H is for oH so gorgeous!

Thanks for the great response to my makeup post yesterday! I wanted to let you know I do read your comments, and I will be responding to your questions next week. If you don't want to wait until then, give me a holler and I'll send you out an email.

Also, I know that Sephora carries products that are expensive, particularly at this time of year. The links are just meant as inspirations. Print out the post and take it to the drugstore or to Ulta - they have the same products and shades, in cheaper prices! I try to give a range of recommendations in different price ranges, but it is easier to link to Sephora or Ulta because they have everything condensed into one site rather than me spending hours doing google searches.

Believe it or not, these posts are extremely time consuming because of the pictures and links - yesterday's post took me 2 hours to put together. If you are wondering why I don't do makeup posts more often, that is why! I want to try to do one makeup post a week, though.. at least that is the goal.

Moving on!


Holy smokes! I am so excited about how this project turned out. Is this not the best wreath ever? I think so!

I first got the idea from Kimba at A Soft Place to Land. The original inspiration came from Ballard Designs, and I saw another interpretation at Thrifty Decor Chick. I had to try it for myself, but there was just one problem - there is no Joann's here! Luckily for me, there is one where my parents live, so I informed my mother via text message (yes, my 56 year old mother text messages) that if she wanted me to brave the Black Friday crowds, we would have to hit up Joann's and she'd have to help me make this wreath. Luckily, my mom is a super awesome wreath maker, and between the two of us, we put came up with what you see above.

I didn't take pictures of the process, and I don't have access to materials to make another one, but I will share the process with you, if you would like to make one of your own. I think the entire project cost me about $15.00. Here's what you need:

Paper maiche or wooden letter, about 2 feet tall
Forest green paint and paintbrush
Garland
Frou-frou stuff (berries, ornaments, greenery - whatever floats your boat)
Ribbon
Upholstery tacks
Hot glue gun

Please learn from my mistakes, the first one being to paint the letter before you start wrapping the garland. Duh, Andrea. After you have painted and the paint has dried, begin wrapping the letter with garland. Use hot glue as needed, but since the garland has wire, you won't need to use a lot. Keep the garland as close together as possible. Depending on the shape of your letter, you may need to use wire cutters to cut the garland.

Once your letter is wrapped, arrange the garland so that it covers all the little empty spots. You may need to use hot glue with this step as well. Then add your bling bling - whatever floats your boat! I used a ribbon to hang my letter, and secured the ribbon on the top of my door with upholstery tacks.

I made this little santa pot as part of an ornament exchange I'm participating in. My partner is local, and I wanted something different than a gift bag to hold the ornaments. This project is also very easy.


Get a terra cotta pot, and paint the top rim white. Paint the remainder of the pot red. Paint a thick black line around the middle of the pot, and draw a square in gold for the belt buckle. I mod-podged the rim and applied a little fake snow. So easy, and it is a super cute way to present your holiday gifts.

JennyKate recently gifted me with an award, which I wanted to pass on.

The rules:

1. Write a post about the award, link back to the person who gave you the award.
2. Nominate at least 7 other blogs.
3. Add links to those blogs on your blog.
4. Leave a message for the nominees on their blogs.
5. Name 10 honest random things about yourself.

I'm gifting this award to:

• Controlling My Chaos b/c she's making me fat(ter) with all her awesome recipes
• Love Maegan b/c she has incredible style. Check out her feather dress! I die!
• Mabel's House is a recently discovered favorite of mine. Love her style, her decor, and her wit.
• Katie at My First Year As A Wallace is a newlywed (aww, I miss those days) and a fellow craft addict just like me.
• Jill at Peeptoe Pumps and Pearls is one of those bloggy friends that I know if we ever met IRL, we'd be great friends. I love her style, and I'd love to take a look in her closet.
• Jennifer at What's Shakin'? b/c she loves Starbucks, leaves me super sweet comments, and makes my crafting to-do list longer each day with her adorable projects.
• Holly at Inka Dinka Doodle - Holly's an IRL friend with an awesome. I was there for the birth of her second child.. I even got to cut his umbilical cord! She's a super talented crafter and stamper. You must see her work!

Here's my 10 honest things about myself:

1. I am lazy. Yep, I am. I'm a terrible housewife. I hate to clean and I loathe doing laundry. I do love to take naps. The two do not go together.
2. I love my dogs and view them as my children. Oh, and JC can talk. Just in case you weren't yet aware.
3. I had a terrible case of mono when I was in grad school. I had to take a leave of absence from my job and drop out of my classes as a result. When you think mono, you think of being tired, but let me tell you.... severe cases are painful. I've never felt that kind of pain before.
4. I love Chick-Fil-A's new milkshake, the peppermint chocolate chip shake. You must try it!
5. Even though I am a self-professed makeup junkie, you would not know it from the way I look at work each day. I always, without fail, wake up late and have about 3 minutes to slap on makeup. As a result, I look like crap. Oh well!
6. I will probably always have short hair. I haven't had hair longer than my shoulders in more than 12 years. The longest I let my hair get these days is chin length.
7. I love Pepsi. Not Coke. Pepsi.
8. I'm starting to run out of honest things to tell you about myself. Well, at least honest things I'm willing to share.
9. I still haven't decorated my Christmas tree, even though it is put together. I'm a procrastinator like that.
10. When we lived in WA, for three years I kept my Christmas tree up, with lights and decorations, stored in my spare bedroom. White trash much? I didn't care. In December all I had to do was pick it up, move it into the living room, plug it in, and I was done.

There you go! TGIF, everyone!