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Design Your Life

Positive and Inspiring Blog Articles You Should Read

05/22/2010

These are some delicious articles to inspire you to live positively and enjoy what’s really important.

Often times I’m asked what’s really important to me in my life. I would have to say love and relationships, art and design. What about you?

Ten Things You Should Already Know By Now

“What’s important today won’t matter tomorrow.”

Things I Love Thursday

“Do you like New York?”
“Yes. It’s my favourite kind of planet.”

Get Confident

“When I meet someone with quiet, real confidence, I can feel it from about a block away. Their confidence does not intimidate, but inspires.

Handbook for Life

Now, is there any handbook that can be a guide to every single person? Of course not. This is just a list of tips that I think will help many people in life — some of them common-sense tips that we often forget about. Consider this guide a reminder. (ZenHabits)

Inspiring Offices

Whether you work at home or in an office, you can surely take some of these delicious designs to your own personal space. My environment affects my mood quite a lot — making sure it’s comfortable and clean is always inspiring!

tbwa2

Get Motivated When You’re in a Slump

“Recognize negative self-talk, which is really what’s causing your slump.”

Artist & Designer Features Visual Splendor

Ordering Food on Etsy: Little Oven Bakery in NYC

05/17/2010

ready to openOrder food from etsy? What? Have you thought about it?

Recently my curiosity got the best of me (as if often does) and I wondered if people really ordered food off of etsy.. Upon asking on twitter, I found that a lot of friends and readers a like have been wondering the same.

Thus, this article is born and I get an excuse to support an adorable macaron bakery AND munch on the cookies. (win/win!)

I decided to order a set of macarons from Little Oven Bakery in New York City. They offer macaron packages on Etsy and I was smitten enough to try one!

The macarons arrived fast, within a day, and were packed up so nice that they had hardly crumbled at all. I was absolutely surprised and excited to be receiving one of my favorite decadent snacks in the mail. I couldn’t believe how well they traveled.

I tasted them with my husband — we split each macaron in half and saved the second box for later (tea time).

The Flavors I ordered were Raspberry, Caramel Fleur de Sel and Meyer Lemon. We absolutely adored the raspberry with chocolate creme, the caramel being a close second and in third the lemon. I prefer a more tart lemon so it was silly to order it as a sweet macaron, however we enjoyed eating each and every one of them.

Nice crunch on the outside with a soft macaron cookie center surrounded by a complementary creme. Creme desserts are absolutely a preference of mine and these were just as delicious as having them in a French cafe with tea. Not as beautiful of course, but macarons carry a special beauty with them no matter where they are and they please everyone they meet.

safe traveling
yumyum
stack em high

Interested in getting your shop reviewed here? Let us know all about it!

Artist & Designer Features Self Decoration

Gala Darling the De-luxe Blogger

11/03/2009

Gala is a delectable dame with an even more amazing (if that’s possible) message! She’s a fashion icon, blogger and international playgirl. We happen to live by the same sort of mantras and for the same purposes so it happened that we instantly clicked and that she would love to chill with Miseducated and let us in on her own creativity and inspirations in life. Come along for the ride!

gala3s

Where do you get your clothing inspiration?gala3s
It comes to me from all kinds of places. Haute couture, street fashion, movie stars & guttersnipes all provide their own unique perspectives & I love to put them all together in a big mish-mash. I have to say though, I don’t often imitate things I’ve seen — the majority of my looks, for better or for ill, are things that come from my imagination, or just from standing in front of my closet & pairing things up.

I think the best looks are unpredictable & a little bit “off” — I don’t relish being appropriate or fitting in. Actually, this morning my boyfriend & I went out for brunch & when he saw what I was wearing, he just laughed — a headband with a huge flower & some netting on top, a shredded black knit sweater, a leather miniskirt, engineer boots & a hooded black faux fur coat. All to go out & eat strawberry pancakes. But I think life is for living, & if you don’t dress up, you’re missing out!

