disneyland |

sunday funday.

By annmarielovespaper on March 19, 2013

On Sunday, I convinced John and my brother Andy to go with me to Disneyland, partly because the weather was springtime perfection, but mainly because I wanted to test my new 50mm lens in the most colorful setting possible. Mission accomplished.

As far as camera equipment goes, this macro lens is such a steal considering just how fantastic it really is! The sharp depth of field blows my mind every time… even if does force me to stand a mile away from my subject to get more than just their nostrils in the shot – ha!

xoxo

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workspace wednesday: what i do when i’m not at disneyland.

By annmarielovespaper on October 24, 2012

It came to my attention recently that it may seem as though all I do is attend parties, drink lots of coffee, and visit Disneyland on random weekdays. (Okay, so 2/3 of those things are pretty accurate.) The truth is, I have my hand in so many different projects at all times that I’m not exactly sure what my title is! I do lots of graphic design, crafting, working for Amy, photographing, stamp-making, scrapbooking for others, writing, and yes, lots of Disneyland-ing. Each day is completely different than the last and filled with it’s own unique set of challenges and rewards. If ever my multimedia design degree (the one that I had no idea what I was going do with when I graduated) came in handy, NOW is the time. I love when things come full circle.

Here are a few of the projects I’ve completed lately:

Rebranding + redesigning Two Peas in a Bucket.

Revamping The Style Eater’s blog.

Designing stamp sets for Studio Calico, including four for October’s Roller Rink kits, three for the Darling Dear mid-release, and one for an upcoming class.

I can honestly say that when I moved back home last March after being laid off, I most definitely did not know what I was going to do (and sometimes, I still don’t!). Freelancing is a mixed bag of tricks. It’s the best because I get to work from home and not wear makeup or brush my hair or put on real clothes for days at a time (or maybe I’m just a homeless person?!). It’s also the worst because there’s so much uncertainty and self-doubt that creeps in on a daily basis. But like all things in life, if you just trust that things will work out, they almost always do. So far, so good.

Quick Disneyland trip, anyone?

xoxo

22 Comments

disneylanding.

By annmarielovespaper on June 11, 2012

By now it’s no secret that I enjoy a little Disneyland in my life. I realize this isn’t exactly earning me any street cred, but somehow I am okay with that.

I’ve been so many times (embarrassed to tell you the number) that my trips these days are usually centered around Instagramming. I love seeing familiar things in new ways and you really can’t beat the instant satisfaction that a cool filter and an inspiring social network provide. Plus there’s a geotag for EVERYTHING at DL (“Fantasyland Churro Cart”, anyone?), which makes it all the better. My camera app of choice these days is called Snapster. I love the wide range of filters and I love how easy it is to quickly import photos to Instagram. All the photos above were edited with Snapster and blurred up a little bit by Instagram. Tag-teaming at it’s finest.

Hate it or love it, there’s no denying that Disneyland has an energy all it’s own. And let’s face it, the people-watching is prime. There’s something so fascinating about what people wear to DL, especially when it involves high heels or workout clothes. I just can’t get enough…!

xoxo

10 Comments

challenges.

By annmarielovespaper on August 12, 2011

The only thing worse than leaving your vacation: unpacking your vacation.

So I’m back from my weeklong vacation to California (which was the best ever) and I’m just now starting to get back into the swing of things.

Well, kind of.

If I haven’t taken a nap after work these past few days, it’s because I slept through my alarm clock before work and had to race to get out the door on time. Coming off of vacation mode and getting back into work mode is brutal, you guys! But tomorrow is Friday and this weekend is Craft Lake City so things are looking up. (p.s. every time I hear the phrase “things are looking up,” I think of this Kaiser Permanente commercial from a few years back. Was this just a CA thing or do other states know what I’m talking about? Oh, how I love that Pete Wiggins!)

Anyways, I’ve been plugging away (intermittently, but still) at the 30 Day Photo Challenge! Here are days 1-5:

Day One | Self Portrait: At Target in Simi with a tall nonfat iced caramel macchiato in hand. Yep, that’s about right.

Day Two | What I Wore: My new grey Vans at Disneyland.

Day Three | Clouds: Firework display at Disneyland last Saturday night.

Day Four | Favorite Color: Teal washi tape + orange scissors action on my desk.

Day Five | Someone I Love: And love him, I do.

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April Adventures

By annmarielovespaper on May 4, 2011

So many fun adventures lately, where do I start?

Two weekends ago, John and I flew home to see our families. And Disneyland.

We flew JetBlue there and I thoroughly enjoyed the Dunkin Donuts coffee + Real Housewives of NYC pairing.

And as if that wasn’t enough, because Long Beach Airport is such a tiny place, we got to exit the plane via STAIRS! How very 1960’s movie stars of us! I made John take a picture with me on the tarmac to celebrate our celeb status.

Oh, how we’ve missed this place! But I have to admit, absence does indeed make the heart grow fonder. There were new and exciting things we hadn’t seen before. And of course, there were are old favorites that never lose their fun factor.

