windy grass

santa monica sunset

2009-07-27T13:03:00.001-05:00

i found these pictures of the sunset in santa monica, when we were in LA for my brother's graduation from USC. wonderful! i love those colors. especially the golds, greys, and blues in the second one.

same time of day

2009-07-27T12:59:00.001-05:00

two different pictures of the same time of day...i actually like that the moon looks like a blob. and that's your typical texas sunset as your driving down the interstate. love it. 'course the picture doesn't show how HUGE the sky actually is.

YUM

2009-07-27T12:58:00.002-05:00

squirrel attack!

2009-07-10T15:00:00.002-05:00

the other day i thought someone was breaking into my apartment, only to find that it was a very confused squirrel climbing up and down my window screen. he didn't want to jump down!

summer colors @ the city arts festival

2009-07-10T14:56:00.002-05:00

the city arts festival is a hot, hot day in dallas when all the art museums are free!

the DMA

[click to see full size]

bridge over lower courtyard at Crow Asian Art Collection

greeeeeen! green green green.

2009-05-26T21:08:00.000-05:00

i love the month of may.

colors of early summer

2009-05-26T20:57:00.004-05:00

smu: hundreds of photographic possibilities

graduation day at smu

2009-05-18T00:17:00.000-05:00

urban outfitters garage sale

2009-05-08T18:55:00.002-05:00

fun blue and yellow artwork on plywood, about 1' tall [$2]

old purple/gold wooden frame [$5]

off white/white wallpaper (anchored by Livy) [$1]

a gorgeous old mirrored tray - flaky medium blue paint [$2]

hello summer

2009-05-05T08:36:00.000-05:00

espejo

2009-05-05T08:34:00.002-05:00

i recently had two photos published on Espejo, the SMU literary website:

it's a really neat site, check it out!

landlocked oasis

2009-03-25T18:39:00.004-05:00

white rock lake is beautiful, even on a cold, windy day.

to die for blue

2009-03-17T11:49:00.003-05:00

some of the beautiful blues that filled the sky all day long in utah. it's a bit easier to carry around a 45lb. pack when you're surrounded by stunning skies. i would actually recommend clicking on these for a clearer view. not sure why blogger is giving these thumbnails low resolution.

details

2009-03-17T11:46:00.003-05:00

squirrel and cat paw prints, respectively.

the wild

2009-03-17T11:38:00.003-05:00

some of the flora in canyonlands national park, utah. almost everything is some shade of brown, and it takes a minute to really see that it is truly beautiful and actually very diverse. and, i think, calming in in monochromaticism and stunning in contrast to the blue, blue sky.

updates

2009-02-11T12:34:00.000-06:00

new spring masthead coming soon
regular postings have now resumed

sit

2009-02-11T12:32:00.000-06:00

expanding our minds at crooked tree

worn and beautiful

2009-02-11T12:28:00.002-06:00

"come to me for rest and refreshment. the journey has been too much for you and you are weary. do not be ashamed of your exhaustion. instead, see it as an opportunity for me to take charge of your life..."

the trials joys of winter

2009-02-11T12:24:00.000-06:00

january

sanctuary

2009-02-11T12:22:00.002-06:00

there is a reason i love old windows

a calm day

2009-02-11T12:18:00.002-06:00

theology library shining in the sun

the sky like a painting

just drive

2008-12-12T23:06:00.001-06:00

crooked tree

2008-11-03T18:25:00.001-06:00

...walking up to the tree

i was attempting to work on a paper about the nazi seizure of art, but was distracted by the fact that it's the day before election day...

what a cozy place.

red mug

2008-11-03T18:09:00.001-06:00

i spend a lot of time at the same place (crooked tree coffee house), so a lot of my pictures have been there lately. that's ok with me because i really love it there.

windows

2008-11-01T11:41:00.003-05:00

writing a paper and enjoying the fall day as reflected in my computer. thank god for peaceful days.

goats are a boy's best friend

2008-10-15T12:53:00.000-05:00

bahahahhahaha.

three views of the texas star

2008-10-15T12:34:00.001-05:00

my favorite is the last one

state fair animals

2008-10-15T12:25:00.002-05:00

elsie the borden cow... prettiest cow ever

i dub thee caterpillar goat

precious piglets. they were moving too fast to get a clear picture. but look how pink they are!

door decorations

2008-10-06T14:19:00.003-05:00

i thought to do military pin ups, but there weren't enough appropriate ones. so, instead, vintage posters from ww1 and ww2. the ribbons, of course, are my favorite part - took forever to tie with two together, but i love the way it turned out.

dallas zoo

2008-09-28T18:20:00.000-05:00

tie-dye party

2008-09-28T17:29:00.004-05:00

i had a tie-dye party for my residents, and it turned out to be a rousing success. they put their dyed shirts in baggies,

then i put them in them in the machine, dried them, and folded them.

they turned out to be so great! check out these bright colors!!!

i made the one above.

painted window

2008-09-22T09:52:00.001-05:00

an old window, painted and hung as art at crooked tree. sweet! this is such a good idea. the trick is that the paint is on the inside, so the dark pink and black had to be painted first...interesting. very pretty with the green walls.

water towers

2008-09-22T09:48:00.002-05:00

ferris.

palmer.

ennis.

fairfield.

a common sight in texas.

cruising

2008-09-16T09:53:00.002-05:00

luckily our campus is a hill, so when i'm coming back from class...weeeeee!

calm after the storm

2008-09-16T09:49:00.002-05:00

hurricane ike passed, leaving us with a beautiful early fall day on monday. our campus is best on days like these.

makes a monday worthwhile.

going 75 miles an hour

2008-09-06T16:29:00.000-05:00

asphalt and grass

summer sky

2008-09-06T16:21:00.001-05:00

above bridwell library

the steeple of perkins chapel

from the business school

houston in july

2008-08-06T23:03:00.003-05:00

a really cool optical illusion fountain at rice university (worth the click)

a fun-loving dog, also at rice

the williams tower and the water wall - 65 beautiful feet of water

williams tower - houston, tx

2008-08-06T22:56:00.001-05:00

there is just something about very tall buildings. luckily, it was a perfect houston day - cloudless and hot.

east texas

2008-07-21T22:45:00.002-05:00

scenes of a small town in east texas. it's beautiful, do you see that?

the coming evening

2008-07-21T18:25:00.002-05:00

the sun sets over the isis river. i wish i was there. it's a whole other universe, and a wholly different life.

when you give a 9-year-old a camera...

2008-07-17T11:17:00.002-05:00

...and drive through dallas, this is what you get:

not bad at all.

light

2008-07-17T11:09:00.003-05:00

ice skating at the plaza of the americas:

an optical illusion as the walls and windows reflect each other:

a thought

2008-07-05T17:20:00.003-05:00

a thought: who buys these items, and why? that top mammy looks suspiciously new. very questionable.

(all at the canton flea market)

what-a-melon

2008-07-05T17:12:00.001-05:00

two pictures that smack of summer. notice the three bees buzzing around the top of the flowering vine. it's cool what you'll find if you just look closely enough!

canton, texas

2008-07-04T23:04:00.003-05:00

i spent most of july 4th at the canton "first monday" flea market. walked about 6 miles around thousands of booths. it's just amazing what some people collect:

antique tools,

medicore fiction,

date nails (i got two, one from 1910 and one from 1926),

light switch covers,

and poultry.

there will be more on the finds of the day later - there were many. it was absolutely one of the most interesting things, ever.

summer eating

2008-07-04T22:54:00.004-05:00

a fresh summer meal.

ground beef with fresh cilantro, parsley, onions, garlic, red bell peppers, tomatoes, and banana peppers. skim milk. vanilla pudding with mango. yum.

fairfield, texas

2008-06-25T08:40:00.004-05:00

"The one thing that we yearn for in our living days, that makes us sigh and groan and undergo sweet nauseas of all kinds, is the remembrance of some lost bliss that was probably experienced in the womb and can only be reproduced (though we hate to admit it) in death. But who wants to die?"