Any cute and quick DIY tips for readers?
I’m not a big DIY’er, actually. I have never been very “crafty”, I don’t know how to knit & I don’t make doilies or tea-cozies or mittens for dogs. I’m just not very clever that way & a lot of people are, so I would prefer to pay them to do a good job! If I DIY anything, it’s really simple — like I’ll take a Hallmark bow (the kind you would put on a gift) & stick it to a headband, or wear pearls around my ankles or something. I like doing the kind of thing that takes three seconds & doesn’t require much more than a safety pin or some double-sided tape…

Where do you find inspirations from the world around? What really inspires you to work?
A. I have always been compelled to write, which I guess makes me lucky. I know a lot of people want to be writers but can’t seem to muster the enthusiasm to carry on — I really think you either HAVE TO write or you don’t, & if you don’t HAVE TO, you’ll never really improve. Even when I was a kid I wrote all the time, I would write short stories on my lunch-breaks when I worked at awful jobs (like selling advertising for newspapers or when I sold home loans & term deposits in a bank), I always have paper on me so I can make notes when I’m in Wholefoods or whatever. So the compulsion, the need, the madness, that’s what inspires me to work. Even if I shut down my website tomorrow, I’d still be writing. I do it for the love, not because I need to make a buck. I think that makes all the difference.

Do you carry your work into your home (can we see???)? Do you find it creeping into other endeavors you take on?
Absolutely. This probably sounds super-pretentious but I think people’s lives are their art. You know, even if you’re a rad sculptress or an incredible mechanic, the WAY you live your life is still the most defining thing about you. I like to bring beauty into everything I do, because that’s how I am, I am obsessed with love & beauty & deliciousness, so yes, it more than creeps in!

gala3s

When moving somewhere new, what’s the first place you have to set up?
Funny you should say that because I just moved in with my boyfriend! The first things I set up anywhere are always my work space & my wardrobe. They are kind of one & the same a lot of the time. My new office also has my huge closet in it, & all my accessories, etc., merchandised like mad & displayed all over the place. I have my favourite pair of shoes (Alexander McQueen) on the windowsill, a purple glitter skull wearing sequinned Mickey Mouse ears on my desk & two bulletin boards propped against the wall waiting for pictures, clippings, photobooth strips.

Your favorite 3 stops:
New York City is my #1 lover. No other city even comes close. But I love Paris, Los Angeles, Austin, Las Vegas, Berlin & Amsterdam a whole lot too. Sorry, I can’t boil it down to 3 & I refuse to cut the others out!

What scent of incense would you prefer in your home? (feel free to create-your-own)
I used to burn Nag Champa obsessively when I lived in New Zealand & I still like the smell of it, but these days I am more into scented candles & essential oils. I really love jasmine, vanilla, rose & ylang ylang.

What hobby are you into lately?
Getting cozy with my lover, RSVP’ing to ridiculous events & taking my partner-in-crime/photographer with me, & thinking about interior design constantly.

What is your lifestyle mantra?
More magic all the time.

3 things you can’t live without right now:
1. My boyfriend, known colloquially as The Dish. He is such great company, he’s totally authentic & he is so effing cute, I want to jump his bones all the time!
2. My new-to-me vintage faux fur coat. It is big & fluffy & the perfect length. I wear it almost every day & cannot get enough of it.
3. My Moleskine daily planner. I am a total organization geek. It is incurable but I love it.

What are your next plans and goals? Give us an indirect sneak peek, if you’d like!
Oh but that would be telling! Sorry, I can’t. Suffice to say, you will not be disappointed!

What’s so great about today? .. and what do you do to prepare for tomorrow? How do you make sure each day counts?
Strawberry pancakes with my boyfriend; rad conversations; The Dish singing songs he makes up about me; cuddling with the dog; organizing my office even more; planning my social calendar for the next week (photoshoots & fashion shows & working out at the haunted mansion), etc. etc. etc.

