Zig Zag

Can't explain it, but this wedding cake makes me so happy. 

the end. 

[here is where I stole it from]

The Newsies

Hello again!!!

It has been too long! Let me explain- April was a whirlwind month for me... I had a high of celebrating my birthday & a low of dealing with side effects from a concussion I got at work. I also left my merchandising job and took a job with some awesome photographers here (yay! here is their site if you're curious).  And I have projects lined up with some interior decorator-friends so this should be a very exciting and busy summer! Jeremy and I have been planning out our summer trips lately, and I am already preparing myself to not buy every piece of junk (aka "treasure") I see when I go to CANTON in a couple of weeks! YAY!!! It's been a long time since I have been there last- all i can remember from my last trip is that it involved beanie babies.... oh and in case you forgot, it is the WORLDS LARGEST FLEA MARKET.

Lately I have been super absorbed in reading this little jewel, you might have heard of it....

And been trying to paint these... this project has been in the works for about a month- I have a love/hate relationship with these birdhouses.

OH how have I not mentioned Pinterest by now?!?! This is by far my new favorite internet hobby! You can create all kinds of "boards" that you "pin" all kinds of images you find on other people's boards or from the web or photos you take. Here's the best part- you can put a pin-it button on your toolbar (I think I mean bookmark bar- technical terms are not my strong point), so if you're just out and about on the web and find something you want on one of your boards- you can just click on your "pin it" button and sends it to your board! Here is an idea of what I'm talkin bout:

Lastly, I have been having some cat-drama. Dinah has been acting out. Maybe with all the craziness that's been going on these past couple of months is to blame? I did quite a bit of googling Saturday, and the only thing I can come up with is that he needs more attention... which makes sense considering I was a post-concussive zombie in April and have been super busy this month... And he is a Siamese. So my strategy is to give him more treats, have play sessions when I get home from work, and keep every article of clothing in our closet (Dinah tore up basically a whole outfit of Jeremy's). We'll see what happens!

I better get back to my leftover peanut butter pancakes and Seinfeld...

Here & There

So... this weekend I finished a little wedding project for my college friend Caitlin (her blog is here!) who is getting married at McPherson Cellars here in Lubbock this May (hey, I was married there too!). She asked me to make her a sign-in tree (instead of a guest book, guests "leaf" a thumbprint and sign their name) similar to the one I used at my wedding:

(so thankful for our awesome wedding photographer Lissa- check out her blog here!)

It was super easy-not too many skills needed. First step for me involved making a delicious cup of black tea (w/sugar & vanilla soymilk of course). I really like embossing and stamps- so I used black matte ink, with matte embossing powder, individual letters and numbers (which is really the trickiest part- I am considering splurging on one of those letter rotatory things... waiting on that 40% Hobby Lobby coupon- I highly recommend signing up for their emails! and Michaels apparently emails them too now! ok I have no excuse for not having that letter rotator anymore!) Where was I? Oh yes, I decided to make the horizontal edges a little fancier with the Martha Stewart puncher and to use watercolors to create the tree. Watercolor is my favorite, and I keep them right under my desk so they are most convenient- my art supplies still need a happy home- ill probably be working on this organizational roadblock later this summer!

Punching the edges was a mess at first, but I figured out a system of counting the notches already punched, and moving the puncher to the right and all was well. Don't worry- I confuse myself a lot too.

Painting was super easy after a quick sketch of the tree-skeleton, that's why I love watercolor- you can't mess it up! 

Jeremy was in the office with me while I was making this (ok he totally helped me out... what can I say, he is a nice guy) and I found myself ranting about how much I hate glue and how it can totally mess up your stuff beyond repair, and also how ironic and unfair it is that the only glue-medium I do like is spray glue, but that is useless to me since the wind here is consistently gusty with dirt and those fluffy tree things all over the place... whew. I'll stop there! All that to say- I have found my glue niche, and it happens to be these little double-sided tape squares found in the scrapbooking aisle- they are amazing. I could type all day about them, but I won't....

Put it all together, and it is ready to be filled in on the big day!

My wedding tree is currently framed above my desk- and I love getting to see it everyday! 

So excited for Caitlin's wedding- she has been a sweet friend and I wish her the best!

What else.... 

OH since I have been married I have been on the search for the perfect home-smell for us. I have found said scent, it's Orange Ginger from Bath & Body Works. It is so fresh and clean and a little sweet, without being too girly. Having a little apartment, and living with a man and a cat, I am the only one fighting for good smells here! It is a tiny issue- but one I think about when things get stinky (which is everyday- man and cat remember). I highly recommend the wallflower nightlight route... as much as I love candles, I have to be honest with myself and go with the option that will least likely kill me when I forget about it. 

AND this weekend I got some presents!!! 

Cannot wait to use these! (aka- keep them out for pretty but actually use them as little as possible so I don't have to be without them for more than a second while they need washing, they so pretty!) Thanks to my friend Julia and Jeremiah-who happen to be having their first baby this year :) I can't wait to meet Jr. and spoil him with lots of candy and sno cones. 

Isn't this box amazing?!?! I've never seen a square one! It was an early birthday gift from my friend Amy- she found it at the Eclectic Tea Pot in Plainview. I plan on stuffing it with candy (wrapped of course, Im sure this baby is loaded with lead...) and keeping it in the living room for now, its pretty roomy inside, so maybe it could also hold candles or pens? suggestions welcome. One can never have too many cute boxes- that is for sure. 

Crafting Fail

So tonight my friend Carrie came over to craft. We both had new projects- and three hours later they are still considerably new. I mean, this is how far I have gotten in my knitting:

All I wanted was a practice piece, but I couldn't even get past the casting on.... I will give in and youtube this tomorrow. 

Carrie's project was a lot more intense- it involved a sewing machine- and was a toddler dress from Freshly Picked. 

The end result was supposed to resemble this: 

So far, we have a fabric tube:

And a future sundress!

I am very proud of her for working so hard despite all the project obstacles (we both have a little fear of sewing machines!). I obviously gave up and ate too much candy. 

 I hope that my knitting skills can improve soon.... at this rate I'll have maybe 1/2 a scarf this winter. And maybe someday I will overcome my sewing machine fear to be an expert sewer(?) like Carrie!

Monday Funday

Let's just take a moment to talk about one of my favorite things- this little guy decorating my bathroom: 

I love how you can see his fangs! So creepy! On-the-verge-of-scaring-children-creepy. It was a gift from Hubs about this time last year, and I would love to add another to my one-piece collection- but every time I look for another one at Ryan Berkley's Etsy shop,I am overloaded with options (good options at that, how is a person as indecisive as me supposed to decide?!?).

Onto more fun. While internetting I came across another amazing Etsy shop, Kivaford, and I am just amazed that making a miniature chemistry set is even possible! 

Sometimes I wish I had become a scientist just so I could have something like this to decorate my intelligently-themed desk that I work on very long equations at. 

More fun...

While I'm thinking about it- I hope that if I ever try my hand at carpentry it ends up in a miracle. I mean I hope it is super easy for me. And cheap. And I can make things like this (also found on Etsy here): 

I love all the compartments- and the cute old couple in the frame- I'll take it all! And it is called an Apothecary Cabinet, and who doesn't like the word "Apothecary"?!?! It takes me back to my Friends watching college days, here, have a little scene and reminisce with me on Youtube.

Well, just found this one from Target and it could be better with some interesting drawer pulls. Definitely the cheapest I have found... 

If only I had the skills to make my own furniture... can you just imagine how much significantly prettier this apartment would be?!?