Welcome, Gabe the Babe!

For those of you following our weekly recaps, I'm here to inform you that Holli Anne won't be posting her recap today. Why?

Well, while we were sleeping she was being super sneaky and having a baby.
(!!!!!!!!)

I am very happy to announce that Holli Anne gave birth to a beautiful, perfect little boy! His name is Gabriel and, as you can see, he's adorable! So here's a big ole CONGRATS to Holli and her hubs on creating Gabe the Babe!

<3

-Tyler Anne
Images via here, here, and here.

While You Were Sleeping // 01

via here and here

While you were sleeping I was dreaming of florals...
What can I say? They're everywhere so it's hard to not miss them!
So, I threw together the pins that made me happiest then went and created a shopping list of similar, affordable finds!

(And yes, when I picked the name of this I WAS thinking of Sandra Bullock and Bill Pullman!)

I sure do hope you enjoy!

I think the funniest thing about florals is how much I used to despise them. I'm not much of a girly girly in the ways of fashion but now I can't help but totally dig the patterns and colors! Whether it's shorts, skirts, dresses, or even shoes I'm on board and wanting more.

Left // Right
I love the softness of the left skirt. So elegant and light. However, when I saw this Garden Girl skirt from Forever 21 I couldn't help but love it more. Bright, colorful, and smack dab adorable!

Left (don't forget these!) // Right
I love a fun print on shorts! They look so cute! These denim Rockin Rose shorts ALSO at Forever 21 do not disappoint with their price or look!

Left // Right
H&M has always had my heart. There's no two ways about that. A little pricier, this sleeveless floral dress is beautiful, airy, and cut just right for warmer weather.

Left // Right 

I love Dr. Martens and any book that slightly resembles them. I know they aren't the most popular but ever since I read One for the Money (the main characters wears them a lot) I've craved a pair. Yet...I don't want to pay all of that extra for the difference between these Victorian flowers and this Print Collection pair. I'd be just as pumped for the $75 pair. They are adorably hardass.

Left // Right
I don't spend $79 for a shirt usually. Maybe that's why my closet isn't as cool as I'd want it to be. Either way, I am over the moon about this Urban Outfitters blouse. I'm already a fan of sheer shirts so with the added floral I just can't even right now. I may just hit publish on this post and go buy it now!

- Tyler Anne (aka Chick Tyler)

Like my writer Facebook Page

Follow my annoying Tweets

See what Pins have me excited

Holli Anne's 2014: Week 6-7

Well, I'm not proud of skipping a week on these, but sometimes life just happens, huh?

These last two weeks were full of big-time nesting, enjoying my little family and definitely feeling the love! So. Much. Love.

Here's what went down:

Pins I'm pinning: I GOTTA have this Sprinkle Cake for my birthday. And this super simple wall art is inspiring a little project for my little man.

Books I'm reading: Finished Harry Potter #3 and have been reading For Whom the Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemingway. (It's for a book club I'm in...I'll be back to Harry Potter this week!)

Movies I watched: The Lego Movie. It's flawless!

Things we're doing: Finishing touches on baby nursery. Cleaning everything else because, why not?! (I can't sit still!) Trying to wrap up things for maternity leave.

Highlights of the week(s): REAL progress on our home! Annual Valentine's Day Date: Waffle House + Lego Movie (it was very fancy). Baby shower from my coworkers. Super sweet visits and surprise baby gifts from friends and family. Just feeling super loved and excited for our little guy to get here and feel the love too!

Hope you've had a wonderful couple weeks!

-Holli Anne

Inspiration: Mini Fashion

A lot of my friends are parents and/or soon-to-be. That's given me a wonderful excuse to start mass pinning ridiculously cute kiddo pics on Pinterest. Today I kind of splurged on these little trendy humans and had to share some of my favorites!

Enjoy!

Can I just take a moment to say, "THOSE HATS!" #adorable

Oh, and for the pictures below...#thoseglasses.

All of these pictures (plus more!) can be found on my Lovely Pictures Pinterest board and tracked back to their original owners!

- Tyler Anne (aka Chick Tyler)

Like my writer Facebook Page

Follow my annoying Tweets

See what Pins have me excited

Tyler Anne's 2014: Week 6-7

Every time I get super busy, I usually do it at the same time as Holli! We're twins so it's cool. This week  we're both a bit behind on recaps but, you know, #life.

So here's belated 6 & 7!

 Week 6 // 7

Inspiring pin(s): Gally Cook One Piece Palm Print // #ColorBlock

Book I finished: Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead // Family issues put reading on the back burner for Week 7

Book I'm currently reading: Frost Bite (Vampire Academy, Book 2) by Richelle Mead & Guilty Pleasures (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter Book 1) by Laurell K. Hamilton - I WILL finish this book this week!

Blog I'm loving: Design Improvised // Inspiration Nook

Blog post I can't get enough of: Studio Kitchen Makeover by Oh Happy Day // Utah Snapshots by Inspiration Nook

Word of the week: Contention // Absolution 

So, what went down? Week 6 was all about dealing with my back pain and doing a lot of behind-the-scenes work for the blog, work, and writing! Week 7 was an emotional roller coaster. My estranged grandmother had two massive strokes (that she miraculously survived) just after my mother got out of rehab. Somehow, though, it brought the three of us closer than we've been in years. Also, had an adorable Valentine's Day weekend that was calm, fun, and just right. Boy Tyler got me seasons 1 and 2 of Castle (one of my top five favorite shows), an awesome decoration for the entryway (blog post on THAT later), and a box of chocolates (with mustache decorations) / typewriter card. I gave him a bacon beer koozie and a book about Dancing with Cats from Modcloth. Oh, and Arby's. :)

Don't forget to see Week 6/7's posts: Valentine's Day Roundup (Even though it isn't V-Day anymore, doesn't mean this post isn't still relevant! You could easily use these for any celebration or just because!)

