clippings | fast friends

 fast friends. These are the friendships that exist in another realm. They are the friends that upon first meeting an instant connection is sparked. A bond that many times can't be explained.

Those are the friendships that bring much joy to both people involved because the relationship feels effortless and nurturing on a soul level.

I have been blessed with a friend that I lovingly refer to as a "soul sister." She was a fast friend many, many years ago. We connected on a soul level and the rest was history.

Cherish your fast friends today. They really know you.
EMILY


This image was compiled from a vintage postcard and Lucky magazine cuttings.

snapshots | miss you

Emily and I are notorious for camping out at Starbucks for hours... buying multiple drinks and working, a.k.a. chatting, as the shifts change and the mood swings from doubleshot to decaf. We have spent countless days taking up residence at one of the tables, yes we are those annoying space hoarders, laughing louder than the welcomed volume and shazam-ing all the cool coffeehouse tunes. Every time we have a Starbs date, as we call it, we grow closer as friends. This blog was actually a brainchild of one of these such dates, which only strengthens our affection for them.

I've been traveling for work a lot lately and have found myself stopping in at various locations, grabbing coffee and missing my Emily. This picture, from one of our many Starbs dates, is helping to ease some of that separation anxiety.

Sending lots of BFF love to my dear friend and to you and yours.

Allie

discoveries | backpacking v.3

To really enjoy a backpacking trip you must select the right people to take on the challenge with. It is a worthwhile adventure no matter who is on board. However, with close friends the experience is all the more rich.

Everyone knows each other including the infamous faces of a backpacker: exhausted, exhilarated, the night train face, history overload face, I need gelato face... and they go on from there. For friends, these faces have already been shared in some context way before catching the flight across the Atlantic. So, when these faces appear on the trip they are treated as welcomed guests.

One portion of the Europe trip had the above range of faces. After leaving Paris we took a train to Belgium. We simply wanted the chocolate and we got it, plenty of it. But we were also taking on our 3rd week of backpacking. We were hitting the first wall of little sleep and tired feet.

This 3 day adventure in Belgium included cycling around the cobblestone streets, tasting the famed Belgian waffles and staying up late eating grocery store snacks in our hostel (due to only enjoying the waffles in Belgium).  That's okay.

We enjoyed the time talking about life, love and the pursuit of happiness many worlds away. It was a treat to have this group together and experience a new culture for the first time together.

Let's plan a return trip, friends.
EMILY

foundations | set apart

As you get older, you start to realize the impact that place has had and continues to have on your life. Your hometown starts to change from a place you're trying to outgrow to a place that you save all your pennies to visit, even if it's just for a weekend. You start to seek out special places to call your own, places that allow you to escape from the roar of the city or expose you to the hustle and bustle. You find yourself avoiding the restaurant that you and your last heartbreak used to frequent like the plague. Why do places have such an incredible impact on us? Perhaps it's because place acts as a capsule for our memories, a chest that, when cracked, reveals the gems of time, a wardrobe that opens its doors to the foreign land of our past.

Place has the ability to invoke joy, sorrow, laughter and uncertainty simply by existing. It allows us to experience our memories by providing a physical context within which those memories can be relived. The following statements are responses from two of my dear friends concerning this idea.

Think about your most vivid memory... what is the relationship between that event and the place that it occurred?

One of my most heart wrenching memories would be the Sunday my dad left. He and my mother were just holding hands and singing in church, we came home and ate lunch, then he came into the living room with a bag in his hand and no wedding ring on, my mom was crying and holding onto his feet. I simply asked, "Dad where are you going?" and he replied, "I'm leaving." Then I didn't see him for three months. It was as if the wind was knocked out of me and my heart was ripped out. It blindsided me.

Is there a place that always invokes a specific memory when you see a picture of it or revisit it?
My family beach house in St. Simons. I have so many memories with my wonderful family at this house. My mom was actually brought home from the hospital to that house, so it has been in the family for years. I was extremely close to my grandparents and have amazing memories with them from that island. I have not revisited the island since I lost them both this year.

Are there certain places you avoid because you associate them with negative memories?

