How to arrange supermarket flowers.

Weekly flowers have become one of my new favorite things (per my "buy more flowers" bullet point on my New Year's resolution/things to do before I'm 30 list). Tulips are everywhere now, so I've been picking them up pretty frequently at Whole Foods or Trader Joe's, but I can also usually find small bunches of pretty-colored roses in the three-for-$12 flower bins at Publix, and I love those, too. That said, my flower-arranging skills are basically limited to trimming the flowers' stems and leaves and shoving everything into a vase, so I loved reading this flower-arranging tutorial on Cup of Jo the other week. Plus, the photos are gorgeous.

Do you love flowers, too, or could you take 'em or leave 'em?

P.S. A story I wrote about parties, with a big emphasis on the impact of flowers. 

Photos by Alpha Smoot and styling by Kendra Smoot for Cup of Jo

Choose joy.

On Monday night, I went to Trader Joe's after spin class. I picked up two bags of frozen peas, a package of shallots and a container of chicken broth, among a few other things. Then I came home, chopped up the shallots and some garlic, sauteed them in some olive oil, dumped in the peas and the broth, boiled and simmered, pureed everything in the blender—and then promptly spilled it.

All over the floor.
All over myself.

I am not kidding when I tell you it looked like I got slimed by Swamp Thing. It was gross. And what did I do?

Oh, friends, I cried. A lot. To the point where I had shaking shoulders, puffy eyes and goo dripping from my nose. It was awful. I cried like my heart was broken, and I cried for a long, long time. Over pea soup. (Seriously. Although, to be fair, there's been some other stuff happening in my life that had probably been bottled up for awhile, and spilled soup was a good excuse for all of it to come out through my eye sockets.)

Poor ACS, bless him, listened to me sob for a good long while, and a hot shower and some sleep also helped me gain some perspective, as did a day spent outside for work on Tuesday. (I mean, how can you be sad when you've got this view right in front of you?) But I still felt off most of yesterday, and so today I've decided to come up with a little happy list—here, in no particular order, are 10 things that are putting a smile on my face right now—you know, as opposed to making me wail like a banshee. Choose joy, like the image above says, right? (Note, however, that the list does not include pea soup.)

1. The little bubbles that float up from the top of the dish detergent bottle when you squeeze it.
2. Glorious February weather.
3. ACS. Always.
4.Sushi dinners with favorite friends.
5. My fluffy felines, who like to touch noses with me (Oscar) and sleep on my head (Zadie).
6. Um, did I mention this view? Lucky to have it nearby.
7. Perfect chai teas in the morning and afternoon: Two Tazo chai teabags, hot water, a glug of almond milk, a splash of agave. Yum. Also, I'm still loving matcha lattes, especially on the weekends.
8. Weekly flowers on my coffee table. This week: pink tulips.
9. New books! Currently reading The Twelve Tribes of Hattie, to be followed by Ian MacEwan's new one, Sweet Tooth. 
10. Wine. I mean, come on.

What's making you happy right now? What's the first happy thought you turn to when you're having a rough day?

xoxo

Photo: My own, snapped at the fantastic Starfish Company Market in Cortez. "Choose joy"—I love it.

A house in the forest.

There are days, weeks, months when I love being surrounded by hustle and bustle, always busy, always going or coming. But then there are other times when I fantasize about what life might be like if I lived in a house like this, in a snowy forest: Sparse, clean, simple, just me and my books and my future dog and maybe my laptop (or maybe not). I think I'm happiest somewhere in the middle of those two extremes, but the latter sure can be tempting.

Photos by Wemer Huthmacher

Charleston.

So as I mentioned on Friday, my mom and I are taking a little trip to Charleston, S.C., soon, and I am so excited I could squeal. So far the only thing on the docket is dinner at Husk the night we arrive, and my mouth is already watering. I've also been poring over Olivia's beautiful blog and her gorgeous photographs of Charleston, like the one above.

It's funny: During my senior year of college, everyone I met asked me where I wanted to live after graduation, and my response was always three words, spoken without hesitation: "New York City." But one day I gave that same response to a good friend, who in turn cocked his head, looked directly at me, and replied, "You know, I don't see you in New York. I see you somewhere in the South, somewhere like Charleston."

