Gift guide: Art

1. sneaker customization kit - for those that want customized shoes or love to design
2. digital time lapse camera - video making made simple and weather resistant!
3. michelle armas calendar - or a painting if someone's been extra good this year.
4. ona camera bag organizer insert - camera protection and organization in a bag you already own
5. coptic marker sketch set - refillable and with replaceable nibs
6. peas USB hub - sleek, practical, and useful
7. uten.silo - organization for offices, studios, or kitchens
8. brush vase - for flowers or paint brushes
9. ipad CF & SD card reader - makes storing photos on the go simple.
10. slice scissors - gorgeous steel scissors
11. iphone case - find something pretty, or design your own
12. pebeo porcelaine 150 - paints to decorate your own ceramics at home

Bird's eye: Venice

As soon as the weather starts cooling off we tend to venture somewhere warmer.

On our latest trip we spotted Venice down below.
(By clicking to enlarge it, you can read the island names.)

Here's the another map I made of the Venice Sestiere.

And while I'm at it, I found a few more vintage photos of Venice amongst my collection.

creative outlet

Nearly every time I feel as if I am finished going through travel photos I see something else and feel inspired.

I love paint, watercolor, and the juxtaposition when combined with photography. Without delving too deep into art and art history (which is my background) it's the dichotomy between photographers using light to 'paint' their images and with painters creating with nature that really fascinates me. They are such different mediums, but can be united in striking ways.

There are quite a few creative projects going on for me and many more brewing... these are a small sample of some of the things I've been working on.

Art is just so therapeutic. My Mom always said people need a creative outlet and I whole heartedly agree - especially when I can combine it with my loves: art, travel, and Stefan.

Flight to Marrakech

Our flight to Marrakech was through perfect weather, which enabled us to see much of what was down below including:

The exact moments when we cross the Pyrenees mountains (where my family's dogs are from)...

When we left Spanish airspace and crossed onto the African continent.

Beautiful remote villages with very interesting topography. Incredibly this photo has only been color corrected.

The red buildings that are everywhere in Marrakech... and perfectly suited for some tilt-shift photography from the plane

Photo Booth

...always worth a visit - even if there was too much developer, which made me look like I had a 5 o'clock shadow comparable to Stefan's.

This is a great site to find them near where you live or if you're heading out on a trip.

1933 Christmas

I was looking through some of my vintage photos and came across this Christmas tree from 1933.

Notice the German details - real candles as opposed to lights and the bushy shape, which I had never seen before moving here. I'm curious what types of gifts were given during this time.

Hopefully we'll get our tree up in the next week or so, but we won't be going so traditional with real candles.

Lady Bavaria

We've had friends visiting so it was great excuse to get out and do some touristy things. It's always embarrassing to not have visited a variety of places around the city, especially because I love to find little hidden places.

I've really wanted to visit 'Lady Bavaria' a lookout point at Theresienwiese (the Oktoberfest grounds). It was really the perfect time, because there is a great view over the tents that are being built for the end all be all of festivals.

This is even the 200th year for Oktoberfest, so it will be more of a celebration than ever. I'm really looking forward to seeing the unique touches this year, including the 25 meter tower by the Augustiner tent that hasn't been built since WWII.

The Oktoberfest grounds are technically closed, however there were a lot of people strolling through and security walking around who didn't seem to mind that we were there.

It also probably helps that it was during the weekend, so we weren't interfering with the workers. I love seeing the process, especially when you consider these 'tents' are really much more structurally sound.

It's pretty incredible to think they are built and taken down each and every year.

Oktoberfest starts 18 September, so it will be here in just a little over a month!

antique photos

One of my guilty pleasures is riffling through boxes of old photos at the antique stores. I love photos, so I find it very hard to imagine how someone could part with these. Surely they have many stories and a history behind them. There are babies, weddings, parties, and my favorite - vacations.

Some are the historical scenes of the lives that cities once lived, while others are people. I admit, I am the creepy person that has photos of people I don't even know.

My favorites are the kids at the zoo or people wearing lederhosen, just because they are funny. I'm not entirely sure what I will do with them - perhaps display them or introduce them to the 21st century and make them digital so I can share them here.

My city collection now consists of:
Rome
the Vatican
Florence
Venice
Capri
Paris
Pompeii
Dubrovnik
Salzburg
Brussels
Trier
Hamburg

I think about how far digital cameras have come and how precious these snap shots and limited film supplies once were.

Now someone's memories are having a second life and making me wonder about the experiences that made them worthy of being captured for posterity... even if posterity means a random American girl living in Munich.

absolutely beautiful

I've been loving Jamie Magazine since I was sent a copy by a friend.

