fun | award love

all saints, soho

hello, hello! i recently received the i love your blog award from line and it's a fun one. here are 10 revelations about me -

1. why did you create the blog?
to keep a journal of some of the things scott & i like to do. i never imagined we would meet so many wonderful people or that anyone would actually read it.

2. what kind of blogs do you follow?
blogs written by friends (that's you) and those about photography & design.

3. favorite makeup brand?
stila has been a favorite for years.

4. favorite clothing brand?
i'm coveting something from chance.

5. your indispensable makeup product?
benefit erase paste & fiberwig mascara. just because i'm not a good sleeper doesn't mean i need to look like one.

6. your favorite colour?
although i'm not sure technically it's a true color, lately i'm loving gray. or is it grey?

7. your perfume?
french orange blossom by jo malone. i've worn it for years, which is unusual because i usually get bored.

8. your favorite film?
this is a tough one because i love so many movies from bullitt to enchanted april, but pixar movies always make me smile no matter how many times i see them.

9. what country would you like to visit and why?
how about the usa? i've never been to california and would be happy to go to maine this year. as for foreign countries, italy would be incredible!

10. make-up the last question and answer it yourself: jamie mentioned choosing a word for the year.
mine would be grace. i hope to have it.

the rules require that i bestow this award of love unto 10 others, so if you want to play along, consider yourselves recipients - asiye, elizabeth, jamie, jane, jen, julia, joyce, erika, meg & michelle.

xo, cindy

ps i had to go back to all saints and try a few more shots after seeing the one line shared in this post. these two are better than my originals, but the one she mentioned is still the best. award-worthy for sure.

fun | saipua bouquet

hello, hello! if you follow me on twitter you know that friday was kind of crazy. i spent most of the day with charlie while he had a medical test at sloan-kettering and was there just in case. i saw a lot of people of all ages who were either about to begin cancer therapy or after they've finished. it was sad and i realized, and not for the first time, that i worry about a lot of stupid things. it was a wake up call of sorts because just like that things can change.


when i got home, i found out i won this gorgeous bouquet of flowers from saipua in sarah's just because initiative! she delivered them herself and it was really nice to meet her. i took photos of them everywhere and wanted to do it well because i love sarah's photos. here they are in our living room with some vintage birds from ethanollie and a classic gardening book by vita sackville-west, in your garden.


in our bathroom with our saipua saltwater soap nearby.


in our bedroom.


and, in my death grip, which was inspired by the movie bright star - those ruffles. thank you so much, sarah! even though i said it just last week, you reminded me that the sun does come out. the saipua just because initiative continues each friday, so check it out here.

xo, cindy

ps charlie did ok in the test. he had a similar one in the summer with a different doctor, so we know what the results will be. it's just too bad that doctors don't seem to be willing/able to share test results to avoid duplication, lost time and extra $$. oy!

fun | beautiful award

album : love & circumstance from carrie rodgriquez

hello, hello! jamie of the wonderful blog lyrical journey, recently awarded me with the beautiful blogger award and i'm thrilled to receive it from such a beautiful person. i'm supposed to list ten things you don't know about me, so here goes -

1. i have my mother's hands. 
2. i nervously went to my first blogging event the other night, blog out loud, and it was great. so nice to meet some blogging friends in person, especially erin who got us started on this adventure.
3. hydrangeas are my current favorite flower.
4. i love chocolate necco wafers.
5. scott calls be gilligan because i love these very worn out khaki pants, which are a tad short and shredded along the edges. they're comfy!
6. i have terrible vision.
7. i love to watch people make things and learn about the process - craft, cooking, design, almost anything. my mom was the same way and would have loved the new cooking tv channel, which is airing early episodes of julia child and the galloping gourmet. love david rocco in beautiful italy, too!
8. i always wear flat shoes in case i have to run. weird!
9. i wish i could be a professional surfer or at least have the lifestyle of one.
10. after many years of yearning, next week we are having our tiny, ugly bathroom renovated. it will still be tiny, but maybe not so ugly. more to come after demolition. 

ok, enough about me. i'm now passing the beautiful blogger award onto the last five commentors on our blog as of now - megan w, candi, michelle, krissy and jen. enjoy your weekend and father's day!

xo, cindy

fun : sunshine award!

