That is Charming

a new personal blog

2011-06-26T22:53:00.001-05:00

I just want to let you all know that I started a new blog over at http://loving-like-crazy.blogspot.com It will be more of a personal blog. So if you would like please change your bookmarks!

Joplin

2011-05-28T11:39:00.003-05:00

It's been a pretty stressful week for the area with the Joplin tornado and all the tornadoes and threats of tornadoes most of the week. We feel very blessed that the big storm missed us. We had a houseful of youth group kids & no basement.

Seth has been in Joplin most days this week helping with debri clean up. Joplin really needs some prayers right now. There are still many hard days ahead with recovery but I know the town will rebuild stronger than ever!

These are just a few of the pictures Seth took on Monday after the storm.

Also be praying for all the other areas that have been affected by storms & tornadoes.

lots of changes

2011-04-03T17:35:00.003-05:00

Wow so I realize it has been forever since I have last blogged but I think I have good reasons for this blogging break! A lot of changes have been happening in our little household.

We moved (again... I know!) to a smaller house just a few blocks down the road. We are with our same landlord though. We just decided the house we were in was too big for us and we wanted something cheaper and cozier. I had a hard time making the other house feel like a home but this new smaller place already feels like a home to me! I am loving it! Cheaper rent & utilities. Also means less to clean up! yay!

However the biggest change for us is about a month ago we found out we were pregnant! We are so excited & I'm so nervous! haha! We had been trying for 2 years and feeling a little discouraged but God's timing is always perfect! And prayers really work! Thank you to those of you that had been praying for us! It means so much to us that people truly care!

We are about 9 weeks along & due in November. We've already had a couple ultrasounds (one at 6 weeks & one at 8 weeks). Even though you can't see much & it definitely doesn't look like a human being, just seeing that something there really makes it feel real! And wow does it grow fast! It grew from 0.34 cm at 6 weeks to 2 cm at 8 weeks! So fun!

The real reason I haven't been blogging much lately is the 1st trimester symptoms. Wow are they no fun! I have been extremely fatigue & feeling queasy almost constantly. Luckily I haven't gotten sick yet but it sure isn't fun when my favorite foods don't sound appealing to me anymore!

So between the feeling tired and queasy most of the day I just don't have much energy to craft much less to blog about it! However I'm hoping that by the time we get to the 2nd trimester I will be feeling a little better and wanting to crochet some more!

Thanks for sticking by during my little blog break. I can't promise how much I will be blogging for the next few weeks but I'm sure I will get back into the hang of things!

the saddest yet greatest thrift store find

2011-03-13T19:18:00.003-05:00

My last thrift store experience was probably one of the weirdest for me. Before I tell you about it I must tell you a back story on it.

Every Februrary the school that Seth taught at held an auction to raise money. I was volunteered to make something to sell at the auction last year. I had a hard time coming up with something and became frustrated when I couldn't think of anything I thought someone would want to buy. I browsed patterns online for hours. When I came across this panda pattern on the lion brand website I thought why not? It looked easy and fast.

I started working on it the day before the auction but it ended up taking much longer than I expected. Maybe I'm a super slow crocheter.... I don't know. But I finished him and I wasn't too pleased with the way he came out. He was pretty wonky. He sat funny because I must have not put his little legs on evenly. But after looking at it for awhile I thought it was kind of charming with his imperfections. Surely some kid would fall in love with him, right?

Well the night of the auction I was super excited to see how much he would go for. It seemed as though everything was going pretty high and then I took a look at the bids for my panda... there weren't any for a long time. Finally someone bid on him for a couple dollars. I was relieved he finally got a bid. I was a little bummed he only went for a couple dollars but at least he was going home with someone.

I thought that was the end of that story.

We ended up moving from that town in June & I missed the local thrift store there. Everything goes for super cheap.

This weekend we visited Seth's parents and we were going to go through our old town on the way home so we thought we should stop into our favorite thrift store! I was excited!

I browsed all my favorite aisles and then I got to the electronic aisle. I noticed something that didn't seem to belong in the electronic aisle. I spotted a cute crocheted panda. I thought "hmmm, that's cute. I used that same pattern once" but upon closer inspection I realized that he was much more familiar than that. He sat a little funny... He WAS the panda I made from that pattern.

After realizing that I became super excited about finding it again but then quickly remembered he was supposed to be loved by some kid that has already tired of him.

If you have been reading my blog for a while you may remember the post where I wondered what would happen to my creations when I was gone. Would they end up in thrift stores to be sold for cents or would they be cherished by those who recieved them? I didn't think I would find the answer so soon!

Well I couldn't leave him behind. I ended up buying him back for a dime. He now sits in the kitchen window where he makes me smile when I walk in the room.

an outfit post?

2011-03-08T21:03:00.002-06:00

I haven't been feeling real well lately which explains the quietness around here the past few days. I haven't had much energy to do anything worth sharing on here & even if I did, posting it seems to be taking more energy than usual. Which is why I'm sharing an outfit post from Saturday on Tuesday night!

I'm not one to do outfit posts. I hardly even know how to dress cute! But Saturday when I had worked up some energy we decided to go to Pittsburg, KS to walk around. I had bought this outfit right after Christmas but never had the occasion. I normally wear jeans and tshirts but felt like dressing up just because this weekend before it warmed up to much to wear it!

romper: charlotte russe
cardigan: rue 21 (I think)
belt: charlotte russe
tights: tjmaxx
shoes: walmart
necklace: cottonlane on etsy

candle making

2011-03-03T13:29:00.002-06:00

Seth decided he wanted to try to make our own candles so he went to Michael's and bought a candle making kit & some cinnamon fragrance.

We tried it out on Tuesday night. We made up our own version of a double boiler and melted the soy wax. Even though they were going to be cinnamon scented I didn't want to just go with the typical red coloring & chose to do purple instead so we mixed the blue & red dye to make this pretty purple color.

We had a little extra wax left over so I found a little jar I had laying around & we poured the remaining wax into it for a smaller candle.

The scent is so strong & lovely! The house smells wonderful even when the candles aren't lit!

We had a lot of fun and it was a lot easier than we expected. We will definitely be trying some more candle making!

crazy yarn

2011-03-03T13:19:00.003-06:00

I spent the weekend with my grandparents & they took me to goodwill to shop. I found a scarf for $2 made from a really pretty and soft yarn. I wanted it just for the yarn so I undid the scarf and rolled the yarn into a ball for a new use.

I took some crazy green handspun yarn that I had spun when I was first learning to spin so it has all kinds of crazy slubs & plied it with the recycled yarn from the thriftstore scarf and came out with this really crazy and fun art yarn. I don't know what to do with it now but I think the yarn itself is just fun to look at! I'll make something from it when the inspiration hits. :)

I plied it with a few other yarns I had laying around but the green one is definitely my favorite!

really?

2011-03-01T20:34:00.003-06:00

I just got home from grocery shopping & on the way home I saw this sign at a gas station near our house. I couldn't help but laugh.

really?

rainbow swirls

2011-02-28T11:59:00.004-06:00

I love browsing etsy for handspun yarns. I've never bought any. I wish I could buy them all though. I love looking at all the colors and fibers. Each skein is a new piece of art in my eyes. However I see a lot of yarns and forget about most of them but I favorited this yarn by SpunRightRound a while back and I can't stop thinking about it! I wish I had some extra spending cash but for now I will just continue looking at these beautiful photos. It's so pretty!

Rainbow Swirls handspun merino yarn

a work in progress

2011-02-22T15:52:00.003-06:00

I'm working on a little rug using some scrap yarn for under our new coffee table.

P.S. doesn't Jenny look absolutely adorable in her pink hair and the scarf I made for her!? This picture is so pretty & it always makes me so happy seeing something I made being loved by someone else!

new coffee table

2011-02-21T13:44:00.003-06:00

I have been searching craigslist for awhile for a simple coffee table for our living room. I thought what I was wanting was going to be simple to find. I didn't want anything fancy, no glass inserts, & it had to be cheap! After countless times browsing the site I gave up and decided to just not try to hard and if it comes along I will go for it.

