Guess who's back, back again

Oh hiiii, yes I have a blog, no I don’t write in it every day week. Why? Sometimes I’m lazy, sometimes I just can’t think of anything to write about, I just write when the muses inspire me. So consider today a catch up day and be ready for some random ramblings.

Last night we stayed up late eating cookies & drinking Stella because it was draft night!! So excited for my blogger girl’s league! After the draft my new team name is Brady & the Bean – because I draft Brady, duh.

 

Draft day faces... how cute is Karoline??

We ordered a new rug from Ballard Desgins... its gonna be here on Thursday and I CAN’T WAIT. Next we need an end table, a new ceiling fan then hardwood floors.

I celebrated many things this past weekend, my Mother-in-law’s birthday, Halie’s Wedding Shower, and M.E.’s friend's 30^th birthday bash. Here’s a picture dump:

 

We have almost officially decided on our Honeymoon destination! It will be official once we order our passports and order the tickets! Originally we were thinking Jamaica... now we’re thinking Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic. The fact that we just like saying Punta Cana has a really big part in the decision.

 

Bathroom: Bam!

Hey y'all! I have nothing too exciting to share about my weekend, it was pretty low key and relaxing...
Friday night we were both craving steak and went to Logan's, them steaks were amazing. Saturday I met my Ma and my brother AJ at the bridal shop and tried on MY dress! Its officially mine mine mine! So exciting and surreal and really hard not to share every little detail about it... Saturday evening M.E. and I went to Red Elephant and drank lots of wine at the house while watching old reruns of Dawson's Creek - the wine made us do it. Sunday we sat around, grocery shopped, did some laundry and sat around some more. Oh and made some amazing chicken Caesar sandwiches. I would share the recipe but I forgot to take a picture so maybe next time. *bad blogger*

Speaking of pictures, I didn't work on the bathroom at all this weekend but here is a sneak peak, before and after shot!

Bam! Now all I need to do is clean and find a new place for the toilet paper which hasn't seemed to move...

5 on Friday & #Backthatazzup

I'm back again, two days in a row?? Impressed right?
1. Guess what M.E. did yesterday? He finished the toilet. Yeah, he's pretty much the best fiance ever, check it out.

2. Guess what I made for dinner last night? Mexican shells and they were deliciously fattening. Check out the recipe here (I made beans and rice to go with.)

3. Guess what Mama and I are doing tomorrow? Picking up my wedding dress! Yup it was delivered super duper early to the Bridal Shop and now its time to take home! And by home I mean my parent's house because I don't want M.E. accidently peaking!

4. Getting a new roof today lalalaaaaa.

5. Next week is a 3 day week with a 4 day weekend! WHAT? So excited. Go America go!

The last 4th of July!

Weak Arms

Hello bloggies…. Let me start off by saying that I am so sorry I have abandoned you almost the entire month of June! What the heck? Where has the month gone?? Before I start on my morning rant, here’s a quick recap of our June:

Our dear friends, the Bryants, are expecting their first baby Bryant in Decemeber and I am sooooo excited! Laura is already such a cute little mommy with her little belly and I cannot wait to meet this sweet little baby!

Our other dear friends Danny & Cristi (who we stayed with in NYC when M.E. proposed) got married this past weekend! Cristi was a beautiful bride and we had a blast celebrating their love – they certainly know how to throw a party! (Steph & I wore the same dress - lookin like the wannabe bridesmaids!)

As you know, we started renovating the downstairs bathroom. Remove old toilet – check. Wallpaper off – check. Paint walls – check. Paint vanity top and body – check. Caulk everything – check. Install new toilet – half check. Decorate with pretty new accessories – half check.

Now let me explain these half checks... The new toilet is completely installed EXCEPT for the fact that it is not connected to the water line yet. We have the new connector (the old one was too short) and I was going to plug it all in last night while M.E. was at baseball but I was not strong enough to undo the bolt – which was VERY frustrating. So I drank a bottle of wine. As for the pretty new accessories, the mirror just needs another coat of paint, the crate/shelf needs to be mounted to the wall, and the shower curtain rod needs to get its act together. You see, this morning I thought I would just simply hang up the new shower curtain. Nothing has yet to happen simply. For the life of me I could NOT unscrew that curtain rod to adjust it to the right length. I was in that bathroom for 30 min this morning trying to get that stupid thing to work. No such luck. So when I got to work I ate a donut.

My sweet sweet fiancé promised he would have both of these things in proper working condition by the time I get home tonight… I think I will have a meltdown if he can’t do it. We have a friend coming over for dinner and I am dying to debut the new potty! Check back tomorrow for pictures, hopefully!

5 on Friday!

here!

 ONE 

Finishing the bathroom! Install new toilet, install new faucet, finish painting vanity, spray paint 'accessories', wait anxiously for the mailman to bring my new shower curtain!

A before pic! So nasty its embarrassing!

TWO 

Brunch with my bridesmaids at Meg's lakehouse! Mimosas, girl talk, hopefully some sunshine & laying out!

Lakehouse view!

