A Christmas baby

Alright, so I stuck my bebe in a stocking and took her picture, don't judge me. I'm actually in love with this photo of her. It was the very last one I took during the session and was lucky enough to capture her beautiful eyes. So if I don't talk to you all before the holidays {I tend to be a little preoccupied lately}, have a wonderful Christmas! We'll be celebrating comfy and cozy-style at home.



I've also submitted this photo to Inspire me Baby which has lots of great inspiration and hints for stellar bebe photography...
This photo was included in the Inspire Me Baby Best of 2011 – inspiremebaby.com

this old foreclosed home: a nursery reveal

Well, here it is finally, the finished nursery, a culmination of months of unfocused design:


The pink chair that might get replaced with a cushy rocker if my behind never heals! Is there such a thing as a 'sit-bone'? Because if so, mine hurts...


The crib:


The redesigned dresser, as you've all seen before, with the new changing mat secured on and all the drawers full of wee little clothes:


The organized closet, ready to rock with labels on everything so the husband knows where to find things when I send him searching:


And here's some of the details. If you have any questions about where I found certain items or how much they were, let me know and I'll do my best to let you know.



And and Aaaaaaannnnnndddd, the nursery's newest addition, Baby Elsie Grace born on 12.9.11, weighing about 7 lbs which was great, because anything bigger would NOT have come out of me the way she did! And just FYI, I wanna tell the world a big giant "I-told-you-so" because I said to everyone I was going to deliver early, and they all just laughed and looked at me with pity, as if going before your due date on your first child was an absolute pink flying unicorn. Ha, I had myself a cute little pink flying unicorn. Now hopefully, once she's old enough to have an opinion, she'll like this room as much as I do...

this old foreclosed home: the invention of an office

When we bought this sad little house, the upstairs wasn't laid out very well. At some point, it looks like the parents said "That's it! We need more room, build an addition!" with no thought or purpose to the design beside space. I mean, they even opted for less expensive options, like panelling, drop ceilings and carpet. So I KNOW that they were only thinking 'space, space, space!' Anyway, it was now up to us to make it work. To make it feel more on purpose and less like two giant rooms.

Here's what the hallway looked like before:


We decided that it was too confusing to have two rooms the same exact size, so we left the one on the right large so it would clearly be recognized as a master bedroom. Then we decided to put a hallway right down the center of the two doors and push the second bedroom wall back, quite a bit. Enough to make an open area large enough to hold the set of windows for natural light, and a desk and shelves for a usable computer area. This should come in handy when bebe decides she's going to get a Facebook account in 23 years, if Facebook's still around that is.

So here you can see the new wall and the office area, along with new doorways to the secondary bedroom and the master bedroom. Make sense?


Here's the new office area painted and waiting for floors...


We really designed around having that set of windows in the hallway, to provide natural light and avoid the long hallway feeling like a dreary tunnel. It's nice and bright during the day:


And the finished area, which personally I find is a great resource and space for both of us. I'm really glad we made the decision to rework the plans and have something that we could get a lot more use out of.

yo yo, 'sup?

Well since learning how to make these, I've decided to put them on everything. EVERYthing. I might pin a couple to the dog. The husband might find a couple on his socks. I love how easy they are to make. In fact, they're so mindless, I made a bunch while watching some tv last night and even taught the girls how to make them this past crafty night. They were a big hit.

Anyway, here's a bunch of things I've stuck them on:

A bebe skirt, a headband and some hair elastics.


A gifted bebe skirt, along with a matching headband.


hair clips.


the elastics up close and personal.


a keychain for my bebe diaper bag.

That's about it, for now. Expect to see them all stuck on your presents this year!

craft night present-makin' marathon

well, if there are any of you planning to come by tomorrow night, i've compiled a list of projects to choose from:

make your own placement clutch. supplies:
placemats
magnetic snaps
embellishments for the front
i will supply the sewing machine

make ribbon paperclips. supplies:
coordinating ribbon
hot glue gun
paperclips
scissors

make a flower bib necklace. supplies:
pre-made flowers or supplies to make some
felt
embellishments {fancy buttons or brads}
chain
chain clasp hardware
hot glue gun

to-go cup cozies. supplies:
felt
embellishments if you choose
i will provide the sewing machine and the template

pacifier clips. supplies:
ribbon
velcro
embellishments
mitten or suspender clips
i will provide the sewing machine

photo tile coasters or canvas art. supplies:
white square tiles {home depot or lowes} or 8x10 canvas
adhesive backed cork roll {don't need if making the canvas}
pre-printed 4.75x4.75 square images or pre-printed 8x10 image
mod podge
sponge brush

button art. supplies:
buttons
embroidery floss
i will provide the needles
muslin or linen fabric piece

