Upstate FancyCelebrating our first anniversary!
Posted on June 17, 2013
Sunday, Matt and I celebrated our One Year Wedding Anniversary. We didn’t do anything fancy, or buy each other lavish gifts. Instead we sat and watched a slide show of our amazing wedding photos by the wonderful Alexandra Roberts while listening to an album by the band (the Cosmic Zombies) who played our wedding. We loved looking through and reliving our wedding day and giggling about all the amazing memories and fun we had that day last June. We spent the afternoon on the Eastern Promenade in Portland, Maine — watching the sail boats in Casco Bay. We brought along a picnic, in a lovely picnic basket we received as a wedding gift, and of course Einstein came with us to enjoy some crumbs. Here’s to many more years and many more reasons to celebrate!
Visiting the Pacific Northwest – Astoria, Oregon
Posted on June 11, 2013
Matt and I decided to drop the dog off at his parents and head west for a 10 day vacation to the Pacific Northwest. It wasn’t exactly an anniversary trip, but it was close enough for us to pretend it was. We flew into Seattle, picked up our rental car (the first rental car of our trip but more on that later) and headed south towards Portland, Oregon.
Since we are both products of the 80′s we couldn’t drive by Astoria without stopping to see Mikey’s house from Goonies. With the help of the internet and our phones’ GPS we found the house and parked our car on the side of the road and snapped a few photos. The house is nestled high on an overlook where you can see part of the harbor and as we posed for photos we heard what we thought were some muffled dog barks. But looking down at the harbor we notice the rocks moving, the noises were heard were Sea Lions so we walked back to the car and navigated our way to the dock we could see from the hill.
I dont’t think either one of us were prepared for what we saw at the public docks. I expected to see maybe 5 or 10 Sea Lions, but there were at least 150. Not a care in the world. Piles of Sea Lions laying on top of each other, splashing in the water, sleeping under docks. Looking back this was my favorite moment of the entire trip. An unexpected adventure.
Our next stop was Haystack Rock in Cannon Beach, Oregon. the day was still windy and rainy but you know what they say… “Goonies never say Die.” A few photos and a quick walk in the sand and we headed toward Portland where would settle in for a few days.
The drive through the small towns and logging roads was beautiful, even though it was foggy and rainy and it felt a little surreal to be almost above the clouds in some parts. Although we only stayed in Astoria for about an hour, it was a very cute town and we hope to visit and stay a bit longer next time. There were so many things on our list and just not enough time to do it all.
A new look for Upstate Fancy
Posted on June 10, 2013
You may notice a new look to the blog. I have decided to move to a wider format to be able to share larger photos and projects as well as change format just a bit. Of course I will still be sharing amazing finds from fellow independent artists and designers, but I also hope to share a bit more about myself and my adventures. So welcome to the new UpstateFancy!
Cooking with CSA goodness
Posted on May 1, 2013
My friend Alexandra Roberts (she’s the amazing photographer who photographed our wedding) loves cooking with local ingredients. So she decided to blend her love of meal making and her awesome photography skills together and start a new blog called Rolling with the Bunches.
I was so thrilled when she asked me if I would design a logo for her new creative endevour, and began working on a design in my head before I had even finished reading the email. I’m very happy with the end result, and can not wait for all of her amazing recipes and cooking tips. While the blog isnt up yet, you can follow her page on facebook and see what she has been cooking with her CSA farm share.
say cheese!
Posted on April 16, 2013
Take flight in these beautiful scarves
Posted on March 7, 2013
I just had to share these erethral scarves by the Melbourne based shop Shovava. All of her work is simply lovely but I can not stop lusting over her feather printed works. They are made from a natural cotton voile that looks light and soft and perfect for the upcoming spring season. I think they are just the perfect mix of the urban and natural world. I just really have never seen anything like them. Beautiful.
Happy Valentines Day
Posted on February 14, 2013
I hope you all have a very Happy Valentines Day. I felt it was time to step away from the computer and break out my nibs and ink. It’s nice to make things on paper instead of the screen. I hope today you will take time to step away from the computer and spend time with someone special.
Underrated Book: Griffin & Sabine
Posted on January 24, 2013
Back in High school I had a weekend job and a small antique shop/book store. It was a very quite position, I worked the shop alone and there were few customers, so I spent most of my time dusting, stocking and pricing items and of course browsing (and reading) the selection of books on the shelves. The owners of course knew I loved finding new treasures to read, and one afternoon when they stopped in, they pulled a book off the shelf and told me it was now mine. The book was Griffin & Sabine by Nick Bantock.
I didn’t know what to expect as I cracked open the spine for the first time, but once it was open I couldn’t put it down, there is something magical about it. Part novella, part artistic endeavor and wholly mesmerizing, the nook is a series of letters, notes and postcards back and forth between two strangers. For someone who loves art, illustration and postcards, I felt that this book was meant just for me. Everything is hand illustrated, even the postage stamps are imaginitve, but my favorite pages are the ones where you have to physically take a letter out of the envelope in order to read it. At times it almost feels as if you are part of the book, or found these letters by chance.
The book ends of course on a bit of a cliff hanger. I remember contemplating what happened for days after reading the book for the first time, and then of course reading it again. It wasn’t until a few years later, in a local bookstore, that i discovered this book was the beginning of a trilogy (it wasn’t over after all). I have read all of the books, but the first one is still the most beautiful to me. If you happen to see this book sitting on a shelf, pick it up, read it, and pass it on. It’s a quick haunting read, but I promise you can spend hours admiring the illustrations.
My 2013 Goals
Posted on January 2, 2013
I’m not making resolutions this year because I never keep them, but I did decide to setup some goals for myself in 2013. They aren’t groundbreaking or overly complicated, just 6 goals that I’m going to try to accomplish this year. I really want to eat more whole foods, which goes hand in hand with saying goodbye to XL tags. I don’t want to setup a goal of loosing a certain amount of weight, but rather aim to get back into a size Large.
I’m going to read 20 books this year. In 2012 I read 13 books, but I also took 2 college english classes that filled a lot of my reading time. I always find all kinds of cool recipes and projects I want to try, and I pin them to my Pinterest Board and never make anything, this year s going to be different.
I’m going to make time for one DIY project each month. Declutter is a must, I’m so sick of “stuff”. And of course I want to take better photos. I got a new camera that I am very excited about, and need to read the manual because it’s a bit different than my last one. I want to learn more about photography and how to take a more meaningful and beautiful photo. So those are my goals for 2013, What are yours? Feel free to share them in the comments section!