Well, we made it through the first “real” week (back to work/school/cooking/etc) of 2014, hooray for us! Did you hear that it’s apparantly the saddest week of the year? It has been pretty dreary in these parts and I guess we’re all dealing with that post-Holiday buzz kill. Then there’s the added stress from spending too much, not to mention eating too much, over Christmas so, yep, I get it. I’ve been keeping my spirits up by working out or walking every day (I highly recommend this series, no equipment required!), eating healthy, drinking a tonne of water and tea each day and listening to a lot of music (usually far too loud!). How do you keep the Winter blues away? Here are some other links to help you find that happy place:
1. How relaxing does this bathtub look?? Absolutely loving the brass hardware and claw feet!
2. I got one of my favourite Izola candles for Christmas and am obsessed with how great it smells! We carry them at the shop and the entire line is so fresh smelling. I’ll be rationing the last couple of inches:
3. This dining area designed is pretty inviting, isn’t it? Once again, in love with the brass light fixture and the woven Eames-looking chairs (who makes these??) are pretty flipping awesome too:
4. Order, order and more order! I can’t believe that we’re already 10 days into January, can you? Really feeling the need to keep a calendar handy at all times and this printable is perfect to keep beside my computer:
5. While I’m not following any diet, I have been watching calories and have cut way down on carbs (especially bread and baked goods) over the past few weeks. Delicious meals like this make it much easier to not go hungry:
A handful of the tunes I’m currently cranking (refresh browser if you can’t see playlist):
We’re starting our new office renos at Spruce on Sunday (can’t wait!) but other than that, I don’t have too much on the go. What are your weekend plans? Hope you’ll have at least a few cozy moments to yourself because I’m already planning mine 🙂 Cheers!
Well, we made it through the first “real” week (back to work/school/cooking/etc) of 2014, hooray for us! Did you hear that it’s apparantly the saddest week of the year? It has been pretty dreary in these parts and I guess we’re all dealing with that post-Holiday buzz kill. Then there’s the added stress from spending too much, not to mention eating too much, over Christmas so, yep, I get it. I’ve been keeping my spirits up by working out or walking every day (I highly recommend this series, no equipment required!), eating healthy, drinking a tonne of water and tea each day and listening to a lot of music (usually far too loud!). How do you keep the Winter blues away? Here are some other links to help you find that happy place:
1. How relaxing does this bathtub look?? Absolutely loving the brass hardware and claw feet!
2. I got one of my favourite Izola candles for Christmas and am obsessed with how great it smells! We carry them at the shop and the entire line is so fresh smelling. I’ll be rationing the last couple of inches:
3. This dining area designed is pretty inviting, isn’t it? Once again, in love with the brass light fixture and the woven Eames-looking chairs (who makes these??) are pretty flipping awesome too:
4. Order, order and more order! I can’t believe that we’re already 10 days into January, can you? Really feeling the need to keep a calendar handy at all times and this printable is perfect to keep beside my computer:
5. While I’m not following any diet, I have been watching calories and have cut way down on carbs (especially bread and baked goods) over the past few weeks. Delicious meals like this make it much easier to not go hungry:
A handful of the tunes I’m currently cranking (refresh browser if you can’t see playlist):
We’re starting our new office renos at Spruce on Sunday (can’t wait!) but other than that, I don’t have too much on the go. What are your weekend plans? Hope you’ll have at least a few cozy moments to yourself because I’m already planning mine 🙂 Cheers!
Thanks so much for your well wishes, emails and texts after my last post. I didn’t mean to worry anyone but I think it’s important not to gloss over the dreary bits in life as reality often isn’t nearly as pretty as what’s filtered through Instagram, agreed? Life/marriage/parenting/etc is a series of hills and valleys (some steeper than others) but I think my situation is starting the climb back uphill and I’m feeling much brighter than I was at the beginning of the week. Talking things out always helps (although it’s super hard for me) and I’m blessed with a pretty awesome support group, even when I don’t feel like sharing much.
