My Merry Mantle

Today Layla over at The Lettered Cottage is having a Christmas mantle party and I thought I'd join in since my mantle is decked out for the holidays. Well actually we don't technically have a "mantle" but I have a nice built-in buffet that works just the same without the fireplace. It's much prettier in person or in better lighting but this is all I could capture since the sun sets so darn early around here. In fact, today Chicago got their first snowflakes but luckily they aren't sticking yet. It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas.......

Here's what I did to complete our Christmas mantel.

• Fresh greenery along with pine cones sprinkled throughout to bring the outdoors in. We use an artificial tree but the greenery is real and brings that Christmas smell into the house without the fire hazard.
• 2 green sparkly trees  and 2 red glitter candles from Crate & Barrel to add a bit of color and sparkle
• 2 reindeer, 3 stockings, and a silver ornament garland from Pottery Barn
• A large tall vase filled with artificial snow and filled with greenery, snow covered branches, and a pop of red flowers to add height and drama.
• And last but not least, my pine cone wreath that I made over the weekend. You can read all about how I made it here.

 Another view of the entire mantle right next to our Christmas tree.

 A close-up of my pine cone wreath that I am oh so proud of.

Looking for more inspiration to "deck the halls " for the holidays? Visit the Holiday Home party over at the Lettered Cottage.

DIY: How to Create a Pinecone Wreath

I was hoping to complete this project before Thanksgiving but I ran out of time. I wasn't worried though because pine cones are everywhere for Christmas too so there is always time to make your own pine cone wreath and incorporate it into your holiday decor.

See this pine cone wreath below - beautiful but is it worth $50 at Crate and Barrel or would you rather spend only $5 and make it yourself? That's what I thought, let's save the $45 and put it aside for another decorating project down the road.

All you need is a $5 styrofoam wreath, lots of pine cones from the backyard, brown spray paint, and a glue gun with tons of glue sticks. I had everything except for the styrofoam wreath which is why the cost was so low.

Step 1: spray paint the wreath a brown color to match the pine cones.

Step 2: start gluing the pine cones to the front part of the wreath. I tried to fit 2 in each row.

Step 3: glue pine cones to the outer edge of the wreath.

Step 4: glue pine cones to the inner edge of the wreath.

Step 5: attach bow and hang it up.

Step 6: admire your handiwork - it looks great! Even my hubby was impressed with it.

What do you think? I think it was well worth the $45 that I saved by making it myself. It took about 2 hours to make but I found it to be a very relaxing project to work on except the few times that a pine cone wouldn't cooperate. I hung it on the door but I've since moved it to hang over the mirror above our buffet, it looks nicer and now I don't have to squirm in fear that every time the door opens or closes that it may break. So far it's surprisingly sturdy and not a single pine cone has fallen over. I hope I've inspired you to try to make something yourself and save some money in the process.

Presents for a Princess

My niece Katie turned 3 a couple of weeks ago but her birthday party is this Saturday. I decided to incorporate her favorite color which she told me was purple into the gift bag and the princess theme into her card. Sorry I can't reveal her gifts because she likes to look at my blog and I would hate to blow my cover!

I decided to "spruce up" the plain purple gift bag that I bought for her gifts. I wrapped the gifts individually and then put them in the bag so she could have a little fun unwrapping all of her goodies. I then brought out the Big Shot and used my new alphabet die set to personalize the bag for her. Simply pick out the cardstock and roll it through the Big shot which does most of the hard work.

Then I just adhered the letters to the bag to spell out "Happy Birthday Katie!"

(Please disregard the fact that the rows aren't in alignment - it's already driving me nuts but I have to just let it go, I don't think Katie will mind)

Then I filled it to the brim with gifts that any 3 year old girl would love.

Then it was time to move onto the card fit only for a little Princess. I decided to use pink instead of the purple this time - please forgive me Katie.

Supplies Used:

• Paper: Basic Black, Whisper White, Melon Mambo
• Ink: Melon Mambo
• Stamps: Princess Time
• Punches: Scallop circle, eyelet border, circle
• Accessories: Bazzill ribbon, ribbon metal embellishment, rhinestones, big shot with polka dot texture plate

My Valentine, My True Friend

I didn’t get a chance to create a bunch of handmade Valentine cards this year but I did get a chance to make a few this past week. I didn’t want to post them before V-day, in fear that those receiving the cards would have the surprise spoiled.  Plus they got done at the last minute too didn’t help the cause but they were done just in time.

