V-Day

Well, whether you love it, hate it, celebrate or not, I hope you had a nice Valentine's day. Bob made the most amazing dinner for me. Saturday, we were watching some Irish cooking show on PBS and we both were saying how amazing that meal looked. Well, he surprised me and cooked the entire meal! I was so proud of him! It was the best chicken I've ever had. He made his own stuffing and stuffed the chicken, roasted vegetables, made gravy, home made lemonade and white chocolate biscuits for dessert. ah-mazing!

I also got this amazing Valentine from a co-worker.

love love love Parks and Rec!

After dinner, Bob was playing with Ben Sharkey at Baker's Keyboard Lounge, which is the oldest Jazz Club in Detroit. So many amazing players have graced the stage, including Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald, Dizzie Gillespie and Miles Davis... to name a few. So when Ben asked if I would sing a few songs, I was really excited! My parents came out along with a few other friends. It's always a classy evening at Baker's.

Once I finally got home and into bed, my wonderful, talented and hilarious sister Celia sent me this Valentine and it's amazing how horrible we both look. I love it.

Oh yea.
iz

Twin Birthday

Wishing a very Happy Valentine's Birthday to my

 Aunt Kim and Uncle Kirk.

Have a great day, wish I could be there to partake in celebrations.

Love you both.

Twinsies!

Then.

and now!
love,
iz

Will You Be My Valentine?

Valentine's day is tomorrow! Do you do anything fun with your loved one(s)? I'm going to lunch with some girl friends from work and then dinner with my man friend before he plays a gig at Bakers Keyboard Lounge. I sure do miss the days of elementary school when every one got tons of valentines and candy! To get into the spirit, I found these amazing vintage valentines.

So cute.

Now go give someone you love a valentine and ask them to be yours!

iz

Commercials

Being that I work at an advertising agency, I'm always excited by a commercial that I find to be inspiring, well done, thoughtful and full of artistry. I want to share with you a few of my favorites lately.

What do you think?

What's your favorite commercial lately?

iz

PS I Love You

Every winter my Grandparent's travel to Palm Springs, CA where the LA Nelson's have the most amazing mid-century modern home. I have so many fond childhood memories of our visits to PS and today I am wishing I were there. I've already told Bob that we are going next winter.

If you have never been, PS is this little retreat made up of desert heat, lime trees, mid century architecture, mountains, bright colors and classic cars. It's some of the best resale shopping I've EVER done. So today, I am missing Palm Springs.

I would wear these.

PS I Love You.

iz

Ninth & Vine

I am so excited to share with you a video of my manfriend, Bob Mervak,
playing piano and singing behind the scenes on the set of
The Ides of March. 

This video was shot by Ryan Gosling on set at Cliff Bells in Detroit. 

Marisa Tomei, Philip Seymour Hoffman and George Clooney all make appearances.

Ninth and Vine from Ryan Gosling on Vimeo.

I'm so proud of Bob and it's so cool to see what his experience was like.

Really an experience of a life time.

Here's to many more!

iz

cups!

So I have this thing for cute and clever glasses, mugs, tumblers, ect. I don't know why these little dishes bring me so much joy, they just do! Check out some of my latest and greatest finds that I really want in my cabinet!!!

How adorable and clever is this!?
Her undies are on the spoon!

These would look so pretty on an antique mini bar cart.

and of course the coveted Pantone mugs.
love.

iz

Reconnect

Last night, Bob and I drove to Ann Arbor to grab dinner with a good girl friend of mine from college, Bridget. We haven't seen each other in quite some time. Bridget recently moved to Boston to pursue her passion of becoming a pastry chef. I'm so proud of her for taking a risk and going for what truly makes her happy, conventional or not. It was great to see you Bridge! Thanks for the inspiration.

How gorgeous is her shaved head?!

Bob is obsessed with Jerusalem Garden's falafel sandwich.
I must agree, it is one of the best I've ever had.

Look, Bridget is posing with the giant!
I look HUGE next to her!

iz

Weekend Update

This weekend was filled with lovely things. Friday night Bob played at Cliff Bells downtown. So many friends and supporters came out for a classy evening, some classy cocktails and I got to sit in on a few classy tunes! Saturday was Bob's Brother Dan and Sister in Law Amy's baby shower! I went early to help set up, it was my first baby shower as an adult and I have to say, it was nice! Later that evening we took them to dinner at Bastone in Royal Oak (great house brews) as a thank you to Amy for designing Bob's webstite, www.bobmervak.com.

We did play one game, and it was so hard! I could only guess four.

Mom at the shower.

ps- it's a girl!

The fun continued as Sunday was my Dad's 55th Birthday! Ceil came into town to help celebrate. Dad decided he wanted Thanksgiving dinner so we cooked a 16 lbs. turkey, mashed potatos, stuffing and asparagus. It was really nice to be all together. Happy Birthday Pops! I love you!

Dad at 5.

Dad at 55.

iz

Suit Goal

I've had my eye on this JCrew swim suit for two seasons now and I'm determined to own it one day. Each year they come out with different color variations. Last year, I wanted the smokey grey/blue option but this year, Ancient Fig has me completely enamored. How amazing is this color?! Also, because it's tulle I would also wear it as a top in the summer, perhaps with a nice vintage patterned A-line skirt and some heels, no one would even know it was a bathing suite. I'll be pinching my pennies this spring for my official 2012 bathing suit goal.

If you'd like to donate, let me know ;)

iz

Lust of the Day

How killer are these Manolos!?! Guess what?! They are mine!!! I just bought these beyond fab lime green suede Manolo Blahnik pumps with bows on top. Today, I am a happy gal. And what makes me even happier is that I paid only $100. Can you believe that? They are mildly worn, but who cares, they are gorgeous Manolos. You must check out this website, Rice and Beans Vintage. They sell vintage and used designer pieces for totally reasonable prices.

Also, I'm feeling very inspired by this look and can't wait to...

 Try something similar this spring!

Have a fab weekend.

iz

Somebody That I Used to Know

Well, I may be the last person in the world to fall head over heels for this song by Gotye, an Australian musician, featuring Kimbra. The song is so beautifully written, with the theme being something we can all relate to whether with a relationship or a friend and Gotye's voice is incredible. He has a similar tone and quality to Sting. I love hearing a strong male voice that isn't Daughtry or Justin Beiber. Gotye is a true talent. And the video is quite impressive not only in technique and patience but how directly it relates to the theme of the song.

As one of my girlfriends said when I showed it to her...

I love his mouth!

Well, that is one of many things I now love about Gotye.

iz

kids. are. so. smart

I love this video. This little girl has it so spot on.

iz

January Photo Challenge, Part III

Here is the next bunch of photos from the January Photo Challenge I joined on Instagram. It's been somewhat difficult to keep up with but I'm determined to finish, even if it's now February!

1.13.12
IN YOUR BAG

1.14.12
SOMETHING YOU'RE READING

1.15.12
HAPPINESS

1.16.12
MORNING



1.17.12
WATER



1.18.12
SOMETHING YOU BOUGHT

1.19.12
SWEET

1.20.12
SOMEONE YOU LOVE

IZ