Author Archives: clearlycorinna

Treats for School

30 Thursday Oct 2014

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Instead of candy, I am sending glow in the dark Cheetos to school.  The bag glows, not the Cheetos.  Anyway, I always like to make a tag of some sort so the kids know who the treat came from.  This time I decided to make little sleeves to send my message and instead of Happy Halloween or some clever play one words message (“witching” you a Halloween)  I am printing “Cheesy” jokes.. so easy.. I scoured the internet and found ones I thought appropriate and “Cheesy” enough.  I am printing them on Fluorescent orange paper, 8 1/2 by 11.  I cut between each joke and taped it around each mini bag of Cheetos.  You could make it “corny” jokes too.. and attach it to bags of candy corn or Fritos. The font I used is called An Unfortunate Event.  Here is a printable copy.

Halloween Joke sleeves

Here are the jokes:

What is a witch‘ s favorite subject in school ?

Spell – ing !

What did the little bird say on Halloweeen ?

Trick or Tweet !

Where do Ghosts buy their food ?

The Ghost – ery Store !

What do you get when you cross a snowman with a vampire ?

Frost Bite !

What is a scarecrow’s favorite fruit?

Straw – berries

What is a mummy s favorite type of music ?

Wrap Music !

What did the skeleton order for dinner ?

Ribs !

Where does Frankenstein like to swim ?

Lake Eerie !

Why couldn‘t the Vampire play Baseball ?

Because he forgot his bat !

How do you open the door to a haunted house ?

With a spoo – key !

Where do Ghosts and Goblins buy their favorite cookies ?

The Ghoul Scouts

When will I see you again?

29 Wednesday Oct 2014

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Did you have a gorgeous day yesterday, too?  I think it was the last warm day we’ll see for a while.. like 6 months! 🙂  I was feeling like white jeans (Lauren Conrad, Skinny Ankle, Kohl’s). White jeans are tough.  They have to be a great fit. I like them to have a little stretch but be thick enough to smooth out any bumps (if you know what I mean ;-)). And not so tight so you have a muffin top.  If you haven’t found your pair yet, don’t give up!  They are out there!  Like any pair of jeans, you have to be willing to keep trying on pair after pair until they are right. My advice, don’t buy them unless you LOVE them.  I advise that for pretty much any clothing you buy.  But I emphasize it for jeans.

I wore my white jeans with a layering tank from Target in Olive Heather and my old standby Chambray shirt, also from Target (also seen here).  Bone colored belt (I like this one too), black leather flip flops and a super cute navy and white striped backpack I bought this summer from BJ’s. Sunglasses are Ray-Ban and my jewelry is my standard, diamond studs and my favorite everyday gold charm necklace.  People ask me about my necklace all the time. I’ll be giving the details of it in a post very soon!

Wyld Style Costume

28 Tuesday Oct 2014

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It’s Halloween and I love to make my kids’ costumes!  It’s the nostalgia of it all.  My Mom did it for my brother and me and I feel like a homemade costume is so much better that a store bought one.  Don’t get me wrong,  I buy costumes too, but if I think I can make it, that is my preference.  The last couple of years, T wanted to be a Star Wars Character–way above my pay grade.  So G has had all the benefits of my crafting bug.  It’s not finished, but I’ve got the basics moving right along and I thought I’d share what I’ve got so far.

I started with a sweat suit from Hanes.com.  Black hoodie (11.99), black sweat pants (4.99).  Then I decided to work with dimensional fabric paint, the kind that bubbles.  Fluorescent Pink and Glow in the Dark Blue.

After scouring the internet for images (because the actual lego figure is so small, I could barely make out the detail) First, I drew with chalk a basic design to follow.

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I started with the blue.

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It took me a white to get my form,  I tried spreading it with a toothpick. Don’t do this.

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In the end, a steady hand gave me the best results.  Consistant pressure on the bottle and making sure my hand had a place to rest while I was “drawing” and squeezing gave the best results.

Here’s the front (still mastering the technique).

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The sleeve has turned out much cleaner.

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This takes a day or so to dry, so if you are attempting a project like this, give yourself plenty of drying time for each side.

