Jess Lively

Have a great day. I’ll be back to work and blogging in the days to come.

Ah. The next time I write, I will be living in a new home. Er, apartment. I was lucky enough to find someone to paint the bedrooms at the new place after all, so I will be lugging home four gallons of paint this afternoon. Erwin and I are moving my jewelry studio to the [...]

Oh how small the Internet really is. Kind of like Chicago, it’s a big city with a lot of tiny neighborhoods. Recently I ‘bumped’ into an old Internet friend who long, long ago designed the logo for Jess LC. She is none other than Stefanie of the blog, Brooklyn Limestone, and design company, Sonic Stef [...]

As things start to unravel a bit here at the studio (I’m starting to move out the items that I’m not taking to the new apartment), I want to mention that today is Erwin’s birthday. Happy birthday, Erwin! We’ve celebrated with a surprise party last weekend, and tonight we’re going to dinner with his friends [...]

So far my new moving concept (moving with only items that fit my vision for the new space) is going well. I have listed several large items on Craig’s List and I am leaving a fair amount of furniture in the studio for the new occupant. But there are a few items which are up [...]

Good afternoon! I hope you had a great weekend. Mine was filled with planning Erwin’s surprise birthday party. It did turn out to be a surprise (thankfully) but unfortunately I didn’t whip out the camera, so I don’t have any photos to share. Several people that came asked me to post a few of the [...]

The weekend. It’s going to be a good one. After a pretty hefty long run (marathon training is starting to ramp up now) tomorrow morning, I’ll be baking with Kaitlyn. On Sunday Erwin and I will be ordering our new sectional and I’ll be inventorying what fits my vision for our new space and what [...]

Good afternoon! I just want to stop in and mention that Susie, my intern extraordinaire, and I will be at Macy’s tomorrow for the Designer’s of Chicago Trunk Show before the big Glamorama event that night. Here are the details: Who: the Macy’s Designers of Chicago designers (including Jess LC) What: Trunk Show (we’ll have [...]

Oh boy. I’ve been excited about this DESIGN YOUR LIFE for a while now. Erwin (my boyfriend) generally stays behind the scenes of MakeunderMyLife, but he’s agreed to be interviewed for DYL following a reader request (thanks, Danny!). Though some of you may not know much about Erwin, I can tell you that we definitely [...]

A few weeks ago I mentioned that I was drooling over a sectional for our new apartment. It looked like this: What I liked: the neutral color, modern lines, and scale of this Blake Sectional from West Elm. What I did not like: the price tag. So this weekend Erwin and I headed over to [...]

Good afternoon! I have finally compiled most of the photos from Chiblogo, take a look. It was a great event and I’m so happy to have met so many of you for the first time in person. Check here for the full Chiblogo wrap up. Courtney and Lauren, the two greatest hostesses to work with. [...]

At this point, I know I’m a borderline blogger cliche making the infamous hamburger cupcakes for Chiblogo. These little guys are super popular on blogs. I first fell in love with them on Bakerella. I then made them for a Fourth of July barbecue and now for Chiblogo this weekend. The recipe is simple, the [...]

This weekend was a blur of fun and food. I will start off by saying I’m busy editing and finishing the photos from the first Chiblogo event which was a huge success! More on that in the next day or so. The New Whole Foods (AKA): “Date Night” I’ll start off this morning with a [...]

Happy Friday afternoon! This Sunday is my second anniversary of living in Chicago. Pair that up with Chiblogo tomorrow night at Matilda’s and I’m in for a pretty exciting weekend. Anyone else with anniversaries or coming to Chiblogo, too? End of the Week Exfoliation “I bought this bag at a boutique in Silver Lake that [...]

Recently I got a very nice email from Melissa of So About What I Said. Of course I promptly responded and checked out her site. I immediately found myself in awe, inspired, and excited to invite her for this week’s DESIGN YOUR LIFE. As you will read, Melissa has overcome incredible adversity with grace and [...]

I have been thinking about this day for several weeks. Maybe a month. I have known I have to do this, but I haven’t been able to come to terms with the reality. With my move coming up in the next few weeks, taking stock of the items I’m bringing and those I am exfoliating, [...]

REMINDER: Chiblogo is coming up! The details are below in pretty invite format. See you all this Saturday. We’ll imbibe, mingle, hang out, and figure out what kind of blogger community we want to create here in the Windy City. And for all those who don’t live in Chicago, come make it a road trip! [...]

As mentioned, I’ve read a quarter of the Julie & Julia Project book with lukewarm feelings, despite my excitement for the movie. On Saturday, Kaitlyn and I did see the film and definitely enjoyed it. The food. The bruschetta. I don’t know how they did it, but that food looked amazing. Did anyone else see [...]

I know that I’m approaching my second anniversary of living in Chicago this week because I hear the Chicago Air and Water Show jets buzzing around Lincoln Park. My first day in Chicago happened to fall on the same weekend as the 2007 show. New Apartment Colors Today I’m debating about paint color for the [...]

Ready for a sneak peek at the new Madison collection? Take a look at this pretty (shown in gold and navy): Sorry for the blur/dark color, jewelry is a tricky to photograph. But you can get the basic idea. We are also doing this guy in a big statement earring as well. As for the [...]

I am pumped about the next two days, which include a long training run, Julie & Julia, a 90′s Music Party, grocery shopping, tapas, a fashion show at Sushi Samba, and two out of town friends (Vicki and Amy). A whole lot of fun in 48 hours, that’s for sure. Does anyone else have a [...]

G’day mates! What if people really said that in Chicago? I think the city would be a better place. I also think the city would be better if we said the words “B vitamins” like Gillian McKeith of the BBC show, You Are What You Eat (which I have watched everyday and thereby lost 1.2 [...]

OhmygoodnessamIexcitedaboutthispost! This week I interrupt the beloved DYL interviews to bring you this very special reader makeunder by Morgan. A few months ago I outlined my process of making under (linked below) and Morgan sent me her schedule makeunder last week. I never thought to apply the steps to my schedule, but it make so [...]

Good afternoon. Sorry for the late posting- I had my first appointment at Macy’s early this morning. The verdict is in: Madison and Wellington are hits! And as many of you know, I asked you all to weigh in about the color choices via Twitter a few weeks ago. The debate between plum and navy [...]

This summer I’ve decided to give myself a break from my usual non-fiction-self-improvement style reading. I’ve decided to read this: Yes, in honor of blogging I am reading Julie & Julia before seeing it in theaters this weekend. To all my non-blog reading friends: yes, I’m lame. To all my blogging friends: yes, I’m cool. [...]

Good (late) morning! I am back from a long weekend my old college town of Ann Arbor. It was great to visit ‘my person’, Maggie, and meet all her med student friends. I also got to visit some old haunts like The Jug and see the new business school. Plus, I got to kayak on [...]