Aint Too Proud To Beg

Please vote for me!!! I really want to win the Best of January!

Bargain Shopping

I am terrible at finding deals on craft items, anything for my dog and ESPECIALLY groceries. However, I think I am pretty good at finding deals on clothes. Here are some of my most recent conquests. If you hurry you can get them too!

Right now Express has an extra 40% off clearance. It comes out to almost 90% off on some of the items.

Red V-Neck Sweater $11.99

Black Ruffle Tee $5.99

Shark Bite Flyaway Cardigan $11.99

Also, this weekend we went to the REI attic sale and we more than got our money's worth on our REI co-op membership. Even if you are not an outdoorsy person I highly recommend you join just for the Attic sales. Here is what we scored:

Men's Keen Pyrenees Hiking boots

Retail: $140

Paid: $40

Women's Reef Sandals

Retail: $40

Paid: $4.97

Have you found any good deals lately?

Two Tone Yarn Wreath

I have seen a few of these floating around blogland lately and I decided to make my own. I am ashamed to admit that until I made this baby, I still had an evergreen wreath up on our front door. For someone who is wreath obsessed, such as myself, this is an abomination. This was super simple and fairly cheap. A few men from church today stopped by and I heard them say how nice the wreath was as they walked in. For a bunch of men to notice I feel like it must be decent.

I couldn't find a two-tone yarn that I loved so I decided to buy two and mix it up. Luckily, yarn was on sale at JoAnn's this week and I got the giant One Pound yarn for $5.99 and the small tan/gray yarn for $2.79. I, also, got the beads for $2.99 and the form for $3.99.

First I wrapped the lighter color around the form leaving the plastic on. 

Then I wrapped the teal around making sure you couldn't see any more of the form. 

Then I cut up the bead garland and just stuck it in until it looked cute. 

I think it looks nice and springy. What do you think?

Please Vote for Me!

The Bridal Card Box I made for my friend's wedding is nominated for the Best of January over At Saturday Mornings. I am so happy to be selected. I never thought this idea would be so popular! Please take a look at the nominees and vote for me if you think I am the best!

Rosette Candleholder

I have a giant surplus of red felt that I am trying to go through, which isn't a bad thing because I have loved everything I've used it for so far. 

First, I spray painted a small styrofoam cylinder red. I learned my lesson from the topiary mistake. 

Then a cut a million small circles.

Then I cut the circles in a spiral.

Then I rolled the roses and glued all over the cylinder. 

I used a nice flameless candle to avoid fire hazards. I kinda love it. 

See topiary mistake above. Just keepin it real people.

I'm linking up to:

Dome Piece

Is this headband too big for my head? Should I cut off the super long feather sticking out? No, seriously, I need your feedback. I never wear stuff in my hair. I kinda love this, but I think there is a slight chance it looks like a bird landed on my head. Help me out with some comments please!

I'm Not a Stalker, I'm a Fan

So I have totes been stalking Blooming Homestead lately. If there is a crafter I aspire to be like or a style I'm trying to have, she has it. Her blog is full of printable that are simply yet stylish and crafts that look straight out of a catalog. Below are just a few samples of the amazingness you can find over at her blog.

Ballin' Out

I get so excited when I get these awards. Even though I know people have to award it to 15 people it still makes me feel special. I mean, they probably read at least a 100 blogs, but they thought of me! So here we go!

This award does not come without its duties. I must:

1. Thank and link back to the person who gave me this award.


2. Share 7 things about yourself.


3. Award 15 bloggers. (I'm doing 5. Sorry bloggy chain award powers that be)


4. Contact these bloggers and tell them about the award.

I was awarded this by Sweet Bee Buzzings and by Come Whine With Me. Thanks Ladies!!

The Seven Things About Me. I'll try to make this interesting.

1.  My uncle was a professional talk show host. This is my claim to fame people! Can you guess who? I bet you can't.

2. My sister and I have the same birthday and we are 8 years apart. Weird. We also have a cousin with that birthday!

3. I have never had a twinkie. This is weird, but my mom is a dental hygenitist and I never even had sugared gum until I was about 10.

4. Crooked pinkies and extra long second toes run in my family. All of the women have them. None of us will ever have careers as foot or hand models. Sigh.

5. I almost became a nun. I went to catholic school for most of my life then decided to go to Ursuline College, the home of the Ursuline nuns, to consider taking vocations. I met some awesome young nuns (sounds like young guns ha!), but ultimately decided I wanted to have a family. Close call!

6. My real real dream is to one day open a bakery. Despite my fallout with Duff Goldman I would like to someday open a bakery with all kinds of sweet treats. I am slowly compiling amazing desert recipes for this endeavor.

7.  I have never seen the Sound of Music. My husband says this is un-American, but it just has no appeal for me. If I've gone 27 years without it why change now?

Now for the Awards. Drum Roll Please...

1. Ashley Creations

2. Blooming Homestead

3. Dianna the Explorer

4. Dragonfly Meadow

5. Homemaker on a Dime

Little Old Me

Today is a big day over here at In the Loop. I am so excited and I am starting to really feel a part of the blogging world.

1. I have reached over 150 followers!This feels like such a huge milestone. Thanks for your support!
2. I am sponsoring my first giveaway over at Saturday Mornings. If you haven't already please enter for your chance to win a $30 Visa Giftcard.
3. I won a giveaway for a $5 Starbucks giftcard over at Thrifty 101. I love free money and this is a great blog. Check it out!
4. I was nominated by 2 fellow bloggers for the Stylish Blogger Award!
5. I have made so many new friends on blogger and gotten so many great new ideas! This has been the best party of all!

A Little Somethin, Somethin

I feel like there is a baby boom going on with everyone around me right now. My awesome neighbor Dani just had a baby girl named Lily and my SIL Jen's baby Owen is getting baptized next month. I like to always make something handmade for a baby no matter how small. I did these letters in about 5 minutes with scrapbook paper and modge podge. Sweet and Simple.

It's a Celebration and Giveaway!

I set the goal this month to reach 125 followers. I am elated to say that I have reached 139 and totally blown my goal out of the water! I really believed 125 would be a struggle, but I did it! In celebration of this milestone and as a thank you for all my new followers I am sponsoring a giveaway for a $30 Visa giftcard over at Saturday Mornings. This would be a perfect way to help celebrate valentine's day. Good luck and thanks for your support!

Card Box

My friend Takea is getting married on March 26 and I am so excited for her. Due to my crafty reputation she has asked me to make a card box to use at her bridal shower and wedding.  I had the idea to make it a replica of her wedding cake. Her real cake is 4 tiers, but I think this looks pretty awesome, especially since I totally winged it. The shower is next Saturday so I'm glad it turned out. otherwise it would have been pretty sad.

First I ordered square hatboxes on ebay.  These were impossible to find in the store! Then I cut out a card slot on the side of the top box and square in the middle of the bottom box with a razor blade. 

I marked the fabric with a marker then cut along the "X"

I wrapped the boxes with fabric pretty similar to how you wrap a present with a few modifications. I just wanted a really smooth and elegant look. I used clips to hold the ends while the glue dried. 

I wrapped the top piece and then added flowers. It doesn't look exactly like her cake, but I think it's pretty cool. Functional and fancy. 

Tell me what you think!