12 Goals for 2012: Buy Fresh Flowers

Second goal completed, and this wasn't exactly a tough one to do. Because really, what girl doesn't love a fresh and colorful bouquet of flowers to brighten up her kitchen? 

I've now crossed two goals off my list (including wearing red lipstick!), and here are the rest of my 12 goals for 2012.

Happy Wednesday!

Life Lately: February 24, 2012

This week: Lookin' stylish while waiting at the DMV (and I'm back there again today!); coming to the realization that I might have a few too many lip products in my purse; and painting my nails my favorite color - BLACK. (And boy, do people have a lot of opinions about black nail polish!)

Happy Friday!

Lovely Web Links: February 23, 2012

+ This week, I interviewed one of my favorite interior designers, Betsy Burnham.

+ I just discovered the blog of Kelli Murray, and I'm pretty sure she's my new favorite painter/illustrator/designer/stylish gal. (Let's be friends, okay Kelli?)

+ Pinterest introduces NOPIN - coding that website owners can embed in their HTML to stop people from pinning their copyrighted images. Thoughts?

+ How companies learn your secrets. Fascinating.

+ I'm a bit of a grammar freak. This e-card and this comic totally made me bust a gut.

Happy Thursday!
  

Tell People...

[Art by Heidi Burton]

Happy Wednesday!

Creative Inspiration: Hollywood Graffiti

I came across the work of artist Greg Auerbach at a cafe in Hollywood a few weeks ago and instantly fell in love with his "Hollywood Graffiti". Auerbach spray paints portraits of film icons over a collage of materials that relate to the actor's career, interests, life, and art. I love the depth and history these pieces have, as well as their urban graphic appeal. 

[Art by Greg Auerbach/Hollywood Graffiti]

Happy Tuesday!
 

Free 'Just Love' iPhone Wallpaper!

Good morning! How about a free iPhone wallpaper to brighten up your Monday? "Just Love" is one of my original collages, available as an art print and in a set of blank greeting cards at my Etsy Shop. And now it's a free wallpaper download to bring some love to your smartphone! This wallpaper was originally offered on Kind Over Matter's 26 Free + Inspirational iPhone Wallpapers From 26 Awesome Etsy Artists.   

 [Click the wallpaper image to view full-size and download.]

Like this? Please click the links below to share the free downloadin' love on Twitter, Facebook, Google+, and (my personal favorite!) Pinterest.

 Happy Monday!

PS. Did you know you can also download a free desktop wallpaper too?

Life Lately: February 17, 2012

This week: eating far too many Valentine's sweets; furthering my obsession with lip gloss with the arrival of two pretty new shades in the mail from my mom; and starting an early-morning running routine (mostly to counteract the eating of too many Valentine's sweets).

How was your week?

 Happy Friday!
 

Lovely Web Links: February 16, 2012

+ Is Pinterest the new Napster? Also, great information for bloggers and people who use Pinterest.

+ The FUNNEST photo editor! Pixlr is like a web-based (and free!) Photoshop that also does amazing vintage effects.

+ More photo fun - Instagram style Photoshop actions.

+ Bloggers: 6 powerful guest post tactics that no one's talking about.

+ The stupid things you do online (and how to fix them).

+ A gorgeous monochromatic black and white home. Swoon!

+ Photoshopping of women's bodies taken to the extreme - The Venus Project.

Happy Thursday!
 

Inspiring Words: Coffee Coffee Coffee

[By workisnotajob]

AMEN, COFFEE! I've been waking up super early on weekdays to go running before work (hurrah for being healthy!) and let me tell you, by 9am I need my coffee like nobody's business. 

Happy Wednesday!
 

Creative Inspiration: Velvet Morning

Vintage portraits + mixed media collages = UH-MA-ZING. I'm loving the retro vibe and ethereal feel of these pieces by Velvet Morning.

[Artwork by Velvet Morning on Etsy]

Happy Valentine's Day!
 

Fridays Are For Pretty Photos...

...at least, this Friday is. A little colorful inspiration for your weekend.


 Have a lovely weekend!

PS. I've been hard at work (which is code for "I've been spending hours Googling how to do this") adding new "Tweet" and "Like" buttons at the bottom of each post. If you like what you see, please share with your pals! xo
 

Lovely Web Links: February 9, 2012

+ A sweet recipe for Valentine's Day red velvet hot chocolate.

+ An amazing kitchen makeover - for under $200. I'm stunned!

+ I love everything about this outfit (and this blog).

+ What I Wore Today is the illustrator's answer to fashion blogging.

+ Link With Love has a chic black and white Helvetica desktop wallpaper calendar for download.

+ 10 apps for more efficient Tweeting. My favorite is Tweriod - it analyzes the best tweeting times to reach your followers.

What wonderful links did you come across this week?

 Happy Thursday!
 

Inspiring Words: All You Need

[Calligraphy by Ornamelle]

 Happy Wednesday!
 

Creative Inspiration: Michelle Jefferson

Collage artist Michelle Jefferson challenged herself to create a new collage every day for a month - each on a 12x12 canvas, each featuring an anatomical heart, and one completed for every day in January. The results are pretty fantastic. You can view the complete One Heart a Day gallery here.

 [Artwork by Michelle Jefferson]

Happy Tuesday!
 

Indie Business: About.Me

You know I love tools to make work smarter, websites prettier, and business easier. So when I heard about about.me last week, I knew I had to share the usefulness! About.me is a personal profile page that features just the basics - your name, your photo, a short bio, and links to your social media haunts (like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, your blog, etc.). I love it because it's simple and uncluttered, yet bold and visually impactful. Here's my about.me page that I just created:

5 Tips to Use About.Me Effectively:

+ Include your about.me link in your email signature. Instead of several different links to your social media pages, one simple link does the job. 

+ Write your bio and tags with useful keywords that relate to your blog or business.  In your bio, use 2 or 3 word keywords (like "collage artist") that search engines can understand. In addition to your bio, about.me allows you to create up to 10 "tags" to describe yourself that can be used as search keywords. I've chosen to hide the tags on my profile, but if anyone searches for "interior designer" "collage artist" or "design blogger" my name will come up in an about.me search.

+ Pick a great, hi-res photo of you or your work as your background. Give viewers a clear picture of who you are or what you do instantly (Note: I know I'm currently going against my own advice by not having a photo of me or my work as my background, but I haven't had time to! I believe it's better to get started on something like this than to get hung up on doing it perfectly. Create your profile and tweak it as you go.)

+ Choose fonts and colors for your about.me page that are consistent with the branding and "feel" of your blog or website. The options for fonts are pretty limited on about.me, but using fonts that are consistent in color and similar in style will create a sleek unified look for your personal brand.

+ If you don't have a blog or website, your about.me page can function as a simple homepage. Your about.me link would be great to include on your resume when job searching - directing people to a simple and beautiful profile page with a brief bio and easy navigation links looks polished and professional.

Readers - what do you think of about.me? Do you see value in a social media profile page like this in conjunction with your blog or business? Let's chat!

Happy Monday!