Saturday at Assembled!

Last week I mentioned I would be journeying to Somerville to check out Assembled, the new local art market.  Lucky me, my talented blogger friend Katherine of Style Tab was also invited and we had a fantastic time! The 100 degree sweltering heat did not stop up from eating yummy food truck treats and picking up a few crafty pieces.

I bought three of these paper flowers

Yum! Sausage, pepper, and basil wrap from Away Cafe food truck. (Plus, live music!)

Sweating on the blacktop.

Sarah Wormann Art - love her drawings!  <-- check her out on Etsy

Give me ice cream!

Thanks again to the team at Assembled for having us! After I move apartments, I will definitely be hitting up the market again for some vintage furniture pieces...and maybe when the temperature is less Amazonian.

Where: Assembly Row, Grand Union Boulevard, Somerville, MA

When: Saturdays through September 21

Let's Get Assembled

Earlier this week I was super excited to be contacted by the team repping Assembled, the new art fair in Somerville.  Gotta love seeing more fun and engaging activities pop up around the city!

Here's how Assembled describes itself:

"Each Saturday over the summer (excluding some holiday weekends) local artisans will be selling handmade items including gorgeous jewelry, clothing, house wares, bath products, and more! Combine that with live music and food trucks (Bon Me, Frozen Hoagies, & Clover – to name a few!) for a fun and festive shopping experience!"

The theme at Assembled this Saturday is right up my alley: "White Barn Heirlooms: Recycled. Reclaimed. Re-purposed".  Perfect timing that the bf and I were looking at some older, aka character-filled, apartments this week.  One apt had stained glass, built-ins, and a claw-foot tub! I mean, come on, you had me at the lace curtains on the porch.

Assembled is also hosting an amazing little game each week. Below are four images of products at the market.  If you find one of these items, you get to keep it for free!  Who doesn't love a scavenger hunt?! {My heart is set on the tiles in the last picture... hint hint}

Follow me on Twitter and Instagram to see what I find!  You can follow Assembly's tweets too {@AtAssemblyRow}, and their hashtag {#ASSEMBLE}. 

I can't wait to see what the vendors have for our {hopefully} new home!

Love: Bike Shorts

With all the bike riding I've been up to lately, it was time to purchase some bike shorts. If you've ever ridden long distance, or even just to your neighbor's house, you might know that biking, well, gets a little uncomfortable.   

It may not have been thrilling to hit the "checkout" button, but trust me I was smiling ear to ear once I took a ride wearing these babies.  After asking a few cycling friends and reading reviews, I ordered Canari Pro Gel cycling shorts from Amazon.  The only real tip I used was 'the more panels the better', and these are 8 panels.  The gel pad is comfy, but it does kind of feel like you're wearing a diaper.  (I don't see any way around that, they are padded shorts after all.) One of my bff's is an avid Soul Cyclist, and she wears these from Lululemon.

If biking of any kind is in your future, including spin class at the Y, I highly recommend getting a pair of padded shorts.  Spending $40 on a functional piece of clothing feels like the pits, but down the road, it's the right thing to do.  Plus, do you really need another Kate Spade iPhone case?!  (OMG that was a mistake, how adorable is that?! And it's a bike for crying out loud! I need it! Aak!)

priceless.

Deal: Cocktails and Canvases

When I like a product, place, person, or program of any sort, everyone around me knows about it. The inherent marketer in me enjoys (over)sharing information about these wonderful things.  I rave about anything from mascara, to a restaurant, a new boutique, or favorite blogs.  Apparently I believe my opinion is a valuable one.

One of these wonders is Paint Nite.  After finding out that I enjoy painting, a co-worker suggested I check out this traveling bar painting extravaganza. The concept is simple: drink and paint.  Their website is user friendly, and you pick out an event to attend based on the painting you want to create.  An instructor gives you step by step guidelines, which you're not forced to follow.  Supplies are all included in the price, and the instructor cleans up after you leave.  That's like, a better deal than art class in middle school.

Remembering to pick up your cocktail and not your brush water cup is the hardest part.

Regardless of your ability, Paint Nite is a guaranteed good time. (Unless you are the Grinch or overly self conscious.)  When I attended, we were instructed to paint a cupcake.  One of my friends painted an ice cream cone that looked like a kindergartener's finger painting, but he had a blast!  I'd also suggest this is an awesome date idea, Howaboutwe.com anyone?

I was reminded of my love of Paint Nite this morning when my daily slew of "deals" emails came in, and Gilt City has a sweet offer! Go to Gilt City Boston and get yourself a few $25 Paint Nite deals. Call your friends, and tell them too. Because drinking is better when accompanied by friends (and oodles of paint). 

Mine's on the left!

You will not regret it!

Skiing Nemo

   In a shocking turn of events, I went skiing this weekend at Mt. Snow, VT.  My family planned this trip last month and right on cue the big winter blizzard named Nemo rolled in.  We fled the city extra early (cough, cough. I was sick.) to get a jump on the storm, and an extra day on the slopes.  I felt like Helen Hunt chasing a storm in Twister. Stopped for breakfast in town, two guys motioned to our rack of skis and said "You goin' skiin'?" (What gave it away?) "You got the right idea!".  We sure do buddy!

