adventures in babyland

Okay, last baby post, I promise! I'm trying to get it all out of my system in one day before I become the creepy & single 23 year old that is obsessed with babies. Nobody wants to be perceived as that girl.

Adele Enerson's blog absolutely kills me though! There was a time when  Cute Overload brightened my day, Mila's Daydreams take the cake. What a fun idea!

perfect nurseries

I feel like one of the best parts of being pregnant must be decorating the nursery.  You can be as playful or whimsical as you want with the design & it's totally acceptable. I can't wait to be an aunt or for one of my friends to have an "accident" (joking!) so I can buy cutesy little things for a baby!

Here are some of my favorite nurseries from around the web...

1. Little Green Notebook 2. Rhoney Design 3. Style Files 4. Black Eiffel 5. I Still Love You 

6. Design*Sponge 7. Ohdeedoh 8. I Still Love You 9. Made By Girl 10. This Is Glamorous 

11. Anne Sage 12. House Of Turquoise 13. Houzz 14. Belle Maison

babies!

Over the weekend I watched the documentary "Babies" & it was absolutely wonderful! There is almost no dialogue & I swear to you, I was laughing hysterically one minute & crying the next throughout the whole hour & 18 minutes. I highly recommend watching it sometime. It really offers a great glimpse at how different life is around the world.

Some things I learned:

• All babies look good in stripes & legwarmers

• This book is a must
• You can't force a cat to go for a walk
• Mongolian babies dress like miniature hipsters

• My mom isn't the only one that swears by Johnny Jumpers
• Changing diapers may be gross, but it's better than cleaning urine off of a bed (Mongolia) or feces off of your knee (Namibia)

• Moms in Tokyo are very stylish
• Baby & animal interaction is hilarious

• Older brothers can be quite cruel (Oh wait, I already knew that one!)

Rent "Babies" on iTunes now!

growing pains

It occurred to me that I have had a real grown-up job for exactly one full year. I feel like this officially makes me an adult. But you know what? I'm still going to act like a kid once in a while :)

via Oh Hello Friend

xxx brooklyn

For some reason this photo of a bar in Brooklyn called Hot Bird really stood out to me. I love the sign hanging behind the bar.

These screwdriver beer taps are pretty awesome too...

My best friend just recently moved out to Brooklyn & I'm hoping to get out & visit her sometime in November. I might have to add Hot Bird to my to-do list & see if it looks as cool in person.

(photos via Alejandro De La Cruz)

this is a low

Steve Aoki is a pretty fun guy & I could listen to this song over & over again. Check him out...

happy birthday, mj

Talk about a musical icon. I love what Hood Internet did with Billy Jean & RATATAT

weekend warrior

This is a sad day for me. It is the last time I will get to celebrate Summer hours & leave the office at 1:30 pm. I love the Summer more than anything, but all signs are showing that Fall is on it's way. I have never really brought myself to enjoy the Fall because all I can think of is the impending doom (aka Chicago winters) that lies just after. I am, however, planning to buy these beautiful red boots this weekend which might make Fall slightly more enjoyable this year.

Luckily, I've got a gorgeous forecast to look forward to this weekend which means I'll be out soaking up the last of the Summer sun all weekend long. I'm planning for long walks & trips to the beach!

Happy weekend! You should check out this blog all about kissing & this one about how to not get a boyfriend.

(photo via Sarah's Fab Day)

sheer leather

Is this not the perfect Fall dress? It is made out of perforated leather which gives a semi-sheer effect. I'm in love with the dress, but not the $300 price tag. It's not something that is within my budget, but $300 isn't that awful for leather. Plus, it's such a versatile piece.

via Nordstrom

beautiful portraits of random strangers

I stumbled upon this set of, well, beautiful portraits of random strangers. I think it's kind of a cool concept because of the whole mystery aspect. I can't stop staring at these 3 portraits...

I think it's the freckles &/or eyes that do it for me.

Don't these remind you of Closer? I absolutely love that movie. There's something dark & beautiful about the story & that portrait of Natalie Portman crying is stunning.

amen, sister...

via

who knew?

I know this may be hard to believe, but Roxy has super cute clothing & a lot of their sale items are marked down very low. I got a tip on this when I saw this funny little post from Oh Joy & fell in love with her dress. After buying the dress for myself (in both hot pink & pear) I explored the sale items a little more. Talk about a hidden treasure! Here are some cute sale items that I'm eyeing:

1. Don't Panic Top $12.39 2. Seashell Convertible Tank $13.99 3. Day Trip Romper $34.65 4. Star Fish Convertible Skirt $31.15 5. Ultimate Tank $14.75 6. Air Breeze Dress $19.75 7. Star Fish Convertible Skirt $31.15 8. Brightly Dress $27.65

Holy cow! I could get all 8 items for under $200! Tempting...

designer library

Move over Coralie Brickford-Smith, there's a new designer in town!

No, that is cruel. I am absolutely smitten with Coralie Brickford-Smith's clothbound Penguin Classics & her recently launched F. Scott Fitzgerald series, but I am pretty psyched about the new collection of clothbound books from White's Books:

I of course caved & purchased Emma & Sonnets & Poems by William Shakespeare. I've really got my eye on the whole set though...

This has turned into such an unexpected hobby for me, but book design totally fascinates me. I love homes with huge bookshelves & now all I can thinking about is creating one of my own with visually beautiful books (even if I don't read them all). I know there are a lot of used book stores in Chicago & as much as I love a crisp new book, vintage designs can be amazing as well. I really should start hunting locally.

Do you know of any good used bookstores in Chicago?