i was uber excited to see a few of the bands playing friday. like… jazzed.  so when i got there (after work), and the ‘will call’ line stretched two blocks, i waited.  then when my tickets were in the ‘guest list’ line… i tried to shake it off.  i was doing pretty well.  thinking… man, this is way better than i thought it’d be.  then, bang. no breathing room.  no moving room.  drunk people. elbows. and suddenly, i realized the photos weren’t worth it.  i liked the few bands i got to see. and having been to my share of music festivals, i am by no means, a baby.  i just think CHBP is still figuring it out.  should a photographer have to shove through over a block long area of people to get photos, and then… shove your way back out?  maybe.  but it detracts from the experience. everything i’ve been reading seems to show people are enjoying themselves… and the music.  i’ve seen a lot of amazing photos, and think maybe it’s just not my thing.  give me bumbershoot, wide open spaces, years of experience, and just around the corner.  for all of my CHBP photos, click

band fences at neumos- these guys and chris pureka were my favourites

band shabazz palaces at the main stage

the reflection on that drum shows some of what the venue was like… packed and narrow

band unnatural helpers at neumos- these guys had amazing energy

band yeasayer at the main stage

i’ve had the luck of living in proximity to sailing folk… the last few thursdays, i’ve had invites to head out to the thursday night downtown sailing series. 2 thursdays ago, i brought my camera, and captured our beautiful night out on the water. thanks to neighbor josh for the invite, and the cornfields for having us. to see all the photos… click

adam keeps watch on the sail

mount rainier making an appearance

greg1 and captain dave

spinnaker’s up after the mark

greg and carrie

pretty sunset on the water…

joshin’ for the camera

our city at sunset

since today is the first day of anniversary sale, i thought i’d post some stylish nordstrom representation. loved her layered stripes and pearls.

have you picked your must have items from that gorgeous book?  come see me at store 2 (northgate), and i’ll make sure you find some stellar hosiery for fall (really fashion? we just got summer and you want me to think of fall?)

nothing says american independence like kids, dogs, old cars and darth vader. am i wrong? we celebrated our fourth in edmonds this year, brunch with friends, then off to stake out a spot for the edmond’s parade. then back in to the city for a dinner bbq. since i don’t live in a house that overlooks lake union (or know anyone who does) i tend to watch my fireworks on tv or listen to them popping out in the street as i fall asleep. what can i say, i lead a glamourous existence. i can’t complain.  hope you had a great 4th, to see some of my photos from the parade click

wasabi dozing as the parade starts

cool old cars kick off the procession

old jeepster… kinda has the same shape as a ‘thing’. love it!

of course i run out to get this shot, and the band stops. there’s some video of my face. not cool steven.

‘horseless carriage’

so many cute kids riding bikes and looking patriotic- notice the two shirts and jeans- not exactly july weather.

dogs as political ads… doesn’t seem to mind.

storm troopers show up at all sorts of events.

darth looking more friendly than usual… he was waving to the kiddos.

the pirates also have a busy summer calendar…

luckily there are to-go cups.

the parade ends on a cute note…

me and miss a. do some bowling.

bowling is fun for while…

but then it’s off to the backyard to… play with birdie!  miss a. watches birdie…

as birdie keeps an eye on the grill.

miss a. wants to know what birdie’s doing? sniffing or begging. take your pick.

next up, mr. b. sticks his tongue out at me.

tongue or no, he’s absolutely adorable!  and very patriotic in his red, white and blue eyes.

thanks to all our friends for including us in your july 4th celebrations!

i first want to apologize that my ISO is OFF, and this picture is grainy/dim/sucktastic (for those who know me- NERVES!). second i want to say… SWEET! it’s tom douglas!   for anyone in the area who loves food, tom is our version of a celebrity. to me, he’s like the seattle-gastro-santa-claus. and he was very sweet to let me bug him for a picture. this little kiosk of goodness in the lobby of the paramount is a VAST improvement over whatever they used to offer. i remember going to a concert ages ago, being famished, and my choices were like nuts or a cookie? tom’s keeping us fed in style. and if you’ve ever been to a party (or wedding!) where he’s cooking… watch for those little grilled cheese bites. you will have died and gone to heaven.

wasn’t yesterday gorgeous. driving through all the hoods of seattle, i love the explosion of pink. makes me want to pull over and capture some of it. so i did.

right when you walk in, a mic’d up scuba diver in a tank that’s enormous. (he’s in there)

From needle+thread

miss fidgety does NOT hold still (but i still get the shot) up against the cool textured wall.

