Not So Cli-Shéa

Eye Yuy EYE!

2012-02-21T09:45:00.000-08:00

**(This post is based solely on my own personal experience and opinions)**

This last Friday I took the plunge and got LASIK eye surgery FINALLY, after wearing glasses since the 3rd grade and contacts every day since the 8th grade.

It's something that I've been planning on doing for years but just put it off. I mean, after all, messing with your eyeballs is a pretty big deal and, like my friend Danica, wearing contacts never really bothered me that much. I spent the better part of 15 years going to LensCrafters for no other reason besides I didn't know where else to go. Every time I had an appointment there I left swearing to myself I'd never go back. The service was horrible, and the prices pretty high. Finally, earlier this year, I talked with a friend of mine that I have known since grade school who I knew worked part time at an optometrist. She gave me the number and I, finally, after years of saying I would, scheduled an eye appointment NOT at LensCrafters. I set up an appointment with Dr.Takeda at Triangle Eye Care. She was wonderful and recommended I set up a free consultation at NVISION for LASIK eye surgery. She herself had had the surgery and recommended I go to the surgeon who preformed her surgery. I had thought about doing it for years and Dr.Takeda was so reassuring so I set up my appointment. It wasn't until I got the appointment confirmation phone call that it all sunk in. I could really be doing this. That's when the fear started. Of course, being me, and having my luck, my boyfriend and I decided to watch a scary movie days before my consultation appointment. We went with Final Destination 5. If you've seen it, I'm sure you're already shaking your head. If you haven't seen it, there is a scene where a girl dies during her laser eye surgery. The surgery itself isn't what killed her, if you've watched any of the previous movies you know that there are so many twists to each death but, nonetheless, it put more fear into me.

Consultation: January 19,2012

The day finally came for my consultation. The center was in a beautiful building in Newport Beach. If we were going to be judging books based on covers, this would be the book I'd grab. They called my name and took me back for a few tests to see if I was a good candidate. The girl was very nice and reassuring. She told me I was a perfect candidate and took me into her office and brought in a doctor to do one more test, she also told me that my eyes look great and ideal for LASIK. Then she cut to the chase to find out my level of seriousness for getting the surgery. "How soon would you want to do the surgery?" to which I replied "Do you mind if my mom comes back here?" Although it's minimally invasive this is a pretty serious procedure, one that both my mother and father have gotten and one that my parents would be gifting to me, so I definitely needed her input. She came into the office and then it became both of them asking me "are you ready for this?". It was in that moment that I remembered one of my very favorite memories. A few years ago my friend Haley and I took a trip to Australia. It was one of the best experiences of my life and one I'll never forget. The memory that I focused on though was the one where Haley and I went hiking through the rain forest, at the end of the hike was a gorgeous waterfall falling into a little natural swimming hole. There was a giant rock beside the swimming hole and our tour guide said, if anyone wants to jump in, feel free. Haley and I aren't real down and dirty girls but our motto on this trip was "Man up". We were probably only going to be here once and we had to make the most of it. As soon as the tour guide put it on the table we looked at each other, locked eyes, and knew it was time to "man up". We climbed our way onto the giant boulder, counted to three and jumped in. Somehow, sitting in that office that day I said to myself "it's time to man up" and I did. I made the appointment, I bought the pre-care drops and we were on our way.

Unfortunately once we got back and my mom checked her schedule she had a court appearance on the date we scheduled. This surgery requires having someone there to drive you home and, like most people, I couldn't imagine anyone there aside from my mother so, I rescheduled. If you know me you know that I have lots of weird quirks, one of which being that I believe in signs. I tried my best to brush this off and not think of it as a "sign" that I wasn't supposed to be getting the surgery.

February 2nd comes around (the day before what WOULD have been my surgery but was my moms scheduled court date instead) my mom receives a call that she won't be needing to show up in court. Seriously? Sign?

Week of February 6, 2012

A week before my surgery I had to stop wearing my contacts (which was a major pain) but it gave me an excuse to get one last wear out of all of the cute pairs of glasses I've purchased over the years (so long Ferragamo, Versace & Chanel). The center offered a credit payment option so I went on the site to take care of that before my surgery. Dr.Lusby, who was scheduled to do my appointment wasn't listed as a surgeon at the Newport Beach facility so I called over to my "patient counselor" to clarify. My call went straight to her voicemail box. She was on vacation until the 14th (my surgery was on the 17). I started to have a mini panic attack. She's gone? Why wasn't I told? *sign*

I took a deep breath and called the front desk to try to clear up the payment that way. The girl on the phone told me that my appointment was scheduled at the Fullerton location. What?! That's not what I had planned on and how was I ever going to know that if I hadn't called?? *sign*

I hung up the phone and told my mom that I was going to cancel my appointment. This is just too many blatant signs to overlook. My mom tried to talk me down and told me that everything is probably fine and I'm just overreacting. I e-mailed my patient counselor (yes, I know she was on vacation) to let her know how unsettling all of this was. She immediately responded and told me that the front desk was misinformed and that my appointment was in fact at the Newport Beach facility and that Dr. Lusby isn't listed but it's not a problem. I was a little reassured.

Pre-Op Appointment: February 14, 2012

I was told that the center was going to call my regular eye doctor to set up my pre-op appointment but, with all of this confusion I decided to just call and schedule myself. I went back to Dr.Takeda and she was actually a little concerned with how I had been treated and the fact that THEY didn't set up the appointment OR send over any paperwork *sign*.

Day of Surgery: February 17, 2012

I woke up the day of the surgery feeling good. I was so sick of wearing my glasses at this point that I just wanted to get the surgery over and done with. They told me that the surgery only took about 15 minutes in total but told me to expect to be in the office 2-3 hours. They test and re-test you to be certain that everything is perfect (which is reassuring). I sign in and the nerves set in. All I can think about is "when do I get the Xanax". A girl calls my name (incorrectly of course) and takes me to a desk with a man who deals with my payment. I go back out to the waiting area. Another guy comes out and calls my name (incorrectly of course) runs a couple of tests and puts me in a room and tells me the doctor will be right in. A doctor comes in (do I even need to say it... mispronounces my name) and retests my prescription. He leaves and ANOTHER girl (whom I will call the Xanax fairy) comes in, gives me my recovery kit which includes a lovely set of goggles. Her English is a little dicey and it takes everything in me to not yell "WHERES THE XANAX ALREADY?!" Finally, she walks me over to a dark room that I will refer to as "the Xanax lounge" where she (FINALLY) gave me the Xanax, put a surgery cap on me, put some drops and my eyes and left me to lay on the chaise lounge with the other two Xanax'ed patients. She asks if I want my mom to join me. I told her yes. She soon returns and tells me that my mom stepped out. I'm not too worried about it because I'm sure she'll be back in time. I can hear a "patient counselor" discussing the possibility of surgery to another girl. She takes her over to the glass window and explains in detail what is being done on the girl who is currently getting surgery. I keep telling myself to relax. While in the Xanax lounge I saw my "patient counselor" that I hadn't seen since the initial consultation and hadn't spoken to since the mix up. I thought it would have been nice of her to check on me, especially with my previous mix-up and concerns. Didn't happen though. Before long Dr. Lusby comes into the Xanax lounge and introduces himself, surprisingly enough, pronouncing my name correctly. He explains the surgery to me and before I know it, my name is being called. A young guy takes me into the surgery room. My mom still isn't there. It's surprisingly cold (they keep it temperature controlled for optimal results) He says "your last name is Maness?" (pronounced incorrectly) I correct him. "Your date of birth is 1-13-86" I respond with a "yes". "And we are preforming surgery on both eyes today" "Yes". He takes my glasses and puts a couple drops in each eye. I walk over to the surgery table. I lay down. He asks if I'd like a blanket. I reply "yes". My nerves are getting more and more intense. I ask if I can lay with my knees bent. They told me I can lay whatever what I want as long as I don't move from that position. Again he asks "your last name is Maness?" (pronouncing it incorrectly for the 2nd time) I correct him...again. "Your date of birth is 1-13-86" "Yes". "And we are preforming surgery on both eyes today" "Yes". A girl with a kind voice tells me "Shea, I'm going to be putting some drops in your eyes right now". Hearing someone not only use my name but pronounce it correctly was so comforting. The laser equipment gets lowered onto my head.

And then it happens...

I say "I feel like I'm going to cry". They hesitantly tell me "It's ok" and I just start crying. It is NOT common for me to cry, even my closest friends have only seen me cry a handful of times, most of which have involved alcohol and, I mean, does that really even count? I immediately was so embarrassed and started saying "I'm so sorry I don't usually cry". They tell me that its ok and just to stay still and take some deep breaths. I'm worried that I'm crying out all of the drops they just put in. I ask "Can I have someone hold my hand?" I can sense the hesitation in the room "uuuuh... yeah... can we get someone please. we have a hand holder". A reassuring hand takes hold of mine. I really don't care that it belongs to a stranger, just knowing someone is there calms my nerves and I stop crying. Dr.Lusby begins the surgery on the right eye. First, cutting open the flap, then the laser reshaping my retina. He is great about explaining to me step-by-step exactly what is happening and exactly what I should be seeing. "Keep looking at the green dot. The green dot should be getting fuzzy. The green dot should be coming back" The green dot should be moving up and down". It was a constant reminder that everything was going well. The smell of the laser was pretty disgusting and all I could think about was that smell was my eyeball being lasered. Gross. But he was done with the right eye and onto the left, and, after the longest 15 minutes of my life, we were done. They sit me up, I apologized for crying and for the hand holding. They take the tape off of my forehead, I yell out a nice classy "oh shit!" as they do it and told them that was the worst part. They all laughed. Then Dr. Lusby sits down next to me for a photo. Seriously?! My vision is foggy, I probably have tape residue on my face and I was just CRYING... perfect timing for a photo-op wouldn't you say? I asked "where's the person who held my hand?" A guy in the corner raises his hand. I ask if I can take a photo with him, after all, I don't think I could have done it without him. It turns out he's a med student. Hah. Poor guy. I come out of the surgery room and the Xanax fairy tells me "We still don't know where Sandy is". She takes me back to the Xanax lounge, gives me another Xanax and sits me down. I sit there for a good 15-20 minutes. I start to worry. What if something happened to my mom? I'm not supposed to even look at my phone. Should I call her? Where could she be? After making myself crazy with "what-ifs" I quickly call her from my phone "Mom, where are you?" "I'm in the waiting room" "WHAT?! They told me they couldn't find you, I'm done" "Ok I'll come get you". From the front door of that building to the front door of my house felt like an eternity. I don't know if it was the Xanax or the surgery but I couldn't hold my eyes open. I got home and took the one last Xanax that they gave me and put my goggles on and went to bed (at 4pm). I was startled awake a little before midnight by my parents sneaking into my house. My mom got worried because she hadn't heard from me. Apparently (I say apparently because I have no recollection) I called my boyfriend (per my moms request to let him know I was ok) and told him that I was so pissed at my parents for coming and waking me up because now I "couldn't go back to sleep". Pretty sure the second I hung up with him I immediately fell back asleep. Haha.

Post-Op Appointment: February 18, 2012

I woke up Saturday morning looking a hot mess. Seriously. I took a photo that will probably never see the light of day but I had literally never seen myself look so bad and had to document it. Haha. I began my eye drop regimen.The post-op appointments can be made with your normal doctor but mine was out of town so I went back to the NVISION center. My vision was much clearer than the day before but still a little hazy and my right eye was red and a little painful. I go back to the center, sign in with a different desk girl than the previous time, get called back by yet another different person mispronouncing my name. He runs a couple tests. Tells me I'm already seeing better than 20/20 which is reassuring and lets me know the doctor will be right in. The doctor comes in and takes a look at my eyes and immediately I feel like a schoolchild being scolded for talking out of turn. She says to me "Your eyes are REALLY dry. Have you been using your drops??" I respond "Well, I was told that I wasn't supposed to begin my drops until today and I started them today like I was supposed to". She wheels her little chair away from me and begins writing. "It appears your eyelid fused to your cornea and scraped it so I'm going to be putting a contact lens in to act like a barrier. I'm also going to be injecting collagen into your tear ducts to help with the dryness" and before I knew it, boom, injections in my eyes and contact in. She hands me yet another product that I am to apply "every night before bed" and tells me she'll need to see me back on Monday to remove the contact. I make an appointment and leave shaking my head. Why was I scolded for the condition of my eyes like it was something that I had the power over? Why have I been to this facility 3 times and have not been seen by the same person more than once?! I'm starting to get very negative. This whole process is starting to feel very, as I described it to my mom, assembly line. Each person handles you for a minute before handing you off to the next person and never seeing you again. They don't bother to learn your name because, well, lets be honest, they really don't need to. After all, they're never going to see you again, why bother? I will admit, having the contact in really helped with the irritation and redness that I was experiencing. Still, I went home with a sour taste in my mouth. This really wasn't the personal experience that I had hoped for. I spent the rest of Saturday relaxing and getting pampered by my roommate and my boyfriend who bought me more of the lubricating drops that I only received five of the day of surgery. They told me to use them as needed and that I could use them every 5 minutes if I wanted. Given that my eyes were "REALLY dry" I had them pick up two of the 30 packs at 14 bucks a piece. Kind of strange that I didn't receive more for my "really dry" eyes.

Two Days after Post-Op: February 20, 2012

I returned to the center to get my scratched cornea looked at and my contact removed. The girl behind the desk was one I recognized but of course, I was called back by a girl I had never been seen by before. She ran a couple of tests and again I was told that I was seeing better than 20/20 and that the doctor would be right in. After more than 20 minutes waiting the doctor finally came in, it was someone I recognized! It was the doctor who did my re-test on surgery day. He mispronounces my name. Fail. I explain to him why I'm back. As he looks through my charts he must have recognized his own handwriting in there because he realizes that he had seen me before while flipping through the pages. He tells me that it looks like my eye is healing well and that he is going to take my contact out. He putting a numbing drop in and it was surprisingly easy. He double checks that I'm taking all my drops which, of course, I am. And he informs me that he'd like me to up my dosage of Prednisolone, the milky drops that, once dissolved go through your sinuses and taste AWFUL. Lucky me. The best part is, he says he wants to see me back on Wednesday. I told him that I already have a post-op appointment with my normal doctor on Thursday. He says he'd still like to see me back on Wednesday. Five eye doctor appointments in less than a week. It's a good thing I work for my parents because I don't think most jobs would be too keen on the idea of me having so many "appointments". Haha.

Obviously, the gift of vision is something very precious and something that I am so thankful that it has been given to me, HOWEVER, I have not appreciated how assembly line this whole process has felt. I've felt like a faceless, nameless being, just another set of eyes, just another $5,000.

I can be very negative and I know that. It is a fault that I have but one that I know I have and try to curb. Maybe I have been choosing to see the negative but at this point I feel that the negative has outweighed the positive (in regards to this center as a whole, not necessarily the surgeon or surgery in general). I'm sure that weeks from now, possibly even days I'll have a different outlook but I wanted to share my raw, real emotions regarding the whole procedure while it was still fresh in my mind. In no way am I saying to not get LASIK eye surgery if you are, in fact, considering it. It has been great being able to go to bed without the hassle of taking out my contacts. It has been wonderful waking up without blurred vision, fumbling to find my glasses. The aim of this post was simply to document my own personal experience.

