I moved!

Hey there! It's been too long since I've posted (gosh that is the kiss of death phrase typed by every blogger whose site will soon meet it's early demise!).

He's what is happening in my neck of the woods.

So I moved! Yup Now I'm in Maryland...not far but damn if it wasn't tedious! I now have a home office which is a welcomed addition.

I would say that my work space is this clean all the time, but no one likes a liar.

Personal wall

My office is right off of the livingroom.

I love this poster!

baby me!

Art work from my baby girl.

...and speaking of additions we now have a new member of the family. Not a baby...silly. A cat. A curious, adventurous 8 month old black kitten named midnight. Hey, my daughter asked for a cat or a brother...easycall.

Say "Hi" Midi!

What else? Oh yeah, I am now Mrs. Maryland All American and soon to be (hopefully) Mrs. All American. I compete January 17, 2014!

Ok. so that's me- now on to the meat and potatoes (or just potatoes for my vegetarian friends). The reason we are all here tonight...What is on my DIY plate?


Project 1:
Our new place has these great windows taking up 2 walls in our living room. We get great sunlight during the day (and we are finding we lose a lot of heat at night) but it has been a complete and total nightmare to try and cover them. There are 6 floor almost-ceiling window panels closely gathered plus one large picture window in the dining area. Now I understand why people hire someone to do this job. My first attempt was curtains...simple darn curtains..So I get the first set of rods, too short, so I returned them and got the second set...just right. Then Curtains...I found a set I loved but there weren't enough of them (6+ windows remember)...then I found some I liked but they were mismatched...Then I found some I liked-all matched-they were too narrow! So I gave up for now on curtains and I have decided to do a privacy window project. I found a great pattern that I loved (at a price I love) and it is lovely!

before

the plan

after. 

find the project here: 7th house

but sooooooooooooooooo much work. I tried finding a die-cut to use but I have to trace a template and cut out by hand....suffice to say I'm going on week 3 of this project.

the spaces aren't uneven because I lack a tool to make a uniformed pattern, no. It's uneven because I'm extremely impatient. Admitting it is the first step to recovery. 

why soooo many windows!!!

Project 2:

I want to turn this old gown:

 

Into this:

Although the photo doesn't show it, generally speaking, the fit is similar. Fitted in the waist and opening to a trumpet. I'm doing this pageant thing and I'm thrifty what can I say....I wonder how it will work out..We shall see tomorrow! 

Commencing: Operation Swag like Eva Mendes!

Living life to the fullest

Life is precious. Unfortunately it's not until you are faced with the possibility of it ending that people tend to notice. This post is just to remind us all how special life is without any sad reminders. Have a great day.

Read then watch: book and movie combos

When I was younger, my mother encouraged me to read by allowing me to read books soon to be released as movies. This proved as a great motivator for me. Today I try to keep this practice. Not only do I get to read some interesting titles but the movie release date provides a deadline for me to finish the book by. While I can not guarantee that the movie is always as good as the book, here are a few good books to read before seeing the movie.

1. Little Women (abridged versions available for younger readers)
2. The Help
3. The Harry Potter Series
4. Disappearing acts
5. The hitch hikers guide to the universe (for younger readers)
6. The Hunger Games (easy read for young readers)

Goodreads.com has a great list far more extensive than my own. Visit them for more suggestions!


http://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/books-made-into-movies

Phenomenal Woman (or Man) Activities

looks like baby girl loves herself! Love yourself!

As people, we tend to feel the desire to be loved or admired at the least. Sometimes the place you need to start is with yourself. Here are a few Activities of Affirmation that you can do to boost your self esteem!

1. Choose 5 affirmations to to use as daily mantras for your life and set aside time, daily, to focus on them. These can be things that reflect your current beliefs or things that you would like to represent how you feel.

2. Fake it! Pretend to be confident. No, seriously. Even when false, if you hold yourself in high regard others will tend to do the same. Eventually your behaviors will mirror your "pretend confidence".

3. Work it! We are all really bad at at least one thing- but everyone also has one thing that they are good at. Focus on the things you are good out. Go out of your way to partake in activities that flaunt your abilities. Example: Say, you are an office worker but you love to sing and put on a show. Organize a Karaoke night and milk it!

4. Take a compliment! If someone one compliments your demeanor, your top, your shoes, your hair- accept it! There is nothing wrong with saying "Thank you". It will boost your day. At the same time, one good deed deserves another. Return the favor.

5. Give. In our daily life we tend to take our blessings for granted. You have a car, it doesn't come with a driver and heated back seats but it gets you from A to B. Am I right? There is always someone who can use your extra things or your time. Give to someone. Maya Angelou wrote in her poem "Our Grandmothers":

When you learn, teach.

When you get, give.

 

Heed her advice.

6. Surround yourself with those with your best interests at heart. There is a certain "charge" to your batteries that you get from being with those who love and support you. Make a date with a friend or spend time with family. It works and the feeling can last for a week!

7. Write down a list of strengths. Take time and write down what makes you special. Ignore all of your flaws and have a "me fest"! Toot your own horn!

8.  Have a photo shoot. Take a few pictures focusing on you looking great. Make sure you look good. Brush your hair, put on a good face, put on your favorite outfit and strut for yourself. On your worst day you can remind yourself of the fox that lies within.

9. Pamper yourself. There is something about setting aside time to just focus on yourself. No one else just love yourself. Take a bath, manicure your own nails. This is absolutely necessary in my book. No one can love you until you love yourself.

Many of these suggestions were taken from the book 48 Self Esteem Activities for Women: Powerful Exercises for Overcoming Low Self Esteem by Corinna Bowers available here.

The making of the wand!

I stumbled across another blogger who did this...tried it...and thought I would share. I went out the other day looking for a curling wand. Being the DIY/ El Cheapo that I am- I started wondering, what differentiates a "wand" from a curling iron? The answer- the clip. So I began to wonder why pay $10-$30 more for less of a product. I went home and decided to try this on a curling iron I planned on discarding.

Step 1: With your curling iron off and unplugged- assess and remove the "clip" from your curling iron. In my case, the clip was held on by screws. I simply removed the screws on either side of the base (handle end) of the clip.

 

Step 2: After removing the clip I noticed a spring toward the base (handle end) of the clip. In my case this too was screwed in. Take note that some springs are just just inserted in a "pocket" type set up.

 

Step 3: Be sure that all clip mechanisms, screw, springs and hinges are removed. Lastly I chose to wipe down my new curling wand. I have had this curling iron (pictured) for at least 7 years. As you can see it has taken a lickin'- but since it keeps on tickin' I figured what do I have to loose.

Result: In my case this barrel was WAY too large to create the great curls that I see others accomplish, but-hey, I tried!

The Resolution-2013

So much went on in 2012...all in all...it sucked sooooo much. Literally from day one till minutes before midnight. I am determined to have a great year in 2013. How? Glad you asked! I have set the following resolutions:

1. Have one adventure per month
2. Earn more from my blog- be a "real blogger".

...sounds good, huh?

2 simple goals with great possibilities! So far I have done one adventure. January's adventure was to go to the Presidential Inauguration. Sounds boring right? NOT! This was defiantly and adventure. I mean we are talking huge mobs of different personalities here! Not White water rafting, I will admit, but no cake walk either! Unfortunately, my phone died very quickly so I didn't get too many pictures but I got a few.

our tickets!

All smiles...although I left my house at 3am to get to my mom's house to leave by 6:30am! So excited!

My mother and I on our way to our ticketed section!

The US Capitol on the opposite side of the reflecting pond.