trying to get all my ideas down in one place. click image to go to flickr and read all the notes. fingers crossed we can start setting the nursery up this week….I’ll feel better when progress is being made.
Still need: car seat, monitor, stroller & a NAME. Please send recommendations (mostly I would like your opinons on baby monitors), it’s been a long time since I had a wee babe!
Remember last Monday when Sarah and I headed out to PHX for some food & shopping? Well, what I didn’t tell you was that while we were in frances we saw this adorable vintage lamp.
I spied it up on a very high shelf and Sarah brought it down. We both ooh’d and ahh’d over it, commenting about how the colors were absolutely perfect for the nursery/girls room. Sadly it was more than my budget would allow for a lamp, so we put it back and I vowed to start watching ebay for another one (which I looked for and could not find).
Well, my sneaky sister in law and sweet mother in law secretly had the lamp put aside and purchased it for me!!!! Last night while we gathered for dinner at Sarah’s place she set the lamp up on her piano and waited to see how long it would take me to notice it!
Isn’t it just the cutest lamp ever?! There is a small night light in the “house” that shines out the window when turned on-perfect for middle of the night feedings!
I’m dying to get the nursery set up, but I still have to move all the sewing stuff out of it first…my sewing room will be moving into our odd L-shaped hallway, but first we need to get lighting put in and an outlet. I’m also searching for a twin sized quilt in white, aqau, pink and red for my daughters bed…send links if you see cute ones! I think I’ve decided I just do not have the time to make one before january!
If left to my own devices my house would be one monochromatic pallet of pastels. I think to me it represents cleanliness and simplicity- two things I value. However, I’ve decided that I need a bit more color, -a little pop if you will- to give some variety to my home.
#1 is an adorable print that I bought from Stephanie last year for a quarter. I found the frame last week (thrifted of course!) and painted it red. It’s hanging in my kids room and I love it!
#2 Is an old typing desk that I found about a year ago. I finally painted it red this past weekend. I think I want it in the sewing room…but I’m not sure how or were.
#3 Sewing with color…
#4 I painted my terra cotta pot red…just for fun. It resides in my dining room.
Even mother nature is adding color to my home. Isn’t the tree just beautiful? I love the way it looks in the spring! What about you, how have you added color to your home? If you have pics please link them in the comments- I’d love some inspiration!
*edited* be sure to head over to the farm chicks blog- they are giving away fabric!!
A little Pandora (my funky fun station) a bottle of windex and a broom- my kitchen, dining room and living room now gleam. At least until the kids come home.
I remember visiting a museum as a kid to view beautiful woven baskets and rugs. The docent told us that each item had a small flaw, probably one we couldn’t even detect. She told us the people who made these items believed that only God could create perfection, so they purposely added flaws to their arts- to show that they were humble.
So…if anyone asks, that’s why I didn’t scrape the small piece of hardened food off the upper right corner of the kitchen window.
After 11 years, 2 kids, 4 apartments and 1 house we finally bought a dresser.
We’ve always had large closets for storing our clothes, but we both decided it was time we bought a dresser. We found this one at a thrift store and I loved it.
I have no idea if it is infact a MCM peice or an 80’s reproduction (how does one tell?). I liked it’s clean lines, solid wood and legs. The mirror is kind of fun too, now the mirror above the bed (on the WALL!) can reflect the light back to the dresser mirror, really helps light up the room!
p.s. it is totally ok to laugh at our ghetto TV. the hubs wants to get a small flat screen with a built-in DVD player.
Today was a perfect Sunday afternoon. By desert standards it was a chilly day, which meant we could legitimately light a fire (so what if the house smells like we’re camping)! I love our fireplace, I’m told that in new builds these days you cannot get a permit for a wood burning fire place, it has to be gas. Makes me love mine even more!
From scratch sugar cookies with sparkly snowflake goodness. Do you want to know my decorating secret? Fill a ziplock sandwich bag with icing (mine is a combination of heavy whipping cream, vanilla and powdered sugar) and cut a tiny bit of a corner off. Use it to pipe out your fun designs. If you do have a tip set (which I do) a sandwich bag is still a good alternative to the huge icing bags, I just slip my tips into the hole I cut in the corner .
Fresh roses from my yard, 1pt added for winter in the desert! I have one rose bush that has grown to about 7ft high, I think it’s time for some pruning. I’ve never been much of a gardener (although Aaron and I are talking about a raised bed this spring), but every January I go out and hack the rose bushes back to a more manageable size.
