Favorite Friday, Travel and Home

Here's some things that inspired me this week.


{1: our mantra, 2: you'll never loose your sunglasses and keys again, 3: sleep among the trees, 4: farm muffins,
5: lego storage finally in the US, via, 6: natural beeswax crayons, 7: $3 modern outdoor lighting}

A Last Minute Ornament That Will Last a Lifetime

{today's post is from Melissa at daily-ish mel. a place to enjoy such weekly posts as wordless wednesday or crafty friday. 

she's my crafting partner in crime and I'm so happy to have her share a hand embroidered felt ornament with us today. 

be sure to stop by her blog and say hi!}

The idea for this ornament came from the festively fun book Fa la la la Felt. I love working with felt for many reasons, mainly because it doesn't ravel when cut and makes for a perfect canvas for embroidery projects.


The beading was very time consuming but really added the delicate detail I was looking for.


From earth-friendly felt, eco-felt to bamboo felt, crafting with felt can be green. Start yours today for a lifetime of Christmas enjoyment!

Gallery Wall for Artwork and Christmas Cards

{I am giddy with delight for today's guest post from Abbey over at Aesthetic Outburst.

you can find her amazing handiwork gracing pages all over the blogisphere. from the creative art in her shop,
to  making and styling costumes for Parents Magazine, and everything in between! this is a blog you'll want to bookmark and visit daily.

here today she is sharing a tutorial for a gallery wall. use it to hang art work or for displaying Christmas cards. thanks for the great idea Abbey!}

Hi, I’m Abbey Hendrickson! I live with my little family in rural upstate New York. We recently purchased an old, abandoned farmhouse and have spent the last few months working to make it our own. When I’m not tearing down walls or refilling sippy cups, I write a blog called Aesthetic Outburst and work as a freelance craft stylist. Thanks so much to Christen for inviting me here as a guest blogger!


One of the first things we did when we moved into our house was to make a gallery wall for our kiddos (ages 2 and 4). They’re both quite prolific and love to see their artwork displayed. Making a gallery wall is simple, and kids of all ages will love having a spot to hang artwork, photos, or important reminders. You’ll need:

screw eyes
wire (I used 18 gauge)
wire cutters
a level and/or measuring tape
clothespins
artwork




Instructions:

1. Mark the spot where you want to put your first screw eye. Using a level or tape measure, mark the spot where you want the matching screw eye. Mine are about 3 feet apart.
2. Twist the screw eyes into each mark.
3. Secure wire around the first screw eye and stretch the wire to the other. Wrap wire around that screw eye and cut off any excess wire.
4. Continue for each level, being sure to take into account the average size of your artwork and keep enough space in between.
5. Hang your artwork!

Favorites Friday, Trees!

A few years back I started collecting snowmen. Their cuteness is irresistible (and I'm not a collector...too much clutter).

But lately, I've found them a bit too cute. You know what I mean? I'm definitely finding favor with the humble Christmas tree. In all forms.

Check out some crafty finds I've rounded up. Trying to decide which one to do this year, they're all so fun. The ice cream cone trees would be super fun to do with the kiddos, in lieu of a gingerbread house. Same with the pine cone & pom pom "tree", it's only 2 ingredients (Kiwi Crate has a whole 2 ingredient series that's definitely worth checking out)!

What collection do you fancy for Christmas decor? Leave your comments below!


{1: wood pallet tree, 2: candy cookie trees, 3: vintage ruler tree, 4: piñata tree,
5: felt trees, 6: wood block tree, 7: pine cones & pom-poms}

Favorites Friday, Matryoshka Nesting Doll Kitchen

Oh among my many favorite things, Russian nesting dolls has always held a sentimental spot in my heart.

Whilst I plan on starting a collection for Sedae, gathering a new set every year, I need to re-vamp some items in our kitchen and want all these seen below. Especially that worlds-cutest-pillow. Have you ever?? Love her.


{1: nesting storage containers, 2: stacking cups, 3: tea towels, 4: nest friend pillow,
5: measuring spoons, 6: kitchen timer, 7: stacking glasses}

Our Advent of Activities for December

Here it is!

I took inspiration from my gathering of advent calendars, and came up with this for our little family.

And I'm sharing the download with you!!!



I knew that instead of a candy/little toy advent calendar, I wanted to be able to have activities for each day of the month, to savor the fun of December. The greatest thing is that the activities I chose can be enjoyed by kids of all ages, tweaking here and there where necessary.


