BFFS-4EVA

I'll be the first to admit that I'm not the most organized host. Sure, I'll save you a cat-free pillow case, fluff you a comforter, vacuum the couch, and have Jackie make pumpkin pancakes in the morning...but when it comes to figuring out what to do throughout your stay, I won't have an entire agenda planned. LA is a wonderful city with a lot of things to do but it's so widespread that you almost have to choose only 1 or 2 things a day. Typically those activities include food, shopping, or something active like a hike or a yoga class.

When Erin came to town, we didn't do much of any of those things! I've known Erin since first grade, so whenever we're together, it doesn't take much to keep us happy and I love that about her. Instead of stressing over where to take her or what to do, we just decided to do whatever would make us happy at the moment, which ended up being the Stanley Kubrik exhibit at the LACMA (probably the closest either of us will get to seeing The Shining since we're both babies!), climbing walls at Rockcreation, skipping the gym to play card games and eat pastries at Sweet Lady Jane, taking our time shopping/gawking at LA Marathoners at the Promenade, split-and-swapping at the new Burger Lounge, and a few more...[life-changing, totally awesome, wish-i-could-post-photos] unmentionables.

Come back soon, Erin! I promise not to plan anything!

Where I've Been

As mentioned in the previous post, January has been completely taken over by the NAMM show. Now that it has come and gone and February 1 is right around the corner, I can finally sit down and catch up!

I might write about this every year, but my level of exhaustion post-show gets worse and worse as the event becomes more my responsibility. This year was no exception as I shuttled around Los Angeles and Anaheim to gather materials, renovate our booth, contract union workers and make sure every little detail was taken care of. I was given a little more creative freedom in regards to the overall "look" of our display, so I took the liberty to spruce up some walls with paint, upgraded light fixtures, a few rugs and plants and storage/platforms. It felt like I was working on an HGTV show and it was so fun! The end result was a space that seemed larger, warmer and cozier than before. I promised my family some photos, so here they are!

Holga Adventures

Holy moly, what a great start to 2012. It feels like summer in LA and I don't mind! Not one bit. For my day off, I took advantage of the beautiful weather and went for a little jaunt around Runyan Canyon with Jackie. It was especially busy - it felt like we were hiking in an amusement park! I don't know if the three day weekend, the weather or new years resolutions are to blame. Probably a combination of the three.



We brought along my trusty camera and experimented with the Holga lens, as you can see. After some indoor experimenting, I decided that the Holga lens was much more appropriate for outdoor settings and I love the vignette effect that I got on a lot of these shots. I kept thinking that it was funny to use a plastic toy lens on such a nice digital SLR. Don't these remind you of those disposable camera shots that you would get developed from summer camp?

Sidenote: I didn't take a photo of it, but the Kale and Coconut smoothie from Naturewell in Silverlake is definitely worth mentioning. There is nothing better after a dusty LA hike! Go brave the hipsters and get one, if you are in the neighborhood.

house bunny // from me, to you

I'm a little slow to discover the photography blog, From Me to You, but now that I have, I know I'll be visiting often! If you're new to Jamie Beck's work, be sure to set aside a few hours because the world through her lens is beautiful and addicting.

She has a little segment called "At Home With..." where she takes snapshots of the most amazing NY apartments. When I saw these photos of Erica Cerulo's pet bunny, Ernie, my heart just melted. Her Brooklyn apartment is also jaw-droppingly awesome -- but nothing beats this little guy and his floppy ears!

2 cats and a bunny - can I do it? 

Cotton + Silk

My little feature on Janae's new blog, Cotton + Silk is up! Moby ended up being the star...but what else is new?

*Psst, check that product placement!

Color Correcting

My favorite program in Adobe's Creative Suite used to be Illustrator. Call me a nerd, but I like to work with vectors and "draw"! For the longest time, I've used Photoshop for the basics and I'm just now starting to explore some of the more hidden tools. There are a ton of really great Photoshop tutorials on Pinterest. I also follow photography blogs that often offer many great tips and tricks (who needs to pay for school?!) but as they say, practice makes perfect. Thank goodness I have a ton of photos to edit.

I'm still working on finding my "style", but here are a few before and afters from my trip to Asia. It's fun to go through these memories...apparently the fondest ones all involve food!


A memorable meal in Bangkok. This photo has me craving lemongrass and coconut. *Yay! I took the weird shadow off her cheeks
One of my favorite things about Bangkok: Street food. Delicious sticky rice in a bag? Say no more. *I think I need to lower the contrast on this one.
Our Laksa adventure in Singapore was so worth the trip across town. Every time Jackie or Blair cooks with the Laksa sauce, I'm taken back to this little outdoor spot. *It was difficult to balance out the shadow across her face and have her eyes "pop"...

Recently Starred **

1 & 2 -- This photo from Josh Goleman's trip to Jamaica has me longing to leave the country again.

3 -- An awesome little Autumn mix put together by Kate Miss // For-me-for-you

4 -- Whooo whoooo galaxy nails. Love this dark blue sparkly color. // A Cup of Joe

5 -- Make Tacos Not War. A motto I can live by. // Knack

September Sunsets & Sweat

If we ever move away from Santa Monica, I'm gonna miss breaking a sweat to this kind of sunset.

Weekend Vacation

Aren't 3-day weekends wondrous?

We decided to stay in town to enjoy the 80-degree weather and beach. But first! Food. My stomach was treated to some awesome homemade meals. The pizza was made by Jackie on our new pizza stone and chef Robinson pulled homemade pasta out of his fancy bag of culinary tricks. I don't think I've ever had homemade pasta before and I gotta say, I am a new woman. I brought my new camera with the intention of trying to take a few photos of his creation, but appetite beat me to it. Such is life.

We brought over special beverages for the chef and I finally opened up one of my precious Muji drinks -- thanks again Akiko, they are so delicious. I'm savoring the second one for a special occasion.

Sorry Neko and Moby...Scratch is the kitty featured on this post! We spent Saturday night being entertained by those crazy eyes. Scratch has such a spunky personality and nails to live up to her name. Her unexplainable interest in tampons is beyond me!

The rest of the weekend included washing and waxing the cars (is it weird that I get so much happiness out of making things shiny?!), beach beach beach, and dying on the Santa Monica stairs. Catching the sunset made it worth it though.

Best thing about a 3 day weekend? Only have 3 more days until next weekend!

Take me to the Greek

Last weekend was Lauren's 1-year anniversary of living in LA...and what did we do about it? We hung out backstage with the Gipsy Kings. Nights like these are prime examples of when work and fun can overlap. It was  beautiful night to spend in Los Feliz on the back patio with some old French gypsies. We ransacked the free snacks, enjoyed the open bar and bomboleo'ed with women 20 years older than us.