Goooood Morning Arizona!

Yesterday was a tough day. Some shit went down and I found out that my departure for the lovely Chicago has to be delayed yet another day. I was less than pleased with this information so I cried a little then got over it. What that means for you is....

JACQUES AND JILL LAUNCHES TODAY!!

That's right! I didn't want to get caught in a hotel with shady internet trying my best to post things until the wee hours of the morning so I'm going to launch a day early. I just want to be sure that everything goes up somewhat smoothly. I'll post again later once everything is up but get excited because today is officially the big day :).

I'll be back later with pictures and the big "everything is posted" news.

Until then....

Update





The shop is UP! Head on over to Jacques and Jill to check everything out.

xo
Mal

Playing with Macro

If you've been following me for a while, you know that my dad got me a really wonderful camera a few months ago. I have absolutely no idea how to use it, but if I've learned anything from reading blogs, its that you don't have to be professionally trained to take great pictures (although it absolutely helps). I've been playing with it all summer. Within the past week I've been brave enough to try out some of the hand-me-down lenses my dad gifted me. So far, my favorite lenses are my macro lenses. I loveee the close up view of the world. I love the detail you can get from the photos and it's fun to frame the shots. Since it's on such an enlarged scale, everything seems much more interesting.

Over the weekend, I was making one of my favorite snacks (raspberries and blue berries with a dollop of cool whip) when I discovered something CRAZY. I am weird about my fruit so when I wash it, I generally pick out the berries one by one from the crate so that I know they aren't moldy. I was picking through my berries when all of the sudden I found this guy...

OH SWEET BABY JESUS! I had a heart attack because at first I thought he was alive. When I realized he had been dead for a while, my fear turned to intrigue and I snagged my camera. The coolest thing was that he was posed perfectly on the berry.

I had a little photo shoot with my bee friend then threw him (and his berry) away. What a crazy discovery. Have any of you ever found something ridiculous in your food? Share :)

Also, before I go, I wanted to thank everyone who participated in my giveaway. Some of you left me the sweetest comments and I've been gushing over them the whole weekend. I leave tomorrow morning for Chicago (YESSS!) but I have some posts planned. As long as I have internet I'll be able to post them for ya, if not it may be a few days before I'm back around here. If you'd like to see what I'm up to anyways, you can follow me on twitter. Please note, I'm a little more crass on twitter. Don't be offended :).

Finally, I'm not sure if any of you like when I do this, but it helps to keep me organized so I'm going to do it anways...
Shop talk:
-Jacques and Jill goes up on Wednesday (If I have internet!!)
-Since Chicago is famous for having great food, I thought I'd start a restaurant review around here. Nothing excessive, maybe two restaurants a month?
-I sent out the first newsletter yesterday. If you signed up and didn't receive it (or something else was HORRIBLY wrong with it) please let me know!
-I have a couple other blog ideas in the works. I hate doing anything weekly (besides your sugar... Which, I'll admit, I hate sometimes too) because I don't want my blog to become stale. But I have some fun occasional features that I can't wait to bring to you!

That's all for today.
-Mal

"It is better to light a candle than curse the darkness." -Eleanor Roosevelt



xo
Mal

And the winner is......

Helllooo!!!

It's time to announce the winner. I want to extend a HUGE thank you to everyone who participated. I've been slowly making my way through your etsy suggestions and they're great :). Since some people left one comment saying they did all 5 things and others left 5 separate comments I decided to make a word document with the accurate number of entries per person (credit where credit is due). When I expanded everyone's entries, I ended up with a whopping 88 (I'm blown away). And, since I want to be fancy, I decided to use the random number generator like everyone else does.

Soooo the winner is...
(I know I'm supposed to post the random number generator picture here but I tried for about an hour and decided it wasn't so important after all. I chose my sanity over the picture of the number generator haha. My apologies)

And according to my word document that is Elizabeth over at Yarn Happiness!! I gotta say, I'm really excited it worked out this way because she always leaves me the sweetest comments and has been a follower for a long time. GOOD JOB RANDOM NUMBER GENERATOR! Congrats lady, be sure to send me your address so I can get your prizes in the mail!!

see you all tomorrow!!
xo
Mal

Last day to enter the giveaway!

