Thursday, September 30, 2010

rohe boat page nelson. part 1.

i realize everybody thinks that their own pet is god's gift to petkind, so i'm going to continue that tradition and gush about my fuzzy critter, rohe (pronounced ro) boat, for a post (or two.. or more...). 
i adopted rohe (aka chatty) from the SPCA in victoria in the fall of 2008. my good friend Gabrielle was in town visiting, and she had adopted 2 cats from the SPCA, gryphon and schooner, and so i was glad that she was able to come along with me for support! after the glass sponge symposium (yes, glass sponge symposium), we headed to the SPCA and went in to meet some cats! the main location was only housing adult cats at that time, and i had hoped to adopt a younger cat, since i was new to cats and wanted to be able to meet it at as young of age as possible. gabrielle and i travelled to a nearby petcetera, where they were separating the kittens (to protect them from any upper respiratory disease that the adults were carrying at the time).
rohe and i locked eyes the second i looked through the window (i know, i know, everyone says that).  we went in to the room and i saw that in front of the cage where rohe, or "chatty", a sign was posted "adoption pending". my heart sank. he was the fuzziest, fluffiest, cutiest little guy and i'd felt an instant connection as he watched me and followed my movements as i moved back and forth in front of the cage. good thing gabrielle was there, for at the time, i was quite timid and didn't feel as though it was important to ask about his adoption status.  gabrielle pushed me to ask, just in case, and so i did. thankfully, it turned out, the tag was for another cat that had already been removed from the cage and adopted, and rohe (chatty) was available! eee!
the technician removed him from the cage and put him in my arms. he lay on his back like a baby, touching my neck and purring away.  i had been planning on adopting a cat for a long time, i had always just planned that things would happen in smaller, slower steps.  i'd had no idea i would be walking out w/ a kitten THAT day! i've always been someone who thinks things over VERY carefully before acting, but as i had to remind myself that day, i had been planning for a long time to do this, and there would never be a 100% perfect time.  the assistant warned me that they were adopting out approximately 6-7 kittens per day at that point, and it was likely that rohe (chatty) wouldn't be there if i didn't submit an application in motion to "reserve" him.  
rohe sat quietly in my lap as i filled out the paperwork and then handed it to the assistant. he checked it over and then said "ok. take this up to the till". i did a double take and asked him stupidly, "you mean, i'm taking him right now? like today?". the assistant said i could leave him overnight if i wanted to and pick him up tomorrow if i'd prefer, but i looked at gabrielle and she was beaming. i thought "what difference will today or tomorrow make? i'll take him now!"
gabrielle and i picked up everything i needed for him: carrying case, food bowls, food, litter, box, treats, toys, and we were on our way!
ryan was in halifax when i adopted rohe, but he helped come up with his name. we named him after ludwig mies van der rohe, an architect that ryan was interested in at the time.
this is turning into a long post, so i'll leave it at that and save more for another time!

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

marine invertebrates.

[photo credits: 1. illustration, unknown ; 2. ropos submersible image of glass sponge reef, lab of S.P. Leys; 3. me, bubble shell gastropod & 4. me, adult moon snail]
my undergraduate "lightbulb" moment occured in my second year invertebrate zoology course at the university of alberta.  i remember sitting in lecture thinking "you mean i can study these critters as a job?!".  my brother and i had been playing in tidepools in roberts creek and in and around vancouver and vancouver island since we were babies, and i always feel like a kid at christmas when i discover a new tidepool to explore.

my undergraduate career, from my second year until my fifth, was focused on marine invertebrate zoology and i volunteered and worked as a research assistant in a sponge biology lab.  i attended as many marine biology courses at the bamfield marine sciences centre as i could, some of the best years of my life and where i met some of my most fantastic friends!  my honours project focused on the reproduction and development of reef-forming glass sponges and got me out on an oceanographic cruise on the jp tully, the canadian coast guard research vessel that deploys the ropos submersible.  this submersible was used to collect my samples and images that i used to write my undergrad thesis.

from sponges to snails, when i moved to victoria to start my masters, i began work on sea snails or gastropods.  i've been raising them and studying them now for nearly 3 years and am now working on finishing up my thesis! finally! living in victoria has allowed me to go on many intertidal field trips, seeing weird and wonderful invertebrates along the way (and a few vertebrates)! one thing that keeps me always in love with invertebrates is that, even though i've been studying them in my university career for nearly a decade and loving them all of my life, i can learn something new every day and can see species i've never seen before any intertidaling trip! i'll post inverts that amaze me every so often on my blog! :)

Monday, September 27, 2010

vogue and the sartorialist.

