One Step DIY

This has got to be the easiest DIY I have ever done. It involves my favorite ingredient, Design Masters 731 Gold spray paint (also seen here & here….and another gold spray paint DIY here.…). We started a record collection this year and I decided to store the records in a milk crate for easy access. I also loved the vintage industrial vibe of the crate, just not the simple blue color. I purchased an $11 crate from Office Max and you guessed it: painted it gold! Literally just one step….maybe two, if you include buying the actual crate. It never ceases to amaze me how drastic a simple coat o’ gold paint can be.

Before:

;

Wouldn’t you agree? Happy Wednesday!

Carpe Diem,

Mandy</

Wanderlust Wednesday: Map DIY

The Riggar’s are a traveling household. We both studied abroad in college and love the thrill of experiencing new cultures, sites, sounds, foods, etc. It only seemed fitting to document our travels, so when I discovered this map I knew I found my solution. I’ve always kept keepsakes from travels; while updating this map, I found a ticket from Space Mountain in Walt Disney World from 2003. Oh, the memories! For now, we love our map showcased bright & center in our living room because it’s a great conversation piece. Someday, maybe it’ll move to our office or a second living room (when that day comes), but we definitely plan on having it around for a while.

Supplies:

- Duct tape or other sturdy tape

-Black yarn/twine  (available at any sewing or craft store)

-Red pins (available at any sewing or craft store)

-Scissors

-Foam

1. Stick one red pin on a city and poke through map. Attach foam to pin on backside of map to secure the pin.

2. Decide where you will place your travel paraphernalia for that particular city and estimate string length.

3. Cut string. Tie around pin. Tape other end of string to backside of your item with any type of tape (I used blue painters). Attach duct tape to backside of item and tape item to the map. *Painters tape is not strong enough to hold the items in place on the map.

It took some pre-planning to organize where each item would be placed depending on city & location of item, especially in denser areas of where we have traveled (i.e. US & Europe).  In order to keep our map organized, we decided to pin only a few of our favorite US cities rather than every city we have traveled to in the US.

This scratch-off map is an easier solution and would be great for someone who doesn’t want paraphernalia from a decade ago cluttering their wall (makes sense, right?).

Do you like to decorate with maps? Or maybe globes?

Carpe Diem,
Mandy

Upgrade: Gold Flats

These flats used to be pink and were purchased at Target probably 5 years ago for about 30 bucks. They have been an amazing pair of shoes; we sure have been through a lot together! One fateful walk  home from work last summer, I got stuck in a serious torrential downpour which meant my favorite suede shoes died and went to shoe heaven. Kinda. Until I decided to spray paint them with leftover gold paint from other wedding DIYs. This is what happens with a short attention span and an affinity for painting anything gold. Now, I just wonder if I look like the crazy chic whose shoes are clearly spray painted OR the genius DIYer rockin’ a sweet pair of repurposed shoes. Hmm…good thing I don’t care because I get to wear my favorite shoes again!

Required Materials:

1. Old shoes

2. Spray paint (I used Krylon Brilliant Gold).

3. Blue painters tape

4. Paper towels

5. Painters tarp or newspaper

Before

Line interior of shoe with blue painters tape and fill with paper towels to protect the edges and interior sole.

Shake paint, spray at least 12″ away and don’t inhale!

Tape the exterior soles. Don’t forget the underside & double check to ensure all areas are sufficiently covered in paint.

Et Voila!

As you can see, this is super easy. You just need some imagination and a well ventilated area; two crucial elements!

Carpe Diem,

Mandy

Happy Monday

Life has been very busy lately and I like it! It amazes me how many photos I take a day on my iphone without even blinking an eye. I don’t look at a calendar anymore to reference events, I typically check my photos. Sometimes I wish this gadget wasn’t attached to my hip 24/7, but other times I am grateful that I can document my life so easily with technology. I’ve always loved having photographs & now I can have them with the click of 2 buttons photographing my entire day. Anyone else an avid Instagram user?  Here are a few snapshots of inspirations & events lately. Enjoy!

