Okains Bay

This week the Norris-Arnold family took us on a day trip to the Banks Peninsula, that crazy looking piece of land jutting off the Canterbury region. We spent the day going from beach to campground, surrounded by beautiful landscapes and a few friendly families with small children.

Sandwich Artist

These simple sandwiches spotted at Low Commitment Projects brought a smile to my face. Some don't look particularly tasty, but all are a little edible masterpiece.

The Mondrian is my favorite.

Let's Talk About Nails.

New Years Eve party nails

Fun fact: I grew up biting my nails down to stumps. My entire immediate family did, and we're all recovering nail biters. After kicking the habit for a while in high school, I finally stopped for good in 2007 by wearing fake nails for about 3 months. They were thick and comprised of nasty chemicals, but that's not what stopped me from biting them, pathetically enough. They were just so beautiful. I painted them bright, neon colors and couldn't stop staring at them. I knew I had to get some of my own.

Luckily for me, after the fake nails came off, my real nails grew in strong and thick. They even feel like fake nails. How could I have been biting these babies off all these years? I felt like I cheated myself growing up.

Now I have a new addiction: painting my nails.

Keads on Facebook

Some of you have told me you check the website daily. Some are subscribed by email. For those of you who like the links I share on Facebook, I have good news: as of last night, keads.com has a fan page.

Become a fan if you want instant updates from the blog to appear in your Facebook news feed.

Terrariums & Planters by Score + Solder

Words can't express my love for these terrariums and planters from Score + Solder, inspired by the forms of crystals. Desert plants are a love of mine, and combining them with crystals is more than I can resist.

Inspired: Street Art by Remed

Today I'm feeling inspired by the French artist REMED. If you haven't seen his work before, check it out at his website or on his flickr photostream.

New York Bagels in New Zealand

Earlier this week I posted about my first attempt at bagel making. Today I perfected the art! I used the dough and most methods described here, with a couple small differences.

Happy Birthday, Larbear!

Everyone say happy birthday to my dear, sweet dad Larry! He's the best dad in the whole world (don't argue with me; you will lose) and I miss him lots.

I thought I'd take this opportunity to post some of my favorite vintage Larbear photos, plus one of us at my wedding. Thanks for always being there, Dad!

A Ring For Every Occasion

I'm excited to announce that Sam's younger brother Harrison will be arriving in a few short weeks for a two month stay in New Zealand! Most people laugh and say, "I wish," when I command invite them to visit us, but Harry really knows how to deliver.

Sam has been preparing by stocking up on supplies for a gold panning tour of the South Island. He envisions us finding enough gold to make a second set of wedding bands to go behind our titanium rings. Ideas like this remind me how lucky I was to find him. (There's a "striking gold" pun in there, but I'm going to pretend I didn't see it.)

Even if this hopeful dream falls short, and we find only flakes, I know we will have fun. Still, I have found myself thinking about rings lately, and then I decided I should write a post about some of the amazing rings I've come across in the past few months. Most of them are out of my price range, but there's nothing wrong with dreaming, right?

The Standouts:

With gemstones and bold forms, these are the rings that shout "Look at me! My hands are covered in awesome!" I am pretty sure I would hurt myself on the spiky one, though.

Rutilated quartz rings by Babette con Dohnanyi

DIY Postcards

Kia Ora!

Good postcards are hard to come by. Postcard racks are filled too often with bad graphic design, lame fonts, or photos that aren't representative of my travels. After almost 5 months in New Zealand, I still haven't seen a kiwi bird.

What's my solution? Make my own!