Lady Nine

Summer Flowers at my Friend's Bridal Shower As the end of the summer quickly approaches, I find myself wondering what things I have left to do before the weather turns cool.  I have to admit, I have a bad habit of looking too far ahead and find myself thinking about Halloween costumes and new soup recipes to try in the upcoming months. However, I try to bring myself back to reality (it was almost 90 degrees today!) and savor the final moments of summer.  Here's to enjoying the end of summer, and keeping my feet (still in flip flops) on the ground! Going to the Coldplay concert in St. Paul Homemade Sweet Potato Gnocchi Wine Bottle Tags for a Couples Shower

This past weekend we hosted a few friends over for some wine and antipasti.  This was a perfect menu for me because cooking in my kitchen during the summertime is very dangerous.  I think if I turn the oven on for more than 20 minutes, my kitchen shelves will begin to melt.  We live in a traditional older Uptown duplex, and with only one window air conditioner, cooking in my kitchen becomes an activity similar to sitting in a sauna.  I tend to make the most of fresh food, and take advantage of our specialty foods in the nearby grocery stores.  Hosting an antipasti party allowed me to assemble, rather than cook, and the results were delicious.  This weekend allowed me to participate in the best parts of the summer;  eating fresh, natural, and simple food. Caprese on a stick Sun dried tomato and parmesan cheese Antipasti platter

Outdoor concert at the Wolfe Park Amphitheater It's finally the weekend, we made it! I am looking forward to this weekend for various reasons. In particular, I do not have any plans.  There is not a single place that I have to be at any given time.  That has not happened since April.  Ok, maybe not April, but not for a really long time.  This weekend is whatever I want it to be, and that is a wonderful thing.  Tonight, I will start the weekend by watching the opening ceremonies to the Summer Olympics while ordering takeout (USA) and drinking wine (Italian).  Obviously, I will be celebrating multiple countries tonight. I wish you all a wonderful weekend, and I leave you with my top three items on my shopping list this week.  Cheers! Such a cute flat for this fall I love the print on this inkjet scarf I will be ordering these crinkle fans for my summer wedding

Lake Harriet Bandshell Picnic It is almost August, I am not quite sure what happened to July.  It seems like one long humid blur.  I have spent my days hanging on patios with friends, eating grilled food when possible, and taking cool showers before climbing into bed.  The hot humid days seem to go on forever and yet, summer is beginning to fade as the nights begin to cool off and the sun sets a little earlier every evening.  It has been a wonderful summer, and even though I haven't blogged as much as I have wanted to, I know that I have spent my days doing other things that I love.  Here are some of my favorite pictures from the past few months, enjoying every minute of this Minnesota summer. Birthday party at Lake Calhoun Adult pi ñ ata treats Cold drinks at Spill the Wine Key Biscayne Beach in Miami 4th of July fireworks over the ocean A fedora will alway make humid hair look good Ice Cream from Sebastian Joe's

I said yes There are so many beautiful love stories out there.  I have been so fortunate to have one of my own.  Jon and I met in 2006 in Florence Italy while I was studying abroad.  He was finishing his MFA in classical painting and I couldn't help but fall in love with this handsome artist.  We moved the first part of our relationship quickly (we moved in together after being in the same city for 4 months), and enjoyed the years to follow.  After 5 1/2 wonderful years and many special moments together, Jon asked me to marry him.  It was the most amazing moment of my life.  I am so blessed to have found a person that I enjoy being with so much, and even more fortunate that he feels the same way.  We have decided to get married in Italy, where our love story started, with a small intimate gathering of family and close friends.  I'll try to keep the wedding planning posts to a minimum, but don't be surprised if I start complaining about m...

It's been too long since my last post, I'm surprised my browser still had my website remembered.  SO many wonderful things have happened in the last few weeks, I want to take the time and share them all within a few different posts.  Tonight is not the night unfortunately, since I am supposed to be working on my design portfolio (Monday night TV is not helping either).  However by the end of the week, I should be able to squeeze in a post or two and update everyone on the best summer of my life so far.  Stay tuned...

Francesca's Collection  White Denim Pants , Mossimo Supply Co Denim Shirt, Toms Shoes Like many creative people, I tend to go through color phases.  I like to compare myself to Jackson Pollock when he was going through his "Blue" phase.  Currently, I am having a White Moment (notice how I capitalized it to make it a proper noun).  My White Moment consist of buying clothes, accessories, and decor in shades of white. Lucky we don't have any pets, but I do live with an artist, so sometimes this can be tricky.  During a shopping excursion where I was on a hunt for white denim, I came across this pair at Francesca's Collection .   They suited my 5'3 frame well, and had the right amount of stretch for comfort.  Paired with a classic blue denim top, the combination was perfect for a weeknight evening stroll.