Spring has officially sprung in Portland! Warm evenings, sunshine & people bustling about. Portland really is a wonderful city when the sun comes out. Myself & the rest of the population are crossing our fingers the weather will stick this time around.

I have accomplished one of my New Year’s resolutions of becoming a good wife: I perfected the chocolate chip cookie recipe! All you bakers can laugh at me, but refrigerating the dough is seriously the most important step. Chewy cookies for an entire week? Boom- wife points. Recipe found here.

I have many girlfriends who live all over the US right. This week, one was home from Chicago & another is in town temporarily after living in North Carolina before moving to San Francisco AND I had another surprise visit from a friend who used to live in New York and is now in Southern Oregon. Phew! Most of these fabulous ladies (and a few more) lived on the East Coast temporarily, which meant an East Coast adventure was due. Chicago, NYC, Boston & Charlotte in 10 days with a back-pack & this little lady. But more on that later!

Easter was spent enjoying 70 degree weather with some fresh flowers & mimosas (duh)! Not to mention, plenty of delicious food & some awesome quality time with the family.

After much debate mentioned here, I decided upon this gray/blue Moroccan Trellis rug for our living room. It finally arrived & boy am I glad I went with it! Our space needed some spice and this rug knocked it outta the park. It’s the little things in life, right?

Spotted this card and fell in love with this too-cute for words quote. Enjoy!

Carpe Diem,

Mandy

Mini Champagne Favors

I feel indifferent about wedding favors. Too often, they seem pointless & unappreciated, not to mention a huge expense. In order to combat this predicament for our New Years Eve nuptials, we decided to make our favors booze. Yup, mini bottles of champagne. Consumed the night of or later by someone who had incredible self-will power. Plus, you can’t celebrate a wedding on New Years Eve without champagne!

I wanted to keep our tables simple, elegant & sparkly, so the champagne logo didn’t fit the bill. Therefore, I resorted to my go-to solution for added flair: gold & glitter. Using glitter trim tape (purchased at Michaels Crafts), we wrapped the bottles in gold, glittery goodness.

I found the black & white tags online (free downloadable PDF) from the adorable blog, Jones Design Company & the “Cheers” stamp was from a NW favorite craft store, The Paper Zone.

Needless to say, the mini champagne favors were a huge hit.

Carpe Diem,

Mandy

Photography by Niki Rhodes.

Baby, It’s Cold Outside

With a Portland wedding on New Years Eve, we knew we needed coffee all night & preferably a few other warm drinks as well. This fact paired with inspiration from a Starbucks coffee sleeve I had saved from one of our first dates (creepy?), spawned the idea behind a “warming bar.” Coffee, Hot Cocoa & Cider would all be available as guests arrived & through out the night.

Continuing with our  “Love” theme (Philly’s Robert Indiana style), I purchased this stamp from Etsy & bought coffee sleeves in bulk from an online vendor. Keeping with the black/white striped theme, I knew these straws would be the cherry on top.

Hot Cocoa requires marshmallows, so I recruited Miss Ruby Disko (mastermind behind my bouquet & owner of frosting guns) to home make some fun marshmallows. She whipped up Vanilla Bean Marshmallows & Toasted Coconut Marshmallows for topping flair. Alongside these edible clouds were raw sugar cubes & Hershey’s White Chocolate Peppermint Kisses.

Boom, there ya have it: a “Warming Bar”!

Carpe Diem,

Mandy

Photos by Niki Rhodes.

More & More Gold.

Who doesn’t love chic & fun drinking glasses, right? Right. With a stash of 250 Mason jars, I was determined to incorporate these fun drinking cups into our New Years Eve, Black Tie wedding. Cue the gold spray paint….again. Oh ya baby…gold spray paint works magic!

This is a beyond easy DIY. All you need is a mason jar, gold spray paint & ribbon + some extra time (easily the hardest ingredient to acquire in this recipe).

Instructions:

-Keep the lids tight on the jars (this protects the interior and top section from paint).

-Flip jars upside down, so lid is facing down.

-Line jars on a table protected in a paint cloth.

-Spray 12″ away from jar, covering all surfaces. I used Design Masters 731 Gold.