For her hair we added little hair pieces that she chose at Chuckie Cheese as her prizes.  I can’t believe we actually got something useful from that place!  And that will wrap it up.

Update: If you’re attempting a project like this, start on the back of the sweat shirt where you can make all your mistakes.  I finished the pants and back this morning and both look so much better than the front.  Oh well, live and learn. 

Punt!

24 Friday Oct 2014

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I had no idea what to wear today.  I have a meeting at 8:30 which is right after I take the kids to school so in the mad morning rush I had to make some quick choices.  In other words, I punted and it turned out pretty well.  Here is a perfect example of how you can pull together things that are already in your closet and make a totally new outfit. I have never worn all of these pieces together.

I grabbed my white and red striped 3/4 sleeve tee (Forever 21 circa 2011- similar here) and layered it under a loose denim dress (Kohl’s Sonoma, Clearance, as always) similar here. I rolled the dress sleeves up an extra 2 or 3 times so you could see the shirt underneath (inspiration here). Belted with a double belt with pewter buckles I bought at Banana Republic (also circa 2011). I like the double belt because it adds just a little something unexpected. A skinny belt wasn’t quite right and a thicker belt wasn’t it either.  This is just something in between that was working for me today.  The pewter buckles give a more casual thrown together look, which is exactly what this was (as you can see, I put a lot of thought into my belts–try this one). Finished off with black tights and suede booties DSW (White Mountain-2012).  The boots have a bit of a cowboy feel so If I were going to get a pair today, I might go for these. I have day 3 hair — so up or with a hat is necessary (Gray polka dotted fedora, Target-2012).  Note to self: need more hats for fall.  And I am not normally the type to rock a side pony, yet, here it is.  A little messy side bun, knot whatever it is, but I think I like it.

Winter White… in Autumn

22 Wednesday Oct 2014

Posted by in Outfits, Thrift Store Finds

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When thinking about what to wear today I was inspired by one of my favorite blogs Cupcakes and Cashmere.  I just tweaked it to fit my style.  Most of these pieces have been shown before.  The oversized meanswear shirt layered over my lace dress.  But this time I added the cropped sweater (see before here) and my well loved Arturo Chiang boots that I bought at L&T 4 years ago, but I still love them (similar here in Whiskey Tye Dye).  The picture looks white but the dress and sweater are cream color.  Only the Shirt is white. So there is a little contrast.  Can you see it here?

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And then there is this coat.  What a find!  I have to tell someone about it.  It’s Lands’ End Kids.. Size XL/14  Found it for $14.99 at a thrift shop (maybe I shouldn’t tell people).  But I love the quilting, the plaid lining (another fall trend)  and the weight is perfect for fall and into winter.  What do you think?

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P.S. Have you seen Lands’ End’s New Catalog?  I’m in love with the Stewart plaid.

Top Rated Playlist

20 Monday Oct 2014

Posted by in Running Music

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We got back from our cruise last week and the good news is I only gained 3 lbs.  The bad news is now I have to get on a better exercise track so I can lose those pesky 3 lbs.  Aiming for 4 days this week plus a power yoga.

I had an awesome running playlist this morning.  Just a good shuffle.

  1. Young Volcanoes, Fall Out Boy –Love this song, great for car singing and dancing too. (95 BPM– 190 if taking double time steps)
  2. The Underdog, Spoon– from the movie 17 Again with Zac Efron when he gets out of the car his first day back to school after the makeover. That is the moment I understood why he was so loved by pre-teens. (145 BPM)
  3. Taming of Carolyn, Lowest of the Low (BPM 95, but again use the double steps to bump up the running speed)
  4. Die Young, Kesha (BPM 128)
  5. Her Comes Forever, R5 — stole this from my kiddos (BPM 60 –double time 120)
  6. I’m Ready, AJR stole this one too (BPM 78– double time 159)
  7. American Girl, Bonnie McKee (BPM 128)

Comfy Casual

15 Wednesday Oct 2014

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My go to is always a sundress or dress or skirt of some kind.  I am so much more comfortable in that than a pair of jeans any day!  Today is no exception.  I layered a baby doll patterned sundress (One Clothing at Marshall’s) that I wore often this summer, either with cropped leggings loose or with a belt to put a little polish on it.  Today I paired it with my new charcoal gray V-neck, knotted at the bottom to define my waist (Walmart, No Boundaries, large as always) and my new kicks, Report Slip on Sneakers (here at Piperline) but I got mine at TJ Maxx for only $16.99.  Ray-Ban Sunglasses.

