Fashion, Art, Design, Beauty
★ On January 1, I started The Red Tent. I’ve had it on my bookshelf forever and it finally seems like the right time to read it.
★ Laced up my shoes and headed back to the gym
★ Started a year-long Bible study using the She Reads Truth app
★ Totally fell down the Serial rabbit hole – cannot stop listening!
★ I started a podcast!
★ I cannot get behind the new color of the year – Radiant Orchid forever!
★ Still loving the new-to-me apples
★ Treated myself to the Shoshanna Amulet from BaubleBar to wear for our annual Eggnog & Dessert party after seeing it here. I adore this statement necklace.
★ Put the finishing touches on our living room tree and on the blue tree in the hallway. The lights make me so happy.
★ I’ve been saving this book for December – the perfect book to curl up with on a chilly winter night (it’s My True Love Gave to Me).
★ Lots of baking – chewy chocolate ginger cookies and orange cranberry mini loaves for our party; cannoli cheesecake for Christmas dinner (my first cheesecake!).
★ Eric took me to an amazingly beautiful display at the Dallas Arboretum of the Twelve Days of Christmas.
★ Participating in a fun book photo challenge and remembering some books from earlier in the year.
★ A holiday isn’t a holiday without a holiday mani!
★ November 1st I was still in Houston for the Houston Quilt Show. I bought some fabric, and saw some amazing quilts in the show.
★ I made some zipper bags out of some linen panels I bought at the needlework show in Paris. I was deathly afraid of putting in a zipper, but it wasn’t that hard. The bag with the armadillo panel was a gift for a friend’s birthday and the bat bag is for me.
★ Continuing my Kresley Cole reading. The covers for these are ridiculous, but I enjoyed the books.
★ Sweater weather is here!
★ Thut keeps me company when I’m working late nights.
★ Attended a beautiful wedding that was entirely book themed. Each of the tables at the reception was identified with famous literary couples, we were at the Marius & Cosette (from Les Miserables) table. And I loved the centerpieces – books and lanterns. So perfect!
★ The apple obsession continues – for Thanksgiving Eric made our traditional breakfast of apple pancakes but we used Honeycrisp apples for the first time and then we also made apple crisp for dessert with Granny Smith, Fuji, and Gala apples. Both were super yummy!
★ On Thanksgiving Day I stitched on my ornament for my guild’s ornament exchange. I loved the snowy scene.
★ I bought this book and am so looking forward to reading it. Perfect for the season. I also bought fabric and thread in the color “snowflake” for a Christmas piece I want to start.
★ Picked up The Fiery Cross again to read. I just can’t seem to get through this book. I was inspired to pick it back up after watching the first episode of the Outlander series.
★ So, yeah, the Fiery Cross got put down again and I picked up a new book/series – Kresley Cole comes highly recommended and a friend loaned me two of these books to read forever ago.
★ My new custom polish from Literary Lacquer called The Blind King (Black Dagger Brotherhood) – it has a crazy amount of holo in it! So pretty in the sunshine!
★ After 8 years we finally framed our map of Rome that we used on our honeymoon. I’ve been wanting to frame it since then but it was lost for a long time, found, and now finally framed. I love how it shows a lot of use and our circled locations.
★ October means State Fair time! We always stop to hear the Killdares play and they never disappoint!
★ New phone (gold!) and I finally found the perfect phone case – Rifle Paper Co.’s Paris map. Had to try two different places because the first shop had sold out.
★ The end of the month I headed out of town for the Houston Quilt Show (which is huge compared to the Dallas Quilt Show) with a friend. We had a fabulous time, and I was completely inspired by everything I saw. Lots of great vendors and the quilt show itself was amazing. Since we were there on Halloween, I indulged in the signature drink at the hotel bar – Dracula’s Kiss. Mmmmm!
★ The month started a bit rough. I always seem to gravitate to Beyoncé’s music when I’m feeling sad and hurt.
★ Still loving my Rifle Paper Co. Secret Garden calendar
★ Found the perfect dupe of NARS Stormbird, Sinful Colors Smokin’ Hot
★ I found my creativity! Spent an afternoon with a friend cutting fabric for my Lady Mary quilt out of the Downton Abbey fabrics. Worked on three quilt tops and immersing myself in color. Pulled out the perfect Fall piece to stitch on too.
