Friday, August 19, 2011

five friday faves

first off, i'd like to wish my little brother a very happy 24th birthday!

jeez, topher, you sure are getting old!

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this week i'd like to share five gorgeous outfits from around the interwebs...i have to admit, i'm usually more for comfort over fashion, but lately i've been trying to step out of my comfort (har har) zone and embrace different styles.



i've been drying to find a maxi that doesn't show my arms.  i have serious issue with showing my arms, especially at work for some reason.  i think the jacket gives lightweight structure and coverage that i've been looking for.


i see these skirts all the time while i'm out thrifting.  i call them "grandma skirts."  BUT, when paired with a bright pink shirt like kendi does, it goes from grandma to GLAM!  i LOOOOVE this outfit!


this is a typical fall outfit for me, but i love how the sparkly earrings and a great necklace could make this go from a fall shopping outfit to a night out with the hubs.


wow.  that's all i have to say.  it's GREY and it has POLKA DOTS and it has RUFFLES!!!  pretty much my dream dress.

Source: None via Catie on Pinterest

this one is so far out of my comfort zone, i really don't even know why i pinned it.  i think if i could swap out the striped skirt for a solid, i could try to pull this one off.  that is, if kyle promises not to tease me for pulling my socks up over the rim of my boots.  ;)

Thursday, August 18, 2011

inspiration workshop with Gussy Sews

THE PROMPT

To keep with the outdoor theme {I'm soaking in every minute while the favorable weather allows), this week's prompt is THE FRONT PORCH. And really, this can be interpreted in any way... Including {but not limited to} front and back PORCHES, decks, patios, outdoor dining spaces, etc. Maybe you have a PORCH off your condo that is divine, or you have a neighbor with a space you drool over. Or, is there a rickety old porch that you find charming. Or a meal you'd like to enjoy on a FRONT PORCH.The possibilities are endless!



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OOOOH!  the front porch!  one of my favorite places to be!  a front porch was a must have for kyle and i when we were looking for the house we currently live in.  i think it will be a must have in any house that we live in, ever.  there is just something so blissfully MIDWEST about a front porch.  (yes, i just made the midwest into an adjective, what are you gonna do about it?)

here's a few images of my dream front porch...


i love all the detailing of this house, and how the front porch wraps most of the way around.


the fans and the painted ceiling...SWOON!  the trim is also beautiful.


another fun wrap around.  (can you tell i have a soft spot for craftsman styled homes?)


i'd love to have a porch swing.  the lights fixtures are amazing!


we have a couple of these chairs that we've inherited from various places...we might need to get a couple of cans of spray paint out!

what does YOUR dream front porch look like?  is it in the city?  the country?  or would you rather sit in the driveway and take in the sun full blast?

Gussy Sews Inspiration Workshop!

Tuesday, August 16, 2011

throwback tuesday: week 1

since i have been participating in Gussy's Inspiration Workshop and that falls on thursdays...i've decided to switch my throwback thursday's to throwback tuesday's.

you don't mind, do you?  ;)


i cleaned up my studio/craft room on saturday and finally found a place to put my little Singer.

i found this when my mom and dad moved last may and chuckled.  my grandmother taught me to piece a quilt on this little thing.  (it REALLY does work!)  i wish i would have put my other sewing machine into the picture for some scale...this one is only about 5 inches tall.  i have no idea where the rest of the parts are...i'll have to keep an eye out for replacement parts when i'm thrifting.

this one's a keeper.

Thursday, August 11, 2011

inspiration workshop with Gussy Sews

THE PROMPT

To honor our warm weather {for now}, I've been enjoying day dreaming about outdoor GARDENS, which is this week's prompt. I love my terrarium and my potted plants, but am also intrigued with lush GARDENS, with vegetables, wildflowers and green foliage. I am also inspired with unique container GARDENS that use unusual containers {like a local cafe, Wise Acres, decorates with on an inside wall}, often repurposed, to grow plants. Do you have a GARDEN you are proud of? Do you have a friend with a green thumb? Or a neighbor? Remember, this doesn't need to be a GARDEN you've harvested or even have taken a picture of {just be sure to give proper photo credit if the photo is not yours}. This is your interpretation of the GARDEN prompt.



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i'm going to be honest with you here, i don't think i can "honor" the warm weather any longer.  i'm just too sick of it.  i know come february, when it's -17 degrees outside, i'm going to be wishing for it, but right now i want to smack mother nature for such crap weather.

sighhhhh.....

rant over.

moving on...my garden has gone to complete crap this year.  i planted the normal cucumbers and tomatoes and herbs and they ALL DIED, because it was way too hot.  i mean, i watered them, but that didn't really seem to help at all.  i have a few flowers let, but not many and our grass has pretty much all but dried out.  it's brown.  and crunchy.

BUT this is supposed to be a HAPPY post, so today i want to talk about my dream garden.  i'd love to have an amazingly huge, lush garden, full of veggies, potatoes and fresh herbs!  fresh herbs are my favorite!  last year, i had a pretty awesome dill plant going on and i branched out on a lot of dishes to include dill, even some fish, which i had never used it for.


source

of course, the mother of all things crafty, home, garden and cooking is THE martha stewart.  and martha has the mother of all gardens!  now, i don't love martha's business tactics, or, honestly, her personality.  but, i do believe that you have to admit it when people are pretty awesome at stuff, and she didn't get all the way up there without a little bit of talent.  i read this article a while back on apartment therapy (side note, how awesome is apartment therapy?  i just love it.) and they linked to a garden tour of martha's.  i can't find the original link anymore, but i DID find this awesome tour of martha's culinary herb garden and boy-oh-boy is it fantastically amazing!!  there's a few images below for you, but you really should go take the tour if you are interested at all.  beautiful!


source

Gussy Sews Inspiration Workshop!

throwback thursday: week 22


not sure who all these are, but they are related to me somehow through my mother's family.

