Aug
Just Frame It!
I finally bought a frame that fit this piece! This is one of my favorite drawings from high school. It was done in ’97, so I was a sophomore at The Ethel Walker School in Simsbury, CT. My art teacher, Mr. Coster was amazing. He allowed me to pretty much do what I wanted and gave me the skills to take my art to the next level. I really miss drawing and should get back into it. I am not sure what is stopping me. I still have a lot of the supplies and I know where I can buy paper. Maybe having this piece on the wall will finally push me to get the conté crayons out again. Eventually, I will splurge on getting some of my art professionally framed, but this cheapo frame will do for now.
Aug
Bedroom Revamp
This blog seems to be a lot of DIY and home decorating these days, but I have wanted to do a lot of this stuff for a while and now I have the TIME! Since we broke the bed … go ahead joke all you want, but the bed was REALLY old, I have wanted wanted to make a fabric headboard. My parents bought the bed and dressers when they got married. On Saturday I just knew I had to make it happen. I had the idea of what I wanted for fabric and after I watched Grace from Design*Sponge create her headboard, I was ready! I didn’t do a step-by- step for this because Grace did such a wonderful job with her video, that it’s really all you need to get started.
The fabric I chose is slightly off white and black, which goes fairly well with the rest of the furniture (white) that is in the room. I am a little disappointed that I couldn’t find anything I liked with a pure white and black, but I am learning to live with it and I am probably the only one that will notice. We plan to get a new duvet that isn’t beige, but we have a hard time with white duvets with a toddler in the house. I am having a tough time deciding which one I want and I am waiting for some deals on Overstock.com bedding clearance. They have some amazing prices on duvets and sheets if you have never checked them out! We bought the end tables for dirt cheap. One thing you may not notice in these photos that made a huge difference to us, is that we brought the bed up about 6 inches with risers. Our bed is on a cheap frame and we felt like something was really making the room seem small. Bringing the bed up and having side tables that are a bit tall makes the room feel so much larger. The pattern also helps to draw your eye up when you walk into the room. We also are able to put the lovely under-the-bed boxes that Savannah is standing on UNDER the bed now.
***Small Byte*** One thing I learned while doing this project is that foam is VERY expensive, so save those coupons or try to find a place online that sells foam cheaper than the fabric store. I paid more for foam than I did on fabric and wood! I also found this great website that I will buy from next time I shop for upholstery grade fabric. I found very similar fabric at the local fabric store for $5-$6 more a yard!
I am going to attempt to make a pillow from the leftover fabric from the headboard. My sewing skills are quite lacking, so we will see if I come up with something presentable!
Tags: DIY
Jul
Junk vs. Gem
I am helping my grandmother clean out her camp and we are attempting to have a yard sale. She is 88 years old and has always had a love for collecting things and absolutely hates to throw anything away. My grandmother and I understand each other and I have a way of being able to connect with her on certain things. I have continuously told her I would be willing to help her with a yard sale and help her get the camp organized. I know it is difficult for her to throw things away and I know it will not happen in a week or even a month, but I hope to help her in any way that I can. I want to get as many pictures into albums as possible and have some time to sit with her and write a bit about each picture. My “Nana” had a lot of great adventures in her younger years and they are all well photographed. I would be so disappointed if all of those stories went untold.
Nana has some great pieces and a whole lot of junk. Today I learned to slow down and take a look at things closer before I deemed them junk. There was a box of old pictures and 2 Saturday Evening Posts that might be worth holding on to (gems) that I was quick to judge because it had a pile of bills from 1965 on top. I also remembered seeing this yellow filing cabinet (gem) years ago when she moved her stuff out of this house. We bought her house 5 years ago (gem) and most of her things went to the camp or to a storage unit that has gone untouched. I am so glad I was able to find this again and was happy that she let me have this filing cabinet. I think it goes great in my office. Filing cabinets are not cheap. A new filing cabinet of this size goes for $75 and although I have needed one for a while, I am certainly glad I waited because this goes much better with the colors down here than a boring black one would. Although, the thought of going through all of her stuff (a lot of which is junk) is daunting, I am actually really looking forward to the possibility of finding some gems. The photographs, which I know are there are enough to keep me going.
Jul
DIY Magnetic Bulletin Board
I finally found an affordable magnetic surface to create a magnet board with! I bought a cookie sheet at Christmas Tree Shops for $4.95. It was so easy.
Cookie Sheet from Christmas Tree Shop
I downloaded this pattern from a free vectors website and changed the colors to go with my theme.
I printed it out on 2 sheets of 11×17.
I sprayed the cookie sheet with spray mount adhesive.
Then put the paper on the cookie sheet, cut the excess paper off and this is the final product. The glue was still a little wet from where I tiled the two pieces of paper together, but you can hardly notice it in person.
Jul
DIY Cork Message Board
Here is my version of the cork boards that Crate and Barrel is selling. Mine are much more colorful!
The cork pieces I bought from the craft store a while ago were always falling down in the humidity because they were only held up by the sticky adhesive that came with them. My new and improved cork boards are like pieces of art and make my space a little more personal. This whole project took me less than an hour and half from start to finish. It could not have been easier and now my cork isn’t going to fall down anymore! Yey!
I found these at JoAnn’s for $1 each and they are perfect for the 12″x12″
square boards I cut for this project. They are 18″x21″.
