Five Favorite Etsy Shops

I know I'm a day late on this post, but I had a family dinner last night and by the time I got home, I was just wiped. It was another long day today, so I thought I'd just do a quick post on a little addiction of mine-Etsy! The other day a friend of mine was telling me she was being naughty at the mall and I jokingly said her shopping habit at the mall was like my shopping habit at Etsy. Then I realized it's not really a joke at all!

I love seeing people use their creativity and bringing some individual (and sometimes custom) artwork and crafts into my home. So I thought I'd do a quick round-up of my 5 favorite Etsy vendors lately.

1. Modern Mud by Naomi is my current obsession. She has ahhmazing vases and little bowls that I have become slightly obsessed with. I actually purchased several smaller vases and then I reached out to her and asked if she could make larger vases in custom colors. She said yes. Watch for an upcoming post on these! 
2. SilverTreeArt by Suzanne L. Vinson. This is a relatively new shop I stumbled on from reading another blog. I ordered a few wisdom cards such as this one and this one and this one. I figure they will add little pops of color to my bookshelves. 
3. Yao Cheng Design by Yao Cheng. I love the prints from this shop. My favorites at the moment are this one and this one. I haven't yet committed to purchasing anything from this vendor because I'm trying to refrain from buying any more art prints. You know, until I finish my basement and realize I have 6 walls to decorate. 
4. Kolorize Vintage & Handmade. I've bought a jadeite plate set from this vendor, along with a brass unicorn, and I love looking at the vintage items she has in her shop. Inventory is always changing so very fun to visit. Plus, who wouldn't love a name like "Kolorize?!" 
5. Pop O'Color sells designer fabric pillows and I usually browse their shop first before I hunt for other pillows. But typically I will see a fabric I like and do a search for all shops that carry that type of fabric, so it can be hit or miss with the pillows. 

Vitamin Goodness

I have the song "Trick of the Moonlight" by Gareth Dunlop playing in my head tonight.  It skips over it like a record and only plays the parts I really like.  

Here comes the night/When all the ghosts come out

I feel its all slowing down somehow/but those lights above are racing by

Here lies the ground/that swallowed all it's found

I had another long day at work, and tonight finds me tired and stressed. I read this article over the weekend in my mom's April Good Housekeeping magazine and it rang a few bells for me.

It talked about how doctors over-prescribe the "big gun" drugs in order to beat what could be minor illnesses and thus bacteria strains are becoming very antibiotic-resistant. Kind of scary actually, because deaths are rising from viruses and bacteria due to the strains becoming resistant. It had me thinking about it because I am allergic to your first-line antibiotics (penicillin, sulfa), so the doctors always prescribe the big guns for me. I had a recurring sinus infection for pretty much all of 2013 because I couldn't kick it with antibiotics. 

It finally took a med school intern to think outside of the box and prescribe me with three weeks of an antibiotic that was a cousin of penicillin. Sure, I developed a terrible rash and hives that lasted for a few months, and I was unable to finish the antibiotics because it started to affect my mouth/face, but I got rid of most of the germs. (The article also talked about how not finishing antibiotics actually helps strengthen those bacteria germs that makes them more antibiotic-resistant. So scary!) 

Now I take VitaFusion gummy vitamins every day (really, it's just like eating candy!) and I haven't had to go to the doctor since late November in 2013, which is definitely an amazing thing in my world. I still have occasional days when the sinus germs flare up and cause me issues, but over-the-counter antihistamines seem to help on those days.  For vitamins, I take a daily dose of Calcium, Vitamin D, a Women's Multi-vitamin and Vitamin C.  I loathe taking pills but I find chewing on gummies is an easy way to fool myself into taking them daily. Besides, aren't they cute in their berry-licious form?!

But I digress. I encourage you to pick up Good Housekeeping and read the article-it definitely rang true for me. And what I want to know is why are the drug companies not investing in coming up with stronger antibiotics? Do they want us to go back to the stone age?! Actually, don't answer that. The insurance companies probably do want us all to die young so they don't have to invest in keeping us healthy. 

