Sponsor Spotlight: Evon- Von

Evon-Von has been one of our biggest supporters here at D.I.Y. Louisville - complimenting, cheering, and applauding all of our endeavors since the very beginning.  She has a quirky, endearing charm, and she’s become a dear bloggy friend.  This month we wanted to get a little more personal with this wonderful gal.  Read below for our interview with Evon, and don’t forget to check out her blog http://www.evon-von.com/.

Tell us a little bit about Evon Von.

Evon Von is a combination of personal experiences, recipes, movie reviews, art and craft projects and many miscellaneous things. It also serves as a 'memory box' for me. I can look back at the cool projects I've created, or reminisce about a fun time in my life. It provides a great way for me to connect with people all over the world that share my interests! After many trials and many errors, I have finally created the web space that I am in love with. I've started (and closed) many different blogs because they were not what I wanted. Evon Von is steadily growing and I am constantly inspired to improve.

What prompted you to start blogging?

When I was younger, I always kept a written diary. As we moved into a digital age, I decided to jump on the bandwagon and keep an online journal. At first it was just a day to day diary, but after lots of changes, personal growth and learning to be tech savvy, blogging has truly turned into a passion for me. I'm not sure if its sad or not, but I always get excited when brainstorming ideas for new blog posts, new layouts, or features!

What are your favorite DIY projects?

Turning a plain bracelet into a colorful, beautiful one! A great use of tin cans, and this spring light up wreath.

You recently moved into a new home in a new state. It's been fun reading about your journey thus far. Do you have any DIY projects in the works for your new digs?

Well since we finally have a backyard, I've become slightly obsessed with gardening and outdoor decor! Here are a few ideas I'm planning for!

Making upcycled bird feeders, a cool herb garden, and dressing up the windows on our house like this. 

Are there any artists/crafters/DIY'ers you've been crushing on lately?

I love A Beautiful Mess Blog, papernstitch, and Crafted Love!

 

Thanks Evon for supporting D.I.Y. Louisville and letting us catch up with you!  It’s always great fun getting to know our readers and supporters! 

~julee~ & --kim

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D.I.Y. Graduation Gift Basket

Okay, so it’s not really a basket per say.  It’s a bag, but you get the idea. I always struggle with graduation gifts.  I realize that most grads just want a handful of cash and that’s usually the route I go.  It’ shard for me though because I’m a gift giver.  I always put a ridiculous amount of thought into the gifts I give, so cash always feels like I’m missing out.  I really do enjoy the process of thinking of a gift for someone and going out and finding it.  I especially love putting together baskets, kits or themed gifts.  So this time I just decided to skip the cash and do what I wanted.  I put together a little “going to college” gift set.  I knew the college that the grad was planning to attend so I used the school colors as a jumping off point.  I picked up an insulated lunch bag to contain the gift and added a reusable tumbler with the name of her collage.  Those were the two big items and the more expensive ones.  Everything else was picked up at the dollar store or grocery,  I added school supplies which included: a notebook, pens, sharpie, pencils and erasers all in the color scheme.  Next I threw in a few snacks including: gum, Twizzlers and individual drink mixes.  I stuck some tissue in the bottom of the bag to prop everything up and snuggled all of the items into the lunch bag.  I printed out a cute gift tag and tied it on with some black ribbon.  I think this gift would be great for grads, teachers, a new job or you could swap out the school supplies and make it appropriate for just about any occasion.

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Kraftwerk Birthday Party

Over the weekend I had the pleasure of attending and helping out a bit at a super cool birthday that my friends threw for their little boy’s 8th birthday.  He’s a really rad guy who happens to love the German synth band Kraftwerk and his parents, Nate and Angie, being also pretty rad decided to celebrate his love of the band with an ode to Kraftwerk.  They were nice enough to agree to let me share this party on the blog with you guys and I’m happy they did, because this party must be shared.

Nate drew these silhouettes of the band and taped them to the appropriately red wall behind the snack table.  Angie used red and black (Kraftwerk colors) for the napkins, plates, silverware and bowls.  The bags were from Layer Cake Shop and filled with popcorn.  The cake was my contribution.

