spring, etc. - green!

On my way to work I get to walk through the Boston Public Garden. It was looking especially lush today, so I snapped this picture. I love how green the grass and trees are. Maybe I am prejudice, because green has always been one of my favorite colors, but I feel like green is a color trend for the season. I especially love it paired with black...

Here is one of my favorite new J. Crew patterns of the season: punk floral.

And for another burst of green + black, how about a Grasshopper Sundae? I'm in!

fashion, etc. - on the street knitwear

I was reading the NYTimes Sunday Styles today, and noticed that Bill Cunningham's On the Street features knitted dresses. I thought I'd share:

I love the knitted princess style dresses by Azzedine Alaïa (left and right). In his video commentary, Bill Cunningham says that knitted dresses are an indication of where fashion is going. I totally agree!

BTW if you havent watched the documentary Bill Cunningham New York, I highly recommend it.

fashion, etc. - birchbox

I got a six months Birchbox subscription for my birthday. The company sends you sample sizes of new beauty items each month, which you can then buy full sizes of at discounted prices on their website.

One of the items in my first box was an aqua nail polish from Color Club. I had wanted to try a color like this since last summer, so when this polish came in the mail I was very excited.

I put it on my toes for a trip to Scituate I took this past weekend, and I think the color really worked well beachside.

I love the way the aqua looks with these neutral colored sandals I got from J. Crew. 

knitting, etc. - boot topper

My cousin Carolyn sent me this picture of a knitted boot topper, which I was able to track down on Ravelry.

The pattern and pictures are by Sara Gresbach, the woman behind Addiesma Designs. 

This project is the ideal way to get that cozy, knitted look for fall, without spending hours and hours knitting a full sock. I will definitely give it a try soon!

swim, etc. - albertine

I am on Block Island this weekend, which has gotten me thinking about swim suits. I am currently obsessed with this photograph bikini from the french label Albertine.

I originally heard about Albertine on the blog Greedy Girl, which I follow on bloglovin.

This suit in particular reminds me of the work of photographer Richard Misrach. A few years ago he had a show at the National Gallery called On the Beach, which consisted of large scale photographs of beach goers in Hawaii, taken from above via a high rise hotel room. You can see a slideshow of On the Beach here.

Richard Misrach 

Untitled 19-03, 2003

chromogenic print

Collection of the Artist. 

Courtesy Fraenkel Gallery, San Francisco; Pace/MacGill Gallery, New York 

and Marc Selwyn Fine Arts, Los Angeles.

Richard Misrach 

Untitled 1132-04 [Flippers], 2004

chromogenic print

Collection of the Artist. 

Courtesy Fraenkel Gallery, San Francisco; Pace/MacGill Gallery, New York 

and Marc Selwyn Fine Arts, Los Angeles.

beach, etc. - block island 07.12

I spent the weekend on Block Island. I swam in the ocean, read on the beach, and ate a lot of good food - what more could you ask for? Can you spot the BI ferry in the picture below?

When I wasn't in a bathing suit, I got to wear one of my favorite summer looks - beach chic. Here's one of my outfits:

- maxi dress: urban outfitters (last summer)
- hoop earrings: j. crew outlet
- fun scarf: The Glass Onion, Block Island (see it here too!)
- beachy cuff: The Glass Onion, Block Island

I like to keep the accessories simple and summery.

I am especially excited about this fish cuff I bought while on the island. It is from the Block Island store The Glass Onion.

I paired this outfit with my favorite Reef sandals - still a little dusty from the beach!

news, etc. - dessert for breakfast

I am a HUGE proponent of dessert for breakfast. If there is ever a left over slice of cake or chocolate chip cookie, I have no qualms about eating it in the a.m. Some people - who shall not be named - have questioned my practice. So it is with great delight that I share this article from Time magazine, which this week reported that eating dessert for breakfast may actually aid weight loss. 

photo by time.com

While researchers from the study referenced stress that dessert for breakfast is not the ideal diet for everyone looking to loose a few pounds, I, personally, take this story as a little bit of vindication for my occasional indulgence in morning after birthday cake.

