Simple, No Cost Burlap Wreath

I got the inspiration for this on another blog...but for the life of me I can't remember where, and I wanted to give thanks where thanks is due...so if this was your idea, thank you so much!!!

I didn't take any before or during pics, just the afters. And, I didn't use a wreath form because I wanted to use things I already had, and I didn't have one of those, so I just cut up a piece of cardboard to use as my wreath form. All I really did was hot glue in a somewhat planned out hodge-podge order circular scraps of fabric (which I already had cut out from a previous project) and glued them, along with some burlap circles, to my wreath form. Most of you probably have scaps of random fabric at home, a bit of left-over burlap, a cardboard box you can sacrifice and lots of hot glue---this is the perfect project for that combination!!!


For now my wreath is just hanging on my son's closet door, but I would like to add a wooden "J" to it and then display it somewhere in his "big boy" room...which right now is currently decorated as the nursery, and will be updated whenever we move him out of the crib...which I am really not in a hurry to do. Anyways, I still wanted to make this wreath because the idea was so cute, and it can always wait to be properly displayed!



Bye for now!

For the Birds "Mantelscape"

Okay, y'all, I'm stepping out of my comfort zone and changing my mantel up...haha! As you can see though, most of the main elements are still there...mirror, candle sticks, "hope" sign & family photographs on the wall...but I figure that Beth's Mantel Party @ the Stories of A to Z is a good reason to rearrange a few things around here. I had fun looking around my house and pulling together some of my birdie items to put up on this week's mantelscape. I have only recently started to "shop my house", and it is really quite fun to see the different types of combinations I can come up with from things I already have. Anyways, here is my "For the Birds" Mantelscape:

I just couldn't take away my hope sign...I like it too much!

I just love this little bird house...it was in a flower pot, but now it's nestled in a jar of twigs weighted with coffee beans.

I found this lovely blue Mason jar at a garage sale. It's been in several different places in my home, but for now it looks pretty here as a home for more twigs. Quite perfect for a birdie theme!

These items were pulled from my bedroom, kitchen and living room. I found the bird house at Hobby Lobby for 50% off or something like that, and I got the little bird nest and birdie from there too...oh, and the sweet little bird tied onto the tart warmer is also a HL find...at 50% off! ;)

I LOVE this shabby little birdie tealight candle holder. I have seen these a few places (I think that Gina @ The Shabby Chic Cottage actually has a few similar to this in her ETSY store...you can check it out if you're interested). I found mine at a local gift shop that I just love...and I bought a few of them since they were so darn cute...and on sale!


Another sweet little bird next to my Mason jar and a cute little bird cage.


To see where my little jar of sticks normally is, click here.

Top view...it is so hard to take a picture with a mirror in the background without getting yourself in the picture!


The little bird cage is from...yep, you guessed it...Hobby Lobby! I just LOVE that store!

Alrighty ladies, that's it! Can't wait to check out some of y'all's beautiful mantels today! Have a great weekend!






I also linked this up to Show & Tell Friday at My Romantic Home.

Compromise in Decorating?

For those of you who share a home with a husband and kids, how to you compromise in decorating to include some masculine touches and kid friendly decor? My dream home is filled with neutral colors, lots of pale blues and greens, shabby antiques, white couches and wood floors. However, a lot of my likes differ from my hubby's...who actually wants a say in how our home is decorated! Grr! Haha! Luckily for us we have several years before our dream home is a reality, so there is plenty of time to work up a solution that will make us both happy---and one that includes kid-friendly spaces as well.

Below are some images (taken from Country Living) of some rooms and pieces that I just love.

This little hutch is to die for...and that blue bench is just so quaint! Love it!

I would {LoVe} to have a china cabinet like this one, it is simply beautiful. And those blue dishes are right up my alley!

Lovely soothing white couches (that my husband just abhors!)...but they make me feel happy!

I love all the white. Very calming, especially when a little blue and grey is tossed in. Yep, I'm lovin' it!

That lovely mirror on the wall is simply breathtaking.

This is a couple's master bedroom...my hubby would definitely NOT go for the pink walls...honestly, I wouldn't either...but I do love the femininity of this Master Bedroom.

So, if any of you have any tips to have a nice balance of feminine, masculine and kid-friendly home please pass them along!

