Waaaay More Info About Me Than You Ever Wanted To Know.

You guys.

You make me want to cry. (Seriously I am an emotional fool)

Thank you from the bottom of my heart for taking the time to write just wonderful (and long) comments and emails. I appreciate it more than you will ever know.

 

So now for the longest post ever on Vintage Revivals. And really probably more junk than you really ever did want to know…..

shoe size? 8 1/2 I love some cute heels but these are my favorite shoes ever. My grandpa made them for me when I was in 5th grade. I always “saved”them but when he died I wanted to remember him more and so now I wear them almost everyday.

What kind of girl were you in high school? Oh my gosh. Thanks Mandi #1 for this question. I was nothing special,  I am SOOOOO uncoordinated and cant play sports. When I was a freshman I was on the basketball team (cause I am 5’9) and I scored 1 point the whole season. I cant sing, at.all. I wasn’t the confident person that I am now. I was always looking for other people, friends, boyfriends, friends boyfriends (Ha ha just kidding….really I am kidding) to validate me. I didn’t see the worth that I had, which I think every single one of us can attest to. I loved hanging out with my friends and shopping. I worked at a library and a Tuxedo shop. Mostly I just wanted to blend in and have people like me.

I would also like a picture from high school.

I apologize in advance for anyone that is in these pictures….

 

My first prom. OMGosh soooo embarrasing. If this is your husband I am sorry that I posted this picture!

Ok that’s it I cant bear anymore.

Where did you go to High School? Copper Hills

Have you ever committed a felony? No, but I have been arrested. You can read about that {here}

Best movie, EVAR. NEWSIES!!!!

Where did you get “love your guts” from? that’s so original! Ha ha! Its honestly how I feel! Everyone in the world has something to offer and I appreciate that. I am extroverted and get energy from being around people so by the time I read someone post I am so excited to tell them that I love it that that is the only way to clearly express how I feel…weird? Yes.

What is your favorite TV show? I love anything on the History Channel and A&E like Intervention, Beyond Scared Straight. I also love Bachelor. And pretty much anything on Bravo.

If you could marry one inanimate object what? At the moment it would have to be my living room. I am IN LOVE with it.

How many siblings do you have and what number are you? Sisters or brothers? I am the oldest of 3 girls

How old are you? 27

Where do you live in Utah? St George

What took you there? College. 1 semester. I rock.

Where are you from? I grew up in West Jordan UT

Do you guys plan on having more children? Yes If so how many? If it’s a boy we will probably be done, if not then we will just keep going…..

Who inspires YOU? All of you!! Sort of cheesy but totally true.

Who are you jealous of? My sisters. They are both funny and GORGEOUS and have awesome clothes.

How do you prep before doing the studio 5 stuff- do you get nervous? I prep as much as I need to. There is always running to Home Depot the morning of. I actually don’t get nervous. When the guy says “30 seconds” I get really excited.

I was wondering though about being one of your sponsors. You haven’t updated your sponsor page, so I was wondering if you could give me some info! I am debating about sponsors right now and until I decide what to do I am not accepting anymore.

BlogSpot for dummies book? I want mine to be cute. I plan to possibly write about these things…hair (im a hairstylist), making jewelry, home décor, painting, hot gluing(that’s a skill right? Cuz im the bomb w a glue gun), recovering furniture, all that crafty kinda stuff….what do you think? There is a place for everyone in Blogland! You should totally do it,  you will learn a lot about yourself.

Where do you find all this stuff and how often do you look? I can never find anything here ugh!! I have a routine. I used to go daily but then I felt like a hoarder so now I go once or twice a week. Know in your store where the good stuff is. Check there first. If there isn’t anything and you have time to kill wander but if not don’t waste it. I can be in and out of the DI in 10 minutes. If you want a larger piece of furniture flag down an employee and have them tag it for you. Even if you are not sure about it. It gives you time to think before someone else snatches it up. Make friends with the employees, then you will be more comfortable asking them to lower a price or to watch for something for you.

What would you call a person that is into Modern and Vintage style? Besides awesome? Good question…I don’t know.

Oh can I have the secret to amazing Mexican Rice? I don’t even know the recipe…only the hubs and the pa-in-law…and Columba

Does it bother you to read posts by people who swear in their blogs? as someone who seems to toe the line a bit more than I do, what do you think about that? You have to be authentic,  if that is how you talk then that’s how you talk. That being said, you will never offend anyone if you don’t swear but you will offend someone at sometime if you do. Some people wouldn’t even notice it,  I don’t swear (since I got all relig) and I have become a lot more sensitive to it so I would notice. You just have to do what feels right to you!!

What’s your typical day like? You know like, What time do you get up? What time do you go to bed? Ha ha ha. Ok I usually get up around 8 to get Ivie to school. Once she is gone I blog for about an hour (give or take) by then Dylan and Court are usually up and I am getting crap from Court cause I am on the computer so I wrap it up. Breakfast etc. sometimes I clean up usually I don’t. I get working on a project (right now its my living room) while Dylan watches Nick Jr or plays. We have a lunch/ nap break and then go and get Ivie and run errands. When we get home its homework, chores, dinner time. Then it’s the battle that wages every night, bed time. Ivie is supposed to be in bed at 9:00. Its kind of hard cause Court doesn’t usually get home from the restaurant until 9:30 and she stalls so that she can see him. It gets kind of crazy because I am trying to *sort of * get the house cleaned up before he gets home, etc. there are lots of threats made and “angry eyes” thrown. Once Ivie is in bed I usually check my emails and hang out on twitter (getting more crap from Court cause the only times that I am on the computer is when he is home so naturally he thinks that’s ALLL I do.) We watch whatever DVR’ed that day and bed time is around 11:30. Phew. That was a long answer.