The rest of the weekend was spent lazing at home with my fam. Amazing.

This past weekend, John and I drove down to Vegas to meet up with his parents. SO. MUCH. FUN.

I have to say that I was really dreading the 5+ hour drive, but it turned out to be beautiful! The hills and mountains are so green and lush right now and the baby cows…omg, don’t even get me started on how PRECIOUS they are! And they’re everywhere! The last time we made this drive was in July when we moved here, and at that time it was 1000 degrees out and we were under the gun to get to Orem for our apartment keys before the front office closed! Needless to say, my expectations for this trip were exceeded exponentially!

I can’t think of too many things more exciting than waking up in a different city and having the whole day to explore! Despite the fact that I had a bad cold that just wouldn’t quit (and wouldn’t give me my voice back!), it was such a fantastic getaway. I love spending time with John’s family. They are such good, fun-loving people…the perfect travel companions!

Now I get a week off until next weekend when I’m back in California! When did my life get so exciting?

1 Comment

Cal-i-for-nye-ay

By annmarielovespaper on December 2, 2010

California – how I have missed you and your people!

I always want to be westbound!

First off, the comings and goings of the trip went off without a hitch. Flights left and arrived on time, security was a breeze, getting to and from the airports was seamless. You would never have guessed it was Thanksgiving weekend.

I love this place at night.

And of course, my family and I went to Disneyland on Thanksgiving. We’ve been doing this since I was in junior high and it’s one of my very favorite things about the holidays, especially now that I live so far away (relatively speaking, that is). We had so much fun and it was the perfect opportunity to get face time with the parentals and brother. I love my family.

Friends ’til the end.

On Friday, my friends and I met for our annual Thanksgiving weekend reunion at Starbucks (six years running!). So good to see everyone. It’s amazing how we can go months without seeing each other and then pick up right where we left off when we reunite. I love my friends. And I love that after discussing Angie’s potential wedding plans, she goes and gets engaged that very night! Congratulations again, Ang! Can’t wait for the wedding!

The gang’s all here!

Default group shot pose. Everyone drops to the floor and gets their velveeta on.

Here are just a few of the 100’s I took – seriously, we got quite a workout in!

Late Saturday night, I decided that I wanted to take classy holiday portraits of the four of us. So we did the the old chins-propped-on-hands, building-a-world-class-cheerleading-pyramid, donning-Santa-hats-over-our-faces routine. You know, the classics.

Then someone suggested we take jumping photos and suddenly it was game-on. Legs akimbo, bodies diving across the living room, jumping off the couch, roundhouse-kicking the air…we were willing to risk our lives for the sake of photographic genius. We were in the zone. And oh man, do all of the photos make me LAUGH! The contorted looks on our faces when we jump is enough to make me laugh out loud as I write this sentence! HAHA!

And here’s when I realized I wasn’t in California anymore. Ha!

It took a good 30 minutes to clear the ice off the windows and warm the car up enough to figure out how to get it out of the spot (holy spinning tires!). I actually found it to be quite hilarious and fun and a good arm workout! I’m sure this is the first of many lessons that Utah will teach me in these coming months…

In My Happy Place

By annmarielovespaper on July 7, 2010

In between packing and organizing and tying up loose ends on the moving front, I have been squeezing in as many trips as possible to Disneyland. So far I’ve been twice in less than a week, which just might be my personal record. Coincidentally, my annual pass expires the same week I am moving, so I am trying to milk that baby for all it’s overpriced but oh-so-wonderful worth! Here are some of the highlights:

I keep feeling an overwhelming mixture of sheer excitement and sheer panic over this move. The panic usually sets in when I’m trying to sleep and I start running through the seemingly insurmountable list of things I have to get done. The excitement sets in as soon as I wake up or read home design blogs or shop for apartment wares or think about how much I am truly looking forward to starting my new job or think about how insanely awesome it will be to begin this new adventure. So far the excitement is winning out over the panic by a landslide. And I intend to keep it that way.

I also intend to hit up the Land at least one more time 🙂

Happy Thursday

By annmarielovespaper on March 18, 2010

So as it turns out, this week has been quite good.

First off, I managed to track down this month’s issue of Creating Keepsakes and was psyched to see what was inside:

EEEEEEEEE!!! You would not believe how excited I was! And still am! I submitted it, along with a few other layouts, back in November, not anticipating it would ever be chosen. But when it was, I was blissfully surprised! Waiting to see it actually come to fruition has been the hardest part! I have a few more layouts that will be published in the coming months and I’m feeling super grateful for this funny little hobby called scrapbooking…

This past Saturday was my mom’s birthday, so the two of us spent some time in one of our favorite cities: Pasadena. I would pack up and move there in an INSTANT! Something about it really resonates with me. Maybe it’s because of the proximity to Dots Cupcakes. Quite possibly it’s because of the cupcakes:)

Then on Sunday, John and I woke up early so we could get breakfast at Disneyland! It turned out to be a gorgeous spring-y day and I got to wear my new giant hat!

Hope everyone is having a wonderful week!

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