Hello Giggles

Have you checked out HelloGiggles yet? It's a humor and entertainment website started by Zooey Deschanel and her friends (and funny ladies) Sophia Rossi and Molly McAleer. I was sort of dubious at first, but I really should have learned by now that pretty much everything Zooey Deschanel does is good (don't prove me wrong, New Girl). They post fun things, mostly aimed at the ladies, like Honorary Husbands, Saved By The Bell episode recaps, useful advice, and funny rants.

Now that HelloGiggles has wiggled its way into my daily reads, I wanted to share some of my fave pieces so far, by way of introduction:

"I’m pretty sure that red lipstick is swagger’s godmother."
Beauty Tips to Make You Feel Like A Queen, by Molly McAleer

"All-access pass to Cuteville without the hassles of gestation, lactation, and 3 a.m. diaper changes."
Your Friends Babies Are Your Babies Too, by Julia Gazdag

"Buy good stuff and take great care of it. It will last forever, and you can pass it down to your grandchildren (if they don’t have giant, man feet)."
Things I Am Learning From My Grandma, by Nicole Shabtai

"They are cheaply made costume dresses that rip easily and seem to attract spaghetti sauce, but to him they might as well be Versaces."
Princess Zach, by Shane Nickerson

Before & after

My friend Abby posted these before and after Instagram photos that she took from her office window above Bryant Park. The first is before people had arrived for the outdoor movie, and the second is after the park was full of people and blankets. Isn't it funny to see the transformation?

PS - I'm completely considering getting an iPhone just for the Instagram app. Is that silly? The retro photo apps for the Droid just aren't as good or as social. Would you switch phones for an app?

Weekend in Pictures

{chillin' in the shade}

{so. many. tiny. drawers!}

{a giant, somewhat outdated globe}

{the courtyard we got locked in for a bit}

{a pretty, new england-y house}

{drinks back in the city, at the smith}

{sunday skies}

This weekend I took a somewhat spontaneous day trip to New Haven, CT. A couple friends and I got the itch to go somewhere, with the limitation that we didn't want to rent a car so we had to be able to walk to our destination from a train station. That limited things a bit, but we eventually settled on a little jaunt to the Ivy League. We wandered and shopped a bit unsuccessfully, then ended up strolling around Yale's campus. We explored Sterling Library and got locked (temporarily) in a little courtyard. It was all very collegiate, it reminded me of visiting Oxford. And, if I'm being totally honest, Hogwarts :)

Amazing crochet art

My friend Nathan's amazing crochet art is being featured all over the place this week. Swiss-Miss posted his crocheted lion head, that was also featured on Fab.com (where it sold!).



Then, more of Nathan's crocheted taxidermy was featured on Trend Hunter. Isn't it amazing?



Now, is it considered bragging if you're bragging about someone else? Because I have a little bit more bragging to do. Nathan got to share his work with Martha Stewart on. her. show! They talk about the lawnmower, tool belt, bear skin rug (!!) and urinal that Nathan created out of yarn.



Amazing.

The Sixth Borough

"The children of New York captured fireflies in glass jars, which they floated between the boroughs. The bugs would slowly asphyxiate, flickering rapidly for their last few minutes of life. If it was timed right, the river shimmered..."



A lovely illustration of the Sixth Borough by Danie Drankwater (via I Love Charts).

Have you ever read the story? The Sixth Borough is a short story by Jonathan Safran Foer that originally appeared in the New York Times, then in his book Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close (side note: have you read that book? If the answer is no: run, do not walk, to the nearest bookstore and get it). Like everything he writes, the story is magical, a little sad, and totally beautiful. It's one of my favorite short stories.

Groom's cake

Remember the trial run I did for a friend's groom's cake a few weeks ago? This past weekend I made the real deal and I'm really happy with the way it turned out. When I first talked to the bride, my friend Angela, about the groom's cake she immediately said, "It should have a beard!" I hesitated. I pitched the idea of a simple white cake with a pair of gold spectacles, like the kind Bryson, the groom, sometimes wears. But the beard idea kept popping up, so I gave it a go. For the test run, I did a white beard on a white cake.



It was nice, but as Bryson and Angela were leaving my apartment after tasting the cake, Bryson sweetly asked if the beard could be brown. Well, of course it can. Who am I to turn down a groom's wishes on his wedding day? Plus, it really would be more "him" with a brown beard.





I'm really happy with the way it turned out. The brown beard was definitely the way to go, don't you think? I don't think the groom's cake tradition is for the cake to actually look like the groom, but this one certainly does. And that makes me smile.

