happy friday!

i just wanted to stop in real quick to say that i hope you guys have a nice friday and a great weekend! thank you for your comments on my last post, and just so you know, kona isn't skunky anymore thanks to the concoction i whipped up to combat the skunk's spray! and speaking of kona, here's a video of him from earlier in the week doing one of his favorite indoor activities: helping to do his part to keep the floors mopped. one more thing, chris wanted for me to clarify that he wasn't naked, his shorts just aren't visible. as if i'd post a video when i knew he was naked. pshhh, that boy.

i was wrong!!!!!: an outfit post

i don't know about you, but i'm never wrong. like, ever. i jest. or do i? the point is, i made a comment last week that turned out to be wrong, but in this case at least, i'm happy about it! i said farewell to jackets, but mother nature threw a curve ball in the form of a cool, rainy day. i love spring weather, but i also love jackets. and you want to know what i love even more? nice, semi-cool days where a jacket is appropriate - the best of both worlds.

jacket: american eagle, sweater: halston/thrifted, skirt: forever 21, sandals: dr. scholl's, bag: pulp vintage shop

this outfit is nothing spectacular, i know that, but you need something with room to grow when you go out for pancakes, so i went prepared. the main thing i wanted to show you was my bag! suzie from pulp vintage shop and i did a little switcheroo and i'm now the proud new parent of this vintage bag. i couldn't be happier, because if the fabric looks like it could have also been used to make drapes or upholster a sofa, i'm sold.

also, do you guys have a pair or ten of these dr. scholl's exercise sandals? they've been around for decades, and with good reason: they're amazing. they're so comfortable, and they last longer than any shoe i've ever owned. i used to have a pair in white, but who knows what happened to those. then about 7 or 8 years ago i got this pair in tan, and i kid you not, aside from some dirt on the bottom, they look the same now as they did when i took them out of the box, and i've worn them A LOT!

i have to tell you about my day yesterday. i'm not one to wish a day would hurry and end because life is so short, and i never want to lose a single minute. yesterday, however, really went downhill fast. kona and i went out for our regular walk and shortly after chris went up the road to his granny's and kona followed him, like usual. after a few minutes i got a whiff of a skunk, and i knew it was nearby. about that time chris came flying around the corner saying that kona just got sprayed and the skunk was rabid. my animals are my babies, and i can't handle the thought of not being able to snuggle them at all times, but there was no way kona was coming inside until he was clean. i thought i'd let him air out for a while, but i hated not having him beside me, so i found a recipe after some googling that people swear works on dogs that have been sprayed. since kona hates a bath inside, i knew he'd REALLY HATE a bath with the hose. he wasn't so bad at first, but when it came time to rinse, he whined and jerked and ran under the deck where i couldn't get to him and refused to come out. then, when i was looking underneath trying to lure him out, i noticed a dove that had nested near the steps. at first i thought it was hurt, but after calling chris over, we realized that the dove was no longer alive. so then the tears came. and came, and came, and came. i can't handle death. at all. especially an animal's death. so i sat in the yard by myself and just cried. kona finally let me finish rinsing him, and luckily the recipe worked pretty well, so then it was time to bury the dove. we have a little animal graveyard where our yellow lab, cheesecake, is buried, and where we've buried other wild birds that we couldn't save, so we put the dove there and i cried some more. as much as i appreciate every minute i have, i don't want a repeat of yesterday ever again.

what i've been working on (for animals)...

yesterday i had a few ideas for some necklaces that i wanted to work on, so after i finished hammering some hoops that needed to be shipped, i sat down and started tangling. as i was tangling chains i was thinking about which charities i felt especially drawn to because it's been a few months since i've donated a portion of one month's sales to a specific charity. obviously i love animals more than life so it will always be an animal charity, and after thinking on it for most of the day i decided on the world wildlife fund. so, from now through the end of april, $1 from each item sold will be donated to help protect and conserve the animals we love so much!

i'm going to say that within a week i'd like to have these new necklaces in my shop, but i have to be honest with myself, and you, when i say that i tend to get a little lazy with updates. BUT, i did finish a shop update on sunday so there are 4 new necklaces, 2 new bracelets, and 1 new pair of earrings in the shop!

other than that, i'm being an adult this morning and eating oatmeal (which by no means is my favorite, but it's honey bun flavor, so there's that...) rather than my preferred breakfast of champions, a toasted plain bagel smothered with nutella. flojo is enjoying it more than i am, so there's a chance there won't be any left when i finish typing this. so how are you, and have you been working on anything?

