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0 follow me on twitter

I finally decided to jump on the bandwagon and join twitter! I know that a lot of my readers are on twitter so please follow me! You can find me at http://twitter.com/nikimcneill. 

I've also added a button to appear in each post so you can easily retweet if you like what you see!

Also, don't forget about the giveaway going on this week, I'm looking forward to your comments!!

0 eat,sleep, draw!!

My "Sincerely, Jane" drawing was featured today on the very cool website Eat, Sleep Draw! Go check out mine and other amazing drawings here.

Thanks Eat, Sleep Draw!!

0 the magic of miles

Good Morning!

One of my favorite albums of all time is Miles Davis's Kind of Blue. Whenever I just want to chill out or just need to relax, this is the album that I go to first. In fact, I still listen to it like it's new.

Maybe you need a little relaxation on this Monday morning too?

This is a video of Miles and John Coltrane performing the first song of the album, "So What".

Enjoy!

7 coming soon + giveaway!!

I'm excited to announce that I will be doing some limited edition prints of two of my drawings. I just picked up the proofs and they look amazing! Seriously, the prints almost look fresher than my original drawings.

They will be available for purchase on my website later this week, and only 25 prints will be made of each drawing. I will be adding more drawings to the shop, but once 25 have sold, I will not make any more!

AND

To kick off the holiday spirit of giving, I'm doing the first ever Single Bubble Pop giveaway this week. I want to thank you all for reading this blog and also find out why you keep coming back! So, here's the deal. I will be giving away one of my limited edition prints to one person who comments on this post. You can choose between "I Dream of Nina" and "Sincerely, Jane".

All you have to do to enter the giveaway is:

1. Leave a comment on this post.
2. Tell me what you like about Single Bubble Pop.
3. Tell me what you'd like to see more of on Single Bubble Pop.

I will choose a winner randomly using random.org on Thursday December 2nd and I'll announce the winner on Friday. I'm really looking forward to your feedback so please be honest!!

3 target queen jewelry

Miss Rachel Stewart creates some gorgeous and fun jewelry paying homage to some of my (and probably your) favorite icons. I wish I'd discovered her work before I moved to Atlanta because she's based out of Raleigh, NC! Check out her blog to see more of her work and order one of these fab pieces.

0 she loves her hair

The fabulous Andrea from Fly has created an online store featuring her natural hair inspired prints. I'm a little late in posting this, as the store opened over a week ago and three prints are already sold out! She should be replenishing soon but I just wanted to share so you can check out her amazing work and maybe pick up one for yourself or a gift for your favorite natural gal.

Click here to go to I Love My Hair

0 happy thanksgiving!!

my cousin susan and i, circa 198?

I hope everyone reading this has a great Thanksgiving! Although work is keeping me away from my friends and family this year, I am so thankful that I have family to miss. I know that some aren't as fortunate to have a large loving family as I do and I truly appreciate them everyday!

I also really appreciate everybody who's reading my blog. As a thank you to the blog readers I have, I'll be doing my first ever Single Bubble Pop giveaway next week!

Stuff yourself with turkey tomorrow and then come back here for details on the who, what, when and how of the giveaway next week.

ciao ;)

0 crewcuts

One of J.Crew's best kept secrets is their beautiful kids line called crewcuts. This line is only available through jcrew.com, the catalogue and a few premium J.Crew stores. Raleigh was fortunate enough to have a premium J.Crew store so I've seen this stuff in person. There isn't one in Georgia, but if you order anything there is no shipping fee.

It is SO cute and the same quality as the adult stuff. When you're thinking about gifts for your favorite little ones this holiday season, check out crewcuts!

0 i'd do it all again

STUNNING! I love CBRae even more this time around. Can't wait to hear more! :)

0 nikimcneill.com

Hey Everyone!

I've been working hard to redesign and launch my website! If you are reading this blog you probably already know that I am an aspiring Interior Design and artist. This is my first step in promoting myself within those fields, so it needs to make a great first impression! Please take a moment to check it out, and let me know what you think. If you could send me a message from the contact page of my website, I'd really appreciate it.

Click here now!

xoxo Niki

0 artist spotlight: lee crutchley

Lee is a graphic designer who creates these fun hand lettered messages in a Moleskin notebook.

For more, check out his flickr stream and blog!

0 it's your choice...

via Tha Hotness

2 perfect pink paradise

Remember my little cousin Ryan who is battling leukemia? Well she's doing a LOT better now, and a local group was so kind as to remodel her bedroom. Ryan is such an amazing little girl and I'm so happy she'll have a room as fabulous as her now. Thank you April's Angels for this beautiful makeover! Read the article about her and her room makeover here.

image via newsobserver.com

0 nc in atl

In between my ridiculous work schedule this weekend, I got to spend some time with my friends from North Carolina who were visiting Atlanta. We had a great time!! Friday, we ate at Ludacris' restaurant in Midtown called STRAITS. It was surprisingly really good; I'm always skeptical of "celebrity restaurants".

armon and I

tanner and his cousin cori

tarik and kayla

This is Arturo, the cutest little long haired chihuahua I've ever met. This is Cori's baby and he uses a litter box!!!! How cute is that?

