musings on late nights

I'm listening to the new Michael Jackson album and really loving it. I know that sounds weird. 

I can explain. 

I've loved Michael Jackson since I was a kid, and in high school his music and weirdness became something that emodied, or at least eased my own awkwardness. I was an introvert. Creative. Misunderstood...There's this emotional underbelly of myself that I could never communicate. So for a while, I lived in my room, sewing and creating things and listening to Off The Wall. 

Thank heaven I went to a liberal hippie college with TONS of weird kids. Different shapes, strengths, and varying levels of weirdness.  Things are different now: strangeness is a commodity. And I am adjusted just enough to have a job and a tiny fan club (they're both asleep in the other room). 

(this is totally off-topic, and I should be more focused. please send me all your comments) 

xo

a

spring to summer fashion // courtney

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 

editors note by Ally - Courtney will send me a text early in the morning that's something like 'DID YOU SEE IT?' ...and I'll know that she's talking about a photo she tagged me in on Instagram - usually something GORGEOUS, obscure, beautiful, and totally out of my price range. I love Courtney's eye. She knows how to find amazing pieces, wear them, and she has a heart for supporting artists of all kinds. 

With summer just around the corner, what better accessory then Yellow108 hats. I mean. They really are a must-have for the warm summer days (paired with the beautiful No.6 Basil Ikat jungle pocket dress). Yellow 108 is based in Los Angeles, Eco friendly, and donates 2% to local non-profits. Seriously you can't even argue with a company like that. I LOVE everything they stand for.

I discovered Elizabeth Suzann on Instagram. Go figure. I was instantly drawn to the pieces and the fabric. You can read more about her philosophy here. I really love everything about her and her mission, as far as fashion is concerned. It is hard enough keeping up with the ever changing world of fashion. Why not collect items that are statement pieces as well as timeless? Everything she creates is handmade in a studio in Nashville. Love. 

Black Crane is a brand by Alexander Yamaguchi and Momoko Suzuki. There is something about Japanese culture I have always found fascinating; and this brand truly has created pieces that are in tune with my emotional draw to Japanese culture. The minimalistic and modern shapes really call to me. There is something so romantic and peaceful about the line. Black Crane is hand sewn in Los Angeles, and also available at Myth & Symbol. 

scout folks spring to summer fashion 2014 - courtney

7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12

No.6 has been a favorite brand of mine for awhile. You can find the perfectly curated store in NYC owned by Morgan Yakus and Karin Bereson. This dress in my opinion is the best modern day mumu I have found to date. It is undoubtedly one of a kind, paired with a gorgeous pair of No.6 clogs. Perfection. Hand sewn in New York, you can find the brand at one of my favorite stores Myth & Symbol. 

American Apparel. The dream team. I personally try my hardest to stick with buying my clothing from hand made vendors from around the world; or companies like American Apparel that are sweat-shop free and ethical. They are always my go to for items like sunglasses, bags, and shoes. They are classic, well made, durable, and at times statement pieces. 

I stumbled upon Baleen jewelry while adventuring through Seattle. The pieces stopped me dead in my tracks. I HAD to buy at least 10 things. The handmade jewelry is assembled in a home studio in Seattle by Billy and Leah. The entire collection is perfect for day to day use. It is affordable and a must have. Their jewelry can be found at Temple of Cairo. 

Enjoy your shopping!

XOXO

Courtney 

new york state of mind: our friends the travelers

Heather Struck and Alex Fischer are two of our favorite people, and they just so happen to have THE BEST apartment in New York, which they let Ben and I borrow when they're gone. Plus they always insist we drink their beer. They're the nicest people ever. We're interviewing them here to share some insight on how they survive in a crazy city, how they maintain their unusual careers, and basically hoping they'll give us their secrets to being awesome.

Pictured is our tour of the Google NY headquarters, where Alex works, which feels oddly like Disneyland with a lot more nerds. I think I might apply to clean the toilets there (there are free snacks everywhere!)