(Wedding) Weekend in pictures

{a bicycle built for two}

{mason jars and name tags}

{wildflower centerpieces}

{into the mystic}

{anchored, forever and ever}

{bride and groom}

{friends and feet}

{i heart new york.}

My friends Angela and Bryson got married on Saturday, and it was so fun and beautiful I didn't really pull out my camera the rest of the weekend. The ceremony and reception were so intimate and personal, I think I was teary-eyed half the day. Even after I gave Bethany the wise advice, "Well, just don't cry" when we realized we were walking into the ceremony without tissues. Angela's brother grilled hot dogs, Murph and I made some cakes, everyone drank lemonade and beer out of mason jars, and danced under a warm Brooklyn sky. All in all, a lovely wedding that made for a lovely weekend.

I'm on a boat

You guys, this awesome houseboat is docked in a marina in Barcelona and they rent beds for $35 a night. I'm ready to go right now, who's with me?

via Design Mom

The best of Renegade

I wanted to show you some of my favorites from the Renegade Craft Fair. A few of them you might be familiar with from other blogs, but they make really great things so I'll share them just in case they're new to you.





Forestbound makes gorgeous bags out of salvaged textiles and hardware. They'd definitely be more of a big ticket purchase for me, but I drool every time I check out their site. It was great to get to see and touch the bags in person at Renegade. Check the site often.



Bettula is home to all things birch. Her birch vases are great (wouldn't they be pretty at an earthy, outdoor wedding?), but what really blew me away was her birch jewelry. Especially the cuffs.





If you read Cup of Jo you've seen these genius morse code necklaces from Coatt before. I've always thought they were a cute idea, but after seeing them in person, I'm definitely sold. I love how simple they are - I'm a huge fan of necklaces you can wear everyday. Rebecca even had a few necklaces wrapped around her wrist as bracelets!





And lastly, I loved Claudia Pearson's illustrations. She does a lot of great food and kitchen-themed prints and tea towels that would be great gifts for friends who love to cook.





But really, I was drawn to her shop by this Brooklyn print. My friends seem to be moving to Brooklyn in droves these days, so it reminded me of the excitement of finding a new apartment and getting settled in an awesome neighborhood.

Weekend in pictures

{crafts in brooklyn}

{printed wallets}

{sweet socks, curled toes}

{thrifting at junk}

An alternate title for this weekend's pictures could be "Really?!" As in, "Really, Liz? You had a picnic on the Hudson at sunset, made s'mores bars, and checked out the new addition to the High Line, took pictures of all of it, then realized you left your memory card at home? Really?!"

So, yes. That happened, and I was annoyed. But then I went to the Renegade Craft Fair on Sunday, accompanied by a tiny girl with frilly socks, did some thrift shopping, drank bubble tea and the weekend was saved.

Oh Boy

Earlier this afternoon Zooey Deschanel tweeted a link to a cover she and M. Ward (otherwise known as She & Him) did of Buddy Holly's "Oh Boy" for an amazing-sounding Buddy Holly tribute album. It's the perfect peppy, happy soundtrack to a sunny summer afternoon. I've been listening to it nonstop! (Listen here)

It reminded me of seeing She & Him last summer here in NYC. They were awesome, and while I love their original songs, the cover they did of "I Put A Spell on You" (originally by Screamin' Jay Hawkins) as an encore was definitely my favorite part. It was epic. Zooey (Zooey, can I call you Zooey?) was so adorably bratty the way she sang it. Here it is:



One more She & Him cover, just because. It's one of my favorite Beach Boys songs, also perfect for a sunny summer day. Happy Friday, friends.



Top photo by Andrew St. Clair for Brooklyn Vegan.

Dewey Decimal

Design Sponge posted this library card catalogue makeover last fall and for some reason I'm totally enamored with it. Seriously, it pops into my head at the most random times. Like on my walk to work this morning, so I thought I'd share.



Isn't it amazing? Does anyone have a card catalogue lying around they'd like to give me?

Weekend in pictures

{the rainbow cake, completed}

{hudson river park}

{glasses, park, people}

{invasion of the giant moths}

{st. george's}

{groom's cake practice}

I think I may have "accidentally" ingested a pound of confectioner's sugar this weekend. It started with frosting (and sampling...) the rainbow cake on Friday, and continued when I did a trial run for a groom's cake I'm making for an upcoming wedding. Besides my sugar overload, I did some reading outside, then went back inside for most of the weekend to bake and frost two giant cakes. I hope your weekend was lovely...and maybe not quite so sugar-ful!