sola coffee cafe

{photo credit: me}

last saturday, my boyfriend took me to a new (to me) coffee shop in raleigh. i was shocked that i did not know this place existed because if there is a coffee shop within a 50 mile radius of me, i know about it. what's even more shocking is that my man doesn't even drink coffee. how does he, the non-coffee drinker, know about sola coffee cafe and me, the bordering on coffee addiction girl, not know about it? what parallel universe am i living in?

so glad we went-sola coffee is awesome. the decor is hip and eclectic and we happened to go on the one saturday of the month that they host a pop-up artist market. there were probably about 10-12 artists there selling their handmade goods.

it got me super charged up to create, and i think i am going to contact sola about participating. i talked to a few of the vendors, and one of the girls said it was her very first time selling her stuff! hearing stuff like that makes me feel proud of any artist who is trying something new with their art. i want to do like a synchronized jump high-five with them. i'm never sure how that will be received so i usually just tell them good luck.

who knows. maybe next time, i will be the girl telling a customer that it's my first time at the market. if they go for a high-five, i'm taking it.

{photo credit: me}

{photo credit: me}

{photo credit: me}

{photo credit: me}

{photo credit: me}

{photo credit: me}

coffee talk

{photo credit: me, taken at bean traders}

on friday i was craving coffee from one of my fave coffee places, bean traders. it's right next to a grocery store and as i needed to get some orange juice anyways...you see where this is leading.

i got an iced coffee and on this very rare occasion i put half and half in it. i always drink my plain coffee black, but i was feeling indulgent so go full fat or go home.

i love this coffee shop for several reasons. it's super close to my house, it's literally across the plaza from my gym, they have tons of tables and seating areas for working, and they have the most amazing caramel lattes. i have taken both my mom and my dad here for coffee dates, i have taken my roommate, i have taken out of town friends. this got me thinking. i want to take YOU on a coffee date. yes. i would like to treat both you and i to coffee here. this is what we might talk about...

i would probably tell you that i'm very happy to be chilling with you at a coffee shop because is there anything better? friends + coffee = deep soul happiness.

i might ask you if you're learning anything cool lately-a new hobby or a book that's interesting you or maybe something in your spiritual life.

i'd tell you about this class i'm taking next week about finding and creating work you love. because i need help in that area. not so much the finding work i love but the creating it part. i'm trying to jump start my craft hobby into more than just a hobby! i would also ask if you had any advice for me.

you would have to tell me about your summer plans. i'd want to know if you have any vacations or trips planned-big or small. i love to travel so it's fun for me to hear about other people's adventures.

and since we were at a coffee shop, i'd ask you what you go-to coffee drink of choice was. important issues, people. important issues.

so, how about it? coffee on me?

this coffee date post idea was inspired by betsy! check her out over here.

coffee on a monday morning

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mornings are hard. especially monday mornings. but then i remember coffee exists. it helps a little. 

grown up iced coffee

{photo credit: me}

there are a lot of things about growing up that are dumb. 

(working, paying bills, having to make your own pb and j sandwiches. whatever.) 

liquor in your iced coffee is not one of them.

{photo credit: me}

i usually drink my coffee straight black, but i've been enjoying this little variation lately. all you need is some chilled black coffee, milk of your choice (almond milk is yummy. try the vanilla flavor if you want a little extra sweetness), ice, and kahlua.

{photo credit: me}

i don't measure anything. i just add until the color looks right and the taste is good. if you want to be really awesome, freeze leftover coffee in ice cube trays and use those as your ice. that way your coffee doesn't get watered down. can't take credit for the idea. my mom has been doing it for years. (hi, mom).

{photo credit: me}

the perfect pick-me-up for when you realize that you are an adult nearing thirty and you can't do anything to stop it. 

scratch bakery

{photo credit: me}

this is how i spent my sunday morning. reading, drinking coffee, and eating a delicious and cheap milano cookie ($1!) at scratch bakery in downtown durham. perfection. 

{photo credit: me}

{photo credit: me}

to go, i also ordered a drink called the sweet child o mine. espresso, cold milk, honeysuckle. 

