Just a Little DIY Wall Art...

When my sister was visiting a couple months ago, we went on a little craft spree.  My sister and I are both very creative with very vivid imaginations so when we have an idea, we tend to go nuts.

I had pinned this project a while ago and wanted to do something similar.

Source: abeautifulmess.typepad.com via Jessica on Pinterest

It seemed simple enough so my sister and I headed out and picked up a frame from the local discount store.  Then we headed over to Home Depot and grabbed tons of paint swatches.  Seriously though, our stack was thicker than a composition notebook.  Maybe its just me, but I was totally feeling like a shoplifter taking all those swatches.  My sister and I even tried to play it off like, "Oh, I really like this color for the living room walls" (proceed to grab four sheets of the same color), "Yeah, but this color would look great in the girls' room" (grab five sheets of another color)  We played it pretty cool, with our swatch stack partially hidden by my son riding in the seat of the cart.

But then - and there's always a "but then" in our family - Trace accidentally moved the swatch stack and all the sheets scattered all over the cart as well as the floor.  Total fail.

Anyway, once we got home I tried to start on recreating the Pinterest image but didn't know what colors I wanted to use and how I wanted to place everything.  I was getting frustrated and then I remembered this image:

Source: etsy.com via Jessica on Pinterest

I had pinned this because I love the yellows and greys on white and want my living room to have the same color scheme.  Plus giraffes are one of my favorite animals.  Win/win.  Then I had the most brilliant idea:  Use the paint swatches to recreate the giraffes!

I traced and cut the outline of the giraffes from the paint swatches, glued them onto the paper, and BOOM!

Instant wall art.  Okay, now obviously it's not as fancy as the Pinterest print, but do you seriously think I'm going to cut all those patterns out?  I think not.  It would be cooler if I had scrapbook paper with different patterns...but since I don't, swatches are the next best thing.  Correction - the best free thing.

My sister also did a more tedious project.

She's a big flower freak.  Well, flowers and other nature stuff.  She's a freak of nature.  And like me, she collects shells so she created this little piece too.

Basically all she did was copy a tribal tattoo turtle image from the computer and use shells for the shell.  Shells for the shell?  You know what I mean.

So whaddaya think of our creations?  I hope it inspires you to create something!  And when I finally figure out a color scheme and pattern for that Pinterest project, I will definitely post it up!

Till next time, stay inspired!  And if you have a cool DIY that you think I should try, let me know!  I'd be happy to get my craft on!

♥ Duckie.

A Little Bit of Family Fun.

And the common way to have a little family fun here on Guam is to have a barbecue at the beach!

The day before my sister left, we packed up the kids and the barbecue grill and headed to our favorite spot, Tanguisson beach.

It is a pretty secluded area that very few tourists know about.  The first time we ever went, there were only two other families there.  The water was calm and clear, shells lined the sand, and the weather was spectacular.  We all fell in love with that beach immediately and it is one of the spots we frequent often.  (I've posted about it previously here)

 Since winter, the beach has become littered with coral, shells, and rocks which makes it a little rough on the feet so it was a little harder to find a soft spot of sand to stand on in the water on our last visit.  The surf was also a little rougher and even though my kids are pretty adept at swimming in the ocean (they get it from me), I still warned them to stay closer to shore and keep an eye on each other and the ocean.  As all ocean lovers know, the sea is constantly changing - the tide, the season, the phases of the moon, etc.  What may be an ideal place to swim one day, may not be as safe a month later.

After swimming for a bit we all took a lunch break and refueled with red rice, bbq'd ribs, fried chicken, and chicken kelaguen.  We decided to go and explore the trail we found on the rocks while our food digested in our stomachs and of course we took our camera along to have a little photography fun with the kids!

 The kids love exploring new areas!

I've said it before, and I'll say it again, Roxy needs to sponsor my daughter!!!  She can't wait to go back to Hawaii this summer so she can surf again!  (Mom, send my boards here so she can practice, please!)

 

I'd say sponsor this daughter too, but it took a LOT of coaxing to even get her to stand next to this tree.  And fuhgeddabout trying to make her put her hand on it!   "There's ants on it!...What's that green stuff?...I don't like moss!...This tree is gross!"

With her gold ballet flats again.

This kid...if he had a choice, he'd be at the beach all day, errday.  He already told me he's running away to live in Hawaii.   (Again mom, just send the boards already!)

This was supposed to be our "lost in the wilderness" pose...yeah, I don't know either.

 And my super tattooed sister.  I'm a pretty great photographer, huh?  If only I was great at self portraits I'd have better outfit pictures!

 And to pay homage to my awesome pose, my sister does THE SQUAT.

Happy Friday, everyone!  Have a great weekend!

♥ Duckie.

What I Wore Wednesdays: You May Just Pee Your Pants

So if you've been following along around here and on Instagram (@frikkenduckie) lately, you'd know that my sister has been visiting from Hawaii for the past month.

She and I are about 7 years apart but we look so alike that some people mistake us for each other - even our own parents sometimes.

Anyway, she's been here since the beginning of January and I'm so sad that she'll be leaving soon!  The kids have always been close to her and they've informed me that they'll be leaving with her - hah, I wish!  Lol.

I think one of the best things about having her visit is that we both get expanded wardrobes!  We've got similar styles and we're practically the same size in everything (including shoes) so its really fun for us to borrow each others' clothes and mix and match items with our own to make a totally different look.

For example, I borrowed this tribal dress from her one day...

 I paired it with a black blazer [Forever21], black suede wedges [Forever21], and silver accessories [Suglasses, Etc. Guam].

My sister normally wears this dress with a denim vest, black lace-up booties, and gold accessories.  Sorry I don't have a picture of her in it for you.  Just use your imagination...

One dress, two completely different looks.

What about you?  What would you pair this dress with?  Let me know in the comments below!

♥ Duckie.

P.S. My sister and I were totally goofing off while trying to shoot this outfit so I started making some really awkward poses.  Try and tell me you're not laughing your asses off at this picture: