good morning! i thought it would be nice to start today on a love note. these beautiful notes are from mara zepeda of neither snow. as part of her valentine’s day suite (which you can order on her etsy shop through feb. 8th), mara is offering limited edition calligraphed valentines with vintage postage. each oversized envelope will contain a custom (up to 15 words) personal message and stamps selected especially for the person you love. each assemblage of stamps is unique and each letter is a great way to send an sweet love note to someone special in your life. if you want to place an order, click here to check out mara’s selection.

i also wanted to add two more quick notes to start off our abbreviated holiday posting day (we’ll be posting 4 times from now until 11am). first, in honor of martin luther king jr. day, here is a link to some great ways to give back on this national day of service and volunteering. if you have time, i hope you can find a way to give back today and any day you have free time to help those around you- and those far from home.

also, i want to wish ac a wonderful 33rd (or “larry bird-thday” as he calls it) birthday. i’ve been privileged to spend the last 6+ years of my life with him and am excited to spend the next 33 with him. xoxo!

i thought it would be fun to close out the week with this great design project from KURO in long beach, california. kuro designed the visual identity and some additional packaging/design work for a new cowboy-themed luxury b&b in nevada called “a cowboy’s dream“. i love all of the little cards, letterhead and logo work they did for them- it really brings the idea of a cool cowboy hotel to life. and the extra dry goods designs? seriously cute. it’s enough to make me want to pack up my gear and head back to montana or somewhere else with wide open skies. click here for more information on kuro and this project, and click here to check out a cowboy’s dream in nevada.

d*s will be posting on monday, so have a wonderful weekend and we’ll see you next week! below is a summary of this week’s highlights:

• new city guides: vancouver and the comox valley!
• past & present: the curule (or x-stool)
• living in: gosford park
• we like it wild: citrus + rosemary floral arrangements + marmalade recipe
• new sneak peeks: rion nakaya, raina kattelson, myriah and nadia of nightwood
• biz ladies: trendsetters, influencers, and connectors
• diy projects: stamped business cards, make your own chandelier, waterslide decals, bike chain clock
• before & after: jeannie’s dress + joanne’s credenza, andreea’s home + dana’s bathroom, renee’s cakestands + alexandra’s bathroom, lindsay’s bedroom + janae’s chair
• small measures with ashley: the art of loafing
• in the kitchen with: the pie truck’s mushroom + zucchini pies
• new d*s guest blogger: sweet paul!
• misc.: origami club, citrus sheets, painted snow, new: alyson fox dishware, angela adams sail bags

This recipe for Zucchini and Mushroom pies, by Bill from The Pie Truck, was prepared thanks to the fantastic work of food stylist Adam C. Pearson and photographer Matt Armendariz in their Long Beach studio. I really loved the time I spent learning in their studio because it has a million and one props to choose from when making and styling food to be photographed. For these images, I chose a vintage mini muffin tin that produced the perfect sized little pies. The empty muffin hole you see was home to a perfectly formed pie which was nicknamed The Hero. The Hero was set aside on his own little plate (kind of like his own little trailer) and for the duration of the shoot, only Adam was allowed to handle The Hero. The Hero is -not- the pie we cut into to take the pictures. The Hero is the uncut one you see. He remained in tact until after the shoot. Then I ate him. He tasted as flaky and good as he looks in the images!

The Pie Truck served its patrons in the Bay Area until 19 December when Bill and his friends and customers unfortunately bid it farewell. (You can read the Pie Truck’s story here). Fortunately, we have a recipe for one of the fantastic pies which were available from the truck. For those of you who knew the Pie Truck, this will let you keep the memory alive. For those of you who never had the chance to taste a pie, here’s what you missed!

*We are devastated at the earthquake crisis in Haiti and unfolding number of losses. One of the greatest needs in Haiti now is for meals ready to eat (MREs). There are a number of charitable organizations, NGOs, international NGOs, private companies and individuals who are mobilizing resources to assist. No matter how small, any contribution can help save a life.*

CLICK HERE for the full recipe for Zucchini & Mushroom pie after the jump!

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I’ve long worshipped at the altar of “busyness”. I have running, ongoing lists of things I’d like to, and intend to, complete. Lists for house projects, lists for garden and landscaping projects. Reading lists. Essentially, all manner of lists for filling up my free time. For as long as I can remember, I’ve felt uncomfortable if I wasn’t “doing” something. If it helped the planet, or my community, or my friends and family in the process, even better. And then I met my husband, who worships at the diametrically opposed alter of “slowness”, accompanied by its first cousin, “idleness.” [image credits, clockwise from top left: the washington post, popmatters, dullog, wikimedia, sign post tours, amazon]

Never one to rush through anything, he helped me learn the beauty in being aware of each experience (instead of my customary pining for the past or longing for the future), of reducing my pace enough to really see what’s occurring around me, to enjoy just simply “being”. Part and parcel of his approach includes relishing idleness-not over-planning life, simply taking the time to notice the trees, along with the forest. I couldn’t have hoped for a more perfect foil.

