This post is brought to you by the all-new 2012 Chevy Sonic.

Here is Patrice and I posing in front of the new Chevy Sonic hatchback. We are cute.

I’ve never gone to Comic Con; I’m nerdy, sure, but it’s not exactly my people. Still, when Chevy offered to send me and a few other bloggers, I jumped at the chance. It was so fun! I just wandered around the show floor, but if I go again I’m heading to the panels. Stan Lee gave a talk; he is probably the most beloved story teller for our generation, and I’m bummed that I missed him.

We met with the Chevy reps for breakfast to learn about the 2012 Sonics, a car designed for the “Millennial generation”. There were a dozen of them lined up outside, and after the presentation we were instructed to pair up and take them for a spin around Manhattan.

“Wait.” I said, “I just get in and go? You’re going to let me take this cute little car around?”

One of the corporate reps laughed. “Yes!” she said. “Have fun!”

Awesome.

There are two kinds of Sonics: hatchback and sedan. Rob and I are still loving our 2007 Chevy HHR which they sadly don’t make any more, but if we were in the market for a new car we’d likely go for the more practical sedan. Still, when it came time to test drive, he wanted to try the sportier hatchback. Boys.

“Ok,” I said. “But I’m driving it first!”

It has pep, and I was loving zipping down the West Side Highway (disclaimer: at a safe speed! Don’t worry, ye corporate titans who let me drive your fancy new car.) Rob took over for the second half of the ride, and I took photos. Here he is driving.

Here is the dashboard, which we both adored because it has two side pockets that we declared “burrito holders” (if not for burritos, I don’t know what.)

And we made out in it. It is perfect for kissing at red lights. That’s journalism!

Then we headed into Comic Con.

The costumed masses were what I was most looking forward to, and they didn’t disappoint. I was so enthralled that I actually forgot to take photos – except for this one of a little Flash playing Just Dance 3.

There were some overly sexy ladies that were eye-roll worthy, but most people had a good WHOLESOME time with it. (I’m such a prude.) You can see some photos here if you’re curious.

Thanks for the fun day, Chevy!

Dishing on my latest Pinterest Pins-turned-purchases. This post, and others like it, will likely be really, really boring if you are a dude.

I went for $110 last night at the charity raffle – not too shabby! I’m going to do engagement photos for a sweet lady and her fiance. The bride-to-be was very excited to have won me, and I was excited someone wanted me!

Even though I wasn’t a real batchelorette, they made me catwalk anyway when it was my turn, and Rob used my camera to get this fun photo of me giggling through it. Here I am showing off two of my latest purchases.

I kind of like showing a little leg; it’s my Thing. As such, short skirts like this are kind of my jam. This one, cut so that it flatters my fuller hips and shows off my stems, was meant for me. I think it can stand to be altered a teeny bit in the waist, which I will do the nanosecond I find a decent tailor.

I thought this would be something I bought, tried on, and immediately returned. I love it, though. It’s so pretty! It requires a halter style or strapless bra. The bow makes it easy to get a customizable fit.

Old Navy has been hit or miss with quality lately; this is a hit. It feels like a much more expensive dress. A word of warning, though, this is built for ladies with “ladies” if you know what I’m saying. That works for me and my 36F’s (I know!), but you might want to skip this one if you’re not stacked. Also, at 5’4 I’m pretty average, but I have a really short torso so I’m always toeing the line of “petite”. I would have done well to get a “p” in this one.

I’m slowly adding black to my wardrobe. My line has always been “there are so many gorgeous colors in the world that black feels like a waste!” but this summer I bought a little black dress and wore the CRAP out of it. She went to brunch with sandals, to cocktail parties with heels, and to lunch with Grandma in my cute sneakers. And now I am a convert.

Have you bought anything beautiful lately? Is my no-black (now “mostly no black”) rule valid?

The SCAR Project by fashion photographer David Jay illustrates exactly why I became a photographer: there is beauty in everything and everyone, and those of us lucky enough to have fallen in love with our cameras can bring it out. Look at what I get to aspire to!

The site is LSFW, depending on how big of a douchebag your boss is.

The book is available on Amazon: The SCAR Project (Breast Cancer Is Not a Pink Ribbon) Volume 1

You guys, thanks for all the nice comments/texts/emails on Monday. You’re the best, and it meant the world to me.

If you’re like me, you see some bag or blouse* that someone has pinned on Pinterest and wonder, “Did they really buy that? How did it look?” Since I’m curious about what others end up buying and loving/hating, I’ve decided to dish on my own latest Pins-turned-purchases.

This dress looked strange, and I really, really wanted it to look good. It’s going back. (From Banana Republic). I think it will be flattering on ladies with less curve to them than I have, and, although I keep trying, this shade of light gray is so not my color.

This dress looked strange, too, but at $17 (I had a discount code) I’m keeping it as a throw-on-and-go sort of thing. I just have to wear a tank top underneath, which is a pain. It might be cute in the fall with boots, and will be a good swimsuit coverup. It’s from Old Navy.

This dress if gorgeous. I got the dark orange color since I already have a magenta dress, and Katie Jane shot some photos of me in it. I can’t wait to see them! It sits differently on me than it does in the photo since I have what the saleslady who helped me into it sweetly called “thunder up top”. It’s still good, though. (It’s from Anthropologie).

Very cool top! I’m super happy with this one; very flattering. I’m looking forward to pairing it with funky, bright necklaces. (From the Gap)

P.S. You can follow me on Pinterest here

*Is the word “blouse” still a thing?

On the morning of August 25 in New York City, two same-sex couples are getting married, legally, for free, in an event hosted by A Practical Wedding and Lowe Events.

