Ever wonder if anyone visits the websites or blogs you've been inspired by? Or the store fronts you window shop at or the items you want to fill your home or closet with? Does the position of a referral make a difference? Does anyone follow the links in captions or credits? Google Analytics can yield some clues.   First you have to add some code to the links you want to analyze. (This can be incredibly time consuming.)   Here's an example of a default link: a href="http://www.gemkitty.com/custom-jewelry/necklaces#style=zoe&gem1=tigb14fof&metal=thin-gold-chain"   Here's an example of a link set up to track events: a href="http://www.gemkitty.com/custom-jewelry/necklaces#style=zoe&gem1=tigb14fof&metal=thin-gold-chain" target="_blank" onClick="recordOutboundLink(this, 'Outbound Links - Within Post, Caption', 'gemkitty.com/custom-jewelry/necklaces#style=zoe&gem1=tigb14fof&metal=thin-gold-chain');ret...

I'm a sucker for a handwritten note; maybe it's because I studied calligraphy and addressed invitations on holiday breaks in junior high. A well lettered sign can also make me swoon; maybe that's an artifact of all the exhibits I created for public hearings in high school. Needless to say, I love both the printed and written word and wondered what was available in a rug for our living room.   The Finds (top left clockwise) : Poem Rug , various sizes 2' x 3' to 8' x 8', $49 to $489; Hand tufted New Zealand Wool Alphabet Rug , various sizes 2' x 3' to 8' x 10', $48 to $640; Rug with Lowercase Alphabet in Cursive Form , various sizes 4' x 6' to 6' x 9', $399.90 to $799.90; Cool Expressions Rug , various sizes 2' x 3' to 8' x 10', $59 to $640; Wool Letters Area Rug , $445; Letterpress Rug , 5' x 8', $249; Letterpress Army Rug .   My search was somewhat disappointing as most rugs with letters and numbers...

Got a favorite color? A color you despise? Or are you neutral when it comes to colors? When forced to pick a least favorite color last week, I chose brown .   The Finds (top clockwise) : Rain in Spangles Dress, Bubbly , $74.99; Ariat Shelleen Boot , $189.95; Lace Convertible Satchel , $49.95.   I don't really have a least favorite color so I quickly looked at a color wheel and chose the one that stood out as least interesting: brown. Our assignment once we chose a color was to seek it out. (See Monday's Shades of Brown post for the brown items I found around our new flat.) Excluding furniture and hardwood floors, a lot of brown was found in my closet. Most of my favorite clothes -- sweaters and dresses -- are brown, so I decided to take a closer look at the meaning or psychology of the color brown.   The color brown has both positive and negative meanings. Positives Associated with all things natural or organic Gives a feeling of solidity, family unity Creates a w...

To improve my eye and to challenge me creatively, I've been participating in a couple of Photo-A-Day projects. One, the 2012 Photo Challenge , has me choosing a color each month and actively exploring it. When my Do What You Love for Life e-course asked us to observe our least favorite color, I combined projects. Here are some of my favorite shots from this month's 2012 Photo Challenge.     Besides improving my photography skills, these projects make me contemplate my everyday surroundings. (You can see more photos in the Color Brown Challenge on Flickr .)   As I mentioned in Friday's Overlooking the Familiar post, I discovered even when I thought I was actively looking I was still missing things. For June's color, I'll be picking another "background" or ubiquitous color - black.   What's your least favorite color? Have you ever tried seeking it out in your surroundings?   Ciao Bella! Eden   Credits: All images taken by Eden Hensley Silverstein...

Today's exercise: Pick a color and find it - really search for it - around you. Once you've got a color, do the following: Stop and look. Look again. Now really look. Repeat. Miss anything the first time you looked? The second time? It's not as easy as you think, is it?     I repeated this exercise over the course of three days with the color brown, taking photographs of every brown item I saw. In my first look at a room or a space, I noticed that I often overlooked brown items that were sitting just outside the frame. For example, my favorite mixing bowl, which holds fruit or vegetables, sits on the kitchen counter NEXT to our coffee grinder. I didn't notice that I hadn't taken a photograph of it until the THIRD day even though I'd been regularly taking vegetables from it. I then wondered:   How often do we go through our surroundings on autopilot, without really noticing characteristics?   When we read text, we often overlook missing words, filling them in...

