What a busy weekend it was! For once, I was kind of looking forward to Monday so that my life would slow down a little. My furniture was for sale at two places this weekend, so I spent my time driving back and forth between the two stores and and trying to fit in a date night with friends and my dad’s birthday dinner. I believe an 8:30 pm bedtime will be a requirement all week long.

This weekend I was also faced with my first big business decision.  Unfortunately, this decision revolved around letting go of an opportunity rather than accepting a new one. I’ve considered the progress of my booth in the West Bottoms, and I decided that this would be my last month selling there. Frankly, the numbers just aren’t working out in my favor.

It was a hard decision to make because I love the atmosphere and the experience and all the people I’ve been able to meet through my time at Bella Patina. I realized I had been looking at the situation from a personal perspective and not a business perspective.

At this point, selling at Liberty just makes more sense for me. They don’t take out rent, just a percentage of sales. If I don’t sell anything for a weekend, I just don’t receive a check.  It is a much smaller shop and I’ve already become friends with the owners and some of the other vendors, and I can see that I can learn a lot from these people. It is also much closer to where I live and the schedule is easier to work around.

If I’m honest I can admit that letting go of this commitment lifts a lot of weight off my shoulders. While I know it can be done, putting together an entire booth by myself is not my reality at the moment. I had too much going on and I’m glad that I will have a bit more free time to enjoy now.

Now, I just want to thank everyone who supported me and took the time to come visit my booth and see how I was doing. And I definitely want to give a huge shout out to my family for helping me transport furniture and make new projects and set up each month. You’re still not off the hook yet, but things will slow down a little!

Now I’ve just got to figure out where I’m going to display my “The Breezy Room” sign. I think I want to hang it up in my garage for motivation!

What’s the hardest business decision you’ve ever had to make? Is it harder for you to accept new opportunities or to let old ones go?

P.S. Tonight when I get home my new DSLR camera should be there! I can’t even wait to try it out! Hopefully I won’t have anymore of those yucky, blurry iPhone photos like the ones above. :)

This post brought to you by VinoVinti. All opinions are 100% mine.

I kind of used to be a party girl in college, and I drank mostly beer or mixed drinks. I thought that wine was disgusting and too “fancy” for me. As you can see, I was pretty classy. Since college, now that I’m phasing out of the party scene, I’ve started drinking wine.

I remember the first glass I had with some friends a couple years ago, and I had my “wine face” ready. You know the one, where your face looks like you just ate something sour, but you’re going to try to look normal so everyone doesn’t make of you? But then, to my suprise, I didn’t even need my “wine face,” because I actually liked it. I still think some wine is a little too fancy for me, but the Moscato, now that is a wine that I can really get into. It doesn’t hurt that you can find some pretty cheap brands that are still delicious!

Now that I’m a fancy pants wine drinker, I always linger when passing the glasses or wine stoppers in a store. These types of accessories would make great simple, but fun, gift ideas for your wine loving friends this holiday season. Here is my list of the top gift ideas for wine lovers.

1. Stemless wine glasses

These just look so sophisticated to me and I would love a set of them. Even for the more experienced wine drinker who might already have enough wine glasses….wait, is it possible to have “enough” wine glasses? Na…

2. A Cute Wine Stopper

I took a bottle of wine with me to a family thing a couple months ago. It had already been opened and I just had the cork stuck back in it. As soon as I went around a turn, the bottle tipped over and wine started spilling out. So for the entire hour and a half drive, I drove with the wine bottle on my lap. That would have looked great to an officer had I been pulled over. Wine stoppers are definitely a great idea!

3. Quirky Drink Markers

I love these silly mustache drink markers, but you can definiely find some cute, not-so-quirky drink markers to match your friend’s/family’s tastes. These are a just a fun way to keep track of your drink and would make a great gift.

4. VinoVinti – for the most sophisticated wine drinker on your list

VinoVinti uses a new, patented technology to create nucleation, a process that allows excess carbon dioxide (CO2) molecules to come together, form a bubble and escape the wine enhancing the flavor, feel and finish of the wine in seconds.

