there's so much beauty it could make you cry.

i've been meaning to post an entry, or atleast figure out how to come up with words to describe how i'm feeling right now. tonight is my first night alone in my new place in Savannah and my mom just left to stay at her hotel. my three roommates haven't arrived yet so i've been able to slowly but surely get all of my things moved in & my room decorated without being in anyone's way. it's been perfect. The city is just as wonderful as I remembered it.

My room is everything I could have ever dreamed of. My bedding, the wall color, the molding, the high ceilings & old wooden floors, beautiful decorative pieces I found & so much more. The entire apartment is amazing. My neighborhood is great and pretty close to everything I need to be close to. Shit, I even placed my bed next to my window just like I always wanted as a little girl (um, because Judy Funnie from Doug had her's that way. so ya know...)Never in 1,000 years did I think I'd really actually reach this point right now and this adventure is just beginning. I'm so thankful that my parents helped me out and supported me so much so I could live here. I keep saying to myself "How did I get here?", but not in a frantic Talking Heads kind of way but in a proud way.

As a little girl, I had four older siblings who were all of college age/older with their own places & cities to show off when I would come visit. At a young age, I'd stay with my brother in Philly and he'd take me to the coolest city spots (well, in my eyes they were. anything he shows me is always pretty cool and interesting every single time.) and when I'd stay with my sisters in NYC they'd be sure to take me to their favorite city spots.

They all exposed me to their own little worlds and I would literally dream of having that one day. I'm not sure they even know this but those weekends when I'd stay with them as a little kid or an awkward pre-teen had a huuuge part in shaping me as a person. I wanted to be like them for many reasons but also to be able to take visitors around and live in a great city with my own place, etc. I feel like I can finally do that now. This magical city is now my home away from home, and not some home away from home where the only thing to do when your family visits is to go to dinner at Red Robin and a trip to Target. I feel like I've grown up. I feel like my dreams are coming true.

I'm in the midst of a love affair with this town & I hope it lasts fooorevvvver. The biggest crush. I'm going to be like one of these people, just watch. Okay, i'm done.

after spending about 2 hours online searching for posters, i'm now the proud owners of these two babez. i love you paypal, you make everything so much easier. i love you ebay, and i love you internet. i've been wanting a Replacements poster for so long and never really liked any, and this one is just simple. There was a Wilco one that I really loved and have been searching for it but nothing worked out, so that was runner up.

they should arrive just in time for me to start unpacking/decorating my room. YES!

The weather the past three days has been gloomy, cloudy and cozy. I wish that my last day here would be beautiful so I can drive through my favorite spots/roads and by the ocean to say goodbye with the sun shining and the windows down. :( that's all i want. I'm still going to do it anyway. Rain won't stop me from saying goodbye to my good ol' New Jersey.

Today so far has been good, watching Ted Kennedy coverage on CNN for the past 24 hours, then a trip to Anthropologie where I found some great sale items, now i'm in my office one last time reading some blogs & fixing up some last minute things. It's so cool to go into stores & look at home decor items and know that I have a house now to shop for. That's fucking insane. I can't wait to make that place my own little home.

I cannot stop listening to the band Deerhunter. Their sound has just been perfect for the past couple of days, with the weather & my mindset. Listen to the song above!

crushes

The Rachel Zoe Project on Bravo is one of my favorite guilty pleasures. Well, I don't really feel guilty about it so I guess it's just a pleasure. Rachel seems like a sweetheart and of course is well dressed. She's a fan of huge, gaudy statement pieces like I am. Flowy 70's inspired dresses and tops, huge bags & huge sunglasses. I really admire her. She basically made a million dollar career out of playing dress up, which sounds like I'm underestimating her job but i'm not. I'd love that job. Obviously, it's reality tv so some of it is a little "oh, come on" staged but for the most part, I like it.

Her assistants' Brad & Taylor's styles are so gooood. Brad is so all American 'prep' with all of his Ralph Lauren suits & plaids, perfect hair and nerd glasses. "I Die" (sorry, world.) Taylor is the biggest fucking bitch but I don't care. Every outfit of hers is my dream, and her hair is sick. They're my favorite part of the show. I have not seen the first episode of the new season yet though. I wish it was on now but NO it's all about ~*Tyra's~* Next Top Model. That will never end. Yuck.

byeyallmovingtojawja SALE

well, it's that time. Two boxes filled with a ton of my things have been Fed-Ex'ed off to my new home & i will follow it on Sunday morning (with two suitcases). I cannot even picture what my life is going to be like down there which is such a good sign. When I can't even picture it, it's usually better. It hardly makes sense but for some reason it always has worked for me. The less I fantasize about certain things and just wait for it to naturally happen, it winds up being great.