On Saturday we went to a local flea market and I found this shelf thingy. It looked like someone took 2 small tables and just placed them on top of each other to make a shelf. So I asked Seth if he thought he could take them apart without destroying them. He looked at it closer and saw that they were just nailed together. They were exactly what I was looking for. Small, simple & for only $6.50 it was the perfect price!

The bottom of the feet were kind of rough so I wanted to put something on the bottom to keep from scratching the floor. I couldn't find my felt so I crocheted some tiny circles and glued them onto the feet. Works just as well! :)

This works a whole lot better than the basket I was using in place of a coffee table! And I have 2 of them... even better!

playful

2011-02-19T08:00:00.000-06:00

i love lucy

2011-02-18T15:38:00.004-06:00

Seth & I realized how much TV we were watching and how much more we could be doing instead so we got rid of our cable & sold our bigger TV. We still have our smaller one set up in the living room but all we can use it for are DVDs & netflix. So when we don't feel like watching movies it has challenged us to find new ways of entertaining ourselves in the evenings. I have realized once the television is gone, I don't really miss it. I feel more creative & I feel like there are more hours in the day!

Last night we were rummaging through the craft room and found a puzzle I had bought for a quarter at a garage sale last summer and forgot about. I hadn't done a puzzle in years! So we decided to see if we could finish it in one night. So right after dinner we put on some good tunes and started working on it. We finished around 11:30. It was a nice relaxing way to spend an evening with the husband. It was a real challenge on my attention span though but I stuck with it the whole time! :)

brooch

2011-02-15T14:19:00.002-06:00

I found this brooch a year and half ago in an antique store in Springfield, MO and it had been sitting in my jewelry box since then. I love it but I always forgot about it. I found it the other day when I was digging through my jewelry box and today I crocheted this doily to pin it to.

valentine swap part 2

2011-02-15T13:57:00.002-06:00

I recieved my 2nd package from the Strumpets Crumpets Valentine Swap yesterday! My other swap partner was Jenny of Everyday is a Holiday. She is an amazing artist! Her style is vintage sweets/bakery. I love all the pink & blues in her work!

She sent me a few prints and blank cards. I loved everything! She sells her prints & other products featuring her artwork in her shop, Everyday is a Holiday!

Thank you so much Jenny! Definitely a wonderful Valentine's Day surprise!

huge owl

2011-02-12T15:53:00.002-06:00

We found this huge owl figurine at a flea market today. I put my hand in the photo to show his size but I still don't think it captured his size that well. If I had $55 to just blow he would be in my living room right now! I'm kidding. But he is awesome right? :)

valentine swap

2011-02-09T12:17:00.006-06:00

It is yet another snow day here! It is pretty crazy. This is the second week I haven't worked at the food bank. I feel like I haven't been there in forever. According the the weather channel it looks like it is supposed to warm up soon so maybe the mountains of snow will start melt so this town can go back to our normal schedule!

It hasn't been bad though. I have enjoyed watching the snow come down and how the town has seemed to have slowed down. I have spent this morning in my Grinch pajamas & red slippers, listening to some Jeremy Larson while doing some crocheting. It's been so nice & cozy!

A couple days ago I recieved my first package from the Valentine Swap by Strumpets Crumpets. I actually ended up with two partners, I'm not sure if it was an accident or not but it was fine with me!

This one is from Karla of The Itsy Bitsy Spider. She is a crocheter as well and she sent these cute little gumdrop mice! Aren't they the cutest? If you would like to make some of these for yourself, she is selling the pdf pattern for these in her shop here.

Remember that flag bunting I made last week during our last big storm?

It was so much fun to make that I have been making more triangles for more of them. Right now they are being blocked. I made the turquoise one out of one my handspun yarn.

I love the texture the handspun gives! I need to spin some more so I can make more flags!

snow day crocheting

2011-02-02T15:17:00.005-06:00

Wow! What a snowstorm! Seth went out into it yesterday to show me how high the snow was. When I took this picture it was still snowing so that wasn't even it. It snowed into the evening!

Instead of doing any cleaning like I should have, I chose to crochet the day away while watching some Glee. First I decided to finally dig into some of the nice yarn I had bought over the summer. I made this little flag bunting out of my Wisdom Yarns Poems yarn. The colors were so pretty and I loved how they worked up. It looks super cute in the kitchen.

Then I used some of the Lion Brand Homespun yarn that my parents gave me for Christmas to make this cowl.

I think crocheting is the perfect activity for a snow day. Cleaning the house can always wait! :)

i'm not going anywhere

2011-02-01T12:54:00.005-06:00

It looks like the next couple days are going to be cozy, stay at home, crocheting, watching netflix & eating soup kind of days. I'm glad we did our grocery shopping yesterday! It hasn't let up yet today.

Seth has his superman shirt and snow pants on ready for any vehicles that may get stuck at our corner.

For Kizzy that means a snow plows & stuck vehicle watching...

and sitting in a box kind of day.

If you are in this storm be sure to stay safe and keep warm!!

the cutest illustration

2011-01-31T23:37:00.005-06:00

I'm so excited to show you an illustration of Kizzy!

Elycia of loveelycia.com recently did a blog makeover and used some super cute illustrations she had made of her cute little family. I thought they were the sweetest illustrations so I asked her if she would make one of Kizzy. She was so sweet and said yes! I am so happy with the results! She captured all the little details I love of Kizzy, especially the little dots on her nose & her love of yarn! Didn't she do a great job!?

Be sure to check out her adorable blog! Her blog is one of my favorite reads. It is full of cute outfit posts, DIYs, kitty pictures & videos!

Thank you Elycia!

yarn vases

2011-01-27T14:03:00.004-06:00

I recieved the latest lion brand catelog this week and was really inspired by their yarn wrapped vases.

I have been saving tin coffee and soup cans and thought they were perfect for this project. I took 3 different sizes and wrapped some scrap yarn around it and added the contrasting black for some texture. It was exactly what I needed to place on top of our entertainment center. I'm really loving simple decor lately.

In other news... how come nobody has ever told me about Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog!? Seth found it on Netflix and made me watch it. It is so weird but so funny! Neil Patrick Harris never fails to make us laugh!

Love these scenes!

valentine doily

2011-01-20T22:49:00.004-06:00

Wow! I have actually finished something! That doesn't seem to be happening a lot around here lately. I'm still feeling worn down this week but I have had bursts of energy. When I am feeling good I try to get some crafting done. I'm sure this snow isn't helping my energy. Snow makes me want to stay cozied up in my bed all day!

I made this doily for Valentine's Day but because I made it in a denim color I think it will look good anytime of the year! I love the shape of the hearts!

pattern found here

hearted

2011-01-17T22:36:00.003-06:00

I realize it has been over a week since I have last posted. I was feeling really worn out last week. I really didn't have much to blog about nor the motivation. I still don't have much to write about but I hate going this long without blogging! So I thought maybe you would be interested in taking a look at some items I have recently hearted on Etsy.

crochet bib necklace, ruffle layers in heather gray by acommonthread

meow mitts KNITTING PATTERN by TinyOwlsMagicAttic

i heart Missouri-Leather. by truche

Snuggly Owl limited edition print by AshleyPercival

Set of 3 hanging bowls in azure by vesselsandwares

Kizzy 365

2011-01-08T18:20:00.004-06:00

I was really inspired by this post on the etsy blog this past week to start a project for myself. A lot of you bloggers are doing 365 projects where you take a photo a day for a year. Since I'm no photographer, I wanted to do something a little bit easier. If you haven't noticed, I love taking photos of my cat. She is so photogenic! Since I already take tons of photos of her anyway why not challenge myself to take a new photo of her each day and post it? That's what I'm going to do. Yes, I'm a little late starting on January 1st but I'm still going to do it... starting today! I created another blog to keep track of each photo so I don't bore or annoy you every day. I'm sure a lot of you do not care to see a new picture of my cat everyday. I don't blame you! (although she is the cutest cat in the world!)

