Falling in Love

One of the things I hate about Nova Scotia weather is the seasons always seem to change so abruptly. One minute it's 30 degrees and hot and sunny, and the next you are wearing 4 layers just to go to sleep in your tent Labour Day weekend (this is not hypothetical - this was my LD weekend).

This was the week of 'the shift' and I am still a bit depressed about it. It's still warm enough to wear sandals during the day and the calendar doesn't officially shift for another couple of weeks, but there is definitely a new crisp chill to the air and just a general movement towards a more Fall-like mood.

That being said, I do LOVE Fall. I love me some sunshine, sand and swimming, but there is just something so romantic and heartwarming about this season. It sort of feels like a new start but a lead-up to hibernation at the same time - you are getting 'back to the grind' while also looking ahead to the colder weather and shorter days. I love...

...that it's cool enough to wear a couple of layers but warm enough that you don't need to bundle up.

I love cozy layers - sweaters and scarves - leggings and boots - cute hats and fingerless gloves - ponchos - rich, warm colours - cute braids and hair twists. I love fall fashion.

 

*all photos can be found here*

...the spicy, fragrant, flavours of Fall.

I love pumpkin (anything) - cinnamon, ginger and spice - apple pie - hot soups and stews - warm, aromatic drinks - sweet potato and squash - Thanksgiving dinner. I love Fall flavours.

*All photos can be found here*

I can't wait to go apple picking, drive and hike through vibrant yellow and red trees, cook up a comforting giant crock-pot meal, (hopefully) cook and host my 1st Thanksgiving dinner, wearing printed scarves with all my outfits, decorate my apartment with Fall colours and scents, etc. Sure, I'm sad to see summer go, but I'm also excited for what's to come.

 

What do you love (or not love) about Fall? Are you excited or apprehensive about the change of seasons? Any fun plans for the next two months?

Crafternoon

Me and my friend (who it must be said is also named Kim) both love to do artistic things. In fact, we sort of bonded over art - or art class to be more specific (yay, high school). We would kvetch over making art while I chewed her ear (NON STOP) about my boy troubles (she's a candidate for sainthood, that one).

Anyway, as we have gotten older and more responsibilities and priorities have filled our schedules, we have found it harder and harder to stay in touch with that artistic side of ourselves. We try to take in the occasional art class when we can, and constantly pin/save cool projects we find online that we will do "someday" but never seem to get around to, but it is often hard to motivate ourselves to sit our butts down and make something.

We were recently discussing how disappointed we are about this and we made a plan - see, we are both generally the kind of people who are more likely to stick with something if we a) schedule it and b) have a buddy to share it with (I am not very self-motivated as it turns out). So, we thought, why not schedule a day once per month where we get together and have a 'crafternoon' (clever, right? I came up with that), i.e. an afternoon or art and craft making!

It has worked quite well so far - we have met twice and have come away from both experiences feeling great and motivated to do it again. The first time we painted a mural on her bedroom wall - observe:

Photo by Kimberly Piccott

And the 2nd time (just last weekend) we made these:

Photo by Kimberly Piccott

FELT FLOWERS! This is a craft I found here. What is great about the blog post the craft is from is that she includes patterns for various shapes that you can print right off and cut out! This made it so easy and fast. You can customize these flowers using different combinations and layers of shapes, as well as different colours and embellishments. You can also customize them by putting different attachments on the back - we used alligator clips because we liked the versatility (you can clip them to a jacket, bag or headband, or simply right onto your hair), but you could also use pins, and various types of hair clip or comb, depending on how you plan on wearing them.

This was not only a super-easy and fast project - it was super-affordable too; This is the breakdown of supplies and approximate costs:

Felt sheets - $0.50 each x 16 (I got 2 each of 8 colours) = $8

Beads and sequins - $1 each x 2 packages (Dollar store!) = $2

Small alligator clips - $4.99 for pkg of 4 (Michaels - unfortunately all I could find) - $5

Grand Total = $15 - and you could easily make 2 dozen flowers with all the felt I bought (hundreds with the beads and sequins) so each one arguably costs pennies to make. I already had thread and sewing needles so that cut down on my costs as well. 

I look forward to making many more of these, for myself and as gifts. I know someone who definitely liked my flower - I came home from supper out that evening and the cat had knocked it on the floor and clearly played with it, pulling two of the yellow stems out!! I had to resew that whole section and it did not look as good after that, I'm sorry to say. 

Apparently they also make good cat toys (who knew).

Do you like arts and crafts? What do you like to make? Do you have 'crafty' friends? How do you make time for creative pursuits?

pinteresting

Ok, it's official - I jumped on the Pinterest bandwagon. It seems like everyone and their dog has been talking about this site lately and I am not normally one to jump on bandwagons right away, but I thought it couldn't hurt to check it out and see if I liked it.

This is what happened with Twitter. I thought Twitter was so dumb, then eventually got so curious by all the talk about it that I just said 'screw it' and joined. Now I am obsessed (ok not quite, but I do love it alot).

I just joined Pinterest like a week ago and I already have 193 pins. Yes, I realize how sad that is.

But that's the thing with these Internet searchy thingys - you search for one thing, then that leads you to something else, which leads you over here and pretty soon you realize two hours have gone by, you have a major kink in your neck, and your kettle has boiled dry waiting for you to unplug it. However, you at least have lots of pretty pictures to look at once you get off your ass, make your tea and come back to the couch (because, let's be honest, that's exactly what you are going to do).

Anyway, Pinterest seriously is a really useful tool - I am ALWAYS finding cool recipes, hairdo ideas, decor and event planning tips, etc, and I am the type of person who has to have everything in one place, easily accessible. So, this tool is perfect for me. I love that I can categorize things however I want and then when I need inspiration, I just have to go into my boards and peruse a little. I admit it, it's handy.

I have been particularly interested in pinning in certain categories lately - including wedding ideas, dream house decor, and outfit inspiration. Yes, I also realize how sad it is that I am this obsessed with pinning ideas for my wedding and my house when I am neither engaged or a home owner, but I can't help it! So. Many. Pretty. Things!

Anyway, I may not be able to use all of these ideas now, but they are there for when I want them later!

Sigh, as if I needed ANOTHER procrastination tool. Unfortunately this one seems to be the worst one yet. And that's saying something

Here are some of my favourite recent pins:

(wanna check out ALL my pins? Follow me here)

Wedding Ideas

Wedding Mad Libs! Such a fun idea for tables as an activity for guests between courses

I would love to have my wedding ceremony outdoors - this forest setting is beautiful

DIY 'lamps' using wine bottles and Christmas lights! So lovely for a patio/outdoor reception

My Style (aka fashion inspiration)

I love everything about this outfit - so cozy and great colours

I love anything with elephants 

This is the kind of outfit I wish I could pull off on a daily basis - cute, quirky, colourful yet polished

And this is just funny. Sometimes that's all it takes to warrant a pin!

Are you on Pinterest? Do you like it? What things are you obsessed with pinning?How do you keep track of the things you discover and like?