so I may be procrastinating...

(image from here)

...since I have successfully bought the elements of gifts, but no real gifts yet. I have bought tons of felt, ribbons, seam binding, sequins, patterned paper, gift labels, blah blah blah. I have my ideas laid out and here goes (also, apologies to anyone who wants me to wrote about anything not related to christmas for the next couple weeks, its probably not going to happen):

WARNING: IF YOU KNOW YOU ARE ON MY GIFT GIVING LIST, DO NOT KEEP READING!*

Basically I am going to make stockings for everyone and fill them. I have bought lots of fun fabric and ribbons, etc to decorate/make the stockings. I'm going to fill them with little bottle of wines, infused alcohol, cookies, biscotti, spice rubs, candy, journals, etc etc etc. Then specific little gifts for people like ornaments, snowglobes, jewelry, journals, bookplates, etc. (trying to make the majority of these handmade)

also, tonight I am going to IKEA. I am going to decorate the crap out of our house!!!!

aaaannndd...in trying to keep this a daily thing, here is today's DIY:

cinnamon candles**
white pillar candles
hot glue
cinnamon sticks
ribbon or raffia

hot glue the cinnamon sticks (vertically) to the sides of the candle. tie with ribbon. smells fanstastic when you light it! for extra pizazz, give with a matchbox covered in holiday paper!

*this does not apply to Ryan. He gets a freebie since I accidentally saw one of the things he got me yesterday. oops.
**I have officially given these to everyone on my list already so I feel weird making them again.

(cue the jaws theme)

so there I was innocently making turkey stock and there it was.

so there I was innocently making turkey noodle soup and there it was.

so there I was innocently stuffing my face with leftover pumpkin spice cookies and there it was.

so there I was innocently lounging away my friday on the couch watching 'diners drive-ins and dives' while drinking tea and cringing at Guy Fieri's awful catchphrases and there it was.

the holiday season is here, people. and for some reason, it seems way earlier than last year.

I have officially bitten off all my nails.

I spent all of Saturday with my best friend shopping for things to make gifts with (meaning we went to the fabric store, antique store and to savers). I did buy a chunk of things yesterday at jo-ann fabrics too. yet I feel so behind! I am in a panic! no decorations up, no completed gifts, some kind of event every weekend until christmas, yikes! why can't I get a couple days of relaxation post thanksgiving before christmas shows up and ruins my laziness er relaxing?

in the spirit of the season, here is one of the gifts I made last year for your DIY pleasure:

spiced wine:

• 1 orange, sliced
• 1/2 lemon, sliced
• 1 vanilla bean
• Peel from 1 orange (orange part only, removed with vegetable peeler)
• 6 whole cloves
• 1 750-ml bottle dry red wine (such as Côtes du Rhône or Merlot)
• 1/2 cup framboise eau de vie or brandy
• 6 tablespoons sugar

Combine sliced orange and lemon, vanilla bean, orange peel and cloves in large glass jar. Pour wine over. Cover and place in cool dark area for 2 weeks. Be sure to strain so family and friends don't choke on cloves. Add framboise and sugar to wine; stir until sugar dissolves. Pour mixture into wine bottle or decorative bottle. Cork bottle and place in cool dark area for at least 1 week. (Can be made 6 weeks ahead. Store in cool dark area.

to give as a gift: go to salvation army. buy tons of fun knitted sweaters. wash. cut off sleeves. sew one end of sleeve. insert bottle of spiced wine. thread ribbon through sweater or tie one on. hand to recipient. hope they haven't given up drinking.

Law & Order mix

hope all my American readers had a lovely thanksgiving yesterday & godspeed if you are one of the crazy people who go shopping today. I am staying inside and making turkey stock and maybe finalizing a Christmas list. so heres my mixtape masters this week! sorry I've reused a couple artists but I was trying to stick to a theme:



Who Is It?- Bjork
What Light- Wilco
When You Were Young- Killers
Where Have All The Rude Boys Gone?- Ted Leo & the Pharmacists
How Soon is Now?- The Smiths
Why Can't I Be You?- The Cure



Create a playlist at MixPod.com



For more Mixtape Master madness, peep the playlists on these blogs:

Hi-Fi Weddings One Cat Per Person Tylre. Ten Thou Bride Fashion Under 100 Jo, Rooting another damn life Savoir Weddings Fancy Notion Dead Flowers Casa De Kaloi Bunnies’n’Beagles My San Francisco Budget Wedding Existing Between Reality and Dreams

Be a Mixtape Master. Email Angie or Ashley to get in on it.


also, special shout out to the wonderful Anna who is getting married this weekend! congrats my dear! I know you will have a wonderful & amazing day!

thanksgiving's greatest hits

alright peeps, I'll probably be up to my elbows in flour, vegetable peels, brine, etc tomorrow and won't be able to post anything so heres my last post pre- thanksgiving (I will be doing a mix masters on friday, I have 2 weeks worth of mixes done!). so on that note, I thought I would do a compilation of some of my favorite recipes I made from years past:

1- Bon Appetit- Cranberry Sauce
2-Bon Appetit- Roast Turkey
3-Epicurious- Sausage Dressing
4-Epicurious- Green beans
5-Bon Appetit- Game Hens
6-Bon Appetit- Apple Crumb Pie
7-Bon Appetit- Sweet Potato Gratin
8-Real Simple- Lamb and Butter Beans
9-Real Simple- Apple Walnut Tarts


now for the cover artwork:

nah...too overdone

(image from here)

getting better...

