Speckled nails

Just painted my nails :) wanted to show 'em off

O.P.I. released a line of "Shrek" nail colors

and they're super bright and fun

Blue- "Ogre The Top Blue"

Green- "Who The Shrek Are You"

I wish I could get a better closer picture,

I had to zoom in here, so you can't really see it clearly,

(and ignore how awkward looking my hand is here)

but it's very speckly & tie die looking.

You could play with layering some patriotic colors,

very fireworks looking :)

Got the idea from here
you just sponge on layers

It's been the best weekend!

Just had to pop in & blog a bit about how ecstatic

I am right now! The week was a little rough,

but once Friday got here,

I received The best news! And I've been on cloud 9 ever since!

Had fun with friends, relaxed, had another wonderful morning in church today, went swimming at a friend's house...

everything's been pretty great!

But Friday was the best! And I can't wipe this smile off my face! :]

The Lord is really opening some amazing doors

for me right now & I am so thankful!

And this week is lookin' pretty good too!!!

Twilight Saga: Eclipse premiers Wednesday 6/30/10

but luckily I have Twilight *Trilogy* tickets in IMAX

for Tuesday's midnight premier!!

Exciting news, fun times, and plenty to look forward to!

Life is good!

And now it's thundering outside my window,

and my cushy bed is beckoning me!

good night sweet world!

Summa time!

In June, I'm hosting a garden party for my girl friends to come over and hang out. It's a Mad Hatter Tea Party theme and it's been several months in the making. I can't wait! I'm a girl on a budget, but I'm gonna make this work!

Isn't this a cute vintage wonderland?Been a Baking Betty today

(any excuse to wear one of my sassy kitchen aprons)

making Lemon Squares & Pecan Tarts, and testing out a few different finger sandwich recipes.

The girls all have their invites,

and everyone seems pretty excited about it.

[ Posting a picture of the invitations I made soon ]

They're texting me about finding new dresses, or digging thru closets and getting their favorite sundresses out, or what foods they're going to bring. I'm still trying to find/make a croquet set.

A true Alice in Wonderland fan.

Trying to turn my backyard into a little Wonderland. But I rent a house in a relatively new neighborhood where every house looks the same and no tree is above 6ft., so I'm going to have to be creative with decorations and shade from the June summer heat. I definitely have a blank canvas. I'm on a constant hunt for baskets, and tea cups, and cute country fabrics/tablecloths.

I found a great little hutch someone was tossing out :)

and yeah... I took it.

[Post a picture of it soon too]

It was a bright orange coral color when I found it,

but plan to paint it either

A) Medium Purple

B) Pretty Dark Turquoise

C) Apple/Lime Green

(a small part of me wants to paint it a hot pink, because never again would I ever have a pink hutch if i had to purchase it)

That's all for now... don't wanna give away too many surprises with some of the girls peeking on my blog ;)

images via Google

It's almost TIME!!!!!

Do you smell World Cup in the air?!?!?

WOOO WOOO!!!!!!!!!!

I've waited 4 long years and

I

am

ready!
It's the ultimate football season!

I wish I were in Malaysia for this so I could watch the games with my family and friends, among crowds full of dedicated football fans! Last World Cup was in Germany 2006, and I was in M'sia loving it! Coffee shops, pubs, and street cafes stay open allll night with big screens showing the games, and hundreds of chairs filled with all eyes on the tvs! I LOVE IT! Hopped up on caffeine, we had games on at 2:00am with the time difference, and everyone was screaming and jumping. I was at Coffee Bean a lot! I liked going to the mamak stalls (street cafes) the most though. It's comfortable there. Where your uncles have known the owners for decades.

All in all

World Cup = so much fun.

Fifty times better than the Super bowl!

Being in the states, we have fans, but I don't think you can quite understand the excitement. It's EVERYWHERE. Walking down any street you can see like 15 screens showing the latest game, or a replay. It's intense. People in the US are asking me "whats the world cup? oh, it's like a soccer game?" Umm no. You see everyone representing their own countries or their favorite teams alike, it's like The international event that's fun and exciting and puts people across the world on the same wavelength. Eveywhere people are watching the same games, and checking in on the scores. Here in the states, people say they're rooting for team USA, and want a USA Bid for the next game. And I'm like, 30 seconds ago you just heard about the world cup for the first time. I think we need to respect the sport a little more, learn about the game a little more, and maybe recognize a few of our own players before we start barking orders for an American Bid on future World Cups.

More Baby Gifts

a chipboard album

There's space for big and small photos on each side of each letter

A Crayon Roll

(not exactly baby-ish, but close enough)

Tucks neatly away :) Happy coloring....

And I made this glass box with twinkle lights around Christmas, but it's a great night light, and could be cute in a nursery or kid's room. You could use whatever scrapbook paper coordinates with their room

BRIDESMAIDS BECOME AUNTIES

So I've been busy making baby gifts for tons of friends, who happen to be mostly having boys.

At first I thought boy stuff would be difficult to find, but it's been quite fun. And I don't typically notice mother's day, but now since I have so many friends that are New Moms, thought I'd post some of these makings... (haha i accidently typed 'new moon' instead of new moms, oooh twilight...)

I made the 5 above for a friend's shower, & wrapped them like so, tried to avoid the typical pastels. I like to paint & stamp brown paper bags, add some tags, & used bold colors in the tissue paper.

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.It was hard to pick boyish fabrics, but here are up close pics
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I tried to sew a little treasure map trail... but then JK! sewing tiny loopy lines is really hard in reality!

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Roadtrip!!

Hope everyone had a wonderful Easter!

A friend and I went on a last minute roadtrip to Colorado

for the weekend :) and I brought little Poppy along too!
The whole weekend had beautiful weather

and the bluest skies and thick puffy clouds

I couldn't stop taking pictures!

Trust me: The pictures do not do justice!
10 hours in a little convertible were not so bad with such pretty scenery... And when we got to Denver,
snowcapped mountains framed every skyline
I got to do a little shopping in Cherry Creek!
Drove all over the city of course. It's absolutely beautiful,
and definitely makes it to my list of places I may move to soon.
I got to try out Cherry Cricket, Earl's, and Fado's. MmMmm...
Did a little grocery shopping at Whole Foods
Sunday afternoon, hundreds of people were on every street leaving their Easter services. And I heard there were over 12,000 people around the Coor's baseball stadium for praise and worship,

and were singing "Somebody to Love"

*Found a new teapot to add to my collection*

I love it! I'm actually having a hot cup of chamomile tea before bed as we speak, in hopes that I can get sleepy! There's a tea infuser inside the teapot, and a perfect cup underneath.

And I picked up this cute tea bag squeezer,

among other things at Crate and Barrel

All in all, I loved seeing Colorado again. And I love the idea of living there, and having the mountains be an afternoon trip, or an easy weekend getaway. I could see myself walking little Bentley through all the beautiful parks and going sidewalk shopping. Some day..... until then I'm just finishing school.

All thanks go to God. "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life" - John 3:16 the greatest love. Happy Easter!

And here she is!

Poppy

my new bunny

She's 7 weeks old

grayish/chocolate Mini Lop

I love her to pieces!

From her floppy ears

to her little cotton tail...

Her little button face! So cute :)Right now she's about the length of my hand
And she'll get up to 6lbs.
I hope she's a fatty! The tiny ones are so hyper

A Candy Colored World

If you haven't been to Target lately, I must share with you

the Liberty of London collection

It's been out a couple weeks, but rumor has it

it's only for a limited time unless it does well.

If you haven't seen the commercial for it,

here it is: Liberty of London for Target

image via Target

Liberty of London has some of everything.

Women/Men/Kids Apparel from swimwear to sleepwear

* Home Decor * Dining * Stationary * Storage * Lawn & Garden *

A lot of stuff is already out of stock online, so hurry to Target,

because it's going quickly! I've told everyone I've seen in

hopes that Target continues the collection! *fingers crossed*

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The Blind Side

I loved it. It's as simple as that.

It was such a good story! I cried and laughed throughout the entire movie, I didn't expect to love it sooo much. I've wanted to see it for so long, and only recently got around to the theater, but it's out on dvd next week and you can bet I'll be there to buy it! This story about the Tuohy family and their wonderful addition Michael Oher is one you won't forget. This is such a cheesy post :) lol but it was that good! It's a little hollywoodized, Michael admits in interviews, but he's proud of the movie. Sandra Bullock earned every bit of that Oscar. And it just reiterates how much opening your heart can do. For someone else, for your family, and for yourself. If you haven't seen it yet, go rent it!

24 things I Adore

To me!
And for my 24th, I thought I would try to list 24 things I like, or just random facts about me, and this is becoming quite a task with the number getting so up there!

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So here's my list of 24
things that I Adore...

at this moment

1. Dim Sum. I love dim sum! It's a traditional brunch I've had on occasion since I was very young. It's delicious Chinese food, around here only served on the weekends, and usually only from 11am-2pm, and did I mention it's delicious? Hot dumplings, steamed buns, giant prawns, lots of seafood and vegetables, and pastries!! Everything's put on carts or trays, and the servers travel around the restaurant bringing all the food to you- constantly! I was lucky enough to have friends take me there for my birthday! I was stuffed!! But I loved every second of it!
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2. Scentsy! I get so excited when the UPS guy delivers a new package and I see the Scentsy stamp on the box! Over 80 scents, over 60 warmers of all sizes, and they're always adding more. I just love how nice my house smells. I've got a wall plug-in in the bathroom, a full size in the living room, and mirror hangers in my car. At this moment I'm smelling Satin Sheets.... MmmMmmm

3. Aprons, J'adore aprons. All kinds. I love shopping for them, making them, playing with new designs, and hanging them in my kitchen.

4. I have drawers full of fabric. I go on the hunt for new fabric all the time! If there was a store where I could find all the cutest prints in one place, minus the granny quilting prints I would be so happy. You really have to dig around here, and you're lucky to find even one nice print for every 100 bolts of fabric you look through. But I'm always making stuff so I work with what I can get my hands on.
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5. I collect Teapots and Pitchers. The more whimsical and beautiful, the better! I just love them. They make me happy.

6. Oh how I miss my beloved Coffee Bean!!!

The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf is sadly mostly a west coast thing here in the states, with a few else where. But it's an international craze! Truth be told, I prefer it to Starbucks, because it has such a large menu for coffee drinks, tea, food, and pastries. It's my daily fix when I'm in Malaysia on holiday. It's heaven!

7. A new pair of Gianni Bini shoes marked 70% off with an extra 15% off of that, and just my size! Thanks to Dillard's sales! Shoes I've wanted all season $100 over were marked down to $30. It was fate.

8. Spring! It's here again! Driving around with the convertible top down and the sun shining. Fresh flowers in bloom, colors are back, you can once again eat out on the patio at restaurants.

9. Strawberry Limeades- probably one of my favorite drinks. A perfect refreshment to warm weather, that and...

10. Sweet Tea! A southern girl's best friend! Not that I consider myself a true southerner, I did however grow up in the South. And for that, I love shabby chic * peonies * decorative, furnished patios * and an ice cold tall glass of sweet tea!
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11. Juicy Couture perfumes smell amazing!

And they just premiered a new fragrance: Couture Couture. My favorite is still Viva La Juicy. MmMmm, I love perfume! Right now I have about 20 fragrances I've kept in rotation.

12. A few new shows I can't get enough of are: Modern Family! If you haven't caught a peek yet, it's on Wednesday night's ABC lineup, you can click here to see full episodes. And Cougar Town is on after that, which I think is also hilarious. Glee on FOX network - also can't get enough of!

Second season starts this April, and if you're anything like me, you'll love the music and obsess over the soundtracks. {sorry Mel :) I know you hate all the singing lol}
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Whew!! This is hard coming up with 24 things, but half way there...

13. Furniture shopping! I do this even when I have no rooms to shop for and nothing to buy. And I have a thing for velvet couches. I've always wanted a cool, cozy, tufted velvet sofa to lounge on.
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14. Sushi! Oh how I love sushi...

the best ever is at Benihana's, but I get sushi from several places.
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15. I'm a JCrew girl. I like the simple, classic style, the clean look, the fresh colors. The artsy side of me loves mixing in patterns and prints, but the earthy side of me loves classic comfy looking pieces.

16. The fall is my favorite time of year. It's the preface to the holiday season. And I looooove the holidays. I redecorate my entire house, and have hundreds of seasonal traditions.

17. I love books and movies, and prefer buying them rather than borrowing them, because I find that like rereading and rewatching them again and again. I have a list of dvds/books I want, post-its I've scribbled titles on, and author recommendations saved on my phone.

18. Pretty Woman is the first movie I remember watching {at age 3}

and have loved it and Julia Roberts my entire life. I think she's amazing. I love her laugh, love her movies, I get defensive when she gets bad press, and I'm extremely happy for her that she's managed to fall in love, have a family, and live happily out of the public eye. And coming in a close 2nd on my list is Sandra Bullock, with whom I just want to hug right now! All this 'jesse' talk, she doesn't deserve her Oscar winning time to be tainted like this.

19. I adore Hibiscus'. Specifically, red ones. They're the nat'l flower of Malaysia, and just seeing them reminds me of my grandmother's house in the heart of Kuala Lumpur. They cover the front of her house, and continue down the sides of the house. You can see them peeking thru every window when you open the shutters. Since she's passed, I don't think they've been looked after as well. But it never fails, when I see a red hibiscus,

I think of her. xoxo...

20. I love nail polish! I grew up in salons so beauty products, toiletries, make up, I love and have too much of. I'm a hair stylist, so yes I have tons of hair-this and hair-that, but I really love nail polish. OPI bottles fill bags and buckets all over my bathroom. I treat myself with new polish or pedicures. Ohhh pedicures... love them too! Especially while sitting in the massage chairs!!!

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21. I love the rain. Most people find it gloomy, but I find it therapeutic. I was meant to live in England.
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22. Pier 1 is my haven. Ever since I got my license it has been where my car has steered itself when there was down time or money burning a hole in my wallet. I was thrilled to have my own apartment when I was 18, my mother and I have very different decorating styles. And I think a home you're happy in makes all the difference.

23. I love traveling, though I don't care for the flying part. I don't fear it, but 14 hrs on a plane, transit, then another 5 hrs, and on and on it goes, til I finally get to Asia. It's tiring, and has definitely tainted airplanes for me. But I do Love the destination, where ever that may be. I could sight see all day long. I dream of the day I fill every page of a passport, and have to request a new one before the current one expires.

24. My favorite gift from this birthday (although I loved them all, my family and friends are so good to me!) was a Madhatter poster :) from my good friend/sorority sister. I love johnny depp, I thought the new Alice in Wonderland was amazing! And I loved the costumes and color, and this poster is so fun! Thanks D

And there you have it! Whew!

24 things I do love so much!

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all images from this post via Google

Spring MAC Makeup

How cute is the Lillyland collection by MAC for this Spring? Lilly, meet MAC! You two make a lovely pair!

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And

this

Cerulean

Charm

finds

you

absolutely

charming!

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revamped the *Blog*

gave it a spring time face lift,

hope you like it!