band : guggenheim grotto - fe da da dee
so glad this favorite Irish band is making
full song tracks available on myspace!

hello! recently, sweet denise gave us the sunshine award, which is pretty great, especially since we've been having some rainy weather. it's wonderful to receive such a happy award and the best way i thought to pass it along was to give it to the first ten ladies who commented on our last post, so here goes -

1. grace
2. aimee
3. pj
4. jami
5. michelle
6. line
7. jen
8. alison
9. joyce
10. krissy

i think i'm going to do it that way from now on, especially if you don't have to write long lists of your deepest, darkest secrets.

xo, cindy

ps our little pink cabinet was on sew, mama, sew!

life : happy things

video : someday by rob thomas
for aimee, bella & pj who lost someone dear this week

we visited charlie last weekend and ran into one of his neighbors in the elevator. she told us he really missed helen and was looking forward to our visit. he told her about it three times and we felt so sad. but, once he started to talk about the people who hoard the food and talk too much at the senior center, the tears in our eyes disappeared because he was so funny. he's made a friend there and her name is helen. she's a nun :).



we brought him a nice lunch, his favorite key lime pie and scott helped pull together his tax papers. if you think doing your own taxes is crummy, try to help your elderly parent. while going through his folders he found this post and commented that it was so nice. by the end of the day he seemed 'happy' and sent us on our way - translation, dismissed us.



so, i was happy when asiye tagged me to come up with a list of things that make me happy because life is short and we should appreciate the simple things that make our days nice -

1. flowers, i know it's shocking.
   
2. music, especially new discoveries.
   
3. feeling well-rested, which is rare.
4. the sandwich scott makes me for lunch each day.
   
5. doing something creative, well.
6. a clean apartment, empty laundry hamper and no ironing.
7. italian food.
8. anything that makes me smile like your nice comments and the word darling (pronounced dahling).
   
9. hearing 'cutie, i'm home'.
10. hugs, hugs, hugs!
    

now, i'm supposed to pass this along to ten people and i'm happy to do it, but don't feel obligated y'all: candace, cassie, dawn, erin, joyce, julia, julie, meg, rachel and suzanne.

xo, cindy

ps usa vs. canada for the gold medal in women's hockey thursday night - yikes!

life : frozen in time

song : great companion by landon pigg
this song always reminds me of the loss of a pet.

thank you so much for your sweet words here and over at the lovelies awards! i'm so glad (relieved) to receive some votes :). you can also nominate your favorite blogs/shops over there and i'm going to select a few to include myself. we're expecting a snow storm tonight and i just hope we don't end up like poor rocky who is still in our freezer and probably always will be. he had the prettiest blue eyes and still does, sort of.

have a great weekend, everyone. may the best team win the superbowl and bring on the olympics only a week away!

xo, cindy

wow : the lovelies award

the lovelies awards have been created by dear rachel of lovely clusters to highlight favorite blogs/shops and i'm really excited to tell you that quaint handmade was nominated for photography! it is so encouraging, you have no idea. i completely understand now what people mean when the say 'they're just happy to be nominated'. if you have a moment, it would be loverly if you could cast a vote for us. thanks, everyone!

xo, cindy

fun : i won!

video(s) : winter winds by mumford & sons.
i love country winston (brown coat) who plays a mean banjo.

hope you all had a nice weekend! cassie of clementine bestowed upon me the kreativ blogger award last week and it's pretty great. so, here are seven things you might not know about me, although it was hard as i'm such an open book ;) -

1. we don't own a microwave or dishwasher. there's just no room for them in our kitchen, so we are patient and wash the dishes ourselves.
2. sometimes, i listen to my i-pod while watching tv, including american idol.
   
3. i have a really hard time making a decision. i blame it on being a libra, but it's probably more to do with a fear of making the wrong one.
4. when our fish rocky died a couple of years ago, we couldn't stand the idea of flushing him down the toilet. burying him in the ground seemed bizarre. instead, we put him in a small container with some water and froze him (less bizarre?). we thought we were so crazy, but apparently many people do the same thing.
5. even if i'm in my pjs all day, i'll be sure to shower and get fixed up before scott gets home.
   