Being a book lover I appreciate the luxurious feeling of the uncoated pukka paper mixed with the photos from David Loftus and the incredible fonts. It certainly makes for an insanely gorgeous magazine.

Unfortunately I haven't found the magazine here in Germany - even at the international booksellers. (I found this magazine here in Munich. You can purchase it at the Hauptbahnhof International Magazine shop for 10.50€)

Stefan enjoyed reading it too, and I'm all for anything that encourages him to cook with me! I may just have to get a subscription from the UK.

You can flip through some of the back issues here.

In case you are interested, here is a list of some fonts that are in the magazine:

Monte Carlo Script NF
woodtype URW D
Fedra Serif B
Quimby Mayoral, which I purchased today!
Soho Gothic
Meta Hairline

We'll be heading back to London in May and have already made reservations at the River Café, where he was a sous chef. I can't wait for a great meal and to pick up his newest magazine!

If you're in the US, you can even check out the Food Revolution and sign his petition for healthier school meals.

We're Moving!

It's been so hard not to share this, but we're moving! Things progressed much quicker than we expected, but we are thrilled.

I'd love to tell you that we are setting up home in Paris or Tokyo... but we're staying put here, in the little village that could - Munich (at least for now - who knows what the future holds).

Our beautiful new apartment is an alt-bau (old building) with tons of character, creaky wooden floors, spacious rooms with high ceilings, and a beautiful little balcony off the kitchen. It gets tons of sun light, which gives me hope that I can rival my Mom's herb garden. Not only that, it's in our same neighborhood, so parting ways with our home won't be so difficult.

While we were back in the US, I constantly saw beautiful pieces of art that I wished so desperately to have wall space for. On every shopping expedition I would say, 'we need more walls!'

I have a great collection and love for art - from my beloved Joe Sorren 'Portrait of Emily', to the piece from our wedding, prints from etsy, antique maps, and zillions of photos from our travels.

And to add to my collection, my parents gifted me the beautiful 'States United' print from etsy's Beauchamping. It's a thoughtful reminder of my home - and it's even heart shaped, just like Ohio, 'the heart of it all'.

Now all we need are more guests!

Max Wanger - Los Angeles

It's such a wonderful honor to be featured on 100 Layer Cake and Max Wanger's blog. Thank you Jillian + Max!

It was the perfect way to round out our trip and have some beautiful photos from such a special time in our lives.

Remember the subway dress that I fell in love with? Well, you can see it in some of the sneak peek photos.

Most of the photos were taken in Venice, California, while the roof top images were taken at the beautiful SLS hotel where we stayed during our fabulous time in Los Angeles.

Max and his lovely fiancée Margaux enjoy traveling too, so if you can't make it to LA they can always come your way. We're looking forward to crossing paths with them again - somewhere in the world!



(photos courtesy of the ultra talented Max Wanger)

Gift guide: Art

1. Photo Canvas - Have a meaningful photo put onto canvas and decorate a special room. (This is a photo from our honeymoon in the Maldives - how nice to wake up to that every day!) (my own image - simply search online or visit a photo shop in your area)

2. Jelly Lens - This helps to transform a camera phone into something better. I actually cringe when I see people use camera phones at meaningful events, but at least these help improve the quality. (image Spoon sisters / Jelly Lens)

3. Superheadz Blackbird camera - When I took photography courses in college I absolutely loved using medium format cameras. This one is beautiful and playful. (image Urban Outfitters)

4. Retro NaNa Tape from etsy - It's great to see creative types using tape more frequently... and the variety is incredible. (image etsy / RetroNaNa)

5. Yashica Portable Scanner - This is a quick and easy way to turn those old 35mm negatives into scanned copies, which make archiving a breeze. (image Yashica - currently only available in Japan)

6. photojojo shortcut mac keyboard skin - A great tool for learners and designers alike. All of the shortcuts are at your fingertips - and not to mention the bright colors make it even more fun. (image photojojo)

7. seat belt camera strap - fun colors and very sturdy. A great gift for the photographer who has everything. (image photo jojo)

8. Stencil 101 - This book is perfect for budding graffiti artists and Banksy fans. (image Ed Roth / Chronicle books)

9. Famille Summerbelle map - These scherenschnitte paper cuts are so striking. These would be an especially nice gift for someone who is fond of London or Paris. (image famille summer belle)

10. etched letters - These acid etched letters would make a great gift for a typography lover. It looks like many people agree, because there aren't too many available. (image Urban Outfitters)

11. hudson chalkboard paint - For those that want something more exciting than the standard black or green. I love the endless variety and would love to add a color splash to my kitchen. (image hudson)

12. zero per zero railway notes - Everyone loves mail - and these notes are absolutely certain to make someone smile. (image zero per zero)

Around the World Travel

There are plenty of resources online regarding long term travel. Here are some that I returned to again and again, as well as a few tips of my own.

