How to Disguise a Heating Pad.

Sparing you details, I've been dealing with a sore back. Subsequently, I've been using my heading pad a lot. So much so that it pretty much has a permanent spot on my couch. However, it has an ugly cheap polyester cover.

Even lovelier, it comes with a danger notice.

I had some leftover upholstery fabric from when I made pillows for my lanai furniture and I thought I could make a sweet little cover for the heating pad. So here is my lovely heating pad with a facelift. Hopefully now it blends into the couch a bit more.

 

Old cover, new cover & naked heating pad.

OOO, getting toasty. 

First time I used the button hole feature on my sewing machine! I only have to tear the stitches out once!

It took me 20 minutes to find a button! I have no idea what happened to the ones to accumulate! 

My Little Navy Tree.

I have this fabulous little white goose feather Christmas tree. Which, yes, a "goose feather" tree sounds a little off, but its precious. I got it from a fantastic little store years ago, One Swanky Shop. Ok ok, so it was my Mother's store, but it was a pretty awesome place. Around Christmas she would close down the store to put up decorations and merchandise and people would literally line up around the block to be there for the Christmas opening. I wish I had some images to show you. It was like a vintage wonderland.

Anyways, back to the tree. When I moved to Hawaii I brought the little tree with me, but not the ornaments we put on it at my parent's house. It use to be a pickle tree. Covered with new, old, large and small pickles to bring good luck. Do you have a pickle on your Christmas tree? It emanated from an old German tradition:

“A very old Christmas eve tradition in Germany was to hide a pickle [ornament] deep in the branches of the family Christmas Tree. The parents hung the pickle last after all the other ornaments were in place. In the morning they knew the most observant child would receive an extra gift from St. Nicholas. The first adult who finds the pickle traditionally gets good luck for the whole year."

source 

So without the pickles, I needed a new theme. I thought how perfect would it be to have a Navy tree. So I began to decorate my tree with vintage blue and gold ornaments, founded by my mom. I still put pickles on my main tree for luck. I thought I would sneak a little baby pickle on to my Navy tree. I'm hoping it will lead to a victory for the Mids this Saturday at the Navy/Army game.

 

Please excuse the mess, I am home sick!

 

Can you spot my reflection? Opps!

The Hubs' Weekend Project.

When we first moved to the island, 2 years ago, the hubs and I searched high and low for a patio set. We finally found something that we liked, but the table was from the scratch and ding section. It had some sun damage, but hey it was discounted. Well after some time in the elements we discovered the table and chairs were not sealed. So the hubs took on the challenge of refurbishing our lanai set.

I forgot to take before pictures, but I found an old shot from a previous outdoor project. 

 

Old sun damaged furniture.

 

Beautifully stained and sealed "new" furniture!

 

Now, just add a splash of holiday cheer!!!

I think he did a fabulous job and our furniture looks so much nicer! I hope the Hawaii sun is kind to it for the remainder of our stay in Hawaii!

Happy Halloween.

BOO!

I hope that you all have a fun Halloween and eat all the candy you want. Unfortunately, my community doesn't allow for trick or treating, but I still got some candy! I think the Hubs and I should celebrate, too!

Sea Turtle Friday.

The Hubs has just completed an 8 week class as part of his submarine training. The final was an interview exam in Washington, DC and he passed! We returned to Hawaii last week. I know that over those weeks he was stressed by the pressure of the exam. However, I enjoyed it because he was able to spend more time at home. The Friday before his written exam I convinced him to come home a little early for an expedition.

I wanted to visit the North Shore in hopes of seeing some green sea turtles! We were in luck, there was a large guy sun bathing on the beach. The wildlife experts that sit on the beach to look out for the turtles estimated that he was 25-30 years old.

 Isn't this big guy handsome!

 

Us with the big guy.

 

 

It is hard to be a turtle, on a beach, in Hawaii, soakin' up the rays.

 

Polo Ponies.

Oddly, polo is popular here in Hawaii. Celebrities have polo ponies and guest players fly in from all over the world to play. They normally have matches on Sunday all summer long; which is a really fun event to gather up a group and tailgate. During the off time, the staff offers trail rides. A few months back my friend, Adrienne, and I went up to the North Shore for a trail ride on the beach.

Here are a few pictures that I played around with.

 Oh and it kept raining. Every time we dried off it rained, again. (You can see the rain!)

Too bad I can't remember my horse's name.  (Western vintage manipulation.)

 Here is Adrienne.

A mini model.

This past week I had a photo shoot with my friend, Joy, and her two-week old baby. Meet Ella! 

Oh, Hello autumn.
Ella is the perfect pumpkin babe.

Thank you to Joy and Ella. What a blast!

An assistant.