THREE 

Sleeping in and being lazy with M.E.

FOUR 

Depending on the weather, watching fiance play baseball on Saturday and walking around Southwood for some exercise!

FIVE

 #backthatazz up, duh.

 

Weekend Recap: Living Room Reveal!

Happy Monday bloggies! I hope everyone had a fantabulous weekend!

With M.E. out of town, Bo and I spent most of the weekend in bed or painting... Friday night I had a little too much fun celebrating Lori's birthday out on the town and paid for it on Saturday...

Photographic evidence of too much fun!

Once I finally got over my headache, I got my butt to Lowes so I could finish my projects before M.E. came home! I actually don't have any pictures of what I painted though, womp womp, bad blogger. Last weekend I painted the living room area from tan to gray, this weekend I painted the dining room area from tan to gray. So the pictures below should give you kind of an idea of the transformation.

Before

After!

Obsessed with my C. Wonder candle & Columbia sangria pitcher!

My terrarium is just so cool.

New shelf! Can never have too many shelves...

And a new coffee table tray for the remotes and my new Volcano candle!

There are a couple more things I'd like to change in here: like a new fan, new rugs, new side table & someday wood flooring... But I think its coming along pretty nicely!

I hope everyone spoiled their mommies yesterday and had as much fun as I did with my new Mother-in-law and my Mother!

DIY: Windows & Moss

Happy Tuesday Bloggies!

Happy Tuesday from Bo!

Yesterday I told y'all about our house project adventures and mentioned the little DIY decor projects I made for our new mantel! I wish I had pictures to show you what they look like in all their glory on the new mantel but the mantel hasn't fully dried yet so... patience, maybe this weekend!

Picture Window

Pinspired by this

 This project cost me a whopping $7! I had an old window from my Mimi (she's an antique collector/seller so she finds things for cheap!) but you can normally find them at any antique shop, craigslist... I even had a friend find some when she spotted construction workers replacing windows at a house in her neighborhood (lucky!). You can upload your photo to Staples and they will print an engineer print for $7!

• old window
• duct tape
• scissors
• large photo

The most important part is measuring your window and then choosing a picture that has a composition that works. For example, don't choose a picture where one of the window beams is directly in front of your face, not cute. So measure your window and resize it using photo software (I used pixlr.com). Once you have your print, cut it out, and tape it to the back! Done!

Moss Letter

Pinspired by this

 Warning: messy project

•  scissors
• hot glue gun
• moss mat (found at Michaels, its moss glued to a net, so its easy to trace/cut specific shapes)
•  letter
• pen/pencil/marker

Open up your moss net stuff, pre-apologize to your fiance for the mess you're about to make. Lay the moss face down and trace your letter. Cut out your letter and glue the moss to the letter! Continue on cutting shapes from the moss and gluing. No need to make precise measurements, if you leave a spot uncovered, just glue some of the moss that has exploded all of your work area onto the funky spot. Done!

House Projects, a Weekend Recap

Happy Monday Bloggies!

I read somewhere (probably Pinterst) that if you smile as soon as you wake up then you're guaranteed to have a good day. I forgot to smile immediately but I'm trying to stay positive! Mondays are just so hard. Especially when you spent all weekend on house projects and when you left for work this morning the place still looks like a mess.

Remember this post about my dreams of home redecorating? Well this weekend we took a step in that direction. Saturday, after a trip to Lowes and lunch with my sweetie, the transformation began. I stripped and sanded the mantel (definitely giving my arms a workout) and stained the wood a darker color to match the furniture in the room. Then a panicked for a little bit because the stain wasn't drying, but I was patient (rare I know) and didn't touch it at all and luckily this morning it seemed ready for some polyurethane (that'll happen tonight). I also painted the walls that were tan a nice gray color, makes the room look brighter and larger! Love it! M.E. and I were hesitant during the first coat (looked kind of purple) but once it dried I'm in love!

I wish I had some pictures to show you but its such a hot mess right now I can't. Give me 2 more days!

While I was patiently waiting for everything to dry, I did a couple of DIY projects:

 A moss letter for my future last name and a window picture! Both super easy and super cheap. Come back tomorrow for these DIY tutorials and maaaaybe some pictures of the new living room!

I'm trying to be enthusiastic about this upcoming week but I'm just kinda dreading when M.E. goes out of town on Friday, Bo & I don't like it when he's gone! I do have a couple of fun lunch dates planned though, including my first blate with Ms. Halie! And this weekend I have plans with my bestie to go see The Big Wedding and watch some live music. Oh, and some more house decorating because that's what M.E. has come to expect when he goes out of town....

 

Deams of House Projects

Once we’re married, M.E. will have about 2 more years before he’s done with school and an FSU Alumni! Until then we are staying in the townhome his parent’s own to save money/we can’t afford to live anywhere else.

Well, I think know I’ve said this before: before I moved in, this house was a serious bachelor pad. He was happy with the way things were in there, good enough for a man and his dog. But M.E. has been pretty supportive lenient with my cleaning/decorating various parts of the house; although, in my opinion we’ve still got a LONG way to go.

