~ twoems

Etsy is such a rabbit hole. I see something I like, I explore the shop, click one of their favorite shops, go to that shop, click one of their favorites, and on and on. It's just like blogging! 
Twoems is a great little shop with beautiful prints by Melanie Mikecz. She uses a digital mixed media technique which includes sketching, painting, drawing and scanning among other things. I just love her work... the colors are fabulous and fun, and the geometric designs are fresh and whimsical.

Sometimes, when I'm adding photos to a post, it will hit me like a train, "Wouldn't this collection make a great mosaic?!" I stop immediately and count up the pics to determine the mosaic size... 

 twoems = MM = Melanie Mikecz

If your in the mood for some fanciful fun, 
And you've done the laundry and gone for a run,
If you think your life might be boring,
Pop over to Etsy and do some exploring!
If it's hot and humid with a chance of showers,
It's a great way to kill 8-12 hours!


I've linked up with Little Red House for Mosaic Monday

~ new york

While in New York last weekend, I hardly thought about my camera. All anyone could think about was the sweltering heat. We literally almost melted. I have never sweat so much in my entire life. Wearing the same outfit out to dinner more than once? Not an option on this trip. We soaked through every single outfit. The heat index was 110 on Friday, and it felt even hotter than that. HOWEVER, even with these hellish temperatures, we absolutely had the best time. Once we were in the following air conditioned spaces, we quickly forgot about the heat and thoroughly enjoyed being in New York and with each other. 


Here are some highlights from the trip...


Alexander McQueen: My daughter who is living in NY this summer, already stood in line for two hours for this exhibit and was thrilled to do it again with me. Cameras are strictly prohibited, so photos to share are not an option. If you are debating whether or not to go, go. It's an incredible show. The Met is such a gem, full of inspiration, entertainment and education.

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Beautiful flowers: As I mentioned, I barely touched my camera, however the flowers at our hotel were definitely worthy... 

The weekend was truly a food extravaganza... Allow me to list our meal gatherings to make it easier...


~ Del'Anima: Our first night we tried a new restaurant thanks to Dovecote Decor's recommendation. Oh, am I glad we did that. A small, quaint bar/restaurant in Chelsea... with the most delicious Tagliatelle alla Bolognese I've ever put in my mouth... truly scrumptious and a new favorite! (Thanks Liz!)

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~ Nobu: The next night, we returned to this favorite in Tribeca. Our memories were solidly confirmed, and it remains a top favorite.

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~ Bergdorf Goodman: The next day we enjoyed a wonderful lunch on the top floor of Bergdorf Goodman... such a beautiful setting. The ahi tuna tower with avocado was unbelievably delicious and worth a trip back... soon.

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I did manage to pull out the camera while waiting for our table at BG... a lovely shopping experience.

Gotham Bar and Grill: Our last dinner was at this long time favorite... the atmosphere is beyond festive... a perfect celebration destination.

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Nello: Our last day, before going to the airport, we splurged at this lunch favorite. Ridiculously priced, pretentious as hell, but the food is always, always perfect. Do not even think about getting tap water... it's 'with bubbles' or 'without' and it's coming from an expensive bottle. Anything on the menu is a safe bet for one of the most delicious things you will ever put in your mouth... Plan on seeing someone famous, and plan on spending a small fortune. 


Another highlight was seeing The Book of Mormon which lived up to it's rapturous reputation and reviews... We LOVED it! It was hilarious and hysterical with fabulous music and memorable characters... pure entertainment. Despite all of the above, I wouldn't recommend to all... In addition to it's humor and outstanding display of talent, it's also more than a bit irreverent, definitely a bit inappropriate, and certainly not for everyone.... profanity and blasphemy galore. If you squirm at the thought of AIDS or female genital mutilation or Jesus mixed with humor, this may not be the show for you. "The moral," the writer Andrew Sullivan claimed on opening night, "is that religion is both insane and necessary at the same time." 
Shrewd and remarkably well done... right up my alley.

