Wristlet Purse

So last night I decided I was going to try out a purse pattern I'd found online. So I headed over to Hobby Lobby to pick out some cute fabrics. I was pleasantly surprised to find some really super cute fabrics! Here's some pics of the finished product:

Let me know what you think!

Craft Projects

So I can already tell that 2011 is going to be a year of craft projects.....or at least for the first couple of months it is! :) Why you might ask.....because right now I'm in a very crafty mood!

I have always loved doing crafts. Especially crafts that create fun items that you can use or decorate with in your home. I had a friend in high school that nick-named me "Crafty Kate". :) So I guess I'm just living up to my nick-name! Last year I attempted to make a quilt....which I might add was a bit of a flop. I now know what I did wrong though....so it was a learning lesson. About a month ago I found another pattern for a quilt sort of blanket that I LOVED. And even better yet, it seemed pretty easy and do-able. So as soon as we were back in Waco after all the holiday traveling I went to the store to buy some fabric.

The result.....a blanket that I LOVE! I love it so much that I am actually ready to make more. While it does take a lot of time to make because it is very, very, very....I must repeat very repetitive. But, with patience and a little bit of soreness, the end result is a gorgeous blanket.

The first one I made is about the size of a throw blanket. Perfect for curling up on the couch with and watching a good movie. I must say, that there have been a few "fights" between Blake and I over who gets to use the cool new blanket. Guess that just means I will have to make another! :) My goal is actually to figure out how to make one big enough to use as a quilt on a bed. I will update you on that when it happens.

My next big craft project....do something about my couches. Mom and Dad, if you are reading this, I love your couches and am so very grateful that you gave them to us. But I must be honest......I am really sick and tired of the fabric that is on them. :) Thankfully the fabric is a slip cover! So here's the plan....

- bleach the slip covers for the couches themselves
- re-die the slip covers a lovely tanish brown/chocolate brown....haven't decided yet
- sew new pillow covers for the existing pillows with some fun vibrant fabrics....another pattern/color yet to be determined
- make a few smaller throw pillows to add

So I decided to post my progress on our blog. It will keep me accountable to get it done. The only thing that is holding me back is 1) not wanting to destroy our ok couches and 2) money. While it will be cheaper than buying new couches it will still be a little bit of an investment. But if you know me, you know that I will find a good deal. I can't buy anything without knowing I got a good deal. For instance....the other day at Old Navy I got four shirts and a pair of pants for $25. That. is. a. good. deal. :)

Anyways....that's about all for now. I will post pics along the way. And if don't see any updates on the couch situation in the next couple of weeks.....ask me about it. Keep me accountable. :)

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year! I can hardly believe 2010 is over! I know I say that every year, but this year really went by quickly. They always say that as you get older, time seems to fly by even faster. It's kinda funny because I knew that the year was coming to an end, but it really wasn't until yesterday that it hit me that it was the last day of 2010! I think that was a combination of the year flying by and me being so busy, that I have barely had time to sit down and think about what day it is, let alone what month it is!

2010 was a really great year for the Penfields! Here's a little summary of some of the major events that happened in our lives (this is in no particular order):

- Blake completed his first year of law school! (hooray!)

- we were in 2 car accidents, but walked away without even a scratch or bruise (praise the Lord!)

- I successfully began my own little felt flower headband and hair clip business (abeauideal.etsy.com)

- related to the headband business....I participated in my first 3 craft shows and had a really great time!

- I continued to build my photography business and had an amazingly busy, but great year!

- my family welcomed in my soon-to-be sister Annie (who, if I might add, is the cutest thing ever!)

- Blake began writing for a movie review website and is loving it (themoviepool.com)

- Blake began his second year of law school

- Blake participated in a client counseling competition in school and made it to the semi-finals (I'm very proud:) )

- Blake's brother, Travis, got engaged to an amazing beautiful woman (both inside and out)

That's all I can think of right now, but let me just re-iterate....it was a busy year! We have a lot to look forward to in 2011! We have already booked a trip with Blake's parents to go to Disney World in March! That was our big Christmas present. We are SUPER excited! And of course, as I mentioned before, we will be having a wedding in the family. I really can't wait to see what all the Lord has in store for us.

For now Happy New Year to you all and God bless!

Quick Update

Oh wow! It's been a long time! Saying that I haven't posted because we have been busy would be an understatement! Let's just say I can't wait till Christmas break where I can sit back and relax for a few days! :)

So here's what's been keeping us busy....

