guns, germs and steel.

some coworkers and i were talking about books today and one of them brought up this one. sounds epic, but incredibly awesome. all about the human race and the history of germs and their influence on different kingdoms and powers all over the world. will be picking this up at the ol' library once i finish "unbroken." long history books about civilzations? one of my favorite genres. thanks coworkers!

postcards from far away.

a day of video posts!! the last is a little coldplay that i WILL learn...very soon.

elbowtastic.

been listening to elbow all day which has made it a good day.

how sweet.

what could have been!! moral of the story, don't hold back :)

channeling joan.

"Fun-loving girl, responsible sometimes. Likes to laugh, lives to love. Seeks size six for city living and general gallivanting. No dull moments or dull men tolerated."

-Joan Holloway, Mad Men

newfoundland?

well after watching this maybe i'll consider going! great ads.

tragically sweet.

saw a movie alone, concession stand was cash only, movie was sad. afterward in the warm sunshine, the light reflecting off strands of my fly-away hair was beautiful and blinding.

something about this habit post made me feel bittersweet this chilly morning- sad but joyful at the same time. such joy in independence and figuring out who you are, but one can't help but want another half to share it with.

pantone love.

how AWESOME are these pantone covers for iphone 4? very VERY cool. perhaps i'll get one when i switch to verizon in february...we'll see! for now i'll just admire these beauties.

coral heels.

how adorable would these heels be in the spring/summer?! i know it's only mid-January, but i can't help but start to think about warmer weather. such a fun pair of heels! maybe they'll go on sale in the near future :)

lose it.

coolest free website? loseit.com you register for free and it's ridiculously easy to keep track of what you eat, calories, etc. you can even set goals for yourself like losing 1 lb. a week or whatnot and see how many calories you're allowed each day. awesome! you can also get it for your iphone if you want to keep track on-the-go. check it out!

new blog love.

miss moss is definitely one of my new favorite blogs. All the good stuff- vintage finds, photography, food, music, fashion, etc. Such a fun blog with great posts. Enjoy perusing!

KOL.

those of you who know me understand that i have 3 celebrity (sort of) crushes: viking jared allen, actor christian bale and rocker caleb followill of kings of leon. last night i was flipping through some channels before the golden globe red carpet came on and bam; an all-access special on kings of leon. i was in heaven. love those boys and their music. caleb is the lead singer and he's somewhat humble, has a sweet nashville slight southern drawl and looks effortlessly hot and hipsterish in his ray bans and plaid shirts. tall, lanky, facial hair, musician? sighhhh. what more could a girl want?! just love him. want to learn more about him? watch the first part of the show i was glued to below. love love. oh, and not bad to watch christian bale win the golden globe for best supporting actor shortly thereafter.

winter.

craving quiet, i went for a walk in the woods and found unexpected beauty at every turn. i love how much there is to discover, even in winter.

we're in the heart of winter right now in good ol' minnesota (expecting a few inches today/tonight!) and i'm loving it. even though it's cold and the parking in minneapolis is dreadful, there's nothing quite like snow-covered woods and the sound of the snow crunching underneath your boots. after a weekend of downhill skiing, a long walk on a wintry night and a morning at the woodsy dog park with a dear friend and our goldens, this little quote from habit resonated quite perfectly this monday morning.

pie!

i LOVE baking pies. it seriously is one of my favorite hobbies. it's really therapeutic to me. takes a lot of patience to make and i just love getting my hands in there and testing out new ideas. imperfection is the key to the perfect pie :) while peach is my favorite to make, i need to branch out. this winter i'm working on pecan pie and this weekend i'm testing one out. i'll be sure to let you know how it goes! and with that, some tips for pie baking:


i use a few different sugars in my pies. i definitely think it ads flavor and gives you different filling consistencies based on the combination of sugars and flour/cornstarch used. i prefer to thicken my fillings with flour or cornstarch rather than gelatin. i don't like the consistency or flavor of a gelatin filling.


HUGE tip for when you're rolling out the crust; be sure the crust has had plenty of time to get good and chilled. if it's not well chilled, the crust will be crumbly and really hard to place over the pie plate or the top of the pie. it takes patience, but i usually put my crust in the freezer for 45 mins or more before rolling (except for the pie pictured. apparently i got impatient! hence the scrappy crust!) i also put a few pats of butter on top of the filling below the top crust to keep the filling moist and add some flavor.


when baking any pie, be sure to put the pie on a tinfoil-covered cookie sheet to catch any of the drippings (and trust me, the drippings WILL happen no matter how full the pie is); this prevents having to scrub and scrub and scrub the bottom of your oven for hours to get that burnt sugar off!


ta-da! pie. i typically sprinkle a little sugar on top of the crust before i put it into the oven to give it a little extra something. be sure to cut some vent holes too (if you're not doing a lattice crust) to let the filling breathe a little while it's baking. wait at least an hour or so to cut into the pie so the filling sets. it will still be warm, i promise :)

happy friday.

