Works in Progress, the vintage iPhone case Edition & a winner!

I always love it when my friends ask me to design something for them that I pretty much have never thought of designing before.

My girl April recruited me to design an iPhone case for her using one of her all time favorite Emily Dickinson quotes.

The thought of my art sporting an iPhone case made me get more excited than a teenage girl having a ballin' hair day while rockin' out at a Justin Beiber concert (hey, it's the lil things in life, ok?)

April wanted it to look vintage with a touch of lace and a realistic bee illustration.

nailed it.

----------------------------

Also are you here to see if you won your choice of any item from the lovely Fancies and Whimsies of Fifteen Evergreen shop?

Come on down #28 the lovely Windy Philips and claim your prize! and thanks for stalking us on twitter, we dig that ;)

My Secret Quirks, Friendships & Cover Hogs

Since a lot of you know me from behind the screen you probably don't know about my quirks & habits like some of my friends who see me on a day to day basis do.

Well, these ladies who finally got to see me in the flesh were lucky enough to learn some tidbits about me that, well, I neglect to mention while blogging ;)

[me, ilene, erika, julie]

1. When I am not home I sleep with an eye mask, ear plugs and gangsta grills (aka a mouth guard). Talk about an amazing trifecta of awesomeness.

2. At the airport I asked Ilene who should go first to order a drink from Starbucks since one of us should stay behind to watch the bags. Apparently this is a very "New York" way of thinking and others out there have trust in humanity. I had no clue that this was so odd.

3. I shower & wash my hair every single day.

4. I get super cranky when I am hungry. I swear I'm like an infant, I need to be fed at least 30 times a day.

5. I am a HA-UGE germaphobe. A carry a mini purel keychain on my purse for quick access. If someone else has touched my food I will not eat it. I touch doorknobs with tissues and hoover over toilet seats like a stealthy ninja warrior.

6. I never realized how uneducated my accent sounded till I left Long Island. We pronounce our "O's" as "A's" or "AW's". Some favorites from the past weekend were:

Stalked = Stawked
Bought = Bawt
Blog = Blawg
Dog = Dawg
Coffee = Cawfee
Here = Hea
Over = Ovah
At All = At Awl
Yesterday = Yestaday

pinky promise I passed 1st grade.

7. If I call you a bitch then congrats you and I are officially BFFs.

8. I curse when its not necessary. I am a happy cursor. F*ck yeah! (blame NY for this ok?)

9. I tend to bust out into the most dated dance moves ever when I get super excited (sprinkler anybody? Going fishing perhaps?)

10. I refuse to drink tap water. Not because I am snobby, but because one time back home there was an "ecoli out break" in the drinking water. The germaphobe in me has cut off all ties with tap water. We are no longer besties.

Buuut I also learned some interesting things about my fellow bloggers as well ;)

for example, Erika will randomly yell "AHHH!" and sprint out of the room with zero explanation what so ever. She will usually return with either food, her laptop, or craft supplies. This is usually followed by some questionable stares back from her peers.

 erika sportin' some yellow heart art bling and the latest "hair flower clips" to hit etsy soon.

Julie will clean out any antique store with all her awesome finds.

 totally peer pressured Julie into getting these mustard tins. You are welcome Julie.

Ilene is the worst cover hog ever. Bitch took my comforter. (see how I used bitch right there? It means we are officially the bestest of friends) (no seriously Ilene is the bomb, she is even more sweet and genuine in person) (I know I was shocked too) (she is my soul mate)

 we shared an airbed so I was allowed to violate her in this photo.

Ashley is the practical jokester placing generic brand cans of black beans all up in my luggage. But it's ok, I woke up earlier than her and put some beans in her bed. Figured she would want to spoon with them since she digs black beans so much. Its a love/love relationship between her and I.

"Number 11" and "plushies" That is all I am saying there ;)

Ashley gives thee best speeches (also? I need to go thrifting with home girl, she gets killer finds. Super jealous)

 me.ilene.julie.ashley.erika

Andrea is my hero and she knows exactly why.

Then there were bloggers who I wished I got to spend more time talking to! I got to meet so many incredibly talented ladies who I wish all lived in the same hood as me. Then we can walk to each other's houses and instead of borrowing a cup of sugar we can borrow silhouette cameos and glue guns.

