Jeremy got me these boots for my twenty-sixth birthday. We've been in love ever since - me and the boots - together forever. And then my sister got me this loop scarf for Christmas last year and I had a hard time putting it away as spring turned into summer. I'm built for Fall and my wardrobe is too.

Loop Scarf - Urban Outfitters, a gift from my sister
Cardigan - Target, I've had this one for years and am always told I look skinny when I wear it
T-shirt - Urban Outfitters
Floral Skirt - Charlotte Russe, this is a cheapie from one of those generic-slutty-teenager mall stores but I like it
Leggings - Target
Earrings - Target, I wore these sweet little pearl drops when I married Jeremy. Nothing fancy (or real, for that matter) and a departure from my usual gold hoops.
Boots - Frye
Hair - Still long (for me) and crazy and curly, here it is pinned into a nest on the back of my head

• Labels:
• anatomy of an outfit
• what we wear


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Now that the weather is cooling off and it's not torture to turn my oven as high as it will go I'm excited to start making pizza again. When I make up a batch of dough it makes 6 pies - which is enough to make us for 3 dinners and leftovers for 3 lunches. That's a lot of pizza. So this week I cut the dough recipe in half and made 4 smaller pies - the crust was so thin it was more like a cracker, which is just the way I like it.

With two evenings of pizza in a row I decided to get a little creative with the toppings (though, really, I'm the kind of person that gets addicted to food and can eat the same thing over and over).

Pizza evening 1:
Garlic and olive oil "sauce"
Mozzarella
Shitake Mushrooms
Sliced pears

Pizza evening 2:
Garlic and olive oil "sauce"
Toasted sweet potato slices (tossed with olive oil and dried rosemary)
Monterey Jack Goat Cheese
Dried figs, sliced
Sliced pears
(As always, ingredients in green are local)

What are your favorite pizza toppings? What else should I try?

• Labels:
• eating local
• pizza
• what we eat


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When I was a kid my favorite things to do were draw and go exploring in the woods. I still like to do both quite a bit. So on Sunday, Jeremy and I put on our hiking boots and went exploring. We found this concrete ditch just behind the highway by our house. When we got to the end we saw a deer! We were completely alone in this huge creepy ditch, traffic whizzing above us and in a fleeting moment saw a deer. I think the little deer was just as shocked to see us. All minds were blown.

I also quickly became obsessed with the juvenile scrawlings we found along the walls of this huge ditch.







Can you imagine being 10 years old, armed with a can of spray paint and have this huge blank concrete wall as your canvas? This unsophisticated graffiti completely hypnotized me. I could pinpoint exactly how it felt, as a kid, to fantasize about having access to a magical door that would take you to a different place - but now instead of this said door taking you to Narnia it takes you to P. Diddy's house.

• Labels:
• graffiti
• oklahoma city


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You guys remember Liz, yes? Nobody inspires me more to purge my things (she threw away her yearbook people! HER YEARBOOK!), drink more tea, and burn more incense like Liz does.

• Labels:
• Liz's First Home
• liz's rental


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This is how I spent my Saturday. Read more about it at Kind of a Sideshow.

• Labels:
• kind of a sideshow
• saturday


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a.


b.




c.


a.
The other day I was feeling especially overwhelmed (for no good reason) and coped by fantasizing about purging my life of all things and living in a teepee. Not a lot unlike my similar fantasy of getting a retro travel trailer and just exploring the world for a few years.

b.
I've been a little obsessed with the idea ever since watching a teepee being built at my friend's Trout Lake wedding. It was fascinating and hypnotizing.

c.
A few glasses of wine later I was sharing this daydream with Jeremy - and helping him to visualize it on the chalkboard wall in our office. We started brainstorming the few things we would need and made a list of things we would need (as pictured on the chalkboard wall):
• A wood burning stove and a couple of pots
• An axe or hatchet
• A guitar
• A knife
• A tambourine
• Playing cards
• Layered kilim and ikat rugs
• A candle
• A first aid kit
• A lake, boat, fishing poles and tire swing
• A mountain

But then I was slapped in the face with reality just a few days later the power went out in our home and I had no idea what to do with myself. So... I think I'll stick with the travel trailer fantasy and perhaps take a teepee vacation one of these days.

P.S. Check out this teepee post Hula Seventy just put up!

• Labels:
• Chalkboard Wall
• teepee


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a.




b.


a.
What do you buy a minimalist for her birthday? This is what I kept asking myself as Liz's birthday approached (September 15, for those wondering). I had a couple factors to keep in mind:
1) Liz lives in a tiny space - so it can't take up much space
2) She will throw almost all of her belongings away on a whim - so I needed to get her something special and lasting

I started my search in the Plaza District and found these tiny teeth paintings by Ruth Borum at DNA Galleries. I wanted to buy all of them for myself and decided one of these little paintings would be perfect for Liz. She loved it. Phew.

b.
I've been a fan of Ruth Ann Borum's work since we were in art school together. She blew everyone else out of the water and had this strong point-of-view from the get go (which is kind of hard at 19 years old). Almost a decade later, I continue to see and follow her work around Oklahoma City and am always left speechless by her talent.

