busy bee!

It's been ultra-busy around here... mind you, I wouldn't necessarily say "productive..." just busy.

Wednesday, was our 2 year anniversary, and we went to La Ronde - the very cool revolving resturant here in the city. It was a really neat experience. However, far too pricey a dinner for me to want to go there again. However, my entree was amazing!

Here are some shots of us at dinner, and the gorgeous scenery... (mind you, it's very hard to take photos out a curved window, when there are lights inside and out....)

After dinner, we were both stuffed, so nothing else got accomplished! But here's a peek at the 5 minute card I made him: NOT my best work for sure... but it was quick and dirty, and he's a guy, so I kept it simple.

Thursday - I had a craving for exercise on the way home (weird - I know!!), so we promptly went for a nice rollerblade. I think we're gonna try and keep this idea up (today wasn't a good day for this though..) After that, I got a little more knitting on my new scarf done, as I checked out most of the new Season Premieres that we had recording on the PVR. Everything was good so far - this is definetly the must-see tv night!!!

Here's a peek at what my scarf looks like so far. That's one small ball of yarn. I stopped when I ran out, and hope to continue tonight, if I can find the proper ball of yarn in the craft room. I really wanted a nice, chunky scarf, but may have under-estimated what it would look like - it's a little TOO THICK. Oh well, it'll keep me warm for sure!!

Note: Cory has already asked me for a scarf, a skull cap and mittens, which is weird because he doesn't really wear that stuff... guess I have to keep going with this....

Today: Our friends Chris & Kailie are now officially engaged, so Congrats to them!! Cory is heading out tonight for some congratulatory drinks, so I will use the time to get working on a project for the weekend: greeting cards!

My "little sister" Rebecca and I are meeting on Sunday for our usual outing. She asked if it was possible to make some cards, as she has quite a few October birthdays. I said I would design a bunch of cards, and she could stamp her heart out!! I'm gonna do up samples tonight. I might post them, I might wait til Sunday to reveal them. We'll see...

Other than that, it's going to be a quiet night, but I plan to get much done this weekend - starting off with some pick-ups (hopefully) happening tomorrow morning. I posted a bunch of stuff I want to get rid of, online last weekend. I managed to get bites on a few, and am gonna keep posting them till everything is GONE!!!

Quick post

It's been a busy week, but thankfully, I've got some fun stuff to post about - including some photos from what we've been up to.

Unfortunately, I can't do much posting at work... nor do I have photos here - so I will post when I am home this evening.

I've also got a fun couple outtings planned for this weekend....so check back!

1 + 1 = 2 years of love!!

Today is a special day at our house!! It's Cory and my, 2 year anniversary!

That's 2 years of being together....total. Yup, and in that time, we've lived in 3 places!!!

First, he moved into my little apartment, but when that got a little small, and we realized we could afford a bigger place, we found the condo/townhouse.

It was perfect for us.... except it had no yard and a lot of stairs.

Since we realized he and me were a forever deal... we decided last December to go "all in" and bought and built our first house together (my first house in general).

Thankfully, despite all the bickering and stress of moving twice already, we've made it through and are merrily on our way towards making this house, A HOME!

It might take a little lot longer than I expected... (blame work for that...), but it's a wonderful work in progress, and we're doing it together!!

To celebrate, he's taking me to La Ronde for dinner! Neither of us have ever been there before, but I hear it's wonderful!! It's also the city's only REVOLVING restaurant! Sitting on the 24th floor, we'll eat our dinner as we ROTATE, overlooking downtown and the beautiful Edmonton RiverValley.

I'm so excited - I've already gone online, and picked out what I'm having!! I love trying new resturants!

Anyhow, in honor of our anniversary, there will be not chores, or projects tonight - just quality time together and possibly a movie...

Hope you have a great one!

Another bathroom post....

No, not that kind...

I figured since I had shared my powder room and the master bath with you so far, might as well show you the 3rd bathroom in our house ( a 4th to come next year, when we finish the basement). We also have a "Main Bath" at the top of the stairs, which mostly functions as the bathroom for the guest room.

