carefully curated vol.2

In the midst of enjoying the season, it seems as though fall is slowly fading away and winter will be here shortly.  I still love it all- the cold, the cuddles, the layers and love.  As each day passes the craving for something simple seems stronger.  This morning I noticed another girl in my old town is opening an etsy shop (great for her & small business) and starting to blog, she mentioned 'following her dreams' and I wondered.. how did we all get this same dream.  Have you noticed that?  Where its like you make it by opening shop and becoming a blogger, networking, partnerships, brands and what not.  Don't get me wrong, I love what I do- but sometimes the over-saturation of the same stuff and the marketing of it all seems like so much.  Another reason sidebar ads will be making an exit from here very soon.  Anyways I'm rambling.

I think thats where the simple comes in, less pressure, more intent.. more of doing what you love to do it, not because everyone else is.  This edition of Carefully Curated seems to be what I'm feeling lately- finding love and sticking with it, making things from scratch and living with less while becoming more.

and then my soul

painted acorns

cabin love

imogene + willie

In case you missed this feature Carefully Curated, you can catch up on what its all about here.

carefully curated vol.1

Not too long ago I decided that I was using Pinterest in a way that really wasn't useful to me.  I was putting so much pressure on myself when I pinned because I thought I should be making all the projects, cooking all the meals and decorating all the rooms.  However, thats just not realistic for my life or personality.  I'm a collector of images- I truly love to look at inspiration and from there I can decide how I interpret and use it in my own life (and work).

I went through and cleaned up all of my boards and turned my pinning time into a thoughtful activity, arranged by a color palette where each photo pinned somehow goes with the photo next to it.  In being a little more honest with myself I gave my old pinning habits the finger and I couldn't be happier!  Now when I see my boards, everything makes sense.  I choose items I truly love and everything is much more authentic.  I no longer sell pins to sponsors because I started to feel like I was selling myself out.  Don't get me wrong, if you include Pinterest as a marketing tool for your sponsors there are no judgements here, its just not for me!

No longer gathering anything & everything I find all day long actually takes a bit longer as things are carefully sourced and selected, but I love how its all looking and am proud of the new direction I decided to go.   I also wanted to be able to remember some of the finds that really stuck out to me  more than just adding them to a board, so this new feature Carefully Curated will share just a few things I'm loving via my pinterest account.  I hope you enjoy my finds and follow along!

Art by Arian Behzadi

The Brand Market

Style Guides by Color

Calling Cards

How do you pin?

instacrush: @thuglifeforevs

Instagram is the one social media outlet where I feel like I have more control over the type of content I want to see.  Sure you can follow & unfollow on facebook and twitter, but there are always promoted posts you can't control at all.  Enter instagram- I like to follow happy users, the ones that post the pretty photos and think about the content in their feeds as art.  I have so many favorites on there and would love to share more of them with you.  Join me each week to see who I'm crushing on!

Emily Blincoe is a killer photographer out of Texas.  Not only does she take & share amazing photos, she produces these collections that are just so thought provoking.  The quality of her work sets her aside as one of my favorite ig'ers because of the time that goes into her projects.  She has plenty of amazing photos in her feed, but I want to share 3 collections with you- #chameleonportrait, #colorsorganizedneatly & #thisAMPERSANDthat, amazing right?

She recently started a new one called #thecollectioncollection and so far I'm loving it!  note* anyone with OCD will be a huge fan of hers =)

Follow: @thuglifeforevs 

Hope you follow along and get a new instacrush too!  Do you already have some crushes?  I'd love to find new inspiring artists to follow so please share them with me below and if you aren't already you can find me @thingslovely xo

seven lovely things

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Lately I have been feeling like there is a line between curator & creator.  I want to be able to produce as much original content as possible, but how do I do this when I lack time or use it all looking at pretty things?  I decided I shouldn't be ashamed of gathering inspiration from all over because I know eventually I will put it to good use.  I think its great to curate, thats how the things we create will be shared anyways right?  

