Europe in Winter Packing

I am leaving first thing tomorrow to fly to Europe with my boyfriend of almost four years, Curtis! We will be traveling for 19 days in 5 (or 6) different cities. We are so excited! I have had a TON of packing anxiety over the past week and have been looking on Pinterest and YouTube for packing ideas. I found that there were not many long-term packing lists for winter in Europe. I did pin some of the ones that I found on my Oh the Places I'll Go Board. I decided for fellow packing anxiety sufferers I would show you what I packed! I also plan to make another blog post (that I will link here) about what I could have done without/what I wish I had brought.

Here is the suitcase that I am bringing.

It is carry-on sized and hard, which are two features that really attracted me. I think I paid only $60 for this suitcase at Target. I thought it was perfect and totally worth the money.

It has two sides and the front side zips up (so your stuff won't fall everywhere when you open it!).

We are going to Barcelona, Spain; Rome, Florence, and Venice, Italy; Pairs, France; and maybe London, England for a day. We will be in Barcelona, Rome, and Florence for three nights each. In Venice we are only staying for two nights and in Paris for six nights.

This is a Vera Bradley Weekender bag. I am borrowing it from Curtis's mom. I think it is the perfect carry-on! I'm glad I could borrow it.

I know a lot of people like to start packing by choosing what they want to wear on the plane (this is something I discovered while looking up packing lists). I, on the other hand, like to pick out my travel outfit last. Here's why: I don't want to wear something on the plane that I will never wear during the trip.

I started by making a list. I split my list up into several categories (This is my original draft, I ended up bringing a couple more items that you will see in the many pictures that are to come.):

Toiletries:

Shampoo

Conditioner

Makeup removing face wash

Face scrub

Toothbrush

Sensodyne toothpaste (this is a MUST for me)

Dry shampoo

Moisturizer

Eye cream

Razor

Nail clippers

Hair ties and bobby pins

Makeup:

Eyeliner (my FAVORITE makeup product)

Mascara

Primer

Concealer and brush

Face powder and brush

Two eye shadows

Bronzer and brush

Eyebrow pencil

Lipstick and liner

This category is totally optional. Usually I go minimal when packing makeup, but this time I wanted to look nice (plus all of this takes up very little room). This is the most makeup I EVER wear. Foundation never makes its way to my face, I can never seem to apply it without looking cakey. I could most certainly do just fine with just eyeliner, mascara, and an eye shadow, but I chose not to for this trip. I want to feel all fixed up.

Clothing:

2 pairs skinny jeans

Thermal tight pants (long underwear)

2 pairs leggings (to wear with skirts or under jeans if it is really cold)

2 skirts

Navy sweater

Navy cardigan

Grey long sleeved shirt

B&W long sleeved shirt

Loose red shirt

Loose green shirt

Tank tops (I wear these with everything, it covers up my rather large unmentionables...)

2 or three v-neck shirts

Pajamas (I only brought two shorts and a shirt. I can wear other shirts to sleep in)

Lots of underwear

2 bras

Lots of socks

UGG boots (Mine pack small and I've had them for a couple of years. Thanks Curtis!)

Brown waterproof boots

This is the section I worked on last. I stressed about how much I could bring and could actually fit more than I planned. I know my list looks longer than most peoples. Keep in mind: it is winter so it will be cold. Also, I listed all of my shirts and sweaters separately so that I would know which ones I wanted to pack when it came to laying out all of my clothes.

Extra:

Phone charger

Camera, charger, and extra batteries

iPad and charger (Curtis is bringing his laptop and mine is kind of crappy, so I am bringing my iPad)

Kindle and charger (I LOVE to read and plan to read more than one book while I'm there so I chose this rather than lugging a ton of books around)

Pocket translator (a Christmas gift that I'm hoping I'll get a lot of use out of)

Travel pillow and case (this is a compact pillow that fluffs up when you open it)

Extra memory card for camera

Beanie

Peacoat

Blanket scarf (I got this for Christmas and it is perfect for the plane!)

