Vintage Find!

For those of you that love vintage accessories as much as I do, check out this super cutie website!!

Button Me Up!! Earrings made entirely out of vintage buttons!

I want to order every single earring on this site, and for $8 that could be extremely easy!

See where your dreams can take YOU!

Tingle Your Taste Buds!

Hello all! Since I am a little bit delayed on introducing my vision board to the blog world, I thought I would show you a few things to warm up your winter days!!

Read on my little followers...

If you are like my roommates and I, coffee is a necessity during these gloomy winter days. Last week, we decided to celebrate our love for coffee and went to the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum in Lincoln Park to see "The Birth of Coffee" exhibit. Yummmmmmy!

First of all...

Meet my roommates!!

Roommate 1: Lauren Oleszkiewicz (O-la-ske-vich)

Friends since zero.

Hinsdale native.

Separated until high school.

Lauren attended Michigan State University & majored in Journalism.

She works for Lettuce Entertain You and wants to go back to school for Graphic Design.

Roommates for 2 years!

BBF.

Roommate 2: Kristina Smolak (Smo-lack)

Lauren's sorority sister at Michigan State.

From Michigan and made her way to the windy city!

Also works at Lettuce Entertain You with Lauren and is getting her Masters in Counseling at Depaul University!

Roommates for 2 years!

And...Me!!! Elizabeth Schneider

Hinsdale native.

Fashion enthusiast.

Dreamer.

Thinker.

Believer.

Just three craaaaaazy girls living in the city, enjoying our sophomore year of LIFE! Sigh...

Where was I? Oh yeah, The Birth of Coffee!

"Photographer, Daniel Lorenzetti and write, Lisa Rice Lorenzetti, traveled more than a million quarter miles, to eight major coffee producing countries to record the diverse communities of people who produce coffee. Their travels trace coffee's historic 18th century globalization, from its humble origin in Ethiopia, to its experimental planting by opportunists, missionaries and settlers. In the tradition of important documentary teams of the past, the Lorenzetti's find commonality across the diversity of the world's coffee growing cultures, documenting the faces and lives of the people who nurture coffee from seed to cup."

Did you know coffee beans start as coffee cherries??

Who doesn't love learning about something they love? Haha.

I highly recommend checking out this exhibit which is available until May 9, 2010. It is a great way to take advantage of the amazing museums we have in this wonderful city!

The Art Institute of Chicago

The Field Museum of Chicago - check out the Diamond exhibit!

Museum of Science and Industry

Knowledge is Power, People!

The Vision Board

Insight into any creative mind is best expressed through a vision board. I used to make a ton of these when I was in college, and for the past 5 months I have been meaning to make a new one to define this wonderful chapter in my life. Unfortunately, magazines and photographs have continued to pile up and everyday I find some sort of excuse not to make time - but not today! Vision boards are supposed to represent your inspirations and aspirations - what do you want to be? what makes you happy? what makes your creative mind run wild?

What inspires YOU?

Step 1: What inspires you? Here is what inspires me...

hairbows, fashion, vintage clothing, vintage anything, jewelry, clean, fresh flowers, color, sunshine, art, coffee, siblings, parents, friends, nighttime, sunglasses, travel, fresh air, good food, high ceilings, love, ambition, home decor, big kitchens, frosty brews, drawing, synergy, clean sheets, learning, charm, photos, stories, candles, fires, mirrors, yummy fabrics, good red wine, vanilla frosting, bows, ruffles, sparkle, pretty buttons, classic beauty, pink lip gloss, fuzzy blankets....the list goes on and on...

Step 2: Translate into pictures. What best represents your inspirations?

I am obsessed with this kitchen from Traditional Home. Fresh, clean, and I love the Robin's Egg Blue accents. Someday I will have a bright white kitchen that is always clean!

This bracelet by Elizabeth Cole is amazing. So vintage inspired. I love the dulled gold with the rhinestones running through the chunky chain. One day I will learn how to weld and make my own jewelry, how ambitious of me, right?

This Vera Wang dress that Michelle Williams wore to the 2006 Oscars makes me want to be a fashion designer. I love the canary yellow, feminine pleating, and those ruby red lips. So beautiful.

This too; one of my favorites.

This, not so much...

I love the colors and depth to this arrangement. This centerpiece was made by Chicago native, Cornelia McNamara. Check out her website!

As you can see, the possibilities are endless. Make your vision board exactly what you want it to be! In the next couple of days, I will be working on my vision board and will post the outcome on my blog. Feel free to experiment with your own vision board, email me a picture, and I'll post it along with mine! All you need is some poster board, some magazines, old photos, fabrics, old jewelry; whatever your little heart desires. Dig in and share your success!

Simple Pleasures!

Little Secrets

Thanks to my fabulous mother, hairbows have been a staple in my life since August 20, 1986. Now, 23 years, 5 months and 27 days later; it is difficult to leave these accessories behind. Although some people may look and laugh when I walk into the bar with a flower in my hair, these headbands are a little reminder of the world that once was. No bills, no money issues, no job hunts, no school; just Disney princesses and vanilla frosting, and hairbows, of course.

In my adult life, my hair accessory and jewelry collection has become somewhat excessive - but, it sure makes an outfit! Throw on a white tee, a pair of jeans, an embellished necklace, a sweet little flower in your hair, and hit the town running! As I struggle to remain fashion savvy in this wonderful city; I have become very fortunate in the fact that hairbows are making a comeback! So I challenge you to take on this fashion trend and see how many compliments you get this weekend (I promise there will be a few). The childish giddiness will be gleaming from your smile and everyone will want to bask in your aura! Pair this hairbow with a yummy cosmo or French martini and you are set - city chic here we come! Cheers!

Passion Pit: "Little Secrets" - Let it jump start your day!