Oops! And a t-shirt quilt!!

Yeah, so I missed two posts last week. Oops....

I am not going to beat myself up too bad about it though because I have been a busy girl! We house and dog sat for my sis in law last week for Thanksgiving and between making sure my family had everything they needed to live for 5 days at someone else's house and preparing for Thanksgiving at my Aunt & Uncle's (and not to mention filling A LOT of Goose Goose Couture orders as well) I didn't have much free time.


Us at my Aunt and Uncle's trying to get a decent pic!!

I also started on my sorority t-shirt quilt! I got the entire front done yesterday. I have never made any kind of quilt before so I have to admit I was quite nervous about it. So far it is going pretty well. I did the Too Cool method seen here. It was a lot more work than just doing the same size rectangles like many do but I will have this thing forever and knew if I took the easy way out it would irritate me so I am glad I did it the way I did. Here is a pic!


Jonesie has already claimed the quilt as his own so he wanted to be in the pic.

And I am a total sheet snob so I decided since the underside will be touching my skin I wanted to find a pretty patterned sheet to use rather than just getting that scratchy solid quilting fabric. So I originally really wanted leopard print and scoured Ross and Marshall's for a single flat sheet I could use. Well apparently people don't sell individual sheets much any more. I always remember when I was a kid going with my mom to the Wamsutta outlet store in New Braunfels and there being a vast array of individual sheets. I was so bummed! But, as quick as I got bummed I became unbummed and I dare to say even giddy when I dug in the back of a shelf at Ross to uncover a hidden treasure! AMY BUTLER MAKES SHEETS! Who knew??? If you are not familiar with Amy Butler don't look her up because you will soon be obsessed with her gorgeous (and slightly pricey and hard to find) fabric. I am obsessed with her print collections and could go absolutely crazy buying her fabric. So it took everything I had not to do a little white girl dance in the middle of the aisle. I got a full sheet set for $19.99. I am doing a large throw blanket so I will have a ton of sheet left so already have plans to make pillowcase dresses for a few of my fave little girls very soon! Here is the flat sheet!



I am also going to make thick bias tape out of the fabric to finish out the edges. It is going to be gorgeous and I will post more pics as I get it finished!

Anywho, we went to the Chuy's Children Helping Children Blue Santa parade last Saturday and had so much fun! It was rainy and cold but as soon as the parade started the sky cleared and we really enjoyed it! Here are a few pics. (Please excuse my lack of makeup!)





 
Gig em!!









I am actually going to do another post in a bit of UGG outfit ideas because Mr. Goat hit it out of the park for our anniversary and got me these!

Source: shop.nordstrom.com via Callie on Pinterest

I pretty much have not taken them off so I did a few outfits on Polyvore and will post them later today. Have a great day!!

Thankful Tree

Hello all! We had a very hectic and busy (but great) week so I had a few potential blog posts I wanted to write but didn't make the time. However, I am sticking to my two a week so I am writing this quick one to tell about my fave craft decorating project I did for Thanksgiving! It's a......



THANKFUL TREE!!!

And I absolutely love it and love how it looks! Here is what I did!

I got the idea from Honey We're Home. She did a thankful tree and cut out circles to use.

Source: honeywerehome.blogspot.com via Callie on Pinterest

I thought about doing that but with 2 1/2" scallop circles because I have a paper punch I could have used which would have been SO easy. BUT I seldom take the easy route and when I get an idea in my head nothing else will do. So one evening when Mr. Goat was out of town I sat in bed and watched Real Housewives of Beverly Hills and cut out leaves. Here are some pics and more detailed instructions.

I bought my paper at Michael's.



The only paper they had that I liked were 12 x 12 sheets so I trimmed the annoying edges off and then cut them down to 8 1/2" x 11" (a normal sheet of paper) because I wanted to be able to stick them in the printer.







Then I found a leaf shape I liked and made a sheet of them in photoshop. Here is the JPG version you can use!



Then I stuck my paper in the printer so that the leaves would print on the white side of the scrapbook paper. You should have a little notifier on your printer that looks like the pic to show which side to face down if you want to print on a specific side.





I used the borderless setting to make sure that none of the leaves got cut off.



Here's a pic of both sides of the sheets.



So then I trimmed the leaves out so they would be a little more manageable.



And then I cut them out!!



Aren't they so cute?!



Then I punched a hole in the top with a regular hole puncher.





Then I used some jute rope that I bought at Hobby Lobby for $2.99 and cut about 6" to 7" pieces to tie through.







Then once I had a big bag of those hubby and I sat down and thought of things we were thankful for. It was a bit of a challenge but it was so fun and special! We have decided we are going to do it every year and when baby Goat gets older he will get to say things he is thankful for too!



Once I got done with the precious (and super drama) leaves I went and tromped around outside and found a bunch of tree branches. I just loved Aunt Ruthie's Sugar Pie Farmhouse's arrangement, shown below and knew I wanted to create something similar but make it into a thankful tree. 

 

Source: google.com via Callie on Pinterest

I found my lit branches at TJ Maxx and they actually only had a set with this really ugly cherry blossom flowers on them but they were on clearance for $7, a deal I just couldn't pass up. So I pulled the flowers off and they looked just like what I had originally seen at Michael's. These are pretty common now, I see them at Ross, Marshall's, TJ Maxx, Target, etc. so you shouldn't have any trouble finding them. I also made sure I got some that plugged into the wall, not ones that took batteries because I wanted to be able to leave them on and using batteries would have gotten expensive! I bought my galvanized vase at JoAnn. It was $12.99 and I used a 50% off coupon so I got it for $6.50! I LOVE it! I plan to use it for lots of holidays!

Then I hung them all on the tree!



I tied a piece of jute rope around the vase and made a bow and voila!!



Don't you love it?!



Hope everyone is having a fab weekend! We are off to Pfluggerville to do mini-Thanksgiving with my in laws because they are going to be out of town for actual Thanksgiving. Happy Sunday!!

My Christmas Top 5

I love Christmas! And I especially love presents! I know, I know. As adults we are supposed to "rise above" that part of Christmas and appreciate the season, what Jesus' life and death meant for all of us and embrace the forgiving and giving nature of the time. And I get all that, and we do all that. BUT, I still love presents! In the average day I would say "I want..." leaves my mouth at least 15 times. It's not always huge, expensive purchases. Sometimes, it is just "I want a pumpkin spice latte from Starbucks." I like to blame the "I wants" on being an only child and not having a lot of money growing up. I also really enjoy online shopping. Having a 2 year old makes it hard to read or do crafts because I can't get super involved in any one thing without being distracted 18 times in 2o minutes. Online shopping can be left alone in the middle and all I have to do is shut my laptop and come back to it later. And if I forget what I was looking at, it probably wasn't anything I really wanted to buy anyway. But I think my online shopping addiction also contributes heavily to the "I want"s.

So all of that being said, I have a jillion things on my "I WANT..." pinterest list. I have decided to look through all of my pins and pick the top 5 things I especially want and why!


#1 - Michael Kors Hamilton Gold Plate Chain in Teak - $348

Source: shop.nordstrom.com via Callie on Pinterest

This is actually tied with the next thing on my list for the #1 things I want. I LOVE this bag. I am a total purse snob and I haven't gotten a new bag in a few years. I just haven't really seen much that I really had to have. Purses to me are an investment and good ones last. Therefore, I don't usually like crazy colors or designs (aside from leopard, it goes with everything) and I like classic colors and styles I will be able to have and use for years to come. I went and looked at this at Nordstrom and I am so glad I did because in the store they only sell it with silver hardware and it was HEINOUS! SO I ran home and googled to see if they had it with gold hardware and sure enough, they do. I first found it on the Michael Kors website but I like to make big purchases like purses, sunglasses and watches at Nordstrom because they are so great about returns and customer service. So they do sell it with the gold at Nordstrom, it's just an online only item.

#1B - Nikon 50mm f/1.8G Nikkor lens - $216.95

Source: wolfcamera.com via Callie on Pinterest

I got a Nikon D3000 last year as a "just because" present from my awesome hubby. Our point and click was seriously lacking, especially after I slammed it down on the cement with the lens open on accident while I was trying to pick baby Goat up one day. Our family photos was suffering because of it and it was hard to want to take pics of my presh baby boy when they all turned out so awful. My camera was a great family investment and it has made it so easy to get great pics. I haven't done much expansion to the starter kit though, because there was so much to learn with just the two lenses I got initially. So now that I have had it for a while, I have learned about bokeh photog (where the subject is in focus but the background is extremely blurry) which is my fave method to use. However, my main lens only goes down to an f stop of 4.5 and to get really good bokeh you need to be able to go down to at least 2.8. Nikon just released this new lens which goes down to f 1.8 and my camera body will auto focus this lens making it a little easier to use. So I REALLY want it! And a tip on camera equipment, wolfcamera.com offers free shipping AND no tax (which is HUGE when you are buying an $800 camera bundle!)

#3 - J. Crew Vintage Pajama Set in Hydrangea - $78.00

Source: jcrew.com via Callie on Pinterest

I LOVE these PJs. I love pretty much anything menswear. I have worn my oversized Men's Michael Kors watch pretty much every day since Mr. Goat got it for me. I started wearing boyfriend jeans in junior high and used to get made fun of for wearing such baggy jeans. I have stolen sweatshirts from every guy friend I have ever had! So these are just absolutely so me it is ridiculous! And I love that you can just wear the top in the summer time with some girlie boxers or something. And J. Crew gives you the option to have them monogrammed which I love even more. I wish they had more options but I think I would want them with a plain block initial, CJG in navy! So cute!!

#4 - KitchenAid Glass Bowl Attachment for Stand Mixer - $69.99

Source: bedbathandbeyond.com via Callie on Pinterest

I have had my empire red KithchenAid Artisian Tilt Mixer for about 6 years now and absolutely love it. I didn't even really cook much when I got it, I just loved the novelty of it and knew I would have it forever. Now, it is the thing I use the most in my kitchen. I got the ice cream maker attachment, and I have a huge list of other attachments I want for it. I use it for scrambled eggs, shredded chicken, cookies, ice cream, cake, frosting, quiches, you name it! So, when I walked in to Williams-Sonoma 2 years ago and saw the 50th Anniversary Edition mixer in metallic Cherry Red WITH a glass bowl, I almost squealed with delight. First I tried to hatch a plan to get the special edition. Then I quickly though about all of the red appliances I have that match my mixer and decided I might tire of the metallic. So I started scouring ebay for someone who might be selling a glass bowl. Then one day I thought "why don't I call Williams-Sonoma and explain my dilemma and see what they say." And sure enough it turns out that they had a glass bowl attachment release planned for the following spring. So it has been on my want list since then. Now, Bed Bath and Beyond has it and that means a 20% off coupon can be used bringing it down to $56 which isn't bad!

#5 - Hunter Rain Boots in Navy Blue - $125

Source: shop.nordstrom.com via Callie on Pinterest

I just love these. I know it is a bit ridiculous to spend that much money on a pair of rain boots especially when I can go to Academy and get something very similar for $20. But I just love these! And how many pairs of rain boots will I buy in my life? So I think the money would be well spent. I think they are classic and I would get a ton of wear out of them.

So there it is boys and girls. Feel free to check any of these things off my list, haha! Are you making your list yet????

