We had THE BEST TIME at my brother's wedding.    It was a beautiful ceremony, good company, good food, and great music.  We partied til' the very end.

 Champ

 Nyah (middle)

The Father Daughter Dance was probably my favorite part of the night.  It started out like this.....

 and ended with them doing a dance routine that had everyone up out of their seats.  When I find the   entire dance routine I'll post it here.  It was the cutest thing ever.

 Champ's first Soul Train Line (and he loved it)

Brother, Sister, and Me Chillin' in the Photo Booth

Mr. & Mrs. Player : )

Images: Amanda Marie Photography

Things are going really well for me at BRIKA.  I have a nice steady pace of orders and I'm learning a lot about the business side of things i.e. invoices, customer service, shipping costs, which products people are drawn to, and press.  Speaking of press, I got some exciting news a few weeks back that some of my products may be featured in a major publication this summer.  These were the items requested to be shipped to New York : )

When I think about how everything is turning out, I can't help but think of one of my favorite quotes from one of my all time favorite emcees...

                 "This Journey That We Take, All These Moves That We Make, Are The Right Ones...."

                                                                                                  

                                                                                                                    -Big K.R.I.T.

A pretty sky

Riverside Arts Market

    After living here for six years we finally (finally) ventured out to the Riverside Arts Market

   

St. Johns River

Couldn't pass up these strawberries

                      Love the message in the bubble

                                                                          Gotta have a Funnel Cake

                                                                 Working out details of their new handshake

Around Here (from my iphone)

A Rainbow

Blooming Flowers (posted on instagram)

Filling orders for  BRIKA 

Working on a killer playlist

 Juicing

Pre-Valentine's Day Flowers

 lots and lots of birds flying above my head (posted on instagram)

Can't Get Enough of: Lena Dunham

I adore Lena Dunham.  I was there from the very beginning of her season premier of Girls last year, and now that season 2 has started I just can't get enough.  Her writing is clever, witty, honest, pure, and just flat out hilarious.  I was so impressed by her, I went searching for more of her work and discovered her debut film Tiny Furniture which she starred and directed in and won all sorts of accolades from it.  She is definitely one of my favorite peeps to keep up with at the moment.

image source 

Weekend Sewing: Quilted Fabric Coasters

I made some quilted fabric coasters this weekend.  I just grabbed a few scraps of fabric and went at it.  I used the pattern from my book Last Minute Patchwork + Quilted Gifts.  Very easy, very simple and very addictive. I have a couple of other things that I need to make around here like bibs for a friend and chair cushions for our kitchen table.  I guess I'll tackle these things one weekend at a time.

2013 word of the year: Productivity

Well, the new year has begun and I am very excited and motivated about getting a lot more done in terms of sewing and creating new things.  I wanted to post a few pictures of a new tote bag I made that I absolutely LOVE.  It reminds me of warmer days, trips to the farmer's market, or just a stroll through the city. Hope you all had a lovely holiday season and here's to a productive New Year!

 

Mr. Penguin

Every year I buy one or two new ornaments to add to our ornament collection.  Here is our latest addition : )

Thanksgiving

We had a good time over thanksgiving break in Charlotte.  It was nice catching up with family and friends.  We had our traditional southern foods  and no matter how hard you try not to overeat, it just never works out that way.  I've decided to host Christmas Dinner this year and would like to try some new recipes.  I guess it's time to start thumbing through those cookbooks.  

Road trippin'

I visited my Local Anthropologie today to pick up a few things for my trip to Charlotte for the thanksgiving holiday. 

 I am hooked on Anthology magazine.  Ever since I wrote about making my first purchase here I haven't looked back.  I've been collecting them ever since.  I love how rich and inspiring the context is, even the pages feel heavenly.  I'm starting to realize that my taste in magazines are shifting in a new direction.  I no longer crave the articles in Lucky, Glamour or Marie Claire.  Instead, I'd rather purchase magazines that focus on creativity. I'm also interested in exploring other magazines from different parts of the world like Lula, Frankie, and The Gentlewoman to name a few.    Speaking of creativity, I also picked up this new book Brooklyn Makers by Jennifer Causey that I'm itching to open.

It took me a while to purchase the second book The Sartorialist: Closer by Scott Schuman but I finally got around to it.  I love the first book and still thumb through it from time to time.  When I skimmed through this book in the store I could tell that it was equally inspiring as the first one.

I absolutely love this grey cardigan and I can already tell that I will be wearing this thing to death.  It is so soft and comfortable and drapes very nicely on the body.  I tried to find it on the website so that I could link to it but it isn't there yet.  Sorry.   So this Chambray Buttondown shirt I adore.  It's more of a fitted shirt which is what I was looking for and I was glad to see it got a lot of positive reviews.

I just love the simple and subtle details of this sweater.

Any big plans for Thanksgiving?  I'm so relieved I don't have to host it this year.  The only request I got was to make a carrot soufflee, which by the way is very delicious.  Below is the recipe if you'd like to try it for the holidays.  You won't be dissapointed.  

Carrot Souffle

7 cups chopped carrot (about 2 pounds)

2/3 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup fat-free sour cream

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons butter, melted

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 large eggs, lightly beaten

Cooking spray

1 teaspoon powdered sugar

Cook carrot in boiling water 15 minutes or until very tender, drain.  Place carrot in a food processor; process until smooth.  Add granulated sugar and next 7 ingredients (granulated sugar through eggs); pulse to combine.

Spoon mixture into a 2-quart baking dish coated with cooking spray.  Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes or until puffed and set.  Sprinkle with powdered sugar.

Yield: 8 servings (serving size 1/2 cup)

Calories 187

Have a Happy thanksgiving and I'll see you on Monday : )

Childhood Home

Just a few pictures of my childhood home that I took this past weekend.  Oh! and this is THE BEST pound cake ever.  I wanted to get a picture of it uncut but that will probably never happen because as soon as it comes out of the oven everyone dives in.  It's soooo good when it's warm.  I so wish  you could taste it and all of its goodness.  It's the most moist, light, and flavorful cake you'll probably ever have....No Lie.  My sister makes these cakes and sells them from time to time, but she mainly makes them because she enjoys it.  I bet she could totally make a living from selling this pound cake.  This cake never lasts.
.

Mother Nature

There is a tree full of berries that's taking over our driveway.  Before it gets cut back, it deserves a photo.

Halloween

just a few random photos from halloween in the past.


hope you have a safe and happy halloween!

Nyah's Words

My daughter Nyah is pretty funny, and I love her little art work she brings home as well as her short stories. This one in particular made me laugh out loud.  If only life was this simple.

It reads:
"I'm on top of the world when I have a doughnut!"

Because every house should have a...

aloe plant, or at least that's one of the rules my parents live by.  "Here Tori, take a piece of this plant with you, and if you get a burn or a cut, you use this."  So I did.  And hopefully I won't have to use it, but if I do, I'll be prepared.