Here I am unpacking my goodies. I'm the most under dressed there!
Here are all the lovely ladies who attended.
I met some really lovely women & I'm so excited to see how they end up wearing & styling my old clothes!! I found some great stuff there and I'm so excited to refashion a few things. If you want to see how I end up wearing those finds, be sure to subscribe to my fashion blog.
all of the above photos can be found here, taken by Jessica.
I had a great time eating delicious treats, getting some new duds & getting to know bloggers I've never met in real life. Truly, all of the things I did last weekend were a testimony of why I blog: friends & crafting.
This halter wrap dress was one of the items I scored at the swap. I love the print & the skirt part. I'm tempted to refashion it into a skirt. Sorry the photo is blurry & gross. The lighting the last couple of days has been less than desirable in the studio. You get the idea, though. I found this wrap skirt (that I wore on Sunday) there, too. I love both of these pieces, but I know for sure I would've completely walked past both of them in a thrift store or any store for that matter. I don't do wraps. Well, not until now anyway.
Here's a list of bloggers that were there:
Cotton and Curls • Wearing It On My Sleeves • Sweet Serendipity • Meet Virginia Design • Frills & Bils • Feather's Flights • the stationery place • Life of a Passeri • Living on the Chic • Crowley Party • yours, mine & ours • Livy Love • madison avenue • brooke passion • A Day in The Life • Exhibit 221 • Harley & Jane • Snarky Drea • My Nutshell • The Sisters 4 say MORE is more...
It's so fun to have a bunch of new pieces to brighten up my wardrobe that didn't cost a thing! Have you participated in a swap before? I definitely want to do it again.
It was like 95º today, so wearing thick denim probably wasn't a great idea. Still, it's been years since I've worn these, so it was nice to bust them out. It was also fun to go to the Zoo with the chilluns.
I'm not one to ever buy something that I have to wear an extra layer with, but this dress was free & the pattern is totally adorable.
The first (left) shrunk so small, I seriously didn't have to take it in much on the sides (maybe a half inch) in order to fit Penelope. The second (right) got a few too many stains right at the bust line. It's not like my bust sticks out at all, so it's hilarious that that particular area was a magnet for stains.
It was sad to see them leave my regular wardrobe rotation, but at least I have a daughter who can wear them in hers! Here's what I did:
The striped shirt came with the little sash, so I just wrapped that around her tiny waist twice & tied a little knot. I LOVE how this looks on her. Seriously, the bright pink is such a fabulous color on Miss P. Overall this refashion took about 30 minutes. It was so incredibly sweet to see her reaction when I presented the new dress to her. She squealed, "Ooo, mommy! It's a princess dress!"
Aww. . . Pen, you know how to make your mom feel special. She was also surprisingly good about posing for me. Sometimes she's so excited about pictures she doesn't sit still for the 1/125th of a second shutter release, but she was more than happy to accomodate on Friday afternoon.
Speaking of cameras. . . I'm selling my Nikon D200. I'm also selling my Sony handycam 40GB hard drive HD video camera, too (as if that wasn't a mouthful). Contact me if you're interested.
I may have eaten like 10 of these. Oreo + cream cheese + chocolate = heaven
I've been collaborating with 
I did manage to get a little caught up on my outfit posts. When I don't have time to take a picture of an outfit that I'd like to share on my 
I'm headed off for a ladies' night. Can't wait!
It was a circus there, though. An employee passed me with a rolling cart full of new donations (that's when I spied the above bowls) and as soon as I started following her, a crowd of about 15 people swarmed around the crate like piranhas! Thankfully no one seemed interested in the bowls, so I discretely ushered them into my cart. I spent $4.50 on the set of 6 bowls. A steal in my opinion. They tend to go for 
Isn't Penelope so cute? She loved seeing the Flamingos today. I just couldn't help but share this sweet pic my sister-in-law took. I'll be taking pics of sweet Felix this afternoon. I'll be sharing those with you soon. He's getting so big!
So. . . have you found any good deals? I was impressed with your awesome finds from last week. 
I've been stewing over what to put on my case for 5 months! Gosh, you'd think I was designing my own tattoo or something. After I got something I was happy with, I ordered & waited. I'm so excited to have a case that has my style written all over it & protects my phone from Penelope.
The graphic nature of my repeat pattern was heavily inspired by the amazing work of 
Just a little FYI about uncommon: their shopping cart & customization is SO user-friendly & pretty. I was also quite surprised at their turn around. I ordered the case late Friday night & it shipped on Monday morning. It was in my hands within the week. Not bad for something so custom.
I found this great button-up at the Tooele DI while out on a little excursion with 
I don't really ever share these little sketches, but Jill says I should. So I will. I had envisioned switching the buttons in the front to the back & using the sleeves for pockets & doing a drop pocket in the front. I originally thought it'd be easier & faster than it was, but as I was going along, I made sure not to take any shortcuts which added to the time considerably.
