Ode to M&M’S {#MMSMuseum NYC}

It’s funny how you can love something so much that it seems like second nature. Today, that something happens to be my love of M&M’S. I love chocolate. Adore. I could eat it anytime of day or night.

But when I started to think about just how much I love M&M’S, I was kind of happy to see it’s been a habit I’ve had for years.

In 2006 we were in Las Vegas for my 21st birthday, and I made it a point to visit M&M’S World in Las Vegas. I would safely say I was in there for over an hour. I came home with personalized souvenir notepads and stickers featuring all the adorable characters. I bought myself an M&M’S keychain with my name on it that I still proudly have on my keys today.

 

In 2009 when I was in NYC for the day, as in just for a few hours, I also made it a point to visit my lovely M&M’S in Times Square. Again that’s where I bought souvenirs for my mom and Pee Wee. Pee Wee has a dog bone toy from there that he adores. And it hasn’t torn at all in over 2 years later.

And in everyday life, my favorite cookies happen to have M&M’S in them, as well as my favorite ice cream treat. At the movies I always buy pretzel M&M’S or peanut butter M&M’S. While blogging I usually have a stash of milk chocolate M&M’S to munch on. I look forward to their seasonal flavors (candy corn M&M’S…nom nom nom) and the characters are ADORBS.

The commercial with hungry eyes at the end? Cracks me up everytime. Everytime y’all. Gah, so cute.

I love M&M’S. I love that M&M’S has personalities that make you love them even more. Their branding and marketing strategies are genius, engaging and oh-so-cute. They found a way to personify chocolate and make you love it that much more. Swoon.

I stopped by Walmart to purchase more for my stash at home, and this lil guy made my heart melt. I’d totally be his Valentine, wouldn’t you?

<insert awwww sound here>

Then I noticed some of the M&M’S packaging had a $1.00 off coupon, which made me even more excited. $1.98 for a WHOLE BAG. Yay.

And so I stocked up on all my faves. Yes, those are all for me. Yes, I am still trying to lose weight.

Bliss. Pure chocolate bliss.

And guess what? There is going to be even another cute character premiering soon. As in Superbowl Sunday soon.

That’s right, you can feast your eyes on the lovely Ms. Brown in her Superbowl Sunday ad. Word on the street is that the big commercial debut will be in the first quarter of the game. I wonder what she’ll be like? If she’s anything like the other characters, she’ll likely be funny, witty and sweet.

And guess what else? I am one of 5 bloggers that gets to go to her big bash in NYC on February 7th. Me!! This lil blogger from South Texas gets to go to the big city for something she loves…M&M’S. I am truly honored. Truly. <3

I can’t wait to tweet about it and post tons of pictures to Facebook. You’ll want to follow me on either of those to feel like you’re in NYC with me next week. I am beyond excited. Thrilled. I am sure the Museum of Chocolate launch hosted by M&M’S/Mars is going to be divine.

Want to see what Ms. Brown looks like? Head on over to the M&M’S Facebook page. I love her glasses. LOVE.

Overall, M&M’S make life pretty sweet, right? So join me on Sunday and grab some M&M’S and we can all marvel at the latest, lovely M&M’S celebrity- Ms. Brown.

My question to you is: what is your favorite M&M’S flavor?

You can find M&M’S all over the web:

M&M’S Website
M&M’S on Twitter
M&M’S on Facebook

This post has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias.  All opinions, photos, M&M’S and ideas are all my own. #MMSMuseum #cBias

Dahlicious Smoothies {Health Giveaway}

Hi everyone! I know you’re all waiting with baited breath to see my oak vanity transformed into an espresso beauty. Right? If you’re not, don’t tell me. If you have no idea what I am talking about, then you must not be a fan of Monica Wants It on Facebook.

Go like me. I’ll wait.

But today I have a quick review and giveaway for all of you. A few weeks ago the lovely people at Dahlicious Lassi contacted me to see if I wanted to try some of their smoothies. Who would say no to yummy smoothies? Not I. They sent me one of each flavor, and I liked them. A lot.