Today is my last day of work for the summer (and sadly, until I'm able to find a new job in Chicago) and this weekend will be focused around packing and, of course, getting things ready for the store. I absolutely love packing and, like the huge dork that I am, took pictures of the things I have been putting into boxes. I may even dedicate a whole post to packing :).

My shop opening is looming over me like this big scary cloud. I feel like I've put so much of my heart into it and the moment of truth is just around the corner. It's funny because I feel like I'm not really putting too many items in the shop but the amount of work that has gone into them has been astronomical. I'm finishing up the last few items that are going to be photographed tomorrow and putting the finishing touches on all the behind the scenes work (bookkeeping, tags, care tags, sewing in loose ends, adding buttons, embellishing with fun surprises). I knew it would be a lot of work to get things up and running, but I'm shocked at how difficult it really is! I think it's fun to get a first hand look at things in other people's stores, so I'm giving you another peek today at an item that will be up next week. (I'll keep giving you previews until the big day--get excitedddd!!)


Remember that today is the last day to enter the giveaway. I'll be choosing a winner tomorrow first thing so if you want to enter, now is the time! . Also, I've been getting some anonymous comments. That's fine and dandy but please leave your name or a way to contact you with your comment so I can differentiate.

xo
Mal

P.S.
Welcomeeee new readers! I'm so excited to have you here :).

Yesterday was a wonderfully productive day

This week has been almost entirely devoted to tying up loose ends for the launch of my knits. Yesterday was no exception. I started the day off by knitting half of another hat then I went to go get my hair done. I LOVE IT!


(note: My bangs aren't cut straight across, I just think it's fun to take pictures like that)

After I got my hair cut, I watched some Cold Case, knit more of the hat, and made myself a DELICIOUS lunch.


Make it yourself!

Ingredients:
-Really seedy whole grain bread
-spinach
-white bean hummus
-cherry tomatoes
-deli turkey
-cottage cheese

1) Toast your bread, spread a layer of hummus on it, then pile on the spinach, turkey, and tomatoes.
2) Throw a bit of cottage cheese on your plate and you're good to go.

I think the flavor was missing something but I couldn't put my finger on what exactly it was. Let me know if you try it and any additions you make to yours :).

After lunch I went to take pictures of the kids knits I have going in my shop. One of the families I babysit for was kind enough to let me use their kids as models and they were SO SO SO CUTE! It's so fun to be around people who are so enthusiastic about everything. They kept telling me I was so professional and I thought that was hilarious since I have no idea what I'm doing. I thought I'd share a photo with you from the mini-shoot I had with them :).


SUUUCHHH a fun day! Today I have a lot more work to do for the shop. While I'm busy with my knitting needles, you should enter my giveaway! It closes tomorrow at midnight so be sure to get your entries in.

xo
Mal

Fun things I bought yesterday

I have this book buying problem... I really can't control myself. I don't even pretend to want to control myself. I buy books almost compulsively. Last week I was feeling really beaten down on the reading front because I hadn't read a really great book in a LONG time so I went to my neighborhood Borders and perused the best seller aisle. I know that's sort of cheating but if they are best sellers they must be doing something right...right?

Anyways, on my journey down the best seller/new release aisle, I saw Chelsea Handler's newest book, Chelsea Chelsea Bang Bang. I read her first book (or what I'm assuming is her first?) My Horizontal Life while in high school. I distinctly remember that I didn't read it at school because I found myself laughing out loud through the majority of the book and I didn't want to be the weird girl who was dying of laughter because of a book. Needless to say, I found the solution to my book problem. Instead of just buying Chelsea Chelsea Bang Bang... I lost control and bought her other book, Are You There Vodka, It's Me Chelsea as well. I may be out of control... But mostly I'm just pumped up about reading these gems.

