happy friday!

i hope you guys are excited for the weekend!  i will be working, but spent yesterday in a weekend-ish mode and visited this cute + tiny bookstore called hole in the wall books that i just have to share!  it's got the cutest facade, but beware there is very little walking space.  only one person can fit in the "aisle" at the time, but it's basically house repurposed for a bookstore.  they have a great selection of comics and batman does advertising with them {so does superman}.

 when i took high school french, i read my first + only full book called 'le petit prince' {the little prince}.  i was in the store for a good hour or two perusing the shelves, and i remembered i had never read the english version {don't ask me why}.  i asked the kind owner if they had any french books and lo and behold i found it!  he helped me find and identical cover copy of it in the literature section and i promise i was the happiest girl leaving the store that day.  i can't wait to read it en anglais!

 i can't wait to sit down and just read a few books!  i hope you will too.

but for now, here are some links for your weekend:

- okay, seriously subscribe to this kid's channel if you haven't because i will keep posting his videos in these link roundups.  sungha jung's rendition of one more night - maroon 5 is incredible.  {can you tell yet that i love maroon 5?}

- hello, dc coffee shops!  what a fantastic list that includes a few of my favorites: northside social, tryst, and baked and wired.  i can't wait to check these out since the temperature has finally dropped a bit.

- love to cook or wish you were a good one?  check out this foodie community chock full of recipes and an online shop – food52!  i just want to eat up the whole website!

- for those who are always loving new etsy finds, this refinery29 round-up of the best of etsy is a great mix of jewelry + accessories {and it features my internet friend, minna of minco!}

- oh, and this justin bieber song is so easy to get stuck in your head, but i like this slower version of it from sam tsui - as long as you love me {cover of j.biebs}

have a fabulous weekend!

xoxo, m

it's my first time {visiting wineries}

the only times i've ever been to these beautiful virginia wineries is for work, so i've never been able to really enjoy the view, tastings, etc.  it's really just a 30-40 minute drive west and there are wineries galore.  so as a belated birthday celebration for one of the girls, we decided to pack a lunch and stop by two of them!

 the first one we went to was delaplane cellars and the view of virginia was just stellar.  my jaw dropped when we pulled up the hill.  the leaves are just starting to change color here, but even now it is just such a sight.

at delaplane, they had grapes still on the vines.  they grow a lot of the grapes on their property, but they get some from other growers in virginia.  you can't really see them here, but there were bees everywhere on these vines!

 i was in love with the inside the tasting room – slanted ceilings + lots of gray and white beauty.  i think the 2010 williams gap we tried was my favorite taste there.  oh, and we used the tractor in the vineyard to self-time some group shots of us, but of course i had to take a picture on it myself.

we had some extra time so our next stop was aspen dale winery!  this place was super quaint + rustic.  i felt like i could live here and there was the cutest 11-year-old fella hard at work driving a john deere!  the girls and i decided he probably drives better than all of us.

i loved the cozy feel of this place.  they have live music on the weekends and you can bring a picnic and eat anywhere on the property {which is exactly what we did!}.

this fabulous circle staircase led up to a little attic room overlooking the tasting room with some of the cutest furniture ever.  my favorite piece was this little red desk!  along with wine, they import olive oil from greece that is to die for.  it was so good i picked up a bottle!

 the owners of this place are super friendly {as is their staff!}.  we had a great time and felt right at home.  aspen dale did wine pairings, so we tried each wine with different cheeses, chocolate, and pheasant.  my favorite wine here was Mary Madeleine's Rosé, and this was definitely my favorite tasting experience.

 i just loved the atmosphere here, and we saw a horse getting some exercise in those barns in the back.

 the four of us are definitely glad it's finally fall – we all wore boots to our outing!

what a great way to start a saturday!  i can't wait to explore more wineries in virginia.

about the beginning

when i first moved to the northern virginia/dc area (over a year ago!), i found myself in a huge city with zero familiar faces.  it's been a rough start getting on my feet and i feel like i'm still in that process (hey, sometimes it takes a while).  i now live in a more suburban area and often find myself missing being near the city.  i just wanted to share some pictures of my first room in virginia, a small place i am very fond of which i shared with my first real friends in virginia.

(tim + megan – i am forever thankful)

i loved my attic room – the small space was cozy and perfect for me (not so much for my taller roommates).  here's a little day/night contrast of my room within the first day of my move-in.  cue the nostalgia.

i could not have been so blessed to have lived in this house my first year post-grad, across the country, away from my family + friends...i still can't believe it!

xoxo, m

new beginnings 2.0

It's been a crazy weekend, y'all!  Painted my new room, packed, moved, and planned a poolside wedding on private property all in one weekend.  If that's not productive, I'm not sure what is.  I've been looking at paint swatches, light fixtures, storage ideas - the whole nine yards.  This move was no doubt significantly easier than the previous one (from Texas to Virginia), but different.  I've had a great time living in the Clarendon area of Arlington - a bustling little city along the outskirts of DC - but now I'm more in the 'burbs with a nice lush green drive following me to my new casa.  I've been taking pictures of my paint progress, but here are a few Instagrams.

