Friday, July 29, 2011

friday is for favorites

balloon photo shoot

grapefruit dresses

chevron tiles

yellow refrigerator

Twiggy Prada ad


Time for another edition of Friday is for Favorites, my weekly series where I become a rebel, and break all of my own rules of design cohesiveness to which I normally adhere on the Bubby and Bean blog.  No themes, trend collections, or matching aesthetics here.  Just a random collection of things I happen to be loving on this very Friday.


1. Amazing balloon photograph by Graham Atkins Hughes.
2. Super cute patterned chair.
3. Pretty + feminine grapefruit colored dresses from ModCloth.
4. Ridiculously cool kitchen.
5. Rad yellow refrigerator.
6. Seriously awesome Twiggy+Prada image from Tatler Mag.


Tomorrow will be the first time ever that I won't be posting a Saturday Morning Daydreams.  But I promise to make up for it next week with a special post all about my wedding shower (woohoo!) which takes place tomorrow! In fact, I'm leaving right now for the airport to pick up my BFF/Maid of Honor, who flew in from Seattle for the shower.  One of my other bridemaids is also flying in from San Francisco this afternoon, and I am so excited to spend the weekend with them, drinking mimosas and working on the massive amount of wedding projects I have piled up.  It kind of feels like Christmas morning today! 

I hope that you have some fun planned for your weekend as well!  See you Monday...






Thursday, July 28, 2011

Roundup: My Favorite Nail Polishes

my favorite nail polishes

I have to admit that I've been so busy with work madness (and wedding planning, when I can squeeze it in!) that I haven't had much time for primping.  It's kind of a miracle for me to find time to shower lately, much less to dress up, style my hair, or put on make-up.  My wedding shower is this Saturday though (yay!), and I decided it would probably be a good idea to pick out a pretty dress and, you know, maybe shave my legs or something. 


gold glitter nail polish
For the last couple of weeks, I've had some very pathetic looking month-old chipped nail polish on my hands, so I figured I'd start there.  I've been loving Sally Hansen Salon Effects nail polish strips lately (they last forever!), and picked out a gorgeous gold glitter to put on my nails for the bridal shower.  If you haven't tried these yet, I highly recommend them.  They're a breeze to apply, and they look just as good as a salon manicure (with longer lasting results). 

Since I was already rummaging through my collection of nail polishes, I figured I'd share some of favorites with you, as seen above. Many of us don't have time to paint our nails on a regular basis, but I have to say, it's a nice + simple way to give yourself a mini-pamper session between the chaos of life from time to time.


1. Scotch Naturals non-toxic polish in Leprechaun Lynch.
2. Megan Miller, eco-friendly polish in Latte.
3. OPI polish in Need Sunglasses? 
4. Deborah Lippmann glitter polish in Across the Universe.
5. Essie polish in Turquoise and Caicos.
6. Chanel polish in Peridot (Fall '11 collection, coming soon!)
(In separate photo: Sally Hansen Salon Effects in Glitz Blitz.  Finished nails source).


What are you favorite polishes these days?




Wednesday, July 27, 2011

wanderlust // tasty hotels

Mauro Mansion, the Netherlands

My fellow lovers of travel and design need to check out an incredibly inspiring new website I recently came across called Tasty Hotels.

La Maison Pujol, France
The site features collections of truly gorgeous hotels and guest houses from all over the world, as seen through the eyes of French photographer Alex Profit.

La Classe, Belgium

2011 is the least I've traveled in years, so whenever I start to feel my wanderlust creeping in, I browse through the beautiful images on Tasty Hotels and just pretend. The website is fairly new and several of the countries/regions are still awaiting images, but I look forward to seeing all of Profit's tasty additions as his travels continue.

What inspiring new websites have you discovered lately?







Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Inspired Handmade Giveaway // 5 Amazing Prizes!

Inspired Handmade Giveaway

There was such a great response to June's group giveaway, and we're doing another one for July!  This inspired giveaway features five incredible prizes: four from small/handmade/indie businesses, and one from the Bubby and Bean blog.  And one lucky Bubby and Bean reader will win ALL of them (worth $112!)


Mountains of the Moon is once again giving Bubby and Bean readers a chance to win $25 Gift Certificate to their online shop!  This gift certificate can be used toward anything on Mountains of the Moon's website, which features beautiful, vintage-inspired clothing crafted from all eco-friendly materials.  ($25 value)

A handmade vintage-inspired Pearl Necklace from Little White Chapel!  This lovely, timeless necklace features a delicate glass pearl paired with an antique brass filigree bead cap, on an 18" antique brass chain. ($20 value)

An 8 x 10 print of the stunning illustration 'Coming Home' by Studio MME! This beautiful fine art pen and ink print features illustrator Megan Eckman's tale of little Imogene coming home to her deer family.  Printed on archival acid-free cotton rag paper and signed by the artist. ($22 value)

A $20 Shop Credit to Bubby and Bean Art's Etsy shop!  This credit can be used on any of the items available in the shop, which features illustrations, typography prints, notebooks, greeting cards and more.  ($20 value)

A medium sponsor space for next month (September) right here on Bubby and Bean!  This is your chance to spread the word about your blog, Etsy shop, or business on a high traffic blog for free!  Don't have a blog or shop?  This makes a great gift for a friend who does! ($25 value)



To enter the Inspired Handmade Giveaway, just leave a comment with:

(1) which one of these goodies you'd most like to have,
and
(2) which method you use to subscribe to this blog.* 

THAT'S IT!


*If you're a new reader, just make sure to follow/subscribe
first
using Google Friend Connect or one of these
readers.


You can also gain ONE additional entry for EACH of the following (all together, that's 8 chances to win!)-
*Each "optional" entry must be in a SEPARATE comment.