Also brightening my thoughts are some upcoming renos at the shop. We’ve all been sharing a shoebox sized office at Spruce Collective for over a year now, not easy considering there are 5 of us partners plus our full-time store manager and 4 employees! Needless to say, when working on our website/paperwork/phone calls/etc we’re always tripping on each other (or locking the door!) and it’s impossible to stay 100% organized. Earlier this summer, we divided our workshop in half with a temporary wall (made of vintage doors) to create a fashion boutique. It’s been an amazing success so we’ve decided to put up a permanent wall and allocate the other half (currently workshop/lunch room/catch-all disaster) to one gloriously spacious shared workspace. First on the agenda is a huge 3-month calendar to keep track of all of our store events, vintage rental bookings, financials and more. It will be life changing!
A sense of order makes everything easier, doesn’t it? Sometimes simply cleaning a closet or drawer can make all the difference on stressful day. I’ve got quite a bit of organizing to do on the home front starting with Sadie’s room, which I painted last weekend. Hoping to finish decorating it over the next few days and I will definitely share some pics. What organizing projects do you have looming? Let’s tackle them together!
Happy New Year! How is 2014 treating you so far? My year started off with a bang, not the good kind unfortunately, so I’m off to a bumpier start than I’d thought in my personal life. But the kiddos are back to school today (yay!) and I’m looking forward to getting back into the routine of things, especially work at the shop and working out. The fact that I’m actually looking forward to working out is a miracle in itself, something I wouldn’t have imagined 4 months ago when I headed back to the gym! My Spruce partners and I decided to consider February 1st the start of our year for goal planning etc. It’s really taken the pressure off of ourselves and given us time to regroup after a busy Holiday season. Now, I’m not a huge resolution girl but do love setting attainable goals for myself. Starting February, I’ll be jotting down more specific monthly goals but here’s a peek at my overall resolutions for the year and some other inspirational thoughts that keep me going when the going gets tough:
My New Year’s Resolutions (thanks Bing and Alt Summit for the monthly goal cards!)
Hello there! I hope that you’ve been enjoying the holidays as much as I have! It’s been one party/gathering/cocktail/cheese cube after the other but with plenty of R&R in between so overall its been really great. We’re having a small group of friends come over (somewhat last minute but that’s how we roll!) to ring in the New Year tonight so I’ll have to rustle up some appies this afternoon before cracking open the bubbly. Do you have big plans? Here’s some sparkling inspiration to get the party started:
I’m taking the rest of the week off but couldn’t say goodbye to 2013 without wishing you all a very Happy New Year! See you in 2014, I have a feeling it’s going to be a BIG year! Cheers 🙂
I’m going to sign off for the Holidays but not without wishing you all a very Merry Christmas! We’ve got another packed weekend ahead of us starting with our Spruce partners/spouses party (our first, can you believe it!?), our annual progressive dinner with friends and their kiddos (my favourite tradition!) and our men’s shopping day at the shop (um, what man wouldn’t want to shop when there are fresh pretzels, beer tastings, hot shaves and friendly gals waiting to wrap gifts for you!). Not to mention my own party prep and still-not-started gift wrapping. So yes, I just might sleep through Christmas 🙂
I’m really looking forward to a few days off filled with baking and cuddles with the kids and then the Christmas circuit with each of our families. Hurray for Christmas! Here are 5 links to love this week and just a smattering of my favourite Holiday tunes:
Nothing to do with Christmas but this blog post about the mom/work/life juggle rocks!
Wishing you all the happiest of Holidays full of family, friends + lots of good cheer and I’ll be sure to check in before we start the New Year. Merry Christmas!
Thanks so much for your well wishes, emails and texts after my last post. I didn’t mean to worry anyone but I think it’s important not to gloss over the dreary bits in life as reality often isn’t nearly as pretty as what’s filtered through Instagram, agreed? Life/marriage/parenting/etc is a series of hills and valleys (some steeper than others) but I think my situation is starting the climb back uphill and I’m feeling much brighter than I was at the beginning of the week. Talking things out always helps (although it’s super hard for me) and I’m blessed with a pretty awesome support group, even when I don’t feel like sharing much.
