Annilygreen

Before and After

2012-03-07T08:17:00.000-07:00

I thought I would share the GROUNDBREAKING idea I had to....get ready....cut off the ugly part of this thrifted scarf.

A stunning display of brilliance, right? Pin it. Pin it, I dare you! It's the before-and-after of the year! On par with this one.

(Let's pretend this post never happened.)

[photos by me]

Weekend Report: Chromatography

2012-03-05T06:30:00.000-07:00

Remember doing chromatography experiments in high school chemistry? Well, it occurred to me last week that it would be really fun to do as an art project. Plus I'm going to start teaching kids art classes soon (how's that for a nonchalant announcement? and yes, I'll be doing one of the classes based on science experiments and I can't wait), so I found myself ordering a ton of chromatography paper, and holy cow...I could not stop. Sort of like how I couldn't stop posting pictures of them. Here you go...

My husband and I filled the table with our color experiments, and I sort of want to blow them all up huge and put them on the wall. Though, I want to do that with most pretty things, which is why I'm out of wall space and my local copy center loves me.

We made fire and sunsets and abstractions.

Then the next morning, my daughter saw the field of colored paper and wanted to try. Hers are the best of the bunch, I think.

Yes, Virginia, there IS such thing as a toddler who is a minimalist.

this became that...

Wanna make your own? All you need is chromatography paper (I used Whatman 3MM CHR Chromatography Paper), washable markers, and a couple millimeters of water in a container....and a 3-year-old to make you feel lame and uncreative. Just color the paper and set one end in the water. Then wait!

Apple Envy

2012-02-23T10:09:00.000-07:00

If I had an iPhone, I would have Instagramed the hell outta this salad I ate the other day.

And the world would have loved it because salads are so pretty. So are bronze forks.

Then I would have taken a picture of my feet.

[photos by me]

Weekend Report: Blue Ribbons and White Flags

2012-02-21T06:26:00.000-07:00

This weekend I won an award. See, we gathered a few loved ones together to celebrate my husband's birthday by having a dessert contest. The spread was incredible and delicious....all worthy of the blue ribbons I made for the winners (the birthday boy was the judge). I took the "Healthiest" category by default since I made a salad to balance out all the sweetness.

A bunch of frills didn't seem right for a man's party, so I did something a little different for the decorations. I made my very tall brother tape copy paper to the ceiling because....well, why not? Then I took a million pictures of every angle because I couldn't help myself.

PS...The living room looks a bit different than it used to. Consider this an update!

A Day Off

2012-02-20T07:13:00.000-07:00

photo by ck/ck, here

This is the most stunning image of Mount Rushmore I've ever seen. Perfect for celebrating Presidents' Day today.

Latest Obsessions

2012-02-17T06:47:00.000-07:00

These links were all going to be individual posts, but I'm just feeling distracted....by braiding hair and cooking up big, BIG changes. So click away, my friends...

>< Someone needs to come up with a non-fire-hazard version of this, stat.

>< Tim Balon has designed the most incredible wall treatment I have ever seen. I NEED it.

>< They say this is the world's largest collection of anatomically correct fabric brain art. I wonder if it has much competition. So weird and awesome.

>< I wish I had the guts to buy a print from this series. The artist statement is perfect.

[photo by me]

Meet 'n Greet 'n Eat 'n Be Sweet

2012-02-15T11:18:00.000-07:00

I had a little crisis last week. Like, I sort of wanted to quit the Internet. I love it...I love YOU. But I was getting sucked in by the more time-wasting aspects and sort of craving real life interaction. So the timing couldn't have been more perfect for getting asked to help with a party...a real party...with real food and real bloggers and real blog readers!

Some of the best girls I know are going to be there, and you should be there too....especially if you're interested in winning one of my leather totes in a giveaway. (I'm not above bribery.)

I'm not sure what would stop you from being there, really. You get to meet your favorite bloggers....they get to meet you...win win!

I know a bunch of you live close by, so....see you next Wednesday?

♥ sponsored by ♥ soel * see jane blog * milkglass and honey * becky kimball * armelle * freshly picked * elsa bags * cotton & curls * modern palm * annily green * fifth and hazel * sycamore street press zupas * {collected} * gatehouse no.1 mer mag * the Alison show * the house of Smith's * Studio 5

Like a Diamond in the Sky: Valentine's Day Gifts

2012-02-14T06:46:00.000-07:00

I have to admit that we bought our gifts this year specifically for the puns involved.

He gave me the moon...and a diamond. I gave him money. Ha!

How many karats would you say this is? Buy here.

This might be one of the most fascinating posters I've ever seen. Explore here, buy here.

