DIY Lamp Shades

Whew!! That was a whirlwind of a Christmas holiday! It came as fast as it went. Yesterday I battled our semi-dried out tree and took down all the decorations. After hubby hauled the shedding beast out the front door, I got the honors of vacuuming up the precious needles. There were so many, my vacuum cleaner staged a protest! It took me 20 minutes to unclog the vacuum head and wand attachment. I never knew a vacuum cleaner could have three separate clogs! If you look at it logically, the first clog should have pretty much stop the flow of air...so how did it get three clog??? Oh well, next year I plan on avoiding this sort of debacle by starting my decorating the beginning of November. That way it will take me until February to take the stuff down...Heehee

Now that I have my living room and dining room back to normal, I had the overwhelming urge to decorate something. Being that I have a gazillion (is that even a word?) projects around the house that need to be completed or started for that matter, I thought it best to choose something rather easy. I grabbed some fabric, left over wrapping paper, spray adhesive, hot glue gun and a lamp shade from my dining room Chandy.

First things first, I used a piece of red wrapping paper to draw a pattern for my little shade. I added 1/2" inch to all sides of the pattern. This was to accommodate lapping of edges and folding of the top and bottom.

I used my pattern to cut three wedges of my decorative fabric. Typically when I recover an "A" shaped lamp shade, I lay the shade down on the fabric as a guide and cut out what looks like a giant donut shape. But this time I had to do something different because the fabric I choose just wouldn't work that way.

I took each piece and folded one edge down...about 1/2". I made sure to only spray adhesive on one piece at a time. To insure permanent contact, I had to spray the shade as well. Now...here's the most important part! WEAR RUBBER GLOVES AND TAPE OFF THE PARTS YOU DON'T WANT EXPOSED TO ADHESIVE OVER-SPRAY!! I ended up looking like one of the Sticky Bandits from Home Alone 2.

I used the hot glue gun to glue the edges around the top and bottom of the shade. Now that its complete, I think I will go to the fabric store and pick out some vintage looking trim for the bottom of the shade.

Back to work...one down five to go!!

I'm linking up to Met Mondays


Talk to ya soon

I just wanted to say...

Thank you so much for being my bloggy friends...

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!!

Teacher Gifts...and a Funny Story

My little man has two of the most wonderful teachers!

He loves them and their class so much that he begs to go to school on weekends. We wanted to give them something they could use in the classroom. So I started racking my brain and of course looking in Blogland to find a cute project that wouldn't break the bank. Then I remembered that Chris over at Just Beachy had recently shared some of the handmade gifts she had purchased on Etsy. One of which was some cute as pie appliqued hand towels. Well my little brain automatically linked these little towels to my monogrammed purse from several posts ago. I decided to make each teacher a monogrammed hand towel. Well I found out the teachers' favorite colors and off I went to Wal-Mart. This is what I purchased:

Two Hand Towels $4.50ea.
Accent Fabric $2.00

My son was very pleased...but I think I will added some cutesy ric-rac trim or ribbon next time. Total cost was $5.50 ea...can't beat that!

Here's the funny story...even though they turned out cute, I did have some anger management issues I had to work out with my dinosaur of a sewing machine. It seems that the little light bulb located over the needle/pressure foot has melted...Yes I said melted...and tried to drip down before cooling in a most bizarre form. I had to wear a head lamp on my head while I sewed...I looked like I was trying to deer hunt in the house! "Watch out deer, I'm pack'n a sewing machine"!!!

I really don't know if I will ever be able to get that hard as rock glass out of my machine. Guess I'm stuck head-lamping it!! heehee

Merry Christmas!!!

My Christmas List...heehee

I Love Christmas!!...

the gatherings, the singing, the food, the decorating, the smells of fresh pine and cinnamon, the magical twinkles in my children's eyes, and most of all celebrating the birth of Christ. Last night on my way home from work, I noticed how sweet it was to see almost every house with a brightly lit tree gracing their front windows. I wondered what it was like in those homes. What were their family Christmas traditions?...watching Christmas movies, having Christmas parties, drawing names, Christmas caroling, attending Christmas plays or recitals??

Then my mind began to travel back to my childhood. The tradition I love the most was looking through the Sears Wishbook catalog and making my Christmas list out. Oh what a glorious time...thoughts of beautiful Barbie houses and cuddly teddy bears popped in my head. What would Santa bring me??

Now I help my children with their Christmas lists every year, but I haven't wrote out my own personal Christmas list in a very very long time. So to recapture a little bit of my childhood, I decided to share with you my list.

Here goes...

Dearest Santa,

I've been a good girl this year. I would really love you too much if you were to put one or two of these under the tree for me this year!!!

Pretty Please with Royal Icing on top!!!

Sewing/Embroidery Machine

Cricut Expression

Drawing Table

OH and this table and chairs from Paula Deen's Furniture Collection!!!