>> Visit any of the shops participating in this giveaway and tell me your favorite item from their website(s).
>> Like Bubby & Bean on Facebook
>> Follow Bubby & Bean on Bloglovin'
>> Follow me on Twitter (please list your username)
>> Tweet this:
Win 5 prizes in Bubby & Bean's Inspired Handmade GIVEAWAY >> http://bit.ly/pLZk2k via @MotM_EcoFashion
>> Follow me on Pinterest
>> Mention this giveaway on your Blog


The winner's name will be randomly drawn via random.org the night of Monday, August 1st, and will be posted here by August 3rd, so make sure to check back to see if you won! 

(*To be eligible to win, you must complete #1 and #2 under "How To Enter" above and still be a Bubby & Bean follower/subscriber through GFG or a reader at the time of drawing).

Big thank you's to the small/handmade businesses who are offering Bubby and Bean readers the chance to win ALL of these great prizes!


GOOD LUCK!






THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED. CHECK BACK ON 8/3 TO SEE IF YOU WON!

Monday, July 25, 2011

Bewitched in Venice // Free People's August 2011 Lookbook

Free People August 2011

I am loving these shots from Free People's August 2011 lookbook, taken by photographer Guy Aroch in Venice, Italy.  Masks and layered jewelry paired with Free People's trademark bohemian-style garments create almost a bewitching, enchanting feel.

Free People August lookbook
Free People August 2011 catalog

The candidness of Aroch's photos (of models Marloes Horst and Darla Baker) is pretty amazing too. It almost makes it look like the photos were taken on a magical, late night Venetian adventure rather than for a lookbook shoot. Very inspiring.

Free People Guy Aroch
Free People August 2011 shoot

Not that I'm nearly ready for summer to be over, but don't you think this lookbook is kind of perfect for the transition into early fall?


Oh Monday, how quickly you always arrive.  I hope you all had a wonderful weekend!






August sponsor spots sold out very quickly, and as of now there are just three 100x100 pixel size spots still open.  These spots are only $10 so they're a wonderfully cost effective way to advertise your shop or blog to thousands of interested readers and creative spirits!  For more information, visit the Sponsor Page.




Saturday, July 23, 2011

Saturday Morning Daydreams // Changing It Up

relaxation
source: Vogue UK

I decided to change things up a bit with Saturday Morning Daydreams this week.  Normally, I post several pretty pictures of things of which I happen to be daydreaming on that particular Saturday.  And although they usually appear to be unrelated to one another, they have a common thread, and that thread is the "theme" for that edition of the series.  It's one of my absolute favorite posts to work on each week.  It's kind of a special little project, and of all my posts in a given week, it's the one I usually spend the most time on.

But on this Saturday morning, I decided to simplify, and just post one pretty picture that effectively sums up exactly what is filling my daydreams this morning.

This past week has been even busier than usual work-wise.  Between adding new goods to my online clothing shop* and starting to prepare for production on the fall collection, creating some new pieces for my art shop, working on the blog and guest posts for other blogs, and a million other random work projects, it's been a little crazy around here. (*Speaking of my clothing line, today's the last day of a special 3-day sale we're having - yes, another project I worked on this past week!  If you want to check it out, you can read the details right here.) 

Wedding
planning is also starting to kick into high gear.  The fiance is home for a a month, and then the band has fall tour right up until our wedding, so we're definitely feeling the pressure to get things done.  I love the fact that we're making it almost 100% DIY, but as many of you know, than can be a lot of work!  I finally finished designing my invitations yesterday, so now it's just a matter of a whole lot of printing, cutting, gluing, stuffing and addressing.  My shower is next weekend too, and I have my little sister and two best friends coming to Chicago to stay with me for a few days to help work on wedding projects. I'm beyond excited to see them, and can't wait to share pictures and stories with you!  I definitely have another very busy week ahead.



Robbie and I are going to hit up some estate sales, and then I'm going to take the rest of the day to be as  L A Z Y  as possible. For my fellow busy bees, there isn't much I can recommend more highly than making sure you give yourself a little break now and then.  Recharging is the absolute best way to boost motivation and feel re-inspired.  I hope that whatever your plans are for this weekend, you have a little R and R time of your own.








Friday, July 22, 2011

friday is for favorites

nerd girls
bicycle poster

awesome jacket and bag

floating in water

turquoise floor

Bubby dog


Time for another edition of Friday is for Favorites, my weekly series where I become a rebel, and break all of my own rules of design cohesiveness to which I normally adhere on the Bubby and Bean blog.  No themes, trend collections, or matching aesthetics here.  Just a random collection of things I happen to be loving on this very Friday.


1. Unbelievable photograph by Samuel Bradley.
2. Pretty-much-perfect trench jacket & bag.
3. Freaking awesome bicycle poster.
4. Most refreshing photo ever.
5. Gorgeously bold + colorful room.
6. The magical miracle Bubby dog.*
   *13 weeks ago, my best friend was diagnosed with doggy cancer
    with an absolute maximum of 6 weeks to survive.  Apparently
    he's just too busy ripping apart toys, rolling in the grass,
    and begging for people food to be bothered with such things.



Do you have anything fun planned for the weekend?  This is the first weekend I have Robbie home in about a month and a half (woohoo!), and I'm super excited to go on one of our estate sale marathon adventures tomorrow.  The rest of the time, I'll be working on making our wedding invitations!  Have any of you made your own?  Talk about a project.  Wow.  I'll be sure to share them once they're all done and have been sent.

See you tomorrow morning for this week's edition of Saturday Morning Daydreams...





I was a guest blogger at the amazing Curious Pug yesterday!  The post features my very favorite summer dresses, so if you have a minute, head over there and take a peek.