unruly-things

hi friends! Marta, from marta writes is hosting a fantastic Black Friday giveathon over at her blog, and I'm thrilled to be participating with a special discount from Seventy and Sunny! from now until Monday, take 10% off orders place from my shop! I've opened a special shop for the holidays, check it out! enter sunny10 at the checkout. and be sure to stop by Marta's blog for more chances to save big and start early on your holiday shopping.
I'm a bit behind on my holiday shop. custom orders have taken priority and I hope to have the shop up next Friday. I'll keep you posted.

I hope everyone has a fantastic Thanksgiving. see you Monday!

it's so darn freakin:
cold outside.

I need more:
socks. lots of socks.

I'm feeling:
cozy. I want to snuggle up with six blankets and some warm tea.

I just reached:
1000 flickr favorites. next week, I'll do something to tribute my all time flickr favorites. maybe something ala "Mav style", but maybe a little of different, too.

I'm thinking about:
cranberry frangipane.
pumpkin pie.
green bean casserole.
mashed potatoes.
stuffing.

and I'm off to Idaho to enjoy Thanksgiving with dlb's family. looks like we might have a little bit of snow! hello... snow!? I don't know if I'm quite ready for snow. today was one of the coldest days I can remember this year. and it wasn't even that cold. I guess it was just because it was so cold and wet. winter is definitely coming. sigh.

I hope you have a fantastic Thanksgiving friends! see you Monday!
{from chizuru-bis, just the beginning of my flickr favorites}
{p.s. if you are waiting for a calendar, they will all be shipped out on Monday!}

mmm.... romance, pretty clothes, tangles of gold, ruffled blouses... Venice.
{from teen vogue}

this is totally for you, Tiffany.
{from jack spade, via oh joy}

I'll take one of each, please.
{from delias}

I totally love this blondie's style. le sigh.... if only I could get my bangs to look that great.
{from copenhagen street style}

I feel like:
talking about myself. :)

I've been tagged a few times over the past few weeks, once by Jora and another time by Afton. my friends, it's been awhile since I've talked much about myself, so here are seven random things about me that you may or may not know. have a fantastic weekend!

::

I get orange and green mixed up.
ok, I totally know which one is which. I don't go out and buy a green dress thinking that it's orange or argue that leaves are orange in springtime, but for some odd reason, over 90% of the time I say orange when I really mean to say green, or vice versa. I guess it's some form of dyslexia, but I've come up empty while searching for a diagnosis.

I'm completely fascinated by the universe.
maybe it's that I just can't fathom the whole idea of the universe. maybe it's that the size of it totally amazes me. but it's hard for me to imagine things being billions and trillions of sizes larger than me or the sun for that matter. I learned in Astronomy that the diameter of the star Betelgeuse was approximately 1000 times larger than that of the sun and my mind went totally numb. the first time I saw a video like this, I literally watched it with my mouth wide open. I could go on and on, but basically fascinated pretty much sums it up.

my daddy was a pirate.
that's right. a swashbuckling, gun-shooting, treasure stealing pirate. ok, ok... not a "real life out on the seas" pirate. he was a pirate for the Gasparilla parade in Tampa, only the best pirate parade to exist. every year in early February, the pirates invade the city on a full sized pirate ship and proceed to parade through the street throwing beads and other goodies to the parade watchers. my dad would wear a big, scary black wig, aviator sunglasses, and get nasty scars and bullet wounds painted on his face. I can remember he'd come bursting into my room all decked out in his pirate gear, and as a little girl, I was actually afraid of him. but when it came down to parade time, I felt the the most special girl ever when he singled me out of a crowd and gave me the best beads he had on. now you know why I picked the swashbuckler soap!

I have a fondness for orca whales.
yep, just like Shamu. when my mom was pregnant with me, someone gave her a stuffed whale at the baby shower. that little whale sat in my bedroom, waiting for me to be born and she greeted me when I came home. I took that whale everywhere with me. she traveled to Jamaica and London when I was little, even to summer camp when I was a little embarrassed to have her there, and now after 27 years, she still sits, nicely wrapped up in a box inside my closet. I always think of the Velveteen Rabbit when it comes to my whale. I just can't part with her!

