Saturday, September 21, 2024

Books July, August & September!!

 Hey Y'all!

It's been awhile on our book blogs, and I'm positive I've forgotten a few. I still have a few to share, so here we go!


First off I've continued the Bridgerton series, by Julia Quinn, with books 4 & 5. It deviates rather largely from the series at this point, both are good but in my opinion the books are always better (than the TV show or movie adaptations).

Penelope and Colin's story is fairly accurate to the most recent TV season, some things are changed to make it make sense on TV, some are change for other reasons, but the "meat" of the story is the same.

Eloise's story hasn't been adapted yet, but it's a rather quick love story and mostly in letters no one knew about so we'll see how that pans out in the TV series in the future... Her getting to know Sir Phillip's children was a big chunk of the story, and I don't see that being the route the show takes with her, assuming she gets her own season.

SPOILER: Skip to after the photo if you don't want to read...

In the books Marina is a Bridgerton cousin we never "meet". However, we've met her in the show, as a Featherington cousin, who is already pregnant and attempts to marry Colin. She then attempts to force a miscarriage, which fails, and eventually marries the brother of her babies father, Sir Phillip. In the book Sir Phillip does marry her for the same reason, his brother dies in war. I wonder how this will pan out, if we get Eloise's story.


An excerpt from the prologue of Romancing Mister Bridgerton:

...But no, she had to go and fall in love with Colin Bridgerton when he fell off a horse and landed on his bottom in a mud puddle. It was highly irregular, and highly unromantic, but there was a certain poetic justice in that, since nothing was ever going to come of it.

Why waste romance on a love that would never be returned? Better to save the windswept-moor introductions for people who might actually have a future together.

And if there was one thing Penelope knew, even then, at the age of sixteen years minus three days, it was that her future did not feature Colin Bridgerton in the role of husband.

She simply wasn’t the sort of girl who attracted a man like him, and she feared that she never would be.


An excerpt from To Sir Phillip With Love:

Eloise Bridgerton smoothed the well-read sheet of paper across her lap. There was little light by which to read, even with the full moon shining through the windows of the coach, but that didn’t really matter. She had the entire letter memorized, and the delicate pressed flower, which was actually more pink than red, was safely protected between the pages of a book she’d nipped from her brother’s library.

She hadn’t been too terribly surprised when she’d received a reply from Sir Phillip. Good manners dictated as much, although even Eloise’s mother, surely the supreme arbiter of good behavior, said that Eloise took her correspondence a bit too seriously.

It was common, of course, for ladies of Eloise’s station to spend several hours each week writing letters, but Eloise had long since fallen into the habit of taking that amount of time each day. She enjoyed writing notes, especially to people she hadn’t seen in years (she’d always liked to imagine their surprise when they opened her envelope) and so she pulled out her pen and paper for most any occasion–births, deaths, any sort of achievement that deserved congratulations or condolences.

She wasn’t sure why she kept sending her missives, just that she spent so much time writing letters to whichever of her siblings were not in residence in London at the time, and it seemed easy enough to pen a short note to some far-off relative while she was seated at her escritoire.

I've yet to find books 6 or 7 at a good price, but I did recently find 8 at a Goodwill, so I have it ready when I eventually come across the others.

This next book was also good, but a bit different than what I'm used to reading from Debbie Macomber:


The Trouble With Angels, didn't know this was a series of books until just now. This is book two, and it focuses on three angels, and three individual stories. Each one is different, but it's easy to follow. 

When irrepressible angels Shirley, Goodness, and Mercy set out for the City of Angels to grant three rush Christmas prayer requests, they are sure they can help without resorting to, er, divine intervention. But they soon find it will take more than one miracle to teach their precious lessons of love—as well as make three special holiday dreams come true!

Angels Shirley, Goodness and Mercy have been sent to Los Angeles to act as prayer ambassadors for three difficult cases. Shirley finds herself assigned to Karen Woods, a young girl who has been having nightmares since her parents painful and messy divorce. Mercy is sent to Catherine Goodwin who is praying her grandson finds a love that will rival the one she experienced years before and Goodness finds herself with a demanding case. Assigned to Paul Morris, Goodness must help the pastor to regain the faith he has lost since the death of his wife.

I found Paul's story the least interesting, but all three were good. I didn't love this style of writing/reading so I won't seek out the others, but if I came across them I'd probably read them.


Lastly, and I know it's not last, it's just the last one I took a picture of. I know I read a few other couple hour read books, but nothing too great or too bad, therefore not entirely memorable...

This book I didn't even finish, I just couldn't:

Little Vampire Women just wasn't for me. I really enjoyed Pride & Prejudice & Zombies, so I thought this sounded good too... I was wrong. The writing wasn't great, and the story was a bit boring. They can't all be winners.


What have you read this month? Any recommendations? Leave them in the comments below!


