Move Over Cake Boss

Move over Cake Boss, it's my mom's birthday and her cake rocked! My mother turned 60 and a party to celebrate was in order. To pull off a party for her from afar, the family was going to have to pull together and that we sure did. Thanks to my SIL, she was able to work with a friend who decorates cakes and boy did she do an awesome job designing this cake or what? This was her brainchild and I'm so glad it was.

As you can probably guess by the pictures, my mom is a quilter and so this patchwork cake with spools of thread, ribbon, buttons, and needles was something I knew she would be head over heels in love with. Everything is edible and no details were overlooked. When we took the spools of thread off the cake we realized that it even had the bar codes on the bottom, just like the real thing. And the ribbon, yes you guessed it, there was ribbon wrapped around the spool. Oh, did you notice the buttons? - Yup, those are edible too. It was so beautiful that we didn't want to eat it but what's a party without cake?

Happy 60th Birthday Mom!

We love you.

Cukes, Cukes Everywhere

Remember that garden I planted back in June? Well you don't have to have a green thumb to grow cucumbers, they are popping up like weeds! Here you can see the first one that I picked and I was so excited that it actually produced veggies that I had to take a picture. Since this picture was taken a week ago, I've picked another one each day. Just when I think there aren't anymore, there I find another one. Now that I am reaping the fruits of my labor, what recommendations do you have for all of these cucumbers other than putting them in a lettuce salad?

Looking for a recap of the progression of our little garden?

Let's hope it grows - June 4th blog post.
It's Really Growing - July 14th blog post.

What's my secret you ask - why the DIY Rain Barrel that we built of course. I am sooooo happy we made that together and honestly having fresh rainwater to water the garden and flowers is not only the green thing to do but it hasn't cost us a penny either.

P.S. I should be able to post some tomatoes and green peppers soon.
P.S.S. How do you use your herbs from the garden? I am in need of some recipes for parsley, basil, and dill if you have them.

Loving Frank and Oak Park

A week ago Sunday, David and I headed to Oak Park to tour the Frank Lloyd Wright studio and home as well as go on the walking neighborhood tour. I have been begging to go since I read the book "Loving Frank" by Nancy Horan last summer for book club. I absolutely fell in love with the whole story and his work has become a bit of an obsession with me. David and I both share a love of architecture so it was a perfect way to spend a summer day together.

In addition to drooling over all of the beautiful homes in Oak Park, I enjoyed taking over 100 photographs of the homes. I forced myself to only use the manual modes on my Canon SLR camera which was quite the challenge for me. Hopefully you'll agree that the hard work was worth it after viewing the pictures.

This house above sold for $3.9 million last year even though they were asking for more than $7million.

This is the front of his studio which was an addition to the house.

Another view of the front of the studio.

Finally here's a picture of his home.

Can you see me by the door? I just didn't want to leave, it was the most beautiful neighborhood and I felt right at home.

This home while it wasn't designed by Wright, I felt the curb appeal and design was just my style. I think for a couple of million it could be ours. A girl can dream right?

Our next trip is off to Falling Waters, we better get planning!

DIY: How to Create Interesting Wall Art

I've been working on a couple of projects for our living room upstairs and I'm finally ready to reveal them to you. The first is an old ladder from my grandparent's farm that I wanted to hang above the staircase to use as a way to use of the space in a creative way while also being practical because I can use it to display items on the little ledge.

First we had to clean up the ladder that's been hibernating in a barn and covered with spiderwebs and dust. We cleaned, sanded, and gave it a little TLC before it was ready to be hung up.

Secondly we had to remove the metal hangers that were attached to the ladder. Back in the day they were used to attach a second ladder to it when you needed an extension ladder. I don't like heights so there's no way I'd be getting on that.

Lastly, we had to attach the ladder to the wall above the staircase that leads to the upstairs. A trip to Ikea helped us find these cream colored vases which fit perfectly between the steps of the ladder. It's hard to see the detail but the vases really are cute and just the right size.

