mrs. raper

 I'm married! 

Maui was wonderful, as you can imagine, I couldn't have imagined a better day!

tea bags!

{3000 teabags dipped in paint}

The piece is called Tea Sunburst and the bags are all hung individually, strung together by their strings and staples, creating a “summer sunburst installation.” The bags linger in and out of light yellows to dark reds to rich browns and sounds kind of silly but is really cool (and potentially easily imitable, should you feel particularly crafty).

 It also appears to be on sale for three thousand dollars, leaving each teabag at a dollar each *if there really are three thousand of them). If your interested in purchasing it's at Rolling Green in Hollywood. They did win the Retailer Excellence Award in Visual Merchandising. 

street art

Art has come a long way; it's no longer reserved for those who can buy gallery works or commissioned paintings. More accurately, what we view as art has evolved, and nothing represents that more than the recent explosion of street art.

The great site Street Art Utopia documents and shares all things street art. It's nearly impossible (although fun) to choose just a few, but here are some of my favorite examples of stop-you-in-your-tracks stunning street art.

 {i love this knitted bike!}

 Be sure to click through to the full post at Street Art Utopia, where they've gathered the best street art photos of the last year (106 of them!).

{via apartment therapy}

happy birthday grandma!!

happy birthday to the one person who checks my blog everyday. who would soothe me to sleep by rubbing my back and singing the sweet song frere jacque. who has never missed sending me a card for every holiday & birthday. who washes the dish towels she buys for me before mailing them, and when i open the package the first thing i do is smell the towels which takes me back to kansas. who always wears Chanel 5, which i love because of her.  

i hope that i can be half the woman you are

i hope today is fabulous for you grandma. i love you so much & wish that i could be there to spend the day with you.

p.s - i took this picture on a walk with my mom the other day, it reminds me of you :^)

orphaned baby owl

{dailymail}

It's not the usual thing you'd expect to find in a kitchen - but these orphaned baby owls seemed right at home as they nestled in two cups.

The feathered pair were clearly having a hoot after moving into the home of their wildlife park keeper, Jimmy Robinson.

The six-week-old burrowing owlets, nicknamed Linford and Christie, were hatched in an incubator, and are now being hand-reared by Jimmy - who works at Longleat Safari Park in Wiltshire - and are given 24-hour care. 

 He named the birds after the former Olympic gold medallist in honour of this year's Games being held in London (where Linford Christie is coaching some of the athletes).

Fortunately, the native American birds can find plenty of nooks and crannies around his one-bedroom flat to hide, and Jimmy has to keep a keen eye on the tiny creatures as they try to blend in.

The pair seek refuge in plenty of weird and wonderful places including tea cups in the kitchen, bookcases and the dog basket of his Saluki, 'JT'.

Jimmy, 25, said: 'As I spend so much time with them, they do look at me as their surrogate mum and will follow me around the house or sit on my shoulder.

 'They also enjoy the security of sitting inside their teacups and sugar bowls and like to find small spaces on my bookshelf and in between my DVD collection to snuggle up into.

'Basically, I have had to have them with me 24 hours a day, every day, and that means taking them home with me in the evening and getting up in the middle of the night to feed them. They always seem to find me at meal times.

first position

and i thought i was an athlete - these kids are dedicated and passionate about ballet. 

highlight of my weekend

my mom and i went out walking this past weekend and ran into this, how sweet!?

artist chuck close

what a profound video and story - In the latest installment of "Note to Self." famed portrait artist Chuck Close writes a letter to himself at age 14, offering himself advice on how to overcome his learning disabilities and his problem with face blindness.

Quick hello

A post from my iPhone, I wonder how this will turn out? I've been so busy I have no extra time to work on the blog - here are some pictures of the past week.
Went to dinner with my dad and Jill, got a hail storm the next evening (like nothing I've ever seen), and had two game nights with dear friends.

Hope your well, I'm slowing getting into a routine at work so hopefully I will have time to put into the blog. Those 15 hour workdays are dwindling, hooray!!!
Xo jean

traditional vietnamese wedding

Don't you love this gold wedding dress? Well here is a little history on the dress...

 
The gown I am wearing is called “Ao Dai.”  They are the traditional gowns women wear in Vietnam (where my parents are originally from).  Many young women wear these gowns on a day to day basis say to school or something, however it is very plain, all white and no hat.

What I wore is the traditional gown that brides wear when they get married, however what makes it more “wedding like” is the choice of fabic, and the hat.  Typically brides wear a flashier brighter color to signify happiness and good fortune as they step into the next stage of their life as a married woman.  And also to let everyone know “hey I’m the bride!” Only brides wear the matching hat.  The hat is not worn on a regular basis since it is only meant for a bride’s wedding day.

 {via oncewed}

week in pictures

{josh thinks he needs this...ha}

{tool world @ lowes}

{spanking new espresso machine, in the new store}

{josh mowing our lawn for the first time}

{our welcome mat}

{good friends came over & we walked to the ice cream shop}