And now we are officially out of wall space. We're on an apartment-dictated art fast. Which brings us to the mushy part of this post:

Husband...I love you more than ketchup. More than cheeseburgers. More than The Voice. Happy Valentine's Day, my dear.

Weekend Report: Ice and Watercolor Valentines

2012-02-13T06:11:00.000-07:00

This weekend I found out that ice bags like this really do exists....and not just in cartoons on people with thermometers hanging out of their mouths. I'm not glad we had a need for one, but I was happy for the excuse to buy it just the same.

I also learned that making last minute valentines with my daughter is awesome. She uses great colors.

And thanks to her dictation, several family members will get postcards that say, "I love you cause you am the best." Then there was the one for her uncle, "Who is the best? The grand Jeremy." And what she had me write for her dad is still melting my heart:

So to anyone who is feeling bummed because you don't have a date tomorrow: forget romance....what you need is a 3-year-old to tell you you're the best. Because you probably am.

We Wear Our Hearts On Our Wall

2012-02-10T06:44:00.000-07:00

If you want to make a little kid happy, cut hearts out of every kind of paper you can find in your house and tape them to the wall.

Scrap paper, security envelopes, glitter paper, the little girl's water colors, wrapping paper, cardboard, maps--all of it. She'll want to show it off to everyone who comes over.

She'll also paint a heart black in her art class, which I sort of adore.

Have a LOVEly weekend, everyone. I'll be nursing my appendix-less husband back to health. Go on a hot date for me!

One of Those

2012-02-09T01:27:00.000-07:00

Every once in a while, you have a day where you're awakened in the wee hours. You realize your husband isn't in bed. On days like this you find him on the bathroom floor, writhing in pain. So you take him to the ER because people shouldn't be writhing.

Appendicitis.

Surgery.

You might feel rage at the clueless volunteers who tell you to take his glasses then wheel him away without letting you squeeze his hand or kiss his cheek or look in his eyes. You know it's just an appendectomy, but you're too tired to quiet the what-ifs that pound on your brain and bring silly tears to your eyes.

A couple hours later, you're sitting in his recovery room, greasy and exhausted and wishing you'd remembered a toy for the baby because you don't want him to touch a single thing in the hospital, ew, and he's tired of playing with the toggle on your coat.

There's nothing to do but sigh a prayer of thanks for family and friends and health insurance and modern technology and kind nurses who make jokes and bring you ice water and warm blankets.

Days like that are crazy and long. And they interfere with plans to photograph and prepare posts about Valentine's Day projects.

Give me a sec?

Weekend Report: Leather Necklace

2012-02-06T06:23:00.000-07:00

I made this leather pendant, and I plan to wear it every day for the foreseeable future. I haven't found a single outfit that isn't improved by it.

"Whoa, brag much, Annie?"

"I just really like it, ok? Back off, Blog."

"Are those shoulder pads in your shirt too?"

"Maybe...what's it to you? It's just a dress I found at a thrift store that had a weird bottom half so I wore a skirt over it so it looked like a shirt. People do that all the time...like every day. And maybe shoulder pads were cool for a reason, Blog. Ever think of that? Maybe they made me feel efficient and businesslike and....shouldery."

"ROFL...at you."

Annie sticks tongue out at Blog.

Aaaand, scene.

Share the Love: A Craft

2012-02-02T06:53:00.000-07:00

There is a big difference between being creative and being creative AND crafty. I think it's an ideas vs. execution thing. Alison (of the Alison Show) is crafty (great ideas, great execution). I can sometimes fool celebrities like Alison into thinking I'm crafty too so they ask me to participate in Valentine's Day crafting/blogging activities like Share the Love.

Point is, I'm lucky my aesthetic lends itself well to simple, simple, simple projects. This keeps my aspirations from outrunning my skills, most of the time. So, let's get on with my contribution to Alison's roundup. Presenting....the Love Note Door Hanger!!!! (Or Luuurve Note Door Hanger, if that's how you do V-Day.)

As soon as the Christmas tree is down, my mom hangs a heart ornament of some kind on almost every door knob in the house. I also wanted to do a sort of advent thingy where I put a little note or treat* out for each member of my family each day until the 14th. So I put those two ideas together, then I put two pieces of leather together, and there you have it...the perfect (soft, leathery, rustic but modern) thing to hold love in.

Wanna make one too? You can. It's easy...I promise. If you use leather,** be sure to use a leather needle and a walking foot on your machine. But it would be really cool with thick wool felt too.

So just cut out two hearts (you can free hand it...be brave!) and sew them together, leaving the top open, obviously. I found the stitching had to go part way up the curve or there was unsightly gaping. I hope someone googles "unsightly gaping" and ends up at my blog.