Photo Courtesy of Dahlicious Lassi

My husband tried the banana flavor, and he liked how it wasn’t overwhelmingly sweet. I am the one who has a sweet tooth, but I will say that although these smoothies aren’t super sweet, they are tasty. They don’t have the faux sweetness kinda flavor nor are they too runny or chunky. The texture feels like a blended fruit would. Natural, mild, easy to drink on the go. It’s also gluten free, low calorie and has LOADS of probiotics to help with digestion and all that jazz.

And the folks over at Dahlicious were kind enough to send me 5 coupons so my lovely readers could try these smoothies out. My fave? The mango is divine. Addicted I tell you. I think they’re a perfect option for a quick, low cal breakfast or snack.

So, want to try some? I have 5 free bottles to give out, so I am going to give out 5 prizes. You can find these at Whole Foods, so if you have one of those nearby you should be able to find them quite easily.

Giveaway Rules:

1.) Leave a comment telling me which flavor you’d love to try.

2.) US Residents only, sorry!

3.) Smile. :-D

Giveaway is open until next Friday, February 3rd at noon.

Shot of Espresso {DIY Dream Kitchen}

 

Source: Houzz.com with credit given to the designer in lower right hand corner. Notes/arrows added by me w/my fancy schmancy iPad app.

What do the above kitchens have in common other than the fact they are not in house?

I’ll give you a hint: they’re tall, dark and handsome.

Espresso cabinets.

Lurve.

Oh my sweet kitchen heavens, dark cabinets to me are like a cupcake covered in the most divine chocolate glaze ever. And the shiny hardware is the equivalent of sprinkles. Glorious shiny sprinkles.

I covet thee.

Actually, covet might not be a strong enough word. It’s always been a dream of mine to have dark espresso cabinets. However, I’ve watched enough HGTV to know that my first home wouldn’t be my dream home, so these are the cabinets I currently have (with the previous owners stuff still in the picture).

Oak. Lotsa oak. I hate it. Don’t get me wrong, the cabinets are fairly new, and they’re super tall up top and I am so grateful for all the space they offer us. However, I’d love them more if they were prettier.

I sound like a mean teenage boy, right? “I like her, but only if she were brunette.”

But yes. That’s how I feel.

What to do? Well, my plan A was to win the lottery and build my dream home, but since that isn’t panning out, I need another plan. A realistic one, perhaps? Sure. Yeah.

Therefore, I did what I always do and went to google after watching way too many episodes of I Hate My Kitchen on DIY Network. Dangerous, I tell you, when I watch that stuff all day. I get too many ideas. Do you all do that, too? Well, I came upon a fantastic forum featuring lovely people who have done exactly what I want to do. The queen of them all is Celticmoon. If I could meet her in person, I’d probably say, “I’m not worthy!” and bow down.

Here’s her before & after. Can you believe that’s the same kitchen? I wish she had bigger photos to share, but even in these small ones you can tell a MAJOR difference. The biggest change? The cabinets. Not literally, but just the color since they’re the exact same cabinets. GORGEOUS. You can ooh and aah her photos here and see my instructions right over here. WOO!

 

Now my DH isn’t onboard with me going at it and trying it on the kitchen cabinets right away, so we agreed I’d try it on the bathroom vanity first. So I took a drawer, followed her instructions with a few modifications and here are my results:

Vanity before:

First coat:

Second Coat:

Third & final coat + hardware:

SQUEE.

Isn’t it just what I wanted? Yes. So, what’s the point of this post, then? I think I need some reassurance that it looks good and that I am not going to ruin my kitchen. I’ll be honest, the price is right and the time/work effort is low. The prep of the door took 2 minutes and to apply each coat took 2-3 minutes tops. That’s a total of 10-15 minutes. The longest part of this process is waiting 24 hours for each coat to dry, but that’s cool.

Supplies: To do my entire kitchen it’d likely cost about $100 worth of supplies for all the 30 cabinet doors, 10 drawers + cabinet frames & molding.

Time: If I do this during spring break from March 10th-18th, I could conceivably revamp my whole kitchen in a week including the 2 poly coats to protect the cabinets. Also, the weather will be more normal at that time, so I could wait 12 hours between coats instead of 24.

Value: Is it a good value to do this? Do buyers like espresso kitchens more than standard oak ones?