Tomorrow I’m going to sit at my brand new desk & listen to some good tunes & write, write, write. I will probably make a coffee run in the morning & then hole up & be as productive as possible!

I make sure each day counts by always focusing on the positive. It’s really easy to get bogged down when you’re thinking about a bill that needs to be paid, or the argument you had with your friend, or the jeans that don’t fit, or whatever — life is full of challenges but you get what you focus on. So keep your eyes to the skies, be grateful for what you have, express love in as many ways as you can, & work to create a life that makes you truly happy.

Do you find your work taking time away from other hobbies and interests? Or is it your all-consuming passion?
I used to talk about how I worked 24/7, & I still do, but it is much more intense now. I used to have time to go shopping all the time, or kick back & read a book, or whatever — that kind of thing is pretty rare these days. I’ve taken on more obligations & while I love them, it certainly does suck up my free time. It has always been this way though, just to a lesser degree. Thankfully it IS my all-consuming passion & there aren’t many things I would rather be doing!

How do you prefer your environment to look?
Colourful, exciting, invigorating. Actually “colourful” might be a misnomer. I like a simple, clean palette (like black & white) with bright pops of colour — does that count as colourful? I don’t know. Aaaaanyway, my room has white walls (which I love) & I bought an indigo desk to go in the middle. I want to paint one wall with blackboard paint — maybe in vertical stripes? — & there are going to be sparkly or high-gloss accoutrements everywhere. I love a simple or plain canvas with ornate madness placed among it. That is so my style.

Favorite music? and Why?
If I had to break it down, I’d say I listen to 60% hip-hop, 40% “other” — the other being a mix of electronic, singer-songwriter, indie rock, & uh, the unclassifiable! I love to mix it up, it’s not unusual for me to jump from Mobb Deep to Bauhaus to Tom Waits to The Legendary Pink Dots to Big L, & my iTunes is almost always on random. Hip-hop is really one of my one true loves, though — I find it hard to articulate how much I adore it.

Are you Miseducated? What makes you Miseducated? <3
Yes, absolutely! I’m miseducated because I don’t do what other people tell me to do, & I don’t follow conventional paths. I do what I feel on my own timeframe, & I am so much happier because of it!

Yes, absolutely! I’m miseducated because I don’t do what other people tell me to do, & I don’t follow conventional paths.

gala3s

.. and just in case you’re wondering, yes, her blog (iCiNG) is just as delectable as she is.

Design Your Life

Who’s That Girl? Anna of Branch and Birdie

04/22/2009

At 18 I ran as quickly as I could from my two stoplight town, to New York City where I dabbled in the fashion and modeling industry.

At 19 I tried out Los Angeles and motherhood all at once. Three years later my daughter and I headed back to the Big Apple in search of something more. What I did find was my soul mate, and we moved out West together to bask in a few of San Diego’s rays. Sunny yes! Creativity and culture? Not so much!

So a Medical Assistant Certification, a marriage and one more baby later my little family of four and I trudged to the rainy town of Portland, OR. Now at 25 years old here I am.

My life has already started, it’s in process and I knew I would not ever be content without creating and decorating.

I had always dreamed of having a little boutique full of local artist’s goods, but I never would have imagined that I would be able to become that local artist. I had sold some of my handmade jewelry in stores before, but did I have the motivation to start up my own empire? Then I discovered Etsy! Fantastic! Phenomenal! A mecca of beauty and vision! With a few click clicks on my computer keyboard, and some design help from my genius filmmaker husband (owner of Two Penguins Productions) I plunged forward and started up Branch and Birdie.

I find my inspiration in nature, scavenging through thrift stores and watching my daughters draw and play! As women we are being profiled from birth, directed to become the celestial being of beauty- but don’t you think that it’s time we take charge? Diaper in one hand, courage and confidence in the other? So good bye NYC glamour and hello PDX basement! I’ve traded my Louboutins in for a sewing machine, and couldn’t be happier.