Little Ink Stained Feet.

August 28, 2014

Bless.
Bless these sweet little feet.
The feet that spilled the bottle of black ink.
The feet that smeared it all over the floor,
That made sure no item in sight was ignored.

What was going through his head? No one knows.
Puddle jumping and merry making I suppose?

Bless.
Bless these moments that demand more.
That push your patience to the limit, and squeeze you to the core.
The moments you wonder how on earth can you survive?
Is the world out to get you? Should I surrender and hide?
Bless these questions that bring you around back to the start.
Your life’s greatest work. Your treasure, your heart.

He stands before you, so innocently waiting,
Inquisitively wondering what mama’s face is conveying.

Bless.
Yes bless these little humans from their head to their toes.
Who teach us love reaches beyond the end of our nose.
Who gave us the gift of a love deep and wild.
A love beyond measure, and this moment is reconciled.
Bless these babes who call me mother,
A word of more value to me than any other.

Bless the ink stain on my shirt that asks I remember,
These little feet are not little forever.

Written late last night after bathtub scrubbing, floor scrubbing, and a few tears:) Maximilian Francis I love you wildly.

3 Messy Pony Tutorials

August 27, 2014

One of the main reasons I keep my hair long is so that I can keep it off my neck in a pony or topknot:) Especially in the Atlanta heat. Here are three versions I change up for a messy pony on the eHow style blog. As easy as it gets, I promise!

Halfway to the long weekend friends! Hollerrrr!!!
A

Local Notes ATL: Henry & June Boutique

August 25, 2014

I only had to hear two words: coffee and clothes…
A brilliant concept really don’t you think??

Meet Henry & June, a brand new boutique/cafe in the East side of Atlanta. Owned and operated by the lovely couple pictured above.

I was smitten over the white brick walls and urban vibe. A wall of vintage cameras?! Hanging neon signs? I ate it up.Being somewhat of a coffee junkie, I was more than happy to find out they provided La Crema straight from the heart of Nashville. (Favorite stop in Nashville for coffee.) I knew they take this coffee thing seriously too:)

“”We ethically source coffees by building meaningful and equitable relationships with farmers, mills, and close partners. With deep respect for farmer and land, we seek coffees with notable flavor, balance, and sweetness. Our coffees are directly traceable to the farm and mills where they were produced.”

After you grab a coffee meander through the store and look closely at their careful collection of designers. and high quality men and women’s fashion that cannot be found elsewhere in Atlanta!

Thankful for businesses like Henry & June who add life and personality to this great city. Head over and see for yourself!

Henry & June
784 N Highland Ave NE
Atlanta, Georgia 30306

Instagram | Facebook

#EncourageBeauty Campaign Launch

August 22, 2014

You all might remember when Hilary and I shared the Encourage Beauty campaign last year? Well, next week we will be starting an all new round, with a new crew, and the message behind this campaign is a powerful one. I am teaming up alongside each of these women with hearts of gold to spread a movement of encouraging other women to embrace and encourage a natural beauty given by God to the heart of every women. The kind of beauty that makes you radiate. Self confidence, self worth, authenticity, kindness, faith, compassion…all qualities that make a women undeniably beautiful! That is what we are celebrating and passing on next week, and I invite you to be a part of this campaign we hope catches fire!

It’s pretty simple to be a part of! Announce the campaign you are joining in on, share a photo or two a day on instagram following the prompts above to encourage beauty within yourself and/or family and friends. It is only 5 days long, so head over to the NEW website (weencouragebeauty.com) to get all the details and downloads.

Wishing you all a grand weekend (TGIFFFFF!) ahead and catch you on the flip side of #EncourageBeauty:)
x, Anna

Office Space Update + Giveaway

August 21, 2014

Since I work from home, I have to have be pretty self disciplined with time management. (A look into our day to day schedule here. Need to update that soon!) I would usually rather take a nap when my little ones are napping, but that is the time I make things happen. Sooo, the next best thing is to make your work space inviting. If it is visually attractive, I don’t mind pulling up a chair and getting to it. This goes without saying it is rarely in perfect order – I’ve got a messy artist mind and lots of busy toddler hands around;) I change up the space often with different photos or artwork, and always a fresh notepad.

I met Jeanette at The Brand Market NYC and found out about her fun shop! So many fun desk du jour goodies to spice up my space. We decided to team up to offer the same goods to one of you! Shop Manhattanite is giving away the following bundle will go to the lucky winner:
Acrylic Stapler
Acrylic Tape Dispenser
Rifle Paper Co. Note Pad
Rifle Paper Co. Telephone Pad

Enter via Rafflecopter below! Winner will be drawn next Thursday. Good luck my friends!
P.S. Want to score that Garance Dore phone case? Head over to the facebook page!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Additional desk details: Artwork by Britt Bass and By Luciana, candles and faceted vase by Anthropologie, Mini jotters by 45 Wall design, mini telephone – vintage, planter made by my husband Gabe, DIY mousepad, Garance Dore notecards, Market Tote: Design Darling, both chairs: antique markets.

Old Hollywood Crushes + Must See Movies

August 18, 2014

(source)

I always say I should have lived in a different era – preferrable the fifties. It was quintessential class for style, ways of life, design…all of it. I especially love the movies though. AMC was my favorite channel growing up, no joke. I had big crushes on old Hollywood stars like Jimmy Stewart, Paul Newman, and Carey grant. Always and forever crushes I admit. Gabe is okay considering they are decades older than me ;);) What about you? Do you have an Old Hollywood crush?

Here are some of my favorites from each!

Jimmy Stewart:
The Shop Around the Corner
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
Rear Window
Vertigo
It’s a Wonderful Life

Carey Grant:
North by Northwest
To Catch a Thief
Bishop’s Wife
Charade
The Philadelphia Story

Paul Newman:
Cool Hand Luke
The Sting
Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid

What are some of yours? I would love to hear them!

Travel the open book.

August 15, 2014

“The world’s a book, and those who do not travel read only one page.” -St. Augustine

This has been the year of travel for me and my family. It is part of my job now with The Brand Market, but we also have family states away and so it is part of our norm to drive long distances to see them. Next month, I will be traveling for a wedding and a few workshops. The homebody in me just wants to stay in my comfort zone unless Gabe is with me. I never want to leave my little ones even if it is just for a night. Some of the anxiety of traveling solo stems from getting sick easily over travel food (but real awful sick). However, since this is my reality right now I am going to put the travel anxiety behind me, and be thankful for the opportunity to see and discover. That being said, what are your favorite spots in D.C. and Chicago? I will have some time to explore with my sister and friends and would love to hear all about the must eats and see spots:)

At the beginning of summer, my college friend Ashley gave me a hair makeover. A much needed cut and an ombre color. She is one of the best there is! She totally styled this shoot as well with the super talented film photographer Sawyer Baird. So happy I got to hang out with them for the day and check out some cool spots in the north Georgia area:)

If you are local, you will have to head to J. Thomas and request Ashley Brandt Jarrel. She is the cream of the crop! (You can see part 1 tour of their space here!)

Hope you all have a wonderful summer weekend. Only a few left! We have some good friends from college coming to visit which so I gotta run and clean my house from top to bottom;)
x, Anna