I guess since they're small, they are often the first rooms finished in a house. Also, since we're on a tight budget, I didn't buy one new thing for this one, just used what we already had!!

Here's a peek:

It's interesting to see how different items in a room, can greatly effect the way the paint looks. The wall color here, is the same as throughout our house: Antique Sterling by ICI paints. It looks a lot less blue here, than it does in most of the other rooms!

The artwork in this room is really simple, just three small black and white framed prints of New York landmarks, that I got years ago at Walmart.

The shower curtain is the one aspect I was really unsure about.... it was Cory's (brand new) from his bachelor days. It's a taupey waffle weave and was pretty expensive. I hung it "for now" after we moved, until I found something I liked. Initially, we both thought it looked "off" but it seems to work ok now. If I happen to come across something I must have, I'll snatch it up. Till then, this works!

The towels were a grea find a few years ago at Sears. Not only are they super soft - but they have the three colors I feature every where: chocolate brown, cream and turquoise blue!!

**There is a fluffy chocolate bath mat underfoot as well!!

I love the countertop in this bathroom. It looks so warm, and chic! The towel is a cream version of the chocolate bath towels and all the sink in here always SPARKLES!!

Since the bathroom is small, I keep tchotckes to a minimum, in here's it's just a simple gold tealight lantern ( perfect for adding a little ambiance at parties), and an Essenza reed oil diffuser! We have quite a few of these around the house, and this scent is so rich and warm - perfect for the space!

Last but not least, a detail shot of the beautiful kleenex box in here! No, i don't buy individual kleenex boxes for the room, I buy a multi-pack (cause I'm cheap), but I always try and pick ones from the pack that fit best in each room. This room was some much more warm and masculine compared to the house, but thankfully this box was the perfect touch!! It's hard to tell but it's all leaves, and rocks! In fact, it's so perfect, when it's empty, I'm gonna stuff a new box inside it!!

keeping it real

Guess who started a little craft project last night?

Yay! That would be ME! It felt nice to get back to creating. But a little weird because the substrate is a newer one for me, and I'm trying desperately to be good with it! YARN!

While putting something away in the gift closet, I spied a ball of yarn in the most amazing color combo, and suddenly decided that I had to re-learn to knit immediately!

I grabbed the knitting needles I bought last week (best spur of the moment purchase ever) and grabbed my books.

I've decided to go with a really simple long, chunky scarf. I went with a simple knit stitch as the yarn is kinda crazy, and a texture would really just get lost.

I'm a slow knitter, so this might take a while but I am determined to finish this one. Mostly, because I saw the most amazing purple yarn at walmart last time that would look gorgeous, but I refuse to buy it until I am finished with all the yarn I have now!

I didn't get a pic of my scarf so far, as I got engrossed in watching TV as I knit. But I will snatch one tonight for you.

What else? I may have some people coming by to purchase some of my old stamp arts tonight. I have the supplies and another neat little project waiting to get started this week as well (possibly inspired by Elise Blaha... We'll see how it turns out before I mention that though )

I also have a craft date this weekend to prepare for. As a volunteer with Big Brothers Big Sisters, I am a mentor for a 14 year old girl, Rebecca. We try and meet every Sunday and do something new.

This weekend, we're slated to make some birthday cards, as she has a few birthday parties to attend. So I'll be busy this week, designing projects suitable for teens!

I've also started my get healthy, get fit plan and am eating healthier, eating less and being more active! Hopefully, I can keep that ball rolling.

Today: I have to hit the bank, get some gas, organize the stamp sets going out to new homes and find something fancy to wear for a very special dinner tomorrow night!

Inspiration : Craft Closet

This page got ripped out of an old Better Homes and Garden issue this week!!

And yes, I do mean one I rented from the library.....

Partially because the page was already ripped, and I didn't want to get dinged for wrecking it. Partially, because I saw it and fell IN LOVE!!!!!