Oh, and what’s your favorite dessert? I love anything with sugar. Red Velvet Cheescake dessert wise but I love candy the most. Purple Skittles and Root Beer Barrels top the list.

When did you start your blog, and how much time do you spend in a typical week keeping it up? Did you have a blog mentor to help you? I started Vintage Revivals in July 2010. I probably spend an hour or so a day on it. Depending on how many pictures I have to edit etc. I sort of had a mentor, Michelle @ Someday Crafts was the first big blogger that I talked to and she gave me some advice about fonts and making my blog more user friendly. I was (and still am) grateful for her friendship. When I was doing CWTS I was lucky enough to have Becca @ Blue Cricket as my star,  She taught me the importance of clear tutorials and awesome pictures.

WHERE do you find time to do all you do? SERIOUSLY…this is a serious question! Do you have a set routine to keep things at home under control and set time to be an amazing blogger/crafter/creator? No. I loathe routines, It hinders my creativity. I am a procrastinator and get things done when I need to. I am always wearing more than one hat at a time. I try and have crafty projects for my girls to do while I am working on stuff. For example when I spent my lifetime stenciling the living room I had a cup of water and a few brushes for Dylan to “paint” the walls too.
We eat at Durangos 3 or so times a week so that’s nice that I don’t have to cook (since I don’t really love it.)

2. Does it freak you out when weird blog stalkers ask for your address so she can send you junk????? Um….is this a trick question? I love it, unless it’s a creeper that shows up at my door (which hasn’t happened yet)

4. Why do you have to live in St. George? I think you should move closer. =) There are LOTS of nice homes for sale around Mandi and I!!! Really, there are. I live in St George because its AWESOME! And you know that you are jealous and want to live here too.

5. We all know who the first man on the moon was, but do you know who was the last? (hehehehe, I do!!! We’re geeks like that!) Nope, Who?

6. What inspires you? I got this question a lot. Problem solving, being unique, being cheap, other bloggers, sometimes magazines, mostly my brain.

7. How did you discover this creative zen of yours? Its not really optional. If I want something I will make a way to do it. I started sewing while I was preggo with Dylan (never sewn before besides a t shirt for 4 h) because I wanted a cute carseat. So I took the one I had all apart and used it as a pattern. I got so many compliments on it I started selling them (with some clothes and such) and then I hated it. So I stopped. If you don’t love something and you don’t HAVE to do it why would you?

8. Does muriatic acid kill grass? I really want to do some mirrors, but I don’t have an empty lot to rinse the acid off into and you mentioned something about it not being good for concrete……?? LOL. I was not prepped for that question so I didn’t have time to think of a good answer. Yes muriatic acid will kill grass. But I think that really its ok to rinse down the gutter. I mean its actually used for swimming pools so as long as its diluted I would think it would be alright.

9. I want the recipe to your favorite family dinner…..puuuuhlease…..with yellow, gray and white sprinkles on top!!!! Get in your car, drive to Durangos and get a Pork Salad with Spicy Tomatillo Dressing. Slap your husband on the butt for a meal well cooked.

Do you have Facebook? I do not now or ever will have facebook. The hubs and I have a pact against it. Marriage is hard enough without receiving updates from your ex’s or high school crush.

2) I have a full time day job, so perfect lighting is not something I can always get. While the beautiful pics are what I strive for, how important are beautiful pics vs. clear pics in your opinion? If it’s nighttime and I use my flash, the pic is clear, but it ain’t always purty. That’s more by default than design, but I cannot change the pattern of the sun. Yet. Pictures are 80% of the project. You have to make people want to click over and see it. If its not pretty then they wont. Think about magazines(or other blogs) when you see a chocolate chip cookie that is beautifully photographed…you can almost taste it. Design is the same way, when you take great pictures (which I am not so great at) it makes you FEEL something. That’s what you want. You want people to feel something (and boredom doesn’t count)

Networking- especially with larger bloggers- just go for it and risk being annoying? YES! Everyone is so intimidated by larger blogs but you have to remember that they are just people too. With messy houses and everything. You may not always get a response but its worth it to try! Flattery always works too. And target larger blogs that do features. I personally only feature projects from Look What I Found Friday but blogs like Ucreate, Someday Crafts, Be Different Act Normal, Blue Cricket have a reputation with their readers for that, so start there!

Why did you take the DIY Club thing off your logo. Are you still doing it? I almost deleted this question. Just cause I don’t want it to come off weird. I resigned from the DIY  because it is a blog that wants tutorials only, no opinion about the products. I personally cant do a project without giving my 2 cents. I LOVE all the girls involved with it and I will still be entering their monthly contests, It just wasn’t the right avenue for me.

Is it worth it to you? All the time, energy and money that goes into blogging- and what are you hoping to get out of it? Money, fame, lasting notoriety? Absolutely. At this point in time I blog for free because I love it. I am trying to find a way to incorporate sponsors and stuff into Vintage Revivals but I refuse to promote anything that I wouldn’t buy. And I don’t want to turn into a blog that only blogs about giveaways and sponsors. So for right now I am ok with free. I love the validation it gives me, who doesn’t? I LOVE making friends and I am going to start a new series called “Meet My BBFF” which is basically introducing you guys to people that blog that I really really like personally and have a friendship with.

I am hoping to do something fun like The Nate Berkus Show sometime since I love TV but we will see.

What projects are you working on as we speak? I am working on some faux taxidermy, board and batten in the living room,  and I just got the best idea yesterday to make a rug for my living room. Cant wait to show you guys!!

Oh and I will be doing a recap of all the questions you guys answered and write a blogging 101 post next week!!