Back to my first love.

Good Morning!

If you're reading this, then be thankful you woke up this morning. Many did not. Someone is crying this morning because they lost a loved one.

I did not lose a loved one but rather discovered a love again. I've been so busy with promoting my business and hustling on that end, that I forgot how it feels to create with vinyl.

I worked on an order for my best friend and second husband. Yep, that's what I call them. I'll have to get into that later for another post and I promise I'll explain it.

Well, he's a DJ so I made him some signs for his trailer that he carries his equipment in so he can always have advertising on all sides.  Then I made him a headphone with his name and number for his newest equipment. I tried out the reflective vinyl which is white from Expressions Vinyl.

His wife on the other hand just became a certified Zumba Instructor and so she wanted 3 tees made for her class.

So, with the help of my friend Da Shawnna, I was able to create a beautiful tee for her. It was really nice to use my Cameo (Chanel) for a vinyl project. I think I want to make more tees for sure.

Then on Monday, I ended up making even more pieces. I have been wanting to make this weight loss jars that I saw a long time ago. Well, some friends and I are going on a cruise in September and we're working on weight loss before then.

So, yeah I made a jar! Here are some pictures of the projects I worked on.

THIS WAS TOTALLY FUN!!!! I CAN SEE MORE TEES IN MY FUTURE! 

I GOT THE CLEAR STONES AT THE DOLLAR TREE 

AND THE CONTAINERS AT BIG LOTS.

DECIDED TO JUST DECORATE THE TOP AND

 THE NO PAIN NO GAIN FILE IS FROM THE SILHOUETTE STORE

Yep, I realize I could have done so much more with my jar but for now I was just keeping it simple. 

Thanks for reading!

Oh and be sure to check out my other blog, I'm have a Design Team call for Pink Bow Ties.

My Hair

Marc decided to let me know this morning he is surprised I still have my hair in the same hairstyle.

Why yes I do.

You see, when I met Marc, I was always wearing my hair different.  Braids and wigs are my thing.

Now, I don't know why I choose to get braids because they always hurt my head. I have always been tender headed since I was a child.  I love braids because I don't have to do my own hair but it takes a special person to braid my hair. They have to be soft to the touch.  If I am doing a lot of moving in the chair, that means it is killing me.  If I am siting there quietly, they're doing a perfect job and will get a nice tip from me.

Now wigs, I love them. I love that I can come home and snatch it right off.

Right now, my hair is in crochet braids. That means my hair is braided down and then I have hair added to my head using a crochet needle.  Simple style. I've gotten these for years and I still love them.

Matter of fact, I am getting them again for our cruise in September with bigger hair.

After this style, I'll wear my hair out for a few days and then probably do the crochet again with different hair.

When it comes to wigs though, I cannot wear them again. My hair is too thick in its natural state. My mom does hair but does not know how to braid, therefore I don't either. Nobody ever taught me and so I just can't do it.

My friend Sharita has a huge afro but knows how to braid her hair down in order to wear a wig.

I just love experimenting I guess but my favorite hairstyle is my natural hair. I love being fierce.

How do you wear your hair? Do you like different styles? Let me know below!

Various Pics of me.
Far left pic: I have tree braids in.
Very top: Crochet braids.
Underneath 1st square to the left: wig.
Next to that: my real hair. when I had a perm.
Bottom left: wig.
Bottom right: my natural hair.

Stupid Stairs and News.

Nothing like walking down the stairs in the morning to miss the last two steps and fall. My knee has been giving me problems for some time but I've never gotten it checked out because it was nothing that last long.

Well, this last trip on the cruise seem to have really taken a toll after I came home from CHA. My knee is better but I can't go up the stairs on both of my legs. I'm going up on one leg and it is VERY frustrating too!

Yes, I already know what many will tell me - go to the doctor. It's not that easy right now. I have an appointment on the 11th at Radiology. Once I'm done with that, I'll make an appointment about my knee. In the meantime, I ordered myself a copper sleeve for my knee.

Hopefully, once I get this looked at or put this sleeve on, it will make it better for me when I'm walking. I want to start really walking again and working out but I can't do anything with this bummy knee.

When I do go to places and walk, I have to be mindful of how I am walking because if I twist my knee a certain way - that's a wrap. I can feel it pulling something. It does not hurt but I know I am damaging it.

I have to go back upstairs after I write this post so that I can get my data stick that I left up there. I need it to finish up these stamps.

Which brings me to my next point, I'm in the process of working on just a blog for Pink Bow Ties, getting a Design Team, and changing the look of Pink Bow Ties.

I was going to shut this blog down but decided against it because I really want to post my weight loss journey somewhere and sometimes I just need to type and not talk. So, this blog will stay.

Pink Bow Ties on the other hand is getting a facelift. It is time.

Someone asked me about making them a tee over the weekend and I was going to do it. I reverted back to my old ways of alway saying yes. Then I had a moment of breakdown, where I cried and I prayed. God knows my heart and knows what direction I am trying to go and knows that I cannot get off course.

So, I had to write this person back and tell them I could not do it but referred her to another talented crafter who has always helped me and who I know would do it.

So, yeah my health and business is my focus this year. My word for this year is really focus. A friend told me some real advice last night and it stung a little but I needed to hear it and I knew it, I just hadn't had anyone say it to me.

Those are the friends you need in your life. The ones who will tell you something even when it hurts.

Have a good day.

Birthday Card Grown Woman Style

Good Evening!!

I am finally able to share this card on my blog. So, I guess it's officially my first creative blog post. Wow!!

The next time, I will post more pictures and maybe even show the process of what I am doing.

So, my friend Denisse had a birthday the other day and actually several other millions of people. So, if it was your birthday, Happy Birthday!!

Here's the card I created for her using the Elizabeth from the La Belle Series.

