April 11, 2014 by gn0mel0ver

It’s The Little Things: Phone Camera Lenses

I never knew these existed. Did you? But I read about them last month on A Beautiful Mess here. They compared different photo lenses for phone cameras. Some of the ones they showed were expensive. I knew as much as they intrigued me, I probably would not be indulging in them. But they also showed a pack of lenses for sale at Amazon for less than $10. They are the VicTsing 3in1 Lens. I thought it would be fun to play around with them.

Spoiler: I was right! So, so right!

Duh! ; )

This is what the three lenses (that really does not sound like a word. Does it?) look like. There is the fish-eye lens and the macro/wide view lens. The macro and wide view lens screw together. To use the wide view, you keep them together. To use the macro (super close-up), you unscrew them and attach only that one.

This is what a lens looks like attached to my phone (I have an iPhone 5).

This one is my favorite. I think. I really love them all. It is the fisheye lens. It makes everything look distorted. I think it is so cool! This is sweet Ollie using the fisheye lens.

This is a selfie. I am on my knees (in case you were wonderin’). Probably beggin’ for clothes.

Or a cookie.

A flower in our backyard.

This is a picture of our backyard without the wide angle lens.

This is the same spot with the wide angle lens. You can definitely tell the difference.

And here is the macro lens. A flower petal in our house.

My eyeball.

Because why wouldn’t I?

An in-depth look at a pompom.

Here it is without the macro lens attached. It is a definite difference.

It’s the little things: getting more uses from something you all ready own!

I hardly ever use my camera on my phone. But now with these easy lenses, I can take fun pictures anywhere I am. These lenses will fit easily into any purse I own. I am thrilled with this cheap little indulgence. I am going to buy a pack for my daughter, too. They are a cool little gift.

Have you heard of these? Have you tried them? Do you use your phone’s camera?

* I was not paid for this post. I purchased the lenses myself, because I really wanted to try them. However, the link provided is an affiliate link. Purchasing through that link will provide a small commission for this blog. I will never write a post about something I have not purchased myself or that I would purchase for myself. As in anything I review, your experience may vary. I am not a professional photographer and I tried to use the lenses to the best of my ability. And my ability… it ain’t much. ; ).

April 10, 2014 by gn0mel0ver

NOW CLOSED! Thirteenth Month Blog Giveaway: Moon Necklace

Thank you to all who entered. This giveaway is now closed.

It’s time for my monthly giveaway! : ). I love this day!

Thank you all for your support. I appreciate it. So, so, so much.

I never even knew I had so much to say. Or share. Or anything inside of me. And you have brought that out of me. You have made my world which was so small seem so much bigger. And I am so grateful.

I was thinking about what I wanted to give away this month. And I knew I wanted to support someone new (to me) on Etsy that I had not featured before. I love supporting the artists of this world.

So, I purchased a necklace from Lunahoo, that I, myself, love. I think all of her jewelry on her site shows so much imagination and spirit. I love the bee products she creates, as well as the whimsical cats and cloud creations. I am thrilled with the item I chose to give away this month. And I love knowing it was handmade from a woman across the globe.

It is a Moon Necklace. It is handmade with love from Spain. I could not resist purchasing one for my daughter and myself to share, as well. I have always loved astronomy (that is until I took it in college. Ouch! The math! Who knew? But we will block that bit of unpleasantness from our minds). I also have a fascination with the moon. And I feel this represents how I feel about the readers of my blog. When I know you are reading, wherever you are in the world, I feel a connection to you. We might not be on the same place on this planet, but we will always share the moon.

Oh, man, now I’m all weepy. On to the rules:

To enter for a chance to win this month’s giveaway: one moon necklace from Lunahoo on Etsy, please leave a comment on this post telling me anything you would like about the stars. For instance: what do you think of when you look up into the sky? Do you wish upon a star? Do you think we really landed on the moon? When was the last time you laid beneath the darkened sky just to stare at the beautiful vastness? If that is too personal, you may leave any comment on this post as long as it is positive.*

You may earn a second entry by following this blog on the right hand side of the page. There are many ways you can do so. If you are a subscriber, please leave a second comment stating that you are a subscribed reader of this blog.. That second comment is your second entry. I am not using the word “follower.” I have never liked it and so from this post on, I have chosen not to use it. You, of course, can choose how you word it. ; )

Limit two comments/entries per person.

This giveaway runs from April 10, 2014 12:00 a.m. PST to April 15, 2014 9:00 p.m. PST. I will be using random.org to choose one winner for the necklace from the comments entered on this post. I will contact the winner on April 16, 2014 via the email address provided in their comment/comments. I will post the winner’s name on this blog on April 17, 2014.

Past winners are welcome to enter this giveaway.

Thank you everyone for entering! And for reading! And for stopping by! And for your support! I love ya to the moon and back! : )

The photos are from Lunahoo’s shop on Etsy. The necklace is being shipped from Spain. It is still on its way to me. The moment I receive it, I will update these photos by adding some of my own!

By commenting on this post, you are entering this giveaway for a chance to win one moon pendant necklace and agreeing to the rules outlined in this giveaway.

I will attempt to contact the winner three times with the email address provided. If I have not heard from the winner within fourteen days from the first attempted contact, the prize will be forfeit and a new winner will be drawn.

* Negative comments (chosen at the discretion of the owner of this blog) will be deleted and that entry will be forfeit.

