Why I Yoga

Every year on NYE I try to make this crazy list of things I'm going to stop doing and another even crazier list of ways to better myself. This January I signed up for a hot yoga membership at Big Yoga and it has been the best decision I have made in a long time. One of the very first classes I took I remember my teacher saying "There are no mistakes in life. Every decision has brought you to this moment. You are exactly where you are supposed to be." This has been my motivation for the year.

I started my practice week and wanting to see what all the buzz was about. I wanted to feel strong and know that I could do anything I wanted. 

So why hot yoga?
 

1. It calms

I started mostly going to the 10pm yoga classes after work, dinner, and a nap. I needed a way to unwind at the end of a stressful day. Just being on my mat and breathing the incense was the best start to relaxation. After a full 60 min class of stretching and moving I got that amazing cold lavender towel and felt renewed. It really is the best way to end your day and gets you relaxed and ready for bed.

2. You become strong

(The first time I saw bird of paradise I thought they must be a wizard or something)

I have never been able to touch my toes or lift more than 50 lbs. I ran cross country and track and never had a need for muscles. Well you don't need muscles to be strong and yoga has helped my go from chicken arms to powerful little things. You don't have to practice perfect you just have to practice the best you can. Each day I feel stronger and ready to conquer something new.

3. You love your body

(I love eagle and the way I feel perfectly content holding it)

Everyone struggles with some kind of body image or another and being an ex competitive runner has changed the way I view my body. I used to be tiny and it was hard for me to adjust to a normal weight. I didn't like my body and what I saw in the mirror. After doing yoga for a few months I stopped seeing my body as an object and more of a machine. I was proud of what I could do and felt physically strong and amazing. I went from resenting what my body had become to loving what it could do.

4. You learn about yourself 

During each practice you have X amount of time to work out. You sweat laugh and feel it all. I learned that I can do way more than my mind thinks I can. I went from having an inner bitch to having an inner boss. From saying yeah that isn't going to happen to saying oh I can do that too! Yoga has taught me to push the boundaries I have set for myself and realize that I can do whatever I want. 

5. You learn to let go

This year has been a lot of ups and downs. I have struggled to understand things I can't control and learned through daily practice that I'm doing it right. Marcy is one of my favorite teachers because of the way she sets an intention for each class. It always feels reflective of what's going on in my life. When she was gone I missed her and when she came back with her news I was shocked. I remember her standing up in the front of the studio and telling us that she was going through chemo. Then she said that cancer was the problem and we were her solution. She could either live the problem or live the solution and I thought that was perfect. Letting go of the negative to make room for the positive. We do it with every breath in class literally letting go of the old breath to make room for clean new fresh air. I can't wait to get back and take another class from her!

6. You get DownDog 

My favorite class is Hot and Heavy Saturday Night! From the fun playlist to the booty shaking it's just fun to dance while practicing. Most classes have music and it can really get you going or calm you down depending on the playlist. I have been taking classes at a studio in Ventura CA called Jai Rhythm and they have more meditative music but anytime a beat is dropped in I feel like I'm back at Big Yoga. It is just a fun way to exercise!

Yoga has changed my life! If you have ever thought of trying out hot yoga DO IT! You will love the people and atmosphere. If you want someone to go with you your first time you know where to find me...

http://bigyogahouston.com/
http://www.jairhythm.com/

Gold painted pots

Touches of gold make planted pots look fancy! I saw some cute pink and gold pots on Pinterest and wanted to copy. These were really easy to make and can be done while binge watching The Vampire Diaries or whatever your addiction is!

Supplies:

Assorted clay pots

Paint

Paint brushes

Painters tape

Paper plates 

For the solid pots: To start just paint the pots a solid color. Do a few layers and let dry. Once they are dry you can add painters tape to make shapes on your pot. Paint inside the tape your gold and do a few layers. Once it's dry remove the tape and enjoy a pop of gold!

For the gold top pots: put painters tape around the top of the pot. Paint the bottom of the pot in solid colors. Do a few layers and let dry. Remove the tape and reposition your tape so you can paint the top rim gold. Once you have done a few layers of gold let dry and remove the tape! 

DIY Chevron Table

I love going to garage sales! One woman's trash is my DIY treasure! I bought a night stand that was in really good shape and decided to revamp it. I started by painting it with primer and picking paints. I decided glitter was necessary and made a huge mess in the process but ended with a really fun bedside table!

I started by priming the table in prep for the chevron painting.

Then I put painters tape around the top so I could paint the rest of the table. I did a few layers letting it sit and dry.

 

For the chevron I got a ruler and pencil because I'm a perfectionist...

You can sample on paper to see the size you want your chevron print to be. I think mine ended up being 2 inch by 2 inch. You want to make the lines into squares so you do lines vertically and horizontally 2 inches apart each. This will make perfect squares that can be divided with painters tape to form a clean print. You can sort of make out the lines I used on my handle below.

Then you can paint in the tape and let dry completely!! Pour yourself a glass of wine while you wait or don't...