And with that, I will say that I am currently happy with my vision and glad the whole experience is behind me and I'd like to share with you the card that my best friend gave me... haha.

xoxo,

shea

Be Mine.

2012-02-14T16:10:00.000-08:00

"I love love. I love being in love. I don't care what it does to me"

-The Format

Well, its here... Valentine's Day.

The day that single people hate, that girls have ridiculous expectations for, and that boys dread.

To me, it's more than flowers and chocolates and hearts and red and pink and x's and o's.

It's a feeling.

It's the feeling you get when you're with the ones you care the most about.

The feeling of comfort you find laughing with friends, eating a home cooked meal with family, curled up watching a movie in your PJs with your sweetie.

That, to me, is what love is and what Valentine's Day represents.

It's not mass produced in a factory, it's not shoved down our throats as soon as the calender reads "February". It's every day. It's every minute. It's the good morning text that makes you smile. The inside joke tweet from your best friend that makes you laugh. The warmth you feel when you think of that someone special. To me, every day is Valentine's Day. Cliche yes, but true none the less. We need to spend every day loving the ones we love, not just that one day in the middle of February.

Here are just some of the people{and pets} that I {do my best to} spend every day loving...

With that I leave you with two of my favorite love quotes...

"Later that day I got to thinking about relationships. There are those that open you up to something new and exotic, those that are old and familiar, those that bring up lots of questions, those that bring you somewhere unexpected, those that bring you far from where you started, and those that bring you back. But the most exciting, challenging and significant relationship of all is the one you have with yourself. And if you can find someone to love the you you love, well, that's just fabulous."
-Carrie Bradshaw (Sex and the City)

"Whenever I get gloomy with the state of the world, I think about the arrivals gate at Heathrow Airport. General opinion's starting to make out that we live in a world of hatred and greed, but I don't see that. It seems to me that love is everywhere. Often, it's not particularly dignified or newsworthy, but it's always there - fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, husbands and wives, boyfriends, girlfriends, old friends. When the planes hit the Twin Towers, as far as I know, none of the phone calls from the people on board were messages of hate or revenge - they were all messages of love. If you look for it, I've got a sneaking suspicion... love actually is all around"
-Hugh Grant (Love Actually)

Have a happy day and try to spend every day loving as much as you're told to today...

xoxo,

shea

The Random Eleven...

2012-02-09T12:14:00.000-08:00

I have never done one of these but my friend the infamous ChicRunner tagged me so it seems I must too partake. So, here goes....

The Random Eleven

The Rules:

Post these rules
You must post 11 random things about yourself
Answer the questions set for you in their post
Tag 11 people (can't be the person who tagged you)
Create 11 new questions for the people you tag
Go to their blog and tell them you’ve tagged them!

11 Random Facts About Me:

I'm a natural redhead and growing up I HATED it. Women would always tell me how lucky I was and how beautiful my hair was and how they spent years trying to achieve the color that I had. As soon as I was old enough I started coloring it and it wasn't until recently that I finally started to embrace it. Ginger power! Haha.
I have a lot of weird OCD things that I do in my daily life. I eat small candies like M&M's and Tic-Tac's in even numbers only. When I pump my gas I have to make sure that the final digit in both the price amount and the gallon amount is an even number. I like things done perfectly or not at all. When turning up or down the volume it always has to land on an even number. I don't like odd numbers in general and yet my favorite number is 9. (I warned you it was weird)
Because of my adoption (and the movie Parent Trap) I was absolutely positive that I had a twin sister who lived in England that I was going to meet at camp and so I spent most of my childhood practicing an English accent (which I have to admit, isn't too shabby).
I admit that I am spoiled but I'm not a spoiled brat. To me, there is a huge difference. Being spoiled means that, yes you are well taken care of, and are blessed enough to get things that a lot of others don't. A spoiled brat on the other hand feels that they deserve the things they get. That being said, one Christmas, my brother and I got the most cliche spoiled kid gift ever. We actually got a pony. My grandparents live on a ranch so it's not that far fetched but, obviously, saying that always takes people aback.
I am one of the girliest girls there is. My friend Danica always mentions it because she is more of a tomboy and whenever she embraces her girly side she usually says that she channeled me. However, growing up, I was a HUGE tomboy. Every day at recess I played kickball, soccer, dodgeball and war (an epic game of dodgeball). Team captains would choose me for their teams before they would choose most of the boys. Who knew that once puberty hit I would lose all athletic ability that I ever possessed.
When I was little I rented the movie "My Girl" probably over 100 times. My mom would always take my brother and I to this little mom and pop movie rental and I would rent it EVERY time. My mom would always get so upset (she's the type that can only watch a movie one time). She would always say "You know every line in that movie, don't you want to get something different?". She could have saved a lot of money if she had just bought me the movie. Haha.
I love maps. Haha. Typing that I feel like Brick from "Anchorman" ("I love lamp"). Maps fascinate me. When I was young my brother had an agent and we (he, my mom and I ) would always spend our evenings after school driving out to LA for auditions (and this was before mapquest and googlemaps) and I was always in charge of the Thomas Guide and getting us from point A to point B. I don't know if that's when my love of maps developed or if my love of maps was the reason I was put in charge but either way, I love them!
I have a birthmark right above my right knee. Growing up I HATED it and was so embarrassed by it. When I look at it now I really don't understand why I hated it so much. It's really not that noticeable AND it's kind of cool! Something that makes me special :)
It's no surprise that I love crafting. It is something that I have done since I was little. I would make (and sell) friendship bracelets out of embroidery floss or beads. I sewed my own scrunchies. I even took a sewing class through the city. Some people can play music, some can play sports, my thing is being crafty.
Before I was adopted my birth mother had another daughter. Growing up I always wished I had an older sister because my mom and I weren't that close (we're so close now, as cliche as it sounds, she's one of my very best friends). Maybe one day I'll find her and will literally have the sister I never had.
I have a crooked right pinky. It was something that I noticed several years back and at a family holiday function I brought it up and my grandma holds up her hands and sure enough... so does she! haha

11 Questions from ChicRunner:

What’s your favorite article of clothing? Gosh this is hard. I don't think I have a favorite article of clothing. I almost ALWAYS wear a tank of some sort under everything I wear so I guess that's my favorite.
Morning person or night owl? Hands down, night owl. Always have been, always will be (one reason I am SO scared to have kids)
How many glasses of water do you drink a day? I try to get in the recommended 8 glasses. I have a Voss water bottle at home and at work. I try to fill it once in the morning, once in the afternoon and then once in the evening. I did the math and it is the recommended amount and an easy way to track it! (much easier than counting out 8 glasses)
What is your biggest fear? I'm sure its caught somewhere between spiders and clowns. I have a pretty unhealthy fear of both. Probably because of the traumatizing time I watched the horror movie "It" as a kid.
Starbucks or Coffee Bean? I'm not a big coffee person. The only reason I really drink it is to kill time at work haha. So I'm going to have to go with neither.
What was the best gift you’ve ever gotten? Oh goodness, I've gotten some wonderful gifts over the years between my pony for Christmas, my Barbie car, my BMW for college graduation but I think that the best gifts have been the ones from the heart. Most recently for my birthday my friend Stefana gave me a gift that made me cry. We had gone to the fabric store for our stocking making party and under my breath I said "I really need to come back and buy some solids" because whenever I go to the fabric store I always buy the fun prints and forget that I need basic solids as well. She went back and got me a half a yard of EVERY solid fabric, new sewing scissors AND two new white and black threads. If you know anything about sewing you know how thoughtful this gift is. She had to go back. Fill her cart with every bolt of fabric and go get all of them cut. Such a thoughtful gift. It still makes me smile to think about.
What is your favorite color? I love so many colors but as of right now my favorite is definitely somewhere between blue and green. Teal or Turquoise.
Would you rather get a phone call every hour from a stranger or not have a cell phone for a year? Phone call every hour definitely. I couldn't go a day without a phone. Not something I'm proud of but it's a fact of life. Haha.
MLB or NBA? MLB MLB MLB! Born and raised an Angel fan. There's nothing better than having a cold beer, a hot dog and cheering on the Angels. My dads company has had season tickets since before I was born and this season he's ALSO a partner for a suite. I can't even BEGIN to express just how excited I am for this. SO ready for baseball season! Go Angels!
Do you use a daily planner? YES! I LOVE LOVE LOVE office supplies. Growing up, whenever I went to the grocery store with my mom, I didn't want to go to the candy aisle, or the toy aisle, I went straight to the "school supply aisle" as I called it. I love a new year and getting a new planner. I don't use mine as religiously as I once did (back when I had two jobs, was taking six classes, was in sorority and was on the Panhellenic council) but I still love having it :)
What’s one thing on your ‘bucket list?’ After I graduated college I went on a life changing trip to Australia. It was incredible and one of the many incredible things that I did while I was there was snorkel the Great Barrier Reef. It was then that I said that I would love to experience the Seven Natural Wonders of the World. Now, some of these lists vary depending on who you talk to but I would love to see:

People I’m taggin’ and the random 11 questions I’m asking you! :)
(If you don't do it, I really won't be offended)

Kristy

Lauren

Corey

Megan

Kristin

Heather

Shea

Marisa

Wilma Rose

Cathy

Amy

Do you have any tattoos? If so, what? If not, want any? What would it be?
What is your favorite birthday memory?
Broken any bones or gotten stitches? If so, how?
What song would you say best describes you? Why?
What is your go-to candy?
What's your favorite job you've ever had?
When you were little, what did you want to be when you grew up?
What is the first thing you would save in a fire?
Where is your dream vacation spot?
What is your vice?
Who was your childhood celebrity "crush"?

Weekend Recap

2012-02-06T16:33:00.000-08:00

Well, this weekend wasn't quite as productive as my last but it was fun.

Friday night I had an impromptu dinner date with one of my college sorority sisters (which was so surprising because it's usually SO hard for us to plan anything because we have such different schedules). I'm not a huge salad fan but SOMETHING about the way she makes salads makes my mouth water. I told her that I had been trying to diet and was wondering if she would mind staying in and she could maybe make one of her yummy salads. She loves to cook and entertain and was nice enough to spoil me with one of her salads. yum!

It was just simply arugula but she has a perfect mix of balsamic vinegar and oil that I have attempted and failed more times than I'd like to admit. She showed me how this time though, I'll have to try it out sometime soon. She grilled up some chicken and we threw it on top (and yes, true to form, I threw a little bit of cheese in as well). It was so delicious and surprisingly filling. We spent the evening giggling, catching up and watching our favorite, "Friends". I started to head home just in time to catch the beau just as he was getting off work. *WARNING: Cheesy line ahead* I love ending my week cuddled up next to him :)

We spent Saturday running errands (every weekend should include a trip to Target, right?) and then he had to go to work. So Danica and I decided to treat ourselves to a cheat meal, after all, we had worked out REALLY hard Friday morning (I was sore all weekend). With coupons and gift cards in hand, we headed to our favorite spot: Chic-Fil-A :)

Even though I felt like I earned the meal, I felt guilty after and decided to do a little home workout to end my Saturday night (wild I know, haha).

Sunday morning I let myself sleep in and snuggle with these two little guys. I know I'm partial but are they not the two cutest dogs you've ever seen? They make me melt.

Then it was Super Bowl party time! No surprise, I'm not a huge football fan but who doesn't like a good Super Bowl party!

We got a call before we headed over that the party host "forgot to pick up the burgers, dogs and buns" while he was at the store. Is that not the most important part?? Haha. So we picked them up on the way over. Then, what do you know, Sam somehow became responsible for cooking the hot dogs too! Sheesh, we might as well just thrown the party ourselves! We had fun though and saw some old friends.

This morning Danica and I got another early morning workout in (I must say, I'm pretty surprised that I haven't given up on this whole thing yet and while, yes, it's been less than a week, I'm still pretty proud of myself). The best part about getting in an early morning workout is that it gives me so much time to myself in the mornings. I get to really pick out my outfits and really do my hair, as opposed to my old way of hitting snooze until the last second possible and throwing on whatever I can grab and throwing my hair up. Yet another of the early morning workout perks. Surprisingly enough the perks have outweighed the negatives.

Tonight Sam and I are cooking dinner together which is always fun.

Monday's aren't as bad as everyone says they are after all...

xoxo,

shea

Foto Friday

2012-02-03T11:24:00.000-08:00

If you follow me on twitter and/or instagram this blog might be kind of pointless bc it's basically just all the photos from there but, here goes:

This week was a week of expHAIRiments

French Braided Pony

Size French Braid/Messy Bun

Side Part Turned Conan O'Brein. Haha.

Continuting with the #FEBphotoaday

2. (my favorite) words

3. hands

This week I also got my order from stickygram.com! You choose nine of your Instagram photos and they make nine little magnets for you. I LOVE them!

Welp, here's hoping that I am as productive this weekend as I was last weekend. I even made a new curtain for the kitchen last weekend!

xoxo,

shea

Thrifty Thrusday!

2012-02-02T11:28:00.000-08:00

This post I did the other day really got me to thinking...

Like most twenty-somethings these days, I live on a bit of a budget.

I have no shame in saying that I often times find myself perusing the shelves and racks of my local Ross, Marshalls, TJ Maxx or Home Goods store. It's an especially great way to find home decor, purses, accessories and best of all... SHOES! This holiday season, it is actually at these stores that I did most of my shopping. You would really be surprised the things you can find. I bought two beautiful Michael Kors handbags for my mother and I for the price of one!

I thought I'd share some of the wonderful finds I have found while being thrifty :)

My mom and I have this thing where we usually go shopping for each others gifts together so that we know the other person will like what they're getting. On a random trip to Ross I came across this gorgeous watch that I have seen for as much as $519!

At Ross, my mom and I found it for $169!

For Christmas, my parents surprised me and got me a new iPad 2! Such an unexpected surprise! I was scared to even touch it without having a case on it, and so, the search began.

While looking around with Danica at our local Marshall's she came across this beautiful Michael Kors iPad case.

Last year for my birthday my mom got my this awesome Michael Kors iPhone case/wristlet.

The iPad case was like the mommy sized version! I was instantly in love. The case was priced at $69.99 (which, by the way is cheaper than the iPhone case was, that my mom purchased directly from the apple store). I, of course, bought the case and went home and did the research. They sell the same case on michaelkors.com for $129.95. I got the case for almost HALF PRICE! Don't you just LOVE a good deal? I know I do, especially on designer duds!

Knowing that you've saved money is such a rewarding experience. So what are you waiting for? Get out there and find some deals of your own! :)

xoxo,

shea

Fat 2 Fit February!

2012-02-01T10:56:00.000-08:00

today was the begging of what I have decided to refer to as:

(First I want to start by saying, I'm in the process of amping up my blog and making it more visually appealing, hence the neat banner that I created. I got the banner template FREE from "oh my! handmade goodness" here. And used two of my favorite fonts from urbanfonts.com "Sketch Rockwell" and "Marquee" and voila! My lovely "Fit 2 Fat February" banner! Ok, now onto the good stuff...)