I am quite happy with the way it came out.

So, if you're wondering where did I get that tag, I do have pictures for that! Matter of fact, I will show you everything I used in one shot.

I know this post is short but I'll be better at stuff like this later.

In the meantime, what's on your crafty desk?

Supplies Used
There is only one thing that is missing, the black and kraft chevron paper I used.

I love to cover paper with washi tape! 

Close up of my shabby chic portion.

Ta Da!! I hope she loves it!
Thanks for reading my blog! I promise to make it more interesting!!

1st Cruise of 2015

Good Morning!!!!

It is almost 8 am here in cold and dreary Maryland. I so want to go out to JoAnn's and pick up a few things I saw posted but I think I will wait till tomorrow. Who knows!!! I may put on some warm clothes after all. It's night and day from the sunny weather I was exposed to last week.

So, in this post, I'm going to include a few pictures of the vacation. I've posted many on Instagram, maybe not as many as I posted on my private account but I will include more here though.

First off, I'm going to do a video of this trip and tell everybody about it and what I thought about it. One of my crafty friends, Diane called me the cruise queen. I actually like that! Yep, we have gone on many cruises. hahahaha

Just so you know, all pictures were taken using my iPhone 5S. Yep, brought my camera but left the battery backup in the room, therefore, there were no really good pictures. I was sad about it but the show must go on.

Please be sure to check out the videos that I took while on vacation. I posted many on Instagram but a lot of them did not make to Instagram so I just compiled all of them together last night and posted them. Now, I can delete that from my phone. hahahaha

Ok here are some pictures from our vacation.  These are NOT in chronological order.

Taken at the Cayman Turtle Farm in Grand Cayman. These turtles were huge!!

Taken in Hell, Grand Cayman.

Could this be a REAL craft shop? I was only passing by. Crap!

Taken in Falmouth, Jamaica right before we got back on the ship.

We love a good comedy show and this guy was okay. I don't 

remember his name. Too bad.

Taken before we took off to Miami.

Taken from the cruise ship as we were leaving Miami.

This was taken on our last day at sea. We decided to sit on 

deck 9 after breakfast.

This is behind the Hell building. Volcanic rocks.

Well, you know where this was taken, right before we got on the cruise.

Taken in Grand Cayman!

Statue at the Good Hope House in Jamaica. 

We are ready to cruise!

An Usie before dinner!

Awww look at my beer! They made

a moose or something like that!

Procrastinator

It is 3:44 a.m. and yes, I am still awake.

Marc came home, and I was on the phone with my friends in California. We'd been talking about our friend Mary who just passed away. Laughing about the good ole days. Then we called my friend Eve. I'll tell you about Eve later or if you've watched my video, I've spoken about her before. She's special.

For dinner, Marc made hash browns, eggs and turkey bacon. Surprisingly, I could taste it a little. Yep, this cold has been kicking my butt. It seems the older you get, the worse they get. I swear I hate being sick. I used to pride myself for not ever getting sick. I would avoid situations but it caught me this season.

Well, after we ate, we decided to play this trivia game m friend Brenda told me about. It's called Trivia Crack. Yep, it really is. It is addicting too! Marc helps me out with the Science and Sports section. We love to play games together. It's fun for us. Well, we played a few rounds in bed and before you know it, the game was staring at us.

Once we woke up, I was determined to get my clothes packed for the trip, but no, I watched my shows instead. Well, now it is almost 4 in the morning and I've finally put some items in my luggage. I guess I'll make a list of stuff I need to add tomorrow. I figure hey! I can sleep on the plane to Miami. Who cares if I don't get any sleep right now.  Right?

Do you work better under pressure? Are you a procrastinator?

Let me know below.

Oh and I'll be posting pics of our trip when I get back!

This Journey

It's almost midnight and I'm laying in the guest bedroom on the bed. I've mapped out a plan for some stamps from Feb - May, now I can take a creative break for a moment and think of other things.

My dream is that more people will find out about Pink Bow Ties this year. I know it will happen because I have people pulling for me. I also have myself pushing it as much as possible. I want to get to the point where I don't have to post my stamps in some Facebook group to get people to see them - they will automatically know. They will follow and keep up with the stamps. I know it will happen and so I wait and keep making moves.

My other important goal is to lose some weight. I've been heavy set, fat, or big boned my entire life. However you call it, it all points to one thing....obesity. So, I know what it feels like to carry so much weight and I'm freaking tired of it.  I had a personal trainer once and I was doing so great but it costs too much money to be honest. However, I learned invaluable lessons from Dave and I know what it takes to lose the weight.

I have decided to give Weight Watchers a chance again and this time I downloaded the app. I would also like to attend some meetings but we'll see. Let's be honest, I hate having to write down what I've eaten. I don't mind counting points though.

Today for dinner, I baked chicken thighs, made some rice and corn. Yeah I know! Not one green veggie in site. I need our roommate Chuck to make the veggies because his taste VERY good. I don't know what he does, but he makes them taste so good. So, he said he would make my veggies for me and show me how to make them. Like our own little personal chef. The man really can cook. I swear he'll make some woman happy.

That is all I ate today and I know it is not a good thing but it's a start. I am just ready to get rid of Tameka cause she's holding me down. Yep that's what I am calling this second person I am carrying around. She is getting on my nerves and I just want to kick her in the ass. Yep I do curse and you may see one or two in my blog. If it offends, I am sorry but I am not changing who I am for anyone. Love me because I am a work in progress boo boo.

Well, I need to take this Mucinex so it will knock me out tonight. I think I love blogging again.

Be sure to subscribe. I had Lhey to add the link over there for me because I don't know if it needs to be special or what but she made it special because everything else matches my colors!!

Be Good!

Photo Credit: Budget Earth