Caught a bug

So lets talk buttons!! You might be wondering...Buttons! Why buttons?!? Yes you are reading the screen correctly and YES I said typed buttons.  You know.....like the buttons on clothing that usually come with extras that just get placed in a jar or lost in your junk drawer (if your anything like me) foreva and eva!!

does such a small button need to be placed in such a big baggie?? haha!

Usually they are useless.......at least to me they are (how often do you resew a button?? Me???.......slim to none.)!!! Well not anymore!........I have a solution for your button problems........just in case you had "button problems"!! HA!  There are many projects out there that you can make out of buttons (just google it......you'll see!) I found an inspiration picture online and couldn't resist making this cute project for my cutie patootie nephew who lives three hours away and who I don't get to see as often as I would like!!

It's his initial and I will show you step by step on how you can make your own!!! Yes I officially caught the bug......(no I'm not sick)......I caught the crafting bug!!

What I used:

Picture Frame
scrapbook paper
buttons
glue

Lets get started! (WARNING: I had a few extra steps when it came to the frame. You probably will not have the same problem as me!! Don't let the first couple of steps (down below) cramp your style.......it was my fault for using this frame!)

I first started out by disassembling my frame.......HUH???.....(you'll see)! 

Remember this frame that I purchased at my almost favorite store (second to the Coach store of coarse....haha!) Goodwill:

Well I didn't realize that the hardest part (of this whole project) would be fussing with this frame! What a hot mess (think Britney Spears circa "when she got all crazy and shaved her head")! Don't worry I was able to work around the issue and make it shine again (think Britney Spears circa "when she was still hot and heavy with JT)!!

 It was only about 4 dollars after all:

You see this whole frame was made for one purpose and one purpose only.....

.........to hold this hippo picture in place!

Therefore I had to peel back all of the layers:

take out the cardboard that was holding the picture in place:

and then take out the Hip Hip Hippopotamus picture:

Yippppeeee!!

You can skip the above steps entirely if you purchased the correct "NORMAL" frame unlike little ol' me over here!! But like I said it was only 4 buckaroos and for that price it was totally workable!!

Next I took a short coffee break..........

......totally necessary when working really early (like 11am) on a Saturday morning!! haha.

Next I printed out the initial (in the font I wanted) on my computer:

cut it out (no really "Cut It Out"........remember uncle Joey from Full House!!):

picked out the card stock color I wanted:

taped and traced the initial onto the card stock (I would recommend using a pencil and not a pen like I did!):

so that you have an outline of where the buttons should go:

Next you take your craft glue:

and your long lost buttons..........or if your lazy like me (and don't feel like scavenging through the house) you buy them instead:

Now start gluing:

I know it looks a bit rough here but the glue dries clear......I promise!

let dry for a bit before gluing on the next layer (I placed it outside on a nice sunny day for a little while and the glue dried fairly quickly).

layer buttons until all gaps are filled in like this:

Voila..........you are done with Z peekcha (insert me using a french accent here!)

 

You can also personalize it by writing the name/bible verse/poem...etc.. directly under the button initial (I planned on it but it didn't work out the way I wanted so I personalized the back of the frame!)

I glued the card stock directly onto the back of the frame and added some ribbon to make it look less harsh (and to prevent scratching of the wall) along with a bible verse:

Total cost: ( owned everything but the frame and buttons) about $6 big ones!!! Not to shabby for some adorable wall art!!

Overall I think it turned out pretty cute "manly" for this 2 month old!! (His dad is probably reading this and would prefer me not to use "cute" to describe it! ha ha)

We are celebrating his Baptism this weekend and I cannot wait to be with him and my family on this very special day!!

I know God has big plans for you Nathaniel and if you let Him......He will show you the way!! 

So tell me.......have any of you had the crafting bug lately???? I'm thinking I may just keep this stride going while I'm still feeling inspired to make new things that are made with love for special people in my life!! (It makes me all fuzzy inside!)  What did you think of my project (I can take the truth and nothing but the truth.....so don't hold back!) considering it was my first time making something like this?? Or how about any "situations" that got in the way (such as my frame dilemma)? Comments/Questions....leave it below!

Caught a bug......the crafting bug,

xoxo Joanna D.

Giver not a Fighter

I might have mentioned a few times in a previous post that I love......with a capital LOVE.....receiving presents!!!  No I'm not that kinda girl who is spoiled and demands gifts.......I'm not....and I'm not writing this post to sound conceded at ALL!!!  I just get really get giddy and excited about tearing through the pretty wrapping paper to see whats inside!! The gifts don't have to be materialistic at all......in fact they don't have to cost one penny......Nada.......zero point zero zero dollars!! The free ones are usually the well thought out ones that tend to be my favorite!!  Its the thought and gesture that counts.....right?!?!  Seriously if you gave me a rock and told me that it reminded you of me.........I would treasure that rock like nobodies business.....(insert finger snap here!!)! I especially love the pressies when someone uses there own gift/talent to make you something!  Its unique and special to you me!  A gift that someone gives you is a symbol that they care about you, appreciate you, and have love for you!  Well........usually......HA......I guest it depends what the "gift" is!
Not only am I a great receiver of gifts.......I love to give em too!!  I'm a lover giver.......not a fighter!! Don't hate! HA!  When it comes to finding and wrapping a gift for a loved one.....I get very serious!! Like get out of my way SERIOUS!  I want it to be meaningful and true to that persons tastes/likes/wants!! I love to think long and hard about what I want to give..........and this process can sometimes take days, weeks, even months!! HA!  Oh and wrapping the gift is very important business too!! It has to look pretty.......like Martha Stewart pretty.....ya THAT pretty!!

