joie de vivre-- a cheerful enjoyment of life & an exultation of spirit.

Friday, March 30, 2012

Happy Weekend.

Oh Pinterest. If only my life were half as wonderfully quaint as the one you've allowed me to trick myself into believing I lead. Casually slicing figs for my mid-week charcuterie plates? Perfectly arranged bouquets of beautiful blooms in every corner of my abode? Upside-down braids on the reg? Yea. Right. But boy, that sure won't stop me from dreamin' of the day. (Swoon.)
 
    
    

Happy weekend, friends. Wishing you & yours a wonderful few days ahead!
'Til Monday.
xo

Thursday, March 29, 2012

Of A Kind.

Alright, friends, here's the scoop. If you haven't yet checked out or signed up for email alerts from Of a Kind, trust me in saying that it's time to do so. With the aim of supporting new up and coming designers, Of a Kind presents one new feature each week sharing glimpses into the designer's personal stories, inspiration, training & taste while also offering special access to a limited-edition piece designed exclusively for the site. Awesome, right? From bow ties to bangles and cuffs to carry on's, Of a Kind represents a wide variety of designs and products to appeal to just about any level of taste.

One of my favorites from these past few months? This incredible briefcase from designer Ernest Alexander. Holy moly-- please & thank you.

 
 
  

And dare I even begin discussion around how great it would have been to have these grab bags on hand over the holidays for those last minute gifts that always left you stumped and scrambling? Genius!

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Mixtape. (No. 5)

From painfully early morning flights and mind-numbing layovers to seemingly endless nights trying to catch up on bills and emails and notes to friends, this little mix has been on constant repeat over here as of late. An unlikely combination of some old, classic favorites with a few new melodies that have been steadily finding their way into my daily rotation, this mix is oddly wonderful in its own special way. I hope you enjoy it as much as I have.

Headphones in. Volume up. Come on Wednesday, let's dance.



Closer Than This -- St. Lucia
Landslide (Virgin Magnetic Material Remix) -- Fleetwood Mac
Solitaire -- Wilco
Universal Traveler -- Air
Without A Word -- Birdy
Keep It Quiet -- Ra Ra Riot
Congratulations -- MGMT
Emmylou -- First Aid Kit
The Sound of Silence (T2MM edit) -- Simon & Garfunkel
Crooked Lines -- M. Ward

Cover art via Wit & Delight, here.

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Simon Bajada.

I stumbled across the beautiful work of Simon Bajada the other day and couldn't help but fall head over heels in love. Just look at the vibrancy of those colors (!!), can you blame me? Not to mention, I'm pretty sure if you stare at those tacos long enough, you'll even start to taste that spice rub's zesty tang. Oh, it's making me crave summer and an excuse to string some lanterns across the patio, carve up an avocado or four, and squeeze a wedge of lime into a corona. Soon enough, friends. Soon enough.

Monday, March 26, 2012

A Little Housekeeping.


Well, things are looking a little different around here these days-- have you noticed? :)

A few new tabs & pages up top + a streamlined and reorganized sidebar over yonder + the addition of some (much needed) categories to keep these posts of mine organized = Progress. Dare I say we're starting to grow up a bit over here at joie de vivre?

Gosh it feels good.

Take a peek around-- I do hope you like what you see. Oh, and here's a long overdue bit about me.
Happy Monday, friends. xo

Friday, March 23, 2012

Happy Weekend.

Hoping your Saturday is spent indulging in waffles as scrumptious looking as the ones below.
(And that the rest of your weekend is equally as wonderful, and delicious, as well.)

Happy weekend to you & yours, friends.
'Til Monday.
xo


Saturday Waffles from Coco|Roost on Vimeo.

Thursday, March 22, 2012

Emerson Fry.

The wonderful Emerson Fry, creative genius behind the former wildly popular and successful EmersonMade line, has come into Spring 2012 with a new collection, a new perspective, and a new name to boot. Enter Emerson Fry New York. And ladies, holy moly, it is every bit as fabulous as you could ever imagine. I think I'm in love. With the perfect mix of chic femininity and classy sophistication, this line is everything I wish my spring/summer wardrobe would look like if only I had the time or money to get it there. Where's a girl's magic genie in a bottle when she needs one, am I right? Take a look and prepare to swoon, my friends.

      
 

(Pssst. Fellow diehard lovers of EmersonMade, scoot on over here for one last chance to shop the odds and ends before they're gone!)

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Amanda Jane Jones: My Better Half.

