Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Yea For Baby Showers!

I've spent the last few days trying to figure out how to put together gifts that I wanted to give to a friend at her baby shower, and after many long nights, I think things came together quite nicely. Ahhh, crazy times without a sewing machine. That's right, the soft blocks and fabric puzzle pieces were all sewn by my shaking fingers. Yeaaa! I think they turned out really cute though.

I also threw in some white chocolate covered pretzels, just for some extra oomph. I think I'm getting a bit better with my packaging. Kinda. Mr. Hippo Guy guarded them wonderfully. I found out that Lauren really likes white chocolate pretzels, so that was my amazing psychic ability at work. Hopefully her little one enjoys the other things. I learned so much after doing both of these projects for the first time, so if I ever want to do them again I'll be a pro. Getting a sewing machine might really help the process, don't ya think?

On another note, my mom came over earlier in the day with her gift for the shower and a certain little dude fell in love with the stuffed animal she brought. This little zebra had the manzie so focused it was hilarious. He held it out as if he was dancing with it. This is another one of those times where I'm so lucky I snapped a picture at just the right time.Awwwww. I might just have to run over to Target and get one for him. Yes please, I'll take more moments like this!

Saturday, September 26, 2009

*Cupcake Saturday*

It's just been one of those days that was jam packed with a bunch of last minute things, so now here it is, the last hour of the day, and I just remembered that it's *Cupcake Saturday*. Picture me scrambling around, searching through my hundreds of online 'Favorites' to find just the right topic for today. Well, I have found it.One of the people who's brain I'd love to pick is Pink, over at CasaPinka. She was one of the hidden gems I found while combing through the blog rolls of some of my other favorites, and I'm so happy I stumbled onto her site. She is another one of those people I want to be like 'when I grow up'. Her posts are full of gorgeous colors(pink included of course), gotta-have-it crafty creations, and my absolute favorite, her realistic experiences with being a mom. We can't have it together all of the time and I love her honesty. I laughed so hard the night I stayed up until 5 in the morning reading through every single post she'd stuck up. It was a sleepless night very well spent. Well now that I've sung my praises to her, I'll get to the Cupcake portion. Pink recently started what she is calling a Cupcake Sociology Project and it has me energized for some reason. You've really just have to read about her experiences so far, especially what got it all started. Seriously, just go read this.

This is the sum-up of her plans. She's brilliant.

"I've decided to embark on a month long study where I will make gorgeous and delicious cupcakes and offer them to random people, noting why they decline my treats if they tell me, and seeing what sort of conversations come from sharing something gorgeous and edible with a stranger. I'll blog about my baking process, try to take some nice photos and then we'll see what happens as I try to pawn them off on friends and strangers."

Now this got me thinking. I would love to try this out in D.C. right in the middle of the Mall! You know where, tons of grass, walking/running path all around. I'd want to jump on this soon because it's starting to get colder, but I definitely don't want to do it alone. How would you feel about baking a dozen or so cupcakes, whatever style you want, and then taking the Metro with me out there on a Saturday to give Cupcakes to strangers? Sounds bizarre, and of course there's the chance that we'd get shot down by a bunch of people, but I think the odds of oodles of smiling faces outweighs that in a great way. Plus, there's strength in numbers. Me by myself would be awkward, but me + 4 or 5 friends = and incredible day making a slight difference in the lives of strangers. So come on, be brave and tell me you'd love to join me! It'll be the East Coast chapter of Pink's project to "reach out to people in a world that seems so anxious right now. "

{the amazing cupcakes were made by Pink. wow huh? find more from her on her blog and in her Etsy shop}

Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Awkward Wall

After tons time mentally flip-flopping, I think I finally have a solution for my 'Awkward Wall'. I painted it a bright white a while ago and have gone back and forth on what to put on it. I'm going with painted stripes! I've got the paint color and I know I want thick stripes instead of a bunch of skinny ones, so now it's just a matter of choosing between horizontal or vertical. What do you think?

