Friday Musing

So I don’t have an excuse lined up for my lack of posting for the last week or so. The best I can come up with is the discovery of the best television show ever, House of Cards. But alas, TV is a terrible excuse (although if you watch the show, you’ll get where I’m coming from. I mean did anyone see that coming at the end of the first episode of season 2?! And those one line pieces of life advice just kill me. Gah I need to watch another episode ASAP).

So to get back to regular posting, I’d like to start posting some new (to me) music every week. I loooove finding new music and thanks to friends with good taste and Spotify Discovery, I feel like I’m listening to new bands on the reg. I tried to delete my Facebook this week and go off the grid, but it turns out you can’t use Spotify with out that Facebook. And I simply can’t live without Spotify. Le weigh.

Today’s musing is After the Disco from Broken Bells. I’m a little sleepy today, so this song is putting pep in my step that I need to get through till 5 PM.

Inspired by the classics

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Red, white and blue outfits have never been my thing. While the Fourth of July is actually one of my favorite holidays, wearing that much Americana spirit any other day can quickly make individually stylish items together feel like a preppy costume.

Lately though, I’ve fallen in love with unique combinations like the ones above. Mixing completely different patterns within the red, white and blue color scheme has a surprisingly modern feel.

It’s unexpected, and I like it. I’m forecasting a whole lot more where this came from, which is Nordstrom by the way, in case you’re about to make a mad dash. I’ll see you there!

Fox Fodder Farm

I come from a wonderfully talented family pool. There’s graphic designers, yogis, bakers, app developers, landscape designers, writers, fashion icons, artists, script writers and the others are super smart, amazing people. Basically, they soaked up all the dang creativity and forgot to leave some! My jealousy and bitterness aside, last year my brother got married and this lead to lots of family reunions and specifically cousins that I hadn’t seen in SO long. One of these amazing cousins started her very own floral and garden design studio since I had last seen her (practically a decade ago if I’m not mistaken – crazy right?!), called Fox Fodder Farm in Brooklyn.

I happen to love flowers. Whenever I have the money, I’m absolutely going to be one of “those people” that always has fresh flowers in their house. I literally stop and smell the roses when I go for a walk or run and nothing can brighten my day so easily as a bouquet of gorgeous flowers (ahem, orange roses to be very specific). But my cousin takes floral design to the next level. These aren’t your $10 Whole Foods bouquets. And I just love everything she creates. The textures, use of earthy tones and unique plants, the combination of the delicate with the masculine, all of it. I want my future home, actually I want my life to look like these pieces of artwork. All the different, the odd and the pretty, all coming together to create one intricate, riveting, display.

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Not only am I captivated by her designs, but I also think it’s awesome that she started her very own business – and it was all through following her passion. Tiffanys found?

You can also check out this little lovely interview for more:
http://www.tastebudsdaily.com/fox-fodder-farm/

Currently craving: HAM

Ohhh man I’m crushing hard.

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Shout out to Confessions of a Design Geek for the introduction, I’m in love with just about everything by the design brand HAM. In 2013 they won Best Stand at Home London in 2013, well deserved methinks. Guys, I want I want I want. A mug, tea towel, print, or notebook. Whichever. Sign. Me. Up. My birthday is in May, plenty of time for them to restock on the mugs, just throwing that out there. Which is your favorite?

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Hand-Holding Couple

As a member of the tourism marketing industry, I love travel photos. Especially those of someone traveling the world so I can live vicariously through it. These photos of the famous hand-holding couple of instagram is seriously cool. They travel all over the world and take the same shot at all the different and new places they visit. Always with the girlfriend looking out in some fashion onto the beauty that they are visiting and reaching back to hold her boyfriend’s (the photographer) hand. Like she’s leading him into this new world they are visiting. One thing I love is her wardrobe choices. They are all very different, but always fit in with the photo and the location. I wish I had seen this before going to Europe! I think it would’ve been so fun to strike the same pose or similar shot in all the different locations I visited. It makes for an amazing photo series that I can’t get over. (shout out to Elite Daily for this one, my love/hate relationship with you rages on)

PS. follow them on Instagram immediately.

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Ballet Dancers in Everyday Life

Like pretty much every girl, I love the ballet. The seemingly effortless gracefulness that glides across the stage is just gorgeous. My impression of most ballet dancers is that they are meticulous, OCD, competitive, and perfectionists to the point of an almost unhealthy lifestyle. But for some reason, this adds to the beauty of the art. Because when you see them on stage, they have such passion and the blood, sweat and tears that went into the production of the show isn’t visible.

So these photos of ballet dancers, that I found on the MTL blog, in everyday situations has to be one of my favorite photo series ever. It brings some fun, romance and silliness to an otherwise very intense dance. The dancers just look so full of love for living. Take a look below!

You can also by the book of these photos: Dancers Among Us: A Celebration of Joy in the Everyday.

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http://www.mtlblog.com/2013/09/ballet-dancers-in-everyday-situations/

Snail mail for the holidays

I love snail mail. It’s like little surprises in your mailbox among the bills and “No interest credit cards!”. It’s part of what makes shopping online so exciting and why things like Birch Box have taken off. I’m quite the hoarder when it comes to cards. Since I can remember, I’ve always saved cards. I think I still have some that were created in Microsoft Publisher that you folded into a little book. To me, a card is just unthrow-away-able. (although I hate myself for it every time I move) But in the land of e-cards, snapchats, and texts, snail mail is more and more uncommon. Except around the holidays.

Christmas is my favorite time of the year. There is literally nothing I dislike about it (except for the calories and inevitable weight gain). And it’s all that much more sweet when you open your  mailbox to find cards from family and friends. So I want to be a part of it!

A good friend from college tweeted me last week and said “No Christmas card this year from Lydia… I’m beginning to think you don’t believe in Santa Claus anymore.” It reminded me that I had in fact completely forgotten about it! That night I immediately took myself to Target to pick up some holiday cards and are sending them out tonight!

When I send holiday cards though I don’t usually send them to those that I see on a regular basis. For me, the holidays and snail mail are to remind myself of those friends that I don’t see often enough. The friends that you want to make sure that they know how much you mean to them, even if the game of phone tag has gotten less and less competitive.

So go out and pick up some cards! I got mine for $7 for a pack of 14 – not bad. Plus, they’re just totes adorable. Now, if you have more money in the bank and more time in a calendar, check out Rifle Paper Co. Not to be dramatic, but I’m basically obsessed with everything they do. I wouldn’t have minded getting some of these little guys to send out!

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Oprisco Photography

This series of photographs are from Oprisco Photography, brought to my attention by This is Colossal. I just think they are stunning. Kind of mythical, stunning and elegant. Just a little Sunday prettiness to get through this gloomy day (if you’re having the winter weather like we’re having in Dallas!)

Plus, if you’re looking to do some Christmas shopping, you can purchase all of these prints! Sign me up!

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