6. until i get to know you, i'm very shy in person. email and the internet have definitely been my saviors when it comes to meeting new people.
7. i'm determined (stubborn) when i set my mind to doing something like getting that darn egg to look like a darn heart and taste darn good - see here.
   

ok, enough about me. how about seven unknown things from krissy, jamie, ms. line, meg, michelle, pascale & shari? you are now at least one time kreative blog award winners, so come on up and keep in mind that the band is warming up to take us to a commercial. enjoy your week!

xo, cindy

ps we made shrimp and corn chowder with fennel from a recipe in real simple magazine this weekend and it was delicious. the fennel adds such a nice flavor.

fun : tag, i'm it!

Evening Peonies.

Hi Everyone -

Oh man, I am a Libra and instantaneous decisions are really not my forte. In class the other day, we had to quickly narrow down the photos we took for an assignment about light to 3. I had about 30 pics and I don't think I picked the 'best' ones. I chose the second photo above, but maybe it really needs the first one because I like things in pairs. I'm also not one to take up a lot of the teacher's time or ask many questions. After all these years, I'm still really shy in school.

Sweet Candace and Courtney tagged little 'ol me with some questions that are kind of similar, so I'm going to do one list and complete it quickly, since I usually obsess about these things. I hope I get it right ;). Here goes -

1. My current obsession: 35mm prime lense gets me off my keyster since it has no zoom. Who thought photography could be such good exercise and lead me to cool things like this?

2. One item from my wardrobe I wear most often: Gap Favorite Tees.

3. The last thing I bought: Patchwork Camera Strap from Erin.

4. I’m listening to: Anberlin, especially Unwinding Cable Car when I feel discouraged.

5. Any Pets? Why or why not: We have an imaginary dog named, Lucy. We don't actually own a dog because we don't want to leave her home alone when we go to work. If we ever do get Lucy it will be after I go on 'pet-urnity' leave. The video store has the cutest parakeets. I'm thinking they might be sweet pets.

6. My favorite holiday spot: Any beach town.

7. 4 words to describe me: Curious, Sentimental, Caring, Worrier.

8. Guilty Pleasure: Store bought flowers in more than one room.

9. The best thing I’ve had to eat or drink lately: Iced Green Tea Latte. I ordered something else and didn't like it. I was going to throw it out. Scott exchanged it for me. Nice!

10. Favorite film: Currently, Everlasting Moments & The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency.

11. Favorite song: If I try to do this, I'll never finish this list. But, no offense to Chris who sang an awesome version of Heartless, I do think Adam and Allison should be in the finals on American Idol.

12. Favorite Flower: Old-fashioned pink roses.

13. Who makes me laugh: We love the show Rob & Big. The Scottster also makes me laugh when he's not even trying.

14. First sign of spring: The green buds on the hedges outside our building that run almost the entire block.

Ok, now more decisions - I'm going to tag these gals : Erin, Grace, Joyce and Lizzy. Have a very nice weekend!

xo, Cindy

PS Does anyone know how I can include a download to a pdf in Blogger? I'd like to make a summary of the guidelines from our digital lab so we can print it.

fun : ten honest bits

Hi Everyone -

I hope you all had a nice weekend! The weather here was really great and we visited my brother in New Jersey for his birthday (more on that later). Beautiful Jewels from Red Otter gave me the Honest Award recently, which requires sharing ten honest bits about myself. So, here goes -

1. Seem to organize things by color, a lot.
   
2. Love blouses and don't really mind ironing them, too much. I also iron Scott's shirts.
3. Literally lost my shirt the other day. I was sure I put my bright pink t-shirt into the hamper. It's gone, gone, gone. It's normal for socks to go missing, but a t-shirt?
4. If Scott didn't feed me I wouldn't eat healthy food. He has to make sure I have something to warm up for dinner when he works late.
   
5. Love the kids pack at the movies - Skittles & popcorn. M&Ms & potato chips/pretzels are really good, too.
6. My nose, hands and feet are often cold.
7. Very sentimental and always look for the hidden meaning in things.
8. Don't like talking on the telephone, especially cellphones. I would be lost without email.
9. Arm chair traveler and blame it on living in the greatest city on earth, although I haven't been to that many other cities.
10. Can be quite disciplined. I recently bought two sundaes at Carvels and took them both home to put into the freezer for later.
    

