Category Archives: friend

{Feb 13, 2013}
  Last minute sweetie gifts!

Have you got your special someone a little something for tomorrow’s holiday? I just heard a radio commercial for getting your sweetie a gift at your neighborhood CVS…I almost died inside. I mean, not that I am above a huge box of Dove chocolates, a cheap bottle of red wine, an InStyle or Us Weekly Magazine, some new black liquid eyeliner, an itunes gift card or a few new lipsmackers…However, why would ANYONE shop at CVS for a gift when Cleveland has a plethora of talented creatives, hot spots & activities to support?

Looking for last minute…gifts that you can call an order in for or pick up tonight? Check out a few of my suggestions…

Flowers : Don’t call 1.800.Flowers, but instead support your local florist. Shops like V2V (Lakewood) and Urban Orchid (Cleveland) are two very stylish floral design shops. Give them a call for something unique for your sweetie. Also, there is also Heinen’s (also a local family owned  business) flower department which usually has fun little bouquets and plants, at a much more affordable cost than turning to the web.

Chocolate : This morning I saw a small plane in the air pulling a “CHOC” flag; I knew it was Malley’s right away. There is nothing like a Malley’s Chocolate covered pretzel and we all know they have chocolate covered strawberries for special occasions! besides Malley’s there is also the fine art of chocolate made by Lilly’s Handmade Chocolates (Tremont), a few of these make an impressive gift. Or, you could cure the chocolate craving with a red velvet cupcake from Cookie and A Cupcake or the recent America’s Best Chocolate Chip Cookie (by Food & Wine Magazine) at Blackbird Bakery (Lakewood.) Seriously, so many wonderful options.

Jewelry : If you’ve ever been to any of the holiday indie craft shows you know there are so many wonderful jewelers in the area. But just as a reminder….guys…my friend Erica of On the Lookout Jewelry makes such detailed beaded pieces, your Valentine would love a necklace by her! Or “she” also loves Oceanne creations (especially the cupid earrings) (wink wink) Both of these jewelers sell to many of our little area boutiques so check out their websites or drop them an email to find out where you can score a last minute gift.

Food & Drinks : There are so many local places, I can’t even begin to list them all. However, I will say one option  I think is really cool is from Gatherings Kitchen located in Lakewood. Where you reserve your dinner, swing by on the way home and pick it up, reheat and voila a 4-course romantic dinner (including short ribs!) at home with NO clean up! $50 for the dinner feeds two lovebirds. Call NOW and you might still be able to reserve a dinner!

Activities : From the events at the Rock Hall, to a night out with the fish at the Aquarium, you could get all yoga twisty at a hot yoga class together or relax to the orchestra…find something special to do with your friends or honey to celebrate the day together. Get creative!

I hope some of my last minutes ideas were helpful and while I don’t mean to knock CVS…please people, we can do better than that! Happy (almost) Valentines!

Posted on February 13, 2013 by charity
Posted in etsy, event, events, explore, fashion, favorites, friend, fun, hand made, holiday, holidays, local, love, neighborhood, orchestra, passion, promotion, relax, seasonal, shop, shopping, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

{Feb 6, 2013}
  Coffee love

Morning friends! Loving the sunshine today, how it makes the snow covered earth extra sparkly, so pretty.

As I was getting dressed this morning I realized that to me February means dusting off all of my red and pink apparel and accessories and giving them extra love during the happy heart month. I usually start by adding small splashes of the select colors (today red high heels) and end on the 14th with full on big hearts, red, pink and every sparkly accessory possible. I have no idea why I do this..but I guess it get’s me through these winter fashion blahs and is sorta a fun challenge unto itself. Do you do weird things like this?

Anyhow, I wanted to share this adorable little promo I picked up from Starbucks on Sunday morning. From 2/6 to 2/14 and after 2pm, Buy one Latte, Mocha or hot cocoa and get one free for your special someone. Sounds like it’s time to invite your bestie, your mom or your beau out for a warm winter drink…but make sure they are wearing something red and pink…all the cool kids are doing it. :)

Posted on February 6, 2013 by charity
Posted in clothes, coffee, free, friend, holiday, holidays | Tagged | Leave a comment

{Feb 4, 2013}
  LovLox hair ‘do : giveaway!