I was also incredibly honored that other ladies wanted to get *my* input on how to start a business! I had so much fun shooting the biz shiz with other people who get me. Other people who work full time and run a shop on etsy. Other people who try to answer client emails, blog emails, paypal requests, special orders and shipping timelines. Other people who deal with the postal service (nuff said) Other people who need to save all their business receipts for business taxes. Other people whose living spaces are swimming in shipping supplies, felt scraps and dried up piles of hot glue strands. Other people who try to keep up with twitter, facebook, blog and other social media outlets ON TOP OF having a personal social life. Other people who deal with the positives and negatives in running a handmade biz.

One day I even stayed up till 2am with Ashley S. and Ilene just bouncing ideas off one another and sharing our personal experiences (whether it was about our blogs, our shops or even life) It reminded me that even though the handmade community can be so ugly at times it is refreshing to see other people try to help those still by offering words of encouragement and advice. I will forever hold in my heart the conversations I had with every single person that weekend. Viva la Handmade!

Share the Beauty!

Hey Loves! Welcome to Week 3 of our Share the Beauty Link up! Today's prompt was "Hair Products". Basically products that help give your 'do a lil "umph".

I am so excited because tomorrow I will finally take the plunge and get some bangs! Some of you may of heard me mention in the past about donating my hair. I have been growing out my victoria beckham bob since 2008 so don't be jealous that my hair is down to my belly button, it took 4-1/2 years for it to get there.

I *was* thinking about taking the chop tomorrow and donate my hair but I think I'm gonna do it at my next appointment. Promise I am not chickening out! It's just that it took me so long to grow out my short hair that when I do hack off 9" I want it to still be a long-ish length. Besides I haven't gotten my hair cut since February of last year so they need to hack off a ton of dead hair anyway. When I donate my hair I want it to be 100% healthy.

Ok now that that side note is done let's get to the biz-nass.

A little trick I use to shorten up my long hair is by curling it with my curling wand. Curls bring up your hair a bit which makes it a little more manageable for me to handle.

I have a terrible habit of running my fingers through my hair, even when its curled! So thats why I have invested in this guy:

Tresseme Aerospray Ultra Fine Mist

Yes, I know what you're thinking "Really Leonora, Aerosol spray?! What are you my grandma whose still rockin' the aquanet?"

Let me defend myself here for a second people! Put down your torches and stop looking so angry. Even though its an aerosol its a SUPER MISTY LIGHT HOLD aerosol. In other words, after I am down curling mah 'do I spray down the curls with this aerosol spray and my curls are *still* touchable and bouncy. I will admit, this is NOT meant for a super-duper hold. This is more so an everyday hairspray, I would not recommend this for a wedding or a prom.

I just hate the feel of super sticky hair. This at least keeps the hold while leaving my hair de-crunchy-fied. Please see obligatory "stuck in traffic with my curls so let's take a photo" photo below.

My next favorite hair product has been keepin' it real with me since 2007 (aww sookie sookie) Bed Head's Headrush shine spray is amazeballs (yeah, totally just said balls on my blog) 

Again, sorta an aerosol spray, but this stuff really pumps up the shine. It leaves your hair feeling weightless while making it look like you just stepped off the Victoria Secret Fashion show set.

This is my go-to for revving up my dull hair. Also since my hair is naturally wavy it helps tame my frizzy dull hair when I let it dry au-natural in the summer time. Since its lighter than a serum it wont leave any funky residue on my skin in the summer.

Plus side? This stuff also smells really good, but don't eat it. Pretty sure that would send you to the ER or something-but at least you would be going there rockin' shiny awesomely smelly hair.

NOW ITS YOUR TURN

wanna join the party and tell the world what hair tools make you swoon? Just link up to either my blog post, Lauren's or Heather's where your link will show up on all 3 of our blogs!

PARTY RULES

1. Make sure you link to your Share the Beauty Post NOT your blog domain

2. Please have the post you link up to be about "Sharing the Beauty" not a giveaway or a product promo. Anyone linking posts that are not related to our party will be deleted.

3. At the bottom of your post link back to either myself, Lauren or Heather so people know how to find the party!

NEXT WEEKS PROMPT

If you missed this weeks linky then no worries! Next week we are talking about "FACE CARE" in other words, what types of products do you use on your face to help your skin look all glowly and dreamy and awesome? Some examples are:  Moisturizer, Face Wash, Make up remover, exfoliator etc. (Psssttt dont get next week's prompt mixed up with "face make up" We will be talking about our favorite make up on another time! Thanks loves)

HUGE NEWS for Yellow Heart Art and Acute Designs

Right now if I had a giant gong I would totally go nutso on that sucker and bang it like a mad woman.

