::interiors::

This space is so clean and simple. I'm not sure where I can find those light bulbs, but I will hunt for them. We've been really good about incorporating plants into the house because Jay is really into bonsai. Since we moved into our house, I've been looking at interior photos with a whole new perspective. Luckily, Jay and I didn't have lots of big furniture pieces to move, but now we're slowly trying to acquire key pieces that we love. Our space is really open, so it's neat to see how we can make the layout work. We ordered a beautiful sofa and next on the list is a dining table.

It's only Monday, but I can't wait until Friday. I have a great friend coming to visit this weekend (hurry up, N!), and I'm sure we'll end up doing some house shopping. She's done amazing work on her new home so I'll be picking her brain.

::maui // the video::

We jumped off waterfalls, swam with sea turtles, explored black sand beaches and hiked a volcano. Take me back! It's still sorta unbelievable that we made the trip and frolicked around such a beautiful place, and really, we saw most of the island! What makes Jay and I a great pair is that he's the planner and I'm the spontaneous one. He created an itinerary for 5 of our days, we had the wedding and those festivities, and the rest he let me meander and stumble into different events and locations.

I give all the video credit to Jay. He's found a new hobby in video editing and he uses his GoPros to document lots of our outdoor activities: camping, hiking, snorkeling, skydiving, snowboarding...the list goes on. I think he did a wonderful job. When people ask why he films this stuff he says, "I want my kids to see how much fun Mom and Dad had." 

::richmond (and outskirts) adventure::

Last weekend, we visited another couple in Richmond to see their new place and go camping. They live on the second floor of a building from the 1800's. Their little neighborhood, just outside of the city, has tons of character. We walked over to a park across the street that overlooked the Lucky Strike cigarette factory. 

It's such a pretty drive from Richmond to Staunton. There's old rustic farmhouses, quaint towns on winding roads and scenic mountain views. We hiked to a watering hole and jumped off fallen trees into cool, crisp water. Our campsite was right next to the river, so when dusk came we roasted marshmallows over the fire pit.

Our last stop was a beautiful winery called Veritas. I'd get married here...

::exploration::

We're off...again. Heading to Richmond to meet up with another couple for a weekend of music, exploring and camping near Shenandoah. They say it's supposed to hit 100 degrees, so blankets won't be necessary. I recently found the yard, my new favorite tumblr (where all these images were collected). You'll get lost planning your next adventure.

Go explore this weekend.

::feeling...::

Some wonderful friends threw us a little engagement party Sunday night at a new winery in Norfolk. We had a private table in the back, sipped on their Mermaid wines and celebrated love. They've sure made the transition to Virginia a lot easier and we're lucky to have them in our lives.

::kentucky boat life::

The month of June has been a lot of running around with a handful of events on the calendar, and making an appearance in a few different cities and states. We've been looking forward to this month for a while, but now it all seems to go by so fast.

Two weekends ago we settled on a houseboat in Kentucky. A college friend rallied a fine group and it made for his long birthday celebration on Lake Cumberland just outside his hometown of Louisville. I wouldn't say we were roughin' it with beds, refrigerator and air conditioning, but it was perfection waking up to chirping birds, sparkling blue-green water and not another boat as far as the eye could see.



Days were filled with wakeboarding, wake surfing, cliff jumping and sun bathing. After dinners off the grill, the guys would venture down the bank to shoot off fireworks. It was nice to have no obligations and no reason to bother looking at a clock.

::starting early::

We're taking off a little early this week. Our good friend from college is celebrating his birthday with a weekend on the water with fireworks, booze and the warm Kentucky sunshine. Not too shabby if you ask me. I've never been to KY, but I'm sure it'll be just perfect. We haven't seen this group in a while and it's always nice to reconnect and share stories. Hopefully I return well relaxed and with sun-kissed skin.

Have a beautiful weekend! See ya back here Tuesday. -christina


source

::a peek inside // at ms. pink string's home::

While in Florida for Thanksgiving, J and I made a pit stop to visit some friends. Nicole, recently purchased a new home with her soon-to-be husband. On her blog, pink strings & green beans, she documents her house projects, cooking tips + adventures in triathlons.

They found this amazing, old-Florida home that needed some lots work. She and her fiancé have completely transformed the place (they've done most of the work themselves!)-- and I was so excited to see the progress. It's beautiful, Nicole...maybe more vintage decor ;)

::weekend finds // leather::

There was an awesome art festival this weekend in Ghent, a super cool area in Norfolk. I'm pretty certain I'd be content with going to art shows every weekend seeing quirky artists and their unique work. I found this incredible shoulder bag from a local leather worker and fell in love.

The woven detail is my favorite part and you can never go wrong with leather. Kelsie was there too with items from With Lavender and Lace-- which is soon to be a brick + mortar shop in Ghent. She had a vintage dress with gold studs that I took home, prefect for layering.

::tipping the scale // DIY::

A while back I picked up this vintage wooden scale. I figured it'd go in the shop, but I realllly liked it. I imagined it holding jewelry on a vanity or fruit + veggies in a kitchen-- tipping the scale each time something was added or removed. Anyway, I kept it, painted it a mustard yellow (not sure why everything's getting coated in yellow?) and roughed it up with sandpaper. Right now it holds handfuls of acorns I found on a recent hiking adventure (see below). These acorns are impressively large, or maybe they just run smaller in Florida.

Preface: J's new hobby is shooting and editing little videos of our adventures. We visited his brother about 3 hours away. That's Katie in the still frame below. I did some vintage hunting while the others jumped off some high platform with a blow up shark, we watched a college soccer game, hung out with his brother's pet pig and hiked in Shenandoah National Park (were I collected acorns). At the end, that's me surprised-- I spotted a deer about 6 feet from me eating. He looked up at me and kept eating, then scattered once he knew he was being filmed...camera shy.

 

::wine night::

Over the weekend was a much needed wine night with friends + some jewelry making. It was so awesome to chat, create and relax. I picked 6th Sense Syrah (mostly because of the 6 but it was amazing). Nikki has an Fuji Film Instax and I'm in love.