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Sunday, December 11, 2011

Chicago Dibs

What do you do when you've spent three hours shoveling your car out of the snow and want to make sure no one swoops in on your spot while you're at the store? Check out Chicago Dibs for some practical and hilarious solutions for navigating the snowy turfwars this winter.

[image via Chicago Dibs

Friday, April 1, 2011

Off to Ohio

Have a fab weekend! I'm off to Ohio to check #27 off the list. [image: The Satorialist]

Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Mercury Rising

Photo Courtesy of NASA/Johns Hopkins University/Carnegie Institution of Washington
NASA released an image of Mercury on Tuesday by its Messenger probe. Hmmm. It looks just like the moon.

Thursday, March 24, 2011

A Beach Blanket with a Cause

It seems I've developed a homing device for woven blankets these days. How about this lovely sarong for a beach blanket?

Each sarong purchased funds one Kenyan child's school fees for a day. Doing good is so fashionable.

[image: Kikoy4Kenya]

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

NB's Chicago Condo on the Market

I just saw this photo of one of Nate Berkus's many Chicago condos and my heart went "AHHH!!!! This is AWESOME!"

This particular property is in the Gold Coast and is selling for $2.45M. View the whole condo here.

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Reuters Editor's Choice - Japan

The above image is among the lastest shots of the tsunami wreckage in Japan. Poignant. Still. Sad.

[image: REUTERS/Damir Sagolj]

Sunday, March 20, 2011

30 under 30


Since turning 28 this September, I've compiled a list of 30 things that I'd like to do before turning the big 3-0 in 2012. I'm determined to enter the bland, yet mysterious realm of the thirties* with a fantastical fanfare. It is my twenties bucket list, essentially. Only I'm not calling it that because I never really liked the term "bucket list," and the movie never really appealed to me.


I've grappled for months about making this list public. However, I've decided it's fun, and posting this to TAS will help keep me on track. Not only that, but I'm hoping there are some even GRANDER ideas out there just waiting to be shared.

So here we go...

  1. Learn French

  2. Sell something on my website

  3. Grow savings after banking an eight month emergency fund

  4. Develop a yoga routine/belong to a yoga studio

  5. Host another murder mystery party

  6. Own a car

  7. Visit Europe - develop a plan to LIVE in Europe

  8. Finish Anna Karenina

  9. Get eyelash extensions

  10. Own a nice piece of jewelry

  11. Enroll in a college course

  12. Read at least 25 of the 100 Best Novels (Modern Library)

  13. Make Julia Child's Boeuf Borguignon (perfectly)

  14. Pacific Northwest Wine Country

  15. Have a good bed

  16. Maintain healthy weight and diet (portion control)

  17. Paint a Self Portrait

  18. Eat dinner at Blackbird

  19. Go camping in Door County

  20. Write a short story

  21. Refurbish a piece of furniture

  22. Goodman Theater

  23. Keep a rosemary plant alive and happy

  24. Have an enviable spred at Ravinia, an outdoor music venue north of Chicago

  25. Take tennis lessons - become a tennis pro

  26. Successfully meditate

  27. See one of my little brother Robby's lacrosse games before he graduates high school

  28. Batique some pillows

  29. Visit my grandma in Gettysburg, PA, by train

  30. Chicago New Years - go somewhere awesome
*Writer's note: I have plenty of friends who are doing just fine in their thirties, so it should be okay. [image]

Thursday, March 17, 2011

Happy St. Patrick's Day!


I have been waiting six months to use this picture! It's too bad I don't remember where I got it from. Oh well. I hope everyone has a fantastic day!

[image: unknown]

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Lakeview gets a Facelift with LAMP


Yesterday, Special Service Area 27 and the Lakeview Chamber of Commerce unveiled the Lakeview Area Master Plan. LAMP focuses primarily on the areas between Southport Corridor and Roscoe Village, and plans to further enhance the areas' work/live/play atmosphere with more green common spaces and farmers' markets. I've included some renderings of the plans, designed by Moss Design, a sustainable architecture firm in Chicago, but you can see the full scale of the project here.

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

A Birthday Trip in Raleigh


My sister just moved to Raleigh, North Carolina, for a teaching position. She's now living in her first big-kid apartment, aside from the housing at The University of Dayton, so she's fairly excited to get her place shaped up just the way she likes it. She's chosen a solid color scheme - gray and white with splashes of red (I am guessing my mom's penchant for warm clay tones had something to do with this).

Claire's birthday is on the 27th, and I've been all over Chicago searching for the perfect gift for our newly christened southern girl. But, I needn't have looked any farther than Furbish Studio, the shop behind one of my favorite blogs I Suwannee.

Furbish Studio is in Raleigh, so Claire can just pop right over there and pick up the adorable spot coasters I've reserved for her. Not only will they look marvelous in her new apartment, but she'll get to check out the shop and explore her new city!

Furbish saves the day. :)

[image: Furbish Studio]

Monday, March 14, 2011

A Looming Obsession



My search for the perfect rug has indirectly spawned a weaving obsession.

I imagine that after a few classes and a table loom of my very own, I could be churning out beautiful handmade crafts similar to West Elm's Hammam Stripe Hand Towels and Ikea's Renate Rug.

Before committing to a table loom like the one above (no small investment), I think I'll be checking out The Chicago Weaving School, which offers 4-, 8-, and 12-week classes, as well as drop in classes for $30 per class, or $100 for a bundle of four classes.

Sunday, February 27, 2011

Saturday, February 26, 2011

Color Inspiration at The Art Institute of Chicago

Amadeo de Souza Cardoso (Portuguese, 1887-1918)
The Leap of the Rabbit, 1911
Oil on Canvas
Arthur Jerome Eddy Memorial Collection, 1931.514
The Art Institute of Chicago

James McNeill Whistler (American, 1834-1903)
Green and Blue: The Dancer, c. 1893
Transparent and opaque watercolor, over traces of black chalk, on brown wove paper, laid down on card, 275x183 mm
Restricted Gift of Dr. William D. Shorey; through prior acquisitions of the Charles Deering Collection and through prior beqeust of Mrs. Gordon Palmer, 1988.219
The Art Institute of Chicago

Monday, February 21, 2011

Calm, Cool and Collected: A Home Tour


Design*Sponge posted a fantastically drool-worthy home tour today that you will absolutely need to check out. Here.

Rhubarb Soda


[image: D. Erin]