Regardless of what my over-acting brain is seeing, I can say that I have the biggest butterflies in my stomach & i am so excited. It's finally happening. It's been one whole year of just wanting this so bad and now it's happening. I can stop answering the "So are you excited for Savannah?" questions and start answering the "So how is Savannah?" questions.

With all of that said, of course I'm sad to leave. I've already started to say my goodbyes and it's hard. It's hard to realize that there's a good chance I won't see my friends/town/home/some of my family until Christmas. That's weird. The biggest plus is that I'm going to be able to just literally start a 'new life', more like a new chapter, where no one knows me. They can get to know me or meet me without knowing any embarrassing high school or middle school perceptions of me (hello Monmouth county), or whatever else. I can just be myself and start on a clean slate.

Anyway, i'm sitting in my office which I will miss like crazy, and I've been going through all of my 'inventory' for the etsy shop. If you're my friend on Twitter & a fan of the eighty8 facebook page, you'll know the announcement already but here it is again:

*email me at Eighty8Designs@Gmail.Com if you've had your eye on anything in the shop & I'll tell you the sale price. I've reduced many of the prices but I need you to message me first to find it out & also I will take off any shipping prices.

So in other words: NEW LOW PRICES & NO SHIPPING.

Into it? I hope so! Help me get 'rid' of my merch before I leeeave!

FROM NOW UNTIL SATURDAY AUGUST 29TH

bottle up & explode over and over.

I don't know what is with me but I guess I'm in a 90's romance Ethan Hawke point in my life. Is that even a legitimate excuse for any type of point in one's life? For some reason, I think the answer is yes. It is. The only thing left for me to see is Reality Bites which I've meaning to watch for such a long time. That's next on the invisible Ethan Hawke 90's romance movie list I have going in my brain. I guess that list is better to have than the, hm let's see...Nathan Lane 90's romance list, right? So I guess I'm not totally pathetic.

Tonight I finally watched, from start to finish, the movie Great Expectations. Based off the novel by Charles Dickens, about a boy named Finn falling in love with a girl Estella when they were children, only to see that throughout their lives the issue of wealth & social status lurks in the shadows making their love impossible. There is so much more to the tale and the movie is shot brilliantly. The creepy yet stunning overgrown gardens, the costume design, the crumbling yet ornate mansion belonging to Estella's old crazy aunt, the depressing rainy streets of New York, the soundtrack and the incredibly perfect Central Park in the fall. I could go on and on.

photo credit for the second photo..

love at first sight on a moving train, wandering around an ancient city getting to know a complete stranger, falling in love minute by minute. what living & breathing human being wouldn't be into that idea? Before Sunrise & Before Sunrise tell the beautiful tale of love at the right place but the wrong time.

Filmed in 1995, Before Sunrise sets the scene and then ten years later Before Sunrise answers some questions but ties it all up wonderfully. Julie Delpy is so effortlessly chic, intelligent and cool. Ethan Hawke does a wonderful job portraying a typical 20 something American who finds himself completely in love with Delpy's character. Please watch it.

Sometimes the entire idea of Scarlett Johansson makes me so mad. On the surface, I want to enjoy her. She has an interesting look, a 'strong attitude', nice style..the ultimate celebrity, glamorous, curvy package wrapped up in a fucking bow, ya know? Then the movies hit the screen. Oh, the movies. Let's face it, girl cannot act. She just relies on her pout and her boobs to do all of the talking. It's almost painful how bad she is at acting. Of course I enjoyed Lost in Translation and thought she did alright in it but she was supposed to be sad, naive and lost. How hard is that?

Then there was that whole Tom Waits' cover disaster which made me cringe. I'm not a Tom Waits fan either. So, when I read that she paired up with Pete Yorn, I felt weird. I love Pete Yorn. I gave it a listen, and I really really really love it. Her voice is good? I found the song on a blog that had millions of negative comments about how her voice is awful but I disagree. This song is great. Listen:

Relator - Pete Yorn & Scarlett Johansson

how to (maybe) wear it part deux

the last "how to (maybe) wear it" post got some good feedback so I decided to do another one. these four items can be found at the shop and are currently very available! Thanks for looking & I hope that these ideas help make the necklaces come alive a bit more through your computer screen.