Horizontal......

Or Vertical......
Blah. I can't decide. I think I'm leaning more towards horizontal. I'm gonna get totally fed up with it all I'm sure and just do this instead.

I found this Paint Chip Sample Wall and I absolutely LOVE it! Wouldn't you just walk into my home and say 'WOW'? I'd go with some different colors, but I think this is incredible. It's the perfect way to get all the colors you like :o)

{sources:: 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8}

Tuesday, September 22, 2009

A Place For Reading.....

Andrew got me the new Dan Brown book about a week ago and as much as I'm dying to get through it, I'm stuck on page 47. I can't read the same way I used to. Too many distractions running through my head. I think one of these fun reading nooks would help!

Those pillows look super squishy and comfy! This has a shabby-beachy feel that I love.

I really like the idea of slapping some wallpaper up just on the wall in this little area. It really sets it aside.

I'd like the house to go along with this nook. You know it's just gotta be amazing.

Ok, now the stenciling isn't my favorite, but the chair and dresser are ideal. They make me happy!

I'm currently working on creating my own little nook in our place, which isn't exactly easy with our completely open floor plan. I've got the oober comfy couch and softy pillow, now I just need to sink into it and open my awesome book!

Sunday, September 20, 2009

Adorable Argyle

After spending about a week trying to find something inspiring, I landed on this picture which brought my love of argyle patterns all flooding back.

I love the mismatch of patterns, but the argyle is my favorite. Thank you Apartment Therapy! I've done some searching for more fun everyday items with this awesome pattern. Enjoy!

I love the base of the Oopsy Daisy lamp, along with the shade of course.Martha Stewart has step by step instructions on how to put the cute little piggy together and even says "This petite argyle pig is so cuddly, you'll want to produce a whole pen's worth." Hmmm, we'll see about that. Anyone wanna try making it with me?
Journey's is absolutely my favorite shoe store, mostly because it has the style of shoe I like and in a size I can actually wear. And what's better than having a shiny new pair of shoes than getting some super soft and comfy argyle footies to wear? Just the thought has me smiling. I wore down the last set I got to the point where only 4 socks are left, and all in different styles. Extra fun to wear!
I'd love to have these argyle drink coasters, but I'm afraid they'd end up in the same place our last set of coasters did, with the little dude's toys. No clue why he loves them so much, but I know why I love these!

Pottery Barn has these argyle pillow shams with throws to match. I like them because they've got much more of the classic color combination. I could just imagine a crafty lady stealing her man's sweater to create these. If you like these ones though, run and get them. They're on big time sale!

I think this 'modern' argyle pillow is much more my taste. Simple, mellow colors, and has the 'made by me' look without actually being made by me. That might go on my birthday wishlist. Better yet, can anyone teach me how to make these? I need some new pillows and I'd love to be able to say I made the covers!

Yeaaa for argyle! Seriously though, if anyone wants to make that stuffed pig, let me know. I think it'd be so cute in a bunch of different styles. Have an incredible day!

Saturday, September 19, 2009

*Cupcake Saturday*

I woke up this morning feeling completely *blah*, so searching for a topic for today's C.S. was a welcome task. Now I want to bake like a crazie person. I've noticed a bunch of different cupcake kits lately, so I'm putting together a little collection for you to oogle. Who knows, they might inspire you too!

::cupcake kit:: seems to be the most well known one out there. With those cute liner colors and the simple name, I'm not surprised. Anything polka dot and I'm hooked.

While some of these kits can be justified, I don't think I could talk myself into actually buying the 'Juicy Couture & Dylan's Candy Bar Cupcake Kit'. I just love that it comes with measuring spoons! Plus anything from Dylan's Candy Bar makes me smile.

Normally I stick with the basics like chocolate and vanilla when it comes to cupcakes, but this Lemon & Coconut Kit from Donna Hay looks too tasty to pass up. To the Chocolate and Vanilla lovers, she's got you covered too.

