Apr 28, 2013

DIY love!

I have a love/hate relationship with Pinterest, not gonna lie.

I mean, we all know it's awesome. It has the best ideas, the prettiest projects, the yummiest recipes, the cutest outfits.

But it also makes me want everything
Well, almost everything. Sometimes people pin stuff and I'm like wtf?! No.

But let's be real. I have like 37 different ways I want my closet in my future home to look. And like 62 different wedding dresses and engagement ring styles. Not realistic. I know this. But it's still a fun, guilty pleasure. 

I think the main thing I actually use Pinterest for is recipes. Because sometimes they're actually fairly easy (and that's my main goal when cooking...quick and easy!) And usually pretty yummy, too! I've found some of my go-to meals on there that I make time and time again.

But one of my absolute favorite things about Pinterest is all of the amazing DIY's on there. I get so excited every time I find something I want to make and I'm all like omgIhavetogetstartedonthisrightnow!! But let's be honest...I've made like maybe 2 or 3 things so far. Not a great record. One day when I actually have both time and money, I will get to more (I hope!)

So here are the things I've actually tried so far:

The letter photo art for my main squeeze. I saw this pin a long time ago and wanted to make it, but I just couldn't decide for who. I had the idea to do it for my boyfriend, but I knew there was no way he would like just a regular black and white, architecture themed one. But once I found some pictures of letters using nautical/water themes, I knew that touch would make him love it!


You can find the tutorial I used for the letter photo art here.

The photo canvas and bottle makeover. The next two things I tried were also presents for my boyfriend. When he moved into his new place, he desperately needed some items to put on the built-ins, and he had zero pictures in his house. These were both things I wanted to do for myself, but I realized that trying any of my crafts out on him first is a great idea! (As long as I can make it male-appropriate and not at all girly ha.) I am a perfectionist, but if I practice the projects for him first, he will never ever notice if I make mistakes (or if I decide there are things I would change when I do it for myself...) 

His mom recently got remarried, and all the brothers (one of whom is also his roommate) were in the wedding. So I got a copy of one of the pictures they had taken after the wedding and made the photo canvas for him to put on his shelf in the living room. The second thing I made for him was a repurposed bottle. I used to bartend, and I collected a lot of our more unique liquor bottles to do something with. I redid a Bulleit bourbon bottle for him, and I used a combo of the tutorials listed below to do the bottle.

These are both projects I want to do again...but I'm glad I tried them on him first, because I definitely learned some things to do different the next time!


You can find the main tutorial I used for the photo canvas here and the two for the bottle are here and here.

Sorry for the crappy photos of the finished products...since all of the gifts were for him, I don't have any of them at home to take better, more blog-worthy photos of!

These are just the few projects I have attempted so far, but my DIY board is constantly growing, and I am trying to decide just what my next craft will be!

Have you been crafty with any of your DIY pins? What are some of your favorite DIY ideas that you want to try? 



Apr 26, 2013

TGIF?

TGIF, right?!

Well, kind of. Friday's aren't always that exciting for me unfortunately. They're usually more like my Sundays (aka I feel like I'm preparing for Monday).

Since I do a lot of events for the company I'm interning for (which is a cocktail company), I spend lots of my weekends working. Including tomorrow. 

But thankfully, I've gotten to spend some time in Athens with B this week, today included. So instead of dwelling on the fact I have to leave and work all day tomorrow, I'm going to just enjoy the time we get to spend together today, and this awesome weather we're having before it rains all weekend!

I mean, how depressing is this?! Rain for pretty much the next 7 days all over the metro ATL area. Boo.

Sometimes when I know I'm about to have to leave him and be away for awhile, I get bummed out and have trouble focusing on and enjoying that last little bit of time we have together. Kind of like as you near the end of your vacation, you begin to dread it, knowing that you're about to have to go home and back to the real world, ya know? Does anyone else have this problem? It's something I'm definitely working on so I don't waste the good times being sad!

This week I've had to work especially hard at remembering to stay positive, because I don't know for sure that I'm going to get much time with B before he leaves for his study abroad. I have to work all weekend, and then he has finals next week. And then I have to work a ton over Cinco de Mayo weekend (our best-selling mix at work is a margarita mix, so of course Cinco de Mayo is huge for us!) And then B is leaving next Monday. 

