Values

Perusing some blogs today and ran across this post from SwissMiss. I've always had fantastic experiences when buying from Zappos, and after reading their core values I will shop there more:-)

                           Zappos Family Core Value

1. Deliver WOW Through Service

2. Embrace and Drive Change

3. Create Fun and A Little Weirdness

4. Be Adventurous, Creative, and Open-Minded

5. Pursue Growth and Learning

6. Build Open and Honest Relationships with Communication

7. Build a Positive Team and Family Spirit

8. Do More with Less

9. Be Passionate and Determined

10. Be Humble

Dreams

via Pinterest

"A dream is your creative vision for your life in the future. You must break out of your current comfort zone and become comfortable with the unfamiliar and the unknown."

~Denis Waitley

Planning

I am Jonesing for a big trip, while that's not in the deck of cards for this year I'm starting to plan for next year. However, deciding where is much harder than I imagined. About the time I get things narrowed down I get side tracked by another place I'd like to visit. I haven't done a lot of travel abroad so there's much to choose from for me...

Paris

I love the lifestyle of the French and want to immerse myself in their culture.

via Here

via Here

via Monicka Clio Sakki

But then there's Greece, where every picture taken is beautiful...

via Santorini Hotels

via Here

Oh and Barcelona, Madrid, Palma de Mallorca...the list is endless really.

Torre Agbar photo by Thomas Mayer

Cozy Mansion

Is there anywhere you're dying to travel right now? What's the best trip you've been on? I'm always interested in what others have done for travel.

Memorial Day

The Little Corner/Tumblr

"When choosing a dream, look to your heart, not your "reality." That's why it's called a dream. Make that dream your goal. Commit to it. Act upon that commitment. The methods to fulfill that dream will appear."

~Anonymous

Art Part 2

Sunday was the final day of the West Austin Studio Tour. I had the bright idea that I would just walk from my house to about 15 different studios. Yeah, all fine and dandy if you don't take into account the 90 degree weather. I almost melted and was plum worn out when I was done.

My FAVORITE artist on Sunday's tour was Valerie Fowler. The amount of work put into each piece is insane. She had some fabulous works on display in my favorite shade of blue. Check her out!

Negotiating Safe Passage

Crepe Myrtle Trees at Night

I thoroughly enjoyed Carolyn Kimball's work as well. She does quite a bit of etching laced with history from her days overseas while her husband worked as a journalist. 

The Long Road

Dome of the Rock

Next up Heidi Stanfield. She lives on a route Bronco and I walk frequently. Her dog usually comes to the gate to bark at us...Now, I've been on the other side of that gate.

The Rebirth of an Artist

Julie Williams does some very cool collage work, kinda on the girly side, but I'm girl so works for me.

Heel to Toe

Animal Spirits

Art

And yet it's another weekend of art. There is no better way to spend my weekend than bouncing around checking out a variety of artists. This will be a 2-part post since I have quite a few artists I'd like to show.

Our art tour started on Friday evening after happy hour of course. There were several downtown spots hosting art work, which was nice and super convenient.

First up, Andrew Long, I LOVED his work. Check it out!

Andrew Long 

Andrew Long

We also loved Katherine Lott's work. Enjoy~

Katherine Lott

Katherine Lott

Passion

via Pink Sherbet Photography

“A master in the art of living draws no sharp distinction between his work and his play; his labor and his leisure; his mind and his body; his education and his recreation. He hardly knows which is which. He simply pursues his vision of excellence through whatever he is doing, and leaves others to determine whether he is working or playing. To himself, he always appears to be doing both.”
- L.P Jack

Karim Rashid

I love this guy's work. 

Silk Road, City Center, Las Vegas

Myhotel, Brighton, Brighton

Teppich Carpet

More Austin pix while out walking with a friend. I'm noticing a lot of pictures of the Frost Bank Tower...must be a new obsession. Enjoy~

Simplicity

San Francisco 1946, by Fred Lyon

As we become curators of our own contentment on the Simple Abundance path, one of the great payoffs is that we start to seek peace and comfort in joyful simplicities. Little things begin to mean a lot to us."

~Sarah Ban Breathnach

Backyard

I have a confession, I really wish I had a backyard. Two reasons: one- I really would love to have flowers all over the place, and two- my 4-legged child would have somewhere to roam. This is a result of my recent visit to see my parents. They have a great backyard. Here are some pix of the flowers and guards of the flowers.

 I have no idea what this potted lovely is called, but he was fabulous!

And we have the first guard...

 My mom might have a thing for frogs...you'll need to take my word for it, because I have quite a few more frog pictures, just not posting all of them.

 Photo bomb!

 Love the squiggles...

TGIF

Ya know for a short work week for me, it sure was long...here's where I want to be for my weekend, curled up with 50 Shades of Darker. Yeah, highly recommend this trilogy:-) Hope you have a great weekend!

via Freshome

Cool Spaces

Interiors I've seen and loved lately..

via Elle Decor

Love the mix of colors, modern furniture and those lights!

via House of Turquoise

via House Beautiful

via Here

via Design Sponge

via Here

Chateau Johnson

The Parental Chateau Johnson that is...I don't think my 900 sq.ft. qualifies at this time. With it being Mother's Day this upcoming Sunday I thought I would share some pix of my mom's decorating skills. 

While Mom and I have different taste, she's got vignettes all over the house and I'm more on the minimalist side...I can appreciate her style.

 I thought we needed 2 shots of the above art work...I think it would look really nice in my place:-)

 Always a sore subject between my parents, the TV. My dad LOVE his TV, my mom wants to die that it has to be sooo big...what does one do, surround ugly with beautiful artwork. Problem solved:-) 

 I'm dying to paint my armoire black too. Do you see what's on top of this armoire? My lovely Christmas artwork for my mom. Nevermind it is almost in the ceiling, in their bedroom to never see the light of day...it's not hidden in a closet.