Purse (I am packing a small Vera Bradley one I thrifted in my carry on)

Extra ziplocks

Ibuprofen, Benadryl, and Dairy Digestive Supplement (I'm lactose intolerant and not happy about it!)

Melatonin (for sleeping on the planes/trains)

TRAVEL DOCUMENTS and copies (We booked our trip through a travel company. I'll tell you the name and about our experience after the trip)

I made this list of things I would like to bring. Here are the things I did end up packing:

A second face wash

Clearasil (for those little pimples)

Book

Another bra

Curling iron (This is such a waste, but I couldn't resist: I had room!)

Dress

Necklace (I'm not much for accessories, but I'll wear this and the studs I always keep in my various ear piercings

Here are some things I ended up not bringing:

Blush

Jacket (My sweaters should do just fine.)

Scarf (I know I will buy one while I'm there anyway!)

Watch (Curtis is bringing his.)

Crochet hook and yarn (This pains me, but I think I can live without it.. No.. Yes, yes I can!)

My original sweaters and long sleeved tops. I could do just fine with these, but I did add a couple more once I saw that I had room in my suitcase.

I shoved as much underwear in that bag as I possibly could (this means I have to wash clothes less often). I packed my two bras with my pajamas in the TOMS bag (one I am wearing with me on the plane). As you will see in my next picture, I swapped the grey v-neck shirt for a purple one because I am more comfortable in it. Oh and I made that hat!

After I saw just how much I could stuff into this tiny little suitcase, I added a flannel, two more long sleeved shirts, a Muse concert tshirt and that purple crewneck shirt I mentioned. I also added a woolen black cardigan that takes up a bit too much space, but it keeps me incredibly warm. I think it is worth it. I can still fit a whole other layer on this half of the suitcase and shove some things down the sides.

Here is a photo of how I packed the bottom. My curling iron is under the bra/pajama bag. There is room to add another layer of stuff in this side of the suitcase, too. I can bring home lots of souvenirs!

Now for the carry on:

The curling wand is in my suitcase (you can find it here). I got mine for $99 and as a Christmas gift.

These are the DVDs that I put in my Mario case (for the plane ride). I know we won't watch all of these, but I figured I could put as many that would fit and it wouldn't make a size difference. After this picture was taken, I added Snow White and the Huntsman and If I Stay.

The camera Curtis and I share. We bought the strap for the trip (yes, I picked it out!). It is a Samsung NX300. We got ours from Best Buy for $400 (it was an open box, so they had it discounted!).

This is the Vera Bradley purse I thrifted several years ago. Not my usual style, but perfect for the trip! I put a couple of lip balms, tissues, hand wipes, and pills in it.

Band-aids, makeup (all listed above), q-tips, extra dairy pills, lint roller, deodorant, toothbrush, another pack of tissues, razor, and tweezers (I also added my nail clippers to this bag).

All of my liquids for the trip. This bag scares me.

Clearasil, two mascara samples, primer, concealer, two moisturizer samples, eye cream, moisturizer, face scrub, hand lotion, face wash, conditioner, shampoo, another face scrub, makeup removing face wash, dry shampoo, hand sanitizer, and my toothpaste are all able to fit! I put my body wash in Curtis's travel bag, but I originally planned to bring bar soap.

Here it is all packed away in my carry on! I also brought a neck pillow for the planes/trains. I added fuzzy socks and an extra notebook.

These are the shoes I'm bringing. I'm wearing the brown boots on the plane (they would probably take up half of the suitcase).

As I mentioned in the beginning of this post, I put my travel outfit together last. These are my largest items! My coat is from Lands End and I bought it at the beginning of winter (I had REALLY outgrown my old one). My blanket scarf works great and should make me (and Curtis) nice and cozy on the plane. If I fold it along the diagonal, roll it up, and tie the ends, I can make it into a circle scarf! This is the best way to wear it. The beanie was a Christmas gift from my mom.

