Golden Bar Cart DIY

My friends always choose my house as the to-go house for any get togethers, and I suspect it is because I am always the one in my friend group who has wine and liquor in stock on any given day. Since, opening the cabinets or keeping the libations on the kitchen counter every day of the week is not very classy, I decided that a bar cart needed to be in my life.

I searched the local antique markets and found this little beauty that just needed a new paint job to bring it back to its glory days.

With the help (and when I say help, I really mean completely fix my first botch job and do it by himself over again) of my boyfriend Glenn, we whipped this bar cart into its new glorious state.

I love the glass layers, that allow you to see everything from the top to bottom in one glance!

My investigative pup, enjoyed the fact that the wine corks were now in prime picking level because she proceeded to carefully take one after the other of her new "toys" out of their location and beg to be let outside to bury her prize.

I can't get enough of my new bar cart and am super excited to show it off at my next event!

Cardamon Bread

Christmas traditions that warm the soul and fill the belly are simply the best kind. Every year my boyfriend's mother, Lauri makes Finnish Cardamom Bread into wreaths to give out to neighbors.

Last year, I came over to her house a few days before Christmas when she was twisting the yeasty treat into the wreaths to bake. I was immediately fascinated, and vowed to come over the next year to see the whole process from start to finish.

The baking extravaganza took several hours, due to the time it took for the yeast to rise, but overall the process was not nearly as intensive as I had thought. And during the wait time, we made chocolate biscotti so fear not!

After kneading the bread, you break off small balls and roll them into long ropes of bread. Then you braid the strands, which Rachel (Glenn's sister) and I did semi-perfectly, and then connect the ends to make the wonderful wreath shape.

Overall the Cardamon Bread to me is better than any dessert I have ever tried. I love a good yeasty treat and the wonderful glaze on this Finnish concoction makes it divine. This is one tradition that I can totally get behind!

Christmas Expressions

The holiday season is filled with wonder and awe.
The unexpected gift, that delivers joy!
The icing of sugar cookies, that prove to be great till the last bite.
The first taste of homemade eggnog, filled to the brim of a glass boot.

These are just some of the wonderful moments I have captured of my beautiful friends faces during this season of love. I can't wait to see what the next few weeks holds.

Oh and the tea party photo shoot that I was asked to take part in has been featured here. 

So check out my expressions!

Revelrey Christmas Giveaway /// Week 3- Closed

The gold chain drifts down to the arrow pointing to the most beautiful blue stone, is this weeks local giveaway! This lovely necklace is made by Courtney of Crafts and Love based out of Atlanta.

I asked Courtney to share what she is passionate about:

"I love creating using my hands to create jewelry, and have loved honing my own style the past few years. But besides jewelry, I am very passionate about serving others - I am pursuing a Master's in Public Health right now and my husband and I constantly dream of packing up and moving overseas to work with and serve others in developing countries. We actually got engaged in Africa, and feel so alive there, and can't wait to get back. That's definitely my biggest passion, and what I work towards every day. Maybe my jewelry business will one day fund those crazy dreams."

To add this brilliant blue necklace to your collection this year (do all three for the best results):

1. Enter a comment below stating what event you would be attending while wearing this necklace!
2. Tweet or post on your facebook about the giveaway, and leave me a comment that you did.
3. Jump on over to Courtney's etsy shop Crafts and Love and tell me what is your favorite item
and leave me a comment telling me all about it!

On all of your comments, make sure to leave your email address so I can get back in touch with you!!!

The drawing will end on Friday, December 21st at Midnight EST.
The winner will be chosen by random.org and is only open to US residents only.

Check out more of Courtney's jewelry on her etsy and facebook!

Thank you for participating in this week's giveaway during:

Week 1 Winner /// Week 2 Winner

The winner of this beautiful necklace is Amelia T.

Christmas Characters

I have never been quite able to put myself in any one particular box. I dress preppy some days and like a hipster the next, depending on my mood. I enjoy reading a book alone in my room or am just as happy to throw a party for friends. So for me Christmas decorations are no different. Some traditional accents and some totally off the wall treasures.

However one thing seems to be a trend with my ever continuing collection of Christmas items. I like characters, and not of the santa variety.

I enjoy my crazy Christmas characters so much! I get so sad when I have to put them back in a box every year!

Revelrey Christmas Giveaway /// Week 2- Closed

Happy Dance! It is time for another giveaway from a local Georgia artist, for my lovely readers! Find out the winner of week one here. Without further ado the second week giveaway is (drum roll please):

This gorgeous teal leather pouch made by Meredith Bridges!