And, since I usually post about my interior design craziness, I thought I would leave you with this teaser of an upcoming project (or two): 

And someone really needs to go hire me a butler. So you know, he can prime my new drywall.

Finished Drywall

Just a quick post today with a drywall update. It appears the strange men have finished with mudding the drywall in my lower level. I wish I could be more excited about it, but it was a rough day, and I'm seeing a priming and paint job ahead of me, so it's hard to get truly excited about the progress. But it is definitely progress, and I'm now one step closer to the fun stuff, so I'm thankful the drywall and mud is done! Here are some snapshots of the freshly mudded walls. Ignore the mess and the terrible lighting in the pictures. I'm honesty too tired to figure out how to work the camera's manual settings tonight!

When I moved into this house, there was a wall diving these two rooms. We knocked down the wall, installed the corner fireplace, and then a few years went by. 

BEFORE

We enclosed the pipes (there are two, one is on the far left, not pictured below), move some light switches, finished the drywall and now, in it's freshly mudded glory:

AFTER: In Progress

The hallway was formerly closed off with a doorway (and no door) at the bottom of the stairs, making a tiny little "cubicle" of doors leading to the loo, the playroom and the laundry room. We took out the door frame and opened up the hall to the doors.  Bad blogger that I am, I didn't really get a good "before" shot of that, but below you can see some of the demo process where the brown trim on the right represents the doorway to the "cubicle." 

BEFORE

 After, the hallway is more open and modern, crisp lines and a flush ceiling.

AFTER: In Progress

Here is another view from the playroom down the hall to the media room-you can see the two posts and the white is where the drywall was mudded.

AFTER: In Progress

The bathroom downstairs has had the most change. It had two types of fake walls and horribly ugly, cracked and peeling floor tile. And you can see the floor has the cement exposed where we dug the french drain. Spiders loved this room. Peyton and I, not so much.

BEFORE

AFTER: In Progress

I'm excited to get Little Loo all done up again so we have two working bathrooms in this house! I have to work this weekend, so I'm not sure how much progress I'll be making down here. Upcoming will be priming, painting (should the wall color stay? should it change?), adding floors and trim.  So there is still quite a bit to do before I can get to the fun decorating stuff. 

One small step for mankind .... let's just say Mud is good. Mud is very, very good. 

Introducing Me

At work today I had the perfectly dreadful task of talking about myself for almost a full hour. One of my team projects was getting to know each other better, so my managers and I took turns sharing 3 pages worth of  "All About Me" questions. It was very embarrassing and I'm glad it's over, but it did occur to me that it might be nice to share some of those "About Me" questions here on this blog. So I don't come across as entirely psycho when you read my impromptu ramblings every Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

So hello. My name is Kelci, and I have a daughter, Peyton, who is 8. We currently reside in a split-level house somewhere in the middle of Iowa (I promise, I do know my own address!), with our dog Boo-boo and a guinea pig named Bugsy.  As a single mom, I am super-paranoid about stalkers and crazies (something about it takes one to know one, right...) so I do prefer to keep some things private.  Plus, I lived in Rochester, New York for five years, and paranoia about that kind of thing is kind of the norm up there. And even though I didn't see the movie about the Craigslist Killer, I heard the title and that's enough for me.

Here are some other things you may not know about me.

I'm Deaf. My mom had a virus when she was pregnant with me, and so I was born with a non-working right ear and severe hearing loss in my left ear. Being Deaf has presented several never-ending challenges in my life, but it has also given me a true appreciation for what I can hear, and a true appreciation for the friendships I have made with other Deaf people in my life. But that may be a story for another day.

I am currently a manager within a mortgage company, but my true passion is Interior Design, decorating and painting the heck outta things. I like change in my environment around me-it's what keeps me engaged and creating.

I love to read--anything and everything. I really enjoy reading young adult Sci Fi books- the City of Bones series by Cassandra Clare; the Twilight series by Stephanie Meyer; the Fever series by Karen Marie Moning, to name a few. My favorite way to relax is with a stack of books or magazines and a glass of Moscato and read the afternoon away.

