5 Minute DIY iPhone Case

I've been sorta obsessed with this Kate Spade polka dot iphone case and similar versions of it for years now. Yes I am aware I could afford to buy it, but $40 for a piece of plastic sounds crazy to me. Leave it to me and my diy copycat skills to find the perfect solution! As you may know, I am a Pinterest addict. I could easily spend hours days on that thing (my bf just says it's porn for crafty people...I admit, he's probably right). I came across this awesome idea one day and decided today would be the day to try it out. Besides, who likes to go outside on a hot summer day? =P

Anyways, if you wanna try it out, here's what you need:

• Clear iPhone case (mine is from Tech21 and has a removable clear backing)
• Paper (scrapbook, origami, photos, magazines, etc.)
• Pencil or pen
• Exacto knife or scissors
• Self-healing rotary mat (only if using exacto knife)

Easy peasy steps:

1. Place your iphone case on your chosen paper and trace around it. 

2. Use exacto knife or scissors to cut it out. (Yes that paper is CHEAP compared to a new case)

3. Insert into iphone case and admire your hard work! :)

Now wasn't that easy? Not to mention, super inexpensive! For the first four I used scrapbook paper. I found some glittery letter stickers to spell my name on the striped one. The fifth one is a photo I found on the internet (shh don't tell!) and the last one is my favorite picture of my dog. Isn't he just the cutest squirrel?

Happy New Year!!!

Happy New Year everyone!!! I cannot believe it is now 2014 and 2013 has come to the end. Apparently the last half of 2013 was really crazy as I just realized I haven't posted anything since MAY!! So what happened the last half of the year you ask? 

August:

• Moved to another apartment in Dublin because our other one was too $$$ (we're not even in the city for goodness sake!). Richard's parents helped us move into our new place. We were so grateful for their help. I 'm sure it would have taken us two months on our own even though the move was like 2 miles. haha

The good: We're now living in Downtown Dublin ('cuz we're so hip like that), which means we're in a 1 mile radius to everything we could possibly need: Target, JoAnn, 99 Ranch, Stoneridge Mall. Don't be jealous. JK. The best part is we can actually walk to our favorite Korean restaurant, Tofu House now! nom nom nom. 

The bad: Even though our place was renovated a few years ago, they still failed in many areas. For example, the light switches in the bedrooms and staircase don't work, meaning we literally have to physically turn on each lamp. In case you're wondering, this is a fun and slightly dangerous staircase exercise when it's pitch black and I'm half asleep before my 6am shifts. We are no longer walking distance to Frankie's dog park, but there is a nice field that people bring their dogs to nearby. Just wish Frankie would get along with this dog named Kurt. He growls at him every time. (Frankie thinks he is so ferocious. lol) 

The WTF ugly: Our washing machine broke after a month and it took 3 weeks, countless phone calls and 6 careless visits from Pacific Sales to get our new one. DO NOT, I repeat, DO NOT use Pacific Sales (part of Best Buy) to buy appliances EVER...unless in fact you don't mind when they forget parts over and over and over and over again. 

October:

• We celebrated Richard's birthday by spending a long weekend in Monterey exploring the beach and fitting in a game of golf (Richard golfs, I drive the golf cart, Frankie tries not to disturb the wildlife). This was Frankie's first trip to the beach and he loved it. Dog lovers - this is one of the best beaches to bring your pup to. The beach is huge and beautiful, dog-friendly and protected from the roads.

Carmel Beach

Pacific Grove golf course (Yes they let us bring Frankie!)

• I also made Frankie a squirrel costume for Halloween and entered him in the Petco and PetSmart facebook photo contests. We didn't win those, but did win our local Petco costume contest. My dad thinks I should make a dog clothing business...sure sounds like more fun than my job right now! 

Mr. Squirrel

Frankie won FIRST PLACE!

November:

• Went to Vegas with a few friends. Saw the Michael Jackson show...it was totes amaze!! (YES! Finally got to use this phrase!)
• Attended a friend's wedding in Stockton. It was a really sweet ceremony at Morris Chapel at the University of the Pacific with a very filling dinner at China Palace. Richard's not pictured since he left to work his graveyard shift. boo

• We came back to Stockton again (we love this place) to attend my fraternity's annual Christgiving (Thanksgiving/Christmas) dinner. It made me feel a little nostalgic of my days at UOP and being surrounded by friends all the time. Thanks to all the brothers who made us feel so welcome! 

My family line :)

December:

• This month really flew by and it sure involved a lot of shopping, gift wrapping and baking. Boy did my bank account take a hit! I planned a Secret Santa gift exchange at work not knowing how much drama it would cause :( and baked some sugar cookies for our potluck. The sugar cookies were a real success and I found some coworkers sneaking a few cookies to take home! I'm still looking for the perfect icing recipe as mine took a while to dry and was still a little bubbly. Let me know if you guys have any recommendations. 

Festive sugar cookies (Recipe)

Secret Santa gift I wrapped

• On the down side, Frankie snapped his dew claw while playing ruff (pun intended) at the dog park. We ended up taking him to the Vet ER where he got sedated and got his nails trimmed. This was one expensive paw-dicure! I know... the picture below looks worse than it is. But isn't he cute? (or stoned? haha) Does anyone use a nail grinder for their dog? I'm trying to find him a good one since he HATES the nail clipper. 

• On Christmas eve, we went to Downtown Pleasanton and ate at Nonni's Bistro, a Scandinavian restaurant that we discovered on a whim last December. They have a cute outdoor dining area complete with blankets and the staff is really attentive. We had their unique and tasty Christmas meal that included Yule Glogg, a delicious warm, spiced drink made from dried fruits. We're not sure what kind of alcohol is added to it but man is it good. We even bought a bottle to take home with us! This was our second annual Christmas dinner there and we're planning on coming back again next year. Any takers? 

• After this, we went to Alameda's Thompson Avenue, famous for their street-wide holiday lights display. We strolled along with hundreds of other families, snapping pictures of all the decked-out houses. Here are a few of our favorites...

• On Christmas day, we opened our gifts, spent the day baking a lemon-rosemary cake (will post about this later) and went to my aunt's house for Christmas dinner. T'was a good day and I was just thankful I got the day off...finally.

Frankie before he opened his gifts

Our first full size Christmas tree (literally rolled home in a shopping cart from the garden center nearby)

See, I've been busy and not just vegetating on my couch watching HGTV...although I admit I did do a fair amount of this too. >_< Wishing you all a Happy New Year and I hope this year is a great one! What are your new year resolutions? I'm still working on mine and dude, the list is already loooong.