herbiehancock

it's the end of another week! actually, with my odd-houred job, the end of my week is now saturday afternoons.  this has taken a bit of getting used to since i grew up in a religion that kept saturday as the sabbath.  even though i left that religion, i continued to keep that spiritual practice and it has been an interesting process to decide where i want to set my boundaries.  as sad as i was to lose my day devoted to loved ones and self-reflection, i'm thankful it happened because it helped me figure out what is most important to me {i'm not planning on working saturdays much longer}. here are some other things i'm thankful for: * serendipitously discovering a pretty bridge {the shakespeare bridge} tucked away in our neighborhood. * everything working out perfectly with an event which i was totally anxious about. * clearing out some stuff from our home {de-cluttering feels so good}. * discovering this very cool and very helpful writing tool . * that i found a job whic...

being extremely poor means there's NO chance i'll be going shopping for new clothes anytime soon.  at first i was miserable about this, but then i told myself, "self, didn't you just write a post about being creative with the clothes you already own as a way to be sustainable? i think it's time you read what you write." so i took to my closet and began playing dress up.  turns out, i discovered all sorts of fun new looks with the clothes i already own, plus a couple additions from the mister's side of the closet {he realized a part of living together meant me acquiring some of his things right?}.  i also pulled out a few dresses that i never ever wear and went to town with my seam ripper.  muah-ha-ha!   the result?... new combo of clothes i already own : button-down striped shirt with floral skirt. borrowing from the mister : dannon's shirt with my skirt. totally deconstructed : took the top off this ugly dress {hello, that peach/tan color on my skin?...

one of the coolest aspects of living in our neighborhood of echo park {other than the awesome coffee shops and being surrounded by musicians, actors & other creative types} is our proximity to the arts district in downtown LA.  this weekend we took advantage of our next door neighborhood and visited dozens of open art studios at the brewery. the brewery is the world's largest art complex, packed full of amazing live/work studios.  twice a year they have an art walk where artists open their homes for the public to come view the art being created there. here were some of the scenes from sunday: { "machine" - a musical instrument by church of art }  { metal key tree by sandman creations }  { art car ready for burning man! } { an outfit for arting - shirt: sf thrift store, skirt: ruche , shoes: bc footwear, pocketwatch necklace: lunashineshine , t-shirt bracelet: made my me } my most favorite studio, by far, was psycho girlfriend 's. these girls were all wearing han...

the past few days have been just gorgeous here in sunny southern california!  after last week, which was a really rough week for my ocd, and then with the tragedy in japan, i decided i needed to make the most of life so i filled my time with wonderful things: on saturday i had a really lovely, relaxing day of writing and reading.  then that night, we headed out to a super fun birthday party.  we had the most delicious spread of cheese with a blind wine taste testing.  i am horrible at identifying flavors in wine, so i took the ole michael scott approach .   on sunday the mister and i headed down to sunset junction to roam around the furniture and home stores.  there are so many cute shops down there, plus amazing coffee and gelato .  yum!  later that night, the mister decided to make healthy, but incredibly delicious, muffins {wheat, apples, oats, honey, cinnamon,... i think that's the gist of it}.   and i did the whole i'm-hanging-out-with-...

hello everyone! while i'm running errands in san francisco, i thought i would leave you with a little outfit post.  i'm not sure if you are aware of this, but ukulele's are much more fun to play when you get all dressed up.  i may or may not still play in my front yard, pretending i'm performing in front of a cafe full of people, just like i did when i was a little girl. my current favorite thing to do is play covers of non-ukulele style songs on the ukulele.  anything goes really, so long as  it catches my fancy and uses the chords i know.  but i still go back to the first song i learned on the uke, she & him's "gonna get along without you now."  it's so much fun to play! dress: forever 21, circa 2005 undershirt & leggings: thermal underwear from REI shoes: chelsea crew earrings: forever 21 belt: my best friend's costume closet, circa high school 1998 bow: san franciscan artisan fair   i hope everyone is having a fabulous week.  happy thu...