Here's what she says about her teeth paintings:
These paintings of teeth are a spin off from my collection of human teeth. I was scouring eBay and saw that there were several listings for recently extracted wisdom teeth, for sale by individuals. This revived an idea i had once about an alter ego: "Cleveland County Tooth Fairy". I made some business cards in order to get the word out to the community and received several neatly packaged submissions. Between friends, eBay, and "The Cleveland County Tooth Fairy" I have amassed quite a collection. These paintings are a sign of affection for expressive qualities of the extracted human tooth. (Oh look at the way it seems to be walking)

• Labels:
• Art
• Painting
• plaza district
• ruth borum
• teeth


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I've been asked a couple times why I must throw an egg on top of almost everything I make. Here are just a few reasons:
1) Eggs are delicious
2) I'm not very good at sauces - so an egg on top helps give a dish some depth in both flavor and texture
3) After working out hard I crave eggs. It could be a protein thing.
4) We get a dozen eggs every other week in our CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) bag from our local farmer who only has happy heritage chickens. I wouldn't dare let a single one go to waste.

After our 5k run I was craving breakfast for dinner. And as the growing season is winding down I don't have a ton of veggies to choose from - so potatoes, onions and eggs it is.

I started out by slicing the potatoes about 1/8" thick. From there I laid them single layer into some hot sunflower oil in my cast iron pan. I layered thinly sliced onions on top and sprinkled spicy taco seasoning on top. In hindsight - I wish I had added some mushrooms to the mix. It took about 10 minutes on each side for the potatoes to brown. Once they were close to being ready I fried some eggs to finish off the dish. Simple and delicious.

• Labels:
• eating local
• what we eat


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Cross-processed photo by Rex Barrett

Last Wednesday we had a couple of our good friends, Micah (in the yellow headband) and James (in blue), over for dinner. When they mentioned running the 5k for AIDS I excitedly imposed and asked if Jeremy and I could run it with them. And of course, they said yes. And of course, I started sketching out our outfits.

Sunday afternoon we slathered on the sunscreen and in the hot hot heat we ran and ran and ran. We passed by a water boy and I dramatically poured it over my head and started dancing like Jennifer Beals in Flash Dance. By the time we got to the second water boy I had no more drama in me and it was a fight to breathe finish. I should explain that I'm not a runner. No way, no how. I'll run every once in a while for a little exercise but it's not something I do.

We crossed the finish line at around :33 minutes - and while I was a little disappointed and felt that I had slowed our team down, I was still excited to have finished my first (and probably last) official 5k. However, Jeremy is ready to move on to a half-marathon. If he does, I'll be the best cheerleader and #1 fan you ever saw.

• Labels:
• adventure
• exercise
• fitness
• running


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Scooty Boots and Dinahsaur have a favorite place in the whole world - my underwear drawer. If I leave it open for more than a minute there is a kitty cuddle party happening in there.

• Labels:
• dinahsaur
• midcentury modern
• scooty boots


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Up until now people were absolutely shocked that Jeremy and I didn't have an iPhones. It just doesn't fit our tech-nerd-designer/engineer profiles to NOT have iPhones. My response was that I was afraid of being too connected - that I would like to keep my phone my phone and my computer my computer.

But then the iPhone 4 came out and our AT&T contracts were up for renewal... and they just looked so damn fine. We were tempted by the fruit. And from there my worst fears about the whole thing came true. My friends have asked "Has it changed your life!?" and I respond "Yeah. Now instead of having mind blowing sex before going to bed Jeremy and I are playing Words With Friends instead. Sexy." I've found that this response makes them a little uncomfortable and they respond with a laugh - but, I hate to say, it's not just a funny exaggeration.

I've had my fun for a good month but I'm ready to put in place a few rules... if only for myself.

The iPhone Rules:
• I will not use my iPhone as a distraction in order to avoid awkward social situations. Like being in an elevator full of strangers. Instead, I will face them head-on, like generations before us, with a small talk and a smile.

• I will not look at my iPhone while have a meal or conversation with someone. This is probably my biggest pet peave in the whole world. It used to kill me when I was iPhone free but since I got mine I've noticed myself slipping into this unattractive habit. When I'm choosing to have a meal with someone, I want that person to feel like they are the most important person in the whole world. I want to give them my undivided attention and would like the same in return. And on that note...

• I will not check my iPhone just because someone else is. This behavior is contagious - like a sneeze. One person checks their phone and it becomes a domino effect. Because nobody likes sitting around looking like they have nothing to do while their friends are checking out what everyone else in the world is doing.