If you are planning a trip around the world or for an extended amount of time it's difficult to know where to begin.

This is where we started. These were our our first considerations, and this is a bit of information about our stops along the way (this is still being updated).

You can also pick country or city specific posts by scrolling down on the right.

These are the places we have visited so far:

Here are a plethora of helpful planning links that I frequently use -

Plane
Star Alliance Around the World planner - We chose Star Alliance because of Stefan's Senator Status and also because they fly to the destinations we wanted to visit and they also give us flexibility (we can change dates without paying a fee).

kayak - we frequently use the multi-city tool and I love that it stores my past searches for future visits.

skyscanner - this also scans budget airlines, which can be very helpful in Europe. I also love that you can search by price if you don't care where you go, but don't have tons of money to spend.

Flight Stats - delays and other important information
Flight View - track loved ones as they travel
Flight Memory - keep track of your own flights and stats on airtime
Seat Guru - find the best seat so you have some extra leg room
Startrax - safety ratings for airlines if you need a side flight

Train
Seat 61 - Very concise and well put together information regarding trains around the world.

Make sure you purchase country passes before you get to the country. Often times they are not available once you've arrived.

Bus
Busabout - I've never taken one of these tours, which seem geared towards a college crowd, but I like the idea of traveling above land and stopping in various cities.

Automobile
How far is it? - calculate distances between cities
Google maps - maps and step-by-step directions between multiple locations.
Meet Ways - find a meeting point in the middle

Everything
Travel Independent - this is an incredible resource that is a one stop place to find useful information regarding any and all aspects of being gone for a long time.

Health + Safety
Centers for Disease Control
Fit for Travel
Travel Cautions + Warnings
Travel Registration (for US citizens)
Medgle- search your symptoms
What bit you - images of bugs and their bites

Research
Project Visa - Which countries will you need a visa for and embassy information
Country Specific Information
Travel + Leisure
Time Magazine city guides
Budget Travel
NY Times Travel
Condé Nast Travel
Concierge
World Travel Guide
Famous Wonders of the World
43 places
lonely planet

Packing
What to Pack - while it seems straight forward there are a lot of things that are completely not necessary and can be purchased along the way.

There are plenty of stores online to help make getting supplies easier. I also suggest heading to your nearest outdoor sports shop and a home goods store. We found many practical things that were added to the 'What to Pack' list.

Here are a few of my favorite Travel brands:
ExOfficio - wicking and quick drying undergarments
The North Face - high quality and very durable
Columbia - feminine and simple outdoor wear
I know every country has their own take on these. If you have time in advance to ship things I also suggest checking out Campmor and Backcountry, for discounted apparel.

Hotels
Trip Advisor - see actual candid photos and ratings of hotels and the reasons people like them or don't. There are some major gems if you just look.

airbnb - vacation rentals, private room, and sublets. It always is nice to walk onto the city streets from a neighborhood or unique location rather than a massive hotel. It's a quick way to feel like a local and stay like one, too.

hotels.com - for every 10 nights you stay you get a free room. If you frequently travel this is a really great deal. I also like that it doesn't tie you to one chain.

hostelworld or hostelbookers - I'm not opposed to staying in a hostel, provided I have a private room / bathroom and it is highly rated. Just check out the best boutique hostels and you'll quickly see it's easy to save money and sleep in style.

hotwire - this unfortuantely only works in the US, but you can get a real steal if you simply need a place to stay last minute.

unusual hotels of the world - if you're looking for offbeat this is a great place to start. Some of these are seriously out there. We've stayed in a hospital and I have to say it was lovely.

Design hotels
Splendia
Desighhotels
Epoque
Small Luxury hotels

Restaurants
Food and Wine
Zagat
Chowhound
San Pelligrino 50 best
Unusual Restaurants of the World

Interesting and random travel links

Spots with Free Wifi

Travel Math - a calculator that helps with distance, time, and budgeting
Walki - Talki - audio walking tours for your MP3
single serving - free pocket sized travel phrases in a large number of languages
Trip It - organize your travel plans
Smug Mug - upload your photos to share and download them in full size once you get back.
gadling - travel related news, gadgets, and photos
XE - money conversion
Panoramio- explore the world through other people's photos
locr - locate your photos / geotag through various methods

Hopefully there was something here that will be helpful and useful for you in the future. I'll add more links over time.

Safe and Happy Travels!

one year ago today

One year ago we were leaving for Iceland + Greenland. I never envisioned what a life changing trip that would be. We were hoping to get back to Iceland during our around the world journey, however there wasn't a logical connection for us.

I'm not overly concerned though, because I know that we'll make it back. Even though it still pains me to say it was already a year ago.