You can explore more of Heather and Alex through Heather's tumblr or her job at Reuters. 

Ally:  favorite colors? 
Heather:  Probably gray and off-gray. I also like really white sheets on the bed.
Alex:  Blueeeeeee, of course. Except for blue cheese, I don't like blue cheese.

Ally:  Heather, you're a reporter, blogger and writer. Just how bad is my writing? Just kidding. But what tips do you have for bloggers or people who are just starting to write?
Heather: Read things, see things, listen to things and love everything that you love wholeheartedly. But when you begin writing as a practice, be yourself. The more of yourself that you come to know, the better you will be at folding that into a profession that pays you to write. Also, you will be inching ever closer to producing art. I think original writing that you can be proud of and that others respond to is the highest achievement you can hope for. You will never stop having role models. At some point you will even have some who are younger than you, and that is mildly annoying, but watch what they do and appreciate them for having the courage to do it.


Ally:  What do you guys like to read?
Heather:  Oh man. Well the last great novels I read were Wolf Hall and the Luminaries. Joan Didion's personal novels A Year of Magical Thinking and Blue Nights are wow. Short story writers like Alice Munro and Lorrie Moore and George Sanders and...there are so many. The NY Times Dining section and the New Yorker at the breakfast table. The Awl and McSweeney's Internet Tendency for funny stuff out of people's heads. I read the news all the time at work, but somehow the New York Review of Books always compels me to read 90% of the articles in every issue. There are also many food blogs that are so wonderful and really do make me more content at home with all the things I can whip up in a tiny kitchen. A Sweet Spoonful and The Wednesday Chef are two of the most meaningful to me, but there are many. 
Alex:  I'm a terrible reader ... I usually fall asleep after a few pages. That's why I've been reading "A People's History of the United States" for the last decade. The things I do manage to read are news and text books. 


Ally:  What are 3 life priorities, listed in order? Is that a scary question?
Heather:  Ahhhh. Honestly, a few years ago I had three very common priorities that seem rather shallow now. But maybe not? 1) A great love 2) A great job 3) A great apartment 
I think the truth was always something more like 1) Make a difference 2) Feel that someone else has made a difference in you 3) Go to Paris 
Alex:  Uh, that is a scary question. I like Heather's 1) Making a difference and would add 2) always being curious and learning new things and 3) Avoid going to Paris for as long as possible. 


Ally:  Give me a summary of your introduction to each other. I love this story.
Heather:  My dear roommate was moving away, so she helped to find a replacement roommate for me. That was not Alex. But it was his friend. They were both German students spending some months in New York, and they got together at my place a few times for beers or whatever. I was actually doing a good job of completely ignoring Alex's presence for a while. Then one night (Valentine's day, actually), the three of us cooked a dinner together and sat in our tiny kitchen and ate it. Alex washed the dishes afterward. I don't think I have ever really let him go since.
Alex:  I like to think that the magic trick I showed Heather the first we met helped out as well.

Ally: Heather - you've lived in New York since Grad School, right? Are you there for life?
Heather:  I probably am, in my mind. I don't know, actually. Part of me really wants to go live in Germany and soak it up. New York has always been the most obvious and ultimate answer to my questions. I am sure I would miss it a lot. 


Ally: You guys lived separately for a long time. Was moving into a small (compared to the rest of the country) apartment together instantly blissful?
Heather:  Yes!
Alex:  Yes, although I wouldn't have minded moving into a large apartment together either. <smiles>

Hamburg 2012

Ally: You both have really cool jobs. Did it take a while to get there?
Heather:  A bit, yes. It's a lot of getting yourself out there and taking risks too. I promised myself always to make decisions with the most open mind and heart possible. That way I would never have to regret any of those decisions, just keep going ahead.
Alex:  Definitely. I had to throw overboard the plans I made a long time ago and postpone my dream of working in academia ... maybe indefinitely? 


