abby try again

a deal for you!

Hello friends.
Isn't this fence+flower combo lovely?
I often walk by this house and wonder how cute it must be on the inside.
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Well, many of you know Jessica over at Shiny Squirrel.
It is her one year anniversary at her shop and if you spend $2o she's offering you a free gift!
Just mention my blog's name at checkout.
Now, this is not a secret ad-she's a blog friend and I 100% support crafty women businesses!
If I had a dream shopping spree there this is what I'd get:

-this amazing scarf by yu-i

-this gorgeous piece of art by my friend lisa solomon

-this print by alyson fox

-and one of these lovely lockets

Happy One Year Anniversary Shiny Squirrel!

peel apart

Did i ever mention that I am a little bit obsessed with the film Drugstore Cowboy?

It's not so much the actual film (although I do like it), more-all of the places in Portland where it was filmed. And let me tell you, those places are fast disappearing. Over the past 20 years or so, an economic boom hit Portland and many of the places in the film are simply gone. This blog post has a bit more detail on that.

     Anyway, I recently purchased some id-uv film for my land camera and was excited to try it out. I decided to hang around Portland and find some "old-timey" shots to go with the vintage look of the film. I guess it's my attempt at my own "Drugstore Cowboy".........

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I had another reason to be hanging around-but shh!
I am working on a special project with this city, and I can't wait to share it!
But for now, mum's the word, ok?

sweet sale

On Saturday, I went to the Sweet 16 Sale.
It was one of the best Independent Sales I have ever seen.
I'm on a tight budget, but if I wasn't-I'd have bought something from almost every vendor.
And it was in the Industrial area of Portland, which made it even better.

I picked up a beautiful notebook from Keegan Meegan Press & Bindery,
a tiny little dala horse ornament from Gretchen Vaudt Ceramics,
and some lovely screen printed paper from Chelsea of Arugula Press.

I was blown away at everyone's gorgeous business cards. These two were my favorites:

I hope you all do this next year!

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p.s.
thanks for the kind and thoughtful responses on my last post!
I love to get your feedback :)

one morning in northwest

NorthWest  Portland feels like a whole different town to me...
from the top:

-a mossy ledge

-beautiful apartments

-clothes drying on a colorful balcony

-peeking through the windows of an empty restaurant

-pastries from this place

-a bite to eat with this lovely gal

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So, film and cameras and learning are all costing a lot of money-especially on our student budget. Now, I am not complaining, such is life-but I've been thinking of ways to earn some extra cash in order to pay for some photography courses I'd like to take.
   I'm thinking of putting a few advertisements on my blog. Of course, they'd be for companies I really believe in-would that be annoying to you all out there? I'm also thinking of making some photo postcards and selling them on etsy....hm...what do you all think? Thanks!

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Hope you had a beautiful weekend!

in season

It is apple season, my friends.
And in Oregon that is one of the most beautiful seasons there is.
My favorite ways of eating apples right now are:
-home made apple sauce
-sliced thin and layered on bread with chicken, cream cheese and bacon
-with fresh bread and butter
-just sliced with a tiny bit of salt

These recipes also look amazing
-here
-here
-and here

What about you? How do you like them?

shoes are good

Well, yesterday I got my free pair of shoes from Solestruck.
They are awesome!
A huge thanks to this company, so nice, such great packaging, so cute....I could go on and on.
It was a hard decision, since they have such a great selection-so thanks for helping me choose!
I will totally be ordering from this company again-and if you need shoes-check them out!
Plus, they have a cute blog.
I suspect these will be my faves this fall.
What are your favorite shoes this fall?
Hope you are well!

a home

I took these photos at my sister's house, with her husband's fancy Nikon.
Her house is the perfect home; comfortable, organized, warm, great light...I could go on.
She can make anywhere feel like home. She's just good at those things, you know?
Lindee never ceases to amaze me.
She deserves a hug today, and since we all can't do that-go over to her blog and say hi.
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What do you think helps make a house a home?

canning

My love for all things home canned, jarred or preserved runs deep.

Perhaps it stems from my Mormon upbringing or maybe even my Okie heritage but wherever it comes from I am glad to have it. That is because these jarred and canned items are among the prettiest of things.

These photos are from this tiny little restaurant in my neighborhood. I love walking by their windows each week to see what strange and delicious items they have concocted. They give the term "window shopping" a whole new spin here, and I love them for it.

I can't wait to eat here on my anniversary.

Gourmet magazine had a feature last month about packing picnics in glass jars..here's one of the recipes.

And because I am a flickr addict, here are some great related photos:

-old timey

-beautiful drinks

-award winning

-pickles & chips

-jars of light

Just for fun-this site.

Do you have any canning memories?

Sometimes, I sit down to post and I have no clue what I am going to write. Okay, most of the time.
Forgive me...
I wanted to share these photos with you.
I feel like they say more than I can right now, more than I know how to express.
Maybe that makes sense, maybe it doesn't.
It's fall folks, I'm a little tired and I just want to curl up with some warm soup and watch a mystery show.
Here are other's people photos that I am so feeling right now...
-this
-and this
-and this.
What are you feeling right now?

beautiful things

I was lucky enough to meet the lovely Jenny the other day.
We browsed shops in the neighborhood, including my boss' shop shown here.
It was 90 degrees that day, but I still couldn't help but swoon over the sweaters, socks, and scarves.
Here are my current loves:
-all of these socks from Hansel from Basel
-this dress from stewart + brown
-these wrist worms
What are your favorite fall items?