New Year Pinterest Par-tay

Looking for some inspiration to kick the New Year off right? Ring in the 14th year of the 2nd millennium with some freshy freshness? Well, boy do we have a party for you. 

(What comes before Part B? PART A!! hardy har har)

I have joined forces with Christina of Just Call Me Chris // Jill of Good Life // Robin of The Balanced Life // Abby of Abby M Interiors // Jackie of Sweetie Pie Style

And we have been busily pinning away to some fun new Pinterest boards:

New Year New You | Fitness

New Year New You | Quotes

New Year New You | Eats

New Year New You | Organized

New Year New You | Style & Beauty

New Year New You | Goals

New Year New You | Home

Cheers!

fiancé friday

I totally blame Throwback Thursday & Man-crush Monday, along with Wayback Wednesday & Selfie Sunday on the title of this post... I had nothing else, & they convinced me it was a good idea!

I have seriously been trying to keep too much wedding bid-ness (how my Memaw says it) from making it to the blog. 1. I would like for the big day to be a special surprise for everyone 2. This is a fashion/personal style blog & I don't want you to go running for the hills 3. I love everything & have a hard time narrowing things down, so once the flood gates open, I would be afraid that they wouldn't ever stop. 

But being that I would make a horrible little boy with his finger in the dike (get your mind out of the gutter & read the classic tale here), here goes letting just a trickle of wedding planning out :)

Here's the deal, we have ZERO clue what Ty & his groomsmen are going to wear & I just can't seem to get a handle on men's fashion what-so-ever. So I'm throwing this one out to you guys!

When people ask to me to describe our wedding I usually go silent & then moments later start blurting out buzz words that I read in Martha Stewart Weddings... I mean, if Martha thinks they are a good idea... I'm game.

So, in a many words, our wedding is: modern boho, relaxed romantic, rustic, set in Nashville in the evening, with lots of layered whites & ivories with hints of blush & navy (as my wedding coordinator calls them, blush & bashful... she's a real hoot)...

And my question is, what do dudes wear to a wedding that is modern boho, relaxed romantic, rustic, set in Nashville in the evening, with lots of layered whites & ivories with hints of blush & navy?

Pinterest is telling me that this mix-n-matched groomsmen look is in, what are your thoughts? (Seriously, if not for you guys, Ty might be waiting for me at the alter in his Birthday Suit... then again....)

See the sources for these pictures & more on my Wedding Inspiration Pinterest page {here}

Also, to source these images I searched "hipster wedding" on Pinterest & found this gem... enjoy :)

Back to School

Ok, I know it isn't officially officially Fall yet, but can I just admit to thinking that it is a little bit, kinda sorta, just a pinch?
The calendar might not say Fall is here, but that isn't going to stop me from dreaming up layered looks & reminiscing about those back to school days (I am technically still a student after all!)

If you are looking for some pre-Fall inspiration, I am happy to report that we have the party for you!

I have teamed up with Jill (Good Life), Abby (Abby M. Interiors) & Lindsay (Lipstick & Lollies) to  bring you the best of the best for the back to school season!

We've created the following Pinterest boards just for your inspiration! Stop by & check them out!

Stylish Gals:

back to school & fall style for college age ladies, grad school gals & amazing moms!

Hair & Beauty:

Back to school & fall beauty favorites and inspiration!

Healthy Eats:

snacks, breakfast, packed lunches & simple dinners to eat healthy throughout the busy back to school season!

Handsome Guys:

back to school & fall style for college guys, grad school guys & stylish dads!

Get Organized:

All the back to school organization you need! From kids, to moms, to your house... get everyone organized for this busy time of year!

Stylish Little Ladies & Stylish Little Guys

Back to school & fall style for those stylish little gals & guys that are hitting the books!

What are you pinning away these days?

Pinterest Challenge: Summer 2012 edition

AKA how I am a DIY poser!

I love Young House Love, and Sherry's collaboration with other bloggers to make the Pinterest Challenge happen is one of my favorite things. I have participated before (making leather accessories in March, and organic dog treats in November), and had such good intentions to come up with an even better project this time, BUT (you had to have known a "but" was coming)... life got in the way, friends came into town, the fabric store closed on Sunday... and I didn't "get around to it"... whomp whomp.

However, in line with my philosophy that if I post something on the internets it increases the likelihood that I will actually DO IT... here is what I wanted to make:

A fox nightlight for my nieces!

{Tutorial here}

So as it turns out, my nieces might be 14 and this thing might turn out to be the Quasimoto of foxes by the time I am finished... but I. WILL. DO. IT.

Have you been working on any DIYs lately?

I am going to head on over to the big Pinterest Challenge reveal to glean some inspiration, and you should too!

xx

Jessica

pinterest challenge: winter edition

Ok, it is time for the big reveal! What have you been working on? Did you check something off of your Pinterest-to-do-list? Check out all the rest of the amazing DIY projects here {and the other co-hosts of the challenge here, here, here}, and mine are below! 