Ally: What are your favorite places in New York? Favorite restaurant?
Heather:  The High Line! There are so many people there in nice weather, it's a mess. But I love love the combination of architecture and flora and the rough and ready city all around. Also they sell good snacks. One of our favorite restaurant's is Joe's Shanghai for dumplings.  
Alex:  I love Washington Square because it's so lively. I also love to go to Battery Park and wave to imaginary steam ships coming in. Restaurant-wise, nothing beats Joe's Pizza ... Joe seems to be a good name for a chef. 


Ally: You are world travelers. What keeps you looking for adventure?
Heather:  For me it's good old wanderlust. My Mom shares a passion with me of loving the variety and craziness and passion of the world. I love that about her too. 
Alex:  In my life, I always want to be curious and what better way to be curious than traveling to places you haven't seen before.


Ally:  Where is your next trip planned? What's your bucket list look like? Is it 1000 pages long?
Heather:  California! It's home for me and Alex's #2 favorite place. We have been trying for like 3 years to do a trip to Australia. That's at the top of the list with the U.S. national parks, Korea, Japan, and diving in the Red Sea.
Alex:  Yes, it's definitely long. Most things are just ideas in my head, but I'd add Iceland, Samoa, and Russia to the list. 


Ally:  Would you two work professionally together?
Heather:  Sure! Alex would probably fire me, or send me to work in the supply room or something after a while. But why not?
Alex:  Yeah, definitely - the working together part, not the supply room part. Although with your partner you have very different boundaries, which can be good and bad in a work environment. 

We love Heather and Alex, mostly because they're hilarious and so fun to be around. They inspire us to follow our dreams, travel, be honest and adventurous, and step up our coffee game. Thanks for reading, friends. 

things I've learned about motherhood - part 1

Here is my feeble attempt to write what I've learned about motherhood. It will fill in the gaps of restlessness between working on my real job and other projects. To connect with readers, and to validate my obsession with being a mother. To procrastinate between art projects, to keep me awake while I'm waiting for my oil change or for my inspiration to kick in. 

ME: 30-something with a baby. Not a mommy expert in any way. Absolutely in LOVE with my little girl and my partner. Life is hard, life is really rewarding. 

Here are a few things I've learned.

I'll start with a list, and I promise to eventually expand and offer something more in the way of anecdotes. 

1. I can't do everything. I've been a runner most of my life. Now, at this current juncture in life, I am not a runner. I am prioritizing other things. I still feel a jealous sting when other people post pictures of their running, and at some point I'll get back into the habit, because I'm a born runner (not in a braggy way, more in a hyperative dog sort of way) BUT I chose this path - I am working on other things now, I don't have time for everything. Finding time was really hard at first, and I didn't get anything done while I was on maternity leave. I bitched about how I could only seem to accomplish laundry. But that's how life is for most people. You either get ALL of the laundry done all the time, or you enjoy your life and family while you can. And I'm getting better at doing 10% of about 5 things and then calling it a success. 

It's also really important now that I write down goals and achieve them. This isn't so much about motherhood, but about accepting time management into my life. I'm forced to accept help every day, from a nanny or a family member or Ben. I wouldn't be able to go to work, or breathe, or feel myself without them. 

The other day Ben saw me reading in bed, and asked 'what are you doing!?' --but in a VOLUME that suggested surprise, like seeing a cheetah in the wild. I think I should prioritize reading more. 

2. I love my partner. Ben and I are better when we consciously appreciate everything we do for each other. And when we plan things for us to do, outside of the house, and sometimes without the babe. Having a tiny disaster-toddler makes a LOT of work for everyone. It will always feel like you're doing more work than anyone. But we have so much time and so much potential to fall in love with each other every day, which is really special. 

3. The simple life is amazing. We read books, snuggle, play, and go for walks. I love the time spent at the grocery store with my munchkin. Ordinary things become extraordinary when you have a really cute baby assistant. Luna has learned to spin this week -- she throws off her clothes and spins in circles until she falls down giggling. It's HILARIOUS. I'm sure every mother or father or aunt or uncle or grandma in the history of babies has also found this human development to their delight, I'm really gracious to join their ranks. 