Hardware: We already have the pulls we want for the 10 drawers, but we would need 30 new cabinet knobs at about $2 each (I found some I love on eBay).

Backsplash: We’d need a light, bright backsplash to make it all really snazzy and not too dark. I am hoping we could get the backsplash done for around $500 or less. Maybe white subway tile?

Lighting: We already replaced our old fluorescent box light with a satin nickel track light that is stunning.

TOTAL COST: $700ish for a total new look for our kitchen cabinets

Good investment? I think so. I hope.

Would this be a tutorial you all would be interested in? I plan on documenting the whole process to hopefully inspire others to get rid of the oak, if you wanna.

UPDATE: My DIY tutorial has been posted here with lots of instructions!

Restoration Hardware Furniture {DIY Tutorial}

In a happy, magical place there exists a Monica who can buy Restoration Hardware furniture without having to save up for 6 months.

I am not that Monica. Darn it.

I am the Monica who has to scour Goodwill, garage sales and thrift stores to find secondhand furniture with potential. It’s a thing I love to do and hate to do all at the same time. But when I score, I score big.

The goods: 2 Goodwill nightstands I bought for $6.50 each back in 2010.

The task: Make them look kinda like these nightstands. (ie: dentil detail, weathered gray/reclaimed wood look…but kinda glam)

From Restoration Hardware, $1045 each.

From Overstock, $690 each

The supplies:

-Nightstands (mine were laminate + wood)

-2 cans of flat white spray paint (the 98-cent Walmart kind will do)

-Latex paint (I chose a dark gray/brown color: Urbane Bronze by Sherwin Williams in a satin finish)

-Sand paper

-3” paint brush

-Tack cloth

-Cheesecloth or a lint-free rag

-Optional: replacement hardware

Okay, let’s get started. My nightstand was made of mostly laminate (top/sides) yet the drawers have a wood front. I didn’t treat the wood differently than the laminate. Also, this method is fool proof. Anyone can do this. Even you. Yes, you.

You need to scrub down your furniture to make sure it is clean. Super clean. I usually use Lysol wipes for that step. Also, if there are any holes/pieces that need to be filled/glued do that now. One of the side pieces broke off to one of the nightstands, so we just put that sucker on there with liquid nails. I also needed to drill new holes for the handles, so I filled those holes, too.

Now we’re ready to sand.

It may look a little crazy when you sand, but it’ll all be ok. Generally try to go in the direction of the grain/faux grain.

Wipe off all sawdust with tack cloth. I do this twice to make sure it’s dust free.

Now, we prime. Here’s my most favorite primer- the 98-cent can from Walmart. I used about 1.5 cans for my 2 nightstands. Apply one coat (lightly) to the nightstand + drawers. I do use the spray paint adapter thing (seen below in black) so my finger doesn’t hurt when using cheap spray paint. Best $2 investment ever.

It will look splotchy. Don’t cry. This is normal. :) You do not want a solid white finish.

Let the first coat of primer dry about 20-30 minutes, then do a 2nd coat. It will still look splotchy. This is ok. It will be fine, I swear.

Ok, so once both coats of primer are dry (spray 1st coat, wait 20 minutes, spray 2nd coat, wait 30 minutes), you can paint. Sort of. What you’re going to do is get your brush, dip it into the paint ever so slightly and start brushing it onto the nightstand. This is almost dry brushing (as in, do not saturate your brush with paint).

My gorgeous paint color: Urbane Bronze by Sherwin Williams.

Here’s an example of what it should look like. You can tell I’ve brushed on some paint in the top half of the photo, while the bottom half illustrates how the nightstand looks with just primer.

But what happens if you get too much paint on your brush and onto the nightstand? Just wipe some off (GENTLY!) I used some cheesecloth for this and it worked well. Do one coat of the dry brushing, let it dry for about 30 minutes and then do coat 2. You can basically do as many or as little coats as you’d like. For my nightstands I did 3 light, light coats. I love.

I then brought them inside to make sure they were both about the same color. They won’t be identical, but that’s ok with me for this project.

And now they have their spot in their new home (our master bedroom) and they got some fancy hardware from Hobby Lobby.