Also brightening my thoughts are some upcoming renos at the shop. We’ve all been sharing a shoebox sized office at Spruce Collective for over a year now, not easy considering there are 5 of us partners plus our full-time store manager and 4 employees! Needless to say, when working on our website/paperwork/phone calls/etc we’re always tripping on each other (or locking the door!) and it’s impossible to stay 100% organized. Earlier this summer, we divided our workshop in half with a temporary wall (made of vintage doors) to create a fashion boutique. It’s been an amazing success so we’ve decided to put up a permanent wall and allocate the other half (currently workshop/lunch room/catch-all disaster) to one gloriously spacious shared workspace. First on the agenda is a huge 3-month calendar to keep track of all of our store events, vintage rental bookings, financials and more. It will be life changing!
A sense of order makes everything easier, doesn’t it? Sometimes simply cleaning a closet or drawer can make all the difference on stressful day. I’ve got quite a bit of organizing to do on the home front starting with Sadie’s room, which I painted last weekend. Hoping to finish decorating it over the next few days and I will definitely share some pics. What organizing projects do you have looming? Let’s tackle them together!
Happy New Year! How is 2014 treating you so far? My year started off with a bang, not the good kind unfortunately, so I’m off to a bumpier start than I’d thought in my personal life. But the kiddos are back to school today (yay!) and I’m looking forward to getting back into the routine of things, especially work at the shop and working out. The fact that I’m actually looking forward to working out is a miracle in itself, something I wouldn’t have imagined 4 months ago when I headed back to the gym! My Spruce partners and I decided to consider February 1st the start of our year for goal planning etc. It’s really taken the pressure off of ourselves and given us time to regroup after a busy Holiday season. Now, I’m not a huge resolution girl but do love setting attainable goals for myself. Starting February, I’ll be jotting down more specific monthly goals but here’s a peek at my overall resolutions for the year and some other inspirational thoughts that keep me going when the going gets tough:
My New Year’s Resolutions (thanks Bing and Alt Summit for the monthly goal cards!)
Hello there! I hope that you’ve been enjoying the holidays as much as I have! It’s been one party/gathering/cocktail/cheese cube after the other but with plenty of R&R in between so overall its been really great. We’re having a small group of friends come over (somewhat last minute but that’s how we roll!) to ring in the New Year tonight so I’ll have to rustle up some appies this afternoon before cracking open the bubbly. Do you have big plans? Here’s some sparkling inspiration to get the party started:
I’m taking the rest of the week off but couldn’t say goodbye to 2013 without wishing you all a very Happy New Year! See you in 2014, I have a feeling it’s going to be a BIG year! Cheers 🙂
I’m going to sign off for the Holidays but not without wishing you all a very Merry Christmas! We’ve got another packed weekend ahead of us starting with our Spruce partners/spouses party (our first, can you believe it!?), our annual progressive dinner with friends and their kiddos (my favourite tradition!) and our men’s shopping day at the shop (um, what man wouldn’t want to shop when there are fresh pretzels, beer tastings, hot shaves and friendly gals waiting to wrap gifts for you!). Not to mention my own party prep and still-not-started gift wrapping. So yes, I just might sleep through Christmas 🙂
I’m really looking forward to a few days off filled with baking and cuddles with the kids and then the Christmas circuit with each of our families. Hurray for Christmas! Here are 5 links to love this week and just a smattering of my favourite Holiday tunes:
Nothing to do with Christmas but this blog post about the mom/work/life juggle rocks!
Wishing you all the happiest of Holidays full of family, friends + lots of good cheer and I’ll be sure to check in before we start the New Year. Merry Christmas!
Here we are, only a week away from Christmas! How are you feeling? Hopefully not too overwhelmed or stressed. I’ve got a lot to do but I’m feeling oddly relaxed about it all, which will likely change all too soon! But seeing these photos (featured in the December issue of Chatelaine, which my Spruce Collective girls and I just happen to be featured in too 🙂 instantly brightened my mood and alleviated my writer’s block last night. I’m a sucker for a good house conversion and I doubt there could be anything more peaceful than living in a former church, unless of course, it meant living in this former church:
This stunning church-turned-home belongs to Alison Westlake (owner of the Toronto flower shop Coriander Girl) and her husband, Tyler. Together they took on a pretty ambitious renovation (you can read more about the process here) of the nearly 150 year old building and I just love how bright and airy it is, not to mention their subtle Scandinavian-style take on Holiday decorating. It’s like a breath of fresh air, isn’t it? Have a wonderful Wednesday!
