{Pretty} in PINK: Blooms

Earlier this week I was reading a favorite blog of mine and was inspired to pink it up a little around here. Being that I live in a house full of boys...the hubby (a boy, obviously)...two sons...heck, even the dog is a boy...it's not often that I get to see much pink. I wouldn't consider my home overly masculine by any means, but I usually stick to fairly neutral colors and the "colors" that I do use are blues/greens/whites/shades of brown...so nothing that just screams girl! So, the easiest (and cheapest) way for me to add a little pink was to hit our local grocery store and grab a $4 bunch of bright pink baby roses. I think that I got 13 roses for my four dollars...not bad! They add the perfect amount of pink to bring a little girlie-ness to my home.

Isn't their color just lovely???

I like their pretty pops of pink on my kitchen windowsill...don't look too close, I didn't clean the window (or sink for that matter) for the pic! ;)

This little bloom fell off her stem, but still has plenty of life in her nestled in this cute little egg cup.

And these 3 lovely ladies are just now starting to really open up...

...I {LoVe} pink roses!

$4 roses in an up-cycled bottle...cheap thrills! It really is the simple things in life that are the sweetest!

Pink it up in your home too!

Blessings, Grace

I {Finally} Caved: Chalkboard Style

Okay, so we all know that chalkboards/chalkboard painting has been super hot in the blog/DIY decorating world for awhile now...but, I have resisted doing anything with it even though I really love the look. I really loved how you could personalize your home the way the folks over at TLC did with THIS spring-inspired mantel...and I love the way that Sarah Down Under used her chalkboard paint in an unusual yet creative way...and I always love the uses that MMS comes up with when she puts a modern twist on the ol' chalkboard...still, I resisted...that is until now!

A couple of weeks ago I was reading my sweet SIL's blog and saw this...and I knew I couldn't resist any longer...and like Kayla said "who can resist a cute little chalkboard thingy?"...not me, that's for sure, even though I sure tried to, hard! ;)

After seeing those cute little chalkboard tags I knew I could let go of my aversion to writing with chalk long enough to jot something down on those little tags, used in a creative way in our home. And, after reading her post about those lil' cuties I really couldn't wait to go to World Market to get some of my own. So much for resisting chalkboards, I was ready to give in!

It's been a bit chilly here, especially for our part of the state, and being stuck indoors for a part of last week gave me plenty of time to organize some less than neat areas of our home. Chalkboard tags to the rescue! I set about organizing our DVD collection, and this is what I came up with...


...now this is a piece of furniture that I definitely wouldn't call "my style"...but organizing it makes it much easier to live with, haha! I took almost 100 DVDs out of their cases (donated the cases to Goodwill) and put the movies into plastic movie sleeves that I purchased at Target. All of those movies fit into these 3 baskets, which I already had...what a space saver! The "Family Friendly" basket holds all our non-animated movies that our boys can watch (I have a separate area for all our kid movies)...and the "A-M" & "N-Z" baskets hold all of our other DVDs. I don't actually have the DVDs alphabetically organized within the baskets...if they fit the criteria on the tag, that's the basket they're in, but we have to just go through them once we get to the basket...I think that if I did have them organized in the basket I would go crazy making sure they stayed that way. This way I avoid that hassle. There is such a thing as being too organized! The basket on the left of the very bottom shelf hold the remotes and the small basket with the ticking fabric top holds extra candles that I keep stored there when not in use.

Anyways, I finally caved in the chalkboard arena, a little bit at least! But I still can't stand writing with chalk...maybe I should try out those chalkboard markers I've heard about...

Blessings,
Grace

Keepin' Cozy in 2011

Wow, so this blog has seriously suffered from an extreme lack of posts...that only means that my "personal life" has been overflowing with what comes with being the mommy of an extremely active almost 3 yr. old boy and an almost even more active 8 month old baby boy, along with planning for a big move and just the regular daily happenings. We have been busy with life around here, so I apologize, dear blog, you have been left on the back-burner for way too long, and I haven't even told you Happy 2011 yet!

Happy Two-Thousand-Eleven, Blog! Hope it's a good one for ya! ;)

The weather here is fairly mild, but you just can't go wrong with the cozy glow of flickering flames from a fireplace. So, in the absence of a "real" fire, I made this little display to add some ambiance to our evenings here at home. I used the mason jars which I already had and bought candles of different sizes. Normally I go for scent when I buy candles, but for this display I went with color...even tho the candles that are scented do smell pretty good.

I used the floral pillow for color inspiration. I just love the clean crispness of white paired with the blue and green. I am planning on using these colors a lot throughout our home once we move away from our rental here...I have been having fun thinking of the color scheme for our next place.

I know this is a horrible picture...but you can get the idea of the coziness that my little fireplace brings to the room. It is really quite quaint, haha!

Blessings for 2011!