It took me a month, and going with someone else, before I went to the grocery store that my ex-boyfriend and I used to go to. I don't go to that section of town nearly as often anymore, partly because I don't want to run into him and partly because it makes me sad that I can't walk in the evenings down those streets with him anymore. However, as much as I avoid those spots, I don't regret having those memories and experiences. It can just be painful to relive them when I feel like I've lost sharing it with someone that I loved. I've learned though, that we don't always have to avoid those spots. I hate this answer as much now as I did last year when others told me, but time and having new experiences with others in the same places help. Another interesting thought is that I actually avoid some places that have wonderful memories. For example, I've only drove past my college apartment complex twice since I moved out. The first time I cried, the second I was getting furniture. I really don't like to go there because again, it reminds me of what I don't have anymore even though the memories are wonderful!

Where do you go when you want to reminisce or think about the past?

I feel energized when I'm standing at the ocean with sand between my toes watching the waves roll in. I think one of my most favorite places in the world is Clarke Beach because of the beauty and memories I have there starting such a long time ago. It's like being in a different world. It doesn't matter who I'm there with, either friends, my mom, or even by myself, I always feel like I escape, can stand in front of vastness of God's creation and rest. I can't think of a time I've ever left the beach feeling stressed or actually wanted to leave. In fact, lately I've felt so drained by work and constantly being in a new place that yesterday I started tearing up at my desk at the thought of going to the ocean.

These places - a living room, a grocery store, a family vacation spot and the edge of the ocean - continue to have an impact on these women's lives because of the memories that were made there. It is because of this that these places will forever be set apart in their stories.

What are the places that you have set apart?

Allie

lists | places of joy

What about those places where you can clearly remember joy in your life... those perfect moments of overflowing joy. Here are five that I am thankful to have experienced.

having a dozen Apalachicola oysters on the tailgate of Daddy's truck.

taking in the Grecian landscape in Santorini.

pulling the car over on a drive home to take in the view.

watching my team beat our rivals on Thanksgiving weekend.

 sharing in a soul sister and best friend's wedding.

EMILY

snapshots | work[place]

As #workinggirlproblems trends on Twitter isn't it nice to know you and I are among a large group of young people having similar working experiences. All feeling a range of emotions and questions in our minds and dreams.

Across the world tonight we are each looking at Outlook calendars for the week, scheduling after work plans and reading the newest innovation & design book. With effort to make our workplaces fit a bit more fluidly with who we are and what our lives have become. In a sense, to create sense of home at our workplaces.

A home for our thoughts, ambitions, responsibility, loyalty and care. Our office cubicles full of photos, college memories and inspirational quotes are the homes for all of the above. For 40 hours a week.

What are you doing to make your work space an extension of you and your home? Is it a place where ideas are fostered? A place where you can get your thoughts together and reapply lip gloss for your next meeting? A haven for friends to stop by when they're struggling with the day?

Learning the ropes in a corporate environment has shown me the need for your desk to become a version of your home. You need a place to get work done, listen to your favorite Pandora station and craft those award-winning emails that really influence work. 

Lots of love to the working girls tonight,
EMILY

clippings | the wanderer

Every aspect of our lives is contained by and held within the context of place. As we grow, we constantly experience the push and pull between defining our place and being defined by where we are placed. I think that as we wander through the push and pull, we eventually find our place.

For all the wanderers out there, you're not alone.

Allie

The image above was created with excerpts from Nylon magazine.

discoveries | backpacking v.2

Welcome to backpacking discoveries part two and to what is arguably one of the most beautiful cities in the world, Paris. I feel inclined to refer to this amazing place as the ever gorgeous French women do in a manner that seems to roll off the tongue incredibly effortlessly, Pariiiii. Ok now that that's out of my system...

We spent three days exploring Paris and saw some of the most glamorous, enchanting sites that I have ever seen. Whatever you do, you absolutely cannot miss seeing the Eiffel tower light up at night. Word to the wise - if you're trying to blend in you may want to avoid sprinting towards the twinkling lights while screaming out in sheer excitement as your friends do the same - that's a dead giveaway for crazy American girls, not that we did that or anything.

Strolling through the Rue Cler and buying food for a picnic, taking a day trip to Versailles, eating French bread, sitting by the plazas and going on walking tours are some activities to fill your time in this beautiful city. Don't forget to drink as much wine as you can, they say it's the secret to that glowing French complexion. Also, seeing the Mona Lisa is an experience that will change you forever. Read about our reactions to seeing the most mysterious woman ever painted here.