wrinkle, wrinkle, little skirt: an outfit post

i know we all have these things on our closet: the piece of clothing that looks good when you put it on in the morning, but by that afternoon it's wrinkled, stretched, and just looking pitiful. this skirt is that piece of clothing for me. i swear it was wrinkle-free and better fitting that morning! but i still got to wear stripes and my favorite wedges, so all was well.

shirt: banana republic/thrifted, skirt: vintage/thrifted, wedges: rugged wearhouse, necklaces: i made them.

since my outfit didn't really have any details or colors, and i couldn't decide on just one necklace, i decided to do a little mr. t action and just wear both. i know that plenty of people wear multiple necklaces, and i think it looks fine, but i've always had this fear of doing it because of this one neighbor we had when i was in elementary school. she wore her foundation so thick she had a speed bump at her jawline where it went from makeup to flesh; her arms were so hairy and she wore so many bracelets i always hated to look because i thought of how it must hurt when the moving bracelets ripped her arm hair out; her fingernails were so long and curved i wondered how she accomplished much (her husband was the housekeeper, so that one's settled); and she wore so many necklaces at once she always made me think of one of my favorite characters: the great mr. t.

so i know i'd told you guys that i wanted to do a giveaway, and i do have it all figured out, but i have to get a little more caught up on these orders first, then i promise i'll share, and i'm pretty excited about it!

i hope you laugh as much as i did.

first i wanted to thank you guys for your sweet comments and words of encouragement on my last whining post. sometimes life just gets so crazy that it's hard to even know what to do, and i'm glad to have great friends like you to help put things in perspective :) i'm still in the process of cropping and uploading a lot of pictures for posts, so for now i want to share this little gem with you, and i hope you're as entertained as i was when i first saw it...


so how was your weekend? did y ou do anything special or get to enjoy the sunshine? i was able to make 14 pairs of earrings which gets me closer to being caught up on orders, i did a little running, and chris and i went to our new favorite place for breakfast. see you tomorrow!

farewell jacket and sanity: an outfit post with feeling

i had decided that i wasn't going to blog today, or any more this week, but it does sort of provide temporary relief from real life sometimes, so here i am. i love spring and warm weather, but i always hate to hang my jackets up until the fall because they're so cozy (and they let you be lazy with getting dressed because you can button them up and hide what's underneath). so this is the last time i'll wear a jacket until october or november...

jacket: thrifted, shirt: banana republic, skirt: thrifted, shoes: old navy

i don't like this skirt. i've only worn it a few times, and each time i do i say it's going to be the last. this time is the last. i'm pretty sure. maybe. other than that, well, there's not much to say about this outfit.

so, when you have a million different feelings and you're feeling completely overwhelmed, and all you want to do is vent, is there a better place to share than on your blog? no. so here it is. i know i've mentioned a few times that i'm kind of drowning in orders and trying my best to keep up. i think i'm falling a little further behind each day, and on top of that, with so many more orders than usual, of course it's more likely there will be problems to deal with. from a customer problems, to post office problems, to me sending a package to the wrong address because i can't seem to keep everything straight, it's all starting to get to me. i've never been even remotely capable of handling stress, and when there are multiple issues going on at once, all i want to do is throw my hands up and say "I QUIT!" but then i have to remember that although running your own business can be very trying at times, i'd never be happy working a "real" job. i know all of this will work itself out, and eventually i will get caught up, but sometimes it's difficult to see an end in sight when you're feeling buried under the stress. maybe i should put chris in charge of customer service because he's a hell of a lot better dealing with things than i am.

this probably sounds silly, but i swear it's making me crazy. i've been small all of my life, and although it's never been as easy for me to find clothes as it has been for most everyone else i know, it's now at a whole new level of ridiculousness. since november i've been running more than i have in years, and obviously running burns fat. last night when i was trying to figure out what i'd wear to work today and tomorrow i got so frustrated and had a pity party because i didn't know what else to do. i'm finding that more and more of my clothes are too big for me. things i love and have worn for years now hang on me like a sack. if i had been bigger to begin with, i'd be happy about it, but because i was already in a size 1 or extra small, i'm so frustrated i could scream! i already buy the smallest size clothing i can find, and now that that's too big i don't know what to do, but one thing is certain: i will not shop in the girls' section - i'm almost 30 years old! even typing this out sounds ridiculous, but i hate the thought of having to get dressed because i know that nothing fits right anymore.

so i'm going to have another pity party, and then i'll get to work on orders and hope i can reach my goal for the day. sorry to be a debbie downer. how has your day been?

what i've been working on...

