Alive


I'm here. I am!

It's been quite the epic year. I've gotten married in May, embarked on the most magical and dream-like honeymoon to Switzerland & Italy into June, and have since been on a whirlwind of activity.

A HUGE announcement will be made this Thursday evening!

Have a feeling I'll be finding myself back here more regularly - lots to update!

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It's the Most Wonderul Time of the Year

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And we're not talking about Christmas. We're talking about the REALLY most wonderful time of the year. At least in the book of Haddad. It's the yellow-electric-hues, the neon orange hues, the blood red hues. The crisp wispy air. The perfect chill that makes snuggling under a blanket just THAT much more enjoyable. The pumpkins. The corn. The crispy leaves. The costumes. The CREATIONS! It's my birthday month. It's mysterious, full of fright, full of family memories, and full of annual apple picking. Jack-o-lanterns. Black cats. Witches. Candy. Hay-rides. Haunted houses. Seriously, can someone name me a month and corresponding-happenings that could ever possibly beat this? Admittedly, I've fallen off of the costume-band-wagon in recent years, however the discovery of the following astounding design by a MAC make-up artist has truly inspired me. I've never seen anything like it. Speechless. Additionally, I've done some serious research on a subject vitally i...
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DIY Graphic Headboard

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When we moved out of our apartment and into our house, I had a grand vision. Everything would be home-made, re-purposed, re-made, hand-crafted, and all considered 1-of-a-kind via my thrift-loving ways and DIY addiction. Nothing more I hate than a home that looks like a cookie-cutter-show-room. Exhibit #1 - One of my first orders of business was to create a dreamy master bedroom. That evokes the feeling of floating on a cloud and serenely calms your bones the minute you walk in. When I think of a dreamy state I think of things becoming blurry......that lapse of time in between falling asleep and fully waking up where your eyes aren't focused. This train of thought led me to thinking about FADED LIGHTS.....and their soft glow. How I would love to always be surrounded by that. I dragged out our strings of Christmas lights - in the dead of spring - and after the sun set, I secluded myself into the darkest corner and snapped a string of shots. After selecting my favorite shot, I just br...
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Life Is Not a Journey, It's an Adventure

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Life is a funny bastard. It's just donned on me in this past year. I was always the girl who had a mapped out trajectory for my life. 5 years, 10 years, 15 years. I was researching college in junior high, I was looking up average salaries for my career in high school, by the time I finished six internships and Hofstra University graduation rolled around, I had landed my "dream job". Everything went perfectly according to plan. It's the age old story - that hard workin' determined gal gets everything she's wanted for years, and whoops! Ends up loathing every aspect of it. The reality FAR from matches the fantasy in your head. What to do with life now? One year later I look at where I am sitting and the adventure I've been on, how drastically a human life can change in 12 months. ONE YEAR AGO: I was working as an entry-level (aka slave) Publicist at MS&L Worldwide. One of the top PR firms in....the world. I skipped along to work in Times Square, 52nd ...
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Happy Halloween-EVE!

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I flippin' love Halloween. {ode of the kitchen towels - and NOTE: my fool proof BAMBOO! I don't lie!} I will be closing this laptop and in about 2 seconds I'll be sinking into that couch right there....looking greatly foward to relaxing in front of our newly installed eco-friendly and energy efficient pellet stove. Best invesment. Ever. I just have to say if you're looking into alternative heating - pellets are marvelous. So affordable, renewable, and you still get that flame that gives you the cozy homey "gather 'round and snuggle in" feeling. Just in love. We'll see what winter brings....but theoretically only $500 worth of pellets is all it will take to keep our little dream home heated for the season! Oh.......and did I mentioned I got engaged on my birthday? {10/21.....no wonder October is my favorite} Whatta week.
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Switzerland (Honeymoon Part 1 of 3)

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We still pinch ourselves when we think about our honeymoon. We had two backpacks, two plane tickets, and no reservations. Literally. We flew into Zurich, Switzerland - and had a return ticket for 2 weeks later from Pisa, Italy. Anything in between was up to us and our spur of the moment whim. It was liberating and freeing. With our two travel books, we'd simply decide every morning where we'd like to go to next (or if we'd like to stay where we were) - finding cheap rooms on the fly was not hard - and partaking in 'the chase' was often fun. (we only had ONE close call, in Florence. It was a holiday weekend there, and it took us almost 3 hours to find an available room) ;-) Those are the breaks. Our adventure as mentioned, began in Switzerland. From Zurich we took the train to Luzern, a small city on the water. After a couple days spent strolling the cobblestone streets, eating fondue, and shopping for Swiss watches, we ventured on to one of my most favorite places o...
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The Plunge

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I think we've given in! After endless back and forth.....we've decided to NOT run off and elope completely alone for the attractive cost of $50........we've decided to rent a space and throw a party for our wedding. It really would be special to be surrounded by those we love. Not a full-on-traditional 'reception' however.......a rough around the edges laid back live-music EXPERIENCE. We're looking at a really sweet music venue - and hopefully planning on having a friend's AMAZING band play. I've been up ALL night researching. I want to stay on a strict and tight budget..........and I want it to be DIY/handmade/homemade.......simple, eco-chic. Some inspiration I've fallen in love with thus far....... [Clear wine bottles - with gorgeous tapered candles at all different heights......how GORGEOUS and stunningly simple is this. I can hunt these bottles for free and pull this 'centerpiece' idea together for just the cost of candles!] [Lovely home...
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Soul Ryder Hughes

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Our sweet boy. This journey he's taken us on in his short 21 months of life has been the ultimate adventure. Life is that much brighter with him in it. The day we left the hospital. Maternity leave love Just another dessert on the Easter table...  The strongest bond Asleep. Those eyes. Monthly photo.  First trip to the beach. SUPER SOUL! Homemade Halloween costume. Picking out his first pumpkin. Dress up at daycare! Morning love. Christmas card photo. 8 months! Swings with Dada. Admiring Dada's drums! 4th of July BBQ.  Climbing. Family photo op.  Yogurt lips at the park. Tubby time. He loves the grocery store, it's a huge snack bar! Froggie towel. Snack time. First time digging into the sand, family vacation at the beach. Washing the sand off his toes. Picking out his pumpkin. I blinked and this happened. Our little chicken on Halloween. He loved g...
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DIY Glam Silver Canvas Tiles

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As with any home, ours is still a work in progress. I have so many projects I’d like to do! I should really stop for a minute, step back, and be proud of everything we’ve accomplished so far. After years and years of living in college dorms with white brick walls, and then strings of white-shoe-box apartments in New York City, I vowed to myself that the day I finally had a place of my own, every single inch of it would be PAINTED IN A COLOR. No more white walls ever again! Life is wayyyyy too short for me to be blinded by the white!!!! Well, we’re on our way to achieving that dream of mine. The most important and large rooms are painted. However the bathrooms are still sadly weepy and stark in white. I've done some punches of color to tide me over for now -- and here is the DIY step by step for these fabulous damask canvas 'tiles' I did for our master bathroom. Hmmm....I'm thinking we’ll most likely pull a color for the walls from the awesomely hippie-hemp-esque stiche...
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I'm back. Let's do this.

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The seas of life have led me to a place where I would like to spend a little 'me' time here....sharing my thoughts, loves, and moments. I would also like to introduce the addition that changed our lives (for the unimaginable best), our sweet son, Soul Ryder. Good to be back friends.
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