Treasure hunting and finding

Looooooook at all my shiny treasures! I can't believe I scored all this for about $40!! The most expensive thing was $12.50 but they gave us a discount for paying in cash. Gotta love the bf for shelling it all out for me so I could take these lovelies home!

This great silver bag was only 9 bucks and has an awesome art-deco vibe going on.  Not sure at all what time period it comes from, but my googling tells me that it's probably a 60's knock-off of the art-deco style.  I don't care though...

...I mean...look at how precious the inside is!

And this silver belt is also fantastic but has absolutely no labels or markings of any kind but I found a bunch of the same belt on Etsy and they all say it's from the 70s.  I have so many dresses and skirts to wear this with it's stupid.

This purse has to be my favorite of all the treasures - it has a label inside that says "Made in Belgium" and from my internet searching I was able to learn that in the 20's France and Belgium were the top-end producers of these types of beaded bags.  This one has a strap on the back for a belt, and I just think it's precious.  Similar ones people were selling online cost upwards of $70 so for just 10 bucks I'd say I definitely scored here.  Thanks again Danny-face.

And this is the same hat that made an appearance earlier that I snagged for my cousin, Molly, and I have high hopes it'll get used in a vintage wedding inspiration shoot one day! It is in such great condition and I can't wait to see what she does with it!

And here is a shot of all the treasures...guess I was really feeling the cream and silver.  It's such a great color palette. 

I can't wait to do another trip but I must hold off until after Christmas when I have spaces that need decorating and outfits that need accessorizing. Then I'll have an actual excuse to shop for myself again instead of shopping for Xmas presents.  Has anyone else ever gotten this lucky at one of those giant never-ending antique malls? There are so many along I-70 and I always feel overwhelmed and like I could spend hours there.

My little brother is engaged!

The word little should really be in quotes because he outgrew me sometime in high school but he'll always be "little" to me.  But anyway...Daniel made the plunge this weekend and asked his lovely girlfriend, Lindsey, to marry him.  Since she lives in Texas and not nearly all of our very large and all Missouri-located family had met her yet, I decided to take my old party planning skills out of my back pocket and put them to good use for a little engagement soiree.  I stole some things from her Pinterest account for inspiration and then also used the fact that they've taken about a million pics together to make some cute little banners.  I snapped a couple pics before everyone got there so here you go - it's nothing super fancy but I think it turned out pretty sweet - just like the two of them!

It was just champagne and deserts, so this table was the centerpiece of everything.

I also made a little station where people could write them a note for their wedding day. 

Another shot of the table/banner - thanks to the bf for helping me with those banners! I don't have a wider shot of the room because it's still kind of under construction (an addition to my parents' house) but there were two more banners with just pics on the two walls adjoining this one and they took kind of forever to make!

A close-up of the cupcakes (ordered from Hy-vee and delicious!) and a quote stolen from Winnie The Pooh via her Pinterest account.

And here's the happy couple - cue the collective "awwww."

And a little table just for them...that they never once sat down at but at least it looked cute.

And the bf and I attempting to take a pic together (4th or 5th try was a charm) so I could show my matching outfit, but the pic is so dark you can't tell that my dress is purple and my tights are grey too.

I had such a great time planning this for them and I am so overjoyed to be gaining a sister in Lindsey - good job little bro, good job.

Things I want to buy

This could be a regular topic for me, because I'm always wanting to buy things I can't afford but during a last minute Xmas shopping trip at one of my favorite mid-MO antique malls, Artichoke Annie's, I found TONS of great stuff that I wanted to take home with me!

Like this adorable vintage wreath - there were 2 of them that I reallllly wanted.

This amazing hat I did take with me for the bargain price of $12.50 - it will soon be going home with its true owner, my cousin, Molly, who does wedding planning and has such a great vintage eye.

This picture is hella blurry, but trust me this lamp was so great - and the dishes next to it are glittery amazingness.

I have a thing for tacky clocks.  See those birds suspended in mid-plexi? So perfect.

This old-school out-door xmas decor perfectly suited my xmas decorating mood!

This pristine vanity set also caught my eye...but I left it for another despite my instincts. Maybe I'll go back for it.

Well hello Incan book-ends.  If you hadn't been $36 for the pair, you would be sitting on my shelf right now.

This poodle lamp was horrible...but in a good way.  I could really see Emily Henderson putting this into some wacky-awesome chick's house.  She gets me.

I'm confident she'd also love this hairy lamp.  And it was only like 25 smackaroos.  It's like they're giving it away.

They weren't quite giving these babies away, but if I ever have to have bar stools in my house, I hope they are as sweet as these.

That's all for the stuff I didn't buy - I'll be back with another post on the great bags and belt I might have bought for myself as early christmas presents.  Happy Monday everyone! xoxo

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

Christmas is my absolute favorite time of year do today I busted out the decorations, turned up the Xmas tunes, sipped the last of my fall ale, and got my place in the spirit! So loving this Sunday night! Hope you like my attempt at holiday decor. The Christmas yoda is a must.

My very sparse wreath...love that giant silver reindeer though!

My little tree filled with barbies and ornaments I made as a kid.

Random decor + fave old pics = smiles.

And my simple but glittery table.  Still in progress.

holiday treats!

so i really really love food. especially dessert...just ask any of my family members...i'm pretty sure it's a genetic addiction. some of my friends celebrated "the first thanksgiving" (as in - the first one that we have with friends instead of family hah) last friday and i brought a couple of my all-time favorite thanksgiving-themed desserts, which area always huge hits and also both SUPER easy to make.

just thought i'd share the recipes in case anyone else is inclined/so that i can find them even easier next time:

• bourbon chocolate pecan pie from the goddess of butter - http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/chocolate-pecan-pie-recipe/index.html
• only takes five minutes to make but leaves you with about a gallon of pumpkin dip dip - http://www.food.com/recipe/sweet-pumpkin-dip-466277

enjoy! seriously...this is the season to get fat. just do it.

a new beginning

so i'm not really sure what the purpose of this blog is going to be, but i really needed a place to share some home-decor/DIY projects that i've recently taken on and am generally bad at journaling so i thought blogging might suit me better. i do not at all claim to be crafty or artistic but i do love beautiful spaces and things and am on a super tight budget so every once in awhile i actually try to do something myself instead of buying it or hiring someone else to do it for me.

i've also recently started a majorly new phase in my life - moved back home to Missouri (the show-me state...hence the blog title), fell in love, and got an awesome new job at the University of Missouri. so in some ways this will just be for documenting my new adventure. so, my friends...here i go!