Self Challenge...

I want to start by thanking a friend for being supportive and giving me some encouraging advice. Amazing how just a few simple words can make a person feel empowered.

You're probably wondering what the heck I'm talking about.

Most of you know that I decided to get into a little business called Mary Kay. I wear it, I love it; so I can honestly say I swear by it. But that's not the only reason that I got into it.

For starters, my whole life I have loved making people feel good. As a teenager, I didn't have a ton of self confidence until about my Junior/Senior year in high school. Over time, I have learned that confidence comes from accepting who you are and not constantly comparing yourself to a) a friend b) the girl you love to hate because she's so dang pretty and c) the unachievable model/actress glossy magazine photo's that have been photo-shopped to smithereens. Love your freckles, your beauty marks, your curves and/or lack of curves. You were made to be exactly who you are.

Example A) Teaching horse back riding lessons. This is a great form of confidence boosting to people of all ages but most especially children. You don't have to be tall, fast or beautiful to succeed at horse back riding. But the right form, the right skills and the right color combinations can make a statement that will make you one of the best. When you know you look good, you will ooze confidence.

Example B) Selling wedding gowns. It doesn't matter what shape a bride is, when she has found the right dress that makes her feel like the prettiest bride on earth, I have done my job. The right fit (to emphasize the assets), color and amount of bling will make a woman feel sexy, classy and gorgeous. When she feels all these things, she will be more excited about her big day and she isn't going to question who she is. When it comes to that special day, she knows exactly who she is and her confidence will make her shine.

Lastly, example C) Selling makeup. Whether a woman wears none or she looks like a showstopper, she still wants to feel beautiful. At the same time, she wants to look in a mirror and see herself. This is what I want to encourage. I do not want to create clones. Not everyone should wear the same eye color, or as much eye-liner, or any eye makeup for that matter. But, if a woman doesn't wear makeup, shouldn't her skin look dynamite?? And if a woman wants to wear makeup, shouldn't she be able to know what looks best on her without spending a fortune that she cannot return if she's not happy? Or what if a woman was never taught the best way to apply makeup? This is why I decided to sell Mary Kay. Because I (ME. Little ol' me...who had to teach myself how to wear it) get to help people look and feel spectacular. I'm not sure about some of you but when my skin is looking great I have confidence and when I'm having a stellar makeup day, I feel like a million bucks. This is what I want people to know: I'm starting my own MK business because I care. I think everyone deserves to feel fabulous and why not reflect how beautiful you are on the inside, on the outside as well. Nothing can accomplish more in this world than a woman with a smile.

But now here's something I'll bet you didn't know. I get scared. I am afraid of failure. I don't want to look like an idiot. Seriously. I have confidence in myself but yet, I let these things hold me back. Because I put so much pressure on myself to succeed that I'm worried that I won't do well right away. How foolish of me, right? I want to help people be confident and here I am worried that I might not be perfect. Well, this is where that friend opened my eyes. She said you have to start somewhere. And then she told me how she started wearing MK and I thought, wow. That was an easy and painless conversation. I can do that.

I don't want to be pushy. I don't want to be intimidating.

I want to be a girlfriend. I want to be fun and informative. I want to help spread confidence.

I can do this. I will do this.

So I'm giving myself a little challenge...

Starting today (well, it's 11:00 PM...so maybe tomorrow) I'm going to do one thing each day that will get me out of my comfort zone and help me achieve the success that I want. I'm going to put myself out there and see where it gets me. All my life I've wanted to be known for something I'm good at. I can't do this sitting on the sidelines.

"Success isn't about how much money you make, it's about the difference you make in people's lives."

Thanks for listening friends. Wish me luck!

It's about Time...er...Tile...

It's day 14. Not that I'm counting....

Our shower is finally tiled! Now I realize that installing subway tile does take a little longer than larger tile....especially when you have to take it down and start over. But we won't go there. Nope.

And my husband had to go out of town for a couple days.

But in my mind I thought we would be further by now.

However, I AM aware that this is easy for me to say because I'm not the one actually doing the work. See, husband?...I can admit it. :)

But that doesn't mean I won't still be chomping on the bit, waiting. Waiting. Trying to be patient.