I'm doing this project because I want an ongoing project that will keep me consistent and that will help me become more comfortable with my camera.

I'm calling this project Kizzy 365 and I have made a tab at the top for you to click to go to the blog of the project. You can follow me but I won't care if you don't. It's a project for myself really. Although... of course I wouldn't mind comments once in awhile :) :)

craft room

2011-01-04T19:57:00.002-06:00

I took some pictures of my newly rearranged craft room. My craft room is very very small but I like it like that. It is very cozy & I love being in here!

I took the guest daybed out of another room and put it in here so guests can stay in here as well and I have a comfy place to crochet. It doesn't have sheets on yet because they are in the wash. But I put the blanket on there for the pictures. I think I may keep it on there. I like the stripes!

I still need to find some prints to put on the wall and I'm sure I will constantly change it around.

It's not much but it's my space and I love it!

Welcome 2011!

2011-01-03T21:41:00.002-06:00

I hope everyone's New Year was wonderful! I attempted to stay up at a youth lock-in but just couldn't make it. I went home sometime between 2 and 2:30am. And slept the entire day of New Years! I am not an all-nighter! I gotta have my sleep!

I'm looking forward to 2011! I have some goals for myself but I'm not going to bore you with mine as I'm sure you have already read countless of other blogger's goals! Mine are similar to everyone else's anyway I'm sure :)

I did rearrange my craft room for the new year. It is much cozier and I love spending time in here!

Kizzy loves it as well. She is allowed in here now that I have rearranged it. Before she would sneak in here to climb into the yarn to sleep when I wasn't looking and I'd find yarn sprawled all over the floor! I took out all the yarn on the bottom shelf of my desk and put down a couple of her blankets so she can spend time with me while I'm in here. She loves it!

Tomorrow I will show a couple more pictures of the room since I have rearranged it!

What are some things you are looking forward to in 2011?

you guys are being selfish!

2010-12-27T18:59:00.003-06:00

When my family gets together we love to share funny youtube videos. My brother always finds the best ones. This weekend he showed us these videos by Julian Smith. So funny! These two videos are my favorite. I have watched the "Waffles" video A LOT this weekend. We keep quoting them during conversations! Love it!

a few Christmas details

2010-12-26T21:31:00.005-06:00

Just a few glimpses into our Christmas this year. Hope you had as nice of a Christmas as we did!

meow

2010-12-24T23:18:00.001-06:00

Week 1 of Seth Tyler's Weight Loss Challenge

2010-12-20T20:54:00.003-06:00

Wow it's been so busy around here lately. When I'm not busy doing things, I'm vegging out on the couch to rest up. I'm feeling worn out but it's a good feeling! That explains the lack of posts here. Hopefully after the new year I will have more time to craft for myself.

The first week of the challenge went surprisingly well. I started off strong but about mid-week I had some troubles with feeling sluggish and unmotivated. I still managed a 2 pound loss so that was great! This week is busy as well and it includes Christmas! I can do it!

In case I'm not able to blog before Christmas, have a wonderful Christmas everyone!

Guess what!

2010-12-13T20:41:00.004-06:00

I'm doing the Seth Tyler Weight Loss Challenge again! This time it is going to go through Christmas... eeek! I hope this works out as well as the first time I did this challenge :)

new colors

2010-12-07T08:54:00.003-06:00

We originally planned on getting a big tree this year but decided yesterday to just change the decorations on our mini tree. Changing out the decorations is much cheaper anyway! I love the new color scheme - purple & blue.

scarves

2010-12-06T13:17:00.003-06:00

I'm finally doing something with all that yarn in my stash that hasn't been used in a long time! Making scarves for those who need them this season.

inspired

2010-11-30T19:03:00.001-06:00

a little bit

2010-11-29T21:11:00.001-06:00

a little bit of Christmas decorating...

a yard full of flamingos

2010-11-23T11:47:00.003-06:00

What do you do when you wake up to a yard full of flamingos?

Make them scarves of course! It's cold out there!

Thanks to a lady in our church we were "flocked" by the American Cancer Society. It made me laugh so I made them some scarves. If we donate to the American Cancer Society we can have them put into someone else's yard. I wonder who we should "flock" now...

jellyfish

2010-11-22T12:55:00.002-06:00

I was browsing etsy and came across this crocheted jellyfish and really liked it so while watching Elf last night I made myself one for my kitchen. He is hanging over my sink!

organize

2010-11-20T13:41:00.004-06:00

Whenever we eat soup or canned vegetables I save the cans so I can make these crocheted covers for them and use them as organizers. They are kind of addicting to make! I made the middle one in blue and white this morning for Seth to take to his office.

My Christmas Mantle

2010-11-19T15:21:00.003-06:00

I pulled out all the Christmas decorations today. I threw this garland together using some of the granny tree ornaments I had made using this pattern. This is my mantle as of now. Knowing me, I will change it a ton of times before Christmas actually gets here though :)

Old Christmas Cards

2010-11-15T15:15:00.003-06:00

I found a way to reuse those pretty cards that were sent to me last year. I crocheted around the edges of each card and attached ribbon for hanging and I have easy and cute Christmas decorations!

Happy Monday!

2010-11-08T22:50:00.004-06:00

Whew! What a busy weekend it was! After sleeping on a dorm floor Friday night, that extra hour on Saturday couldn't have come at a better time! We had a great weekend but unfortunately I didn't take any pictures! I did notice when we got home how pretty and orange the tree in our backyard had gotten! I love this tree! The orange color reflects into our dining room. So pretty!

The Big Daddy Weave, Aaron Shust & Andy Kirk show Saturday night was really fun! I especially liked Aaron Shust's set. By the time Big Daddy Weave came out the weekend started catching up to me. I ended up sitting down half of their set. I still enjoyed it though! Big Daddy Weave even retweeted my tweet after the show! :)

This is totally random but it was too funny not to share. Sometimes when Seth takes off his socks for the night he will throw them across the room so they are at least near the hamper. A few nights ago he had done this not paying any attention to where it landed. A few minutes later I got out of the bed and saw that we had some new wall decor. I couldn't stop laughing and when Seth saw what I was laughing at we grabbed the camera to take a picture to prove that it had in fact attached itself to the wall! I left it there for a day until I needed to get the laundry done. I couldn't leave his other sock without a match!

looking forward to

2010-11-05T14:30:00.004-05:00

This weekend is pretty packed for us! Tonight we are taking the youth to a youth event and then as soon as we get home tomorrow we are going to this show!

Can't wait! Anything you are looking forward to this weekend?

what i've been working on

2010-11-03T16:58:00.001-05:00

Here's a little sneak peek at some ornaments I'm making.

Autumn

2010-11-01T11:44:00.003-05:00

a present

2010-10-25T22:21:00.001-05:00

We had a good waiter tonight so we thought we would leave some happy art for him.

flavors.me

2010-10-22T16:06:00.005-05:00

I came across this really neat application today that lets your create some sort of a "homepage" for all your social websites. It's called flavors.me It makes it much easier to give this link to your friends or customers than to give them 4 or 5 different links to go to. This way they can find everything they need from you in one place.

Here is mine for an example. http://flavors.me/thatischarming

You can link your blog like I did here. It pops up right on that screen so they can read it from that page.

I also have my twitter feed come through on here.

I also have my etsy and flickr accounts linked on here but they have tons of other services you can link to on here.

This is perfect for those of you that have blogs, twitter, flickr, facebook fanpages or any other networking sites to go along your etsy shops.

I think it is so awesome! Have any of you tried this? Leave your link here if you do have one. I would love to see it!

Thanks Mom & Dad!

