At the risk of sounding like a total Starbucks fan girl, I’m going to show you all another one of Starbucks’ successful attempts at package design. The attention to detail in their designs just makes me squeal in delight. I do this often but Starbucks really deserves the squeals.

Detail one: Embossing the outside of the box - design for my fingers to enjoy.

Detail two: Patterns everywhere! Love it.

Detail three: Crazy 3-d box design. Whoever came up with how the inside of this box would be constructed deserves a medal for awesomeness. I wonder how long you have to sit there with some paper to figure that out.

Detail four: Taking the time to really design the stamp that goes on the chocolate. Sure, you can just throw your name on it and be done but where’s the fun in that? Where’s the need for me to pull out my camera and forever remember what your chocolate looked like?

So kudos to Starbucks for designing and not just throwing your chocolates into a crappy box. It makes the experience a little more memorable. Or maybe I just think that because I’m a designer and notice these things.

I love a small, family-owned coffee shop as much as the next person but there is something about Starbucks that I just can’t keep away from. Maybe they add more sugar to their Frappuccinos than is fathomable or maybe they train every barista for months on end on the art of making a great cappuccinos. Whatever it is, I love my drinks from Starbucks.

So when I saw a great website from Starbucks offering free samples, I was delighted!

The website, Starbucks Coffee at Home is an all-Flash site. On my connection at home, it loads pretty slowly.

The chalk artwork on the whole site is well worth the wait. Check out the Barista Gallery if you visit the site. I never had the patience to draw more than a little cup of soup on Crisper’s chalkboard, I don’t know how these guys did what they did.

I love how each page you go to is erased but you can still see it behind the new page, something about that is so unique but so “duh”-simple. Why didn’t I think of that? I can’t imagine what kind of Actionscript probably goes into this site. There are a lot of small touches to the site that just made me smile, like the chalk dust.

As much as I usually hate sound on a website, I do like the ambient background “music”. When I got to clicking around a lot, the chalk sounds did get annoying.

I took the “Find my Perfect Coffee” test at the bottom and got a free sample of the House Blend delivered to work. Can’t wait to try it! :9 Mmm mmm.

The packaging it came in was great. I was expecting a regular brown box and honestly, a smaller sample. The box the sample came in was computer software-style, same basic shape, smaller size with a flap in the front with more information. I absolutely love the art. That little rooster is so cute.

So thanks Starbucks for the eye and taste bud candy!

John and I went on our second road trip together this past weekend. Traveling from Orlando, FL to Savannah, GA. Savannah to Myrtle Beach, SC. Myrtle Beach to Kill Devil Hills, NC. Kill Devil Hills to Asheville, NC and from Asheville back home.

Savannah was gorgeous. We stayed in Savannah Bed and Breakfast Inn with a comfortable bed, quiet courtyard and delicious breakfast. Neither of us had ever stayed in a Bed and Breakfast. We were weary of not having privacy and having to make small talk with everyone staying at the inn. Not so! We were left alone when we wanted to be and helped tremendously when we needed to be helped. Everyone was so friendly, I didn’t mind talking to people. (And I am not a people-person.)

We walked around all night looking for somewhere to eat dinner once we checked into the Inn. I’d read a short review of a place called Jazz’d while searching for a B&B to stay in, so we decided to try it out. Loud music, live singer/piano player and lots of food. They served tapas, which neither of us had tried before. $55, Tapas for Two! We each had our choice of a soup or salad, we shared four tapas and we both we served our choice of dessert. Great food, great service, great price. I would recommend it to anyone (as long as you could handle the noise)!

We continued walking down River Street, bought some chocolate, took some pictures.

The next morning, we walked around like tourists, taking pictures of every monument, building, house and street we came to. It was so much fun! Of course, this was after the incredibly relaxing, quiet morning we’d had out in the courtyard of the Inn. I wish I lived there!

We ate lunch at a little cafe, then we were on our way to Myrtle Beach!

I can’t say that I was too fond of Myrtle Beach. I must be really old for 21, but it was just too bright and too crazy. It actually reminded me of a large-scale Waterford Town Center–too many teenagers and way too many things packed into one area.

We stayed at Compass Cove. It was really busy. There were a lot of children running around in wet bathing suits, shoving their way onto the elevators before anyone could even get out. The beaches were nice though and we got some really nice pictures of the sunrise on John’s camera.

After Myrtle Beach, we drove off to Outer Banks, North Carolina. Our hotel was in Kill Devil Hills–a nice little Days Inn. The whole area was beautiful. The beaches, the houses, the sand dunes everywhere.

It was quiet and slow-paced, just the way I like it. (Am I boring or what?) We ate at Miller’s Waterfront in Nags Head. AMAZING. John had fried crab cakes, I had a sampling of broiled seafood. The crab cakes were the best part, 100% crab, no fillers. So far from the Red Lobster seafood I always have. I think I dream of crab cakes at night now.

The next morning we had our continental breakfast, went out to watch the sunrise (though we were a bit late), then set out to see the lighthouses. We drove all the way down to Hatteras and back up again. I had never seen a lighthouse before, so they were pretty amazing to me. Got some great pictures.

After the lighthouses, on the way out of Outer Banks, we went souvenir hunting. I wish I had bought more for myself!

Our next drive brought us to Asheville, North Carolina. The drive there was pretty long, a nice 7.5 hours. We crossed through so many tiny towns that were sprawled out over so many miles. I don’t know how people live so far away from the nearest grocery store. I’d go nuts!

I loved Asheville! The mountains were beautiful and the people were friendly. I wish that we had had a little more time. By the time we got there, it was around 10pm, so we decided to just order some pizza and go to bed. I really wish we had gone to look for something that might have been open. I’m sure we wouldn’t have found much, considering it was also a Sunday.

The next morning, we just walked around downtown Asheville. Got some coffee. Checked out a bunch of shops. (I got the best coasters! “Mommy loves you, but if you leave a ring on my table, I’ll kick your ass.”) Ran out of money for parking, so we had to find somewhere else to go. We ended up eating at a sushi/hibachi restaurant. It was good but nothing out of the ordinary as far as Japanese restaurants go.

Then we left for home. 9+ hours of driving. It was tiring.

So, about 2,000 miles and 30-something hours of driving and we got to see some of the east coast. I loved the places we went, I almost feel homesick for them! I should probably get out of Orlando as soon as I can.