Mr T is currently working on puttying the drywall and sanding the layers. (Well, not currently as in right this minute. Right this minute he's watching the back of his eyelids. It's still light out and the birds are chirping. How one can fall asleep already baffles me.) But all this sanding is making our house an absolute mess. We have dust everywhere. I spent my entire Sunday off cleaning every inch of this house. (I'm feeling optimistic that he'll be sure to put a tarp up over the doorway when he sands next.) I will be especially glad when this step is complete.

Next up. Painting. And you'll all be happy to know that I did indeed get my paint colors picked! I'm pretty stoked to have it start looking like a real room. I've got some fun ideas that I want to do. I can't wait to share them!

This is way off topic but is anyone watching the Billboard Music Awards? Michael Jackson is performing. I'm not sure what just happened but it was kind of cool. And kind of weird. What did I just watch??? Huh. And I'm sure I'll get hate mail for this statement but they need to bring Luke Bryan back. He's going all GQ on us. I am no longer getting that "hey baby I'm a country man" vibe. Sorry ladies.

Uh..hum...anwaaaaays......

I'm thrilled to show off our fantastic shower (so far!) I'm being told that we should be able to shower by the end of the week. I'm crossing all my fingers and toes. Watching everything come together is so freaking cool.

Ta da! Isn't she a beaut!?

Enjoy this beautiful weather and rummage season! I'm going this weekend...first one of the season for this girl!

Thanks for reading friends!

Bathroom Renovation Day #3

We have a wall and a tub! Woot! Woot!

Once again the husband said he got everything done that he wanted to do today. My husband is very blessed that he has a great father who is willing to put aside his free time and come out to work for another 4 to 5 hours after a full day of working his day job. I don't know about him but I tend to forget just how much we have to do until we have a finished bathroom. Example: I forgot we...er... I have to paint. I kept thinking that once drywall was up we would just magically have a finished room. Whoops. There I go with that wishful thinking again.

Hit the rewind button.

I tend to fast forward through things. I already have a new bathroom rug, a really neat mirror and contemplating towel colors and wall fixtures.

I should probably think about paint.

Anyways...thankfully my wonderful hubs (I'm abbreviating here. I may be saying husband way too often) stays on task and knows what needs to be done next. Tomorrow he's hoping to get the whole room dry walled. I'm actually pretty excited about that. It will really start looking like a room!

Today, I was ecstatic to come home and find that the tub had been installed, a wall was framed in and dry wall was started.

SO thrilled that I had to get the camera out. Again. :)

Here is our bathroom thus far!

Working hard and thrilled to have their picture taken.

Our My Our soaker tub!

Wall for our shelves or closet, still undecided.

I love seeing progress! And since I've gone and started picking out the fun stuff, I thought I would at least share. What's the fun in shopping for things if no one can see them?!

The fabulous mirror that I scored an awesome deal on at TJ Maxx!

How about these lights? I am beyond excited for these. Are they not adorable?

Check back to see what the next couple of days bring us! I wish I could stay home and watch it all take place but sadly, I must continue going to work. Besides...I know how much my hubs would love to have me home and scrutinizing supervising helping him but I wouldn't want him to get too dependent on me...*cough, cough*

Goodnight everyone!

Bathroom Renovation DAY #1

First rule of thumb: never stay home sick on the first day of a renovation. That's tear everything out day. Or in other words, non-stop pounding and dusty as heck day. A few ibuprofen (to lessen the hammering headache...no pun intended...ok maybe a little), some HGTV and couch time and I managed to rest and relax as much as I could.

8 hours later we have a "clean" slate. It's amazing how much easier it is to envision things when you have a completely empty room. And also what you find when it's an old farm house. We've got some lovely new floor tile and the husband thinks there was a fire at one time. I wish the walls could talk!

Here are our Day #1 bathroom pics:

How about this for our new tile?

Where the shower was.

Where the sink and toilet used to be.