So what do you think about the ladder? A little different but I love that it's aged, came from my family, and fits the space perfectly.

The second wall art project I've been working on is the set of 18 photos and frames that are hung in a very casual style in the space that separates the dining room from the living room. I have to thank Layla from The Lettered Cottage for the inspiration for this project and she also helped by offering her photography for sale as well. Sorry folks but I can't take credit for that but the photography is exceptional and mine doesn't come close to this. Seeing it in person is even better, I promise.

Once I had the art ready to hang; I took a trip to Homegoods, Target, and Hobby Lobby to purchase the frames. I had to buy 8x10, 5x7, 4x6, and 5x5 frames so I bought a bunch that were interesting to me (more than I needed) and brought them home to figure out which would make the cut and which would need to be returned.

Next I matched the photo to the frames and then laid them out on the ground. This part required a lot of patience because there was lots of moving around until I got the layout that I really liked. Then it was time to bust out the hammer and nails and it's time to get to work.

Tip: If you prefer, using kraft paper cut-out paper squares the size of the frames and stick them to the walls using painter's tape to ensure you are happy with the layout on the wall before you commit using nails. While I wasn't patient enough for this technique, I highly recommend it if you are commitment phobic with wall decor.

After I got them all hung, I had a problem with keeping all of the frames straight which was a bit frustrating for me especially after I kept ensuring they were straight with my handy dandy straightener. Therefore I had to come up with a solution fast otherwise every time I walked by the wall I would notice any frames that had mysteriously shifted.

Tip: I purchased a package of velcro fasteners that are little 5/6" round dots and I attached one to the back of the frame and the other to the wall and magic happened - the frames don't shift anymore!

Here's the end result which I'm very happy with. While this look isn't for everyone, I love the wow factor it offers. Have you created some interesting wall art that you would like to share?

I Love Checklists

If you are like me, you love to make lists and check off your accomplishments one by one. Ahh, the feeling of crossing off another task makes me feel so good and I just love these cute, funny, but practical templates. Thanks to designer Erin at Vale Designs you can do that not only in style but for free! Yes, Erin has been kind enough to share them with us so all you have to do is download them and print them. The free, down loadable templates are available here.

You can choose from "the freakin never ending to do list," "the pain in the groceries to buy list," and "the dreamy blog topics to post list" for you bloggers. I was rolling on the ground when I read the title for the grocery list template because I absolutely, positively hate grocery shopping which is probably why our fridge is pretty bare unless David goes to the store which is pretty often.

A special thanks to How About Orange for sharing these awesome templates with us.

Giveaway - Itty Bitty Ghost Chair

Adventures in Renovating a Brooklyn Limestone is giving away a Lou Lou baby ghost chair thanks to AllModern. The ghost chair is all the rage in the decor world because it's a perfect mix of modern and classic. Not to mention since it's the baby size, it'll be the perfect chair for your little tikes. All you have to do is go to the blog by clicking here, and leave a comment about how you found the blog (me of course) and you may be the lucky winner. It's a $133 value so get those comments in because you and your little one may be the winner.

Isn't the baby one adorable?


Good Luck!

A Day at the Lake

On Sunday we headed out with our neighbors for some fun in the sun and went boating. We are lucky enough to have a lake close by so it's very convenient and makes us appreciate our little town even more. Our neighbors have twins that are almost 3 years old and they are just a hoot to be around and they LOVE the water. I only wish I had a love for water at their age like they do, they already swim like fish and jumping into the water they are able to turn any frown upside down.

Dave and I chilling on the boat

Little man is loving life and floating on the water - can you see his smile?

The little lady was a bit cranky from her late night the night before but one jump into the lake and she was all smiles! She's also not shy about letting me take her pictures which I absolutely love, I'll have to practice my skills on them more often.

Here's Jen trying to warm up little man because the water was a bit chilly at this time.

Here's Shawn swimming in the deep water with the kids because it was just too cold for us girls, we liked watching more.

Captain made sure we got to and from the dock safely.

