Don't forget to check out my website at http://coreyloo.weebly.com/
I've updated a few things on there and will continue to make a few additions.
Tuesday, July 31, 2012
Sunday, July 29, 2012
Preparing to Party
Warning: This is my first lengthy blog post. You've been warned.
As some of you heard (unless you are my parents of course!), my brother and I have spent all summer planning a big surprise party for my parents' 40th wedding anniversary.
The surprise happened yesterday. It was scheduled for 4, but because my parents are always late, no surprising happened until 4:30. My parents thought they were coming over for a housewarming party with all of our friends, but the house was actually full of friends from throughout their lives.
I started thinking about this party last year and have had it in the back of my mind since then. The month of July has really been focused on covering every detail for the party...from making sure our new house was unpacked and clean (biggest job of all)...to planning food...to tracking down friends to invite. One great thing about the party was that I knew I would have to have my house unpacked and ready for people to see. Those who know us well, know that we never finished unpacking in our last house! We had a whole room of boxes that were never unpacked. So I knew that this couldn't be the case when we moved to this house. We have worked all summer with the help of our parents and friends who have come over once a week to work on scrubbing moldy walls, unpacking the kitchen, and doing mini projects.
Because of all their hard work, this past week hasn't been so bad. I expected to be pulling my hair out with stress. Yes, I was definitely stressed this week but it wasn't because of a never-ending to do list. The stress came from the thought of the actual "SURPRISE" itself.
Anyways, here are a few projects and pictures from the week. I'll post some party pictures later this week.
My first burlap door hanging...
I'm pretty happy with the final product. We kept it inside the house as part of our decorations.
Failed project Lesson Learned: I had a cute idea to incorporate some chalkboards into our decorations. I bought 4 boxes of drinking glasses from TJMaxx and planned to use chalkboard paint to create a label on each drinking glass.
I learned that you should always test an idea before carrying it out multiple times! After painting one glass and seeing that the paint would indeed stick, I went ahead and painted the rest of that set (you can see them in the background). After painting these 8, I decided I should probably test the paint and see if it would hold up....I filled the glass with ice water, the glass began to sweat...and the black label slid right down the side. whomp whomp! Needless to say, we did not drink out of personalized glasses at the party. Luckily the paint peels off easily, so I can quickly remove it all and return these glasses! Oops! :) Lesson learned!
Anyways, today has been a day of relaxation and eating massive amounts of leftovers.
As some of you heard (unless you are my parents of course!), my brother and I have spent all summer planning a big surprise party for my parents' 40th wedding anniversary.
The surprise happened yesterday. It was scheduled for 4, but because my parents are always late, no surprising happened until 4:30. My parents thought they were coming over for a housewarming party with all of our friends, but the house was actually full of friends from throughout their lives.
I started thinking about this party last year and have had it in the back of my mind since then. The month of July has really been focused on covering every detail for the party...from making sure our new house was unpacked and clean (biggest job of all)...to planning food...to tracking down friends to invite. One great thing about the party was that I knew I would have to have my house unpacked and ready for people to see. Those who know us well, know that we never finished unpacking in our last house! We had a whole room of boxes that were never unpacked. So I knew that this couldn't be the case when we moved to this house. We have worked all summer with the help of our parents and friends who have come over once a week to work on scrubbing moldy walls, unpacking the kitchen, and doing mini projects.
Because of all their hard work, this past week hasn't been so bad. I expected to be pulling my hair out with stress. Yes, I was definitely stressed this week but it wasn't because of a never-ending to do list. The stress came from the thought of the actual "SURPRISE" itself.
Anyways, here are a few projects and pictures from the week. I'll post some party pictures later this week.
My first burlap door hanging...
Sweet Sidney kept me company while I worked :)
I learned that you should always test an idea before carrying it out multiple times! After painting one glass and seeing that the paint would indeed stick, I went ahead and painted the rest of that set (you can see them in the background). After painting these 8, I decided I should probably test the paint and see if it would hold up....I filled the glass with ice water, the glass began to sweat...and the black label slid right down the side. whomp whomp! Needless to say, we did not drink out of personalized glasses at the party. Luckily the paint peels off easily, so I can quickly remove it all and return these glasses! Oops! :) Lesson learned!