According to my husband he's right on track and got everything done that he wanted to today. Tomorrow he's tackling insulation and electric. I'm really glad that he's super handy. And I'm delighted that all I have to do is tell him where I want things. I'm hoping to kick this nasty cold so I can go shopping (which is what I really do best) and pick out some neat things for the bathroom. Not to mention I now have a very dusty house that needs cleaning. This is a terrible time to be sick. But as usual I have impeccable timing.  Here's to hoping for a better tomorrow!

Good night everyone!

Ready, Set, Reno!

It's here. The day we've been waiting for since we moved in.

The beginning of what will undoubtedly be a continuous couple weeks of cuss words, headaches and frustration.

Tomorrow is bathroom renovation day!

Even though I'm well aware that my husband and I are most likely in for a stressful undertaking, not being able to use our main bathroom and sharing a half bath, I'm excited to see the end result. That's right. HALF bath. No shower. We'll be showering at my parents place. Until it's done. No pressure to stay on schedule. At all.

Good Lord...I'd better stock up on wine.

The challenge for me will be keeping my mouth shut and not questioning my husband to death. I believe him to be totally capable, I really do. But I have this unnecessary need to know EVERYTHING that's going on and to understand every little thing. And I know it drives him crazy. But I'm just curious...

I'll just keep reminding myself to be patient and that he was very willing to let me pick everything out that I wanted in this bath. And he didn't ask questions. In fact, it may have been the very first time ever that he kept saying "whatever you want." Huh. He picked the biggest project we've worked on to let me make the decisions. This could be very important. It could make or break all of my future decision  making for all of our future ventures. Oh God.

There will definitely be wine in this house. Pronto.

* I am by no means a wine-o-holic or have any drinking addictions. It is a means of therapy. Simple, affordable, short term therapy.

I can't wait to see the progress throughout the week. Here's the before shots.

The bathroom housed the washer and dryer.

This is from the day we moved in.

Our gross, scuzzy shower. Ick.

The odd corner storage and random mirror.
Toilet is staying there but getting replaced.
Hoping to make it look a little less cramped.

Washer and dryer have moved downstairs. The
cupboards came down today. We have a good
sized bathroom!

The sink that lived in the corner. And isn't that
an awesome medicine cabinet and light fixture???

The husband is chomping at the bit. He had to get a head start by
hammering a hole in the wall. Boys...

Hope everyone had a great weekend. Have a wonderful week!

Kitchen Progress...

I've been waiting much too long to share my kitchen ideas which are slowly coming to life.

Life just has a way of butting into my plans sometimes, so something that should have taken a few days has taken me a few weeks. BUT, it's progress, so that makes me excited!

I LOVE our farmhouse. So much so, that I say it out loud, every day. And then proceed to pinch myself to make sure I'm not dreaming. I have fantasized of living in a farmhouse on a cute little piece of country heaven since I was a young girl and it seems surreal that it actually happened. But with the old also comes projects. Which. I. Love. (Mostly because I'm creative and my husband is super handy).

For anyone that has seen our home, we have a great (half of) kitchen. The other half is empty. Designed by the previous owner, it isn't the most functional for us. Yet.

The updated half of our kitchen although still
not entirely done. Dreaming of a back splash...

Here is what the empty side of the kitchen looked like (with my very small and tiny attempt at "storage".  (It was intended to be temporary, I promise my vision is much more impressive, functional and time consuming than that!)

Once again, Pinterest has been handy but I am going to take FULL CREDIT for my ideas. I have envisioned my dream kitchen since the first day we walked through this house. However, when it comes to big decisions, I'm a little indecisive. It's a little harder to say, sorry honey, I think I changed my mind. Take it down. Sorry I wasted your time. Better luck next time, buddy. *Shoulder punch*...

But one day my husband told me he took off a day to help me with stuff I wanted to do around the house. First on the list...kitchen functionality!

To Menards we went to "save big money" on my open shelving must haves.

We were able to get the shelves measured, cut, brackets up and boards positioned. But it took me a bit to find the correct color as I wanted the shelving to match our cupboards and look as if they belonged. 

Turns out they only needed 3 coats of Polyurethane with no stain and they are a perfect match.