And so, today’s small measure celebrates the decidedly low-fi activity of nothingness, of loafing, of absently whiling away the minutes and hours. The pursuit of inactivity is seriously maligned in today’s do-more, be-more, see-more, go-more culture. “Idle hands are the devil’s tools”, courtesy of one Geoffrey Chaucer (Tale of Melibee), is a mindset so deeply ingrained in modern society that many of us feel guilty for having a long, ambling lunch, or taking an impromptu nap, or simply seeing where the day takes us.

“The Art of Doing Nothing: Simple Ways to Make Time for Yourself” by Veronique Vienne is full of insights, suggestions, and tidbits for embracing intentional loafing. From meditating to taking a long bath to staring pointlessly at the sea, Vienne engages her readers to find merit in simply “being” instead of always “doing.” In Tom Lutz’s
“Doing Nothing: A History of Loafers, Loungers, Slackers, and Bums in America” , we learn about inspirational do-nothings, from Thoreau to Oscar Wilde to Kerouac.

As for myself, I’ve learned that my finest bursts of creativity occur when loafing about. The long, lingering cup of tea whilst watching the sun rise over the ridge behind my house, the extended rocking chair session on the front porch, the purposeless gazing at the creek across the road from my mother’s house-when my focus isn’t anywhere but on that which is right before me, my mind seizes the opportunity to move freely around and about its nooks and crannies, folds and membranes, surprising me with unplanned, unprovoked, unintentional delights.

CLICK HERE for the rest of “Constitutional Rights (Or, The Art of Loafing)”, more on the walking “constitutional” and the Cloud Appreciation Society’s manifesto after the jump!

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i nursed a pretty major crush on a sailing boy for years when i was younger, so i’ll always have a soft spot for anything sailboat-related. these new angela adams sail bags are made from recycled sails in collaboration with a local portland, maine company, sea bags. i’m partial to the full-sized bag, but the wine totes are great for frequent party-goers, too. click here to check out the collection and shop online.

tgif! the weekend is finally here and i’m ready to celebrate making it through another cold week in the city. thankfully sweet paul is ready with some party-planning tips at the guest blog, so click here to check out his suggestions for events at home!

In honor of the new year we’ve decided to redouble our efforts to use locally grown flowers and produce in as many as arrangements as possible. This week was the perfect week to get started again: a little bit of rain and a little bit of warm sun meant that the fields have been pushing up new blooms all over our favorite local flower farms. Thanks to Northern California’s mild seasons and fertile soil, we’re blessed with amazing fruits and flowers throughout the year.

During the wintertime California’s citrus fruits reach their peak meaning that we have a huge assortment of bright and tasty oranges, tangerines, and clementines to add some zest to our arrangements and our plates. While shopping the market we came across an oft overlooked member of the citrus family, the kumquat, and decided to make these little guys one of the featured players in this week’s post. Alongside some farm fresh ranunculus and rosemary from our backyard, we’ve put together a few ideas that are both fanciful and fragrant.

Rosemary and citrus seem to go hand in hand. Rosemary’s pine scent compliments the clean and fresh sparkle of the citrus’ bouquet. Winding and weaving a few long switches of rosemary together makes a perfectly sweet-smelling nest to protect a few choice kumquat “eggs” on the dining table. Similarly, rosemary and kumquats are the perfect pair when added to bouquets and boutonnieres of citrus-colored ranunculus, leaving marvelously subtle smells in their wake.

Of course, there were so many lovely members of the citrus family calling out to us at the farmer’s market, we couldn’t leave anyone behind. We gathered a good armload to make some of Alethea’s Four Fruits Marmalade. The recipe is after the jump below!

CLICK HERE for the rest of studio choo’s post and the full recipe for their four fruits marmalade!

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this bedroom transformation comes from lindsay of aubrey and & lindsay. not only did lindsay and her helpers tear down a wall, but they turned two separate rooms into one lovely master bedroom with a clean, fresh look. i’m a sucker for a studded upholstered headboard, so i really appreciate the bright new look. click here to read more about the makeover process right here. thanks for sharing, lindsay!

[have a before & after you'd like to share on d*s? just shoot me an email right here with your images!]

CLICK HERE for janae’s chair makeover after the jump!

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i’m a big fan of diy cakestands, so i was excited to see d*s reader renee’s before & after submission. renee is getting married in july (congratulations!) and is focusing on making as many things by hand as possible. guests will be taking home cookies as favors, so renee decided to use a mix of plates from the goodwill to create her own cookie/cake stands for less than $50. the plates were painted to tie all of the disparate dishware together (there will be doilies between the food and the stands to make sure everything is food-safe) and then voila- brand new custom cookie stands! you can see more images of her handiwork right here, thanks for sharing, renee!

[have a before & after you'd like to share on d*s? just shoot me an email right here with your images!]

CLICK HERE for alexandra’s bathroom makeover after the jump!

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