Grace

I'm {Dreaming} of a White Christmas

I have got the Christmas itch...and although I have doubts that I'll wake up to a white Christmas, I am ready for all the fun the holiday season brings...the problem is, I am almost totally clueless as to what gifts I'm going to give this year. Usually I have a rough idea of what I would like to get the people on my list, but this year my creativity is definitely lacking! What's a girl to do? I need ideas, big time.

Last year Christmas came and went, and our sweet, almost 2 year old son had to have his Christmas morning sweets stuffed in his "Baby's First Christmas" stocking...because, well, I was too lazy and didn't get around to buying him a "real" stocking. This year though I will be ready with this cute stocking for him, courtesy of Pottery Barn Kids, and also with a coordinating one for baby brother! I am in love with these boyish Christmas stockings, and I can't wait to fill them with goodies for my two precious sons.

(Pictures from PB Kids)

If you have any good Christmas gift ideas, feel free to pass them along my way...I have a long list and I am short on creativity! I really need to get my act together!

Blessings, Grace

White Pumpkins = The Perfect Solution!!!

I am not a big fan of fall colors...never have been...at least not inside my home. I love to see the trees change color as the summer gives way to fall, but I enjoy looking at those colors outside and prefer to keep my home fairly neutral when it comes to the changing of the seasons. My mantel did need a bit of a lift though, and the bright pink flowers I had on it previously were a bit too summery. So, I took a quick trip to my dear ol' Hobby Lobby and found the perfect solution...white pumpkins! I added a bit of fake greenery, or "faux-liage" as sweet Ms. Layla of TLC calls it! That with a bit of real moss tucked inside of my mason jar made for a perfectly neutral fall display. Just a hint of Autumn is all right with me!

A {Perfect} Sunday

Yesterday I was just about to head out to the store with my 2 yr. old, and when I ran into our kitchen to get my grocery list I saw this...

...isn't it a pretty picture?! I love the simple things in life, and something like a clean kitchen, a yummy smelling candle burning and the beginnings of a breakfast omelet being made by my dear hubby makes me very happy. This picture pretty much sums up our day yesterday...simple yet beautiful...a {perfect} Sunday!

{In Love} with Blue Mason Jars

A few months ago I got on a Blue Mason Jar kick...and I decided to add to my "collection" by searching them out via antique shops and eBay...I was not disappointed! Within a few days of looking for them I had amassed quite a few, and here is how I have them displayed so far...

...holding some wine corks and twigs in twine in my kitchen...

...I love looking at them when the light comes in through the window...they are so lovely that way!

I also have a few on my Spring/Summer mantel...

...they make great vases and are pretty just standing alone!

Any other blue mason jar lovers out there???

Lookie What I Made!!! ;)

Hello blog-world, here's my latest creation, and boy, it's a doozie!!!

After some fairly major complications with my pregnancy at 35 weeks, I delivered this little guy via emergency C-section. And, after only 1 week in the NICU, we got to bring our sweet Eli home! I am doing great, he is a super-duper wonderful baby, and all in all we are feeling extremely blessed that things turned out the way they did. Weighing in at just a bit over 5 pounds we're calling this precious boy our little piglet...you should hear this little man when he's hungry!

Thanks to those of you who have checked in on me...it means so much!

Blessings, Grace

Keeping Up with the Joneses

Do any of you ever feel like you're stuck in the phrase..."keeping up with the Joneses" when it comes to blogging? I know I do. Blogging feels like a competition sometimes, and if you don't keep making the newest and trendiest crafts to show all of blogland then you somehow feel like you're unworthy to blog at all...well, maybe not totally unworthy, but still, it's hard to keep up with all that's going on out there in the world of blogging...especially if blogging is more of a leisure activity and not something you do to bring in the bacon.

I am, obviously, speaking from my own point of view. I love to blog, but for me it gets in the way of me living my life at times...a life that right now is charging ahead, full steam, with plenty of beautiful everyday activities that pertain to being the mommy of a {very} active 2 year old with another beautiful boy's appearance coming closer as each day goes by. It's a lovely life, but it's not always conducive to blogging, and that's okay. When writing about my life gets in the way of me living my life that's not a good thing. So I know my boundaries, but oh, how I miss being here more often! Haha! I miss all my bloggy friends, I do, I do!

Recently I have been working on some totally cutesy favors for the baby shower that I am having. Just imagine a sweet little twig nest filled with blue chocolate eggs and all wrapped up with some tulle and twine with a pretty little nest-stamped label attached! I'll show pics when I'm done making them. They are going to be too precious!

Shoe & Scarf Organizer...A {Sister} Project!

A few weeks ago my sweet sister, Gloria, came to visit for Spring Break. We had a great time together, and during our visit we decided to work on a project that would help her to keep all of her shoes/scarves/belts/etc. organized and neat! College dorm rooms can be rather cramped and crowded, so the more space saving and organization you can do the better! We made a trip to HL and picked out the materials for our project. We sort of made it on the fly, figuring out what to do as we went, and it turned out really great I think!


