glitter dipped leather New Year's Eve celebration necklace

So I have a love hate relationship with glitter but with all of the New Years celebrations knocking at our door I couldn't help but bust out a little sparkly stuff. You can't tell but the necklaces really do glisten and sparkle in real life.

Anyway I've had some leather scraps for a while that I picked up here at a local discount fabric shop (for those who are local..SAS Fabrics) . Originally I picked the scraps up to make a gift for my husband but that didn't pan out so I decided to put the leather to work by making a statement necklace. As I was making them I had in mind making something that would jazz up a plain shirt for New Year's eve..you know just in case I was the only one who wouldn't be wearing a sequin jumpsuit or something..ha. Speaking of, have you noticed sequin craze 2011 is still going strong..sheesh they are EVERYWHERE???

Anyway I think the project was efficient enough to share just in case someone out there is looking to add a little sparkle to their life.

This is what you will need:

*heavy duty craft glue (Quick Grip is my favorite..throw away that stinky E6000 stuff ASAP)

*scissors

*leather scraps

*glitter (if you aren't into glitter then I would suggest dipping the ends of the leather with a little liquid gold leaf)

*gel glue (I like Martha Stewart)

*wire necklace (I picked mine up at Michaels)

First cut strips of leather to desired length. Next take the heavy duty glue and cover half of the strip then fold the other half over the wire and press. Once you get all of the leather strips all secured then trim the pieces to desired lengths. Next dip the ends in either liquid gold leaf paint or take a nice gel glue and cover the area you would like the glitter to be. Let it dry and then shake of the excess. Lastly wear your new necklace some place that you are bound to have fun.

Speaking of fun...what is this New Year going to hold for each and every one of us? I can't wait to find out. 2011 was a tricky year for me so I am all for a new one. Not that I am wishing it away I am just ready to press forward. And you?

the match game

When I saw the above space with the yellow faceted mirror I really wanted to find a faceted mirror of my own. The room was recently features in Veranda Magazine and was designed by Kirsten Kelli. After I pinned it I immediately came across the picture with the girl in the yellow shirt and thought...hmmm that's a great match. I had so much fun with it that I made a game and found as many as I could within a few minutes from my desktop that I felt were a good match. I know if somebody made a real life tangible match card game out of fashion and interiors I'd be first in line to purchase it;-)

Also I am very attracted to similar silhouettes in fashion apparently....sleeves and higher necklines.

{Images} 1- Veranda Magazine scanned by me, 2 - Extra Petite, 3 - here, 4 - zara , 5 - Eddie Ross, 6 - Pinterest, 7 - here , 8 - ASOS, 9- here, 10- here, 11- here, 12-here, 13 - here

a few scenes from around the home {testing a new camera lens}

I have quite a few corners in my home that do not get very much light..so it was to my delight to get a new lens for my camera that would allow me to take better photos in lower light situations. YIPEE! The best part about it is that the lens is pretty darn inexpensive (when talking lenses) and is nick named the nifty fifty. The only bad thing is that that it is a fixed lens which isn't conducive for trying to capture a whole room in a small square footage scenario. Oh well at least I can get good shots of the kids indoors now.

Now off to pick a paint color to go behind that shell mirror. I promised myself to get my bedroom painted before the new year. I will let you know how it turns out.

scenes from Christmas Eve

{photos taken with my phone}

Christmas Eve has to be one of my favorite days of the year because my family has a tradition of having a simple dinner by fireside. This year my Dad actually made a bonfire in the backyard where we talked about what Christmas means to our family while we enjoyed cheese, crackers, flatbread, hummus, fruit, roasted vegetables mixed with pear (yum). All of the baskets lined up in the top picture housed all of the food. Then after we were done eating we went inside for the annual Christmas story read to the kids by my Momma as seen in the bottom picture. To top it off we loaded up in my my Dad's trailer where we drove around the neighborhood observing streets lined with luminaries. I loved how there were other families out as well..it wasn't uncommon to hear bandwagons busting out in song. My brother said that people busting out in Christmas carols makes him feel awkward...mostly the kind when people come to the front door and you are the only one at the door with people singing to you. I could appreciate his statement since we weren't raised as a serious song and dance kind of family (most of us). We usually only reserve busting out our song and dance for a laugh. In fact I thought about the time my date took me on a gondola ride and the the guide busted out in song..I laughed when I wasn't supposed to have laughed..then I laughed more because I was embarrassed. I may have a problem with laughing when I am not supposed to. At least I have been cured of not laughing during a prayer..that was the worst.

Hope you had a fun filled Christmas weekend.

tis the season.....

