Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Nest Relocation

These lovebirds have been busy lately! We picked up our little nest and moved 900 miles across the country to beautiful Colorado! All summer long, I was eager to get moved. I had so many great ideas to beautify our little nest, so many projects I wanted to do. But I hadn't seen our new apartment. I didn't know which things could go where AND I knew that some of the projects wouldn't travel well. So I had to be content with logging all of the inspiration I came across on Pinterest. Well, now we are here! We finally have internet, and I know what I want to do. Unfortunately, I spent twice as much at Ikea buying new furniture than I intended, so some things will have to wait. Soon, though, very soon, lots of projects will be happening. Until then....

Sunday, July 10, 2011

Design Seeds

Aaaaaand I have a new favorite website. This one is called design seeds where Jessica creates color combos based on gorgeous photos. Look at all these beautiful color palettes! You will notice they are all pretty similar...That's just where I am right now.





Pretty cool huh? It's a great place for inspiration!

Friday, July 8, 2011

Cool Storage Ideas

Storage Glee might just be my new favorite thing. This website is a treasure trove of nifty storage ideas.
Like this spoon wall that is used for holding mugs. We could totally use one of these, we have quite a mug collection!
Or this spool holder! I love any kind of storage that hangs on a wall. Space saving is important in a small apartment.
I would love to have one of these drawers turned jewelry holders. What a great solution for keeping necklaces untangled.
And finally, this hexagon/magnetic spice thing? It can be arranged and rearranged. And if you had a Silhouette SD (**HINT, HINT, HUSBAND!!!!**), you could make some labels for the ends.
This is just the tip of the iceberg. They have so many cool ideas, I got sucked in for waaayyyy too long. Check it out!

Wednesday, July 6, 2011

Chalkboard Paint is Super Cool

I have been seeing lots of chalkboard projects around lately, but I think this one from BHG just might be my favorite. Jazz up some unfinished wood chairs by painting them a bright color. Then paint the back splat with chalkboard paint. You will never need place tags again!
This is another great idea. Give wine bottles a sleek modern look and a personal touch by painting them with chalkboard paint.
Or use chalkboard paint to create wall decor that can change anytime with the swipe of an eraser.
Use chalkboard paint to help you remember which plant is which. You could even right down maintenance instructions on each pot.
This stuff is pretty awesome and I can't wait to use it for something. Or many things!

Tuesday, June 14, 2011

Beautiful Things

I started using Pinterest recently, and it has made me realize how much I love beautiful things just for the sake of being beautiful. I suppose it's why I went into interior design...I believe that being surrounded by beauty can enrich our lives! Here are some of the lovely thing I'm loving today.
1. Per usual, birds and branches (or in this case, wires). I don't know if I'll ever stop being obsessed with bird silhouettes.
2. Anything ruffly! I must be going through a girly phase, because I'm addicted to flowery, ruffly, girly things and colors.
3. Terrariums are hot right now in the craft world. I have supplies to make one, but I don't think it would make a cross country move very well, so I'm holding off until we are in Colorado.
4. Chevron (obviously!). It's the new houndstooth. Remember when houndstooth was back in last year or whenever? I'm so glad we have moved on to chevron!
5. I love these faux deer heads that keep popping up everywhere. As with the terrarium, I plan to make one of these after we move.
6. I can't explain the bunting craze, but it is darling!

To see other beautiful things that have been catching my eye lately, come visit me at Pinterest!

Sunday, June 12, 2011

Stuff I Made: Necklace and Earrings

I spent all day yesterday crafting away! One of my favorite little know-hows is the pom-pom. It is incredibly versatile - you can use cotton, or fabric. You can use it for jewelry, a shirt or pillow embellishment, or a headband. I like Little Miss Momma's pom-pom tutorial the best of any I've read (and I've read a lot). I made both a headband and a necklace. The headband didn't photograph well...more about that in a minute.
I also ordered these vintage looking leaves from an etsy supplier. I want to make a matching necklace, but I don't really have any jewelry making knowledge so that is a challenge that I plan to conquer eventually!
So, there are different levels of blogginess. You can tell the good blogs from the bad because the good ones have really fun, colorful graphics and professional looking photographs. The bad ones have headers that have what look like hand drawn pictures that were scanned in and either really bad pictures or no pictures at all. I think I have the cute graphics down, but unfortunately my pictures suck. I have a digital camera, but it is both crappy and packed away at this time. All of my pictures are taken on my phone and then edited in picnik. I dream of having a nice digital SLR so I can take my blog to the next level and be more like Pioneer Woman! If only they weren't so expensive!

Saturday, June 4, 2011

Flower Headband

A lady at work complimented me on a headband I wore one day. When I told her I made it, she asked me to make one for her too. I attempted this with some chiffon-type fabric (since that is what mine is made of), but it turned out REALLY badly. It was hideous! Disheartened, I postponed any further attempts for awhile. Today, I was finally ready to take on the flower headband once again. This time, I used an old cotton tank top. I was unsure of what the result would be, but it turns out cotton works well! I asked little J. to be my model.
The one on the left is the original and the one on the right is the one I made today. The purple one turned out so great I sort of wish I wasn't giving it away! I guess it's a good thing I have more of the fabric left : )
If you want to join in the headband making fun you will need:
1) fabric - both flowers are recycled, one from a skirt and one from a shirt
2) a headband
3) scissors
4) hot glue
5) felt
6) a button or a brad

To make the flower, use the same method I used for the medallions in the Monogrammed Wreath only with fabric instead. I discovered the flower is sturdier if you hot glue it to a round piece of felt. Once the flower is finished, cut another felt circle the same size and put it on the inside part of the headband. Then glue that to the bottom of the felt on the flower.