J'adore Pariiiii! Alright so maybe I'll never get it out of my system but a bit of Parisian flare never hurt anyone, right?!

Allie

stylings | about Allie

As a warning, this post comes along with a lot of bragging and best friend love for Allie.

This is a brief outline of Allie's style, coming from the girl who is a co-MVP in shopping, discussing new issues of People Style Watch, and sharing scarves and tees into infinity.

Allie's style is a mix of classic pieces and art. One of her true passions is the artistic mind and spirit. She truly exudes this in what she wears, her jewelry and even the decor in her little room across the hall.

She loves the color teal and uses it to cheer up a classic black dress so perfectly. Whether it's in a simple pair of earrings, or even a chunky knitted hat. Allie also is known for putting things together that on the surface would seemingly be a mismatch. However, the way she artfully includes them is brilliant and encourages her roommates to do the same thing. Helping to increase our art and style exponentially. For that we love her.

She is simplistic in her hair and makeup. Always getting ready first in the group because her hair has the perfect curl and her skin is radiant. She loves Bare Escentuals makeup and Bumble &Bumble Surf Spray.

Have a fabulous, stylish weekend friends.
EMILY

snapshots | perfect beach

It's not often that you find the perfect beach. I know from day trips in college to Alligator Point (Florida State grads can relate) there is a lot to be desired when searching for the perfect beach. One without seaweed everywhere, one with shallow enough water to swim - one with deep enough water to have that entrancing teal color, one with space enough to have your own space yet, busy enough to have an element of "we are all beaching it and getting Vitamin D!!" And ultimately one that has enough sun and sand to fulfill that longing desire that we Florida girls have to be ocean side.

Well, friends, I think I've found that beach. Right along Sanibel and Captiva Islands is the treasure, off the coast of Ft. Myers, Florida. There is nothing I did not like about this place on the map.

The beach was perfect. Shells galore, pelicans playing in the breeze, the perfect temperature of the sun, a hammock nearby, and a salt water pool. Who's going on the next trip? I promise there are reasonable flights from most major airports. Don't hold me to that promise, but I still want us all to be on the next one-way flight.

Cheers to summertime weather a bit early!
EMILY

discoveries | backpacking v.1

Alright, we are about to launch the first post in a til' summer-series of posts on backpacking Europe. It is going to be a fun journey with some tips that will help you prepare for a trip or add to your bucket lists.

Allie and I had the privilege to travel through seven countries after graduating college and experienced a wonder-filled adventure. We charted across Europe with several friends, 32 lb. packs, jars of peanut butter, and Allie's Polaroid camera. Please read below to get a few tips on our first destination... London, England.

London is much like New York City. There is an incredible amount of things to see: historical sights, museums, people-watching, royal haunts and jewels abound. So, like New York City, you must be strategic in choosing what to see in the few days in the city. A key part to this trip was to not get overwhelmed with the amount of things to do and really take in what we were able to see.

I can recommend a few must-sees in London: Tower of London and Tower Bridge, Buckingham Palace, The Crown Jewels, British Museum, Notting Hill, and the Portobello Market.

These places are clearly London. They tell stories of the past and bring you street side to see culture and day-to-day. 

Please feel free to email Allie or I with any additional questions you may have on the topic over the next weeks. We are an open book and want to help spread adventure to every reader. Whether that is through hostel recommendations, places to see, places to eat, or how much really fits in a pack. Also, please visit our blog from the trip here. These posts were written from random internet cafes and waned as we got further away from affordable internet (aka Italy). 

Enjoy the weekend, friends.
EMILY

lists | real talk

I often find that the greatest inspiration lies in reality. It is astonishing to think about how many stories are being told in real life through the events that occur, the words that are spoken and the memories that are made in all the days lived all over the world. Real stories of real people... people with problems, people on journeys, people living their dreams and people struggling to figure out their lives... these are the stories that fuel the explorer's imagination and weave the fabric of adventure.

Every story, whether it chronicles great success or brings attention to the small annoyances that drive us all crazy, is worth telling. These documentaries/mini-docs tell some of my favorite stories.

"I don't have to prove anything to anyone, I only have to follow my heart."