Happy Monday all you Cleveland lovers, hope you everyone managed to get some rest after that steaming hot halftime show. I mean whether you like her voice or not, that girl was on fire for sure. No need to really talk about the actual game; however I did enjoy all the twitter activity when the lights went out during the second half of the game..WOW.

Today I have a very big treat for one lucky reader. For over ten years I have had my hair cut, colored, trimmed, curled, poufed and more by one special lady. She has done the hair for my sisters who sometimes fly from across the country for a new ‘do just for her style and talent with hair of all types. As a recent mom balancing work and life was a concern for her and so she did what any rational person might do…start her own business? Yes, my friend Tiffani has recently founded LovLox the perfect chair to relax into, to get those InStyle waves, to achieve that rocking Valentines Day red head ‘do or a new pixie cut for spring. LovLox is located at 29540 Center Ridge Road (located inside fringe & foundation) in Westlake. It has a ton of natural bright light and a nice buzz around the salon, just what a salon experience should be.

I am really excited for today’s giveaway and can’t wait to see the before & afters! Today one lucky reader will get an initial consultation, cut and style from LovLox. the perfect push for a new spring look in the CLE. To win, follow @LOVLOXRR, and then tweet me @iheartclev,  ”I need a new @LOVLOXRR ’do for spring!” Winner will be chosen by random and notified on Monday, February 11th.

Posted on February 4, 2013 by charity
Posted in beauty, explore, friend, giveaway, hair, salon, Uncategorized | 6 Comments

{Jan 30, 2013}
  Guest Post // Zach Christy

Hey CLE, “boy” do I have a treat for you today! I don’t know if you remember or not but at the beginning of this year I put out to the universe a few goals for this blog and today I’d like to officially kick off the new i heart cleveland “man friend” series!

Not that I don’t write about things for both women AND men, but sometimes my sparkly, cupcake-filled, fashion-minded me overtakes and it’s always good to included a view from the other team…so here we go…

Today I’d like to introduce you to a friend of a friend (and now my friend too) Mr. Zach Christy. Zach seems to have his hands in some wildly creative projects around town and so when I approached him about his favorite hots spots  he really gave me lots of “to-do’s” to add to my own personal list. I know you will all be pleasantly surprised by some of his favorite foodie hot spots and I don’t know about you but after you finish reading his wise words, if you want to call me for tacos and guac…I totally have a craving.

Thanks so much Zach for kicking off this series! Cheers to a great year of spicy Mexican, antiquing adventures and more creative play. To follow Zach and see some of his work check out his vimeo site here! Take it away Zach…

“I moved to Cleveland in 2009. I moved here for a job and really didn’t think I would be staying for too long.  I met a girl and we dated for a little bit, but that’s beside the point.

Almost. 

We shared a mutual appreciation; let’s call it love,  for Mexican food.  Pretty early into our dating life we decided that we were going to try and go to every Mexican restaurant within the greater Cleveland area.  And, I am pretty sure we managed to get to most.  All of this is beside the point, other than the fact that it really allowed me to discover some of the great places that Cleveland has to offer that I would have never found.  It doesn’t hurt that my dad and I also deal antiques on the side. So, the willingness to go into places off the beaten path has been built into my nature from the start.

MORE! →

Posted on January 30, 2013 by charity
Posted in adventure, antiques, celebrate, design, explore, friend, man friend, restaurant, retail, shop, shopping | Leave a comment

{Jan 29, 2013}
  Get excited!!!

So I saw this ad in this months Cleveland Magazines (along with the sexy singles…congrats Allison!) and began to get SUPER excited!

Just a few more weeks until I officially put together my weekend bag and move into Tower City for this years 37th annual Cleveland International Film Festival! My Cleveland winter…almost spring…would not be as spectacular if the film fest wasn’t in my life.

Thanks to all the staff and volunteers who are working their tushes off to pull together the final details for this years festival…I am counting down the days.