What are the benefits of using VinoVinti?

• Faster than decanting and more efficient than aeration devices.
• Opens the wine and enriches the flavor.
• Reduces harshness and what some people call the “acidic bite.”
• Improves the mouthfeel and finish.
• Simple and easy to use.
• Designed to give a lifetime of wine enjoyment.

This product would make a great gift this holiday season for any wine drinker, to enhance their wine drinking experience. You can buy one now at http://www.vinovinti.com/store.html.

To learn more about the VinoVinti, check out VinoVinti on Facebook and watch the following video to see how it works:

**Please drink responsibly, and as always, only drink if you are at least 21 years old or older**

Originally, I wasn’t going to buy a new full size tree this year. The boyfriend and I won’t even be home for Christmas, as we’ll be going between our hometowns to spend the holiday with our families. I decided that we could just use the little Christmas tree I bought for my booth at Bella Patina after the sale, and that would be good enough.

But then the sentiments of our first Christmas living together started to get to me. Plus, who cares about the Christmas tree on Christmas day, it’s used more to put you in the holiday spirit all month long. And I’m a decor blogger, for cryin’ out loud! I need a real (fake but full size) Christmas tree.

So I braved the Black Friday crowd and headed out with my mom in search of a tree. Turns out, now that Black Friday is on Thursday, 7 am shopping on Friday isn’t all that scary. And the sales suck. 20-30% off? I know they can do better than that! So that was a bust.

(I did however get a new chain for this necklace I broke 2 years ago while I was out.)

But I remembered seeing an ad for Michael’s that said Christmas trees were 50% off all weekend. Then they had a coupon for an extra 30% off, including sale items. That was more like it. Friday evening I drug my sister into a Michael’s and stood for many long minutes staring at the Christmas trees. Naively I decided I wouldn’t spend more than $50.00 on a Christmas tree. Ha. Ha ha. That was, until I decided I wanted the most expensive tree they had.

I did the math which would be about $125, tried calling the boyfriend for permission (this does come out of the joint account since we will both be feeling the holiday spirit) and he didn’t answer. I panicked, asked my sister approximately 2 trillion times what I should do, walked in circles around the store, called him again, then took his non-answering as a “yes.”

So we finally made our way to the register. I was really going to do this. (I haven’t told you how much I really hate spending money.) Then we realized that the extra 30% off coupon ended at noon. Shoot. I panicked some more, and then claimed that I would not be spending $200 (which was the 50% off price) on a Christmas tree I meant to only spend $50 on. So then I went home sad.

Actually, we went to Target…where I wanted all the Christmas decorations and a tree to put them on. Then the boyfriend called me back. He said he didn’t care how much it costs, if I wanted it, I should get it. Say what? But no, I really can’t do that. I mean, do we really need a Christmas tree? So I told him I didn’t know what I was going to do and got off the phone.

Then I bought gingerbread men, chips and dip, and prepared for our cousin girl’s night. As soon as my cousins got to my apartment, I bombarded them with the story of the Christmas tree, asked their opinions, and then drug one of my cousins to Michael’s to go get that dang tree. Forget the extra 30% off. I need a full size Christmas tree.

I pulled my car around to pick up the tree and a couple employees were helping me load it into the back seat. All was well, and then I went to close the door, and it bounced back in my face. Seriously, why do they make the Christmas tree box just a couple inches longer than the average back seat of a car? This led to my cousin and I shoving the box in awkward angles to get the door closed. We were crying we were laughing so hard, and we eventually dismissed the employees. Not because we didn’t need their help, but because this was getting embarrassing.

Needless to say, we did finally get it home, but it’s a good thing my cousin is thin. Because she was working with about 5 of inches space between her chin and the dashboard. It was only about a 5 minute drive, but it was super funny to see her riding that way all for this dang Christmas tree.