 

I did the same pattern for the top of the table. This one took up more space and time but was worth it. Again draw your lines, form your boxes, and split your painters tape in the middle.

 

Paint a few layers and let sit.

 

When you peel off the painters tape it might not look perfect but you can touch up with a small paint brush.

 

 

Once the painted section was dry and I pealed the painters tape off I re taped to prep the glitter rows. This was easier and gave me a chance to touch up any parts I didn't like. If any paint bleeds into the white you can cover at this point by painting over it with your 2nd color...or in my case covering it with glitter.

 

This layer I let sit longer because I used glue for the glitter layer and knew it would dry really slow.

 

Once I pulled off the last layer of painters tape I touched up the glitter section and covered with a glass top.
Keep in mind this is a full weekend project because of the detail and time needed to let the paint dry.

Beer chocolate cupcakes with caramel and pretzel topping

Every year I pig out during the Super Bowl. It is the best time to binge eat guilt free. I decided to turn my obsession of making cute and weird cupcakes into this years treat! I made these beer chocolate and caramel pretzel cupcakes...yeah try saying that after a few beers. Below is my modified recipe and a link to the original cupcake.

Ingredients:

1 12oz stout (I used old Rasputin)

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 TBSP vanilla extract

3 eggs

3/4 cup cocoa powder

2 cup sugar

2 1/2 cup flour

1 TSP baking soda

For topping:

Caramel 

Chocolate

Pretzels 

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees

2. Mix all solids in one bowl sugar, flour, baking soda, cocoa powder

3. Mix liquids in another bowl beer, milk, oil, vanilla extract, and eggs

4. Combine the dry and liquid bowls and stir till they are combined

5. Add to cupcake papers and bake for 20 minutes

6. Let the cupcakes cool and get toppings ready

7. First melt chocolate in microwave then use a spatula to top the cupcakes with

8. Stick pretzel sticks in the cupcakes

9. Heat the caramel topping in microwave and use a fork to drizzle over the pretzels.

The finished products are both tasty and adorable! I added some football toppers for the party. Enjoy!

 

http://www.thebestrecipesever.net/2014/03/beer-and-pretzel-cupcakes.html?m=1

Re:Make 2014 Brit&Co

For my birthday last May I was excited to hit the Brit&Co Re:Make event in Austin. Crafting and DIY projects are some of my favorite things! Coming up this month is the Brit&Co Re:Make 2014 Conference in San Fransisco. Whether you are going for the conference, crafting, or shopping this year looks on point!

In Austin they had a small conference space dedicated to the event but it was a perfect set up.

Some booths had handmade gifts and offered a DIY project you could make right there! Brit&Co also had make and take projects for all attendees. We made necklaces and got to check out the 3D printing stations. 

The Re:Make Festival, which is what we attended in Austin, is FREE! To sign up for the San Francisco event all you have to do is RSVP here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/remake-2014-shop-handmade-goods-make-free-diy-projects-tickets-11933247665
They will have over 100 makers and lots of DIY projects and inspiration.


The conference will have speakers from some of my favorite blogs and brands! Joy Cho of Oh Joy! Ido Leffler co-founder of Yes To Inc. aka Yes To Carrots and more. Bradford Shellhammer co-founder of FAB. Speaker from Mashable, Eventbrite, Lucky Magazine and more: http://remake.brit.co/speakers/
#REMAKE2014

DIY Soy Lavender Candles

The cousins in my family have a tradition of making Christmas gifts. Better known as Craftsmas we each try to come up with the most creative ideas to make for each other. Over the years we have made some really cute projects! This year I made soy lavender candles in some vintage mason jars I bought at a garage sale. They actually turned out to be way easier to make than you would think. After reading a few blogs I found some short cuts and tips to make your crafting easier.

Supplies:

Jars

Wicks 

Wax

Pencils

Tweezers 

A stove and pot

Essential Oil

Glue

I bought all supplies at Michaels they have a huge selection of candle making supplies! 

To start take your wicks and glue them to the bottom of your jar. If your jars are small like mine were you might need tweezers to get your wicks in. This will keep it secured when you pour the wax in and keep it from floating up. You want to let this sit and dry while you melt and scent your wax. 

To get you wax going keep the stove on the lowest possible setting. Some blogs say you need to grate the wax down before you melt it but that took extra time and was unnecessary. Put all the wax into your pot. You don't want the wax to boil you want it to slowly melt. Once everything is melted and you have liquid wax you can add the essential oil. Add as much or little as you like.

(My arm was numb making these shavings!) 

Once your oils are added and ready to go keep warm while you get your jars ready. Take the wick and wrap the excess around your pencils. This will keep the wick straight and in the center of your jar while you pour.

Once all your jars are prepped and ready you can pour the wax into the jars. They will slowly turn solid and look like real candles! Let sit over night and no matter how tempting don't remove the pencils till they are completely dry!

When the are dry you can remove the pencils and cut the wicks to fit your jar. Be careful about how tall you leave the wick you want it to settle inside the rim of your jar.