I used to dye my hair green and wear jncos.
oh the days of being a teenager. I listened to punk and ska music. I even skanked. {seriously, it makes me giggle to watch this video.} I can however, admit that I saw more concerts during this phase of my life than ever. my best friend and I would have our parent's drop us off at the venue, usually somewhere in downtown St. Pete, and we'd dance our little hearts out. I even managed to meet a few bands, snag a few autographs, and get a song dedication while dancing back stage.

I have a terrible addiction to cheese.
I love it, love love love it. but I try really really hard not to eat too much of it, otherwise I'd probably be gigantic. I usually have at least one type of cheese in the fridge for crackers but sometimes I just can't decide on one. I get trapped at the cheese counter at Whole Foods. there are so many delicious options. I'll discretely add cheese to the shopping cart while dlb and I are grocery shopping so he doesn't notice I'm buying more than one. my favorites are smoked gouda, morbier, and gruyère. {um, where do I sign up for confessions of a cheese-a-holic?}

I've always been a collector.
I collected things when I was little. stamps, gemstones, my little ponies and those tiny fuzzy bears that were always at the checkout line at fabric stores to name just a few. I loved having a collection of things and even then I'd arrange them in an some kind of order. biggest to smallest, arranged by color. now, I still love collecting things, but I try to limit myself to things that are really special to me or give me inspiration. like nature. I absolutely love leaves. and I didn't know how much I loved them until I moved somewhere with a change of the seasons. it's fantastic. and it totally moves me.

and here are a few extras while I'm at it:
I love black.
I'm weary around horses.
I'm a shoe-a-holic.
I'm a classically trained pianist.
Zero 7 is my favorite band.
I'm only slightly obsessed with baking pies.
and I'm secretly a zombie. just kidding. :)

{photo from kygp}

I admit. I was first attracted to the packaging. then it was the names and ingredients like organic honey yogurt, scurvy-preventing limes, or a touch of pure Artemisia Absinthium that finally won me over. these pretty soaps are handmade in Portland too.
so I bought the Swashbuckler soap yesterday for reason pretty dear to me. later, you'll find out why. :)
{from arcana soaps}

yes please.
{via design crush, from melissa joy manning}

I'm head over heels in love with these lace wallets.
{via vain and vapid, from makr}

Jenny wrote to tell me about a special discount at Loyale. from now until December 1, Loyale is offering a 20% discount on their holiday collection. there are some really lovely things on their site and it's all eco-friendly clothing made with organic cotton and factory reclaimed overstock fabric. use the promo code LoyaltyF10 at the checkout.
{from loyale}

I bought a pair of leg warmers a few weeks back and I'm totally excited to wear them. with buttons and poms and cable knit styles, I'm feeling like those dress and tights days will be a little warmer now.
{from urban outfitters}

as I've said before, I love love love initials and monograms. I'm on a mission to recreate this look of layered initial necklaces. wouldn't an initial locket look great with this collection?
{from anthropologie}

maybe you noticed my new header? the hand lettering is by the amazing Tara Jones. I contacted her a few days ago with a request for the lettering in my header. doesn't it look amazing? she sent a few options, which I had a really tough time deciding between because her work is really great, but ultimately I went with the one above. combined with my fireflies trapped in glass jars, I think it captures romance and wonder. check out her adorable website for more samples of her work. thank you again, Tara!
{from tara jones}

a few dresses I'm loving right now.
{from penelopes}

I never would have expected such pretty dresses from Quicksilver but I like these a lot.
{from quicksilver}

I quite like these pillows. they seem like they'd invite long hours of relaxing if they were strewn about on my couch.
{via e soule, from jill bent}
{by the way, the poppytalk holiday themed market is filled with fantastic things.}

I decided to go ahead and update my shop with some more of the collection calendars. this might be the last update, so act quickly if you're interested in a calendar!
::
the next shop update will not include calendars, but will have some holiday cards, gift tags and more! look for these in the shop next Tuesday, November 25.