 

Mad props to Michelangelo for all his work because painting on ceiling is no joke.  Okay, so I didn't paint my ceiling, but I did have to fix the wall-ceiling trim of the room and that was hard enough.  So it's goodbye to my wood-paneled cozy attic room and hello to coral walls and hardwood floors.

Thanks to all who helped me move and got a great "stairmaster" workout climbing up and down my house.  Off to rearranging, buying a few new pieces, rearranging some more, and organizing galore!

P.S.  When I'm MIA from the blog, follow me on Pinterest for some guaranteed activity.

A Valentine's Banquet

Happy Valentine's Day!  I hope you all have a lovely day, no matter your status.  Today is just a day to be reminded of what we should do every day - love.  Spend it with someone you love, whether it's your family, best friend(s), or lover.  

Photo credit: Briana Smith

Just thought I'd share a few pictures from the valentine's banquet we had at church this past weekend.  I emptied most of the contents of my room to put together this dessert table.  Thanks to everyone who brought delicious treats!

Photo credit: Daniel Kim

whoa, it's 2012.

I can hardly believe it.  The end of last year went by like a whirlwind, and now it's the beginning of another. I know it's been a while, so here are some highlights from the last few months:

• I got the wonderful opportunity to start working at Holly Chapple Flowers with some of these amazing ladies (and man!).  On a side note, I am so sad dahlia season is over.
• I experienced the most gorgeous autumn ever!  I also hiked at Shenandoah National Park for the first time.

all about autumn

original image by vicki grafton photography, flowers by holly chapple

I hope everyone had a great Labor Day weekend! I know it's a bit early to be talking about autumn, but the weather in northern Virginia is definitely getting there.

{on the road} hello, virginia!

It's been a crazy past few days since I arrived in Virginia.

Thanks to everyone for your thoughts and prayers! We didn't have any problems on the road - no flats, no accidents, not even any traffic. There's not much to say right now, except that my housemates are amazing and my room is finally coming together. Here's a whirlwind of "before" pics I'm sure many of you are itching to see. I will do some before & after posts with DIY projects to come - promise!

 

  

closet space, aka "Narnia"

Thanks to my awesome not-so-little brother for all his help on putting things together and carrying things I could not (or could if I were willing to break my back). A few little fun facts about the new place & some other random updates:

• That white dresser in the first picture was left behind, so the girls gave it to me for free!
• I spent $20 at Goodwill and got a cute wicker laundry basket, lamp base & shade, cute wooden bowls, and a hanging shelf. Photos to come, of course.
• I used craigslist and got a night stand, bookshelf, and metal bed frame for a total of $32.
• I live so close to the metro it's amazing. I have yet to take it, but am excited to explore like crazy!
• My brother developed a love for gelato. We've been to Boccato twice since Sunday. This one's oreo and white chocolate.

• My first piece of mail was waiting for me when I arrived at the house. I was ridiculously excited. My brother kept telling me to stop taking pictures of it cause it's not a celebrity, but maybe it is. Thanks, dear friend. (:

• I will forever be a Texan at heart, and a Singaporean, but I'm glad to be here enjoying my time in VA. Though I don't quite miss Texas yet, it's probably because I've been so preoccupied with everything else. So...no hard feelings, Texas, but I have a huge crush on Virginia right now.

{on the road} ready, set, go!

In 2 hours, I'll be on the road to my new home in Arlington, Virginia, some 20 hours away.

The past 4 days since the previous post have been absolutely insane. The amount of packing and unpacking I've done is ridiculous, and I have proof, but first - here's a tid bit about packing:


Over the years of moving and traveling, I've found that the most efficient way to pack a suitcase is to roll up tees and tanks into the crevices of the luggage.

returning from hibernation

Finally, after a very (almost dreadfully) long hiatus, I will come back and be blogging every day this week. School has been absolutely insane, but I am finally DONE! Thank the Lord.

I'll be touring around Virginia this week to hopefully find a job and just explore the state. I'm very excited, but also pretty nervous to be traveling by my lonesome. Keep me in your prayers - for safe travels, God-ordained moments & a humble, obedient heart.

wedding wednesday: virginia vineyard wedding

outdoor weddings have always had this alluring appeal to me - the light breeze, the sun on your skin as you walk down the aisle...so perfect. except in houston, or pretty much anywhere in texas. the drastically fluctuating temperatures here don't exactly assure you of a sweat-free wedding day if you want to do it outside.

however, christine & tim's virginia vineyard wedding has made the north look so appealing for outdoor wedding grounds and perhaps for living...? i've been to many places as a child, but remember next to none...and i definitely don't remember the united states having places that look like this

seriously, add a body of water nearby and this is utopia for me. christine and tim added lots of personal touches to their wedding, including iron-on transfers of their silhouettes (pictured below).

read more details about this wedding on ruffled blog where christine shared about her experience designing and planning her wedding.

these gorgeous photographs were taken by our labor of love by heidi