This Is Me #2

1. I grew up listening to country music.  There was to be no other genre of music played under my father's roof.  When I was five my mom bought her and I Gloria Estefan's tape Cuts Both Ways.  That was my first exposure to non-country music.  I loved her album Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me.  I could sing along to one of her songs any day.  It took me awhile to allow country music back into my heart, but I enjoy a good foulk- county song, and a singer with some twang. 

2.  I enjoy all sorts of music these days, but if I had to pick my top five favorites, here they are in no particular order:  Nirvana, Modest Mouse, Jurassic 5, The Dirty Projectors, the Pixies, and Mos Def.  

3.  When I was a kid I wanted to be just like Shirley Temple.  Singer, Dancer, Model, Actor, all around awesomely talented little girl.  As an adult, I'm glad I wasn't a child star.  Plus, I don't have a speck of talent for any of the afore mentioned star qualities.  

       

4.  I prefer to spend my waking hours outdoors.  When the weather isn't great for days on end I forget this fact.  Then when the weather gets nice again, it takes me a bit to remember I'm happier when I'm not trapped in by four walls.  

5.  I rarely wear make-up.  

Hope you enjoyed this weeks This Is Me.  Have a lovely Saturday, and Happy DIYing, chris!  

Fun Friday Fascinations #9

Yay, for Fridays!  Hope you're having a good one.  Here are my Fun Friday Fascinations for this week, they are mostly DIY oriented.  I realize there has been a serious lack of DIYing on here lately.  I have a ton of things going on right now, and sometimes it's more fun to photograph my everyday life things, rather than some DIY I've been slowly piecing together.  Maybe these lovely DIY inspired finds will get me in the DIY tutorial making mind frame.  Enjoy!

Since I did away with Saturday Blogger Love, I'll start off this week's finds with some great ideas from a few of the blogs I check out on a regular basis.  My first find is a Honey Nutmeg Cinnamon Facial Mask from my absolute favorite blog Delightfully Tacky.  Elizabeth has an amazing blog, the design is simple and beautiful, and she seems like a beautiful person inside and out.  Her posts are well written, and chocked full of beautiful photographs.  This particular DIY mask I'm crazy about.  We all have physical features we are insecure about, and my biggest problem area is my skin.  I'm 27, and they keep telling me I'll grow out of this acne thing, but I'm pretty sure this is a life long battle.  I can't wait to try this tasty sounding facial mask.  I know honey is good for your skin, and surely cinnamon and nutmeg will at least leave my skin feeling tingly fresh.  

Another pair of bloggers I'm a huge fan of Kaylah over on The Dainty Squid posted a group of super lovely photos of her and Elycia together from Love Elycia.  I love everything these ladies wear, but in this particular post Kaylah opened up my world to something I've been missing out on.  Awesome animal brooches meant for holding glasses!  What!  I totally need one of these.  I hate sticking my sunglasses between my boobs, and when I put them on top of my head they fall off.  So, I hit google up, and found a bunch of awesome ones, but I think I like this unicorn the most.  I don't have enough unicorns in my life.  

I'm new to the popular blog bleubird.  I kept finding myself back on James' blog through other blogs or pinterest, and so I finally decided to commit and make it a regular pit stop, and boy am I glad I did.  She has a lovely blog, and I love her photographs and way of life.  She recently posted about this book The Home Creamery, and tried making her own butter with her family.  One of Aaron and my dream goals is to own enough land to have some goats, maybe a cow, and to make cheese, and fancy butters.  This book looks like an awesome resource, or at the very least creamy inspiration.  :)  

Now on with my regular finds about the internets.  I love tutorials for making simple things we use around the house.  I bet this homemade brown sugar would be so tasty and fresh, rather than the bag of brown sugar I buy that lasts for months and months.  

Shrinky Dink is back!  In a major way, I'm seeing it everywhere.  This shrinky dink necklace tutorial is way classer than the shrinky dink from my youth.  I love the seahorse and color, definitely want to give this a try ASAP!  

No this fancy folding chair is not from Anthropology.  Prudent Baby made this love painted cushion for her outdoor chairs.  I love the pattern, and use of colors.   Perfect for summer.  

Speaking of the outdoors, let's have a backyard party, and play twister!  Fantastic idea from You + Me.  

So glad summer is here.  I need a healthy dosage of sunshine.    Enjoy your weekend, and happy DIYing, chris.  

Photo An Hour #3 (( Part 2 ))

Hi ya!  Happy Thursday!  I'm back again with the second half of my third Photo an Hour from June tenth with my macro lens.  

1:30pm - 2:30pm

A little overlap from where I left off yesterday, hanging out in the back yard.  Moose joined me, and I caught some super cute close-ups of his adorable nose and ears.  I can't get enough of his handsomeness.  

2:30pm - 3:30pm

As the sun started lowering toward the horizon more mosquitoes where lurking around.  This one didn't survive the battle.  

