Underwater Park

Who doesn't need a moment of calm amidst a hectic workday? Check out this video of scuba diving in an ephemeral lake.

Explore this recently flooded meadow park in Austria with walking trails, benches and picnic tables. {via antlermagazine  }

The “Grüner See” (Green Lake) is situated in Upper Styria, Austria. It is amazingly beautiful because of its deep green/blue colour and the surrounding alpine scenery. The lake itself dries up in autumn but fills up with melting water. The water itself of the lake is extremely pure, like glass. The colour is a result of light refraction.

Halifax POP

I'm super excited for the Halifax Pop Explosion happening October 20th to 24th. There are so many great acts happening within a few days. I definitely want to check out Jenn Grant and Timber Timbre who will be playing at St. Matthew's Church and Final Fantasy performing with Symphony Nova Scotia as part of their Traditional Pops Series . It might seem early to start planning for this, but shows (Girltalk and MSTRKRFT) have already sold out and Final Fantasy/ Symphony Nova Scotia is into limited seating. Check out the full schedule here .

Fit for a princess

I just spotted this little girl's room over at Design*Sponge . I want to sleep wrapped in rainbows! 

42 bikes for every car

As I'm struggling to meet parking bylaw requirements for a condo site design I'm working on, 1.5 spaces for every unit, I stumble upon this photo:

Wishful thinking, but if we all switched to the Brompton folding bike , I'd have a much more interesting job designing public space rather than parking lots. (Not to mention all of the other benefits). {via spacingtoronto }

Andrea Cochran: Landscapes

One of my favorite Landscape Architects has recently published a book, Andrea Cochran: Landscapes . I first came upon Cochran's work as a student. The powerful simplicity of her work was exactly what I was struggling to achieve in my designs. I contacted Cochran's studio in San Fransisco with hope of an internship, but true to her regional preferences, they hire locally.

While minimalism can often be cold, Cochran's designs are emotional, evoking feelings of peace, strength and grace. Through her innovative use of  materials, regional sensibility, and adept sense of space she creates places that are beautiful, functional and socially and ecologically sustainable. Cochran has mastered the art of '... as simple as it is, but no simpler'. 

Needless to say... I love her work. When I'm feeling disenchanted with my own designs, looking through her projects motivates and inspires. {via Landscape+Urbanism }

Pesto perfetto

My basil patch is nearing its end for this season, but I'm hoping to make one more batch of a recipe I've been evolving all summer. I always intend to freeze the leftovers, but this is so good I can eat it straight from the spoon. 

 Basil Pesto

3 garlic cloves, peeled

3 cups basil, loosely packed

1/2 cup walnuts

2/3 cup parmesan, grated

3/4 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

2/3 cup olive oil

Chop the garlic in the blender. Add the remaining ingredients except for the oil. Drizzle the oil into the blender while blending. I've really enjoyed this with gnocchi as it absorbs the sauce, but try it on other pasta as well as on chicken, pizza, or added to soups. Perfetto!

Links

This chain necklace from Leviticus Jewelry is totally my style and would really liven up some of my basic tanks. I think the Forever 21 necklace is a decent alternative at a fraction of the price. What do you think? Do they really compare?

{via cupcakes and cashmere }

Leviticus

Forever 21

Studio dreamin'

I just saw this painting by Lotte Geeven and am in awe of this spacious studio space. I would lock myself in and not come out for days and days... {via Grijs} 

I missed PARK(ing) Day!

 Pioneered in 2005 by Rebar in 2005, PARK(ing) Day is a one day (Sept. 18) event where people take over metered parking spaces and create temporary parkettes or other public spaces. Last year over 500 installations where created worldwide. The essence of the event is to question car-oriented infrastructure. {via Polis}

Speaking of questioning car-oriented infrastructure, Nocturne, Halifax's equivalent to Nuit Blanche, is featuring an installation entitled The Parkades Project. "Exploring the spaces of car-parks this project is inspired by the movement of people, inherent architectural acoustics and environmental considerations. Through rhythm, scent, light and sound this piece creates an aesthetic experience for pedestrians in a building for cars..." This is definitely at the top of my must-see list for Nocturne.

Draped

Over lunch today with the girls, I was moaning about how I need work clothes, but whenever I go shopping I find the cutest little dresses. Problem is, I don't go out that much and in a laid-back town like Halifax I often feel overdressed when I do. So I get back from lunch and I see these...

Oh my! The draping! The ruching! I'm still swooning over these dresses from J. Mendell.

{via lake jane who saw it here} 

BOOK

BOOK is a project between two guys in New York and two guys in Ireland. They sent a sketch book back and forth between each other for almost a year without any other communication, each creating a spread in response to the previous entry. The result is fun and inspiring, check it out here. {via antler magazine}

Diviner's sage

Yesterday I received a box of live plants from Richter's Herbs.