Cause the lovely Regina and I can FINALLY share our big news!



*ahem*



The 2 of us teamed up and have made a beginners eBook guide to Photoshop for all you bloggers/shop owners out there!


We saw all the distressed tweets and facebook statuses about piknic biting the dust. I have never used piknic before (nor am I really sure I am spelling it right-there is a "k" somewhere in there, right?) since I have always done all my graphics in photoshop. So we decided to help you all out by creating a step-by-step tutorial eBook about how to do some basic certain tasks in Photoshop.

I will say the brains behind this operation was the beautiful Regina. She approached me a few months back about collaborating with her. I loved the idea and knew I wanted to be a part of it <3 I have loved working with her from start to finish. She is a total sweet heart and I hope one day I can squeeze her neck and give her a big 'ol bear hug in fo' realz life.

I will be honest with you, Photoshop is a program used in the legit corporate world (aka it is the go-to program for corporate 500 companies) I also took college courses  to learn photoshop and try to execute photoshop to its full potential. It can be an intimidating program if you just open it up and have no clue how to navigate, so we are showing you the basics on how to use photoshop so you can then apply those basics to your own design needs! Intimidation is not wanted here, you so got this.


*Some Things* You will be able to do:
• Resize your existing images to fit the dimensions of your blog or resize images to create blog buttons/banners
• Add a vignette to your photos
• Add text to your photos (Perfect for making Blog Buttons, Blog Headers or to watermark your images)
• Get your text to go around a circle
• Remove blemishes from your face or spots on your photos
• Change your swatches to the Pantone Color Matching System
• and more! <3

(Add a vignette to your photos)

(Get text on your photos to make Blog Headers, Blog Buttons or Watermark Images!)

The eBook will be available on Monday for $22, but if you wanna nab this bad boy for a limited time discounted price of $16 then just pre-order this book by going here!You must pre-order by Sunday 12am EST before the book goes live on Monday, March 26th to be eligible for this limited time price.

NEW IN SHOP Half Full Print

To me, I always see the print as "Half Full"

...don't you?

Perfect gift for that optimistic, when you need a "pick me up" or just to dress up your digs!

Do you see the print as half full?

For more "word art prints" visit here!

Also I have unleashed my inner mad scientist and have been brewing up COMPLETELY new products and designs for Spring! If you want a sneak peek before anyone else (as well as a sweet coupon code) then sign up for our newsletter! We will not spam ya, pinky promise (trust me the last newsletter I sent out was back in October) Be on the look out for our sneak peek in the next few weeks!

Happy Spring!

Also? A few things...

we have an awesome giveaway happening over here!

And a HUGE ANNOUNCEMENT tomorrow on the blog!

Share the Beauty! A link up party - hair health

Hey Girl! Welcome to another Beauty Linky Party!

I am so stoked to start off our 2nd beauty prompt this week which is "Hair Health".

WHY MAH 'DO NEEDS SOME THERAPY

So, apparently, home gurl has gone over an ENTIRE year with out getting a hair cut. I dont know if I should be proud by this or not. I mean it doesnt look *too* ratty, does it?

look I even have that awesome "wind blown" thing going on (in case you were wondering which glorious lady I was up top I'm the one on the end in the navy blazer) (Oh and those other crazy ladies? You'll find out more about them in my creative estates recap post but they are Ilene, Julie, Ashley and Erika)

So given that my duds have not been snipped in over 400 days I need to use some products so I dont end up looking like simba (obviously simba as an adult, not a baby) (clearly)

MY ARSENAL OF SUPPLIES

1.  It's a 10 Miracle Leave in Product

2. Redken Glass Smoothing Serum

WHY I DIG 'EM LIKE WHOA

First of all, who ever named the "It's a 10 Miracle Leave in Product" is right on. This concoction of amazingness IS a FREKKIN miracle.

It's basically a "leave in conditioner" spray on roids. It smells awesome and works even awesomer (I need to work on my adjectives) I use this puppy more so in the summer time to tame the frizz. Basically you spritz on this product to wet hair, comb through, then blow dry as normal. It help leave your hair feelings soft and silky and gives it a really polished look. Also? since my hair is now going on day #432 with out a trim or cut of any sort it helps tame my split ends and wild mane. It is light so it wont weigh down your hair AND you will not feel any residue at all.