Posted on January 29, 2013 by charity
Posted in event, explore, festival, film, friend | Tagged | 2 Comments

{May 4, 2011}
  Stash Style Sale

This weekend marks the inaugural Stash Style home SALE. If you remember, this past April, my friend closed her Chagrin Falls Store to look for a new way of doing business..hence the sale events were born.

Join her this Friday evening for the kick off preview sale (including live music under an evening rain-proof tent!) from 5-9pm and the official sale Saturday from 10-5 at her urban-chic Rocky River Home located at 780 Bates Road. Shop till you drop!

Can’t make it this weekend but would like to be notified of future sales? Drop a note to stashstyle@yahoo.com.

Posted on May 4, 2011 by charity
Posted in antiques, architecture, art, congrats, creative, event, explore, fair, friend, opening, outdoors, shopping | Leave a comment

{Apr 6, 2011}
  Emails. Mom-friends. FREE babysitting!


I know a big audience for blogs are the tried and true heros of the world…Mom’s. As a way to connect with “outside world,” to stay up on trends, news, recipes, family stories blogs are a wonderful way to connect with others in Cleveland to the other side of the world.

This blog (iheartcleveland) was actually really inspired by some of my “mom-friends.” You see as many of my friends left the corporate world to raise their families, I took it upon myself to write to them elaborate emails about the happenings of the social scene, making sure they weren’t left out. Fast forward a few months and I heard someone talking about how they had been forwarded “this email about fun things happening around town”…MY EMAILS had been forwarded, I was thrilled!

This email, then turned itself into a blog for not just mom’s but also artists, non-profits, hipsters, tourists, creative like-minded Cleveland cheerleaders and many more. So first and foremost to those of you who forwarded on my emails…thank you.

Now onto the “free” childcare. I have this friend (who was one of those email forwarding mom-friends) who is just delightful and very smart. She and a handful of friends came up with this idea of a babysitting co-op, where you trade points in exchange for a babysitting time.

These ladies of the “co-op” don’t miss a social beat, they are movers and shakers, they attend MANY of the events I write about, never EVER complaining about paying a sitter. Their babysitting co-op allows for my friends to sneak away to a lunchtime yoga class, a few film festival flicks, a wine tasting with the girls or dinner out with their special someone. Check out the nitty gritty details (how it works, starting your own, etc.) about the co-op here from an article the Plain Dealer did on them back in 2007.

It’s 2011 and I can’t believe I have never actually A) thanked all my mom-friends who follow this blog and B) ever taken the opportunity to gush about how creative parenting and babysitting co-ops TOTALLY ROCK! You ladies always amaze me, you should be very proud of yourselves…I’m proud to know great groups like yours exist in Cleveland.

(illustration by CSA images)

Posted on April 6, 2011 by charity
Posted in community, creative, families, family, free, friend, people, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

{Nov 24, 2010}
  Be thankful.

This year YOU have a lot to be thankful for.

You wake up, you get on facebook or twitter or email or the like. You take a shower, you get your morning cup of coffee. You go into work, (which also allows for more internet usage.) You enjoy the warmth around you, your work pals; your lunch buddies. You close up for the day and head home to your family (or pets). Maybe you hit the gym or a meeting at the library. You eat dinner, watch a little telly and then do it all over again.

We might get caught up in the mundane, but today PLEASE stop and take a moment to realize these incredible everyday acts are truly such a priveledge and for the little things, we should be thankful.

This year I have so much to be thankful for. A wonderful family. An incredible network of friends. The opportunity to do what I love, graphic design. A roof over my head. My adorable friend Franklin (dog) and his new BFF Amelia (camper). And without a doubt, this blog.

I’m thankful for this opportunity to be able to write a little each day. I’m also super grateful for you (the reader) to give me a chance to share my daily thoughts with you.

May you, your families and friends have a wonderful holiday. Be thankful for living in a pretty darn cool city, i heart Thanksgiving…we heart Cleveland!

Posted on November 24, 2010 by charity
Posted in families, family, friend, holiday, holidays | Leave a comment

{Jul 16, 2010}
  A BIG Sale! (07/18)

Posted on July 16, 2010 by charity
Posted in art, friend, sale, vintage | Leave a comment