If you're reading this, consider yourself a winner of the Honest Award and feel free to share a tidbit, too. Scott is visiting his Dad today and teaching him how to make his famous roast chicken, playing cards and probably going food shopping. They love to do that. Hope you have a great week!

xo, Cindy

PS This Wednesday, I hope to share some of the things I learned in my first photography class. Shifting from automatic to manual settings is quite a challenge. But, we can do it!

blog : lemonade luv gets a+

Hi Everyone -

Recently, sweet Julia of Red Otter nominated us for the LUV Award, lovely Charlotte of We Blog Artists nominated us for the Lemonade Award, and wonderful Yasmine of A Print A Day gave us an A+. We are so grateful and glad we don't have to get all dressed up to accept the awards and then have people criticize our fashion choices like the Oscars ;).

The nicest part about receiving awards is to then pass them along to some favorite blogs. I tried to choose those we have not nominated or mentioned before, and if you're reading this, consider yourself nominated, too.

1. An Open [Sketch]book
2. Artsyville
   
3. Bandelle
   
4. Good-Ness
5. Greenbeanbaby Art
   
6. Inleaf
7. (Into) the Fray
8. Kelly Loves Whales
9. L'Atelier
10. Lyrical Journey
    
11. Omami
12. Poetic Home
13. Pretty Good
14. SimplyGrove
15. Small Expectations
16. Treasuring
    

Thanks to everyone for being a part or our lives and your constant inspiration.

xo, Cindy

[Note : Choosing a list like this is painful, but it's nice to return the favor. So, anyone who leaves a comment will be added. There, I feel better.]

fun : award & tag

wore many hats as a kid : not so much now : but, i do love them

Hi Everyone!

A few weeks ago the adorable Ellia awarded us with the 'I Love Your Blog' award and last week sweet Melissa tagged me with the '7 Random Facts Meme', so here goes:

1. I wore many interesting hats as a kid. I never wear them now, but have a small collection of vintage. Actually, I'm kind of obsessed with my hair.


Mom : Me : Aunt Caroline
Where are their hats and my front teeth? Why me, why anyone?

2. When I was 10 years old my Grandpa was probably around 70! Whenever he would visit I would ask him to play cards with me. I 'won' a lot.

3. While riding a bicycle, I can turn the corner without holding onto the handlebars. It's a wide turn, but I haven't wiped out, yet.


Did I dress myself that day? Look at the tilt of the hat and the hands in pockets.
Wish I still had the tree, but do have the handmade humpty dumpty.

4. Scott and I met on a blind date. We went to the ICE CAPADES with two other couples and their KIDS! Isn't that a crazy? And no, we've neither been back to the Ice Capades nor expect to do so.

5. My father-in-law calls me 'Miss Accurate' because I like everything just so. Fortunately, I'm not as tyrannical about it as I used to be ;).


Hey Grandpa, wanna' play cards?
But, please don't mess up the table. It took me an hour to get it just so.

6. I don't like to read instructions and would much rather spend countless hours trying to figure things out myself. On the other hand, if I don't know something I'll spend countless hours researching it. I suppose I'm a walking contradiction.

7. I think Steve McQueen is. the. man. But, Daniel Craig has enormous potential. If he starts racing cars in real life or some other macho activity, it could be a problem.



Now, it's my turn to pass on the love to a few others if they want to play along, too -

1. Aimee
2. Diana
3. Jess
4. Julia
5. Krissy
6. Livy
7. Suzanne
   

xo, Cindy

fun : one word meme

Basset Hound Puppy from SharonMontrose via Red Otter

Hi Everyone -

Alicia's answers on her blog to the One-Word-Answer meme going around were great! She encouraged us to play along, so I did and you should, too!

