Early morning is one of my favorite times with Toby. He's super mellow and talk-y, and we "chitchat" about lots of fascinating things while he plays in his crib. When Toby was first born, I was so anxious that I was doing everything right (he was so teeny), but these days I'm thankfully settling in, feeling more confident and just enjoying his awesome company. Oh, Toby, I adore you and your Jack Nicholson eyebrows!
My view at 6:30am
Early morning is one of my favorite times with Toby. He's super mellow and talk-y, and we "chitchat" about lots of fascinating things while he plays in his crib. When Toby was first born, I was so anxious that I was doing everything right (he was so teeny), but these days I'm thankfully settling in, feeling more confident and just enjoying his awesome company. Oh, Toby, I adore you and your Jack Nicholson eyebrows!
Ribbon Braids Headband
Start the french braid as you normally would but add a ribbon to 2 of the braid strands. You are going to be making 2 braids along the face line. Braid all the way to the ends.
Do the same french braid with a ribbon on the other side along her face line.
Braid all the way to the ends.
Attach the braids together in the middle of her head (loosely)
Laughter yoga
Have you guys heard of laughter yoga? Indian physician Madan Lal Kataria encourages people to get together in small groups and start fake laughing; after a while, he says, the laughter will become genuine and euphoric. Dr. Kataria believes that laughter can cure physical and psychological ailments. It sounds nutty, but my friend Scott recently tried it with a group of friends and said it was surprisingly awesome. Would you give it a shot?
P.S. Also, marshmallows!
P.S. Also, marshmallows!
Wednesday giveaway!
Today's giveaway is from Chicago letterpress studio Snow & Graham. They're giving away their beautiful 2011 wall calendar, which has gorgeous flower illustrations each month. Wouldn't it look lovely above a desk? (It would also make a great gift.)
For a chance to win, please visit Snow & Graham's shop and leave a comment below. A winner will be chosen at random tomorrow. Good luck! xoUpdate: Mrs. Dontje is our lucky winner. Thanks for playing.
Helmet style
We've talked about helmets (and lack of helmets) before, so I'm loving these photos of Milanese models in their Vespa helmets. Very cute!(Photos by Hanneli Mustaparta)
Maine perfume
A few years ago, my dad took my sister and me on a fall weekend trip to Bar Harbor, Maine. We stayed in a charming old B&B and made it our goal to eat lobster for every single meal, including lobster scrambled eggs, bisque, rolls, whole lobsters, and even a McDonald's McLobster...
Even though it rained almost the whole time, the trip was one of the best I've ever taken.
So I was psyched to discover this Maine perfume. Wouldn't you love to smell its sea, air, sun, pine and grassy scent?(Photos by 3191 Miles Apart and Between the Bread)
Looking for a photo intern
My dears, I'm looking for a top-notch photo intern to do some fun original shoots for Cup of Jo this winter. Do you know anyone who might be interested?
About the internship:
* One day per week, preferably a weekday. The day might change week to week, depending on the shoot, so someone with a flexible schedule would be amazing.
* A bunch of different shoots, including street style, city photos, home interiors, parties, etc.
* Commitment of at least 3-4 months, ideally longer.
* Unpaid, but great exposure on the blog and tons of gratitude.
About the photo intern:
* A Cup of Jo reader.
* Lots of photography experience.
* Shoots digital.
* Fluent in Photoshop.
* Cheerful, creative and hardworking.
* Punctual, efficient, organized and great at meeting deadlines.
* Outgoing and comfortable approaching strangers on the street.
* Lives in New York City.
* Preferably a flexible schedule.
If you're interested, please email COJphotointern at gmail.com with a bit about yourself, resume, and link to your photographs. Thank you so much!
(Photo by Crystin Moritz)
D.I.Y Ombre Hair.
Unless you've been living under a rock throughout summer (which seems to have swiftly departed) then you will know that "Ombre" hair has been a very "in" style. In very basic terms, it's a look of which it appears your hair has been sunkissed (depending on the strength of the colour) at the ends of your hair. Or that you're hair has grown out, leaving you with darker roots and lighter tips. It appears that the popular choice of colouring is brown to blonde/caramel, although i have seen people doing ombre with many different colours.