Over the last several years I have have put on more than several pounds.

(skinny minnie me in 2007) (me now)

(size 0) (size 4-5)

Not something I am proud of but, something that happens to the best of us. With a busy schedule and an office job eating right can be a chore and working out? Forget about it. I've never been one to work out. I'd say the last time I was really active was high school when I was on cheer. I've had gym memberships over the years but really don't have the motivation. I also don't like the feeling I get of being watched at the gym. It's probably all in my head and there is probably no one watching me but the feeling alone is enough to not want to be there. So this month I've decided it was time for a change. And what do you know? My best friend Danica was on board! She stays much healthier than me, she even runs marathons but everyone can always do more. So this morning, it was on!

We got up bright and early (took some horrifying "before" photos hoping to eventually see some progress) and we headed to the park for a good forty minute workout. We both mainly wanted to focus today's workout on abs so we did lots of interval ab work outs. By the end we were feeling good. Overall it was a great workout. If you don't know me you don't know that I am the biggest sleepyhead EVER. As a kid I would even sleep in on Christmas, just to give you an idea. haha. I got up at 5:45 this morning and it was surprisingly easy.

I know that exercise isn't the only part of getting fit. They say that diet is the most important part. That being said, I am completely changing my diet, cutting out soda, and trying to cut out eating out all together.

Last night I made myself a smoothie and put in in the freezer for today. I took it out before our workout and by the time I was ready to leave for work it was perfect consistency. Last night I also grilled up some chicken (for lunch today) and hard boiled some eggs (for a healthy snack). I'm really excited for this journey and (fingers crossed) the progress that is going to be made. :)

And lastly, today was the beginning of something else I've been looking forward to:

Here is a photo (no filter) of my "view today" during our early morning workout. Catching the sunrise is a definite perk to being up early :)

xoxo,
shea

#FEBphotoaday

2012-01-31T10:14:00.000-08:00

So, I've been seeing everyone who has participated in the January Photo a Day Challenege and was a bit bummed that I didn't take part in it, or know about it, rather, until it was a little too late. But, what do you know, there's a February challenege!! I'm not missing this one! So here it is...

I'll be posting the photos via instagram on my personal twitter (@sheacrystal). And possibly on my Not So Cli-Shéa twitter (@notsoclishea) as well. I'm really excited to take part in this. There are SO many people participating! I can't wait to see everyones photos! (If you're participating too let me know! :) )

(and be sure to check out Fat Mum Slim's post about it, I'm even linked!)

On a side note, I have a new diet beginning the 1st of February as well. February is as good a month as any to get my summer body ready right?? Haha. (Especially with Stagecoach in April!) I'm going to be eating a lot better and actually working out. I'll give more details later but this is going to be a part of the routine:

Well... Here's to February! :)

xoxox,

shea

Deal of the Day!

2012-01-25T14:04:00.000-08:00

I am SO excited about something that I just HAVE to share.
So, my friend Danica and I enjoy all of the designer-things-for-less blogs like Copycat Chic.
Well, welcome to my first designer-thing-for-less post!

Anyways, I have been drooling over this bookshelf for my living room for quite some time:

I found it while thumbing through a Home Decorators catalog.

Recently when Danica got married and moved out, she took some of the living room furniture with her, so, I had to do some shopping to replace a few things and got a new tv stand and coffee table that happen to match this bookshelf perfectly with the x's on the sides. I wanted to get two of these bookshelves for either side of my TV stand to house all of my DVDs (I have quite a large collection that currently resides on the floor by the TV awaiting a new home). Unfortunatly money is kind of tight and these bookshelves run $279 PLUS $40 shipping... PLUS tax! We're looking at about $350 a PIECE.

Like most struggling twenty-somethings I definitely don't have an extra 700 bones lying around.

And then today, I was perusing target.com, like I often do and look what I found!

At target.com they were selling it for $229.99!

A whole $50 cheaper!!

BUT wouldn't you know it, they were having a home sale and it was marked down to $169.99!

Over $100 cheaper!!

But wait.... there's more.

The sale offered FREE shipping AND an extra 10% off!! Bringing the grand total down to....

drumroll please...

$152.99 before tax!

That is almost $130 cheaper than the original unit!

NOT including the $40 shipping they were going to tack on!

AND I had a $25 Target giftcard from Christmas!

When everything was said and done I spent a grand total of $332.76 (307.76 less the gift card) for TWO bookshelves that I have been dying over, which is LESS than I would have spent on ONE from the other place.

Thank you Target!

As if I didn't love you before, this has just reassured my love for you.

*sidenote: my grandma gave me $250 for my birthday this year, which I used on the bookshelves, meaning I spent less than $60 out of pocket. I am BEYOND thrilled!

xoxo,

shea

Weekend of Presents!

2012-01-24T11:15:00.000-08:00

What a weekend it was!

It started off kind of sour when I had to report to jury duty at 7:45am on Friday morning. I was there for the better part of the day. I came prepared with magazines and my iPad and the people watching alone was quite entertaining.

(The view of Long Beach from the balcony of the courthouse)

Once I was finally finished I went over to the beau's house for a little before he had to get to work. Like a nerd I spent Friday night watching "Bride Day" on TLC while cleaning my room and organizing my closet. Haha. I'm definitley getting old.

Saturday was errand day.

I decided to give the infamous sock bun a try... I'd say I'm getting better at it....

(Here is a tutorial if you are interested)

And then the present-fest began. I started by finally getting my beautiful birthday present from my mom sized.

We went to the bank. We spent some time lovin' on my pups

And then, for the best part of the day, I got my birthday present installed! For my birthday the beau got me an iPod hook up for my car (which I have wanted FOREVER but have just been too lazy to ever really DO it). We went for the appointment at Best Buy and shopped around in Barnes and Noble while we waited. Once it was installed it was life changing. Not only do I never have to worry about having CD's in my car anymore, it also CHARGES the iPod or iPhone that is connected. Needless to say, it is my new obsession.

My friend Maryam shared this wonderful photo with me of her and I and some of the other wonderful girls that comprise my college friends. So many great memories with these girls. The photo made me smile.

Sunday was another wonderful day, the beau and I spent the first half of the day at Disneyland (we have passes so we try to go as much as possible). The minnie ears that I have been yearning for were back in stock. I wanted to get them when we went for my birthday but when we went they were sold out, PARKWIDE! Just my luck. When I told the girl at the register how excited I was to finally get them she told me that they had just gotten them back in THAT MORNING! He bought them for me as a late birthday present. I was so happy! I kept asking "are you embarassed that I'm wearing these?", his response of course was "No" buuuuut I could tell he kinda was. haha.

From Disneyland we headed towards Pomona for yet ANOTHER one of my presents. For Christmas Sam got me tickets to see my favorite band Dashboard Confessional. I go to a Dashboard show once a year since, I can't even remember when and when tickets went on sale this year for his tour they had NO California dates. I was so bummed. They later released some CA dates and my boyfriend bought me tickets for Christmas. We grabbed some yummy Italian food before the show.

Then it was time to see mister Chris Carrabba do what he does best.

::swoon::

It was the most perfect weekend. I am such a lucky girl.

xoxo,

shea

Twenty Twelve!

2012-01-16T16:11:00.000-08:00

January is already half way over and I haven't even posted! I thought I would be better about this in 2012 and I'm already off to a bad start. Well... Lets get the ball rolling and hope that this leads to more posts!

Unfotunatly the beau had to work on New Years Eve and got off around 10pm. We made the most of it tho and we took off and headed for my parents vacation home in the desert after he got off work. We did our own coutdown in the car on the ride and got to the house a little after midnight. It was so beautiful out there. We spent a couple days with my parents, my brother and his girlfriend. It was a nice relaxing weekend with perfect weather.

After new years I went into panic mode. Usually I have my birthday (which is the 13th) all planned out by New Years but I just had so much going on, I hadn't planned anything! Luckily one of my very best girlfriends helped me put a night out in a duffy together.

Thanks girl!

So I got a group of ten girls together and took the duffy to a wonderful dinner at my usual birthday spot (Tantalum in Long Beach).

(excuse my akward stance, I didn't know whether to stand or kneel. haha.)

Drinks and wonderful people, a perfect birthday.

My best girls <3

The infamous "Sister Wife" Haha.

It was such a wonderful night. I have such great friends and I'm glad they all could make it. I am quite a lucky girl :)

Friday morning the beau and I took off for the happiest place on earth, Disneyland :)

He was my favorite part of my birthday :)

We had a great time (as always) I even ran into some old co-workers and my cousin while we were there! It's fun wearing the birthday pin and having everyone tell you "Happy Birthday" :)

We headed home and got ready for dinner.

We had ANOTHER dinner at Tantalum (I told you it was my favorite birthday spot haha) with my parents, my brother, his girlfriend, Danica, Stefana and my sweetie of course :)

And lastly, we ended up at my go-to Tracy's Bar & Grill where the beau and I took this ever-so-romantic pic. Haha.

It was a great way to spend my birthday festivities. I got to spend time with all of my favorite people BUT... the weekend wasn't over!

On Sunday Danica's episode of "My Fair Wedding" with David Tutera aired!

Here are a couple of sneak peeks if you missed them.

http://www.wetv.com/my-fair-wedding/videos/my-fair-wedding-danica-bryan

http://www.wetv.com/my-fair-wedding/videos/my-fair-wedding-surprising-the-bride

We all watched at Danica and Bryan's house. It was a lot of fun. Such a fun group. It really is SO bizarre to see yourself on TV. We have been waiting for the episode since her wedding in JULY!

An experience that I will truly never forget.

(Dont forget to check out her blog here to see all of her personal experience.)

THERE! Now we're all caught up on 2012! Haha. Hopefully I don't let as much time go by between posts :)

Happy (belated) New Year! :)

xoxo,

shea

Oh Thank Heaven 2011

2011-12-31T19:33:00.000-08:00

What a year 2011 has been!

So many wonderful things have happened!

I can't believe 2012 is already upon us.
Am I the only one who vividly remembers when we made it into the 2000's like it was yesterday?
And now it's about to be 2012?? Time really does fly.
Cliche yes, but true.

I was just at the optomitrist and the doctor asked "How long have you been wearing contacts?" I responded with "Since the eighth grade, so... (I did the math) eleven years". ELEVEN YEARS?! I'm old enough to have been doing something for ELEVEN YEARS?! Where does the time go?

In honor of the new year that is quickly approaching, I have decided to make a list of things that I am thankful for and that have helped make my 2011 what it was. Since this year I turned the big (eek) twenty five years old, I decided to do "The 25 Things that I am Thankful for" so, here goes, in no particular order...

1. My job. As much as I hate waking up and going to work every day, I know that we are in very difficult times, where having a job is a blessing. No, I'm not at my dream job, but I'm currently working alongside my parents at our family business that is currently in it's second generation of ownership which I think is really cool.

2. My house. I'm so thankful to have a roof over my head and I got so lucky that one of my dads friends was looking to rent his house. I am currently living in a 3br 3ba house for the same price I was paying for a 2br 1ba apartment AND now I get to have my dogs live with me, such a blessing.

3. My education. I am so blessed to, not only, have been given the gift of a private school education from preschool through high school, but also a college education thanks to my parents.

4. My health and the health of my friends and family. Something that I, admittedly, take for granted very often but it is something that I am extremely thankful for. I am so fortunate that those I love have their health. So very grateful.

5. My crazy non-immediate family. Between grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins I've got quite an eclectic group. Each and every one of them have played an intrigal part in making me who I am today and I wouldn't have it any other way.

6. This wonderful country that I call home. I am so blessed to have been born in the land of the free and the home of the brave, where I have rights and freedoms that some only dream of.

7. This blog. I'm thankful that I have a place where I can share my thoughts and feelings freely.

8. Music. For as long as I can remember, I've loved music. I love how it has a way of taking you somewhere, or nowhere at all, making you feel, teaching you new things, making you happy, making you sad. It's such an incredible thing.

9. Sunny California. Though sometimes I say I'm going to get out of here, I really can't imagine a better place to live. I've done a little traveling, definitely not enough to say that California is the best place to live but I'm willing to bet it's up there :)

10. As lame as it might sound, my iPhone. I had to do it. I really couldn't live without it and I really am thankful for it. There, I said it. haha.

11. I'm thankful for the beauty in the world around me. The sunrises, the sunsets, the changing of the leaves, a blooming flower. We truly are surrounded by beauty.

12. My strong moral compass. For as long as I can remember I have stayed out of trouble. To me, the boundries between right and wrong are very clear. The thought of being in trouble was never worth the risk to me. I'm sure that I can attribute some of that to my upbringing.

13. The progression of electronics as a whole that make life easier. My day to day life is so easy with the world at my fingertips. I could be lost in an area I dont know, pull out my iphone and within seconds have a route to where I need to be. My gas light could come on and I could find the nearest gas station. It's incredible the things we can do today that we couldn't have done a mere 10 years ago.

14. My brother. Even though we don't always get along, he was one of my very first friends and will probably be one of the last. Only he truly understands just how crazy my family really is.

15. My cousins. These are two of my favorite people in the world. Cade, who is four years old, I've been watching since he was an infant. We have a very special bond that I love. Just the other day he stopped playing and sort of gave me a once over and he goes "Shea, you look very pretty". It's moments like that that melt my heart. Brynn is three and is an absolute sweetheart. The two of them have a way of brightening even the worst of days. Luckily, they help me get my maternal fix without actually having to have any of my own ;) haha.

16. Gamma Phi Beta. I don't have any real sisters of my own but joining a sorority really gave me that sense of sisterhood. I met some of my best friends in sorority and don't know what I would do without them.

17. My birthmother. I'm adopted and so very thankful that she made, what I consider to be the most selfless decision that a person can make and decided to give me a life that she couldn't.

18. My two adorable dogs. Yes, sometimes they make me crazy but they really are like my kids. Sometimes I catch myself when people are talking about their kids I bring up my dogs and I can see the look on their faces, thinking I'm being rude, comparing their kids to dogs. That's not it at all! I'm comparing my dogs to kids! haha.

19. My wonderful boyfriend. Recently I was asked what I like the most about him and my answer was simple, "he makes me feel like I'm 16 again". He makes me feel young. He makes me laugh. He makes me giddy. He makes me feel beautiful. He makes me feel loved. He makes me forget about everything else. I'm so happy to be with him and look forward to our future together.

20. My oldest friend Stacy. I met Stacy when we were in preschool together. Over the years we have had birthday parties, sleepovers, Christmas programs, high school dances, cheer squads and so much more. A little over five years ago I had the honor of being her maid of honor and earlier this year I got to be one of the first to meet her newest addition, baby Luke. I've been friends with Stacy for over 20 years and I'm sure we'll be friends for another 20.

