Park ya heart at Union Park

----------------
sweet spring is your

time is my time is our

time for springtime is lovetime

and viva sweet love

e.e. cummings
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So my little park, Union Park is waking up from it's New England hibernation. And, let me tell you, I couldn't be happier. The fountains have been turned back on and this year's flowers have been planted and are joining the perennials. Nothing is quite as relaxing is sitting on my stoop or up in my apartment with the windows open, listening to the sound of the fountains. One of my most favorite New England things. 

The only issue with Union Park is that you can't get it in. Enter one giant collective waaaah waah here. Well, technically, I lied. You can enter the park a few times a year. And it's actually pretty great when you can. The neighborhood association throws concertes four times a year where you can bring a blanket, wine and snacks and listen to music in the park. Pretty stellar, indeed, right? 

But you know what? A little rebel in me is thinking that four times a year is not enough. Yesterday morning, I saw a couple had jumped the fence and were laying on a blanket, relaxing in the sun. It looked awesome. So if you can't find me and my Instagram feed is blowing up with photos of grass 'n fountains 'n flower 'n sunshine, you'll know where to find me. Breaking the rules, soaking up goodness right in the middle of my own little park. 

-xo-

eb

Twin Donuts! The noms!

Growing up in the Butner home, weekends meant a couple of things: one you would be spending time outdoors running around doing something and two, donuts would be consumed.

The art of the donut (or donnies as my dad calls them) is something to be studied. Since I've moved to Boston and away from Bob's donuts, I've felt hole in my heart (see what I did there?). Bob's on Polk Street is open 24 hours. They make sure a fresh round of donuts is available right at 2am. Hot out of the fryer. Smart folks at Bob's. Known for their apple fritters, it is my humble donut opinion that You. Just. Can't. Go. Wrong. At. Bob's.

So, finding myself in Boston with a donut hole in my heart, I've been doing research on where to find the best local fried dough. And considering that if you yelp donuts in Boston, you're thrown back pages and pages of reviews on Dunkin' Donuts, I needed to do some digging to find a real mom 'n pop place. This article on Boston's independent donuts shops helped a lot. If anything, created a checklist for me (and a sure increase in trips to the gym - ugh - I digress).

Enter Twin Donuts. Or twin donuts as you can see from the awesome and stellar neon sign that acts as the pearl gate to donut goodness. A bike ride away in Allston, this place is legit. Old School like nobody's business. No frills here, just honest to goodness calories and, well, goodness. You can grab a donut from the counter, or sit down to be served standard breakfast fare like egg combos, brekkie sandwiches, flap jacks and omelets. The healthiest thing on this menu must have been the... errr... let me get back to you on that.

On to the donuts. Since I'm in Boston, I took a chance to snag the last Boston Creme (and this was only at 9:45am) and a Honey Glazed. Now where I come from (the West, remember here, people), this Honey Glazed thing was new to me. I guess as the donut traveled West, we dropped the Honey and called it just plain Glazed. Regardless, both donnies stood up to the test. I left satisfied and charmed.

So, twin donuts, thanks for filling that donut hole in my heart. See ya again real soon.

-xo-

eb

(And speaking of indy donut shops, if you ever find yourself in Sisters, Oregon get thyself to Sisters Bakery - no joke, one of the best donuts I've ever had in my life. Perfect for Bachelor skiing mornings.)

Calligraphy Time for Bowtied Paper

On the side (and in all my spare time) I create custom wedding invitations under my side company, Bowtied Paper. While I've worked with a number of calligraphers in the past for invitations, I've always wanted to learn to master the art of calligraphy myself. 

So last week, I headed down to Boston Calligraphy where Liz Roessler teaches her "Lettering by Liz" course. You learn a little bit of history, the basics of how to hold the pen and posture, the tools and then are given two hours of blissful time to create and play. It was such a welcomed time to get away from creating on the computer. 

I'll be working on refining my craft so Bowtied Paper can reap all glories. 

If you're in Boston, you can take wonderful Liz's classes at her charming space in the North End. See her updated schedule here. 

Happy creating!

-xo-

eb

One of my favorite mottos, I saw this on a locket in NYC two years ago.

It's stuck with my ever since. Life is short and if you're not taking chances, you're not living.