My 22-year-old, NYC-loving heart was insulted by that—did he not think I could make it in the city?!—and refused to acknowledge the idea that maybe New York really wasn't the right place for me. I'm pretty sure I tossed my ponytail and responded with a haughty, "No way! Charleston? Never."

Of course, these days—after spending almost seven years in Sarasota, which is not exactly the Deep South (too many snowbirds/transplants) but which is definitely not the Northeast—I've changed my tune, and I often think of that little exchange between my friend and me. While I'm still not sure Florida is my home for the long haul, I know that my desire to live in NYC has passed*, and I've come to really enjoy living in the part of the country that I do. I love Sarasota; I'd also move to Savannah or Charleston or New Orleans in a heartbeat. Turns out I really do like abundant sunshine and Southern accents. Who knew?

*This is, of course, provided that Martha Stewart Omnimedia or Bon Appetit magazine don't come a-knockin'. (Call me if you want to, Martha. We're best friends, remember?)

Photo by Olivia 

A breath of fresh air.

I don't know about you, but even though I love my job, the idea of crawling out of bed this morning was kind of awful to consider after four days of—at least for me—pretty much pure relaxation. I ate (my cheesecake was a hit!), I read, I shopped, I slept, I snuggled, I spent time outside (I highly recommend long Black Friday Bike Rides, by the way), I spent time inside, I watched movies...it was glorious. So if you're feeling a little...underwhelmed...about getting back to the grind today, too, I present you with this photo, which I snapped at my parents' house on Thanksgiving morning, as a sort of visual breath of fresh air. Here's to a new week.

How were your Thanksgivings, if you celebrated? (And if you didn't, how were your weekends?)

P.S. The holidays are officially upon us now, huh? Eep!

Dress your desk.

I guess it's time to begin thinking about 2013 calendars, huh? (Seriously, where does the time go?) This desk calendar from Rifle Paper Co., with a stand designed by Makr, is at the tip-top of my super-official (ahem) Calendar Consideration List. So pretty, right?

P.S. Thanksgiving is one week away. Yikes!

Entryway seeks TLC.

Internet, I am about to show you something that is not too pretty.

It's my entryway. Actually, calling it an entryway is a bit of a lie--it's really my front door and the space that surrounds it.

Reader, it is ugly.

The thing is, as I've mentioned before, I live in a small apartment. It's big enough for me and the cats--and certainly an upgrade from the studio I lived in prior to moving here--but there's not a lot of room for stuff. Which is, actually, totally fine with me, aside from this entryway dilemma. I just want it to be prettier, you know?

I think the desk is OK where it is--prior to it being there, a chair lived in that space--but it's that mirror-hook area to the left of the front door that's bugging me. My dream would be to put some sort of little catch-all-type piece of furniture there, but the space is so narrow that incorporating something like that means people walking through the door would slam right into it. I'd prefer to preserve my friends' kneecaps and avoid that.

Chalkboard paint is something I've wanted to incorporate into my home for awhile now, and I'm wondering if painting a swath of that wall with it--and framing it somehow--would help. Actually, I'm also wondering if I should paint the door itself. Or--on a completely different note--if I should start the process of creating a big gallery wall and have it stretch all the way over to the front door.

Basically, I'm at a loss. Any advice?

P.S. On a separate-yet-related note, I bought this print recently--I've wanted it for years--and I love it. It's hanging in my bedroom now and is decidedly not ugly. Unlike my entryway.

Let's chat.

I have some things I would like to discuss.

1. Mrs. Meyer's cleaning products. Do you use them? If you don't, you are seriously missing out. My favorite, favorite, favorite scent is geranium, because it sends me back to summers at my grandparents' house in Pennsylvania, sitting at the stools in the kitchen as a breeze blew in through the open windows. (Related: I think my middle name should be "Nostalgia.") My second favorite scent is honeysuckle. It is glorious.

2. Josie Maran argan color stick in Petal Pink. I love Josie Maran's cosmetics line; her argan oil has become a daily staple, as has her argan lip treatment (it feels so good on my perma-chapped lips). The lip treatment is kind of thick, though, so when I need something moisturizing that also has a little bit of color, I swipe on this stuff, which is the perfect shade of pink. (Her Magic Marker cheek and lip stain is also delightful.) And in other lips-related news, Rosebud Salve is also really great.

