Let's Take a Stroll

 On July 10, 2009 I married my best friend. On our first anniversary, we went to Maine (beautiful!), but I don't honestly remember if we did anything at all 2nd and 3rd year.  This year, we rang in our day of wedded bliss under the bright lights of New York City. Our first night we went to see Annie on Broadway (absolutely loved it!) The song "Maybe" has been stuck in my head ever since :)

 The next day, after eating at the SaraBeth's by Central Park, and indulging in the best eggs benedict. we navigated the curvy paths of Central Park. We had no set plan, but decided we would go wherever the roads took us. Half way through the day both of our cell phones died, which was kind of nice because it was just us.   Anything we wanted to do, we had to search :)  It was an adventure. And I love adventures!

We stumbled upon tables for chess and checkers, and after declaring myself Queen of Checkers, Mr. and I played about 6 games to test my title.  Needless to say, I still have my invisible crown :)

  As we walked through the beautiful paths of Central Park, we stopped at a vendor table - Michelle Han.  Her hand cut stamps and prints were simple and fantastic. We found a pretty sweet Christmas gift for my brother-in-law, and then decided to get something to mark our trip.  The one we picked was the 8x10 adventure print.

  

As we drove home, Mr. and I debated on what it was she made a stamp of - a cliff or ship? I think it's interesting that we both immediately saw a completely different image.  I saw this and thought "A boat! An Adventure across the seas! Love it!" Mr. saw it and thought, "A Cliff. " Please note the lack of exclamation marks because something has to be REALLY sock-knocking to have him be super pumped. He is pretty mellow, which balances out my excitement for everything. I still say it's the tip of a ship, with a rock on it (okay - when I saw that out loud, it doesn't make sense - but does life?).

What a wonderful day with a wonderful guy!

Ring a Ding Ding

With my wicker basket and my tomato bike bell, I feel like me and my baby blue bike can do anything. However, I recently took my bike out of the shed after a long winter, and realized the cute bell I would ring for no reason, didn't work. Instead of alerting people of my comings and goings, or getting Mr's attention, it now makes a sickening click....non-effective!

With one thing on my brain - I found a slew of different bells that would take the place of my tomato. Which is the cutest? You decide.

Flamingo Bike Bell - $8

Lief! bell - This is only sold in UK, and seriously is as cute as a button.

Turtle Bike Bell - $17

Bird Bike Bell - $30 (This is also a light which is great if you are coming home as it's getting dark!)

Orange Hand Painted Bell - $29.99

There are too many to chose from, but at least I know there are ones out there to replace my now dudded tomato bell. A moment of silence for the ol' chap.

Which one would you pick? 

 

Etsy Love

The Trendy Owl

Recent Etsy purchase....as I am looking through my google reader - I come across the cutest hair bands that are on sale for a whooping $5! five dollars?! I heart headbands and this certainly will pimp my hair.  The elastic band doesn't seem like it will squeeze my head (a reason why I can't wear hairbands all day). And for 5 dollars? I have met my hair's soulmate.  
I quickly purchased three - it took me no more than three minutes to pick them out and buy them. I can't wait for them to arrive! There are all different colors and styles to check out!!
After perusing the site, I settled not only on three hairbands, but also a necklace. The flower jewelry has three fabric flowers attached to a chain.  I already have my outfit picked out when it arrives in the mail!


Check out The Trendy Owl's Etsy site to see all the different types of designs!  

Address me with your eyes

I have so many different address labels. Some with cats (yuck!), ducks, boats and frogs (why, I do not know).  Some labels have my correct name (what that is - who knows!), some with my maiden name mispelled, some with my married name, and some with a name I do not recognize.   One common trait amongst all of the labels is that they were free. My favorite F word!
After looking through websites, I found fabulous stamps that would get the job done.  I would be able to have the following: a correct name, correct address, and not have any crazy creatures that I am not fond of.  Etsy has a slew of address labels that I have fallen for.  