Ok I'm done now...thought if I was dreaming, I might as well dream big!! Heehee

Merry Christmas!!!!

Handmade Ornament Ideas

I love handmade ornaments. Whether they are my creations or someone else, handmade ornaments are treasured keepsakes...memories from Christmas' past. I remember sitting in my high school art class carving Rudolph out of a piece of balsa wood. I still have it and it's on the tree every year!

This morning as I was reading my emails, I found some really cute and easy handmade Christmas ornament ideas at BHG.com. I wanted to share some of my favorites.

Who doesn't love tassels? This one is made with simple felt, ribbons and a bead...easy for children to make. If you wanted to take it to the next level, you could use decorative fringe trim, ornate glass beads or silk ribbon.

All of us have seen those boxes of a dozen clear glass ornaments at Michael's or Hob Lob...Well here are several ideas putting those plain Jane globes to good use.

By coating the inside of the glass ornaments with craft paint, you can change the color of the ornament. Then use some cute as a button glittery stickers or appliques on the outside. Tie a sweet little ribbon on the top for a hanger and you have it made!However, if your in a lazy mood (like I'm in today) you can just purchase pre-colored ornaments. They cost a little more but you don't have to paint them!...Less mess!

Why not put those glitter pens and rhinestones to work? Use them on an glass ornament. Any small abstract design would be very cute...stars, circles, swirls, etc.

OH Boy my favorite toile! This little beauty is decoupaged with a toile paper napkin. I have seen around Blogland many ladies using monogrammed paper napkins from Homegoods to personalize/monogram white plates. How cute would that be to have a tree full of monogrammed glass ornaments?

The last idea I wanted to share isn't an ornament but a dainty little advent calendar made out of match boxes. The boxes are covered with scrap book paper and numbered on each end. They are glued together to form the outline of a tree and topped with a paper applique. Too cute!!

Well back to work!!

Merry Christmas

Gift ideas for a little girl

Wow Christmas is rapidly approaching and I feel as if I have nothing done! I have been trying to organize my Christmas list and sort out what items were to be purchased online, what items were to be purchased in store and what items were to be handmade. While doing this my mine wondered back to a gift we gave my step-daughter last year. She is very into all things American Girl Doll. Now for those of you who don't know, American Girl Doll is a very cute and even educational line of dolls, books and clothing for little girls ranging in age from 2yrs+. Although be prepared to get price tag whiplash!! They aren't cheap!

So back to the gift. My step-daughter wanted a cute little bed for her doll. But we really didn't see paying $145 for a doll bunk bed. Heck that was more than the doll!!

So I started searching Wal-mart and Target...and found this for $20+.

It came with some light pink boring bedding...so I purchased some small pieces of fabric that coordinated with my step-daughters bedding. I made small duvets, pillows and mattress covers. voila customized American Girl bedding! If you didn't want a white bed, a sweet little can of spray paint could fix that! I think all together I had $30 in this gift...It sure beats $145!

Happy Shopping and Merry Christmas!!

New Find

As I was surfing the net this morning, I came across a website called Wallies that sells wall decals and cutouts. My head automatically began to spin, thinking of all the ways I could use these sweet little things. And of course I couldn't resist not sharing it with you.

They offer:

Cute as a button Seasonal decals...Peel and Stick...easy peasy and easy to remove.

Pre-cut designs

How great is this...chalkboard on vinyl sheets!! This would be a great way to turn a cabinet door into a chalkboard with out actually disturbing the paint/finish of your door. Or you could cut small rectangle pieces and stick them to canisters/containers for labels. The possibilities are endless.

What a cute way to allow your child the freedom to decorate their walls. These peel and stick play decals can be repositioned.

Each element of the decal are cut separate, allowing you to place them anywhere and design personalized murals. Check out their website HERE

Merry Christmas!!

Happy Thanksgiving!!

2 Corinthians 9:15 – "Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!

Better Homes and Gardens

I may not have all I want...but I have all I need!!

I hope everyone has a warm and blessed Thanksgiving!!

Monogramed purse

Recently, a dear sweet friend of mine celebrated a momentous birthday. I wanted to give her something that would be very special so I decided to make her a monogram purse.

I purchased:

1/2 yard of fabric to use for the outside (face fabric) of the purse (the black polka dot)

2/3 yard of fabric for the lining of the purse & monogram (the red print)

1/2 yard of white felt for quilting

Decorative ribbon 1-2 yards
1/8 yard of coordinating fabric (will be used for the monogram)

Copy of a letter printed from the computer

I cut out my purse in both the face fabric, the lining fabric and the felt.

Next I pinned the face fabric to the felt.

And quilted these together using my sewing machine.