Have a great day,

Craftin' Wife



Wednesday, September 18, 2024

13th Fri- Friday the 13th, Our 21st wedding anniversary! 16th Mon- Craft With Me 18th Wed- Some Of My Favorite Things Right Now- CATCHING UP AGAIN

 Hey Y'all!!

I did it again! Let's catch up, okay?

Friday the 13th was our 21st wedding anniversary, we spent the day shopping around at local thrift shops, then we went out to dinner with friends and attended opening weekend at Forest of Screams! We had a lot of fun, and really enjoyed the attractions, and how well laid out the place was.








Monday's craft with me is uh.... delayed? I haven't crafted in a bit. We did go to a Goodwill Outlet location near Akron, and I found a bunch of adhesive vinyl, but only in black and white. I have a lot of decal ideas, so we're planning a crafting day soon. I also used my points on Craftables and ordered some HTV to do a few projects.


Some Of My Favorite Things Right Now:

Craft Favorites:





1) Gildan Tees~  An endless assortment of colors, affordable, easy to work with, comfortable, true to size. What's not to love?






2) Craftables vinyl~ I like several others, but this is my favorite place to get vinyl. I'm in love with the glow in the dark, and the UV color changing HTV. This vinyl is insanely easy to weed and adheres like a dream! When I wanted a peach HTV that wasn't pink this is the only place that I could find it. I love that they're super affordable, and the company is in Tennessee! I wish they had a stronger social media presence (y'all hiring??) but they do have a very active private facebook group, the admin is fantastic, but I don't see the brand posting much.






3)Dorhui Vinyl Scrap Collector~ Prior to this I was using a mini cup, and it wasn't working well. This speeds up the weeding process by leaps and bounds. It just suctions right to my work surface and the petals grip all the scraps. Game Changer!

I really miss this next one, working with just the easy press mini right now is sometimes difficult:
(It's still my favorite though, so highly recommend.)




4) Goldoro Pro 5 in 1 Heat Press(12x15)~ So much more even heat and pressure with a heat press! I love the versatility, and price, of this model.  Much larger work space 12x15, as opposed to my easy press which is 9x9. I needed something larger. It fit's nicely in the space where the Cricut Easy Press was, I was afraid a heat press would be too big for the space, but it works well there.  The only negative I have with this heat press is it doesn't have an auto shut off feature, I'm used to shutting it off when I finish, but if you've relied on an auto shut off before it would take some getting used to.


Makeup Favorites:

I've broken this up into four categories; Makeup, Hair, Skin, & Nails! These are my current favorites in each category, most items are linked if still available.


Here's a link to the previous Favorites blog:

http://craftinwifescreations.blogspot.com/2022/01/current-favorites-fails-beauty.html

I do feel the same about all of these products.


Makeup:

Face- Flower Erase Everything Foundation in UF1. It's like a primer, but better. Like a foundation, but no shade matching required. Walmart says out of stock, and it's not available elsewhere. I was able to find it on the other beauty websites, and places like posh, mercari, etc.

I wish it still existed. I'm on my last one. Any suggestions for a similar product?


Eyes-

Y'all already know. Wet 'n Wild Big Poppa Mascara is my #1 drug store mascara. It lifts, lengthens, darkens, and curls my lashes well. Plus it lasts all day!


Lips-

IF you've seen my collection you know I have a ton of lip products, and I constantly look at what's new. Here lately I've been really loving nude, and drift towards this formula & shade the most... Dose of Colors Liquid Matte Lipstick in Nude Mood. It's the perfect pinky nude for what I'm currently liking. It dries down nicely and isn't sticky, or slippery.

*It's the only pic the website would let me save.*



Travel Product-
I love I.B.Y. Beauty, and enjoy all the products from them I've tried. If you decide to shop the brand use code CraftinWife25 at checkout for 25% off! For travel I like the Carry On Face Palette. It has an eyeshadow palette side, and a face quad side featuring blush, bronzer, and highlight. I don't have it with me currently, but previously I always took it with me on trips.

**The influencer program is over, but last I tried the code still works.




Hair~
I still haven't decided what I'm doing with my hair (grow, cut -medium, or short). Currently it's at a length where it will almost all go into a ponytail! Styling, and shampoo/conditioner wise I'm not really using anything new... I'm still not sure what products I need now. It's less wavy and way way thicker than it used to be. Any of the thick haired people have suggestions? Please share in the comments below.

Currently I'm using  all the things (styling wise), until I find something I love.
Also, which style brush should I be using? HELP!




Skin~
Y'all Influenster* had been spoiling me with luxury products and I'm loving them all! Currently I'm still using Charlotte Tilbury  Charlotte's Magic Cream, and it's fantastic. My skin is more hydrated, brighter, and feels firmer after use. 
*Now I never even get a notice for potential freebies from them.



 Nails~
I've done a Nail Polish Collection blog, and rediscovered Fresh Paint Nail Lacquer. Apparently it's available at Five Below, but I don't recall where I got mine from (in the shade Honeydew) and they only appear to have one shade, sold out. So, it looks like I better enjoy that bottle, as it seems near impossible to find. I liked it because the color was vibrant and it held up for TWO WEEKS!