Here it is all packed up! I'm ready ready ready! I'll be back late January!

Do you have any packing tips? Think I did lots of things wrong? Let me know! I'd love some tips!

with love,

Courtney

Potato Corn Chowder

We just made this chowder for dinner and it was just delicious!

Without further ado here is what you need for the recipe:

For the rue:

6 cups chicken stock (can use vegetable stock to make this recipe vegetarian!)

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 teaspoon dried thyme

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon onion powder

Salt and pepper to taste (we used a LOT of pepper, which we love)

For the ingredients:

2 lb new potatoes (washed and cut into bite-sized pieces)

1 can corn (can use thawed frozen or fresh)

1 can sliced carrots (can also use thawed frozen or fresh)

2 tablespoons butter

1/4 cup heavy whipping cream

Mix all rue ingredients together and heat on high until boiling. Add in potatoes, corn, and carrots. Cook on medium until potatoes are completely done (mine took about forty five minutes) and make sure to stir. When the potatoes are done, turn the heat to low and add butter and cream. Serve.

I really do hope you guys enjoy this recipe! I know that my family thought it was absolutely delicious.

with love,

Courtney

Mini Quilt Swap Quilt Top

As mentioned in my last post, I am very excited for the mini quilt swap hosted by Schnitzel and Boo! I loved the pattern I mentioned before, but I just couldn't figure out how to lay it out.

I tried laying it out randomly, then organized, then organized in a rainbow-type pattern and nothing seemed right. The middle was my favorite, but it still didn't really compliment the fabric.

I found this picture of a mini on Instagram via thimbleblossoms. I instantly fell in love with this pattern and decided to use it instead! I cow;don't find a link to the actual pattern, so I had to come up with it myself (which wasn't too difficult)!

I tried this layout and posted it on my Instagram and the general reaction was that it was WAY better than the last! I was happy, because this was way prettier in my mind.

Tah-dah! I LOVE this mini quilt top already! So much so that I spent most of my day after classes making it. Curtis was not very happy, needless to say (and is grumpily sitting next to me at the moment, too).

I do hope my partner loves this pattern as much as I do. I'm even thinking about recreating it for myself with some fabrics that are more catered to my taste.

with love,

Courtney

Schnitzel and Boo Mini Quilt Swap

I am so super excited to be participating in the third round of Schnitzel and Boo's mini quilt swap! I got the most amazing partner and am so excited to start creating for her.

I found these Cotton & Steel Basics and instantly knew I wanted to use them! I bought a charm pack and am thinking about doing something like this:

This is from The Happy Zombie and I found it on Pinterest the other day.

This was the first image I found on Pinterest, but it wasn't very descriptive. This one is an Instagram post from heyporkchop. I did some looking around and found a couple of links, but I'm just going to have to figure it out on my own!

I tried a couple of layouts and have not found anything I'm completely satisfied with yet. The shimmer is throwing me off, I'm not a fan of fabric with shimmer and I couldn't tell it was in some of the fabrics online. However, I'm sure my partner will like it! I just have to try more layouts before I begin sewing.

with love,

Courtney  

DIY Rug

Hello! We just moved and our new house has all wooden floors. It is absolutely beautiful! However, my feet demand soft, not cold floor. Thus, my need for a rug!

Rugs are EXPENSIVE. Of course, most of my favorites were atleast $100 dollars (and that's the minimum). Being the crafty person I am, I started looking into rag rugs and DIY rugs, too. Then I came across this on Pinterest.

DIY Rug! I made mine out of four smaller rugs from At Home. They were $5.99 a piece!

Here you can see the stitches that run down the center of my rug. You can't see the stitches on the horizontal sewing line and I just tucked the tassels underneath!

Nova loves new things to lay on. Anytime I put something down on the couch or the ground he plops right down!