Today I'm hanging out with some pretty great gals and we are all sharing seven things we are totally loving.  I kept gravitating towards watercolor this week, which makes makes me believe I'm ready for spring and with the speedy rate the year is already going by I'm sure it will be here in no time.  I would love if you would join up with us and share what seven things you are loving too!

vintage christmas posters

I feel like the holidays just rush by so fast, it sort of makes me sad.  I think the fact that the days are counted down with advent calenders and constant reminders are no help.  I want to enjoy each day this season and knowing we are less then two weeks until Christmas day actually makes me sad.  Maybe I'm never fully prepared for the holidays so the rush seems very overwhelming to me.

Over the next week or so I will be sharing some fun tutorials, favorite things, printables and even just pretty pictures.  Its my way of enjoying the season.  Also eating fudge helps.

These vintage inspired Christmas prints by artist Paulo Viveiros are on my current love list!

Does this season pass you by too, or do you prepare and enjoy every minute?

a fancy little number

With holiday parties in full swing and New Years Eve just three weeks away, its time to start planning those party outfits!  I'm all about the sparkles this time of year.  Slap some gold on me and call me Betty or just let me wear this entire outfit to some fun party.

necklace / bracelet / polish / clutch / heels / dress / invites / print

Today Outfit Additions is helping you get closer to putting together something cute to wear by offering up 2 (two!!) of their jewelry pieces.  I picked the Black Drop necklace and gold twig bracelet for this outfit, but you get to pick any two you want!

I wanted to share just a quick blurb about this independent business: Outfit Additions is a Berkeley, California based retailer of fashion accessories. Their jewelry is sourced from artisans across the US and abroad while the silk collection is designed and manufactured by them.  Cool right?

They have so much cute stuff so if you can't wait to find out if you won use code 'joy15' to save 15% off your purchase and if you do win and made a purchase they will refund you back for two items!  

*Mandatory Entry* Visit outfit additions shop then come back here and leave a comment telling me what two items you would pick if you won! *Extra Entries* tweet, share on facebook or share the image above on instagram & tag @thingslovely.  For each item you do leave another comment!

THE SWEEPSTAKES IS NOW CLOSED

winner: erika 

*Sweepstakes Details- contest runs 12/09-12/12, winner will be chosen at random, winner chooses two items from outfit additions (in the event items are unavailable a gift card for that items value will be issued).  if purchase is made by winner items will be refunded, if more then two items are purchased then two highest will be refunded.  if winner chosen does not have a gfc profile with a valid email address and a way to contact is not left then another winner will be chosen.  winner will be contacted via email. Open to US, Canada & UK residents only.  Age 18 and older.  Winner will be announced publicly and notified via email as per FTC guidelines.  The fulfillment of this sweepstakes is provided by Outfit Additions and sponsored by Heather Smith of JustLovelyThings, LLC.

Color Therapy: Peaches and Cream

 Peaches and Cream

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Color Therapy: Summer Loves Red

 Summer Loves Red

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Color Therapy: Pretty in Pink

 Pretty in Pink

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packaging: holiday style

Adding little touches to gifts can make the things you are giving people feel so much more special.  With inspiration all around us (pinterest, blogs, google, magazines..) its easier now more then ever to find ways to do just about anything.  The handmade movement is moving passed the way of being a trend and instead becoming a way of life.  Showing your creativity and imagination means so much more then buying mass produced wrapping supplies.  Here you will find some of my favorite finds from recent pinterest searches giving you ideas to dress up your gifts with lots of love!

- maps, magazine pages, vintage prints and string -

- kraft paper, string, cut out snow flakes and pom poms -

- material, flower finds, sparkle ribbon and plant garnishes - 

- stickers, lace, scrap book cut outs and kraft boxes - 

- doilies (paper & fabric), pattern paper, book pages and buttons - 

- book pages & twine -

I hope you have been inspired by some of the things that have been catching my eye..

speaking of which how adorable is this free desktop calender from Happy Serendipity?

{click here to get the direct download}

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