Room Tour: Bedroom

With each passing week we're making progress and making this house a home. We got so much done this weekend and I wanted to share. Welcome to the bedroom!

Hung painted frames and wall art. 

Ryan put our dresser together and I got a clothes rack to hang my vintage dresses (and it's a pretty good spot to let clothes hang-dry).

We sat the TV on top of a vintage olive green American Tourister

Decorated some exposed pipe with green and brown finger knitted "ropes".

...and now the part I think I love the most! Our re-purposed headboard! We found this great louvered door at a junk shop in Montrose for $25. It's the perfect size! We took it home, scrubbed it down (thing was dirrrtttyyyy) and hung it on two nails above the bed.

I love the scratches and imperfections on the door and just the overall effect it gives the room. The little slats are so perfect for tucking in cute note cards or decorative papers.

 

We're still hunting for a cool old bench for the foot of the bed, but I think we're almost done in this room!

 So fun!

Crafty Christmas Bonanzaaaaa

Hello sweet visitors! I know Thanksgiving is in two days, but I'm still thinking a month down the road.

Christmas 2010 = D. I. freaking Y. With Ryan and I moving into a new apartment next week, our moneys will be a bit smaller this Christmas, but there will be no stressing out.  There will only be...busy!

I got a bit of a jump start this year since I anticipated the move...I had about 75% of my gift shopping done and my Christmas cards made at the beginning of November.  But there's still a fair bit to be done, like decorating the apartment after all the boxes unpacked. Decorating my home for Christmas is one of my favorite things about the holidays. I absolutely watching (or maybe directing? "More of the colorful lights! More on the bottom!") Dad string the lights and garland on the tree so we could dive into the boxes of ornaments, carefully unwrap the delicate Kleenex-packed ones are get-to-decoratin'.

This year will be the first time Ryan and I get to spend the Christmas season together. I'm determined to go  (a bit) overboard with the cheer and super determined to use mostly handmade, vintage and re-purposed items to do it

There's no limit to what you can do or make, just google Christmas DIY or look up tutorials and go nuts! Etsy has an endless supply of amazing vintage pieces and supplies, even pre-made kits, like this Winter Wonderland cupcake kit , this Holiday journal kit,  and this needle felted snowman kit  just to name a few, that can be shipped to your doorstep in days! 

If you like to shop local, hit up any antique shop. I guarantee they will have lots of vintage Christmas ornaments, figurines, cards and books. Last weekend Ryan and I snagged this 3 foot Santa

 at August Antiques  in the Heights (If you're in the Houston area, I recommend stopping by;  they have tons of Christmas items from the 50s and 60s!

I also bought a handful of these vintage Santa cut-outs to string up in the apartment.

At the moment, I'm waiting (not so patiently)  for my Jenni Bowlin chipboard buttons to come in the mail (via Etsy!) so I can make this awesome garland per Amanda's awesome tutorial found here.

So if you'd like to get your hands dirty this December, here are just a few of the hundreds of ideas and tips to help make your Christmas super DIY and unique:

Reuse broken or old ornaments to make a beautiful wreath! 

Use scrap yarn to wrap foam balls! 

I LOVE the candy cane candle in the upper left had corner!  I think the evergreen pieces on the outside of the glass adds such a classy touch to a table setting.

Great tutorial for making your own antique tin candles

This is what I'm working on now...crocheting Christmas tree garland. I chose fluffy white sparkly yarn to look like snow!

Use blank cards and scrap booking stickers or chipboard pieces to create your own unique cards! 

Chose pretty holiday fabric to make your own cheery bunting. Here is a no-sew tutorial!

Even if your gifts aren't handmade, you can add your own personal accents to the packaging! Use stamps, ribbons, buttons, or stickers to create your own gift tags. Blank tags can be found at Hobby Lobby or any craft store.

This is a great idea if you have kids and even if you don't making paper ornaments or decorative (using pretty holiday scrapbook paper) paper chains is a fun and easy way to add a handmade touch to your decor.



Happy Christmas crafting!

[photos from google images, light up Santa is mine]

Happy Monday Giveaway!

Happiest Monday to you! Can you believe Turkey day is just around the corner? Hop on over to my friend Stacy's blog, Stacy Says, where she's hosting a little Thanksgiving-time Notes from the Republic giveaway!

Here's what's up for grabs:

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One embroidered "Give Thanks" note card and a sweet birdie fabric button ring.

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You should be her friend, too!

GIVEAWAY! 60s inspired lawn ornament hoop bulletin board!

To celebrate my sister Michelle's 26th birthday I'm having a giveaway! Leave a comment here to enter to win this 60s inspired lawn ornament embroidery hoop bulletin board! This contest is open to all facebook friends and blog readers. Winner will be chosen on Thursday the 26th. Yipee!

[please note: there are two small thumbtack holes on the board...]

make-it-happen

This past weekend was a make-it-happen weekend. I resolved to make some new things and I did!

After work on Friday, I went over to the massive Spec's downtown. This is not just a liquor store...they have an amazing and exotic assortment of foods from all over the world! Cheese, jams, fruits and veggies, crackers/cookies, spices and sauces...you could really hurt yourself there..and sometimes I do.

