Reorganizing my life

I have been working hard on getting everything in my life reorganized and redecorated.

Lets start with the obvious:

1. This good old bloggy blog

2. My etsy shop here

I wanted to have two distinct themes between the two.

The blog is about life and me and things I like, vintage meets classic.

While my shop sells crocheted (thats why the yarn) and paper items such as my planners (see below) here

I want people to look at the button or the banner and know that this is what this shop sells . I wanted it to be more defined where as before it was a little of everything and a bit of organized chaos.

I have also decided that once some of the items in my shop run out thats it. I will also be adding more items that fall into the above categories.

3. Living room

4. Bedroom

I also moved around these two rooms but thats for other posts.

I also made a new signature  (see below)

Thangs are changing and I love it!

Trial and Error

As with most things, practice makes perfect and trial and error are the best ways to learn things, ok enough with the witty cliches. 

Although they are correct, this post is about crocheting.

Awhile ago my cousins wife who is mom of this adorable one from our wedding

approached me to make some hats for her bun in the oven

She wanted me to make her several cute popular designs, I am sure that you have seen around

(thats for a different post)

Well, I did my research and looked for patterns. 

I have made hats before, but had no reference to a smaller head and how small really is an infant?

 I looked, I tried and was not very successful.

This picture is a representation of the 2 righties who claim to be a size newborn and 3-6 month.. 

yeah right in your dreams.

I had to had that snip bit of sarcasm because not only did those two hats not even come close to fitting a newborn they wouldn't even fit a doll or a premie.

So I did what anyone would do, through trial and error I came up with my own 3-6 month pattern.

So here it is folks.. you may use my pattern for any purpose including but not limited to selling, gifts, or features but please give credit where credit is due, thanks.

Newbie hats:

Notes: Ch. 2 at beginning of row does count as part of dc sequence

- Chain (ch.) 4 slip stitch (sl st) to create ring

- ch. 2 and continue with 8 double crochets (dc) in the middle of the ring sl st at the top of ch 2

- ch. 2 and place dc in same space, continue in circle with 2 dc in each space sl st at the top of ch 2

- ch. 2,* 2 dc in next st, 1 dc in next st* continue from * in circle until complete sl st at the top of ch 2

- ch. 2, 1 dc in next 1 sts, *2 dc in next st, 1 dc in next 2 sts* continue from * in circle until complete sl  

  st at the top of ch 2

- ch. 2, 1 dc in next 11 sts, *2 dc in next st, 1 dc in next 12 sts* continue from * in circle until complete 

  sl st at the top of ch 2

- ch. 2, 1 dc in next 12 sts, *2 dc in next st, 1 dc in next 13 sts* continue from * in circle until complete

  sl st at the top of ch 2

- ch. 2, 1 dc in each st in circle until complete sl st at the top of ch 2 (repeat for 3 rows)

- ch. 1, 1 sc in each st  in circle until complete sl st at the top of ch 1 (repeat for 4 rows)

tie off and finish off ends and you are done.. yay. 

You can add frills, thrills, buttons and flowers to this pattern for more variety as well as different colors. 

This is just a basic beanie pattern.

Have you tried it? Let me know how it goes.

This post will be linking up this week here

Dear Hubby: A year in review

As seen here and here we celebrated our year anniversary

This year has been a worldwind of crazy chaos

As you can see from my homemade card for our anni

Dear Hubby-- I honestly can't believe its been a year since we said our I dos. This year has come and gone and with everything things have been for better or for worse. I still love you more and more everyday. I only get to spend weekends with you right now, but its the best time of my week :). When you get in at 2 am on saturday morning, you give me kisses and go take a shower. I love it when you do that, it makes me so happy and comforts me knowing your home. You write me letters once a week. You have been incredibly supportive during all of my school and I am glad I can do the same for you. I am so glad you can finally do what you want and you're so happy.

I love you so much P.

Sponsored post: AstroBrights paper

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Astrobrights Papers by Neenah Paper for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

Have you ever made a poster or a card, but couldn't find the right paper? Yeah well its happened to me too. AstroBrights makes 23 bright papers, so your bright ideas get attention. These papers are perfect for home, school and/ or office. Stand out from the crowd-- choose a lively AstroBrights Papers for your next brochure, invitation, flyer, announcement or craft project. AstroBrights Papers is about creativity and getting noticed. They provide a wide range of 23 COLORS because they believe ideas and important, thoughts aren't shy and they are not afraid to stand out from the crowd. 