I also bought something fun for Jacques and Jill. LOOK HOW CUTE! (it's a stamp)


Mmk I believe that concludes this session of "Malori is really irresponsible with her money". Tune in next week for an all new episode!

In the meantime, don't forget to enter the giveaway! It closes on Friday :)

xo
Mal

New Day and Giveaway

This week is turning out to be quite hectic. I leave in exactly seven days (THANK GOD) and my store goes up in eight... I'm a little worried about how unpacking/mailing things will go. But I've started to pack all my knits into one cute plastic container from target so I won't have to search through countless boxes to find an order. Last night I wrote the majority of my descriptions and today I'm making hang tags and pricing things (as well as weaving in ends and sewing on buttons!) It's fun getting so close to the big day but definitely stressful as I'm a perfectionist and want nothing but the best for my store.


(it's been a while since I posted a picture of myself. At least I feel like it has lol)

Don't miss out on my giveaway, it closes this Friday. Go to the post below to enter (or click the link from this post).

I'll be back tomorrow feeling a little more put-together than right now! In the meantime, click the link on my sidebar to order your copy of Creative Juice Zine :).

xoxo
Mal

Giveaway timeee

So I was playing around on google reader yesterday when I realized you can get analytics for blogs there. I thought it'd be fun to see how many subscribers my blog had and I was SHOCKED to see that the number was 104. Is this information accurate!? I'm going to assume that it is and, as promised, I'm bringing you a giveaway. Rather than heap a bunch of crap together and throw it at you, I thought it'd be fun to do something smaller and more personal. So this giveaway is somewhat small, but quite good if I do say so myself!

Here's what you get:
-An adorable ring from Samantha of Indie and Chic. I love her sweet collection of accessories so when I treated myself to a pair of earrings from her last week, I decided I'd also treat you to a piece of her jewelry!

-I compulsively make lists so when I found this sweet notebook on etsy specially made for LISTS I couldn't resist getting one for you.

-A gift certificate to Jacques and Jill worth $15.00

-One surprise item! I'll give you a hint...it's one of my favorite things :)


So if you win you can put on your ring and make a list of all the knit goodies (or earrings) you want from Jacques and Jill :). Then you can use the mystery item. So great!

Here's how to enter!
-Comment below telling me your favorite etsy shop
-Sign up for my newsletter
-Blog about this giveaway
-"follow" my blog
-"like" Sunday Morning Sugar on Facebook

Easy enough right? If you do all of the above you can get 4 entries. If you already follow, mention that in your comment to get an entry for it. The giveaway will close on August 27th at midnight Arizona time (this friday!). I want to extend a HUGE thank you to everyone who takes the time to read my blog. When I started it I really had no idea what I was doing and I can't believe how far I've come in the past year!

I love you all so much!!
xo
Mal

Creative Juice Zine

It's finally here! Are you ready!??! ARE YOU READY!? Okay I'll calm down a little bit...

I've been lucky enough to be a part of a fun project for the past few weeks (and hopefully for a long time to come) and it's finally time to share the details with you :).

The lovely Justine (who I mention constantly around here) approached me a few weeks ago with a fun idea to start a craft zine with some other incredible bloggers (Kaeluh, Janel, and Chelsea). We all teamed up, wrote some great articles/DIY's/recipes and put them together to create the first issue of....


Today is the first day for pre-orders so head on over to my sidebar (or below) and click the "buy now" button. The cost of the zine is $4.00 and $1.00 for shipping (100% affordable). If you pre-order, your zine will be shipped after the first of September.

And while you're clicking things on my sidebar... Don't forget to sign up for my newsletter :)! Your information is safe with me!

xo
Mal

Relax, Don't Do It!

"Oh, I'm sorry, did my pin get in the way of your ass? Do me a favor and lose five pounds immediately or get out of my building like now!"



I couldn't resist. I watched Zoolander this morning and will be quoting it for the next few weeks (at least). Also, I never realized before, but the costume design in the movie is fantastic.

xo
Mal

Art....?

Last night I FINALLY started working on a project I've wanted to do all summer. Here's a peek...