I ended up painting several plaques and tags with the chalkboard paint, as well as a great framed version. Then we ran out of time during set up and didn't even get to set them out. Oh well!
I wanted to add some fun color to our food/snack choices, as well as personalize it a little. I made some candy as party favors using our theme colors and molds ordered off of Amazon. Some of the candy came out perfect, others not so much! This is an easy project, but the chocolates have to be watched VERY carefully or they will burn and become discolored. The nice thing about these is that you can make them several days early and keep them refrigerated. Here are my makeshift double boilers on the stove.
Colored in the "40" with a lollipop stick.
Very happy with the final product!
In the middle of all the planning and chaos, I decided that I should probably make an outfit to wear to the party :) Why not?! So on Thursday night, I started sewing this skirt, and I finished it up on Friday.
LOVE this fabric! It is soo bright and colorful and fun! Perfect for summer!
And here it is! A floor-length skirt! Perfect for a summer party! I wore it with a black tank layered over a green tank and tucked into the skirt.
My wonderful friend Stacy made these great pom-poms to hang over the drinks table. Super cute! She also manned the kitchen with my fabulous mama-in-law. They kept the drinks pouring and the plates filled. They were AWESOME! I absolutely could not have pulled off the party without their help!
Whew!
I'll post pictures from the party itself later this week. I didn't take as many pictures as I would have liked, so I'm hoping to get pictures from other people who were at the party in addition to the few I took on my phone.Anyways, today has been a day of relaxation and eating massive amounts of leftovers.
Sleeping on the couch with Sid while hubs watches the Olympics.
And drinking a glass of wine.
We have about 8 unopened bottles of wine left from the party. I guess the sangria, margaritas, and kegs were enough for everyone! Oh well! Guess I won't be buying anymore wine for a while!
Monday, July 23, 2012
This Old House
We bought this house just a few months ago. I saw the listing online and immediately fell in love with it! Isn't it cute?! It was built in the 1930s and has so much character! We were really lucky to buy it at a great price because it had been through a foreclosure and tax auction. With the low price tag, the house came "As Is"...meaning we've had a bit of fixing up to do!
Some things that I love...
-2 fireplaces--one working & one filled with bricks that's begging for an update!
-chandeliers in almost every room-all brass means they need a coat of paint or replacing
-hardwood floors everywhere
-a white-washed upstairs that's a blank slate for design
-old school charm
-Purple guest room--still needs to be painted
-Guest bathroom--even worse than the bedroom: TINY & gross!
-Master bathroom--12 lightbulbs...really? I do not need to see every flaw that well! Plus a long counter with only one sink and a tiny corner for the toilet
-Kitchen--needs all new appliances & I cannot stand the wooden countertops! They never feel clean!
I hope you'll follow my blog as we work to update the house and tackle some other projects along the way!
Sunday, July 22, 2012
And so it begins...
I've debated starting a blog for the past year or so, and I kept putting it off until summer. So of course now that summer is almost over, I decide to get it started!
I would like for this blog to be a place to share some of the things that I've made. I was raised by a crafty mom, so it's in my blood! When I was little, that meant puff paint, decorative buttons, glitter paint, and of course a hot glue gun. In college, I started sewing and making my own clothes and curtains. Now that I'm a homeowner, my craft focus has changed again. I still love sewing and monogramming, but now I'm working to create things for my home on a budget! I'm trying to start thrifting and have already come across some great finds! Thanks for checking out coreyloo!
I would like for this blog to be a place to share some of the things that I've made. I was raised by a crafty mom, so it's in my blood! When I was little, that meant puff paint, decorative buttons, glitter paint, and of course a hot glue gun. In college, I started sewing and making my own clothes and curtains. Now that I'm a homeowner, my craft focus has changed again. I still love sewing and monogramming, but now I'm working to create things for my home on a budget! I'm trying to start thrifting and have already come across some great finds! Thanks for checking out coreyloo!
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