Happy Halloween

Instead of doing any laborious and messy pumpkin carving this year, I got three small pumpkins and painted them in a white wash, for a cool minimal centerpiece.

Jan over at Poppytalk has a fun feature on painted pumpkins too.

Of course, all this pumpkin covering gave me an idea for next year: glitter pumpkins! Would look great on a white tabletop with lots of tea candles.

Hope you all have a happy and festive Halloween!

It's a rainy day

On this dreary rainy NYC fall day, I'm thinking of ... macaroons. The pastel palette is a nice counterpoint to autumn's grays and browns, no? Below, top right fashion shot is Philip Lim, via New York magazine; bottom left, j.crew.

P.S. Have you been to the Ladurée website? It's so freaking cute.

A Shot to the Heart

Loving these bold new arrow and bow necklaces by Brooklyn-based studio
Digby and Iona. They manage to be romantic without venturing anywhere
near sappy or sweet.

Celebrating the Love

It's Friday, and I'm in a celebratory mood! I'm happy to share with you some fabulous, festive photos from last weekend's wedding ceremony, taken by the lovely Joy.

These pics really capture the magical ambiance of the occasion. Thanks, Joy, for sharing them!

Hand-painted signs by designer & friend Amy Gorrek.

Simplicity 101

I love these elegant and understated stationery sets by stripe and field. Restraint is a good thing.

Magical Weekend

Last weekend, we celebrated the marriage of my very dear friends
Christy Briggs and James Carter! The ceremony was held outdoors
in beautiful Sherman, Connecticut, right by the water surrounded
by fall foliage. Christy and J.D. are such a special couple, and it was
evident how loved they are by all the wonderful friends and family
who paid tribute to them this weekend.

Whether it was designing the pavilion decor (my friend Amy),
performing the ceremony, giving a reading or a song (the uber-talented
Maya Azucena), or participating in the hilarious and awesome flash-mob
style tribute to the bride (coordinated and choreographed by the groom
himself) - everyone brought so much love and energy to this event.

I'm holding my breath in anticipation of the sure-to-be-stunning pictures
taken by photographer Pat Furey.

We spent the day after the ceremony at a laid-back barbeque at the
bride's parent's home; I can't think of a better way to end the weekend!

Photo above of Candlewood Lake, Sherman, CT by the lovely Miss Cheryl Zibisky.

A breath of fresh color

Loving these pastels by Jennifer Gardner. I came across her large-scale pieces at an art show in Connecticut, and was blow away by the rich bright pigments that seem to glow on the canvas.

A Very Special Occasion

I'm so excited to share a really special recent project with you. We recently had the opportunity to design wedding invitations for our dear friends, Rob and Katherine. The invitation design is inspired by the couple's love of hiking - in fact, Rob proposed to Katherine while they were hiking in the romantic English countryside.

The invitation suite is simple and elegant, and evokes the wedding palette of charcoal gray with a fresh outdoorsy green. The envelope is jazzed up with a custom-made stamp and pretty striped washi tape.

The couple had a stunningly beautiful ceremony in the hill country outside Austin, Texas (below). It was my first visit to the area and I'm totally smitten! We were so honored to be a part of our friends' special day.
































Note: Wedding photos by Jeana Costa.

Spicing it up

I made some sweetly spiced nuts to jazz up my usual salad lunches this week, yum. I used
walnuts here but almonds, pecans, just about any nut would work and be equally delicious.
This recipe is so beyond easy, it can barely call itself a recipe! But it really adds a little
something extra, especially if you like sweet and crunchy things.

Spray a bit of cooking spray on a foil-lined baking sheet (as shown below), and spread
the nuts out in a single layer. Generously dust the nuts with light brown sugar, and sprinkle
on some cinnamon. Drizzle a little honey over the top, as much as you like. Then put them
in a 375 degree oven until they are lightly toasted and the sugar has melted a bit, 7-10 minutes. You can smell when they're toasting, so be sure to get them out quickly or they will burn.

I added them to a mixed greens salad with organic grape tomatoes and a bit of blue cheese - they're also good on their own for snacking.