21. My friend/roomamte Stefana. She is one of the most caring and genuine people that I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. I've known her for about 7 years now. Even though I'm almost a year older than her, she's kind of like a motherly figure for me. Always looking out for me, from making sure I have soup if I'm sick to making sure I have a ride if I'm drinking. I'm so lucky to have her in my life. Living with her this last year, we have gotten really close. I'm so glad she made the decision to leave the nest and to join mine to take on such nicknames as "baby" and "Steffie Boo Bah". Don't know what I'd do without this girl.

22. My friend Haley. I met Haley in 2004 when we rushed Gamma Phi Beta together at California State Univeristy, Fullerton. We didn't become close, however until Spring of 2005 at our first Greek Week. If you didn't experience the Greek system, Greek Week is a week long event of compitition, spirit, and fun. We had no idea what was in store for us but during the course of the week, I made one of my very best friends. My favorite memory with Haley was when we traveled across the pond to the beautiful Australia after graduating college. It was a life changing trip and I'm so glad I got to experience it with her. Haley recently got engaged to her long-time boyfriend (and one of my favorite people) Brian. She asked me to be a part of their special day as a bridesmaid and of cours I accepted.

23. My very best friend Danica. Where to even begin with this one. Over the last 13 years we have gotten closer and closer to where now, I see her more as my sister than as my friend, I have even introduced her to people as my sister! haha. I don't know what I would do without her in my life. She has been there through my ups and my downs, as I, hopfully, have been for her as well. She knows everything about me, the good and the bad. She knows all my flaws and accepts me as I am. We spent the last almost three year living together and growing pretty much as close as two people can. Last year we even got each other ALL the same Christmas gifts! Haha. This year was a whirlwind of a year with Danica getting engaged, married AND moved out all in less than a year. I had the honor of being Danica's maid of honor at her wedding. It was such a beautiful day for such a beautiful girl, a girl that I am proud to call my friend.

24. My father. At times he and I are more alike than I'd like to admit. My dad and I have a very similar sense of humor that I lot of people don't understand but we have a great way of making each other laugh. We also have very similar tempers and, at times, can be like fire and gasoline. At the end of the day though, I'll always be his little girl and I'll always have him wrapped around my little finger (just the way a daddy and daughter should be ;) )

25. And lasty, but of course, certainly not least My Mother. As cliche as it's going to sound, my mother truely and honestly is my very best friend. Oddly enough, we really weren't real close growing up, like I said, I was more of a daddy's girl and my brother was more of a momma's boy but as the years have gone by my mom and I have gotten extraordinarly close. I don't know what I would do without her. Unfortunatly almost all of my friends have lost their mothers to cancer. Because of this, I know how lucky I am to, not only have my mother, but be as close to her as I am. My mom has really stepped up and, not only been a wonderful mother to me, but has also become somewhat of a psudo mom to my friends like Danica, who no longer have their mother. My mom is the rock of our family and is, what I consider to be my angel on earth.

(one of my favorite photos of me with my parents)

I'm so excited to see what 2012 holds (hopefully not the end of the world, as predicted, haha).

What made your 2011 special? Any special plans to ring in the new year? What are your New Year's resolutions?

xoxo,

shea

Foto Friday!

2011-12-15T16:18:00.000-08:00

Happy Friday!

Gosh Friday's make me so happy, I don't even have to have any weekend plans, just knowing that the weekend is ahead of me makes me happy as a clam.

This Friday I thought I'd share some "Foto's" with you.

Enjoy :)

My little cousin Brynn and I after my cousin Cade's Christmas performance.

A little miniature apple, so small and cute I had to get a picture.

I saw this Nadia Cakes car while driving the other day. I remember seeing them on Fabulous Cakes on TLC and had to snap a pic.

Their car was so funny.

"Yup, we were on TV, we know... we're awesome"

I got a photo sent to me the other day of one of the kittens I rescued at my work. Looks like she's adjusting well :)

I've been listening to alot of Minature Tigers lately. I had forgotten how much I loved them, specifically this song.

My boyfriend always sends me the sweetest stuff :)

In less than a month you get to see me make this face on national television. Tune into My Fair Wedding on WE tv Sunday January 15th to see the whole episode of Danica's wedding.

With Christmas right around the corner, it was time to get started on my "famous" english toffee. I've been making it the last few years now and it's become a bit of a tradition. My family keeps asking when they're getting their Christmas toffee. I put it in cute mason jars this year.

A little over a week until Christmas!

I officially made my own stockings this year, made my toffee... AND, thanks to my OBSESSION with Pinterest, was motivated to make all of my wrapping really cute this year. Overall, I'm pretty proud of myself. I just need to get a little more shopping done and I'm all set!

Do you all have any Christmas plans or traditions to share?

xoxo,

shea

And the stockings were hung...

2011-12-12T22:57:00.000-08:00

by the chimney with care... after being homemade of course! :)

So this year, after YEARS of wanting to make my own stocking, I put together a stocking making night with the roommates (old and new) Danica, Stefana and Marisa. We all headed to the fabric store and picked out our fabrics. Which, let me tell you, at M & L Fabrics Discount Store, can be an overwhelming task. Once we all made our decisions, we all chose fabrics that were so perfect for our personalities and then we got home and got started!

We put some Christmas music on, Stefana made some Christmas cocktails and the fun began! We spent the next several hours cutting and laughing and sewing and singing until finally we were all finished. I made a stocking for both myself and my boyfriend:

I went to put our names on them but I felt like it made them look kind of tacky and it made them lose the simplistic look, so, nameless they shall remain.

Danica made a stocking for herself, her husband and even a paw shaped one for their puppy George :)

Stefana made three also, one for herself, one for her boyfriend and an extra because there was so much cute Dr.Seuss fabric she didn't know what to DO with herself. Haha.

Once we were finished I was so proud of all of us, especially Stefana who really didn't have much sewing experience beforehand and who was determined to do everything herself. They turned out great, especially for a first timer!

The next day I got to thinking about how much fun I had and how easy it really was to make and decided to make one more, document it, and do a little tutorial on it so, here it is! :)

(Note: It may seem a little long but I tried to be as thorough as I could in case anyone wanted to try it themselves. If you do, remember, be patient and most importantly be creative!)

Materials
1/2 yd (exterior)
1/4 yd (cuff)
1/2 yd (lining) (can be the same as the exterior if you’d like)
20" x 30" piece of batting (preferably Warm and Natural)
6 " ribbon for hanging loop
Coordinating thread (optional, white is always fine)

*These measurements will leave you with leftover fabric

The wonderful stocking template I got from FabricWorm and you can find it here.

The cuff template I created myself because I am so OCD I couldn't just free cut it. So i got some printer paper and taped pieces together measuring 16" x 9".

Exterior: Lay the fabric wrong side up and fold the right side of the fabric over about 13 inches (so that the pattern fits on it). Lay the pattern piece on top to be sure that it fits.

Remove the template and repeat the steps with the batting and lining (So that they are all laying on top of each other as seen below)

Pin stocking template to all layers of fabric.

Cut around the template, making sure to cut through all three layers (which should all be folded in half, leaving you with six pieces of fabric.)

As you can see here

To assemble the body of the stocking, put the two exterior body pieces right sides (or, as some people say, pretty sides) together. Put the batting on the wrong sides of the exterior fabric. As you can see in the picture below, you will have a layer of batting, two layers of fabric (right sides together) and then another layer of batting.

Pin in place.

Sew the four layers together with a 1/2" seam allowance.

Trim the batting from the seam allowance if necessary to help reduce bulk. Also, make small snips around edges TOWARDS the inside of the stocking, being careful not to snip your seam. This way the fabric can bend.

Turn right side out and press with iron.

Interior: Put your lining pieces right sides together. Sew them together leaving about a 4” gap on the heel side that will be used later to pull the stocking through. (If you look close, I left an opening on the left side, about two inches down) Snip the round edges. Set aside for later.

Cuff: To make the cuff I used my 16" x 9" template and cut my fabric.

Use your iron and press the piece in half (like a book)

Sew together the open side.

Turn the cuff inside itself like the photo below so it’s folded at the bottom and the raw edges are at the top. It should make a tube you can stick the stocking in.

Stick the cuff on and around the top of the stocking, matching the raw edges and making sure the seams line up together.

Stick the whole thing into the lining. The stocking and lining should be right sides together.

Again, make sure all of the the raw edges meet together at the top (lining on the outside 2 cuff edges, and the sewn together exterior and batting edges).

Grab your a 6" piece of ribbon and fold in half. Place the ribbon between the cuff and the lining along the back body seam of the stocking, like the photo below (the whole that you left is also useful to make sure that your ribbon is straight and in place). Make sure that all seams and the ribbon match up evenly.

Sew all the way around the top. Make sure you catch all the layers (lining, cuff edges, loop, stocking).

Turn the whole thing right side out using the hole left in the side of the lining.

Finish turning it inside out and press and sew up the hole in the side of the lining.

Stuff the lining inside the stocking and fold the cuff down. Press the edges as needed.

Aaaaaand viola! All done! I was so happy once I finished my stockings and am glad I was able to share it with you. Now, to fill them with fun treats for everyone! :) Stockings were always my favorite part of Christmas. My grandma had knitted stockings for us that grew with every item put in them. They were like Mary Poppins' bag, just never ending. It was so much fun.

Let me know if you have any questions or comments on this tutorial. Keep it mind, it was my first, so be kind. Haha.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to everyone! :)

xoxox,

shea

NovemBUUUUUUR

2011-11-30T16:08:00.000-08:00

Goodness gracious I've been slacking on the blogging!
(Not that I was ever real religious about it.)

One day, I tell ya, one day I'll be motivated and write in it all the time. Do I smell a new years resolution? perhaps.

It's not that I haven't tried. I actually have several draft posts that just aren't quite finished that I've just been letting linger for god only knows what reason. For example, my Thanksgiving post. Thanksgiving was only, oh, a WEEK ago. Haha. I really need to get on it. I think my problem is that I don't have a work area. My mom and I have been discussing doing a complete makeover in my garage. It's currently my "craft cave" as my friends call it, filled with sewing machines, fabric, and every craft supply under the sun. It's currently not in great shape. I think that if it got a facelift and I created a perminant station for my laptop I would definitely be more motivated to not only blog, but also be more crafty and creative, two of my favorite things. Perhaps that's something I could do this weekend and who knows, maybe I'll even BLOG about it! Two birds my friends, two birds. Haha.

On that note, it's the last day of November! Hope you all have wonderful plans to deck your halls this December and be merry, after all, tis the season! :)

xoxo,
shea

Her Fair Wedding PREVIEW!

2011-11-09T11:08:00.000-08:00

So, as I posted here my best friend is going to be on this season of David Tutera's "My Fair Wedding". We're still not sure when the episode is airing, they told her possibly some time in January or February but the season itself starts THIS SUNDAY!

First of all, I'm excited just for the season because I love the show, but, OBVIOUSLY I'm even MORE excited because HER episode will be airing. The craziest part is, there are already previews on TV for it!

First, we saw this preview for the season:

Danica made several appearances in the season preview which is so exciting because I think they have something like EIGHTEEN brides this season. But then, last week, we heard that there was a preview that was EXCLUSIVELY Danica and what do you know, after hours of DVRing pretty much every wedding based show on the WE channel, we found it! (Keep in mind this was filmed on my camera off of the TV so it's not the greatest quality, but its good enough).

*because this is a link from my videos on my facebook page you might need to be signed into facebook to see it and, more specifically, you might need to be my friend to see it. I'll look into posting a different one that isn't from facebook soon.

It's us! We're ACTUALLY going to be on TV! Danica and I have this conversation pretty much every day asking ourselves "Are we REALLY going to be on TV?". Well, this definitely makes it that much more real. I can't wait for the episode to air, although I have a flood of nervous feelings as well.

On another note, it's NOVEMBER! When did this happen? When did summer come and go? The year is almost OVER?! Gosh, so much has been happening this year it has just flown by!

Something about a new year approaching always gets me really excited (although I'm not excited for the extra year older that I will inevitably be, haha), there's something refreshing about turning that calendar page to read January that feels like a clean slate, a fresh start. I'm excited for it.

But first, the yummiest holiday of all is right around the corner, Thanksgiving! This is my first holiday season with the new beau and I'm looking forward to it. I love time spent with family, it gives you a feeling that you really can't describe, a feeling that is really only felt during this time of the year, I get giddy just thinking about it!

Well, happy November! I'm going to try to find time to be as domestic and crafty as possibly this holiday season. Stay tuned to see how that goes. haha. :)

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-31T09:40:00.000-07:00

Welp, it's officially Halloween. I can't believe how fast this year has gone. I say it every year but I swear this year has gone faster than all the others. I'm just getting used to the idea that it's 2011 and before we know it it's going to be Thanksgiving, then Christmas, then it'll be 2012 already!

I'm getting a bit ahead of myself here, back to the point. It's Halloween! As promised I stopped by my parents house on my lunch break the other day and rummaged through some old photo albums. Now, my mom was never great at taking photos and especially not good at organizing and storing them properly so, I wasn't able to find everything, but here's what I came up with:

My brother (Superman), Me (a bunny), my mom, my grandma and her dog. Note the fact that my whiskers are smeared because my dad, that Halloween, bought a Yoda mask and scared me half to death and put me in tears. Boys never grow up do they...

This actually isn't even a Halloween photo and my brother would probably kill me if he knew I put this up, but when I found this I knew I HAD to share it. One of my FAVORITE things to do growing up was watch Richard Simmons videos, put on some sort of "leotard" and "work out". Yes, I'm not kidding. Haha. I'm assuming this is one of those times. Looking up to his older sister, my brother would join me, letting me dress him up (yes in my clothes). If I could find a way to put some of the home videos of us "working out" on here, I seriously have to do it. It is some of the funniest stuff you will ever see.

Stating the obvious, this was me as a bride one Halloween. Don't know why I have that angry look on my face but I DO remember that this was for a party at my school. We were ALWAYS late for school functions so I'm assuming that's why I'm mad. I was probably thinking something to the tune of "hurry up and just take the picture, we're already late". haha. Very typical of me.

Not sure exactly what I was in this one but I'm assuming a princess of some sort, my brothers smile in this one kills me.

I remember this being one of my favorite costumes. I was a "Southern Belle". I don't know if I convinced my brother to be a cowboy or if it was just coincidence but either way, our costumes definitely corresponded that year. Gosh, that "bonnet". Seriously? Haha. My friend Stefana says I still make this face which doesn't surprise me.

I have prided myself these last few years on not buying a store bought costume but rather, creating something of my own. I know that Halloween seems to have taken on this new life of "Who Can Wear The Least Clothing" but I've decided to take a different approach and rather, be something creative, or that makes people laugh.

A few years back (before the costume was sold in stores) I had a somewhat unhealthy obsession with Lady Gaga. It was before she was as mainstream as she is today. I decided I was going to be her for Halloween and I wasn't going to do it half assed. I Gaga'd myself from head to toe, from the blonde wig to the studded heals, to the mirrored glasses, to even drawing a peace sign on my wrist. I was pretty proud of it. (Yes, it WAS a bit skimpy but that's because the costume called for it, after all, I had to stay in character. And, even though I DID wear tights, I had to do a LOT of drinking before I ending up going out in public in that costume.)

That same year I was working at a bar and we had to dress up at work. There was no way I was going to wear that Lady Gaga costume to the bar. A) I didn't want to get inappropriate comments made to me all night long B) I really didn't want to work an 8 hour bar shift in those shoes and C) I actually liked the costume and didn't want it to get ruined. SO, I came up with this costume for work. Yep, you guessed it, a pregnant cheerleader. The funny thing about this costume is that this was actually my high school cheer uniform. I just bought a girdle and put some stuffing in at and drew on a belly button. You wouldn't BELIEVE how many people said to me "I thought you were actually pregnant" to which I laughed, but in my head I was saying "It's Halloween you idiot".

Last year, again, I was working at the bar and was looking more for something comfortable and yet clever. So I came up with this "Mail Order Bride" costume. People loved it and it cost like NOTHING to make.

And then comes the icing on the Halloween cake. The most epic costume yet. My best friend and I are pretty much obsessed with a certain show on TLC called "Toddlers & Tiaras". We watch it religiously and I decided awhile back that this is what I wanted to be this year for Halloween. This month as been so busy so the costume didn't end up AS polished as I had hoped, but it was still pretty amazing. Anyone who watches the show knows how dead on this is. It's hilarious, cupcake hands, awkward smile and all. (A special thanks to Miss Kristy for the PERFECT tiara)

I was channeling one of my fav toddlers, Miss Eden Wood, as you can see...

Well, I hope that everyone has a fun and safe Halloween (and, of course, eats plenty of candy ;) )

Her Fair Wedding :)

2011-10-29T13:08:00.000-07:00

This post should have been done AGES ago. I went to blog about the AWESOME event I went to Tuesday for the season premier of "My Fair Wedding" but I realized, I needed to first, tell the backstory about HOW I got there before I could tell about the event itself so, here goes...

For those of you who don't know, way back in February (the day after her engagement) I nominated my best friend and (at the time) roommate Danica for the show "My Fair Wedding". Generally speaking, the bride herself applies for the show. Danica and I watched the show religiously and I knew that she probably wouldn't apply herself so, unbenounced to her, I sent this e-mail (with a few things changed for privacy purposes).

Hi My Fair Wedding!

I'm not actually the bride myself but my best friend and roommate is the most deserving person and deserves the ultimate wedding that I KNOW David Tutera could give her. She actually got engaged last night, so I'm jumping the gun a little but we watch "My Fair Wedding" religiously and as soon as that ring was on her finger I knew that I had to contact you guys.

Here is a little bit about my nominee:

• NAME: Danica

• BRIEF BIO: Danica and I have been friends for over ten years. I love her like a sister and couldn't imagine my life without her. She is one of the most genuine and kind people that I have ever had the honor of knowing.

Several years ago she lost her mom to a long and painful battle with breast cancer. It was extraordinarily hard on her because her and her mother were very close. Things went from bad to worse when Danica's father immediately began dating and remarried. Danica and her father now have an estranged relationship and the close family that she once had no longer exists.

Luckily, she has a great family unit outside of her immediate family with her grandparents, her aunt, uncle and cousins. My family has also stepped up and treated Danica no different than they would treat me. However, without the financial support of parents, I know that Danica won't be able to afford the wedding that she truly deserves.

Danica and Bryan met last year on her birthday and I couldn't have chosen a better guy for her. He's a firefighter and a genuinely sweet, kind, and caring person. I'm so excited for them to start their lives together. All they need is their dream wedding.

I hope that you can help me give the ultimate David Tutera wedding to my very best friend because I can't think of a more deserving person.

Thank you,
Shea

And what do you know, SHE WAS CHOSEN! She had planned on spending a year engaged and getting married February of 2012. The show, however, asked how she felt about a July 2011 wedding. That's quite a difference. After a lot of talking and consideration, Danica and her fiancé decided to go for it!

The process itself was incredible. It all happened in the course of only THREE WEEKS. One day a week for three weeks were filming days, then, on the third week, that Saturday was the WEDDING! I still can't believe it has already come and gone. The experience was so incredible.

The first day of filming consisted of:
-Meeting the bride and groom, getting to know them a little better.
-The Couple meeting David! (which really IS genuine. He makes sure that you don't interact until the ACTUAL first meeting)
-The bride showing David her "swag" table and introducing her theme to him, which was a "country picnic" theme. Surprisingly, David actually liked the theme! We knew that he would turn her theme into something beyond incredible.
-Showing David the Bridesmaids dresses which, again, he surprisingly LOVED. (Generally this is also when David sees the Bride's gown but, Danica didn't have one.)

The second day of filming consisted of:
-Wedding dress shopping, where we all surprised her at a bridal shop
-Another surprise of a Bridal Shower at Sonya Dakar Skin Clinic in Beverly Hills!

The third and finally day of filming (before the wedding) consisted of:
-A fun outing for Danica and her fiancé
-Danica and David trying some pies (Danica's cake alternative)

And then, a couple days later, WEDDING TIME!

The location was kept a secret until the VERY last minute. Danica's guests knew where the venue was before she did! We arrived at a gorgeous little white church which was actually the church that they filmed "7th Heaven" in! We were beyond pampered, getting our hair and make-up done. The ceremony was perfect. The reception was on a Western Themed Universal Studios back lot. It was the PERFECT place for the PERFECT wedding that Danica was given. We were all asked to not share any photos until the show airs sometime this season, so I'm respecting that. But, once we're allowed to, you better believe I will be putting some up. Haha ;) I'm actually not sure exactly how much I'm allowed to say even in this blog but, they're already showing previews for the season (including Danica's wedding) so, I guess most of it isn't too much of a surprise. Here's the commercial if you haven't already seen it.

The whole thing was such an incredible experience. I'm so glad that Danica was chosen, she really did deserve it. I can't wait for the episode to air although, of course, I'm a little nervous for dumb things I may have said or done. Haha. I guess only time will tell.

xoxo,
shea

Happy HalloWEEK

2011-10-24T09:50:00.000-07:00

The countdown has begun!
Officially one week until Halloween!

Like most kids, I loved Halloween growing up. I loved the idea of not only getting to play dress up, but also getting REWARDED for it with CANDY! What a sweet deal!

I'm going to try to make it over to my parents' house at some point this week to find old Halloween photos of myself to post for a good laugh. My mom was never great behind a camera though so we'll see what I'm able to find.

As far as my costume this year I'm still keeping it under wraps until it's unveiled because I'm so excited about it and want it to be a surprise. Only a select few know what I'm going to be. I still feel like I have a lot to do on it so we'll see how it turns out. I've been coming across some really great costume ideas and thought I'd share some of them with you. Enjoy :)

Mary Poppins and Bert

From Keiko Lynn
SUCH an adorable idea. The Mary Poppins costume is great but then having Bert really makes it. I'm not sure I could convince my boyfriend to do that but if I can, I definitely want to try this look eventually. Plus, he would look SO cute in that outfit.

Flo the Progressive Girl

From my obsession Kandee Johnson
I've always found these commercials funny and everyone knows who she is, so it'd be a really relevant costume. Plus, my best friend Danica was Geico money a few years back so it would just be funny.

(and that's me as Lady Gaga if you couldn't tell.)

Hot Air Balloon

From Babble
How cute is this?? It would definitely be hard to wear this to any sort of party (which was a problem Danica had in her Geico money costume), and it's definitely not going to be easy to transport, but I still love love love it. It's the kind of costume that you wear to a costume contest type of party.

Jellyfish

From The Craft Begins
Yet another very clever costume. Again, one that might be hard at parties but one that will definitely get noticed.

Candy Corn

From I'm Your Present
A very adorable and yet very simple costume. I'm not a candy corn fan but pretty much all of my friends LOVE it so I'm sure they'll enjoy this even more than me.

This ADORABLE Cat in the Hat & Green Eggs and Ham

From Dana Made It
My roommate Stefana (@StefanaCupcake) is pretty much OBSESSED with all things Dr.Seuss. I definitely thought of her when I saw these adorable costumes, and they're surprisingly easy.

Paper Doll Costume

From Lauren of Busy Bee Lauren
This is definitely something I can see myself doing. I love these kind of costumes. Not only is it very DIY but, growing up, I LOVED paper dolls. I got books upon books of paper dolls from my grandma, it would be a great nod to my childhood.

Last Wednesday Danica, Stefana, Marisa (the newest roommate) and I had a roommate (old and new) Halloween night. We carved pumpkins, watched Hocus Pocus and I made us some yummy apple cider cocktails. Who says carving pumpkins has to be for kids right? haha :)

Well, that's all for now, hope everyone has a great HalloWEEK!

Be Productive!

2011-10-19T11:02:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I find it SO hard to be productive. I find that I go through waves of productivity.

Like most, I have my lazy days where, although I have tons to get done, I just want to veg out in front of the tv with my puppies, catch up on the DVR and do absolutely nothing. Then there are those days where I'm in a "Don't talk to me" robot-like uber-productive kind of mode where I get everything I need to get done and then some. Those are the days when I clean out every drawer, cupbord and shelf before lunch. I recently had one of those days.

My best friend and roommate Danica recently got married and moved into her beautiful new house with her husband Bryan and I went on a cleaning rampage. Since she was leaving I thought it was the perfect time to clean everything out. I went through every cupbord and drawer, I set her things aside, and re-organized everything that was left. I literally cleaned out the entire house. It felt so good. I cleaned out my closet and ended up with a giant donation pile. There is something so refreshing about a good cleanse.

HOWEVER, shockingly enough (for those of you who know me as the eternally single girl) I recently found a great guy who has changed this single girl into a gushing, cheesy, smitten girlfriend. That being said, I've been spending all my free time with my man and have been getting so behind on everything!

I came across this video on the lovely Sydney's blog and it made me laugh and I just had to share:

What a great idea to get things done!

My only problem, how am I going to find a bowl big enough to put my boyfriend under? ;) haha.

xoxo,
shea

FREEZE!

2011-10-07T14:09:00.000-07:00

You're under arrest!

Haha, not really.

I recently had a friend of mine Corey ask for a custom order for a onesie. I have been so busy these days that custom orders are pretty much all I've been doing lately. She told me that the dad of the baby-to-be was a cop and that the mom used to be. She was interested in getting a onesie made with a badge and possibly a holster on the hip. It was something I had never done before but I was excited for the order. I'm always excited to try to create something new. I must say, this is probably one of my favorite pieces yet. I texted a photo to Corey once I was finished and she loved it, which is always what I'm hoping for. The baby shower is this weekend. I can't wait to see the mommys reaction to one of my favorite pieces to date. So, without further ado (btw, i looked up whether it's ado or adieu and just confused myself even more so if someone knows how to properly spell it, let me know. haha) here it is!

Don't you love it? I sure do, and hopefully mommy-to-be does too :)

Happy Friday everyone! :)

xoxo,
shea

No, not the gas station...

2011-09-27T15:52:00.000-07:00

My latest obsession is everything Chevron.

No, not like the gas station, but the zig-zag inspired print.

Now, those of you who know me, like my best friend and roommate Danica, you know that I got in a bit of an uproar over the whole Missoni for Target thing. For those of you who don't know, Missoni is a high end brand, usually spoted on celebs as you can see here:

The brand decided to create a line exclusively for Target stores much like other brands have done; brands like William Rast (Justin Timberlake's company), Jean Paul Gaultier, and McQ Alexander McQueen.

Unlike most of the general public, and those waiting in line for the brand, I was not very amused by the Target venture. To be honest, I'm not a huge Missoni fan to begin with but then oversaturating the general public with heaps of the zig zag print, not to mention an immense amount of commercials being thrown our way, I just wansn't on board with the whole thing.

That being said, I still love the chevron print on just about anything. Here are some things I'm DYING for right now:

This adorable dresser with the chevron pattern painted on top, it actually looks like it might be two nightstands used side-by-side to give the dresser effect. love.
(source)

A punch of color and chevron print to match. I'm dying for this. Now, to just find an occasion to recreate this look... Good thing October is the "Month of a Million Birthdays" as I like to call it.
(source)

This is one of my absolute favorites. It's a mix of pretty much all my favorite colors (as you can probably tell from my blog layout). Haha. It pretty much is my blog layout in a room. I love it. And I love the the soft grey color doesnt make the chevron pattern make you dizzy or anything like it could in a brighter color.
(source)

And lastly, yet again, a mix of all my favorites. I have a love of all things eclectic. This room is so wonderfully eclectic it makes me giddy.
(source)

With Danica moving out very shortly, I feel like I should take this opportunity to do some redecorating. I'd like to change my room around a bit and definitely do an overhaul on my garage turned craft room. If/when I tackle these projects, don't be surprised if you see some chevron sprinkled throughout.

Happy Tuesday!

xoxo,
shea

♥

2011-09-19T16:36:00.000-07:00

as unexpected as it is... some boy has been making me extraordinarily happy lately :)

(credit)

xoxo,
shea

Makeup Your Mind!

2011-09-16T13:39:00.000-07:00

If you know anything about me, you know that I am literally the epitome of a girly girl.

I've carried a purse since I could walk. I live for shoes and handbags. I'm a firm believer that you can never have enough accesories. And, of course, I LOVE makeup.

I had been stuck in a makeup rut, using the same old thing even though I knew I didn't like it, but dreading figuring out something else to use. I had been using MACs Studio Fix liquid foundation for years. I had never been totally satisfied with it but, like I said, switching brands can oftentimes be such a hassle. You go down to the department store, have a stranger sell you some random make up that is probably seasonal that they're being told to sell, after which, you get home and realize its not your color whatesoever and on top of that, it makes you break out!

I don't know what came over me but, I had heard that there was a Sephora inside my local JCPenny so I decided to check it out. I walked in and, what do you know, there really WAS a Sephora! I actually used to work at Ulta with my roommate Danica and while, stores like those are fun, they can oftentimes be overwhelming and all of the employees are busy helping someone else. The way this Sephora was set up tho was perfect. It was much smaller than most Sephora's but it still felt like they had everything I needed. The girls who worked there were very friendly and got right to assisting me with my make up selection.

I was eager to try Makeup Forever because I've noticed it's what my idol Kandee Johnson often uses. I asked the girl working if she had a favorite brand and she acutally told me that she loves the Stila Perfect and Correct Foundation. I hadn't used anything Stila since high school, maybe even junior high but I figured I'd give it a shot. Since I was already there, I asked if she would mind using one brand on each side of my face, to compare. I liked them both but the Makeup Forever reminded me a lot of MAC which, like I said, I was trying to steer away from. The Stila foundation seemed to have a lot more to offer with key benefits like:

•Swirled with an advanced emolient system

•Unique multi-mineral complex

•Contains potent antioxidants & skin soothing chamomile

•Helps diminish the look of fine lines and wrinkles

•Helps hydrate & balance

•Helps minimize pores & control oil

•High definition, high performance

•Weightless, medium coverage

And overall, it just felt better on my skin, so I decided to go with it. After all, look how cool it looks!

Since buying it, I actually feel like my skin has improved. Putting it on is so refreshing because of the built in hydration. I've been really happy with my purchase and I think I can officially say that I'm a Stila fan!