Sand, slap the Polyurethane on, steel wool, slapping on another coat, steel wool, final coat and voila. Board done.  Actually pretty easy...(once you realize that you may or may not be able to get the black stamp marks off 100% and you stop trying to sand harder after you notice you have now created a dip in the wood...)

So here are my shelves now that they are "done". And by done I mean finally up, even though they are still empty. I'm just so anxious to show you that I can't wait! But, I'll be working on organizing my cupboards in the next day or two, so I do promise to share a FINAL after picture.

Please do not judge our flooring. That is
also on the kitchen update list!

And P.S the little white shelf WILL be going...eventually. My next vision still needs to be built by my handy husband and I've been told he needs to buy himself a fancy schmancy saw in order to build said project. He certainly knows how to get what he wants....

Pray for some more Spring weather fellow Wisconsinites! Let's hope it's not a winter wonderland in the morning (it's April for Pete's Sake!)....Goodnight!

Peek of Spring

It's Tuesday and while my husband is sitting through 2 days of meetings, I tagged along so that I can get a little R&R. I'm sitting in our hotel room painting my toes, watching HGTV and waiting to hit up the spa for some whirlpool pampering and later, my Aromatherapy massage. Ahhh, the good life. A girl could get used to this...

But while I'm waiting I thought I would share my first attempt at a burlap wreath. I started by using this tutorial. And it was useful for 5 minutes. Then, if you're anything like me...you just say to hell with instructions and start doing whatever looks good. It doesn't help the photo's on the tutorial were not the best but I'm actually pretty happy with how mine turned out. I just won't be showing you any step by steps because, honestly, I'm not sure I could do exactly what I did, over again. Also, I read that you should have 12-15 yards of 5-9" burlap. This is where not listening got me. I ran out 3/4 of the way through and had to scrounge through my craft supplies to find a piece of burlap that I could cut up (and matched color!) and use to finish the rest of the wreath. But I did it! Then you can decorate as you wish.

Tip: I used wrapped wire to secure my additional pieces,
so that it blended with the burlap

Voila! My first DIY burlap wreath!

I still may tweak my Spring add-ons around but right now, this is where it's at and it's MUCH better than the snow covered swag that was on the door from winter. I'm so DONE with winter!

We have so many projects going on right now. Hopefully I'll be able to share my kitchen project with you very soon...

And then the desk I'm refinishing...

And maybe by then we'll have landscaping projects! Spring really is coming folks....we just have to be patient...only hopefully not until June.

And with that, I'm going to go hit the pool. Or at least chillax next to it with a good book. Nothing better than the smell of chlorine and a thrilling novel to get the cold winter thoughts cleared out of my head...

Have a terrific Tuesday everyone!

Secrets of a Wedding Consultant...

This is totally random and nothing like my usual posts but it struck me that people might be curious.

When people find out I'm a Bridal consultant they always say "I'll bet you make great money" "that must be a fun job".

And it really is. Most days. But there is so much more to this career than just playing dress up with people. Just remember when you read the following, I still love my job and better yet, I'm darn good at it. (Sorry to toot my own horn but I'm proud to say it because it even shocks me.) But just for your reading pleasure...here are the Top 5 reasons that Bridal Consultants deserve a raise. Every. Single. Day.

5) We are psychologists....I don't just have to assist a nervous/excited/indecisive bride. I also have to help bring mom, sister, future mom, and bride all together. Every. Single. Person. Has to like what the bride picks out. (Word to the wise...don't bring the ENTIRE family.) But often times they do and sometimes it's a hoot and other times it's down right frightening. Recently I had a bride in tears because mom and future mom-in-law were not on the same page. One mom is offering to help put more money towards the perfect dress and the other mom is crying to me because she's feeling left out. Awkward. Ummm....I wasn't sure what to say? You should really talk to your daughter. Really. No...really?
I have never had a Bridezilla. I get "momzilla's". I've had mother's absolutely hate the bride's favorite dress and dress after dress after dress I FINALLY get mom to see that her daughter is smiling in that dress. About 98% of mothers imagine their daughter getting married in a "Princess dress". And don't forget the sparkle. (More sparkle please...we still need more sparkle...it could almost be a Saturday Night Live skit)  Can we just get the word out right now that the bride is supposed to be the one in love with her dress?