I pondered on the idea for a few weeks, went out and bought the dye & kept it until i felt brave enough. Saturday night, i thought "eck, why not", so i mixed the dye and tried out a strand test to see what the colour would be like after 25 minutes. If it was too blonde, it wouldnt have mattered as it was only one piece of hair. After 25 minutes, the colour wasnt really all that different. So, i knew it had to be on for longer.
And this is the result. I do like it, considering i did it myself, it could have been a lot worse. I'm not planning on keeping it forever, it definitely fullfilled my longing to change my hair & i think it actually looks really nice. I have noticed it has dried out the ends of my hair pretty badly, which were already very dry anyway, unless it's just making it stand out more haha. Over all though, thumbs up for a bit of Ombre hair.
All images taken from Google. How hot does Drew Barrymore look right now?
A few months ago, i became very bored of my current hairstyle. I know a lot of you are always bigging up my long, brunette locks, but when you've had the same style for years, it does become a little mundane. I wanted something different, but i didnt know what. For a while i though of chopping it all off Frankie Sandford style, then i decided i would almost definitely miss my long hair. Then i thought of going all over caramel but i wasnt sure if i would suit it. It was then that i discovered "Ombre". I had saved various different images of celebrities sporting the ombre hairdo, in the hope that maybe, if i was feeling brave enough, i could take along a few photos to the hairdresser (who i was assuming would charge a stupid amount of moolah to essentially put some bleach and tin foil at the ends of my hair) After stumbling upon Lily's Blog LLYMLRS (which is amazing so go follow her) and finding her post on "How to DIY Ombre", i thought "This actually doesn't look all that difficult".I pondered on the idea for a few weeks, went out and bought the dye & kept it until i felt brave enough. Saturday night, i thought "eck, why not", so i mixed the dye and tried out a strand test to see what the colour would be like after 25 minutes. If it was too blonde, it wouldnt have mattered as it was only one piece of hair. After 25 minutes, the colour wasnt really all that different. So, i knew it had to be on for longer.
L'oreal Perfect Blonde Highlighting Kit - £5.99 & HELLO BOOBIES.
I applied the dye all over the ends of my hair, making sure i really covered it all. I also put some on the ends of the hair that was closer to my face, as i wanted it to blend and feather a little more. I left that, for approximately 30 minutes. As there was a lot more dye, i think it worked a little quicker than the strand test. After this time, I washed and dried my hair, only to decide it wasn't quite as blonde as i'd hoped. It was more a dull gingery strawberry blonde, and i wanted a little more depth. So i then applied a bit more bleach but this time only to the very ends of my hair, i then put tin foil around it. I did this as i was getting ready to go out, and i didnt want bleach flicking everywhere, although i really think it helped the bleaching process along. I left this for another 20 minutes.And this is the result. I do like it, considering i did it myself, it could have been a lot worse. I'm not planning on keeping it forever, it definitely fullfilled my longing to change my hair & i think it actually looks really nice. I have noticed it has dried out the ends of my hair pretty badly, which were already very dry anyway, unless it's just making it stand out more haha. Over all though, thumbs up for a bit of Ombre hair.
Pretty sure my friend won't be too impressed i used this picture, sorry darling! :)
♥
♥
Stockholm style
Simple yet beautiful. Adding a chambray shirt and black jeans to my fall wishlist. Also, red hair!(Photo by Stockholm Street Style, via Vic)
Brooklyn Diary
Our girl Lena just curated a new book, Brooklyn Diary, which takes a look at the daily lives of 21 Brooklyn artists, documented by 10 Brooklyn photographers. They reveal their favorite neighborhood spots and offer peeks inside their quirky homes. Part-coffeetable book and part-travel guide, Brooklyn Diary will be released on October 11th. I'm really excited for it. Congrats, Lena!
(These photos show Anna and Tim Harrington and their sons Benji and Casper. As lead singer of the punk band Les Savy Fav, Tim is known for his crazy theatrics--he must be such a fun dad. Anna and Tim also run the textile company Deadly Squire. Their photos make me want to pickle vegetables and buy a pool.)
(Photos by Jessica Antola)
Have a happy weekend
Porter has a new kissing blog!
