happy weekend + sister love

what a week! so glad we've finally made it to the weekend. I got the sweetest surprise yesterday afternoon- a package of love from my sissy! she knows me so well. she stuffed a box full of all my favorite things, including this awesome vintage stamp holder (she overhead me say I loved it when we were at paris on ponce a few months ago), a pair of "boyfriend jeans" (yay!),  some fun gum & the new xx cd (yes, we are still stuck in the days of middle school where we burns cds and then decorate them for each other). kara, you are the best sister on the planet & I love you! 

snapshots from kara's place

my sister's apartment is so stinking cute. she has a knack for arranging things in such a thoughtful, uncluttered way. pretty much everything in her home is vintage & almost all of it has some kind of story behind it (see all of her vintage collections here). being in her home is truly a breath of fresh air. it's beautiful & unique & makes me never want to step foot in a kirklands again.

{kara's olympic flower display in honor of the open ceremony!}

sister visit in atlanta

over the weekend, my mom & I took a little road trip to visit my sweet sister in atlanta. it was such a fun weekend getaway, filled with good food, estate sale hunting, shopping & hanging out at her adorable place (pics of that next week). kara took us to the cutest antique market called "paris on ponce."  the owners were so nice to talk to have done & amazing job renovating this old warehouse. if you're ever in atlanta, you've got to check it out. also, the best bbq ever can be found at heirloom market. ah-mazing. here are some snapshots from our trip. 

 {heirloom market bbq is the shiz!}

{paris on ponce antique market}

 {cookies + lemonade - 'cause shopping makes you hungry}

interactive birthday card

just a little card I made for my sister for her birthday last week. has quite a jolly postman feel, don't you think? 

messy ballerina bun tutorial

my sister kara was in town last awhile back & taught me how to do this cute messy ballerina bun. I know there are plenty of hair tutorials out there, but I thought the photos turned out so pretty that I wanted to share. 

this look works best with “day-old” hair. no product is necessary, but hairspray helps “dirty” up the hair, so it's best to use a little.

step 1: gather all of your hair up into a high ponytail.

step 2: with a rubber band in one hand, make one loop through your hair, as if you’re making a pony tail.

step 3: twist the rubber band and make a second loop (don’t pull through) to make the bun.

step 4: use your finger and place it in the center of your bun and fan out your hair around it, so the bun is full.   

step 5: using your hand, smooth out your bun by wrapping the pieces around it.

step 6: make a final loop over the bun with your pony tail holder.

step 7: use bobby pins to tuck in any missed pieces if necessary.

remember, it should look messy, so don’t fret too much

ta da! and simple as that, even if your ballet teacher wouldn't approve.

1950's murder mystery party

my sister kara recently threw the cutest murder mystery party. she found this unopened game (from the 80s) at an estate sale. the game theme was "high school reunion 1954". it came with the invites & each person's character, so that they could come dressed the part. her friends really got into their roles: the three-sport letterman jock, the malt shop waitress, the prom queen, the straight-a valedictorian, the goodie-goodie (hmm... sounds like a season of the real world). kara gave everyone vintage broaches to hold their name cards so they knew who was playing which character. she also served old school appetizers & drinks & had a make your own sundae station. oh, and juke box music playing in the background, of course. don't all her friends look so adorable? I wish I could have been there!
(photos courtesy of kara's friends, lee & matt)