A few weeks ago, after days of “Should I? Shouldn’t I?” and picture-collecting, I made the appointment and got the riskiest haircut of my life, nearly 13 inches! It was shocking but it’s honestly been the best and I have zero regrets. I went to Kelly at Root Salon in St.Paul and she did an amazing job.

Before I got married this past September, I had got extensions (by the lovely Carol at Heart Salon in MPLS) since I was planning on wearing my hair down and my natural hair just wasn’t long enough. The extensions were AH-MAZING, you couldn’t tell they weren’t my real hair and, had I not gotten them taken out, they would have lasted much longer. However, they do require some maintenance and I have a very low tolerance for much more than bare minimum when it comes to time spent on my hair. I made a handy chart to illustrate my point.

After one too many sweat-inducing 45 minute blow-drying sessions, I knew it needed to go. Everyone should do at least one extreme hair cut in their life. It’s been incredibly freeing and a nice change of pace.

cheers!

Chilly days call for bright accessories. Last year was infinity scarves and this year I’ve been knitting myself tons of colorful, semi-slouchy warm hats.

Since I started knitting last year with this aviator baby hat for a friend, Ravelry has been my best friend. You can hunt down a pattern pretty much anything you’re looking for. For the knit hats, I used Boyfriend Hat Pattern and the Rikke Hat Pattern. Both are pretty easy and great for practicing. After doing a few of each I was even able to make a hat freehand, without a pattern. Achievement unlocked!

cheers!

Thimbelle is a decorative display face made up of both upper and lower cases as well as numerals. Light line-weights and shortened slab-serifs hint at the delicate and decidedly feminine nature of Thimbelle. Crafted on basic line strokes, details were added that elude to extra embellishment such as the B, K, and W. The full, round counters & bowls like in the letters C, G, O, and S allow the face to feel open and light while remaining bold.

These past few weeks have been pretty busy for both Ned and I. After 2 years of running my own business and freelancing I’m starting to look for a full-time gig again. For Ned, after over 10 years of working at Space150, the past 2 years spent being the Creative Director, he’s decided to leave and start out on his own. It’ll be a big transition so I wanted to do something for him to make it a little easier. His last day was Friday so for the past few days I have been re-organizing our office to make room for him (aka clearing out all my junk). The first big step in this was to get a new work table, something substantial, durable….and cheap.

I wanted something that would match the wood work table I’ve been using since they’ll be in the same space. I picked up the supplies below and although I knew it would be sturdy, I honestly wasn’t sure how pretty it was going to be. It’s pretty minimal/industrial but I’m really loving the end result. I used a dark walnut stain and a semi-gloss varnish just to give it a little shine. The door that we used for the top is 80″ x 30″ and fits perfectly against the wall with enough space for 2 chairs. Ned just set up all his stuff on it today and so far, so good!

So now, or at least for the time being, we get to work back-to-back. Naturally, with both of us wearing headphones.

cheers!

Lately I’ve been trying to show my neglected nails a bit more love. Glitter has never really been my thing but a few impulse-purchases-in-the-Saphora-check-out-line later and I found myself with a tiny glitter polish collection!

And, after some experimentation, I found a way to actually wear glitter polish without looking 14.

If you save the big glitter flecks for last, and use them sparingly, it’ll turn out perfectly. 4 coats takes a bit more time but well worth the wait.

cheers!

This year our New Years Eve plans were cut short due to some pesky Minnesota snow-rain. Bummer. So instead, Ned and I spent the night at home, made a little dinner, opened a bottle of wine and each wrote down some of the highlights from last year and what we want to accomplish this next year. Being a goal-oriented list-maker, this is turning out to be one of my favorite new traditions.

cheers!

My first typeface has a name…”Thimbelle”! After I asked for some help with a name a few weeks ago, I got so many wonderful suggestions from readers/friends/family. Many of you said it reminded you of stitching, others said it had a nordic folk-art feel to it. Thanks for all the great ideas! Ultimately, Thimbelle came from a reader on QBN and I think it’s just perfect. Feminine enough, with a nod to stitching and a little play on words. My favorite.

Cheers!

I love working through the holiday rush with my favorite Christmas music playing. My December playlist rarely changes year to year with the same mix of personal favorites and classics. I love em all…but I hold a special place in my heart from this holiday favorite, circa middle school. It’s my musical equivalent of Home Alone…it’s not Christmas without it.

cheers!