kalidarling (monster-ously cute)

May Giveaway!

In honor of my recent craft shows and my upcoming shop update, this month's giveaway is going to be a doozie. The lucky winner will be snuggling up with a Spike plush!

Who couldn't love that little face? Spike is a beastie that roams coffee and soda counters in fast food restaurants. Without eyes, Spike is completely blind. He is able to navigate by walking backwards swishing his long tail tail back and forth like a walking stick. While this is a great way to navigate obstacles on the ground, his horn causes some problems above, frequently spilling soda, and knocking lids and straws around. If you've been to a fast food restaurant with a messy soda or coffee counter, I would not be surprised to find a Spike lurking near by.

Are you just dying to take him home?

Here are the rules:

To enter just sign your name in a comment and tell me what your favorite soda or coffee drink is. My current is an iced coconut mocha. Yum!

For a bonus entry tweet a link to my giveaway or post a link on your blog. (Make sure you post an additional comment here letting me know so you get your bonus entry!)

The winner will be randomly selected Sunday night (June 5th) at 6pm. Good Luck & remember to check back to see if you've won!

DIY Embroidered Greeting Cards

This year one of my goals was to write more Thank You's. I love how personal and sincere hand written notes are, and handmade is even better! For this tutorial I machine embroidered my cards using a sewing machine with fancy stitches. That said, it would be a breeze to convert the steps for a straight stitch sewing machine or hand embroidery.

Let's get started!

Materials: - Blank Cards/Paper - Embroidery Thread - Sewing Needle - Scissors - Craft Glue - Buttons/Decorative Paper (Optional)

1. Pick out a cute stitch or plan out a cute design and then start stitching it right onto the front of the card. If you are concerned with making straight lines either lightly draw them in pencil with a ruler before you start or use the measurement guides on your machine as you sew.

2. Once you've finished embroidering your design embellish with buttons, trim, yo-yo's or pen drawings. Trim off your thread ends and secure in place with a dab of craft glue. If you don't want the backs of your stitches to show, line the inside of your card with decorative paper cut to fit.

Super easy! If you decide to try the tutorial, post pics for me to see. Hope you have fun!

Thrifty Finds!

When I first moved to St. Louis I was only familiar with a few neighborhoods and I spent a good deal of time wandering around (sometimes lost ;) discovering new parks, restaurants and shops. The city offers such an eclectic assortment of neighborhoods each offering its own unique style and feel. We have our own versions of little Italy and China Town. There are distinct hipster, posh and artists neighborhoods. As a new resident it was so exciting to head out in my free time and explore. I was in the habit of visiting one new place at least once a week.

More recently I realized I'd been slacking on this. With summer just around the corner I'm hoping to  pick it back up again. I started by branching out this week and visiting some great vintage and thrift stores on the south side of the city. There were so many wonderful things to look at, but only a few made it home with me.

This black beaded purse. My grandma used to have a collection of purses like this. Love it! The marbling on the closure is adorable.

White beaded necklace.

This vintage smocked pillow pattern. Swoon. My summer project list overfloweth.

Have you made any great finds recently?

Bento #15

Sorry for the surge of short posts, our power was out all of yesterday and I didn't have time for anything beyond a quick bento post. Heavier content ahead. Promise! Also, bad lighting = bad photo.

Contents:
- Vegetarian Chili
- Strawberries
- Steamed Rice
- Parsley from Garden

The Raptor?

No, it's the print I mentioned buying on twitter last week.

It's not a raptor, but it is a T-Rex on a bicycle with pink tassels, on a hillside surrounded by cherry blossoms. And folks, it doesn't get much better that.

I bought it at a local print show called Art Crank. It was created by a local artist but unfortunately I failed to write down his name. Doh. I'm going to try to get it framed tomorrow. Hope you're enjoying your weekend! It's 5:50 and I can NOT get the final countdown out of my head. ; )

What I wore 5.18.11

I actually wore this last week, but I'm making serious progress on processing all those photos! It's a work day and this is a typical work outfit so I think it fits. This is what I wore.

Shirt - Nordstrom Rack
Tank & Shoes - Target
Skirt- H&M
Tights - Macys

Bento #14

Fear not, the brown shade on the broccoli is from soy sauce. It's one of our favorite ways to prepare broccoli. We steam it and then dress it with soy sauce and lemon juice to taste. The soy sauce prevents us from needing to to add salt and the lemon adds a fresh twist. The combo is a great light alternative to butter (Not that it prevents me from adding butter to the potatoes - I'm not a communist).

Contents:
- Broccoli with Soy Sauce & Lemon
- Mashed Potatoes
- Homemade Egg Noodles

Craft Fair Booth

I've been sorting through literally thousands of photos that I've taken over the past month. Please bear with me as I finally get them organized and posted! Here are some photos I took of my booth at my first craft show of the season. I'm marking number five off of my list. After this I am pre-registered for two more shows and was recently asked to join two more. I'm thinking about it...

This show was lovely. My friend Tricia volunteered to man the booth with me making the whole experience that much more fun. I met some great folks and chatted with a few of the sweetest kids I've ever met. The weather took an unexpected turn and while it didn't rain, we did experience some significant winds hence all of my curtains being tied up. The book cases were something new I tried. I liked the look, but they were just as cumbersome as you would imagine without being wholly stable. I'm still experimenting with the set up.

Eek, it's getting late. More posts to come as the photos are uploaded. Thanks for reading! - Kali

New Summer Project!

While we were at the mexican grocery store purchasing supplies for our Cinco De Mayo party I found this treasure trove of embroidery patterns and thread.

There were handkerchiefs, pillow cases, aprons and fabric that could be cut and used for multiple projects. Added bonus - everything was crazy cheap! I picked up a hoop, a pattern and thread for less than $5. It's the perfect project to stash in my over sized summer purses to eat up time while waiting in lines, enjoying the weather outside or relaxing at happy hour. So excited to get started!

Cinco De Mayo Fiesta!

Every year, to celebrate Cinco De Mayo, I make a huge batch of homemade enchiladas. The recipe is ridiculously simple, but very involved so I only make them once or twice a year. When I do make them I never make fewer than 40, but it's usually closer to 80. They freeze well which helps a great deal, but having that much food around is a great excuse for a dinner party.

A couple of days before the party I hit up our local Mexican Grocery for ingredients and decorations. We had paper flags, cardboard luchador masks, crepe paper drink pics and a pink pegasus pinata to round it all out. I love all of the bright colors and gaudy designs!

Tragically, it started raining as soon as we filled the pinata so he remains intact and is currently keeping watch over my in table. I'll have a pinata party soon.

In addition to the enchiladas we served potato salad, chopped salad, guacamole made by my cousin, and the obligatory chips and salsa. Potato salad may seem like a strange side to accompany enchiladas, but it's family tradition. I've never eaten them any other way. For drinks we had regular and pomegranate margaritas, assorted mexican sodas and horchata martinis. The martinis were the hit of the night. I see them being a party staple from now on.

It was so much fun! Did you celebrate Cinco De Mayo? If so, what did you do?