After ALL this, and after the tree was set up, my mom texted me to tell me that there was another sale the next morning for 25% off instead of 30%. I about lost it. So my sister and I took the receipt hoping they’d let us do a fake exchange because we wanted to get around reboxing the already decorated tree. We finally caught a break here and the cashier informed us that those extra sales did not apply to Christmas trees over 4 feet, which means I got the best deal I was ever going to get, which was a relief.

Are exhausted you from reading this? Kudos if you stuck through the whole thing. Basically, my entire point is that I bought an expensive Christmas tree that was a much more stressful shopping experience than it should have been, and now I will be using it for the rest of my life. I am not going through that process again any time soon. No siree.

What is your worst Black Friday shopping experience? 

What a weekend! I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving. Mine was great and super full, and I definitely was not ready to come back to work today. Luckily I had a dentist appointment this morning, so I got to prolong my “vacation” just a little bit longer.

This weekend was full of family, food and crafting. It was perfect.

Will and I went to my parents’ house for Thanksgiving, where we enjoyed a home cooked meal and then laid around all day. It was so funny, because my mom prepared the meal for 7 people all by herself. I asked if I could bring anything, and she told me not to. To get to the good part of the story, she burnt the rolls. Then she proceeded to apologize for everything about the meal, even though it was all delicious, even the burnt rolls. Because we were tired of her apologies, we made a rule that anytime she apologized about the food, we would throw one of her burnt rolls at her. But since there were at least 3 of us throwing them, she got “stoned” more than once per apology. Let’s just say that we had to explain to my sister’s boyfriend that we don’t normally throw food at the cook at family dinners.

Friday I went to work with my mom so I could attempt some Black Friday shopping in the city she works in, but they had no good deals. I was looking for a Christmas tree and all I could find were deals of 20 and 30% off. Come on now, that’s a normal sale, not a Black Friday sale.

Friday night I came back to Kansas City and decided to check out Michael’s for a Christmas tree, and of course I wanted the most expensive one they had. I ended up getting it, but it’s a long, interesting story, so I’ll share that one with you tomorrow.

I definitely need some bigger decorations, because you can’t even see the ones that are on there. It doesn’t look much different in person either. AND I ordered a DSLR camera on Thanksgiving Day for $340 so hopefully I can take some more beautiful photos of my tree in a week or so.

Friday night I hosted a girls night for my sister and some of our cousins. That gathering got a little out of hand. Ha!

It all started out great, with all of us comfy in fake pants (leggings) and minimal makeup. We even decided to make a Gingerbread House. It was looking so good.

Then all of a sudden candy and frosting was all over the floor and this is what we ended up with. How this happens, I do not know. I’m sure it had nothing to do with the wine being consumed.

On the plus side, I used one of the wine bottles to make some extra Christmas decor. :)

That’s just a wine bottle painted blue, sealed in with mod podge that was mixed with glitter. Easy peasy.

I spent the rest of my weekend working on some furniture for the shops I contribute to that will BOTH be open this coming weekend. Talk about a time crunch. As it turns out, I played a little too much and the boyfriend is finishing up one a credenza for me today so that it can be delivered tonight. Talk about a stand up guy!

How was your Thanksgiving weekend? Have you ever thrown food at your family gathering? 

You guys. I still haven’t done anything blog worthy this week. Monday night the boyfriend and I rented the first Hunger Games movie to get caught up, and last night we took my Little to go see the new one. Obviously, I’ve had no time for crafts! And with the sudden ending of the second movie, I feel like I’m going to have to spend some of the weekend reading the third book again. I hate being left in the dark and I can’t remember what happens!

Since tomorrow is Turkey Day, I’m going to go ahead and tell you the things in my life I’m most thankful for, rather than share the DIY projects I haven’t been working on. :)

First and foremost, I’m thankful for my family. They like to point out to me how in high school I said over and over that I was leaving and never coming back, and now I call my mom about 50 times a week. Oops. 23 year old me forgot 17 year old me’s threats.

