making spirits bright.

Having a quiet but bright holiday here in Oregon - with a very festive christmas ficus. 

I hope your heart and home have been full of love. Merry Christmas!

May Your Heart Be Light

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas makes me cry every time I hear it on the radio. I was talking with my Dad about our favorite carols, and I got a lump in my throat even speaking the line all our troubles will be miles away. 

There is something so universal about the hope we feel on this day. The hope that we will only find joy in the coming year. It's the wish I have for everyone, and especially you.

May Your Heart Be Light.

(photos) on film with pentax k1000 | my studio apartment christmas tree

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

Despite the stresses - the shopping and sending - Christmas really is the most wonderful time of year. 

 Whether it be standing shoulder-to-shoulder at Sur La Table or in a line at the post office. It's not consumerism, or cynicism, but something much more simple than all of that.

A set of (slightly burned) Martha Stewart quince pinwheels to the three most important service people in my life : my printer, my morning bus driver, my film developer.  A box of protia on my doorstep straight from San Diego. A champagne lunch on the thirty-first floor with the sales team.

Christmas is a season to celebrate the gifts we're given all year long.

and the greatest of these, is love.

A Look at Christmas in Portland

Today, I'm sharing What Christmas Looks Like In Portland on Un Giorno Da Leone, with my friend (and fellow USD alum), Alessia. I jumped at the chance to be a part of the series for two reasons:

1. Alessia is one of those people that keeps it real. Even on her blog. It's a refreshing rarity! So when she asks you to write something, of course you say yes, because she's coming from the same honest-to-goodness place that keeps me accidentally laughing out loud in my office as I read her daily recaps. (really, read this.)

2. Portland and I have been on an upswing in our relationship. This season has made me feel like maybe I found my city-soul-mate. Who doesn't want to brag about being in love? Plus, It'll be nice to have a written record of this feeling somewhere in June-uary when I'd rather become a recluse than have one more day of wet jeans.

You can read my color story and the rest of the What Christmas Looks Like In ____  on ByAlessia.com .

Deck the Halls

Part of working in the service industry is that during December - when everyone else is out enjoying their holidays, traveling and shopping - you are at work helping them do so. We're lucky if we even get Christmas day off.

My roommates and I decorated a Christmas tree in our house, since some of us couldn't get home to our families. It's a special memory of mine; the way we carry out our traditions with the people around us, in the time that we can find. It doesn't take much to celebrate this time of year.

tis the season for ten-hour work days, bundling up because the furnace is broken and sipping hot toddies! fa lah la lah la!

Christmas Colors, Another Way...

(1) Chris Everard (2) via The Terrier & Lobster

I loved Coach's other Christmas Colors - so naturally I was smitten with this project by Raw Design Studio which tried to pin down colors other than 'the classics'.

With swatches like Aunties Lipstick and Hannukkah Induced Envy Christmas becomes as colorful as the dinner conversation after four glasses of spiked-egg-nog!

"I'm Sorry, we are out of Holiday Cheer"

"86 Holiday Cheer"

{* In the restaurant biz "86" is the phrase used when we run out of something.
we use this board to let the servers know when items are 86'ed and we are done serving it for the night}

We all started the day with smiling faces ...

mine with redlipstick and a big poofy side pony with a red ribbon! like at Garance Dore! and a red stripey cardigan, and a bright green circle scarf!

but something about dealing with holiday shoppers left this on our white-board by the end of the night...

Merry Christmas, especially to those of you at work like me!

From Coaches (holiday) Playbook

I just Love Coach's gift wrapping and holiday campaign this year! Fuscia, Magenta, Periwinkle and Violet happen to be some of my very favorite colors {Hello, have you noticed to my blog's color scheme?} And it's lack of typical holiday prints and colors make it nondemoniational!

Fresh, Festive, and Free-Thinking!

Its The ha-Happiest Season of All

"So bring us your wonder, your whimsy,

your wide eyed wow..."

Spent my weekend taking the Zoo Light train ride with my sister & our boyfriends. They had a light up Kangaroo that shot is baby out of its pouch!

Portland is so m a g i c a l this time of year

Brown Paper Packages Tied Up With String

Last monday {which turned out to be, statistically speaking, the busiest post office day of the year} I spent 2 hours in the post office writing addresses, and picking boxes to send out an armful of Christmas presents and cards to the people I miss.

This monday, I'm going to be having a holly-jolly day knowing that there are little green polkadotted & red striped packages arriving on peoples door steps all over the country!

Even though the holidays are pretty stressful {and waiting in line behind other citizens is awful! ... and subsequently thinking that makes me feel more awful} it's kind of fun to be in the post-office with people doing the same thing you are.

It's wonderful knowing that those boxes are full of thoughtfulness & christmas cookies, not overdue bills.

so when i'm standing in line with 113 people infront of me ... it's like seeing 113 "I love you"s, stamped and waiting for departure.

Sam
a.k.a Samantha Claus

(image) film from my vintage Pentax