Senior photoshoot.

Let's try to get over the general awkwardness of having two of the almost-exact same photos placed side-by-side and focus on scrolling to the different pictures below. But first, it is imperative that I thank my amazing and very patient photographers -- my brothers! They were totally cool with all my weird poses and demands; and they did a pretty great job, no?

Okay, that's enough. Scroll down.

Here we all are together! I set the camera on an opposite log, and look at the photo we got? One of my favorite pictures of the day, by far. Oh, and before proceeding, it should be mentioned that my hair decided to hate me that day.

There a peak into our adventurous afternoon! We started in the desert, drove to a beach, and ended up next to an artificial waterfall after a Dairy Queen stop.

That's my kind of photoshoot.

Lookie at that.

A re-design was far overdue, and I finally got down to business today and made one for the blog. It took a lot more time then I anticipated, but it was worth it. I helped me to realize that I truly do love design, and having photoshop cs6 as a free trial doesn't hurt either.

However, I've also been contemplating some new post content on the blog. I realized lately that my blog hasn't been focusing on the things I want to concentrate on. Sure, I post now and then, but there are huge gaps that I never fill, though my mind is buzzing with ideas. Want a hint? Think more etsy and even a bit of fiction now and again.

I've bought some jotters, am brainstorming, and will be back soon with some new ideas.

Oh, and the above picture is a sneak peak into the amazing senior photoshoot with my brothers! Can't wait to share more pictures soon.

P.S. The winner of the giveaway is Lidja! Please email me.

New friendships.

New frienships are some of the most exciting and special times in life. I'm so blessed to have been able to spend time with some pretty amazing people over this past week.

I had the honor of watching my super sweet friend get baptized. Living in Hawaii means baptizims are at the beach, and we were fortumate enough to have a day filled with spakly blue waters and scorching hot sun. The gathering and celebration were all wonderful reminders of Christ's love.

Along with that wonderful day at the beach, I had the opprotunity to meet another special person for the first time. The online world of blogging is a pretty amazing place filled with some ridiculously talented people, and of course, I've always wanted to meet one.

It all started with a guest post and finding out Valerie was coming to Hawaii for a PhotogenX DTS with YWAM. Now, if you know me, you know I have pretty strong sentimental attachments to that organization. Therefore, when I found out she was visiting, a meeting was soon in the works.

We spent a wonderful afternoon together walking along the beach, taking pictures in a garden, and meeting pineapples for the very first time. Honestly, it was one of those times when you can just feel God is in control. We talked about our futures, traveling plans, and a myriad of other things; and it was unforgettable.

P.S. Giveaway here.

Quill and Fox Giveaway!

How could you not love those two adorable cards? They are the sweetest things, and I'm ridiculously happy about this! The amazing shop Quill and Fox is sponsoring this charming giveaway; and if you haven't checked them out before, be sure to stop by the shop! You'll be sure to run into beautiful designs and cards at every turn!

Want a chance to win those two adorable cards above? Here's what you can do!

Mandatory

+Visit Quill and Fox and comment with your favorite item

Extras

+follow Quill and Fox on twitter

+follow me on twitter

+tweet about the giveaway (please include @amusingkimberly in the tweet so I can track it!)

+favorite Quill and Fox on etsy

+follow my blog

Please leave a comment per entry. The giveaway will run from now until next Friday the 25th at 12:00 midnight, Hawaii time. Go ahead, enter away!

Beaded, braided, bracelet.

inspired by: henry happened

This is coming from the girl who had four wisdom teeth removed last Friday. After a weekend of grogginess and complete unproductivity, I thought it would be the proper time to do a fun craft tutorial.

You'll need:

+Silk thread

+Beads

+Clasp (optional)

+Chain (optional)

First, cut three pieces of chord at about nine inches long. Tie a knot at one end and begin braiding for and inch or two (or you can begin threading beads on immediately). Now, it can be tricky to string the beads onto the chord if the holes aren't large, so make sure your chord and beads and compatible.  Simply continue braiding the chord as you add beads.

To finish, I tied knots at the end and tied the chain and clasp in; or you can continue braiding and simply tie the bracelet onto your wrist, like a friendship bracelet -- you can even make a loop on one end and tie a button onto the other. Anything goes!

Do what's easiest and have fun!

P.S. Keep and eye out for the fun giveaway I'll be announcing this Friday!

Evaluating

free-lensing fail

Doesn't it seem like all bloggers are constantly re-evaluating their blogs?

You've probably noticed this space of a blog has been a bit neglected the past few days or weeks. I haven't been updating as much as of late, and I suppose it's time I shared that I'm learning how to make blogging an extension of my life -- not my life. It's a challenging balance, because I love blogging so much at times. It's ever-so inspiring; but sometimes I need to take a step back and realize that right now, in this moment, I want to build blogging around my life, not build my life around my blog.

Another thing I want to work on is creating quality posts -- not just blindly churning out material. The word "branding" has been going around lately, and I have been thinking about it a ton. Don't get me wrong, though, because I have no idea what my style is yet -- but I'm hoping to find out with time.

To help me grow, I've decided to:

+DRAW A NEW DESIGN EVERYDAY (sketch, typography, etc.)


+READ A CHAPTER OR MORE OF A NOVEL EVERYDAY


+DO ONE CRAFT FROM PINTEREST EACH WEEK (it's so easy to read them, but not to do them)


+LEARN ABOUT PHOTOSHOP

Blogging is such a beautiful thing, and I love it most when it's helping me and other people to grow. Feeding off of other's ideas and coming up with a few of my own -- that's the blogging I love.

P.S. Isn't this and this so inspiring? Gah, I'm dying.

A good excuse.

Birthdays are always a good excuse. Hanging with the lovelies, catching a trolley, amazing pizza, pouring rain, a spontaneous sleepover, and uncontrollable laughter. Yes, please. Oh and cake. Did I mention the cake? It was a delightful break amidst the flurry of life.

More on that later, though. For now, let's just breathe.

May started with a crack.

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This is how I feel right now. Lying down, almost in a state of prayer. Let's just say my May started off with a crack. It's not so bad considering on April 30th, I felt like curling into a ball in a corner and screaming. That's what happens when a person cracks their laptop screen. Now I'm at the stage where I just can finally look at myself in the mirror without cringing, so it's getting better.

To soothe my wounded heart, I've been turning to pinterest a lot lately, so I thought I'd share some of my favorite pins as of late. Isn't pinterest such a glorious place? My design board is sort of my favorite right now. Graphic design is amazing, people, and I'm looking forward to studying it at college. That's right college is finally sinking in over here. Today I started the process of registering for classes. Getting advised, calculating credits, searching for a roommate -- it's all crazy.

They have this neat set-up on facebook where I can chat with other people staying in the same hall as me and select my own roommate, so I'm hunting down a Christian girl. I know the Lord has a plan in all this insanity, and it's going to work out.

It's going to work out and May's going to get better with time and I'm going to do better in school these last few weeks and I'm going to start waking up early and eat less sugar and take more pictures and be more motivated.

All I can say is, after breaking my laptop screen, it's got to be "all up from here."