While I was there I also picked up one of my favorite Nars blush called "Orgasm". I die for this blush. It literally looks great on everyone. Depending on your skin type it can look peachy or pinky and has a gorgeous iridescent hue. I just love it.

Because I tend to get oily throughout the day I also picked up a Mattifying Foundation compact from the Sephora brand.

While I was there I picked up a few other things and then made myself get out of there before I spent any more money! haha.

I'm so happy with everything I bought, its scary how fast you can spend money on makeup!

It sure doesn't LOOK like $215 worth of stuff! haha.

Also, today is the first day of sorority recruitment at my Alma Mater California State Univeristy, Fullerton! Wishing my girls good luck! Can't believe it's been seven YEARS since I became a Gamma Phi Beta!

♥ ΓΦΒ ♥

pΓΦΒably the best decision I've ever made.

I hope that everyone has a happy Friday and a very relaxing weedend!

xoxo,

shea

The higher the hair...

2011-09-15T18:36:00.000-07:00

...The closer to God!

I've always loved that little saying. My roommate does too and even has this in her bathroom:

I've always had such a hard time getting any volume in my hair. I remember being little and my mom (who isn't very hair knowledgable to begin with) trying to curl my hair and by the time she finished it'd be completely straight and flat again. Since getting older, my hair has gotten thicker and can manage to actually hold a curl now but doesn't really keep much volume.

So the other day I came across Kate's blog where I found this awesome post.

I watched these tutorial videos:

and thought to myself, I HAVE to try it! I had a dinner date planned last night with my boyfriend and his mom, who, not only would I be meeting for the first time, she ALSO just so happens to be a hair stylist! So, if this went right, it would be perfect.

I went to my local beauty store and couldn't find the Aquage Uplifting Foam that Kate raves about and swears by on her blog but, the girl working there suggested this:

I use Matrix haircare already so I figured it was worth a shot.

Once I made that purchase, it was volumizing time!

I washed my hair, applied the volumizing foam and blew my hair dry upside down. I could already tell that the volumizing foam had worked because my hair was fuller than normal.

I then used Kate's technique and crossed my fingers:

(that's my "I sure hope this works" face. haha)

I let the hair sit while I finished up my make-up, took a deep breath, took the clips out and viola:

more volume than I've ever been able to give myself! After I took the clips out I had to do just a little touching up but I was very pleasantly surprised. I can't wait to really perfect this technique and spend more time being "closer to God" ;) haha.

xoxo,

shea

the blog post that never was...

2011-09-14T14:10:00.000-07:00

As cliche as it is to say, there really aren't enough hours in the day.

I have been wanting so badly to blog more often. I know that, for me, blogging every day is a bit unreasonable as of now but I would like to at least start with trying to keep up with it once a week. My roommate Danica and I were talking yesterday about it and I got super excited because I had a great blog idea!

Last night I had planned to make a batch of my famous toffee for my grandpa's birthday. Usually I only make it for Christmas to keep it special, but I know how much my grandpa loves it so I decided I'd make an exception for him. I asked Danica if she would help me take photos for a "Toffee Tutorial" blogpost. She, of course, said yes and we were both excited about it.

Now... insert that old cliche saying "there aren't enough hours in the day". After work I went over to my aunt and uncles house to watch my two little favorite people, my two and four year old cousins Cade and Brynn while my aunt and uncle went to parent teacher night. I ended up being over there longer than expected and rushed home to make my toffee. It wasn't until I was almost done that I let out an "OH SHOOT!" from the kitchen. Danica immediately knew why I did it and jumped up off the couch with her iPhone and snapped a picture of me. Haha. We both knew we missed the opportunity. I guess that means I'll just have to make another batch which, isn't all that bad, it just means we'll have some extra toffee :)

So I guess technically this is a blog post about a blog post that didnt happen. That still counts right? Haha. Well, at least the toffee got made and my grandpa loved it. :) That's all that really matters.

Do you have any tips for how to keep up with your blog and write in it more regularly?

xoxo,

shea

Brown Paper Packages Tied Up With Strings

2011-07-26T22:11:00.000-07:00

These are a few of my favorite things!

So, I've been wanting to do a "favorite things" post for SO long but I just have SO many stinkin' favorite things!

My friend Kristy had a Summer Favorite Things post. That's a good way to narrow it down, make it "Summer" Favorite Things.

My internet girl-crush Kandee Johnson does monthly favorites, which narrows it down even more and the adorable Mandy, from Miss Indie does "Friday Favorites" which is a good way to break it down even further, into weeks.

Since this is my first "Favorites" I decided to start broad and start with my "2011 Favorites".
So, here it goes! :)

If you know me, you know that one of my main obsessions is my gold jewelry :)

My Gold Michael Kors Watch is one of my prize possessions.

My grandma got it for me this last Christmas (ok so that was 2010 but, close enough;) ). When I opened it I almost started crying because it was so unexpected. I love it.

My Jane Hollinger Teenie Heart Bracelet (in Gold)

I bought this on a whim at Fred Segal one night with my friend Stefana. I don't usually make a lot of big purchases but I fell in LOVE with this and it just so happens that I found it right after I got my tax return check. Sounds like a sign to me :) This is one of my absolute favorite things that I ever bought myself.

My Gold Diamond Ring

This year I turned 25 AND my parents celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary. My mom bought the two of us the cutest daintiest gold rings that both happen to have 25 little diamonds in them! My mom and I both wear them every day, it's so special :)

My Yellow Jessica Simpson Massi Heels

Most years on my birthday I buy myself a little something special. These were my birthday gift to myself and I love them. My best friend/roommate Danica knows far too well about my obsession with heels :)

My Singer Simple 2263 Sewing Machine

I have lots of sewing machines but this one is my favorite. It's a basic, easy to use machine and the colors are just to die for, PLUS I got it on sale at Walmart :)

My "you are what you craft" Sweet Perversion Print

One of my favorite things to do is go to arts and crafts festivals. I love seeing the creativity of others and the beauty in creativity. One of my favorites is Patchwork- Indie Arts and Crafts Festival . I got this print at the most recent Patchwork festival in Santa Ana. Sweet Perversion makes SO many funny (and somewhat crass) prints. They're hysterical. My friends and I spent so much time at their booth.

So, now that I've shared a few of MY favorite things, tell me, what are YOUR favorite things? I definitely would love to do more of these posts and do them more frequently so that I can share new things with you all. I hope that you all are enjoying your summer. More soon! :)

xoxo,

shea

Celebrating Consistence

2011-07-19T16:55:00.000-07:00

So I haven't been blogging every day, but I HAVE been blogging a lot more than usual and I'm pretty proud of myself!

(this blogger gang sign cracks me up)

My friends Danica and Kristy are a bit more privy to the blogging word than I am but I have been wanting so badly to get more involed, to get more followers, to be able to have giveaways, to make fun tutorials and really just to be able to have a creative outlet! I'll tell ya... sitting at a desk for 8 hours a day sure doesn't let you be very creative aside from the occasional letterhead re-vamp or fax cover sheet. Like you could see in my last post Danica's wedding has really been a great opportunity for me to get some creative juices flowing which as been so fun for me, but that's almost over. Time for a new focus. And I'm going to do my best to make this blog it! :)

My biggest blog motivation is my OBSESSION Kandee Johnson (and this is her personal blog).

She is a make-up artist who does make up tutorials online and is SO great at what she does (and she does it all with FOUR kids!) She is absolutlely adorable and if you check out her youtube page you'll fall in love with her too. I have already gotten Danica and Kristy obsessed. Not only is she absolultely adorable, she is sweet and kind and really makes a difference in people's lives. I would love to have even a fraction of the impact that she has on people. So, we'll see how this whole thing goes...

xoxo,

shea

"Boats N Hoes!"

2011-07-18T13:27:00.000-07:00

For those of you who are unaware, Danica and I are OBSESSED with the movie "Step Brothers". When it was time to plan her Bachelorette Party it was a no-brainer that the theme had to be "Boats N Hoes". If you have never seen the movie, well, first of all, I feel bad for you and you should watch it immediately, but here is the "Boats N Hoes" music video.

Danica and I know EVERY word to that song and find it absolutely ridiculous and hillarious. So, once I had the theme idea the fun began! :) I stumbled upon these ADORABLE light blue and red anchor decoration at Target and that is when the creative juices began to flow.

Once I had the adorable table wear (plates, napkins, cups and silverwear), I thought to myself, we need a photo backdrop. If you know me, you know that I'm obsessed with photos (and photo backdrops). As you can tell, I made one for Danica's 21st birthday also.

So, I bought a red and white tablecloth and two adorable paper lanterns that matched the decor for our "photo backdrop". I made a stop at Alin Party Co. for a personalized banner kit to make a "Boats N Hoes" banner and viola! A photo backdrop! :)

In my opinion, an event isn't an event unless you get t-shirts made. So, I had my friend Frankie at "Triple Force Grafix" help me put together some ADORABLE shirts and tote bags. I made the invitations myself and when I did I found a font that I fell in LOVE with.

So, I sent over the font to Frankie and my design idea and he put together probably the cutest shirts and bags I have ever seen.

Going with the theme I got Danica a capain hat and made a cute sailor hat for all of the other girls.

We got there pretty late on Friday night so we picked up some pizzas, made some drinks, and got right into opening presents! After Danica finished opening her awesome (and somewhat embarassing) gifts, we played a round of "Dirty Minds" and then busted out the Kareoke machine. Who doesn't love Kareoke?!

The shirts and hats were a hit. We wore them all day by the pool on Saturday.

AND we even wore our hats when we went out Saturday night!

We spent Saturday night at the 12th Floor Loung at Fantasy Springs Casino, right up the street from the house. It was so much fun. We started the night off with a couple of bottles of champagne and then we headed downstairs to Lit, the nightclub. It was definitely a great place to people watch. I even added to the things to gawk at when I busted out my "Toddlers in Tiaras" routine. I had everyone hysterically laughing.

It was such a great weekend with such a great group of girls. I can't wait until this weekend when my best friend becomes a Mrs! I'm so honored to be her Maid of Honor and can't wait for this weekend!

Love you Danica! <3

Bachelorette Weekend!

2011-07-15T16:05:00.000-07:00

It's finally here! (I say "finally" like it's been forever, when I've really only had about a month to plan it! Haha.)

Danica's "Boats N Hoes" Bachelorette Party weekend!

Today, after Friday traffic, we're gunna be getting the HELL outta dodge before the infamous "Carmageddon" for a relaxing and yet WILD weekend in the desert. I have SO many awesome surprises for not only Danica, but also all the girl invited. It is going to be SUCH a fun weekend. I can't wait to share all of the things that I did, but as of now, everything is still under wraps. :)

Hope you all have a great weekend and stay off the 405!

xoxo,

shea

What a whirlwind!

2011-07-10T21:51:00.000-07:00

It's been almost two months since my last blog post (thats beginning to seem pretty standard). There has been so much going on. Like I mentioned in a previous post I have been working full time which has, unfortunately left very little time for my other "job", my baby clothing line. I miss being out in my garage, or "craft cave" as my roommates have so lovingly renamed it. I've missed being out there with the sound of my ipod being drowned out by the sound of my sewing machine. I miss having burns on my hands from my hot glue gun. I miss letting my creative juices flow for hours on end watching it go from day to night without even realizing it.

I recently had a discussion with my roommate telling her how I'm interested in making Not So Cli-Shéa more than just a baby clothing line, but rather a creative boutique of sorts really encompassing the full range of creative passions that I have and love. So, that's been something that has been being tossed around in my head lately.

On top of my busy work schedule I have been helping my best friend and roommate Danica plan her wedding. I have the honor of being her maid of honor which means the world to me. She recently got chosen to be a bride on the WEtv reality show My Fair Wedding! We were SO excited when we found out that she was chosen! The day after she got engaged I actually applied them for the show because I KNEW that she'd be the PERFECT bride for the show and what do you know... I WAS RIGHT! :) We started filming last Thursday and it was SO much fun. The crew were great and David was just as incredible as I had imagined. I'm SO excited to see what he's going to do with this wedding because I KNOW it will be amazing.

Hopefully I'll have time to write more about everything later. I just wanted to write SOMETHING to let people know I'm still alive! haha.

x<3x<3

Oh Blogger, where art thou?

2011-05-13T13:02:00.000-07:00

It lives! Blogger has returned! There are still some things on my blog that haven't gone back to what they were but we'll see. I'm gunna give it some more time.

I'm still trying to keep some hope alive that it will return. From what I've read "Content created between Wednesday and Thursday was removed during the outage, but Blogger says it will be back up soon." I changed things on Wednesday night, which explains its dissapearance.

Blogger's Tech Manager Eddie Kessler had this to say, "We rolled back to a version of Blogger as of Wednesday May 11th, so your posts since then were temporarily removed. Those are the posts that we're in the progress of restoring."

Here's to keeping my fingers crossed...

xoxo
Shea Crystal

Feather Hair Extensions!

2011-05-11T19:38:00.000-07:00

So, I'm not sure how many of you have fallen captive to the feather hair extension craze but I certainly have.

If you're unfamiliar with them, I'm sure you've seen them without even knowing what they are on celebrities like:

Hilary Duff

Jennifer Love Hewitt

and even Steven Tyler!

So, before Stagecoach my friend Katie and I decided to go get some. I got a cute striped blue one and a white one.

As soon as I got it I thought to myself "I could definitely do this". So, I did what any normal human being does when they want to know how something is done... I checked YouTube! haha.

And that is where I found this video. Kandee Johnson is my new OBSESSION. She is SO adorable and sweet. I even got Danica and Kristy to love her too! :)

So, I went to Sally Beauty Supply and bought:

A Fusion Hook

and Fusion Pliers

Then I went to one of my favorite spot (where I always buy all of my extensions) Cassy's Beauty Evolution where I bought:

Hair Extension links (silicon is better for a better hold)

and... the feathers themselves!

The feathers come in pretty much every color of the rainbow so whatever your favorite color is, you can have as a feather in your hair! It's a bit of an investment initially but, the way I see it, most salons are charging 30 bucks for them, so paying the initial cost (which was about 70 dollars for everything) wasn't too much.

So I did a few on myself...

A pink one on my roommate Stefana...

And two on my roommate Danica

We are all now completely OBSESSED. I can't wait to buy more and put more in our hair! :) They are so fun and easy! Maybe this will get you in the spirit to spice up your hair a little too! I definitely recommend them! :)

xoxo

Getting the Ball Rolling!

2011-05-11T09:04:00.000-07:00

So, I got little to no sleep last night but it was SO worth it. I stayed up most of the night re-vamping my blog and I'm in LOVE with it!

I finally took the time to create something that really is a reflection of myself. I can't wait to really lose myself in the blogging process and make this a really awesome place to not only advertise and share my product, but also share about myself as well.

Unrelated to Not So Cli-Shéa, I have recently become OBSESSED with feather hair extensions. I went and got some put in a couple weeks ago at a salon and thought "I could definitely do this" and, true to form, shortly after, I did! I got feather happy and did some for my roommates Danica & Stefana. I got them both obsessed too! I'm going to post about how I did it in my next entry. It's so fun and easy, anyone could do it!

xoxo

Oh Thank Heaven, 2011!