3. These shoes. I am a woman obsessed. I really want them. I tend to buy a pair of wedges every summer, and usually a cheapie pair from Target because I also tend to walk hard and therefore ruin said wedges. So, yes: I wear them until they break, and when they do, I typically tumble to the floor in a terribly embarrassing way, often in my office or in front of someone important, usually while wearing a skirt. Anyway, all that to say that I love this pair and I wish they would go on sale.

4. Mad Men. Oh, Mad Men. Do you watch? Please tell me you watch. The past few episodes have been so great, and Sunday night's moved me (and also freaked me out) to the point where I thought about it all day on Monday. Like, I was sitting in my lunch meeting at work, crunching on a potato chip and thinking about Mad Men. I was typing emails, but thinking about Mad Men. I was talking to people -- coherently, I hope -- but thinking about Mad Men. You get my point. I think Season Four is my favorite (and "The Suitcase" is by far my favorite episode of that season), but I alternately can't wait to see next week's episode and am crushed that it means that the season will be over.

5. Pure Barre. Have you guys ever tried this workout? I was supposed to go last night, after work, but guess who forgot she'd agreed to go to a dinner meeting until a reminder popped up in Outlook 15 minutes before said meeting? (Guess who was also in jeans with greasy, ponytailed hair?) So I'm going to another class instead--obviously, since I missed Tuesday's--with my friend Lauren from work, and I'm a little scared that I'm not going to be able move when I wake up the next day. If you've taken a class or are a Pure Barre-or-similar addict, please let me know.

OK, I think that's it. Anything you would like to discuss? Lay it on me!

Photo: Jamie Beck for A Cup of Jo. 

Let's spoon.

Speaking of things for the kitchen, aren't these wooden spoons from o ME and o MY delightful? Stirring a big pot of soup with one of these pretties would make me very happy.

The easiest DIY ever.

I am not a particularly crafty person. I wish I was -- and I will read about and admire craft projects and DIYs until the cows come home -- but I'm just not. So the fact that this weekend I created something pretty for my home -- something that began life as an object totally different from what it ended up as -- is a coup for me.

That being said, this is literally the easiest DIY in the whole world, and it cost me a whopping $7. Here's the back story: I spotted this gilded bookends project in Martha Stewart Living awhile back and bookmarked it as something I'd love to make someday because it was so pretty and functional. But in typical Megan fashion, it got pushed to the bottom of my to-do list until this past weekend, when I was at my parents' house and knew I could scrounge up some stray bricks and a can of gold spray paint.

And that's pretty much the gist of it, honestly: Get your hands on a pair of bricks (I found four, so I made two sets of bookends) and coat them with metallic gold spray paint. Let dry, and then arrange on your bookshelves or nightstands as desired. Easy!

Photo: My own.

Scenes from the weekend + committing to...

What a wonderful weekend. I'm at that point in my life where I now appreciate the quirks and beauty of my hometown, and going to visit it, like I did this weekend, means taking advantage of those things rather than counting down the minutes until I can get back to Sarasota. A nice feeling, for sure.

I had Friday off from work, so after a morning pedicure (much needed, long overdue), I headed north to Winter Park and my parents' house. On the way, I stopped at Rifle Paper Co.'s bricks-and-mortar storefront and picked up a few little treats (see: first photograph), then headed home to see my mom and hang out with my seven-year-old cousin, who's been staying with my parents. He and I wound up having a great time taking my parents' two dogs to the local dog park and then eating too much frozen yogurt afterward.

Saturday, I have to say, was a total throwback to childhood thanks to two little words: go karts. We took my cousin to Lil 500 (a go-kart track my uncle used to take my brother and me to when we were my cousin's age), and I think we loved it as much as he did. It didn't hurt that the weather was absolutely perfect, either -- humidity free, with highs in the upper 70s and a warm breeze -- and the feeling of the wind in our hair and the sun on our faces was enough to give us all perma-grins. What a fun day.

Then, before Easter dinner at my parents' house on Sunday, we decided to take part in the ultimate Winter Park tourist activity (and one of the most fun, too): the Winter Park Scenic Boat Tour, which has been around since 1938 and which travels through the lakes and canals of Winter Park -- which is also known, apparently, as the "Venice of America" (a title that makes me laugh). The weather was just as perfect as it was the day before, and it was fantastic being out on the water, listening to our old Southern tour guide (who was wearing tape-measure suspenders!) and just completely relaxing. My favorite part of the trip was going through the pretty canals, pictured above.