Where is your mobile phone? Here

Where is your significant other? Grocery Shopping*

Your hair color? Chestnut
Your mother? Multi-talented

Your father? Suave

Your favorite thing? Wedding ring

Your dream last night? Stressful

Your dream goal? Puppy

The room you're in? Cozy

Your hobby? Photography

Your fear? Death

Where do you want to be in 6 years? Here

Where were you last night? Home

What you're not? Phone-person

One of your wish-list items? Puppy

Where you grew up? Suburbs

The last thing you did? Made bed

What are you wearing? Glasses

Your TV? Treasured

Your pets? Imaginary

Your computer? Glorious

Your mood? Sleepy

Missing someone? Yes
Your car? Reliable
Something you're not wearing? Tiara
Favorite shop? Purl Patchwork

Your summer? Fun

Love someone? Always

Your favourite color? Pink

When is the last time you laughed? Now

When is the last time you cried? Wednesday

*It's 7:30 am on a Saturday and he really is & so happy

Don't you think someone needs to get me that puppy already? Did you hear Obama refer to the dog they wanted to get for their girls at his first press conference yesterday? He said they wanted to get a mutt, just like he was, but Malia is allergic and needs a hypoallergenic dog. I'm a mutt, too. Half German, quarter Italian, and a quarter Czech = All-American. I feel so much better about all of that, now ;).

Happy Weekend!

xo, Cindy

thanks to the academy!

Recently, my wallflower self has been encouraged to get up on stage and accept a couple of awards for quaint. The Arte de Pico award comes from the uber-creative Ellia of Greenbeanbaby Art. And then, Laura of the always interesting Quirkology and Monica of the beautiful M & Co awarded us with the Brilliante Weblog award. Thank you so much for the honors ladies as you all never fail to inspire us!

Monica's award involved some questions, so here we go with a rebel yell as I kind of re-interpret the rules. Scott is supposed to answer them on his own and it will be interesting to see if there is any overlap. Should be ;).

What are the last 3 things you purchased?
* Waves prints from Mav & Lena
* Damask Wooden Gocco Postcard from Krissy
* Patchwork Linen Tape from Rashida

What are the last three songs you downloaded?
* Bess Rogers - Decisions Based On Information, album
* The Kooks - Shine On, video
* Jon McLaughlin - Beating My Heart - love this!

What were the last three places you visited?
* Brooklyn, The Bronx & Queens all in the same day
* East Hampton, NY
* Cape May, NJ

What are your three favorite movies?
This is hard as we love to watch movies, but these popped into my head right away.
* Bullitt
* Rear Window
* Finding Nemo, but Wall-e might replace the fish

What are your three favorite possessions?
* Wedding ring
* Vintage sterling silver & enamel collection
* Membership card to the New York Botanical Garden

What three things can you not live without (other than family and friends)?
* iPod
* Television
* Cosy bed

What would be your three wishes?
* World love
* Good health all around
* Perform on stage with a favorite band, or any band for that matter

What are three things you haven't done yet?
* Traveled to California (04.09?), Japan, Italy, Scandinavia
* Adopted a dog
* Picked winning lottery numbers, but this one won't matter if I get my three wishes first

What are your three favorite dishes?
* Almost anything Scott makes for me, which is a lot
* Ice Cream
* My Mom's homemade Spaghetti and Meatballs

What three celebrities do you want to hang out with most?
I'm a jaded New Yorker, so don't really give a hoot, but there are a few exceptions.
* Kelly Jones, Stereophonics
* Pia Jane Bijkerk (changed from Kate Spade after thinking about it on the subway this morning)
* Steve McQueen back in the 1960s

Name three things that freak you out?
* Being scared
* Dirt on me, I wouldn't last 15 minutes on Survivor
* Snakes

Name three unusual things you are good at
* I've never lost a sock doing laundry
* Figuring out things without the directions. Actually, I'm not sure I'm good at it, but just prefer to do it that way.
* I'm very observant and will notice a message/details that might go unnoticed.

What are three things you are currently coveting?
* Nikon SLR
* Beach House
* 20/20 vision

Name three bloggers you are tagging and giving a "Brilliante Weblog" award to and seven for the "Arte de Pico" award.
* Making these choices is too much pressure because everyone who visits this blog is a Superstar.
* I'm not sure people want to be tagged and I don't want to be annoying.
* So, if you haven't received these awards yet, consider yourself awarded by me. Yay!

Note: Jen B of the Polaroid-filled Scissors Paper Glue and lovely Michelle of Cicado Studios have taken the baton and accepted their Arte de Pico and Brilliante Blog awards. Hurray!

xo, Cindy

just plain fun to read

Award winner, artist and poet laureate, Julie nominated us for the "just plain fun to read" blog award. Julie is such a warm person and an amazing collage artist - I envy her abilities ten-fold. It's always interesting to read about her reflections on life and how she deals with its twists and turns. Thank you so much Julie for the nod in our direction!

