Better together.

You and your Valentine look good together. Real good. And so do heart shaped, two toned, pink cupcakes! I love making multi colored cakes and cupcakes. Mostly because there is no real science to it, as long as you're putting different colored batters together in a baking vessel, you're going to get awesomeness. For vibrant colors I use Wilton tasteless color gels (I got mine in a pack of 12 at Michaels), you only need a small sliver of gel to get great color. These cupcakes were topped with dark chocolate frosting and were D-licious! For something extra special put a cute little plate of treats together and serve to your sweetie. I'm off to finish homework. Hope idea number 2 is helping you get inspired to do something special for your Valentine!

Take me out.

Being busy has it's ups and downs but no matter what you have to remember to make time for yourself. Most Saturdays Nick and I like to spend some time together adventuring around town, going to new places. Since we live in a completely new part of town this has been pretty easy for us lately. Today though, we went back to our old NE stomping grounds and visited some of our old favorites (shout out to Screaming Sky Gallery, we miss them so much! They were the real reason we made the trip). We were going to go to Tasty N Sons but they were SUPER packed so we went next door to Cha Cha Cha. Any sort of mexican food is good by us, plus we probably ended up saving a little money. We're both really big on eating at home, but I think it's important to get out and have someone else do the dishes every so often. It's nice! 

I also wanted share my love for one of my favorite pairs of boots. The Native Jimmy's. They're light, fun, and extremely functional for these rainy Pacific Northwest winters. My favorite thing is that they keep you warm without adding the bulk of other similar styles of winter boots. Makes them more realistic for everyday wear. If you're interested I suggest buying them here (seriously Zappos is the greatest site ever, I am a huge fan). 

I have some work that I need to get done but I'll be back here tomorrow with a super cute, super delicious Valentine's Day activity! Are you as excited as I am? Of course you are! 

Something Old. Something New.

That's some gnarly thriftage, brah!

I ended up having some time to kill before class the other night, which in Portland is pretty awesome because it's rather small and there are so many fantastic things in walking distance. I walked around for about an hour doing some leisurely thrifting and found some pretty sweet stuff. I use to work at Nordstrom and developed a pretty ridiculous shopping habit (having a discount changes things guys) but now that I have bills to pay, and all that good stuff, shopping trips are something sacred. I very rarely buy anything full price anymore, first of all because I can't afford to, and secondly finding things on sale or in thrift stores seems like more of an accomplishment to me now. I know it's silly, leave me alone. Anyway I got all this for $36! Which officially made me broke but it was worth it. 100%. I've secretly wanted a Pendleton bag for a couple years now but kept the want deeply buried because I could never justify how ridiculously expensive it is. This little guy was gently used, the perfect size, and only $17 (which is officially $41 off).


Also, as promised, here is one of a few craft ideas I'm posting to get everyone excited for Valentines Day! Handmade gifts always seem a little more special to me. Plus they're fun and inexpensive which are both major bonuses.

A) First, collect your supplies. For this I used a circle paper cutter, white card stock, fresh no. 2 pencils, and a variety of different colored ink pads.
B) Next cut out your cards. I think hand cut hearts would be a really cute alternative!
C) Do some stamp testing to see what you like. Using the eraser end of the pencil, get some ink. I would dip (I don't know what other word to use for that) my eraser after every two or three stamps
D) Come up with your own unique designs!

We're pretty crafty kids so I just picked a couple things that we already had. To save some cash I suggest modifying to what you already have too (you don't need to go out and buy a paper cutter). Ink pads can get kind of spendy if you buy a bunch at once, but they've turned out to be a pretty good investment. They're also sold with a couple colors in one pad like this, which is what I would recommend if you have the urge to buy ink pads for this specifically. You could also just use markers to get color on the bottom of the erasers, or even paint. They really do turn out great and are really quick to make! Good luck!

Need. Coffee.

Hey there, hi there, ho there neighbors. Lots of exciting things are happening which means not a lot of sleep with some stress sprinkled on top for me. BUT I can't wait to share with you all (which I realize isn't a lot of you but thank you for the support and time spent reading, it means a lot!) and I should have some time tonight to do that! Also I started some fun craft tutorials for cheap and fun valentines. SO AWESOME. So stay tuned and in the meantime here's a little special something I think you will like.

Dexter translation, "I'm too sexy for this scarf...but I'll wear it anyway."

Purple Haze

That's the new color of my hair. Manic panic's purple haze. My hair was really dark brown, almost black so it's going to take one more round of dye before it's all done but nevertheless, I'm in love! I've had some friends ask me what brought on the change, I've never dyed (or even talked about dying) my hair a crazy color, but I just had this epiphany the other night that this is really the only time in my life that I'm going to be able to dye my hair purple and get away with it. After seeing what my hair would look like purple and daydreaming about it for the next couple of days I decided it's always going to be something I wish I would have done if I didn't do it. So there you have it. $20 later I'm a...purplette?  A purplehead? Who knows.