So of course, I waited till the last minute (last night) to complete my Pinterest Challenge. In my defense, I went to Michael's earlier in the week, and picked up so many items for all the craft projects swirling in my head (house decorating, Bachelorette Party planning for friends, and wardrobe rehabs) that I didn't know where to start. 

I chose the leather bracelet DIY found on my "DIY Love" Pinterest Board

Inspiration Pic: Left panel {via} 

{Official Leather Bracelet tutorial}

I followed the linked tutorial to a T, so I will spare you the gory details. But I do want to tell you about my awesome leather score: all these leather scraps (in 4 different colors) from Michael's for $5.99. Run don't walk and pick your self up some!

 I also picked up "Instant Krazy" glue that clearly said on the packaging it could be used for leather, and grabbed a sheet of snaps.

FYI: if you use scissors you love, they are have a chance of being dull by this point...

I also ended up severely bending my needle when sewing the snaps on... not sure it was "leather" gauge... 

 But voila, somehow it came out even better than I expected!

I had so much leather left over, and was on a roll, so next I tackled the girlie bow I have had my eye on, with this official tutorial

{via}

Again, easy peasy lemon squeezy, and it looks so legit! Can't wait to wear this under my top knots for Spring, à la Blair from Atlantic-Pacific {here, here}

I really still want to tackle this Matthew Williamson inspired DIY Chain Bracelet {pinned here} (but need to collect some supplies first)... I'll keep you posted.

In fact, I have caught the bug and really want to start ticking off all the projects I have on my DIY Love board. Especially with my shopping hiatus, it is so amazing to see how a little craftiness can transform your clothes!

  

Ok, show me yours now! 

Include some links in the comments to your recent Pinterest inspired craft projects!

xx

Jessica

pinterest challenge: winter edition

Good Afternoon!

I know you ladies are all up on Pinterest, pinning amazing projects that you would like to DIY.... 

well let's get on those already!

The fabulousness that is Sherry from Young House Love and Katie from Bower Power are back with their 3rd installment of "The Pinterest Challenge"

I participated in their link up fest last go 'round, and it was so much fun to see all of the projects competed by they other participants.

This season I am going to pick one of the fashion related projects from my "DIY Love" board.

I am currently crushing on girlie bows, luxe embellishments, and neon accents, and hope to incorporate some of this pretty into my closet with a old fashioned DIY project inspired by Pinterest.

I want you to get in on the action too! Check out the challenge, and we can discuss what we completed next Wednesday after the big reveal!

xx

Jessica

Pinterest Challenge (Fall): Pug edition

If you follow John & Sherry on Young House Love or Katie & Jeremy from Bower Power then you are aware of the Pinterest Challenge.

Previously these lovely ladies called all pinners into action, to create something that they had pinned (Pinterest Challenge:Summer), as I missed the previous challenge I did not want to let this one slip me by. With my recent travels and Halloween celebrations taking me away from crafting over the weekend, I chose one of the over 400 "pins" on my boards based on its simplicity and timing. Being that it is the Pug's birthday, I made some organic dog treats, based on my pin from Marilyn of Simmer Till Done (her dog treat tutorial is found here).

I found all the ingredients at Kroger for about $14, and the entire endeavor took under an hour. The ingredients I bought can be used to make this recipe several more times, in fact, I should be able to turn out ~200 medium (guitar sized... see below) treats from my $14 of groceries, bringing the cost per treat down to 7¢!

Organic Pumpkin Dog (Doug) Biscuits:
2 organic brown eggs
1/2 cup canned pumpkin
2 tablespoons dry milk
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
2 1/2 cups Organic brown rice flour 
1 teaspoon dried parsley (accidentally photographed celery flakes, but used parsley)

After preheating my oven to 350F, I mixed the eggs and pumpkin until they were creamy. Next I added the dry milk, sea salt, and parsley flakes, followed by gradually adding in the flour. I kneaded the stiff dough with my hands (flour covered, it was still a little sticky).  

Because Doug has a small mouth and tiny teeth, I rolled the dough to less than 1/4 inch, and used guitar cookie cutter - he is a Nashville dog, after all. 

The cut cookies were good to go straight on to the backing sheet, and into the hot oven. I used 2/3 of the full dough ball to cover my cookie sheet with 35 biscuits, I would imagine the entire recipe yields ~50 biscuits of medium size. After 20 minutes on each side, I allowed the biscuits to cool, then my official taste taster gave me his verdict... DELISH! His only complaint was that they were a bit tough to chew, so in the future I may make a smaller size cookie.

Can you detect the changes in Doug's emotions during the process?

At first he was skeptical...

And then he noticed the dough, and began his, "I'm so pathetic, I NEVER get fed" shtick

While the biscuits were in the oven he gave up hope and fell asleep...

DELISH! Getting all the little crumbs out of his wrinkles! (A face only a pug mother could love)

Happy Birthday puggy!

Thank you ladies for inspiring another great round of the Pinterest Challenge. Check out the fabulous results from the Pinterest Challenge masterminds Sherry and Katie, and their two guest Challengers Erin and Ana.
I have also ordered some new craft supplies so that I can actually make some more "pins" a reality in the near future. Here's to being crafty!