(image from here)

ah! perfect!



happy thanksgiving my friends!

songs of the season

this is the second year we are hosting thanksgiving in our house, which means I have 4 more days to make the house sparkling clean and 4 more days to make it smell like seasonal cinnamony magic*. last year we had about 30 people and this year is looking more like 15-20. goals this year: make food better. I of course bought probably way too much food but I am super psyched to make turkey enchiladas and mashed potato gnocchi with leftovers! so here's the breakdown:

turkey
mashed potatoes (the usual, mashed with butter cream & chives)
peas
green beans
carrots
stuffing (trader joes)
biscuits (from a tube)
cornmuffins (jiffy mix)
apple pie (so glad I canned apple pie filling in the fall)
cranberry sauce

do you guys have a favorite holiday food? mine might be everything. I really like all turkey day food. I should probably wear something loose fitting.

also, has anyone had the pumpkin silk nog? I am curious to try it...

so anyways: last year, as I peeled millions of potatoes with my sis, I listened to middle cyclone over and over. I love love love that cd any time of year but now it has a special space in my holiday line up too. I put it on in the car today when I ran my seasonal shopping errands (I even started making christmas gifts today! stay tuned I'm going to start posting christmas diy ideas from past years after thanksgiving!)



do you have songs that remind you of the holidays?? besides you know, actual holiday ones?

*also, why are there not mini pumpkins left to buy? its still the season for pumpkins right? how am I supposed to do a sad attempt at decorating now????

black is the new black mix

so I was going to write some kind of awesome post since I have been taking a little break from the internet (my comeback post if you will). but alas, just like so many much anticipated come back tours, this is going to be pretty lame. basically, at a loss for what to write about, I googled myself (for any fellow 30 Rock watchers, not that kind of googling) and found nothing too hilarious. so here ya go, kids. my mix for the week*:



Black Mirror- The Arcade Fire
Black Star- Radiohead
Blackout- British Sea Power
The Black Angels Death Song (cover)- Beck
Black Cloud- Morrissey
Black Sheep- Metric
Black Thumbnail- Kings of Leon
Man in Black- Johnny Cash



Music Playlist at MixPod.com

---

For more Mixtape Master madness, peep the playlists on these blogs:

Hi-Fi Weddings | One Cat Per Person | Tylre. | Ten Thou Bride | Fashion Under 100 | Jo, Rooting | another damn life | Savoir Weddings | Fancy Notion | Dead Flowers | Casa De Kaloi | Bunnies’n’Beagles | My San Francisco Budget Wedding | Existing Between Reality and Dreams

Be a Mixtape Master. Email Angie or Ashley to get in on it.


* sorry for the late entry. anyone else have issues with scheduled posts? this is the second week I scheduled something and it did not work.

oh hi

kinda over the internet lately (but not you, my dears!). need a few days off. will be back to my normal commenting & posting self soon enough. hope all is well with youz guys. ciao for now.


(via the always wonderful dreamcats)

(It's Raining) Cats & Dogs Mix

Stray Dog and the Chocolate Shake- Grandaddy
Lovecats- The Cure
Hounds of Love- Kate Bush
Plea From a Cat Named Virtue- The Weakerthans
Diamond Dogs- David Bowie
Pink Pussycat- Devo
Dog Days Are Over- Florence and the Machine




Music Playlist at MixPod.com

---

For more Mixtape Master madness, peep the playlists on these blogs:

Hi-Fi Weddings, One Cat Per Person, Tylre, My SF Budget Wedding, Ten Thou Bride, Fashion Under 100, Dead Flowers, Jo Rooting, Another Damn Life, Casa de Kaloi, Bunnies'n Beagles, Something Different, Savoir Weddings, and Fancy Notion.

Be a Mixtape Master. Email Angie or Ashley to get on the list.

favorites

so I'm sure if you're reading this you probably think 'oh a picture heavy post, this probably took her a couple minutes to throw together' but that is not the case. I spent quite a bit of time trying to figure out what I wanted to show you. should I let them see pictures where my arms look fat? where my hips look huge? where my legs look chunky? what about that one with the double chin, do I show that one? then you know what I said, eff it. this is how I look. I have big hips, a butt that won't quit and the opposite of michelle obama arms. why don't I just post the fun photos and get on with it? while I know it is not the case, I wish someone saw this (a wedding insider if you will) who thinks only thin flawless people get married. cause I'm far from those two things, I had a total blast, my husband is the best and I could not have had a better day. I am a real girl that got married. so on that note, here are some of my favorites (in no order because I am lazy):


(my girls' bouquets)


(sweet moves, part 1)


(sweet moves, part 2)


(I adore this picture)


(smooching my bestest bestest friend)


( "babies in suits!!!")