Now, the great thing about receiving this award is that you don't have to do anything other than be yourself. No racking your brain to remember your first words, or where you'll be in ten years. So, in the spirit of pay it forward, and without further a do (drum roll, please), here are my nominees for the "just plain fun to read" award as they are must reads, too:

Bliss
Design For Mankind
Paper Schmaper
Please Sir
Posie Gets Cozy
S*hopTalk
{frolic!}

xo, Cindy
Photo Credit : Out & About In NYC

too slow, tagged again!

Sweet Julie King has tagged us with a different set of criteria this time. Here are the rules:

• Link back to the person who tagged you. [done]
• Post these rules on your blog. [done]
• Share six unimportant things about yourself. [not sure they're unimportant, but they're true]
• Tag six people at the end of your entry. [haven't done this, but please share some unimportant facts about you in the comments]

So, here's our He + She interpretation of the tag:

1. Mottos
She - "I need that like a hole in the head." [see the bowl above - 2/$20!]
He - "She needs that like a hole in the head!" [now she'll complain she has nowhere to put them!]

2. Secrets
She, allegedly, sounds like she's eating cupcakes when sleeping. [why cupcakes? it's a quiet food.]
He will only wear tartan plaid, slim guy boxers. [what is that in the photo?]

3. Value to the Team
She is the technology guru in the house, and can program the tv, cable box and vcr to record at the same time. [yes, the show we want to tape!]
He makes them each a delicious brown bag lunch every day. [see photo above.]

4. Needs Improvement
She sometimes throws a tantrum that involves jumping up and down. [maybe once a year, so?]
He has a horrendous sense of direction. [if he says to go right, go left.]

5. Cravings
She currently loves Green Tea Lattes. [must be the color of bright green peas.]
He prefers coffee from local shops/delis, but will drink it from anywhere, anytime, anyplace. [he drinks a lot of diet pepsi, too.]

6. Behaviors
She loves old things + new stuff. [see photo above.]
He irons sharp creases into his chinos. [and, so?]

Photo Credit : Cindy, under time pressure 'cause that sandwich looks good.

she's been tagged!

Cindy has been tagged by the wonderful Krissy from Paper Schmaper, so technically she’s it. Thanks Krissy, I’ve always wanted to be an “It Girl", now my dream has finally come true! The game of tag going around blogland involves answering 5 questions. And away we go...

What was I doing 10 years ago

• I was married to Scott.
• Living in the same place I do now.
• Working as the Marketing/Web Manager for a Management Consulting firm.
• Studying graphic/web design at Parsons.

What are 5 things on my to-do list for today

• Register the trees we adopted this weekend as part of the Million Trees NYC program. We have a small garden in the Sunnyside Gardens Park, which is one of only two private parks in NYC, the other being Grammercy Park.
• Work on setting up an Etsy shop - I’m struggling to get this done as there is so much to do.
• Do some laundry, which usually involves some ironing, too.
• Get out and take a good walk – I tend to be a homebody.
• Watch American Idol – I’m channeling the gods and predict David will win :).

Snacks I enjoy

• Anything from Cheeks Bakery in Williamsburg, Brooklyn
• Popcorn + M&Ms/Skittles – love the kids pack at the movies
• Ice Cream
• Pokey biscuits from Japan
• Green Tea Lattes

Things I would do if I were a billionaire

• Move to Grammercy Park and have a summerhouse in the Hamptons
• Give $$ to our family
• Travel – we’re terrible about doing this and use living in NYC as our excuse
• Set-up a charitable foundation for kids

Places I have lived before

Only two places

• Northern NJ - snore.
  
• New York City - yay!
  

6 people I want to know more about

Most of these ladies are new to me -

• Amanda of London Southern Belle - I'm such an Anglophile and love her perspective
  
• Jane of Posy - I love her English-style
  
• Livy of A Field Journal – crafts the most lovely things
• Marichelle of Heart Handmade - I heart her creative blog
  
• Pia Jane Bijkerk – she has such an interesting life and lives on a houseboat
• Rashida of I Heart Linen – so funny and makes the most amazing things

Thanks Krissy - that was fun!

Photo Credit : 7.23.08 changed to Pia's 'cause it's perfect