Lake Austin

| August 3, 2010

Julia Double Austin2

BJ Lake Austin2

Lake Austin Lights2

A few weekends ago, we got a text really late at night asking if we wanted  to take a trip to Austin in the morning. duh! For some reason BJ and I decided to start roasting a chicken around midnight, instead of packing and resting for the trip. So we only got a little bit of sleep before, we met up with 26 other cousins (more or less, I loss count) and caravanned to Lake Austin. Some of us only had 10 minutes notice to pack, but I’m so happy so many people could go. We jet skied, played volleyball with strangers, grilled, swam, got tangled in seaweed multiple times, and squeezed everyone into 4 hotel rooms at the end of the night. We ended the trip with a finger lickin’ meal at Salt Lick. Mmm, summer.

NYC P.3 Diana instant back

| August 2, 2010

Woo hoo. I finally scanned all the instant photos from July. Thank you, Rice Media Center. Below are some of my favorite shots from our trip to New York, and I uploaded the rest here.

We were gifted a Diana camera and instant back from Catherine and Trevor for our wedding. More than my digital camera, it ended up documenting the majority of the trip. I guess we’ll just have an itty-bitty photo album to hold all these memories. Plenty of trial and error happened before we got a better handle of the settings, but we loved the instant results (especially me, Ms. Impatient) and having something tangible to hold and look at. Thank you, C + T!

Grand Central

EvaSoho

Calder MOMA

Annie BJ MET

MET Statue

Bklyn Museum

Vanessa Double

NYC Skyline from Brooklyn

BJ Bookstore

4854222765_eda239943e

BJ Broadway Soho

Me Broadway Soho mural

I desperately want to buy a scanner, but I guess a washer and dryer, vacuum, and forks and spoons should be more important on the list. Unless we don’t mind a slightly dirtier house and eating with our hands ….

Next up: Austin photos.

explosion in the sky

| August 2, 2010

Inspiration from the web. I love the simplicity of these posters as well as the designers’ other work. (Click on the links to see more)

corn

pickle

Allan Peters‘ Poster-On-A-Stick. More here.

12_eits-00

12_eits-01

Micah Max‘s Explosion in the Sky concert poster. And in his own words:

The firecrackers and their abnormally long fuse, represent the band’s ability to go from quiet, shimmering beauty to bold, loud passages in an instant. It’s always fun to do work for a band that I greatly admire.

Hat tip: Twig & Thistle

pick me up

| July 30, 2010

This summer is going by way too fast and we’re getting pretty frustrated that there are way too few hours in the day after we get back from work, make dinner, clean, etc. This +  all of the other things going on has put us in a little funk.

With the school year approaching, I’ve been filling a lot of professional development hours with workshops. Some are not so exciting but still helpful—like the two-day sessions on classroom discipline. And others—like the ones at the MFAH and Glassell—are much more enjoyable and relevant. The sessions were only a few hours each, but I got to dabble in collograph printing, pinhole cameras, enameling, ceramics, and, well, just having some fun. It was just the boost/kick in the butt I needed, and now BJ and I are considering taking an evening class during the school year.

sourpower2Instant pick me up. I used to by these by the strip, but I spied a bulk pack at Candylicious in the Rice Village.

watercolor plate2Our plates and cups seem to be chipping at record rates. I wish I knew how to do something like this.

DSC_0028 2

I tried enameling for the first time and decided to do something simple and not so “art teacher”. You know what I mean?

glassell pinholes 2Yes! Got to go back into the darkroom and learned how to use a paint can as a pinhole camera. The weather and lighting were unpredictable, but I still had fun shooting in the sculpture garden.

work in progress2Working on a few projects and still figuring out my footing.

hah. excuse all the hand shots. not feeling so creative. again.

NYC P.2

| July 19, 2010

During our stay in NYC, the first two days were spent buying essentials that we didn’t have time to pack. Honestly, we were happy just to make it to the airport on time. So we ventured down to Rockefeller Center to pick up things like socks, underwear, t-shirts, shoes, etc. We didn’t buy too much after that, but here are some of my favorite things we snagged besides the books BJ got.

