Friday Favorites Linky Party 451

Parents often do a theme birthday party for their children. Last week I ended up with a musical birthday by accident.

I spent my birthday on stage with 58 of my closest friends at the historical Lincoln Theater at a concert band dress rehearsal!

Follow me @condoblues on Instagram to see my antics in real time here! (Pretty please?)

The Lincoln Theater opened in Columbus in 1929 and quickly became known as a place to see such jazz greats Count Basie and Cab Calloway, among others. The City of Columbus saved it from demolition in the early 2000s, refurbished it, and it now hosts a wide variety of entertainment options - including little 'ol me.

Let's Party!

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Friday Favorites Linky Party 450

Let's Party!

Please support and follow our lovely blog party hostesses:

Friday Favorites Linky Party 449

I had the most incredible experience this week. I got to meet, learn about, and hold a falcon!

Please don't yell at me about the furs, animal lovers. First, they are vintage and second, they didn't have anything to make cold weather clothing about of but animal products in the time period I'm portraying in the photo. Thanks.  

While dressed as a pretty, pretty princess. 

Cool, huh?

Let's Party!

The One Thing You AREN’T Doing to Save Money on Your Heating Bill but Should!

In 2008, my husband and I started a year long project to reduce our utility bills by what we though was a too lofty goal of 20% with cheap home improvements and new habits. We beat our original goal and reduced our electricity and natural gas our use by 32%!

We’ve kept our yearly average lower than comparable size energy efficient rated homes in our area for 10 years running and with all of the things that make life worth living: holiday lights, electronics, and toasty warm toes in the dead of winter.

So while my heating bill stayed low and the rest of the house is toasty warm (thanks in no small part to adding weather stripping like this to the bottom on my window sashes installing a programmable thermostat like this one and using it) my laundry room was always colder than the rest of the house. (Disclosure: I am including affiliate links in this post for your convenience.)

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Friday Favorites Linky Party 448

How to Make an Easy Hot Glue Embossed Wood Sign

Call me Danger Girl. I have to admit hot glue is one my favorite adhesives even though it has the potential to sear off my fingerprints. I use hot glue to glue stuff together all of the time but using hot glue to make the craft itself? Not so much. 

Which is why I was very interested when a review copy of the book  Hot Glue Hacks and Crafts 50 Fun and Creative Décor, Fashion, Gift and Holiday Project to Make with Your Glue Gun by Angie Holden and Carolina Moore was delivered to my doorstep. I was happy to learn the book does not feature your typical crafts put together with hot glue. Instead Hot Glue Hacks and Crafts teaches you how to make the craft elements almost entirely out of hot glue – including a pair of flip flop shoes!

(I reviewed a copy of the book for review but that has no bearing on giving you my honest review of it. I am including affiliate links for the items I used to make this project in this post for your convenience.)


One of the things I like about craft books like Hot Glue Hacks and Crafts is how it can inspire you to use several techniques from different tutorials in the book to make a totally different hot glue gun craft on your own. In this case, I drew inspiration from the Hot Glue Embossed Vase and Hot Glue Party Cake Topper projects to make an embossed hot glue Love wood wall sign.

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DIY Hot Glue Wall Art Tutorial