Every house where love abides
And friendship is a guest,
Is surely home, and home sweet home
For there the heart can rest.

Henry Van Dyke



photo credit: Katie carpenter

DIY butter!

boy do i love DIY projects! this one looks just delightful. how lovely to have a little jar of your own hand-made butter?! trying this very soon with some friends.

plenty of fish.

as a 24 yr old female who has yet to find her other half, i was definitely drawn into this ad the first time i saw it (during the bachelor premiere last week HA!). not only is it simplistic and sweet, but it totally gets to the very bottom of what many people want most in their life; a partner to share it with. call me cheesy, but i just thought this was a brilliant ad for a dating site and every time it comes on i sigh.

cacao.

i heard about this young, local dude who is making his living by making authentic chocolate bars (rogue chcolatier). i looked him up and just love the descriptions of these chocolate bars and his story. kinda pricey, but sounds like they're worth it! maybe i'll try one some day...

creature comforts.

fun new blog to follow! creature comforts has daily inspiration/color boards, DIY projects, fun ideas, etc. love it! check it out.

trees.

my 94 yr old grandma has quite the memory. last night she recited 4 beautiful, well-known poems from memory. here's one of her favorites.



I THINK that I shall never see
A poem lovely as a tree.

A tree whose hungry mouth is prest
Against the sweet earth's flowing breast;

A tree that looks at God all day,
And lifts her leafy arms to pray;

A tree that may in summer wear
A nest of robins in her hair;

Upon whose bosom snow has lain;
Who intimately lives with rain.

Poems are made by fools like me,
But only God can make a tree.

Joyce Kilmer

pulling on a line.

hello monday morning, how are you?

emotions.

standing in the shower. i realized i was giving it way too much mental and emotional energy. and just like that, i decided to let it all go.

ive never been good with sharing my emotions. i tend to keep a lot of things inside and find it difficult to tell people things if i know it will a) hurt them, b) make them upset with me or c) are just very personal thoughts. call it the minnesota passive-aggresive in me, it's just extremely difficult. there are quite a few things lately that have me thinking/worrying/stressing/not-sleeping/excited/nervous/confused/happy and frankly, i'm a wee bit mentally exhausted. then i saw this little quote at habit today and i felt relief. maybe i need to stop thinking so much and just let it go and relax. do i sense another new year's resolution?? i think so.

hair.

i have really thick, wavy hair. sometimes it's hard to figure out how to contain it or make it look cute. here are some hair style's i'm going to try and emulate.


heidi klum's cute curly tresses look so fun.



kate hudson makes the down, natural, wavy look so effortless!


even though i hate taylor swift, her hair is adorable. i should try and do this little up-do look more often.

road trip-inspired fashion.

if you haven't checked out anthropologie's latest digital catalog, please do so now! so many fun looks! oh to view americana from a convertible whilst fashionably dressed...

live.

what a lovely live video and song!

Neutral Uke Hotel | A Take Away Show | In The Aeroplane Over The Sea from La Blogotheque on Vimeo.

growing.

Growing is Forever from Jesse Rosten on Vimeo.

typewriters.

in today's unnecessary but awesome "wants," i give you, the typewriter. ahhh to hear the clickity clack of those keys and to pull that sheet of paper out once some little ditty is artfully inked. i'll keep looking for the perfect vintage typewriter for my apartment, but until then, i'll just admire these beauties.

resolutions.

so i've heard a lot of people lately say that resolutions are not a good thing because most of the time you don't keep them and then you let yourself down. i happen to think they are a great idea. what harm is there in setting some overarching goals or themes for the year? i found this little "resolution reminder bracelet" idea on poppytalk and thought they would be great stocking stuffers and gifts for friends. i just got some little red string and some silver beads and made the bracelets then took some card stock and labels and just hand wrote on them a little note about the bracelet. the three beads signify a hope, a dream and a to-do (or don't) resolution. i hope that it's a great reminder of these little resolutions and hopes throughout the year and looks cute on your wrist too! i think it's never bad to strive for goals, no matter how lofty. without goals and dreams, where would we be?