So there you have it. A sizzling hot weekend in New York...

~ light bulbs

We've already established the fact that I am a self-proclaimed weirdo when it comes to obsessing about certain details. (Many of you have commented that you are equally obsessive... just the encouragement I need to follow through with more obsessive posts like this one!) I fully understand that there are more important things in the world to worry about than light bulbs, but I can't help what is going on in my brain, and light bulbs have been in there for weeks. Seriously? Light bulbs? I know what you're thinking... This lady really has lost her marbles... Let me explain.

When I was at my sister-in-law's house recently, (blue and green post) I happened to notice these amazing light bulbs on her kitchen light fixture. These weren't your ordinary light bulbs. They had these fancy tips... like hand-blown glass or something! I did some detective work and after wasting my time at Lowe's, Target, the Electric Supply Store, and every other light bulb selling store in the area, I called the owner of the fancy light bulbs and asked her to fill me in on the light bulb situation. Good news and bad news. 

Bad news: She couldn't immediately locate the source she ordered the bulbs from. (There was a minimum order and she had plenty of bulbs... not at the top of her list... understandable... she would find it eventually and get back to me...) 

Good news: She hooked me up with 9 bulbs so that I could finish off my new chandelier for the reveal post! 

Again, I refer to the crazy train and yours truly riding on it, when I tell you that I decided not only the new living room chandelier would be the lucky recipient of the new fancy light bulbs, but also my bedroom chandelier and my dining room chandelier, neither of which have shades, and both of which could use a little light bulb makeover. 

Here are the fancy pants light bulbs...

Here they are in my new living room chandelier...

I am not much of a waiter. I am more the annoying type who, when something is on my mind, it must be figured out immediately, pronto, yesterday. So waiting for my sister-in-law to locate her bulb source was not going to be an option... Who know's when she would have the time, or remember to do something so trivial... Thank goodness she was kind enough to hand over 9 bulbs for my living room chandelier, but I had other chandeliers to worry about! So I did a little searching of my own and came up with a source myself. Silicone Bulb Shoppe, in South Dakota, dips the bulbs by hand, and they are beautiful as you will see. It's hard to tell in the photos what a difference the new bulbs make, but believe me when I tell you, I notice, and I love them! Here are some before and after shots of my light bulb upgrade extravaganza...

dining room before

 dining room after

master before

master after

Turns out the tips are not hand blown glass, but silicone! Glass bulbs are dipped in silicone and the silicone tips are rubbery! Silicone light bulbs are my new thing. I think they are the greatest. The husband was a bit leery of this new development...

~ Some of the tips are too long.

I solved that problem (if long tips are a problem) with a little snip snip of the scissors.

~ The 5 watt bulbs are not as bright as the 15 watt bulbs we were using before. 

I quickly pointed out the fact that we used the dimmer with the 15 watt bulbs, and probably lowered the 15 watt bulbs to, can you guess? 5 watts! 

Such a problem solver...

They're perfect!

Is anyone else feeling the excitement? 

Contact The Silicone Bulb Shoppe if you can't live another minute with plain ordinary light bulbs! They completely understand and will take care of the problem!

~ outdoor spaces

Summer is all about spending time outdoors... eating al fresco, sipping summer cocktails, and enjoying the warm weather.

Take a look at these beautiful outdoor spaces...

(All photos above are from Pinterest except the ones labeled Martha Stewart)

If you've never visited Little Red House, now is the time. She was lucky enough to visit the home of Bunny Williams in Connecticut and has featured her personal photography of said visit in several posts.

Here are a few more awesome outdoor spaces for this post, thanks to Mary Carroll! All images were taken from her Bunny Williams posts on The Little Red House.

(Bunny Williams images by Mary Carroll via Little Red House)

Happy Summer! It's moving along quickly... Enjoy!