So here are some wonderful goodies I received for my birthday this year.......I must say the goodies were pretty spot on with what I have been lusting over (Thanks Friends and Family........I love you like lady Gaga loves her 10 inch heels (seriously how does she do that??)!!):

• Marc Jacobs Daisy perfume I've been lusting over! (highly recommend it for summer if you like sweet smells!)
• Fun summer colored nail polish (WITH GLITTER!!) and the new OPI crackle nail polish (haven't used it yet......looks interesting!)
• Fruity smelling candle! (You can never go wrong with candles!)
• Scented wax ball that looks like a candle but is not. I have it in my bathroom and when it gets steamy in there the wax ball perfumes the whole bathroom (sooooo coool!!)
• Yummy smelling body wash.

• Big billowy beach hat!! (will come in handy by the pool/beach!)
• Purty scarf (love with a capital LOVE the colors......I wore it on our trip to Chicago)
• New shades (most perfect fit I have ever owned!!!)

• JEWELRY (always a great gift in my book!!)
 

• Fabulous hair products (I think they're trying to tell me something?? The hair is a hot mess most of the time.......I get it!! HA!)

• Beautiful wallet in a Gorg color!
• Some fun gift cards to some of my fave stores (Victoria's and her awesome Secret and Nordstroms)
• Cute Coach wristlet in the perfect "greige" color!

 

And my most favorite of all.......are reading through these heartfelt Bday Cards!! (I just can't come to terms throwing these cards away.........hoarder in the making this one I swear!! Ha!)

 

 

So tell me, have you received some fun goodies this year??  What are your favorite/unique presents to give (I'm always looking for new ideas)?  Are you like me and enjoy giving presents that are perfectly wrapped with matching wrapping paper and bow or are you like my husband and would rather wrap the present in a plastic bag and tape it shut with duct tape (may or may not be a true story)? Do you like ripping through your wrapping paper or do you open the corners carefully and save it to give it a second life? Or maybe you've tried the new OPI crackle nail polish and would like to share your thoughts..........(I'm so curious)? Any comments leave it down below!!

Giver not a fighter,

xoxo Joanna D!

Family Ties!!

Remember the Chicago trip I blogged about ( you can read all about it here: part 1, part 2, & part 3 if you haven’t already) and in Part 3 I may have mentioned that it was “kinda” my last post about our trip.  As in kinda I meant it would be the last post about our trip exploring and staying in the city. You see, we checked out of the hotel room on Saturday, therefore giving us two more days to drive to the suburbs to stay with family. 

We especially couldn’t wait to see this little guy:

I could just eat him up with a spoon......he is that yummy!!!  Oh and the baby smell……..I just love that baby smell!! (well not that baby smell......you know what I mean!!) It smells so sweet and innocent (does innocent have a scent?? HA!) and oh so fresh!! I just love it!!  This poor little guy was in the hospital for a few days before we got there.  He was sick with a fever.  You wouldn’t of known it though.  He was soo good.  Not a lot of crying at all.  He would lay there and let you hold him, rock him, and he would even smile at me when I started talking and singing to him (haha……maying he was just laughing at my singing now that I think of it……smart little guy!)

 Hi my name is Nathaniel and I'm new here:

High five (see we even have a secret high five wave we do with each other…he doesn't know it yet!! haha!):

I just love baby clothes…….look at his little puppy jammies!! Can I get an awwwww………AAWWWW! (I wish I can get away with wearing sweet little onesie jammies like him.............but that would be a little weird!!):

 He’s a good sleeper too. (I bet his mommy would beg to differ!):

But when hes awake he likes to party!! I think we have a future dancer on our hands. Just look at his moves.

He like’s to raise the roof:

And fist pump (the jersey shore cast would be so proud!! What would his jersey shore name be?!!? Hmmmm!)

He starts it from the top:

then takes it to the middle (with both hands mind you):

and fist pumps:

He even rocks out whenever possible (he might be begging for a drum set for his first birthday! Auntie can make that possible......anything for this sweet face! Oh and any way I can help with torturing my big brother......its payback!):

Future career options: Jersey shore cast member, Rockstar, dancing with the stars contestant?!?!........we'll have to wait a few decades before we find out!!