i haven't been working on many new designs as the sales from the lonny magazine feature have been keeping me incredible busy, but i did take a little while yesterday to hammer out something other than the brass quartz hoops that i can't seem to make fast enough! i know that the trend right now in jewelry is "the gaudier, the better" and i do like that, but i have a hard time getting away from the aesthetic i feel most comfortable with: simple and modern.

see what i mean? i really don't have many new things to show! although i don't wear earrings (flojo thinks of them as toys, and if i wear them they'll just end up bent or broken) i always seem to have a lot of ideas for them, and since the hoops below are my best seller, i figured i'd make another geometric shape, but on a slightly smaller scale, and see what people thought! and the bracelets, well, i just love bracelets.

because of the number of these hoops i've been making i've collected an array of blisters and callouses, not to mention raw fingertips. still, i wouldn't have it any other way, and i'd rather put sweat and tears (no blood thanks to my skateboard band aids) into what i do than have a "regular" job any day! now, i'm off to go hammer out some more hoops!

have you been working on anything new?

i'm (not) on a boat: an outfit post

nope, i wasn't on a boat, although i wish i had been, i just decided to go a little nautical. i'm sure you recognize the shirt because i pretty much wear it every other day. okay, not that often, but once or twice a week; it goes with everything! i was also excited to wear that skirt because it's been freshly hemmed, taking it from mid-calf to mini!

sunnies: tumbleweeds (best eyewear ever), necklace: i made it, shirt: banana republic, skirt: vintage/thrifted, shoes: rugged wearhouse

so, yeah, this might be one of my favorite outfits in a long time because 1. it has stripes, 2. it has a vintage and/or thrifted element, 3. i can't believe i almost didn't get those shoes but now that i have them i want to wear them with everything, and 4. it's kona approved.

so how was your weekend? mine was nice. i worked most of the day saturday to continue filling orders from all of the sales i've gotten from the lonny magazine feature. then on sunday chris and i had a fun day until i learned a lesson... i always think it's better to be silly than serious, but it's all fun and games until someone breaks a shoe. in the midst of my mc hammer dancing, exaggerated limp walking and ballet in the grocery store aisles - meant to get a few laughs from chris - i felt something that just shouldn't be: a ripped off sole on my clog. it was almost a sad day, but then i epoxied that baby back on an all is well with the world!

also, we watched the cider house rules because i finished reading that book a couple months ago. you'd think i'd know by now that it is an absolute mistake to watch a movie after reading the book because movies NEVER measure up, but apparently i'm some sort of masochist that likes inflicting two hours of movie-watching torture upon myself. all i can say is, if you've read the book, just enjoy that and never, EVER, under ANY circumstances watch the movie. you will want to punch your tv. repeatedly.

bookworm: an outfit post

our weather has been, uh, hot. not like march at all. monday evening was the book club meeting, and i knew that by the time i left the restaurant at 9 or later, it would be cool, so i needed long sleeves. unfortunately i had to leave home several hours before i needed to be at the restaurant because i had a few errands to run, and a;; i can say is, i hope i didn't get there smelling like an armpit because i was HOT!

sweater: (hot when it's 80 outside) vintage/thrifted, dress: tj maxx i think, necklace: dinosaur toes, boots: vintage/thrifted

i have to be honest with you, it's so much easier for me to act goofy, cross my eyes, or make weird faces than for me to make normal faces and take these pictures seriously. this was one of those days where i'd rather scrub a toilet than act appropriately, so just don't mind the faces, okay?

so, if you follow me on twitter you might remember that on tuesday night i tweeted about a big project that i'd just finished. it's big in size at 22" x 30", and i can't wait to get this family portrait in a frame and hang it in the dining room! i love painting with watercolors because colors can blend, lines don't have to be straight, and you can just have fun with it! now i want to paint someone else but i'm not sure who!

"look at me, i'm sandra dee"

if you know me even a little, you'll know just how crazy i am about grease. even after watching it regularly for 20 years now, it still never gets old. as usual, i'm been humming or singing a song from the movie, and since i have a few new favorites from browsing etsy, i thought, "hey, these things together would make a good modern day sandy outfit!" so here's my compilation, 21st century sandy!

where to find these beauties: sunglasses, dress, necklace, ballet flats, handbag

that outfit definitely puts me in the mood for a boardwalk stroll along the beach. or maybe a bike ride. but probably both. sunglasses and sundresses... anyone else in the mood for a little summer lovin'?

my little magpie: an outfit post

put something gold in front of flojo and she's in a trance indefinitely, which is why i think she's more magpie than sun conure sometimes. she loves this skirt as much as i do because we can both appreciate a little sparkle! the first time i wore this, i decided that i'd do a one skirt/three ways type deal, so here is outfit #2...