I have officially fallen in love, and am determined to turn one of my closets into something that even slightly resembles this masterpiece!

Thankfully, we have some leftover wire shelving left from our master bedroom makeover....now just to hit up Ikea to score some boxes, baskets and more magazine holders

I'm adding it to the bottom of my home project list, so it might be awhile.. for now, it's tacked on my bulletin board!!

My lovely evening out...or "why I didn't get my fall bulbs planted or laundry done..."

Remember sometime last week when I mentioned I may be lucky enough to be scoring some concert tickets?

Well, I DID!

Yes, I was lucky enough to score two tickets to the Keith Urban concert tonight! A big shout out to Ideal Contracting who hooked my work up with 4 tickets to their SKY SUITE!!!! It was a fantastic show!!!!!

I'm not a hardcore country fan.... but I do like the occasional artist, and Mr. Urban is definitely one man who's as easy to listen to, as he is to look at!!

If you ever have an opportunity to see one of his shows.... GO!!! It was a wonderful concert. He sounds fantastic live, and is a true entertainer. As well, one of the most gracious performers I have ever seen - his crew gave out so much stuff!! More guitar picks, drum sticks, etc. than I have EVER seen!!! As well, he took the time to sign some tennis balls and then hit them out into the stadium!!! He makes his rounds in the crowd, and spent quite a bit of time off the main stage!

Plus, you gotta love it when a guy takes the time to tell the crowd how special a show this is, because his wife (Nicole Kidman) and little girl (Sunday Rose) have made the trip out for this show, and then the camera pans backstage to Miss Sunday Rose playing with the camera man!! **Our show sold out, and they added a 2nd one, so Keith's playing again on Tuesday, if you're local!!**

Anyhow, here are the two worst pictures, taken from my cell phone of the fantastic show!!!

So, please blogland, accept this as my excuse as to why I didn't get the laundry done, the kitchen cleaned, or my fall bulbs planted.....

I was busy spending the evening listen to this beautiful man sing..... *sigh**

Ensuite Bathroom

Hmmm... I just realized today that not only have I taken very little pictures of the furnished new house... but I certainly haven't posted much (other than my powder room and some living room pics).

I'm beginning to think that was because I've been seeing so many other bloggers beautiful spaces, that I've been embarassed by my own.... :(

But not really, I love our place, and know that despite having $0 to spend on new stuff right now... I'm working with what I've got, and as we get time/money/gifts.... this place will end up exactly as I want it!!

However, as I was cleaning today, I realized it might be a good time to show off what I do have so far....

So, without further ado... here's our Master Ensuite bath:

This photo most accurately displays the wall color, and the color of the vanity, which is the same throughout our house.

I am so glad that our exisiting shower curtain worked so well in this space!! I love it!!

The only thing I feel I am missing, is something for above the toilet... whether that's a piece of art, or a cabinet, or a shelf.... I'm not sure... Any ideas???

While I'm not a huge fan of displaying my toiletries, these glass Apothecary jars ( from Ikea ) are the perfect solution for storing these everyday items. Since they are white, they don't look ugly sitting out!

Why am I showing this weird shot? One, to point out the over-the-door hooks (Umbra) that we use to store our bathrobes on. Two, to show you the door profile we chose in the house ( we get a lot of comments on it!!)

The lighting isn't AWFUL.... but it is builder spec... However since we won't be here forever, I wasn't too interested in spending a fortune for something I LOVED!

Lastly, a nice little detail shot of a little basket that holds facecloths (usually it's nice and neat, but there are some cloths missing... )

So, that's it? That's where I get ready in the morning!! It's a bright little room that is fresh, clean and cheerful!! It's by no means that spa bathroom of my dreams.... but it's an ensuite, and it gets the job done.
Any thoughts, questions, ideas or suggestions for me??? Please, I'd like to hear from you!

Especially, if you have an idea of what I should do with the wall above the toilet!!