[photo credits: 1. patrick demarchelier for vogue; 2. me; 3. peggy sirtoa for marie claire]
ever since i was a young teenager, i've been obsessed with fashion magazines. i used to get my mom to buy me the latest magazines when she'd make her monthly pilgrimage to costco :)
and now, even though i'm still a starving student, i can't help but indulge in my monthly vogue, harper's bazaar and house & home magazines... and sometimes marie claire... and elle...

i'm a little behind the times and only discovered scott schuman's blog, the sartorialist, a year ago. as i am still in the early stages of establishing this blog and my sources of inspiration, i thought it might be a good idea to post about his beautiful book by the same name. i bought it at chapters last year and its my favourite coffee table book; i never get tired of flipping through it.  i really love seeing the amazing, unexpected style that ordinary people put together, that scott schuman finds and photographs. the colour and texture combinations inspire me to try to put together some new mixes of my own of things i have in my closet...
(ps. this vogue turkey cover of jessica stam is my favourite vogue cover to date. i love its simple power. i would LOVE to have a copy of this limited release issue. the rodarte dress worn by natalie portman for the marie claire photoshoot caught me off-guard, i'd never would have imagined wool, tie-dye, neon and plaid could look so beautiful together. i learn something new every day!)

Sunday, September 26, 2010

for my pet monster...

[photo credits: xmoonbloom]
these adorable knit hats for pets are made by a california etsy merchant called xmoonbloom! i might have to pick up a few for rohe for christmas! the little devil toque would definitely suit him...

Saturday, September 25, 2010

poladroids...


i just found and downloaded this really neat free program called "poladroid" that converts your images to look similar to the classic polaroids. a little too much fun...

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

boutonnieres.



[photo credits 1 and 2, jamie delaine. photo credits 3 and 4, alison page]
i had so much fun designing and making the boutonnieres for our wedding, i'd like to continue making them, maybe in the hopes of selling them on etsy one day, if there is ever any interest.

Monday, September 20, 2010

magnolia project prototype.


the flower isn't as magnificent as martha's photographers make them look, but maybe in a bunch, with some actual leaves attached to the stem, it will look more realistic? my work continues...

Sunday, September 19, 2010

housewares.

ryan and i made our very first "housewares" purchase with a gift certificate given to us by the lovely kylee. kylee gave us a gift certificate to a super neat kitchen store in victoria called "muffet & louisa" which is located on store street. we bought a pretty white colander and two emile henry bowls, one in figue (purple) and the other in slate (dark gray). love!
we also found a beautiful throw that we hope to use as a tablecloth (once we finally own a table) at "plenty", one of my favorite specialty food/cookbook/housewares stores. the cloth is made by a company called "nkuku" based out of the uk. i have a feeling i'll be spending a lot of time daydreaming on their website!  now all i need is a house...

Friday, September 17, 2010

weekend project.

my project for this weekend is to attempt to replicate this crafting project found on martha stewart weddings. a friend who is getting married in a year loves magnolias, but she is opting for a fall wedding, and in my mind, purchasing a significant number of magnolia stems would run a hefty bill.  the description of the craft project seems easy enough, but i'm all thumbs, i only became an "expert" making her "poms" for our wedding after making 100+ and destroying a likely equal amount! we shall see...

Monday, September 13, 2010

blog love!





ryan and i are so excited to be included on the bella umbrella boutique's blog this week with some of our wedding photos shot by jamie delaine!

we are also AMAZINGLY excited to be featured on Ruffled's wedding blog this morning! so so honored and elated!
part 1 & part 2.

Sunday, September 12, 2010

andrew bush, envelopes.









[photos by andrew bush.]
a very cool post i came across on the blog, thoughtful day, showing these amazing envelope photographs by photographer andrew bush. they make me want to write some letters!

Saturday, September 11, 2010

first.






























wedding photo credit: jamie delaine.
my new husband ryan and i have decided to start documenting our new experiences, ideas and inspirations with these blogs: mine - the inspired biologist, his - the hungry architect, and ours - the biologist and the architect.


a little background about myself. i am currently writing up my msc. thesis in biology from uvic, specializing in marine invertebrates.  though i have been learning and working as a biologist for the past ten years, i have always admired and drawn inspiration from fashion, design, pop culture and music.
my husband ryan is attending dalhousie and earning his m.arch in architecture. he has a passion for design and construction, but one of his favourite pastimes is eating amazing food and drink, trying new flavours and exploring new cuisine. 

we have a jolly, fluffy boy named rohe, whom we obsessively adore as i'm sure you'll notice in subsequent posts.

ryan and i have been long-distance dating for nearly four years and recently were married in roberts creek, bc.  ryan and i designed the wedding and crafted many of the DIY projects. our amazing friends and family helped us with many other DIY projects and helped us bring everything together to a wonderful end. the perfect wedding day! i got to work with some incredible women designers/crafters/vendors for some of the projects, i will share all the details on a subsequent post. our amazing wedding photographer, jamie delaine, posted a lovely write-up on her blog. part 1 and part 2. our second shooter robyn michelle-lee thompson also posted some great shots and a elegant write-up on her blog.

as every new blogger promises themselves, i'm hoping to contribute to this blog as often as possible, posting about what inspires me, what makes me smile - whether it be an amazing pair of shoes, a beautiful photograph, a dreamy song that i have on repeat or a neat critter from a tidepool at low tide - i'll try to post about what makes me happy, and i hope you might something that inspires you too :)