Last year I was looking for bright yellow paper for a halloween project  to make a wig. AstroBrights Paper was the only one that matched my color scheme. I really do use this product.. believe me! haha. 

You can support, you can give, you know you want to give to your local elementary school by entering the "Give a Brighter Year" sweepstakes "Give a Brighter Year" sweepstakes here. You can win cash prizes and school supplies valued at $30,000 for the school of your choice. Go here "Give a Brighter Year" sweepstakes to enter the sweepstakes.

You can also get the family together to participate in "Make Something Astrobright" design challenges on the Astrobrights on Facebook to win Astrobrights paper and other prizes. Share your projects with pictures and videos. If you share via twitter or pinterest don't forget to use hashtag #goastrobrights.

Need ideas for AstroBrights paper, you can use it for summer book reports, after school chore chart or PTA meeting flyers. You go mom; be bright, beautiful and crafty. 

 

DIY Kate Spade inspired artwork

This weekend I worked on a little DIY artwork for the bigger bathroom.

Yes, I painted it again, but its not ready for its debut yet.

 I was inspired by this kate spade inspired artwork by Joi of Nuestra Vida Dulce 

(source)

I painted my canvas navy blue and used silver variations in paper instead of gold.

This project is SOOOOOO easy

Get your canvas, painted (if wanted), paper, glue and a 2 in circle punch

Punch away

Arrange and glue.

Easy peasy, right? 

I love the different textures of paper I found at Hobby Lobby.

Have you made a kate spade inspired art work yet?

I will be linking up here

My weekend in photos

We started our weekend by doing a mini tri

(before)

I will have an update to this this week

(after) and exhausted

and.. 

As you already know it was our anniversary

Which you can see a re-cap here

After dinner we went on a picnic to a local park to have cake and champaigne

We had a cake "topper" re made 

Our old one ended up in the zen garden at our venue (don't ask)

our baker had kept some leftover paper flowers from a year ago and decorated the cake

It was sooooooo good. 

We also went to a local production of RENT and it was pretty awsome 

What did you do this weekend?

The year of paper

Traditionally, the first anniversary is paper.

I thought long and hard about this gift. I wanted to give soemthing that was traditional, yet practical. It wasn't until the day that I was going to give the gift that I stumbled across the perfect gift.

a politic chit chat book, its quirky and fun

and a box of 100 postcards. P has been writing our friends and I regularly. The postcards have a retro feel of a comparison of new york and paris.

wrapped in a paper bag and twine

I don't know about you, but anniversary cards are so plain and impersonal

I took some of my favorite/ most impact events of the last year and drew them in a road map on stationary left over from our wedding invitations. 

What did you do for your paper anniversary? 

I am linking up here

Year one: the marriage

Last year on this day I married my wonderful husband.

The year has not been perfect by any means but I have cherished the time that we have spent together. I could not be happier with our marriage and where we are now. I love you more and more everyday P and every day is a new adventure waiting to be discovered.

Fashion friday: the purse

I have never been tradditional. I have never liked designer stuff. I would prefer to make my own or buy the cheap version.

I have mentioned it before, I have never EVER been fasionable. 

Well, that all changed this weekend.

I bought my first Coach bag.

                                             I love it.

I joke that I became a real woman this weekend because I bought it, but honestly I couldn't resist anymore and P persuaded me.

This is my slow upward battle to being fashionable.

What do you think? Do you always shop designer? Do you feel overprotective of your bag (i do)

Mini-vacation: Day two

So, I talked about Day one of my mini vacation to Ohio here

On Day two we traveled from Cincinnati to Dayton.

On our way to Dayton we made a few pit stops (you'll read about one tomorrow) including breakfast

In Dayton we went to the National Air force museum

(yes, P's dream)

They had all kinds of airplanes/aircraft, etc

First military bomber

An ambulance

they used Model T's because they are reliable

Disney and the war

there was a fleet called snow white and the seven dwarfs each aircraft carried around those figurines in the box. Each plane had a character on the aircraft

new derby name?

another option.. they also had the plane that dropped the atomic bomb on Nagasaki in the main museum.  

Than you could take a free tour to the annex at the actual air force base and see experimental and important to history aircraft.

this is Roosevelt's air force one

equipped with an elevator he used to get in the plane and maneuver throughout..pretty cool huh?

This was Eisenhower's air force one (I think) and there was also one there that carried JFKs body back to DC after he was shot

many helicopter

this thing was called a goblin and it would attach to an aircraft via hook on top and than let go it was awsome.

Been to any cool museums lately? Oh, best part the museum was free even the annex.