Small Places that Make Me Smile! :)

Yesterday as I was reading from the blog The Inspired Room, I had the idea to photograph certain small places in my home that make me smile. Melissa @ The Inspired Room was showing how to make certain spots in your home "mini destinations"...and so I photographed my smile destinations! Haha! Not sure if that was what she was talking about, but there are several little places in my house that I like to gaze at, places where I feel good about how things look...and places that keep my mind off the usual mess that comes from having a toddler roaming the house. Here are just a few of my favorite smile spots...

...My bird themed table centerpiece that I pulled together by "shopping the house"...it especially looks pretty at night all lit up!

I like this little area because it combines several natural elements...the small twigs, nestled in some jute twine, that my son and I collected in our front yard, some sand dollars that I found in the ocean and the natural look of the small little nest and shell-filled glass jar. I wasn't sure if the air/land/and sea elements would look okay together, but I think that they work!

This may seem like a funny place that would make me smile, but on the contrary I just LoVe these white canisters that my sis-in-law gave me for Christmas. They are simple and just perfect for this spot on my kitchen counter.
If you have to wash dishes, you might as well be able to look outside or have the beautiful sunlight streaming in while you're doing it! I love having a window by my kitchen sink...and I love the few simple things that the window ledge is decorated with...

...my "shabby chic" candle holder with the candle "sugar baby" by Tyler Candle Co. inside, the sea glass and shells that my son and I found by the ocean. Simple. Makes. Me. Smile.

Another kitchen smile spot...I am in the kitchen a lot, cooking and such, so why not smile too?!...oh, and you can see, more twigs! ;) This little pedestal tray was formerly just holding the empty white pitcher...and it looked rather sad. So, I shopped the house again (and the yard!) and came up with this!

I just LoVe the look of the natural tiny tree branches...aka sticks...they fit in quite nicely with my little birdie nest!

To keep the twigs upright I just wrapped some jute webbing around them...sort of making a nest as it were for them!

And, just to keep it real, this is what I normally look at all day as I chase and play with my sweet boy. It's a messy life, but it's a good life!

My Simple No Frills Mantel

As promised, I am linking up some updated pics of my mantel to Beth's Mantel Party over @ Stories of A to Z. After reading her post and drooling over her gorgeous mantel I'm almost embarrassed to show mine...nah, just kidding. I can appreciate other people's creativity while I bask in the simplicity of my own mantel's humble adornment. So, here ya go...first off I included a pic of my mantel's "before" look...which you can tell by the after pics that I didn't really change things too much. Mostly I just removed the Christmas decor and added a few shells. Easy? Simple? Yes.

Christmas 2009 Mantel...my sweet son loved when we'd turn on the lights on the garland in the morning, and would exclaim, "wights, wights!"

Partial view of my simple mantel...the shells are from my sweet neighbor next door.

Full-view...pretty easy look. No Frills!

I love the pic of my and my hubby at the beach. Sweet memories!

Our family pooch pictured here...his beautiful white coat fits perfectly with my neutral palette! Haha!

This handy-dandy "candle holder" is supposed to be a soap dish. I found two of them at 50% off at a local shop and re-purposed them to hold some candles and placed them on both sides of my mantel.

Well there you have it, folks. My simple, no frills mantel, which suits me just fine! And, just for fun, I want to share an adorable picture that I took yesterday of my precious son making his trail-mix snacks. Have a great weekend, y'all!

All I Have to Offer is Me...

The past couple of weeks I have been avoiding writing here at Ruby Moon Designs. I guess you could say that I've hit a slump, and honestly, when I read about everyone else's wonderful design ideas and crafting abilities I have thought to myself..."what do I have to offer?"..."what could I dream up to interest people in my life...and in my blog?" Well folks, all I have to offer is me. The good, the bad, the interesting and the everyday life that I call all my own. So, my focus here at Ruby Moon Designs is going to shift somewhat. I am going to be completely real here...and though that might not always mean that I'm going to try to wow you with my creative talent, I will let you have a glimpse into my world. So, that being said, what have I been up to lately?...

...the past few weeks have been spent recuperating from a minor surgery I had done, a lot of time has been devoted to finding places for new Christmas things...and even more time has been devoted to cleaning and decluttering. Am I the only one who gets spring-cleaning fever in January? Probably not! My home is slowly but surely returning to normal...which means that I'll soon have extra time on my hands to tinker around with the way that things look. I added a few cute things to my mantle after taking down all the Christmas stuff---but I'll be linking that up to the Mantle Party @ the Stories of A to Z tomorrow. So stay tuned.

Thanks to those of you who have stuck with me!