Sneak Peak

Here's a sneak peak at what I'll be telling you more about tomorrow! I DID NOT take this photo. I only edited it!

This Weekend

I am getting super pumped for the fourth of July weekend. It's probably my second favorite holiday (first is Christmas). The past three years, I have spent the weekend on Lake Hamilton with John and his family, and it is always a BLAST (pun intended)

Anyway, I've been getting even more excited when I see Independence day colors on stuff, so I thought I'd share some of my recent favs.

Ask anyone at work and they'll tell you I have an unhealthy obsession with chocolate covered pretzels. There's just something about the sweet with the salty that really gets me going in the morning in the afternoon all day. And if I am having one of my cravings, you can bet that I will stop at nothing to get my hands on some Flipz.

These are a little more festive. Maybe I'll make John help me make some :)

Nom, nom, nom

Oh Martha, how I love thee

These are just super adorable and make me SO hungry! I actually do think we'll be munching on some fruit - my momma is going to bring some up and I'm going to make some fruit dip. MMMMMMMM!

I feel like these would look good with some blackberries too!

Can't forget some super cute red, white, n' blue outfits! Unfortunately I cannot go out and buy myself something like this, but if I had the money (and time and desire) I'd want to wear this for the fireworks show:

Source unknown :( - oh, and yeah right I could never pull this off. My bestie Natalie could, but not me.

If I had cutie pie babies I'm make them wear some festive stuff too!

Heart Break Kids

Good thing I'm not planning on having any babies anytime soon! SERIOUSLY. NEVER. (Okay, maybe just not for 5 or 6 (or 7 or 8) more years. Babysitting is the best birth control.

But seriously, enjoy your fourth food. Enjoy the sun. Enjoy the long weekend and, most importantly, ENJOY THE DANG FIREWORKS!

For the dream - BOOM POW, as Emily would say :)

A Quick Retouch

My sister, Eliza, had this as her profile picture on Facebook and I thought it could use a 5-minute retouch.

Before

After

This photo was taken in 2007. Funny how little the two of us seem to have changed.

Magic Lamp

I think I discovered the next big trend. Yup, that's right. Me. Want to know what it is?

Oversized lamps.

I saw my first one the other night while walking around the Heights with John (while eating our favorite, Red Mango). After seeing it, I went to Pinterest and searched for it, and I came up with a lot of hits. Which is why I believe I have discovered the next big thing. You can thank me later.

Desire to Inspire

Source unknown - I actually really love this room. The rug and the chair, and the yellow pillow make me happy!

Soderbergagentur

Caldwell Flake

So, now you know.

Confusion on the Blog Front

Sorry that some of my posts seem to be in the wrong order. I tried to fix it but couldn't and didn't want to delete any, so just scroll down to see the newest one!

Sorry again!

Bursting at the Suns

One thing I'm obsessed with is the sunburst mirror. I just love 'em. And I gotta have one. Seeing as I'm a little low on cash, I've been really interested in some DIY mirrors. Here are a few that have inspired me!

Ever needed to get rid of some old paint stir sticks? What a great idea!

Centsational Girl

Or this one?

Our Humble A{Bowe}d

This one is made from old cereal boxes. I know I have some of those around my house somewhere...

Under the Table and Dreaming

This one cost less than $25 and it's gorgeous!

The Nester

This one is made from wooden skewers that are then spray painted bronze! How clever!

Just Pleased as Punch

I'm planning on making one myself very soon. In fact, I have everything I need except the mirror! I'm on the lookout though, so keep checking in to see my progress!

Doesn't Matter Where You Start...

.....just start.

That's what one of my new fav bloggers said once. (By the way, do you know how hard it is to find a photographer that blogs about TIPS and TRICKS? She does that and I LOVE it!) As you might know, I'm getting a little crazy about the possibility of starting up photography. Something about it - the colors, the faces, the piece of time held still for eternity - just makes me want to splurge and buy the first camera I can.

I'm trying to be good. I'm trying not to make an impulse buy, but to bide my time, weigh the options and practice my mad skillz until then.

