Valentine Freebies

I'm back!! I decided I was ready to get my creative hat back out and start this blog thing back up again... For now here are some freebies I made just in time for Valentines day. Enjoy :) If you use them feel free to tag @leahcharrington would love to see where these guys end up.

valentine.

Whether you are single or not, who doesn't love- love! According to the National Retail Federation, all of the candy, cards and flowers purchased in 2014 added up to more than $17 billion. That's a lot of love people shared last year!  In fact, it is such a large number that brands can't ignore it because love makes the world go round. I have been taking a look at the Twitter sphere today to see which brands are sharing the love and came across some pretty unique hashtags. Sweethearts social media campaign for this Valentine’s Day is #TweetHearts. You can tweet a personalized message using the hashtag and they will send it to you either to order or to tweet to your Valentine. Evian’s hashtag #ILoveYouLike is a really engaging social media campaign this year. You simply tweet the completed #ILoveYouLike sentence and Evian will send you a personalized message to share with your Valentine. 

Sweethearts #TweetHearts Campaign

Evian #ILoveYouLike Campaign

Here are some of my favorite brands sharing the love with you this Valentine’s Day.

creative.

handwritten by Stacey Meredith

I received this print for Christmas this past year, and I must say it was my absolute favorite present. Not only because it is in black  & white (my two favorite colors besides purple) but it was made by my creative mentor Stacey Meredith. What I love most about this print is how accurately it describes me as a creative person, it's almost scary how exact it is. When asked to describe myself, it usually takes me a while to come up with just the right thing to say. Well, this print does exactly that -- this is who I am. 

1. Easily bored -- I always knew even when I was little that I would have to constantly be doing something new, pushing the envelope somehow because if not, life just seemed boring to me. Even now as I am a senior in college, that is why advertising excites me. It is always evolving and always changing, how could it ever seem boring?

2. Risk takers -- If you do not ever take risks how are you going to grow as an individual. I take risks hoping there is a greater reward but sometimes I fail. If you never try you would not understand the most rewarding thing in life, which is overcoming a challenge. 

3. Color outside the lines -- Being constricted by coloring lines was such torment to me as a child. I would just ask for "white paper" so I did not have to follow the coloring books lines. Life can be seen as coloring outside the lines. I find joy in the unordinary, walking a different way to class, or making a mess out of a watercolor painting. You have to get outside the lines to really embrace new experiences. 

4. Think with their heart  -- Anyone can tell you I wear my heart on my sleeve. I care deeply for people and have infectious love I wish I could spread to all people. I know I get my big heart from the precious mom who raised me. Because of her, trusting my heart is what just feels right.

5.  Make lots of mistakes -- I am really good at making mistakes. Life’s greatest lessons are learned by how you react to those mistakes. Learning and growing from mistakes is exactly what has shaped me to be who I am today. 

6.  Hate the rules -- I do not like being told what to or abiding by someone else’s rules. Granted, if I didn’t follow any rules I would probably not be where I am today. Don’t get me wrong there is a time and place for rules, however, not when it comes to my creative thought process.

7. Work independently -- When it comes down to it, I am an independent extrovert. I do great work when in collaboration with people but I also accomplish a lot when I am on my own. I am very driven by my own desires and love to see my thought processes come to fruition. I hope to run my own Etsy shop or freelance one day.

8. Change their mind a lot -- Once I make a decision, I want to change my mind. I am an innovative thinker and do not like to settle. My mind is constantly thinking of ideas and my preferences change frequently.

9. Have a reputation for eccentricity -- I do not like to do what everyone else does. I love individuality and see it as an expression of creativity. Admiring local finds, quirky brick walls, getting lost and stumbling upon a tasty restaurant are simple quirky things I love. As Sweetwater brewery would say, “Don’t float the mainstream”

10. Dream Big -- Whether its traveling the cobble stone streets of Italy, landing a job across the country, owning tons of puppies and aspiring to be a creative. I have dreams and passions that consume me daily. I have these grand ideas and plans and everyone’s response is always… just keep dreaming. Stay tuned because one day, these dreams will become a reality. 

 

Until next time-

simply,

leah 

memphis.

