wordless wednesdays

dress | stones | agate bracelet | window

currently crushing on: casa de perrin

My web surfing (do people still use that term?) landed me onto casa de perrin yesterday afternoon. I was so taken by the unique portfolio presentation and went gaga over the inviting images. Take a peek for yourself. I am dreaming about the kind of party that would incorporate all that glassware in the first image, and wouldn't you just love to sit at that tea table for an hour or two?

a vermont weekend

Hero Hubby and I took the girls up to Vermont and enjoyed a relaxing, rustic weekend (as relaxing as you can be with a baby and a tot) on a maple syrup farm owned by one our family members. Though we hoped for snow shoeing and sled races, we had rather mild weather and instead delighted in visiting The Vermont Country Store and a strolling down a few of the trails on some 100 acres of beautiful land. A little family bonding around the wood stove, homemade cookies and fresh country air made for an excellent adventure. Oh, yeah... the hour long soak in the whirlpool tub didn't hurt either.

thanks, mum

The roses my mother brought us for valentine's day are still perfuming the kitchen with their light, sweet scent and are a colorful stand-out against the dreary backdrop of this morning's rain. I hope you have a rosy weekend (whatever the weather may be).

wordless wednesdays

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type A+

The bespoke fonts of lost type had my inner font-nerd swooning. This is a great resource and I suggest you check it out if only for the fun of it. I simply must have: Lavanderia, Ribbon, Tommaso and Nelma.

images via losttype

blog love: a little something

Introducing Kristy of a little something. Welcome to a Side of Sparkle - so happy to have met yet another talented blogger!

Hi! I'm kristy. a twenty-something wife to my handsome husband and mama to my darling daughter. I'm pretty into this blogging thing and crafting it up here and there. A little something is all about family, love, parenting, funny bits from my life. I blog about the things that make my heart happy. I blog about our life and how I wouldn't have it any other way.

You can find out more about Kristy on twitter: @kristyavilla and facebook

currently coveting: unmentionables

Actually, these undergarments are so very mentionable. Maybe it's some post v-day daydreams, but these "unmentionables" from Anthropologie have me thinking about doing some early spring cleaning of my top dresser drawer. 

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wordless wednesdays

happy {valentine's} day

I won't go into a long story of how Valentine's day came to be or how wonderful this day filled with hearts and flowers (and chocolate) is... No, just a simple wish to all that love is in your lives.

image source unknown

love is around the corner

Hopefully love is already with you! I've been think a lot lately about Valentine's Day (just four days away!) and how this day is a nice puffed-up opportunity to express your love to everyone in your life, not just your main squeeze. I've made a list of all the fun DIY Valentine crafts I've been seeing on blogs lately and thought I'd share my discoveries.

I might save this idea for next year when Violet is a little older and won't want to try and stab something with the arrow/pencil (although she still might want to do that next year anyway). I think it's more appropriate for older kids...bookmarking! Thanks, Sweet Muffin Suite.

I really like this idea and might make my own "Scrabble Gram" for Hero Hubby's upcoming birthday (it's a big one). Perhaps I could make each letter in postcard size, send the individual pieces out to our friends and family and ask them to mail each back to him with a birthday wish written on the back? I'm thinking as I type... better perfect this idea and get on it quick (I have less than a month). Thanks, oh, happy day.

This card is so clever! The tutorial is a visual treat, too. Love it! Thanks, minieco.

What better way to jazz up a plain old chocolate bar than with these super cute printable wrappers? This might have to be the sweet surprise I send along with the Valentine cards we are sending to the Grandparents.

The idea of making my own scratch-off cards is very inspiring. Great technique to know about and perfect for creating some fun Valentines. Who knew dishwashing detergent could be so much fun? Thanks, Better Homes and Gardens.

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wordless wednesdays

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first freebie! printable recipe cards

As many of you may (or may not) already know, I have a passion for graphic design. In my spare time (which is very spare these days) I like to fool around in Photoshop and play with fonts and overlays and brushes. Kinda nerdy, but so much fun. I thought it might be nice to share some of all this fun I've been having lately and so I'm opening up a category of "freebies" on my blog. For this first freebie post, here are some hi-res recipe cards. They are downloadable for you to print and enjoy. They are in 4x6 format and will print two per page. I've made up several styles and I hope you enjoy writing your recipes on them as much as I have enjoyed making them up! I suggest printing onto cardstock for a sturdier outcome.

Downloads (right click on image and "save as")
printable recipe cards 1
printable recipe cards 2
printable recipe cards 3

thank goodness for makeup

A friend of mine has a saying she uses to bestow the ultimate compliment upon something: "it's almost as fun as makeup." I couldn't agree more - for me, makeup is the ultimate "thing" that is just pure fun. Instantly, I am transformed into a nine year old girl swiveling up a tube of petal pink Christian Dior lipstick and marveling at the candy-like color when I dive into my makeup bag. I don't expect everyone to relate - to some, makeup is weighted by a world of marketing, controversy over the definition of beauty and damaging body image issues. In my world, nothing replaces the feeling of having a slick of lipstick, a brush of eye-liner, a wash of blush and a coat of mascara. I just feel *dressed* and that makes me happy.

image via

(oh, yeah) wordless wednesday

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salmon x 3

"Mama! Maaaaaaaammmmmmaaaaa!" Those were the only sounds I could hear as I waited to be helped at the fish counter yesterday at the market. What I didn't hear was the question the man behind the counter asked me, which must have been "did you say 3 and a half pounds?" because that's exactly how much salmon I ended up with. For a large family that would be quite adequate for one dinner, but for us it equates to about three entire meals. I'm not sure if I really did ask for three and a half pounds, or if "one" sometimes sounds like "three." Either way, it's amazing how much distraction a child can cause. I didn't note how much was on the scale, nor did I think about how heavy the wrapped fish was when it was handed over to me. No, I was focused on quelling the sounds that were coming from the 26 pounds sitting in the shopping cart seat wailing about wanting cheese and goldfish and bananas. And so, I have three and half pounds of salmon. Thankfully it was on sale. I made this recipe last night with all of the fish and have determined that it will taste just fine re-heated for Hero Hubby's lunch and our lunch. Any left overs I plan on dicing up and mixing with pasta in a light cream sauce. The recipe for brown sugar and soy sauce salmon is a keeper - it was very easy to put together and, since all the cooking was done in the oven, there was no lingering fish smell in the air after dinner. Serve this with baby bok choy and white (or brown) rice and you have a healthy, yummy meal (or two... or three).

recipe and image via Martha Stewart