This is a winnah.

Another product I use to help with frizz is the Redken Glass Smoothing Serum.

This product is great to use on dry hair. I just place a pea size amount in the palm of my hand, rub together so the serum gets all over my hands, then run my fingers through my hair to apply the serum. I will warn you: A LITTLE GOES A LONG WAY. Unlike the It's a 10 this stuff will weigh down your hair is you put too much in. 

I love using this product to smooth down my hair during the day over the summer if humidity hits it. It's also great for applying to your hair BEFORE you flat iron or take a curling wand to it to seal in your hair, protect from heat and prevent frizz.

NOW ITS YOUR TURN

wanna join the party and tell the world what hair tools make you swoon? Just link up to either my blog post, Lauren's or Heather's where your link will show up on all 3 of our blogs!

PARTY RULES

1. Make sure you link to your Share the Beauty Post NOT your blog domain

2. Please have the post you link up to be about "Sharing the Beauty" not a giveaway or a product promo. Anyone linking posts that are not related to our party will be deleted.

3. At the bottom of your post link back to either myself, Lauren or Heather so people know how to find the party!

NEXT WEEKS PROMPT

If you missed this weeks linky then no worries! Next week we are talking about "HAIR BEAUTY PRODUCTS" in other words, what hair products do you use to help style your hair and make it all "beautify"? Some examples are: Hair spray, Mousse, pomade, hair ties, bobby pins etc

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Works in Progress! The Clean and Modern Edition

Have I mentioned that I absolutely love designing stuff for you guys??

I haven't? Well, I do.

Especially when you guys come at me with a new design concept that I really don't do that often.

Melinda contacted me a few weeks back. She is a type designer (as in, designs actual FONTS! How cool is that?!) and wanted a new logo and blog header that reflected her clean, modern designs.

I don't really do too much clean and modern, I'm more of a "let's make silly things" kinda gal.

I accepted the challenge and I absolutely love how these bad boys came out! They are simple yet have just enough design in them to give it a touch of "WHAMOO!!" (see? I can never be serious. Ever) (I feel bad if Bubs ever pops the question, pretty sure my wedding vows to him will be the lyrics to that awesome MTV Boy Band "2Gether" who came up with that touching song "Calculus", go on, refresh yourself with it here. You are welcome in advanced) (I know my Calculuuuus, it says you plus me equals us) (ok I'm done now) (what was I even talking about originally?)


Here is her logo that I designed! (ignore the obnoxious watermark, thanks to Pinterest I have to protect my work, and now that this belongs to Melinda I gotta protect home girl too!) 

aaaand her new bloggy banner! I love that her tagline is up top and not below. Threw ya off there didn't I?

Thank you Melinda for letting me be a part of your branding!

Extend the life of your wardrobe!

Guess where I am today?

I'm guest posting over at Sew Caroline! So hop on over and join me there ;) I'm showing you how to extend the life of your existing wardrobe!

(Yes, I am aware that I have way too many photos of me in bounce houses.)

 I also have too many photos of me awkwardly jumping.

You mean, this isn't a normal relationship?

So, things got a little crazy last night between the bubs and I.

The series of events are as follows:

• Saw 80 bucks worth of Bub's cash chillin on the bed, so naturally I was all like "So, this is your dues money for us dating, right? Cause you're a couple of months behind".(Just kidding he doesn't really pay me to date him) (although that is a magnificent idea)

• I shoved said 80 bucks down my shirt, and run out of the bedroom with bub right behind me. Juuuuust as I was about to make it out the door he scoops me up and throws me on the floor.

• Got tickled to death by him, managed to get the money back. While he was counting his change I grabbed a nurf gun and started to nail him. (VICTORY IS MINE!) (at least I thought)

• Again I get tackled, nurf gun becomes fair game and ends up in the hands of the enemy. Somehow in the process bub took off my boot and pelted it down to the laundry room. (he's super romantic like that)

• In a panic I waddle with one boot left on me and lock myself in the office. I find a piece of 2x4 with nails sticking out of it.  I collected it as my weapon of choice. I also managed to find a giant piece of styrofoam that i use for my shipping supplies and used it as a shield. Basically the movie 300 was being reenacted in my apartment using things that could be found on regretsy.

 this happened. ok maybe not as violent, but pretty close. img via

• Finally come out of the office with 2x4 in hand and started to get pelted with nurf gun amo. I start swinging my 2x4 and bub is all like "DUDE THAT HAS NAILS!" and I'm all like "bitch suck it up it aint THAT bad" (ok I didn't say that) (but really, I'm fighting for the death here, I will not go down lightly)

• I eventually get cornered into our bedroom where my ass took the brunt of about 8 nurf gun shots at point blank range. I yelled for mercy. Bub gives in and then like a ninja I gain control back of the nurf gun.

