vintage etsy love.

zebras and bubblegum.

old green canoe.

fishbone deco.

hindsvik.

rhan.

in stitches.

Who knew cross stitch could be so fun? I love these designs from Chez Sucre Chez. I'd like to come up with my own and get stitchy once the winter nesting urge sets in.

silhouette.

I love this idea from Making It Lovely. Design Sponge has a tutorial to do it yourself. Or if you're too lazy for that, Clay Rice will be in Charleston Sept. 15. Look for a story on him in next week's paper.

oh homer.

I'm on a shopping high. I spent most of the day scouring thrift stores on the outskirts of town, looking for stuff for Stinge. I found four great cross-body bags, some shoes, and a few tops, but the prize of the day was a selfish find: a complete set of 1955 Homer Laughlin china. Maybe I don't need it, maybe I'm too young to get so excited about dishes, but I'm in love. Now I think I need a china cabinet.

micmacs pattywhack

I just watched this movie last night. It's by Jean-Pierre Jeunet, probably my favorite director, thanks to films like Amelie and Delicatessen. Micmacs a.k.a. Micmacs à tire-larigot did not disappoint. It was beautiful, colorful, imaginative, funny, and suspenseful. If you're in Charleston, catch it at the French Film Festival this weekend. 

decor porn.

I'll be the first one to tell you that I'm stubborn. When someone tells me I can't do something, or that it'll be too hard, it makes me want to do it even more. I think I just want to prove that anything can be accomplished if you approach it intelligently.  Maybe it's not stubbornness after all.

We were pre-approved for a much better mortgage than we expected. This makes buying the house a distinct possibility. It needs to be completely redone, but I'm excited at the prospect. I don't think it'll be easy, but it only took a few hours to figure out how much money it would take to fix it up to our specifications.

Who knows what'll happen. But for now, I'm dreaming of tiles and retro-style refrigerators and French doors and light fixtures.

curioser.

As expected, I very much enjoyed my time wandering solo around Savannah.* I ran around like an art school student with my camera and have some fun, colorful photos to share later. Until then, here are some of the strange/spooky things I ran across that I may not have even noticed had I been more sociable.

A mysterious wall of graves at Colonial Park Cemetery.

There is no doubt in my mind that this old hospital/"poor house" is haunted.

Speaking of ghosts...

 Ghost kitty.

* That is until I was involved in a minor car accident that has given me a (hopefully temporary) driving phobia.

south bound.

Oh Darling! Photography.

I'm headed to Savannah again this weekend. I sort of invited myself along on the boy's tournament weekend, so I'll be stuck entertaining myself for most of it. I'm quite looking forward to it. 

I don't get to spend much time alone, and I've been thinking all week about browsing antique shops, getting lost on side streets, discovering new bakeries, taking artsy photos, lounging by the pool, and reading — an actual book, not just the internets. Heck, I might not even take my computer. 

OK, that's a lie.

watermelon cake.

I must make this sherbet-y watermelon "cake" before the end of summer. Courtesy of Big Girls, Small Kitchen. Always an inspiration.

i'm a fan of dodeline.

Sarah Early of Charleston-based DodelineDesign is making our custom wedding invitations, and I can't wait to see how it all turns out! She's been great about putting up with my indecisiveness, and I love what she's done so far.

These are just a few examples of her work, available in local shops like Lesesne and Mac & Murphy. Check out her Etsy shop, too.

taste the rainbow.

Oh muh geez. Someone make me this. Or perhaps I'll make it myself and let you know how it goes. Anyone have a birthday coming up?
Also:

Chocolate and avocado macaroons. Raspberri Cupcakes is an amazing blog.

life styles.

Everything Ashley Meaders does is amazing. If I had the money to hire someone to style my wedding — or just my life — it would be her.

flipping.

We looked at a house today in our neighborhood. It's a cute, historic shotgun house on a great up-and-coming street at an unbeatable price. The only problem is, it needs intense renovations. The previous owner started it off but left a huge mess and the bare bones of a house. Floors, heating and air, kitchen, bathroom, windows, doors, closets need built or replaced.

Half of me thinks it would be so much fun to create a home — kitchen, bath, yard, bedrooms, etc. — exactly to our specifications. Half of me thinks we'd have to be insane. Could we handle this in our first year of marriage or would it lead to certain divorce?

it's ok to be stingey.