4. I have so much ability to love. I get full body chills when Luna does something funny, and she can't even talk yet. 

That's all for now. More to come. 

Here are some photos of Lu's 1st birthday, which was wildly successful (in that I didn't have a meltdown and everyone had food and beer).

Guest post with Styled by Katie // Spring Fling

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8

from Katie: 

One of my favorite up and coming brands that I have started to become OBSESSED with is Show Me Your MuMu. The line was started by two free-spirited and lively ladies, one who hails from Newport Beach. The idea struck them when you moved to Manhattan, and would consistently purchase shirts and tops in sizes much larger than they wore, stretch out the neck, and throw over vintage slips to become the ideal comfy yet cute mumu-esque dress. However, they could never find the ideal fit. It needed to be baggy and short -- flattering and girly -- but not so much as to swallow you whole. Why not, they decided, create this much-needed staple themselves?? And so they did, reinventing The MuMu. Their line can be worn by all sizes, and shapes, and comes in all sorts of fun colors and prints. Like I said, I'm obsessed!

Another brand I am swooning over (and has blown up over the last couple of years) is Stone Cold Fox! These California beach girls believe in ‘Quality of Quantity,” and that good things are worth waiting for. Every piece is locally made in California, only made when its ordered, and packed by the girls behind SCF. They boast self-designed textiles, sand-washed silks. Each item is thought out and personal. Keeping the company USA made, not mass marketed and a bit hard to find, the girls love the idea that having a SCF piece is like finding a treasure. 

Painted Bird shoes are so incredible different than anything I have seen! Each pair of Painted Bird shoes are like a beautiful jewel for your feet. They are artisan crafted, hand crocheted shoes resulting in a product that is altogether exquisite and unique, as well as incredibly comfortable. They are so great for a day at the beach or a casual night out, my favorite are the ones that lace up your leg!

Katie

Find me on my blog here : styled by katie.

the greatest joy

I love watching these two together so much. girls. Making each other laugh. Luna entirely captivated by India's big-kid abilities. You can see the love in their eyes. 

weekends: edition 1

A peek into the weekends of our contributors. Nothing crazy, usually.

April 12-13

ABBY:

Lately, I spend my Saturdays drawing in a studio art class for 5-6 hours. 

Even though there were about 10 things I could be working on, I had a selfish Sunday; ran for 5 miles in the morning and then walked to The Cellar off of Del Mar to try the newly launched Bear Coast Coffee (it did not disappoint).

MARISSA:

So, this weekend I finally tried the bourgeois toast joint in San Francisco I heard about on NPR and obsessed over.

I hiked in Tiburon's redwoods and really bonded with my future sister in law. Then drank beer on our friend's roof and watched the sunset. I watched my brother in law graduate nursing school, and my heart was so full of pride for him. We drank whiskey and played Coachella live on TV and danced to arcade fire. 

This weekend was magical. Back to reality, and detoxing.

ALLY: 

I spent my weekend cleaning up after barf-fest and preparing for a certain 1-yr-old's birthday. Boring! I can't wait for NEXT weekend. 

made in the usa - Spring housewares roundup

Spring is a good time to freshen up your home. Pull back the curtains, rearrange your workspaces, hang some new art on the walls. My main objective in interior design is to create a space that affects people in a positive way. It's always captivated me, how a space can impact your mood and desires. 

We've compiled a few statement pieces that go a long way to freshen up your space. All are made in the states, and represent our love of handmade, keepsake goods. These beauties will live with you way past spring. (besides the soap, obviously)

scout folks spring housewares roundup - made in the usa

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9

Courtney - I love Joinery NYC. I have a few items from them and they have become such adored pieces in my home. I've had my eye on their planters for a while now. A few of the other pieces I've found shopping around LA and online. I think my favorite part about interior design is that it's always changing - you can add a new plant or a new fabric and you feel suddenly lifted. 

Thanks for reading! We'll do a less crunchy version of housewares soon.  - A&C