• Bub then runs away and locks himself in the office.

• I realize my gun is out of amo but will never let the enemy know that. They can smell fear ya know.

• Not knowing what to do I just stood in front of the office waiting for him to come out now knowing what in the world he could be using as a defense mechanism (My guess was he was going to come out swinging our wireless keyboard) Instead he comes out looking like this.

He took 1/2 of my scarf collection and surrendered. I have no words. When I asked about the scarves he said "well, I thought you would be mad if I wore your ENTIRE scarf collection"

How thoughtful, so now  I only have 30 scarves to put away as opposed to 60.

And this is a typical Tuesday night in the Bubs/Toots household.

Still want me to babysit your kids?

Share The Beauty! A Link Up Party: Favorite Hair Tools Week

Welcome to the Paaar-taaaay!

I just got back from Creative Estates, but more about that later.

I am so stoked to start off our first beauty prompt this week which is "Favorite Hair Tools".

WHAT I'M WORKING WITH: MY HAIR TYPE

my hair is on the "thinner" side, but I do have a lot of thin hair so you can't really tell. Also you all are used to seeing my hair pin straight, well confession alert: Its naturally wavy. I also have been hair dye free for the past 5 years. I miss dying my hair, but honestly I couldn't keep up with the maintenance or the moola. Besides I kinda wanna know when I start to go gray, 27 and going strong! (totally just jinxed myself here) (side note: I keep ripping out of my head pretty little golden blond highlights that I think are gray hairs, what is wrong with me?)

 say whaaaaa your hair is naturally wavy?

MY ARSENAL OF SUPPLIES

1. Chi Ceramic Flat Iron

2. Infiniti by Conair (Curling Wand)

3. Padded Cushion Brush by Hoopla

WHY I DIG 'EM LIKE WHOA

Now I don't know about you, but I need to give whoever invented the "flat iron" my first born child as a big fat effin' THANK YOU.

I mean, just look at her. Isn't she the most magnificient thing you have ever seen?

Those curves, that shine, and oOooO that COLOR!

The Chi Flat iron and I have been kicking it as BFFs since circa 2005. I'm gonna be straight up honest with you-this is a pricey flat iron. She will set you back about $100 bucks. BUT (there is a but) Bed Bath and Beyond sells these bad boys and what do you get in the mail from Bed Bath and Beyond pretty much every other day?

Oh right, their 20% off coupons.

I always try to buy any expensive hair products from BB&B because not many places will give you a discount on such a name brand high priced hair tool.

The reason why I bit the bullet and bought a Chi was because back in the hay day I would buy brands like Hot Tools, Conair and Revlon. They probably cost somewhere between $25-$40. The down side? I noticed that when I straightened my hair it looked like the bomb dot com for about an hour. Soon my quaff would start to frizz a bit and not look as "flat" (yes, I did say quaff and yes having wavy hair is a curse) Also? Even though those flat irons cost 3 times less than my faithful chi I found myself replacing my drug store flat irons every year because they would stop "holding their heat".

My Chi flat irons last me years AND they keep my hair pin effin straight. I am in love with my Chis and will never ever go back to drugstore brand flat irons. I literally use it every day. I love flat irons because its an easy way to touch up "day old" hair and tame fly always. The plates are also ceramic which give even heat distribution and is safer on your hair.

Also? If you look closely at the picture of the Chi you'll see that the metal plates slightly continue to the sides of the iron, thats so you can curl your hair with the flat iron. It's a little tricky but can be done. But I prefer another tool for curls.

The Infiniti by Conair curling wand is the first curling wand I've ever owned. Granted I do not like conair for flat irons I am lovin' me this wand. For $30 you really can't go wrong. I swore off curling my hair for years. The stupid curling iron clamp would leave creases in my hair or the stupid clamp would get caught in the previous curls I made causing it to pull at my already pretty curls and leave them frizzy and pathetic looking.