4) We are artists....ALERT...all those gowns you post on Pinterest? Those gowns are a few thousand bucks. Don't get me wrong. I did it. I'm still a Pinterest junkie myself. But it isn't the bargain website. Dress shopping is kind of like car shopping. You don't get the fully loaded options for the basic economy cost. But everyone comes to us wanting that unique dress for under $1000. And I get it. I totally do. I didn't want to spend a lot on a dress that I got to wear for only one day. But I was also open minded. So another helpful hint...if you want to find the dress of your dreams and not get stressed out, be open to ideas. If you let us think outside the box, we're pretty amazing. We've added sleeves, straps, sashes, brooches, appliques, beads, color, slits, camo, "poof", lace overlay, less "poof", removed straps, created new necklines, removed flowers, added flowers...you name it. And we've done all under $1000. Bet Pinterest can't do that. What can I say? We're talented folks. 

3) We are secret keepers....I'll not be naming any names or breaking any promises but we hear it all. We have women come in all the time that don't want their family to know they were already in and found a dress. So we play dumb and let the "search for the perfect dress" start from scratch again and again. I've learned of secret pregnancies that even moms know nothing about. I've been told about breakups and learned about personal insecurities. (If I had a dime for every person that complained about their boobs or "armpit fat" [is there such a term???] I'd be a millionaire.) Standing in a bra and underwear while in a 5 x 5 fitting room tends to lead to honesty and spilling of personal information. This is actually the part that makes the job worth while to me, however. These are girls and women that feel comfortable enough around me to trust me with their story. And when they trust you with that kind of information, it makes helping them find the perfect dress that much easier. It's what makes me feel like I make new friends in this world, almost every single day. And if I help make a difference in someone's day or wedding planning or once in a lifetime experience, then that makes the job totally worth it.

2) We are strong...We eat and drink very little. Haha! It's true! We work around our appointments and if that means we have a bride (or bridesmaids or tuxedo appointment) every hour then that's what we do. And we do it with a smile on our face. Because we love what we do. Even when the sister is doing our job and pulling 10 extra dresses "just to see them on" or when mom thinks the bride should try on every dress in the store so she has "an idea" of what she likes, we do it happily. We do not cry, whine, whimper or show weakness. We put the customer before ourselves. When our stomachs growl we suck it up, gulp a soda and have a quick tantrum behind closed doors and then we go back out with a smile on our face. We also happily (we would whistle while we work if we could) lug 20 + pound dresses umpteen times a day so that we can say we we worked out. Yes. Strong, indeed.

1) We are miracle workers....I could just leave it at that. When people call in March wondering when they should order their wedding gown for a June wedding I am not allowed to say "six months ago", which is what all of us would sometimes like to say. Pretty sure that would get me F-I-R-E-D. What women want, women usually get. And we are the ones that make it happen. We make sure their dresses come in, in perfect condition. If they don't, it's our job to send them back and make sure that they get here on time. When a woman comes in and her wedding is in a month, she is looking at us to help her find the perfect dress. And by perfect dress it means: right color, slimming, flaw covering, confidence building, make-every-one-at-the-weddings-mouth-drop gorgeous dress. It doesn't matter the shape or size of the bride, the goal is always the same. And we have to know what they mean when they say ruffles and really mean rouching, dipped front which means sweetheart, mermaid which is a misidentified fit and flair, no poof a.k.a no ball gown but A-line is ok. We learn to read what all these women mean when they say one thing but sometimes (often times) mean another. And last but not least....once the miracle of finding THE dress is over and the dress is ordered and 6 months later comes in, the rest of the magic happens. The alterations. No, a dress does not come in with a bustle, hem and perfect fit. Those amazing seamstresses make it happen. They might be the real miracle workers. You could not pay me enough to do what they do. They. Are. Amazing. Here is my last little tip: treat your seamstresses with respect. They are the ones that make you look like a million bucks and one wrong stitch can make or break your dress. Waiters can spit in food....seamstresses can_______(you can fill in the blank). They won't. But they could.

Now don't you want to run out a become a wedding/bridal consultant??? It sounds horrifying and yet I'm strangely crazy about it. I love it. I enjoy the hustle and bustle. I am thrilled to meet new and interesting people. And best of all, I love the thought that someday when they are telling their kids about their quest for their dress...they might actually remember how fun their experience was.

I hope that all of you get the privilege of loving what you do every single day. Life is short...be happy! Happy Friday everyone!

Our wedding day. The search for my dress is what made
me realize I would be good at this job. And I got my dress
at the company that I now work for!

My "Not to Shabby" Chandelier....

I HAVE to take a quick moment to share my latest DIY.

I have waited a VERY long time to finally get my chandelier. At our last house we had a hideous light that (in 3 years) I never took the time to replace. After a very short 8 months at our new house I took it upon myself to make things happen and to do it for a steal. I suddenly have this new found passion for refinishing outdated pieces.

I do believe my husband was skeptical but with each piece I successfully accomplish I feel he's finally starting to have a little faith...

Which is good because I have a desk project, dining room chairs awaiting and a dresser search in the works....

It's a shame I have to get ready to go to work and help the world have more beautiful brides or I would happily write a wittier, funnier, slightly longer blog post. But with that...everyone have a Wonderful Wednesday! (And let me hear your thoughts on my $6 chandelier!!)

 

 I'll show a BEFORE and AFTER full dining room view once I start working on my chairs!

 

There's a First Time for Everything...

Did you know that for 30 of my 31 years I've been a hopeless romantic to the point of let down? And that I have always had a love/hate relationship with Valentines day? Because every year I always hoped that someone would express their crush on me....or do something sweet....or send me mysterious flowers. Then I met my husband and I would tell him how much I hated Valentine's and then secretly hope there would be a surprise when I woke up or got home from work. It happened one year (the very first year Mr T and I were together)...I was given a very sweet poem. Then skip a few years and my surprise was heart shaped steak.

Yup...I did not stutter....

But I believe there was candlelight with that heart shaped steak. Although, truthfully, it's hard to remember because one doesn't forget heart shaped steak....(Sorry husband...but it's funny. Now...)

But FINALLY I was smart and came to the realization "I should NEVER expect anything because of 2 things....1) My husband is NOT romantic....and 2) he's good to me every day, so what does one Hallmark Holiday mean?"

BINGO.

It was finally the best Valentine's day I've ever had. No disappointment. No expectations. In fact, Mr T was kind enough to pick me up a pair of gloves because he said my hands are always cold. I'll take it. It was a random act of kindness and for me, that's what V-day is all about.

Actually scratch that. That is what marriage is all about.

AND... I decorated. What? I like hearts...and pink...and red...and all of it together. Plus Pinterest just puts way too many cute ideas out there! So I got creative. (Did you know that candy hearts are much cuter than they actually taste?) But I thought everything turned out cute...plus it allowed me to keep up some Christmas-y things by just adding hearts. Because I hate that feeling of an empty house when all the Christmas stuff comes down. :)

You know what else happened for the first time in my life? (It's been an exciting February) I refinished a piece of furniture.

You know that empty house feeling I mentioned? Yes...it created a monster. I got hit with the decorating bug big time. But rather than shop and go nuts (since I still don't have that money tree I've heard of) I decided to try my hand at refinishing a piece that my mother-in-law picked us up at a rummage sale. I had actually started it before Thanksgiving but the Holidays are busy, people! So I let it sit and sit some more. I finally made myself start up again and then I realized that it wasn't that hard....and that I actually enjoyed it!

I'm working on my $6 chandelier as we speak! Can't wait to see how that turns out!

AND here's my furniture redo!

BEFORE

AFTER
(I used DIY chalk paint tutorial from here.
3 coats later, waxed, buffed and new handles)

It has the perfect spot in our front entrance way.

Our farmhouse entrance. (The husband
even got to keep his deer up.)

I'm making the best of this long, miserable winter!

 Thanks for visiting!