Never fear, I’ll be back!

xo

In preparation for next week, which I’m planning on posting a DIY a day(!), I’ve decided to take a breather and not do a DIY today. There’s only so many projects I have floating around my head, and today I’m going to be working on a super secret mothers day/birthday project for a couple of women in my life. Shh don’t tell them!

But look! I found cute things online to show you until then.

ekkk! cute dog with sprinklers

I’d like 4 of these, please.

love these matching tattoos.

how amazing are these embroidered portraits?

I’m having some serious bathtub envy. Biggest downfall to my apartment.

Now, to get this computer and puppy off my lap and get motivated. I have a little work to do later today, possibly a party to attend to, and a lot of crafting (and sleeping!) to catch up on.

xo

The hardest part for me is finding a good recipe, and the inspiration to follow through with making said recipe. I always forget to take a grocery list with me to the store, or if I do bring it, I don’t even glance at it and end up coming home with 3 cans of spaghetti sauce, mac and cheese, and frozen burritos. I grocery shop as if I were a college freshman. Kh is breaking me of this habit.. slowly..

I’ve been finding some amazing recipes out there recently, now if only I could find the time to get all the ingredients and get to cooking. Here are just a few I’ve found that would be great little treats, or full meals to make for the mother in your life next weekend. I know my mom wouldn’t complain if I showed up and cooked one of these for her.

bacon egg and toast cups :: source ::

mini frittatas :: source ::

fast raspberry scones :: source ::

And for a healthy, more complete meal, what about this? It sounds amazing!

stacked roasted vegetable enchiladas :: source ::

I found a dozen more recipes I can’t wait to try out. I’m even thinking about giving the scones a go, but using strawberries instead of raspberries. The veggie enchiladas also have me wanting veggie lasagna.. Ok, now I’m just plain ol’ hungry all around. Feed me! Or rather, use this inspiration to feed your mother.

xo

homemade pineapple infused rum :: source ::

sake mojito :: source ::

gin and rhubarb cocktail :: source ::

sweet southern cocktail :: source ::

What do all of these have in common? They all sound very refreshing. I love the idea of a cocktail made with iced tea, after my new found love of iced tea.. I’m slow on the uptake at times. Recently I haven’t been able to enjoy an adult beverage due to some meds I’m on, so I may just be lusting after anything with a refreshing sound to it. I miss drinking out of straws! I also came across these two recipes for non-alcoholic beverages.

orange juice with lemon :: source ::

homemade lemonade recipe :: source ::

While I’m not the biggest fan of Tequila, the sweet southern cocktail sounds perfect for sipping out on my porch. Soon enough I’ll be able to drink out of a straw and have a refreshing cocktail of my own.

xo

Before the collage begins, be sure to look back at these other posts for some more ideas.

Gifts under $50
Mothers Day cards
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:: Mothers Day Roundup ::
1. glass etching via Make It and Love It
2. block print poppies via Martha Stewart
3. flower pillow via burlap and blue
4. fingerprint jewelry via Sarah Ortega
5. bathroom labeled jars via The Idea Room
6. painted ceramic dishes via Under the Sycamore

These were just a few of my favorite finds. #4 I’ve used in previous roundups, and I think it’s a great alternative to the fingerprint jewelry in my under $50 list. #5 I could see being used for a 100 different things. Spices, supplies, you name it. I love the recycling of the Starbucks glasses.

Sometimes I’m not the best at recreating projects just by photographs. I get easily confused between steps and even have had my moments of fudging it. Just put a big piece of felt here, or hide and glue the back of it.. good as new! I came across this video tutorial on how to transfer photos onto wooden blocks. Another GREAT idea! And the video is cute to boot.

__________________

Not only did I find some great DIY’s around the internet, I also have some older DIY’s that I’ve made that could be perfect for gift giving.

:: Marie, Oh Marie crafty roundup ::

1. Silhouette wall art
2. Framed cork board
3. Fabric covered terracotta pots
4. Pin cushion mason jars

The silhouette wall art could even be turned into a silhouette framed piece of artwork, or even done on a wooden block and hung up. I love a craft that has a million different possibilities.

__________

I love looking back at some of the older DIY’s I started with and seeing how much my photography (and ideas) have improved. I just started this blog back in November, so it hasn’t even been a full year yet. You live, and you learn. Which is why it’s great to have a documentation of the learning process.

Yayyy craft times!

xo

A couple of them really had me giggling, and would be perfect for the slightly twisted humor that exists in my family.

thanks for squeezing me out :: source ::

(eye) heart you :: source ::

my life would suck without you :: source ::

one badass mother :: source ::

axe lady :: source :: (I just love the letterpress look)

If you’d like a more eco friendly way to send your Mother a note, you should head over to someecards. They have some of my favorite online cards. Sarcastic and witty, whats not to love?

__________

Feeling inspired yet? I certainly am. Keep stopping by this week, I’ll be putting up a DIY roundup and maybe even a few of my own DIY’s next week.

xo

And Mom if you’re reading this, no I won’t give hints as to what I made for you!

