Merry Christmas!  I just had to do it.

Check out more amazing font-ness right here. Jessica's work is truly inspiring.

Two of my favorite things in one.  Movie. Posters.  Film and design, yum.

Check 30 of the best movies posters of the year here.

Here are a few of the ones I loved most but honestly, they're all so good it's hard to choose!

With the holidays just a hair pin turn away, sending cards to loved ones is on the list of things to do.  Of all the cards I've seen these cards may say it best of all because, well, it's ALL of the days that matter not just the holidays.

You can buy them on Etsy here and to see more of Kelly's work go here!

I was lucky enough to catch this short at a film festival this fall and I keep coming back to it when I want to laugh a little. It's such a concise little story with a bunch of humor and a touch of sadness.

From the National Film Board of Canada (NFB)

More holiday wrapping paper cuteness. Enjoy!

I can't help myself when it comes to animals, clearly.

found here.

Whoa, I have been out of orbit for a looooooong time!  From working a bunch to marathon training to mini nap breaks in between I have been away for a while...sorry about that.  More to come in the next few weeks and with a new year on the horizon things are going to change around here in a positive way!  First up though, some festive holiday wrapping paper to get us all in a warm and cozy mood. What better way to do it than with octopi wearing santa hats. Give me a break.

you can pick it up here.

Happy holidays! xo

Eerie but interesting. To Mark Time. 

"So I sent an email to seven of my friends, including Sarah, and I said, 'Does anyone want to go see Lost in Translation tonight?' and then I sent an email immediately afterwards to the six of my friends who weren't Sarah and I said, 'NOT YOU.' - John Green.  

On how he asked out his wife for the first time

So sweet. 

(Found here)

so romantic.

(found here)

iwanttoeatsomesmoressobad!

(found here)

and they have slate cheese boards. Be still my heart.  

This looks ridiculous and I would like to have one.

Definitely something to remember.  

Here there fun font!

(found here)

How cute are these?! I want to adopt them and bring them home immediately. 

They would both be well taken care of in my apartment along with all my other animals.  I don't currently have any birds, just squirrels, elephants, giraffes, deer and a moose. 

(Found here and here)

If I were getting married tomorrow I would be wearing this dress. Stunning.

(you can find it here)

“I think you’re doing yourself a disservice if you don’t share what you’re good at with others. Sharing your talents, your excitement for life, your drive to do good—I love that.”

- Collin Hughes on The Great Discontent

(found at Kyle Read)

I must admit, I have the best parents I could ever imagine having.  Not all people can say that unfortunately, but I've been lucky enough to have two loving parents who have supported me my whole life.  Because of this I am very close to my parents.  Friends and other family members have often times asked what it was about their parenting style that lead to our positive relationship.  Since I don't have children of my own it's hard to say, but I would imagine it's a mixture of firm parenting along with the freedom to do what makes me happy. That might be simplifying it but it's the combination of those two things that have stuck with me the most.  

This article in The New York Times seems to agree.  I don't think any of us really have the answer for the perfect way to parent but I'm just lucky that mine pretty much nailed it.  

Salad.  I keep thinking about salad. I've always liked salad and growing up I used to take part in the salad bar at restuarants whenever possible.  What I don't like though is a boring salad.  By boring I mean lettuce, tomatoes, carrots and dressing. That's no fun! 

My kind of salad involves corn, feta cheese, artichoke hearts, beets, hearts of palm, olives, egg, avocado and dressing.  I'm talking a big mama, full for hours salad that has so many flavors going on that my mouth doesn't know what to do with itself.  With this summer heat still in full swing nothing sounds better these days. 

Movie Monday: CELESTE AND JESSE FOREVER

I saw this movie back in January at the Sundance Film Festival.  As I've said before I love romantic comedies and this definitely fits the bill in that department.  The thing that made this film stand out was the unconventional falling in love then falling out of love scenario.  It doesn't take the easy way out, instead it makes you think about who's in your life and why they play the role that that do in your life.  Everything happens for a reason and this movie explores that idea which I really respect.  

There's also a very funny scene involving lip balm, worth the price of admission! 

Check out the trailer here.  

It was released in NY and LA on Friday, but if you don't live in either city, don't fret, it should be in your neck of the woods in no time! 

It's Monday and that means back-to-work day. I haven't talked much about what I do for a living yet but I thought today would be a good day to start. I studied film in college and now work for a film festival in Manhattan. I love watching movies and I tend to gravitate towards romantic comedies and documentaries.

Since I spend my days surrounded by film, I thought I could bring it home a little bit by starting up what I like to call Movie Monday's. Maybe I'll talk about a newly released film that I caught at the theater on Friday night (one of my all time favorite activities) or bring some attention to a movie I love that I think you should know about. 