Hi there all you holiday celebrators. Usually when there is silence around the blog it means that it is opposite day on the other side of my computer. Yesterday I was in charge of coordinating the girls school party and I gave myself the job of doing a take home craft with the kids. After purchasing a bunch of nickel plated platters from the Dollar store I decided to give em a coat of chalkboard paint. Being that the platters were already magnetic I brought supplies for the kids to make their very own magnets. I was a sweaty mess after leaving the classroom. Glad to have it done. Glad to have most all of my holiday business done in fact. Glad to spend more time with family. Glad to go on a couple of hikes. Glad for lots of things actually. I intend on playing blog post catch up soon but for now I just wanted to pop in and say hello.

What is shaking with all of you folks out there?

P.S. - For some reason those little mini sequin star magnets are making me giddy.

{Colors}

The branding and the colors of the above packaging from Fogal, a Swiss legwear and kniwtare company is really doing it for me today. Yes those colors are inspiring me on many different fronts but especially for a certain room in my home.

{above photos via here}

designer crush {Nam Dang-Mitchell}

{all photos from House & Home}

I don't have anything to say except that I am not over having a little glamour sprinkled into ones home. Such a soft and inviting space without sacrificing style. I love how Nan keeps us guessing with the usage of very safe mainstream elements mixed with pieces that are edgier and fashion forward. To see more of Calgary based designer Nam Dang-Mitchell then hop over here.

This months issue of Canadian House & Home is a keeper.

Do you like?

classic {weekend}

Well how are ya'll doing (I just got back from hanging out with half the state of Texas). This weekend was jam packed full of cowboys, rodeo, route 66, family and finally getting to meet up with a blogger friend. My husband & I left to go to Las Vegas on Sat. morning to meet up with the in-laws for the annual super bowl of all rodeos. For some reason nobody ever believes me when I tell them that I go to the National Finals Rodeo every December and they especially do not believe me when I tell them that I have a good time. Ok I admit it doesn't take much for me to have a good time...just imagine all of the prospects that come with people watching at such an event.

Hands down one of the highlights of the weekend was that I finally got to meet my pal Angela from The Painted House. When I found out that she was flying all of the way from Georgia to be in Las Vegas the same weekend...there was no way I would miss an opportunity to meet and see her beautiful face in person....even if it were at midnight. It was kind of surreal..probably due to the fact that it was late and we had weird servers that came to our table that really weren't our servers but were male patrons who happened to be dining at the next table over just pretending to be our server. There is so much strangeness in Las Vegas.

Speaking of strangeness I predict bolo ties to be the next BIG thing...You better go out and get yours now before they bolo away. Seriously though after I saw the below picture I was kind of wondering if we'd start to see a resurgence.

{above photo via here}

Let us get back to something a little more classic now...

{here, here, here}

Next bathroom redo I am using something of the above sorts..I think black and white basket weave tile is so classic and stylish.

Every time I think I am going to recover my green chairs or do something new I will see pictures like the below that cause me to think again...

Michael Hainey told the Selby that editors can teach bloggers the importance of reporting. I am here to report that I am going to keep the green chairs and many of the black, white and cognac around my home. My husband will be so proud of me. See I am a great reporter of things.

{above photos via the Selby}

How are all of you?

{A portable snowball fight} Happy weekend!

At dusk my Dad pulled up with a trailer full of snow that he had hauled down from the mountains. He called me only a mere hour before he came by so it turned out to be such a spontaneous and fun treat for the children. In fact it attracted the attention of neighbors who couldn't help but come on over and join in the fun. Yes my kids are barefoot playing with snow in our 60 degree weather and loving every minute of it. When they came to the door they were all dirty, cold and wet so they were immediately stripped and put into the warm tub. That was when I was glad that this would be the only snow we'd see in our neighborhood all winter long.

Hooray for fun people like my Dad.

Hooray for the weekend.

Hope it is a fun one for all of you.

yellow, 2012 pantone color and a guest post

{above images via my Pinterest board right here. The above Chin up Butter Cup print can be found here}

I was looking at some of the images that I have recently saved to my desktop or to Pinterest and there seems to be a theme going on...yellow. I was really surprised because this was not my intention as yellow is never the first on my list. I do have to say that after seeing all of the images together that it is kind of growing or "glowing" on me. Yellow is completely unpretentious and keeps things fun.

Did you happen to see what the 2012 pantone color is..it wasn't yellow.

Also I recently had the opportunity to share a couple of chic tips over on Trissta's blog, Living on the Chic. You just may want to go check it out...something about brass. Plus Trissta is a true Aggie (can I share that?) and has a great eye. Hop over here to check it out. Now hurry and go hit your thrift stores to scoop up all of your Momma's and your Grandma's brass treasures.