Gage Huntley Designs Giveaway

It's time for a giveaway and this one is sponsored by the lovely Amanda of Gage Huntley Designs.
Please take a moment to check out her website and take a look at her beautiful, handmade jewelry.

Amanda graciously sent me one of her best-selling initial bracelets and this cute dainty heart bangle, and I am in love with both.


These are pieces you won't find at just any of your local stores and what makes them work for me is that they are basic enough to go with just about anything.
I don't buy a ton of jewelry so when I do, it has to be something that is versatile and classic.
These pieces will most definitely see a lot of wear from this girl :)

If you're looking for something a little more bold to make a statement, Gage Huntley Designs won't disappoint here either. Bright colors and the combination of dainty feathers and hearts with bold, gold chains and faceted beads sure make for jewelry that's one of a kind.


Here is what Amanda has to say about her business:

"I am a work from home wife and mother of a 2 year old ball of energy named Gage Huntley. By day I am in real estate and by night I am designing all these amazing pieces that I, myself, would LOVE to wear. I have been making jewelry all my life but gave birth to this business in 2012 when I finally got the courage to dive in. It makes me happy being able to hand make items that each person is so excited to receive and show off.

Jewelry is a statement. It’s your style front and center for everyone to see. It just makes you feel pretty! You can never have enough!" 

You can also follow Gage Huntley Designs here:

Facebook

Instagram: @amandalovesgage

One lucky winner will receive a black and gold initial bracelet and the gold heart bangle as pictured in the top photograph.

If you're ready to place an order now, Amanda is offering a 15% discount with code: TheForge15 

The giveaway is open to all US and Canada residents! Good Luck!

You have to complete the first two entries to be eligible to win! 

1. Be a follower of The Forge
2. Visit Gage Huntley Designs and leave a comment about what item you like best

a Rafflecopter giveaway

we're back...

we're back home and man does it feel good.
as much as I love traveling and seeing new places, I really love coming home just as much.
there's just something about the familiar smell and the way it feels to crawl into your own bed at night with the dryer steadily humming until you fall asleep. is that just me?
i think even logan could tell since he went straight for his toy box and then, when he curled up in his bed to go to sleep after this long and stressful day, it definitely seemed like he had missed it as well.

traveling with a 15 month old is much different than traveling with a 6 month old or even a 12 month old. he is just so much more active now and hates being confined to his stroller or a tight airplane seat.
i sure am glad the flight was only an hour long ;)
i am planning to share a little bit more about traveling with an infant vs. traveling with a toddler in a separate post soon.

the rest of this weeks posts will be way too many pictures from our trip to chicago, a giveaway that I can't wait to share and maybe a style files post?

if I haven't returned your email or comments, please forgive me! i will try to catch up this week :) i really appreciate every single one.

this week I...

... found two humongous and luckily already deceased spiders in the house. one under the dining room table and one on logan's play area rug. i still get chills wondering about whether he played with it or not.

... turned the oven on preheat and forgot that I still had the dessert from the night before in there.   covered with plastic wrap. yup. did you know that plastic wrap easily peels off of glass after it's been melted? now you do.

... cleaned up baby pee in the living room.

... thought the play yard was locked. realized it wasn't when I caught logan stirring my cold morning tea with my iphone. i have no idea how it survived but it still works.

... found a box of shoes underneath a box of purses in my closet. cool. new shoes :)

what fun stuff happened to you this week. do share :)
happy friday!

family pictures

a couple of weeks ago I had the glorious idea to take family pictures, on our own, with the tripod and remote. yahhhhh i think the first picture shows quite well how that turned out and the second how logan felt about posing and sitting still, looking at the camera and of course: smiling.

we ended up with some quite hilarious out-takes so it was definitely worth it.
however, i guess i'll just have to suck it up and pay someone to take our picture next time.

are you a control freak like me? because i sure always feel like I just can't trust anyone else with my creative vision. like i'm the only creative person in the whole world, right? right!  ;)

i am now taking recommendations for Pittsburgh area photographers.

style files: striped midi skirt

skirt: aerie, shirt: old navy, shoes: graceland, necklace: aerie, bracelets: aerie, lisa leonard, ae, sunglasses: ae 

as you are reading this i have once again packed our bags and hauled the kiddo across the country to be with dada. we are spending some time in chicago and looking forward to the end of the season (it's almost here) :) yay!

i have a few posts scheduled for the rest of the week and I'll be back early next week. 

if you think you're gonna miss me like crayzay you can follow via instagram ;) 

diy: leather sleeve shirt

i've been admiring leather detail shirts all over the place for a while now but the ones I like have either been sold out or way too expensive. so I figured why not make my own version using a $2 tee from goodwill and some of this leather imitation fabric I bought 2 whole yards of at wal mart a few months ago when it was on clearance... have I ever mentioned I'm a craft hoarder? 

here are a few inspiration pictures of leather trimmed shirts and shirts with leather sleeves I had saved: 

source I, source II

since my t-shirt's sleeves weren't long enough to do something like that second picture I ended up with a very similar but shorter version. i also thought about putting the pocket in but holding up a piece of leather it just didn't look quite right.

i did the actual sewing part when it was already dark so I didn't take any good pictures of my process but I'll try to describe it as best as I can.

what you'll need: 

a t-shirt

about 1/4 yard of leather 

(real would be great, make sure it's soft and thin, i used pleather) 

sewing machine

matching thread

a seam opener

scissors 

lay your shirt's sleeve flat like in the picture. open the seam (dotted line) several inches on each side of the shoulder seam. the size depends on your individual shirt and how large you'd like your leather piece to be. once your seam is open, cut out the fabric as you can see in the picture but leave about a 1/4 inch on each side, this is what you will sew the leather piece to. repeat on other side.

now cut out your two matching pieces of leather. make sure you leave extra on all 4 sides. 

turn your shirt inside out and place the leather piece right side down. using the extra t-shirt fabric you left earlier match up all 3 sides and sew a straight line down each. I recommend you start with the opened seam side and just sew right along where the seam used to be. then sew down the sides starting at the top. this may take a little bit of adjusting as you go. make sure to go slow! do this for the other sleeve as well.

now turn the shirt right side out again. all that's left to do is fold in the extra leather on the bottom of each sleeve and sew a straight line across. you can now also trim off any excess fabric/leather on the inside of the shirt. 

done :) 

i know this is probably not the "right way" a seamstress would do this but it worked for me. if you have any questions at all let me know!

find more inspiration here!

bits&pieces

just a few bits&pieces from life lately, including...

... getting down and dirty on hot days playing with sand and water. is there a better combo for a little boy?

... your own sandwich creation that turns out amazing, fresh vegetables from the garden and a sweet surprise from that wonderful husband, because parenting on your own for extended periods can get pretty though sometimes

... a box of free goodies from everlane and a few new things to wear for fall. labor day sales folks! 

... various shopping carts and rides

... play dates, big puppies and sunshine

... a date night, the first well baby visit without dada and some early morning book reading in bed with the sun coming through the window

happy friday and a great weekend :)