My Heart is in Elyria

Last week we went back “home” for a while so Andrew could throw a bachelor party for Kevin [my sister’s fiancé]. We took Hugo with us and he behaved so, so well during the car ride there. It’s such a hassle getting him into his carrier and then he spends the majority of the time whining and ripping his claws apart on the metal door. So this time we put him on his leash and let him have free range of the car [except for Andrew’s seat since he was driving]. After about ten minutes of exploring and crying he settled down on the armrest/console in between our seats and slept most of the way there.



I was a proud mamma!

While Andrew was busy running around with his boys, I was doing this to my hair.

I did it. I went blonde again and got me some bangs. They can be swooped to the side like this, or styled so they ley flat and straight across my forehead like this:

But wait, there’s more!

PINK!

Okay, so it’s not quite the pink I was envisioning. It was much brighter after we did it, but it faded to this after just one wash. I’ll be buying a different brand of dye and redoing it here soon. I might brighten up the blonde too… We’ll see.

A huge thank you to Amber & Matt who helped me do this and put up with my sleep deprived, manic break downs of laughter while straddling the toilet and laying on the stove. You’re the best!

Matt’s band, The King and the Rook, played a show on Friday night in Cleveland.

It was their first show, but they did such an amazing job! We were all super proud!

The show was at the Roc Bar in the east bank flats, if you were curious. And there was an awesome view of the river and city from the patio out back.



There were also a couple of other good bands there – OceanSpeak and New Shoes. If you’ve got a moment, you should check ‘em out. :)


Saturday was spent with my Mom and sister. We got our hair done in the morning, had lunch at the Olive Garden, then did some shopping at Target in the afternoon.

Then on Sunday, Andrew and I had an ice cream date with Matt and Amber and hit the beach.

It was a bit windy that evening…

So after a little while we headed back up to the grassy area and strolled through the rose garden and played with a cannon. Ya know,  a typical Sunday night.





We spent the rest of the evening jumping on their trampoline and watching Arrested Development. It was fantastic.

Sadly, we had to leave the next morning, but we had a safe drive and Hugo continued to behave himself and was rewarded with numerous treats. I can’t wait to go back next weekend for the bachelorette party and then finally the wedding! Only 16 more days!

Friday Favorites: Polka Dots

via ModCloth 

You can’t go wrong with a black and white polka dot dress.

via Kate Spade

Is it wrong to want a new phone just to be able to buy cute cases for it?

via Tobi

I think I need these shorts. I'm in love.

via vampy varnish

This manicure is amazing! The colors remind of a floral water color painting.

source

Sting rays are one of my favorite animals. This is the Potamotrygon leopoldi, more commonly called the polka dot ray. They live in the fresh water rivers of South America. Aren’t they gorgeous?!



Happy Friday, everyone! Hope you all have a fantastic weekend!

Friday Favorites: Swimwear

The calendar may still say it’s Spring, but it definitely feels like summer! With all the sunshine and super warm weather we’ve been having, I find myself longing to be near the beach again, and by beach I mean Lake Erie - one of the few drawbacks of not living in northern Ohio anymore. As I daydream of laying on the sandy shores – not necessarily of Lake Erie – I can’t help but think about all the adorable swimsuits I could be wearing. Here are five of my favorites:


top // bottom 

This two piece suit from ModCloth is too cute!



 

I have a serious crush on polka dots and little ruffle skirts, apparently, and this suit from Popina is no exception.



 

How adorable is that bow top!? This suit is made to order from amourouse on Etsy.

I can’t get over the color of this Nina Ricci one piece. Gorgeous!

This La Perla Grecian inspired bikini is perfection. Now if only I could afford it!
A girl can dream…


Hope you all get a chance to get out and enjoy the beautiful weather this weekend!

My Star Wars Clock Make-Over

I bought this clock a long time ago from Goodwill. It was still in its original packaging, but had been donated from the store [most likely Target] because the little handles that hold the back of the clock in place had been broken.



An easy enough fix, but I never got around to doing it. I had put in pictures of various landmarks that the husband and I would like to visit someday, but that was back when I first bought it [almost two years ago] and I’ve been itching to change it up.