Italian Pot Roast for dinner, which we ate in front of the fire. The son was so mesmerized by the fire he rarely took his eyes off of it!
Going backwards in the weekend, I had a really good time Friday at Crafeteria. Thank you to everyone who stopped by and said hi, gave me lots of warm fuzzies (which I needed since it was a cold night!) Sarah took a few pics of our spread
Georganne assigned us the perfect spot! On this cold Friday night we were sandwiched between free hot coffee and the Urban Cookies table- right by a light! There was a good crowd and we did a decent amount of business. I really enjoyed chatting with Brady Breese the co-owner of Urban Cookies, he is the baker of the yummy cookies, which I of course had to sample. The Milk Chocolate Chip cookie was so rich- would go perfect with cold milk! Now lest you get all bummed because you don’t live in PHX and can’t swing by for an afternoon snack -they ship- all over the US. If you are still undecided about whether or not to order some for yourself, they are a green company.
Saturday at Bliss was a fun event too! There were 3 kids who sat down to make the ornaments, two seven year-olds and one six year old boy. I was totally amazed that they each finished their ornaments- they didn’t give up! One of the little girls had never sewn before and she impressed me with how straight her stitches were. Again, I had some kits left after the event and listed them in the shop if anyone would like a fun holiday craft- that even the kids can do!
Tomorrow I’ll be adding a few more items to the shop, a few things that didn’t make it at crafeteria. I know, I said I was closing the shop…I’m so indecisive! I for sure won’t be doing any big shop updates until after the first of the year!
A few weeks ago I was browsing Goodwill for a pair of pants, instead I found this diamond in the rough for $2.
It was a good size and didn’t have too many tacky “things” on it that would need to be removed, so I bought it. I used my scissors and wire cutters to remove the ghastly bow and “crystallized fruit”, I did save the little birds nest that were on it though. After everything was off I fluffed up the branches a bit, making it appear more full.
I ventured out at about 8pm on Black Friday to grab these little things from Micheal’s. They had a huge selection of do-dads for making your own wreath.
I only used one of each bunch of berries, and about half of each spool of ribbon. I started by ripping the silver berries off the large stem, and then using their wire to wrap it around different wreath branches. Then I filled it in more with the aqua berries. I wanted the birds/nests to be a bit symmetrical at the top of the wreath, I spaced them out enough that I could put a large ribbon in the center and hang it. After everything else was on I tied a bunch of small ribbons and adhered them to the wreath using some 24 gauge wire I had (I would recommend something a bit heavier).
I wanted something simple but pretty and was very happy with the results! It now hangs on our front gate, welcoming all who visit!
All together it took me about an hour to create and cost me approx. $9. I could maybe be talked into making a smaller one…if anyone is interested. Go forth and create! Happy Holiday decorating!
family + good friends + good food + plumbing problem = thanksgiving!
hope yours was great too!
Yesterday I took a breather. I spent an hour at the park with my daughter. She played and I read “Deception’s Daughter” as the warm breeze (it was 95 yesterday) gently rustled the leaves in the trees. Very relaxing. Then we journeyed into downtown Mesa to drop off Decembers class samples (here and here). As it was near lunch time I decided we should stroll the downtown area and get a bite to eat at Mango’s. Really yummy mexican food, not the nicest cashier today; c’est la vie!
I spent the afternoon working on a Christmas Garland, and catching up on season 3 of Ghost Wisperer. I was so inspired by Amy’s halloween garland I just had to make my own!
Helping with homework was a breeze, no complaining! And then…my husband came home and surprised me with these! (and yes Jaylee {and Clint}, they came from Albertson’s, but I don’t care!)
A yummy dinner of Porcupine Meatballs completed the evening of my very nice relaxing day! Breather days are nice… the rarer they are the more I appreciate them!
is the sewing room! We finally got rid of the monstrous futon, the empty space in there now is warming my heart!
My sister is coming to visit this weekend which was just the right push I needed to get this room in order. Where will she sleep now that the futon is gone you ask?
Why right here where the ironing board is, on an inflatable mattress. We don’t have over night guests often enough to warrant a permanent bed anymore.
See that chair in the corner? Solid wood, lovely detail work on the legs? $12 at goodwill, I’m planning on recovering it next week (hopefully) in a pretty red floral print I found.
Even the closet is organized! Well, it’s organized in my own special way, I suppose it might look messy to comeone else. Be sure you click through to flickr on these images, I’ve loaded them up with notes (which explain things like, why aren’t there any baseboards in this room, or what’s with the laundry basket in the corner).
The giveaway? TOMORROW and here is a teaser.
