Be Bold - Free Printable

It. Is. FRIDAY! 

Today's post is short and sweet. I came across this quote the other day, and decided to give my own spin on it. Little doodles and sketches like this are the best, especially since you can throw them in a frame and BAM! you now have something adorable to hang on your walls. 

And of course, since things can never just be black and white. 

Click the links below to download the JPGs, and give yourself a daily reminder to NEVER be regular! 

Be Bold Quote - Black and White

Be Bold Quote - Blue Gradient 

Be Bold Quote - Light Blue

Be Bold Quote - Pink Gradient 

Be Bold Quote - Purple 

Be Bold Quote - Teal and Green 

You can even print them all and create a beautiful little gallery wall.

Hope you all have a fabulous weekend! 

Bedroom Dreaming

Hello everyone! 

Over the past week, Eric and I kicked off our bedroom transformation. This is one of the rooms that I wish we would have started sooner. It's our most personal space, and yet whenever we were in there I never felt like it was our own. 

So last Sunday we said ENOUGH and got started. First we primed and painted the trim Simply White by Benjamin Moore, since that's the goal for the entire house. Just this step alone made such a dramatic difference in the whole mood of the room. The ugly wood trim is now all fresh and bright! 

Having to get ready in the morning with all of the furniture pulled away from the walls and in your face was super interesting. 

After we had a few coats of paint on the trim, we taped everything off and attacked the walls. Since we had a decent amount of leftover grey paint from the living room, we decided to use that color in here as well. Gadget Grey by Dutch Boy is the paint name, and it was a color we both knew we already loved, and agreed wasn't too masculine or feminine. 

Flashback to when we first moved in! 

Such an improvement from the blue. 

Now of course I want to work on new bedside tables, hang curtains, look into a new bedroom set, make matching lamps...curse of the decorator domino effect. :) 

I actually do have a game plan for this space, as it is no where near complete. The first big task I want to tackle is stenciling a herringbone pattern on the wall with the window. I was inspired by this photo below from Kristen F. Davis Designs. 

The randomness of the colors and pattern is what I find so interesting. It's not your traditional herringbone pattern, and this has way more colors that we would use, but I think it could really add some interest to our room. My vision is to replicate the random pattern, but only use a shade darker grey, and a shade lighter than what is on our walls. I think keeping with a monotone color scheme will prevent it from becoming too overwhelming.

Secondly, I have been bitten by the Rast-hacked dresser bug. There are projects all over the inter-web transforming plain IKEA Rast dressers into these glorious pieces.  Not only would they work as great beside tables, they would add six extra drawers of storage. Color me impressed. 

Source, Source, Source. 

For our version, I want to paint it a dark teal/peacock color. Off Broadway by Allen + Roth is what I'm leaning towards, with beautiful gold hardware. 

Other plans include hanging curtains, making a headboard, looking into area rugs, and finding matching lamps to paint gold and top with black lampshades. 

And since I need a visual before I make any sort of decision, I've created this little mood board to help bring my ideas to life.  

I'm sure the final space will look a little different, but it's a step in the right direction! I'm so excited to get started on that stenciled wall, it will be a true "math-meets-art" test of our personalities. 

Other happenings this weekend included a little trip to the Ohio Valley Antique Mall where I spotted this sexy beast. 

All. Those. Drawers. 

And those gold label pulls? AAAAHHH!!!! 

I didn't even look at the price tag, my heart wouldn't have been able to take it. 

I really wanted to take this guy home with me too. What would I do with a giant "D" you ask? Whatever the hell I want, that's what. 

Eric's parents and grandma also came down to visit us, and Grandma W passed some of her sewing wisdom down to me so I can hopefully get started on my kitchen curtains. 

I'm a little nervous, not gonna lie, but she seems to have faith in me. 

Woo, that was a lot. 

This weekend, instead of starting a major project, we're going to focus on sorting through all of the boxes that are still piled up in the office and guest room. 

I think six months is long enough for those poor things not to have a home yet. 

Anyone else starting a major task this week? 

Do you love mood boards as much as I do? 

Are there curtain god's I can pray to to help me sew these bad boys? 

Have a good one! 

The Book Loft - German Village

This weekend Eric and I trucked up to Columbus to visit our friends, Jason and Jared. It was so good to spend time with these guys, we don't get to see them enough. They took us to one of their favorite bars, The World of Beer, where they have over 500 craft beers you can try. Needless to say the guys had a great time, I even tried a couple of beer-cocktails that were especially yummy. 

We also went to the Ball State gymnastics meet against OSU on Saturday to watch my sister Angie. She is a senior this year *shakes head in disbelief* and her last home meet in Muncie is this Friday at 7pm. If you're in the area you should go and cheer on the Cardinals! 

On Sunday, the weather was so nice Jason took us on a little walking tour of German Village. He brought us to The Book Loft, a bookstore with 32 rooms just bursting with bargain books. 