2011-04-20T12:31:00.000-07:00

I haven't blogged in FIVE MONTHS!

So much has been going on! I decided to quit my bar job and start working for my parents full time, which was a big change. I hadn't done ANYTHING "full time" since college a few years ago! So, getting used to the 9-5 was a bit difficult, but I'm doing it.

Then, the greatest news of all, on February 2nd my best friend and roommate Danica got ENGAGED! So, it's been quite the wedding planning central at our house. Which, being the crafy planner that I am, has been so fun and exciting.

Danica has gotten me really excited about really getting involved with my blog. Obviously, hers is a well oiled machine and mine is a tinker toy in comparison. But, I've been doing a lot of brainstorming with her on how to re-vamp it and really get excited about it and I've already started making changes. I even found a way to add more pages! (the About Mé and Galléry at the top) I'm really looking forward to filling the blogging universe in on everything Not So Cli-Shéa! :)

Check back soon!
Shéa

Wish List

2010-11-21T23:59:00.000-08:00

So, Christmas and my birthday are less than three weeks apart so, this time of year I usually start putting together a little list for my mom mostly. She always says I'm so hard to shop for. I think that I'm easy but then again, I know what I like! haha. Anyways, my list this year is as follows:

A ticket to Stagecoach

A recent desire to take a trip to Nashville got me really into country music. It's pretty much all I listen to now. The switch was a bit sudden and shocking but I definitely have a new respect for country music and would LOVE to go to Stagecoach. PLUS, my family has an amazing vacation home on a man made lake in Indio, just minutes from where the festival takes place, so it would be PERFECT :)

A dress form

I've wanted a dress form pretty much my ENTIRE life. I ask for one EVERY year, when I gave my mom my list she even said "oh, there's the dress form again" haha.

A pink kitchenaid mixer

I'm famous for my mashed potatoes but since moving out I don't have a mixer of my own. And if I'm going to get one, I want to go big! I've been eyeing this mixer for like two years.

A gold Michael Kors watch

I already have the silver one but I pretty much only wear gold jewelry (I'm OBSESSED with my gold bangles). I'm pretty sure if I got this watch I would never take it off. I LOVE it.

LOST the complete series

Granted, I have seasons 1-5 already on DVD that I always bought the DAY that they came out, but I made a deal with my mom, if she gets me the complete series I'll give her all of my seasons. Sounds like a fair trade to meeeeee :)

A fish eye lens for my Canon rebel

I LOVE the way photos come out with a fish eye lens. This was on my list last year too, we'll see if second time is a charm :)

A cute license plate frame

I recently got a new car that I LOVE and personalized license plates, I would love to doll it up with some cute plate frames :)

A new digital camera

I have had the worst luck with cameras lately and yet again, I'm in the market for a new digital camera. I don't even want anything real fancy or expensive, just something that takes better photos than my phone and is easy to use.

Pretty much everything on etsy
I'm OBSESSED with this print and pretty much everything like it.

Yudu Personal Screen Printer

It would be AWESOME to be able to not only sew, but screen print my designs. The possibilities would be endless.

Seville Tufted HB Parchment headboard

I love the regal feeling of a heaboard. I've wanted one for awhile and finally found one that I like at a reasonable price! :)

DVS slippers

I know these are for boys but I don't care! I LOVE them! My feet are ALWAYS cold but I don't really like traditional slippers. Usually they have really flimsy soles and don't last long. The DVS slippers are more like shoes, so I can wear them outside (which comes in handy since my "studio" is in my garage).

And from my Amazon.com wish list, a bunch of new books :)
Stitched in Time: Memory-Keeping Projects to Sew and Share from the Creator of Posie Gets Cozy by Alicia Paulson

Handmade Home: Simple Ways to Repurpose Old Materials into New Family Treasures by Amanda Blake Soul

Appliqué Your Way by Kayte Terry

Sew Liberated: 20 Stylish Projects for the Modern Sewist by Meg McElwee

Bend the Rules with Fabric: Fun Sewing Projects with Stencils, Stamps, Dye, Photo Transfers, Silk Screening, and More by Amy Karol

Sew & Stow: 31 Fun Sewing Projects to Carry, Hold, and Organize Your Stuff, Your Home, and Yourself! by Betty Oppenheimer

One-Yard Wonders: 101 Sewing Fabric Projects; Look How Much You Can Make with Just One Yard of Fabric! by Rebecca Yaker

Bend-the-Rules Sewing: The Essential Guide to a Whole New Way to Sew by Amy Karol

And that concludes my list (thus far, tee hee ;) )

Craft Fair Recap!

2010-11-21T23:06:00.000-08:00

Goodness!
I don't know WHY it's so hard for me to keep up with this blog. Maybe if I had more followers, I'd be more inclined to keep up with it (note to self). Anyways, since I last wrote I was in my first craft fair!

My friend and old classmate Heather Kent put it on at her church to help fund their youths mission trips. It went VERY well. Everyone responded very well to my product and my set up. I was so pleased.

Here are some photos (sorry for the quality, they were taken with my phone)

My booth (I made a "Not So Cli-Shéa" banner to hang on the table. I used a pink suitcase to display the girls collection, a blue suitcase to display the boys collection and a little doll closet in the middle to display the gender neutral items. People LOVED it.)

The boys collection in its blue suitcase

The girls collection in its pink suitcase

Gender neutral items

I'm SO thankful to have such great friends that not only came and supported me, but also my friend Stefana came early and helped me during my busiest time and my roommate Danica was there the ENTIRE day from 9am-4pm keeping me company at my booth. I don't know what I'd do without them.

The craft fair was SO much fun and not only did I sell a LOT, I also met a lot of really great people who I hope to do craft fairs again with soon.

Speaking of craft fairs, I spent the afternoon at Patchwork Indie Arts & Crafts Festival. My roommate and I went to the last one so I knew that I had to check it out again. That sort of thing is SO up my ally. Hopefully one day I'll be featured at Patchwork. There is another one next Sunday in Santa Ana, if you're interested. I would definitely recommend it, although I spent way more money than I should have. haha.

Here is a flyer if you're interested:

I've made so much new stuff lately and have even gotten my roommate to help out! I'm looking forward to sharing some of the new stuff real soon :)

The Ten Commandments of Crafting

2010-11-04T00:07:00.000-07:00

While wandering around Etsy today I came across this page in which TeenAngster got a chance to interview Amy Sedaris, author of Simple Times: Crafts for Poor People. I'm really looking forward to getting my hands on a copy of this book but, until then, I leave you with an except from the book that TeenAngster provided that I LOVED.

The Ten Commandments of Crafting

I. Remember the crafting day, to keep it hobby.

II. Thou shalt not attempt crafting beyond thy intellectual capacity — a nitwit can't knit.

III. Thou shalt not craft graven images of thy neighbor's wife.

IV. Thou shalt remember to replace the glue cap so the top of the bottle doesn't dry out and then thou hast to get a pin to poke a hole but the glue never really flows as well as it did before.

V. Thou shalt not fill envelopes with glitter and confetti and send them in the mail.

VI. Thou shalt remember that popsicle stick crafts only have the illusion of being structurally sound.

VII. Thou shalt not force a mollusk out of its shell by boiling it alive but rather coax it out with a fork when making a shell necklace.

VII. This craft book, which towers above all other craft books, is a jealous craft book. Thou shalt have no other craft books before it.

IX. Remember to honor thy crafting and pastimes for they are a great way to get your mind off all the damage thy parents did.

X. Thou shall not covet thy neighbor's crafts, even though those crafts look like they are supposed to, and thouist crafts resemble a random pile of yarn.

Amy Sedaris is VERY funny and, like I mentioned, I look forward to getting a copy of her book but, until then, I've been keeping busy getting ready for the craft fair that I am going to be a part of this Saturday. If you're free please feel free to stop by :)

Time: Saturday, November 6th 9am-4pm
Location: Faith Presbyterian Church
500 E. San Antonio Ave
Long Beach, CA

It's a GREAT way to support local artists by buying handmade items and would even be a great way to get some holiday shopping done early!

Hope to see you all there!
Feel free to e-mail me with any questions!
notsoclishea@gmail.com

And the winners aaaaaare.....

2010-10-16T01:10:00.000-07:00

So... I know I said I would post the winners on Friday and TECHNICALLY now it's Saturday but I had a CRAZY busy day.
After much anticiaption I'm SO excited to announce the winners of my FIRST giveaway. Thank you to everyone who entered. It was awesome to read all of your comments, to see all of your tweets and to have you all following me! I'm hoping to make this a regular thing, having giveaways as often as I can.

So... without further adieu, the winners of my First Giveaway are:

Kimi Fowler!
Not only did she tweet about my giveaway, she ALSO promoted it on her baby center community account which, according to my blogger stats, got me a staggering EIGHTY FOUR hits on its own. Unfortunatly, Kimi's little guy is a little too big for the aviator onesie so I'm going to actually be making her a custom piece. She is very into golfing so I'm actually going to be making a special order, one of a kind piece especially for her little man :)
Thanks again Kimi for all the support! I can't wait to get your product to you and see photos of your little one looking "Not So Cli-Shéa" ;)

and

"Cat's Litterbox"!
Cathy followed my blog, commented on the blog post, tweeted about Not So Cli-Shéa (@NotSoCliShea) AND commented on my Facebook Fan Page
I can't WAIT to see her little Gus in his new pair of Aviators :)

AND since I'm making Kimi K. Fowler a custom onesie, I still have one more winner to announce!

The winner of the diamond "bling" onesie is...

Kristin Miller!
Kristen also followed my blog, commented on the blog post and even blogged about it! I can't wait to see who Kristin will surprise with the wonderful gift of a custom handmade onesie! :)

To the winners: please e-mail me (NotSoCliShea@gmail.com) with your mailing address so that I can send you your onesie as soon as possible :) Please feel free to take photos of your little one wearing their garment and send them my way. I would LOVE to feature them on my blog and even on my Facebook Fan Page!

Again, thank you to EVERYONE for participating. Your support is MUCH appreciated. Stay tuned for more news and more giveaways hopefully very soon! :)

Also, I would like to thank my best friend and roommate Danica for all of her help and support with this. She is having a giveaway of some of my onesies on her blog as well if you care to take a look. I don't know what I would do without that girl. Also, a little side note this weekend is going to be crazy for her. She's going to be working the Long Beach International City Bank Marathon and Half Marathon. I just pray that everything goes smoothly and it's not too much of a stress fest for her.

My First GIVEAWAY!!!

2010-10-10T23:10:00.000-07:00

So, I'm SO excited to announce my first Giveaway! I have been wanting to have one for awhile but have just been so crazy busy. And now, I've finally put some time aside to actually do it!

So, my first two giveaway items are:

Aviators on Grey and White Striped Long Sleeve
Size: 6-9 months

This is one of my favorite pieces. Very unique, very hip. Perfect for your little cool guy. :)

And second, Diamond Ring on Pink
Size:6-9 months

Perfect for your little "Material Girl" this diamond ring has enough bling to catch anyones eye.

These make for great unique pieces for your child or, they also make fabulous gifts for friends and for baby showers.

I'm SO excited to FINALLY be having a giveaway and with that being said, entering is easy!

To enter simply:
-Follow my blog
-Leave a comment on this blog post
-Link to my blog
-Tweet about Not So Cli-Shéa (@NotSoCliShea)
-Leave a comment on my Facebook Fan page

OR combine any and/or ALL of the above! There is NO maximum amount of entries so comment, link and tweet away!
There will be two winners, one for each item. Winners will be announced on Friday October 15th. Good Luck to everyone and I can't wait to announce the winners!

Fiiiinally

2010-09-30T14:50:00.000-07:00

I'm SO excited to announce that I will be having a booth at my friend Heather Kent's Craft Fair on Saturday November 6th. Check out the facebook event here.

It's still a little over a month away but I've been working away at getting all of my stuff ready for purchase and putting together a cute and eye catching table/booth. My roommate has been helping me with ideas and even going to craft fairs and flea markets with me. I'm so excited. This is going to be my first craft fair. Heather' asked me to do a craft fair awhile back but I just didn't feel my product to be 100% ready. I'm pretty type A and I either do things 100% or not at all. So, I decided to hold off and, lucky for me, Heather decided to have another craft fair and I'm honored to be asked to join again! :)

I've made several new items that I'm going to be sharing soon and I want to share some photos of my potential table set-up for the fair to possibly get some feedback.

Ideally I'd like to change my blog up a bit first and make it a little more functional but stay tuned, a lot of exciting things are in the works! :)

Four MONTHS?!

2010-09-09T15:46:00.000-07:00

So, as you can tell I havn't updated the blog in over four months. I'm so disaapointed with myself but I DO have my reasons.

I have been SUPER busy recently. I started working at my parents office, along with my job at the bar AND babysitting my cousin twice a week AND making baby clothes AND since the last time I wrote Danica and I moved! It has left me just enough time to do some facebooking and tweeting but not much to really sit and do some decent blogging.

Another reason I've kept away from the blog front is because I have been camera-less :( I have had pretty terrible camera luck in recent months. First, I had my camera stolen at a friends birthday party at a club, being strapped for cash I bought a hundred dollar replacment camera that I lost the charging cord for I guess during the move. Buying a new one pretty much cost the same as the camera so I didn't want to do that. My Canon Rebel SLR has been acting up so I haven't been able to use that either. Long story short... well.. not really at this point, I got a new camera!

It's waterproof, dust proof, shock proof AND freeze proof! If you know anything about me, I'm not real "outdoorsy" but I figured having a durable camera sure couldn't hurt.

Some more exciting news: Since the move, I relocated my "office" to our new place! We have a MASSIVE garage so I packed up all of my "craft room" from my parents garage and hauled it over to its new home. (photos to follow)

Here are some of the pieces that I've created since my last post. Bare with me, all of these are from my phone and for some reason the sizing and placement is a little weird but.. you get the idea.

Go Green Baby!

Go Green on Grey

Cement Truck

Long Beach Baby

Sailboat

Anchor

Dia De Los Muertos Baby

Egg on Purple

Navy Egg

Pink Leopard Locket

Popsicle

These are my new favs. I've recently become a huge fan of making what are called "yo-yo's" which I put on the onesies. The buttons that you see are actually faux buttons made of felt.

Pink Yo Yo

Orange Yo Yo

Beige Yo Yos

Navy Baby made for my friend Pilars son Keaton

"K" Onsie

Keaton in his "K" onesie

Itsie Bitsy Teenie Weenie Orange Polka Dot Bikini

Alhambra Fire Dept Girl

Alhambra Fire Dept Boy

Alhambra Fire Dept Twins (Front)

Alhambra Fire Dept Twins (Back)

I have much more to catch everyone up on but I'l leave it at that for now so that I have more to write later :)

busy busy busy.

2010-05-06T20:31:00.000-07:00

I've been so busy lately! Danica and I just recently found out that we're moving! We've been so excited and making moving and decorating plans every day! With all of our exciting plans (and expensive taste) I've been working a lot more to bring home the bacon :)

Unfortunately, that has left less time for my line. It's still alive and kickin' tho! Don't you worry.

