CHRISTMAS TREE INSPIRATION

When it's not snowing, or when it's snowing and I can stay inside (IE NOT DRIVE) this time of year is my most favorite of all! Thanksgiving is just a couple days away and then we are in Christmas season! What can be better than Christmas shopping, decorating the tree, drinking even more coffee and hot coco, wearing boots and scarves, listening to Christmas music all day long for a month, and celebrating Christ's birth?

Of course my favorite part of the Holidays is being with my family, which this year we will miss out on. However, last night Paul and I had a Skype date with Paige, Matt, Landon, Oslo, Mom and Dad which was so much fun! They received a virtual tour of our apartment, making them the second to seventh visitors! I think we'll get to see our family on Christmas after all...

In preparation for the Holidays, we went to the Salvation Army and picked out our Christmas Card outfits and I'm just giddy about the finds as well as our upcoming photoshoot! I will post our card here so you all get to see because honestly we aren't sending them out to everyone -- mostly family. Stay tuned.

Until then, feast your eyes on these adorable wintertime inspiration pictures! Don't they make you feel cozy inside? This is my inspiration for our tree, since we are working completely from scratch:

Burlap Bulps? Yes please! Tulle Puffs and Glitter. Cute Packages and Ruffled Skirt. Adorable Wooden Ornaments! Anything Glitter!! Acorn Ornament. Gift Wrapping...

Hopefully our tree will look something like this! I'm sure burlap, tulle and glitter will be involved.

NEWS: I have a date tomorrow with my new friend Amanda. Paul is going out with his friend Andy. Paul gets Thanksgiving and Black Friday off - PAID :) and I'm crossing my fingers that he'll take me out for BF Shopping.

Happy Thanksgiving!
Amber

THANKSGIVING DINNER

We are so happy to have found a church home - check it out here Mom, Dad, and anyone else who's interested.

We were invited to Thanksgiving Dinner thrown by two small group circles held at a home here in Wakefield. The get together happened last night. Paul and I were excited to go because we haven't seen too many people outside of church, so thought this would be a great chance to make friends. It's funny, because the church we go to is majority mid-30s and under, married, with little kids/babies. It's ridiculous how fertile this church is -- actually, it's really scary!! Three months into marriage here, and we are not looking for a surprise. Really though. Just about every couple is married and is pregnant, has a baby or little ones.

Here is an illustration of Thanksgiving Dinner. I put it together like this to show you how we fit in. We are in the dotted line. The lighter haired people just represent grandparents -- she doesn't actually have gray hair :) Hearts are dating, rings are married, kids you can figure out, and the lady with the bump -- well, she's expecting. This is a good representation of our church except I would say another couple should have kids.

All in relationships.

Thanksgiving was really nice though! We got to meet some really great people and I set up a date with Amanda (Andy's girlfriend) so am excited to get in some girl time. Slowly, but surely, it's starting to feel like home.

Next week we are going to Barb and Fred's for real Thanksgiving. We are also looking forward to that. We are in the works of setting up a date with Anna and Jeremy's friends for the second weekend in December as well.

Oh PS totally rocked redish lipstick yesterday. It felt holiday-ish, and now that I'm married I feel it's totally appropriate to wear colored lips. I also am doing my hair like this: curls on top and straight on bottom because it helps hide my roots but gives me length! Thoughts?

Best,
Amber

BURLAP BOWL

I've been working on a fun project over the last few days and am excited to finally share it with you all! I have so many left over materials from the wedding and burlap is one of them! I've been creatively reusing materials to decorate our tight space...

So here's the burlap bowl I made this week! Materials are simple. And if you don't have Mod Podge (I ran out too) use this simple recipe that works exactly the same and is much cheaper: 50% water to 50% Elmers Glue.

I have it on the coffee table now holding letters from Grandma and the coupons she sent plus random chargers. It will eventually be moved to my desk I think.

More pics:

And, here's a taste of our living space since I haven't shared too many pictures of our actual apartment. We recently put these pictures up. Notice, Fish and Chicken? They were the actual tokens Paul and I chose at our wedding :)

Taking pictures in the evening with no natural light, gives a yellowish tint. I kind of like it. Gives our place a very bohemian or 70s vibe.

Best,
ANCM

CABINET MAKEOVER

I have this week off as I put in too many hours this last month at work -- good thing or bad thing? I was able to accomplish a lot over the day, which was great! I set up a new checking account system with numbers, paid some bills and most importantly redid one of our kitchen cabinets.

I found this great adhesive shelving liner at the Dollar Tree this weekend which I knew would be perfect for recovering the nasty shelving wallpaper in our cabinets! With a day off, why not right?

Here's the before and after:

And the steps between. It didn't take all that much work/time. Tore out the wallpaper and cleaned the shelves. I used Dolphin Fin gray paint (extra from what we used in the bathroom) to paint the back of the cabinet walls. Then laid the adhesive coating. Easy! And the best part is it only cost me $1.00.

Whoever painted before did a bad job with the brush -- still some yellow paint on the wood, but I didn't want to paint over everything and I don't have stain at this point to re-stain cabinets. So, we'll work with what we got. It's definitely better.

NEWS: I might start the job search again -- thinking about picking up a second job so I can get full time hours as I don't think it'll be possible in my current position.

INJURY

Who's on Pinterest? Follow me! Seriously, nothing better than an afternoon of pinning and getting inspired by home decor and DIY crafts. That's exactly what landed me into the problem of the day...