For now hes just a little teanny eanny weany meany baby who is most content when hes doing this:

The next night after all of the auntie paparazzi (poor kid has no hope…….his mom is a photographer and his auntie (moi) is an obsessive picture taker!) we got all dressed up to go to a party where little Nate could show his baby friends/cousins all his dance moves hes been working on!!

All spiffed up and looking handsome with one of his favorite peeps……his mommy:

don't you stick your tongue out at me:

this is my vogue pose:

Break dancer??:

Let me formally introduce to you my older brother, Peter, and his wife Iwona who are parents to that precious little guy who I've pretty much dedicated this whole post to:

Daddy with his son…..oh so proud:

Grammy (babcia in polish) with her grandson……oh so proud:

Me and my "sista sista":

The fab 3 (sorry hun):

Almost a great family picture (Little E just loves picture crashing):

got one (although Nate's not looking into the camera):

This one just cracks me up (where did the time go and allowed these two to have babies?!?!).  My brother and cousin with their babies…….awww:

Me and the boyfriend (look at him…….I just want to pinch his cheeks…..which cheeks?!?! Ill never tell! Ha!):

Overall everyone had a great time eating, talking, and dancing!! It was a great ending to an incredible weekend!! I feel like it was complete and cannot wait to go back for some more fun (which will be real soon)! You see I have a real BIG family and we are really close. Closer than Lindsey Lohan’s freckles!! Ya that close. (eww.... I now have a picture of Lindsey's freckles in my head!) And we throw BIG parties…….for almost every occasion imaginable. You name it we party to it.  These parties involve a lot of catching up, eating, dancing, gossiping (you may or may not have to duck with the amount of gossip that is flying around in that room! Ha!), drinking (every table is equipped with its own shot glass and bottle of vodka! We're Polish....that’s how we roll!) and just plain ol' family loving!! We live for it……..we breathe it……..we sure do love our family time!! Whatchya ganna do?!?…..my grandma (moms mom) had 8 babies!! Yes you are reading the screen correctly………8 babies…….. who in return got married and had babies of their own……and now those babies are having babies of their own!!  That means only one thing……..lots and lots of parties!!  

Cheers to FAMILY,

xoxo Joanna D.

May Favorites

So another month flew by (oh so quickly like they always do) and I wanted to share with y'all some of my favorites for the month of May:

• Versa Spa:  Have any of you tried the Versa spa tan before?!?! Well I haven't until just recently and I must say I really digged it!! The spa by my house was offering a 2 for 1 deal and I used them both right before our Chicago Trip (you can read about here, here, and here!).  I went from sporting the "Casper the ghost" look to a nice bronze sun goddess look (well I'm really exaggerating here but it did give me a nice bronze color)!  Versa spa claims the tan should last about 10 days (in combination with self tanners to extend the color) but it only lasted about 5 days on me.  I would definitely try Versa Spa again!!

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• Kiss Nails:  I think drugstore nails have come along way since the time I used them when I was younger.  I love to pick up the Kiss brand from my local drugstore when I'm in a pinch and have no time to get a mani.  They hide my icky, brittle, peeling off nails (I work at a pharmacy and it gets very dry in there!) and makes my nails look professionally done.  They last me about a week (if I'm not doing allot of cleaning) and are really cheap too!!

• My new purses:  I scored this brown satchel and yellow clutch at Marshall's a few weeks ago and I love them.  I have wanted a brown cross body bag for some time now but never really found anything that I liked.  Every time I go to Marshall's I go straight for the purses (well any store really...haha!) but never really find anything that catches my eye in my price range!  These two were at a great price (brown satchel = $25 and yellow clutch = $15) and I couldn't pass them up! I love the pop of color the clutch will bring to my summer outfits!! Happy Girl!!

• Papaya massage candle:  A coworker had brought a Pink Papaya catalog over for us to look at. I have never heard of Pink Papaya before.  They are a cosmetics company that specialize in natural body, skincare, and makeup products.  I found some really neat products in the catalog but one thing that really caught my eye was this candle that doubles as massage oil. Ya......I know right?!?!?!  You light the candle and after a little while (you blow out the candle) you beg ask nicely your significant to give you a nice relaxing massage!! Greatest thing ever......I have no complaints! They come in all different scents, are very moisturising (both parties benefit from the massage) and would really make a great gift!

• Nike's work out gear:  Summer is almost here and its time to spend allot of time outdoors!! The hubs and I like to get in shape by hiking at one of our state parks during the week.  I love Nike's workout pants and tanks!! We have an outlet mall close to our house where they have a Nike store and I find some great deals there all the time! Definitely one of my must have items in my summer wardrobe!

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•  Essie nail polish in Braziliant:  Just bought this at Walmart and I love this color for spring/summer!! Bright and Fun to give a little pizazz to my wardrobe!!

So that's all I have for my May favorites!! I'm sure I'll be loving them for many months to come. I hope this post was helpful and if you have any questions about any thing mentioned just leave it in the comments below (or email me). 
So tell me what were your May favorites? (Any thing is free game such as home decor, beauty, cooking, books, etc.!!) I would love lurve to read all about it!

xoxo Joanna D.