★ Spent the first part of the month in Mesa, AZ for a stitching workshop with four girlfriends. Visited a fun quilt shop while we were there and of course had margaritas!
★ Wore my CrowsToes Huginn & Munin polish – in. love.
★ Dress shopping to find something to wear to a wedding. Came home with these two lovelies. Wore one to the wedding and one to my birthday dinner.
★ The wedding was held in an art gallery, which was so fun. After the wedding, a dinner was held at a fantastic Turkish restaurant. I always enjoy the belly dancers as well.
★ Participating in the YogaGirl challenge – I did yoga!
★ Pulled out my Angel cards in order to focus my thoughts. Interesting that I pulled Creativity when my life felt anything but creative right now. It was good to meditate on what creativity means to me.
★ Coincidentally I share a birthday with Tori Amos. Love her so much, her music gets inside me and wraps itself around my emotions
★ Birthday dinner at Ziziki’s Greek restaurant wearing the beautiful ring Eric gave me and beautiful birthday roses
★ Outdoor jazz concert working on the mini quilt for the swap
★ Finished swap mini quilt – so in love with that octopus!
★ Finished my re-read of Interview with the Vampire – my copy is autographed too!
★ Another re-read – this book has been on my mind a lot lately for some reason, so I decided to re-read it. I absolutely loved this series by Zelazny
★ My ongoing travel project – hexies – perfect summer project Hex on the Beach quilt
★ Catching up on Downton – watched the end of Season 3 and the first two episodes of Season 4. This show is breaking my heart!
★ New nail polish (365 Days of Polish Running Through Meadows) and new maxi dress
★ Wearing my new infinity scarf – my birthday gift from Sylvia – love it!
★ Started a new book while waiting to board my flight to AZ. Enjoying the first book in this new series by Christina Lauren.
★ My dad collected stamps, so I saved the cancelled stamps from envelopes for years. I’d gather a bunch and then bring them to him. It was always fun to see his reaction when I brought one he hadn’t seen before or needed. I stumbled across these cleaning out my desk and was overcome with missing him. I don’t even know what to do with these stamps now, it feels wrong to just throw them away. His birthday was this month too, so he was on my mind a lot.
★ I spent a good portion of the month working on a mini quilt for a swap I was participating in. I loved working with these nautical blues.
★ I stitched a pincushion for a sweet friend’s birthday. To celebrate her birthday we went on a little roadtrip and spent some time exploring this fun shop – I loved the lavender and the vintage bottles of buttons.
★ I finished my Kiss Kiss quilt made of Tula Pink’s Parisville line. I’ve been enamored with this line since I first stumbled across it – the Marie Antoinette cameos are my favorite! I was excited to bring it for show & tell at quilt guild.
★ Loving Lana’s new song
★ All about the glitter polish this month – Orly Macabre Masquerade and Finger Paints Enchanted Winter
★ Back to reading Interview with the Vampire
★ Delicious caprese burger Eric made
★ Bounty from our garden – little tomatoes and lots of herbs
★ #tacotuesday
★ So so so in love with this CrowsToes polish in Huginn & Munin from the 9 Realms collection
★ Lots of rain = migraine = Mountain Dew
★ New fabric haul
April was a good month!
★ Spring mani using OPI’s Do You Lilac It?
★ We celebrated our 8 year wedding anniversary with Thai food
★ I treated myself to this gorgeous statement necklace from JCrew. I call this my Marie Antoinette necklace. I wore it to a goodbye party for a friend who is moving
★ Received butterLondon Trustafarian as a RAK – in love with this color!
★ Celebrated a bonus from work by purchasing an iPad Mini for myself
★ Laughed myself silly reading this gem by Alice Clayton – looking forward to the next in the series
★ Eric slipped this little heart into my lunch box – love that man!
★ Finally bought a statement bubble necklace – got a fantastic deal on this one from T&J Designs, and I LOVE yellow!
★ Sleepy Thutmose “supervising” while I baked a cake
★ Celebrated my promotion at work with Mexican food and margaritas!