From needle+thread

my amigo in arms.

seriously.  how long has it been since you were there?  i tried to count and since i suck at math, came up with something around 9 or 14 years.  IT. IS. SO. MUCH. BETTER.  i’m not kidding.  you should leave work and go right now.  or let’s make a date and go during octopus week.  i will be there.  then.  you don’t know how i feel about octopuses (or octopi, both are CORRECT).  i lurv them.  they’ve helped me out of many a stressful situation.  it’s a long story.  but me and the eight-legged guy?  we bonded.  and i was even polite while politely shoving people out of my way to get this picture.

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EVENTS-
dec 3rd-17th (thursdays) – downtown – an improvised christmas carol – have you been to unexpected productions? HI-larious, and their interpretation of a christmas carol is SO FUNNY. i think i went 3 times the first year i found it. they take suggestions from the audience for elements of the story, and it turns a story we’ve all heard a zillion times, into something unexpected, fresh and FUNNY. GO!
dec. 4th – downtown – figgy pudding caroling contest – if you’ve never been, it’s worth a stroll through, or stay for the whole thing. i love that they block off the streets and you can wander and listen to all the groups sing. here’s some info about the event.
dec. 4th – top of queen anne – holiday magic – from mcgraw to galer, all the merchants on top of queen anne are having a festive night
dec 5th – holiday kick off at the sip and ship in ballard – i know there’s music and a percent off, but can’t find my email about it. i LOVE the sip and ship. and they take a lot of stress out of wrapping AND shipping. two things i’m not fond of.
dec. 6th – the boutique culture warehouse sale – i went to the one they had end of summer… some great deals from some of your favourite boutiques AND this time they’re doing a clothing swap.  here’s the info.
dec. 12th – santarchy or santacon… of course they have a facebook page.  the best part of santarchy is coming across it randomly.
dec. 17th – holiday party at mario’s, their website has all the info.

plus i just did a search for where to see the best light decorations, and my favourite, olympic manor is listed in this article- although, i can’t tell how old it is. and just realized it’s written by courtney strand, who i met for the first time at blogmeetblog!

more to come, and if you know of something great, email me!

i grew up in a relatively small town.  what am i saying… 6000 is teenie tiny.  i sometimes feel like i’ve come so far from where i started, that i’m never very sure if i actually did come from there.  christmas-time is that period in the year that that i’m fully reminded.  makes me remember growing up- maybe it’s like this for everyone…

i seriously start getting giddy, my ADD kicks into overdrive with all the sparkle, music, parties… baking opportunities. i make christmas music mixes and make my husband nuts with the over-playing of the waitresses ‘christmas song’, i like wearing socks and sliding in the kitchen while gene autry blares, and i make cookies i only ever eat this time of year.

since this blog is seattle specific, i wanted to begin to collect all the things i love attending every year.  seattle is beautiful at christmas.  i love living here, and making new traditions in our city by the sea… i know i’m getting a jump on the christmas stuff, pre-thanksgiving- but… this is what i’m looking forward to, and there it is.  if you want to find a list of christmas events, check back and click on inspiration or musings.  for the month of december, i’ll make sure it stays at the top.  have a happy thanksgiving (we’re doing a small t-day with friends- wii give thanks!- it’s kind of self explanatory…and will involve turkey).  hope to see you about town, and as always… i’ll have my camera.

p.s. the picture is from last week and involved no editing but cropping.  i’m loving the crazy light shift this time of year- although it is making for some tough fashion capturing.