I (Katie) have been super busy with not only my photography business, but also my felt flower headband business. I am so very grateful for both business and creative outlets. I have been traveling almost every weekend for the last 3 months for either photo shoots or craft shows. It's been great! I can feel myself getting closer and closer to being able to just do photography and headbands full time! My daily job has kept me super busy as well. Just like in any other business, people want their stones just in time for Christmas so their visiting families can see them. So we've been on full speed for the last few months.

Blake has been busy, as usual, with school. He finished up his first quarter in the beginning of November and is now half way through the winter quarter. He has really enjoyed his classes this year. He recently competed in a client counseling competition with a good friend of ours, Mallory. They made it into the top 9! I am so happy and proud of both of them. I know they really enjoyed it!

That's about it for the Penfield's at this time. I had to share one of our Christmas pics that we took of ourselves with a tripod for our Christmas card. :) This is not one that we actually used on our Christmas card. Didn't want to give it away before everyone gets the card....but it's still one of my favorites!

I hope to be a little better about posting on here in the next few weeks! If I don't though....Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to everyone! :)

Happy Birthday Blake!

Today is Blake's 24th birthday!! I am blessed to be able to celebrate another year with my sweet husband on his birthday!

He is the most amazing man and deserves to be celebrated! I love you Blake and am so proud to be your wife. Happy Birthday babe!

Love,

your Katie

busy, busy, busy

Well it's been over a month. My only excuse....we have been busy. And when I say busy, I mean BUSY! :) I was sort of looking for the summer to be over because I thought that meant we would slow down, but it didn't. We only got busier! For the month of August we were only home 1 weekend and September and October are quickly becoming like that as well. The good thing about all this busyness is that a lot of it is because of my photography. I have been driving all over Texas taking pictures of weddings, seniors, families, etc. I have to say that I absolutely LOVE it though! Being a full time photographer is my absolute dream and I feel myself getting closer and closer with each new photo session.

Right now the biggest thing is senior portraits. Everyone wants to get them done in the fall because they are due in, in early spring. So it has kept me running. But they've been fun! Young people are always the most fun to photograph, whether they are 2 or 18! I have also been really busy planning for the craft fair that I will participating in, in early November. I will be in the Waxahachie Civic Center in Waxahachie, TX. I am really, REALLY looking forward to it! I will have my own booth selling my felt flower headbands and hair clips. So come out and visit if you are around the area! :)

Blake has also been super busy with school starting back up. It's back to the grind and the end is a little nearer in sight! I'm so proud of him and everything he's accomplished thus far. Law school is no easy thing and he has done so well.

Other than that not much else is going on in our lives. Of course we hardly have room or time for anything else! I will try to be better about updating on a weekly basis!

family reunion

On to a much lighter post! :) Last weekend I got to meet our little baby and if I wasn't in absolute love before now I totally am! She is so so so so sooooo sweet. As I was walking around holding her at the hotel that we stayed at for our family reunion, I kept having people stop to look at her and they kept asking if she was mine. My initial reactions was, "oh no! She's not mine, she's my parents foster baby!" A lot of people would then ask oh so you guys only get to keep her for a little while? And that broke my heart. So then when people would ask I would say with joy, "Yes she is mine. She is my baby sister!" :)

There was a few times that Blake would be walking with me when someone would ask that and it was pretty funny to see his face. He is definitely not ready for kids right now. Which is completely understandable! For one, he's still in law school and it would make it very difficult. But also you need more that an hour of time to prepare for having a child! :) She was a good practice for him though. And I must say, she had him wrapped around her little finger just like the rest of us.

Overall we had a wonderful time visiting with family this past weekend. We also got to see some really good friends of ours that are living in Abilene. Blake finally got to see their super cute house! We'll actually be back in Abilene at the end of the month for a wedding that Blake is in and that I am photographing! Really looking forward to that weekend!

This weekend has been a nice and productive, but relaxing weekend. I was able to deep clean my apartment for the first time in a very very long time. I mean I've kept it clean, but this was a serious clean. Like cleaning baseboards, fan blades and inside the oven. Yep....that's a deep clean. It feels good though.

I also got in the mail an order for new felt colors that I've been anxiously waiting for!! So I've been busy with some new designs. The couple of new designs I've made are on my etsy shop. Here's a few pics of the new ones:

All of the styles are $8 and can be found on my etsy shop. You can choose between stretchy or hard headbands.

That's it for now! I'll try to get better on keeping you informed of the Penfield happenings! :)