For you lucky ones who have fantastic scratch recipes but just need the extra oomph, Meri Meri is lookin' out for you with these colorful decorating sets. You know me, I couldn't pass up a chance to show something Pirate themed. Yeaa skulls! They've got a bunch more like these too. I'm loving the Open If you Dare kit.

This is the ultimate cupcake kit. Saint Cupcake has the perfect setup. You point and click, picking 3 cupcakes, 3 types of frosting, and 3 kinds of sprinkles. Then they package it up beautifully and send it your way. Sound like fun? Wanna get it for free? One of my favorite sites, 'oh, hello friend' is giving one of these Signature Kits away! Just clickety-click over to her site and enter. If you win, please tell me how yummy the cupcakes are!

Tuesday, September 15, 2009

A Happier Kitchen

After months and months of stepping over a baby gate to get into our kitchen I now love sliding back and forth over the invisible line between the un-dining room and my new favorite room in our home. Here's the kitchen setup we had before, when we were minus two cabinets thanks to all of the kitty stuff.

To make things worse, next to the litter box cabinet we had a giant kitty tree that I couldn't stand. Not exactly the best bunch of things to have in the kitchen of all places, but with a little dude wandering around, none of these things could be accessible to him. Well, this baking kick has inspired a change. Getting rid of the cats isn't an option(unless anyone wants to take them, pleeeease?) so I asked my wise-as-a-smarty-owl Momma what she would do. Her advice was to throw it all in the bathroom. Well that wasn't an option in my mind, but I got me thinking about other rooms. After hours of baby-proofing the kitchen, scrubbing and disinfecting cabinets, and confusing the cats, all of the kitty junk is situated in the hallway closet. Yeaaaa! It left a bunch of room for some awesome reorganizing. Let me introduce you to 'my' cabinet.....

It's oh so pretty in my mind. I like being able to see everything. Moving things around also reminded me that I have the Giant Cupcake Pan from Wilton, and thanks to my aunt's incredible brains, I've got a new solution to making the end result look edible instead of slathered in frosting. Perfect timing to get some extra room. My sprinkles and such cabinet is getting a bit full. I blame it on Little Bits for having too many awesome sprinkles. Along with my strong like for that place, I ventured out today with my Momma and Katie to a new place called Cakes Plus. Thank goodness I took a second look at the store reviews online because I didn't realize they were more than a bakery. That place made me so happy! I loaded up on goodies.

So many Merckens chocolates at the bottom there. And if these sprinkles here don't make you smile, please look at them again. I love the name for them too(my favorite Charlie Brown character).

Little Pigs!! No clue what I'm gonna use them for, but they were too cute to pass up. Plus Katie talked me into getting them :) Right before checking out, my two road trip buddies saw these....I snagged the green and pink one, and I know it'll fit perfectly in my growing cupcake collection. I've got to stop procrastinating and get that up. Hmmmm, that could be a perfect project for my next Cupcake Saturday post. Thanks for checking out my craziness! Have an amazing day!

Saturday, September 12, 2009

*Cupcake Saturday*

Today it's all about Having Your Cupcake & Wearing It Too! I skipped around my favorite go-to website, Etsy, and found some pretty interesting cupcake images that range from cute and sweet right up to zombie-ish. Now I know you won't love them all, but I do! Most are on t-shirts and a few are on kids' clothing, but with some sucking up you might be able to get the creators to put the images on all kinds of wearable items. Enjoy!Dog Bone Art rocks. They'll slap the Pirate Cupcake image on shirts, bags, buttons, bumper stickers, whatever.I love the Pink Skull & Cupcake Shirt from the Cupcaity shop(cute name). The detail is incredible. It's also the kind of shirt that would get me a sideways look from my Momma :o) On any given day I feel at least 3 of these. An 'Off the wall' creation from Jason at KillTaupe. These are two that I'm definitely keeping on my wishlist. Both of these Rocky The Zombie images are hand painted, and you can choose the size/style of shirt. Black~White Speaking of hand painted awesomeness, here is the Elephant Who Never Forgets To Eat Cupcake. Too cute.Little Frankencake here was slapped on the front of a baby onesie, and the best part is the rear view. Just look, it's adorable. Doesn't the Motherhood tee just sum it all up? Making cupcake bites with some ladies the other night I heard the funniest thing...."Do you think if I do them in pink the boys won't eat them?" I'm just happy that I can keep mine out of the reach of my little dude, for now at least.