Saturday night we hung out at the W midtown for a "baby shower after party". Apparently baby showers are more like birthday parties now?? New to me, but it was fun no less! lol

outside the W

inside the W

I was much happier to see my old friend Dominique than this picture lets on;

we go all the way back to Fuller GT Magnet!! :)

Pretty Aggie ladies!

I love how NC A&T will hop in a car and support each other for whatever occasion.

Good times!! I hope you had a great weekend too :)

3 style icon: fly lady di

I wish I could get away with dressing this expressively everyday! Fly Lady Di is truly one of my style icons. Here she is rocking her signature look in the November issue of Liberating Style magazine. Read the article here, worship the photos below! :)

For more info on her, check out www.flyladydi.com.

2 great outerwear at every price

I don't know about where you are, but it's getting chilly enough here in Atlanta that I need some type of jacket or coat everyday. I love outwear because its an easy way to make an outfit pop without a lot of effort. I have (what I think is) a lot of coats, but I think I need some updating!

Here are a few I've been admiring at every price point.

While I was working for Old Navy we got these in and I instantly fell in love! It is such a cute fit, with the 3/4 length bell sleeves and oversized collar. And, I love the yellow lining! It's only $35 this week at Old Navy!

We carry this coat at J.Crew and it is made of the softest yet warm wool ever! I love the ruffles down the front too, it just makes the coat a little more special.

Now THIS is my holy grail coat. I tried this on in Anthropologie and it fits like a glove. The weight of the wool is perfect and the detailing is AMAZING. If only I had an extra $300 lying around, I would have bought it and never taken it off!

2 best in the world!

I've been gone for the past few days because I went to homecoming at Carolina and it was soooo great to be back in Chapel Hill with my girls! We had a great time, just reminiscing on our undergrad days. It was also a great reminder that we can't hang anymore! haha I was so exhausted when I got back Sunday night, and even left work early on Monday. But it was all worth it, can't wait till we do it again New Year's Eve.

Love you girls! ;)

1 thanks compai!

The fabulous ladies of Compai have a new book that just released called Refashioned Bags and I was lucky enough to win a copy! I can't wait to get copy in the mail. If you're unfamiliar with Compai, please check out their blog and website here.

0 mavens, connectors and salesmen

I just finished listening to Malcolm Gladwell's 2002 book entitled The Tipping Point. It was a very thought provoking read about the catalysts that cause epidemics.

When I say epidemics, I don't mean the kind dramatized in movies like Outbreak, or the most current hysteria surrounding swine flu. This books concentrates on the elements that cause a viral spread of ideas or trends, and what contributes to them. For example, he begins the book talking about the circumstances that cause the formerly "skateboard fan only" brand Airwalk to become an international top sneaker brand in the 90s. With so many other options, what made millions of teens who had never stepped on a skateboard gravitate toward this brand? Gladwell does a great job of breaking it down.

One of the most interesting parts of the book to me was his categorization of the people that cause epidemics, either directly or indirectly. He broke up these people into three groups, Mavens, Connectors and Salesmen.

You know that one friend of yours who knows everybody? That's your Connector friend: a person who truly loves people and enjoys connecting them even more. Chances are, if you sat down and figured out how you met all of your friends, most of them would connect back to this person.

And then I'm sure you know another person who is the expert on something. Whether it be where to go to have a good time on the weekend, the best place to find cute shoes, or even the best products to use on your hair, they know it. That's your Maven friend: a person motivated by knowing everything they can about their subject or area of choice.

And then there are Salesman. These are the people who use the connections of the Connector friends and the knowledge of the Mavens to convince others of the validity of something/anything. Whereas a Maven doesn't necessarily seek to share her expertise, a Salesman not only shares, he influences. A Salesmen has the gift of persuasion that Connectors and Mavens lack.

So what does this all have to do with me? Or you? While reading the book, I tried to place myself within one of these categories and I don't think I truly fit in any. I can say for certain who is the the Connector and Maven in my life, but not sure who the Salesman is. What about you?

I did realize, however, that I do have a bit of Maven tendencies, and that was the part of me that started this blog. When I look at my posts from last year, I realize that I was doing my best to share art, music, inspiration and just parts of my life simply for the sake of sharing. Although I do still want to do that, for whatever reason, my motivation has been zapped lately!

It's a new month, I have a new computer and I'm a month into my new job. I think it's time to find some new motivation and bring out the inner Maven in me. 47 people subscribed to this blog for a reason, so I'll do better to give you a reason to come back to SBP!

Look for more post from me, starting tomorrow!