As promised, our Movember Monday post. I’ve got about 30 minutes left in Monday, so I’m going to make this quick.
Movember is all about raising awareness & research funds for prostate cancer & the LiveStrong foundation. It’s a really great cause and Rob’s stache would love your support {I would too!}.
He’s already raised $200 bucks {woohoo!!}! Help us reach his goal of $500 by the end of the month.
Cause cancer sucks but ‘staches rule.
Thank you!!
I like natural peanut butter. Peanut butter should just be peanuts {& maybe a smidge of salt, if we’re being completely honest}. Skippy, Jif, Peter Pan & the like taste so sweet to me. Yuck! Peanut butter should not be sweet.
Confession: We’re a 2 jar of peanut butter family. I eat natural & Rob prefers Peter Pan.
One of the issues though with natural peanut butter is the oil that rises to the top. Whenever you try to mix it, the oil sloshes out and runs down the side, onto your counters, and all over your fingers.
NO MORE!
I picked this quick tip up from my dad a few years ago. {It was quite the “DUH!” moment. So simple.}
When you get home from the store, leave your natural peanut butter upside down on the counter for a couple days.
All the oil will rise to the bottom of the jar. When you flip it right side up, the peanut butter will be on the top & the oil will be on the bottom. TA-DA!! SO MUCH easier for mixing.
Don’t forget! Today is Movember Monday. Full post coming this evening.
My friend Kim is hosing a DIY blog party. While certainly isn’t a craft blog, I love to make stuff and meet new people.
Each of the 6 weeks leading up to Christmas has a different theme to DIY. Check it out {blatently copied from NewlyWoodwards}:
Monday, Nov. 16: Dare to… be thankful!
Take some time making your own DIY Thanksgiving project. It could be a fun Thanksgiving advent calendar, a banner or something completely unique. Post about what you made, how you made it and photos in its new home.
Monday, Nov. 23: Dare to… entertain!
Show us your table! If you are not hosting Thanksgiving, take this opportunity to make your table look great. Bring out your dishes and napkins and set your table. I promise you that it will make you smile every time you walk by. Get creative and use new things. Or go true DIY and make something totally new.
Monday, Nov. 30: Dare to… eat cookies!
As we begin to attend holiday parties, share your favorite cookie recipe for all to enjoy. It’s like a digital cookie swap. Share the recipe and a review of the cookie. If you can, add a picture. And don’t worry about the extra calories. At Christmas, cookies are calorie-free.
Monday, Dec. 7: Dare to… give homemade gifts!
Nothing is more special than a gift made by you. Try out something new to give this year – ideas include bath and body items, kitchen gifts, hand-sewn clothing or home decor.
Monday, Dec. 14: Dare to… deck the halls!
Make something new to deck your halls. Did you find something in a catalog that you wish you had? Wreaths, stockings, pillows or advent calendars? Make it! Inspire us all to do the same.
Monday, Dec. 21: Dare to… have traditions!
Everyone has traditions for the Holidays. Tell us all about your favorites or start a new tradition to share.
I have no idea what I’m doing for each of the 6 weeks but will figure something out. And isn’t the schemeing half the fun?? {Maybe that’s just me.}
In the meantime, check out some of the other bloggers who’ve already hopped on board:
Emily at Imperfect
Laurel at Ducks in a Row
Shannon at Shannanigans
Carrie at Brick City Love
Joi from Nuestra Vida Dulce
Jenny at Words on Wendhurst
Jess at Alex and Jess
Kellie at KellieBelle’s Karma
Lauren at Lauren Makes
Mandy at Moody Girl Projects
Allison at Allison and Jared
Stephanie at Living Life Shiny Side Up
Ashley at Little Moments
Jen at Notes from the Heartland
Laura at The Meckleys
Kelly at At Home with the Pooles
Kelly at Casa de Edgewood
Leigh at The Kesler Expressler
Meredith at La Buena Vida
Totally stoked? Sound like fun? Of course it does!
Come join us. All bloggers are welcome! Even you jaded, cynical, “but-I’m-not-crafty” types {yeah, you know I’m talking about you}.
Head on over to the NewlyWoodwards, get the full scoop & a button for your blog.
So will you joining the party??
{updated Nov. 16, 23, Dec 7 & 14 with links to the projects}
Remember that vintage dress form I found yesterday at Amber Lion Antiques?
I waffled about bringing her home {even negotiated the price down a little!} for the better part of 45 minutes before my meter ran out. Acutely familiar with New Brunswick’s Parking Authority and their deep love of parking tickets, I left her there.
Walked to my car.
Got in.
Pulled onto Rt. 18 south.
And promptly got off at the first exit and went back to the store.