Here is our finished project! Too cute, right?!! A sturdy dowel rod wrapped with jute upholstery webbing provides support to hold up all the shoes that will be hanging here.

There is space for 16 (or more) pairs of shoes in the cute little shoe pockets that we made. Burlap (of course!), doubled-up, provides the backing for the shoe slots. And sweet little bows attach the dowel rod to just a regular hanger.


I am pretty sure that we used a yard of burlap and 2 yards of the Americana fabric...like I said, we sort of did it on the fly, so I can't remember exactly!


For extra storage, you can put shoes in the slots and also hang them from the outside too! A better hanger might be in order to do that though...I can see that plastic one snapping from too much weight!


At first I questioned the lighter blue bows...but I think that they help to lighten and brighten this little shoe hanger, and I like them much better on the finished project.


Okay, now, for one of my favorite parts...we attached 6 wooden bangles to the back with ribbon...sewed onto the burlap...and it is perfect for hanging scarves or belts or necklaces. Isn't this just perfect for a college dorm closet! Pretty & Practical = Perfection!!!


The bangles were so easy to attach...and by far the most unique touch on this little craft project.


Along the bottom of the side, opposite of the shoe pockets, is one large sleeve, open at both ends, to hold a pair of boots.

I really had a fun time working on this with my sister, and I am tempted to make one for myself too! It probably took about 3 hours or so with both us working together...and that was with some interruptions from my little toddler. You could do this yourself easily in an afternoon.



Linking up to:
Toot Your Horn Tuesday @ A Silly Little Sparrow
Talented Tuesday @ My Frugal Family

Quiet on the Homefront...

I know that I've been a bit quiet here on my blog, not that things here at my home have been the same...in fact we've been quite busy here...and all because this little guy turned 2 yesterday!!!


So as soon as things settle down here...and as soon as I clean all the cake crumbs off the floor and dispose of all the wrapping paper & find places for new toys I will be back! I have a fun project to show off that my sister and I made together about a week ago. It's super cute and will help her out a lot to keep things organized at college! Stay tuned!!!

The Five Dollar Challenge & My Easter Topiary {Tutorial}...again!

A couple of weeks ago I was inspired by The Five Dollar Challenge by Living with Lindsay to create something to decorate for Spring using as little money as possible. I made a trip, my first, to a local Dollar Tree store, and as I went inside I really had no clue as to what I would make. I browsed the aisles one at a time and sort of just let my inspiration come to me as I looked at all of the items the store had to offer. When I saw the beautiful Robin's egg blue bowls I knew that they would be the perfect base for a sweet little Easter topiary. So, I snatched it up and then went on the hunt to find some other supplies to make a topiary. My goal when I went in the store was to spend as little as possible on my craft, so I also kept in mind what supplies I had on hand at home.

I bought this beautiful blue bowl and the "eggs" for my topiary are simply bubble gum eggs! Bowl = $1, Eggs = $1, so $2 total so far.


I bought the floral foam, the styrofoam balls, a second blue bowl...to give a second topiary as a gift to my aunt...and I also needed some more gum to complete my second topiary (another $4) and that's all I had to pay out-of-pocket at the store for my project. $6 total for two topiaries isn't bad! (And, btw, my aunt {LoVeD} getting her sweet little Spring surprise from me! It was fun to be able to give one away!)


I found some unused pencils that I had at home and pulled out some ribbon from my ribbon stash to wrap around the pencils.


After sticking the pencil into the foam ball, I removed it briefly and squirted some hot glue in the hole before reinserting the pencil.


Once the glue hardened around the pencil I began wrapping my ribbon around the pencil. Hot gluing it at the top to keep it in place.


Here are my two wrapped pencils. Ready for the next step...


...I grabbed some Spanish moss that I already had in my craft supplies and simply hot glued some around the foam ball. This made a perfect "nesting" area for the bubble gum eggs!


After the foam ball was adequately covered with the moss I started hot gluing on my eggs. I just started at the very top and went down from there. I didn't pack them extremely tight that way you could see some of the moss poking through. It took 4 dozen gum eggs per topiary...or, $1 worth of gum!


After my eggs were glued all around the topiary form, I trimmed the floral foam and hot glued it to the bottom of the bowl.


I also hot glued the left over foam and wedged them into the corners to add stability. I made a hole and inserted some more hot glue and then stuck in the topiary and held it 'til the glue hardened.


Once the topiary was in place I covered the floral foam with a bit of moss...


...and here is my finished Easter Topiary. I tied a sweet little bow beneath it to add an extra touch! Not bad for just 3 dollars, is it?!! I really love it, and love that I was "forced", haha, to be extra creative to come up with it! It is probably my favorite craft that I have made this year!


I think that it is the perfect addition to My {Sweet} Spring Mantel, don't you?!!

*I originally posted this tutorial a few days ago, but changed it up just a tad for today's challenge!*


I am linking this little sweetie up to The $5 Challenge at: