my christmas vintage book wreath

So I finally got around to finishing my Christmas vintage book wreath... you know... the one I told you guys about a few weeks ago... remember? Well, after a couple of glasses of wine and a few hot glue gun burns, I finally finished it. I'm serious about those hot glue gun burns... crafting is a dangerous hobby.

First I gathered all my supplies... You will need a foam craft wreath (I initially thought I was going to create 3 of these bad boys... not so much. After my hot glue gun injuries, I was lucky to finish one.) You will want an old book. (I found the Charles Dickens 2-in-1 during this bookstore visit.) You will need a hot glue gun and plenty of extra glue sticks. (The culprit of my injury.) And you will want some craft paint.

It is also a good idea to have an assistant available.

Oh, and a glass of wine.

First I painted the pages of my book. I was using this tutorial over at Living with Lindsay, so I did exactly as she said... and painted the pages of my book... first with the brown craft paint, and then with the grey. However, if I was perfectly honest, I would tell you that I think this step could easily be skipped... but that's just me.

Then I began carefully rolling my book pages, one by one, and hot gluing them to my foam wreath. My placement of each rolled page was pretty carefully calculated, which I believe is just my OCD-craftyness kicking in. I realized that my pages were more rolled... whereas Lindsay's are more "just put on," which I think I like better... but too late now.

If I had to do this craft over again, I would do a few things a little differently... 1) I would use a smaller paperback novel... with the really flimsy pages. My book had really tall sturdy pages, which made them a little harder to maneuver. 2) I would have started with a larger frame for the base of my wreath. And 3) I would have skipped the whole page-painting portion. I don't really think you can tell, one way or the other.

But overall, I am very pleased with my finished product. It will definitely be up for the holidays at my house.

What about you? Have you been working on any Christmas crafts lately?

top 2 tuesday

This week's Top 2 Tuesday is your 2 favorite jobs.

1) My current job. I could not ask for any better. I am currently the Staff Accountant for a German manufacturing company... we produce plastic pellets. Exciting, I know. But really, I love this job... and I love this company. Through my current job I have... met some of my favorite people... traveled to Germany (twice)... traveled to Boston... learned so, so much in the accounting world... been given the opportunity to WORK FROM HOME so I could keep my job. I mean after a list like that... who wouldn't love plastic pellets?

2) My College job. Well, if you can call it that. My last semester at Troy, I was the Graduate Assistant to the Associate Athletic Director. I got paid in tuition fees and books... which as a graduate student, is a pretty sweet deal. This job was especially fabulous during football season, when my title changed to Assistant Game Day Director every Saturday. Through this job I was able to... fly with the football team to watch them play Kansas State (my parent's alma mater)... meet this incredible girl (now lifelong friend)... plan for my wedding... Fabulous, fabulous job.

Head on over to Taylor's blog at Undomestic Momma to link up and tell us about your top 2 favorite jobs!

all i want for christmas...

Dear Santa,

This year I would really appreciate it if you would talk to my friends Kate and Lily when compiling my Christmas list. They seem to know me really well this year. And to make it easier on you, it might just be best if you replace my stocking with the Longchamp Le Pliage tote... just for easier carrying. I wouldn't want to strain your back or anything. Don't worry, I'll be sure to leave you plenty of pumpkin spice cookies.

Love,

me

-Longchamp Le Pliage tote bag. Love the Navy, Graphite or Praline colors. It's the perfect carry on tote for my trips back and forth to Atlanta.

-Kate Spade Give it a Whirl Idiom bangle. I adore these Kate Spade bangles, but this "Give it a Whirl" one is my favorite, for sure. What a fun little reminder to wear on your wrist... with engravings like, "smile at a stranger" and "have cake for breakfast."

-Columbia Women's Mighty Lite Vest... in the Tidewater color please. Super warm... and super light... a very nice winter combo.

-Lily Pulitzer 2011 planner. I always adore her planners. They are bright, colorful and usually include a couple of party planning tips among the pages.

-Lulu Lemon pants. Specifically the Groove style. These might be the most amazing workout/lounge pants ever made. And they come in long lengths... which makes me very happy.

-Canon 16-35mm wide angle lens. My big ticket item... the one that my Christmas cash will more than likely be going towards this year. She's pretty, isn't she?

What about you? What's on your Christmas list this year?

quinn {louisville children's photographer}

Oh. My. Goodness. Seriously... how precious is this little man? Quinn made my job entirely too easy. He just laughed and laughed as dad pulled him around in the wagon and mom followed around behind me. His smile is so infectious. Go ahead... see for yourself.

{Be sure to comment on how adorable this little guy is. For every 10 comments, the family will receive a complimentary 5x7 print.}

hunt family {louisville family photographer}

Just a small, little family of 9... that's all. No big deal. This family was seriously awesome. Bonnie and Andrew have 5 beautiful children of their own, and then in addition to that house full, they also have a series of foster children that come in and out of their lives. Bonnie told me how every year they have Christmas photos made and how important it was to include everyone that was in their home at that moment. "...because, right now... we are a family."

The whole family melted my heart. You can probably see why...

{You guys know the drill... Be sure to tell them how great they look... for every 10 comments they will receive a complimentary 5x7 print.}

thankful thursday

This Thursday I am thankful for:

1) The Sharpie Pen. These have become my go-to pen on most of my craft projects. They are fabulous. They don't bleed through your paper, the ink doesn't smudge when you're writing, and my favorite part... acid-free... perfect for any of your photo memory projects.

2) Early Christmas decorations. You will never hear me complain about someone that puts their Christmas lights up in October, or about the early holiday commercials overtaking television, or about pre-Thaksgiving mall decorations... nope, not me. Christmas lights just make me happy. This photo is of the Christmas tree at one of the malls near my house... sigh, so pretty.

3) Hot tea. Earl Grey to be exact. With lots of Splenda. It's my drink of choice during these colder months... and probably a little better for me than my morning can of Dr. Pepper. It's a perfect hand warmer too.

my first mini book...

So... you might remember me mentioning a while back (ummm say, 2 months ago) how I was considering signing up for Elise's BIGmini online class. Well, I did. And it was fabulous.

I absolutely adore anything Elise crafts up... but I've always been intrigued by her mini books. Serving somewhat as a mix between a scrapbook and an art journal... I loved the concept. I just didn't know where to start.

Typically when I scrapbook, my OCD tendencies come out in full force... things have to be in chronological order, my color scheme needs to match, all pages need to be the same size, and so on and so forth. But after taking Elise's online workshop, I realized that mini books were about breaking the rules. I could include loads of pictures, or no photos at all. My book could document an event, or could simply be a list of my favorite things. There is freedom in these little books. This was still hard for me to grasp as I started putting my mini book together, but I'm hoping with a little more practice, I can rid myself of my crafty-OCD.

For my first ever mini book, I ended up creating somewhat of a journal/scrapbook for the month of September. I wanted to document my thoughts and adventures as we just recently moved to a new city. I would love to do more of these in the future... maybe a month here and a month there.

The whole book was inspired by a card I found that has a quote by Neale Donald Walsch that reads, "Life begins at the end of your comfort zone." Love it.

I then started selecting some favorite scrapbook papers and trimming them all down to the same size (about 4x5). This definitely helped. Once all the pages were the same size, everything else seemed so much more manageable. I could put all my papers/mess away, and just work with the pages I selected... way less intimidating.

Then I decided to round the corners... I mean, because everything looks better with rounded corners.

I ordered some photos that would best document the month of September... focusing on a visit from my parents, then another visit from my sister. I added some journaling, some mementos gathered along the way, and a few last minute embellishments... and called it done.

Here's the whole thing... My first mini book... start to finish...