DIY: Gold Pin Wreath

So I am a holiday decorating fanatic! I love it! It is not complete until it looks like the Holiday Decorating Fairy threw up all over my house. I wish there was a Holiday Decorating Fairy because it sure would save me alot of time and money, haha! Part of my fave thing about holidays is getting to find new crafts to do to prepare. So I found this beautiful wreath at Madigan Made that she made out of gold tacks. I LOVED it immediately and knew I wanted to make one. But her's is on a 6" Styrofoam wreath and the couple places I had in mind to put it needed something a little bigger. So I figured "Oh, it can't be that much more work to make a bigger one." HA! Little did I know. Anyway, here is my info on doing one, what I did, my Pinterest tip discovery that is a HUGE fail, and all of the supplies it took. First of all, here is the GORGEOUS finished product.



And here is my huge Pinterest fail. I kept seeing all of these repins with a pic of a wreath form made out of plumber's pipe insulation.

Source: thepennyparlor.com via Noly on Pinterest

I thought "What a great idea! Strofoam wreath forms cost like $5 at Hobby Lobby and this way I can make it whatever size I want." So I went to Home Depot and bought the thickest tube they had. I took it home and was super excited at my genius purchase and how much money I was going to save. Now, here is a little secret. IT DOESN'T WORK. AND IF YOU KIND OF GET IT TO WORK, IT STILL ISN'T ROUND AND WILL EVENTUALLY START TO GO OBLONG. Take your happy butt to Hobby Lobby with a 40% off coupon and buy one there. Here is what the insulation wreath looked like courtesy of Gail Made.

Source: gailmade.blogspot.com via Callie on Pinterest

Although Gail gives some tips to get it to kind of be round, it was a big pain in the a&* and I was quite annoyed so I threw the whole thing away and went to Hobby Lobby. A quick tip about Hobby Lobby too, I originally went to the floral department and was irritated to find only green wreath forms that had a flat edge and wouldn't work for what i needed. Luckily, I was in a wandering mood and happened to be wandering around the back of the store and found a whole other section of styrofoam stuff including the 6" and 14" wreath forms. I bought the 14" and it was $4.99 so came to  2.99 with my coupon. Then I went to the Dollar Tree and picked up one box of gold tacks (which I found in the school supplies section, not the home improvement section, contrary to where the "super helpful" employee at Dollar Tree told me they would be. I knew I was going to need alot more than that but I wanted to see how much that covered first. So here we go.



Here is my wreath form, my box of 300 gold tacks and a Miller Lite which I suggest having while you make this especially if you are making it while watching college football on a Saturday. I found a nice little area where the styro wreath had been joined together which I used as a guide to make my first circle of tacks. First I tried not overlapping them like this.



I quickly realized styrofoam was going to show if I did it this way and pulled them out. Then I did them slightly overlapping. I was originally trying to keep them perfectly in circles overlapping the previous circle but quickly realized the wreath is very forgiving so just try to work in one row at a time and fill in from time to time to even it out. The great thing about this is that the next row of the tacks holds the previously row down so you don't have to worry about them falling out. So here is what a whole box covers.



After doing that section I calculated (by my crazy method of measuring with my fingers) how many more boxes I would need and figured about 9 more, so 10 total boxes for a 14" wreath. It took me about 5 hours total to finish this wreath. It was good mindless activity to do in front of the TV. There was about a 1/2" section that wasn't covered so I guess I should have gotten one more box but the ribbon completely covered the section so I am not too worried about it. After I was finished the wreath I measured about a 12" piece of ribbon (I used brown silky ribbon from Hobby Lobby found in the floral ribbon section for $6.99 and was half off on sale) and tied it in a knot around the wreath. Then I tied a bow around the knot to cover it and used a tack to hang it from. The wreath is quite heavy but a push pin held it perfectly fine. I just love how it turned out! Madigan Made said she used 2-3 boxes for a 6" wreath and she used copper ribbon which also looked gorgeous with the gold tacks. You could also spray paint this after you were finished to make it a cool color and that would probably look really neat. I think a black one for Halloween would be awesome too! So anyway, here is the finished product again! Have a great Saturday!



Coming soon: a drug store review of Goody Simple Styles Bun Spirals and Seche Vite Quick Dry Top Coat and a belated posting of my Halloween Home Decor! Thanks for reading!