(my dapper husband)


(ring shot 1)


(ring shot 2)


(ring shot 3)

(again, the dapper husband)


(hand shaking)


(fist bumping)


(laughing, unsure what to do with my arms)
(more sweet moves)


(stump jumping)


(the whole gang)


(squeeze!)

if you guys want to see more, there are about 200 more on facebook alone. let me know and I can friend you! again, all pics are from the super fabulous kate rose. please check her out if not for yourself than to recommend to your friends!

next up: non wedding posts such as crafty holiday gift ideas & rants about daily life & to do lists!

interested?

so...since a good chunk of the people who read this blog followed my old blog, I wanted to know:

do you want to see the professional wedding photos we just got in or are you over my wedding?
(here's a sneak peek to help you decide)






(all pictures from our super amazing photographer...anyone local looking for an amazing photographer, definitely check her out!)

blah

(image from here)

feeling kinda crummy (all I want is my milky tea and popsicles*...oh and tons and tons of sleep!) but here are some sweet things:

1- my husband (for being such a great guy)
2- the cats (and their constant need to snuggle my brains out)
3- hearing great songs on the radio (also, listening to the celebrity gossip portions of 2 radio stations; I've timed it well, one is at 7:35 then the next one is at 7:45)
4- taking my clothes right out of the dryer so I don't have to iron them
5- getting magazines in the mail (martha & real simple, love them both because they are the holiday issues! also, what is martha's problem not putting out a homemade gift guide this year??? I know if I buy the cookie one it'll just be recipes I already have, like last years)
6- new socks! (I know I'm a total nerd)
7- light jacket weather
8- loving that my houseplants haven't died yet! (well 2 but not all, I mean why did I need all that tarragon anyways??)
9- a new social media obsession (why is twitter so addicting? now when I go online I open my email, my facebook, my twitter, my google reader & my blog. woah)
10- finding really good decaf coffee (starbucks, espresso flavored)**

* I realize that makes it sound like I'm not eating. I am also eating whatever I can put my grubby little mitts on. Also, spell check wants me to capitalize popsicle. really???
** why didn't I check here first? oh right, cause I'm a total cheapskate

so....here's to a good tuesday! which is almost wednesday (which is halfway) which is basically thursday which means friday is so close! (I used to work in an office where I always made comments like this to an accountemps rep we had. he always said the same thing back to me "your office has a serious morale problem". I was always curious where he had worked before, what kind of magical, fantastic place where people aren't psyched for fridays)

sunday breakfast.

i felt like i was missing out.

I'm new at this. be gentle!

friday mix #2*

Love Burns- Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
Jilted Lovers & Broken Hearts- Brandon Flowers
Here I Dreamt I Was An Architect- The Decemberists
You Don't Know Me- Ben Folds w/ Regina Specktor
You are What You Love- Jenny Lewis
In The Sun- She & Him
Your Daddy Don't Know- New Pornographers
Everlasting Light- The Black Keys
Strange Overtones- David Byrne & Brian Eno
Chips Ahoy!- The Hold Steady



Music Playlist at MixPod.com

(check out these guys' super sweet friday mixes too!)
hi fi weddings
one cat per person
tylre
10000dollarwedding
fashionunder100
jolynn
savoir weddings
fancynotion
anotherdamnlife
dead flowers blog
bunniesandbeagles
casadekaloi
mysanfranciscobudgetwedding

*apparently mixpod hates me and doesn't want to let you access the mix. I am working on fixing this!!!

upside frown.

so in lieu of writing a complain-y post about how I feel really crummy (oy my stomach!) and how annoying people are around voting time (if I have to read one more facebook status from someone I don't even talk to anymore about how I'm a 'loser' and other not so nice or pc words that I voted for the person who won and their candidate lost, I might scream or punch or both) and how many people I've dealt with lately that have had bad attitudes, I have chosen the higher road. which probably doesn't count since I just bitched within those above parentheses. nonetheless! I decided just to hobble together a post full of links of inspiration/ happiness! woo!


(from this site, which always makes me smile!)

*flyers turned artistic posters
*hilarious samplers

*amazing junk portraits

*graffiti knitting road trip

* lace trees

* awesome website about awesome things

* it made my day

* bangable history

and... its almost Friday!

(also, just want to say a huge THANK YOU to 2 great ladies who gave me shout outs today! you are the sweetest! for serious!)

simple little things.

(you can buy this print here)

* there is something so amazing about the simple pleasure of having tea (with sugar and milk) and some buttered toast. I have had it 3 days in a row and it makes me so happy.
* I loved handing out candy with my husband at halloween (I mean how great is that?? I love us. is it silly that that makes me feel more like a married couple than bigger things like using my new name?)
* watched 'The Walking Dead' the other night. am I a total weenie that I was totally freaked out? that poor horse! then I preceded to go to bed and start to reread the books again.
* I love voting. god, I am such a nerd. but seriously, how great is being able to do that? also, the lines were very short and I went to the right place (our town has a couple different voting places) so that made it even better!
* some other sweet things so far this week: falling back in love with old cds, baking cookies & delicious dinners, taking super hot showers, snuggling in tons of blankets

hope your week is off to a good start too!