I recently attended a Craft Fair put on by Miss Heather Kent. Awhile back she flattered me by asking if I would be interested in being a part of a craft fair that she was putting on. Unfortunatly, I didn't feel my product to be 100% ready yet, being the perfectionist that I unfortunately am. But, of course, I still wanted to go and check it out and support her. It was awesome. She did such a great job getting a wonderful group of vendors together. Some of my favorites were:

Found And Made
All of the items are handcrafted using bits and pieces of vintage, recycles or repurposed materials found at estate sales, thrift stores or even a junk pile or two. It was so neat to see the creative ways that things could be reused. Even down to the business cards that were made out of cut outs from old books. I definitely recommend checking it out.

momo fuchi
She had all sorts of adorable handmade ruffle bags. All of her work is very clean and she has a great eye for color. A definite recommendation for anyone looking for a girlie little gift or even a fun little something for yourself :)

Cookin' Cutie & Co.
Cookin Cutie has adorable cooking aprons but what REALLY caught my eye were her GENUS dog collar bandana wraps. I love for my dogs to wear the cute bandanas that they get after coming home from the groomers but a) they never stay on and b) I'm always afriad that it might be choking them. She came up with a great idea that slips right over the dogs collar so that they don't even know that it's on. If you do cooking and are looking for a cute apron check her out, but also, if you have a dog check her out as well!

Whodini Handmade
I LOVED Whodini Handmade. My friend Josh came with me to the fair (what a trooper) and the Whodini Handmade wallets just jumped out at us. They were so unique and fun. Josh had to buy one. Funny thing is, there was a raffle and I WON another one! Since Josh had already bought one I actually decided to donate it to the next group Give Global.

Give Global
Give Global is a non-profit organization allowing people to buy recycled clothes and accessories in order to give directly to a refuge center for children in Musekee, a small village in Northern Thailand. They have some really cute stuff and it's a really great cause. I recommend checking them out and adding them on facebook and/or following them on twitter as well.

Crochet Creations By Chelsey
Also at the fair was a friend from high school Chelsey who has her own crochet business Crochet Creations By Chelsey. She has some adorable headbands and hairwraps for any girl in your life from infant to adult! Her stuff is really cute and a great summer accessory!

Heather Kent
And last but certainly not least, again, Miss Heather Kent. She put on the wonderful event and was herself a vendor. Not only does she do amazing artwork, including outstanding pet portraits, she also does hand-painted jewelry art. I caved and HAD to buy a piece. Her meticulous work is astounding. It's the perfect unique gift for any unique lady in your life.

Needless to say, I had a great time at the fair. I'm sad that I wasn't able to be a part of it. But, I am definitely looking forward to a next time, when I can showcase all of the hard work that I've been doing tucked away in my parents garage or as I have been calling it recently "the office". Haha.

One of the major reasons that I chose to forgo the fair was because I felt that my product had a lack of a professional look due to the fact that I didn't have my own label created yet AND my business cards had YET to arrive. Without those two things I just didn't feel comfortable presenting my line to the world.

However, I recently had a friend buy a couple pieces for a baby shower that he was attending and I made due with what I had. I put together some labels and tags and packaged them up as you can see below:

Makeshift tag on the winking owl

Makeshift tag on duckie

All packaged up and ready to go

I have since been researching label companies and I am getting REALLY excited about it. Having my own professional label to put on my products is really going to make it all feel so much more official and really add that finishing touch. Also, I have since received my business cards from Vista Print and I am really happy with them.

So... like I said, things are still moving along, not as quickly as they were at the start, but they are definitely still moving.

My friend Corey has a niece who is turning one this weekend. Most of my products only go up to size 12 months so I made a special order for her. Instead of my standard bodysuit I instead used Gerber baby tee's in 18 months for her order. She says that the baby's mom is really into duckies but is kind of a rocker chick and is into animal prints. So, I mixed the two and here is what I came up with:

Leopard duckie baby tee

Giraffe duckie baby tee

Also, since my last post I expanded my color selection! I now have a wide variety of color to work with! SO exciting!

All of my onesie colors :)

These come in sizes 0-3mo, 3-6mo, 6-9mo and 9-12mo

And I also have these long sleeved patterned bodysuits

These only come in sizes 0-3mo, 3-6mo and 6-9mo

Also, I recently bought some fabric dye and am going to be dying the other four white baby tee's that I bought. I'm anxious to see how they will turn out. One of them is going to be for my friend Pilar whose husband is being deployed at the end of the month and we're going to put her son in a cute navy outfit to see his daddy off. Pictures to come!

So, even though I havn't posted in awhile, I've been keeping busy. Don't forget to check back often to stay caught up! Also, I will be having a giveaway soon on Danica's blog and possibly mine as well in the very near future, even more reason to stay tuned! :)

Take Care! :)

nice tush ;)

2010-03-29T21:08:00.000-07:00

so I made a couple of new pairs of bloomers that I'm excited about.
check them out :)

School Spirit (CSUF)

Peace

and I also made a couple of new onesies :)

peaceful heart

peaceful heart (back)

I love dad

lovebirds

lovebirds (back)

thanks for visiting :)
don't forget to become a fan on facebook!
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Not-So-Cli-Shea/368499030403?ref=ts

Pack, Pack, Pack it up!

2010-03-24T19:02:00.000-07:00

Things have bene going really well and I've been getting such great feedback from everyone! It's so nice to hear everyones comments. Not to mention everyone has been telling their friends which is such a blessing! Now that I have pretty much finalized my logo I have been working on my packaging. I wanted to have something simple that really showcases the product. I decided to stick with a clear bat and some simple twine. For convenience I used little price dots to mark the size of the garment enclosed.

Here are a couple of examples:

Peace on Stripes Packaged

Winking Owl Packaged

Duckie Packaged

Diamond Ring Packaged

And of course, true to form I made a couple of new pieces :)

Monogram Prince(ss)

Camera

California Baby

California Baby (back)

And I even made a headband! :)

Button Headband

It goes great with this piece:

Thanks for visiting! :)

New Logo!

2010-03-22T12:09:00.001-07:00

It's time to reveal my new logo.
I still might make a few changes but here is what my friend Frank from "Triple Force Grafix" came up with from the sketch that I gave him. It's pretty dead on what I wanted. What do you think??

If you saw the sketch I gave him you would be shocked at how pretty much identical it looks. I'm so pleasantly surprised with the way that it came out.

Well... thanks for checkin in... be sure to check back soon! :)

TGIF

2010-03-19T22:47:00.000-07:00

I love Fridays.

Ever Friday I go with my aunt and my two cousins (Cade, 2 1/2yrs. & Brynn, 1yrs) to toddler story time at the library. I love spending time with them (and... it's a good way to check out baby clothes trends! haha.) After that I have all day to myself. I don't work on Fridays so of course afterward I went to "the office", or as Danica calls it, my "craft cave". I got back to the baby clothes grind and this is what I came up with:

Peace On Stars

5K on Stripes

Rock Princess (Finished)

Rock Princess (back)

Hearts On Hearts (Finished)

Hearts and Camels (Finished)

Black Pump (back)

Legacy (back)

Paisley Dachshund (finished)

Paisley Dachshund (back)

And I decided to throw in some Fun for Friday :)

Grey Sunglasses

Mustache

Gosh... this stuff never gets old... stay tuned for more! :)

Run For Fun!

2010-03-19T01:46:00.000-07:00

So, my best friend and roommate "ChicRunner" does something that I could never imagine doing in a million years and that is run for fun. I mean, don't get me wrong, I WISH that I could but, with my horrible side cramps and weird back problems, I prefer to just watch from the sidelines. I have been with her through much of her running endeavors and I have come to realize that "Running for Fun" is actually something that tons of people do, not just my crazy roommate ;)

When I decided to get into doing baby clothes we discussed how there is a lack of anything running related for the babies/kids of runners and thus, I give you, my running inspired onesies:

Flower Marathon

Grey Marathon

Grey Marathon (Back)

Purple Striped Half

Polka Dot Half

And then I made this one just for fun...

Peace on Stripes

Peace on Stripes (back) (the peace sign ended up a liiiiittle more exaggeratedly sideways than I anticipated. haha. )

I'm still having SO much fun doing all of this and can't wait to set up my etsy account and get things movin! :)
Also, a special thanks to my cousin Cheri for donating to the cause :)

Todays Creations...

2010-03-17T00:40:00.000-07:00

So I spent most of today putting some finishing touches on some of yesterdays pieces and also making a couple of new ones.
Here are the changes to yesterdays pieces:

I stitched on the Lion on the Giraffe Heart

And I also added a Giraffe heart on the bottom

Sticked on the Hippo on Leopard Heart

And added a leopard heart on bottom

I added a ribbon the Winking Owl

Added a border to the Sorority Letters (still going to add the symbol on the back)

I stitched on the Gold Medal

I added laces and stitched on the Paisley Running Shoe

I also added a paisley heart on bottom

I added laces and stitched on the Leopard Running Shoe

I also added a leopard heart on bottom

I added laces and stitched on the Rose Running Shoe

I also added a rose heart on bottom

I added a paint border and ribbon to the Diamond Ring
I LOVE the way this one turned out.

I added a ribbon to the ducky

I stitched the edges and added a "cherry" to the Cupcake

I also added a button on the back

And here are todays new pieces:
(Most of which still have things that need to be done to them...)

Teal Anchor

Back of Teal Anchor

Anchor on Stripes

Rock Princess

Hearts on Hearts

Hearts & Camels

Black Heel on Pink and While Polka Dots

Teal Bird on Grey Pocket
(Pocket is non-functional)

Guitar Hoodie
(one of my favs)

This whole thing has really taken over my life and I've been LOVING every minute of it. I've come a long way in the few short days that I've really been actively working on it. I can't wait to see what tomorrow brings. Unfortunatly tomorrow is a busy busy day for me so I'm not sure I'm going to get much done but keep checking back. Hopefully I'll have my etsy store up and running by the end of the week. Once I have it up it's going to be www.notsoclishea.etsy.com.

Thanks for visiting! :D

and the announcement is....

2010-03-15T20:12:00.000-07:00

I have decided to launch a handmade baby clothing line!
I'm so excited about it and have been working on it NON-STOP.
I've done a lot so far but have a long way to go...
I'm looking into getting a logo made up and cant wait!
here is what I've come up with so far:

Not So Cli-Shéa
Custom Baby Clothing

Lion on Giraffe Heart

Hippo on Leopard Heart

Winking Owl

Gamma Phi Beta Legacy
(can do in any sorority OR fraternity :) )

Gold Medal

Pink Running Shoe

Paisley Running Shoe

Leopard Running Shoe on Pink and White Stripes

Rose Running Shoe

Monogram Lettering

Diamond Ring

Orange Ducky

Paisley Dachshund

Pink Cupcake

get excited...

2010-03-12T13:43:00.000-08:00

New things are coming to Not So Cli-Shéa!!

I'm so excited to announce a new venture that I will be embarking on but I have to iron out a few kinks first...

I'll be working with my friend and roommate ChicRunner to launch it and couldn't be more excited! So stay tuned!

worthwhile

2010-02-26T00:38:00.001-08:00

So, I've been told that I need to start blogging more. I too, have been thinking that I would like to blog more... update my cyber footprint, if you will. However, true to form, I can't help but be a bit cynical about the whole thing. I feel that blogging is a bit egocentric, narcissistic even. To think that your words, your thoughts and feelings are important enough to be made available to strangers still strikes me as kind of odd. When I used to blog in high school, using sites like Xanga and livejournal it was almost just because everyone else was doing it. It wasn't because I really had anything important to say, and that is how I feel now. I feel that if I'm going to blog I want it to be something worthwhile. I don't want to just ramble about my daily actives. So then that puts me at a crossroads. Do I a) stop blogging all together or b) start doing something that IS worthwhile?

I decided to go with the latter. Not just to create a better blog experience but to create a better me. When new years rolled around and everyone decided to make resolutions about loosing weight and drinking less and sleeping more, I made a decision, not a resolution, that I was going to do what I could do benefit my fellow man. I have only made small steps in this venture so far. Giving when I wouldn't normally have given, having patience when I normally wouldn't have had patience, listening when I normally wouldn't have listened. A man at my work the other day summed it up very well. He slipped me a $20 tip on a bill that couldn't have been more than $30 and when I asked "are you sure?" he responded with "if you have it, share it". That is exactly the motto that I would like to emulate. I want to leave a footprint in the lives and hearts of as many people as I possibly can. Having this blog is not only a way to possibly help reach more lives but also act as a motivator for me to continue on this journey. I'm not sure what is in store for me but I am very excited and anxious to see where this life takes me and hopefully it IS somewhere worthwhile...

2009-12-08T03:20:00.001-08:00

With Christmas time quickly approaching it has gotten me thinking about a lot of things. The most obvious of them being Christmas! I can't BELIEVE it's almost Christmastime again! I remember when I was growing up it felt like YEARS between each Christmas and yet my parents would always say "I can't believe it's Christmas time AGAIN already!". Now I'm the one saying it.

Another thing that I've been thinking about is how this is going to be my first Christmas not living at home. Although last year I had an apartment I was actually moved back into my parents house by mid-December. My roommate and I picked out the perfect place for a Christmas tree the day that we moved into our apartment way back in January of this year so, needless to say, we are looking forward to getting a tree.

Another thing that I've been thinking about though is how tight money is this holiday season. One of my favorite things ever is giving gifts, especially gifts that you know someone is going to love. Unfortunately this holiday season, I'm not sure I'm really going to be able to do that. I've even joked to some of my friends that this Christmas I can't even afford to MAKE gifts. Haha. We'll see... hopefully I come up with something special (and easy on my wallet).

Lastly, the other thing that has been on my mind is how 2009 is coming to a close. It was this time last year that I was finishing my last and final semester at CSUF and getting ready to face the "real world". Sadly, not much has really changed since then. I had these grandiose ideas for my future and what I was going to do, none of which have really happened. Don't get me wrong, I'm SO happy with SO many things right now. I have GREAT friends that I don't know WHAT I would do without, I have a loving and supportive family, I LOVE where I live (but when you're a block from the beach, how could you NOT??) and I have more fun that I should most of the time. Truth be told though, I'm working a meaningless job even though I have a bachelors degree and am more than qualified for dozens of other jobs this economy has really taken a dump on the job search for me. I have gotten to the point where it has really started to get under my skin to have to answer the age old question "What are you doing with your life now?". And that is why, I am making it my quest to claim 2010 as MY year. I am a firm believer that you make your own destiny. If there is something that you want you have to go out and get it. I am so happy in so many aspects of my life there is no reason that I shouldn't be in ALL aspects. So, with that said, I hope that 2010 is ready to get rocked by me because honestly, I don't think it stands a chance ;)

2009-05-14T17:10:00.000-07:00

Hello hello. It's been quite some time since I filled the online world in on this journey that I call my life. It's been years since my beloved Xanga and LiveJournal but alas, my roommates blog has got me antsy to join the blogging world again and so.... here I am.