Leave you threads long at the beginning and end so you can tie them together to hang.

Then write something sweet (or salty) and leave it for your love to find on their door in the morning.

*I have to recommend getting some Taza chocolate to put in it. I mean, I guess you could put any kind of treat in there, but I've found that the key to happiness is Taza's (stone-ground and therefore slightly, perfectly gritty) salt and pepper chocolate. It's everything good about salted chocolate plus a kick that just makes me want to cry. I know I'm emotional about chocolate, but this is objectively incredible.

**Leather stores sell scraps, did you know? So don't feel like leather is out of reach. You can buy small pieces for cheap. And you'll feel like a cowboy.

Powerless

2012-01-31T05:16:00.000-07:00

How, exactly, did Ikea expect me to resist the Mycket bowls? That shape!

I saw them in Carl Kleiner's latest collaboration with them yesterday, and I had purchased them within hours. Ridiculous.

You're Invited

2012-01-30T06:30:00.000-07:00

Ok, so you now how everyone with a blog is adorable and on top of things and came up with a theme or a word for the year, you know...weeks ago? Well, I'm a little late to that game, but I've finally decided what 2012 is going to be about in our house.

I got this idea one day when my daughter started listing all her friends and family, saying we were going to have a party and they were all going to come. "What will the party be for?" I asked her. "Because they will be so happy to see us!" was her answer. Sounds like a good enough excuse to me! The kid lives for parties. She still tells strangers about her rainbow birthday.

So that's the theme. Parties. Just lots and lots of parties. We're going to celebrate everything we can with as few or as many people who want to join us. And it's not all frivolous. Having a year of celebration will assure that my house gets cleaned more frequently and that we refocus on delicious, fresh food and that we show people how much we love them--three things I wanted to make resolutions about anyway. But this will be more fun and hopefully more motivating than saying to myself that I should clean more.

This is where you guys come in. I need ideas. There are the usual holidays, but are there any obscure things that are worth throwing parties for? Want us to celebrate your anniversary? We might be up for that. Anything that deserves some garlands, balloons, twinkle lights, and friends.

[photos by me]

Hello, Friday!

2012-01-27T01:18:00.004-07:00

This week has run me ragged. Anyone else? It started strong with a fantastic celebration of Chinese New Year (more lanterns!), but then the to-do list got longer, the work got more tiring, and the major life questions got more major (what do I want to be? what fights are worth having? what if I quit the shop and just blogged? how would I justify all the leather I want to buy? how do I find a babysitter who wants to build her babysitting portfolio instead of getting paid?).

This is why we have weekends.

Come back Monday, though. That's when the party starts. (Imagine my daughter beat boxing here...she literally says, "N tss N tss N tss.")

Papier Mache Igloo

2012-01-26T06:46:00.000-07:00

photo by Jennifer Kirk of Ambrosia Creative

I've had this project from Bloesem Kids bookmarked for a while, with plans to make it for my daughter, but I just realized that what I really want to do is make it for myself....life sized....so I can crawl inside it and live there.

Feeling Good

2012-01-25T07:06:00.000-07:00

Ok, let's be honest. Most days I don't shower till at least noon. There's this sweet spot that has to be reached....with the older one sufficiently distracted and the baby sufficiently content. It's an art, really.

But when I do get dressed, I've found the keys to not feeling like a frumpy mom every day: blazers and brooches. Specifically these stellar geometric brooches I got from Twig (only $4!). What, not sparkly enough for you? Don't worry...they have glittery ones too, and I can't get enough of them.

Weekend Report: Altitude Design Summit

2012-01-23T05:47:00.000-07:00

This weekend I learned that fantastic conferences full of fantastic people doing fantastic things are MUCH more fantastic when you're not pregnant like I was last year. Instead of spending all my time trying to find a place to sit down, I actually talked to people. And I didn't throw up once!

I stayed up super late the night before tying leather to my business cards. Was it worth it? Well, I got a few OOOOHs, so yes.

I meant to be all cool and fashion-bloggy by taking a picture of my clothes every day, but this is the only one I remembered to do. So there you go. (necklace from Native)

I wish I'd gotten a shot of myself in these shoes that I tried to wear to the parties on Friday night. Ha! I can walk just fine in heels, but these were like evil stilts or something. I had to hold on to the wall all the way down to the parties, and I fell twice once I got there. I changed into flats within the hour. Proud moments.

So. Alt. I give it an A+. Many thanks to everyone who came to my roundtable discussion and to everyone who didn't laugh at me in my ridiculous shoes and to everyone who worked so hard to ensure that we had a great time and to the Grand America for have such dang delicious cookies in your lobby.

