Clutching my Clutch.

Walking home from work the other day, I was very frustrated trying to find my keys. Too many pockets, too big of a purse. And it was heavy. My purse becomes J's storage container often times. I was very frustrated.

This frustration lead to an epiphany. Why not make a clutch? One pocket. Small. Compact and light. And so I forgot about anything else I had planned for the afternoon (and I had a lot planned. Fun stuff, like thrifting and stopping by Hobby Lobby.) and ran to my scrap fabric bag.

I cut, ironed and sewed, and talked to my sister on the phone. And after thirty minutes, I had succeed.

The flowers were a previous project, that I ended up hot gluing to the clutch to complete it. It was, quite possibly, one of the easiest projects I've ever done. In hindsight, there are always things that I would do differently. And maybe I'll make another one day. But It works. And it only has one pocket. And it's small enough, that it can't be too heavy. It can't be used as a storage compartment by husbands. It holds a wallet, a phone, gum, chapstick, and a Hobby Lobby coupon. I love it.

Are you in on this downsize? Or are you a large bag kinda person? I love it, and for now, this small clutch is all I need. What do you think about the flowers? Also, does anyone recognize this fabric?? Yes, My name is Mallory, and I am a navy and white stripe-aholic.

Come, Sit.

Thanksgiving is a time for eating, laughing, and deep discussion with friends and family. It is a time of gratitude. It is a time for celebration of life and happiness. It is a warm holiday filled with love.

It is also a time to practice your Pottery Barn staging skills.

For those of you who are serious R. Simple Life readers, you know my obsession with Pottery Barn. I love me some Pottery Barn. Can't afford it though. So I fake it. And this time I took inspiration from my head. I didn't have a picture in the catalog. I didn't have a tutorial on the website. I just used what I had (and 4 place mats I purchased for $3.00 total) and thought Pottery Barn while I worked.

And at least according to my dear friend Wendi, it worked. She came in, took one look at the table and said "Looks like Pottery Barn in here." (I love her.)

And in true Mallory fashion, I took a million pictures of the table, and even a few of our end table (complete with branches I cut out of the tree right outside my house)...

But none of the delicious turkey, ham, mashed potatoes, sweet potato casserole, corn casserole, green bean casserole, rolls, cranberry sauce, or pumpkin pie. I guess I'll just have to show you one more of our table setting, and you're just going to have to imagine those plates filled with wonderful Thanksgiving food.

(That one has some food in it...) Did you have a good Thanksgiving? Were you more concerned about the table settings than the food too? Or am I the only one? J is the chef, I am the decorator. That is just the way things are around here. I don't think I should have to apologize for that. The food was awesome, by the way.

Thankful.

After days like yesterday, where we had a dinner for 12, for four, I am thankful for stretchy yoga pants.

I am thankful for a husband who rolls his eyes when I complain about those jeans making me "look wide."

I am thankful for family who misses us, and loves us still, even if we are not able to make it to where they are for the holidays.

I am thankful for great friends, who have become our "family away from family," who have become the people I go to for advice (or just to hear I'm not alone), who have become the people we can't stand to miss.

I am thankful for a 80 pound puppy, and a big fat cat.

I am thankful that hair grows.

I am thankful for my feet. And the muscles in my legs. And the ability to run 26.1 miles.

I am thankful for snow. Even if we don't have any. I'm thankful that someone, somewhere is experiencing snow.

I am thankful for Pottery Barn.

I am thankful for Ana White for teaching me how to knock off Pottery Barn.

I am thankful for blogs, because how else would I waste spend my time?

I am thankful for babies, and thankful that I don't have any. Yet.

I am thankful for Santa.

I am thankful for navy blue and white stripes.

I am thankful for the USAF.

I am thankful for food on my table, a roof over my head, and clothes on my body. And a Camelbak full of fresh water.

I am thankful for Harry Potter. And J.K. Rowling.

I am thankful for Colorado.

I am thankful for Lost.

And Sarah Richardson.

Source

One thing I am not thankful for: my camera eating my memory card. You'll have to wait to see our Thanksgiving table until I can figure out how to get it out.

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year.

It's that time of the year again. It is a time to celebrate with friends and family. To remember how blessed we are. To remember how magical it can be.

Harry Potter Day.

For those of you who are closest to me, you know this past weekend was one of the most exciting weekends of my year. I couldn't sleep with anticipation. My wand was placed by my bedside with care. And visions of Crumple Horned Snorkack's were dancing in my head.

In our house, we celebrate many Harry Potter Days. July 31st, Harry's Birthday. November 19 (or July 15th, or whatever day he graces us with his big screen presence). Tuesday, since we read HP as we fall asleep. Last weekend held one of the big Harry Potter Days of 2010... The release of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part One.

And he did not disappoint. The movie was awesome. Followed the book amazingly. Full of amazing detail and adorable outfits (thank you, Hermione). Full of magic and love. Full of fright and tears. Amazing.

Now, it wouldn't be a Harry Potter Day without celebrating in our clothing, would it? So yes, the Hogwarts track jacket was brought out. And the Gryffindor scarf. And of course, a little DIY.

You'll remember last Sunday, I had a productive day. Making cork sticks and Christmas card displays (I'll send you our address, all you have to do is send your card this way!). Well, I hinted at one more DIY project.

Bonus points if you know what this is. Double bonus points if you knew what it was before you saw the movie.