I love naughty words in calligraphy. Definitely be prepared to see more :)

My life has been took a few major turns lately. Pretty big, life-changing turns. 

In these tough seas, I'm constantly remembering this...

Boston Walkabout

Today was one of those, "get out of the house and get movin'" type of days. Partly because of spring fever, but mostly because I had construction going on in my apartment. And, much to my weekend dismay, unlike San Francisco (which has a law that makes it illegal for residential construction to start before 9am), the Irish lads working on my place like to show up around 7:15am. Ouch, says the weekend sleeping in gods.

OK! So out and about we go. A total of 9 miles walked from one side of the city to the other. A bit windy, but all in all, good to feel the sunshine. With the goal of the Bunker Hill Monument in mind, a friend and I meandered across the Mass Ave bridge, along the river taking in the water sports, all the way to Charlestown. A really charming little neighborhood, with it's traditional New England clapboard houses. Two hundred and ninety four steps later, and we were at the top of the Monument.

A post-climb stop at Massachusetts oldest tavern, the Warren Tavern (we're talking 1780 here, people) for an Allagash or two was much needed. We passed on the food, as the standard bar fare looked, well, fairly standard. It was then off to the Navy Yard, the North End (new favorite dive bar there would be the humble and oh-so-Boston Corner Cafe - lots of accents in here) for a beer and pizza and a stroll through the Commons and Garden.

The city is really starting to rumble from it's slumber. Lots of runners, walkers and bikers had the same idea today. Wake up, Boston! Spring is here!

-xo-

eb

crew practice on the charles.

sails away!

love these colors.

the pond is full at the boston garden!

i was here two days ago, and it was an empty muddy mess!

YAY spring :)

i liked the look of this here truck.

can see tooling around during summer in it.

just add a cooler, dog and some company 'n tunes. beach time, anyone?

294 steps to the top.

#workitout

hey there, mister. 

RAWR! What kind of monster did YOU draw today?

I would say that I try to draw at least one monster each day. I attended a "Get Drawing" talk at the SXSW Interactive conference in Austin last month. The idea was that as designers, art directors and (wow!) everyone else, we don't draw as much as we should.

Draw or doodle, it doesn't matter. As a society, we rely too much on the computer to create our ideas. We should get back to the basics to help loosen up the creative thought process. The speaker, Von Glitschka, challenged everyone to make a habit of bringing drawing back into your life by drawing for 21 days.

So, the next time you're chatting away on the phone or reading the paper, try picking up a pen to draw. Then keep doing it. Such a simple joy.

Happy drawing!

- xo - 

eb

my medium of choice.

mark up those monstas!

we're moving out of our office in a year... so i got permission to draw on the walls. 

so satisfying. nothing better. 

hi little guy.

david bowie monster.

i'd like to do a whole serious of celebrity monsters.

fun, right?

the piece on the left was commissioned for a set of siblings birthdays. 

they were turning four and two.

monsters for all!

rawr 'n xo 'n stuff

Oh Joy! It's Spring

Well, I think it's (knock on wood) official.

Spring is here in New England.

And boy, oh boy, am I one happy girl about that. The winter wasn't tooooo terrible (ok, it got a little long there at the end) but all in all, the Coloradan in me kind of said, "Hey Boston winter, so what? Yea, you're a little too cold, a little too grey and a little too long. But all in all, you make me appreciate the summer, blue skies, bike rides and the warmth of good ol' sunshine that much more."

So, good riddance highs of 32°, wool jackets and hot toddy's. Bring on rosé, bare legs and walks around town.

Spring, welcome back.

- xo -

eb 

view from the office.

look at the springy rainbow.

breaking rules left and right:

white kicks before memorial day is how i roll.

an easter monster card i made.

even monsters like spring!

One Year Later

Hey all,

Today is a big day. One year ago today, I boarded a one way flight, SFO to BOS. Yikes! Stripes... Man was that scary.

Leaving friends and family, everything I knew and loved... That took a lot. But it turns out the past year has taught me a lot about living, adventures, people and myself. I have taken some amazing (New England) adventures, meet some unreal (New English) friends and had an overall wonderful time exploring, well, New England.

Can't wait to see what the next year will bring.

-xo-

eb