I also knew that I wanted the calendar to hang in our house, as counter-top space is limited. This way, it makes a cute little banner to enjoy all month long as well.


I love how hanging it on our mirror allows a peak at the un-covered day to come, or the reflection of the paper back once revealed.

So here's what to do. Download, print and cut out the activity cards I made for you. Choose and cut out 3x3 squares of scrapbooking paper to cover the back of your activity cards (and one 4x4 for December 25th). Glue the decorative paper to the back of the cards, grab some twine or ribbon and clip on your cards with clothespins. Each day, uncover your activity for that day. Easy! Fun!


Below are links to some of the crafts found on the cards.

December 2- make crystal snowflakes
December 6- make hot glue tracings of winter objects
December 9- make snowglobes
December 12- make okra snowflake prints
December 14- make an ice block building
December 15- make foam snowmen
December 19- make snow-melt art wrapping paper
December 20- make cottonball snowman
December 21- make glue paint snowflakes
December 22- make snow play-doh

While Your Turkey's in the Oven...

Yes, let's be honest, everyone comes for the food. But there's no reason you can't dress it up a bit right?

So while your bird (or tofurkey...) is in the oven, and you're sitting down to rest and watch the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade, take a moment to think about how you will present your food you labored all week over.

Iron that tablecloth and set up a buffet table. Find some cool twigs in the front yard and put them in a vase. Leave little notes for your guests, reminding them of all the reasons to be thankful.

Make your most anticipated meal of the year shine!


{wood runner, twig centerpiece, silhouette place settings}
{coffee filter chair flowers, change up the traditional colors, a symmetric buffet table}
{thankful butcher paper runner, rustic buffet table and tissue pom poms, tree stump chargers}

Favorites Friday, Muppets Mania

There's a new Muppets movie coming out next week and I'm so excited! I can't wait to take the kids...and have an excuse to see it too.

The thoughts of this new movie made me remember a miss piggie ornament I had when I was young. Every Christmas it was my most treasured ornament. It had to have front row center placement on the family tree.


(photo source)
Did you have any favorite Muppet paraphernalia growing up?

Here's a round up of some other super cool Muppet themed items you can get or do too!


{1: haters gonna hate, 2: ornaments, 3: muppet puppet printables, 4: art print, 5: minimalist muppets, 6: kermit snack, 7: retro concert posters}

Favorites Friday, Billy Buttons

I can guarantee these little billy buttons will be present, in some form or another, in our Thanksgiving feast decor.

I can also guarantee you'll be seeing a lot more of these native Australian flowers everywhere in the near future.

To billy buttons! Aren't they cute?


{1: invitations, 2: custom wine labels, 3: botanical art print, 4: boutonniere, 5: embroidered, 6: table decor, 7: felted wool diy}

Favorites Friday, Fall Projects for the Home

Now's the time, if you haven't already, to start pulling out those boxes stored away marked "fall".

If some of your decor from seasons past are looking a little sad around the edges, start the season off right with some of these great projects. Sure to spruce up your home, make you feel all warm and cozy, like autumn does best.

 {1: paint your house numbers on a pumpkin, 2: cover frames in fall colored lentils, 3: make leaf printed linens, 4: adorn a cowl with some festive pom poms, 5: decorate with a nature garland like this, 6: eat many bowls of homemade pumpkin gingersnap ice cream, 7: start making vanilla now to give as christmas presents later}

Favorites Friday, Black and White Fall

Today is the first day of fall so if you're looking for some inspiration on how to decorate this year, consider the simple yet strongly-stated use of black and white.

It doesn't have to be just for Halloween, but all season long.

Stretch your fall comfort zone with these bold colors, and daringly mix them with with natures abundant colors you see outside. 

 {1: black and white plates mixed with natural fall colors, 2: make some fall art, 3: white watering can and gourd with black numbers and neutral flowers, 4: love this striped cover-up, to stay dry in the rain, 5: arrange a gorgeous bouquet of black and white flowers, 6: embroider a statement and frame it, 7: stencil a silhouette on a pumpkin}

So Zilly for the Beach

Zulily is the place to shop for daily deals on all things mom, baby and kid. Everyday essentials you'll need, they'll have it. At majorly discounted prices.

So if you haven't signed up yet, do so now. It's free to join and they'll send you daily emails on all their killer deals!

