Holiday Table Setting

Christmas always calls for a big, fancy dinner at the Old Brick School House (aka Grandma Sharp's house).  My sister and I were able to head up north to help Grandma set up for the meal!  Below are two photos of what we accomplished.  Setting a table formally isn't as hard as it looks:

1 large plate in the middle

add smaller plate and/or bowl on top (optional)

2 forks on the left

1 knife and 2 spoons on the right

small salad plate placed upper left to large plate

a juice/wine glass and water glass above the knife and spoons

finalize the look with a fancy napkin fold

For these napkins, I simple followed a YouTube Tutorial - The Crown Fold.  TaDa!!

Happy New Year!

So, it's been awhile since I last posted something.  Things have been super busy with the Holidays and working more hours.  I headed up north for a few days to spend time with the family too.  Plus, playing with all the Christmas gadgets and gifts!  :)  My biggest gift was the Bamboo Create... above is my first little doodle with it.  I have a feeling it's going to take me awhile to get the hang of it.  I'll most likely be sharing creations along the way though... so stay tuned for some graphic art!

New Items

I've been spending some time working on my Etsy shop in between Christmas shopping / wrapping / cookie making.  Check out some of the newest items!

Above photos:

1.  Vintage Chambers leather belt with floral design

2.  Vintage floral clutch with a little sparkle

3.  Vintage Nine West lace up boots with 1" heel

Gingerbread People

Got in the Christmas cookie mood the other day and made some gingerbread people.  Made four of the cookies special for my sister and her roommates... thought it was cute to put their initials on them.

Congrats Sister!

Congrats to my little sister for being all done with college!!!  So proud of her, as well as excited for the adventures ahead!  Go Suzanney!!

Took a trip up to Cazenovia College with Mom and Dad last night to celebrate Suzie being done!  We were luck enough to catch a beautiful sunset on Cazenovia Lake while we waiting for the Brae Loch Inn restaurant to open for dinner.  Got some great shots in.  :)

Cazenovia Lake

Mom and Dad

Me, Dad, and Mom with the Grad!!  Congrats Suzie-Q!

Do What Makes You Happy

The Geneva Apple

Today was the opening of my new Etsy shop - The Geneva Apple.  This shop will feature my love for vintage finds.  Mostly home decor and small accessories, however it will include other vintage items depending on my discoveries!  Below are a few images of some of the items posted today:

The Geneva Apple

I'm that girl...

Absolutely love this from whimsy studio.

DIY Bracelets

Found an awesome DIY Blog and just loved these bracelets!  I had to make them for myself on my day off today.  The most challenging part about them is finding all the supplies.  I had the best luck at Michaels (and they always have coupons.. whoohoo!).  Unfortunately, I couldn't find waxed linen cord... I ended up going for a less costly material and used some cross-stitching thread.  You can try it with colored hemp cord as well.

Regret Nothing

Crocheted Christmas Garland

 

Above is a photo of an easy holiday project any crocheter can make!  I made this garland last night while watching a corny Christmas love movie on ABC Family (love watching the holiday films they play on 25 Days of Christmas).  The garland above can be made with red, green, and white yarn.  Just create a bunch of circular crocheted pendants and then chain them together.  You can make it as short or long as you would like.  For mine, I did 5 pendants of each color and then chained them together with green yarn.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Pumpkin Pie

Today I made 2 pumpkin pies for the first time ever.  And yes, I took a picture of mine... however they just didn't look as nice as the ones below so I figured I would post a pretty picture instead.  :)  Thanksgiving is almost here, one of my favorite holidays!

Morning Motivation

"Set your alarm for 6am.

Don’t groan when it goes off and pull the covers over your head, get up and start your day.

Put on a baggy top and running shorts.

Go downstairs and pour yourself a nice big glass of ice water.

Cut up some fruit and mix it in with yogurt.

Add some granola.

Now go outside.

Stretch for 10 minutes.

Skip for 5 minutes.

Jog for 10 minutes.

Run for 10 minutes.

Walk back.

Lay out a towel on the ground and lie down on it.

Do 200 crunches.

Yes, they hurt, but they are 100% worth it.

When you’re done, get in the shower.

Use a nice smelling shampoo and matching conditioner.

Shave your legs and wash your body.

Exfoliate your face.

Get out of the shower and let your hair air dry.

Look in the mirror.

Do you like what you see?

If you do, good for you.

Do this every day and you will continue to love yourself.

If you don’t like what you see, do this every day and pretty soon you will.

Being lazy might feel good at the time, but being active feels better in the long run.

How badly do you want it?"

Wow... just read this on Pinterest.com.  Total motivation to get started and run in the morning.  :)

Hand-Knit Keychain

What to do with extra yarn... I'm sure all you knitters out there have little scraps of yarn laying around that you don't know what to do with.  Instead of just getting rid of those pieces, below is an easy, quick project that will add some style to your keys. 

I created the yellow bow with a single cable stitch and then wrapped yarn around it to attach to the green tag.  These make for great little gifts or stocking stuffers!

The Voice

Hike to the River

Took a hike down by the Hudson River with Mom, Jackie, and Gabby yesterday.  A little chilly outside, but so beautiful.  Still some color left on the trees.  It was a nice way to spend the day before heading into a crazy night at work.

Knitting Finds

Love, love, LOVE these knitting projects below... may have to give them a try.

 

Up and at 'Em

No procrastination today... got up early to ship out a pair of hand-knit baby booties and run errands before work.  Even had time to enjoy a big cup of coffee and knit a little.  Happy Friday!!

DIY

Makes me think of snowballs... I may have to try this instead of cutting paper snowflakes this year.  A very elegant twist to the craft.

Let the Creativity Flow

Happy November!  Hard to believe we are starting a new month... my goal for this month is to spark my creative side more and start something new.  Found this list to help me do just that!

Have Passion

Dust Off Those Skis

So, yesterday is the official first day of snow.  I walked outside after work and had to wipe 2" of heavy, wet, white stuff off my car!  Crazyness... I'm calling it right now that it'll be a winter full of lots and lots of snow!  Get those skis and snowboards ready people!  :)

An Inspiring Story

I love all the blog postings of "Quit Your Day Job" on Etsy.  I found this one to be very inspiring, you never know what can happen if you follow your dreams and take a chance on something you believe in:

http://www.etsy.com/blog/en/2011/quit-your-day-job-poor-pitiful-pearl/

Write Your Own Story

Sheep & Wool Festival

Mom and I took a little trip to Rhinebeck this afternoon to check out the Sheep & Wool Festival.  The weather was perfect and the sites were beautiful with all the foliage happening along the Hudson River.  Overall, a very inspiring adventure!

Plenty of natural and dyed fibers to choose from.

Surrounded by all the vibrant colors and textures.

Mom catching some sun with great threads.

Wouldn't be a Sheep & Wool Festival without these guys!  Thanks for the great products!  :)

October Nights

Had a great day/night with the family Monday.  The highlight had to be the pumpkin carving and campfire to wrap it up!

MmMmMm... pumpkin guts!

Hard at work...

Gotta make the salty pumpkin seeds snack!

The finished products all glowing bright...

I don't know which is scarier... Jesse's face or our pumpkins.

Perfect ending to the night with an awesome campfire!  I love October... definitely one of my favorite months!

Homemade Curtains

I love a good craft or project for my apartment.

These curtains were an easy, fun fix for my living room!

I bought the fabric on clearance at Ikea for about $10 (with plenty left over - I think I may have to make some matching pillows!).  The hardware cost about $8 at Bed Bath & Beyond.  And the time spent making and installing the curtains was the fun part!