Cleaning House The Office

Cory is hard at work today... and so am I!

I decided to clean the house and what I really wanted to tackle was a little bit of my office.

Unfortunately, this room has been lacking some attention since we moved in, and things were shoved into the closet and haven't been looked at since.

When we started packing before we moved, I decided it was time to get rid of some stuff, and I've gathered lots of it together today, and started listing it online.

So far, my listings include some shoes (sizes 6 & 7) - most have never been worn!!

As well, some of my old stamp sets, from when I used to be a demonstrator for Stampin' Up!!

I figure there's no reason in keeping things I am certainly not using, so I'm putting them out there to find new homes!

While I'm on the topic of making room, I might as well mention that Kal over at Love Life is also having an online garage sale, so if you're looking for some great art, head on over there, while it's cheap, cheap, cheap.

** We have one of her prints hanging in our house!!*

carpet conundrum or ketchup chips and beer

Remember how I said I would post about the party "accident" on tuesday? And then there was no word about it yesterday? That's because it wasn't quite finished... But I figured I'd share the details anyhow. :

So yeah, the party went off without a hitch! Yay!

However, just after we escorted the last person out the door and had started to put things away, my brother called me to come upstairs (he had a bit to drink, so I offered up the guest room and he graciously accepted).
Right away, I knew something bad had happened. When I got upstairs, my fear was validated!

Martin had been sleeping, and felt the urge to purge. Not familiar with the space, we couldn't find the garbage can, so he made a run for it.... Unfortunately, standing up made it worse and he threw up right there on the floor. Then again in the hall to the washroom! Then again in the washroom!

I'll spare you the photos, but I'd like you to picture something: his stomach contents included lots of beer and a bag of ketchup chips! Yeah that's right- what you are envisioning is foamy bright pink stains on my cream berber!

I was not impressed! But, you can't really be mad at someone for being sick... So I grabbed dark towels and emptied a bottle of carpet cleaner.
Unfortunately, it was almost 3am, so I let it be for the night.

The next day I headed over to dad's and borrowed his carpet cleaner. I was pretty happy with it, when it was all said and done. It took 4 water refills and I was pretty air I'd gotten it all out.

When I checked a day later, I realized I had not! So I ran another 2 water loads over the stains.

I am going to check them tonight and hopefully the stains are gone. But, I am taking solace in the fact that as long as the dirty water is still coming out a bit pink, there's still hope of getting it out for good!

If after the weekend, it's still bad, I'll get a professional in to do it!

Anyone else have horror stories involving stains? Please share! Anyone have a secret tip or trick for stains, let me know!

(no longer) blinded by the sun

Well, you may remember we were realy stuck on finding appropriate window coverings for our dining room patio doors.

I really wanted to do a panel track system and really fell in love with the following fabric for said system:

Unfortunately, not only was the price tag a LOT higher than I wanted to spend... but we soon realized that we needed something a lot less sheer.
At the peak dinner hours, we couldn't even sit at the dining table, and working in the kitchen was incredibly hard.

(this picture doesn't even do justice at explaining how sunny it was.... it only turned out this dark, because every other picture was so sun-filled, you couldn't make the picture out!)

The only other reasonably priced option, was available via catalogue only, and since the color was "mushroom", I was a little wary of purchasing it, sight unseen. That. and the retailer is on my "never shop here again" list.

My next thought was to go with draperies, at least for the meantime, but I couldn't find anything I loved enough, that was black-out lined. Plus, I wasn't sure if the look would be a little too formal or not.

Anyhow, Cory (our resident cook) finally got so fed up this weekend, he dragged me out to buy something ASAP!!! We hit up a couple stores and came up empty! Pretty much everything we liked, was super expensive, and/or needed to be custom ordered. We needed something immediately!!

After a long temper tantrum and (almost tears), we ended up going home with some coverings on Sunday. Unfortunately, they are exactly what I did NOT want to come home with....

Yes, that's right, we got vertical blinds!!! (GASP....) Oh, and it gets better..... they are PVC!!!

