Flower Power

Flowers have always been a part of my life. As a child, I spent countless hours with my mom at the garden center picking out flowers, choosing color and growing season combinations, and then helping plant them. She taught me all their names and how to love and care for them. 

Whether you're an avid gardener or just a flower lover, having fresh flowers in the house just makes everything a bit more cheery. That said, I bought these tulips at Trader Joe's yesterday! I fully advocate for buying flowers for yourself, but it certainly is fun when a certain someone brings you some "just because flowers" and today, someone did! However, I realized after receiving said flowers, that my TJ's tulips were occupying my only vase (How do I only own one vase?!). So, I decided to break up the bouquet. Growing up, my mom was always putting little blooms from our garden around the house in little vases and jars. Use what you have!

 

Left picture, from left to right:

1. Mini vase trio, purchased years ago at Williams-Sonoma (similar)

2. Vase, old from Target

3. Emptied and cleaned mini Orangina bottle

*Tip: to extend the life of your flowers, make sure your stems are free of any leaves/foliage to prevent bacteria growth. Adding a few drops of bleach to the water can also help with this. Also, adding a small spoonful of sugar gives your stems a little something to munch on to keep 'em perky a few days longer. 

Go buy yourself some flowers!

DIY #1 of a zillion

Alrighty. I promised far too long ago a long list of DIYs and home re-arranging. Welllllll, let's just say I am my mother's daughter. Let me explain. My entire life (and probably hers too), my mom has consistently had at least two projects going at once. When I began my first project, (re-habbing a dresser) my dad came home from errands and said, 

"OH NO! There are TWO of you!!!"

This is because he knew that as he watched me put the first coat of primer on said dresser, I had already begun re-doing my grandmother's worn brass bed (that was sitting in their basement waiting to be finished).Our antics drive him crazy. Good thing we're loveable and make pretty things.

So, because I am my mother's daughter, those other two projects are still in holding at my parents' house. Oops. Here is another fun little DIY to tide everyone over (well, Lorri, since she's the only one that reads this). Most of this crazy spurt of project-ing has been brought on by www.pinterest.com. I found a lovely shade tutorial while clicking around about a month ago and instantly knew it was the solution to a lamp that had been causing me trouble. Waaaay last December, I ransacked my Grammie's basement and scored two sweet lamps, but ever since, I've had a terrible time finding a shade to go with either. 

The entire tutorial for my lamp-saving solution can be found here. This is how hers turned out: 

thenewlywife.com

See how I was so inspired? Genius, this girl is. She gives awesome instructions (and even made her own shade structure!), but basically, this is how it went:

-I adjusted for making a table shade, rather than for a chandelier (sorry I didn't take a picture of the before-naked shade or the hot-gluing process). I started with a basic "small" sized dome shade, easily found at places like Lowe's or Target. 
-Brown "pleater" fabric came from JoAnn's. I bought two yards to be safe, but only used about one.
-I used a white colored pencil and the top of a large spice jar for tracing (trace the circles on the reverse side - it's easier to draw on and you don't have to worry about lines on your circles - #2). 
-Once you cut out the circles, paint only a few at a time (like 5-7) and then fold/unfold them (see #4) so you can get some texture. 
-Also, the major problem I had in finding a shade to begin with was that I couldn't find the right shape. I could find dome shades the right width, but not long enough. Shades with the right length were too wide and dwarfed my base. This is the beauty of creating your own! Since you are overlapping your painted circles as you hot glue them around your shade, it's super easy to add a couple of extra rows to extend the bottom (#5).
-You'll noticed I trimmed the top and bottom so that I have a straight edge, but you could certainly leave it alone for a scalloped edge instead.

 BAM. Problem solved. 

Playing catch up

Well, hello folks. Long time, no blog. Kerry running around like a crazy person without time to even take out the trash/recycling (GASP-gross, I know)=no blogging whatsoever. My apologies.

I now have been at my new job  for over 4 months (how did that happen?!) and lived in my glorious Plaza apartment for just short of 5. The apartment is great and full of lots of charm. Including window AC units. That I refuse to leave on during the day for the sake of saving energy. However, when my apartment was 100 degrees at 10 pm when I arrived home last night, I said the heck with energy. So for my sanity and overall coolness, I left them on today. Al Gore, please don't chastise me.

I'm in the process of refinishing multiple pieces of furniture and re-evaluating the set up of the apartment. Before and afters to come!

I HAVE NOT BEEN COOKING. Bad, Kerry. I feel inspired constantly, but at night it feels daunting and I end up eating a granola bar or chips and dip. Oops. I blame it on the heat. 

My job is going quite well. I went to Puerto Rico in April for a meeting about a conference I'll attend there in October. I attended our Annual Conference in Indianapolis in June and was so humbled by the enthusiasm and praise I received from board members and attendees alike. It's great to be appreciated! Truth be told, the transition back to the desk has been a major challenge, but I'm excited about some fall happenings that could yield more responsibility. YAY.

For your listening pleasure, please check out the lovely Edith Piaf. There is something so timelessly charming about classic French music. All the more reason to learn French. Ahhhh add it to my to-do list.

MORE NEWS!

I've got 2  job offers on the table! 

How did I ever get so lucky? It makes me 

feel as though this year of navigating precariously through limbo was all 

Worth it.

I've even found an amazing one 

bedroom apartment I can actually 

     afford 

in the 

Poet's District on the 

Plaaaazuh.

Things are looking up, folks.

I'm a big kid now!

BIG NEWS!

The day has finally come. 

I am moving out.

I've been thinking about it a lot lately. 


Obviously, I have not found a job out of state. 




It's time to be a grown up. 

I am getting my OWN place. To my self, by myself. Accountable to no one. 

I used to think signing a lease and getting a place in Kansas City was failing. Quitting my dream. But what it really is, is succeeding! I've saved plenty of money, I have great friends, I work crazy hours, and I love my life. My parents are a great support system and I love them. I am so grateful for their patience as I've climbed up and down this crazy roller coaster of the last year and a half. Just one question...

Where should I live? 

Headed to a Hootenanny

According to the "official" Walnut Valley Bluegrass Festival website, there are only "232 days 'til the Walnut Valley Festival"! WOO HOO! Who's with me? Bluegrass (at least to me) is something you just can't help but like. 

COME ON. 

You just try not to have fun whilst some hillbilly wails about his mama's kitchen spoon. 

(Okay, you caught me. I made that up)

But, seriously.

CAN'T WAIT!

P.S. If you're REALLY interested, you can buy a ticket for all four days for the super sweet price of only 70 smakeroos!

Already cleared it with mah hunny...we're gonna see us-selves a show!

Ready...set...go!

Alright, folks. I've been doing a lot of thinking this month, being the new year and all. And I have whole-heartedly decided that

2011

is my year.

It must be my year, otherwise I will be that 25 year old still living with her parents.

FOCUS