I bought a shadow frame and I'm designing an abstract piece that symbolizes some major goals I have in my life. I worked on it for a few hours last night then got stuck but hopefully I'll get inspired again today and finish some more of it. It was a really nice break from all the knitting I've been doing. I love working with paper. I can't sit down and draw a picture of anything realistic but give me shapes and colors to play with and I'm a really happy girl!

What projects are you working on this weekend? Leave me links :)

xo
Mal

Does life ever slow down?

The grand opening of Jacques and Jill is scheduled for September first. That gives me exactly twelve more days of furiously knitting, photographing, pricing, describing, packaging, and preparing. It will be such a relief when the September rolls around and I can take a bit of a break but until then I feel like my life is whooshing past me!

Sadly, because knitting is consuming every waking moment in my life, I don't have many exciting things to share, but I thought I'd give you a little DIY.

A few years ago I saw the cutest envelope in the world (seriously) and when I realized it was made from a magazine I just about died. I instantly made myself a pattern and began hacking away at old magazines and making my own. If you've ever purchased something from me (or you've gotten a letter from me) then you know what I'm talking about. They're really simple to put together and make your mail about a billion times more exciting. I feel like the majority of my DIYs are realllllly simple, but oh well.



What you'll need:
-an old envelope (any shape/size)
-old magazines (or new ones I suppose...)
-scissors
-a glue stick or tape or even just regular glue if that's all you have
-a pen or pencil

1) Carefully disassemble your envelope. This is what you're going to use to make your template.
2) Lay the disassembled envelope on the cover of one of your magazines. You can also lay it over some card stock paper if you prefer. Any thicker paper will work!
3) Trace around the envelope. You'll have to be somewhat careful not to move your envelope around the paper because that will skew your template. When you're finished tracing, cut along the lines
4) You have your template! Woo! Now use this to trace over any page in the magazine that tickles your fancy.
5) After you've traced your template on a few pages and cut them out, you can fold. I feel like this is pretty self explanatory but I'll say it anyways. Where ever there was a fold on your original envelope, there should be a fold in your new magazine version.
6) Glue/tape the sides together (be sure to leave the top open so you can put your letter inside!) and you're finished!


Before I go I want to fill you in on some things that are coming up in my life:
1) The first edition of Creative Juice, a craft zine I write for (along with four other fabulous ladies) is coming out in September. It's going to be fabulous.
2) I am moving in twelve days. Twelve days, you say? Yes, I am moving the same day that my knits are going live. I'll be a big bucket of stress that day. Be glad you only have to deal with me through the computer screen.
3) Did you notice that you can now sign up for my newsletter on my side bar? If you haven't signed up yet, be sure to do so!

See you tomorrow
xo
Mal

Busienss Feature

Helloo all,

It's been a while since I've featured a business and I decided it was time. I decided that I didn't like asking the same questions of all those I interviewed so I'm working on changing it up (this one is still the same, oops!). This week I'm featuring a business that is really special to me. I'm from Phoenix and I've been shopping at buttertoast since I was a junior in high school. They have a fabulous vintage store and they are so sweet and dedicated. When I saw their store and heard their story I realized that the possibilities for business ownership really are endless. Here's what Jasmine had to say :)...


What is your name and where can we find you online (blog/twitter/website/etc)?

My name is Jasmine Jarrett and I am one half of Butter Toast Boutique and my business partner is Traci Nelson

www.ButterToastBoutique.com
www.etsy.com/shop/buttertoastboutique (coming soon)
www.etsy.com/shop/billiegoatvintage    (current online store)
www.twitter.com/ButterToastPHX

What do you do for a living?

Both Traci and I run the our local vintage clothing store Butter Toast Boutique, in downtown Phoenix AZ and the Etsy store currently under the name Billie Goat Vintage but we will soon be moving all of our online inventory under the Butter Toast name.

We ALSO have second jobs to supplement our income... I tend bar at a local neighborhood bar and Traci waits tables. We have been doing this for about 2 years now... its very tiring at times but we have no doubts BTB will be successful.