I went "zilly" over these great beach themed items:

 {onesie, activity book, book, canvas}

Favorites Friday, Ombre

Ombre is the gradation of a color from dark to light. And it seems to be the new black. It's everywhere! For good reason, too. How great would any one of these be in your home or for your next party?

 {1: i love lamp, 2: swell, 3: vintage pitcher and glasses, 4: sky's clearing dress, 5: storage, 6: celebrate, 7: invites}

Master Bedroom Re-do

The master bedroom. Usually the most neglected room in a family's house, and ours is no exception. I think one of the reasons this is such a common occurrence is lack of vision. I know that's always been my struggle. Since we've moved into this home I've been drawing inspiration for a room re-do. As you can see, we need it!



I pulled together images of rooms and decor that I like in grey, yellow and white. With maybe turquoise or coral touches. This is my favorite part of design: hunting, gathering and shopping!

This is also where a handy husband comes in hand, since I loathe painting walls.  

Loathe.

I've got a gagillion projects I want to get done, but I think it's important for us to have an oasis to retreat to at the end of the day. So I'm making it a priority. I'll share any shopping finds I come across on twitter and of course, the big reveal at the end.

What do you think??


{row 1: 1, 2, 3, row 2: 1, 2, 3, row 3: 1, 2, 3}  {row 1: 1, 2, 3, row 2: 1, 2, 3, row 3: 1, 2, 3}

Labor Day White Party

You know that old rule of no white after Labor day? It's a silly old fashion rule (I can say that because I don't wear much white anyway) but why not make the most of it by sending the color off in style with a White Party.

{row 1: one, two, three, row 2: one, two, three, row 3: one, two, three, row 4: one, two, three}
As much as I wish we could have a White Party of our own, the husband has convinced me into a trailer work party.


But can guarantee I'll be wearing white.

(click on the image to find out where to get the look yourself!)

Favorites Friday, Dog Party

I had grand plans for having a fun fourth birthday party for our little pup Max this year. We celebrated big on his first birthday but then one kid came, and then another and the poor pup became third fiddle.

I was determined that this year would be the year to do another party.

A bunch of dogs all romping around the yard is tons of fun and it's a great excuse to hang out with their owners over great food and cocktails.

So I sent out invites and everything. See?


Well, his birthday weekend just so happened to fall on the only weekend we had open and was the weekend my wonderful husband wanted to send me on a girls trip.

So, I chose to be selfish and cancel the party.

In hopes of ever getting to this party again this year, here's my inspiration board. If not, well, the 5th birthday's a big deal right?

Happy (much belated) 4th birthday to the craziest poodle around!


{1: tutorial for quilted scottie pillows, could be great party favors or an activity for each guest to choose pre-cut fabric and take home to do, 2: dog toy ice lick, would keep the dogs entertained and hydrated on warm summer days, 3: balls, bones, and leashes oh my!, 4: doggie bags to send treats home in, 5: dog bowl platter could hold all sorts of yummy food, 6: great silhouette party invites, 7: the center of attention can't go without a party outfit, 8: plush bone party favors, 9: gather friends and celebrate all your dogs' special day}

Favorites Friday

Which one inspires you?


{1: peach margaritas, yes please, 2: DIY paper pouches, 3: magnetic airplane clips, for displaying artwork, 4: Will Schofield prints, 5: i like you print, 6: zach the triceratops, think i'm going to try my hand at making one, 7: we're in need of new drinking glasses, and I'm in love with these}

Favorites Friday

{1: juicy couture polka dot clutch, 2: make a pouf tutorial, 3: the worlds cutest baby shoes by baby bloch, 4: vintage inspired squirrel on board, 5: fun doormat, 6: hilarious "no hablo" onsie, 7: adorable farm play mat}

Miss Sedae's Room

I'm {slowly} starting to gather things to re-decorate Sedae's nursery. So before I transform pieces here and there, I figured I should share what it looks like now.

It's a real girly girls room. Which I swore I wouldn't do. But I did.

And it fits her because this little one is all girl.

Her room has the right balance of feminine with whimsy and personal touches with lots of stories behind it all.

Whether it's the crib and changing table that Tayden once used or the bookshelf Rich built, the hand stitched animals, knitted doll or paintings from family and friends, presents, pictures, and the DIY's I did, it all means something.

That's what makes a room, any room, tell a story. Fill it with things you love and it will speak to you every time you walk in.








See the above caterpillar here.