Madewell Oxford229.99! oxfords on final sale at Madewell. They kind of slip off my feet when I walk, but I’m determined to fix it!

Nara_Towel2

WarriorsRadness2Yoshitomo Nara towel (already doubling as my movie blanket) & a Warriors of Radness sweater from Opening Ceremony.

1968_Calendar1968 (BJ’s favorite year) calendar towel from 10 ft. Single *

NY_Ties2J.Crew tie & Steven Allen Tie from Bird **

Bird_EarringsMelissa Joy Manning triangular earrings from Bird

* Kudos to Lena C. for the tip
** Spotted George O’Malley + was probably very obviously about it

New York I love you P.1

| July 14, 2010

We’re back! Our feet are worn out, our bellies are full, and our brains are about to explode from all the noise, art, people, sights of New York City. We ended up taking more photos with our new Diana Instant back (Thanks you Catherine!), and once those get scanned, I’ll post them here and write more about our trip later…

IMG_0301a

IMG_0303a

IMG_0305a

IMG_0306a

IMG_0308a

IMG_0312a

IMG_0373a

IMG_0420a

IMG_0446a

IMG_0447a

IMG_0450a

IMG_0452a

IMG_0491a

IMG_0492a

IMG_0493a

IMG_0506a

IMG_0517a

10.75 lunch specials at Azusa, Grand Central market lobby, Pearl River Market, Despana tapas, water towers, MOMA, the Met with Annie, Brooklyn Museum to see Kiki Smith + the fashion exhibit, Vanessa, and looking at the skyline from a dock in Brooklyn.

Joy

| July 5, 2010

34950_405168766668_507331668_5002876_7937477_n

34045_1330634102054_1117033964_30779317_3528871_n

We are overwhelmed with all the love, friends, laughter, family, dancing, food, and joy surrounding these last few days and feel so fortunate to have so many people celebrate and support us. THANK YOU. More pictures to come- we’re off to spend more time with everyone who is still here especially these kiddos. Cute overload.

Coming up for air

| June 22, 2010

Hi there,

Just coming up for some air. Whew. My house is covered in paper scraps, my head is spinning, and 24 hours seems like too short of a day! I finally settled my car situation, and we decided to take out a loan to buy a new car. At least I’ll have more peace of mind during my long commutes to work. And we’ll both be sharing it, so I think it’s a good idea in the long run. Still, timing? Not so great.

I thought I would share this piece BJ did a few nights ago. I swear he busted it out so quickly. Don’t you think he should do more?

creativeprocess_web

I’m so excited to see all my friends and family next week.

in the blink of an eye

| June 16, 2010

I feel like this summer is going to be gone in the blink of an eye! Let’s see: over the past few days I’ve gone to a couple of meetings, got into my first car accident (not my fault though!), went on a retreat with BJ for marriage prep (more on that later), quietly celebrated my 25th birthday, sewed lots of flowers and birds, and drove all around Houston running errands. I really wish I were super-organized and had a few extra pair of hands.

* The accident couldn’t have come at a worse time—right on the day of our retreat + with all these wedding plans going on. Plus, B and I are sharing a car. But on the bright side, this rental drives over pot holes so much better than mine. My car is basically too costly to fix, and I need to find a replacement quickly before I turn over the rental. Oi.

Thankfully, B was close by and called the cops for me. If anyone ever offered a Getting Through the Small Things in Life course, I would be the first to sign up. On the syllabus: How to change a tire, How to get info in an accident, How to fix a leaky pipe, How to sign a lease.

Anyways, before I ramble on any more, here are a few pictures I remembered to take:

retreat bag

JuliaBelt_web

WireBasket

CoinBelt61610_web

TexasBelt

  1. Packing for the weekend
  2. Finished Juju’s flower-girl belt + a few brass bells
  3. Huge wire basket from Grace Hart & Co
  4. Gaudy belt from Sand Dollar thrift store around the corner, 45 cents
  5. Another belt from Sand Dollar. Made in Texas. (Clothing1/2 off on Wed. :)