How? WHY? - They were white, they were $47, and they could be brought home and installed in an hour!!! SOLD!!

When I came downstairs, and saw them installed, I have to say, I smiled. It was dark in the dining room. It was also a lot cooler inside. Plus, Cory did an amazing job (lined them up with trim on other windows and everything) and the white looks alright.

I'm still searching high and low for a replacement, but these will definitely do the trick for now. Plus, they were cheap enough that we won't be out a ton when I replace them...and I'll try and sell them online anyhow :)

Please don't judge me!! :)

fan-tastic!

I just found out there's a potential for me to be attending the Keith Urban concert on Sunday night!

I'm not a HUGE country fan, but I like it. And I most certainly like Keith Urban, so I'm beyond excited for this!

A girl here at work got tickets from one of our trades. Initially, it was suppossed to be 2 tix and I'd fill in if her bf couldn't go. But then, she found out it was 4! So I am pretty sure she's gonna share with me. Almost completely sure...p hoping and praying!


I haven't been to a concert since early 2000! And I don't even remember who I saw!

Oh and I think I forgot to mention, they're centre ice...skybox tickets! We wouldn't have to worry about refreshments and snacks. Plus, I wouldn't have to worry about not being able to see... Or hear... Or have to sit next to smelly people!

Fingers crossed for me!

Yowzers!

Well, this weekend was chock full for sure! Unfortunately, that means I didn't get all the things on my list done. But that's bound to happen when life throws new stuff at you, so I just rolled with it, and didn't let it get me down.

Friday - I spent on the couch. Reading a new book: "Remember Me?" by Sophie Kinsella. I like a nice, easy read and these books are great. I'll review it after I've completed it this week!

Saturday - while Cory was out and about, I cleaned the house and headed out for a few party essentials, as it was SURPRISE BIRTHDAY PARTY NIGHT!! The party went off really well, and had a great turn out! He was incredibly surprised! Thanks to Jarrett & Ashley for corraling all our friends and organizing one big, sneak arrival thru the basement door! He had no clue and was in total shock!!

Unfortunately, the downside of having a party, is the aftermath..... there was a bit of an incident, but I'll post more on that tomorrow, in it's own post (stay tuned)

Sunday - due to Saturday's accident, plans changed drastically, and we spent the day running around for a saving grace! We also got some shopping done, and we now have a (temporary) sanity saver window treatment for the dining room patio doors - look for that on Wednesday!

Cory's super busy at work for the next little while at work and will be starting the 2nd job pretty soon, so I'll be on my own a lot. I've stocked up on library books, craft supplies and have a ton of projects planned! Hopefully, I can "busy" my alone time away.

Today: a mini workout, a long walk, cleaning the office, 2nd attempt at "the incident", some new knitting needles to try out, and maybe some crafty goodness!

weekend warrior

I took a week off from blogging. Mostly, I just didn't have much to say, and partially, I ran out of time.

Cory has been working very long hours lately, so he hasn't been able to get started on the coffee table project. :( My mom was also in town Wednesday, so that took up an evening for me. We found out that Cory got hired part-time at Rona , so he will be starting that this weekend as well!! Then, he had to help out a buddy who he owes some serious favors to ( Thanks Ryan!) with his landscaping for his new house.....

So, instead of moping about what I wasn't getting done, I decided to GET stuff done instead! I cleaned the house last weekend. Pretty thoroughly actually, organizing and cleaning out individual drawers and closets etc. I even got together another little pile of stuff to give away.

Plus, I have decided to stop holding on to things I'm not actually using. I can be an impulse buyer, and often have things sitting around the never get used/worn and often sit for weeks months years in my house with the price tags still on!! Time to change that. I am wasting my money!! So, I've decided to sell some of this stuff! I have a lot of clothes, and craft stuff that could find a new home.

