Flashback Friday...

my friend Amber over at style::thrifted usually does a post entitled "flashback friday" including some sort of horrendous or hysterical photo from her younger years. however, i happen to know she's coordinating a wedding this weekend and after our conversation last night, i believe it is safe to say her blog will be blank today...SO i thought i'd give you a little "flashback friday" action! i am not digging quite as far back into the vault though - my apologies...

Last night it was my joy to spend a few hours with "old friends" - my very FIRST college friend Lisa was visiting from Arizona with her 6 week old baby boy Maddox...and of course I just HAD to meet him. HE IS DARLING. nevertheleses, sitting there chatting it up made me continuously ask the same question: HOW DID WE GET HERE? it CANNOT HAVE BEEN 8 years ago that we met NOT POSSIBLE! but it is. it was 8 years ago. WOW time flies...this is Maddox Craig...and THIS is my dear friend (and his beautiful mama) Lisa

ANYWAY, after that nostaligic meeting and SUPER TASTY dinner, I went to Kimie and Kent's - they needed a ride for the airport and SOMEHOW (God is CRAZY smart!) I ended up being available and IN RIVERSIDE to meet their need! SO FUN to see 2 of my favorite friends in the same night! Especially since they are 2 I don't see NEARLY often enough! We had a little time to kill before Kimie & Kent needed to be at the airport - so we chatted it up - and laughed a bunch - and then made the trek to Ontario. It was a SUPER long day for me - but SO worth it!

anyway, talking aside, here is the "flashback friday" pictureTHIS is me and Kimie when we went to see WICKED in January of 2007...SERIOUSLY that was over 4 years ago now! I don't think we really look that different...I wonder what 4 more years will do...

congratulations graduate!

on saturday one of my nearest and dearest friends walked across the GRAND stage (under a tent on a parking lot) at California State University Fullerton and received her Bachelor of Arts in Art Education. i am SO proud. i met Rachel the day she turned 20 - we lived together for 6 months - and have been great friends ever since. she truly has been an answer to prayer and a huge blessing in my life. we have laughed a LOT, cried several times, eaten quite a bit of panda express, panera bread, olive garden and olive pit not to mention the gallons of Starbucks we've consumed together...we've watched countless episodes of friends, attended parties galore, exchanged gifts for birthdays, christmases, graduations, etc...we've both done airport duty more than once and yet every single bit of it has been a joy. Rach is one of the most amazing women I know - she has an incredible heart for others and is committed to serving the Lord and living each day to the fullest. I prayed fervently for an Orange County friend for over 8 months before I met Rachel Christine - but she was SO worth the wait!

iloveyou dear sweet friend!

CONGRATULATIONS ON GRADUATION!

TED :: emoticons

Ok, I'm sure a lot of people have never heard of TED but it is an innovative conference that basically (like REALLY basically) inspires thinking outside the box and sharing ideas and strategies that will change the world. literally. CHANGE THE WORLD. the video below was shown at TED - it isn't revolutionary - but it is REVEALING - this is SO our generation...

ps. i didn't know you could make a cheerleader with emoticons... *\o/* how STINKING clever is that! i'm impressed!

nail polish UPDATE

we have talked many times on this blog about my moderate obsession with keeping my nails painted at all times. WELL i have been seeing some interesting polish layering techniques around the internet (specifically pinterest - do you have one yet? you should get one for sure! FABULOUS!) and thought I'd give one a try. SUCCESS. i might be in love. currently i'm wearing "master plan" (a mysterious soft grey) with "make you smile" (CHUNKY glitter) and the combination is idyllic - it's like a little happy dance on my nails.

reunited and it TASTES sooo goood!!!

in the summer of 2008, I studied Global Business Management in Oxford, England. it was THERE that I was introduced to one of my favorite things: MAGNUM bars! seriously they are probably the best packaged ice-cream treat i've ever consumed. AMAZING. rich and decadent and SO refreshing on a humid English day. MUCH to my chagrin, they were not available for purchase in the states. WELL MY FRIENDS, things have changed. several weeks ago i started to see glimmers of hope on the internet and now once again dreams are coming true. that's right - MAGNUM bars are now located at a target near you.go. get them. quick. NOW! you will thank me...but i apologize in advance - your body may not!

the great fabric adventure...

ahhhh blogger deleted everything I posted yesterday. how annoying. i wonder what was wrong with him - maybe he got the flu everyone else is having and threw up my posts. sad day! oh well. here we go again...same story...one more time...
i am moderately obsessed with black and white stripes. and i use the word moderately here as an understatement - i am RIDICULOUSLY obsessed would be more accurate - check my pinterest - PROVED IT! anyway, the wierd thing is that black and white striped fabric isn't always easy to find (and by easy to find i mean readily accessible at normal around town places like JoAnns...not real fabric stores or online - that is probably EASY to find...whatever). SO i finally scouted some down at IKEA - but i'm lazy - and a smidge busy - so i hadn't made it down to Costa Mesa when the dreaded "not in stock" icon appeared. TRAGEDY. if only i would have got my MOVE ON! so i kissed it goodbye. HOWEVER, the other day I was online and it was available again, so i planned an immediate trip. for the next day. i got momentarily distracted by the awesome grey rug available for a measly $19.99 (thank you for THAT price IKEA!) but eventually made my way to the fabric area where I spied my prize. what I didn't realize was that the scrap I spied was LITERALLY the only smidgen of fabric that remained in the store. so, in typical {out of control} shell fashion, i hunted down a guy who took that scrap of gorgeous black and white striped fabric down for me, folded it up, and handed me a ticket priced at $2.99 for the yard. i was ONE happy camper (even though i wasn't camping!) NOW...i need YOUR help...i need some awesome structural chair or fun bench to recover with my 1 yard of fabric...something timeless so it can live in my house FOREVER! come ON thrifty friends (Amber) hook a sister up...oh and if you could throw a fresh coat of black spray paint on it too...i would SO appreciate it!

the ROYAL wedding...

i die.