Above is the card that I made for the best hubby in the world. It took me a couple of tries before I got it just perfect for him.  I can’t believe that 9 years ago on 2/14/02 we got engaged during our trip to Daytona for the Daytona 500. I still remember how nervous he was and how relieved he was after he heard my “yes” after the big question was popped. I’m thinking we should head back there next year to celebrate 10 years.

The pink card above which was similar to David’s I sent to my littlest nieces back home. I included a couple of little treats for my little Valentine’s. Little girls love pink don’t they?  

 

This last card I made for some other Valentine’s in my life but it didn’t turn out as well as I would have liked. I should have used green as the main card color but they got done. It’s definitely not one of my better cards but having a few “not so great” cards help to create the next best creation afterwards.

Happy Valentine’s Day everyone!

Projects I’d Love the Nerve to Tackle

Maybe I should have titled this “projects I’d love to attempt but don’t have the nerve”. I think with a little help, encouragement, and guidance from some experts I can tackle most of these.

Centsational Girl made these adorable Crate & Barrel like poinsetta pillows for Christmas. I know it’s mid-January, but it’s never to early to start making them now for Christmas presents in December – right?

I think I’ll need my mom’s help with this one given she’s the quilting and sewing guru of the family. Interested in attempting this project – here’s the details.

A Soft Place to Land created the coolest Board and Batten treatment to the walls in their living room. I would love to have the guts to try something like this in our basement family room to give it some architectural detail it’s lacking.

Curious how to create this on your walls, the cost, and the amount of time? Click here for details.

Elizabeth Kartchner from Just Us created these super cool embellished tees using old tee-shirts and some fabric scraps. She shared her how-to’s on a local TV station and I’m really eager to try this one out. She even used a scrapbooking tool, Sissix, to cut the flowers out of fabric.

Susie over at Susie Harris’s blog created these DIY flower pillows on the cheap. Again I’d love to tackle this but I need a sewing machine and a little guidance from my mom too. Are you starting to see a theme? I love pillows, fabric flowers, and projects that are easy.

 

My new favorite DIY blog is Knock Off Wood and a special shout-out to Sherry at Young House Love for sharing this blog with all of us. Ana at Knock Off Wood has me thinking that I really can build furniture for the cost of peanuts that are sold at Pottery Barn, Crate & Barrel, and West Elm. I am determined to make this coffee table when the weather warms up a bit. Intrigued by the idea of making your own coffee table – step by step drawings and instructions are here along with some testimonials from people who have built this in 2 hours and under $50 – yes that’s not a typo.

There are tons of detailed plans on how to build anything from a square dining room table, nightstands, beds, or entertainment centers. She creates plans that are easy to follow and people are always sending in pictures of their creations along with some tid-bit’s of advice that would be helpful to anyone else looking to build the same thing.

Honey, if you are reading this, will you help me make this coffee table pretty please? I promise not to yell or get bad if you make a few mistakes along the way – promise! I’ll even buy extra wood in case of any boo-boo’s.

Are there any projects that you want to tackle but are scared to use a jigsaw, table saw, or sewing machine? Did you end up with all of your fingers afterwards and a pretty cool project? Do share. I’m looking for the confidence I need to venture into unchartered waters.

Clear Stamps & New Punch Design by SU

A new year and new products available through Stampin Up and I couldn’t be happier with the improvements to the already fantastic product offerings.

I love the punches from Stampin Up but the flatter design will make it easier to store and also has a lock down feature to take up even less room in your scrapbooking totes when you go somewhere else to make cards, create scrapbook pages, or create something else. I used the new punch on my holiday cards and it was so much easier to punch and the new designs are so refreshing too.

Last but certainly not least, the option to purchase high-quality clear stamps is finally here. I tried them and love that they are the same quality as the regular wood stamps that has made them famous. The clear stamps are available at a lower price point than the wood stamps and the best part – they are stored in a cd/dvd case with the contents clearly labeled on the side for easy storage. I am in HEAVEN since I’ve run out of room in my closet where I currently store my stamps in baskets. These take up less space – so does that mean I can have even more stamps in my collection? I’m thinking hubby would say no. For those of you that love the wood blocks, don’t worry they will continue to offer them at this time.

Interested in trying these new products? I’ll be hosting a Stamping Open House at my home soon to celebrate the Sale-a-bration that will be going on. Stay tuned for details.

A Crafty Gift Card Package

I love shopping for Christmas presents for my family but as much as I try to fight it, sometimes I have to purchase gift cards because that is what they really want - especially those teenage nieces/nephew. I was trying to find a fun way to package those gift cards that just aren't the same when you give them in an envelope. Below is what I came up with - a stocking that holds those gift cards and it doubles as an ornament for the tree too.