3:30pm - 4:30pm

My latest DIY that I finished recently.  Photos and a tutorial to follow in the future.  

5:30pm - 6:30pm

I took Aaron outback to take some outfit pics, and of course i had to snap a few of my own.  This t-shirt is perfect for Aaron.  I always smile when I see him wearing it.  

This was the first thing that caught my eye when we walked outback.  I love the way the sunlight is making the lush green leaves glow.  

This lovely lily was growing in a bunch of weeds around this cinderblock.  So lovely.  

I loved the color of my sweater against the green.  Makes me think of watermelon, mmm.  

That's where I ended my photos for the day.  Of course I didn't go to sleep at six thirty, but as the sun lowered to the horizon, the more buggy it got, and the less I wanted to hang out in the sun taking pictures.  Plus by this point I had tons of photos, so I thought I reached my goal for the day.  I enjoy Photo An Hour days, because it really has me thinking outside of the box to push myself to get creative beautiful photos.  I'm always excited to upload my photos, and share them with ya'll.  Hope you enjoyed, and happy DIYing, chris!  

Photo An Hour #3

I did a Photo An Hour with my macro lens on June tenth, and I have a ton of photos I love.  I went through them multiple times trying to narrow down my selection, and even though I only photographed between six thirty in the morning and six thirty in the evening, I have nearly twenty photos!  I don't want to inundate you, and slow down everyone's computers more than I already do, so I'm going to break this into two posts.  :) Enjoy!

6:30am - 7:30am

Everything is going to flower in the garden right now, and I'm sad it's the end of the broccoli and lettuce/spinach.  Though, the flowers are lovely.  So we let them keep growing, even though we probably should have pulled them, and planted something else by now.  Oh, right, what was I doing in the garden this early?  Letting Moose out.  That's the second thing I do every morning, right after I put in my contacts.  

7:30am - 8:30am

Speaking of Moose.  What a silly dog this little man is.  He doesn't leave the back door if I don't go outside with him, and he needs to go on two walks a day.  If I delay his walk at all, he bounces everywhere at home AND on the walk!!!  He's so darn excitable, and cute!  I can't get enough of him.  He's always good for a laugh.  

8:30am - 9:30am

While on our walk I spotted two awesome fungi!  I never noticed seeing the Devil's Dip Stick around before, but a while back Kaylah on The Dainty Squid posted some photos, and I was enthralled.  I wanted to find one, and I just so happened to down the street from my house!  I don't normally walk with Moose and my camera, but I had to head back out with it to get both these awesome finds.  I love the colors in the conch mushroom.  Not a typical mushroom color for this area.  

10:30am - 11:30am

Checking out my pocket contents on the back deck.  A doggie poo bag, some rocks, a button, and a penny.  If I see a button or penny on the ground, it will end up in my pocket.  I have a hard time resisting collecting a rock on every walk I go on.  I could probably fill a house with rocks, if I didn't curb my rock addiction.  Hehe.  

11:30am - 12:30pm

Working on a DIY.  I was enjoying sitting out in the sunshine.  I have to smile watching the sun create dancing shadows over my handy craft.  

12:30pm - 1:30pm

Salad for lunch.  We grew all the greens ourselves!  So tasty.  I also threw on some cherry tomatoes, cucumber slices, chick peas, zucchini triangles, bacon bits, parmesan cheese, and blue cheese dressing.  When I was little my salads would mostly consist of chickpeas and tomatoes drenched in blue cheese dressing.  Well, I guess some things don't change.    

1:30pm 2:30pm

Laying out in the backyard while working on my DIY.  

This Is where I'll leave you for tonight.  Sorry this post is so late.  I kept putting it off, and half forgetting that I hadn't completed it yet.  Happy DIYing, chris.  

Personalized Gift Wrap

Here is a super simple DIY.  This is how I wrapped my baptism gift for my niece a week ago.  

I dyed some nylon rope, back when I dip dyed my hammerhead t-shirt.  I wanted to try out this heart knot on some material I had around the house, and this was what I came up with.  In the tutorial I followed, the lady used two different colored hoodie strings, which looked a lot nicer than this, but this is what I had around.  I still like the outcome, though.  I want to try it on sturdier rope, and a better color.  

I made my wrapping paper by cutting a cross out of a small potato.  You could cut out any simple shape from the potato, and use this technique for any holiday.  

I used the potato, and white paint to stamp the cross randomly on some craft paper.   It dried super quick, and I was able to wrap my gift, a personalized treasure box.  

The potato stamping technique is awfully useful.  Great for when you need a stamp in a pinch.  Especially if it's a stamp you wouldn't feel necessary to be a part of your regular used stamp collection.  Hope ya'll found this useful too.  Happy DIYing, chris.

Fudge, Again!