 
Have you always known that this is the career you wanted to have?  If not, tell me how you got into it.

No way... I can't speak for Traci but I have always had a million interests growing up... photography, writing, interior design and even a professional soccer player at one, young point in my life. BUT I can say, for quite some time I dreamed of having my own clothing store/cafe/music store/venue, (All in one, of course) and a small local magazine. Ha! BTB is something close to what I have wanted for more than a decade now.... so, really I guess you could say I have known for a bit.

How the store came to be is still a bit unreal for me..... A brief history.... Since my early teens and even younger actually, I have had an affinity for seeking out treasures.  So, naturally I fell in love with thrifting, which led to a love for everything vintage. A long while after the online vintage store boom, I decided to jump on the ebay train and I found Traci soon after when she started modeling for my online vintage store Billie Goat Vintage. Traci was always interested in fashion, so vintage quickly became a new love for her as well. A year or so later I approached Traci and asked her if she would like to collaborate on a small retail/working studio space in the downtown arts district and Ka-pow! Butter Toast Boutique!
 
Did you go to college to further your education in this field or did you gain your experience in another way?
Nope, its all been learn as you go so far, although at some point I would love to go back to school.
 
Do people generally support you or have you run into people who think you’re crazy to not have a “secure” desk job?
 
Haha, well people generally think I am crazy because of how much I work. I think more than anything people admire us for "going for it"
Traci and I have both put a lot of time, money and energy into what we are doing but we aren't special and we don't have anything that others don't, we are simply willing to put ourselves out there.

What is your favorite part about your career?
Definitely the shopping, searching, digging and the excitement of finding something amazing. And I enjoy the community the store has opened up for us... downtown Phoenix is still growing and we are happy to be contributing and helping shape the arts district.




Finally, do you have any advice to entrepreneurs or budding artists who want to make their craft/passion a career?
GO FOR IT! Put yourself out there and really commit to what you want create. (and get used to change.... nothing will ever work out as you planned)


I want to thank Jasmine for taking the time to answer my questions. If you live in the phoenix area I would definitely recommend stopping by the Butter Toast Boutique because it's absolutely wonderful. If you live far away, the online store is just as fabulous so don't worry :).

xo
Mal

Another goal down...

I'm so excited about my 20 before 20 goals. I know there are some I won't be able to complete (saving $5000, getting straight A's last semester, and being in a craft fair) so I'm determined to do as many of the others as possible! I just booked a cooking class for September 18th and this morning I sold my 15th handmade item. I've been keeping up with my blogging so that's another goal I'll be able to cross off and when school starts I'm going to learn how to sew in my garment construction class so there's another. I'm already compiling my list of goals for next year and if you've never set goals for yourself I'd highly recommend it. I can't even begin to tell you how much I've done that I never really thought I would do.
(an old photo but this bad boy will be in the shop soon!)


On that note, my bonus goal was to set up and teach some kind of crafting class. I've been thinking a lot about this and I have some ideas for ways I could go about this. I thought that a really fun way to teach people how to knit would be in-home knitting parties. For a price I could supply yarn, needles, and knowledge to a group of people (no more than 10) for a fun ladies night where you and your friends can pick up a new skill. Sort of like a Tupperware party...but better... I'm still working on the specifics, but I think it'd be really fun. Does that sound like something you would be interested in?


I feel like I have so many projects and not enough time. After I post all of my knits my life should calm down a bit but these next two weeks are going to be absolutely ridiculous. Here's another peek at what I've been up to...


xo
Malori

ps
I want to thank everyone who emailed me or left me a comment yesterday. The good outweighs the bad as far as I'm concerned and I really appreciate your support :). Also, Justine is having a sweet giveaway over at her blog so you should check it out!!

Eay, Pray, Love

Yesterday I spent the majority of my day packing (FINALLY!) and knitting. My mom asked if I wanted to go see Eat, Pray, Love and I decided I could take a break from my rather unproductive day to go see the movie. I read the book a really long time ago, I think it was my junior year of high school? Regardless, I loved it and I love Julia Roberts so I figured it couldn't hurt to see the cinematic version of the novel. I just have a few things to say.