I love this picture. My baby is so cute (in my humble opinion)! I'm a sucker for black cats.

One thing I will say about making this is: lay the smaller rugs out in the store. Some of the ones I picked out originally were drastically different in size!

with love,

Courtney

Mini Quilt

I created a mini quilt swap on a website dedicated to swapping. This website is called Swap Bot. People from all over the world join swaps (either internationally or regionally). I primarily join the crafting and book swaps. It is a great site and I highly recommend checking it out! I will link my profile here.

This is the quilt top with the lines marked! It is a teeny tiny quilt that I made using Fat Quarter Shop's Sister's Choice quilt pattern. I only made one block (obviously), making my mini measure 10.5" square.

Hand quilted! I had quite a bit of fun hand quilting this beauty.

Here is the hand embroidered little label I made for the back. It's slightly crooked, but hey isn't that the purpose of 'hand-made?'

I named this mini "Lovely" because I feel like that was a deserving name! I tried to use fabrics that were not quite my taste for this project and I think it worked out nicely! I really do hope my partner loves this mini as much as I do.

with love,

Courtney

A Quilt for Momma

This quilt was a surprise gift to my mother! When I took her to the fabric store with me I secretly let her pick everything out. It was fun and my goodness was it hard to keep it a secret from her.

I even had to make the label in secret... Very challenging.

Working on the binding... Nova always lays in my lap when I quilt and he especially loved this one, most likely due to the raginess of it. Yes, I know ragginess is not a word!

The beauty in its full glory! My mom was so excited when i announced that I was done and that I had made it for her. She didn't believe me and then I showed her the label.

Its permanent resting point is on the back of our couch.  We are about to move across town and I will post a picture of it on display in the new house as soon as it is set up!

If you've seen my last post, can you tell that Nova loves looking out these windows? It is one of his favorite places in the house. Hopefully there will be a similar place for him at the new house.

Here's another picture from when I was binding the quilt. He's in my lap cuddling under the quilt. Oh my, how I love this cat.

I am so thankful for my mother and exuberant that she loves this quilt so much.

The pattern for this quilt is from a blog called Bloom and Blossom.

She calls it the Raw Edge Layer Cake Quilt.

In the tutorial she uses layer cakes to make the quilt (10" squares), but I used yardage and cut the squares at 9.5" instead, because that is the size of the ruler I have!

I will be back next Monday with another post!

with love,

Courtney

Rag Quilt

Here are a couple of pictures of the new rag quilt I have been working on.

I love taking my mom to the fabric store with me because she loves helping me pick out fabric.

I just think that the squares look so pretty from this angle.

That's my cat, Nova, bird-watching in the background.

I've been binding this quilt this past week and working on the label. I can't wait to show you the finished product! Another post will come soon. Stay tuned.

with love,

Courtney

A Quilt for Kodi

I've decided that I'm in love with this quilt.

I love the pattern, the colors, the couple who received it, everything.

My lovely mom helped me choose the beautiful fabrics to use for this quilt and we are both extremely happy with how it turned out.

I hand embroidered the label and hand quilted the whole quilt, myself.

My oldest cousin is having her first child in August of this year. I wanted to make something special that I knew she, her husband, and their new daughter could enjoy for years to come.

I think that there is something oh-so-very special about a handmade gift.

Unfortunately I was out of town for the baby shower (both, in fact) and could not give her the gift myself. My younger sister and mom were both kind enough to record the opening of the quilt at the shower.

She cried! My cousin and her husband love this quilt and I could not have asked for a better reaction! You can view her photography blog here (She has pictures of her pregnancy and I'm sure pictures of Kodi to come)!

This lovely quilt pattern is from a quilt-along I found on a blog entitled Sing All You Want.

She calls it The Arrow Tail Quilt.

There is a Flickr group with pictures of quilts made from this pattern here.

with love,

Courtney