The first thing I needed to do was paint the face white instead of the icky cream color it was originally.



I unscrewed the clock face from the frame and covered the hands with painter’s tape since I wanted to leave those black.



Then I took it outside and gave it a good 2-3 coats of white spray paint.



Funny story: I actually got carded at the craft store when I was buying the spray paint. Apparently I don’t even look older than 18. Not surprising – most people assume I’m in junior high. One day I’ll be thankful for that…

Next I needed to decide what pictures to fill the clock with. After much deliberation, we [mostly I] decided to go with a Star Wars theme. I whipped up some minimalist style prints on the computer, print/cut them out to fit in the clock frames, and laid them out in the order I thought looked best.



I used clear tape to hold the pictures in place behind the face of the clock.


[please ignore the kitty hairs stuck in the tape – one of the perks of being a cat momma]

Now I needed to fix the handles on the back of the clock. I did this by simply cutting the tips off popsicle sticks and hot gluing them onto the original handles.



All that was left now was to clean the glass and put the whole thing back together.



Yay for DIY geeky décor! I love the simpleness of the pictures and the cohesive, bright colors. I’m so pumped to have this hanging in our living room! Am I the coolest wife or what?

UPDATE: You can now download the pictures I made here to make your own Star Wars clock!


------------------------------------------------------------
You might find me linking up with:

MONDAY: Brassy Apple // Making The World Cuter // Polish The Stars // Sew Can Do // Skip To My Lou //
Craft-O-Maniac // C.R.A.F.T. // Project: Ispire | TUESDAY: Not Just a Housewife // Today's Creative Blog //
Chef In Training // Reasons To Skip The Housework // Sugar Bee Crafts // Teagan's Travels // Sweet Little Gals | WEDNESDAY: Ginger Snap Crafts // Someday Crafts // Lil' Luna // // {PRIMP} // My Girlish Whims // Southern Lovely | THURSDAY: What's Cooking Love? // Somewhat Simple // Fireflies and Jellybeans // The Mandatory Mooch |
FRIDAY:The Shabby Nest | SATURDAY & SUNDAY: Tutus & Tea Parties // Here's To Handy Andy // Tatertots And Jello // Under The Table And Dreaming // I {heart} Naptime
------------------------------------------------------------

Friday Favorites: Wall Art

Lately I’ve been dreaming up ways to decorate our little condo. I have a ton of family photos I’d like to hang up, but I also want to mix in some fun prints and whatnot. I don’t know if we’ll ever get around to hanging anything on our walls – especially since the husband’s been talking about moving in September instead of renewing our lease – but, nevertheless, I’ve been scouring the web looking for artwork to buy, admire, or use as inspiration. Here are some of my favorite artists and shops:


The Meek Boutique

clockwise: 1, 2, 3, 4

inaluxe

clockwise: 1, 2, 3, 4

Curly Girl Store

clockwise: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

Technically these are greeting cards, but they’re so darn pretty I would have to frame them hang them on the wall.



Studio Mela

clockwise: 1, 2, 3, 4

Carl Christensen



I’m absolutely smitten with all of the carnival photographs in this shop (there are many more than what’s pictured in this set).



Your turn! Any awesome shops I should know about? Let me know in the comments! I’m always on the lookout for pretty pictures to swoon over.

Friday Favorites: Star Wars

Happy Star Wars Day everyone!!

source

Here are some of my favorite Star Wars products and crafts from around the interwebs.

source

Star Wars Character tees. I love the rebel flight suit!

source

Star Wars Death Star Planetarium from Think Geek. This could be a fun nightlight for a kid’s room or my room...

source

How cute are these Star Wars embroidery hoops? I especially love the two Chewbacca ones.

source

I seriously hate those family stick figure sticker things, but I think I could handle having these on the back of my car.

source

We WILL have this as our mailbox someday.

This next one isn’t a product or craft, but it’s still one of my favorite Star Wars related things on the web.

source

Gotta love Arrested Development! I’m pretty sure that if I ever have a son he’ll turn out something like George Michael…

Have a wonderful Friday! And May the Force be with You!