I may have to indulge myself further with an "Eat Cake for Breakfast" T or tote from Kate Spade.

garter stitch, etc.

My union jack tea cosy project has reignited my love of garter stitch. It is a quirky and fun stitch that I often forget to use.

  

I am happy to see that garter stitch is becoming a trend for the fall. I came across this sweater in a British Vogue, which I picked up while waiting for a connection at Heathrow. It is a cashmere rollneck, worn back to front, from JW Anderson.

I also love this electric blue sweater from AlisaDesigns on Etsy. 

 

I might have to whip up a chunky, garter stitch infinity scarf like this one by Andrea Sanchez for next winter! Pattern available for free on Ravelry. 

  

anna styles - dinner and a show

Tonight I am going to dinner and a show with some friends in Boston. It is very sunny and warm out, so I wanted to wear a summery outfit that was still evening appropriate.

I decided to go with a new dress I bought on sale in Amsterdam while I was there last week. It is by the French label, Egerie. I don't normally wear bright colors and crazy patterns together, but I love the tropical feel of this dress.

To keep attention on the dress, I paired it with simple pearl earrings, and my favorite gold, cuff ring from Henri Bendel. I also slipped on my everyday black flats from Cole Haan, since I was going to be doing a lot of walking.

Summer is my favorite season, and I'm looking forward to many more fun outfits!

anna runs - surviving my first 5K

I ran my first race yesterday! It was the Halfway 5K (5K sponsored by the Halfway Cafe) in Canton, MA. It was a beautiful day, and having friends and family there made it lots of fun - even for someone who has long considered herself a "non-runner." 

I was able to wear the shirt I made for the race to advertise my blog. The woman behind me at the start line told me she was a knitter and that she would visit anna knits, etc., which was exciting!

  

See how I made the shirt here.

  

Post-run - I made it!

Overall it was a great event and a great experience. I'm not looking for something too soon, but I'd definitely be up for another race sometime in the future!

anna runs

I am running my first race this Sunday. It is the Halfway 5K in Canton, MA. I am not much of a runner, but I thought it would be a fun goal for the spring... Let's hope I make it out alive!

As part of my preparation, I decided to make an anna knits, etc. T-shirt to wear on race day. I was inspired by a post on the blog Oh Happy Day for family reunion Ts.

Here's how I did it:

Step 1: Assemble T-shirt (I used a GapFit pima cotton tank), T-shirt transfer paper, and Iron.
Step 2: Print out your design backwards, on the transfer paper.
Step 3: Cut out the design.
Step 4: Iron on the design with the iron on its highest temperature, and no steam. Iron longer than you think you should.
Step 5: Peel back the paper to reveal the design -- if the paper is sticking go back and iron more!
Step 6: Show it off.

You can download the pattern I used to make this anna knits, etc. shirt here!

hearts, etc.

I saw a cute sweater with an embossed heart design while shopping at the Cambridge, MA boutique Mint Julep. 

The sweater is by the Danish clothes brand, nümph.

I love the way the knit stitches outline the purl stitches. Seeing this design made me do a search for other heart patterns online. Here are some of my favorites from Ravelry. Click on the picture for the pattern.

photo © 2009 Katie Chameleon

pattern by Hannah Fettig

photo by GmaX4

I haven't found a pattern to achieve the bordered pattern seen in the nümph sweater, but here is a simple heart pattern from the blog craft passion in case you want to try out your own embossed heart.

 

neon, etc.

Neon seems to be everywhere this season. I am particularly loving the mix of neutral tones with neon accents.

photo via BUILDING BLOCK

I can't wait to make a tea cosy similar to this gray and neon yellow one by amagpieandadove on etsy:

I'd love to make a tea cosy covered with neon bobbles similar to the ones sported on that awesome spring sweater. Any ideas on how to create tiny yarn bobbles?

Even the NFL is getting into the neon fade. After checking out this post, my boyfriend mentioned the new Seahawks uniforms, which were unveiled today. Check 'um out:

Photo: Seth Wenig / AP