I was in love before we even made it to the front door. 

This place is a MAZE. Room after room crammed with shelves, packed with books of every variety you could imagine. Each room has a theme to keep you're interest organized, but even then it seems like you're just wondering around a magical cross between Belle's library and Pan's labyrinth. 

I wanted desperately to bring this beauty home with me. 

Don't bookshelves make stunning black and whites? 

If I had my way, we would have walked out of there with our bags heavy and our wallets light. 

So to all you fellow book lovers, if you ever find yourself in German Village be sure to sneak into this gem, you will NOT be disappointed. 

This Post Is Off The Scale

Exactly one year ago, I published THIS POST about developing your strength through your struggles. 

"Strength does not come from winning. Your struggles develop your strengths. When you go through hardships and decide not to surrender, that is strength."

I've been thinking a lot lately about that quote, and the fact that I posted it a year to the day is a bit freaky. In the mentioned post I talked about my frustration with the numbers I was seeing on the scale. To keep things real and honest, I am still in that same old rut I found myself in last March. Nothing I do seems to be helping me get closer to my goal weight. Yes I complain, and yes I know I need to be grateful and proud of what I've accomplished so far. But when your progress is determined by a number, it's hard to feel like you're succeeding when it hasn't changed in a year and a half. 

THAT my friend is the problem. 

I have been focusing entirely TOO HARD on those little digital numbers that flash up at me every week. 

Lent started Wednesday, and I've decided that instead of giving up chocolate or wine, I am going to find one Off the Scale Victory every week to go along with my weigh-in. These OSV's can be anything from "I didn't snack on the ingredients while cooking", "ran an extra 5 minutes on the treadmill", to "totally caught that guy checking me out!". Anything that boosts my spirits, makes me feel GOOD about myself, and deserves an inner high-five!

And being the designer that I am, I've created a little list to keep with me to record each of my Off the Scale Victories.

One is designed for the weeks of Lent, and the other is just to use whenever!

So if you also need to focus on those Off the Scale Victories like me, you can download these lists by following the links below! 

"My Off The Scale Victories" List

7 Week "My Off The Scale Victories" List

Everyone needs to celebrate a little more in their life. Whether it's the giant hurdles, or the smallest of leaps. Take the time to give yourself that inner high-five you deserve!

Pole-iversary!

Happy Pole-iversary to me! 

Two years ago, I found a Groupon to Bella Forza Fitness and took my first Pole Foundations class. From the moment I took my first spin, I was completely hooked! Since then I've been taking 2 to 3 classes a week, and also started taking as many fitness classes I could fit into my schedule. At first I started pole to get stronger, now I'm focused on getting stronger so I can do more pole! Never have I ever had this much strength, and I can't even explain how great of a feeling it is. Pole has completely changed my life :) 

Here are a couple videos from my Beginner Pole classes: 

These just make ma giggle now, I love how excited I was to spin by pushing myself off of the floor while doing a Table. 

Once I was moved up into Intermediate I was taught how to invert. Here is a picture of one of my first Butterfly tricks. 

Not long after I was moved to Intermediate, we had our annual BFF showcase. I thought "What the heck!" and signed up. Here is the video of my routine to Sweet Transvestite from the Rocky Horror Picture Show.

Now I laugh at how shaky the inverts are, but this was an absolute rush to perform in front of people. Videos like this really help me see how much progress I've made. If you ever start a new hobby, document everything. There is nothing like seeing your talents improve that gives you the confidence to keep doing what you love! 

After around a year in Intermediate, I was finally moved up to Advanced! 

One of my absolute favorite tricks I have learned in Advanced is an Aysha. Below is a video of when I finally nailed a Handspring into a Split-Grip Aysha. 

We've had another showcase at Bella Forza Fitness, and of course I said "Sign me up!". This showcase I did an advanced routine with two other of my peers. We had a medley of Disney songs we meshed together to create and adorable performance. :) 

My latest trick I've really been working on is called an Iron-X. It is literally holding your body away from the pole so you are in the shape of an "X". It requires control, strength, and takes a lot of practice. 

Here is one of my first attempts I recorded a couple weeks ago:

And here is another video taken last weekend at the Arnold Sports Festival: 

Held it a few seconds longer and I am pumped! 

This last one is a Cartwheel into a Split-Grip Aysha that I just nailed yesterday! Need to keep that one leg straight, but I'm still very happy with it! 

Bella Forza has also let me meet two absolutely insane pole athletes, Estee Zakar and Natasha Wang! Click their names to see videos of their incredible skill! 

Bottom line, Pole Fitness has become a MAJOR part of my life. I can't begin to explain how thankful I am to have found this form of exercise, or how important is has become to me. The support and love that flows through the ladies in my classes is indescribable. Everyone is rooting for you, and they are just as happy when you succeed as you are about yourself! 

If you've ever thought about giving pole dancing a spin, GO AND TRY IT! 

You'll never know what you're missing until you give it a shot!