We had a fabulous time with our neighbors, they really are very fun and generous people. We couldn't ask for better neighbors so they better not move away anytime soon!

Blogs I Adore - Making It Lovely

Nicole Balch from Making It Lovely is actually a local talent from Oak Park (home of Frank Lloyd Wright too) and she is the owner of Pink Loves Brown. When she isn't working on remodeling and decorating her 1920's bungalow she's working on her business Pink Loves Brown where she designs and sells cards, stationary, gift sets, magnets, etc. Nicole and her hubby are keeping busy with the latest addition to their family, their adorable daughter Eleanor.

Nicole posts a style post each month pulling together outfits that look lovely on just about anyone. She posts the pictures and also where you can find the various pieces for the outfit. Below is the July post and I'm absolutely drooling over the purse and shoes below, aren't they drool worthy?

You may have heard about the Better Homes & Gardens 48 hour challenge that took place this spring/summer between 5 bloggers. They were given $500 to spend at Home Depot and 48 hours to complete a weekend project. Well there was very stiff competition between Making It Lovely and This Young House (now known as Young House Love) but I think the hand-painted floor that looks like a rug cinched the win for Making It Lovely. It was the most beautifully painted floor I've ever seen and did I mention that Nicole was 9 months pregnant when she did it?

I know you are dying to see that floor and as you can see they redid their front porch for the challenge. Isn't the green and pink so refreshing and relaxing for a porch?

And look at lucky Eleanor's nursery......ahhhh!

She put together the details of the nursery for her readers. I love that she is so generous with sharing every detail of her rooms including where she got the various items. This is so helpful when you want something that she put in a room. (Note: I'm not putting together a nursery but this was just one example-sorry.)

Didn't get enough of the front porch? Here's a before and after, what a difference and it only cost $500!

Last but not least, here's her business website Pink Loves Brown.

Thanks Nicole and keep the inspiration and beautiful pictures of Eleanor coming.

P.S. Sorry about the order of the pictures, I really don't like when blogger does this.

Lemon Whoopie Pies

One of my favorite flavors is lemon and when I found this recipe for Lemon Whoopie Pies, on Joy the Baker's blog, I knew it was a recipe that I had to try. Lemon and whoopies pies combined - how could I go wrong with this recipe? I hosted a scrapbooking night at my house this weekend and I knew the girls would love to take home these delectable treats after a long night of scrapping. It was my little way of saying thanks for spending the evening at my house.

After I whipped up the dough and baking the cookies in the oven for 12 minutes, I made the cream cheese frosting which I slathered in between the two cookies and wa-la, lemon whoopie pies. My mouth is watering as I look at these whoopie pies and I wish that I had some left overs because I'm really craving another one of these. I'm off to make another batch. Oh, are you looking for the recipe? Here you go!

ENJOY!!!

DIY: How to Frame a Seafan

About a month ago I came across this idea to frame a Seafan in a shadow box from Bower Power and I knew this was an idea that I wanted to do for our 2nd bathroom which has a beachy theme. It's rather simple because all you need is a seafan, shadowbox, cardstock paper, and adhesive. Yes, it's that simple and I think it's gorgeous and classy decor. The hardest part of this project is getting your hands on a Seafan especially if you don't live by the sea, but we discovered that you can buy anything on Ebay.

Cardstock paper, gluedots (adhesive), and scissors

All you do is trim the cardstock to the size of your shadow box and adhere the seafan to the paper. You need to use a shadow box versus a picture frame because of the end of the seafan that is 3 dimensional but if you want to cut that off you could use a frame.

Here's my Seafan in the 2nd bathroom next to the beachy picture already framed.

Our little window with some birds and toiletries for bathtime.

Another view of the bathroom

This was a super quick project and I love that I finally have some artwork hanging up in the bathroom. I'm thinking about framing a starfish into a smaller shadow box but I don't want this room to be too themed which is always a problem for me. In addition to hanging these 2 frames, I pounded about 20 nails into our walls today but you'll have to wait to see where the other 18 nails went.