Ingesture

Work has been keeping me busy so I'll be back with a 30 for 30 update tomorrow! In the meantime, here is a peek at the Bachelor of Fine Arts exhibition Ingesture at the Central Michigan University Art Gallery on November 20, 2010.
My friend, Margaret (Megan) Mcwhirter along with Taro Takizawa and Seth Sutton showcased their work and presented a little speech about their journey towards their degree. Unfortunately, I did not get any of Seth's work, but below is Megan's "Blue" which I got to help stick to the ground so no one would kick them over on accident. I was so nervous to touch them, especially if they would clink together when I set them down - Eep!

The prints below are done in woodblock by Taro Takizawa. The house highlighted on the left is his house; in his speech he told us he based it off a picture of his street back home in Japan. I'm in luuuurve!

And this, my friends, is Tenmoku. Megan and her boyfriend adopted the second cutest (Of course Adelaide is number one) kitten and the best part is - she has thumbs! Known as Ploy dactyl or my favorite, Hemingway, cats, they have an extra digit which makes it look like they are wearing mittens. She is a Michigander for sure!

She decided to help me pack and I decided that maybe I shouldn't pack her away in the suitcase. I might not have given it a second thought had I not been gushing over with pride after seeing Megan and all of her hard work at the gallery the day before.

Congratulations again, Megan!

Happy (belated) Thanksgiving!

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday because I know I did! It was great to catch up with both my and H.M.'s families and get a whole 4 days to relax. Before we get back into the daily grind groove, here is a recap of my holiday weekend:

 On Wednesday night, H.M. and I hung out with old friends in their new apartment in Midtown instead of going to the bars. This also gave us the chance to get a sneak peek of the Detroit Thanksgiving Day Parade floats that we lined up along Woodward. I could hardly sleep with the anticipation of going to the parade in the morning!

This year, H.M. and I went with our friends Kenny, Amy and Eric. The parade was great and I got to watch the cow jump over the moon and a bunch of other beloved floats, bands, teams and balloons...and of course, Santa! While I didn't get a picture in front of Santa like last year, Amy and I did get blasted with streamers from the Detroit News' float!

 (Shhhhh I threw on whatever I could find to stay warm...I wore my 30 for 30 gear to dinner, no worries!)

Thank you, Kenny, for immortalizing our streamer fun!

Thank you to my sister, Holly, for taking this in her (and Jillian's) wacky watermelon room! I decided not to wear shoes that day because, hey, I'm at home! I was hardcore enough to at least wear my ballet flats in the car and into the house just for the sake of preserving my tights! According to some of my family, I looked like one sassy pilgrim...

Another big thank you to my other sister, Jillian, for taking this picture on my parents from porch. In her PJ's. What a trooper! This is also me without make-up or a hair dryer. I come from a family or curls and all I got was a kink! Oh well, I was too excited to head from Fowlerville with my family to Oscoda for H.M.'s family and Part II of Thanksgiving.

Of course, a BIG thank you to Nick, H.M.'s little (andisweartogodidentical) brother, for taking a picture with me near the train tracks. On the way back, he collected quite a few pieces of gypsum and rail ties...no worries, the ties were off to the side already!

Phew! Home again! Time to unpack and try to relax before Manic Monday! I missed my baby kitteh, Adelaide, and she has been talking up a storm since we got home (and as I type this). Looks like I'll call it a night!

Knock, knock!

Is anybody there?!

I am really glad I had the forethought to schedule some posts while I was in Mt. Pleasant last weekend because as you can tell, I got a little behind on the outfit posts. And so, without further ado:

There was so much to do last weekend, the picture above was taken in the gallery office after I arrived in Mt. Pleasant and got a sneak peek of the show...

And Megan's Mom got a great picture of us at the gallery together, but alas, I have yet to get my hands on it so I had Jordan re-enacted the outfit once I got home. Along with one of Megan's vases of course!

I was excited to see Adelaide when I arrived home on Sunday afternoon, especially after meeting Megan's adorable kitten, Tenmoku! I'll post more pictures of the actual event during the holiday weekend.

On Monday, I was in a bit of a panic as I hadn't had time to do any laundry so I decided to wear my mini skirt seen here and here as a shirt under my sweater. I was rather impressed with my last minute fix on the sweater once I noticed it was missing a button too - it made a perfect belt loop.  Even my Mother approved when I showed her at work!

Tonight we are visiting friends that moved into a new apartment near campus so I will post todays outfit later. Probably not going out to the bars this year, but we always manage to have fun! Tomorrow after we go to Detroit's Thanksgiving Day Parade, we are heading to my parent's near Lansing and on Friday we are off to Oscoda for the rest of the weekend to spend time with H.M.'s family.

What are your Thanksgiving plans? Are you staying home or traveling?

Happy (Early) Thanksgiving to you and yours!

All Bundled Up

I am just full of bad puns this weekend!

On days when I do not have time to dry my hair, I have used this little 'do to help me get out the door and also to give me the option for a a style with a bit more texture on Day 2!