EVENTS-
dec 3rd-17th (thursdays) – an improvised christmas carol – have you been to unexpected productions? HI-larious, and their interpretation of a christmas carol is SO FUNNY. i think i went 3 times the first year i found it. they take suggestions from the audience for elements of the story, and it turns a story we’ve all heard a zillion times into something unexpected, fresh and funny. GO!
dec. 4th – downtown – figgy pudding caroling contest – if you’ve never been, it’s worth a stroll through, or stay for the whole thing. i love that they block off the streets and you can wander and list to all the groups sing. here’s some info about the event.
dec. 4th – top of queen anne – holiday magic – from mcgraw to galer, all the merchants on top of queen anne are having a festive night
dec 5th – holiday kick off at the sip and ship in ballard – i know there’s music and a percent off, but can’t find my email about it. i LOVE the sip and ship. and they take a lot of stress out of wrapping AND shipping. two things i’m not fond of.

more to come, and if you know of something great, email me!

we’ve been working over the last couple of weeks to make this blogger event something special.  we’re so excited to meet everyone!

just a few things!
we’ve updated the time – it’s now 7-10pm

giveaways/sponsors- thank you thank you thank you to:
boconcept- wouldn’t be a party without an awesome party space. boconcept is also sponsoring some giveaways! sweet!
mike’s hard lemondade- mike’s will be there with their spiced apple and they want to video some blogger responses. i love holiday ‘merrymaking’, mike’s might be my new ‘go-to’ beverage for the holidays (save me the trip to ikea for glogg)
Qdoba- will be providing food for us! a full taco bar- be sure to visit their Facebook fan page.
trophy cupcakes- a little bite of sweetness, trophy is bringing 140 mini cupcakes!
Dry Soda- a little sweet, a little bubbly… the perfect party drink!
SPUN- a giveaway for the bloggers! $200 in SPUN clothing.
hazel salon & organics- free organic samples from chi and pearatin, 2 $50 gift certificates for amazing salon services!
value village- 2 $20 gift cerificates for 2 lucky bloggers!
moo cards- moo is giving several lucky bloggers free cards. we love moo, and we LOVE free!
modcloth- sponsored giveaway from modcloth. if you haven’t see their cool clothes, check them out here.
shop ruche- sponsored giveaway- see their great vintage inspired clothes/accessories here.
cs management- hired our very awesome DJ- tigerbeat. nothing makes a good party like great music!
yiu design and cylinder studio- help with the promo and website- thanks guys!

a small list of some of the 100 blogs who have rsvp’d!
the clothes horse – our co-host for the event, rebecca has an amazing blog chronicling her style and inspiration.
urban fashion network – tarah and youa do a great job of giving you the low-down on local fashion events, and sponsoring local designers.
darrah’s dresser – another seattle fashion blogger, darrah’s honest run-down of events and fashion is a can’t miss.
sydney loves fashion – local fashion insider sydney- shops, culls and finds all the great, making your job easy when you need to know where to get what.
jaunty magpie – get inspired for that next fashion purchase, the magpie puts together imagination, style and great finds.

plus: alix rose, emerald dandy, fashion for nerds, the midnight cook and so many more!

we can’t wait to see everyone this friday!
n+t

when i showed up at the last one of these parties… i think it was august…  i was setting my expectations low.  i was late.  i almost didn’t go.  i took the bus with my friend jennie, and i think we almost bagged and went drinking somewhere… but when we got there… it was like we showed up at a party in another city.  people were dressed up.  there were so many people, lines for drinks weren’t that long… and since it was at the sculpture park, and the end of summer… you could mill, dance, mingle at your own speed.  it was a really fun night.

so when this one came round, i was ready.  i knew.  and when i got there… it did not disappoint.  a great mix of young and old, drinks+snacks, AMAZING beats by one of the best dj’s i’ve heard in a while… tigerbeat (tigerbeat206 on twitter) and people who brought it when it came to style.

SAM is not the best museum i’ve been to in my life, but by far it’s the closest to my heart… and there are worse things you could do than turn a museum into a night club every couple of months and get the people milling around, dancing and appreciating art.  add it to your list of events… you won’t be disappointed.