life with him

wearing: zara sweater and 77kids pants

sometimes i wish i had the endurance of my 11 months old. he falls down so many times each day and still he gets back up and tries again and again. makes me realize that i can't give up so easily either. currently he is absolutely fascinated by doors. the opening and closing part could probably keep him occupied for hours if there weren't his mama worrying about those tiny little fingers getting stuck or squished. he is also getting closer to walking and it has me all excited and worried at the same time. i've been chasing him around the house since he started crawling at 5 months so at least that won't change. 

i am starting to plan his birthday party for next month. next month? i can't believe it's here already. my baby is turning into a toddler with 7 teeth, still not so much hair and a smile that melts my heart every time. life with him is fantastic in every way.

blogging: how to keep a balance

skirt: tj maxx, shirt: tresics, sandals: birkenstock, sunglasses: cheapos from local store, lips: maybelline fuchsia fever

last night i shut the computer off at 9, had a big latte and a couple of white chocolate chip macadamia nut cookies for dinner, in bed, with a stack of magazines - and it was heavenly!
 i've been going non-stop for the past few weeks and i am starting to notice that my patience runs thinner, my body is achy and my brain goes at 100 mps. when i finally go to bed at a time no mom of an 11 months old boy should go to bed, i still can't fall asleep. having my phone around all day doesn't help either. i love this blog and whenever i am not taking care of my little man or cooking, cleaning or doing laundry- which is not much time - i spend it thinking about post ideas, coming up with/planning outfits to wear, updating all my social media, returning comments, reading up on my faves and getting inspired. in the end, it takes up a lot of that precious time that i get to myself. oh and then there is my wonderful husband who when he gets back from work shouldn't get ignored by his wife as much as he has been...
when you ask other bloggers a lot of them will say that they blog for themselves, but let's be honest, we all hope to reach others with what we write. if i wanted to do all of this for myself i could set my blog to private or keep a journal - but hey, that didn't even work when i was a teenager. proof are all those 1/4 full journals in a box somewhere in the attic...
i love blogging and i hope that some of you who read my posts actually take something away from it all.

so i am going to start making an effort to get away from bloggy land a little more often and paying more attention to the ones around me. that doesn't mean there won't be the usual amount of posts but i really need to stop spending every night in front of the computer or checking my phone every 15 minutes. social media can be so addictive.
i hope this doesn't come across as me complaining, i am not! i'm just trying to be honest about the amount of work it actually takes to run a blog. and if you're like me and leaning a little more towards the type a side, you know how hard it is to let go and not try to give 100% all the time. sometimes i think it's actually a good thing i am not working a full-time graphic design job because i'd never come home from the office ;)

so, how do you other moms or work full-time/blog full-time ladies do it? how do you keep your balance without ignoring your real life friends and family or ignoring bloggy land?

GIVEAWAY: Neon Vinyl Clutch

aaaand for all of you who can't or don't want to make this clutch themselves... it is giveaway time :)

ok, here is the deal:

this giveaway is closed!

to enter you must be a gfc follower of the forge and chose one other way to subscribe. Leave me a comment saying how you follow and also leave your email. (if you don't have gfc just choose two of the other options to follow along)

for additional entries you may:

subscribe via email 

follow via bloglovin'

like the forge on facebook

follow the forge on twitter @theforgestyle

follow on instagram @theforgestyle

follow on pinterest

leave a separate comment for each one you do! 

tweet about this giveaway and leave me the link in your comment

@theforgestyle is giving away a neon vinyl clutch http://tinyurl.com/cxwwthw #giveaway #freebie #fashion 

pin this giveaway to pinterest and leave me the link in your comment

enter @theforgestyle #giveaway and win this neon color block clutch http://tinyurl.com/cxwwthw

post this giveaway to your facebook page and leave me the link in your comment

that's a total of 9 entries per person. just leave a comment for each one that you do.

i will draw a winner via random number generator on may 18th. 