Well, I made it through the weekend (just barely!) and I’m really happy that Monday is here. The shop has been bustling with Holiday shoppers (yay!) so I’ll be focussing a lot of my energy there before the kiddos are home on Christmas break next week. I’ve managed to tackle most of the presents on my list but I always save the wrapping until the end, just to be sure I haven’t missed anything. I’m usually up far too late on Christmas Eve powering through the last of it but, this year, I plan on giving myself much more time. Even the simplest gift feels extra special when it’s wrapped up pretty, don’t you think? And speaking of simple, I’m a big fan of plain kraft paper mixed in with bright patterned wrapping and fun embellishments. Here are some festive examples, right up my alley:
Do you wrap as you go or leave the giant task right until the end, like me? Luckily, I really enjoy wrapping gifts and adding personal touches. Isn’t the nautical rope know above divine? I wouldn’t even want to open a present that lovely! Hope you had a wonderful weekend 🙂
The past several weeks have been insanely hectic (to say the least) and although it’s Friday and I’ve got a fun weekend ahead (it’s our last weekend of The Urban Market and we’re headed to an Ugly Sweater Party on Saturday night), I must admit that I’m really (like, really) looking forward to Monday. Not like there’s anything exceptionally special about Monday, there’s just nothing on my calendar for Monday! Odds are good that it will end up being just as busy as any other day but sometimes you’ve just got to have a visual goal in mind to make it through the busy bits, right? Works for me 😉 We’re officially halfway to Christmas Day and here are 5 festive faves that caught my eye this week:
1. Loving this Scandinavian table, especially the sheepskin chair covers:
3. I’m super envious of anyone blessed with beautiful hand lettering skills (ahem, yes I’m talking to you Jessica!) and Lindsay Letters has some fabulous prints for the Holidays and beyond. (But seriously, I’m pretty sure it was supposed to be my great talent, I just got missed somehow)
5. I have no idea when I’m going to get any Christmas baking done (maybe when the kids are out of school?) but these Peppermint Chocolate Crackles look pretty darn delicious:
Ok, off I go to run the kiddos to school and get things set up for The Urban Market but have yourself a wonderful weekend and I’ll be back to chat on Monday (ah, glorious Monday ;)! Cheers!
Man, this Holiday season is ticking right along, isn’t it? I’ve made a decent dent in my Christmas shopping but still have a ways to go, how about you? Things looked pretty festive this week with a fresh dusting of snow too. Not enough for a snow day or driving headaches, just enough to make everything look magical! Brad and I are sticklers for a freshly cut tree in our house but I know not everyone has the space for a full grown Christmas tree. When the kiddos were toddlers, we chose smaller tabletop versions of Herr Tannenbaum (to keep little hands from pulling down ornaments) and I really loved how easily they fit into our home decor. Presents actually displayed better too, piled under the table, so I thought I’d share a variety of petite trees perfect for spaces large or small:
Cute, right? We have a mini tree for the kids set up on our dining room credenza this year (to avoid any arguments as to who’s bedroom it should belong in!) and it’s full of bright baubles and handmade trinkets that they’ve made over the years. They love it (I do too!) and are always rearranging the snow globes and other decorations underneath. Hope you’re having a great week so far!