2010-10-14T19:37:00.003-05:00

This past week has been busy finishing up the unpacking and getting to know the people of the church. I just want to show you this picture I took right after we came home from church. They had a pantry shower for us on Sunday and this was most of the food they gave us. This doesn't even include the gift cards. How awesome is that? They have really taken care of us since we have gotten here. We feel so blessed to be here!

I also received my birthday gifts from my parents this week.

Some vintage thread on spools.

These super cute owl salt & pepper shakers. Love them!

and some vintage dress potholders.

She also included a vintage 1940s pattern book for potholders and a couple more potholders which I didn't get good pictures of yet. Thank you Mom & Dad!!

And just to prove that I have been crafting lately...

I have been working on some scarves just to use up some of the yarn I have had sitting around. They aren't anything special but I have found it very relaxing to just do rows of single crochet without having to do much thinking and complicated stitches. It's almost addicting! I'm already on my third scarf! :)

We are here!

2010-10-09T20:58:00.005-05:00

I'm back! I want to give a huge thank you to all the lovely ladies that posted for me this week! They were all great weren't they?

We are finally starting to get settled. We had tons of help unloading which was so appreciated. Loading the truck ourselves was tough! We were so sore! Luckily I have an amazing & strong husband who did all the hard work!

This town seems really awesome! We walked around the square yesterday and checked out some of the shops and we had lunch at a mexican place which was delicious!

I'm so in love with this house too! There is tons of sunlight which is great for taking photos. Since I haven't had a lot of time to craft anything I have been trying out the light by taking lots of photos of Kizzy. She is just too fun to photograph!

Last night I had the chance to crochet some though. It was so nice after a week of not being able to get to my yarn. Kizzy was there to help of course! :)

Hopefully sometime next week I will give you a tour of the new house! I hope everyone had a great week!

Guest Post: Becky (Strumpet's Crumpets) - Embroidered Book Illustration Tutorial

2010-10-09T08:00:00.002-05:00

Hello Gang! I'm Becky from Strumpet's Crumpets! I was very stoked to help blog during Carol's move into her awesome new home!

So here goes, what's your favorite book? I have a list of favorites, but one that is most important - Hope for the Flowers! If you've ever read it you know it's amazing! The book has a very special place in my fellow and my life! So I thought why not embroider the illustration on the cover. It's hanging in our bedroom, so everyday we are reminded of that sweet story!

To begin I photocopied the cover, so I wouldn't mess up the actual book, then I got these supplies together:

1.hoop (paint if you paint your hoops - I always do)
2.fabric (paint again if you paint part of your fabric, I did)
3. embroidery thread
4. carbon paper
5. pencil

Instructions:
1. Take fabric and tape it down to a hard surface.
2. Take the carbon paper and tape it carbon side down on the fabric. Then tape your photocopied book cover on top of that! 3 layers; fabric on the bottom, carbon paper, top is the paper! You must tape because you don't want the layers to shift or it will be wrecked!
3. Grab a pencil and trace the illustration you want. Use a colored pencil so you see what you've traced.

4. Take the tape off each layer and put your fabric in the hoop (you can paint wooden hoops if you'd like, of course let them dry before placing the fabric in the hoop).

5. Start embroidering! :)
6. I use my hoop as a frame, so I hot glue the extra fabric to the back of the hoop!
7. Hang it up and enjoy!!

And tada!
So what's your favorite story or book? This is great for kid's rooms too! Dr. Seuss, fairy tales, fables, etc. I'd love to see your embroidered book illustrations! Stop by my blog and send me a link to your embroidery photos! I hope you all have an awesome day and lets all wish Carol and Seth happy moving and unpacking! :)

Guest Post: Meg (Twisted Tree) - Halloween Inspiration

2010-10-08T08:00:00.000-05:00

Hello there That Is Charming readers!

My name is Meg, from the blog Twisted Tree where you can read the ramblings of my life as a stay at home mom to three perfect children and the wife to the most amazing man( at least I think so)!

Carol asked some of her blog friends to help her out with a guest post while she moved into her new adorable home, that I love by the way, so I jumped at the opportunity!

Since it's October, what better to talk about than Halloween!

I have to admit, I was never a fan of the holiday until I had children of my own and now I look forward to it every year...not to mention I have a husband who decorates more than anyone I know for Halloween, he's a dork, but that's why I love him!!

Do you still dress up for Halloween? Hey, it's one time a year when you can dress up as a bunny rabbit, princess or sock monkey and no one will look at you like you are crazy...so go for it!!

Here are some "spooky" images that I found to get everyone in the Halloween Spirit...

Trick or Treat!

Thank you Carol for letting me guest post on your awesome blog, I hope you get all settled into your new home and make it your own with all of your lovely creations and goodies! Home is definitely where the heart is!

xoxo~Meg

Guest Post: Kyla (The Fiction We Live) - Autumn Patterned Fortune Cookie "Crackers" Tutorial

2010-10-07T08:00:00.002-05:00

Hello everyone!

I’m Kyla also known as OneLateNight from The Fiction We Live. Carol is currently on the move to her new fantastic home!
While she is away she asked if I would do a quick post to give you all something to read while she is moving and unpacking. I decided to do a quick DIY for autumn.

During Autumn I have my very specific go to decor items; Pinecones, Leaves and Cinnamon Sticks. This time I thought I would show a really cute addition to your table, or family gathering. On Christmas specifically my family will open crackers before we eat, and wear the silly crowns and laugh at the ridiculous toys inside. This time why not grab some great scrapbooking paper and goodies from your craft room and throw together a really fun addition to any table.

Autumn Patterned Fortune Cookie "Crackers"

1) For Supplies you will need:
Preferred colors of paper
Scissors, or cutting tool
A perfect Circle to trace (I used 3 inches for the small cookies, and 5 inches for the large)
Glue or Glue Dots
Additional paper to make fortunes, or fun buttons

2) Cut up your paper into the amount of circles you would like to make into paper cookies

3) Follow the picture below to fold your cookies. Fold your circle in half without creating a crease; have the open end facing to your left. To begin the bending of the paper cookie place your thumb and middle finger on each end. While still holding the opening closed with the other hand place your pointer finger in the middle of the folded circle and start pinching with your thumb and middle finger.

As you start to “pinch” you will see the paper to all of the work and a paper cookie will form.

4) Once you have folded your cookie place a dab of glue, or a glue dot into the newly folded crease and hold your cookie together until dry. If you want to add in a paper fortune, buttons or charms do so before gluing.

5) Place a bunch in a bowl, or on individual plates for a fun dinner party addition. You can add in your own fortunes, Jokes, notes, charms, or even buttons. I think buttons would be a great after dinner game!
Place all of the same color buttons in each paper cookie. Place 2 different coloured buttons among the group. Those who open the cookies with the different coloured buttons are on Dish Duty! Easy as Pie

Thank you so much to Carol for letting me guest post to share this DIY!
Carol I wish you a happy and easy move and I’m sure I’m not alone in being excited about seeing pictures of your house when you’re all settled.

Happy Autumn everyone!
XO. Kyla

Guest Post: Ali (ali crochet) - Giveaway

2010-10-06T08:00:00.002-05:00

Hello, I’m Ali from Ali Croshaye.com. First I want to thank Carol for having me be a guest poster on this gorgeous blog. I am very new to the blog world and I’m learning as I go. This is my first guest post/give away ever! I’m super excited! So here is goes! I have a beautiful handmade granny square earring that was crocheted.

To enter:
All you have to do is leave a comment on this post. Be sure to leave an email address so you can be contacted if you win!

The giveaway will end Saturday October 9, 2010. I will shortly contact the winner there after.

Happy Blogging and have a wonderful week! (:
Love, Ali
alicroshaye.com

Guest Post: Kam (Campfire Chic) - Felt Tissue Holder Tutorial

2010-10-05T08:00:00.001-05:00

Hi! I'm Kam, aka Campfire Chic, and while Carol is busy moving I'm popping in with a little DIY. I like being able to make crafts in the time it takes to watch Modern Family. You can make a handful of these puppies during one episode! I hope you enjoy it :]

This craft is quick and easy. In fact, it is a perfect craft to do with kids (adult supervision is recommended) or as a last minute gift!

