Happy Weekend!

I'm so glad it's the weekend already - what a busy week.  Thursday felt like Friday.  Oh well, time to get out your Halloween costumes and polish those vampire fangs.  I hope everyone has a fabulous weekend planned, but mostly, I hope no one goes into a sugar comma!  I shall leave you, and the month of October, with a few pictures of my own place decorated for Halloween a few years ago.  We won first place in the door decorating contest for our apartment which meant lots of dinero off of the next month's rent - yippee!

Happy Weekend!

Halloween Cupcake with White Chocolate Spiderweb

Halloween by Martha Stewart

Pasta Skeletons

 Halloween Party Picks

 Halloween Tree

 Halloween Crackers

 Candied-Out Pumpkins

 Black Cat Treat Boxes 

Witch & Cat Pumpkins

Martha Stewart is always a great go-to for party ideas, recipes & crafts, and Halloween is no exception.  I absolutely love the pasta skeletons.  And why stop at skeletons?  I'm sure kids would love making pumpkins & ghosts with pasta as well.  Throw in a few stickers & markers and the kids will go crazy for this craft project.  The Candied Out Pumpkins are also adorable, guarding their candy jars from the occasional candy seeker.  All you need is a pumpkin, some glue and candy to deck out your candy table and make it the most festive party on the block.  Kids and parents alike will admire your creativity and you can say, "Oh, those pumpkins? We do those every year."  Happy Halloween!

A Vintage Halloween by Country Living

I am loving these ideas from Country Living, especially the pumpkin toss game 

& candy corn stand filled with candy.  Halloween is such a fun time of year so I hope your 

parties & costumes are coming together and you have a fun weekend planned!

Last Minute Halloween Ideas

from the Hostess with the Mostess

Here are some great ideas for the adult party-goers who enjoy Halloween just as much as the next kid.  I love the purple cake with the writing "Love at First Bite".  And her modern take on Halloween in the fourth picture is too awesome for words.  What do you think?

Paris versus New York

 

I absolutely love these illustrations by Vahram Muratyan, especially the godard/woody one.  It's such a great way to honor both city's differences & likenesses.

Via A Cup of Jo

Etsy Tuesday: Halloween Costumes & More

It's almost here, that frightful night filled with miniature witches and goblins and superheros, knocking on doors asking for the occasional trick or treat.  In case you're still in search of ideas, here are few of this week's Etsy finds. 


a family of superheros

vintage party favors

a roaring Max

adorable little gnome

trick-or-treat tags

dinosaur capes

miss incredible

halloween wine charms

a monster bag

Gorgeous Wedding Pictures

by AH-mazing photographers.

My childhood friend married his beautiful sweetheart this October

at the Dallas Arts Center and Matt & Ivy Photography did a great job

capturing their style.  I love the reflection off of the water.

Annie & Mark had the sweetest wedding at her parents' home last year

filled with over 400 smiling faces that danced the night away.  Being photographers,

they had about 15 official photographers! who were close friends & colleagues.  

This one, taken by Rob Strong was just after the ceremony.  Love it.

 Two comedians who fell in love.

Photo by Annie McElwain

A kiss at sunset.

Photo by Courtney Dudley

Happy Weekend!

 

Photo by Rob Strong

 

Just a few words to say, I hope you're having a fabulous weekend.  This weekend's itinerary for me has been filled with movies & books which makes it exceptionally relaxing and great.  I also put some Halloween decorations out finally, but it's pretty sedated compared to most years.  Mainly I have tons of Halloween presents to finish mailing out to all of my nieces and nephews - gotta love them!  

In case you're browsing the web, here are a few things to check out:

• Jane Austen was a bad speller?
• Halloween crafts for the kids by Martha Stewart
• Redesigned movie posters
• Cute baby picture from Oh Happy Day!
• Funny dancing shoes
• Festive dinnerware from West Elm

Brave New Voices

I just watched Brave New Voices on HBO and it was seriously amazing.  Seriously.  Amazing.  In case you aren't familiar with it, Brave New Voices is an international youth poetry slam festival put together by Youth Speaks, Inc.  It is an incredibly empowering event and gives a new voice to a generation that seeks social change.  In fact, they demand it.  They tell stories from the margins.  They bare their souls.  I am in complete awe of them.

