shoot, it's FEBRUARY?! edward sharpe and the magnetic zeros is keeping me sane.

hooooooly cow, it's FEBRUARY!? wha??

that being said, i do not have a mood board for you to celebrate the first of the month (or the second of the month or the third of the month). it has been an absolutely insane couple of weeks between visitors and starting a new job and traveling and yadda yadda yadda...so anyway, so sorry for not posting the ole' mood board on schedule but i'll try to get to it as soon as i can.

what i can share with you instead is a link to check out one of my new favorite bands, edward sparpe and the mangetic zeros. i was turned on to them by my friend martha, a huuuuuuge music lover and someone who i turn to regularly for tips on the latest and greatest. she writes a really great blog about her favorite music and newest finds and you should definitely check it out for a little musinspiration.

meanwhile i'll be hoping edward sharpe and the magnetic zeros make their way through austin again soon so i can check them out in person. i've been listening to the album "up from below" over and over again and it gets better every time. enjoy!

I'm an iphone user!

Ok so my new job also came with a new iPhone. How fun, right? I'm still learning the keyboard and apps but so fAr so good. I'm even writing this post is from my hotel room in Houston (hence no photo, too advAnced. Oh and I'm not fixing typos, sorry! So I wanna know from you iPhone users...whAt's the best (read: cutest) protective cover to get??

grey nail polish for grey skies

the weather in austin has suddenly turned brisk again, with rain on and off to add to the "ick" factor. so my new go-to nail polish is this new grey shade, called particulière, from chanel's spring 2010 line. i picked it up at neiman's for $23 about three weeks ago.



can't find it or don't want to spend the bucks on it? opi's you don't know jacques from the france collection is a good substitute and can usually be found for about $8.

ps. i'll be in houston for work tomorrow so there probably won't be a post...will definitely be back on wednesday!

my sequin wedges are packed

nick and i are off to san diego for the weekend! one of my oldest friends from high school, kyle, is celebrating his marriage (he kinda sorta eloped with the coolest girl ever a few months ago) and i'm so excited to be able to join in on the fun. i'm also looking forward to spending some QT with my BFF katie and her hubs, who live in my old home of san francisco.

don't ask me what i'm wearing to the party...all i know is my outfit will involve these sequin leopard wedges from forever21 for $25.80. don't worry, the leopard is WAY more understated in person. another victim of bad website photography.

saundra's to die for blueberry muffins

saundra is my mother-in-law and her blueberry muffins are to die for. really, that's what the recipe is called: "saundra's to die for blueberry muffins." they are SO.GOOD. here's the how-to:

muffin ingredients:

• 1.5 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1 egg
• 1 cup fresh blueberries

crumb topping ingredients:

• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup butter, cubed
• 1.5 tsp ground cinnamon
  

muffin directions:

• preheat oven to 400 degrees.
  
• grease muffin cups or line with muffin liners.
• combine 1.5 cups flour, 3/4 cup sugar, 1/2 tsp salt and 2 tsp baking powder.
  
• place 1/3 cup vegetable oil in a 1 cup measuring cup; add the egg and enough milk to fill the cup. mix with the flour mixture.
• fold in 1 cup blueberries.

crumb topping directions:

• mix together 1/2 cup sugar, 1/3 cup flour, 1/4 cup butter and 1.5 tsp cinnamon using a fork or pastry cutter.
  

• fill muffin cups with muffin batter all the way to the top and sprinkle with crumb topping mixture.

• bake for 15-20 minutes or until lightly browned. makes 8 large muffins or 12 small.
  

yellow accent pillows in the living room

just picked up these terrazzo silk pillows in yellow from west elm for the living room couch. for some reason they don't have the yellow version on the website but there are tons in store. loving their new "decorate with yellow" stuff. the silk pillow covers are $34 each and $14 for the down inserts. tip: i had a 10% off welcome to the neighborhood coupon that i received after changing our address with the USPS.

ps. can we talk about the long hanging capiz pendant lamp in last photo above? i MUST have one of these i an high-ceilinged foyer one day. MUST. $259. here are more images from the west elm website. *sigh*

black and white queen of spades skirt

this queen of spades skirt from lulus fits in perfectly for my love of all things black and white (see my bathroom here). $52 sounds a bit pricey for lulus but it's a pretty classic skirt that i can see myself wearing for ages. as mentioned before, lulus sells out quickly so if you want one you should scoop it up now.