Home.

I wanted to share with you all my the finished product (finally) of my third floor hallway.  It has literally been a giant, empty wall for the three and a half years I've owned my place while I worked on deciding what would fill the walls. Anytime I decorate a part of my house I want it to reflect my style but also who I am.  This wall was no exception.  Over a year ago I bought on Etsy a print of each of the 7 states I've lived in to date. 

Finally with my Mom's visit approaching I cashed in my Homegoods rewards and bought 7 matching frames so that she could hang the images for me while she was in town.  As I was framing them I was more and more pleased with the decision to make this hallway a reflection of where I grew up (which was basically the entire east coast).  Now that they're hanging I love it.  It seems the perfect way to honor my childhood and show all of the places that have earned a piece of my heart.  Of course, Florida is the middle: the place that finally feels like home.

I'm thankful that after years of moving I finally have a home of my own for the foreseeable future.  It feels good to have roots but I wouldn't trade in the experience of living in each of these places for the world.  I'm also thankful for the collection of friends I've acquired over the years and through my mobile childhood.  

It is finished.

Love,

B

Rose Petal Crafts.

As I posted last week Thomas sent me beautiful flowers at work before our date last Thursday which included my favorite flowers (mini carnations) but it also contained my second favorite flower - roses! Of course the mini carnations are still going strong (my favorite part about them is they last FOREVER, what could be better than that) but the roses have started to dry up. So Tuesday morning I pulled the petals off....

Being the google-savvy girl I am, I took to the internet for craft ideas of just what treasures I could create with my rose petals (because, let's be honest - I loved them too much to throw them away). I found a few 'eh' ideas before stumbling upon Maure's flicker page which contained this image:

I love decoupage! I haven't done it since college (when I had a few pretty cool project along the way) but after I saw her images I thought, what a perfect idea. She decoupaged (as pictured here): a piece of cardboard, a bangle bracelet, and a big wooden bead. After searching further I found that a few other people had made napkin rings out of toilet paper rolls - sheer brilliance. BUT my roses are pink and my kitchen is red so I don't think that would be my best call.

I decided that since I wanted to frame a picture of T and I anyway, I'd start with a picture frame. I picked up the supplies at Michael's on lunch Tuesday and here are the results...

Love,

B

Make.

The last thing I made is something I affectionately call 'the look book'. I'm a firm believer in having a versatile wardrobe so that you can get the most for the money you do spend. So as I look through the magazines I get every month (In Style, Glamour, People Style Watch) I cut out pictures of the looks I like. Then I paste them into a book and make notes around them about which parts of the outfits I already have and which ones I need.

Turns out, you usually have at least half of the outfit already and then you can add what you don't have to your shopping list. Example: I recently cut out a picture of an outfit I love and I actually had the whole outfit except a fun, colorful pair of flats in a textures material. A week or two later I found an adorible pair of Cole Hahn purple snakeskin flats at (of course) TJMaxx and va-va-voom I had the outfit I loved.

The other step to this is that after I buy a piece I also make note of all the other outfits I could put together with it. So after I bought the purple shoes, I made a list of 3 other outfits they were perfect for, to make sure I get my money's worth out of them.

Anyone made anything else cool lately I might want to try?

Love,
B