diy: patriotic clutch

happy fourth of july, everyone!

i bought this clutch (also discussed here) from a thrift store in san diego, and i was sure that i wanted to do something with it when i had more time. so, while we waited to move into our house (here in okinawa), i decided it was time for my clutch to have a face lift in honor of 4th of july!

1. my supplies: blue tape, red and white fabric paint, brushes, and navy blue clutch. there are paints specifically for leather/pleather, but michaels didn't have them so i took a risk with fabric paint and it worked out well!

2. i wanted to create stripes so i decided to use "natural stripes" already in the middle of the clutch. i used blue tape to separate the stripes. (pardon the newspaper working area. it doesn't look "pretty", but it was the best thing i could find as a work area.)

3. i painted the middle stripe red. i did 2 layers, waiting 20 minutes before applying the second layer.

4. i decided to let the paint dry overnight since i did the project while my daughter slept. at least 4 hours is all it needed.

5. i separated the next segment of stripes with blue tape, making sure that i covered the area that i already painted very well.

6. i painted the designated area with white paint. i did 3 layers to cover up the blue and waited about 10-20 minutes before each layer.

7. voila! my very own patriotic clutch in red, white and blue! i couldn't be happier with how it turned out and the colors were just right! next is the fun part of wearing it with an outfit! stay tuned... what do you think?

enjoy your fourth and be safe! xoxo

light as a feather

tank: kirkland. cardi: f21. belt and shorts: jcrew. shoes:  (borrowed from my mom) 

bag: gucci (borrowed from my mom). jewels: bulova watch, tiffany's, anthropologie, fanciful wish

i finally have some time to post a few of my outfits from before we left the u.s. thank you to yolanda of hope, wish, dream, and love, annie of the other side of gray, and yi-chia of always maylee for guest posting! we're still in the process of getting settled into living in a new country. i can't wait for our family to be settled in our home and have a sense of routine....oh, the things we take for granted! i also can't wait to start taking outfit photos! :) 

happy sunday! xx

meet yi-chia

Color Blocking Fun

Hi everyone!  I’m Yi-chia and I blog over at Always Maylee.  I’m taking over Heidi’s fabulous blog while she makes her move to Japan.  Can’t wait to see those pictures Heidi!

Today I’m talking about colors.  By now, everyone knows this summer it’s all about color.  Even before this trend emerged, I loved colors and I love to color block.  All the colors together in one outfit just totally brightens up my day.  Here are some of my tips for summer time color blocking fun!

Pick a main color to use in the outfit.  The pink in my shirt and my shoes anchor this look.

Don’t forget about your shoes!  They can participate in the color blocking fun too.

Don’t want your color blocking outfit to be too loud?  Add a neutral cardi or neutral 

shoes to help tone it down.

sunrises

hatta mountains. dubai, uae. viewed from hot air balloon.

maui. view of the west side of haleakala mountains. 

maui. view from haleakala mountains. 

maui. view from haleakala mountains. 

maui. view from haleakala mountains.

"if you want to be reminded of the love of the lord, just watch the sunrise" jeannette walls

there's something heavenly about sunrises as they stir a new beginning.
i'm definitely not a morning person, but waking up at 3am to catch these sunrises were worth it!

we have gotten over our jet lag and slowly getting settled in. we had hoped to move into our new home before the 4th, but it probably won't happen. however, we saw our future home yesterday, and i'm excited to start decorating our house and make it our home for the next few years....more importantly, to be living in the location we wanted- within walking distance to all the restaurants, stores, and the beach! happy thursday, everyone! 

meet annie

Hey guys! I'm Annie and I blog over at The Other Side of Gray. I am SUPER excited to be guest posting for Heidi today!   

Since I am wearing this lovely Madewell dress, I thought I would talk a little bit about my love for polka dots. They are awesome, aren't they? This dress was one of those items I stalked in the Madewell Spring look book for months. It was totally inappropriate for me to be lusting after it in January, but nonetheless I would check online everyday to see if it was available, nervously biting my nails... and then slap my hand on the table in anger when it wasn't! Until one day. One day, I clicked the new arrivals section...and there it was. This sweet beauty...mine for the taking/ordering. Boy were my hands happy that day - no more nail biting or red palms. Some (my mom) have said I have a problem, but can you really blame me? Polka dots are so awesome - they deserve to be stalked :)

DIY Bracelets - Guest Post

Hi Everyone!  

This is Yolanda from Hope, Wish, Dream and Love and Fanciful Wishes.  While Heidi is transitioning to her new home, I wanted to share some DIY Bracelets I've been obsessed with the past few weeks.

To clarify, I am a newbie (I've only been at this for about 3 weeks) at jewelry making so it's taken a lot of patience and practice but it's been so much fun.  I look up tutorials on Pinterest and Google and learn for free. The girls at the bead shop I frequent are always a big help with my questions also.  Right now my biggest seller is the sideways cross macrame bracelet.

Why did I get into it?  I'm almost 8 months pregnant and bored at home.  So thought I'd make my own bracelets since Pinterest got me obsessed with them.  I didn't think people would be interested in my bracelets, but they are and I'm absolutely grateful.  