- Jack Kerouac, On the Road

centerville, texas

2008-06-25T01:29:00.004-05:00

crowded at 9pm

friday night coffee and people-watching

(please click pictures to see actual size)

summer time

2008-06-15T11:08:00.002-05:00

twirling in the water. soaking in the sun.

murray st. coffee shop

2008-06-15T10:56:00.002-05:00

we discovered the sweetest little coffee shop, here where we live in deep ellum. the lighting, the artsy/scandinavian decor, the coffee, the *free wi-fi*... it's wonderful.

top picture: isn't it cool how my friend turned her mac into a picture frame? that right picture is real sepia...an old photo of her mom. foreground is my ever-present moleskine.

i live here

2008-06-09T18:48:00.001-05:00

a saturday in dallas, texas

dallas farmer's market

2008-06-08T13:46:00.001-05:00

drive

2008-06-07T17:00:00.003-05:00

the drive from houston to dallas was relaxing and beautiful.

i said hi to Sam Houston along the way.

flying home

2008-05-22T17:08:00.001-05:00

packing up

2008-05-22T16:36:00.006-05:00

leaving my beautiful room was a little sad, but i planned it well and it was actually a relaxing move.

i put my jewelry in an old film canister, bought for $1 at the annual arts school book sale.

i grabbed my favorite mint and honey sweet tea and sat on the quad...

and looked at the clouds.

a gust of wind

2008-04-30T22:36:00.003-05:00

(these are worth clicking on)

pairs

2008-04-30T22:28:00.002-05:00

i almost compulsively have to post two pictures at a time. but it seems a waste to not include the two, they both look at the same thing in two different ways, and i like them both. the scene and the detail. it is funny how you look at something you see every day so differently when it's in a photograph.

lately...

2008-04-30T22:24:00.002-05:00

... i've been reacquainting myself with an old friend,

and getting a wonderful package from a family friend in new orleans. it has been quite nice.

green

2008-04-30T22:11:00.004-05:00

there are some colors that have an immediate effect on me. green is one of them. there is this bright, bright green that happens only when the sun is hitting new leaves. i don't want to wear this green or live in a house painted this green. i just want to look really hard at it. it's so, so green. i love it so much.

love

2008-04-25T16:54:00.005-05:00

my print from emily at theblackapple came in! it's beautiful! the colors are warm and lovely. it was my first ever purchase from one of the blogs i read daily...very special, indeed.

i love getting mail.

hooray!

calling all sheep

2008-04-25T16:36:00.003-05:00

this art installation is so cute and surprising. the shapes are so realistic! more details here.

window shopping

2008-04-22T20:08:00.003-05:00

window shopping on the way to the Musee D'Orsay in paris, summer 2007

perspective

2008-04-22T20:00:00.002-05:00

just to show you how perspective changes everything, this statue of Jean D'Arc at the Musee D'Orsay is only 2 feet tall. cool, huh?

above and below

2008-04-19T20:24:00.001-05:00

lost!

2008-04-19T01:22:00.003-05:00

oh no!

awake tea

2008-04-17T18:37:00.004-05:00

i went to the only starbucks nearby that is open until midnight. around10:30 i really wanted some delicious warm tea, and reading the menu I asked if the "cozy" flavor made you tired. the adorable guy behind the counter said no, but it did make him feel cozy. no cozy for me! i needed to write. so i had a nice warm cup of "awake" flavor tea.

studying

2008-04-15T21:55:00.003-05:00

i study here. the sun is the best part. when you are studying inside and you feel like you're outside, that's awesome.

a corner

2008-04-15T15:35:00.003-05:00

this is where i sleep. it is very comfortable and all the colors go together, which makes me happy.

a monday

2008-04-15T02:42:00.006-05:00

it was sunny and cold. i wrote a paper and had snack time with a friend. thought about the future and tried to figure out the summer. all big things. here are some small things:

the solar panel in the science quad

ribbons on the boulevard

some teddy grahams that escaped from the circus and played on my laptop while i figured out philippians.

meet a friend

2008-04-13T23:56:00.003-05:00

the interesting thing about this bench is that it is about 5 inches taller than most so your feet swing even if you're tall. i wonder what that has to do with meeting a friend?

well that's helpful

2008-04-10T16:35:00.002-05:00

my favorite parking spot at my favorite starbucks. but you can only sit down for 30 seconds.

colors

2008-04-10T15:58:00.007-05:00

in the spring time everything is so green that you can't see it properly.

there are other colors, of course! these babies are cute:

and these neon tulips arrive every year and stay for three weeks.

it is a nice place.

oops

2008-03-31T10:30:00.001-05:00

A picture on Tuesday with an article about guidelines that New York State health
officials use to determine who should receive breathing machines called
ventilators during an epidemic was published in error. It showed a mask for
anesthesia, not a ventilator.