Now, he's only going to be gone for 10 days, which is very short for a study abroad trip. But I am used to being able to pick up the phone and text or call him whenever I want to. But with him being in another country, being 6 hours ahead of me, and him being on a strict itinerary  the entire time he's there, being able to talk to him is going to be few and far between. And that makes me sad. I mean, I know we'll be fine, but it's just going to be weird that whenever I think of something hilarious (because I'm sooo funny...), or when I see a picture I think he'd appreciate, I am not going to be able to just pick up my phone and text him. Ugh. But he does have a certain amount of international calling time we can use, and I'm going to be relying heavily on Facebook messaging I guess...as long as he has internet. But have any of you had your significant other/bffs travel internationally before? How did you communicate?!

Anyways, back to the positive! We have plans to maybe go to the Botanical Gardens today, and then head downtown for dinner and happy hour. 


It's Twilight weekend, so there's soo much going on, including lots of free shows! I'll explain more about Twilight in my weekend recap post...I had never heard of it before coming to Athens. My favorite description I've ever heard of it is that it's the NASCAR of bicycle racing...if you can imagine! HA One of our favorite newly-discovered bands is playing on the street stage tonight, and I can't wait to see them again! They opened for a group we love not long ago, and we barely made it in time to see the last song or two they played, and they were awesome. I've been waiting on them to come back ever since!

And, to end it on a pretty awesome note...my first time participating in #backthatazzup Friday. Because what better way than to get in a positive, upbeat mood than to listen to all this good stuff?!






Apr 22, 2013

Weekend Shenanigans, and other randomness...

Yay for another boring weekend with not too many shenanigans! HA

I feel like I say that pretty much every Monday morning. Is it getting old yet?! My bad. It's true though, which is really sad.


This weekend B was super busy with school stuff...it's almost the end of the semester, so I think we all know how that goes.

So, I stayed home and hung out with the fam for most of the weekend (which explains the whole pretty-much-no-shenanigans thing.)

The one fun thing...my little bro had his senior prom Friday night! I didn't get to see him off the past two years because I was living in Athens, so it was fun for me to be able to go.



The pictures the girls in the middle are holding are of one of their best friends that they all grew up with...he passed away when they were in middle school from leukemia. But they have all done a great job of still including his memory and his family in everything they do.



They had a huge group go together...this isn't even all of them! Seeing everyone's pretty dresses and hair is so much fun now that I never have any reason to do that!



There group was so big they took a coach/tour bus looking gigantic thing. I mean, what happened to just normal limos?! And yes, this thing had a stripper pole...


The prom was in the Grand Ballroom at the Georgia Aquarium...isn't this the cutest little picture ever with the beluga whales?! And please notice my brother's caption for the picture...he is quite the little comedian.

So, that's pretty much it for the excitement from this weekend. Saturday I worked an event at the Mall of Georgia, which is so not close to my house (unfortunately for me, fortunate for my bank account...)

While we're talking about how far away that was, let's take a minute to talk about Atlanta traffic. If you're from here or live here, you know. It is the devil. And as if the regular, every day traffic wasn't enough, I run into random things constantly that just aren't normal. Twice in the past 3 days, the interstate I needed to be on was completely closed. What is that?!

So Saturday I was supposed to be at the Mall of Georgia at about 11:30. I left in plenty of time to make that happen. I had 2 choices of how to go - the perimeter around Atlanta (285) or straight through Atlanta (the connector/75/85). I decided to go the connector because no one said anything about it being messy on the radio, and for pretty  much the past year there has been road work on 285 every weekend. So I head through Atlanta, and guess what?! Someone called in a suspicious package, and 85 was SHUT DOWN. So of course, everyone and their brother was trying to get on 400, the only other option, and guess what now?! They were doing construction there, too, so it was only 1 lane for a few miles. It sucked. Needless to say, I was not on time for that...

Fast forward to this morning. Obviously, I expect Monday mornings to suck. But I am lucky enough to not have to be in the office until 10am, which means I usually have a pretty easy ride to work. But not today. Today, a car was on fire (I have no idea if there was someone inside or if everyone was ok...I can only hope and pray that no one was seriously injured. I know my complaining about traffic seems insignificant in comparison) and my entire side of 285 was shut down. There was well over an hour worth of delays to go about 10-15 miles, and over 10 miles of bumper to bumper traffic sitting at a dead stop on the interstate for most of the morning. So I headed towards my alternate route, the connector. And it was backed up onto I20, with lots and lots of traffic and delays, too! So, I wound up having to drive all the way through Atlanta on I20 and up 285 on the complete other side to get to 85 and Norcross. It was a long morning...

To sum it all up...don't ever try to go anywhere on time with me. It just doesn't happen.

And while we're on a depressing note...can we please all have a moment of silence for my missing May Designs planner? I am devastated. I feel lost, I have no idea what's going on in my life, and I have no clue where to be and when. It's not a good feeling.