(source: studio white)

CUPCAKES & FROSTING!

Last night was the last regular meeting of my Bible Study (next week we’re having TACOS! woot!) and it just happened to be my small group’s turn for snack. My small group leader, Rhonda is in LOVE with my red velvet cupcakes and I seriously contemplated bringing them just for her – but I was really in the mood to try something else (my friend Lisa makes a new cupcake each week – check out her blog if you have a special place in your heart for cupcakes – she’ll definitely inspire you with some GOOD ones!). SO I attempted the cookie dough cupcakes – and MY OH MY they were DELICIOUS! My roommate Carrie and I sampled them right after they came out of the oven and they were melt in your mouth, ooey, gooey fantastic. However, last night when they were FROSTED (with my adaptation from a Sprinkles recipe) they were literally too good to stop eating...and before I knew it, they were GONE. I was secretly kind of hoping for leftovers – no such luck! The ladies loved the cupcakes but were all in agreement that it was the FROSTING that really took the cake (pun intended) so here is the recipe for Shalina’s FAVORITE vanilla buttercream (I originally made this frosting for red velvet cupcakes that I served at Shalina’s bridal shower – together we tweaked the recipe until it was perfect – THAT is why it is Shalina’s favorite!)

Shalina’s FAVORITE Vanilla Buttercream
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter – softened
4 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon milk
3 teaspoons vanilla
1/8 teaspoon salt

Put all ingredients in your kitchen aid OR bowl appropriate for use with a hand mixer. Pulse mixer until powdered sugar is combined. Turn mixer on HIGH and let it go…when it is smooth and creamy, wipe down the sides and bottom of the bowl and give it one more quick go on high. Then you’re all set. Frost whatever you can and consume in massive quantities…this frosting is SO worth the calories!

April Design Recap

April was a pretty busy design month - but most of my designs are still "in process" - i'm working on a wedding coming up THIS weekend (congrats ashley & chazz) and a graduation announcement going out in the mail THIS week (congrats anna garcia, MD) - but I can't post pictures of either of those until the invitees seet hem first...SO...for today...I bring you a scaled back version of my April - including a bridal shower, a business card, and a team logo and remind you that there is more to come SOONLY! OH, and you can ALWAYS take a peek at what's up in my design world by checking out my business blog. First up is the French inspired Bridal Shower Soiree hosted by Kirsten Lockhart for her niece Ashley Saine who is VERY SOON to be Mrs. Ashley Wilson! This bridal shower was probably one of the biggest events I've done to date. It included an invitation (with address labels and return address seals, OF COURSE) coordinating thank you notes for the bride-to-be, placecards, centerpieces, favor tags, gift tags, and a variety of other little pieces that brought the entire shower together. I wasn't there to see it in person, but from what I've heard, it was quite the affair. Next I bring you the business cards of my dear friend Amber McGaughey. Amber lives in the greater San Luis Obispo area and is running a little event planning business. She is extraordinarily visioned when it comes to weddings and would be a GREAT hire if you're looking for a little help on your big day (visit her blog style::thrifted to check her out!). Ambs is also working at Pottery Barn and had the opportunity to host their booth at a show recently and needed some cards last minute...so we whipped something up and she already booked a wedding! YES! i love it when designs sell!! Finally I bring you the logo design for "hearts on fire" a team of independent demonstrators for Gold Canyon. Lynne came to see me a few weeks ago and had a fresh vision for her business team. She really gave me all the pieces to the puzzle and I just put them together. She LOVES the new logo and her team does too!

The best part of my job is UNDOUBTEDLY providing people with things they use and love! Being a part of the big moments in people's lives is incredible!

Happy Birthday little sister...

on Friday, April 29, 2011, my little sister turned 21. wowza. 21. SO...off I went to San Diego to celebrate for the weekend. Friday evening we went out to dinner at Casa de Pico with Julie's boyfriend Tyler & his family...it was there that Julie ordered her first LEGAL beverage - a strawberry margarita (i had water in case you were wondering!).Saturday was a non-birthday-related-day. I went to Anna's to help her with her graduation announcements and then babysat my sweet M for a while (yes she was supposed to be napping - playing with Aunt Shell is WAY more fun!) and then we all went to Costco to see Julie in her new taste-testers outfit including a hairnet...SO CUTE! ha! (she is going to HATE me for posting this on the internet!)Saturday night I went to a "talent" show with mom and dad - but there was literally no talent in attendance. it was truely pitiful.
Sunday was a church day (par usual) and then the family came over for lunch, we ate, and then I headed back north to make it home in time for church. It was a full weekend - but I was glad to be home again. NOW for a weekend in Orange County so I can get some laundry done!