Wishlist.

This dress by Stella McCartney is lovely!

Nick Van Woert.

Nick Van Woert. Born in Reno, Nevada 1979, curently Lives in Brooklyn, NY.

A Seattle Q & A with Amber Murray.

Amber Renee Murray

Designer, Free Time Industries

See her work here and blog here.





This is my newest blog feature "A Seattle Q & A." Being born and raised in Seattle, I've come to meet a lot of stylish and unique people, who do a lot of cool things, so I thought I'd ask them some questions.



1. What trait(s) or characteristic(s) do you get from your grandparents?

I get my square jaw and love of jokes and three card poker from my Grum.



2. What's the best part about living in the Seattle?

Easy access to both city and nature.



3. What do you always carry with you?

Chapstick, sketchbook, and the

embroidered turtle Kate Bailey got me in Mexico that lives in the pocket of my Pendleton Coat.



4. If you could have dinner with any deceased author, who and why? Linda Goodman, so she could do my charts.



5. Worst food indulgence? (the more secretive the better).

It is no secret that the tres leches cake at Senior Moose is the best thing to happen to Ballard.



6. If Obama were coming to your house for dinner, you would prepare your famous __________. (Include your recipe if you want!)

Pepper Lime Popcorn: Air popped corn Nutritional Yeast Salt and Pepper Lime juice Melted butter or warn olive oil (and Achar if you want more spice). Put it in a bowl, shake it up, and serve! Yum.



7. If you had to make rules (like Fight Club), what would rule #1 always be?

Remember that everyone could use a little kindness.



8. No one knows _______________ about me. (fill in the blank). Make it as serious as you want to.

The most common song that gets stuck in my head is "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head" written by Hal David and Burt Bacharach for for the 1969 film Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.



9. Is the Seattle freeze fictitious? How do you know?

It is alive and well. It happens all the time! Just shrug it off, they might not pretend like they don't know you next time.



10. Where is the best place to eat dinner?

My kitchen ... as long as my boyfriend is cooking.

Thanks Amber!

The Safety Cape

cape, thrifted/ jeggings from greenhills/ pumps from SM Parisian (again! <3)

I got this cape from way back. I just haven't used it untill today. I love that it gives me a feeling that I am safe in it hence the title. I love the sheer fabric and the floral print makes it all the more of a gift from heaven that it already is.

The whole moving thing has been a challenge to me, I'm sure I have mentioned that so many times from my previous posts. But above all, I am truly very happy that I finally did it. Now I am actually working to keep a roof over my head and to bring food to my own table and It feels so great to have that big of a reason why you do things. This whole experience taught me a lot - considering the fact that I haven't even reached a month yet. It made me value what I have and it taught me how to prioritize and be patient. On top of that, it also made me somehow become even closer to my family. How ironic is that? I now stay online longer than usual to chat with my parents, I make time to hangout with my sisters and beloved nephews on weekends and I get to save up on chat over coffee too because I can just invite friends over! heeh!

There's so much to look forward to this year and as I watch January leave, I look forward to seeing more plans materializing this February. All is not peaches and perfection but right now I can say that there's little else to ask for.

Cheers to all independent women out there! =)

Ciao for now!

Weekend.

This weekend was almost entirely spent with "Free Time Industries," which included a sleep-over, good food, productivity, and lots of fun. Andrew and I also discovered some decent hardwood, as well as tiled flooring under our hideous linoleum kitchen floor. We'll probably rip up the tiling and run with the hardwoods (because the tiles are in rough shape), but for now we think they're pretty cool. We still have more nails and things to take out before we can even sweep or mop it, but I included some in-progress shots of it anyway. (Hope you had a lovely weekend as well)! -n

My name is Aie

I have been getting questions on how to pronounce "Aie". For those of you who doesn't know my real name is Althea Mina, nick name- Aie . I also don't know how my parents came up with the nick and that weird spelling. I asked once and they said it was my great grand mother's idea. The other time I raised this question, they said it was my first word. Whatever the reason is I am very much used to be called Aie. Some people call me Thea which actually takes about 3 seconds for me to realize they are talking to me. lol!

Here are some photos taken from the garage where I live now. I didn't shoot inside the house because you'll see nothing but blank walls. I hope you like it! =)







swin suit worn as a top from f&h/ thrifted skirt/ shoes from SM Parisian/ necklace from SM/ belt from Terranova

I'm off to hangout with Allan and his officemates! =) Enjoy your Friday night loves! Be safe!

x0x0

Girl Crush.

My friend Kyle Johnson told me about photographer Vivian Maier who took pictures from 1960-1990's. Her work was discovered at an auction and included over 100,000 negatives, thousands of prints, and mostly undeveloped rolls of film. The person who bought them is currently developing the rolls, read more about it here, or donate to the kickstarter fund for a documentary on her here.

Lunch/Dinner and Design Revolution.