Today's challenge was to clean up my dresser area in my bedroom. I hate laundry. I really do, and I dont know why. I usually can get the motivation to fold the clothes, but they more often then not sit of the dresser for days or weeks before I get them put away. So it takes a big pep-talk before I can tackle the clothes and jewelry and whatever else has taken up residency on my dresser.  Everything was going smoothly and I was feeling motivated until I had a little visitor.

Miss Friday had to be in the center of the action. She didn't quite get that she was not invited into my dresser.

In fact a few months ago, I unknowingly trapped her in my dresser when she climbed in to take a nap. I found in hours later after realizing the kitten was missing outside of her napping hours. Luckily she forgave me.

Updated Photo Blog. Ginger Snaps.

Hello all! It's been awhile, again! I keep hoping something magical will happen and I will be able to keep up on my blog. Oh well, I try my best. I do have an update though. You need to check out my photo blog I have with my Big Sister, Ginger Snaps. Here are our two latest post:

Wedding Photo 2010 or 1910?

Having a little fun in Photoshop today. Here is my all-time favorite photo from my wedding taken by my fabulous photographer Heather Z.

 

Now, I can make it appear vintage!!!

A Photo of Adrienne.

For my birthday (months ago), I got a group together to hike Ka'ena Point, the most Northern part of the island. I snapped this picture while walking and its one of my favorites. I'm not really sure why, I don't think the composition is that wonderful, it probably has more to do with the memory. However, add a few filters and you can find something a little more interesting to view.

I will add more photos later from that hike. For now, enjoy this photo. What is your favorite variation?

 Original.

One.

 

Two.

Being Crafty.

While JJ was on deployment, I decided to take on a refurbishing project. I really wanted an area on my lanai to drink my coffee and enjoy a book. However, the space is not that deep and most lounge sets were too big or if they fit they were super expensive. So after some searching on craigslist, I gathered some second hand pieces for a DIY project.

 The couch came with an ugly green cushion and pillow, thank goodness for a sewing machine!

 This old peeling chair is real wicker that I needed to strip first, but it is a rocker. 

I was able to still keep our table out on the lanai. 

After hours or sanding, priming, painting, sealing and several blisters I finally turned the white chair and beige couch into beautiful "cappuccino" furniture. I managed to only get a little paint in the building ;) and the light headed-ness to a minimum.  While the paint dried and my blisters recovered I slaved away at my sewing machine recovering cushions and making new pillows. The end result, a place for me to enjoy my morning coffee and to enjoy the view. 

The side tables are the next DIY project, but they are the perfect size for a cup of coffee and a book. 

Here is my attempt at an herb garden. The sun is a bit intense in the afternoon, but I am trying to have a green thumb! 

A Little Bit-o-Sunshine.

As I was passing through the produce section at the commissary this week, these little beauties caught my eye. Its amazing how flowers can make a person smile, so I decided to get myself a little treat!

Fence Cups.

Have you ever seen a message on the highway spelled out with solo cups? Maybe a boy asking a girl to prom or a good ol' "God Bless USA." Well the Navy has taken that concept to a whole new level. When a submarine returns from deployment the wives and girlfriends of the crew put up an impressive display. Two days before JJ's return a group of Charlotte women slaved away putting up a design.

Don't let it fool you, this is a dangerous task; nail breakage, crapping hands and sore fingers are a few of the side-effects.

Not the greatest picture, but this was the end result!

hi·a·tus.

hi·a·tus

–noun, plural -tus·es, -tus.

1. a break or interruption in the continuity of a work, series, action, etc.

 

For reasons unknown even to myself, the word hiatus has always been a favorite of mine.  As it has literally been months since my last blog, I would like to apologize for the hiatus. I could give you a million excuses, my design business picked up, visitors, travel, a new kitten or the most significant news lately, the return of my husband from deployment, etc. However, the truth is I just pushed the blog to the back burner and as the ideas piled up in my head I was overwhelmed by the task of updating. I have procrastinated enough and am ready to return to the world of blogging. So I vow that this week I will blog everyday. By next week I'll probably be back to a normal schedule, but I hope not to have such a drastic lag again between blogs. 

 

 For now, check out the newest photos on Ginger Snaps. 

Singapore: Chinatown.

By far the best place to find unique and interesting things in Singapore is Chinatown. Here you can have a custom stamp made with your Chinese zodiac or even a suit tailored specifically for you. My favorite treasure is my new collection of calligraphy brushes! Chinatown is full of open vendors selling anything you might want. If you are making a trip there this is on your "must-do" list!

 

The metro station nearest to Chinatown is People's Park and I loved the sign!

 

Oddly at the end of the open market is a grand Hindu temple.... shouldn't that be in Little Indian. Very Beautiful though! 

 

Can't have Chinatown without the lanterns!

 

I just loved the vibrant colors of Chinatown!