With so much hustle + bustle over the past few weeks (well, months really!), I’m feeling the need to simplify more than a few areas in my life. The New Year is always the perfect time to clean off the slate and start fresh and I just bought myself a shiny new planner to get the ball rolling. There’s a lot to be said for online calendars and apps but between juggling kids and shop life, I really just need to write things down. Speaking of clean + simple, this Scandinavian home and it’s understated take on Christmas was like a breath of fresh air amidst the glitter + glam of all things Holiday currently circling the web. While I’m loving my amped up dose of colour this year, there’s a lot to be said for the calming neutrals of this family home:
Relaxing, isn’t it? And I don’t think anything could be cozier than sipping hot cocoa next to that kitchen fireplace, unless it involved curling up on the fur rugs in the living room! When it comes to Christmas decorating, are you team less-is-more or go-big-or-go-home? I’d like to think I’m somewhere in the middle 🙂
Here we are, only a week away from Christmas! How are you feeling? Hopefully not too overwhelmed or stressed. I’ve got a lot to do but I’m feeling oddly relaxed about it all, which will likely change all too soon! But seeing these photos (featured in the December issue of Chatelaine, which my Spruce Collective girls and I just happen to be featured in too 🙂 instantly brightened my mood and alleviated my writer’s block last night. I’m a sucker for a good house conversion and I doubt there could be anything more peaceful than living in a former church, unless of course, it meant living in this former church:
This stunning church-turned-home belongs to Alison Westlake (owner of the Toronto flower shop Coriander Girl) and her husband, Tyler. Together they took on a pretty ambitious renovation (you can read more about the process here) of the nearly 150 year old building and I just love how bright and airy it is, not to mention their subtle Scandinavian-style take on Holiday decorating. It’s like a breath of fresh air, isn’t it? Have a wonderful Wednesday!
Well, I made it through the weekend (just barely!) and I’m really happy that Monday is here. The shop has been bustling with Holiday shoppers (yay!) so I’ll be focussing a lot of my energy there before the kiddos are home on Christmas break next week. I’ve managed to tackle most of the presents on my list but I always save the wrapping until the end, just to be sure I haven’t missed anything. I’m usually up far too late on Christmas Eve powering through the last of it but, this year, I plan on giving myself much more time. Even the simplest gift feels extra special when it’s wrapped up pretty, don’t you think? And speaking of simple, I’m a big fan of plain kraft paper mixed in with bright patterned wrapping and fun embellishments. Here are some festive examples, right up my alley:
Do you wrap as you go or leave the giant task right until the end, like me? Luckily, I really enjoy wrapping gifts and adding personal touches. Isn’t the nautical rope know above divine? I wouldn’t even want to open a present that lovely! Hope you had a wonderful weekend 🙂
The past several weeks have been insanely hectic (to say the least) and although it’s Friday and I’ve got a fun weekend ahead (it’s our last weekend of The Urban Market and we’re headed to an Ugly Sweater Party on Saturday night), I must admit that I’m really (like, really) looking forward to Monday. Not like there’s anything exceptionally special about Monday, there’s just nothing on my calendar for Monday! Odds are good that it will end up being just as busy as any other day but sometimes you’ve just got to have a visual goal in mind to make it through the busy bits, right? Works for me 😉 We’re officially halfway to Christmas Day and here are 5 festive faves that caught my eye this week:
1. Loving this Scandinavian table, especially the sheepskin chair covers:
3. I’m super envious of anyone blessed with beautiful hand lettering skills (ahem, yes I’m talking to you Jessica!) and Lindsay Letters has some fabulous prints for the Holidays and beyond. (But seriously, I’m pretty sure it was supposed to be my great talent, I just got missed somehow)
5. I have no idea when I’m going to get any Christmas baking done (maybe when the kids are out of school?) but these Peppermint Chocolate Crackles look pretty darn delicious:
Ok, off I go to run the kiddos to school and get things set up for The Urban Market but have yourself a wonderful weekend and I’ll be back to chat on Monday (ah, glorious Monday ;)! Cheers!
House & Home. Photo by Michael Graydon.
Izola Green Moss Candle (available at Spruce Collective)
Nate Berkus
Shhh My Darling (free printable!) via Poppytalk
Lark & Linen (Roasted acorn squash with mascarpone . . . yum!)
Design Love Fest
Country Living
Fancy-New Zealand Design Blog
Noel Shiveley
West Elm
The Flair Exchange
Camille Styles
The Curvy Carrot
A Little Empty Room
Artifact Uprising
Scout Mob
Poppytalk
A Beautiful Mess
Lindsay Letters
100 Layer Cakelet
Petra Bindel
Cardboard Christmas
Les Tissus Colbert