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

WIWWW {what i would wear wednesday}

sooo....i've been slacking in the WIWW posts.  quite honestly, it's just so hard to get excited about any clothing when it's 100+ degrees outside.  THANKFULLY, the heat seems to have broken.  as i type this, it's pouring outside.  and it feels awesome...trust me, our workout was inside today (due to rain) and the doors were flung open and it felt SO GOOD to have that breeze on you!

anywhooskies.

it was dark this morning...so even though it's cooler out, i'm doing another version of what i would wear wednesday!

which, let's face it, is much more fun than looking at a picture of me this fine morning.

it's getting cooler, so i'm dreaming of fall...



if you'd like to see where you can get everything, the link to the original polyvore is here.

try not to have a heart attack when you see the price of the purse.  and the jeans.  i'm just saying it's pretty, i'm not going to promise that i'm not going to find similar thrift items for $2.

love.

Friday, August 5, 2011

inspiration workshop with Gussy Sews

THE PROMPT
I've been thinking a lot what we all do in a day. And what I am always in awe by is how vastly different we all are, which is why I came up with this weeks prompt. This week I encourage you to find inspiration in your day-to-day by posting a single photo, a collage of photos or simply a written list that depicts A DAY IN YOUR LIFE. Some of you may be stay-at-home or work-at-home moms. Some of you, like me, are business owners. Or a student. So look around you... What does your day look like?  I hope you will find beauty in something that maybe you find a little mundane by taking a moment to work on this prompt, A DAY IN YOUR LIFE



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a day i the life of catie

i'll be honest, my days tend to vary a lot.  i'm trying to change that.  i know it's healthier to get into a routine, i have just been having some troubles doing that.  right now we are working out with shocker fitness on monday, wednesday and fridays and i've been trying to get myself up to run on the off days.  unsuccessfully i might add.  but, again, i'm working on it.

so, in conclusion, i'm going to give you today's play by play, because it was somewhat of a normal day.

and i worked out, so you know, i look better.  ;)

catie's wednesday

4:45 am - alarm goes off, kyle hits snooze
5:00 am - alarm goes off again, we get up
5:15 am - we're off and headed towards shocker fitness
5:30 am - workout begins
6:30 am - workout ends and we head home
6:45 am - kyle gets in the shower and i make breakfast and his lunch
7:00 am - kyle heads out the door
7:15 am - hop in the shower, get ready for work
7:50 am - leave for work
8:05 am - get to work, log into computer
8:15 - 11:15 am - today i spent this block of time freaking out a bit about a deadline, it worked out in the end.
11:15 am - kyle called me and informs me that his flight left at 1:20 pm, not 3:20 pm like he thought and was i coming home for lunch to see him
11:30 am - left for home, ate lunch, told kyle bye (he's headed to atlanta for a meeting tomorrow)
12:30 pm - back at work, spent the rest of the day freaking out about another deadline
5:30 pm - realize that i just did a bunch of extra work that the architect didn't ask me to do, instead of working on the one thing he asked me for and decided i was too annoyed to continue working.  and the dogs needed let out.
5:45 pm - ran to dillons, grabbed a bite to eat, let the dogs out into the oppressive heat, watched the news, passed out on the couch for about an hour
7:00 pm - woke up to a cat sleeping on my head....i'm looking at you MOW...
8:05 pm - kyle calls because i didn't get online.  i was distracted by the TV i guess...
8:15 pm - we discuss a few things, hang up and i read my google reader for a while...
9:00 pm - time for the 9 pm news and a little big of blogging
9:35 pm - once the news is over, we typically start getting ready for bed so we can actually wake up at 4:45 one of these days!

my life sounds very depressing wrapped up into a little list like this.

but, the thing that i love about my job is that EVERY SINGLE DAY is different.  projects are in different stages, sometimes i head to the site, sometimes i'm working on drawings, sometimes (though not lately) i'm pulling finishes or making presentation boards and sometimes, i have nothing at all to do.  that's usually around christmas though.

because construction workers don't like to work when the ground is frozen.

just sayin'.

and because it's not a post without a picture, here's a little funny for you.

tomorrow we're doing an office tour of my very first project i did "on my own" and i was prepping a post for you all about it and went to google maps to see if it had been updated and i saw this:


construction site.  it looks like three buildings, but it's actually all one.  i promise, they even have furniture and stuff in it now.

so i got all excited and thought maybe they had updated the street view (the car has been spotted recently in the wichita area) and went to the street view and saw this:


BHAHAH!

how far i've come.

i'll take some pictures for ya tomorrow and hope to share!

and yes, i'm a funhater and blocked out all the information from the google search, so don't even bother.  i'd rather not get fired for sharing client info thankyouverymuch.

Thursday, August 4, 2011

throwback thursday: week 21


my little brother and i.