There. Now if anyone has other projects they want to try, just let me know here or on facebook and i'll write out the supply list for you. We should have a grand time making little happy Christmas gifts, so come one come all!

birds of a feather

So I've made a mobile for the bebe's room, but I'm not sure if I love it. What do you think? I found the tutorial for making the fabric feathers here and although I love the feathers, I'm still undecided on the finished project. I don't know if it's too busy, or if I just need to look at it in the room for a few days...



It was really simple to make actually, I just used two paint stirrers, spaced and drilled some holes and then pulled the twine through and tied a knot. It's cute, don't get me wrong, I just can't make up my mind. Maybe it's the bebe brain?

and something for me...

I finally broke down and made myself one of those ever-popular bib necklaces. Really simple actually, just some hot glue, felt, chain and pre-made flowers. I found the fabric and the burlap flowers on clearance for a couple of dollars and the filler flowers are fake flowers. I simply glued the flowers in an arrangement onto the felt, glued {and stitched, for extra holding power} the chains to each side of my felt and then cut the felt out so none of it showed through in the final product. Simple!

handcrafted Christmas: ribbon paperclip bookmarks

These again were inspired by a similar idea on Pinterest and a really long wait in the fabric cutting line yesterday morning. All you need is some coordinating ribbon, paperclips {mine are small but you could use a larger version as well} and some hot glue.

This first version is just looped through the paperclip at the top, pulled tight and cut.


This second version is just looped through and hot glued in place, then cut.


So simple {and quick} to make and perfect for stocking stuffers...

yup, it was Pinterest, again

Thanks to that site I just happen to love so much I want to marry, I created something out of a piece of furniture that was headed for the dump.



I bought this a LONG time ago for $5 and it sat and sat and sat in my basement, while other projects took presidence. Well, after a year of climate changes, moisture and movement, the drawers didn't fit so well anymore and I just couldn't deal with it, so it sadly gathered dust. It was on it's way out until a friend pinned an idea, baskets instead of drawers in an old dresser! Egads! So after a new coat of white paint {2 actually} and some wainscot panelling cut to size, it has a new life as a guest room side table. Luckily I had the Ikea baskets laying around from an old wardrobe AND they happened to fit PERfectly. And who couldn't use more storage, especially since that room's going to be filling up soon...

thanks mom

This Thanksgiving, I have a lot to be thankful for, my life is full and blessed. As is my belly! Regardless, there's one thing i've always appreciated: my creative gene. Thanks to my crafty/artistic mom, I've always had an outlet for my imagination, and she always encouraged me to create.

Well this one I can't take credit for, but thanks to Pinterest and all those other imaginative people out in the world, I came across an inspiring idea. So I took my butt down to the thrift store, bought a sweater for $6.00, cut off the sleeves and stitched a hem. Easiest. thing. ever. And, I love them. And, they keep my legs warm. My dearest Pinterest, I love you, please don't ever die...




So Happy Thanksgiving to all you creative and not-sure-if-you're-creative people out there. You never know until you try!

handcrafted Christmas: placemat clutch

And who doesn't want to know how to make this?:



Yeah, I know you do. Have ten minutes? Cause that's about how long it will take you to make one of these bad boys. First you'll need:


a placemat
magnetic snap set
scissors
hot glue gun
felt
embellishment, or vintage pin

First you want to fold over one side of your placement, to create an envelope and sew the sides shut:


Next you want to place your magnetic snaps, like so, and cut a circle of felt large enough to cover the snap. Hot glue felt to inside back of bottom snap, to keep things from getting caught on there...


Now just hot glue your decorative embellishment over the top snap {or another piece of felt and then add your pin} and you're done! They were so quick that I had to make a few, and one of those just might be for me for keeps...mm hm. Any questions, let me know!

go to dessert: death by chocolate

So this is my go-to dessert and by far my husband's favorite. It's super easy to make and absolutely delicious, and it just looks impressive.