And finally, the last little bit of all this randomness...and it's positive, too! I couldn't end it on a depressing note, especially not with all of the negativity and heartache of the last week. But today...I got a call back for a second interview!! My initial interview went really well last week, and I really like the company and environment, and I think it would be a great place to really start my career. So again, please keep your fingers crossed and say a prayer for me!!


Apr 21, 2013

Sunday Social

I decided to link up for Sunday Social again today. I think the questions this week are fun, and being a newbie blog, it's a different way for you to learn a little more about me.



What is your shopping weakness? 

Target in general...for just about anything. But I mean, that's the case for pretty much every female, ever, right?! Downtown Athens - all the cute little boutiques. And pretty much anything to do with jewelry or makeup. Let's just say my taste is way better than my income at the moment.

What is your food weakness?

I am a super weird, picky eater. But sweets, particularly chocolate, are my primary weakness. I am doing everything I can to control it and not give in to my constant sweet cravings, because I know how unhealthy it is. Also, chicken wings. YUM. Oh, and Mexican. I can eat it pretty much every day.

What is your go-to movie to watch when nothing else is on?

I don't watch a whole lot of movies just because...I have Netflix, which is pretty much the best thing ever. Although it's kinda overwhelming at times because there's too many choices and I suck at making decisions.

What is your go-to breakfast food?

Usually cereal. Occasionally oatmeal (I like that mostly in the winter though, I rarely fix it in the summer...idk why?!) And for lazy weekend breakfasts, I prefer eggs, bacon, grits, biscuits, and gravy. Ya know, the works.

Do you drink coffee? If so, how do you take it?

Yes. Every day. The question should probably be more like "do you drink milk and sugar with a side of coffee?" Because that's how I like it, with sugar and milk (and a lot...told ya I have a weakness for sweets). And in the summertime...I like it cold!

Apr 15, 2013

Weekend Shenanigans...better late than never!

Sooo I am super behind today on getting this post up...whoops. I don't know why I have been so slow. But it's ok. Better late than never, right?!

Here is a very quick recap of my weekend.


Did my own nails for a change and tried to make a little half moon mani with NARS Orgasm polish.


Had my first pool day of the year and it was glorious (minus the fact that I put on a little tanning oil, and was covered in pollen within about 5 minutes...)

Saturday was the first ever concert in Sanford Stadium, and it was part of Jason Aldean's Night Train tour. It was pretty awesome and I really wish I had more pictures. But I was trying to just be in the moment and enjoy my day! We started the day off tailgating on North Campus, and then headed to the stadium around 6. We saw Thomas Rhett, Jake Owen, Luke Bryan, and then of course Jason Aldean (with a special appearance by the one and only Ludacris!) I just wish it could have lasted soo much longer!


They couldn't sell alcohol of any kind in the stadium of course, so we made it our mission to see how many mini bottles we could fit into one pair of cowboy boots.


Jason Aldean!


Panoramic view of Sanford during the concert!

I did not want this weekend, or all the time I was getting to spend with B, to come to an end! 

Ohhh...side note! I have a job interview in the morning. Please say a prayer, keep your fingers crossed, and whatever else works for you. I haven't been on a job interview in several months and I am super nervous!

Apr 8, 2013

Weekend Shenanigans, and more...



My weekend shenanigans....here they are...are you ready for this craziness...??!









Yeah, that's right. NOTHING. 

Ok, it wasn't that bad. I did have a few things going on, but I'm mostly saving up for this weekend. But more on that later.

So first, Friday. I helped my family pack. For the beach. Which they're going to without me. The worst form of punishment ever. So depressing.

Saturday, they left for the beach. I cried. Then I went to work. I had a few places I had to go do tastings at...nothing major, just boring. Then I went home, and changed my brakes. No, not by myself. I 'assisted' while my step-dad did them.

And then...the scariest moment of my life. Or at least really, really close to it.

Usually after my step-dad works on my car, he immediately takes it for a quick test-drive around the 'hood. Except Saturday we got distracted...my mom called to check in because they had just gotten to the beach. So after talking to her, we decided to run some errands. My step-dad had to move his truck (which had a really big enclosed trailer attached) so I could get out of the driveway. While waiting on him to move, I crank my car, put my foot on the brake, and put it in reverse so I can be ready to back up and pick him up at the end of the driveway.

But y'all. My brakes didn't work.

My car immediately started rolling backwards when I put it in reverse, even though my foot was on the brakes. So I started slamming my foot down on the brakes, and nothing.

I couldn't stop. But my heart just about did.