She’s not perfect but experienced and loved. She has a past; a little worn but completely beautiful.
Amber Lion Antiques was one of my favorite antique shops in college. It’s small but I could browse for over an hour.
There’s a lot to look at but it’s not super cluttered; neatly organized but layered. I purchased my Sputnik lamp & set of mulberry china here. I was in the neighborhood today & decided to stop by after work.
Prices are ok; some things are a completely reasonable, some are priced kinda high. Of course I’m no antique guru, so maybe I’m just naive. Generally speaking, the furniture is a little out of my price range but sometimes I find the perfect item, priced right, just waiting for me.
I loved this teal lamp. For $55, it seemed fairly priced but then I saw it read “As Is”. If I didn’t have so many projects on my plate, I might have taken the time to rewire it. It had two bulb sockets that rotated on a ball joint & would look fabulous with a good size white drum shade.
You’re looking for a wicker coffin??? You’re in luck.
This vintage marble lamp is HUGE!!! Seriously must be 4′ high. Too big for our place but would look totally rad in the right proportioned room.
I didn’t think the $185 price tag was ridiculously unreasonable, considering the size.
This yellow pendent lamp reminded me of one I saw over at The Brick House.
If we had a place, this display case would have been wrangled home some how.
I LOVED the lines, the glass top and it was less than $200. Almost reason enough to open my own shop.
This vintage fan was peeking out from the back room. I’m on the hunt for a vintage fan but theirs were all priced higher than I want to pay.
And, finally, this dress form. I’ve been passively keeping an eye out for a vintage dress form like this & really dug her realistic shape.
If you’re in New Brunswick, NJ with an hour to kill, swing through Amber Lion Antiques. You won’t find a steal like on Craigslist or yard sales but they have decent stuff at competitive prices. {They’ll also negotiate a little with the prices if you ask.}
Amber Lion Antiques
356 George St.
New Brunswick, NJ 08901
(732) 214-9090
So you have a bookshelf full of books ~ some with pages, some without ~ and you want to drill holes through them. So you can, say, string them together. How exactly would you do that??
First, use a Forstner bit to drill through the covers.
The Forstner bit creates a perfectly cut out hole but we found it worked much better on the covers than it did on the pages.
So how do we cut through those annoying page things?? A spade bit is perfect!
But first use a couple heavy duty clamps/clips to keep the pages tightly together. If you don’t, the pages just twist up & tear & it’s a huge mess.
Since the forstner bit drilled a perfect hole through the cover, choose the same size spade bit. Then drill!
The pages kinda look like sawdust, don’t they?
Voila! Your book now has a hole. {And it magically changed colors! haha!}
And if you want to be able to easily drag a whole shelf full of books around the room, string twine through each hole.
While tying said books together isn’t so great if you actually want to read them, it’s a great way to ensure your meticulously crafted styling is never rearranged.
Rob is now a Mo Bro.
“What the eff is a ‘Mo Bro’,” you ask? {I DID TOO!!}
Well. I’ll tell you.
Actually, I’ll let the Movember website tell you.
A Mo Bro starts Movember – the month formerly known as November – clean shaven, and grows a moustache all month long, garnering support from friends and family in the form of donations. What’s more, a Mo Bro is a walking billboard for the cause as his new look opens the door for him to talk about cancers affecting men – making the moustache a symbol, much like the pink ribbon is for breast cancer. Each Movember culminates in a Gala Partè in major cities around the globe where Mo Bros dress up to match their Mo, channeling the likes of Tom Selleck, Ghandi and Ron Burgandy, vying for the ultimate accolade: Man of Movember.
My formerly bearded husband is now cleanly shaven.
Yesterday – Day 1
We will be taking 1 picture a day as November goes on and the ‘stache grows. Every Monday, I’ll recap with the weeks pictures. At the end of the month, we’ll take a vote about what kind of “mo” – if any – Rob should keep.
How can you help?? THANK YOU FOR ASKING!
Donate & support Rob’s ‘stache. All the money raised benefits prostate cancer research & Lance Armstrong’s LiveStrong.
Thank you for your support!! Cancer Sucks. ‘Staches Rule.
This weekend, we will continue building.
Not on our house, but on this.
The set my dad is designing & building. More details to come.
Halloween is my favorite holiday of the year. FAVORITE. With the move and all the renovation craziness, we just aren’t going all out this year though.
This little vampire pumpkin {that the awesome hubs carved} is our singular decoration.
Next year we’ll have to do better but – if you’re looking for some awesome Halloween inspiration – you must check out Mrs.Limestone‘s totally rad Brooklyn abode. She’s quite something when it comes to Halloween. This year, there are skeletons climbing on her house! CLIMBING! On the outside.
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