April 4, 2014 by gn0mel0ver

Peanut Butter Nutella Cookies

Be still my heart. Girdle my belly. Cinch in my thighs.

‘Cause I am about to share a cookie recipe that has become my new favorite.

And I cannot stop making them.

And I cannot stop eating them.

This is a humble cookie. It is simple. I find I like cookies with those two descriptions the best.

Most cookies are best the very first day you make them. These cookies stay soft and yummy for at least two and a half days (this is the longest length of time they have ever lasted in our house).

When I was eight, my grandmother gifted me a cookbook called, “For Good Measure: A Cookbook For Children” (I highly recommend this cookbook for children. Heck, I still use it myself). In it, was a peanut butter cookie recipe. I have never made or had a peanut butter cookie as good as the peanut butter cookies made from that recipe. I have been making those peanut butter cookies for twenty eight years. Sometimes I change it around by adding new ingredients. This recipe is adapted from that one. Because that recipe is so simple, this makes these cookies a cinch to put together.

Here is a little poem my thighs threw together for you, in honor of these cookies:

The faster to make.
The easier to bake.
My mouth will wake.
And my thighs shall quake.
For goodness sake.
This poem shall take.
The cake.

For being the worst…

The cookies take first.

On to the recipe!:

Ingredients:

1/4 cup smooth peanut butter
1/4 cup of Nutella (chocolate hazelnut spread)
2 Tbsp. Milk
1 stick of softened salted butter (8 Tbsp.)
1 egg
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
Caviar from 1 vanilla bean (if you do not have this, you can increase your total vanilla extract to 1 1/2 tsp.)
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 cup organic brown sugar (it makes a difference)
1 3/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda

This recipe makes twenty four cookies.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. If you have a convection oven, preheat oven to 325 convect bake.

Pour the 1/2 cup granulated sugar in a separate bowl and set aside while you work on the following.

In a bowl with a hand mixer or in your bowl on your stand mixer, beat butter and brown sugar until light. Stop mixer and add in your vanilla and vanilla bean caviar. Mix.

Now add peanut butter and Nutella and mix together until completely incorporated.

Add the milk and egg and mix until light and fluffy.

Turn mixer to low and add in salt and baking soda. Mix until incorporated.

Add flour and mix.

Turn off mixer. Now take a small ball of cookie dough and roll it on your hands. Drop the ball into the bowl of granulated sugar and gently roll it around.

Place the ball of dough on a baking sheet. Repeat this step until your baking sheet is filled with cookie dough balls evenly spaced apart.

With a fork, make two flat indentations onto each cookie.

With a spoon, scoop up some of the granulated sugar and pour a little sugar over marks left from the fork.

Place baking sheet into the oven and bake for 10-11 minutes until edges are just a little brown. Do not cook longer. You do not want these overcooked.

Transfer baked cookies to a cooling rack.

Repeat with remaining dough. Turn oven off. Enjoy!

I think these cookies are better completely cooled down. There is just somethin’ that happens to the Nutella and peanut butter when they blend together at that time.

Now I’m off to make these guys.
My thighs…
They sighs.

P.S. I shared this on Savvy Southern Style.

And My Romantic Home.

March 20, 2014 by gn0mel0ver

It’s The Little Things: Vintage Folk Belt

When I saw that Modcloth’s next vintage line was going to consist of bohemian pieces, my heart sang. And my stomach sank. Because I was all ready over my monthly clothing budget. Besides, I thought, what are the odds I will get the one piece I want in the collection?

I had wanted a beautiful black maxi skirt with rainbow patches on the bottom.

Their vintage pieces generally sell out lightning fast. They price them very affordably.

And so I stalked the website. Maybe hoping that my odds would be slightly higher than I had thought they would be.

Then I moved on, because I thought my piece had sold out.

One morning last week, just as I was about to go get ready, a banner slid across the screen of my iPad. It said something like, “Earlier access to our vintage bohemian line.”

I jumped over to the Modcloth App. And there was my skirt. Not sold out. I added it to my cart as quickly as I could, not noting measurements or sizing. I just wanted to realize the dream. Being vintage, there was only one of each item being sold.

But there was something else, too. Something I hadn’t counted on.

A vintage belt.

But not just any vintage belt.

A vintage folk belt.

And anything with the word folk in it is automatically better. Isn’t that right folks?

I added it to my cart. Placed my order. And tried not to feel guilty.

It came. And I love it. As my daughter said when she finally saw what I was wearing, “Gurl. That. Is. The. Best. Belt. Ever.”

When I told her it ties in the back and therefore will fit her, too, the grin increased.

I wore it on Saint Patrick’s Day. It arrived right before my husband and I were going out for lunch.

And I love it.

And I love making funny faces whilst wearing it.

I think I am confusing the word folk with dork.

Because it is a fun belt and I like to be a fun gal.

It’s the little things: little accessories that make the whole day better.

Do you have an accessory like that? Any vintage pieces that make your heart sing?

It’s quite all right if you don’t.

Different strokes for different folks.

And all that jazz.

P.S. I shared this on Savvy Southern Style.

And on The Pleated Poppy!

Gnome Lover

Stumbling through life while still having fun

fun

It’s The Little Things: Phone Camera Lenses

NOW CLOSED! Thirteenth Month Blog Giveaway: Moon Necklace

It’s The Little Things: Vintage Folk Belt