I’ve got lists upon lists of what I would like to get done…

List #1 – the ASAP NEEDS TO GET DONE YESTERDAY List

• Roof (serious leaks and creatures living up in there… it can be terrifying sometimes, I’m not joking)
• Downstairs bathroom (because we are too embarrassed to let anyone in there)
• Stairs (the house is a townhome on stilts and the outside wooden stairs need to be replaced before one of us falls through)
• Clean out “carport”/under the house – aka haul away all the crap

List #2 – the Make-things-more-aesthetically-pleasing List

• Paint the exterior (I've been watching too many episodes of HGTV's Curb Appeal)
• Wood/laminate flooring in the living/dining area
• Re-paint the kitchen cabinets (for the 2^nd time, the 1^st time I surprised M.E. when he was out of town… his first taste of my decorating invasion... But it wasn't perfect so I'm gonna do it again!)
• Paint the living/dining area from tan to a light gray (because according to Pintereset, gray is the new tan for walls)

And my newest decorating obsession idea – whitewash the fireplace. I thought I had gotten permission from M.E. when I asked if we could have a white fireplace like our interior designer friend, Laura Bryant Designs, and he said “sure.” After talking about it a little more he realized I meant our fireplace current in our house (what other fireplace would I be speaking of?!) and he totally nixed the idea and crushed my dream. Plan B is just to stain the mantel to match our dark furniture.

I’m still holding out hope though… Maybe some pictures will convince him…


Our home now



Our fireplace to be?!



 

DIY - Golden Polkadot Bowls ($1 Store Craft)

Happy Friday Bloggies! Its almost the weekend - where we get to sit on our butts and wish we had money to shop and/or redecorate the house! This weekend I plan on ripping wallpaper off the walls and then laying on the couch because the weather ain’t supposed to be that great…

Speaking of redecorating and wishing for money, last night I was inspired to create a dollar store craft. I was inspired by For Chic Sake - such an easy project that looks so classy!

Golden Polkadot Bowls

NOTE: Do NOT eat out of this bowl. Spraypaint is not good for you.

Step 1: Gather supplies!

White bowl - $1

Stickers (could use any shape! these circle garage sale stickers worked great) - $1

Gold spray paint (had some at the house already) – free!

Painters tape (had some already) – free!

Step 2: Stick those stickers! (Actually wash the bowl first so there’s no dust or anything) Make sure you stick those stickers really well, wouldn’t want any paint seeping underneath! Also, tape around the outside.

Step 3: Spray that sucker! One coat will do. Then let it DRY. I got a little overeager and started pealing the stickers too soon. Be patient! After about an hour, peel away. Some paint may have gotten underneath your stickers and left less than perfect circles. Its cool, mine did – it adds character.

Step 4: Bring it to your office to make all your coworkers jealous or your sweet one-of-a-kind paperclip holder.

TIP: So many color options! A patterned bowl with black spray paint? A black bowl with neon spray paint? These would make great gifts!

Room Revamp

The first time Mark invited me to his bachelor pad, he wouldn’t let me in the downstairs room. I think I peeked the next time I was over while he was in the bathroom or something - it was a mess. At one point he had had a roommate, and then it was Bo’s room, and now it was a junk room. And the connecting bathroom? Forget about it. We had been dating several months before I was brave enough to venture in there.

Finally I convinced him it was time to clean it up, so we moved some things around and with some help from a buddy he installed hardwood floors. It was decent enough to leave the door open after that – not quite an eyesore any more (but the bathroom still needed some help.)

Then I moved in and it became a Mark/Angie junk room. It sat like that for a couple of months before we attempted to organize it again.

WELL Mark was out of town this past weekend and I decided it was time to get that room’s act together once and for all. I mean how can I plan an organized wedding when our house is an unorganized mess?!

before

after

before

after

before

after

before

after

 You’ll be surprised to know that I didn’t throw anything away! I just found a home for it all – and that’s where the bed raisers really came in handy. Also, I started a ‘garage sale’ pile. You know, just in case we ever have a garage sale……...

Also check out my sweet curtains, closet curtain, and new long bed skirt (because I raised the bed I needed an extra long bed skirt). Both made from canvas drop-cloths I got from Home Depot for cheap!! I got my inspiration here:

http://meganbrookehandmadeblog.com/2012/08/diy-drop-cloth-curtains-no-sew-curtains.html

http://www.littleloveliesbyallison.com/2012/05/tutorial-easy-diy-bed-skirt.html

I apologize for not having pictures/instructions of how I made my linens, I was too exhausted from moving the bed and the carpets around to think about trying to find a camera.

 

I got the results I wanted: the room doesn’t look like a college guy’s room anymore, but it’s not too girly. And although it’s a storage room for sure, I’m not embarrassed to let people see it!

I have a couple more projects to finish, like the chevron canvas and some pillow covers from the leftover drop cloth, but that’s for a later date, another weekend when Mark leaves me alone to entertain myself…

Although he did promise to help me re-do the bathroom.