Included amongst them was a plant known as Salvia Divinorum, 

diviner's sage or salvia. Richter's states: "Sacred sage of the Mazateca Indians of Mexico used to induce divinatory visions... psychotrophic effects similar to mescaline due to salvinorin compounds." This plant, while perfectly legal in Canada, has come into use as a recreational drug, either chewed fresh or dried and smoked, for visioning  and mild hallucinogenic effects.

Have you had any interesting Salvia experiences?

Pop-up art spaces

What to do about empty store fronts and the negative impact they have on downtowns everywhere? Use them as temporary exhibition spaces. They help to animate the street, provide artists with additional opportunities to display their work and reach a larger audience, as store fronts are often more approachable than traditional galleries. Read more here. {via Polis}

Wanderlust

I just saw this photo of a geothermal pool in Iceland and it brought out my travel instinct. I really need to get on some serious trip-planning. {via what possessed me}

Snapshots

Itsy bitsy 70's shorts

I love these shorts by American Apparel! I have ever since I saw them here. I've been humming and hawing over them for months. I  wonder if I'd actually hang out in them, or  perhaps  I  worry that I could never quite live up to this hot mama.

W-A-L-L-S

Typography meets interiors in Thomas Broome's ink on paper artworks.

{via apartment therapy}

whyred

The perfect outfit for the summer to fall transition (even if you're not 6'2").

{via La Boudoir}

Vata season

{Photo: Flickr}

The Ayurvedic system of health makes a lot of sense to me (may because when I read the description for Vata it was bang-on me). To explain it simply, there are 3 main energies- Kapha, Pitta and Vata, and everything- people, seasons, food- has a dominant energy. You can determine your constitutional type here. As we transition from summer to fall we are going from Pitta (hot and moist) to Vata (cool and windy). This can be a difficult time for some people leading to restlessness, fatigue and insomnia, and it sets the stage for your winter health (viruses, arthritis, SAD). Here are a few tips to keep your balance moving into Fall:

• Switch from summer meals like cold salads to warm, freshly-cooked, oily foods like soups, curries and stewed fruits.
• Alternate periods of rest with activity. We are the only species that doesn't slow down from summer into fall.
• Establish routine in your life- regular mealtimes, bedtimes and work activity/breaks.
• Take time for reflection
• Exercise moderately, without overexertion.
• Oil your skin. This is very important for balancing Vata. A full-body warm oil massage, with a partner or self, before a shower is relaxing and grounding.

{photo: thriftydish}

So I really need to follow my own advice. I hope these tips lead you into a happy and healthy fall!

Shifting seasons

{via desire to inspire}

I'm usually a very organized and balanced person, but the activity of summer has pulled that out from under me. I'm flat-out exhausted and my life feels like it's in disarray. I'm actually looking forward to a rainy day this weekend where I can turn off the phone, bunker down and do some hardcore nesting. If you're sharing my late summer burnout I'll be following this up with some tips for easing the transition into fall.

Eclectic Modern

I looovvve the eclectic style of this house. It must be a really fun place to hang out! {via desire to inspire}

Flying Yogis

I tried a yoga of flying class for the first time the other night and it was exhilarating! A combination of yoga, thai massage and acrobatics, this challenging partner yoga had me hanging upside down from one contact point from the first posture and I can't wait to try it again!

{photo David Paul Morris}

Weekend whirls

Snapshots from my weekend...

Late summer salads

What to do with that quickly ripening basket of peaches? Try this peach and tomato salad adapted from the Time's columnist Mark Bittman's 101 Simple Salads. I've recently fallen for Bittman's 'minimalist' style of cooking and I made a minor adjustment to this fabulously simple recipe.

The basic recipe consists of chunks of tomatoes and peaches, red onion slices, cilantro and chile flakes tossed in lemon juice and oil. I added avocado chunks and subbed fresh basil for the cilantro because that's what I had on hand. Deceptively simple, this salad is complexly delicious!

Garden update

I just had to share this pic of my cutesy little watermelon.  I've just planted fall crops of lettuce, spinach, arugula and swiss chard- veggies that prefer cool weather. The produce is coming full force, I've got more zucchini than I can handle and will be sharing my top 3 zucchini recipes later in the week.

Shirts on

If you look this hot, cool and completely put-together wearing 

only a shirt, you've got my blessing (It helps to be 19 and swedish). 

{via stockholmstreetstyle}

Dress form as decor

I thought I had an original idea here...

I guess not, but how lovely. {via Desire to Inspire}