I wanted to give the wand a go since all you have to do is take your hair with your hand and just physically wrap it around the wand.

Seemed like a simple concept so I went for it. It only took me 2 attempts to nail down this tool. It holds a curl super well and my hair will literally last all day.

Don't get me wrong, gravity will play a roll and "droop" the my hair down, BUT the curls never "uncurl" themselves. Since my hair is thin I can divide them up into about 3 sections on each side (so 6 total) wrap a section around the wand for about 15-20 seconds, let go and BAM a curl. It takes me maybe 15 minutes tops to have a hair full of curls.

Also? If you want waves and not curls simply make your sections larger and dont leave on the wand for as long. The smaller the section and the longer you leave it on the tighter the curls. It's easy to dress up your hair from day to night.

And lastly my go-to brush is my Padded Cushion Brush by Hoopla. I stumbled upon this brush in a drugstore. I liked it because it was big and the bristles were plastic so I knew I could rock this brush with wet or dry hair.

The brush is gentle enough for me to comb through my hair right from the shower. It has "vents" in the back of the brush allowing me to use it while blow drying my hair. Honestly this brush is pretty much a 3 in one since it works for wet hair, hair that is being blasted with a hair dryer, and hair that just wants to be "tidy up".

NOW ITS YOUR TURN

wanna join the party and tell the world what hair tools make you swoon? Just link up to either my blog post, Lauren's or Heather's where your link will show up on all 3 of our blogs!

PARTY RULES

1. Make sure you link to your Share the Beauty Post NOT your blog domain

2. Please have the post you link up to be about "Sharing the Beauty" not a giveaway or a product promo. Anyone linking posts that are not related to our party will be deleted.

3. At the bottom of your post link back to either myself, Lauren or Heather so people know how to find the party!

NEXT WEEKS PROMPT

If you missed this weeks linky then no worries! Next week we are talking about "HAIR HEALTH" in other words, what hair products do you use to care for or improve your hair? Some examples are: Favorite shampoos, conditioners, hair serums, deep conditioners, hair masks etc. Pssst don't get next weeks prompt confused with "hair beauty" where we will eventually talk about hair sprays, hair moose, pomades and things like that at another time :) thanks girls!

Taking a Poll

hey loves!

Ok, I need you guys to help a sistah out.

I have never done a craft show before because, well, 98% of the craft shows on long island are pretty "kitsch" meaning they involve very "folk" looking stuff.

Nothing against folk, but lawn ornaments are really my thang.

But I finally found an indie craft fair that is more my speed, I sent in the application and *fingers crossed* they accept me.

This is where you all come in.

I am inventory illiterate. I have never ever ever done any type of craft show before. Basically I know that I sould:

• Have a price sheet available on my table 

• A Banner with my shop  name

• Business cards

• Get a fancy square for credit card payments

•  bring food

• have a ton of singles

• find a clever way to display my products

• have bags for people to put their swag in once purchased

I was wondering if there way anything I was missing? A BIG thing I am having a hard time with is how much inventory does one bring?? I would be selling:

• Necklaces

 • Plushies

• Prints

I am unsure how many styles of each thing to bring as well as how many quantities of each.

For example: Do I bring 15 different print styles in quantity of 10 so there are 150 total?

GAAAAH please help! The fair would be going on from 11am-7pm for 2 days.

Thanks in advance, if I could give you all a Mercedes I would.

Color Blocking Makes Me Swoon

You all know how I love to share with you rad things that I stumble upon.

One of said rad things are these effin' cute color block tote bags made by my girl Erika from Rouge and Whimsy. (yes, they are that cute I had to add "effin" in front of it. Oh hey relax its not like I went totally "mob wives" on you) (now those women are FIERCE)

and the best part? They go quite lovely with red hair ;)

((erika makes me wanna get bangs))

I dont know why but I really wanna eat this bag. Someone get me a fork and some whip cream please.

Are you swooning out yet? ("swooning out" is the new "freaking out", use it, love it, be it)

You can check out these 100% handmade lovelies over here and here.

Double Bonus? Since erika is my homie fo lyfe (See thats how you can tell we're legit homies when you spell "life" with a "y") she is giving you all 10% off these lovelies with coupon code "LAUNCH" (For a sec I thought it said "LUNCH" which made me excited cause I really like to eat)

if you  buy one let me know so I can move next door to you and we can share the bag-mm kay?

good.