The top of the stocking flips up to conceal the gift card inside.

(I love Target's gift cards with the cute puppy)

Supplies Used:

• Paper: real red cardstock, old olive cardstock, whisper white cardstock, Heidi Grace Designs Jolly & Bright patterned paper 
• Punches: eyelet border, scallop oval, large oval
• Accessories: white gel pen, bazzill red/white ribbon, silver elastic cord

Note: all products are Stampin Up unless otherwise notes

My Thanksgiving Final Touches

Remember these Thanksgiving Dinner invitations I made a few weeks ago for my guests? Well in making my final preparations for the big feast, I thought I would carry this theme to a few other things the guests would see during our Thanksgiving feast.

How about menus at each of the 4 tables (17 peeps in total) so that the guests can see what will be served during the big feast. There is a lot of food and they shouldn't leave hungry. I was a little stressed about the 22 lb turkey so I bought a ham as well - lots of leftovers and I already have some new recipes to try and use up all that delicious turkey.

This year in addition to using David's grandmother's fine china, we are using real linen napkins, I hope I don't regret this decision because there are a few messy folks coming but I guess that's what the washing machine is for. I decided to make my own napkin rings using some twine and stamping "bon appetit" on the tags.

What do you think? Simple but I like adding my own touch to things even though my husband said I was just making it harder on myself. Well the tags only took 5 minutes to make but rolling the silverware and typing the tags took about 30 minutes. Still not bad for a little touch, I want my guests to feel welcome.

Wine, Cheese & Chatter - party invite

My friend Sue is having a Wine and Cheese Tasting Party at her house and of course I jumped at the chance to help out. I had a few ideas in mind for the invitations and she let me run with the idea of something simple like an invitation that looks like swiss cheese. I love the simple look of the invitation because it speaks to the sophisticated type of party that she is trying to create. The invitation sets the stage for the party and I think the simple black and merlot colored font is the icing on the cake. All we need are merlot colored envelopes and they are all set to go off in the mail.

To create the swiss cheese look, I used two different sized punches including the standard paper punch and then a 1/2 inch punch. My hand got quite the exercise with punching, and punching, and punching a few more holes in the invitea. Not only did I get the invitations done, I also have a big pile of confetti too. Hmmm......what could I do with that?

Blogs I Adore - Just A Girl

Chris from Just A Girl is like the girl next door that you just love to be around and her blog is plump full of fun things to try yourself. What I love about Chris is that she blogs about projects and stuff that in real life that we often struggle with. For example, I was rolling on the floor laughing when she posted pictures of her husband trying to fix the washing machine - he took the pieces apart and ultimately Chris ended up with a new washer. I thought for a moment that it was my hubby in those pictures, take it apart, and pray it gets reassembled properly without too much damage.

In addition to blogging about life, Chris blogs about DIY projects, shares others creative talents with her readers, is very organized (love it), and is thrifty to top it off. Were we separated at birth? We really have similar styles and I feel at home when I read her blog each day regularly. (Cool I just had to try this new strikethrough feature and it really worked). 

Here's a few projects that you may enjoy.

Look at this armoire that Chris refurbished. If you are wondering how she made this go from out-dated to chic, then check out her blog for details here. Here grandparents were kind enough to let her take a few things from their home and I love how this family treasure can look at home in her more modern house.

Don't you love the new hardware? Those drawer pulls are gorgeous.

Then when she organized craft supplies for her kids, I thought wow - she can make recycling soup cans even better by using them to hold pencils, markers, and paint brushes. I love how it's all in one place. I like the idea for my scraproom.

I love this very orderly area of the house where the organization station resides. The vinyl calendar that she purchased from SayItWithStyle on Etsy has me very interested in making my very first Etsy purchase (hard to believe I know). How perfect especially since I constantly am erasing and crossing out things on the calendar as things change.

In addition to the calendar, she has baskets for all of those school papers, library books, and miscellaneous receipts that need a home when you come in and/or out of the house and don't want to forget anything. I just love this and only wish I had a mudroom or larger entry way so I could have a command center organization station.

Last but not least, isn't that artwork soothing and gorgeous for a bathroom? I love it and can you believe that she made it herself? I love how simple artwork can be if you branch out a little bit. Stop buying artwork, especially if you change your mind a lot like me, and put your creativity to work. It's so much more meaningful to look at art you created versus purchasing it.

I hope you visit Just A Girl's blog, I can guarantee you fill find something to tickle your fancy.