Boarding Pass – Little Brown Pen

One of my favorite things about living in Paris is that it’s a city that people regularly pass through. After getting to know Nichole Robertson through her blog Little Brown Pen, it was great to finally meet her a couple weeks ago when she was in town. During mini Paris meet-up, Lindsey and I sat there amazed and inspired as we listened to all of the amazing projects Nichole has cooked up, and how things like her blog, twitter and etsy have really let her do all these amazing things (a copy writer by trade, Nichole regularly teams up with her equally as awesome – a business minded whose secret identity is as an illustrator – husband Evan on projects). This year the duo released their first major project – the Perpetual Paris calendar, which combines their favorite typographic photos of Paris. I’m excited to see what comes next, but in the meantime, enjoy a look into how Nichole’s travels inspire her work! {Thanks, Nichole!}
home town:
Columbia, Pennsylvania. It’s a small town in Lancaster, County, and people jokingly ask me if I’m Amish when I reveal where I grew up. I’m not, but I can bake a wonderful whoopie pie–Lancaster’s other claim to fame.
where you live now:
Glen Ridge, NJ. Glen ridge is about 12 miles west of New York City, which is about as far away as I could possibly be.

last trip taken:
Paris

next trip on deck:
Boston, MA
one place you would go back to again and again:
Paris. I travel to Paris multiple times a year, and I never tire of the way the light hits the buildings, the way the bread smells baking and the way I feel when I am there, which is giddy.
place you’d most likely recommend a friend go visit:
The Bavarian Alps. I have a client (Amala) whose headquarters are in Sulzberg, Germany. The mountains are stunning and the small charming towns are so peaceful. The pace of life is anything but frantic, and you feel at one with nature. Once when I was there for a meeting, the President of the company stopped us mid conversation and said we’d finish later as it was “a perfect time to take a dip in the lake.” I remember he also mentioned something about the sun being in the just the right spot. Try to imagine this happening in America.
preferred method of transportation:
Though I love to travel, I’m not a fan of flying. The worst part for me is takeoff, and my husband has the scars to prove it. I watched a movie about a plane crash when I was 9 (hey, thanks, Dad!) and I never recovered. I love to travel by train, and wish it were more practical in the US. Though there is something to be said for a good old Americana road trip.
place you’ve never been but dying to go:
Greece. It’s on my list of things to do before I am forty. And time is running out!

place you’d never go back:
I don’t like to say never, but the Poconos come to mind. I wanted to like the Poconos, I really did, but just found the whole area depressing. Perhaps I just stayed in the wrong area.

most memorable trip in 2 sentences or less:
My husband and I took a three-day road trip in Pennsylvania when we were younger and broke. Diners, dives and camping! And that’s all I can say about that.
how do you prepare for a trip?
I can leave for a 2-week trip in an hour. I travel scandalously light. When it comes to itineraries, I am light on that front as well. I may pick out a place or two I want to visit, but mostly I just take things as they come.
how do you record your travels when you’re traveling?
My camera, a notebook, and a “little” brown pen.
what is your favorite thing to photograph in a new place?
The small stuff: coffee cups, chairs, bikes, street signs. I rarely take full shots of monuments or vistas. There are already thousands of wonderful photos of the popular attractions taken by much better photographers. I like to capture the place the way it is lived in by those who call it home.
on an average, how many pictures to you take on a trip?
Thousands!
what’s in your “designer travel kit” ?
A Nikon D5000 and a zoom lens, a moleskin journal, a brown fine point Sharpie and black sunglasses

{rose window print for sale on etsy}

what do you do after a trip? how long after a trip does this happen?
I usually blog while I am traveling, and share photos on Flickr. I am pretty diligent about updating photos fairly quickly. I have never scrapbooked and I rarely put photos into albums. I often mean to, but never get around to it.
favorite souvenir/thing to bring back?
Always food. Especially coffee and butter.
More from Nichole:

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