Happy Nom Nom Monday.  I made fudge again!  I don't know why I think of fudge as a summer dessert, especially when it melts after sitting out for over an hour.  Well, at least it's a yummy dessert that doesn't involve baking in the oven.  That keeps the kitchen temps down a bit, though you still need to use the stove for a bit.  I made Double Decker Oreo Fudge again, and Peanut Butter Fudge.  I changed up the Oreo Fudge a bit, cause I wanted there to be a thicker chocolate layer.  

What You'll Need:

Double Decker Oreo Fudge ((found via Bakers Royale))

- 1.5 Cans of Sweetened Condensed Milk

- 10 Oreos

- 1 Cup White Chocolate

- 2 Tablespoons of Unsalted Butter

- 2 Cups Semi-Sweet Chocolate

Peanut Butter Fudge  ((found via Pennies On A Platter))

- 1 Cup Unsalted Butter

- 1 Cup Creamy Peanut Butter

- 1 Teaspoon Pure Vanilla Extract

- 16 Ounces Powdered Sugar

Directions:

Prepare two 8x8 pans by lining with aluminum foil.  Butter the foil, so the fudge will peel away from the foil without sticking.  

Double Decker Oreo Fudge

Start by breaking up the Oreos.  I used a piece of cling wrap to break the Oreos up in, or you could use a ziplock baggie.  Much less mess than using a knife to chop them up, that's for sure!  

Then melt the white chocolate, butter, and half a can of sweetened condensed milk together in a double boiler.  When everything is melted together, remove from the heat, and stir in the Oreo chunks.  Pour this mixture into one of the prepared 8x8 pans.  Stick the pan in the fridge while preparing the chocolate layer.

Now for the chocolate layer.  I doubled this from the original recipe's directions for a thicker chocolate layer.  In the double boiler melt together a can of sweetened condensed milk, and two cups of semi sweet chocolate.  Once this is fully melted together, evenly spread this mixture over the white chocolate Oreo layer.  Place in the refrigerator, and it should be thick enough to cut after about two hours.  I waited for a couple days, the longer you wait, the easier it will be to cut.  

Peanut Butter Fudge

In a double boiler melt together the butter and creamy peanut butter.  Then add in the vanilla, once throughly combined slowly add in the powdered sugar.  Pour in the other prepared 8x8 pan, and let thicken in the refrigerator for at least two hours.  

Once both fudges are stiff, it's time to remove the from their pans.  Cut the large 8x8 sheets of fudge into small bite sized squares.  Clean the knife off between cuts, and the knife wont stick to the fudge, making a mushy mess.  I carefully place each piece on a pretty cake stand.

We made two more layers, and placed a round sheet of parchment paper between them.  Both fudges were awesome.  The peanut butter fudge was perfectly peanut buttery, it was like eating a spoonful of peanut butter.  Mmm!  I think next time I might make the peanut butter fudge with a chocolate layer!  

Hope ya'll enjoyed, and happy DIYing, chris!

Lazy Hot Days

Happy Sunday!  It's been super hot here.  I think it reached ninety today, and the humidity was high.  I felt like we were swimming though the neighborhood during our evening walk around six-thirty/seven.  Even Moose was okay with only going for a half walk, instead of making it around the whole outer circle of the neighborhood.  I was going to venture to a different picture place other than my backyard again, but it was just to darn stinkin' hot.    This is what I wore today ...

Dress -- vintage thrifted

Belt -- hand-me-down from my Grandparent's basement

Shoes -- Dirty Laundry DIY lace-ups

I recently took in an inch on each side of the top half of this dress.  It fits just like a glove now.  Before I had way too much room in the chest area, and my already small boobs looked ti-ny!  I also fixed the bottom of the zipper in the back.  It had come loose, and left a gapping hole at the top of my bottom, so I'm glad that's all closed up now.  :)  I love this dress a ton.  I bought it at a great vintage/thrift store in Shoreditch, London. The print, and cut of the dress are perfect for me.   Great for throwing on, and getting things done.  I usually don't wear red, but I love the little red pipping on the pockets, and across the top.  The pockets are super useful.  I end up with loads of random things in them.  At one point today, I had my 75mm lens in one of my pockets!  I love how the blue and white pattern on my belt work with the pattern on the dress, they complement each other well.  I've been wearing either this pair, or my black pair of Dirty Laundry shoes everywhere these days.  I'm not one for flip flops, and these are the most comfortable pair of shoes I have for all these hot humid walks I keep taking Moose on.  

I mostly finished an awesome bracelet I crafted together, but I need to buy a toggle clasp to finish it off.  That's what I spent most of my day working on, and hanging out in the sunshine, trying not to spend the entire day hiding indoors.  Now that the sun is setting, I'm hiding out dreaming of eating popsicles, and watching Lie To Me.  I hope ya'll are keeping cool where ever you're reading this from, and happy DIYing, chris!