austin

I took off for Austin, Texas this weekend- a spur of the moment trip to visit one of my girlfriends. First time to Austin (or Texas for that matter)- and I loved it! 

That's Celeste. She's a rockstar. And quite the tour guide! 

We toured the town on bikes. All day. 

And the day was beautiful...

 and apparently very 'cool' for Texas weather. Although we did hit up some fans every now and then...

Then we stopped by the local animal shelter called Town Lake... WHY DO I DO THIS TO MYSELF? I'll never know. 

I couldn't help but photograph these faces. And I'm not kidding- it's like they were asking for a photo session..

<cue Sarah Mclachlan song>

What did I tell you? Heart. Wrenching. 

If that doesn't make you want to hop over to your nearest shelter...

Good news is: Celeste filled out an application. She's going to get one!! The story is a little more complicated- involving a dog that's not actually hers that she's trying to re-possess. Hmmm.. Stay tuned...

We then finished off the afternoon by jumping in Barton Springs-

 why don't they have one of these everywhere?

I finally met her cute boyfriend-

Dinner at this fabulous little restaurant called Parkside-

love this shelf system-

Most of the decor that I saw in Austin was alot like this- simple, sustainable, no frills, no fuss. Just a really laid back urban vibe... Not like any other city I've been to. 

Went by Hotel San Jose on South Congress- ever been? 

<photos from southern living>

Also went to another really cool place called Eastside Showroom. Didn't take pictures but loved it. 

and then there was dancing.. ofcourse.

Lots of laughs...

and I mean belly laughs!

Love you Celeste! Thanks for showing me a good time. 

Oh, and while we are OFF the subject of design:

Hoyt turned 30 yesterday!! Happy Birthday to my sweetheart. 

All pictures (except the few I cited above) by me- *Some people have inquired about this: I slightly edit these pictures in iphoto (sometimes I use Photoshop Suites but mainly just iphoto)- convert some to black and white, crop, etc. It's easy, I promise.