Ideas for gifts are floating all over the place, and I realized just how hard it can be to buy for your mom. Every mom is different, so I found just a few of my favorites that are under $50.

mother and baby rabbits embroidered hoop art :: source ::

fingerprint jewelry :: source ::

eco friendly gift box :: source ::

love pillow :: source ::

small ceramic bowl :: source ::

love nugget ring :: source ::

I’m a big fan of taking a bunch of little gifts and putting them together in a box or basket with a cute card. The best presents in my opinion are the handmade ones, but I know not everyone is crafty enough for such ventures. Maybe try your hand at a homemade Mothers Day card? I know my mom would love it if I even just finger painted on some cardstock and sent it her way. (No mom, that’s not what I did either).

I hope this helped get your gifting juices flowing. Stop back this week for a great roundup of DIY projects for Mom, and even a Mothers Day card roundup.

xo

Usually this time of year I’m trying to hide indoors anyways. The pollen swirling around in the air always finds a way to ruin my life. This year it hasn’t been nearly as bad as previous years. I’ve even taken to enjoying the flowers! It makes my job that much easier when I don’t have to worry about allergies.

Ok, so onto better things! I’ve been seeing a lot of Spring inspired DIY’s lately. Paper flowers, birds, you name it. Here are just a few of my favorites involving string/felt. I’m feeling rather inspired and may even get out my felt and thread later today.

twine flowers :: source ::

felt dahlia brooch :: source ::

felt flowers :: source ::

felt pom poms :: source ::

I came across these painted Tom’s, how cute are they? Not to mention super Springy!

:: source ::

xo

But I suppose it’s not all that lovely when you want to wear Spring dresses, sandals and get ready for Summer. Last week was just that, warm and Spring like. Borderline Summer weather even. With warm weather come the warm weather outfits. I have slowly begun to stock up on just that. I had to return some things to Old Navy the other day and ended up getting two things to replace it, and a credit back. I love being cheap.. er.. thrifty!

A simple black halter dress for $9. You like my super obvious tan line?

Another simple black dress for $12.

I’m getting much better at returning clothes I’m not at least 95% in love with once I get them home. They end up sitting in my closet or on the floor. I have a strange habit of not taking tags off clothes until I wear them for the first time. I won’t even tell you how many shirts still have the tags on them in my closet.

With all this talk of outfits, I couldn’t help myself and had to put together 2 Spring time finds of outfits. I’ve done this a few times before, and well, I must admit I’m a window shopper to the extreme.

:: shoes: sandal via dsw ::
:: dress: woodblock artist dress via modcloth ::
:: necklace: petal to the metal necklace via modcloth ::
:: earrings: marrakech your eye earrings via modcloth ::

Now this outfit is my favorite, and when I showed Kh the only reply I got was “So very you.” Which.. I’d have to agree. Others may like a bunch of floral prints for Spring.. but I like my solid black.

:: dress: holiday in paradise via modcloth ::
:: shoes: sandal via dsw (can you tell I love these sandals?) ::
:: earrings: textured triangle earrings via forever 21 ::
:: necklace: geo accent necklace via forever 21 ::
:: bag: studded fringe hobo bag via forever 21 (I have one just like it from dsw but you can never have enough fringe bags, amiright?) ::

This weekend I’ll be on the hunt for the perfect thrifty outfit, so watch out for that next week. Do you have any Spring time/seasonally appropriate wear that you’re drooling over lately? Share it with me!

xo

:: source ::

I’ve been taking a bit of a break from the blog these past few days. Involuntarily, of course.

It’s not all jelly beans and lemonade when it comes to life. Sometimes you get hit smack in the face with a whole lemon, and that smarts. Especially if you don’t see it coming. It’s those times you have to take a deep breathe and remember it can’t last forever, there’s always a valley before a hill (quoting a fortune cookie I saw recently, I can’t take all the credit).

This past weekend we had a couple of friends over. It was our first real time entertaining since we moved in. We made homemade pizza (recipe here), and had a few drinks on our back porch. It was a great night, until the incident happened. While biting into a piece of pizza, one of my back molars broke in half. Ok, that sucked. What sucked even more was the following 2 days. I can’t remember ever being in so much pain. I barely got any sleep, and walked around like a zombie.

With it being the weekend I couldn’t get to the dentist until Monday. Monday came, and I finally was able to get the tooth pulled. I’ve had a phobia of the dentist for years, but with the amount of pain I was in, I didn’t mind the 10 shots of novocaine or the surgical extraction. I got to sleep last night! And today I look like a chipmunk.

A chipmunk wearing pajamas and watching as many crime thrillers from the 90′s as possible. I did have a couple of client consultations, I’m sure they thought I was pretty terrifying, and mildly humorous looking.

Sitting around like a chipmunk isn’t all that bad. I’m looking on the brighter side of things, no pain! It’s given me a lot of down time to …

snuggle with the pups
catch up on laundry
watch every movie ever put on netflix
get all my reading done on bloglovin
surf every last inch of etsy
eat as much mashed potatoes, pudding, and mushy food as I want (mmm mashed potatoes!)
wear my pajamas, constantly
get caught up on blog posts
contemplate doing the dishes but ultimately decide against it
brainstorm new blog ideas, start working on a new header, and even start up a few more simple DIY’s

Once I’m all healed up I have every intention of ordering pizza.. or maybe chinese food. Either way, give me!

Do you have any scary dentist stories? I know everyone’s got them! For now this gal’s going to go back to her mashed potatoes, and her cheesy crime movies. Until next time!

xo