you know you’re an architecture student when….

via

… the alarm clock tells you when to go to sleep
… you’re not ashamed of drooling in class anymore, especially in structures
… you know what UHU tastes like
… you CELEBRATE space and OBSERVE your birthday
… coffe and cokes are tools, not treats
… you’ve fallen asleep in the bathroom or shower
… you think it’s possible to CREATE space
… you’re not seen in public
… you’ve watched 32 straight hours of tv while modelmaking, drawing, drafting, 3D modeling
… you lose your house keys for a week and don’t even notice
… you’ve brushed your teeth and washed your hair in the school’s bathroom
… you have a pillow and sleeping bag stashed underneath your drafting desk
… you’ve discovered the benefits of having none/very short hair
… you’ve gone to get coffee and back before you realize that you were wearing safety goggles and earplugs the whole time
… you always carry your deoderant
… you know the exact time the vending machines are refilled
… you’ve sung/danced to some awful 90s one hit wonder at 3 am without a single drop of alcohol in your body
… you take notes and messages only with color markers and your signature pen or pencil
… you combine breakfast, lunch and dinner into one single meal
… you see holidays only as extra sleeping time

… you can live without human contact, food or daylight but if you can’t print, it’s chaos.

… you refer to famous architects by their familiar name as if you knew them (Frank, Corb, Mies, Rem…)
… you’ve got more photographs of buildings than of actual people

modified from excerpt:  Architecture Depends by Jeremy Till.  MIT press.  p. 24

Fall Favorites

Fall is unquestionably my favorite time of year.  Perhaps it’s because I would much rather be chilly than warm… maybe it’s because it fall hiking is extraordinary… or maybe it’s because I’m from New England where the trees turn to cherry reds, piercing yellows and stunning, expressive oranges.   I have put together a collection of things that inspire me in light of my favorite season, so grab some cider and a cozy knit scarf and enjoy!

1 //    salted caramels

Salted Caramels

 – reminds me of my mamma

2 //    ankle length cardigan

3 //    golden coffee cozy

4 //    orange maxi dress 

5 //    cranberry orange soap  

6 //    felted baby booties – do they come in my size?? 

7 //    lovely red alpaca yarn 

8 //    flavored maple syrups by Dean & Deluca

9 //    back to school canvas messenger bag/backpack

wishing you the most wonderful fall

daddy days

recently, I’ve been thinking a lot about my family and my [past] home.  being far far away in Denverland while the rest of the immediate Carwells hang on the East Coast has been tough to say the least.  not only have some fairly adorable pictures just resurfaced from my daddy’s younger days – oh yes I am! – he’ll be making the trip out to see me in just 3 days for the James Taylor concert @ Red Rocks [eeeeeeeee!!]

so… this post is dedicated to the sweetest, most intelligent, most compassionate fella in my life…. and the universe 🙂

oh goodness… how can you not ❤ that face! — he looks exactly the same!

_ __ ___ _________________________________________________ ___ __ _

the man who made the music:

although most people know him by trade [doctor] one of the things that makes him most special to me is his insane musical talent.  His background –  completed a theory and composition [music] major back in the day and his innate talent have combined to make a man that can pick up any instrument given to him and play… that can write incredibly touching music.. and that can sing with the best of ’em.  I’ve always loved listening to him spin whimsical and emotional tunes around the house from his piano, and will never forget the times he let me stand by the piano and sing as he played.

poppa playlist:

anges obel        –                     riverside

angus + julia Stone     –              big jet plane

ben e. king     –              stand by me

billy joel     –                piano man

birdy    –                  fire + rain

boy + bear     –                  lordy may

civil wars     –   my father’s father

dan auerbach     –                goin home

ella fitzgerald     –            fields of gold

james taylor     –                copperline

james vincent mcmorrow     –             we don’t eat

john mayer     –                           3 x 5

ray charles     –                     georgia

ray lamontagne     –              shelter you

tom petty     –        learning to fly

the cast of wicked     –      defying gravity

  ❤ ❤ ❤

on the hunt for my perfect bread box

after last weekend’s lovely farmer’s market find of fresh bread… i found myself asking myself [and my baking connoisseur roommate] how to store this delectable good.  my mother always stores her loaves the fridge.  in the past i have always just twisty-tied it up and left it on the counter.  DUH – someone must have grappled with this question earlier on in history, and out came the invention of the BREAD BOX.

because I plan on continuing to patron the wonderful farmer’s markets around town and also plan to continue to indulge in wonderful hand-made loaf-deliciousness…

and because these things are just too dang cute not to have in one’s kitchen…

i thought maybe i’d start my hunt for my perfect bread box

here are some beauties i’ve come across… what do you think??

old timey with a roll top

industrial style

lunchpail look-alike

flash of feminine

… and this goes without saying because you’re all smarty-pantses who can figure it out, but not only are these guys great for bread, since they’re so homey and beautiful you could use them to decorate with the additional storage bonus for tucking away little trinkets you don’t want cluttering up your space!

fancy meeting you here :)

So, Friends, I’m here to tell you… nothing in this world is truly autonomous.  The idea for “this blended life” spurred from my fascination with the non-absolute.   Everything exists on a continuum: each characteristic of a thing, whether it be gender, color, brilliance, form, kindness or any other descriptive you might think of, cannot be comprehensively described by an either/or.… a black or white.  Hence, hybridities and continuums exist, and guess what… that’s what makes life uber interesting!  Furthermore – everything in existence is influenced or impacted by at least one other thing!

Yes, yes, I know… this is not a completely new or shocking concept, but one that has an incredible amount of depth and far reaching implications.  I personally believe that the beauty in life comes from these “in betweens”, these “neither here’s nor there’s”… the things we can’t truly fit into neat little boxes.  Perhaps this comes from my inherent inability to organize.  Perhaps it is an indicator of just how much fascinating variety life has to offer.  As my adorable Italian drawing teacher, Tiziano, used to say in his endearing little accent while practicing the English language… “variety is the spice of life”.

This blog, therefore, is truly just a mundane reporting on what I find interesting in my life… but at times it will call out or highlight the above concept – the qualities of things in life that are a little of one and a bit of the other… those things that are inextricably

blended.