Also it's my mom's birthday tomorrow! She's a pretty incredible woman. There's this birthday card at my work that has an owl on the front and above it, it says "wiser". I was looking at it the other day and couldn't help but think there's no way she could get any wiser. She's the smartest person I know and as much as I hated to admit it when I was growing up, I hope to be half as amazing as she is someday. HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM! I love you!

BAWITDABA

Such a good weekend. It was filled with our friends Tessa and Russell, Russell's 23rd birthday, rainbow cake, coming really close to singing karaoke but chickening out, and pizza bigger than your face. Shout out to the couple who gave Kid Rock a run for his money. Go ahead and quit your day job you two, fame is knocking on your door. See ya'll next week!

Home Alone.

Ahhh yes the house to myself. Furry friends are sleeping, rain is pitter pattering, I'm wrapped in a nice cozy blanket. Oh and I'm super bored. Solitude is nice after a long day but come on, it's the weekend, give me a little excitement! Lucky for me I am easily entertained. I settled in to read a blog or two and I stumbled upon The Paper Mama's post of testing out hair colors (original credit though goes to Moorea Seal , another awesome blog). I figured it had the potential for a lot of excitement and I was right. I love every color. AND I am so not afraid of grey hairs anymore. Fancy that.

Anyway while I've been sitting here browsing the web I also found the first addition to our bedroom decor...

Bold lines, soft colors (and purple). Perfect! We have a queen sized bed which normally would have been $79 but we got it for $29! That's 50 dollars off!

Happy weekend!

Ch-ch-ch-changes

That little cutie on the chair is my mom's dog, Gracie, she's staying with us while my mom is in Maui.

Talk about college chic. It's beautiful isn't it? This is our bedroom folks and we're ready for a change. You'd think that as an interior design student my bedroom would be nothing short of fabulous but let me tell you right now, it's not all pillows and paint swatches. Being busy designing my butt off in school leaves little time to design and decorate at home and I'm slowly trying to change that. The first runner up for a makeover in our pad is the bedroom because it reflects who we are the least. And I would really like to stop being too embarrassed to show it off when we give people the grand tour. All 7 steps of it. Today I sat down and really tried to brainstorm what we could do in there. With a lot of online browsing and Nick's must-have's list, which called for our favorite colors (green and purple), better lighting, and lots of art on the wall, I put together some inspiration images..

What I really want to do is harmonize masculinity and femininity. For masculinity I want to add industrial elements, geometric patterns, and bold lines. For femininity I want to add soft pops of color, vintage pieces, and some playfulness with art and organic elements. I'm so excited for the change, there's only one problem. Dolla dolla bills y'all. Yep, we're poor college students, and as easy as it would be to get my hands on the perfect stuff for our bedroom there's no chance it would all be in my budget. SO, I decided I'm not going to do it. Ha, totally kidding. No, what Nick and I decided together is to vow that everything has to be thrifted, or on sale (and not just that 15% off sissy stuff, we're talking good deals here people), and we have to do as much DIY as possible to cut cost down. Good plan right? It's going to take some time but we're ready to take on the challenge. Wish us luck you guys! And feel free to give me any good DIY tips.

Bueller...

look at that cute thing I'm doing with my face right there. gold.

Yep I had to play hooky today from my night class. Sorry mom. Nick and I both have had a bit of mild insomnia lately and I think it's just our bodies trying to get back on schedule after Christmas break. I'm sure staying up late blogging and playing modern warfare 3 hasn't helped. Either way we didn't wake up until almost 4 pm! I couldn't believe it. I don't particularly like missing class but this way I haven't had to part with my PJ's at all today and I got to have a lazy evening of tea and homework. It's been nice. I also had the luxury of tackling cooking an artichoke for the first time. It turned out really good and now I have a new go-to for a healthy snack (maybe some other time sea salt and vinegar chips...). I've always been really attracted to artichokes, they're such a good looking vegetable...  

..but just like quinoa, I had no idea how to go about cooking this little guy. Luckily simply recipes was there to save the day. She even gives instruction on how to properly eat it, and for that I was very thankful because I probably would have struggled otherwise.

It's snowing again so I need to go outside and play in it because,"life moves pretty fast, if you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it."-Ferris Bueller

Roadies.

I got my first pair of Jeffery Campbells today which is pretty exciting for many reasons. First and foremost they make me feel a little like Penny Lane from Almost Famous which is awesome. So awesome. Also I got them on super sale from Urban Outfitters because they only had one size left...my size. It's fate I tell you. And fate feels so much better when it's less than a third of the price.

My friend Taylor finally made it to Portland, four days later. It's funny because she really has perfect timing, it was a perfect day for her to be here. I'm not the best at staying in touch with people, but what's great is that I have a handful of girlfriends I can immediately pick up with right where we left off and it never really feels like we're too far away from each other. If only we had a pair of magic pants that we passed around...hmmm. Anyway this girl is pretty great and I'm excited about where she's headed in life. I can't wait until we live in the same city again.