I met up with Meredith in downtown Stone Mountain, 

not to far from my old stomping grounds to pick up this pouch just for you!

Meredith is a super talented artist  in so many ways, one being she just happened to be wearing shoes that she made while we where there so I had to snap a picture of them as well!

I asked her to share why she loves to craft, and the response she gave was incredible and speaks about the pouch that you will receive.

"I love making accessories that are both elegant and durable. It is important to me that my good holds up to daily wear. I like my possessions to see me through the years. The memories embedded in an object you have carried and used for years are really special. The throw away society that we are living in is polluting the Earth and we are surrounding ourselves with objects that we don't care about. Personally having a few cherished possessions keeps my life simple and full of meaning. When I make my crafts I expect them to be used daily and stand up over time."  

To add this cherished handmade teal dream to your collection (do all three for the best results):

1. Enter a comment below stating what items you would like to put in your new pouch!
2. Tweet or post on your facebook about the giveaway, and leave me a comment that you did.
3. Jump on over to Meredith's website and tell me what is your favorite item
or art piece that she has created and leave me a comment telling me all about it!

On all of your comments, make sure to leave an email so I can get back in touch with you!!!

The drawing will end on Friday, December 14th at Midnight EST.
The winner will be chosen by random.org and is only open to US residents only.

For check out more of Meredith's wonderful work find her on etsy, Facebook and her website.

Thank you for participating in this week's giveaway during:

The winner of this giveaway is Erin W.!!!

When life knocks you down...

Christmas Gift Guide for Your Girlfriend

I have been a girlfriend, for a long time. I mean a really long time. I haven't been single for more than a couple months at one time since 8th grade. So, I had a guy friend of mine ask me what to get his girlfriend, whom he has only been dating a couple of months (so jewelry is out of the question) for Christmas, me be being the expert on what girlfriends like and all, I came up with the following:

Soy candles (dulce de leche scent), yummy loose tea, bubble bath bombs, and a soft colorful throw blanket.

No matter what gift you give a girlfriend at Christmas it needs to show that you care for them, and that you put time and thought behind it. Therefore, I put together a pampering package. My guy friend's girl, lives states away so they spend a lot of time apart, therefore it is important that she knows he is giving her a big hug through the cold months even though he isn't physically there. Everything in this pampering package brings warmth, and thought. Accompanied with a handmade card, this gift package will make her truly smile!

Toasting Tea Party

Two wonderful photographers Erin Michelle and Sarah LaRue got together and decided to throw a tea party photo shoot and I was asked to take part in this wonderful event.

We had so much fun laughing, eating homemade strawberry cake and eating sugar cubes!

All of the little details, really made the event feel super special and over the top!

They did such a wonderful job, and I enjoyed every minute of it!

Revelrey Christmas Giveaway /// Week 1- Closed

Every week during the month of December, I am going to be doing a giveaway featuring local artisians for my super fabulous readers! HOORAY! The first week is:

This first giveaway is something that I am truly passionate about, because it involves food. And more specifically a wonderful food that needs to be a part of every savory meal, well at least it is at my house. Garlic. My only problem is that those pesky little bulbs of goodness either start sprouting or go bad before I can use it all up because I just leave them in the full view of the sunlight.

The solution is made by Lisa Ingram of Pottery by Lisa who created this amazing garlic keeper that begs to be showcased on your counter.

Lisa not only creates beautiful items from clay, she is truly a great friend (we had coffee together when she personally gave me this piece). So when she gave me the option to pick any piece from her shop, I snagged this little guy for you, and I named him Garett, who is the prettiest handsomest white garlic keeper that you ever did see.

Now for the fun part, how to win Garett, the garlic keeper (do all three for the best result ;):

1. Enter a comment below stating your favorite garlicky dish to make/eat!
2. Tweet or post on your facebook about the giveaway, and leave me a comment that you did.
3. Jump on over to Lisa's etsy shop and tell me what is another piece you would like to have
or a custom piece that you would like to have her make for you
and leave me a comment telling me all about it!

On all of your comments, make sure to leave an email so I can get back in touch with you!!!

The drawing will end on Friday, December 7th at Midnight EST.
The winner will be chosen by random.org and is only open to US residents only.

If you would like to check out more of Lisa's wonderful work you can find her on facebook and etsy.

Thank you for participating, and garlicky kisses to you all ;)

THE WINNER IS Holly W.! Please contact me to arrange for shipment!