My frequent view from the Jeep

    Our weekend worked out better than expected.  I experienced skiing in fresh powder for the first time, per usual the engineer was there to help coach me through every turn.  The challenge of learning something new, especially in 2 feet of snow in a forest, is made all the more easier when a cute guy is telling you how awesome you look doing it.

Is skiing even a sport you can look cute doing?  I could be anyone under there ^

  So while Nemo pounded Boston and my friends were cooped-up inside for a day, I was breathing in the fresh mountain air (and drinking too much Mt. Snow Ale with my parents). I highly recommend riding out a blizzard in this fashion.  Just don't expect to come home to a parking spot... or even a street.

We parked 2 miles away and walked home, which was actually a fun adventure!

For more pictures of Nemo's beauty, check out one of my favs, Hogger & Co. Her coverage is gorgeous, and professional...not like my Instagram snaps!

Bunny or Brah?

   A few weeks ago, my engineer and I ventured into the mountains of New Hampshire for our first ski day.  It was an adventure he had been looking forward to for months.  I'd prepared him for the worst- that I might disappoint and be a grinch on the mountain (my parents, sister, and friends all gave him fair warning as well).
   I grew up skiing with my family, beginning at age four being towed and taught by my father.  It is not a sport I ever took a liking too. Year after year, we packed an enormous amount of puffy clothing and heavy gear into the car and traveled north.   Ski trips always fell on my birthday too, aka 'winter break' from grade school. I would cry that my toes were cold, my nose was too runny, and my friends were faster than me.  As expected with an attitude like that, I slowly gave up skiing to my mother's dismay as she loved to foreshadow that one day I would meet a skier boy and regret quitting. 
   Mother is always right.
   One of the first awkward getting-to-know-you conversations the engineer and I shared was about ski boots, and how disappointing the winter was turning out.  I think I started mentally gathering my gloves, helmet, goggles, and snow pants right then.  Realizing how much he loves it made me conjure up some happy memories on the slopes.  It had always been more about the people I was with than anything else, I had just been too young to really notice.  
    Heading in to this winter season, I knew I would enjoy myself if I relaxed and focused on who I was with more so than what we were doing.  Turns out, I do like to ski. Whodathunkit!  Despite complaining about a cold wet nose, I have happily swooshed down the mountain three days so far.  I have a great teacher to remind me of the 16 years of lessons from my Dad, and he's glad to let me take a Bailey's break when I need one.  The cherry on top... I'm a better skier than expected.  Ski culture has always enticed me, and snowy mountain towns are so fun to visit.  It's panning out to be a wonderful season.  
   Another 2013 resolution... to be a ski brah on the slopes, rather than a ski bunny in the lodge.  Although, I won't hesitate to quit one run early to beat my friends to the bar. Après–ski, everyone?

Check me out!

I'm rocking: Tecnica Fling ski boots, Patagonia snow pants, Atomic Affinity ETM skis

Men vs. Women {Weekends}

Man-cave. Girl-talk. Mancation. Ladies Night.
    Sometimes, we desire a few blissful moments of single gender hangouts.  We need time for a boy to be a boy, and a girl to be a girl.  Sometimes, we turn that into a weekend getaway; it’s an excuse to throw away money and get hammered in the spirit of embodying our gender.  Cue, my weekend.
    While I spent last Saturday on a tour of vineyards in the Hamptons, the BF shot rifles and lit shit on fire in Vermont.  Recapping our stories on Sunday night to each other was like swapping articles from Cosmopolitan and Field & Stream.  We could not help but laugh at how opposite our travels had been.  Although both were similarly filled with great friends, lots of booze, and millions of much needed laughs! Throughout our relationship, our opposing interests have wound up in fun adventures and discussions.  Any reason to learn something new is exciting for us both. 

     I think it’s important to have times like these, when men and women separate to explore things they normally wouldn’t do together.  Not that the BF would refuse a wine tour, and I do plan on learning how to shoot a flaming arrow one day, but it is nice to have time apart.  Boyfriends do not want to listen to us talk about how wonderful they are, or how dumb their last birthday gift was (no matter how thoughtful).  That’s what girlfriends are for. That’s why we need Women Weekends.

Thank the universe for truly amazing friends. xx

Trail Blazing

One of my favorite parts about dating my engineer, is learning new things (see, the 4th Commandment).  A few months ago, he found me a used mountain bike, fixed it up, and taught me how to ride again.  We frequently ride around the city; so far, I've been using mine solely as a means of transportation.  Yesterday, he finally convinced me to take the bike where it belongs, a mountain.  To be fair, The Fells is not a mountain, so I'd say we were more "trail blazing" than mountain biking. After my initial fear of falling subsided and he gave me a few pointers, I was off riding over some gnarly roots and rocks.

Trail blazing was fantastic- great exercise surrounded by a gorgeous atmosphere.  Everyone we rode by in the park smiled and said hello.  One older couple even asked if we were having fun.   After 2 hours and 8.2 miles, I had to call it quits, but the BF was very proud of me.  I feel great and have some sweet photos from our adventure.  Not too shabby for a Saturday in October.