When I'm not working at my day job at the Charleston City Paper, I like to do fun things, like shop. My co-worker Susan and I decided to turn our mutual love of thrifting into something lucrative, thus Stinge Vintage was born.

We've been amazed at the response from people both locally and around the world who apparently love our selection of affordable vintage clothes and housewares.

Work has forced us to take a bit of a hiatus over the past few months, but we're getting back on track. Keep an eye on our Etsy for new posts every week, and become a Facebook fan, too. Some recent favorites added to the shop:

a powdery blue gown (with original tags!)
a handmade '50s-style shift dress
a kitschy little recipe box

in stitches.

A few weeks ago I wrote an article about Sideshow Press and Stitch Design Co. One of my favorite parts of my job is meeting insanely talented and inspiring people like the ladies behind these companies.

Adorable invitation from Sideshow.
and a stationery set.
Stitch identity.

Charleston has so much talent, and I hope I can help to highlight more and more of it. Of course, I'm always open to suggestions (erica@charlestoncitypaper.com).

lemme see your grill.

This post from local blogger Tartelette inspired me to experiment with simple, fresh food this weekend. We picked up a few bags of beautiful produce at the Vegetable Bin (Charlestonians' secret cheap food destination) and fresh pizza dough at the farmers market.

We whipped up some homemade sauce (tip: don't cook it) and grilled a pizza, topping it with fresh mozzarella, basil, and Italian sausage. It took just a few minutes to throw together and it cooked even quicker. The result:

Best of all, it was just breezy enough to make dining on the back porch bearable for the first time in weeks. We grilled up a couple of local peaches and paired them with vanilla bean ice cream for the perfect summer dessert.

city of love.

I wonder what Europe is like in the fall? We're planning our November honeymoon, and I'm already overwhelmed with fantasies of days spent doing nothing but exploring old cities and tiny towns, eating good food and warming up with coffee and wine. The fiance has a Spanish degree and spent a summer in Bilbao, so Spain is a contender. But I can never get Paris out of my head.
Last time we visited, we were exhausted from exploring Ireland, Spain, and Italy. I think Paris deserves a closer look, don't you?

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sleep castle.

I've been experiencing some serious bedroom envy lately. I'm pretty over mine, with a cheap Ikea bed prone to breaking, a huge TV we never watch, and a broken hamper that we may or may not have accidentally run over with a jeep. Some necessities:

Combined with...

A soothing wall color.
A cheeky pillow.
And a sweet little kitten, of course.

make your mark.

I love the idea of nontraditional wedding guestbooks. There are so many fun ideas floating around the blogosphere I'm finding it impossible to choose. Can I please have more than one?

Let your guests type their love for you on a vintage typewriter. (Sadly, this beaut is sold.)

Find a fun graphic poster and have everyone sign it, like this one by twoforjoypaper.

Give your guests some props and a chalkboard (like this one), and you're sure to get some hilarious photos.

What's your favorite? Do you have any other fun ideas?

divine desserts.

Last week I stopped by Charleston's newest gourmet to-go restaurant. Owned by two chefs, Twenty Six Divine sells creative lunch items, vacuum sealed dinners for two, and some beautiful amazing, little desserts. Best of all: It's pretty dang affordable.


Check out their menu here. And if you're in the market for a personal chef, Chef Enan has his own company on the side. Read my full Charleston City Paper article here.

savannah.

Savannah is two hours from Charleston, perfect for a weekend getaway. The two cities are strikingly similar in a lot of ways — history, architecture, landscape, Southern sensibilities — and really different, too. The differences keep me coming back. Funky, affordable shopping, stylish restaurants and bakeries, and a youthful art scene really set the city apart.

Strawberry cupcake and sweet tea at Back in the Day Bakery.

Our uber-swank hotel, the Avia Savannah.

Produce at the farmers market at Forsyth Park.

More Savannah musts:
* ShopSCAD for art from future Picassos.
* Paris Market & Brocante for the most beautiful store you'll ever see in your life.
* Clary's Cafe for greasy brunch.
* Bonaventure Cemetery for ghosthunting.
* Twilight Visions: Surrealism, Photography and Paris exhibit at the Jepson Center.

Check out my full article in the Charleston City Paper.