Every kid needs a synthesizer birthday cake, right?  This was a lemon cake covered in homemade marshmallow fondant.  I used sprinkles for all the little switches.

Nate made these awesome activity books for the kids that were filled with mazes, crossword puzzles and other fun Kratwerk themed activities.

The highlight of the party was a performance by “Kraftwerk” featuring Nate, my husband and my amazing daughter.  They played one of the birthday boys favorite songs.  We thrifted all of their shirts, spray painted the ties and I painted the name signs.

The performance was a surprise for the birthday boy and judging by the hugs he handed out at the end I think he really loved it.

And just for fun, because sometimes I like to amuse myself with Photoshop.
Thanks again to Nate and Angie for letting me share this really unique party here.  It just goes to show that you can really take any idea add a little creativity and make an awesome party out of it!
-Kim

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What We Wore

I’m still not really sure about this dress.  I like it, but I’m not sure it’s the world’s most flattering thing on me after looking at these pictures.  What I do like is, it’s cool and kept me from undo suffering while at an outdoor party this weekend in the 97 degree weather.  I love the colors and print, they remind me of peacock feathers.  I also love that is was $13 on clearance.On second thought, the unflattering photos could just be a result of me having the posture of a 95 year old woman or the fact that I couldn’t remember how to smile.  Have you ever done that? I mean I honestly could not figure out how I normally smile.  Everything I tried felt so fake and forced (and looked that way too, apparently) and when I wasn’t trying to remember to smile I looked like I was going to punch someone.  No idea what my problem was but hopefully I figure out the smiling thing again, quick.




Details:
Dress- Cato
Bracelet- Forever 21
Earrings- old, can’t remember where they came from

--kim

Linking up with The Pleated Poppy!

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Instagram Garden Update

I posted a while back on my garden when it was just getting started.  I'm amazed by the constant growth in the garden.  Everyday I spend whatever time I can find out there pruning , watering and admiring the miracles that seem to be taking place.  It really is quite fascinating.  This is what's happening in the garden this week

    
    
    
    

My favorite petunias, the amazing log pathway my husband installed, green tomatoes on the one full size tomato plant that I have, baby watermelons, tons of cherry tomatoes, peppers almost ready to pick, more peppers and pretty purple flowers starting to bloom.

--kim

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Mock Apple Pie

Looks like apple pie, smells like apple pie, tastes like apple pie…

Need an excuse to use up that abundance of zucchini growing in your garden?  This is trickery at its best right here.  There are no apples in this pie at all, just zucchini.

My aunt made this faux apple pie with zucchini fresh from her garden while we were visiting recently.  I don’t like apple pie – not even fake apple pie – but my husband swore that this tasted just like the real deal.  And – get this! – my daughter even gobbled this right up.

You can get this  faux apple pie recipe on  Foodwhirl.

What do you think?  Would you give this a try?

~julee~

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Insta-Friday….on Sunday

   

Punctuality has never been my thing, as every single person who has ever known me can attest.  What can I say, I do what I can.

I am working a full-time summer job, which means I’ve been spending my days whining about how tired I am and not doing much else.  That also means that the snapshots on my phone aren’t very exciting as of late.  Unless of course you’re into pictures of office supplies, file folders, and large copy machines?

~Summer cherries.  Is there anything more delectable?

~Our July D.I.Y. Louisville meet-up was this week.  Have I ever mentioned how awesome all of the gals in our group are?  Also awesome, is the Moroccan mint tea at Sunergos.

~My daughter was in her very first dance recital this weekend.  Do you know what the opposite of a stage mom is called?  Because that’s what I am.

~I treated two hard-working little dancers to a treat after their dress rehearsal.  I don’t know why I always let them talk me into Steak and Shake, since I eat neither steaks nor shakes.  At least they give out these cool hats.

Even though this is extremely tardy, I’m still linking up my simple moments with Life Rearranged this week.  I hope you all have had a wonderful weekend! 