"...And me, stuck in the traffic."

"We come from such a humble beginning."

"To be inspired in your work is probably the most important thing... to be surrounded by people and places that make you want to work creatively and do your best is really the essence of what everyone is searching for in their jobs and careers."

"The fear of the unknown is the greatest fear of all... but we just went for it."

Now let's all go buy video cameras and become our own paparazzi... I mean producers.

Allie

snapshots | i would like to...

After reading Emily's words yesterday, I was inspired to think about how to cultivate an adventurous spirit when so often the spirit of life seems to be dominated by the ordinary, the routine, the 'I have to.' Then I stumbled upon a piece of paper that I wrote over a year ago during a great conversation with some friends in which we were talking about our dreams. After chatting for a few hours, we all challenged each other to choose five things that we would like to do in our lives and write them down.

You may be thinking this sounds simple but the challenge lies in the fact that it is not intended to be a to-do list of goals or endeavors to accomplish. It's more about pondering what you truly enjoy, what makes you feel alive and what, if you're honest with yourself, you wonder will ever happen.

You may get the chance to experience some of your likes and you may not... but the point is to simply acknowledge them. This acknowledgment then frees you to dream about what is close to your heart.

What would you like to do?

Allie

clippings | most likely to adventure

Senior year we all waited for the afternoon announcements to share who had won which Senior Favorite. The categories seem quite shallow looking back to six years ago. But, sitting in that small desk with 30 other students waiting for the bell to ring for dismissal these categories seemed to be defining.

I won "Most Friendly" and of course reacted with a smile and shrug of the shoulders. I was happy that my classmates thought that of me. I liked that better than "Most Likely to Succeed." Because, as I've learned, no one can define success and success is much different once the bills have your name printed on them.

Now I wonder why there wasn't a "Most Likely to Change the World," "Most Likely to Explore," "Most Likely to Challenge the Status Quo" senior favorite? My mind wants to analyze what would have helped to make us all a bit more discovery-oriented and less of the typical high school grad. It is the little things that can really cultivate the adventurous spirit in each of us.

Let's all commit to bringing that spirit to the next generation in any way we can, with determination. Whether it's in the work you're influencing, children you're teaching, or conversations you're having over lunch. Let's be the voice of exploration.


EMILY

stylings | international interior

The first year after I graduated college, it felt like I got hit by a truck when I realized Spring Break was a thing of the past. Unfortunately, the career standard one to two week vacation doesn't easily lend itself to gallivanting across the world. How then should the working girl entertain a sense of adventure amidst the nine to five? My answer might seem quirky but it does help to cure a bit of wanderlust, while still sparking interest for using that vacation time to the fullest. One word, globes.

Yes, globes. Buy a few and place them strategically throughout your home. Put one at your desk, on your bookshelf, by the fireplace, at the kitchen table and any other place that you frequent. They can function as charming accessories, bold statement pieces and inspiration to explore beyond your walls. Plus, if you're ever having trouble deciding where to go on your next adventure, simply take a spin and see which country you land on.

Look for interesting color schemes and differing sizes to fit certain rooms or areas. Funky looks, including antique, nouveau, old world and classroom style, can all be mixed and matched to avoid making your house look like a travel agency. Below are some ideas of ways to incorporate a globe in any room.

Happy travels, both inside and outside your home!

Allie

Images via Pinterest - 1, 2, 3, 4 & 5.

snapshots | converge

You know those moments where you realize the reason webs were weaved months and years ago in friendships? There are those defining moments when you are made fully aware of the value of people and relationships in your life. Not only is the value made clear but the why behind your friendship is gently unfolded and partially revealed. Don't we all want to know the why in everything? That is undoubtedly our inquiring human nature.

One of these moments happened to me last weekend on a visit to Allie's hometown in Florida. Although, it's certainly not the first time I have seen "reason" for this friendship it was an especially noticed moment.

It was a weekend to laugh, hysterically laugh, ask hard questions, cry, cry some more, remind ourselves of the fibers in which we are made, focus on our purpose in life, and simply be for one another. It was a weekend that was also designed months and years ago to be woven into our stories.

Have you taken note of those moments in your life when people and place converged and you could easily pinpoint the why hanging in the midst? The moment you are living in and the people you are living it with.


EMILY