I then printed a large "b" from my computer and cut it out in two sizes. I used two coordinating fabrics, one for the smaller "b" and one for the larger "b". I hand stitched these two letters together using a decorative stitch. Finally I stitched the double letter to the face of the purse. I added decorative ribbon to the background.

Once the detail work of the purse was complete, I stitched the purse to the lining and attached straps.

The end result:

I think it turned out pretty good...and my friend loved it!

**Today I'm linking up to Met Monday's at Between Naps on the Porch**

Talk to ya soon!

Loads of Laundry

Laundry Rooms!!!
To be honest with you, I have never considered decorating my laundry room until I started blogging. Yes I had seen beautiful laundry spaces all organized and accessorized in magazines or online but never really got the urge to decorate my own. In its current state, my laundry room is a "junk jail" that happens to house the washer & dryer! It's amazing, things in our house that are "homeless" will find refuge in the laundry room. So I decided to bite the bullet and get it done. Besides, having a beautiful place to work always helps the work go a little faster...Right!!

Like all good designers do...I began an inspirational hunt for ideas I could utilize in my laundry haven. Then the fun part of clearing out the space will come next. That means finding a home for all the homeless items and removing those annoying metal shelves. Sound like a helper job...Oh kiddos!!! teehee

My Inspiration

I found this wallpaper at Waverly.com and absolutely fell in love with it. Instantly I thought of beadboard paneling with this vintage looking paper above it. And what girl doesn't love pinks and browns! :) Now that I have a color scheme...its off to choose the other elements for the room.

This laundry room has several element I would like to use in my own...the chandelier, wallpaper and the cute vinyl lettering on the wall not to mention the cabinetry above the w&d.

I like the compartment shelves...maybe it would make staying organized easier.?? (fingers crossed)

Definitely need a place to hang wet clothes...thats a must!

I do need a decorative shelf above the washer to help hide that water supply box. However, mine would need to be considerably lower than this one.

This last picture is just for kicks. I only wish I had a new washer and dryer that I could enclose within cabinetry. Great idea for a w&d that is located in a heavy traffic area. Also, the large glass canisters are a great idea for detergent and clothes pins.

Well guess I need to put on my work gloves and dig in! I'll keep ya updated!

**All the above pictures excluding the first are from Better Homes and Gardens**

Talk to ya soon!

Lunch Break Find

I was having such a blah day at work yesterday, I decided to go do a little retail therapy! First I hit Ross and found this darling little white candy dish which I love love love. I think I will place it on a small decorative plate and house my kitchen sponges inside it...or maybe take the lid off and put a little tea candle inside it. The possibilities are endless!

Next I stopped by the fabric store and picked up a yard of this beautiful country yellow fabric. I've got a few projects in mind for this little pretty as well. I'll share those projects in a few days!!

Hope everyone is having a wonderful day!!

Talk to ya soon!

A little late...My window treatments

I had all intentions of linking up to Funky Junk's "Saturday Nite Special-Window Treatments Party" However, things just didn't work the way I had planned. So...four days late...here is my kitchen window treatments.

Like most women out there, I have a little bit of a rooster theme going in my kitchen. So when I found this cute farmhouse inspired fabric...I just had to get it.

I wanted a simple treatment that was easy to remove and didn't require permanently attached rods. My plans are to one day install a continuous cute-as-a-button little country shelf above all three of my windows in my breakfast nook. The window on the far right of the nook was turned into my plate display shelf (Click HERE to see that project). I don't have before pics or during pics...just finished (this was a pre-blog project).

I started out by measuring my windows and adding six to seven inches to my width measurements. This is to accommodate the slight swag in the top. Next I measured 1/3 of the way down from the inside top of the window. I used these measurements to draw and cut out a pattern on a $5 discounted white bed sheet. I know what your thinking..."why is she ruining a perfectly good sheet to make a pattern?" Well, once you use the pattern to cut out your decorative fabric...you can use it as a lining for the back of the treatment.

After cutting out the body fabrics, I cut several strips of plaid fabric on the bias to make the piping trim. Now I know there's another name for it other than piping...but I can't think of it right off hand. Anywho, I stitched the bias strips of fabric together making one long strip of fabric which was then folded around the piping. I sandwiched the fabric covered piping between the right side of the decorative fabric and the bed sheet lining, stitching these layers together. Please note..the piping should be turned inward when you sandwich it between the top fabric and lining. That way when you turn it right side out the piping will be on the edge of the treatment. Make sure you leave a small opening to allow for turning the treatment right side out. I used the same plaid fabric to make three little tabs and two decorative ribbons. I sewed the tabs to the top of the treatment and tied the ribbons around the ends. I know this was kinda hard to explain without step by step pictures...but if you have any questions you can leave it in the comments or send me an email.

Since I missed Saturday Nite Special, I'll be linking up to Transformation Thursday over at the Shabby Chic Cottage

Talk to ya soon!