{from zue lei, via design for mankind}

lately I've been incredibly drawn to pretty things like lace adorned sweaters, soft ruffles and crocheted accessories. I love love love these pretty coasters from the Simply Photo Winter Wonders Shop.
{from simply photo}

as promised, here's what I've been up to:
I've just finished shooting the Winter 08/09 collection for Vain and Vapid. it was SUCH an incredible experience. a few months ago, after completing a set of custom garment tags for Julie, the talented designer behind Vain and Vapid, I proposed the idea of shooting her next collection. despite being half way around the world from each other, we collaborated to shoot the Winter 08/09 collection.
after multiple emails back and forth, patiently waiting beside my mailbox for packages with new garments, planning the location for each outfit, and braving the rain that is oh so typical of Portland, I am so SO pleased with the outcome.
the model and friend of mine, Leslie Butler, did an amazing job. she's a natural behind the camera and surprised me when we began our first shot in the lobby of the Ace Hotel. despite being nervous, she rocked it. and the photos show.
Julie is an amazing gal with a lot of talent. first up in her shop tomorrow will be a few of the Rivington dresses. check out Julie's blog for updates. there are more garment shots to come, so stay tuned!

and thank you Julie for the amazing opportunity!!!
{from top to bottom: Rivington Dress, Crosby Dress, Harrison Skirt}

I'm absolutely delighted:
that today is Friday. it's a great day.

I'm off to complete the final shot for the photoshoot this afternoon. it's a really great one, and of course, I've saved the best for last. I'm planning to share with you on Monday what I've been up to with this shoot. I'm excited, and hope you are too!
many of you have asked when I'll be restocking my calendar, and I hadn't planned on doing a shop update until November 24, but I'm going to push it up to next Thursday, November 20. I've got a big surprise planned for the update. something I've been working on and I'm really really excited about it. so I hope to see you there.

until then friends, have a great weekend!!
{from allie pasquier}

today's photographer spotlight is one of my favorites. Jennifer Causey, of Simply Photo, has a fantastic ability of capturing light. her work is so vibrant and cheerful. I first fell in love with her blog, Simply Breakfast. breakfast is my favorite meal, however I rarely have time to indulge in breakfast during the week. usually sticking to boring oatmeal, I tune in to drool over Jennifer's delightful breakfasts each day. her shop is stocked with beautiful photos and her blog is always an inspiration. thank you, Jennifer, for letting us indulge today!

::

what first sparked your interest in photography:
I don't actually remember. I think it was a friend of mine in college. She started taking photo classes for fun and I decided to join in.
what was your first camera:
I know I had some sort of polariod camera growing up, but the first camera I remember really shooting with was a minolta slr. i'm not sure of the model.favorite thing to photograph:
food. definatley food. and things.favorite artist/photographer:
there are so many. i love sally mann, robert frank and harry callahan. and i love the contemporary work of laura letinsky.most memorable advice you've been given:
shoot a lot. shoot what you love.advice you'd give starting or aspiring photographers:
go for it. keep your eyes open. notice the things around you.favorite color:
emerald green and the color of wheat.if you could eat only one thing:
bread.something you can't live without:
of course, my camera. and my family.on repeat from your headphones:
i'm amazed by my morning jacket.what inspires you:
so many things. nature and how different it is with each season and depending on where you are in the world. food and how beautiful it is in it's raw form.

a friend of mine is looking for make up artists and hair stylists interested in building their portfolio with a fun fashion photoshoot this Thursday. if you are interested or know anyone who might be, please let me know! thank you!
{from .ultraviolett}

upon finding this amazing post from Joanna, I promptly headed over to see what Sofia Barão has been up to. I've been a fan of Sofia's art so naturally I was bound to love her jewelry creations. I am absolutely in love with her crocheted accessories. I won her little giveaway yesterday {squealing with delight inside} and I'm soon to be the proud owner of this lovely coeur errant crochet necklace. be sure to check her blog, as she mentioned that she'll be organizing more of these little giveaway's soon!
{from sofia barão}

Anthropologie's November catalog is absolutely to die for.
{from anthropologie}