Happy weekend, my darling readers! What do you have planned for the next couple of days? I’m so excited because I’m going to see Sarah Jessica Parker and Blythe Danner on Broadway in The Commons of Pensacola. I booked the tickets forever ago—I can’t wait! Here, to get your weekend started right, a few happy posts from around the web:

American Girl dolls, for sale!

An inspiring song for a chilly week in NYC.

How to stylishly store matches.

New Year’s Eve missed connections.

Meryl Streep intimidates other actors.

Treating fairy light withdrawal.

A Royal selfie.

Love this pretty, flowy top.

DIY pizza fun.

Shake it like an Instagram picture!

New rules for Tina and Amy’s Golden Globes drinking game. (Don’t forget to watch Sunday night!)

(Image via Wit & Delight)

I stumbled across this bookstore thanks to Bri over at DesignLoveFest. It’s called the Cité du Livre, and it’s located in Aix en Provence. Apparently, it used to be a match factory, and to get indoors, you have to go through three giant books! The titles that lead you to the entrance are Le Petit Prince, Le Malade Imaginaire, and L’Etranger. Don’t they look so cool supersized? I’ve just added this spot to my list for my trip to Aix en Provence later this year! 

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Yes—Valentine’s Day is still a more than a month away, but during the snowstorm this past weekend, I made a trip to one of my favorite Brooklyn card shops, and decided to get a little crafty! The main reason: Have you heard about heat embossing? It’s what gives cards that elegant, raised, dimensional effect. All you need is a stamp of your choice (I chose this one), embossing powder, this heat tool, and watermark ink. You stamp your design onto the card, cover it with powder, dust it off (you can save and reuse the excess powder so it lasts a long time), and then seal with the heat embossing tool. Voila! A beautiful handmade card to give to your sweetie, your sister, or your friends. 🙂

So pretty, right? Would you try this craft?  

My devoted readers know: Brooklyn Bridge Park is my favorite spot in my new neighborhood, snow or not. Over the weekend, Matt and I decided to go for a quick hike and test out the new SLR camera(!) I got for my birthday. Nothing beats a winter sunset in New York. My toes were icicles by the time we made it up to Brooklyn Heights Wine Bar (the spot we chose to warm up), but it was completely worth the walk. A bonus: We got to check out the newest section of the park!

We learned something, too—the park’s suspension bridge in the winter wind shakes. A lot. 🙂

Hope you enjoyed the snowy weekend!

More Brooklyn Bridge Park here, here and here.

Happy New Year! I’m still in that phase where it’s hard to remember to write the date as 2014. 🙂 It’s been quite a chilly start to January, but I always love how cozy this time of year feels. It’s sort of fun to just hibernate indoors (although I know by March, I’ll be ready to get outdoors again!). What are your favorite things about this month? I love the feeling of a fresh start, winter hats and coats, and also the thought that, in just one week, we’ll get to watch Amy Poehler and Tina Fey host the Golden Globes again! 

I also always think carefully about my resolutions this time of year. My goals this year are:

1) To plan more frequent phone chats with friends and family (texting is great and all, but there’s nothing as fun as catching up and laughing over the phone!).

2) To practice yoga at least once a week. There is an awesome studio in my neighborhood, and I love going, but need to make it a routine.

3) To write more—for myself. I have lots of ideas swirling around, but I need to actually block off time to put the pen to the paper. 🙂

4) To continue to work on my French. My vacation to France and Italy is just five months away!

What are you excited about this month—and in the year ahead?

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