It's been ridiculously hot here...Typically after work I enjoy a glass of red wine while watching the news, but lately it's just been too hot for room temperature red wine. Remedy? Sangria! I don't know why it took me this late in the summer to whip up a pitcher, but I think it will be a weekend staple from here on out in the house. Everyone loved it! I emptied a bottle of Tempranillo Rioja into a pitcher with 2 large handfuls of pineapple chunks, strawberries and grapes. I added 3 tablespoons of sugar, a little pineapple juice and stuck it in the fridge for about an hour. After a good stir, pour over a wine glass with ice, throw some fruit in there and shazzam! It's cool, sweet and refreshing. The perfect summertime substitution for a Cabernet.

While I was browsing cocktail recipe books at Spec's I came across this amazing appetizer. I'm not a huge fan of blue cheese and I had goat cheese at home so I made a little substitution and whipped up a batch of these guys:

You need- 2/3 cups walnuts, chopped (you could substitute pecans or any chopped nut, really) 4 oz cream cheese, softened, 6 oz crumbled blue cheese, 20 loose seedless red grapes

Toast walnuts under the broiler for 2 to 3 minutes or until lightly toasted, transfer to a small bowl. In another small bowl blend and mix together the cheese, cover and place in refrigerator to firm up slightly for approximately 15 minutes. Put one heaping teaspoon of the mixture in the palm of your hand with a grape in the center and roll between both palms until the grape is completely coated, then roll in the toasted walnuts. Place on a plate single layer without touching each other and chill for 30 minutes or until coating is firm, and serve.

Friday was full of kitchen fun!

Saturday was a busy one, too. Ryan and I got up semi-early (read: 9am) and hit the Farmer's Market! We stocked up on mangoes, nectarines, lemons, limes, cucumbers, tomatoes and lots of other colorful fruits and veggies. We had a great lunch at Onion Creek before heading over to Central Market...and regretting that we paid for lunch. You really can just fill up on all the wonderful tasters there. We sampled coffee, wine, bread, salsa, cheese, juice...you name it. We left feeling like we were going to pop. We were supposed to hit the junk shop, but succumbed to a nap instead. That evening, I made my first ever batch of chocolate mousse with homemade whip. oh.. my...want it every day. Recipe over here!

Sunday was nice and lazy...the temp on my car read 104...I'm not doing anything outside when it's 104.

This weekend I took out some bright, colorful skeins of yarn and got to work on an urban guerrilla crochet project I had been wanting to start. I finished and "installed" it on Saturday night and snapped a quick photo Sunday morning. Don't you think it brightens up the corner of Hopkins and Fargo a bit? Gotta love the Montrose.

I'm pretty sure it's illegal...and it would honestly make me sad-face if someone tore it down...but I'm gonna enjoy it as long as it's there.

For more on urban/guerrilla knit, click here!

painting the roses red

Still not done, but coming along! The pins are still visible, I wanted to make sure I could remove easily, (25 rosettes!), add jute rope to the wreath, rearrange the flowers and leaves.. THEN it'll be done. Whew!

Pretty much ready for some weekending.

WIP Wednesday part deux

I love the summertime. Srsly. I love swimming and grilling and shorts and suntans... *most* of the things that come with summer in Texas. I don't like being eaten alive by mosquitoes, and I don't like it when my shins sweat as soon as I step outside. Maybe it's me wishing it didn't "feel like" 106 degrees...maybe it's me wishing I could sit outside by my fire pit, maybe go camping? I'm not wishing summer away... I'm not....I just really like the fall, too. I like hearing high school marching bands practice...and... I'm gonna say it. I'm kind of excited about football season. I'm looking forward to going to a few games this year...cheering for the saints and the tigers...maybe I'm jumping the gun a little bit, but a little early planning never hurt and who knows? People (someone) might want one of these:

I'm going to start a little line of spirit wreaths for the fall. This one (I don't know why it looks blue on camera because I swear to you, it's royal purple in real life...) is my first; a small LSU wreath. It's 1/2 way done and my thumbs are killing me from shoving those little pins in...but I'm excited to see the final product.

[I don't know what it is with me and wreaths that look huggable.]

Done-ski

Whew. That took a while, but it's finally done! Not 100% sure what to do with it quite yet. I mean, I like it, but I don't know if it's sell-able? I think I need to practice more.

Inspired!

Erin from Sunshine and Carousels posted this little photo and I was like "must.... do...". I've never tried to use felt applique on any embroidery project, but now that I'll be finishing my owl today, it's a good time to try!

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What a perfect little housewarming gift!

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Happy Tuesday!

crazy cat lady inspired craft

last weekend, this happened. irl.

today i love!

I tried making one today but got frustrated. When I figure it out, I'll let you know! Aren't they beautiful? My parents went to a wedding in Austin this past weekend and tiny paper cranes on beautiful paper covered the tables. She snagged a few for me 'cuz she knew I'd like 'em. She was right!

[weheartit]