If you get a chance to watch it on HBO, do it.  You will be amazed.

Top 5

Top 5 things I'm loving on today 

The Nars Vintage Nail Polish Collection was recently released, bringing back old favorites that had been previously discontinued.  So, if there's a stylish lady in your life you need to buy a present for, I would highly recommend these.  They're beautiful.  Seriously.  And perfect for Fall/Winter.

 Is it possible for a pitcher to be so stunning?  I didn't think so, but then I found this beautiful creation and I am so tempted to buy it.  Unfortunately, the $269 price tag is more than enough to keep me from splurging.  Perhaps if it were 95% off I'd be willing to buy it but until then, I will think about how gorgeous it would look on a bar ready to serve Martinis to Mr. James Bond.

Smoking never looked so stylish - this cigarette carton from Tank is filled with 6 complete & unabridged classic books ranging from Joseph Conrad's "Heart of Darkness" to Ernest Hemingway's "The Snows of Kilimanjaro".  I am definitely putting these on my wish list.

This is seriously hilarious.  This coat rack by Normann Copenhagen is incredibly fun & functional, even if you don't own a sparkly gold jacket.  It comes in various colors including pink & green and runs for $96.  Love it.

And last, but not least, is this modern Cuckoo Clock from the Museum of Contemporary Art.  I am so head over heels for this clock, which also comes in a black & white striped pattern.  But yet again, we are hit with one very large price tag of $348.  Why do such fabulous things have to be so expensive.  Seriously want, but seriously can't substantiate spending such a small fortune on this clock.  I wonder if it's possible to make this...

The New 50

On MSN's homepage today, they featured an article titled "How to Keep the Passion Alive After 50" and featured the above picture.  Is it me, or does their featured couple look more like 70?

Well, I was sure 50 looked a lot different than MSN suggested and so, I googled famous people over 50 and here are the results. The first picture is of Mr. Darcy himself, Colin Firth, who turned 50 this year.  The picture was taken at this year's Oscars, and I must admit, I have a bit of a crush on him.  He's gorgeous, mesmerizing, a fantastic actor and has a British accent.  What do you think - does he look 50?

The second photo is of Patrick Swayze's Baby, Jennifer Grey.  She also turned 50 this year and is looking quite fabulous as one of this year's Dancing With The Stars contestants.  Though she has had a number or surgeries on her nose, she is in excellent shape and makes dancing with 25 year old Derek Hough look effortless.

So, if this is what 50 looks like, then what was MSN thinking?  I will leave you with one last picture and that is of the beautiful Queen of England, Helen Mirren. This year she turned 65 and looks, Incredible.  Seriously, I hope I look as great as her in my 60s.

(Jennifer Grey photo courtesy of DWTS)

Mid-Term Elections

Just a reminder, but don't forget to vote.  It may be mid-term elections, but these elections are for your representatives which means it's your vote in Congress.

In fact, 61.6% of those eligible to vote, voted in the 2008 Presidential election.  That means 38.4% did not and it was the highest turnout since 1968.  In comparison, 95% of those eligible to vote in Australia cast their ballots.  Of course, they are required to by law and if they don't, are subject to fines or community service.  Furthermore, when compared to other countries who have democratic elections, we are third from last in voter turnout behind India, Germany & the UK.

More often that not, those who do vote, tend to vote during the Presidential election but skip mid-terms decreasing voter turnout by 10 - 15%.  So, get out and VOTE.  You won't die like P. Diddy suggested, but every vote does count.

The 1010 Project

The 1010 Project: a photographic journey through 100 pictures taken on 10/10/10 by 10 photographers from around the world.  I am totally loving on this.

                               in South Africa                            in Tokyo

                                         in Berlin                                           in Brighton

                                         in London                              in Melbourne