Because I am revamping this blog, I am going to start with the basics. You need to get to know me before I start just putting my 2cents spin on what's going on in the world. Therefore, I am taking you back to my roots, my hometown and my first city love. Born and raised in Memphis, Tennessee, I know what good BBQ tastes like and I could quote some Elvis on command if you asked me to! You know when people ask you what city you are from but you live in a suburb and you just say the nearest city? Well, I am a true Memphian, I don't live in any of the suburbs but I lived straight up in Memphis. One of my greatest appreciations for being born and raised in Memphis is the feeling I got of living in a city but not being overwhelmed by the vastness of it. A city full of hustle and southern hospitality, full of diversity and passion, that is my Memphis. Because I am sharing the love for my hometown, I would be crazy not to let you know some of my favorite spots!

some of my favorites...
Huey's (you have to try a world famous burger)
Overton Square (best nightlife area and local grub)
Malco Movie Theatre's (a classic movie theatre)
FedEx Forum (MUST see a Grizzlies game)
Muddy's (local sweet spot)
Indigo (favorite boutique)
Saddle Creek (best shopping)
Majestic Grille (favorite dinner spot)
Memphis Wall (take a classic tourist picture)
The Zoo (we have pandas!)
Shelby Farms (all you need is a beautiful day)



Choose901 is a group of Memphians that curate a site with Memphis news and event info, plus spiffy videos featuring Memphians and sweet Memphis places! They are doing great things for the city of Memphis. Check out choose901.com or follow them on twitter (@choose901) to keep up with all the local happenings! 

cheers.

I have decided to revamp my blog. I am officially dusting it off from 2013 and starting a clean slate. I am completely changing the direction with where I want to take my blog looking forward to sharing my passions and life endeavors.  As a young blogger, freshmen in college, I had no idea what I wanted my blog to be about. It served the purpose of a personal Pinterest page where I can share my thoughts on what I liked and also served as a hub where I could share some of my graphic design pieces. Well, then I took on studying abroad in 2013 and my blog took a shift towards Italian culture and my love of travel. Honestly, after that trip nothing could really top that! Until I moved into my first "college" home with 5 of my best friends as a junior in college and that was where I left off... Here I am now a senior and I finally have a direction to take my blog in. I am looking forward to sharing my love of design and all things creative, my love of food and occasionally a good beverage, my desire to travel the world and local finds, and lastly wherever my life takes me is what I want to share. I am challenging myself to write between the lines about the unordinary and thus the name simply stated was born. I am tackling a variety of topics with one common theme: one word titles. Why you ask? Because if you can share a moment using multiple words, one word can define it and that is exactly what I am going to do. Simply define my life passions with this blog. With that, cheers to new beginnings and picking up right where I left off.

simply,
leah

top 20 lessons I learned in Italy.

Top 20 Lessons:

1. Toilet seats don't always exist in Italy

2. A "toilet" can be literally a bowl in the floor

3. They don't have AC in Italy

4. They also don't have dryers, so you hang dry everything

5. Some of the people get really offended when you barder the prices in the markets

6. Zara is one of the best stores ever invented

7. The Euro exchange rate sucks

8. All the food is SOO fresh here, its amazing! 

9. There is good gelato and bad gelato

10. You can get some real cheap but good wine

11. You can't buy alcohol after 9 from a store unless you are sketchy about it

12. Italians grocery shop daily & look at you strangely if you buy a lot of food

13. The post office is 10x worse here then in America

14. Stamps are very expensive & you need two for one postcard

15. Italian is hard to learn and understand

16. You get charged to sit down at a restaurant 

17. If you get a coffee and drink it standing its 1,50 euro, if you get it to go its about 3,00 euro, & if you sit down to drink it its about 5,00 - 7,00 euro

18. The Ponte Vecchio was used  to sell fish until the king didn't like the smell so now they sell gold & silver 

19. I know I can go somewhere knowing no one and be completely out of my comfort zone and meet some of the greatest people and form friendships in a matter of days!

20. I never knew how much I could love a culture other than my own until I left Florence, Italy. 

My favorite view of the city

One of the most beautiful churches I have ever seen

My favorite night spot, Ponte Vecchio

Bridge concerts are the best

Love the view on the bridges

Market, freshest food... ever

Enoteca, a local wine shop

Home cooked Italian meal

life is full of adventure.

well, I never thought this day would come but it has. I leave for Florence, Italy tomorrow morning and couldn't be more thrilled. I'm most excited to see where life takes me in a beautiful, rich city of Firenze. I am going to post on here throughout my 6 week journey in the historic country of Italy. Stay tuned to see where life's next journey takes me. Always remembering Jeremiah 29:11, each step of the way. 

Simply,

Leah 

closets.

lululu.tumblr.com

k.slademade.

watches.

dream wedding.

My dream wedding is a fall wedding. Complete with a lace dress and long bridesmaid dresses. For my groom, I want some warm autumn colors incorporated. I want a yummy chocolate cake! I like simplicity for decor and flowers. I love the cream and burned orange/taupe color combo. The one photo I want to have taken at my wedding is a leaf throwing one. To me, this is my dream wedding.

stud.

(zara)

kate spade cont.

             

kate spade.

Kate Spade is one of my favorite brands. Kate spade is known the world over for their bold and stylish designer clothing, designer shoes, women fashion accessories and more. The gorgeous collection of handbags is so unique and sophisticated. It doesn't matter what else you wear because Kate Spade says it all. Kate Spade is all about color, glam and that WOW factor. These are some of my top ten all time favorite Kate Spade pieces: