Fan Friday // What's the Number Again?

So I took a break yesterday to get some ducks in a row with adding more designs to the shop.  I am very proud of this collection & should take time to tell you about it more but I am just ready for my man to come home from his work trip.  When he's gone I get a lot done: one because, well, there's no one to hang with (yet!) & two, because I can't sleep when he's not here.  Seriously :(

These new designs reflect, I think, a real versatility but still a real style.  I am excited for them! They are more complete, more thought out, more put together, & more code than what I was working with before.  I'd also like to share with you my design story even though it's not awesome or anything....just a tale of how I decided I wanted to learn something & how I've kept up with learning it.  Maybe that should have been a post for Blogtober, oh well.

I think I am finally over my cold so that's a plus!  Additionally as much as Blogtober rocked, I am excited to get back to my regular posting schedule which means sharing actual things happening to me. Seriously, I really like to do that!  But anyway for today at least, here's another Fan Friday:

A Book Fair kit from The Book Fair, a shop owned by Kate behind Scathingly Brilliant.  I seriously want one. I don't even know what I'd do with it, really I don't except be in love with it.  Seriously.  Do you remember book fairs? Man, I loved them.  When my sister & I were in elementary school I remember seeing each other there, in the library, looking through the books.  We were 3 grades apart so I think we might have avoided each other.  Pardon the reminice but, sheesh....fresh erasers (we'd get them shaped like frogs because they were pretty & not functional at all), paper backs, packs of 8 crayons, those little pencils you could switch the tips on, oh & those pens with the different inks you could select & push the little button down.  Coolest thing about school.  I miss it.  I'm a sucker for nostalgia.  The best part of this kit? A button with star stickers.  Once you read a book, you put the sticker on the button.  Remember Book It? Read enough books, you get a pizza.  Damn.  Dopest thing ever.

I recently discovered L E I F shop featuring a lovely ceramic artist I happen to admire so much, Lindsay Emery.  Lindsay's work is so colorful & modern with an organic feel.  It's amazing.  I always gain so much inspiration from her work.

This cake (of course found on Pinterest with no link back...help please!).  Is it too early to start thinking about my Birthday? It's December 15th..too early?  I'm not sure what we'll be doing for my birthday this year...or for Zach's!  He has a December Birthday too but he's not real big on those sorts of things.

I am not ashamed to say I sing loudly to this song when I'm along in my car.  I have no idea what the words are....but boy do I sing.

My room mate from college just joined Society 6 with some really cool prints.  She's hilarious, so you definitely need A Bro Ham Lincoln for your wall.

Link Love

++ This post on Elise's small business changes really got me thinking about stuff for our venture.  I'm living and learning right now but these tips are awesome.  I've already decided to move on from etsy for the art & accessories part of Five Sixteenths but sticking with it for some of our other ventures.  I had no idea about shipping through PayPal.  I mean I'd seen it before but thought it would be way to complicated.  So we'll see about that!++

++ This post on a new blog I just found on infidelity.  It was weird, I came at it thinking 'oh yeah, cheating & lying' but to sum it up its a good article on marital disloyalty.  She goes on to say "And if you aren't constantly working to add to your marriage, you are detracting from it. And if you are detracting from your marriage, you are creating infidelity."  I don't totally agree but I do find her tips & her take on it helpful.  I dunno....read the article, I think its interesting. ++

++ I've also been downloading a whole bunch of new fonts & can't wait to try them out.  I think I'll put some more new designs in the shop! ++

Enjoy your Friday!

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In a Little Rut

Sometimes I get in a little blogging rut...well, a life rut really.  But I don't even know if I should call it a rut because I have a lot of ideas, & I want to do something but it just doesn't amount to anything.  Maybe it's like an overload...I dunno.

Like right now, I'd love to sit down & do a really awesome blog post but I don't know what to say...so I'm just telling it like it is.  Do you ever feel this way?  Like you've got a lot to do but no where to start?

With our house being in a constant state of disarray & things constantly getting moved, reorganized, and shuffled around I feel lost.  I just can't get a handle on it.  I've always been that way & sometimes change sorta disrupts where I am.  In college when I moved, you sorta just move in & put your things away.  You don't have to fix anything & thank god my college apartments were furnished.  I felt in a constant state of transition for a long time.  Durring college it was fine, moving is what you do...but when I graduated I was ready to settle down & spend some time in one place.  Which didn't really work out that great with our last apartment but now that I'm here....I just want it to be over.  I want to have a desk, a place, I want to be settled down.  Everything is piled up here, I just want it put away.

So I wake up everyday, for some reason I just feel so sleepy in the mornings, & set to work.  On things for the blog, design clients, various stuff for the shop, & other obligations...but then I feel like I'm getting no where with it all.  Things get done but not as much as I'd like.  It's weird cuz I want to do more but I also just want to crochet in bed while watching Supernatural.  I think it's the I'm my own boss thing so I can convince myself to put things off or that things really aren't as awesome as I think they are.

I'd also like to be able to go back on the road with Zach.  It was so fun!  We'd stop at neat places, eat yummy food, & just sew up the dotted line to where he needs to be.  Maybe I'm just getting a bit stir crazy, I dunno.

I've finished up some more work here today both on the home front & the design front...you should check out the really sweet new header over at Polka Dotted Chaos, just saying.

I dunno, I don't mean to alarm you but I think that life is sorta being life right now......& I need to grab it.  I also think its because I've not found too many interesting things to photograph lately.  I need to go somewhere!  You know how I love playing with iphone apps!

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5 Things You Should Do the First Week after you've Moved In

Last month was Blogtober, this month is Homevember.  While this won't be a 30 day treat, I'd still like to dedicate quite a few posts to our new home.  There were many ups & downs and I'd really like to share them with you - like why you shouldn't use PODS storage if you don't quite know where you're going - but today's post, I'd like to share some do's instead of don'ts.

I want to share with you 5 things to do when you move in.  Over the past month+ I've done these things, but seriously I should have done these things with in the first week because after we started getting settled, I put them off:

 Clean your Top Loading Washer  - if you've kept your old appliances or appliances were left for you, clean them.  I never thought about cleaning the washer (it's a washer, it washes) but boy I wish I had a picture of the water filling the basin the first bleach cycle.....that's right I went through a few.  (this tutorial was helpful.)  Now it's all squeaky clean & spotless.  So seriously, do it.  Also, clean all your appliances - refrigerator  stove, dishwasher, etc - cuz you should do that when you move in...but you don't think about your washer!

 1 Part Dawn Dish Soap + 1 Part Vinegar  - Do it.  Don't even hesitate.  Your bathroom will be spotless.  Also, go ahead & fill one of those dish soap sponge things with it & keep it in the shower.  Clean when your in there.  Best. Tip. Ever.  Heck, use this to clean anything you can think of...maybe not walls....but sheesh...it's amazing.  When we first moved in, I cleaned the tub with some regular cleaner (wish I had a before picture) but the ring on the tub needed more work so I left it for later.  Then when I read to leave the dawn+vinegar solution on there I sprayed down the shower & left.  I wiped it down in a few hours.....SPARKLING! 

 Vacuum out the Cabinets  - I thought that a good peak & wipe would be ok, but there was some residual..um.... crumbs & other bitties left up in there.  Gross.  So yeah, just do it. And maybe do it again for good measure.

 Change Air Filters  - I have to admit that we were told to do this at the inspection but once we moved in our remodel became the priority.  But I vacuumed the carpet & it was gross, too.....so think of all the stuff that is blowing around your house & needs to go through the filter.....but it's all clogged.  It's inefficient & unhealthy.

 Take Before Pictures  - I have a few but I wish I'd taken more, especially with these tips, but if you're going to remodel or even just want to document the transformation...take pictures! You'll be even more proud when you see where you've come from!

We're still making a bit of progress on the house.  Right now the basement is all down to studs but we did get the floor in the big room done.  We are waiting on the electrician, then it's the dry wall guy, then I think I'll consider us close to being done.  Seriously, I can't wait.

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