So here goes.  I think the best best film to kick things off is Chris Marker's La Jetée. Marker passed away today, one day after his 91st birthday. He was a poet, novelist, photographer, editor and filmmaker. La Jetée is often ranked among the best time-travel films ever made. Set in a post-World War III nuclear-devastated Paris, “La Jetee” tells the story of a prisoner sent to the past and future to save the present. The film was one of the first to use sci-fi notions of circular time and has since spawned a myriad of references. Comprised mostly of photos, the 28 minute film is not only beautiful to look at, but the format is so unique it changed the way people looked at film. One of my closest friends introduced me to Chris Marker and I'm so thankful he did.

Here are some of the stills from the film. If this doesn't make you want to watch it immediately I don't know what will!

                            

                          

After a lovely, yet pretty rainy, weekend at the Newport Folk Festival I will leave you with these two great songs.  First up, Blind Pilot's We Are the Tide.  My friend Liza's friend Dave is the trumpet/organ player.  Pretty fun and upbeat. Watching them play this song live was worth the price of admission to the whole festival.  We were out of our seats bopping along to the beat the minute it started. Talk about a perfect song for a marathon mix!

The second song is one I came across via The Veda House .  The video is a little nuts but I can't stop saying hahahahohoho now.  Definitely a band I'm going to check out.  Enjoy!

Living in Park Slope has a lot of pluses but the 'slope' in Park Slope can be exhausting after a long day at work, doing errands, or training for this silly marathon.  One thing I love is riding my bike but pedaling uphill to get back home doesn't always feel so great. I've always wanted to ride my bike to work but I'm always nervous I'll be tired and sweaty by the time I get there because getting up and over the bridges seem too tough.  Until now that is!  Check out this super great Kickstarter campaign for the Faraday Bike company.  Not only is it solar powered to give you an extra energy boost while you ride by it's made in America.  Woo hoo! These days I'm starting to really understand just how important that is.  Check it out dudes.  When I save up enough money or win the lottery I'm getting myself one of these puppies!

Faraday Bikes!

How cool is this and why did no one think of it before?  It's like an ice cream cone but for your coffee.  Yes please!  Check out the Cookie cup here.

Even though my teeny-tiny kitchen is made for babies I still love cooking, or at least attempting to cook....

Lately I've been noticing a lot of ounces or grams used in recipes which don't exactly translate with my measuring cup. This tea towel from West Elm may be just the right thing to help me out, and it's cute to boot!

if you want one too, buy it here

As someone who loves design but sometimes struggles because I don't think I'm good at it or even motivated enough to start anything because it seems to daunting, I found these 50 tips to be immensely helpful and inspiring.

50 Things Every Creative Should Know

I've had this conversation with my sister before and I guess even a few 'friends'.  Glad to see it's not just a small group of people that feel this way.  Making friends is tough these days!  Will you be my friend?

Second trip. Off to Russia! A place I always thought about but never really thought I would see, at least this soon in my life.  Moscow was amazing.  So much history that I couldn't wrap my head around it.  I'll be picking up a book on Russia stat!

      


               15th century Frescos. Looking good guys!
       


               


 There were Matryoshkas everywhere I went.

Anyone know what this says?

 Propaganda posters from the war. 

The postcard photo of Moscow.

Then I was off to St. Petersburg.  I fell in love with the city. It has canals running throughout it so it had a European feeling. The buildings were stuck in time and it seems like it will stay that way since all the buildings are considered historic and can't be torn down. ever.  My favorite parts of this trip were the White Nights boat tour and The Hermitage.


     
                 The Peterhof fountains.                                Church of spilt blood.

     
                                                                                                   Boat ride!
 City bus lines.

    
                 The Hermitage!                                       Even the floors were beautiful.

     
            Of the few pieces I saw, these were my favorites. I definitely have to go back.

Home really isn't far away even in St. Petersburg...

I had a great time traveling and hopefully I will be on a plane again soon to another new place. For now sleep. I've got a marathon to run in 115 days!

Phew! I've been away for what feels like forever but I'm happy to be home.  First I was in Madrid, then Moscow, then Saint Petersburg, then home, then Minneapolis, then Charlotte, then home! All in about 3 weeks or so. I now know that I love to travel and even with all the flights and lay-overs and security metal detectors I'm up for anything.  So! Here are some pictures from my trips to Madrid and Moscow. Not of ton of photos (because I was technically working on these trips) but definitely some that left an impression while walking around town.

First up, Madrid.  The colors and feel of Madrid was fun and exotic but very relaxed.  I could definitely have done with 2 or 3 more days there.  


Love crazy.                                                                                         Pastel Windows.         

    Staying refreshed in the 90 degree heat.


        
       

Sightseeing!

              

 ....and eating!