what a week!  it started off as one of those long, busy, overwhelming weeks, but ended with a bang!  we got all dolled up, hung out with good friends, and set up some big plans for february.  life can be exhausting, but it has a way of cooking up some interesting surprises to compensate. here are a few of the things i'm grateful for this week: * making progress in my ukulele playing {hard work finally paying off}. * photoshoots with tatiana  {no more self-timer... yay!}. * choosing to spend my time in really wonderful ways. * all the fun projects on the horizon {we got several calls this week asking us to be involved in some upcoming creative projects. more on that soon!}. *  this beautiful and inspiring post . * getting to talk to several favorite friends who live far away. * broccoli with trader joe's artichoke & parmesan dip {yum!}. * receiving the awesome water bottle i won from tay's giveaway {hooray!}. * all the random, unexpected doors that the unive...

on sunday, we did something we never do.  we woke up, grabbed breakfast at a favorite cafe, and cozied up with a movie!  it was the perfect way to spend a rainy sunday morning.  so far, this week has been pretty busy... and it's only tuesday!   such is life i suppose.  but all this busyness, plus the fresh memory of our lazy sunday,  has definitely got me craving more cozy down time.   { warm woolly sweater: h&m, baby doll dress: gap, belt: f21, jeans: urban outfitters, boots: target, earrings: an old etsy shop which, sadly, has closed. } some of the things i love to do when i'm super busy, stressed, or overwhelmed are: put on my favorite sweater play sweet sweet music read a totally frivolous magazine draw with pastels sip tea do yoga watch an indie film look at pretty pictures on  j'adore twirl in a swooshy dress read my favorite blogs play with chloe cat watch a fire in the fire pit window shop on  ruche  and  modcloth and ju...

this weekend was pretty quiet around these parts.  after such a rough ending to our week, we needed some down time.  the one outing we did have was saturday night when we hung out with our friends before they left.  these particular lucky friends are spending the next several weeks touring europe with the LA Philharmonic.  they live such a hard life don't they?  we had amazing wine & cheese, played with their kitties, and laughed a lot.  it was exactly what we needed. { very affordable, lazy saturday outfit ~ ruffle shirt: h&m, shirt tunic: target, belt: forever 21, jeans: urban outfitters, shoes: patagonia, little stone earrings: made by my friend echo! } we did have a bit of excitement though when the mister finally fixed the computer! there was a very dramatic "emergency room" type revival.  i may have said "it's been three days, i'm calling it..." and he may have shouted "not on my watch! come back you bastard!" and after a very lon...

there have been a ton of awards going around blogland right now, have you noticed?  i was the recipient of a couple of them.  so without further ado... first, the lovely ana, from the world through my eyes , gave me the stylish blogger award, where i am to divulge 7 facts about me. sooo... 1. i have  synesthesia .  2. i don't own a television. 3. i LOVE to watch live breakdancing.  4. i kept my last name when i got domestically partnered. 5. i am a classically trained soprano.  although i haven't sung in several years - i miss it! 6.  i am terrified of heights. 7.  i'm allergic to corn and all corn-related products {and i'm pretty sure america is trying to kill me because there's corn in EVERYTHING!}. {seeing sunshine!  dress: ruche, pocket watch necklace: lunashineshine, little stone earrings: made by my friend echo!} also, the soon-to-be, brand new momma connie, from all about connie , tagged me with 10 questions: 1. why did you creat...

this weekend was a pretty full one with all sorts of free artsy fun that sort of just happened.  don't you love when life works out that way?  it's like hiring Fate as your personal secretary.   friday night a few of us headed out to a gallery opening at gallery 1988 to see " is this thing on? ," an artistic tribute to the best comedians of our time.  there were SO many great pieces! the exhibit will be there until saturday, january 29, if you live in the area.  if not, you can check out the prints and original artwork on their website.  there were so many beautiful, hilarious, talented pieces, but my absolute favorite was probably this one {although it was a close running with these  flight of the conchord plushies }: conando suave: { artwork by ken garduno } on saturday night, we had a friend who was in a poetry reading downtown at art share LA .  there were so many great poets, much better than the small-time coffee shop poetry readings i've...

i feel like i have been so productive this week with my do to lists and with my personal growth.  i still have so many unanswered questions and all sorts of life paths before me from which i could choose, but i'm taking it all in stride. 2011 is definitely off to a great start! { the neighbor kitty paying me a visit while i work in the yard. } lately, i have been listening to a lot of joyful, fun, & inspiring music.  this is the music that has been energizing me to get stuff done, explore new ideas in life, and remain hopeful for good things that i know are right around the corner.  so i thought it was fitting to share these songs in my first playlist of the new year.  some of it is french canadian, some swedish, some british, and some good ole american.  some of it i have posted about a long long time ago, but thought it was perfect for life at present. i hope you enjoy! { grooveshark can sometimes be a little finicky.  if it stops playing, just ...