US residents only (sorry everyone else) 

good luck :) 

{she made it} neon vinyl clutch fashion diy

this is a simple clutch diy for anyone who has basic skills using a sewing machine. i am by no means a professional and if i don't use the right terms please don't get offended. i am completely self taught and most of the time just learn by trial and error.

here is what you'll need:

sewing machine
about 1/2 to 1 yard of vinyl depending on what size clutch you want to make
fabric for liner (you don't have to line it)
zipper
rotary cutter
ruler
thread
paint (i used patio paint)
possibly some fabric glue
masking tape
foam brush

Cut your piece of vinyl to the desired size. Mine was about 22" x 16.5". Cut your piece of fabric for the liner just slightly shorter on the zipper side so it wont show after you sew it together.

i then added some fabric glue and glued the liner onto the wrong side of the vinyl piece. my fabric was very silky and because you can't really use pins to keep it in place i just decided to add some glue.

i did the same thing with the zipper. line it up right side of zipper facing wrong side of vinyl and then sew down the side with your zipper foot. do the same thing on the other side and be careful because you won't have much room to work with. i opened the zipper a little bit because it was easier to sew that way. 

once the zipper is attached, make sure you open it about half way. DO NOT forget this step or you won't be able to turn your clutch right side out when you're done sewing. then simply sew down both sides right over your zipper.

your clutch will then look something like this: 

if you have some excess fabric you will want to trim it now. also cut off the excess zipper. turn your clutch right side out and it'll look like this: 

now you'll need your paint, foam brush and masking tape.

tape off the stripe that you want to paint on both sides. 

i painted two coats and let the paint dry over night before removing the masking tape. 

it didn't seep through at all and covered perfectly. i used patio paint because it is weather proof so i figured it would stick to the vinyl.

the lined inside will look like this.

then you're all done and ready to take it out on the town. 

i am happy to answer any questions you may have, just shoot me an email or comment. 

if you'd like to win this clutch just enter the giveaway here

and if you want more diy check out my feature post over at love stitched today for some neon jewelry to go with this clutch :) 

{style files} polka dots, skinny jeans and a blazer

jeans: ae jeggins, polka dot shirt: jcrew, blazer: f21, sandals: graceland, sunglasses and watch: michael kors, necklace: parallel world designs on etsy, nail polish: essie tart deco, lip color: maybelline color sensational in fuchsia fever

hey everyone! did you have a good weekend? with all of the heaviness of last weeks posts i am starting this week of on a positive note :) tomorrow i'll be posting the vinyl neon clutch diy tutorial as promised and then there will also be a giveaway. so make sure to check back for that. 

i am totally in love with my new fuchsia lipstick. i had been on the hunt for the perfect shade and finally found it. this color seriously goes with almost anything. and how about the new $20 michael kors sunnies from tj maxx? that is my place to buy sunglasses and after my cole haan ones broke on vacation these ones were the perfect replacement. love them!

linked up here

instagram sunday

so i've been messing around with this file for way too long and blogger just won't show it at its actual width :( that's why these instagram sunday pics have been showing up at a different width than all the rest of the pictures on my blog. sorry about that! i get super anal about things like that but at this point i have no clue what's going on... 

this week we...

hung out with little brother some more

went to starbucks twice

ate bagels

found a sweet piece of home at the grocery store (milka)

painted the bathroom (finally after almost 4 years)

missed the hubby

got some new toys

fell in love with the new fuchsia lipstick

picked up a suitcase

dropped someone off at the airport once again

picked the hubby up at the airport after midnight

fell in love with birdy (where have you been all my life??) 

read books

cuddled the puppies

got more prints for the instagram wallpaper 

finally moved some euros out of the wallet after 3 months

went to the playground

what did you do? 

huffington post feature

image via stylelist home

hope you're all having a great weekend. It's pretty rainy and cool here but I can't complain because we just had a super nice week so I am just hoping the weather will turn around again soon.

i am just dropping in quickly to let you guys know how excited i am to be featured as a pinner to watch, over at the Huffington Post's Stylelist Home blog today!! i am so honored that they picked out my painted jar candle diy project from among thousands of wonderful pinterest pins :)

see what they had to say here.
you can also follow me on pinterest here.