Wednesday, September 9, 2009

Sites I Stalk

As my list of blogs/sites I'm loving keeps growing, I thought it'd be fun to share a handful of them, along with the reasons they rock. Here goes.....


Nicole is the blogger behind Making It Lovely, and she lives up to the name. She's working on transforming her family's so-so bungalow into a cute home, and the pictures of her place are incredible. She does the things I would love to do in my place, but when I try it never comes out as fabulous. She also is the owner/creator of Pink Loves Brown, an online stationary shop full of cute cards, bookplates and tons more.

Decorology

I don't remember where found Decorology, but it was one of my first 5 finds, and I've been through her entire blog multiple times. Ashley pulls from magazine websites, artists, photographers and who knows where else. Her overall taste matches mine so wonderfully that I'm always running back for more!

Hostess With The Mostess

Finding this site a few months ago has made for some awesome nights up late cruising through other peoples' parties. The pictures are gorgeous and I'm dying to host a baby shower or two to try some themes out!

oh, hello friend

oh, hello friend speaks to the softer side of me. There are regular giveaways, daily postings, and many links to all kinds of art, jewelry, clothing and more. The best part? She has usually has multiple posts each day :)

Blah to Tada!

Claire is the perfect example of good things coming into your life when you least expect it. I have no clue where she found me, but a random comment from her had me instantly hooked on her site. blah to Tada! is full of Claire's ingenious ways to recycle or improve on the everyday things that we all have. She combines a bunch of 'blah' items and Tada!-you're left with a beautiful picture of something you're dying to go do yourself. She must bottle up all of her creativity in all of her little honey bear jars. I have no idea how she's able to post with new ideas each day, but I'm loving it!

Made By Girl

I first found Jennifer's blog through her Etsy shop, and I'm so happy I did. It was like getting a present on an already awesome day. She also has another online shop full of cards and posters including her too-cute-for-words ABC posters.

Twig & Thistle

If you're always on the lookout for fantastic crafty ideas and Do-It-Yourself freebies, this is the site for you. I'm loving the Ice Cream Dream post and the DIY Freebie: Lunch Bag Notes.

Bakerella

There really aren't words to sum up how fantastic I think Bakerella is. Her recipes are so yummy and what makes her extra wonderful to me is that she walks you through everything! Mouth watering pictures go hand in hand with detailed instructions, so there's really no messing it up. I'm thinking of having a Bakerella inspired party, anyone wanna come?

Centsational Girl

If there was ever someone I'd want as a neighbor to guide me through all of my projects, it would be Kate from Centsational Girl. She transforms some of the most awkward looking things into "gotta-have-it" items. I love what she says...."I'm on a quest for diamond style on a dime, and I'm out to make my world fabulous, for less, one DIY project at a time." She's not kidding at all. Check out her Staircase transformation. Wowza!

Cake Wrecks

I must be the last person to jump on the Cake Wrecks bandwagon, but I think I'm the one who lucked out. It's like watching a tv series on dvd. You get to skip all the pesky commercials. Well I got an overdose of cake in a matter of days. I laughed, giggled, shared with people around me, and many times said, "Blah. What were they thinking?!?!", all because of this awesome blog. Throughout the week Jen posts horrifying cakes, awkward typos, and just plain scary creations that Wreckerators slap together. At least she makes up for it on Sunday with Sunday Sweets, the complete 180 degree opposite of the Wrecks. Just look. You'll understand.

Now go check out all the amazingness that these sites have to offer!