1) James Fraco is gorgeous. He's 100% my kind of guy and he's wonderful in this movie. (Did I mention that he's gorgeous?)



2) Ketut is hilarious and adorable but also insightful. I loved the character and thought it was very well-played.
(I could only find an image of the real Ketut and Liz but that'll do the job)


3) Julia Roberts was a perfect choice for the lead. Once again, she wowed me. Also, I think she was costumed beautifully. Age appropriate but still sexy and fun. Perfect!


If you haven't seen the movie you should give it a try. If you haven't read the book you should ABSOLUTELY read it. Especially if you've ever dealt personally with divorce, depression, or feeling lost in life (it appeals to pretty much everyone). It was a fantastic way to end the weekend!


And before I go, a note on disparaging comments. Before I go to the negative, I want to say that I appreciate and love every comment that you guys leave for me. They are all sent to my email and if I don't reply on the post, know that I read (and re-read) whatever you say to me. It blows my mind that people are reading this and that they want to contribute by leaving me sweet comments! I love it. Having said that, I would like to address the anonymous comments that are less than pleasant. A friend of mine told me that you aren't big in the blogging world until you have haters and I guess that I'm getting there because I've recently gotten some comments on posts and on my formspring that are rather cruel. I'd like to address them formally so here goes:
If you are reading my blog and you do not like what I have to say then stop reading. No one is forcing you to be here. No one is making you look at my pictures or read day-to-day stories about my life. And I am certain that no one is forcing you to comment and criticize me on a personal level. Be aware that when you are reading this blog (or any blog for that matter), that you are reading a perfectly tailored snapshot of someone. The voice of this blog is just one facet of my personality. I like to keep things light. I want my blog to be a place where people can go to find little bits of inspiration and maybe gain some motivation in their own lives. If you only know me through my blog, please be aware that you don't know the whole story. I know that I am choosing to put my personal life on the internet and that may seem like a cry for attention, but really I just wanted to be a part of (what I thought was) the incredibly supportive DIY community. So please, if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all. And if you frequently find yourself muttering angry words at your computer while you're reading my blog, then stop reading.

I apologize for turning my happy movie review into an angry sort of rant. I promise I will not address negative comments in the future (especially not in a post) and will continue to keep things positive around here.

xo
Mal

Unnoticed

“She was beautiful, in the quiet way that lonely, unnoticed people are beautiful to those who notice them.“ -Jedediah Berry



xo
Mal

Too much knitting..

Too much knitting going on over here for a real post today.

So much to do to get ready for September! How did it get here so quickly!?

HOW!?


Okay I'll stop spreading my panic to you and get back to mass producing ear warmers :).

Don't forget to sign up for the monthly newsletter by emailing me at SundayMorningSugar.Blogspot.Com!


xo
Mal

p.s.

This sweet blog featured me yesterday and said some of the kindest things about me. I am so excited about it! Check it out by clicking here.

Deleted My Facebook

So a couple days ago, I got fed up with the world of facebook and decided that it was time for it to go. After deactivating my account I felt like I had cut my arm off. I have had a myspace/facebook since I was in 7th grade and I feel extremely removed now that it's gone. I promised myself I'd leave it off for at least a week and see how life goes when I don't have instant access to all my friends, present and past, with the click of my mouse. I know it's only been about a day and a half, but I am shocked at how much I have crossed off of my to-do list. I finished a custom beanie order that I have been working on for a year and a half (it took me so long because my little brother's friend wanted it and I didn't really think he was serious. Turns out he was).

I also finished a cute scarf for my shop and got started on my last custom knit order! It should be done today depending on when I leave work.

NOT ONLY did I find time to finish those two knits, but I also wrote in my journal, read two chapters from two books that I'm currently reading, wrote my two articles and bio for a craft zine I am a part of, AND I PAINTED!