I guess taking a week off was good, cause now I have a whole list of stuff to try and tackle this weekend:

1. I am hoping to take some time this weekend and take photos, and create listings for a bunch of stuff that can hopefully clear room in the house, and fatten up my bank account :)

2. In a glimmer of a creative spark, during a shopping trip with my mom, I remembered I wanted to pick up new (fatter) knitting needles, to hopefully help me out with the re-learning.... I have yet to try them, but with the cool fall weather, I am eager to get at least 1 scarf done before I throw in the towel!

3. I started downloading all the photos I've taken since I got a digital camera way back!! (No, I have not printed photos since then... except a couple crappy home prints for crappy projects). However, I am interrupted by cory so I need to finish downlaoding and deciding which to print. I'd like to work on a collection/book for our anniversary at the end of the month, but I think I might be too time-constricted!

4. I took a little look at my greeting card inventory (finally) and really have to start stocking back up! I'm still torn as to whether or not to start selling them again, as I find I lose interest when it is for business rather than pleasure.. we'll see!

5. I'm throwing Cory a surprise birthday party tomorrow night!! He has no idea, and since his birthday was last weekend, and everyone was out of town for the long weekend, and he had to work.... I really think he will be sooo shocked!! HAHA Got you babe!

6. I have a slew of home decor ideas brewing in my head, that I probably should get out a pen and paper and make a list, and re-itemize them. It might be a while before he gets started on some (with the 2nd job and all) and I'd still like to complete some things!!

7. I have three bags full of fall bulbs to get planted while the weather is still nice. Unfortunately, our landscaping (the front) was not completed by the builder yet, so I am afraid they'll be starting their lives in pots this year, and possibly will be transplanted once we have garden beds to move them to! (pretty pics to come)

8. I would like to hit up a flea market or antique mall, as I have been seeing a ton of great re-worked pieces on other blogs lately, and am feeling inspired! I really have no space for any new furniture right now, but it would still be fun to browse around and see what possibilities I would have.....

9. I stopped at the library last night ( but didn't go to the good one, so need to make another stop tonight ) I hope to start up the book review I had on my last blog, and share with you, some new reads!!

** There's a lot of ideas and brainstorming happening in my head right now, and Cory's busy, so I promise to get back on at home and update, and load pics and all that jazz. I might even have multiple posts each day... you never kow ;)

Anthro... really?

A few months back, we got our first Anthropolgie here in Edmonton. For years, I've seen images online, and read about all the beautiful things gals everywhere were pining over.......so I had to check it out.

Unfortunately, I just never made my way over to the mall. Today, I met a gf for lunch and a movie, and since we had plenty of time to spare before the movie started, we wandered around and I made sure to check it out.

I have to say, I was kinda disappointed.... another friend's description on it being a higher-end Urban Outfitters, was pretty much BANG ON!!

I hadn't expected that in the least, and while I did find a few cute things, I have to say, they were highly over priced!

One thing I did find and fell for, was this "C" monogram on a stand. As we both have the same first initial, I think it would be pretty cute to toss our monogram around this place. Anyhow, for the meantime, it's on my Birthday wishlist.



I think it's urban, and country enough to work for both of us, and it would look super great on the mantel!! I'm sending a link your way, Cory!

Next Project - A preview

Since we've finally finished the closet project, we talked last night about the next project: the coffee table transformation (there are also 2 matching end tables, in a different room).

Cory said he's most likely start on the work this week! YAY!

If you've been reading for a while, you might remember that we got these tables back in the spring:

Our well-off friend was giving them away when he moved into a new house. After much thought, I took them, realizing their potential.

Thankfully, the coffee table was perfect for our new space.... except for the color!

For the meantime, I've made do, by toning down the wood tone, simply by covering it up:

I simply took an old art piece I made last year and lay in on the shelf under the glass top. Somehow, it managed to be the perfect size!! (everyone has commented on it, thinking I bought the table with it!!!)

But my plan was always to stain them darker, to match the rest of our home.

Here's the color we're thinking, Minwax Ebony:

Stay tuned for progress on this project!