Absolutely loving Amanda Jane Jones' new weekly feature, My Better Half, over on her beautiful blog these days-- have you seen it? It's the perfect combination of simple & charming, all wrapped up into a weekly portrait that you can't help but smile as you read. Click the images below to link back to that particular feature, or click here to view all posts in the series. Enjoy!


(P.S. Did I mention that Amanda is the creative genius behind the design of Kinfolk? I know, right? Talk about talent.)

Tuesday, March 20, 2012

Birdy.


For those of you who have not yet discovered the soulful and incredibly mature voice of 16-year old British singer/songwriter Birdy, I suggest you hop on the bandwagon. And quickly, at that. After stumbling upon her rendition of Bon Iver's Skinny Love a few months ago, I knew this talented artist was one I wanted to keep around for a long, long while. Unfortunately for me, however, her debut album, Birdy, had yet to be released outside of Europe. (Ok, patience, we can do this.)  Well, three months later,  March 20th has finally arrived.  Hooray!

A solid compilation of original tracks mixed with some truly well-done covers of classics like James Taylor's Fire and Rain, this album is surely not one to disappoint. Having already had this record on repeat all morning, I can assure you, I'm head over heels and my fondness has done nothing but grow with each cycle. Gosh, I love it when that happens. 

Preview the tracks on iTunes here, grab your free download of Without A Word (!!), and then do yourself a favor and get a copy of your own. Happy listening!

Monday, March 19, 2012

Ash & Anchor.

I have been on a big scarf kick as of late-- even more so than usual, for those who know me well-- and the 2012 Spring line from Ash & Anchor has got my full attention. I'm just in love with these gorgeous prints--



With all of this warm, sunny weather that we've been having as of late, it's hard not to feel like Spring is just around the bend and these beautiful color palettes are just oh so tempting. I'm doing my best to exhibit some form of self control over here, but I don't know friends, we'll see how long that lasts.

Check out the Ash & Anchor shop, here. Happy Monday!

Thursday, March 15, 2012

An American in Paris.

We were camped outside the Brasserie de I'Isle Saint-Louis in Paris. It was one of those days when every cell in your body just begs to bask in the warmth of the sun all afternoon-- the rays of light irresistibly intoxicating after winter's dark and dismal grey. We were enjoying an assortment of greens doused in a mustard vinaigrette that made you want to lick the plate for fear of wasting a drop and I found myself wishing my French was good enough to ask the waiter how to replicate the emulsion. (Though I'm sure my query would surely have been met with nothing more than a furrowed brow and a disapproving scoff.) An accordionist was leaning against the bridge just across the way, looking out over the Seine towards Notre Dame, and filling the streets with his deep and beautiful baritone. It was one of those moments that I wish I could have bottled up-- forever locking away the sights, smells, sounds, and feel of it all-- for it was as close to a feeling of perfection as I've encountered in a long while. Life felt good. And rich. And whole.

We only had a matter of hours in Paris before boarding our flights back to the East Coast, but it was a wonderful few hours nonetheless. While it's wishful thinking at its very best, I can only hope that another, longer trip back is in my near future. I'm already yearning for more.

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Quiet & Quaint.

Strolling along the cobblestone while taking in the grain of the landscape and the calm of the medieval city streets, the steady knock of my boots against the cold, hard stone interspersed with the click of my camera's shutter were the only sounds around. It was quiet-- oh so very quiet-- as though these beautiful little towns were still settled within their winter's slumber. But I didn't mind. Not one bit.

Around every corner and through every little passageway; sitting on the windowsills and lingering in the doorways-- there was a subtle, quiet quaintness to be found. Refreshingly peaceful at the time, the charm of it all still lingers.



Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Les Marchés.

No surprises here, this girl loves her markets. From the big time fleas to the local, weekend farmer's markets, whether I'm on the hunt for something or not, if there's a stall to be perused or a stack to be sorted through, sign me up. So naturally, when I discovered that the plan for last week was to align our day trips to the little medieval towns of Southern France with their scheduled weekday marchés, I was one happy camper. And holy moly-- It. Was. Wonderful.

The vibrant colors of the fresh fruits & veggies set against the patterns of the Provencal linen; the intoxicating smells of roasted tomato and paella mixed with a hint of fragrant soaps from across the way; the sound of the butcher's knife hitting the cutting board and the constant buzz of locals bartering down the prices of their wares-- there was so much to savor and absorb. I could have wandered those endless cobblestone streets forever and still not captured or seen it all, but I did my best to soak up every second that I possibly could. 


 

Oh, for the love of god-- my mouth starts to water just looking at it all. It's not too soon to go back, is it?