What you need:
1 box chocolate cake mix
1 box chocolate pudding mix
heath bars
whipped cream

Ok, so you bake the cake according to the directions. Once it's done and cooled slightly, you can just break it up with a spoon in the pan. You can also pour a little coffee liquor over the cake and let it sit before layering it into your dessert, but i've been skipping that step lately ;)

While your cake is baking, feel free to make the pudding and let set in the fridge. I usually make my own whipped cream at this point too and then set it in the fridge. Also take the time to break up your heath bar into small pieces.

Now, starting with the cake, just start layering until you run out of the goods. It's that simple. Always leave off with a top layer of whipped cream, and top it with some crushed heath bar. Mmm mm.

handcrafted Christmas: fabric covered tins

As you will see, I made a quick tutorial, but the original idea comes from here. She used fabric glue, which would probably work better, but I was too lazy to look the original instructions up, so I went with mod podge. Because who doesn't love a little mod podge?

Anyway, All you need is some mod podge, scissors, fabric scraps, old mint tins and a brush.



Place a layer of mod podge on the top of your tin and adhere your fabric scrap. Even everything out. Repeat this step with the bottom.



Trim the excess once everything is dry. I also added a bit of mod podge to the edges to help with fraying. It seems to work, and if you get any on the metal part you can just scrape it off with your nail when it's dry.



I made several and have different plans for each.



Here's one though, coordinating button magnet sets. You could also use them to gift some tags, or as business card holders. Perhaps gift card holders or jewelry tins. They'll be great to have around for wrapping on a whim.

burp cloths for the bebe

Ok, I knew it couldn't be that hard. And I knew I wasn't paying that much for something my bebe was just going to be spitting up all over SO I figured it out! All it takes is some flannel {$3 a yard on sale!} and a serging stitch. Simple, easy, no mess. I could handle this.



Luckily I was able to find some really cute patterns, those whales make me happy.



And I was able to figure out that my fancy machine has a serging foot and stitch. Wahoo!



The final cost for this project: .75¢ Yup. A whopping 75 cents a piece. Insane really. Each cloth is a quarter yard. Don't those whales make you happy too?

handcrafted Christmas: craft ribbon tags

Winner winner chicken dinner! Well, not really, just a cozy for your starbucks! The winner is....wait for it.....bumbleBEE! thanks for playing everyone and keep reading, because i'll be having a few more giveaways in the spirit of gift-giving!

Back to crafting, I'm currently in the gifting mindset, and this year Christmas will be mostly handmade. I'm trying to keep it simple, so craft paper is going to be my wrapping go-to. I wanted to make some fun tags at least, to pair with colorful ribbon so my packages still have some pop. If you've never sewn ribbon onto paper, I highly recommend it. It's fun, fast and festive!



My trick was to keep the tags {craft cardstock cut to around business card size} lined up one after another and then cut them apart after I was finished with that particular ribbon. Really quick and simple. I think I may end up attaching a lot of these to packages with mini clothespins, so I only punched holes in a couple of sets. These could also make really cool stocking stuffers for the stationary fan. Anyway, try it, you won't regret it!

at it again: another thrifty find updated

Well, I'm at it again, this time with a $3 hanging shelf I purchased a while back at the thrift store. I knew it would eventually live in the nursery, but I had no idea it would end up the way it has. I pretty much had no plan going into it, but after finding some adorable inexpensive knobs, I knew what it should be!



First, it was white {off-white}, and in pretty good shape, so instead of painting it again, I decided to give it a quick distressing with my sandpaper block. If you don't have one of these, it's not necessary but it does make the job easier then working with just the paper.



Second, I measured for, marked, and drilled the holes where my new knobs would go. Now here's the tricky part. The knobs are long screws held in with hex nuts, which means, to make them flush, I had to partially drill a larger hole in the back of each of my holes I already drilled. This way the nut fits into the hole, and becomes flush with the back, so there are no hanging issues.



The following step is daunting. I have a Dremel, and a metal cutting blade, but if I didn't, I don't know what I would have done. All that extra screw coming out of the back had to be cut down, again, to make everything flush. All the sparking made me nervous, but as long as you wear gloves and safety goggles, you should be fine. Don't take my word for it though, I kept imagining my basement up in flames!



All in all, it was an easy enough project, with the right tools. I wish I had better pictures for you, but unfortunately I didn't think to stop at each step since I was so excited about getting it finished. The whole project ended up costing me $13 dollars, which is not bad, considering it's one of the cutest things in there now!