I got the idea from Jason Wu's Fall line but decided to add an asymmetrical part and then twist the front parts of my hair because I am still in the process of growing out my bangs. The next day, I have curls that transition into waves and however odd that may sound, I love it.

Want to give it a whirl? Click here.



Nutty for Nutella

Last weekend when H.M. and I went to Eastern Market, we decided to mix it up a bit. The fog was just starting to clear as our friend Kenny came over to join us on our weekly adventure. Just as the sun began to clear away the fog, he was able to grab a shot or two.

You can see more of his work here. He does amazing work! For Halloween I dressed up as his twin in what I consider to be his Standard Issue.

But I digress...

Before heading home, we stopped in Rocky's for some snacks. Kenny picked up some Baba Ganoush and sun-dried tomato Crostini while I decide to finally buy Nutella. If you have not yet had the pleasure of experiencing Nutella, it is beautiful spread that combines hazelnut and milk chocolate. Pricer than Jif, I think it is totally worth it, especially after what I whipped up on Wednesday!

I made Hazelnut Croissants in the morning before work with a cylinder of ready made croissant dough, Nutella and a couple spices I found in the cupboard. First, I preheated the oven to 325 as directed on the packaging. After popping open the cylinder (my favorite part!) and unrolling the croissants, I spread the Nutella over each triangle and sprinkled some Cardamom, Cinnamon and Cloves on top. Then I rolled them up and put those bad boys in the oven for 10 minutes. While I waited for them to cool, I decided to go dry my hair.

That was my mistake.

Next thing I know H.M. was not only awake, but had already eaten 3! Luckily, I was able to snag some in a baggie to eat with my coffee once I got to work. They still tasted like heaven the next day! I don't know how they would have tasted on Day 3 though because by then, they were all gone!

I think next time I will try them with crushed walnuts inside too! Do you have a favorite morning pastry? Do you make it yourself or pick it up?

The Balancing Act

I don't know about you, but I am entirely ready for Thanksgiving! I would venture to say that it is my favorite holiday of all. It combines a lot of my favorites: Fall, Food and Family!

Sorry. I am a total cheeseball!

As I write this, I am counting the days until I get to eat yummy Thanksgiving treats, visit both my and H.M.'s families and not have to worry about work or school for a few days. I would make a paper chain, but considering I will not be home this weekend it hardly seems worth it.

Side story: Before I left for India, H.M. made a paper chain to count down the days until I got home and when he picked me up from the airport, he gave me the last piece. I still have that piece.

 I will be the first person to admit to being awkward, but I am going to have to work on this pidgeon-toed stance I have going on! We'll see how long that lasts!

On Wednesday I dontated blood and in return, my work gave us Panera gift cards and a set of stemless wine glasses! I was going to donate any way, but I suppose it is rather nice of my work to provide incentives to help save lives for those who need a little extra coaxing (apparently not all people like to give blood?!).

And lastly, I leave you with a toast to the beginning of a great weekend! Here, I have the beginnings of a Whiskey Sour...Yum! And yes, I am cheating and using a mixer...it's been quite a week!

P.S. Believe it or not, I will have posts up this weekend while I am at my girlfriends exhibit in Mt. Pleasant. Hope it's a great one!

...And Then I Don't Feel so Bad!

Hello friends!

Tonight I am going to make it short and sweet as it is getting pretty late on this lovely, cloudy Sunday. But first, Day 7!

Thank you to everyone who has fallen in love with our record collection (and lovely blue wall) - we actually still listen to the 45's on the wall so it is a double bonus!

As far as an outfit post for today, I needed to work on my car a bit today in preparation for my trip to Mt. Pleasant at the end of this week so I decided that I would "skip" today. I only use parentheses because technically I got a little overzealous and started remixing on Saturday so I have been a day ahead of everyone. And that was driving me a little crazy. So this is what I wore today and a quick overview of my favorite things that just so happen to make an appearance!

a. Bruce the Moose: However silly, this stuffed animal has always been the perfect pillow or just flat out snuggle buddy. He never complains about being little spoon or if I am hogging all of the covers!

b. Steamer trunk: My favorite thrift store find! I discovered this when I was in Fowlerville visiting family and used it as a coffee table in my first apartment and now a bedside table. I think it adds character and is great for hiding extra blankets for impromptu sleepovers.

c. The Clash Tee: This is actually H.M.'s shirt. He was the one that really got my into The Clash and Joe Strummer (who I adore) so I took it upon myself to make it my own and incorporate it it my wardrobe...although I did decide to leave it out of my remix this time...

d. Adelaide: I rescued her from an animal rescue group who were participating in an event at the Detroit Zoo for "Meet Your New Best Friend Day". H.M. and I originally went with a friend who was looking for a dog to adopt and we had to come back the next day because I just couldn't leave without her!

e. Elephant Comforter: I bought this at Dilli Haat when I was working in India. I loved going to the marketplace and bargaining with the different stall owners. Elephants are one of my favorite animals and it reminds me of all the good times and good friends I had while in India.

Ok. Well that turned out longer than I expected (Surprise!). I hope you all have a great week!