Fall is here!

It's officially fall in our apartment.  It's the perfect Sunday evening.  Rain is drizzling outside and candles are glowing inside creating a warm atmosphere.  Hubs made apple crisp and apple sauce from scratch.  A pumpkin roll scented candle is wafting through the air. 

October will be here in the morning and we are ready for it!

Don't you just love fall?

Christmas in September?

This afternoon I participated in a Stampin’ Up event where we made Christmas ornaments. I was happy to get crafty for the afternoon.

There were so many steps to the ornament we made!  We started by stamping specific stamps in specific colors.  We then used this awesome device that outlines the stamp to die cut it for you!  (Thank goodness...I can only imagine how long this would have taken if we had to cut out each of the stamped shapes!)

Many stamps, die cuts, and glue dots later… (2.5 hours later to be exact) I came home with this beauty.

I had a good time.  I'm wondering what other craft groups I can try out in the future!

Zentanagle

2 weeks ago I had the opportunity to participate in a zentangle class as an opportunity to learn to focus and improve creativity.  I jumped on the opportunity to use the right (and more creative) side of my brain for a few hours.

The art of zentangle involves learning to draw repetitive patterns in structured patterns on 3x3 tiles.  Our instructor taught us 8 patterns and encouraged us to let go of the inner critic and embrace our creative side.

There are 6 steps to zentangle:

1.  Focus - Clear your mind!
2.  Frame - Mark 4 dots and connect them with lines to frame the tile.  (Uneven lines are encouraged!)
3.  String - Outline the structure of your framed tile by breaking the frame into different sections.
4.  Fill - Fill each strung section with a different zentangle pattern.
5.  Shade - Shade patterns using pencil.
6.  Sign - Hold tile out at arms length and determine the orientation you desire for your zentangle.  Initial the tile.  Sign and date the back.

 

 

I really enjoyed learning zentangle.  I intend to buy a book to learn more patterns and to purchase a pre-strung ensemble set that I can frame for my future craft room.

30 Before 30

Confession:  My 25th birthday is creeping up on me.  In just over 5 years I will turn 30!

Below are 30 things that I will endeavor to do in the next 5 years.  I will blog updates as I go.

This is going to be fun!

1. Buy a house
2. Host a family meal (at least once for my family, at least once for Hubs family)
3. Hold a garage sale
4. Learn to swim (better)
5. Learn to knit mittens
6. Get PHR certification
7. Run a 5k Color Run
8. Learn to play a new song on the piano
9. Try to ski
10. See a show on Broadway
11. Get a kitty!
12. Learn how to apply makeup
13. Get rid of acne FOR GOOD
14. Send a secret to PostSecret
15. Visit 4 new states
16. Do a 365 day photography challenge
17. Create a photo collage wall
18. Celebrate my birthday in random acts of kindness
19. Find 500 geo-caches with Hubs
20. Pay off student loans
21. Host a theme party
22. Start a craft group
23. Learn to cook 2 new recipes each month for one year
24. Complete wedding scrapbook
25. Learn 10 new hairstyles that can be put into practice regularly
26. Identify my signature drink
27. Color my hair
28. Buy stock
29. Take dancing lesson with hubs
30. Maintain this blog!

Chocolate Ice Cream

My siblings paid a visit a few weeks ago and that gave me a valid excuse to try out making homemade chocolate ice cream.  As you might imagine it was delicious!

There was lots of chopped chocolate...

The chopped chocolate was then melted....

And mixed and refrigerated...

 

Until...

it was ENJOYED BY ALL!

 Love my ice cream maker!