The boyfriend. He’s so cute, I can’t not be thankful for him! (Photo courtesy of Archer Photography)

My friends. I have three besties from high school that I stay in touch with on a regular basis. Only 3. But that’s fine by me. These are the three girls that I can depend on and share all my good and bad news with, and I know they’re still judging me, but in the way that best friends do. :)

Okay okay, now that I got all the important obligatory things out of the way, here are some other things I’m thankful for:

- cuddles on the couch
- chalk paint that lets me paint in my living room without making me high
- silly TV shows like Teen Mom and Sister Wives
- my job – how else could I pay for those fun student loans?
- pretty scarves – I’ve come up with new tradition of buying one every time I visit a new city, and my collection is growing!
- the opportunity to travel
- life lessons learned the hard way
- hot chocolate to put me in the holiday spirit and warm me up on cold days
- the people who visit this blog and pretend to be interested in my day-to-day life
- the friends I’ve made through blogging, the ones that I can text and meet in person and it’s not weird
- flats – the best shoe ever invented so I don’t have to wear heels to work
- music with good lyrics
- green tea – this is my coffee in the morning
- holiday socks
- ice cream erryday (I meant to spell it like that)
- that I get Thursday AND FRIDAY off every year for Thanksgiving

This is just a small list of the things in my life that I appreciate.

What are you thankful for this Thanksgiving?

This past weekend I did absolutely nothing. The boyfriend was out of town and I took full advantage of my alone time to just catch up on some much needed rest.

I’d read a couple of those blog posts last week that talked about how we all take such pride in being busy, in being too busy to actually enjoy what’s around us. Like down time and relaxation is a bad thing.

Lately, I’ve been feeling really overwhelmed. Not so overwhelmed that I can’t get stuff done, just to the point where I was feeling like I haven’t had any time to stop and breathe. (I’m super dramatic here because as I’ve pointed out before, I’ve had plenty of time to watch all of my TV shows.)

So this weekend, even when I had the opportunity to make some plans, even when I had stuff around the house that could have been done, projects laying around unfinished, I decided to spend my weekend giving myself time to just be.

And I have zero pictures from the weekend, so this post may be a bit boring, but I honestly did nothing picture worthy.

Friday I was asleep for the night before 8 p.m. True Story.

Saturday I went to the gym, then ventured out one more time to shop for some mascara and body soap before planting myself on the couch for the rest of the afternoon/night. I think watched like 5 or 6 movies.

Sunday I didn’t even get out of bed until after 11 even though I was awake at 7:30.

And this morning, I didn’t dread a Monday at work near as much as I usually do. I felt rested and ready to go somewhere and do something, even if that something was work.

So while an entire weekend of nothing to do might be unrealistic for you, don’t forget to take some time this holiday season to just relax and let go of the stress of all your commitments even if it’s just for a few fleeting moments. I promise you, it’s worth it!

I am so happy it’s Friday and I have an uneventful weekend ahead of me! I’m talking the only reason I’ll be getting up from the couch tonight will be to refill my bowl with ice cream. The boyfriend will be gone for the weekend, so I can have ice cream for dinner all I want. 

This will be the first evening since Monday that I’ll have a chance to sit down and relax, and I’m taking full advantage of it. Wednesday I set some seemingly impossible goals for myself to knock out some of my to-do list. I didn’t get it all done as soon as I’d hoped, but I got it all done before the weekend.

I’m pretty sure you need one of these finished snowmen to add to your Christmas decor. How cute would this look on a door?

I also made these pretty necklaces during my lunch hour yesterday, which was admittedly a little awkward as every employee who walked in asked what I was doing. I think they’d make a great Christmas gift!

I did make it out to my booth last night and added a few of the snowmen and some mason jar oil lamps (you can barely see them sitting on the cream dresser). I also set out a tree and strung some lights across the doors. Next weekend I’m planning on rearranging the entire booth, but here’s what it looked like last night.