I bought frame hooks to hang my boards. These were about $2.50 for 3.
I used pre-cut cork boards from Michael’s. Package of 4 for around $10
Plywood works just fine for the backing. These are cut to the size of the cork, which was 12″x12″.
Hot glue the cork to the plywood.
Line up the fabric and fold it neatly around to the back. Tug the fabric tight and use a
staple gun to staple the fabric to the wood.
Now use two frame hooks. One for the left and one for the right side of the board.
Hint: I used hot glue to keep them in place because the nails that come with the frame hooks are impossibly small. It helps to stick the nail into the hole with a little glue and then nail.
The finished product! Click the picture to get a closer look.
Jul
Introducing SueSmallBridal.com
It’s finally here! Introducing Sue Small Bridal – Alterations and Custom Designs! I have been anxiously awaiting the day where I could show off this great website and this extremely talented bridal gown designer! Sue Small designs gorgeous wedding gowns and does stunning bridal alteration work in Clifton Park, New York. She is also lucky enough to have her as my Mother-In-Law. Who wouldn’t want a Mother-In-Law who is a talented wedding gown designer?! Sue designed my bridal gown and has designed numerous dresses for Savannah. As you will read, brides and Moms can’t say enough about her. She works out of her home in Clifton Park and has been doing business by word-of-mouth for over 20 years for many brides in the Albany and Saratoga, New York area. Since I love a good wedding, Sue and I enjoy talking about her work and what the latest bridal trends are. She truly enjoys every every piece she comes in contact with and treats it as if it were her own. If you need alterations or a custom piece designed for an event Sue will be able to work with you. Whether you are a Bride, Bridesmaid, or Mother of a Bride who needs something designed or altered, or someone who wants to revamp your wardrobe to fit your new figure, Sue can do it all! I am a former Knottie and truly enjoyed helping other brides find reputable local vendors on theknot.com message boards, so spread the word if you have worked with Sue and send your friends to the site to see some of her great work!
Tags: design
Jul
Again with more message/bulletin boards…
These are totally cute and would be so easy to DIY! I get giddy over stuff like this…
Thork Boards from Crate and Barrel
I just love how they arranged them here. Perfect for a craft room!
This might be on the TO DO list for next week.
I have some cork already that I bought at Michaels. I think I got a 4 pack for around $10.
These are from Office Max, but Michael's has coupons that you could use on this purchase.
Now, just need to find the perfect fabric to cover them and cut squares of plywood to glue them to! I am thinking a nature print in earthy brown, white and light green tones to match the Jalapeno Jelly color walls of my office. Have you ever been to Print & Pattern Blog? She has so many inspiring little Bytes in here. I get all fired up and ready to design when I look at her blog. In this case I am ready to rummage through some fabric to find just the right covering for this DIY project.
Jul
Magnetic Bulletin Boards
I have been wanting to add some damask print in red and white somewhere downstairs in our family room for a while now. I have a red theme going down there and want to add some other patterns to break up some of the solid colors I have. I think that creating something practical and colorful at the same time would be a great touch. I looked around and found some great magnet boards that other ladies have made. I love this first one so much!
Magnetic Bulletin Board from Country Living
A Magnetic Message Board from shabbyvintagemom's Etsy store
Metal Tray Message Board from Cottage Life
When I make mine I will be sure to let you know how I did it. Will I use an old cookie tray? Will I frame it with wood? Could I frame it with ribbon instead. God knows I have enough of that in this house! Let’s see if I can do this on a dime and make it look as great as these! I am up for the challenge.
Jul
Bugs and Birds Craft Project
Savannah and I spent a morning creating birds and bugs a few weeks ago. It was a great early summer project.
What we used for this craft project:
- Any size Strofoam Balls cut in half
- pipe cleaners
- plastic eyes
- pom poms
- paint
- construction paper for wings
- glue
- feathers for birds
Before you get started it is helpful to lay craft paper down before you have your child paint the bug and bird bodies. I usually have our craft table covered in a piece until it gets really beat up and then I replace it.
Step 1: We painted the body of our birds and bugs
Step 2: We added pom poms and decorations to the bodies. Glitter, feathers and wings made of construction paper are just a few suggestions. Savannah put one of the pom-poms in her mouth thinking it was food. I guess I should have mentioned to her that they were not food. Don’t worry she didn’t actually eat it!
Step 3: We added legs with pipe cleaners.
Here are the birds and bugs that we created! Savannah’s favorite part was the pom-poms. She really enjoyed putting those on and yes, tasting them. She didn’t want legs or eyes on one of her bugs, which is why one of them looks a little naked.
Jun
Personalize your space
Union Street Media posted this on Twitter earlier today:
To celebrate #BTVSMD share the unique things on your desk that make it your own. Snap a pic and tag your tweet with: #BTVworkspace (#BTV)
I had a hard time choosing just one thing that makes my desk my own, but I built this desk myself from an old door and took the sliding keyboard tray off of another desk we were getting rid of. I would say that my home office is very personalized. I try to surround myself with creative inspiration and of course pictures of my pumpkin. She created that lovely painting above my computer. I love how colorful it is.
I also created this craft table from two 6 cube bookcases from Michael’s crafts and an old door for the top. The wrapping paper and ribbon rack was a simple DIY project that was inspired by this post by Country Living. My daughter and I spend a lot of time crafting at this table. 
Thanks for checking out my space!