I have a confession. I'm a klutz. This means I've got very few light colored clothes. Today I find myself daydreaming about a cream colored skirt to give a purple handbag some pop.   The Finds (top clockwise) : Color Block Easy Tee, Gray , $27.93; Palm Groves Medlinda, Natural/African Violet , $278; Fidji Bobbi G282 , $188; Farran Skirt, Tapioca/Shore Khaki , $425.   What do you think of light colored skirts or pants?   Ciao Bella! Eden   Credits: All images taken by their respective sellers: Express , Kate Spade , Tory Burch , and Zappos.com . Collage created by Eden Hensley Silverstein for The Road to the Good Life.

On Thursday, May 10, we left our cozy Edwardian apartment at the edge of Hayes Valley and The Mission for a larger Railroad flat in the heart of The Mission. Starting at the back of the flat with our kitchen, over the next couple of weeks I'll give you a tour of our home.     We always knew we'd be moving. In fact, we started looking for a new place before we got pregnant last May. What we didn't plan on was moving so soon after Gates was born; we'd even given up the search . Our new home, however, was too good to pass up.   We now have almost double the space, approximately 1,600 square feet, gaining a breakfast area, a dining room, and another bedroom. We have both a full-size washer and a full-size dryer in the flat. We have on-site storage. And, we have parking. The only downside to our home is the lack of a bathtub.   New space means decorating opportunities. And more space means new furniture. The first room we need new furniture for is the kitchen. Right...

Recently I've been posting inconsistently. Lots has been (and still is) happening: our newborn and now upcoming move. As Internet won't be available immediately in our new flat, I'll be going offline for 5 to 10 business days.     When I return I'll walk you through our new neighborhood and give you a tour of our new flat. We're not moving far - just from the border of The Mission and Hayes Valley to the heart of The Mission.   Over the next couple of months, I'll be completing the refresh of this blog that I started in November. My goal now as it was then is to be authentic. With that goal in mind, some features will disappear, while others will return like Bedside Reading and Found . I'll also be asking you what you'd like to see more of so stay tuned!   Ciao Bella! Eden   Credits: All images taken by Eden Hensley Silverstein for The Road to the Good Life.

Now that my feet are finally not swollen, I'm looking forward to stepping out in something other than a pair of flip flops. I stumbled across these glittery flats and was immediately hooked.   The Finds (left to right) : The Zoe Necklace with Tiger's Eye Gemstone and Thin 16" Gold Chain, $57 ; Vivi Glitter Ballet Flats, $168 ; Polka Dot Empire Waist Tiered Dress, $41.99 .   What do you think? Just the right dash of pizzaz or over the top?   Ciao Bella! Eden   Credits: All images taken by their respective sellers: Ann Taylor , GemKitty , Macy's . Collage created by Eden Hensley Silverstein for The Road to the Good Life.

One thing my husband and I enjoy doing is entertaining. Our current cozy one bedroom apartment limited our dinner parties to intimate gatherings of six or less. Now that we're getting ready to move into a two bedroom apartment with both a dining room and a living room, I'm dreaming of hosting dinner parties again. Therefore, today's roundup of typographic objects are related to socializing.   The Finds (top left clockwise) : Bon Appetit Linen Towel, $28 ; Cook with Love Floursack Towel, $15 ; Type Collage Coasters, $12 ; Letter Coasters, $13 ; Give Thanks Linen Napkins, $72 ; Custom Recipe Platter, $60 .   Before and after your guests arrive you want to cultivate the "right" attitude. By "right" attitude I mean non-stressed out and relaxed, ready to have fun, and open to having guests help out with prep and serving. Cook with Love dish towels from Letterform are perfect for setting the mood and letting guests know they're welcome in the kitchen. ...

We all have tricks we use to get through the tough times. When you push yourself to finish a race that's just outside your comfort zone - "just one more step." When you breast feed your baby and it doesn't come as easily or as naturally as everyone says it should - "tomorrow I quit, I can do it this last time today." I never understood the few mothers who when asked how long they planned to breast feed their baby for included "tomorrow I'm quitting" to their answers; now I understand.   Be forewarned, this is a somewhat long post. It's also about a very emotionally charged topic - breast feeding - and it's not PC. It's a very personal post and one that was incredibly hard to write, much less share.   I've come across few mommy bloggers who've had anything less than an idyllic breast feeding experience. As a soon-to-be or new mom, these bloggers set incredibly high unrealistic expectations. Other bloggers who happen to be...