~julee~

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Sponsor D.I.Y. Louisville in July

We’re looking for sponsors for July, and we want YOU! If you’re a blogger or indie business owner we would love to have the opportunity to feature you on D.I.Y. Louisville. Premium sponsor spots are $10 for the month and include a 250x120 logo button on our right sidebar, a feature write-up post, and shout-outs on our Facebook and Twitter feeds during the month.

D.I.Y. Louisville has been growing by leaps and bounds over the last few months and we plan to keep up the momentum with great tutorials, projects, featured artists and What We Wore posts. In the last thirty days our blog has had over 13,000 views. In addition to our blog, we regularly post on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest.

Are you interested in swapping ad spots? Swapping ad spots is easy and fun! We’ll place your button on our blog in exchange for placing our button on your blog and we both benefit from the increased exposure! We have a limited number of 125x120 spots to swap each month, and we run the buttons from the first day to the last day of the month.

To advertise contact us at diylouisville@gmail.com. We accept Paypal as method of payment.

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Owl Birthday Party

This owl party was thrown by my best friend for her daughter who turned 10 last month.  The owl theme with the little bird and peace sign is perfect for an older girl.

I had no part in the planning of this party, mainly because, as you’ll see, the hostess didn’t need any help putting all of these elements together by herself.  To save on time, the main decorations came from a party themed set from the party store.  The rest was pulled together with baked goods from local bakers and additional decorations printed from an Etsy seller.

Also, these pictures are a combination of two parties for the birthday girl with the same theme – a family party on one day, and a sleepover party on another day.  We moms sometimes do crazy things for our kids.  Here are some of the details:



The hostess adamantly believes that a party isn’t complete without a big cake.  This beautiful cake was made by a local baker.  She did an amazing job decorating with elements from the party decorations.  I forgot to get a picture of the cut cake, but the inside was also pretty with strawberry cake and green buttercream.



The fondant owl, bird, and bow cake pieces were made by local baker and cake decorator Louisvillicious.   They look too adorable to eat, but the kids were more excited about eating these pieces than the actual cake.  Go figure.

The cupcakes were purchased at a local bakery and the hostess used Oreos and Reese's Pieces to turn them into owls.  So cute and so easy!

Both sets of these owl cookies are darling!  The Etsy set was purchased from TSCookies on Etsy and used for the family party.  The service from TSCookies was wonderful, and each cookie came individually packaged, tied with coordinating ribbon and labeled with the ingredients on the back.

The local owl cookies were made by Louisvillicious and were used for the slumber party.  These had an added little flower on the top of the owl that was just too cute!  Louisvillicious was great to work with and very willing to customize their products for the hostess.  The hostess packaged these cookies herself and passed them out to the girls with their goody bags.

 

The slumber party was a campout with a movie under the stars, campfire popcorn, roasted marshmallows, and these adorable owl smores.


This was the dessert table for the sleepover. Instead of a traditional cake, the hostess purchased a cookie cake.  (Hostess tip:  cut your cookie cake with a pizza cutter.)


The hostess also used owl printables from FlipChickDesigns on Etsy to create customized signs, cupcake toppers, candy wrappers, and bottle labels.  (Hostess tip:  It was less than $10 to have the printables printed at an office supply store and the quality was great.)  The bucket of movie snacks was used for the sleepover movie, and the bags of gumballs were given to the girls in their goody bags.

This was such a fun party and the owl theme is great for any age!  I hope this has helped inspire your next party.

For quick reference:
Cake: Local baker, email us if you’re interested in more details
Fondant cake adornments and baked goods:  Louisvillicious
Local owl cookies:  Louisvillicious
Etsy owl cookies:  TSCookies
Owl customizable printables: FlipChickDesigns

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What We Wore–At the Beach

 

Dress:  Kohl’s

(Use Kohl’s coupon code BLOGGER10 to save 10% off your purchase through June 23.)

Sandals:  Target

I purchased this dress from Kohl’s last summer and it has been one of my favorites.  It’s a simple dress that took me through all seasons by adding leggings, boots, and cardigans.   I love pieces that I can get so much wear out of.

