Still Kicking

Hi all,

I promise I am still alive.  I am also still very much interested in posting on my blog.  I am having technical difficulties and have been too busy with my job and school to fix it.  I hope to be blogging again soon.

Love,
Abby

Still here

Hi readers, don't give up on me. I am still here and wanting to post. I have a few posts written; however, I can't publish them. I cannot seem to publish any posts that contain pictures. Has anyone else had this problem? I think maybe I've reached the capacity limit for pictures in Picasa/blogger. Help!

Jewelry Storage

I am on the hunt for an attractive yet functional way to store my jewelry. While I have a few nice pieces, most of my collection is costume jewelry. I want to protect the nice pieces and any pieces that might tarnish. I want to be able to easily access each piece when I am in a hurry and on my way out the door. I want to display the larger pieces and the most eye-catching ones in an visually appealing way.

I’ve found a few ideas on Pinterest. However, I do not have a space in my bedroom that is low enough to do anything that sits on top of a piece of furniture. The only furniture in our bedroom other than the bed is a tall chest of drawers and two mismatched nightstands. Also, there is no room in my closet. I’ve thought about using my nightstand; however, I can just see myself knocking something off with the covers or a pillow that may fall. So, I think the nightstand option is out.

I’m getting inspired by the following photos. Click each picture to locate the source via Pinterest.

Do y’all have any tips or suggestions? Also, where can I find a nifty stand like some of the ones in these photographs? I look forward to sharing what I come up with and to hearing from you. I’ll keep you posted.

Proud to Announce: 2D Studio, LLC

Hi all,

I just wanted to share that my husband, Judd Langham, launched a new website and Facebook page for his landscape design, planning, and urban design firm, 2D Studio LLC.

You can find 2D Studio’s website at www.2DStudiollc.com .   Additionally, we’d love for you to find and “like” 2D Studio on Facebook . 

2D Studio will maintain a separate blog located within their website as a way to journal about current project details and updates.

Here is more about Judd as described on the new website:

“Principal designer and founder of 2D Studio, Judd Langham, ASLA, LEED AP, believes in creating public spaces that are sensitive to and respectful of their surrounding context and that are responsive to the client’s programmatic needs. Judd is experienced in all facets of the design process from conceptual design, design development, construction documentation, and construction administration. He currently serves as an invited guest juror at Auburn University for graduate level design studio reviews, and he serves as a guest lecturer at both the University of Alabama at Birmingham and Auburn University. Additionally, he serves as an Adjunct Professor for the Master of Landscape Architecture Program at Auburn University. Having attained status as a LEED Accredited Professional, Judd takes pleasure in using his education, skills, and talents through his professional practice at 2D Studio LLC to make an ecologically sustainable difference one design at a time.

Born in Brewton, Alabama, a small rural city in south Alabama, his interest in landscape gardening and design came at an early age. At age 15, he started his own landscape maintenance company along with his father and brother. It flourished and grew to include a landscape installation and construction business. Through this early entrepreneurial endeavor he gained residential design and installation experience which resulted in Judd’s passion for landscape design and inspired him to study at Auburn University in Auburn, Alabama.

While at Auburn University, Judd earned a Bachelor of Science in Horticulture with an emphasis in landscape design. He also earned an undergraduate Business Minor. He remained at Auburn University to earn a Master of Landscape Architecture Degree, the terminal degree for this field, in 2007. Judd graduated magna cum laude and was also inducted into both Tau Sigma Delta and Sigma Lambda Alpha Honor Societies. While a student in the Landscape Architecture program, he served as a Research and Teaching Assistant to the Chair of the Master of Landscape Architecture Program, where he gained university teaching experience as well as experience in stormwater design. Additionally, with his graduate assistantship Judd designed and implemented rain gardens and other green infrastructure within the Auburn University Arboretum. Judd’s master’s level training provided a variety of hands-on experiences combined with diverse research and studies in horticulture and landscape architecture which influenced his passion and interest in creative and innovative stormwater, sustainable, and green design. While in graduate school, Judd served as the Treasurer for the American Society for Landscape Architects (ASLA) Auburn University Student Chapter for two years and was awarded the ASLA Merit Award for best thesis project and design.