Clear stickers from tickledpinkpaper

My favorite!!!
NoteTrunk

So cute!!!
ModernArt Rubber Stamps

Bugabooannouncements 

I think this may be one of my favorite simplest stamps!
from NoteTrunk

I can't stop looking through Etsy and finding all sorts of fun address stamps!!  This makes me want to toss all the free ones and get a stamp (or two!)

Don't Cage Me

There are moments where I honestly feel trapped. Though I am sure most people feel this way, I'm not sure what to do about it. I don't like the feeling that I am stuck at my job, stuck paying my bills, stuck period. This is in no way a rant, but there are times I wish I had more free time to do the things I dream about. So what inspires me are all the art pieces relating to bird cages. Not only do I feel an emotional connection, but they remind me of something whimsy, magical. All the artwork to the side was found on Etsy.com - I just wish I had space to buy it all and display it!

I am in love. I am in love with this website - Ruche. Everything, and I mean everything, is something that belongs in my closet. Did I mention I would need a new house to replace my closet? Going with the birdcage theme (four stars for themes!), I found this necklace that I NEED. Yes, much like I need water and food - the same type of needing.

It is called Lemon Rose Bird Swing Necklace - handmade! The bird is adorable, and I like the touch of the yellow rose. I would feel a tad guilty buying it for myself, but ho hum. Why not?!

For a whooping $30, I feel like that is a deal. Now....what to wear with it.....

Other bird jewelry that peeked my interest and plucked my heart strings? I love the idea of wall stickers - and how cute are these?

They would look adorable in a girls room, or a craft room....ahhh - I can see it now!

On our front porch these pillows would be a great addition!

Thanks to etsy - finding cute items are so easy peasy. This 50s birdcage pillow would be a great summer purchase.

Buying all of the jewelry I would want, I would need some sort of organizer - I received this from my family last Christmas. I love the style. However, with the amount of necklaces I own, I may need another!

This was from Urban Outfitters, but there are a bunch of different ones available. What I really need is an organizer for earrings, and again at Urban Outfitters I have found my match! Round and round my earrings can spin.

I am a bit dismayed, as my pictures are extremely tiny! Nonetheless, as long as the item itself is bigger than a postage stamp, I am a happy camper!

Wear your heart on your sleeve

According to Goenglish.com (might I add a very reputable source for idioms) wearing your heart on your sleeve means:

People who wear their heart on their sleeve express their emotions freely and openly, for all to see. Example: "She is kind of player who never hides how she's feeling. One look at her and you know if she's winning or losing." Reply: "She wears her heart on her sleeve."

You can see how these people feel as easily as if they were "wearing" their "heart" on the "sleeve" of their shirt. Example: "Some people love him and some people hate him, but my brother always lets you know how he feels. He wears his heart on his sleeve."

People who wear their heart on their sleeve do not hold back their emotions, for good or for bad. It is clear how they feel in each moment. Example: "She's a shy person. She's never been one to wear her heart on her sleeve."

Why wouldn't we want to wear our hearts out on the open? Except for fear, what else is stopping you? (and I think perhaps that is reason enough for most people). However, I believe if you feel it, show it.

As I was ever avoiding work, I found Planet Pudge, who knows exactly how to wear her heart. Perhaps my love for this woman stemmed from her self-description, "an over-caffeinated, creative-deprived mom in search of fun, modern clothes for her two little girls. Sick of the same old mass-produced stuff, she started fanatically drawing, cutting, obsessing over fabrics and hand-stitching everything (much to the dismay of her calloused middle finger). "

My FAVORITE shirt is Apple of My Eye

Yet another cutie petutie shirt.......think of all the possibilities you could do with scrap fabric!

Or if you are more literal, here's the shirt for you.

Emily Penso not only designs and prints her own shirts, but also creates and paints her own jewelry. Her art work reminds me of cartoons from the Black Plague, dark yet inspiring. It may just be the bird man on her homepage, that reminds me of doctors from 1900's. Not sure if my taste is the same as her artwork, but I do love the tree earrings.