I was terrified I was going to roll right into the car behind me, (my brother's girlfriend's car, who was also gone to the beach with my fam) which is way newer than mine.

I even clearly remember at one point in the 5 or so seconds this happened, that I looked down at my feet to make sure I was actually pressing the brake since nothing was happening.

Finally, I had the bright idea to pull the emergency brake. (No, I never thought to throw it back in park...)

But then, my emergency brake didn't stop me right away, either.

Soooo...I ran into the trailer attached to my dad's truck that wasn't completely out of the way yet.

Thankfully, I didn't hit his truck. But I did manage to hit the part of the trailer that was covered in that diamond-plate metal stuff.



You know this stuff, right?

And it scratched my car to hell and back. I can't bear to put a picture of it up. I don't want to look at it. :(

So, just a word of advice...whenever you get your brakes changed, you have to pump them a while to get the brake fluid back in the line to make them work again. Who knew?!

(Ok, my step-dad did know, he just didn't think to tell me since didn't take my car for a test drive, and he felt sooooooooooo bad!)

I found out last minute that I didn't have to work Sunday night, so I decided to head to Athens a little earlier than planned to spend the day with my boyfriend. We very rarely get lazy Sunday's together. We headed to our favorite wing spot to have lunch and watch the Brave's game, where I had this yummy twist to a strawberry daiquiri. It was beautiful outside, I couldn't resist.


Once the game ended, we decided we weren't quite ready to go home yet, so we walked around downtown a while, then headed over to North Campus. I gave B a little tour, because as long as he's lived in Athens, he has never really paid attention to the beauty and history that is all over campus. (He goes to a private university, so I can't really blame him I guess...)



You never know what hidden little spots of beauty you'll find around campus.

Sunday night, we watched the ACM Awards...so much eye candy. And can we please take a moment to remember how freaking adorable Luke Bryan was at the end when he won Entertainer of the Year?! It all got me so much more excited for this weekend!

Let's also take a moment to go 'ahhhh' over the absolutely stunning dress that Nancy O'Dell wore when she presented an award on the show. I die.


And now here we are at super exciting Monday. Yay. 

Actually, in all honesty, Monday's aren't that bad. I go into the office on Monday, so it's the only day of the week that I really have to get up and put on nice clothes and all of that fun stuff (which I do look forward to now because my reasons for putting on 'real' clothes are few and far between..ha.) There's actually not a dress code of any kind at my office. I could wear yoga pants, norts, whatever, and no one would say a word. But just to make myself feel like some sort of grownup, I don't.

Except this Monday, I drove all the way to work, and my boss wasn't there. And I couldn't get in touch with him. So I drove alllll the way back home (I don't have a key, and it's just us there on Monday). When I finally talked to him, he realized he forgot to tell me he had a meeting, and wouldn't be in till later. 

However, hopefully the second half of this week will be AMAZING...I've been counting down the days for awhile now.

Tuesday night I'm going to Sweetwater Brewery in Atlanta to work an event...even though I'm working, I'm excited to go because I've never been.

Then my weekend starts! Yes, Tuesday night. I am heading back to Athens after working to spend five long days there with B, and I can't wait. 

So we will hopefully have lots more down time this week to spend together...and then......

SATURDAY.

Guess what Saturday is?!

Saturday is...Jason Aldean and Luke Bryan in Sanford Stadium.

I am so excited. Like little kid at Christmas trying to stay awake and listen for the reindeer on the roof so I can catch Santa in the living room, but passing out early only to wake up at 5:30am to a mound of presents excited.

In case you didn't know already, I am Luke Bryan's wife stalker number one fan. Ladies, he is fine.



Mmmmm....

I will leave you with that bit of yumminess on this beautiful Monday! :)







Apr 3, 2013

What I'm Loving Wednesday

Hi lovelies!

I have been super busy this week, and have neglected this little baby of mine. But here's what I am loving this week!



I love that I got last minute tickets to the Braves home opener Monday night, and me and my little brother, Ty, got to spend some quality time and go together.







Kimbrel - Brave's amazing closer with a super intimidating stance.


I am loving my cute new summertime cocktail cups I got for $1 each at Target today! I am ready for a pina colada right now.

I am loving this site I found, courtesy of Pinterest, duh.


Go Dawgs. 


Because wine. And monograms.


These are just too cute. I want one in each pattern, please.

And I am loving that my brother has decided to have a low country boil by the pool at home for his graduation party. And that I'm pretty sure B will get to come! I am already planning the party, decorations and all. I hope the little bro doesn't mind a little bit of nautical, red, white & blue to go with the food. I mean, it just goes with a low country boil, ya know?!

What are you loving today?!