I'm not a huge fan of TV. If the TV is on in our house, it's on Disney (for Peyton). I use Netflix to catch up on series because I hate the suspense of waiting for the next piece of the story line each week. So I'm usually 3 years behind on the popular television series and I also usually get bored with the story lines after one or two season's worth.

My favorite drink is coffee. I drink coffee every day, and pretty much all day. I don't have a favorite food, though I could live off of bread and chocolate alone. I tend to go through weird food phases where I get on a food kick and eat the same food non-stop for a week and then I won't eat it again for 2 years. Yeah, I'm weird. I'm also allergic to exercise. I was very active in high school- I danced for 14 years, I did a round with tennis, tried track, played volleyball, did cheer-leading, etc. But then my knees started giving me grief and I became allergic to pain. So now I enjoy Kyaking and Horseback riding, because there's no impact to my knees.

I hate wearing shoes. And socks. I would prefer to be barefoot all day if I had my way. And I hate shoe-shopping. The apple must not really fall far from the tree because Peyton is the same way. I get cold in 70-degree weather. I don't have much (ok, I don't have any) body fat, and I get chilled very easily. Many days my gas fireplace is my best friend.

My favorite color is teal, but it's followed pretty closely right now by emerald and magenta. And yellow. And I've found myself flirting with coral. Basically, if the color wheel spit up in my house I probably wouldn't mind too much. Sometimes, though, I can be a little anal with details and I like things perfect and uniform--Peyton calls it "matchy-matchy." When we installed the marble tile around my fireplace, we ran out of tiles, so we had to go back to the store and buy additional tiles. But the pattern didn't match exactly, and ever since it has driven me nuts. 

And the last fun fact of the day...

I'm not really a collector because I usually see it as clutter.  The only thing I truly do collect is books, because I have always wanted a library in my house.  But my Nook has led me into the electronic era and there's just no stepping back from that edge.  But last year, I did start collecting Disco Balls. I used to constantly joke about wanting a disco ball in my office, and my friend found me a big one and got it for me. And the sparkles hooked me. So now, every time I see a disco ball I have to buy it. And then, I saw a pretty image of Jadeite dishes on Pinterest and I decided to start collecting Jadeite dishes to fill up my new dining room Hutch/Command Center. Oh, it's a slippery, slippery slope, my friends.

So there you have it. A few fun and random facts about me. What about you, have you slid down any slippery slopes lately?

Making Progress and an Impulse Buy

So today there were strange men in my house. I don't know who and I don't know when, but when I came home, there was drywall tape all over the place downstairs. It's exciting times, folks.

Ok, not really. Taping and mudding drywall is about as exciting as watching a snail slinch itself ever. so. slowly. down. the. sidewalk. (Yes, I did, I just made that word up.) 

But it's ,/progress,/,/ Here are a few snapshots of what progress looks like. 

 

Just think, in three days (give or take) I will have new walls to paint! And then the exciting stuff happens, like new floors and a new bathroom with a second toilet back in the house! And then, for the really exciting part--decorating it!  

In other news, today I stopped at a consignment store over lunch and did some browsing. I might have been naughty. Ok, yes, I was naughty. 

I spied these babies: 

And even though they weren't in the best of shape, I kind of just had to have them.  I had sugarplums images like these scrolling through my head: 

Image found on Pinterest here

Image found on Pinterest here

Image found on Pinterest here

Bamboo is very popular in interior design right now. Purchasing new, however, can be very costly. And since Bamboo is not the most uh, comfortable, type of seating, I thought it made sense to keep the trendy spending thrifty.   So one of these puppies came home with me, since I could only get one in my car at a time; and tomorrow over lunch I will have to pick up the second. So exciting! (On a side note, every time someone says "So exciting!" I hear the song from Moulin Rouge in my head and it automatically completes that sentence with ",/it will run for fifty years...,/")

So, to wrap this post up, here is a sneak peek of one of the chairs in its new (less than permanent) home: 

Any votes on color? Emerald? Coral? Teal? 