Lesson for today: Express your emotions. Don't be afraid to wear your heart out for all to see. Just maybe not literally.....

Stamp This with food

I found fabulous cupcake stamps located on Taylored Expressions. There are cuppie love scenes, which simply mean cupcakes are kissing and hugging, holding hands and going on dates. So adorable! Maybe they will get together, and have mini-cupcakes. yum.

I tend to have a closer attraction to cupcakes then I do any other dessert. Not even eating them, but looking at them decorating them, dressing in them (yes, I mean accessories - not a vanilla cake on my head!)

On Etsy, I found Cupcake Tree Designs, who designs the simplest cupcake stamps. I think you can't go wrong with a small little treat to stamp with!

I like the idea of making your own wrapping paper. Plain wrapping paper is always cheaper, and can be found in any Dollar Store - yet with a little ink and a cute stamp - you have just made your very own wrap. The great thing about this is - it is never the same! Each present is individually stamped and each gift deserves separate attention.

Not only does she have cupcakes, but you could also stamp using hand mixer stamps, bacon and egg stamps, pie stamps...the list seems endless and delicious.

Other cupcake ideas? yes. I have fallen in love with Popcorn Cupcakes. I would definitely make this as a tribute to his favorite snack.

I found this at Family Fun .

Ingredients

• 1 baked cupcake
• White icing
• 40 mini marshmallows (white or pastel yellow and white)
• Yellow food coloring (optional)

• Clean paintbrush
• Scissors
• White construction paper
• Blue and red markers

1. Frost the cupcake with white icing. To create each piece of "popcorn," cut one mini marshmallow in half and squish the two pieces back together into a whole mini marshmallow, pinching firmly. Pile the finished popcorn onto the frosted cupcake.

   
   

2. For a buttery look, either dilute a drop of yellow food coloring in water and brush it on with a clean paintbrush or mix pastel yellow marshmallows in with the white.

3. To make the band, cut a strip of construction paper about 1 1/4 inches by 8 inches, or to fit your cupcake, and decorate as shown.

4. If you're creating many cupcakes, design just one band and color photocopy it. Wrap the band around the cupcake and secure with tape.
   

This seems easy enough! This looks simply adorable...the problem is I am not really a true fan of marshmallow - but I could just pick the topping off (yes, I was that kid that picked the toppings off of everything).

But to end it with what I started - stamps. Popcorn stamps. from none other than Cupcake Tree Designs.

You could stamp movie theater invites with these cute lil boogers, and mail them out! Who doesn't love a good flick with friends, and a fun invite to boot?

Happy Stamping!

Bags of Organization

The mail comes in....and the mail should go out. However, it gets lost in the madness of our home. How do we solve this problem? Since Mr. is against my plastic bag organization - I stumbled upon a pattern for mail sorting. I love it. The problem is where in the world will we hang this project?

I love where they hung this too. the back of the door! It is functional yet not in the way! perfect-o. Now, how to create it? I can not take any credit for this creation, but I can tell you where I found it. Bright and Blithe has the tutorial, which is pretty straight forward. As soon as I rescue my sewing machine from the pitfalls of our bedroom, I will definitely get started on this wonderful bit of organization.

Hopefully soon I will be able to post pics of my own mail sorter, till then it will have to suffice looking up photos of other people's completed projects!

My only other bit of longing stems from my need to organize our gift cards and coupons. I had a paper "coupon" holder, yet after a few wears and tears, it did just that. It wore. It tore. And all my gift cards slipped out all over the floor :(

I would pay a pretty penny (and maybe a not so pretty penny) to have something that clearly organizes our cards/coupons. I have seen two different types on Etsy that I simply love.

I sew on Etsy has the cutest coupon holders, and they actually seem pretty darn sturdy! They come either already made ($32), or she also offer the sewing pattern for an easy payment of nine dollars! That isn't too shabby!

With these two ideas on my hands, I am hoping I can wipe the dust off of my sewing machine, and get right to work! Happy organizing!!