• I will not check my email after 6pm. This extends to my laptop as well. Work has been following me into the evenings and I don't like it. No matter how much that little email icon on my iPhone is haunting me - but I will not check it.

• I will choose reading books or magazines over refreshing my Twitter every 3 seconds. Twitter has become an addiction. I HAVE to know what the 100 people I follow have to say in 140 words or less. The iPhone is an enabler.

• I will not choose playing Angry Birds over getting it on. Again, not just a funny exaggeration. I'm putting an end to this torrid love affair with Angry Birds. In fact, I'm going to ban my iPhone (as sleek and sexy as it is) from hanging out in the bedroom altogether.

With all of that said, I love the maps, cameras and the immediate and accessible resources the iPhone allows. But from here on out, I'm choosing real life over the one that is 4.8 ounces and fits in the palm of my hand.

• Labels:
• iphone
• technology


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I'm really excited to share these custom wedding invitations I designed for Buffy & Jeff with you guys. Buffy gave her fiance, Jeff, the task to find invitations (or an invitation designer) for their wedding. Jeff hit the internet and stumbled upon my designs - he was loved the fact that my invites are unique and not too frilly or girly. Then when he saw that I live in the same city he was sold.

My client-base is mostly from the East and West coasts and the occasional international couple from London or Australia so I was just as delighted to work with a local couple.

Buffy and Jeff are using lots of natural materials and Manzanita branches in their wedding decor, so I used that as my primary design inspiration. Their colors are a dark chocolate brown and green. They also specified that they wanted a nice balance of sophisticated yet modern.

As I started illustrating branches and designing the invitations I also began thinking of ways to make their invitation suite extra special. I decided to duplex the linen paper used for the invitation with cork on the back. This cork is usually used for kitchen cabinetry - fortunately, I have a wonderful printer who is willing track down materials like this for me when I'm thinking way outside the box. And because we were spending a good part of our budget on paper and cork I utilized digital printing to save a few bucks for this couple. We then bundled the invitations with twine and used kraft paper envelopes to keep the earthy wood theme throughout the suite.

I had such a good time working with Buffy and Jeff to create an invitation suite that reflects not only the look and feel of their wedding day but them as a fun and modern couple.

• Labels:
• and kathleen
• custom wedding invitations


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After this came out of the oven, Sunday evening, I couldn't stop staring at it. I kept on thinking "I made this. I made this!" My own abilities to throw together a nice meal, from scratch, with just a few ingredients on hand were blowing my mind. Just a few years ago I could barely combine ingredients for a cheese lasagna, reserved for special holidays only, and here it was - just a rainy Sunday evening. And I'm making a veggie pie! From scratch! But enough with the exclamation marks because behind the scenes was a very messy kitchen and we didn't eat until 9:30pm.

As we were eating I couldn't help but think of all of my friends who state with confidence that their grandma is the best cook ever. EVER. Between bites, I kept imagining what my future grandkids will think about my food. I like to think that I'm becoming a cook for them.

I want to know - Is your grandma the best cook ever? What is your favorite home cooked meal?


I used this recipe but had to substitute a few ingredients here and there. I also added sweet potatoes to the mix. And I was really impatient with the crust and skipped a few steps in order to eat this meal before midnight.

• Labels:
• eating local
• vegetarian
• what we eat


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It's that time of year where I've convinced myself that it is Fall, regardless of the temperatures that keep on creeping into the 90s. There is a crispness, a certain smell to the air. I can really feel it. I've already started unpacking my scarves and hats and any sort of tan I accrued over the summer has quietly faded away.

So c'mon already, Fall. I'm ready. Let's make this official.

Shawl - Cotton Emporium
Tank - American Apparrel
Shorts - Street jeans, cut-off
Clogs - Dollhouse
Mermaid Bracelet - Vintage
Other bracelets - Forever 21 cheapies

• Labels:
• anatomy of an outfit
• what we wear


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We're super excited that our master bedroom has been used as an example for tips on how to layer rugs on HGTV.com.










I have a little bit of an addiction to rugs and eventually ran out of space... so I started layering. And now just about every room in our house has a layered rug in it. My dream is to have an entire room filled wall-to-wall with kilim and ikat patterned rugs with accompanying floor cushions and a fireplace. One day...

• Labels:
• HGTV
• rugs


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This last weekend was the 3rd Annual Coney Island Beard and Moustache Competition produced and hosted by my moustached brother, Donny Vomit. Next year I plan on being at Coney Island for the competition.

For now, I love seeing all the photos that bombard my Facebook and Flickr after the event. And when I came across this one my heart strings were tugged at something fierce:



All photos courtesy of the very talented Holly Van Voast aka LensJockey. Check out the rest of her Flickr photostream here.

• Labels:
• beard and moustache competition
• coney island
• Donny Vomit


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