New fashion idea: Wearing kid-sized sweaters.
The difference between good and bad dancers. (I'd be the terrible dancer.)
Loving this fall dress.
A bicycle thief.
Who wants some monkey cake?
19 fall dresses under $100.
How to decorate a room.
How to decorate your wrists.
My favorite baby links.
Plus, three Cup of Jo posts you may have missed:
* NYC Legos.
* Summery photos.
* Grey sweatshirts.
(Photo via Kissssing)
Toby's belly laugh
Toby has started doing hilariously awkward belly laughs every few days. Here's one we caught on tape, when Alex was opening a package. He found the wrapping paper totally hilarious.
P.S. They say the average 4-year-old laughs 400 times per day!
Hot pink lips
I usually wear red lipstick or nothing, but I'm really digging this hot pink lip color. I'm planning to try some at Sephora this weekend and crossing my fingers that my alabaster complexion can pull it off. Would you wear it? xo
(Photos from DvF, via Aubrey Road)
Ink + Wit giveaway
Today's giveaway is from Ink + Wit, Tara Hogan's beautiful letterpress and design shop based in New York. She's offering one reader a $50 gift certificate to her shop. (I love her stamp sets and tea towels.)For a chance to win, please visit Ink + Wit and leave a comment below. A winner will be chosen at random tomorrow. Good luck! xo
Update: Flora is our lucky winner. Thanks for playing.
Wading into the ocean
We didn't make it to the beach this summer, so I'm living vicariously through this video of Mav wading into the ocean in Portland, Maine. I can almost feel that icy cold water on my feet and ankles!
(From 3191 Miles Apart, which I adore)
How to do Heidi braids
I'm terrible at doing my hair and usually wear it in a messy bun. So I was excited to see that Julie did a post on how to do Heidi braids. What a cute fall look! Will you try it?
First days with Toby
My lovelies, thank you so much for your sweet comments on our birth story. It felt so wonderful to reminisce. Now I'd love to share a few photos of the rest of our hospital stay, if you'd like to see...(This photo above is one of my all-time faves!)
About an hour after Toby was born, our nurse brought us to the maternity ward, where we would be staying for two nights. In New York City hospitals, you typically share a room with another new mom. (Is that true for other cities, too?) It's totally fine, though, because a curtain goes around your half of the room for privacy, so you feel surprisingly separate; and it's also nice to have another mom around to talk to. (Private rooms were also available, but they cost a whopping $900 to $1100 per night! Yowza.)
We lucked out and got the bed by the window. Looking over the East River, we watched the sailboats during the day, and the twinkling city lights at night. We felt like we were on vacation.
I was exhausted after pulling an all-nighter and giving birth, but also so high on life that I couldn't sleep. I felt dreamy and giddy and wanted to soak up every moment with Toby.
A few friends came by and brought orange juice, sandwiches and bouquets of flowers. (This beautiful bunch is from Abbey, who arranged it herself!)
One funny thing is that newborn babies are typically sooooo sleepy that they won't wake up even when they're hungry. So, the nurses encouraged us to rouse Toby for a meal every four hours or so. But even when he was eating, he'd fall asleep at the breast, and I'd have to tickle his chin or cheek to remind him about the task at hand. :)
I adore this sweet photo. He looks just like his sonogram!
Babies lose weight right after they're born, so in this photo, Toby is a mere 5 pounds 8 ounces. A little sparrow! It's crazy to remember on how small he was (especially compared to how chubby he is now:) He was floppy, smelled like milk, had wrinkly dinosaur feet, and was covered in that lovely newborn baby fuzz.
A funny thing about staying at a New York City hospital is that they'll bring you free meals from their own cafeteria, but they also have a huge binder of neighborhood restaurant menus in case you want to order delivery. The first night after Toby was born we ordered in falafel!
The nurses taught us how to swaddle Toby into a little burrito. Babies apparently love being wrapped tightly, since it reminds them of the womb; they also like rocking, bouncing and white noise--including hairdryers!
It was such a magical time. We were thrilled with our time at Weill Cornell, whose staff gave us such gentle care (the nurses were wonderful). Thank you again for reading our birth story and being so lovely all along the way. Sending a big kiss to all of you xoxo
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