I thought this correction, in today's NY Times, was hilarious.

at home

2008-03-27T23:36:00.003-05:00

in houston

writing

2008-03-27T23:28:00.004-05:00

writing is therapeutic. i write in this journal, which i rescued from the sale table at urban outfitters almost a year ago. i always resist starting new journals because i love the stiff blank pages. but this one sat there staring at me with it's cool woven cover and sweet colors, so...now it's a little fuzzy from wear. that's what it gets.

beads

2008-03-27T23:18:00.004-05:00

from my dear friend karron. she said she knew i liked beads. i do, i love them! those round ones are a beautiful iridescent brown/gold. i thought it was creative how she picked these two to go together...i never would have thought of it. she got the same for herself, too!

they're from francesca's, a wonderful little boutique.

natural hair

2008-03-23T20:49:00.003-05:00

an ad for Wella Koleston Hair Care Naturals hair color, by Leo Burnett Beirut. the image is cut into the billboard to let the colors of the sea and sky show through. what an amazing idea...the colors are so different it looks like three different ads. it's beautiful!

via coolhunter

neon

2008-03-17T19:25:00.003-05:00

out the window of Rum Boogie, Beale St.
you can almost hear it humming. feels kind of lonely, doesn't it?

alabama's capital

2008-03-16T15:57:00.004-05:00

red and blue

2008-03-13T00:25:00.003-05:00

odds and ends

2008-03-12T23:48:00.005-05:00

i'm the girl that takes pictures of a water fountain when i visit MLK's church. but look, how cool! it's only two feet tall.

this is solid steel. a solid steel overly pruned tree. what is it and why is it in front of Dexter Ave. Baptist Church? we will never know.

and in New Orleans, many of these foot-wide disks were hanging in the window of a haberdashery. those eyes!

highway 80

2008-03-11T23:19:00.006-05:00

highway 80 is the long road between Selma and Montgomery, Alabama.

(they're really worth a click to see the larger image, especially the church- which was built in 1904)

to be remembered

2008-03-06T19:56:00.004-06:00

the Tomb of the Diver, found in Paestum, Italy. it's beautiful, the way he is perpetually suspended in midair like that, halfway to his destination. it's so...hopeful? serene and simple. i like it.

coffee

2008-03-06T19:48:00.001-06:00

coffee is my ~~anti~~ drug.

today at javalato.

texas

2008-03-05T23:38:00.005-06:00

texas is such a beautiful place to live. monday night it snowed.

and today was...this:

beautiful.

stairs and polka dots

2008-03-05T23:32:00.006-06:00

on the usc campus. look at how many bridges, stairs, and sidewalks there are in this picture, all going to different places and in different directions.

i love polka dots.

vote

2008-02-27T16:40:00.003-06:00

not a great picture, but i was so excited about mailing in my very first vote/ very first absentee ballot! yay. i hope the count clerk appreciates my beautiful stamp.

possum

2008-02-27T00:01:00.003-06:00

i saw a fat possum today walking along a fence in the middle of the day. then he crawled under a sidewalk and curled up. oh man it was so cute and cartoon looking with it's pink nose and fluffyness. silly possum, day time is your sleepy time!

william morris invades my life

2008-02-26T15:45:00.006-06:00

my second post ever on this blog has two pictures of my trip to the william morris house in the english countryside. it was one of the best places we visited. i still regret not getting anything at the gift shop. though, maybe not any more since just now i was reading design*sponge and read about these...

william morris journals in "persian"! and these...

william morris note cards in "clover"! and so many others! oh, how pretty! it's not even just that the prints are beautiful, but that looking at them reminds me of the house, and the summer, and the air, and the furniture in the house, and the gardens...it is really wonderful. i'm so happy.

some magic

2008-02-22T00:18:00.009-06:00

sometimes my screensaver pops up with pictures i haven't seen in a while and it makes me go through my albums and relive the wonderful things i saw this last summer. the town of oxford is a wonderful place.

like these roses, in the oxford rose garden.

and this old boat on the river isis, reflected in the green water.

and have i mentioned that i love pigeons? i do. they are so fat and cozy looking. especially when they are cow-print colored like this little guy. a thought: do you think british pigeons have little british accents? like, "hoot, old chap!"

ps. you can see the full-size version of all pictures in the blog if you click on them!

to the death!