A fantastic few days off, indeed -- and now it's a new week and I kind of can't believe it. Nevertheless, here are my goals for the next few days:

+ Continue early-waking and sugar-reducing.
+ Speaking of food, plan out my menu for the week. I've been eating kind of randomly lately and, as with most of the things in my life, I find I function much better when I stick to a bit of a routine. So, yes: do that.
+ Do. My. Taxes. (Oh, hello, last minute.)
+ Be kind. As I've been reminded via some family stuff lately, you never know who's struggling or how much.
+ Embrace the gorgeous weather.

And you? Tell me, and I'll see you back here tomorrow!

Photos by me, taken with Instagram (I'm pinkoclock, if you'd like to follow me!).

loving: paula mills' australian home.

 

 

i don't know what exactly it is about illustrator paula mills' lovely australian home -- featured on design*sponge last week -- that's stayed with me, but i can't stop thinking about it. really, it's probably everything: the attention to detail, the color, the styling -- it's all just perfect, and creates such character in the space. file this one under inspiration, for sure.

photos of paula mills' home by tigs macallen, via design*sponge

loving: blackline stoneware from schoolhouse electric.

(i seem to be on a home-decor kick this week, so i might as well go with it, right?)

these blackline stoneware pieces from schoolhouse electric are pretty much perfection. that striped teapot needs to be mine immediately.

bow-ed over.

 

over the past few months, i've been happier with the decor of my home than i have since i moved into my apartment almost three years ago. i feel like there's a unified design theme, and while there are certainly spots that need work -- the awkward wall space by the front door, for example, or the sliding closet doors onto which the previous tenant inexplicably painted odd pictures of kittens -- i'm generally quite comfortable hanging out at home these days. 

but that being said, i've already started putting together a wish list for the next place i move to. a water heater that gives me more than 10 measly minutes in the shower without turning the water ice cold is at the top of the list; a dishwasher is a close second. wood floors would be nice, too. so would my own washer and dryer. and i think i'd like my next home to feel a little more grown up and androgynous -- i want plenty of quirky details, of course, but i think a more streamlined approach is something i'm slowly coming around to. 

this wallpaper by emily isabella for hygge and west, for me, hits that quirky/grown-up mark almost perfectly. i love the gold bows against the dark gray background, and i think this paper would be perfect and special in a powder room or a closet, even if just on one wall. 

how do you feel about wallpaper? do you use it in your home? (i sometimes frame samples, but have never actually used it...yet!) how would you describe your design style?

p.s. please excuse the terrible pun in the title of this post. i couldn't help myself.

file under: pretty.

rifle paper co. fabric (!) for villa nova. perfection. (i want that chair badly.)

view the full collection here.

photo: rifle paper co.

what are you doing this weekend?

happy friday, friends--we've made it: to the end of the week, to the start of the weekend, to the beginning of a new month, to the last 31 days of the year. crazy, no?

after a not-that-great thanksgiving weekend, i mentioned on monday that i came home and promptly started nesting, which means i'm already pretty well-ensconced in the christmas spirit. i've got my cookie menu almost all planned out (expect a slew of baked! posts soon), my gifts (most of which are homemade, all of which come from local and/or small business) ready to go and my house decked out with a bit of sparkle (like that sweet gold snowflake, above).

what are your plans for the weekend? i'm making a trip to ikea tomorrow, i think, plus i've got after-work plans tonight that include some of my favorite faces, so all of that will be fun.

and i'm trying really hard to focus on the spirit of the season instead of the blatant materialism that i see going on right now. don't get me wrong: i will always enjoy reading gift guides, i love shopping and i'm drawn to pretty, sparkly trinkets just as much as, if not moreso, than the next girl. but i find myself slipping into a crazed "buy! buy! buy!" mindset too easily around this time of year, so i'm making a conscious effort to step back and remember that what's most important is spending time with the people that you love. it's not always easy, but it's worth it.

happy weekend, everyone.

the (holiday) weekend + committing to...