So we traveled two hours to Tulsa, OK in order to see our beloved Weasley Family, Hermione, Harry, Hagrid, Dobby, Neville (even if it was short) and all the rest of our loves on the big, giant IMAX screen. Yes, you heard me right. Two hours. And it was totally worth it. Even if I did have to drive the whole way there.

So if you haven't seen it yet, grab your wand, pull on your Quiddich sweater and get to the nearest theater. If you need someone to see it with, fly me to wherever you are, and I will go. No questions asked.

And for those of you who have seen it, WHAT DID YOU THINK?!?!

Life is Good.

Sometimes, when it's cold outside, or when it's warm inside, or when we have headaches (in our head and out), or when the world just seems so far away, or when we just need a vacation...

...this is all we need.

Faux Frame

I'll admit. I've circled everything in the Pottery Barn catalog. Yep everything. I should actually just forward the entire thing to Santa. I want it all. I want it all. And I want it now Christmas.

But, we all know that is not going to happen. Santa, don't think I'm greedy. I just am sending you the catalog for ideas. But don't worry about this. I've already got this under control.

Source: Pottery Barn

You may be wondering, did she really spend $199.00 on that Gilt Frame Card Holder? Frugal Mallory? Cheap Cheap Birdy? Well, I did not. Instead, I saw this and took inspiration.

You see, that is the secret of my projects. Most of the time, I get inspiration. Sometimes (as in this case) I see something and think "I can do that." Call it HSE. Call it crafty. Call it straight up copying. Call it whatever you want. But whatever you call it... this is what it gets you.

I found this very large frame at the local thrift store for $7.75. It was too expensive. But a week later, my friend Jill was back at said thrift store, and it was 75% off. So she bought it for me, so I could be "Mallory-crafty" (a new adjective coined by Jillian). So all in all, this project was free to me. (Unless you count the bag of mint and dark chocolate chips I bought Jill as a thank you.)

Lets just see what this thing looked like before I got my hands on it.

And although the cross stitched flower arrangement was beautiful, it was very dirty, did not fit in with the decor over here, and well... you know. Not exactly my taste. So I changed it. Simple project, one of my many on Sunday. Here are the instructions:

1. Find large frame.
2. Take picture/cross stitch/glass out of frame and dispose of.
3. Measure width of frame and add 2 inches.
4. Cut twine to this length.
5. Using a staple gun, measure evenly (you'll want to do a little math before you start... consider how many pieces of twine you want and how far apart you want them) down the frame and staple twine to inside back of frame. Make sure twine is taut.
6. Hang Christmas cards that your friends and family send you (hint, hint).

So, what do you think? I find myself longing for many things in the beloved Pottery Barn catalogs. In fact, I look through my Pottery Barn catalogs more often than some of the magazines I actually subscribe to. Shocking, I'm sure. Perhaps Pottery Barn can be thanked for being my inspiration to DIY. For as long as they keep their prices up, I will continue to create knock off pieces. Do you do this? Covet Pottery Barn? Or perhaps it is another store. (Anthropologie is my other one.) Does this drive you to DIY? Or do you just cave and spend the money?

Cork on a Stick.

Here is my thought process on a day like Sunday.

Wake up, ouch my head hurts. And my hair still smells like bonfire. Gross. Where is my husband? Do I smell bacon? Must find bacon. There is husband! He's making Eggs Jonathan. With bacon! Yum. So good. Now I need Tylenol. And a shower. Lets get water from the refrigerator. Ew, lets clean out the refrigerator. I'm feeling productive. What do I get if I mix wine corks, a yard stick, and wood glue? I like it! Now what? Oh, footballs on. Oh, I'm losing. Where is that $2 frame Jill got me? Here it is. What if I add a little twine... Perfect. Laundry, laundry, laundry. Soup. Laundry. Harry Potter is this weekend. We need shirts. Done. Laundry. Sarah's House. Laundry. Run. Couch. Bed.

Aren't you excited to see all the fruits of my labor from Sunday?? We'll start with my first project from Sunday. A cork stick. Corks on a stick. Yardstick cork. Well whatever you call it, it's meant to be a tall skinny cork board for a very narrow place. What do you think?

If your wondering how I made the cork stick, you're in luck! Because I'm going to tell you. It was a very simple project that took me all of 5 minutes (not counting the now 36 hours the cork stick has been under a 2x4 in the garage to make sure the glue sticks.

1. Drink lots of bottles of wine.
2. Save the corks.
3. Get a yard stick (if you go to a small, local hardware store and bat your eyes and wear something pretty, they might even give it to you for free...).
4. Using wood glue, attach corks to the yard stick.
5. Place under something heavy (I just so happened to have a 2x4 laying around) for 12 hours to let the glue set.
6. Hang on wall. Hang things on cork stick.

So? I made the cork stick as a way to use my collection of corks. I still have many left over. That is what happens when you collect something somewhat useless. You get to make awesome things. What do you think? Could you use a cork stick for a narrow area in your house? Stick a few notes on there for your cat? A picture or two? Tell us what easy projects you've been up to using everyday items from your house!

Oh, just a tip. Don't use hot glue. It won't work.

Calvin the Coodleveisen.

Sometimes when you least expect it, like when you are printing off a 40% off coupon for Hobby Lobby, life gives you lemonade. In the form of a purring cat. Rubbing his face all over yours. And kissing you. But making sure the camera doesn't get any of the kisses, so his friends won't make fun of him.

So to thank all you amazing readers for reading 100 posts of my ramblings (Yes, we are celebrating our 100th post today!) I will simply let the pictures tell 1,000 words. Or more like 26,000.