{photo credit: me}

it was totally different than any coffee drink i have ever tasted. hot on top because of the espresso but cold underneath because of the cool milk. they recommended drinking it with no lid because you lose the combination of tastes. the honeysuckle gave it a slightly sweet, slightly citrusy flavor. it sounds weird, but it was beyond amazing. the only bad thing is that it was gone in about four sips. more more more.  

sunday funday. what did you do today?

blogger meetup!

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this post is a little late in coming, but i've been a busy bee lately. i haven't been able to gather my thoughts enough to put a decent blog post together. when i do get online in the evenings, i've been catching up on other blogs and not writing much on mine. tisk-tisk. i was scolded by my mother this weekend. i think she's the only one who checks every day to see if i have posted. so, mom, THIS ONE'S FOR YOU! 

two sundays ago i got to attend my very first blogger meetup! my friend carrie co-hosted the event with two other local blogging gals and sisters, kate and lauren. (you may recognize kate from pinterest. she is a full-time hairstylist and her hair tutorial pictures are all over! local celeb. no bigs).

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we met at benelux cafe in downtown raleigh for a night of coffee, waffles, and blog talk. 

{photo credit: me}

apparently the raleighwood area is very blog friendly. there were over 20 ladies who attended the event. some of the gals just blog for fun, some of them do it for business, some of them have few followers, some have thousands. there were ladies representing makeups blogs, fashion blogs, decorating blogs, life blogs, cooking blogs. the list goes on. 

{photo credit}

{photo credit: me}

{photo credit: me}

sometimes, when i mention that "i blog" to someone, i get the response of "huh?" or "that's nice" complete with a glazed over expression. it was great to be in a room full of fun ladies who all shared that same interest.

{photo credit: me}

{photo credit: me}

i hope i can attend another bloggy get-together in the near future! until then, i will keep myself busy cyberstalking my new friends. speaking of, check out andrea's re-cap of the evening! style and wit, this girl's got it. 

dates with kelly

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in the past two weeks i have been on two GREAT dates. OMG! DATES! ok, don't get too excited. they weren't with my future prince charming-dennis quad wasn't available when i called-but my friend kelly really knows how to have a good time. she even paid for my coffee. that makes it an official date, i'm pretty sure. 

{photo credit: me}

last tuesday, we went to one of my favorite coffee shops in raleigh, the third place. before i moved here, my mom and i would occasionally drive up from southern pines for the day. the third place was always our first stop. we needed liquid energy before we hit the town. the atmosphere is nice and cozy, and, hello, they make leaf shapes out of the foam. what you're looking at is my nutella latte. kelly got a festive (and more delicious) eggnog latte. i guess i'll just have to make another visit to get my own. if i have to. 

after coffee, we headed to ornamentea for a try-it tuesday project! every tuesday, ornamentea features a different jewelry craft for only $3. you can make as many as you like and all the materials, supplies, and tools are provided for you. i'm a cheap date. 

{photo credit: me}

kelly and her tongue hard at work.

{photo credit: me}

ring-a-ling!

{photo credit: me}

our finished pretties. i might give this as a christmas present. to myself. 

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since we enjoyed our time together so much, we made plans for a second date (second date!) to grab cupcakes at the new daisycakes location in durham. daisycakes was a mobile cupcakery, selling out of an airstream trailer, up until about a month ago. they just opened a sweet little cafe and bakery in downtown durham where they serve cupcakes (obvs), pastries, coffee, and savory foods.

{photo credit: me and kelly}

{photo credit: me}

banana cake with caramel frosting and
vanilla dream with rainbow jimmies. 

{photo credit: me}

{photo credit: kelly}

i think i look best in photos when i'm wearing my pj/gym clothes, and i'm about to eat something wonderful. photograph your subjects in their natural environments, right?

{photo credit: me}

kelly is the best. i really hope she asks me out again.

p.s. if you live in the raleigh/durham area, make sure you head to daisycake's website to get a coupon for a FREE cupcake. 

the red cups are coming! the red cups are coming!

actually, the red cups at starbucks are HERE! this is one of the little things i look forward to every fall. it's not officially the holiday season until i see the red cups. basically, starbucks tells me how to feel and act and think. if starbucks told me to jump off a cliff, i would.