- Tyler Anne (aka Chick Tyler)

Like my writer Facebook Page

Follow my annoying Tweets

See what Pins have me excited

Valentine's Day Roundup

Tyler Anne's Valentine Roundup

I know Valentine's Day is only a few days away but here are some DIYs/Recipes that you can totally pull off in that time! 

1 / / This creative and definitely cute DIY Valentine's gift wrap found on PaperBlog can be pulled off quickly, giving that extra touch of love. 

2 / / This A Beautiful Mess how-to might not be meant specifically for V-Day but I think it should definitely be considered if you and your loved ones dig yummy, homemade kitkat bars!

3 / / I very rarely drink but what better way to celebrate love and Valentine's Day with Design Love Fest's 1966 Cosmopolitan?
4 / / Want to make your celebration a little more festive? Maybe surprise someone special with some LOVEly balloons? Check out Design Improvised's Valentine Heart Balloons!

Holli Anne's Valentine's Day Roundup

So this year I'm a tad busy for fun Valentine's Day crafts. If I do anything nifty it will definitely be ON Valentine's Day and probably way simple. But, I'm super into these four Valentine's day goodies.

1. These Valentine's Day Cookie Cakes on Bakingdom not only look delicious but are adorable! Plus, they have sprinkles on them and I'm just a sucker for those!

2. I love, love, love these Cupid Arrows from The Sweetest Occassion.  They are such a creative way to give your Valentine a date-night package.

3. This cheesecake is just amazing! I'm sure I'd never have the patience to make it, but isn't it wonderful?! Featured on The Foodie Crush Blog.

4. And lastly, these Crayon Paper Hearts from Martha Stewart are such a simple, effective decoration to me. They were featured on Craftley Blog. 

-The Annes

Tyler Anne's 2014: Week 5

 Week 5

Inspiring pin(s): Golden also PANTONE Color of the Year 2014: Radiant Orchard Nature

Book I finished: Last week was hectic! I didn't finish any books, barely reading any at all! Ahh!

Book I'm currently reading: Guilty Pleasures (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter Book 1) by Laurell K. Hamilton - I need to finish this book!

Blog I'm loving: Design Love Fest

Blog post I can't get enough of: Tim and Hannah's Affordable DIY Self-Sustainable Micro Cabin — House Tour by Apartment Therapy

Word of the week: Arctic

So, what went down? SNOW! Considering that I live in Florida/am from Alabama, this was a big deal. Our little city shut DOWN for two days and work understandably slowed. So when the cold weather moved on my life became hectic! 

Don't forget to see Week 5's posts: Inspiration: Green & Gold / Super Simple DIY Desks / Holli Anne's 2014: Week 5 

- Tyler Anne (aka Chick Tyler)

Like my writer Facebook Page

Follow my annoying Tweets

See what Pins have me excited

Holli Anne's 2014: Week 5

This week was crazy because it snowed in the south! If you don't live down here (or if you do), you probably saw some silliness on the news about people being stuck in their cars overnight because of our snow, but that didn't happen where I live, so it was just fun! Plus, my husband and I got a couple surprise days off work and used them to work on little man's room. Bonus weekend!

Here's the run-down of the week:

Pins I'm pinning: Maybe it's the fact that our house is almost back in order, but my pins seem to be heavily organizing themed. I love this to-do list method.

Books I'm reading: Finished Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone and the Chamber of Secrets. Why am I just now reading this series? Better late than never I guess! I'm hooked!

Movies I watched: (I don't watch a lot of movies but I figured this could be a fun category since I DID this week). Fargo.

Things we're doing: Painting walls gray (check). Painting furniture white. Staining desks. Building Websites. Playing in snow!

Highlights of the week: SNOW (duh!). Lovely date night with my hubby. First visit to Chipotle...yum!

Things I'm blogging: Super Simple DIY Desks (our office space is getting done...yay!)

What's the scoop on your week 5?

-Holli Anne

Super Simple DIY Desks

My husband and I have been on the hunt for the perfect desks for a while now. He is an illustrator and wanted a drafting table BUT our office is in our living room and drafting tables are pretty large. (Except those smaller plasticy ones, but again, this is in our living room). He found a table-top drafting board at Hobby Lobby to solve that issue. So that meant we just needed desks with a large enough surface to hold the drawing board. Plus, I like a really roomy work space to spread out! 

These were easy to make, only cost us about $90 total (for two of them) and look so spiffy in our office space. Here's how we did it:

Supplies: 

• Slab of pre-cut wood from Lowe's (though, I'm sure you could cut some yourself if that's your thing).
• 2 Ikea trestle legs
• 1 can pre-stain wood conditioner
• 1 can wood stain & polyurethane in one
• Fine grain sandpaper

1. Assemble the Trestle legs following the Ikea instructions. 

2. Lightly sand the surface of the wood and wipe dust off with damp cloth. (The wood we bought was about $20 for each slab).

3. Apply coat of pre-stain wood conditioner with paint brush or cloth. Let soak for about 15 minutes. 

4. Apply first coat of wood stain and sealer. Let dry for about 6 hours and then apply the second coat. 

5. Put the wood on top of your trestle legs and get to work!

So, maybe this is almost a little TOO easy to qualify for the DIY category, but it's perfect for us. Affordable, adorable and assembled with love!

-Holli Anne

Inspiration: Green & Gold

1 | 2 | 3 | 4

- Tyler Anne (aka Chick Tyler)
Like my writer Facebook Page
Follow my annoying Tweets
See what Pins have me excited