i'll be the first person to admit that i try to put a positive spin on most of my posts (have we talked about the fact that my friend kate accuses me of living in a marshmallow?), but i'm just going to be honest: overall, my thanksgiving wasn't that great, and i was really glad to get back to sarasota on saturday afternoon, where i promptly went into what i'm referring to as "christmas nesting mode." i put up my tiny tree (pictured above), i hung up some gold glitter snowflakes and i started on a couple of diy projects -- one being a huge, custom photo for my bedroom wall. and actually, now that i stare at this photo, i realized that i also actually swapped out that black frame for a much prettier white one, and it looks so much better. being at home is really making me happy right now -- i daresay it's keeping me sane.*

and in the spirit of good mental health, here are five commitments for the week:

+ exercise. for both the endorphins and the fact that i need to burn off the exorbitant amount of pie i consumed over the  long weekend.
+ make this: pumpkin and goat cheese risotto. it sounds so, so, so good.
+ pick up a curtain and curtain rod for my bedroom window. in the spirit of making my home prettier (and my random nesting), i think it's about time, don't you? especially after almost three years here.
+ start making some of my holiday gifts. (more on them after they're given.)
+ just breathe.

*daresay is a word that never fails to transport me to the pages of a jane austen novel. i kind of can't believe i typed it but i'm pretty glad i did.

photo by me

what are you doing this weekend?

i posted a comment the other day on anna's blog in response to her post about steve jobs' death, and i feel like this part of it -- the last paragraph -- sums up a lot of my feelings right now (it's also a bit of a reiteration of what i said earlier this week):

"my grandmother passed away last week at the age of 95. we were very close; she was an amazing woman: an educator and an advocate of social justice, but also someone who rode her bicycle well into her 80s and enjoyed bird-watching from her back porch. she lived a full, happy life, and she made others’ lives richer and more beautiful just by being here. when i found out she died, it felt like the wind had been knocked out of me. 

i felt the same way when i read the news about steve jobs (while browsing the internet on my macbook, appropriately). i never knew him — i was more acquainted with the idea of him, as most of us were — but i use his products all day, every day. and i feel like he gave the world the same experience my grandmother gave me. he made it better, more beautiful. richer. i love that the dedication on apple’s website says that “steve leaves behind a company that only he could have built, and his spirit will forever be the foundation of apple.” it seems so apt. 

it’s hard, personally, to lose two people who were so important to me, albeit in such different ways, in the course of 10 days. i feel like there’s a lot of grieving still to be done. but i feel like both my grandmother and steve jobs would want me — and us all — to move forward, to be better as a result of this experience. so that’s what i’m taking away from it all: move forward, and be better."

yes.

the weekend is going to be a quiet one; i really need to kind of get it together after living rather randomly for the past week and a half. my house is a mess, i need to do laundry and dishes, and i'd like to make some meals that will get me through next week (i'm thinking a big pot of hearty soup sounds really great). i'm also planning on going to the farmer's market and maybe doing some furniture rearranging in my house (my darling felines have clawed apart one of my favorite chairs and it either needs to be moved or replaced). there will be time with friends and time alone, and i'm looking forward to all of it.

how about you? what are your plans or the next few days? whatever they are, i hope they are lovely and autumnal. thank you from the bottom of my heart for all your wonderful comments this week, too -- they mean a lot (they always do).

see you back here on monday.

photo by *cinnamon. its title is "the swerve and the static"; isn't that pretty?

loving: rosegolden

this past sunday, i tweeted that i woke up thinking about creating a gallery wall somewhere in my apartment, which struck me as a fairly random but also as rather a lovely way to start the day. this week, i've continued to think more about the art (or lack thereof) in my home, and in particular my bedroom, which was repainted several months ago but which is still embarrassingly bare.

so i was delighted to discover that one of my favorite bloggers, anabela, in collaboration with erin, has created rosegolden, a shop selling beautiful, blown-up pictures of flowers that also feature a bit of gold-leaf detailing. (in fact, the shop's "about" section says that it's anabela and erin's way of "bringing together [their] love of flowers and shiny things.")

i can get behind that. and i can get behind hanging one of these in my home, too. how about you?

images via rosegolden

loving: jordan's colorful living room.

though she's currently living in paris, jordan shared photos of her san francisco apartment's living room on her blog this week, and honestly: i wish i could copy of the entire thing and plop it into my own home. love, love, love all the color and pattern.

photos by jordan