I couldn't find a picture online that wasn't from another persons blog, or pre 2018.



What are your current favorites? Please share below, or tag me in a social media post!



Have a great day,
Craftin' Wife

Wednesday, September 11, 2024

July & August Makeup Looks

 Hey Y'all,

So.... I tried, at first....

Then I promptly decided it was far too hot to mess with it on a regular basis. And wore very little makeup throughout.


Here are the few July & August looks I have:


1) 4th of July, not exactly what I was going for. When I chose the dark blue and started, I knew I was committed to it. This is the outcome-

I ended up liking it pretty well.




I tried something new with my hair, mainly to get it out of my face, it was easy and pretty cute too!


2)


3) Did not like this lip color at all, but had to share. Keepin it real!


4)


5)


6) Curled my hair with rollers, did not do what I was hoping...



7)



And that was it...

September probably isn't going to be much better. I'll try to ramp it up!


Have a great day,

Craftin Wife



YAY! We're all caught up with blogs! Any blog ideas for October? Share them in the comments below, or on social media.

Let's Craft How To: HTV Shirt, One Layer

 Hey Ya'll!


For this HTV (heat transfer vinyl) how-to I'll be using:

My {Windows} PC 

(Cricut can also be used through mobile, tablet, laptop, ect. Android, Windows and Apple compatible, though some features are a bit different across the platforms.)

My Cricut & Design Space

Cricut 12x12 standard grip cutting mat

Cricut Weeding Tool

Cricut 9x9 Easy Press 

Rainbow Oil HTV from Hobby Lobby

Gildan Tee Shirt(s) from Bulk Apparel 


To begin load up Design Space and choose an SVG, create your own, or find one online. The options are endless. If interested in either a how to make your own, or my favorite sites for SVGs let me know in the comments below!


We're going to be working with my husbands (main) company logo, original artwork by Kevin Thompson, modified by me for use with the Cricut and to put on apparel. 


1) Open your design and size it to fit your "blank". This is going on an XL shirt so I chose to go close to max. The 12x12 actual cutting space is 11.5x11.5, similarly the 12x24 mat cuts 11.5x23.5, allowing a half inch mat space. 

2) Click "Make It". 

3) Most all HTV goes on the mat shiny side (carrier sheet) DOWN. Therefore iron on (HTV) projects need to be mirrored for that reason.

4) After I've made sure to mirror my design I move it a little further in and down on the mat on screen, I'd rather give myself a bit of leeway there than have it cut the design off.

5) Select your material, either by the dial on the Explore Air 2 or older machines or on screen with the Maker series.

6) Load your mat by pressing the arrow buttons. (There is no material on this mat, picture was taken after the fact.)
7)Click cut, the cute little Cricut C, or play button.
Cutting in progress screen. Depending on the design, and size this could take several minutes. If you're doing a multi color design each color will be loaded on a separate mat. There is a hack around that depending on size(s) and if interested in that let me know in the comments below!


8) Cut has finished, unload the mat.


9) Click finish! This will take you back to design space and your image. 

The computer (phone, tablet, etc) portion is done, so if you want to save your work before closing out it will prompt you to do so. 

This is what my cut out looks like. Because this was so large I didn't have much excess to save, but if you've done a smaller cut use your scissors are cut around your design before weeding to save your vinyl for another project. Or create a box around your image, which makes cutting away the excess a bit easier.

10) Weed you design. On these patterned vinyl's, or on white, I like to use my Ott Light so I can better see what I'm doing.


This task can be tedious depending on the design, but should pull up/weed fairly easy.  Some suggestions for if it's not easily pulling away: cut settings were wrong (read the instructions with each brand you're using), bad vinyl which is rare but does happen, or your design is just too small. Most of the time if there's an issue it's the cut not being deep enough. Test cutting with a new material is a great way to alleviate that issue.


11) Prep your material according to the HTV directions.
For this example using my Easy Press I pre-heated the shirt at 305 F for 15 seconds. This is done to get out the wrinkles, and any moisture that may be in the shirt.

12) Press! Since this design was bigger than my press I had to do it in sections. ( Not an issue with my new heat press, yay!) I did 305 F for 30s, in four sections paying close attention not to overlap and "burn" the design.


13) Some HTV is warm peel, some is cold peel, be sure to follow the directions there, as it does make a difference. Peel the carrier sheet, and it's done!



14) All finished! The Easy Press has an auto shut off feature, some heat presses (like mine) do not, so I always manually shut it off to stay in the habit. If you haven't shut down design space you can do so now, or start your next project!


If you'd like more in depth about any of todays blog highlights let me know! If you're new to Cricut (even if you're not) and make anything new share a link to your project(s) below, or tag me on most social media @craftinwife I'd love to check them out!


Have a great day,

Craftin' Wife