I usually do these posts when I have a very busy week and barely have any time to sleep, so here it is, my lunch and dinner. Trout dinner was of course by Andrew (you're the best)! I do have a little something though, I attended a really great event tonight held by Teague to see Emily Pilloton speak about 'Project H Design," it was extremely inspiring and she is not only amazing but extremely well-spoken. My attention was held the entire time. So, here is her new book "Design Revolution," check it out.

Busy bee

I haven't been posting outfit photos lately because I have been busy moving. I was supposed to go out and take photos last week but lo and behold I was down with a flu for a week. But thanks to your sweet comments I'm all good now. I promise to make it up to you all! =)

Allan took this using his phone while we were lounging in Jacksloft. It was too dark there so please forgive the blurry photo.

I know I am taking too long to finish fixing everything in my place. I wish I had all the money in the world to buy everything that catches my eye in the furniture stores. I haven't shopped for clothes or shoes lately. I have been around DIY stores, Japan home, Ace hardware, SM homeworld, and home depot. It's surprising how I actually enjoy looking around places like these. I can stay there for hours! I swear designing a small place is never easy!!! But I am still very very excited to dress it up!

This weekend is going to be interesting because my sister is going to bring me to Dapitan. She said they offer a lot of good stuff there. Fingers crossed!

Oh by the way I might have to give up some clothes by selling them here so please watch out for that. I have yet to decide which ones. Sad! =( I'll keep you posted for sure.

A Seattle Q & A with Laura Cassidy.

Laura Cassidy

Style Editor, Seattle Met

Editor in Chief, Seattle Met Bride & Groom

See her work here and blog here.





I'm introducing my newest blog feature "A Seattle Q & A." Being born and raised in Seattle, I've come to meet a lot of stylish and unique people, who do a lot of cool things, so I thought I'd ask them some questions.



1. What trait(s) or characteristic(s) do you get from your grandparents?

My mom's mom, Eileen, was an over-accessorizer. I am really happy and really proud to say that I inherited the gene. I also inherited a lot of her jewelry, as well as some really beautiful and meaningful pieces that belonged to my husband's grandmothers, Jane and Marie.



2. What's the best part about living in Seattle?

Aside from the saltwater, evergreens, and mountain tops, the smallness of it. I love making new friends and finding out that you already know eight or nine people in common. I like that if you care to, you can really know and understand an entire community. And if you want them to, the community can know and understand you.



3. What do you always carry with you?

As of last week: a pair of clear, rectangular cat-eye Prada sunglasses. They're epic.



4. If you could have dinner with any deceased author, who and why?

Carson McCullers, because she was delicate but tough, simple but revolutionary, timely and timeless.



5. Worst food indulgence? (the more secretive the better).

Sour cream + Mrs. Grass brand onion soup mix + Wavy Lays = I'm not proud of it.



6. If Obama were coming to your house for dinner, you would prepare your famous __________. (Include your recipe if you want!)

If Obama were due at my house, I'd lock the door, turn off the porch light, and let the most unwelcoming Throbbing Gristle record bleed out through the windows at full volume. Liars, crooks, and fakers are not welcome in my home.



7. If you had to make rules (like Fight Club), what would rule #1 always be?

Tell yourself the truth.



8. No one knows _______________ about me. (fill in the blank). Make it as serious as you want to.

No one knows about my imaginary friends.



9. Is the Seattle freeze fictitious? How do you know?

I think it's hard to move to a new city no matter what the city is. I think many people are afraid of relationships, I think some people are intimidated by directness, and I think that often, in this world of 60-hour work weeks and constant tethering to information and communication, it's hard enough to carry on existing relationships let alone forge new ones. I am more weirded out by women who vibe out other women and succumb to sensing competition rather than embracing sisterhood. And most of all I am bummed out by people who judge and shut out others based on their appearance and/or their perceived social standing, intelligence, or status.



10. Where is the best place to eat dinner?

My backyard. The old wrought iron table pulled into the evening sun, Jane and Marie's tableclothes and Eileen's dishes (filled with meals that contain ingredients from the nearby garden), a stack of LPs, and some new and old friends.





Thanks Laura!

Mark Weaver.

Mark Weaver, born 1981 in Winchester, Massachusetts, is a designer & illustrator who currently lives in Atlanta, Georgia. See more of his work here.

Weekend.

This weekend went by really fast. On Friday, Andrew got his 64 Chrysler New Yorker back that he owned when I first met him about 9 years ago. A few years later, he ended up selling it to a friend of a friend, who luckily, just sold it back to us! It wasn't even mine, but I associate a lot of great memories with it, so it's really special to have it back in our lives. Saturday was a combination of walking on the beach, renovating the Free Time Studio, and spending the evening at home, which is my favorite kind of evening. Andrew bought bay/sea scallops, prawns, clams, mussels, and fish from Uwajimaya and made us some delicious appetizers and seafood cioppino, which was complimented by some fine wine and movie watching. Some other highlights were making cookies with my mom, singing my baby nephew to sleep, and seeing friends and family. Hope you had a lovely weekend as well! Love, -naomi