At least there are plenty of beautiful and exotic destinations in the coming months to distract me from missing those beautiful islands.

light graffiti

I keep being drawn back to the beautiful images that light graffiti artists have been creating (check out some of their beautiful pieces here: 10 Light Graffiti Artists ).

Despite being able to do this with a standard flash light / pen light and a long exposure camera, a French artist named Aïssa Logerot created Halo - a spray paint light. How ingenious!

It works like traditional spray paint - you can achieve a subtle spray of light or one that is more illuminous and it must be shaken when it's running out of juice. What's even more is that the light is interchangeable and you can simply replace the nozzle for different colors.

I can't wait to see what other artists are able to do with his idea.

(images Aïssa Logerot)

camera zoom

This past week I joined one of our groups down to Neuschwanstein - the fairytale castle that Germany is so well known for. Can you believe it would have costed roughly $280 Million / 200€ Million to build now?

I was able to try out my camera's mega-zoom and was really impressed with the results. This camera is also capable of panoramas (like my Olympus stylus verve), so I included that as well. The photos are scaled down because they were too big to upload!

It appears as though Christo + Jeanne-Claude got ahold of it, but it's just undergoing renovations.

Here's another one of Hohenschwangau - the castle that was the summer home of the Wittelsbach family.

It looks like I'll be able to take a lot of fun photos during our trip.

new camera

I am having a fantastic time learning my new camera. So far I am very impressed with its capabilities.

I know that Nikon's are seen as cameras designed by photographers for photographers and Canon's are seen as cameras designed by engineers for photographers, however I've had so much luck with Olympus.

They were the first to incorporate the super macro function into their cameras. I always love to look closer and see the intricate details, so this is now essential for me.

extended travel preparation

Things are starting to really come together for our trip this fall and suddenly all of those small planning details become reality. I'm starting to analyze all of the intricacies, especially since there are things that I could only buy in the US.

Among my concerns:
Familiar medications -
I plan to bring things from the US for a large variety of ailments. I'm crossing my fingers that our over the counter medications are legal to take into other countries. I'll at least have things in Germany and then we can figure it out from there.

Photos -
The obvious choice is bringing a laptop and downloading thousands of photos from our journey, but that's more baggage and expensive heavy baggage at that. I planned to take several extra memory cards and then I was searching high and low for another back up solution. If you are in a similar predicament, or don't want to haul a computer, there is the Foci Photo Safe II. The reviews are fantastic, however I am hesitant because I would constantly question if they really are stored or if it malfunctioned.

Instead, I bought a 9" (super tiny) 'net book' that has 160GB of memory, as well as internet and a webcam, which will help us stay in touch with family if and when we have internet.

I finally decided on a camera, which was a gift from Stefan. I will still use my trusty Olympus stylus verve, but I also got the recently discontinued Olympus SP-565UZ, which has the super macro function that I love, as well as a 20x zoom. It's compact and very sophisticated without the bulk of extra lenses.

Something else that I had never seen are USB charging batteries. They also can be recharged in a NiMH charger. We can charge them in the net book or in a wall adapter.

Packing -
How exactly do we pack for months? I have a feeling we will be bringing a lot of hi-tech vaporwick clothing that dries quickly and can be washed in a sink. Since we will be traversing various climates we also have issues in figuring that out.

The websites that I have been reading recommend ExOfficio underwear over and over. Their slogan is '17 countries, 6 weeks, 1 pair of underwear'. We decided to go with more than one pair, but it will cut some of our essential bulk and be quick to clean and dry.

Rather than assuming towels will be available everywhere we go, I also purchased several Aquis Microfiber towels.

If you are also planning an extended trip, I suggest reading Travel Independent. It's been such an incredible resource.

I'll do my best to detail our preparation. We're still working on our itinerary, but I can promise it will be a once in a lifetime adventure.

(images courtesy of Olympus + USB Cell)

20x200

Last year I made a gift guide with ideas for creative types in your life, which included 20x200.

They have many stunning small editions of original artwork- including the one that I just purchased today (above) from Shaun Sundholm.

I can't wait to find a special place for this print. How fun it is to be an art patron - even on a small scale.

Tilt Shift

I'm so in love with this website that Rachel posted on her blog. It's called Tilt Shift Maker and it enables common folk like myself, that don't have a specially designed tilt shift camera to create beautiful photos that look like they are miniatures. After I spent way more time than I care to admit using the site, here are a few of my favorites...

Rome + Cairo

East Greenland

Reykjavik

The trick is to find photos where the focus is on the foreground with a large depth of field and it also helps if there is some height. I'd still like to try bokeh.

I really need to decide what kind of camera to get, which was my birthday gift way back in January. Any recommendations?