2008-02-21T23:19:00.005-06:00

what is this coolness? it's an old painting with a wonderful detailed silhouette superimposed on top. pretty and hilarious.

from silhouette masterpiece theatre.

mmm warm

2008-02-21T16:37:00.002-06:00

i made my bed last night with freshly laundered bedding. i wrapped myself in the blankets as i pulled them from the dryer and then ran down the hall saying "warm warm warm warm warm". i absolutely love fresh-out-of-the-dryer blankets. mmm warm.

frames

2008-02-17T15:37:00.010-06:00

several years ago, a wonderful boy that i babysat gave me a handmade picture frame for christmas. ok, the frame was bought, but he glued all the buttons on. i'm sure he had no idea it would be the start of my addiction to buttons.

here are my versions. the frames were $1 at michael's. yay for cheapness!

puff paint + buttons + painter's tape + acrylic paint. about 8 inches tall.

acrylic paint + buttons + cool antiquey lace. about 4 inches tall.

grass shoes

2008-02-17T15:34:00.003-06:00

a friend who was wearing these sweet girly shoes was kind enough to indulge my odd picture-taking ways. i like them because they are white and summery and all woven and perfect for walking through the grass.

free ribbon

2008-02-14T11:49:00.003-06:00

i found this on the floor the other night when i was walking through my building. finding free ribbon is one of my favorite things. today i saw a friend that was wearing a sweet pink ribbon in her hair that was originally tied around a box of delivered cookies. see? free ribbon is amazing.

oh...

2008-02-13T20:39:00.003-06:00

i was done for the night, but then i saw this...and i just stared at the sweetness that is this picture. when you click to look at the bigger picture, it gets even better. i would (never be able to pull this off, period, but if i were to i would) wear this with mankiller heels.

how did The Sartorialist get a picture in the middle of traffic like that?

ps. oh, tie bar, how i love thee.

cotton and buttons

2008-02-13T19:31:00.000-06:00

interesting fact: i love it when a bunch of turtles are swimming around in a pond or something and all you can see are their wee little heads poking up. it's hilarious. it's also a fabric! ha! this is "pond" from west hill. if i had a pillow with this, i would laugh every time i saw it.

i saw these the other day and it inspired me to make my own valentines. they don't have to be used as valentines, but i used some that way.

i traced a cheap thank-you card that i already had, so it would fit in the envelope, and i dug into my button stash. i also made some tiny ones by folding a 3.5 inch square of cardstock in half and drawing just two button-flowers with tiny buttons. i think those will make sweet gift tags.

soft

2008-02-12T23:32:00.001-06:00

oooh look at that scarf/pashmina/blanket. it is a wonderful, cozy heather gray and looks heavy. i like heavy scarfs. it's huge, too. huge! so cool. if you click and look at the larger picture it looks like a wool or a thick cotton jersey, maybe. that color is so wonderful, i want a sofa made out of it immediately.

picture from The Sartorialist.

my blog

2008-02-10T03:11:00.003-06:00

i want to use this blog as a kind of inspiration wall, where i can throw anything that i think is beautiful or unique or worth looking at over and over and over again! i'm missing some important tools for that to work perfectly- namely, a scanner and a Nikon D40. BUT, since the latter is a long way from happening and the former is not essential, off we go!

i've been obsessing over some wonderful blogs lately (see blogroll), going back and ready every entry ever on each of them, and they have rekindled my love of crafting and creating and color and making things by hand! how exciting! it reminded me of all the times i say "oh that is beautiful" and have no way of saving that beautiful thing. i want to use all of that wonderful inspiration in the project of my lifetime - in other words, my eventual home. no, not my next residence hall room, but my home home home home.

so, dear blog, you are my bulletin board of beautiful things and i cannot wait to fill you up until you are bursting with pure awesomeness.