monthly music

Looking for some fun music for May? I've decided to switch around my monthly playlists to be a soundtrack for the current month, rather than a soundtrack from the previous month. I hope you enjoy these songs as much as I am right now!

Confident May 2012

1. Magic Girl by Sleepy Rebels

2. Bookends and Silent Pages by Kiersten Holine

3. This Is What I Said by Cloud Control

4. Strange Attractor by Animal Kingdom

5. Free by Graffiti6

6. Seeing Stars by Meg Hutchinson

7. Save Me by JJ Heller

8. Songbird by Jillian Edwards

9. Kingdom Come by The Civil Wars

10. Smokescreen by Willis

Confident May 2012 from joyful_life on 8tracks.

sick days

Well it is day 5 of spending my days curled up in bed with daytime TV, my laptop, my kindle, a bag of cough drops, and a thermometer. The good news is my fever is finally gone (peaked at 102 before I got a prescription for antibiotics) and now I don't feel like sleeping through the entire day. Hopefully I'll be 100% by Easter.

So...now that I'm not sleeping the day away, I finally have a chance to post my music playlist from Bold & Brave March. Enjoy the tunes!

Fine Art Photograph by PrettyPetalStudio

Bold & Brave March 2012
1. Settle Down - Kimbra
2. Daughter - Yellow Ostrich
3. Disparate Youth - Santigold
4. Little Talks - Of Monsters and Men
5. Untitled No. 3 - Sayde Price
6. Ho Hey - The Lumineers
7. Ne'er Do Wells - Audra Mae & The Almighty Sound
8. Simple Song - The Shins
9. The Moon - Glen Hansard & Marketa Irglova

Bold & Brave March 2012 from joyful_life on 8tracks.

be silly.

For the last few days I've been reveling in the fact that I am finally relaxed. There's no homework to do. My career is going at a great pace. Cleaning is more fun than a chore. I have time (and the desire) to start rebuilding my social life. And I am rediscovering what it means to have fun.

Be Silly Be Honest Be Kind Print by wikedpaper

For some reason, when college ended and my new career began, I found myself in a little bit of a depression. It came as quite a shock once I discovered what was happening. It seems a lot of emotions over the past few years were masked by stress, going crazy behind the scenes, all bottled up without a chance to escape. Then, when the pace of my life changed, I think I finally had time to really take note of how I was feeling. Honestly, I think it was just a lot of change to take in all at once. But over the weekend I realized that I am laughing more, acting silly, and enjoying myself in a way that I thought was left behind in adolescence. Developing inside jokes with my boyfriend, getting to know "school" friends as "lifetime" friends (this is where the conversations about our lives last longer than those about homework), organizing my apartment for aesthetics rather than sanity, and enjoying the more plentiful moments when I can ask myself "What do I want to do next?" 

So...today I would like to urge all of you to slow down for a moment. To turn off the TV, put down the smart phone, walk away from the computer and reconnect with yourself.  Has it been too long since you took a moment to relax? Take 15 minutes for you. Just 15 minutes of uninterrupted "Me" time. You deserve it. Trust me. 

monthly music

February's music mix has me singing or tapping the steering wheel to the beat every day in my car...on the way to work, going from building to building, while running errands, when I'm headed home, and even when working on my laptop. I love music kicks like that, don't you?

Pinecone Fine Art Print by CocoShack

It's All Possible February 2012
1. We Are Young - Fun.
2. Rivers and Roads - The Head and the Heart
3. The Wolves - Ben Howard
4. Home - Parlor Hawk
5. Swan Song - Jennifer O'Connor
6. Say You - Imaginary Cities
7. My Girl the Horse - Fences
8. The One You Love - Passenger 

It's all possible February from joyful_life on 8tracks.

march madness

Oh my goodness....March is here!

I can't believe this year is going by so fast! I feel like only yesterday I was counting down the new year and writing my resolutions. Where does the time go? I'll just assume that means I am having fun. :)

So...it's that time for monthly music, but my playlist isn't up on 8track yet, so I will tide you over with some interesting music videos. These songs aren't on the monthly playlist, but I have also been enjoying them lately.

There is this very unique and somewhat disturbing video from Kimbra.


Then there is this group of very talented individuals sharing a song.
Walk Off the Earth covering a former monthly playlist song by Gotye.


I love the woodsy atmosphere in this video by Maps and Atlases.


Lastly a little hip hop for you. I was blown away by this song performed live at KEXP by local Seattle artist, Macklemore. Ray Dalton's vocals in this made the whole song for me.


Hope you enjoy the tunes! Have a great weekend!

a note from Ira

I think I may have shared this note from Ira Glass once before here on this little blog, but today it is feeling especially pertinent. This is something I need to remember when developing creative works for my shop, or even simple sewing projects for myself. The more I complete the better I will get and the more confidence I will have in my abilities. I hope this little note is helpful to some of you as well. Happy Tuesday!


Ira Glass on Storytelling from David Shiyang Liu on Vimeo.

oooh child...

Sometimes we all need a little reminder. 

Go gentle with yourself.

Click image to download and print from Flickr.

Happy *Heart* Day!

 ~ Happy Valentine's Day! ~

Valentine Print by thebigharumph

Do Small Things print by UUPP

To the Moon print by artstudio54

Smitten With You print by breedingfancy