That night, there is going to be a gigantic wedding reception, open to the public, with drinks, a DJ, awesome decorations and an open wine bar. Rob and I will be there, and I hope you’ll come, too. Save me a dance! Tickets to the event are $20 on on sale here.

Will I see you there? I hope so!

p.s. Even if you can’t make it, you can buy a tote bag to support the event. Cute, right?

Risk!
“True Stories, Boldy Told”

I started listening to Risk! after meeting the host, Kevin Allison, at an event. “I know your podcast,” I said, “because my husband made me listen to an episode, and I was sooooo uncomfortable! It’s inappropriate!” He laughed and said, “You will NOT like the story I’m about to tell tonight, then.” He then got on stage and told the tale of meeting a heavily-accented Asian man at a club and having awkward sex with him which he descibed in detail while I slid down in my seat and covered my face with my hands.

I’m kind of a prude.

On the podcast, Kevin usually tells one of his own stories in the hour-long broadcast, and notable comedians and story-tellers (and sometimes every day folks, too, from all walks of life) tell stories, too; stories that they swore they’d never tell. Stories that are awkward and embarrassing: think pooping your pants on a date or drug-induced hijinks in the 90′s. I refuse to listen to it with anyone else in the car, and have to be careful while listening on the subway: I tend to bust out laughing to myself, making me look like a crazy person. If you’re like me, though, and you love the stories of other people, this is for you.

Fruit Ninja

Pay the $2 and get the full version; it’s worth it. Fruit comes flying up from the bottom of the screen and you have to use your samurai sword (your index finger!) to slice it before it falls to the bottom. There’s a magic formula to an iPhone game that makes it good: Quality graphics, simple premise, challenging game play. This game has it all.

Tiny Wings

I know, everyone is obsessed with Angry Birds, but I’m more partial to the squat little chicken with wings too tiny to fly. The game is sweet: you touch the screen to wake him up, and when time is up, the sun goes down and he falls asleep again. Gameplay is a little tricky to master: the ground is a series of islands covered in dips. Since the bird can’t fly, he has to use gravity to be mobile. You touch the screen to fold his wings and make him heavy to slide down one side of a dip, and lift to make him light so he goes flinging forward. It takes a little practice to get the timing down, and then the obsessing begins! You start with a series of three objectives, and when you complete them, you get three more. Each set is a score multiplier, making it a constant challenge. Also fun: the design changes every 24 hours, so you want to check in every day to see what wonderful combination of colors, hills and coins the designers have in store.

Two wonderful, inexpensive art projects to cover your poor, bare walls with something other than mass produced stuff from Ikea.

This one by How About Orange uses office supplies to create the modern-looking red photo. Click over to see how it’s done – totally simple!

Here, Jordan went back to kindergarten with some potato prints! I love her reminder about brights and neutrals, which translates to all sorts of visual art, including home decorating and getting dressed: “If you are going for a colorful end result remember you need the neutrals in the artwork to make the brights really pop.”

Go here for instructions and more photos.

Happy long weekend!

A few weeks ago, we randomly acquired a 10 oz. tub of wet dog food – stuff we would never feed the dogs normally because it’s full of chemicals and weird by-products.

Gross, right? It smells even worse.

I felt bad chucking it, though, and since it was only ONE tub, and I knew they would love the crap out of this gooey, smelly stuff, I decided to make it a treat. I portioned out it out into small plastic cups and put it in the freezer. When the temperature outside got really hot, I passed them out. Dog popsicles!

When I went to take her photo, Leeloo grabbed her popcicle and started running!

It’s ok, girl. I really, really don’t want to share.

I tend not to post about my parties often because I want people to feel relaxed when they come over and not worried that they’re going to get written about after they drink too much and puke/make out with a new friend/go home with a new friend of an entirely different gender than they are used to going home with/get naked/declare “the party has moved to the shower!”/pass out in my living room and wake up spooning one or two of my dogs/etc.

Because that shit is fun.

But I’m breaking this rule thanks to Gavin (who comes over, like, once and then I can’t stop talking about forever) and his instant camera photography. And for the record, no one pictured here did anything (too) debaucherous.

Photojojo gave me an Instax 25 camera and a dual pack of film at a Mighty Events party I went to months and months ago. I was “saving” the film for a project, which is a horrible idea. We all know “life” counts a special occasion, right? Right. Well, I forgot, but Gavin didn’t, which is why we are friends.

So Gavin oh-so-wisely busted out the film and loaded up the camera, then walked around snapping shots of everyone. I had a piece of orange photo paper left over from a photoshoot that I assisted on and it came out for this party, held up by duct tape which is what you see in a few shots.

Go get an Instax to have on hand for your next party, and go ahead; stock up on film so you don’t end up hoarding it. It’s cheap enough, and worth it!

Edited to add: The photos come out about the size of a credit card, perfect for tucking away in a wallet as an impromptu party favor.

I won a gift certificate for some cake pops by Emily of Nomnivorous in a charity raffle, and cashed in for at a recent party. I requested them non-chocolate but let Emily do whatever all else she wanted. She sent over white chocolate with vanilla cake insides and fun oversize sprinkles. Love ‘em!

If you’re not hip to cake pops, they’re the cute little bits of cake wrapped in a candy shell on a stick, invented (or at least wildly popularized) by blogger Bakerella, who literally wrote the book on them. You also might see them for sale in “arebucks-Stay”, but those versions are chemically tasting and not fresh. Not like Emily’s.

They’re $24 per dozen if you’d like to order them, and the colors/flavors are customizable. Email Nomnivorous@gmail.com since she doesn’t have a website (“yet”, if I have anything to do with it.)

Thank you, Gavin, for your stellar hand modeling skills, and for biting one open so I could display it. You are a good friend.