Felt Tissue Holder
Materials Needed:

Needle

Felt (I used Eco-felt, which is made from recycled plastic bottles, in green)

Embroidery Floss (I used DMC 420)

Travel pack of tissues

Scissors

Buttons/Badges/Pins whatever you want to call them! You know you have a few laying around looking for a home

I am excited to see what you come up with!

Thank you, Carol, for allowing me to do this guest blog while you move into your new home :)

xo, Kam
P.S. If you have any questions, feel free to contact me (blog, twitter, e-mail, etsy)

Here We Go!

2010-10-04T17:13:00.002-05:00

Today is the day we are packing all our stuff up and tomorrow we will be heading out to our new home. This week has felt like the longest week ever. I'm so relieved it is finally here. To be honest these past few weeks haven't been the greatest but we will have a fresh start, starting tomorrow and I couldn't be happier!

This part of the moving process is the worst for me. I hate packing...

...but luckily I do have some good help! ;)

Starting tomorrow I have some awesome guest posts that include DIYs, a giveaway, and some inspiration lined up so be sure to check back for those! I will try to be back here sometime next week.

Olde Tyme Apple Festival & 5K

2010-10-02T20:40:00.004-05:00

One thing I love about Fall is the festivals. The Olde Tyme Apple Festival in a town near us was today and had a 5K race and a parade. This morning we woke up suuuuper early (4:30 for me... yuck!) so Seth could run in the 5K.

even Kizzy doesn't function well this early in the morning!

He achieved a PR in this race. 26 minutes 9 seconds.

He also placed 3rd in his age division. Again I'm so proud! I love that he is doing these races. He enjoys them so much!

The parade was a lot of fun! I was really disappointed though that the marching bands started farther down the road. Who skips part of a parade like that!?

But the few random cars pulling out of the Walmart parking lot not realizing they were entering in the middle of the parade line made up for it! It was hilarious seeing their shocked faces when they realized they were stuck awkwardly driving slowly down the road while kids yelled at them to throw candy! :)

Here are a few of my favorites from the parade.
The coolest cop car ever!

These kids were so cute! They were skipping down the road while the guy behind them sang the song from Mary Poppins! By far my favorite part of the entire parade!

After the parade we tried to fight the crazy crowds to find a parking spot closer to all the vendors and booths. It took us forever to find a spot! And we still had to walk a good distance. I scored a few awesome things but I will have to try to take a picture of them tomorrow to show you.

Do you have any interesting festivals where you live?

It's my birthday!

2010-09-30T13:10:00.004-05:00

[weheartit]

Today is my 24th birthday! This morning I was woken up by Seth and my cat singing happy birthday. It was super cute! At the end of each line Kizzy would meow. That definitely made my day!

Then Seth made me a nice breakfast and we just finished a very delicious lunch also made by Seth (garlic brown sugar chicken). And tonight we are going to Applebees for dinner and dessert. Then hopefully we will go see a movie. It's a really low-key day. It's been so nice!

With all the packing and stuff, it's just been super busy. Which is why I haven't blogged a lot lately about crafts. They are all packed away! As soon as we are moved in, I am hoping to get back to some crafting! I have a few ideas already for the new home that I can't wait to try out! I can't wait to move already! This week is crawling by so slowly!

Corey - Biggest Loser

2010-09-29T18:02:00.003-05:00

If you watched last week's episode of the Biggest Loser, you would see that Corey didn't finish the race (after collapsing so close to end!) to get onto the Biggest Loser ranch. Fortunately that didn't stop him from still working towards his goal! I love that he is still motivated and that is such an inspiration! Super proud!

Still cheering for Corey!! :)

Sneak Peek!

2010-09-27T21:57:00.003-05:00

Today we signed the lease for our new home! Only one more week until the move! I took a few pictures while we were there so I thought I would give you all a little sneak peek at the house!

The front porch.

The pretty light fixture in the master bedroom.

I have a mantle! I can't wait to decorate it for the seasons! This is in the living room.

The ceilings are really tall too. We measured about 10 feet!

The dining room is huge! We realized there will be lots of space for little nooks like for reading or whatever.

The kitchen is pretty narrow but there is still plenty of space.

I hope this week goes by fast so we can move in! I will try to post better photos once we are in and settled!

Since we may not have internet for a few days, I would love to have some guest posts. It can be tutorials, features, inspirations, whatever. If you are interested please email me at cac922[at]cccb[dot]edu by Friday evening. I have 5 spots available.

Sign Up!

2010-09-26T22:01:00.003-05:00

[weheartit]
Last year I participated in a Christmas ornament swap. I had so much fun making ornaments for everyone and it was SO awesome receiving so many beautiful and creative ornaments! Kimi has opened up sign ups for the swap already! Click on over to her blog for details and sign up!

Lovely Saturday

2010-09-25T09:13:00.003-05:00

Today we are trying to sell all that clutter we have dug out of our home. It is the perfect Saturday for a garage sale. It's not too hot, not too cold, not windy. Just right! And the traffic is starting to pick up! I hope we get rid of all this today because none of it is going into our new home! :)

De-cluttering

2010-09-23T21:03:00.004-05:00

I'm not sure if I have written about it on here yet, but we will be moving in about 11 days! Eeek! It snuck up on me so fast! Seth has taken a job in a town about 2.5 hours from here as a youth minister. We have realized in the past few months that youth is where Seth is best at. We are both looking forward to this ministry!

We were approved for a really awesome house to rent but we still have to sign the lease. We are praying that everything goes well! So in preparation for the move we have been going through all our stuff for things to get rid of. So far we have a nice ~~little~~ huge pile of clutter we will be getting rid of on Saturday during our garage sale. We have already sold my awesome mustard yellow couch. Seth has hated it since the day we got it but I enjoyed it the 4 months that we had it! :)

Tomorrow is more sifting through things and setting up for the sale. So stinkin' excited!

Etsy Faves

2010-09-22T17:45:00.004-05:00

Lately I have been browsing Etsy for inspiration. Everytime, I end up favoriting so many things that I thought I would share some of them with you every once in awhile. By the way, if you haven't looked at the suggested shops feature on Etsy, you must! It is so accurate and I find tons of new to me sellers that I adore!

Vintage Intarsia Patterned Sweater by Miscusi

Sangria Fancy Kitty Shirred Cap Sleeve by cathypeng

Cat Face by theboxofbirdsshop

Yellow Owl Necklace by birdqueen

Toby Tobagan Adult Hat by spoolofsugar

Mexican Folk Art Ceramic Bird by hollybeans

Go Team Pinkerton!

2010-09-21T06:00:00.000-05:00

So I'm totally excited about tonight because tonight is the season premiere of...

The Biggest Loser!

Seth & myself are huge fans of this show already & watch it every week but this season is even more exciting for us because one of the contestants was a classmate of ours from Central Christian College of the Bible! Yay Corey!

From what I have gathered from reading online is he has to compete with other contestants for a spot on the ranch & the contestants that don't win will have another chance later on. Whether or not he makes it to the ranch, we will still be cheering for Corey!

Be sure to watch at 8/7c on NBC!

Go Team Pinkerton!!

Itty Bitty Pumpkin

2010-09-20T13:47:00.004-05:00

Today Seth & I are hanging out at Starbucks. Mocha Frappe. My favorite. Yum!

I wanted to show you an itty bitty pumpkin I made last night. I couldn't show you until today because it was almost dark when I finished it and my camera just wasn't going to take a decent picture. So I snapped a picture right before we left. Isn't it just too cute? It's so little!

I found this easy tutorial from Wee Folk Art.