shirt: banana republic, skirt: tucker via ebay, necklace: here, shoes: target

i just realized that i'm hiding my hands in every one of these pictures, and now that i realize it, it seems sort of weird. do you ever get confused and not know what to do with any part of your body when it comes to taking pictures? i do all. the. time. and here is exhibit a, b, c, and d.

i wanted to thank you guys for your sweet comments on my last post about having earrings featured in lonny magazine, and i also wanted to thank you for supporting my shop like you have! seriously, without a lot of you cheering me on and inspiring me, i may have just caved and given up thanks to rude customers! okay, that started off positive then took a negative turn, but what i'm trying to say is, THANK YOU!!!

lonny magazine

i just have to tell someone because i'm so excited... my brass quartz hoops are featured in the current issue of lonny magazine! i think lonny magazine is beautiful and full of some of the best inspiration around, so i was about to just burst from excitement waiting for it to come out so i could see it!

so that's my exciting news. how has your weekend been so far? mine has been pretty nice thanks to the sunshine! i jumped on my trampoline for 50 minutes yesterday doing a ballet workout, and today chris and i tried somewhere new for lunch (which makes me hungry again just thinking about it). oh, and i got five new pastel colored sharpie pens, so i'd say that's a good day!

"when are you going to post the pictures of me paddling you?"

since i don't always post pictures of what i wore in chronological order, rather in order of preference, i sometimes get a backlog of pictures. last sunday i wanted to be sure to take pictures so that i could show you one of the pretty headbands that rebecca from manzanita sent me, and since chris likes to mess with me during the picture taking process, this sort of turned goofy...

headband: manzanita, cardigan: i can't remember, camisole: tara jarmon, jeans: target: shoes: payless, necklace i made with: vintage locket, amethyst core from camp + quarry, parrot charm gift from beca

i feel like my animal babies are always in the pictures with me, and i hope you're not tired of seeing them, but if flojo isn't with me she screams at me the entire time i'm trying to get these picture taken, and kona always walks in mid-picture to be rubbed. so there you have it, demanding animals.

after those pictures is when it started to get silly. since the whole family was in the living room, we figured, "hey, why not have an awkward family photo?" once that was finished, it seemed only natural for chris to throw me over his shoulder and smack my butt while kona barked at him.

ever since we took those pictures chris has been asking me when i'd post them, so this is for him! i feel lucky to have a husband that reads and is interested in my blog and also knows how important it is to me. awww, makes me feel so in love.

stolen from a friend: an outfit post

i'm as big a fan of stripes and florals as i am of richard simmons nutella on bagels, and with spring just a split second away, i want to wear a floral print every day! my good friend beca posted pictures of what she wore (and i wish she'd do it more often) the other week and i instantly fell head over heels in love with her outfit. so naturally i stole it, sort of.

sweater: target, dress: vintage/thrifted, belt: came with a dress, shoes: old navy, necklace: i made it

so i didn't exactly copy her look, but if i could get my hands on a twin cardigan and skirt i would have. seeing her cardigan though reminded me that i had this striped one just hanging in the closet not being used (the tags were still attached). i got it a year or more ago with a gift card but never wore it because i always thought it didn't looked right. and then beca posted pictures. it's amazing what a little inspiration can do for a lack of imagination!

also, i love that second picture! right as the picture was being taken chris held flojo in front of the lens, and i just love that she's in focus and getting the attention, because she's so pretty!

feathers

uhhhmmmm, i didn't really know what to blog about today. i always like to have a few days or even a week of posts planned out, but sometimes that just doesn't happen. so how about if i show you what i worked on this weekend?

since chris left at about 6am on saturday morning and wouldn't be back until shortly before i went to bed, i knew i had the house to myself and could really spread out (translation: make a huge mess of supplies) and listen to the grease soundtrack all day long! in addition to doing my usual boring cleaning, i knew i wanted to play around with watercolors. i kind of liked the way the one feather turned out, so i tried to make pretty much the same feather, but with different colors. i've never been very good with watercolors, but i still enjoy painting from time to time!

i've also been air plant farming. i have a little collection of several air plant species that i've been watering and sunning just waiting to get babies and blooms! this weekend i decided to use some of the plants and stones to make these babies. i guess plants are the big home thing right now because i've been seeing them used in the most creative ways, so i figured i'd have a little fun with them as well!

i guess that's all i've got for now. how has your week been so far? have you been working on any fun projects?