-Touch ups may be required along bottom portion.

-Let dry.

-Remove lid & tie ribbon.

Et voila! It’s always in the details & these chic mason jars are so much more adorable than regular, old drinking glasses.

Carpe Diem, 

Mandy 

PS. I love the last photo for many reasons, one being that the “M” in “Mr.” fell off. Just goes to show something will go wrong, but in the end…nobody cares! Really, I promise.  :)

Photography by Niki Rhodes. 

Whoopie Love

Holidays allow for over-indulgence. Maybe that’s why I love them so much. Either way, I’ll take any excuse to bake sugary treats! I headed over to a dear friends house who has a kitchen equipped with frosting guns…frosting guns, people!!

I’ll forgive you if you think these look like tiny butts & not hearts. Because I agree.

You may be wondering why we’re pouring Jack Daniels into the frosting, so here goes: While touring the Jack Daniels Distillery on a whirlwind Nashville weekend trip, our 80 year old tour guide named Betty, gave us her baking secret. Directly replace vanilla with Jack Daniels in all things baking & it tastes just as good, if not better. This may be a direct result from all employees receiving a bottle of Jack  the first of every month…blame it on the booze!

Inspiration found here and recipe found here. Bon Appetit!

Carpe Diem, 

Mandy 

Valentine’s Breakfast

With Valentine’s Day being on a Tuesday this year, we decided to indulge in a lazy Sunday morning breakfast instead (thanks for the inspiration, Camille!).

I added some twists to the recipe I found here (via Pinterest) & they were well worth it! We ended up with a Brioche Almond French Toast sandwich stuffed with Vanilla-Coconut, Blueberry Cream Cheese. Naturally paired with an Orange Mango Mimosa, of course. Living above a Starbucks means we start nearly every morning with some soy lattes & this special occasion was no different. Plus, those Valentine cups are just adorable…I can’t resist them!

Ingredients


French Toast 
3 eggs per 6 slices
Brioche loaf (Lovejoy Bakers is delicious!)
1 tsp. Vanilla
1 cup Almond Milk
Dash-o-cinnamon

The French Toast drill: Slice. Mix. Dip. Grill.

Cream Cheese Filling
12 oz. Whipped Cream Cheese
1 tsp. Vanilla
1/3 cup coconut
Pinch of granulated or powdered sugar*
Blueberries

Whipped is the-way-to-go for this recipe. It is beyond easy to mix up & even easier to spread. Don’t waste your time with regular cream cheese! Add ingredients, mix together & spread over the french toast. Garnish with additional blueberries & more coconut inside & out of the sandwich.

Drench with maple syrup & enjoy!

* The original recipe called for powdered sugar, which we did not have, so I mixed in vanilla & coconut for the sweetness.

Side note: I barely cook. I am a total beginner, so these directions are easy-peasy because that’s the way I like it!

As beautiful as this sandwich looks, it’s also ridiculously indulgent. I’d like to try the same recipe again, but use the cream cheese as a “frosting” rather than filling & keep the slices separate. Either way, it is a delicious breakfast!

Enjoy!

Carpe Diem, 

Mandy 

Cookie Bombs

Let’s talk about sweets. I get my sweet tooth from my grandmother & father and boy, when I have a hankering I am unstoppable. It’s an issue some days. When I saw these cookies on beloved Pinterest, I had to eat them immediately. So began my dive into the baking world.

These are very simple: homemade chocolate chip cookie dough, wrapped around an Oreo. For convenience matters, I also tried with store bought cookie dough and it was an epic fail. Domestic-fearing cookie addicts, the “quicker” route is not the solution this time (I will not even show photos, they are that terrible). So, roll up your sleeves & start pouring the sugar because theses babies are all homemade.

These make a great party favor & are easy to transport to a pot luck. Most think they are traditional chocolate chip cookies at first sight, until the first person eats one…and then those cookies become the life of the party. I did not win the Super Bowl cook-off, but I totally think the contest was rigged anyways. I don’t believe it one bit.

Recipe found here.

Carpe Diem, 

Mandy