We have a winner! (Target.com giveaway)

Another large turnout! Thank you to everyone who entered. The winner of the $15 Target.com gift code is:

Yaz!

Congratulations to our winner! Another giveaway will be up soon, so keep an eye out for it!

Whoops! Google accidentally reset thousands of accounts.

Apparently over 150,000 gmail accounts were accidentally wiped over the weekend. Although that's not very many in the big picture of Google accounts, it's enough to have drawn a lot of attention to the issue.

Google has released a statement that they are working to restore all of the messages, attachments, and chat logs lost in the incident.

I know that I keep a lot of information and documents in my Gmail account that aren't well backed-up elsewhere. This makes me want to go through everything and save copies to my computer
just in case. I've heard that Google stores data very well and very long-term, so hopefully they'll be able to restore all of the affected accounts.

This site has more info for you.

What a Weekend!

"I am thankful for the mess to clean after a party because it means I have been surrounded by friends."
~Nancie J. Carmody






Remember that big chalkboard I made for under $10? This is what it looked like after the party. We hung it on the wall, put out chalk and let people draw/write on it. I think I'll hang it in my office/music room.

The party was a complete success. It was high-energy but nothing was damaged, it was rowdy but not too loud (no cops!), people were dancing all night long and we never ran out of food/drinks/ice.

Since I worked full days both the day of and the day after the party I didn't get a lot of before/during/after shots, but over the next week or so I'll be posting some of the things that turned out really well.

Happy Morning Music

"Be pleasant until ten o'clock in the morning and the rest of the day will take care of itself."
~Elbert Hubbard







I love listening to classical music in the morning! I heard this Mozart concerto on my local classical station the other day and thought it'd make perfect morning music - it's calm, peaceful and lovely.

It's my Birthday!

We're not doing a lot to celebrate tonight since we're having the big party on Saturday, but my sweetheart did surprise me with flowers, a small cake and a great gift (more about that in another post).

On another birthday note, I won a $15 Amazon.com code from myCardz.net (my 3rd win from them!) and it showed up in my email this morning. I splurged and bought this light for my party:







I'll definitely put up a review once we get it in and set up! It's sound sensitive (lights move to the beat of the music) so hopefully it will add some great atmosphere and put on a bit of a show. It might be a bit expensive for a light, but thus far I've spent very little on this party. There was room in my budget - and this will definitely be a big decor centerpiece!

Well, that's about it for today - time to go have another slice of cake!

Make your own chalkboard (mine cost under $10)

“I will not waste chalk.”
~ Bart Simpson







For my nightclub party on Saturday I wanted something interesting for a particular wall and decided to do a chalkboard. It's large, stark décor and people can draw/write on it as they please - which could get interesting as the night goes on!

Chalkboard wall decals in the size I want are a bit too expensive for this party, and because we're renting I can't actually paint the wall. Instead, I decided to make my own framed chalkboard to hang!

Many months ago I picked up this picture for $1 at a local thrift shop. It never got hung up, so it's been sitting around taking up space. Time to transform this baby!




It's hard to tell in the picture, but the whole thing measures aprox. 3'4" x 4'4"



I used FolkArt Chalkboard Paint:








On the first coat, I started out trying to be too perfect. I figured I should have a fairly good spread to act as a base layer, but I ended up just pushing paint around on the glass, causing formed ridges between strokes. I ended up just painting whatever would stick in a thin layer, which turned out to be the right idea:




See how the picture is still kind of visible through the first coat?




I thought I'd need three coats, but two turned out to be fine. I might still add another layer tomorrow if I'm feeling frisky, but it looks pretty good after just two:







So there you have it! A large framed chalkboard for under $10. In a few more days it'll go up on the wall and I'll get some more pictures for you all!

Party Recipe: Mozzarella, Cherry Tomato and Basil Skewers

One of the things I'll be serving at my upcoming nightclub-themed party:







I love these easy yet artsy hors d'oeuvres. Basil, tomato and mozzarella is a classic flavor combo (the insalata Caprese), and serving them this way makes for great finger food with great presentation.




Click here to see the recipe page where I found the mouth-watering picture.

My Birthday Party {Target.com e-code Giveaway}

"Nobody cares if you can't dance well. Just get up and dance."

~Dave Barry








My birthday is this week! This will probably be my last birthday in Oklahoma, at least for a while, so it's a good excuse to throw a party!

I'm transforming my house into a nightclub for an evening, and I'll be posting my progress/ideas here for you all to see as the week goes on.

To celebrate, I'm offering one winner a $15 Target.com e-code!



To enter:

Give me an idea for my party! It could be food, inexpensive decor, or anything else you think might help me set the club mood.



For bonus entries (leave a comment for each bonus activity completed):

Subscribe to my feedburner emails
Follow me via Google Friend Connect
Follow me on Twitter




The last day to enter the giveaway is Sunday, February 27 (02/27/11). I will use random.org to choose a winner and will contact him or her by email (please leave an email if it is not visible in your profile).

We have a winner! (Lancome Giveaway)

Wow! 150 entries for our first giveaway! Thank you to everyone who entered.



Congratulations to the winner of our first-ever giveaway, Andrea D.! She'll be recieving a tube of Lancôme's Hypnôse Mascara, complements of the Miss Mnemosyne blog.


Stay tuned for more giveaways in the future!

Over the Top: Playable Angry Birds Birthday Cake!

This guy made his son a crazy birthday cake - a working, playable Angry Birds cake! The video shows the cake's construction and, of course, its inevitable destruction in true Angry Birds fashion.