[photos by me]

Hexagons are the New Triangle

2012-01-18T07:23:00.000-07:00

I'm so in love with this watch it sort of takes my breath away. Good thing my husband took the hint and got it for me for Christmas.

(The hint was an email saying, "Get this for me.")

Weekend Report

2012-01-17T06:47:00.000-07:00

You guys. Disney princesses potty trained my daughter.

Nothing we did was working. We couldn't convince her that the toilet wasn't scary and that she should put her....stuff....in it instead of on the floor. Finally I decided that we couldn't keep doing the same things and expect anything to change, so we sucked it up and bought the pink monstrosity with the bejeweled "flusher" that chimes. And now I believe in magic.

Ok, moving on to things that don't involve bathroom habits.

First, my logo. Did you notice it's been tweaked again and looks a thousand times better? I'm a wannabe graphic designer with the computer skills of an 80-year-old. So I have to give a huuuuge thank you to Melanie of Fifth & Hazel for saving my life and helping me kern the heck out of that darn LY so it would look nice. Seriously, if you want to hire someone to make things look fantastic, get in her line...she's awesome.

Second, my "About" page. I have one now! My next goal is to have a FAQs page. That would be totally legit, right? As it stands, I don't really get asked questions at all let alone frequently, so we'll have to work on that. Ask away, my friends.

And lastly, this blanket. I made it for my baby. (#supermom!) Sewing flannel and normal cotton together makes for a blanket with the perfect warmth and weight. I recommend it. If you are a company that makes baby goods, please note that it is masculine without being blue or having a baseball on it.

MLK

2012-01-16T09:09:00.002-07:00

Today is just one of the great things Martin Luther King, Jr left us with...a day off. It's one I observe with fondness because it was one of only two days off the entire winter semester in college (that and he was an incredibly great and inspiring man). Point is, I'm going to holiday it up as best I can, so I'll see you tomorrow.

Be super kind to everyone, ok?

Thursday

2012-01-12T09:23:00.001-07:00

The following things are really only connected by the fact that they are on my computer and on my mind.

First, I designed a new logo. The old one was lovely and all, but I started to hate its guts. It had serifs, and I'm not really a serifs kinda girl, so they had to go. Don't worry...the random shape thing is still going on. (Here's a picture for those of you who read in Google Reader and can't be bothered to click over...that's how I am, so I'm going to make it easy for you.) Also, I gave up on trying to convince people that Annilygreen is one word. The public has spoken, and they say it's two. I'm not going to fight it.

Second, I bought this little thing at Target the other day (anyone else have an addiction to the dollar section??) because it cracked me up. I mean, why does it look like a prison sign? Or something you'd see in a bus station? And why is "YOU ARE" slightly larger than "MY SUNSHINE"? I feel like it's bossing me around....wagging its finger at me and telling me I am its sunshine whether I like it or not. I respect that they've managed to make this lovely sentiment feel so abrasive. The power of design! HA.

Third, I found this gem saved on my desktop, but I have no memory of saving it whatsoever. Clearly, it's hilarious, so I'm happy to pass it on.

And lastly, remember how I used to make fabric art pieces? It's been a awhile. This one sold at my very first craft show ever. Seeing this photo again makes me want to get back into that. Add it to the list of things to do when my kids are both asleep for a significant stretch of time!

More Presents!

2012-01-10T06:37:00.000-07:00

Aren't these beautiful? I thought they were, so I bought them for myself for Christmas (at a steeeeep discount on Fab...woot!). Then I wrapped them up, practiced my surprised face, and had my family give them to me.

I feel like the world has tea towels coming out its ears, but I'd never been excited about any of them enough to take out my wallet until I saw these. I planned to put them on the wall....turns out the creator's had the same idea in these gorgeously styled photos.

Printed by Studio Piano Nobile, purchased through the R&L Goods sale.

Presents!

2012-01-09T07:48:00.000-07:00

Christmas seems like a million years ago. Does anyone even want to hear more about it? I did want to show you one thing that showed up at our house, thanks to a mall Santa. I didn't think I was quite ready to start down this skinny, plastic road, but there is nothing like seeing a little girl opening the very thing she whispered in Santa's ear.

Clearly, Santa got a little carried away in the Barbie aisle...you know, living out his childhood dreams* and whatnot. You can't really expect him to resist when they have such cool hair, can you? So much more awesome than when he was little.

*Yes, there was a time when my dreams were nothing but MORE BARBIES! My mom said we couldn't get more till we learned to take care of the ones we had. But my dang sister kept chewing the toes off them. I found one that had hard enough legs that she couldn't ruin, so she chopped off its hair instead. I might never get over it.