I stumbled across Becca Stadtlander's incredible art on pinterest (of course) and if you check out her Etsy store you can see why.  Not only is her artwork immediately engaging with a sort of Americana meets children's book illustration aesthetic, but her subject matter is so varied that it's hard to find something that you can't live without.  Not to mention that at around $25 for prints, it's incredibly affordable to make your own little Becca Stadtlander gallery wall.  Investing in art is daunting and that's why my walls went blank for so long, but hanging little groupings of prints is a nice way to ease into the world of art without investing your entire savings account on a piece.

Some of my favorites:

Purchase on Etsy Here

Purchase on Etsy Here

Purchase on Etsy Here

Purchase on Etsy Here

I hadn't seen this one before today so I'm already considering a new addition to my wall.  Purchase from Etsy here

Laying out my gallery wall:

If you are looking for cheap frames, these are from AC Moore where you can often find buy one get one gallery wall frames or use their frequent 50% off coupons.  The con is that you are on your own for measuring accurately (which I obviously sort of missed on but close enough, right?).  Pottery Barn frames will set you back some financially, but they come with super handy dimensional guides so that you can pre-measure accurately before you start putting holes in the wall.

Ok, so technically Pizzeria Toro is in Durham, but it definitely should make your to do list if you're in the Triangle area and love pizza.  Because this pizza is going to definitely exceed expectations -- a decadent combination of rich cheeses and fresh ingredients all on the perfectly crispy on the outside and still soft on the inside wood fired crust.  I love Papa Johns just like the next girl; I even eat frozen pizzas from time to time.  But after the first bite of our spicy lamb meatball and kale pizza, I had the horrifying realization that I had been eating straight trash for most of my life and this is how pizza should truly taste.  Real cheese!  It's good.




Plan Ahead:  This restaurant is very small, so come early or there may be a wait.  The tables are very close to each other, so expect to get friendly even with your neighbors when you are trying to squeeze two pizzas and two beers on your small table.  Also, parking can be a bit of an issue.  The restaurant has a very small section of parking available on the street, but you may have to circle around for a bit or use a parking deck if you don't get lucky enough to grab a curbside spot.  There is a small parking lot behind the restaurant that is free to the public on weekends and after 5 on weekdays that might have a few spots left as well.


The service is very fast; we had both of our pizzas on our table and ready to eat within 20 minutes of sitting down.  And afterwards you may need to walk off some of your food baby with a nearby stroll to Durham's revitalized American Tobacco District or you can catch a Durham Bull's game or a show at DPAC (Book of Mormon is coming back this December by the way!).