I also want to show you this pretty hairtie that I am wearing today. It's actually a headband but I thought it looked cute as a side ponytail. I won it a few weeks ago on Chelsea's blog. It's by Rachel of Cucuco. She also sent me an adorable yellow hair clip with the same type of flower as the headband and a notebook with some fabric flowers on it. Her shop & blog is full of cuteness! Be sure to check them out!

Cucuco Shop

Cucuco Blog

Le Sigh

2010-09-19T23:37:00.002-05:00

[Catherine Ledner]

I'm pretty sure a skunk sprayed near our bedroom window.

Good thing we bought that super strong air freshner this past week.

So proud!

2010-09-18T21:10:00.003-05:00

Today we spent the day at the Ozark Ham & Turkey Festival in California, MO. We had to get up super early but it was worth it. Seth and some friends ran in the 5K.

Note: Those are my shorts. The one downside to Seth's weightloss is the fact that he keeps taking my favorite shorts that I wear around the house to go run in!

I crocheted a row on my urban jungle hat while waiting for Seth to run the course.

He came in at 26'52". He thinks it was slow but I think he did great!

He got first in his age group again! I'm so proud!

Afterwards we went to all the vendor booths and checked out all the crafters. I ended up only buying these 2 knitted Christmas stockings for $1 each! I really love the diamond one!

Apparently Kizzy is already getting into the Christmas spirit! Maybe she won't look at me strangely when I start listening to Christmas music the day after halloween :)

Urban Jungle Hat wip

2010-09-17T16:00:00.000-05:00

Last winter I bought Vickie Howell's book Pop Goes Crochet. I have been a fan of hers ever since! I love her work! I used some of her patterns for Christmas gifts last year.

When I saw the pattern for the Urban Jungle Hat, I knew I needed to put it on my list of things to make soon. I love all the puffs & the slouchiness!

The other night I started on it. The pattern is really easy to follow and I'm having fun making this so far! I can see myself making this hat in many different colors! We'll see how this one turns out though :)

What projects are you all working on?

Collections Day 4 - Milkglass Vases

2010-09-17T12:48:00.003-05:00

Here is the last collection I have to show you this week for Lindsay's collection challenge. It is my milkglass vases. I really have no reason to collect them besides the fact that I think they are really pretty clustered together in different shapes and sizes. Right now I have them on my black shelf. I love the contrast of the black of the shelf and the white of the vases. They are really handy when Seth brings home flowers. I like to break the bouquets up into the different vases.

Thank you Lindsay for this super cute idea! Head over to her blog to see her collections and I believe she will be doing a showcase of other people's collections on there real soon too!

Collections Day 3 - Beach Sand

2010-09-16T16:49:00.004-05:00

Today for day 3 of Lindsay's collection challenge I am going to show you the beginnings of a collection we have started. Since going to Galveston, TX last year we started collecting sand from the beach of our vacation and I make a little terrarium with sand, shells, & other little findings on the beach. Since we don't like spending money whenever we can, this is a great way to have a souvenir of our vacation without buying their overpriced souvenirs. I etched "Galveston, TX" on the big one. I have yet to etch "Tybee Island, GA" on the little one. I can't wait to see wherever else we will be collecting sand from!

Do you have any recommendation for future beach vacations for us?

Bobbled Beret

2010-09-16T06:00:00.001-05:00

I just received the newest issue of Crochet World. This is my favorite issue so far that I have! There are tons of cute & quick projects in this one!

I decided to do the Bobbled Beret first. It was really easy & it worked up quick!

I'm not crazy about the hot pink but it was the only color I had enough of for a hat.

What do you think of it?

Collections Day 2 - Vintage Cameras

2010-09-15T14:06:00.003-05:00

Continuing onto day two of Lindsay's Collection Challenge, I have some old cameras that we like to collect. We have absolutely no knowledge on these cameras. Seth won a box of old cameras at an auction once and we tend to pick a new one up everytime we go thrifting.

These 3 cameras were also in the box Seth won. I believe they are video cameras.

This made me laugh. While I was gathering all the cameras up to take a picture of them, I realized we had FIVE of these land cameras. Oops! :)

Smile big!

Amber's Fingerknitted Headband Winner

2010-09-15T13:44:00.003-05:00

Thank you to those that entered the giveaway! I have chosen a winner using random.org.

Looks like the winner is Zoe from Sealed With A Kiss! Congratulations Zoe! Be sure to email me at cac922[at]cccb[dot]edu with your mailing address & your choice of either mustard yellow or dark gray headband so I can forward it to Amber & she can send your prize out!

And a huge thank you to Amber for the tutorial and the headband giveaway!

Collections Day 1 - Vintage Chalkware Banks

2010-09-14T14:43:00.005-05:00

This week Lindsay of Pixies & Bears is sharing one collection of hers a day. She asked everyone to join in with their collections. It actually started yesterday but it totally slipped my mind yesterday but that is ok. I am starting today. Today I am going to share our vintage chalkware bank collection. It is pretty small but I love it! We don't buy just any chalkware bank. It has to be crazy, kitschy, or weird looking. It has to make us laugh!

We keep all the change we accumulate when we use cash in these. We saved all the change we had for about 6 months and saved up 30 extra dollars for spending cash on vacation! Saving is more fun with these banks!

This is the bank that started this collection. I saw this bank at an auction and begged Seth to buy it. It reminded me of Alice in Wonderland.

I'm not sure where we found Gramps. Probably the thrift store. Seth found this one.

This is my favorite. Look at those eyes! We keep the change that Seth finds with his metal detector in this one.

This is our newest bank. We found this one at a flea market on our way home from vacation. I love how it looks like a kid's old dirty sneaker. :)

Want to know which one is Seth's favorite?

of course!!

What do you collect?

Kizzy's First Feature

2010-09-13T21:23:00.003-05:00

My sweet Kizzy Bear is included in the cat feature over on The Curious Pug. Go check her out and all the other precious kitties!

Pumpkin Spice Muffins

2010-09-12T19:41:00.004-05:00

I don't really like to do much in the kitchen but when there is a recipe as easy as this one I can't help but try it! Stacy told me about this recipe last year so I tried it. They were a huge hit with us!

All you need is a box of spice cake mix & 15 oz. can of pumpkin. Mix well together and spoon into a lined cupcake pan. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 22-24 minutes & let cool. Couldn't be easier, right!?

Note: recipe found on cooks.com

Hey Big Shot

2010-09-10T14:29:00.003-05:00

Right after I published my last post a friend told us to go to a house that was selling some vintage cameras. Seth found this camera called "Big Shot." It made us laugh so we had to buy it. I think it is Seth's favorite find of the day!

Hey Mom, Remember This?

2010-09-10T13:54:00.002-05:00

This morning we went to a few garage sales around town. I found this Magic School Bus book for 25 cents. It is funny to me because in kindergarten, I was scared to death of this book. My teacher read it to us and I started crying. I remember my friend hugging me while I was crying through the whole book. I think my teacher asked my mom to take the book home and read it to me to help me get over my fear of it. I was a pretty strange kid ha!

Last night I started working on an idea I had. I can't show you the final project yet but here is a sneak peek! I'm thinking a tutorial is in the works :)

Welcome Autumn!

2010-09-08T11:45:00.004-05:00

I love how the weather seemed to have shifted to more fall-ish weather while we were on vacation. I have enjoyed the cooler days with the windows open. Kizzy is enjoying it too. She loves sitting in the window sill which she can't do when the windows are shut.

Fall is my favorite season because not only is my birthday this month, but I love the colors & scents too. I am looking forward to wearing my scarves and hats again! I'm looking forward to burning spice scented candles. I'm looking forward to the pumpkin spice lattes & baking some of these super easy pumpkin spice muffins!

Yesterday I decided I need some fall decor in my living room. The living room has been pretty bare since we have moved in with just the couch, a chair and tv stand. I pulled out the bookshelf from my craft room and placed it in the living room so I could display some of my fall decoration. I plan on creating some cute fall decoration this season!

What do you enjoy about fall?

Another chance to win!