Luckily, my roommate upstairs friend Ashlyn (she lives above me in my apartment building) said I could borrow her Nikon for a bit. Get a feel for it, if you will. Hopefully it will help me determine what kind of camera I do want to buy when the time is right. Honestly I am leaning towards a Canon right now, simply because that's the brand I've always used. I think they're both good cameras and I'm 99.9% sure I'll be buying one of them.

Anyway, this week is busy, so stay tuned but please don't lose patience with me. I'll come up with some good blog posts SOOON! Until next time, here are some photos that are inspiring me right now:

Toddlertoes - this could not be any cuter!

Rachel Blackwell Photography - I love that photographers are always taking pictures of happy occasions. Always. 

Rialee Photography - you can bet your bottom's dollar that I'll be taking LOTS of pics of Ella. Only problem is she is so dark that it's hard to capture her eyes a lot of the time. But I would love to get some pics like this. Gorgeous!

Sweet Little Things Photography - is it bad that I'm already thinking about what baby gear I would need for newborn photoshoots? I just love the textures - GAWGEOUS!

Photography (part dos)

Last night I went back in on my photo from yesterday and worked on getting rid of some of the blur. Hopefully you think it's even better again!

Edit #2 - less blur

Side-by-side

What do you think? Better?

I'm going to try to get some more practice in this weekend. Keep a look out!

Photography

Photography has been tempting me more and more every day. Today I left work early due to an upset stomach and VERY low temperature, and decided to mess around a little bit with photoshopping some pictures of my own that I've taken with the crap-a-holic good-ole point and shoot. Here's the original:

Before

And....after some photoshopping....

After

Here's a side-by-side for easy comparison:

Side-by-side

Here's another one:

Original photo (take winter 2011)

edited color

Side by side

hehehe

Original black and white

edited black and white

Side-by-side

Kind of sloppy (since I was just messing around) but what do you think? Think I could pull this off? 

My Last 5 Pins

Time for another preview of what I've been pinning on Pinterest, my favorite website EVAAAAA. These are the last 5 things I pinned that are currently making my head spin! Hope you enjoy.

1) I love the ambient lighting found here. So romantic and just relaxing and FUN!

Style Me Pretty

2) Although I'm not really a "plate" person, I really love the way these plates are hung. They seem to create a motion across the wall that really intrigues me. I am also hopelessly in love with the paint color!

Flickr

3) UM, HELLO. I am DYING over these curtains. So. Freaking. Awesome. Great thing is, the girl who writes this blog did them herself. Can I please say "sign me up?"

The Yellow Cape Cod

4) This bathroom is a little too green for me. I pinned it, however, because I love the floating shelves above the toilet. Very elegant and a great way to maximize space.

Decorology

5) I want to steal this room and plunk it into my life. Enough said? I didn't think so. I am completely achy for that staircase, the wonderful stencil work on it, the light, the flowers, the table....AHHH! So much I cannot even handle it.

Isabella & Max Rooms

The great thing about Pinterest is that you don't always have to pin something you would want to have in your own home. Instead, you can pin things that make sense to you, that you'd like to copy but tweak to fit with your own style. Like the bathroom above. Or the plates. I don't necessarily love the rooms, but I love some of the elements in the rooms and would definitely do some of them in my own home one day.

What about you? What have you been pinning?

Ella's First Haircut

Before

After. Plus a mustache. Thanks.

You can really tell the difference when you look at her face (and try to ignore the brown sheriff mustache) - her eyes are much more prominent. They also tidied up her legs, and her foot fur is a lot shorter! Sometime this week John and I are going to tackle her face alone. Good luck to us!

I Still Like Color

Hope you liked the white post. It sure is inspiring! I like a little more color on my walls, personally. Gives it a little personality, a little shizam! I tend to be drawn to a happy medium between BOLD personality, and stark white. Hence, my inspirations:

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I Like Color

But if I didn't, I'd love to decorate my house like this. In all white. It's so classic, clean, and relaxing. The kind of room you see in magazines and then hang on your walls.

Personally, I prefer white to be paired with some natural wood tones. I think it gives it a depth that is not achieved without them. Without the warmth of the browns, I feel like the white comes off a little too sterile.

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Personally, I like colors. I prefer colors. But, if I didn't, I'd love my house to look like this.