I'm not saying I spent 24 hours a day on facebook before, but I never truly realized how much time was spent there. It was far more than it should have been, clearly. So my question (and maybe challenge?) to you is, have you ever tried to go without facebook? If not, try staying away for a few days (or forever!?).

Before I head to work (my god I'm so so so late), I wanted to mention that I have a cute monthly newsletter starting up. If you're interested in getting it, email me at SundayMorningSugar@yahoo.com. I know I've said it before, but I'll say again that nothing on the newsletter will ever be seen on the blog (and there may be a coupon for my shop for my first round of subscribers!). So send me an email!!

xo
Mal

Soceity6

Hey kids,

Today I found this WONDERFUL website that I really want to share with you. Soceity6 sells really interesting prints that are totally affordable. I'm planning on buying one or two to add to my collection that will be helping to decorate my new apartment. I am a little bit obsessed with prints so I'm really pretty excited about this discovery. Perhaps you will be too!? You can check it out by clicking here. The following are a few of my favorites.









xo
Malori

Goings-on

My life has been absolutely RIDICULOUS recently. I'm homeless (moving in three weeks to Chicago for school, still don't have an apartment), slammed with work for my shop, part of a group of lovely ladies who are putting together a zine, trying to find a job, and putting together a monthly newsletter for my fabulous readers. I feel like there isn't any time to breathe. Also, I love it (minus the being homeless thing).

If you're interested in receiving the monthly newsletter let me know! Email me at SundayMorningSugar@yahoo.com and I'll put you on the list. Again, it will feature information that is not on the blog so it won't be redundant. It's a great alternative for you if you don't have time to read the blog but still want some Sugar. Also, Justine did a great job with the layout so it's pretty adorable (if I do say so myself).

I'm sure most of you have heard about the post from Biscuit by now. Let me preface this by saying I thought her list of Pet Peeves was hilarious and even though I am guilty of a few line items, I could still find the humor in it. I've been promising to host a giveaway when I hit one hundred followers and her pet peeve about crappy giveaways has me thinking. I thought that since this giveaway is BECAUSE of my followers, that I would give you a chance to contribute. What would you like to see in my triple digit giveaway? I'm open to any and all suggestions and I want it to be a prize that you would actually want to win so let me know.

This post has been mostly informational, I apologize. I just feel like I had so much to tell you and I really didn't want to cram it onto another post. To round things out, I decided to share some pictures that my older brother and I took last night. He left for school today and before he left he decided it was necessary to "bond".







xo
Mal

Prescott!!!

So on Saturday I took a desperately needed break from life to go on a day trip with one of my oldest friends...

Since middle school babyyy!!

(that picture is from high school, my freshman year, but you get the jist...Also, she's going to actually kill me for posting that picture)
Anyways, we took a day to visit Prescott, Arizona.

One of my favorite things about this lovely state in which I grew up is that with a quick drive you can be somewhere COMPLETELY different. We hopped in my car around 10 in the morning (at 105 degrees) and two hours later were bundled up in Prescott enjoying the brisk weather and beautiful scenery (65 degrees).
We snagged some lunch at a yummy burger restaurant when we got there because we were STARVING. I'm shocked that neither of us thought to throw some snacks in the car for the drive. What kind of a road trip doesn't involve snacking!?

After lunch, we looked through about a BILLION antique stores. There are soooo many antique stores in the town square. You could get lost in them for hours.

This guy was my absolute favorite find of the day. A KNITTING SHEEP! ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! I laughed so hard and fell in love. I didn't buy him because Kristina told me it was "really really creepy", so I settled for snapping a few photos.

We finished off our day (really it was just the afternoon) with taking about a jillion pictures in the park (I'll spare you the majority of them). It was a lot of fun and oh so beautiful! If small towns didn't make me feel trapped, I would love to live there someday!





And the day wouldn't have been complete without a chai latte from a local coffee place. (verdict: tasted pretty good, TINY portion for the price)

Such a fun day!!

In other news, I'm part of a group of ladies that is putting together a crafty little zine and I'm sooo excited about it. If you're interested in subscribing, stay posted! More information will be available really soon

xo
Mal