{ you gotta have (creative) friends - part 2 }

I happen to be lucky enough to have several seriously creative friends.  Because I am constantly inspired by them, I thought it would be fun to do a little bloggy series that focuses on getting to know a few of them.  Second in the series is my insanely creative friend and former design school classmate, Mari'.

Mari' Vasel - owner/designer for all things bean, an infant and toddler handmade apparel company. Mother to Kaia, a headstrong, independent and wonderful little bean :) Wife to Matt, my equally headstrong, adventurous, hard-working husband.

*Matt and Kaia as a baby bean -- Kaia, the little bean



*just a sampling of the darling designs available in Mari's gorgeous, handmade line

 

Re-decorating around the house: refinishing furniture, making pillows and painting whatever strikes my fancy! (attempting) to play my guitar.

*How fantastic is this bench makeover (which has been in her family for years)?!!

   
I don't often consider myself a good person to give advice - I'd rather seek it out. As far as kid's style - stick to the sale racks or it gets really expensive quickly!! 

 Ahh - see above creative outlets. I am always looking for a way to re-invent or makeover existing things. Re-cover pillows in new fabrics (use a coupon at Jo Ann's & it's super cheap). Paint! Dye fabric! Scrapbook paper & frames! Honestly, our lovely blog host is my best inspiration :) 

* a perfect, eclectic mix of framed objects and photographs, ready for her bedroom gallery wall
* the makings of a felt bloom-adorned, handstitched pillow



* finished pillows (this mix of fabrics is so dreamy, right?!!  Mari' scored those beautiful wood buttons while we were shopping together at Denver's excellent fabric shop, Fancy Tiger)

 I don't read magazines - when they arrive at my house, the pressure to read them stresses me out!

It changes depending on the season. in the fall/winter - sitting in front of our wood burning fireplace or up in the loft on our large leather chair. in the summer, out on the deck or down in my studio where it stays cool.

*a pile of perfectly stitched bibs stacked neatly in Mari's studio

*So many yummy fabrics!  Oh, and I'll take one each of those tees, please!

*More fun fabric choices!

As with magazines, I don't read too many blogs either - too much stress to keep up, but I'm amazed at some of the ones I do stumble across. In addition to this one, I enjoy bovagoods and industrial to organic - another friend of mine who is striving to live an eco, sustainable life.

A victorian house! Does that count?  I feel that the character that comes with those would give me the foundation for all of my decorating needs!

sweet home style

It's not old enough. I crave exposed brick, original moldings and subway tiling with a claw foot tub...
If I had HGTV that would be it - I'd never get anything done. As it is, watching the Bachelor/Bachelorette.

Morning - I'm energized and ready to roll!

I really don't like starbucks for a lot of reasons...but I do love a vanilla hazelnut coffee, lots of cream, no sugar from Einsteins!  

Thanks again to Mari' for participating in my creative friends series.
When she first told me she was starting her own childrenswear business, I was so thrilled for her! On top of being an unbelievably innovative designer, she is also insanely driven.  I'm convinced that all things bean will be an enormous success.  I was lucky enough to receive one of her impeccably stitched onesies/ burpcloth combos as a gift when little Grant was born, and I can't think of a more perfect little something for a new mama.  Pop on over to check out all the sweet designs she has to offer.  

Please stay tuned in the coming months to get to know more of my creative friends.  I know some awesome people :) 

{ making me smile... }

Camp-outs!! We're going to be doing a lot of this in the next few days. These delightful images are definitely getting me in the mood. 

source unknown

Have you ever had a campfire banana?  Holy moly.  There are GOOD.  Reminds me of being a kid :)



the educated camper



 This is a pretty neat camping-inspired mood board.


slow noodle

   a cleverly packaged little s'mores kit

twig and thistle

Do you enjoy a good camping trip or does this better sum up your feelings on the subject....?

ann taintor



 h a p p y  w e e k e n d !

{ color combo crush - navy and pink }

Anyone else head over heels for this preppy combination of hues right now?
It feels so modern and clean when paired with big doses of white.



style at home

diary of a lovely

 hgtv



bella bambino



style me pretty

nichola robyn events

 
I, for one, can't get enough!

{ i am loving }

This fantasy backyard movie night setting.

via pottery barn

Pass the popcorn please ;)

{ i spy a diy - the B tee! }

  You may know that I'm kinda head over heels in love with Boston Terriers (or BTs, as they're called around here).  The whole rest of my family is just as smitten as me with this lovable breed.  Georgia, the spunky, pint-sized BT, lives at our house, my sis has two Bostons, my cousin has two, her mama has one, my parents have two.  Yep, that's a lot of black and white fur! You're kinda not allowed to have any other kind of dog in our family ;) Anyway, I wanted to show our love for our dog by whipping up some Boston sweetness for my boys. My inspiration was this cute tee from the Poppy Collection (ha, clever!) from Gymboree.  So adorable, but pretty darn girly. I figured I could fix that by omitting the red flower and those fancy eyelashes ;)

 I cropped in on the face, blew it up, and printed it to get my pattern.
I used the same size (about a 7x7 image) for both the 12-18 months tee as well as the 3T size.

I chose to use buttons for the nose and eyes to add a little interest.

These guys seem to dig them ;)

And, just because Jack asked very politely for me to "put a picture of me jumping on the computer. PLEASE!" .....


Wacky, silly kid!
By the way, the adorable, Rae, over ar Armommy, has a pretty great video tutorial about appliqueing, if you'd like to give applique a go. It's quick and easy, and the possibilities of fun designs are endless!

{ blissful birthday weekend }

I had a fantastic birthday weekend. On my actual birthday, I woke up to a ceiling covered in balloons, thanks to Mr. P&P and my little guys.
It was such a beautiful surprise!



I indulged overindulged in a gorgeous and scrumptious birthday cake.

And had a blast during an afternoon of girly shopping with my sisters.

Thanks to all of you for the birthday wishes!  I hope you had a lovely weekend as well.

Happy Monday!