merry, merry christmas! i love the holiday season, although sometimes it is so easy to get caught up in the busy-ness of everything. last minute gifts seem to always stress me out a bit, and somehow each year i end up swearing i will never wait so long again...yet that just never seems to happen does it? :)

christmas eve day was spent last minute shopping/wrapping- i'm bad, i know! this included a new pair of shoes for me- merry christmas, self! plus fun socks + cupcake liners for my boyfriends sweet little sisters!

^^remember this? d.i.y peppermint brown sugar body scrub for my cousins!

christmas eve night was spent at my aunt's house with all (15+) of my cousins. meaning lots and lots of food- funny how out of all these pictures the only thing i actually ate was the bread (i'm super picky!) call me crazy...and then i'll call you crazy..it'll never end! regardless, they look pretty in pictures right?!

hope you had a merry everything!! 

The past few weeks I have been so busy with design requests! Maybe its the holiday spirit- if so, I'm happy and honored to get to share my two (actually- 3, notice the new look?) most recent designs for some amazing blogs! I am working on more now, and have a queue in the works- pretty neat if you ask me, I appreciate the little business. If you find yourself interested in the full details and pricing information, wander over to my blog design/branding page!

You can click each design to see it live >>

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I'm finally home at my parents house to relax and enjoy one whole month off of school after cramming my little brain out during finals week (last week). Up until yesterday, I really hadn't been feeling very festive or ready for the holidays- everything came so fast this year! Normally by the time the semester comes to an end I am really prepared I kick finals in the butt. And yes, I know how dumb that sounds, and to be honest I even backspaced it immediately after typing, but after thinking about it I decided to retype- since its true. That's just what I do.

Now, I am just thankful they are finished and I can start focusing on all the Christmas festivities! My family has been going crazy with traditions- which of course, I love! Yesterday we crafted our very own new Christmas tradition. Here's how it went down; we wrote each family member's name on a piece of paper and put them in a basket, everyone drew a name (making sure they did not draw their own). We had one hour to shop downtown Boulder for whoever's name we had drawn, before meeting for our dinner reservation and to exchange gifts. All gifts had to be under $20- I got my mom and chose Table Topics for her- and I got super cute mittens you can still text while wearing (score).

We ended up with so many fun and unexpected gifts- like Haikubes (dice that make Haiku poems, who knew)! In addition to fun new traditions, I've been loving the old ones too- helllllo baked goods and sugary treats!

Do you have any fun family holiday traditions? I'd love to hear about them!

a few weekends ago it was my best friend maddie's birthday! we had a fun little get together with the girls and a night full of yummy food and lots of laughing! i have to admit though... i completely spaced making her birthday cake- and remembered last minute while taking a shower only an hour before everyone came over. i didn't have much time and wasn't able to make it quite how i wanted since it was warm and the frosting was melting before my eyes...but i do have a chance to redeem myself as my birthday is right around the corner!

i frosted that in a towel thank you very much! ^^ 

the only thing martha stewart has on me is time management...and jail time, clearly

i've got a little less than 1 month to master my cake decorating skills before my own birthday. here are my inspirations:

hope your day is sweet! xox

whenever i edit pictures, i find myself faced with the same problem- over saving a thousand different edits of the same photo. sometimes the differences between two are SO subtle that it probably wouldn't make a difference to most people, but i stress and stress over whether to go with the more muted matte look or a "cleaner" color popping action. in the past, i've gotten questions about what my editing workflow- so i thought today i'd share a peek into some of my favorite actions!

find all these actions in at paintthemoon.net in ; the essentials, PTM coffeehouse mega set, tillie's attic, the bee's knee's action set {free}, miracle makeover

color adjustments, retouching, brightening + turn down the lights- PTM the essentials, hello, gorgeous (natural glow)- PTM miracle makeover

PTM milky tea action

PTM silver spoon action **my absolute fave BW action

PTM vanilla pop action

color adjustments, retouching, brightening + turn down the lights- PTM the essentials, hello, gorgeous (natural glow)- PTM miracle makeover

 PTM urban delight action

PTM biscotti **all time fave- i use this action on literally, everything! people, little details, food, it just makes everything so pretty! 

PTM burnt marshmallow

PTM creamy java

i highly highly highly recommend/beg you to try paint the moon actions, they are absolutely brilliant! these are my current faves, but i tend to frequently have a new favorite- there isn't one i have yet to like! whats your favorite?! xox

in light of the approaching holiday season, i was excited to put together a pinboard of cute packaging ideas! i'll admit, wrapping presents might just be more fun to me than actually whats inside!

STAMPED GIFT TAGS - remember rubber stamps?! i can't wait to pull out my really old craft boxes and get going on these | PERFECT BOWS HOW TO - because i've always wondered | FRINGED PAPER BAG HOW TO - more rubber stamp fun | FUNKY LACE - whats not to love? | FABRIC WRAPPED - hello, adorable & really ridiculously easy. why didn't i think of this?! | SIMPLE - my absolute fave | DIY GIFT CARD HOLDERS - much cuter than the tacky ones from stores, obviously | POPSICLE STICK TAGS - i love repurposed- and who doesn't have popsicle sticks hiding in their craft box? ...nobody | FANCY BOW HOW TO - i heart the unexpected |

it's december first, so naturally christmas list making is on my mind! earlier today i came up with all my lists for family and friends, i just love brainstorming the perfect gift for each person, don't you? this year i am excited for a lot of DIY inspired gifts for the ones i heart the most- of which i can't wait to share!

need some inspiration? check out my diy delights pinboard for some festive little gifts!

want to know whats at the top of my list this year? i love the little things- so of course i'm lusting over vintage paper straws, fun fabric and i couldn't help throwing in a pair of chunky wedges perfect for the holiday season.

i sure hope i've landed a spot on the good list this year!

all images via my wishlist pinboard from pinterest