My recent project is making the Chan Luu inspired wrap bracelets.  So far it's coming along but practice makes perfect!  I'm also always looking for ways to make a sliding knot for a clasp, or learning a new technique for making bracelets.

Want to make your own fabulous arm candy?  Check out the tutorial links I posted below!

Here are some of the tutorials I used for these bracelets:

Micro Macrame Bracelet (they have the best diy's!) - http://honestlywtf.com/diy/diy-macrame-bracelet/

Braided Wax Linen Bracelet - http://makebraceletsblog.com/make-bracelets-video/

Ribbon and Chain Bracelet - http://www.henryhappened.com/wear-calypso-st-barth-knock-off.html

Chan Luu Inspired Wrap Bracelets - http://www.madebylex.com/2011/07/chan-luu-inspired-bracelet-tutorial.html

Obsessed!

Thanks for reading!

studs and crochet

 top: zara. shorts: f21. belt: j. crew. shoes:  (burrowed from my mom). bag: louis vuitton. 

jewelry: bulova watch, carollee, f21, diy cross bracelet by hope, wish, dream, and love.   

happy friday everyone! i love the gold stud detail on the collar of this simple black top and these crochet shorts was a great find at f21!

since we will be trying to get our bearings in japan the next couple of weeks, i'm happy to say that i will have a couple of guest bloggers (yolanda from hope, wish, dream, and love and annie from the other side of gray) on my blog! i'm super excited for all of you to meet them and read what they have to say and/or share their styles! stay tuned...

enjoy your weekend!

fair winds and following seas

aswan, egypt: we took a felucca ride on one of our cruise stops along the river nile

san diego, ca skyline: leaving for a mexican riviera cruise

venice, italy: boat exhibition 

lifestyles of the uber rich and famous...yacht event @monte carlo, monaco. 

no, we weren't part of the event! :)

venice, italy: one of my favorite pictures that i've taken. though not very sharp, i'm amazed that the picture came out pretty well. 

there's a wonderful saying in the navy for people who are moving or moving on from the navy: "fair winds and following seas". this nautical saying is a blessing of good luck. 

i can't believe that at this time, next week, we'll be in japan! 

remix

dress (worn as top, also worn here): zara. skirt: f21 (also worn here). shoes: kenneth cole 

(borrowed from mom). bag: louis vuitton. jewelry: bulova watch, anthropologie, carolee, target, banana republic. 

happy monday, everyone! most of my wardrobe/shoes have been packed and on their way to japan. 

i'm definitely still enjoying my mom's shoe collection. :)

lemon drop

 shorts and blouse: f21. shoes: aldo (borrowed from mom). wallet: kate spade. jewelry: anthropologie, f21. 

tgif! enjoy your weekend everyone! xoxo

when one door closes, another door opens

 “One’s destination is never a place, but a new way of seeing things.” – Henry Miller

ponte winery. my favorite winery in temecula, ca

along dingle peninsula, ireland

venice, italy

mykonos, greece

bahrain

dublin, ireland

hotel del coronado. san diego, ça

finally...internet access! :) we've moved out of our first home. it's bittersweet, but we are ready for the adventures ahead!

happy thursday, everyone! 

travel thursday: venice

“the whole object of travel is not to set foot on foreign land; it is at last to set foot on one’s own country as a foreign land.” – g. k. chesterton

it's said that once you travel, you catch the travel bug! that's what happened to me and my husband after our honeymoon. in fact, we were plagued by the bug!!! fast forward years later and many travel experiences later with a new baby, traveling has slowed down a bit...well, actually A LOT. but we definitely got traveling out of our system...for now. the urge to travel is still there, hibernating within us, but traveling will come with time. there is SO much more to see and experience! we can't wait for the adventures as we travel together as a family. we want to share with our daughter the joys of learning about other cultures and gaining a different perspective. and one day, we'll be able to travel just as a couple. it's essential to continuing a happy healthy relationship! 

so for now, i'll have to relive our travels through pictures and thought i'd share them with you. today, i'll start with venice...probably my favorite city...so far. :)

view from our hotel...

view from st. mark's campanile.

while walking at night, my husband wanted to take a picture here. 

one of the best surprises about venice is getting lost in the alleys/streets and discovering 

a quaint cafe by the water in a quieter area of the city.

we decided to take a gondola ride under the moonlit sky...yes, it was every bit as romantic 

as i imagined it to be. :)

one of my favorite views from the rialto bridge...there is something very special about cities with 

a river or body of water running through it, but venice takes it to a whole new level! 

from st.  mark's campanile...me wearing a j. crew tank. 

view from our ship...we took a meds cruise via princess cruise line.

what can i say, i'm a tourist. this pose is a must! :) from our hotel, we took a water taxi...a pretty 

posh taxi, which we shared two other people on our cruise because let me tell you, the sticker 

price was ridiculous with the exchange rate at that time.  but it was well worth the price to make

 sure we got to our ship in time to start our cruise. me with another j. crew outfit. 

i hope to make thursdays a "travel" day. 

happy thursday everyone! thanks for reading!