Upon graduation, Judd joined The Olin Studio in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania as a landscape designer and planner. While at Olin, he worked on projects across the country ranging from a 400 acre brownfield mixed-use redevelopment in Napa, California, to a variety of projects in the mid-west and along the east coast. His project experience included sustainable campus planning and design for University of Wisconsin in Madison, Wisconsin and University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Additionally, Judd worked on the following projects while at Olin: urban planning and design for the Napa Pipe Redevelopment Project in Napa, California; master planning for the New York Botanical Garden, Bronx, New York; and garden, recreational and courtyard design for the Phipps Playground at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland.

After gaining invaluable experience at Olin, Judd returned to his home state to reside in Birmingham, Alabama, where he worked with a local mutli-disciplinary firm, Barge Waggoner Sumner & Cannon, for two years before becoming a founding partner at 2D Studio. Since the inception of 2D Studio, Judd has served as project manager for the complete restoration of Genetta Ditch in Montgomery, AL, an urban stream on the 303d impaired streams list. The restoration plan included 3,200 linear feet of restored stream channel and riparian zone, a constructed wetland, a variety of green infrastructure to remediate stormwater before it enters the stream, and a passive park that would help to educate and stimulate the public. True to his roots, Judd has continued his pursuit of landscape gardening and sustainable residential design while continuing to evolve in project experience and interest in the design profession.”

You can contact him here:

Judd Langham, ASLA, LEED AP
Principal | Designer | Planner
205.202.4101 ph
205.335.3761 cell
judd@2dstudiollc.com

Essentials for Southern Men

This post falls into a category created long ago on this blog called “Southern Women How To’s.”  In this case, the post is about how a southern woman can recognize a southern gentleman.  Or better yet, it is to provide a glimpse into the life and style of a southern gentleman.  Of course, for all true southern women and men the items in this post are nothing new.  Southerness is not something that can simply be acquired by physical location, the way one dresses, the way one acts, the way one drinks or eats, or even one’s level of enthusiasm for sporting events.  It is, however, a compilation of all of these things and then some.

I was inspired to write this post after reviewing with colleagues (Hi Teresa and Jaime!) a Southern Living online article featuring lists of southern essentials for both men and women.  Click these links for the SL list for men and the SL list for women.  I agreed with most of the items on this list.   Although, I immediately began recalling things that I thought were excluded.  The SL list was a “top 10” list so there was a limit to what could be included.  My list will be much more extensive and will fall in no particular order.  I may even add to it in the future.  You can access the original source for each photograph by clicking on it.  I have linked the photos through my Southern Men Pinterest Board.  Feel free to follow me on Pinterest if you like.

(Note: In no way did I intend to declare that all southern men should have these items to be complete.  :)  This list is simply my own thoughts about one of my favorite things: southern men.  Many of the items I have included were chosen because they remind me of my true southern gent. of a husband.)

I’ll do a follow-up post in the future for southern women essentials.

Ok, here’s my list of essentials for the southern man.

1. Good Manners and Chivalry (ok, maybe that one was listed in a particular order…FIRST)

2. Well-Stocked Bar/Barware

3. A Collegiate House Flag  (of your alma mater or favorite team)

4. Affordable Jeans

5. Short Sleeved Golf Shirts  (I particularly like these from Southern Point)

6. A Baseball Cap  (If it doesn't have a college team's logo then it had better have something southern on it (i.e. favorite hunting dog, state flag, cotton blossom, etc.)

7. Gun  (I’m not sure I know a southern man without one.  Whether it is theirs or their granddaddy’s heirloom, most southern men have a gun for those “just in case” moments of needing to protect or provide for their families.)

8. Preppy Colored Khaki Pants

9. A Pair of Loafers/Driving Mocs

10. Big Dog  (This is a picture of our dog, Cole, taken by my SIL Brenna.)

11. A Classic Sweater

12. Classic Suit (This is essential for so many occasions: church, weddings, funerals, work, etc.)

13. Cufflinks  (I included these for when today’s man is attending a party/wedding/event in a tuxedo.  I think it is nice for a man to have on something with a personal touch when wearing a tux whether it is rented or owned.  Cufflinks are a way to do just that.)

14. Pocket Knife (preferably with a cork screw and bottle opener)

15. Classic Pea Coat

16. Silver Flask

17. Football Game Day Attire in School Colors (In addition, every southern guy needs a tie in his favorite team’s colors. I love this burnt orange/cotton blossom one from Southern Proper.)

 

18. White Cotton Undershirt  (This is a staple.  It is hot down here, y’all.  An undershirt completes a southern man’s outfit).