That lamp is getting a makeover, too. For now, it stays black.

The smooth, satin finish is lovely. You could also add poly after the paint has dried. I am lazy and haven’t done so yet, but I likely will. Maybe.

 

Love the dentil finish. Makes it look a bit nicer, while the curves on the bottom make it look a little shabby chic.

And there you have it! A fool proof tutorial on how to achieve that coveted Restoration Hardware/Pottery Barn/Ballard Designs weathered gray reclaimed wood kinda thing. Whew. That’s a lot of words. I want to remind you that it works on wood or laminate furniture, and it’s so cheap compared to buying this stuff from a store.

Restoration Hardware price: $1045+ each ($2030+ for a pair)

Monica’s Luxe for Less price: $20 each ($40 for the pair)

That’s almost TWO THOUSAND DOLLARS in savings. Fist pump.

Is this something you’d try out? I can only imagine how great this would look on a buffet or kitchen table. Let me know if you try out my tutorial!

Be back tomorrow with some more painting/staining questions. I think I need y’alls help.

And I leave you all with a cute picture of Pee Wee…look at those eyes. I melt.

Pee Wee’s Goodie Basket {#ILoveMyk9 #CBias

And I’m back! Sorry for the lack of posts lately…I’ve had an 18 day vacation from work, and I just returned to work from said 18 day vacation. Pooped. I am pooped. Luckily, thanks to getting Pee Wee his annual gift basket filled with LOTSA goodies from Walmart, at least I know the dog is taken care of. So, last week I showed you all the goods, and today I’m going to share with you Pee Wee’s excitement. It’s adorbs. I know some people think dogs are dogs, but Pee Wee (and all dogs) have a personality uniquely their own. Pee Wee is a diva (yes, he’s a boy, but a diva nonetheless), professional napper and the sweetest, most loving dog ever. Although if I try to clip his nails one more time, I’m sure he’d put me up on Craigslist if he could.

Glad he can’t. Might be the lack of opposable thumbs.

I went shopping for his annual gift basket, and got home and was trying to figure out a way to arrange it nicely. Now, Pee Wee doesn’t care how it looks, but since it had a place under our beautiful Christmas tree, it needed to look nice.

Lots of Milk-Bone® products along Pup-Peroni, Oster Oatmeal Natural Wipes, auto waterer, Oster Nail Trimmer, Hartz Bath Towel, American Dog Outfitters Toy, etc. If you want to see more of the goodies and why I bought them, you can view my album here.

I also bought a plastic storage container to hold all the stuff in decoratively during the holidays and functionally when I needed to put it all away.

Pup-Peroni is Pee Wee’s favorite treat. Hands down. He goes nuts for these Milk-Bone® treats, too, which is fine with me since they come with a $2 coupon you can use to buy Milo’s Treats or Pup-Peroni.

Using some tissue paper, I arrange it all in the plastic organizer bin.

I grab a sparkly bow and some dog-themed ribbon to wrap around the bin. I secure it in place with double-sided tape.

And then I place it under the tree for Pee Wee to inspect.

“This is all for me? Omg. Seriously? Thanks.” (that’s what I imagine he’s saying in the picture below)

“I’m opening this now, you know.”

“The coast is clear…”

Success!!

Those are the best pictures I got because he was moving insanely fast! His fave part of the goodie basket were the Milk-Bone® products followed by the green alien toy.

His least favorite? The bath products!

Oh well.

And, because Pee Wee is super thoughtful, he got his dad a Christmas gift, too. (Also from Walmart!)

 

A super sweet card + a framed photo of a beautiful father/son moment. I snapped this moment in time right before my husband graduated with his bachelor’s degree last month. This photo? My heart melts y’all. I love those 2 so much. So much.

Overall, I’d say Pee Wee loves the holidays and loves his goodie basket. Ain’t he a cutie? I had to get myself something, so I snapped this picture and framed it. This is Pee Wee laying on my tufted coach…ya know, the one he is not allowed on. Kids these days.

Love him. <3

Do you think your pet has quirky personality traits? What is your pet’s most favorite treat?

This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias. #CBias #ILoveMyk9