2010-09-08T07:20:00.002-05:00

Just a quick note to let you know that I had written a granny square tutorial on A.Darling. I am giving away one of my granny square necklaces! So head on over there & enter!

Also don't forget to enter Amber's giveaway in the post below!

Finger Knit Feather Headband Tutorial & Giveaway

2010-09-07T16:00:00.002-05:00

Hello! I am Amber from A.Darling. Carol asked me to give you guys a little tutorial today! If you have never been to my blog before, you'll see that I am way into knitting and today I am going to show you one of my favorite things for the fall season, headbands! This headband is so cute and easy to make, you don't even have to know how to knit, awesome right?

supplies needed:
bulky yarn , feathers, buttons, tapestry needle, measureing tape
-------------------------------------------------------------------
directions:

I just wanted to make a little note that I did not measure around my head, I just kind of winged it until it fit, but you can measure around your head and finger knit the lenght of it, totally up to you!

To start, tie a loose knot at the end of your yarn and loop it around your pointer finger.

Start at your pointer finger and weave it in and out of your fingers until you get to your pinky.

Loop your yarn around the front of your pinky, and weave it back to your pointer.

Reapeat these two steps until you have two loops on each of your fingers

Here comes the fun part, take the bottom loop and pull it up and over the top loop on your fingers and let it slide to the back of your hand.

Now repeat the first two steps, weaving the yarn through your fingers until you have two loops, again pull the bottom loop over the top loop.

Now if you look at the back of your hand, it should look like this

And this is ok! Don't worry about it. As you go along, make sure to tug your headband every now and then to make it tight and even things out.

Keep repeating steps one and two until your headband is the length you want it to be

Be sure to loosen your loops around your fingers so you can slide them out easy.

Cut your yarn and leave about six inches of tail so you can thread it through the loops

If you have a big loop at the end like I did, just thread your yarn back through and tighten it up.

Now you are going to want to "try" on your headband so you can figure out where you want to sew your button onto. Take an extra piece of yarn, or some embroidery thread and sew your button into place.

After that you can now try it on and just wiggle the button through the yarn.

Take your feathers, I used two and slide them down into your yarn and grab another button and sew it on top of your feathers.

I kinda went under the button to secure my feathers more. Trim the bottoms of your feathers and enjoy your headband!!!

----------------------------------------------------------

Thank you so much Amber for that tutorial! This is a perfect autumn accesory!

Amber has offered you all the chance to win one of her cute knitted headbands in your choice of either mustard yellow or gray.

Here's how to enter:

*EDIT* New rules for the mandatory entry. Sorry about that! Those that have entered already will still be counted.

-To enter you must go over to Amber's blog & leave a nice comment on any of her posts. Come back here & tell me something you love about her blog.

-For extra entries you can blog or tweet it. Just leave a separate comment with the link(s).

-Contest ends September 14!

Good Luck!!

Sunrise

2010-09-06T10:39:00.005-05:00

These are the last of the pictures we took on our vacation so I won't bore you with them anymore but I wanted to show you the sunrise we watched on Friday morning right before we left Tybee Island. We had been wanting to watch the sunrise but we are not morning people so we kept missing it. Friday morning we were determined to get up in time to watch it before we had to leave. We set every alarm possible. I'm glad we made it out there in time. It was so gorgeous! These pictures may seem redundant but I couldn't pick just a couple. It was too pretty!

*Sigh* I'm already missing the beach!

Evening on the beach

2010-09-05T22:08:00.007-05:00

Thursday afternoon the waves were pretty awesome. We were told that it was because the hurricane was passing. I had more pictures from then but they somehow got erased while I was putting them onto the computer. But I do have this picture.

After dinner we walked along the beach while the sun went down. I loved the evening because the sand was cool on my feet.

I love this pattern that the waves made on the sand.

Morning on the beach

2010-09-02T12:49:00.005-05:00

So far I have been feeling much better today than yesterday. A little bit of a runny nose & cough but the sore throat is gone! So we have decided to spend as much time on the beach today as we can. We went out this morning so Seth could use his metal detector again. While he did that I snapped some photos of the beach.

He mostly found pennies, dimes & quarters & bottle caps.

The water felt so nice on my feet.

Tybee Island!

2010-09-01T20:54:00.004-05:00

Yesterday we arrived at our vacation location. We are in Tybee Island, GA. We had never heard of this place but Seth just picked a random place on the map and found Tybee Island. The trip here felt like forever but once we got here and walked out on the beach we realized that it was very much worth it! It is beautiful! It isn't too hot and the breeze is perfect!

Unfortunately on the trip here I started feeling a little off. My throat started feeling scratchy and I started sneezing a lot. At first I just figured it was my allergies bothering me because they had been right before we left but I'm thinking I caught a little cold or something. Sooo... that means I have been spending most of the day resting in the hotel room. It makes me sad really but I have gotten to enjoy a few nice moments today. I am hoping I feel a little better tomorrow so I can spend more time on the beach and have the energy to do some fun activities outside. It stinks being inside all day in this beautiful place!

This is our view from the hotel room. This morning I was practically blinded by the sun's reflection on the water but a few hours later I could just sit and watch the waves. It is so relaxing! Makes me wish we lived closer to the ocean.

We had lunch at a place called The Sugar Shack. Seth made me laugh so hard while taking a drink I almost spewed it all over the place. I couldn't stop laughing for the longest time. I don't even remember what was so funny actually! ha! Then we grabbed some ice cream cones from there. I had the mint chocolate chip ice cream in a waffle cone. Yum!!

After lunch I needed to rest some more but before I could fall asleep I saw this giant ship so I had to take a picture of it!

While I was resting Seth went looking for treasures with his metal detector. He found this army man (not with the metal detector of course!). I named him Ty. He will be Galvin's new best friend. Galvin is the little ducky toy we found on a beach in Galveston, TX.

For dinner we went to Cafe Loco. The food was really good there! We were stuffed!

After dinner it was dark so we walked out to the beach so I could at least spend a couple minutes on the beach today! It was really dark so all we could see were the waves and the stars and boats in the distance. It was so relaxing just standing out there. I could feel God's awesomeness in His creations. It made me feel safe even though I felt small being out there. Loved it!

Baby Octopus

2010-09-01T11:19:00.003-05:00

Seth is out on the beach using his new metal detector. I'm hanging out at the hotel because I have had a sore throat and runny nose since yesterday. I am hoping I feel a little better so I can go to the beach later. Our walk on the beach last night was soooo nice! I can't wait to get back out there!

While I'm resting up in here I thought I would share with you the octopus I crocheted for Janel last week. She skyped me asking if I could make it for her & I was super excited to start working on it! I think she turned out adorable.

Free pattern found here.

Vacation!

2010-08-31T22:17:00.006-05:00

So I may have forgotten to mention on here that we were going on vacation. That explains the lack of updates on here!

We picked a random place on the map that sounded interesting and started driving there. Here are some pictures of our trip so far.

Our trip started off by going to a Kansas City Chiefs game. It was my first time going to a chiefs game. It was a fun experience! It was the first game in the newly renovated Arrowhead stadium which was really nice! Seth was also able to meet his role models, Bob & Larry! :)

Then we were on our way to our destination. These photos are some random photos of the car ride.

Some random Superman fun in Illinois! I had visited this place when I was in high school so when I saw the sign for it I asked Seth to pull over to it so we could take some pictures with the giant superman.

Those are just a few of the pictures we took on our way here. Check back later to find out where we ended up! :)

Owl Gifts

2010-08-23T16:39:00.003-05:00

My sister in law gave me these this weekend as a thank you for helping her with the wedding. Aren't they the cutest? If I had seen that owl lamp in a flea market I would have snatched it up right away. How perfect is it? :)

The LXD

2010-08-22T17:43:00.003-05:00

So last night as a way to wind down from all the busy-ness of putting together a wedding (which went real smoothly! Congrats Allison & Mark!!) I sat down and started reading my google reader. I came across this blog that mentioned the show The LXD on hulu.com. I decided to check it out and became instantly hooked. I may be the last person to even hear of it haha! It's a superhero story but is told through dancing. (their powers are dancing). It sounds super cheesy but it really is amazing! Every episode was so beautiful & the dancing is out of this world! I watched the entire "season." It's only 10 episodes long and each episode is between 5-15 minutes long. I hope they do another season!

