As iron sharpens iron...

Today my beautiful best friend left for Thailand.

That sentence holds a lot of emotions. 

I am so thankful for Toby. When I returned from England, I prayed and prayed for an encouraging Godly woman to call a close friend. She came in an unexpected form, of someone very different from me, but someone that God placed in my life just at the right time and used immensely to bless me. She has become my encourager, partner in adventure, a wonderful bridesmaid, and confidante. 

Today she embarked on a journey to the slums of Pattaya in Thailand. I can't imagine anyone more perfect to rise up to this opportunity, but hey, that's why God called her, right? I have the privilege of hearing about what God is doing there in her and through her, and praying for her during the journey.

Shortly after she returns in six months, she'll be embarking on another exciting journey. Next summer, she will be marrying an incredible man named Kerrigan. Kerrigan is another person who God put in my life very specifically, although at a much earlier time. There were countless times that God imparted wisdom in my life through Kerrigan, throughout high school and early adulthood. 

These two have been a blessing to me separately, and I can't even begin to imagine the value they'll add to His Kingdom as they do life and ministry together, faithfully serving Christ.

Thomas and I enjoyed shooting their engagement pictures last weekend, and here's the first of a beautiful set:

I love you guys and thank God for putting you in our lives!

Happy 40th!

I just made my 40th sale on Threadflip.

"On what?" you ask? Threadflip is a fashion marketplace that allows you to sell your used designer and vintage clothing and accessories.

You set up your shop page, and Threadflip facilitates the payment processing and created the shipping label. Easy peasy.

If you want to try it out, you get $5 just for joining using my referral link!

http://www.threadflip.com/referrals/69z0

There's no fees or catches or clauses, just a great way to recycle your closet, and find used designer pieces!

Raindrops on Roses and Foxes on Mason Jars

I’m STILL finding uses for all of those mason jars from our wedding décor. Last weekend, I decided to top some with plastic animals.

My husband’s first response was to question the functionality, but I’m afraid there is none…

They’re just cute.

They function as jars, so you can fill them with your craft supplies, like beads and crayons, or bathrom good, like qtips and bath salts, or with your sewing notions, like pins and buttons, or office supplies, like pushpins and paper clips, or fill them with delicious treats to give to your friends. I’m sure they’ll say, “my, what a cute animal lid!” and not, “what purpose does this animal serve?”

ANYWAY…

Supplies:
Mason jars
Lids that fit your jars- these can be upcycled salsa or pasta sauce or jam lids, or new canning lids.
Figurines for on top- animals, toy cars, action figures, etc
Super glue/gorilla glue/ any glue that bonds both surfaces
Spray paint (I used Rustoleum Painter’s Touch Spray in Jade.)

Instructions seem a bit silly, as this is quite self-explanatory. But I will share my pictures as well as the mistakes I made so that you don’t make them too.

Starting out…

Animals successfully glued to lids.

Tom’s creation- some sort of flying deer hybrid creature.

Painted! This one was more successful than my first attempt, where I sprayed too close and too thick, causing bubbling during drying. Lesson learned: obey the spray paint can instructions.

I’m going to use these for crafty bits and bobs.

Voila! Quick and fun project. =]

Things I'm Thankful For Today

I know that everything I have is from God, but today I want to list some of the good things He's given me just this morning. They are little things, but little things make the big picture. And I never want to take any thing, no matter how little, for granted.

This morning I'm thankful for:

A husband who wakes up super early with me to read the Bible and eat breakfast together.

Breakfast cereal. (Om nom nom)

A beautiful, sunny walk to work.

A job that I can walk to.

Comfortable shoes to walk in.

Encouragement from coworkers.

The view out of my office window.

Coffee.

Happy Thursday, friends. We're almost there. =]

Invasion of the Grumpy Cat

So before you read this post, you should probably be familiar with who grumpy cat is. You can familiarize yourself here:  http://www.grumpycats.com/

Now that you've done that, here's what I spent my free time last night doing:

Photoshop makes the world a funnier place. Have a good day, friends. =]

Fondant Fun - Pokemon Style

I love making cupcakes. I love making things in general. But there aren't enough occasions to do so. So, birthdays are always my excuse to make cupcakes! These were for a friend's birthday, and were one of my first adventures with fondant.

First I made chocolate cupcakes and peanut butter frosting. Both recipes came from the book on my counter in the picture: 500 cupcakes. It's a keeper.

I started with a block of store bought white fondant, and picked a design that only required several colors of fondant: Pokemon! Then I split up my fondant and kneaded in the food coloring. This was sticky and messy and gross. Then I washed my hands. 

Next, I cut out circles the size of the top of my cupcakes, which conveniently happened to be the same size as a glass. So I used the glass like a cookie cutter. Then I spread some frosting on the cupcake, like glue, and placed the fondant circle on top.

I broke down the cupcakes down into shapes, and cut all of the shapes for the Pokeballs and Pikachu faces.

And then stuck them on using little dabs of water. Easy-peasy. 

The verdict? Fondant is not so bad. It's actually pretty fun. 

But I've seen Cake Boss, so I know I still have a long way to go. No fondant Mona Lisa's for me yet. I'll be sure to show you when I attempt, though. 

And I'm now accepting cupcake requests/challenges. =]

Clothing Without Commitment

You've probably heard of Netflix. It's a subscription service that gives you access to streaming movies and TV shows whenever you want them. You don't have to pay for the individual views, so if you don't like something, no money wasted, just stop watching it. It's a great service.

Let me tell you about something better. Imagine if you could do that with clothes... have a subscription closet. You can pick clothes whenever you want them, and if you don't like them, just send them back. For me, that's the ideal way to shop. I love the wide variety you can find by shopping online, but the risk factor of not seeing and trying before buying is daunting. 

So, thats where Gwynnie Bee comes in. For a monthly subscription you get access to an unlimited wardrobe, with free shipping both ways. Even better, you can use my referral link to try it for free for a month. I know I sound like a cheesy advertisement, but I have had SO much fun with my free month that I think you should try it too. 

You get a box in the mail with hand wrapped items that you can wear as much or as little as you want. There are prepaid return bags inside the box, so when you're done, you just drop them off at a UPS dropbox. There's no commitment. You can be adventurous and use the opportunity to try things you normally wouldn't, or you can use it to find something to wear for a special event. You don't even have to launder them when you're done. Here's a dress that came in my last box that I wore today:

It was fun and perfect for twirling in. And it's already in the UPS bag ready for me to return it tomorrow. The only downside is that they only offer sizes 10 and up. Sorry skinny minis. You'll have to eat some cake first. ;]

So click here to check out the collection, and if you like what you see, try it out. No commitment. =]