And then late last night I finally finished the cabinet I was painting for a co-worker.

Check out the before and afters (and damn those after 10 pm dark iPhone photos!).

Those knobs on top are just sitting there. I thought they’d be cute on the doors, but I didn’t have any screws that were the right size to attach them.

I dropped the cabinet off with her at work today, and she seemed to love it. That was exciting because it’s just kind of nerve racking to paint a piece for someone else.

What is your weekend looking like this weekend? Do you have plans or are you just enjoying some down-time? 

Okay, okay. You’re probably tired of my holiday posts. But that’s too bad because my life is revolving around the holidays at this point. In fact, I made it official by buying some peppermint ice cream. :)

Tonight will be busy, busy, busy with holiday cheer as I finish up my snowmen that will be for sale in my booth this month. Here’s the progress report in pictures.

Now they’re gonna get their little hats put on.

And we can’t forget some scarves to keep them warm!

Now all they need tonight is some wire to hold them together and some pretty little buttons. I LOVE how each snowman has his own face and personality! My mom came up with this project, and honestly at first I thought it was a little too crafty, but now I’m sure they’ll be a hit. I think I’ll even keep one for myself.

I’m also getting some potpourri mason jar candles together and making some jewelry (great Christmas presents, ya know). Bella Patina is opening from 4-8 tomorrow night for a little pre-Christmas shopping, so I really need to get all the crafts finished tonight. Then I’ll be working on this little guy for a co-worker.

How cute is this cabinet? It’s giving me quite the time with sanding though. There’s some old stain under there that keeps gunking up under my sander, but tonight I see a fresh coat of paint in its future. The sides are all that’s left to sand.

Am I squeezing too much into one night? Start sending me happy thoughts to help me get all this done!

So I know I should just wait the remaining 6 weeks or so of the year to recount my New Year’s Resolutions for 2013, but this is the first time I’ve even remembered what my resolutions were by November, let alone followed through on them. Even though I checked in at 6 months in, I’ve been getting a little anxious to measure my progress again.

So let’s get right to it.

Personal Goals:

1) No Pop

Bam. I am owning this one. Except for the two slip ups I mentioned in my last recap, and then I accidentally ordered a Crown and Seven after I’d been served a couple other drinks one night. But only three slip ups in a YEAR???!!! Fine by me. I’m already considering giving up office candy for next year. That stuff is killing me.

2) Work out

At the 6 month check in, I was working out on and off. I rejoined the gym a few months ago and have been going to a 5 am class at least twice a week and trying to fit in a couple other workouts throughout the week. Ironically enough I did skip this morning, though. 

3) Join the Debt Movement, get a second job, and pay off as much of my student loans as possible. 

Well so far I’ve payed down probably around $7,000 worth of student loans this year. I planned on doing a little better than that, but I can’t complain. I’d be a lot further behind if I was just making the minimum monthly payments.

And my little furniture venture is looking up this month. This year I wouldn’t say I’ve actually made a profit, so I guess I’ve kind of lost money. However, I’ve learned a lot of lessons the hard way (my favorite way to learn) and I’m prepared to do better next year. I’m glad I didn’t end up getting a second job because I think I would have been a bit resentful.

Blog Goals:

1) Increase my readership and provide more, better quality content for you guys!

I think I’ve come a long ways this year with my blogging. However, what I started with last year was pretty pathetic, so it was hard not to improve from there. I actually even went back at one point and erased a couple super embarrassing and completely pointless blog posts from when I first started.

Some of my most popular posts from this year include:

The Best Paint Brush for Chalk Paint

Chambray Shirt with Corduroy Pants

How to Make DIY Cake Stands

The Truth About Chalk Paint

2) Step it up a notch with giveaways.

This one was stupid. Nothing like buying your friends. I’ve failed on this goal, but on purpose. I don’t want my blog to be a space just for giveaways.

How are you doing with your 2013 Resolutions? Do you remember what your goals were?