My Top 5 Favorites from Birchbox

I thought I would do a quick post today about my favorite items I've discovered through Birchbox.   I've been with Birchbox for around 10 or 11 months now, and as I have shared in the past, Peyton and I get a kick out of the small samples we get each month. It's always fun getting something in the mail, even if it ends up being a product you don't use or love. (Hey, I never claimed to be rational.)

But I thought I would share the top 5 (well, ok, six) that I loved. I say 5 because I consider the Shampoo and Conditioner a set. (I'm logical like that. Sometimes.)

1. Whish Three Wishes Body Butter in Pomegranate.  I loved this lotion. Besides a nifty name that fits right up my alley (Three wishes? Genies? Anyone have one I can borrow?), the pomegranate scent was yummy. As a lotion, it did pretty well with absorbing into my skin and fighting the dryness. I drink a lot of coffee and keep my house super warm, so my skin is always dry.  (You think I'm joking. Hint. I'm not.) It does come in several other scents, which I've not tried, if pomegranate is not your thing. 
2. Eyeko Black Magic Mascara. I have thin, but slightly longish, lashes, so having mascara to define the lashes is always a good thing. I have tried a lot of mascara brands and this one has kicked all of the others out of my very cute Vera Bradley bag.  For interested parties, this is the cosmetic bag I keep all my stuff in. Isn't she cute?! 

   

   Vera Bradley Large Cosmetic Bag in Plum Crazy

3. 12 Benefits Instant Healthy Hair Treatment. I used to use It's a 10 Miracle Leave-in Product, and that stuff is also amazing.  When Peyton's hair was longer, we would use it almost daily and it helped get her tangles out and reduce the tears. But then I got a sample of 12 Benefits and the scent is ahhhmazing and it seemed to make my hair SO silky and smooth. Same detangling benefits as we had with the It's a 10 product, but a yummier smell, so I am now a fan of 12 Benefits. 
4. Beauty Protector Protect and Detangle. This is another detangler that I ended up liking--it had a fabulous fruity smell that lingered for a very long time. It was a bit heavier on my fine hair than the 12 Benefits, and my hair wasn't as silky as with the 12 Benefits, but the scent definitely puts it in my top two for hair detanglers. 
5. The last (two) items are Davines Love Smoothing Shampoo and Conditioner.  I think this is another case where the gorgeous fig smell pulls these two items into my favorites. Technically, this shampoo and conditioner set is designed to reduce frizz and detangle hair into smoother strands, and since I have fine, straight hair, I don't really need this type of shampoo/conditioner line. But the Indian Fig scent is amazing-definitely worth the investment. Oh, yeah, and my hair was pretty smooth when using it. It just reduced the body and volume that I normally strive to inject into my hair. Some days, my nose wins the battle over good hair days.

So there you have it-my top favorites from Birchbox.  What about you? Do you subscribe to any makeup sample mailing services? I've heard there are several good options out there. And of course, Peyton is always looking for more perfume and nail polish samples!  

Turtle on the Wall

It's the little things sometimes. For over a year I've had Nate Berkus's huge white lacquer turtle shell boxed up. I bought it from Target when the turtle craze exploded onto the scene (the scene being Nate Berkus + Target = mad dash to Target) and had to have one. On a side note-how insane-I just Googled Ebay for the shell and one recently sold for $132.50! I think I paid $19.99 (and it might have even been on clearance when I finally got it!).

I tried it on the entry wall. And it looked odd and not at all inspiring. I immediately took it down and didn't even bother to snap a picture.

Then, I tried to include it in the initial stages of my gallery wall.  And while it did add that extra touch of non-art that every gallery wall needs, I couldn't find a layout that really worked with it.  The layout below was the closest I found to a happy path with Mr. Berkus's turtle and it just wasn't happening for me.

Fast-forward one year to today. I stubbed my toe on the turtle box again and I hauled it out, determined to find a home for it.  I finally landed in the loo-dark navy walls and white lacquer just seemed to be fated. 

Now he's a happy shell. And truly, every time I'm in the loo now I get a ridiculous smile on my face.