this weekend we ended the old year and started the new just the way we like it ~ good food and great friends!   okay, true confession time, our new year's eve actually started out in true form for us, being that we changed our plans only about a million times through the day before we eventually joined our efforts with some of our new favorite friends and formed a pretty fun party, if i do say so!   two of our friends drove in from the inland empire {brave girls!} and we all headed over to our other friends' high-rise apartment near the grove.  these two just got engaged a few days ago, so we had a lot to celebrate for the new year {congrats you crazy kids!}.  at midnight we ran up on the roof and saw fireworks in every direction over the various neighborhoods of the greater los angeles area.  it was magical! friends! my cute new dress {thanks to a fabulous christmas gift from the in-laws!}: { dress: ruche, cardigan: h&m, tights: piedmont boutique, shoes: ch...

this weekend was filled {FILLED!} with parties, people, & art ~ just how i like it! friday night was a blast. we headed over to a holiday party at our friends' house and met dozens of interesting people in the biz . our friends, elia & maranatha, are talented filmmakers . maranatha even won an emmy for her  documentary about pediatric heart surgeries in egypt. it was so much fun getting to hang out with them and meeting their interesting friends. the renegade craft fair was at a small park close to my home, nestled in a little valley between chinatown, elysian park, and the art warehouse district. there was also a lovely view of downtown. on saturday i took the mr. to show him some of the things on my christmas wish list {hooray for handmade!}. then sunday i went and met up with the lovely brandi from not your average ordinary  & pizzelles , and i had the pleasure of meeting lillian from unstitched {her blog is gorgeous, by the way}. it was so great to ...

it has been a fantastic week and i have so much to be thankful for! **** * getting most of the christmas gifts for my loved ones made, planned, & purchased {no day before gift planning for me this year - woohoo!}. * rocking the parallel parking all by myself {and becoming more comfortable driving again in general}. * the super cold weather, which was the perfect opportunity to pull out my favorite cozy coat and hat! * our christmas tree. it makes our house smell so dreamy! plus the twinkly lights at night make our home feel magical. * chai lattes, which i may or may not have kept hidden from the mister. i worked hard to stop my addiction, but it just feels so right! * my husband making me laugh first thing in the morning by doing an impression of beaker singing muse . [long dreamy sigh...] that guy is awesome! * the super warm days that came at the end of this week! now i can wear my favorite dress, found at my favorite thrift shop on haight street {dear san francisco, i miss you...

so as you know, this past weekend was a long holiday weekend for all of us in the states. the mr. and i were lucky enough to get 2 whole thanksgiving dinners with family AND we got to have a fancy date ushering in the christmas season. unfortunately i didn't take time from our ravenous dinner anticipation to capture many photos. i only have a few from thanksgiving dinner #2 which i snapped while we waited for the food to cook. in all seriousness, we actually did have a great time with our families, despite our photographic evidence to the contrary. { the words were finally uttered, "ok, don't look like you have low blood sugar!" } **** saturday night we had ourselves a little decorating date. we picked up a wee tree, made ornaments from paper and felt, ate curry, drank cider, and listened to the best christmas radio station ever { big r radio ~ christmas classics station under the "eclectic" tab in itunes radio}. it was a blast! { i made the stockings f...

i have been LOVING the super cold, cloudy weather in los angeles lately. it finally feels like fall and the holiday season! which means i get to wear super warm, cozy clothes and sip gingerbread lattes everyday. mmm! { addiction in full swing } i've also been making some great new discoveries, both in real life and in blogland. here are a few of them: if you live in los angeles and just happened to wonder where to get the best chai latte in the world, then let me tell you, it's at the alcove cafe & bakery ! along with the best desserts, a cute outside patio, and a plethora of cool characters. *** there have been tons of awesome giveaways lately all over blogland! perfect for a little pre-christmas gift perhaps? here are a few of the fantastic giveaways i've found: + eshakti clothing giveaway on not your average ordinary {act fast, it ends tomorrow, nov. 25!}. + brilliance found ring giveaway on after 'i do' {ends friday, nov. 26}. + happy serendipity mak...