 

Dress & Belt:  Old Navy

Sandals:  Target

Simple summer dresses without many accessories or layers is a must when the weather is so hot.  These Target sandals don’t get much rest around here.  I wear them almost every day with jeans, shorts, dresses, you name it.  Definitely my best buy of the season so far!

This is the last of my vacation pictures.  I’ve been extending them as much as a I can, but it’s time to face the fact that life has returned back to normal around here.  *sigh*

I’m linking up with The Pleated Poppy and many other What I Wore bloggers that are completely worth checking out.  If you are stopping in from The Pleated Poppy, please say HI!  I’d love to come check out your blog as well!

~julee~

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June Birchbox Review

I’m a jetsetter girl at heart, so I was thrilled to discover that Birchbox dropped its geriatric gig and redeemed itself with a first class upgrade this month.



At first opening of the box, we are given a little gift for the man in our life as a reminder that Birchbox is now offering a male version of their monthly service.  It is not ironic that I know a lot of male flight attendants who would love just such a service.



Here is my full spread:  Comodynes self-tanning towels, Masqueology pore minimizing mask, stila bronzer, Stainiac lip and cheek stain, John Varvatos cologne for my man, and a glorified baggie from tili.

My favorite product is the Stainiac lip & cheek stain, although I’ve only worn it on my lips and not on my cheeks. Because why is it weird to wear a lip gloss on your cheeks? I tried to get a picture of my puckered lips wearing the gloss, but I couldn’t get any self-photos that didn’t look like I was cougar-ing it up for a MySpace profile.  You’ll just have to trust me that the product is nice.



I can’t decide if I like this bronzer as much as I am mesmerized by the little spirally globs floating around in the tube.  The product is great, actually, but it’s maybe a little bronzier than my pale face is accustomed to.  I’ve yet to bravely wear it outside of the home.



So now I have to ask Birchbox, What’s up with the glorified baggie?  Is it to flaunt your stylishness as you send your travel size liquid toiletries through the airport security screening?  Except that your toiletries must be in a clear plastic bag for security screening, so please spare the 200 anxious travelers lined up behind you and save this bag for another purpose. 

How about you?  Do you Birchbox or similar?  How do you feel about your items this month?

~julee~

PS – If you would like to sign up for your own Birchbox subscription and want to kindly use my referral link, you may do so HERE.

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Monday Magazine Challenge–Mojo Tofu Kebobs

This recipe is adapted from the July/August 2012 issue of  Everyday Food.  The original recipe calls for pork, but we used firm tofu instead.

Coincidentally, there are also instructions for pressing and firming tofu in the same magazine.  We use a very similar method to what was shown.  We cut our pieces in approximately 1-1/2 inch cubes so they would marinade better.  This is purely preference, however. 

Mojo Tofu Kebobs (adapted from Everyday Food):

Serves 4-6

1/3 cup olive oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon red-pepper flakes
3 tablespoons lime juice (from 3 limes)
1/4 cup orange juice (from 2 oranges), plus 1 orange cut into 16 pieces
1 package firm tofu, pressed to remove excess water
1 large cucumber, cut into 1-inch rounds
Salt & pepper

~In a small pot, combine oil, garlic, and red-pepper flakes over medium-low.  Cook until garlic is soft, 15 minutes, swirling occasionally.  Remove from heat, stir in lime and orange juices, and let cool 15 minutes.

~In a zip lock bag, toss tofu with half the marinade and refrigerate at least 30 minutes; refrigerate remaining marinade.

~Heat a grill or grill pan to medium-high.  Clean and lightly oil hot grill.  Thread tofu, orange, and cucumber onto skewers.  Season with salt and pepper.  Grill kebobs 3-5 minutes per side.  Brush with remaining marinade and serve.



We brought our cucumbers all the way from South Carolina, fresh from my aunt’s garden. The combination of the cucumber with the citrus was amazingly delicious.  I never would have thought to add orange slices to grilled kebobs, but they added a flair of summer delight to this grilled combo.  We will definitely be grilling this again soon.

Did you make any recipes or complete any magazine projects this week? If so, share your link with us! We would love to check out what you’ve made and we’ll also share your project with our Facebook readers.

~julee~

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