Lazy Sunday.

Ain't he cute?

Remember when I said we are a cuddling on the couch kind of bunch? Well I wasn't pulling your leg, that is really the extent of what we've done today. We did however take a break from the mediocre movies on TV to go out in the SNOW! It only lasted about 5 minutes but we loved every second of it! Hope you all got to enjoy the snow and are having a great three day weekend!

These boots.

The cutest tattoo shop ever. I love my job.

I have these boots that somehow have never made it out of my closet, but I tried them on yesterday and thought to myself, hey, I think you're actually pulling these off right now. Then Nick comes around the corner and says, "looking good babe, those boots look good with your outfit". Sold. 

Anyway, about yesterday. At our shop we do $13 flash tattoo days every Friday the 13th and they're pretty crazy, it's like a tattoo marathon. By the time it was over we were all a little loopy and in need of so much pizza. It seemed like everything that could go wrong did and yet somehow we made it out alive, laughing about it all. It was a good day. 

The unicorn was very popular.

A Day of Firsts.

So I admit, at times I can be pretty stubborn. Most things that end up being a craze I try to stay far away from. I am quite the rebel. The thing is though, with just about every popular thing I boycott, I end up giving in and falling in love with it. One day I will understand when everyone praises something, there is probably a reason for it. For now I will learn the hard way and have awesome late discovery days like today. The holidays are officially over and my hibernation weight needs to go so I've started working out and eating healthier. With the change of pace I decided to officially give into two things; Lululemon and quinoa. My lovely mother got me a Lululemon gift certificate for my 21st birthday and almost 8 months later I finally used it! I got the No Limit Tank and the Back on Track Crop and they are so AMAZING. Now I get it. Lululemon lovers of the world, I commend you. Moving right along...

Quinoa Salad

Quinoa, quinoa, quinoa. I still will never understand how certain health foods become popular. My nutrition teacher last quarter said, "Quinoa is what's in, it's so hot right now", and that was enough for me to think it was silly. But after reading food and fitness blogs the last week or so and hearing how much everyone loved it I decided to give it a go. Of course it's delicious. Look who's the silly one now. I had trouble finding a recipe that I liked online, they all seemed so different too which was confusing for a newbie. So incase you're like me and are finally giving in but are totally lost, I'm posting my recipe. (Note my recipe makes a large batch, from what I hear quinoa keeps well for about a week so I wanted to have a bunch made for quick and easy meals. If the quantity scares you just half it!)


Ingredients:

• 2 cups quinoa
• 3 cups cold water
• 1/2 tsp salt
• Small can of sweet corn
• 1/4 cup of cilantro, chopped
• 1 green pepper
• 1 bundle of green onions, chopped (makes about 1 cup)
• 1 tbsp of ground flax seed
• 1 avocado

Dressing:

• Freshly squeezed lemon juice (1 whole large lemon)
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp minced garlic

First soak the quinoa for about 5 minutes in cold water, strain in a large mesh strainer, and rinse a couple more times in strainer. Add quinoa, water, and salt into a large pot, cover, and bring to a boil. Once boiling keep covered, reduce heat to low and cook for 15 minutes. Once quinoa is done cooking remove from heat. While quinoa is cooling mix together all ingredients of dressing ( I put them all into a jar and shook it up). In a large bowl gently combine cooked quinoa, dressing and remaining ingredients. When serving add a couple fresh slices of avocado for extra deliciousness!

Anyway my friend Taylor is on her way over right now so I better quit blogging and start vacuuming (with all these furry friends of ours I vacuum almost everyday, party on). Which reminds me, as promised, here is a picture of our handsome cat Dexter..

Dexter

..he is so stinkin' cute. 

--Candace

Hello.

My name is Candace. 

I'm 21 years old. 

I'm a student at the Art Institute of Portland, majoring in Interior Design. 

I'm an after school teacher, teaching art and creative writing classes to 

a bunch of awesome teenagers.

I also work at a tattoo shop, and yes, it makes me feel super bad ass (and no, I do not tattoo people).

I have a partner in crime, his name is Nicholas, and I'm in love with him. 

We are proud parents to a silly dog named Jackon and a crabby, 

yet loving cat named Dexter.

The four of us live in a cozy little apartment in SE Portland OR, where we all thoroughly 

enjoy hanging out and cuddling on the couch together as a family. 

There is so much more to learn about us but what it all boils down to is that we are some pretty lucky kids and I felt like it was about time to start documenting this time in our lives.

Yep, that's me. I love mexican food.

Nick loves mexican food too. He also insists that we wear matching shirts...kidding.

Here is the silliest picture I could find of Jackson. He's a black lab border collie mix. 

Just wait until you see his curly tail.

Dexter is camera shy, but I'll sneak a picture soon. 

Off to make bison burgers for dinner! Mmmm

-Candace