(All of the outfits and accessories that were 'styled' to match the necklaces can be found at ShopBop)

oh noooo ooo oooohhhh

sooo into these two songs. give them a listen.

Actual minutes ago, I came across these amazing pillows from the great etsy shop Petit Coterie. I'm posting this mainly to remind myself to order a couple of these once i'm settled in Savannah. How perfect are they? Made from burlap with beautiful French detailing. All of the French writing can literally say "I'm a disgusting piece of trash" and I would be into it. Check them out!

"turn off the light 'cause it's night on the sun"

I've been searching online (mostly on Etsy & InSound) for band posters that aren't the typical reproduced, generic performance photo or album cover. Don't get me wrong, if I love a band, I will pretty much support them no matter what their posters look like but I'm a huge fan of poster art like the ones listed above. Mostly all of these are for different concerts in many different areas and artists design the prints using the most beautiful, vibrant colors and unique composition.

I appreciate art as decor but if I had it my way, I'd decorate my home with all music related art posters/prints, framed album covers mixed in with personal pieces like old photographs, post cards, and different mementos from my life. That's what I enjoy the most when I walk into people's houses or when I read different decorating magazines/websites. I just love when you can walk into a room and know the person's favorite band, movie or memory by just looking around.

generic floral or tropical already made cheesy framed prints from bed, bath & beyond? fuck that. use some creativity! some people hate doing that though.

poster credits- 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.

"Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans"

Yesterday morning my Mom and I drove into New York City to spend the night there and see some exhibits. First, we went downtown for the John Lennon Exhibit at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Annex which was amazing. In order to get to the actual Lennon exhibit, you have to walk through the entire rock & roll history part which was so great. Tons of history on all kinds of artists from Muddy Waters to Janis Joplin, Run DMC, Patti Smith, Sex Pistols, even Arcade Fire and the Black Keys. If you love music, I'd recommend just going to see what it's all about.


I wasn't really expecting to see all of it but I'm glad that's how it all worked out. It all flowed perfectly together with the Lennon dedication right at the very end which was completely beautiful and heartbreaking. I had to stop myself from crying a couple of times. If you're a Beatles/Lennon fan, please go see it if you're in town. You must. It's a pretty small room filled with tons of personal items, home movies and other wonderful things that was a perfect mix of happiness and tragedy.

It just constantly breaks my heart that this person was taken away from us. I wasn't even alive when he was murdered but his life still affects me and so many other people. I try so hard to even think about someone in the spotlight right now that comes close to being like John Lennon and no one comes to mind. A true, talented musician with powerful thoughts but yet such a down to earth heart & soul. WHO the HELL is like that with as much fame and fortune that Lennon had. I hate being 'that guy' who talks about how everyones shot to shit nowadays but sometimes it's true. However, people (especially celebrities) were pretty rotten back then also, I think it was just that John Lennon was extra special.


Today after waking up & walking around, we wandered over to the Richard Avedon Fashion exhibit at the International Center of Photography. It was so great. His photography is breathtaking and my personal favorites were the ones taken in 1950's Paris.

Black and white photography is my favorite so each and every photo on display really moved me. The beautiful outfits the women (and men) were wearing acted as art inside art. The older ones were my favorites but so were the ones starring the 90's "Supermodels" like Kate Moss, Gia, Stephanie Seymour and Linda Evangalista. This is a must-see for anyone who loves fashion and photography.

rachel roy fall 2009

Rachel Roy's designs are always completely beautiful, feminine with a bit of an edge and structure. Rachel, herself, is always dressed impeccably. Married to former business partner of Jay-Z, hip hop mogul Damon Dash, she's both a wife/mother and innovative, creative businesswoman.

I love how she uses trendy ideas like the cut-out dresses, the hard edged 80's silhouettes, and corset tops with menswear inspired trousers but still remains so classic. Women could wear her designs today, ten years ago, 50 years ago and 50 years from now. So timeless, with just a bit of a rough side peeking through.

In other news, tonight is my last drawing class & the official end to my summer classes in general. I'm a nervous wreck worrying about presenting my huge final drawing which I'm not so happy with. All I know is that this was my first drawing class ever and I learned a lot, tried my best and hope that it shows. I don't know why I expect to perfect everything after only a 5 week class. :(