I usually take shortcuts; just little ones here & there, but as I've refashioned more & more, it's not worth it to spend the time to refashion something if I'm not going to do it right the first time. It's pretty crucial to finish edges & hems properly. It takes a bit more time, but it looks SO much more professional. I started on this little project around 7pm and finished at about 2am. I ended up having to unpick everything in order to get the shape I want & that took about two hours. Every seam was finished with a regular stitch, a top stitch & a surged edge. It's a lot more work when you have to unpick 3 sets of threads per seam.
I'm really proud of the final product. I feel like it looks polished & not at all like it was originally a mens shirt. What do you think? Would you have passed this shirt up in the thrift store?
It was hot today! Yikes. Wearing a dress sure helped keep me from sweating puddles.
Also, it turns out that sewing leather is even more satisfying than sewing through paper. Not quite sure how that's possible, but it is. 
I had originally planned on making a really elaborate belt, but as I was working on the project, I decided to keep it simple. I'm glad I did. This belt is also perfect for layering with other belts. I love the layered effect.
Have you tried sewing leather with a machine? What are your thoughts about it?
Molasses Cookie Ice Cream!
I used molasses instead of maple syrup. Since the ice cream doesn't call for much sugar at all, it's not incredibly sweet. Which I like. But to add a little bit more sweetness & depth to the simple ice cream, I rolled each scoop in ginger, cinnamon & sugar. Oh, it's good. It's the perfect amount of sweet. This particular recipe (probably because of the 2 cups of cream it calls for) sets up really well in the ice cream maker.
It's the perfect sort of craft to do with friends and/or while catching up on your shows! 
Penelope looked much too cute today. I couldn't pass this little photo opportunity up. And, she naturally poses just like that. What a ham.
She sat down & went through patty cake while I was snapping away. Wish my camera had a video mode. Total Cuteness Overload.
It was almost refreshing to go to Thrift Town. It was like there was a whole different demographic of people donating & shopping there, so there were some pretty unique things there. I found this gorgeous chair sitting triumphantly atop a large shelf. I knew I had to have it. It was $8; a little more than I'm used to spending on chairs at thrift stores, but well worth it. I'm not going to complain.
I wish I knew what brand/designer and era this chair was from. There are no markings indicating anything like that. Any of you savvy folks out there know possibly where this chair is from? I'm so in love with it, I think this baby needs a mate.
Have you found any good deals lately? A couple weeks ago, Heather scored a 
I love this leather! It's so smooth & soft and the tips of the feathers curl out, which I love. All I did was cut out the little pattern pieces & glue them onto a headband & glued felt underneath the leather for sturdiness. Simple!
With that said, my cousin-in-law found these boots for $5 but they didn't fit her. Gladly I took them off her hands! The leather is in near perfect condition. Maybe I'll wear them the next time I go glamping. Or Gliking. That's glamour hiking, in case you didn't catch that last one. Either way, I'm totally ready for all the snow next winter (and next spring).
I just finished off the rest of them this afternoon when I made a fresh lemon strawberry granita. After trying out 
My version: Strawberry Lemon Granita
I just took this tank in a little bit at the shoulders. Took about 20 minutes & Now it covers the dirty pillows.
Wore the dress as a skirt. So comfy!
I love the grey patent leather. I'm thinking when I get brave enough, I'll draw on the leather and add fun textural details to it.
On an exciting note, I was just floored & extatic to see 
Print and cut out pattern pieces. Tape onto leather. Carefully cut two inside slits with an X-acto knife & ruler. Punch holes then cut out perimeter of the pattern.
Tape your leather to a sturdy surface, like a desk or slab of wood. Start a tight braid with the farthest right strand & count each time you cross a strand.
Ignoring the bottom part as you go, count up to 6. Once you get to six, start untangling.
Look at the bottom part, the strand that’s on top should go through the hole. Follow the strand with the end of the bracelet.
Once you’ve followed through that end, your ends should look like this. Take the right strand & smooth it out. the end will want to go in between the right & middle strands. Once you’ve untangled that, start your second set of 6. You might need to untangle as you go as you run out of room. The bracelet pattern uses two sets of braids.
Once you're done braiding, your bracelet will look a little lumpy. Don't worry. Just give it some time & it'll break in nicely.
Once you're finished braiding, you'll attach snaps or button-studs.
Wear on your wrist for a couple of days to break it in. Be sure to get it wet if you'd like for the braids to lie flat. ENJOY!!
I just got a dress form in the mail today. I'm very excited to get started on a project. First up? This amazing number I scored from Savers about 3 years ago. I've been meaning to do something cool with it ever since I bought it.
Jill was the one who painted the pouch on the right. Didn't she do a fabulous job? I would've either done a solid color or chevrons. I love that she has a different perspective than I do. She helps push me forward with my style & design. Click the button below to download the printer-friendly version of this tutorial & for the pattern pieces. I’d love to see how you make this tutorial yours! Email me pics or link to your pics in the comments.
Today, I'm over at the 
I'll be emailing you details. Congrats ladies!
I love this shirt.
