waysideviolet

a quick hello

Jessica — Tue, 15 May 2012 14:25:36 +0000

I’m sorry it’s been so quiet around here! I have lots of projects and a little news that I want to write about, but I’ve been hiding under a sea of homework. I’ve finished everything for two classes and I just need to finish one last garment for the semester. Tonight. I need to finish it tonight because tomorrow we fly to New York City for Joel’s graduation and for a mini-vacation.

I am so excited for the trip, but there’s still lots to do: finish packing, bake a thank you pie for our the puppy and house sitters, clean the house, and on and on. Cors tried to help me with a mega load of laundry on Saturday. His method of helping is snuggling in the laundry piles and hiding tennis balls under them.

Side-note: making a super delicious stir-fry is a pretty tasty way to use up all the veggies in the house before a trip.

When we get back from New York we’ll be turning around and getting ready for another adventure, but I’ll tell you about that later. I’ll be back soon with way too many photos!

mother’s day wrappings

Jessica — Sat, 12 May 2012 17:45:50 +0000

Since I won’t see my mom on Mother’s Day this year I had to be a bit proactive and ordered her presents early so I could wrap and ship them myself. To be honest, this is what I do for most family birthdays and holidays, because we live nowhere near family and I love wrapping gifts.

For this one I gathered some brown paper, dotted tissue paper, red ribbon, and card.

First, I wrapped the gifts in brown paper.

Next I took my tissue paper to the ironing board, folded and lightly pressed it into a strip of my desired width.

I carefully tapped the tissue paper so that it formed a band then then tied the red ribbon around the whole thing. Voilà!

I’m quite happy with it!

recently on etsy

Jessica — Sun, 06 May 2012 14:15:22 +0000

You know how it is. You sit down with your coffee and you think “I’ll just look at Etsy for two minutes.” Half an hour later and you’re still clicking, hearting, and shopping.

Here’s what I found on my last trip down the handmade rabbit hole of lovely things.

1) Chalkboard Mug 2) Porcelain Bottle 3) Cori Badge
4) Camera iPhone Cover 5) Antique Ring

roses for breakfast

Jessica — Sat, 05 May 2012 13:54:40 +0000

It’s a misty spring morning and Cors and I went stamping through the park. We saw ducks waddling and quacking along their way to the lake and got very wet and a little muddy.

Somehow after all that, a quick trip to the store for tiger tail donuts (my favorite!) seemed in order. And an armful of softest pink roses came home with me, too.

Cors loves flowers so I put the vase on the floor for a few minutes so he could have a sniff.

I’m afraid I have a frightful sweet tooth in the mornings. How about you?

happy designs by shanna murray

Jessica — Fri, 04 May 2012 14:30:00 +0000

I’ve been a fan of Shanna Murray’s work for ages and of course I adore her new Spring collection. It’s a lovely mix of ribbons, wreaths of clover, and thoughts.

I’d be happy to scoop up the whole shop, but if I had to pick a favorite it would be this one. Be brave.

You can visit the shop here and read more about Shanna’s work on her blog.

weekly loves: art and jewels

Jessica — Thu, 03 May 2012 02:18:27 +0000

This week’s loves have a bit of an art and jewelry theme. Starting with a brilliant new photography book…

My copy of Nicole‘s super-lovely Paris in Color came today. I opened it immediately. Oh, it’s gorgeous! I can’t recommend it highly enough. Of course it will make you feel like skipping work and hoping on a plane to Paris, but the composition of the photos should also please anyone with an appreciation for design or simple, wonderful things in life.

These are two quick shots I took during my first flip through:

A new favorite Etsy shop mine filled with chevrons and color blocking, Foudre Blanche:

This adorable Nouvelle Vague print by Rosie Music:

Such pretty “ruined” Polaroid art by William Miller:

And last of all, I am quite tempted to order this pyrite ring by Palomarie:

recipe: snap peas + pasta

Jessica — Tue, 01 May 2012 16:04:34 +0000

Fridays are my all-day schoolwork days. Last Friday it was around 2 o’clock when I finally looked up from the sewing machine and thought about lunch. I wanted something tasty and didn’t mind taking a break from my work.

I did a quick pantry and frig check check and came up with this simple snap peas and pasta dish. It’s mighty good!

Ingredients
Pasta
Snap peas
Butter
Parmesan cheese
Salt & pepper

Prepare your pasta the usual way. While that’s going wash your peas and/or other veggies. I steamed my peas for just a few minutes.

Saute veggies for a minute or two in a little bit of melted butter.

Drain your pasta and add to the pan with your butter and veggies.

Season with salt and pepper and give everything a good stir.

Grate a little Parmesan over the all and enjoy!

funny face

Jessica — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 18:07:55 +0000

I forgot to mention last month that Cors turned five-years-old. It’s hard to believe he was ever the tiny little teddy bear that we brought home all those years ago. But he’s still every bit as cute and crazy and fun.

Cors was a little extra mischievous this weekend. He stole cleaning rags when I was dusting, unplugged my computer by sitting on the power chord, and smudged up the window while grumbling at squirrels. But it’s hard to refuse this funny face a game of ball. I don’t even try.

If you want you more photos of this adorable pup click over here.

weekend cups & plates, vol. 2

Jessica — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 15:07:37 +0000

I always seem to start a new week with a batch of photos from the weekend. And most of these photos are of food. I think it’s because I have a little more time on the weekend to make something photo worthy. Plus there are a few more minutes to take time to photograph it before eating quickly and rushing on to the next task.

Saturday was rainy and cold. It required hot coffee and my breakfast staple of granola:

Joel got back from band practice and we wrapped up and headed out to our local good place to eat, The Firkin. I had a very nice cup of tomato soup and toast with sun-dried tomatoes. Tomatoes all around!

Sunday afternoon I got back to my schoolwork but not before some cake. Strawberry lemon on the left and death by chocolate on the right:

Pattern drafting – trouser draft:

A slash and spread method for drafting a sleeve:

Between cutting out fabric for my second to last construction (sewing) project of the semester I made a batch of cinnamon rolls. Oh my goodness! They are the most wonderful smelling things ever!

photo by Joel

It’s nice to have a little something sweet to share with sleepy coworker on a chilly, cloudy Monday morning.

interview with a photographer

Jessica — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 22:04:22 +0000

A few weeks ago, I was going through the flickr favorites of my friends, like I do from time to time, in hopes of finding some new-to-me and inspiring photographers. I found a bunch! A few were so compelling that I jotted off emails to them right away to see if they would be interested in a little interview series I wanted to put together.

Here is the second interview in the series featuring Jennifer. I hope you enjoy the photos and words as much as I have!

Tell us a little about yourself:
I’m a lifestyle photographer living in San Luis Obispo, a small and charming town on the Central Coast of California. When not taking photos, you can find me blogging, exploring cities, café hopping, eating with friends, outdoors hiking, or hanging with my husband and our 1-year old border collie Dexter.

What kinds of camera(s) do you use?
I use a Canon Mark II 5D.

What are you looking for when you’re taking a photo?
Natural light, unique perspectives/angles, and authentic moments.

What are your favorite kinds of photos to take?
I like being behind the scenes and taking pictures that tell stories. I enjoy shooting food, creative spaces, and people.

Film or digital?
I love both for different reasons but shoot mostly digital.

You can find Jennifer on her: blog, website, Twitter, Flickr, and Facebook.

*All photos by Jennifer