Xs and Os

Leonora

Share the Beauty! a NEW link up Party! (Will you RSVP?)

Hello Lovelies!

I am so excited to share this blog post with you! Lauren from The Elephant Trunk approached me a few weeks back about doing a linky party involving beauty products. Of course I was all over this like white on rice! We reached out to Heather of Just Lovely Things as well and she too would be co-hosting with us (can this linky party get any radder? Me thinks not)

Basically each week will be a different "prompt", for example one week will be dedicated to "Hair Care Products" where another week might be "Make Up Brushes".

In the post we would mention our favorite product (uh, duh) what we are "starting out with" (for example: If we are talking about hair products I would mention that I like this product for my non-dyed, straight, thin hair. That way other people with the same hair type as me can potentially use the product) and we would mention why we love the product and why it works best for us and our needs.

The reason for this link up party is to get the word out about other beauty products that maybe you didn't know existed or maybe to try out a different brand. Perhaps you have no clue what kind of anti-frizz serum to use on your curly hair or maybe your favorite foundation in the world has been discontinued (let's be honest, its a sad sad day when your go-to eye shadow bites the dust and falls into the retail black hole never to be sold ever again) This party will allow you to see what else is out there! Also? You'll get others coming to your blog too!

HOW TO JOIN THE PARTY!

I can not WAIT for this project! Waddya say, wanna RSVP? Our First party goes live on March 12th where we will be sharing with the world what our favorite Hair Tools are! So feel free to blog about your favorite flat iron, curling wand, brush, hair ties, hair dryer--whatever you want! Just make sure its a tool for your hair and not a hair product! We will be talking about our favorite hair products like hair spray and shampoo another week :) You will be able to link up to either mine, Lauren's or Heather's blog and your link will automatically show up on all 3 blogs!

Hope to see you March 12th!

X's and O's

Leonora

11 Things

11 Things...

I've been seeing these pop up all over and I was tagged by Heather, so of course I'm going to play!

Here are the rules:

1. Post these rules
2. Post a photo of yourself and 11 random things
3. Answer the questions set for you in the original post
4. Create 11 new questions and tag people to answer them
5. Go to their blog/twitter and tell them that you've tagged them.


11 Random Things:

 Me and Courtney <3 she took the photo of me below (I'm on the left)

1. My hair color is all natural. I used to dye my hair all the time. I recently stopped so that I can see when I start to go gray (true story) I'm 27 now and holding strong! But if bub continues to keep leaving his boots all over the apartment, hide his "car repair manuals" under the covers at the foot of my bed, thinks that cookies are an acceptable dinner meal & shooting me with nurf guns it might come sooner than later.

2. I MUST have "paper napkins" given to me at a restaurant while eating. I feel like wiping my hands on a "fabric" napkin does nothing for me.

3. Whenever I walk into any store I will always bee line it towards the back to the clearance section. Mama loves to save money.

4. I check to make sure I unplugged my flat iron at least 5 times before I leave the apartment. Its one of the few things I am absolutely OCD about. I will even stare at it for a good minute seeing it NOT plugged in, walk away and think "Ya know I bet you there is SOME WAY the flat iron magically got plugged in again…" then go back and check. Again.

5. Wanna know why my hair is super long? I will be donating it soon! I am letting my hair grow to Guinness world records lengths first so when I hack off the 9" my hair is still fairly long. The only awkward thing is when I get out of the shower my hair "tickles" my butt. It took me a while to figure out it was my hair and not a spider--by the way doing the "OMG THERE IS A SPIDER ON ME!" dance while naked and wet is not fun. You know what dance I'm talking about.

6. I think about death way more than the average person should. Let me clarify, I am not suicidal! I meant that I think about what happens "after you die" way too much. It freaks me out and gives me heart palpitations.

7. I write neater on a diagonal then on a straight line

8. One year bub and I had a hard time figuring out what to be for halloween. This of course led to an argument (duh). In a fit of fury and frustration I yelled "YA KNOW WHAT?! LETS BE PETER PAN AND TINKERBELL! CEPT I'LL BE PETER PAN AND YOU CAN BE TINKERBELL!" it was the best couples costume ever.

9. I dont tan. I have never been tan. I don't know what I would look like with a tan, and thats kinda sad to me. Worst.Italian.Ever.

