Some opportunities are just plain fun. This was one of them. When Danielle got in touch about doing a weekend guest post, I was all over it. I love her site (as mentioned here before), and couldn’t wait to talk about the new work of a favorite artist. It was posted this morning. Go take a look!

We did some curating over on Cargoh today—picks of our favorite Valentine’s Day gifts from some of their sellers. If you’re new to Cargoh, it’s a nifty social marketplace of indie art and design, run by our friends Paul and Cariann Burger.

Below is a peek at just one of my favorites. You’re going to have to click on through to see the rest of them.

Inspiration from sfgirlbybay, Victoria Smith

It’s cold, there’s lights on the trees outside, and even though I’m writing about gifts everyday, I’ve yet to really feel like the holidays are upon us. Thankfully I have these posts to inspire me. lovely!

merry merry.

Anthropologie’s Wrapping Paper on Oh Joy!

Creative Wreaths on Poppytalk

Winter Greetings on Modish

Finally getting around to posting whatnots I’ve had stashed in TooManyTabs for for.ev.er.

If you haven’t tried it, it’s a Firefox extension that allows you to set aside a tab/url for later without the pages using up memory or, if you tend to have massive amounts of them open at once as I do, taking down Firefox all together.

So here’s to Saturday evening at the park with the dog and the hubs, sipping some Sip & Kranz and getting caught up.

The sweet gals at 9SpotMonk are having a Father’s Day giveaway and it’s a very cute idea.

They’re looking for practical gift ideas for Dad’s who have everything. In return for your clever (or even brilliantly simple) suggestion in the comments of their latest post, they’ll send you a complimentary letterpress card for your Pops.

And did I mention it’s frickin’ adorable? You (or your kiddos) can color in the card to make it even more special.

The cards get mailed out on Monday so hop-to and add a comment.

1230 E. 49th St.

breckenridge rec center

My lovely friend Darra has a show at Stumptown! (SE Division location)

Opening Reception is this Thursday, 06.11 from 4-6PM.

Her pieces are inspired by memories of significant homes and places she’s been. The painted parts represent the more discernible parts of the memory. Read more here.

The work is awesome and so is Darra. So happy she’s having a show. Please swing by if you can!

Just grabbed an afternoon latte at my new favorite coffee spot, BARISTA (Note: the site is still a work in progress. To see more, visit Yelp).

Since they opened about a month ago, I’ve been there far more times than I probably should, but their stellar espresso and perfect latte keep calling my name (plus it’s amazing how such a simple treat-to-self can put such a spring in my step—the little things, right?)

Today, cappuccino mugs propped the windows to let the breeze in (and I just had to snap a photo), MGMT tunes bounced around the room and once again the latte was just right. With this place just a block away how can I resist?

Now, back at my desk I’m ready to continue this productive afternoon.

A recent update on their site says they’ll be adding more seating and outlets to their Gadsby Building location—happy news for this wifi-loving, work-from-anywhere, techie town.

City by the Water, Cityscape

Last summer my sweet and sneaky husband conspired with our good friend Ben Friedle and commissioned this painting for my birthday.

At the time it was locked up in Ben’s imagination and represented on our bare walls by a large rectangle of blue painter’s tape (Jacob had put it there to tell me of the coming painting. I know—cute, huh?).

A few months later and we’re waking up to this vibrant, energetic City by the Water. We absolutely adore it!

Since completing this piece, Ben’s been painting like crazy.

He has five brand new paintings that will be on display at his first public show—the opening is tomorrow night. I know it’s going to be killer and I cannot wait to see the finished paintings.

Come show Ben your love at La Merde Lounge tomorrow night. (7p to 10p)

RSVP on Upcoming and tell your friends about it too.

Check out more of Ben’s artwork here.