19. Seersucker Suit

 

20. Leather Boots  (These boots are essential because they can be worn with casual clothes to a football game or they can be used for work.  My husband calls his leather boot s*!t kickers.  Ha.  I think he means it in the literal sense.  His parents own a cattle farm.)

21. White Oxford Button-down Shirt (I like this one from Southern Tide)

22. Navy Blazer

23. Handkerchiefs (Every southern man should carry a handkerchief, especially when he is dressed up.)

24. Boat Shoes

25. Linen Blazer

26. Gingham Button-down Shirt

27. Manly Stationery

 

Do you have any suggestions that could be added to the list?  Or, do you have any comments about what I’ve included?

Still here

Hi bloggy friends,

Don't give up on me. I'm still around and wanting to post. I am having trouble with publishing from Windows Live Writer. I get a message saying that a remote server can't be found.

I am so frustrated. Does anyone have any suggestions?

I am having to publish this from the Blogger iPhone app.

The Brenna Wedding Invitation

We seem to be on a TLP wedding invitation blog post trend right now.  Maybe that is because the wedding invitations we’ve done are some of our very favorites.  This post is especially meaningful to us because the invitation we designed for this wedding is the one that gave us the idea to start The Langham Project DIY Printable Invitations and Stationary and because it is the wedding of Judd’s brother, Colby, and his precious wife, Brenna.  As you might have already figured out we named this invitation and its corresponding components after the beautiful bride.  The Brenna Wedding Invitation features a custom combined monogram (that includes the bride and groom’s full names as an overlay) with a nice surround detail in a sage green font.  The other wording on the invitation is brown.  Brenna was so kind to share some photos from her special day with us to include on this post.  We would be remiss to share these without giving credit to their amazing wedding photographer, Julie Cottrell.  We’ve put our watermark on the photos that we took. Any photos without our watermark were taken by Julie.

We offer several options for our wedding invitations.  Each design can be purchased separately or as a package.  The individual wedding invitation is available for $45.00.  The Brenna will be customized entirely for any bride and groom who order it.  The monogram and colors can be changed to fit the look and feel of the client’s wedding.  This design was created to fit a square 6 1/4” x 6 1/4” piece of cardstock.   The invitation fits inside of an envelope that is 6 1/2” x 6 1/2” in size.  We, The Langham Project DIY Printable Invitations/Stationary, send the customer a digital file of his or her order. The customer is then able to purchase any paper of his or her choosing and is able to print as many or as few invitations as needed on a home printer.  Another option for the customer is to ask a local print shop to print the order.  Brenna ordered her paper from an online source and then printed the components you will see in the following pictures on her home printer.

For Brenna and Colby we designed a matching set that included a wedding invitation, reception response card, wedding ceremony program, and thank-you note.  The Brenna Wedding Program design is available for individual purchase for $45.00.  It features the combined monogram in sage green and brown font throughout.  The wedding program is designed to be double-sided.  It is 5 1/4” x 8 1/4”.

The Brenna Response Card design is available for individual purchase for $15.00.  It ties in with the wedding invitation with a more simplified custom monogram (with only the bride and groom’s first and last names).  It is 4 1/4” x 5 1/2” and fits a 4 3/8” x 5 3/4” envelope.

The Brenna Thank-You Note design was customized to be larger than many wedding thank-you notes by request of the bride.  She knew that she writes large and wanted to have enough space to properly thank her guests.  The size of this note, as the rest of our products, is customizable.  The Brenna Thank-You Note featured below is 5” x 7” and fits inside of a 5 1/4” x 7 1/4” envelope.  The Thank-You note design can be purchased as a separate component for $12.00

As previously mentioned, the Brenna wedding invitation and its corresponding component designs can be purchased separately or together as a wedding package.  The individual prices for each design are as follows:

Brenna Invitation: $45.00

Brenna Response Card: $15.00

Brenna Wedding Program: $45.00

Brenna Thank-You Note: $12.00.

Or, you can save by purchasing these items together with one of our packages.  The package that includes a wedding invitation (including featured custom combined monogram), response card, wedding program, and thank-you note is $107.00.

These designs, and this couple, are particularly special to us.  We hope you like them too.  If you are interested in ordering the Brenna Wedding Invitation design or the other pieces featured please leave us a comment on this post or send us an email at langhat@gmail.com.  Click here to find The Langham Project DIY Printable Invitations/Stationary on Facebook or see our sidebar above.