10. My eyes are made out of 3 colors. They are outlined in gray, green is the main color with flecks of brown.

11. I miss the old "facebook" where it wasn't intrusive. I thought it was a nice way for people to keep in touch but STILL talk to each other to know what is going on in their lives. I worry facebook for the younger generation is going to kill them of any and all social skills. I am SO HAPPY it was not around while I was in high school, it first came out when I was in college but like I said back then it was minimal and no where near how it is today (annnnd my first "WHEN I WAS YOUR AGE" Moment is sponsored by ginkgo)


And.. the 11 questions Heather wants me to answer:
1- Sweet or Sour? how bout both because I order the sweet and sour chicken at chinese food places! (Bada Bum!) (yeah, I just "drum beat" myself) (im not proud of this)

2- What is your favorite kind of music? Going to be totally honest here, I'm not really a "music" person. I'll listen to the pop station or country station but I dont keep up with the newest thang. Although LMFAO's "sexy and I know it" is fun to "wiggle wiggle wiggle wiggle" to

3- Where do you see yourself personally in 5 years? In 5 years I hope to at least be engaged (lord willing) have a pup named Hercules, make Yellow Heart Art my only source of income, be a home owner, and finally figure out how to plant seedless watermelon.

4- Do you know any other languages besides english? I know the language of the sailor. AKA I have a potty mouth.

5- What is your biggest pet peeve of all time? People who are always late. I mean COME ON *always* late? I always tell those people to meet me 1/2 hour earlier than planned so they come "on time"

6- Have you ever been in a fight and thrown something made of glass at someone, like they do in the movies? HA! LOVE this question! And no, I haven't. The closest thing I have come to this was one time in my "clubbing" days (yes, I live on Long Island, its what we did for fun in college ok?? JUDGE ME!) I was "seeing" this guy who was a few years older than me (that's all you're getting a "few" years ha!) My friend Heather was seeing his Friend at the time too, so it worked out perfectly whenever me and Heather wanted to go to the club to see this guy and his friend. The 4 of us planned to meet up at the club, but the 2 dudes were COMPLETELY ignoring heather and I. They made no effort to talk to us the entire night. When I found "my dude" huddled between 4 tall gorgeous blondes I took  my dumpy 5' 3" self over there, got in the center of the huddle, got in his face and said "DO YOURSELF A FAVOR AND TAKE MY NUMBER OUT OF YOUR PHONE" I then threw a drink at him and walked away. Best moment ever.

7- Reincarnation: What do you come back as? I want to come back as a successful boy band member. I want to know what it feels like to have women flock all over me and be a bagillionare for singing songs about sharing ice cream and going to the mall.

look at me rocking out, total boy band member status right there. Also? I own at guitar hero. Ok, thats a lie.

8- If you could go back to any age you were and live it again, how old would you be & why? HANDS DOWN 22. You were past that exciting "WOOOO I'm 21!" Phase, and you were still in college and kind of an "adult" but not totally one quite yet. I frekkin LOVED IT. I was taking all graphic design and art classes at the time so my entire day consisted of creating things FOR GRADES (uhhh AWESOME) during "breaks" between classes my friend Erin and I would go back to her dorm room and make music videos. I also worked part time at Abercrombie and used my discount to buy sweet clothes. Damn, life was awesome.

9- Cats or Dogs? dogs hands down. I get freaked out by the way cats stare at me, they look like their plotting the best way to kill me while i'm sleeping or something.

10- Have any guilty pleasures? I watch family guy marathons on TBS. I know I know you can judge me, this time I totally deserve it.

I tag Erika, Julie Ann, Ilene, Amy and Caroline! (& anyone else that wants to play!)

To answer these questions-

1. If you could have any super power what would it be and why?
2. If you HAD to quit your job (or change your college major) and you HAD to pick a different career path what would you do?
3. What was your most embarrassing moment
4. It's 2012, when you were younger how did you think the world would be by now?
5. What is a fear you are trying to work on?
6. Do you remember POGs and if so HOW the HECK did you play??
7. What talent do you wish you had but lack skills in? (For example I do not have an athletic bone in my body, when I tried to ski I totally ate snow)
8. What store can you max out your credit card in?
9. What was your favorite childhood toy or activity?
10. If you could have a 2nd house anywhere in the world where would it be and why?

If you have been tagged by someone or end up tagging yourself from this post, leave a comment with the link I would love to come and check it out!