I was so inspired by a Pinterest find I had to get started immediately -- 7:00 am on a Saturday morning immediately! I grabbed a soup can we just recycled to rewash, and sliced open the back of my hand.

I know this picture isn't that great, it's probably because I was just about to throw up or pass out! I'm not good at tending to my own wounds, and Paul is working today. He is a good husband, and offered to come home but I said I could last for the day -- maybe!

Check out these pics of me being creative -- DIY doctoring?

I wasn't going to let this little mishap get me down! I dug the can back out of the trash (I chucked it when it cut me open) and rinsed it out again, let it air dry, and went back for more!

Here's the inspiration. What a great addition to my desk, yes?

And, these are my steps: Most important step is use a hammer to pound down the inner sharp edge! And, be safe.

I'm really enjoying my pencil holder -- I think I'll to do at least two more :) Hope your having a safe Saturday!

Love,
Amber

PANCAKE BREAKFAST

Weekends are so lovely! We try to sleep in late. Let me clarify, I try to make Paul let me sleep in past 7:30. Saturdays we are very lazy and lounge around, make a big breakfast and I get completely ready for the day before we decide to leave the apartment.

This weekend we are changing that though! Here's a perk about living in New England: they have yard sales through the winter! So, instead of getting out the door at 11:00 I think we're aiming for 9:00. Yard sales are much different on the East Coast. Most items don't have a price on them, so you really have the opportunity to bargain. My advice: don't ask how much something costs, or wait for the seller to see what you're holding and yell a price. Be quick and say, "Will you take 50 cents?" Then it's usually your steal! Many times it's the men working the sales, with a big ole wad a cash rolled up just walking up and down their sidewalks talking and saying numbers. It's different...

PS I've been saying I wanted to get a folding dry rack from IKEA since we moved in. Scored one this last weekend garage saling! $2.00. I'm so cheap. I'd go to stores, but couldn't get myself to buy one for $10.00. It's just for drying dishes--seriously! Also this one is especially nice because it folds up. When you have limited counter space, that's a huge perk!

Moving on... So, this weekend we'll get up early, have our pancake breakfast, but go yard saling before I get ready. BTW here's a look at our weekend mornings:

...In our tight kitchen. Note Paul sees something to fix in any situation. That's why I love him! Because I never feel bad about giving him a DIY project :) I'm looking forward to the weekend already! It's only tomorrow away...

Love from Wakefield,
Amber

CRAZY PILLOW TIME

Things are coming together in our little one bedroom. I'm covering the bedroom in this blog today, because everyday I make my bed I just think about how much I love it! The reason? The pillows. In our house of two we call it
CRAZY PILLOW TIME
It's pillow love my friends.

Check out a sneak peek of our bedroom. Our 500 thread count sheets, RL blanket, and throw that we love plus the crazy pillows, gifts from friends. Also, you'll see my shopping rack extended closet, since ours holds not much more than my button ups and skirts.

Paul's antlers, believe it or not, is the only thing hanging on the wall.

It's getting there. Painting this back wall is the next project on my To Do List. You aren't going to believe this, but I'm painting it black. Paul is not a fan, and I'm sure many of you are appalled at the very thought but it's what I want. And, usually my ideas turn out! Check out these inspiration pictures--maybe you'll see my vision too. 

SOURCES:  design sponge - martha stewart - style files

NEWS:  Paul seems to be over his sickness, but I think I'm sick now. Boo.

Best,

Amber

THOSE LITTLE THINGS

You may be thinking I just poof - fell off the face of the Earth! Nope. We successfully moved into our new apartment in Wakefield, Mass where our neighbors are absolutely insane, but life is good. I'm not spending this blog discussing the neighbor situation but I will someday.

I know everyone is dying to get a taste of the apartment and I'll give you a couple glimpses. As you probably know I'm crazy for the details in life, so I'm only showing you the details and not the big picture. Unfair? Maybe, but the big picture is a big mess right now.

The best part about living in my first rental was opening all the wedding gifts. It was like Christmas morning, but with even more gifts! Christmas morning on drugs! Literally, I would open a box and sigh (a happy one) because I just loved what I saw in it. Sometimes I would laugh too. Maybe we are all just a little crazy--not just the neighbors... Again, not going into the neighbors on this blog :)

OK. Today you get a taste of bathroom and kitchen love. I wrote everything I love about the bathroom details, then tried to start writing all the kitchen detail loves but there are too many people to mention. But, Sam -- thanks for the little white dishes, because I use one by the sink to hold my rings. I love tiny things.

The cabinet wallpaper is hideous, trust me. That's on the to-do list. Do you see the black granite? Paul snagged that from work! It was a remodeled kitchen, and that piece was going to get thrown. I think it's a great piece to separate our appliances from the countertop. Keeps them dry from water spills and clean from other messes! I love my white holder for utensils, and I'm so obsessed with my all white and black dinnerware gifted by many wonderful people. Take a look! So pretty! One last thing, please notice in the bathroom there is a "reserved" sign from the wedding :) I think Miss Meghan made that!

Anyways. Life is good when you get to decorate. I love seeing all the gifts and wedding decor pop up--I reuse everything! Hope you all are well. Missing you.

NEWS: We have a new address. Contact me if you need it! We found a great church, and are meeting awesome people. I am getting new roles at work which I'm excited about! Paul is getting sick, we think.

Love,
Amber Nicole Clark Meyers.