Here is a trailer I found for it...

A little wedding detail

2010-08-18T12:44:00.002-05:00

My sister in law's wedding is this Saturday and I wanted to show you the little favors I made up for the reception tables. Remember the pattern I posted awhile back of the delicate flower? I whipped up 70 of these real quick & glued little pearl beads on the front and magnets on the back.

It is tough being a crocheter

2010-08-17T09:46:00.003-05:00

I came across this video on this blog this morning. It had me laughing so I thought I would share! If you are a knitter or crocheter you will enjoy this one!

"What does a caveman need lace doilies for?"

Guess who is crocheting!

2010-08-16T00:32:00.003-05:00

Tonight Seth asked me to teach him how to crochet. He caught on quickly! I thought he was kidding when he asked me but he kept asking so I taught him how to make the foundation chain and single crochet. Look how awesome his stitches are! I'm so proud! I will be expecting a granny square blanket from him for Christmas now :)

Crocheting husbands are sexy!

p.s. a giveaway is coming soon!

Party!

2010-08-13T08:09:00.004-05:00

Have you wanted to try t-shirt yarn? I wrote a tutorial on how to make it for Lindsay's blog party today! Check it out! While you are there be sure to watch for all the other posts which will contain diys, giveaways, inspiration & more! There will be one new post per hour (20 posts in all!!) What are you waiting for?

Getting Away

2010-08-12T23:10:00.007-05:00

As I wrote on Monday, it was our 2 year wedding anniversary. Seth surprised me by booking the bed & breakfast we stayed at on our honeymoon in Osage Beach, MO. It is the The Inn at Harbour Ridge. I loved it back then but I think I enjoyed it even more this time around! The owners are super nice and will do anything to make sure you are happy and comfortable but they don't hover at all. It is a super relaxing place to be!

[photo credit]

When we arrived we were greeted with a sign for our anniversary. It was really sweet!

[photo credit]

This was our room. It is the Happily Ever After room. It is soooo nice!

Our room had a private hot tub. It would have been better if it wasn't soooooo hot outside! But I still enjoyed it!

Here are some details of the room that I really liked.

This picture was right outside the room. I took this photo for my parents.

Some pretty flowers.

Me too! She had this in the bathroom. She had a ton of sheep decor.

There was a cute little table by the window.

The room was decorated with lots of hearts. It was a very romantic atmosphere.

This was the view right outside the back door. It was so pretty back there with the gazebo & little pond.

Tuesday morning I sat at that little table outside while Seth was getting ready. This cute little guy came up to me. I barely got a photo of him before he scampered off again.

Then we walked down to the gazebo to sit and enjoy outside before it got too hot again.

As we were leaving I noticed these little dala horses right outside the room.

We visited The Yarn Basket and I bought these really pretty yarns. I am not sure what I want to do with them yet. They are almost too pretty to do anything with!

I have more photos of what we did in Osage Beach on another camera but unfortunatly I can't find my cord for it. I hope I find it because there were some fun photos on there!

It was such a nice little getaway for a few days to just spend with Seth. I'm sure we will be going back again!

Just a Wii bit of cuteness

2010-08-12T13:17:00.003-05:00

Seth took us on a surprise trip to the bed & breakfast that we stayed at on our honeymoon for our 2nd anniversary. It was soooo nice but we got home yesterday. Seth's brother house sat for us and took care of Kizzy while we were gone. Matt & Kizzy must have had lots of fun because she was sleepy most the afternoon. She found the Wii bag and made a bed out of it. It was too cute and I was glad I had my camera close by.

As if sleeping in the bag wasn't cute enough, at one point she was using the wii remotes for a pillow!

We got a few pictures of our nice getaway. I will try to post some of them later.

Giveaway!

2010-08-11T10:14:00.004-05:00

Would you like to win one of my granny square necklaces? Janel from Run With Scissors was kind enough to host a giveaway where I am giving away this necklace! Please go to her blog to enter! (ends Saturday, August 14)

To those of you coming from her blog, welcome! Thank you for taking the time to come visit! I am inviting you to introduce yourself! I love getting to know my readers!

Happy 2 Years!

2010-08-09T05:00:00.001-05:00

Today is our 2 year wedding anniversary!

Seth,
The past 2 years have been so amazing. You truly are my best friend & I am so blessed to have you as my husband. I can't wait to see what God has planned for us for the rest of our lives together. I love you so much!

I wonder...

2010-08-07T22:39:00.004-05:00

The decision I made in my last post has been sooo freeing! I can make things for myself without feeling guilty. What have I been doing with the time now? Making hotpads of course! I have a little corner in my dining room that needed some color and I thought colorful hotpads would brighten the space up a little bit. I actually have one more that is just pink and black rounds but I didn't get a picture of it before it got dark. I think adding a few vintage hotpads or potholders to the collection would be so fun!

I was thinking as I was making these though. I wonder what will happen to everything I make one day? Will my children treasure these things or will they be auctioned off in a smokey building for a quarter in a box of odds & ends? Have you ever wondered this? Or am I just weird? I'm ok with being a little weird :)

New Direction

2010-08-04T17:19:00.005-05:00

Lately I have been feeling frustrated because I can't seem to figure out what I want to do with myself creative-wise. I can never settle with just one thing. I always feel like there is something missing. Something I just wasn't getting. I am wearing myself out worrying about what I could make that will sell. I have found that when I am pressured to create, I go blank. It must come naturally.

I have also been really frustrated with the fact that I can't seem to be as successful as everyone else. I'm always worrying about the fact that others are gaining more followers much faster than I can.

I was asked the other night what I wanted to accomplish with my etsy shop - what my goals were. I answered that I never intend on it being really that successful. I am not business-minded. I like to create. That is all. I hate worrying about pricing, making listings, packaging, shipping, etc.

So I sat down and did some thinking. What was missing?

I realized that my priorities were wrong. My relationships with my Savior & others are lacking because I spend so much time worrying about how to make a successful brand. I have decided that my first passion is serving God and being Seth's partner in ministry. I believe the past year that I have had my etsy shop and blog was God teaching me to gain confidence & courage in myself. I have learned SO much about myself because of this and I wouldn't change a thing. The people I have met along the way have been fantastic and inspiring! They will still be close to my heart. I believe that now God has nudged me in another direction. I can use the skills I have learned in the past year to do a better job in the ministry. I can better serve my God and be a better partner to Seth in the ministry.

Don't worry though. I will still be crafting and blogging. It just won't be my biggest priority anymore. You may not even notice a change much. I will still be doing the same things - just with a new focus. I don't care that I don't have as many followers or selling as much as others. I'm content with the few that are really interested in my work and what I have to say. So if you stick around -thank you!! I'm glad you are willing to stick with me as I go on this journey!

I'm really excited about where this takes me & Seth. I have no idea where but I'm just going to listen & obey.

Late Night Crafting

2010-08-02T20:51:00.003-05:00

It has been so busy the past 2 weeks that I haven't had a lot of time to craft so last night I just sat down and crocheted up this little birdie for myself. It felt nice to just make something even if it wasn't for anything or anybody in particular!

Pattern found here.

Butterfly Wreath

2010-07-29T15:59:00.004-05:00

My sister in law is getting married next month and I am helping with the decorations. It's a small ceremony so I thought some handmade touches would be cute. I found some heart shaped wreath forms at Hobby Lobby and these pretty little butterflies and made this little wreath. I have another heart shaped wreath form and I plan on crocheting some little flowers for that one.

And my cat is cute. But you knew that already of course. :)