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DIY Chandelier

14 Tuesday Oct 2014

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I have been looking at chandeliers for my family room for a long time (maybe 2 years?).  It takes me a long time to make decisions on these kinds of things but when I do, I love what I’ve chosen.  So of course, the one that I drooled over was $15,000.  Not happening. Even the knock off was $1,700.  Better, but still…no.  I was looking for the knock off of the knock off, but it never came, so I switched gears.

Then I started watching Hostages on CBS and saw this chandelier…

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and it started me in a new direction.. but I wasn’t sold.  I wanted something more modern looking, less traditional, is that transitional?  Anyway, I started looking on Overstock for something more reasonable.  Then I saw some more photos of inspiration..

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and

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but this put me into action..Tory Burch’s Office, I’m in love…

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So this is my plan, find a chandelier and paint it gold.  Also, I wanted to take advantage of the exposed bulb trend going on right now (like this and this). Of course Hubby was against it.  Why would you buy something and then paint it?  But let’s face it, girls, sometimes that haven’t even designed the things that we want.  So we have to take matters in our own hands.

I finally wore him down.  I found this one at Home Depot.DSC01141

and this paint, Krylon 18k Gold Plate spray paint.

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Then my magic Hubby put his perfectionist in gear.  We took out all the pieces and figured out how to reassemble them so the Chandelier would be the right height.  There were 2 poles that connected to give it a maximum height that was way higher than we need so we took one of the poles out and it gave us the perfect drop from the center beam of our great room.  Then M put pieces of painter’s tape over the bulb sockets before painting.

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Pretty easy, right? This is what we have so far with exposed bulbs…

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but I was in Target the other day and spied these little lamps for $22 and I might have to add shades to look more like the Tory Burch Chandelier… hmmmm…stay tuned.

Is it Fall or Summer?

30 Tuesday Sep 2014

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This weather has been amazing!  But of you’re leaving the house in the morning , it’s chilly.  Yesterday somebody said to me “You look so nice today, it’s the perfect mix of fall and summer”.  That was all I needed to hear, that is why this outfit made it onto the blog.

The dress, I just bought on clearance at Marshall’s for $10.  It’s a tube dress and since we are taking a vacation soon, I bought it as a throw on dress and how can you resist the price!  Since a tube top is not appropriate when you are a parent volunteering for School Picture Day, and it was a little crisp this morning, I topped it with one of my chambray shirts I bought at Target maybe 3 years ago.  Flip flops (Lands End), a pair of “that girl” earrings and off we go.  Sunglasses, J.Crew Factory.

P.S. “that girl” earrings is a personal joke.  I am forever wearing my diamond studs, so at a product/accessory swap party (my friends have them about twice a year) I was looking at some super cute dangly earrings and proceeded to tell my friend that I wanted to be “that girl“, the one who wore those kind of earrings.  So every time I wear something other that my studs, my friend and I will joke that today I am “that girl“. 🙂

My Top Rated Playlist

26 Friday Sep 2014

Posted by in Running Music

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What can I say, thanks to my kids, I have become a fan. They have great songs to run to!  Super fun and bouncy.  I tend to dance a bit while running to these. Here are my faves right now..

  1. Does He Know (BPM 139)
  2. C’mon C’mon (BPM 143)
  3. Still the One (BPM 143)
  4. Kiss You (BPM 180)
  5. She’s nor Afraid (BPM 168)

These are also on my hit list:

  1. Live While We’re Young (BPM 126)
  2. What Makes You Beautiful (BPM 125)
  3. One Thing (BPM 125)
  4. Best Song Ever (BPM 127)

I hope you find one or two that you can add to you fun run list! 🙂