Stenciling vs. Wallpaper

Back in March, I had the interior of my entire house painted white. I wanted a clean slate; crisp white walls that I could be creative with. I decided that I wanted to wallpaper one wall in my kitchen and soon after began a mad search for the perfect wallpaper. I found exactly what I wanted at Anthropologie. Of course, it had to be Anthro...where you can find the most amazing things, but things that are not always within my budget. I saw the Paeonia Wallpaper and immediately fell in love with it.

However, the price was beyond what I was willing to spend. At $148 per roll and needing two rolls to cover my wall, the total cost would be over $300. Not to mention, after reading the reviews and finding out how difficult this wallpaper is to work with, I discovered that I would most likely need to hire a professional to hang it. Still, I put 2 rolls in my cart and spent about a week going back and forth contemplating.
During this time, a friend of mine suggested that I try to find a stencil similar to the design of this wallpaper and I immediately had doubts that I could ever find anything comparable. Despite my doubts, I began looking at stencils...sooooo many stencils! Nothing even came close to matching the design on the Anthro wallpaper, nothing caught my eye until...
I stumbled across a website, Stencil Boss, and there it was! The Large Wild Flower Stencil at only $21! (Funny, they even use the Anthro photo with their stenciled wall photo shopped into it.)

I bought the stencil, bought some paint (Behr - Sunburst), bought a small roller, and went to work...

A million hours later (not really, but it sure felt like it), I was done. I had considered adding all the detail in the wallpaper to the stencil, but decided that it looked fine just the way it was.

The cost of the whole project? Less than $50...and that makes me HAPPY! Sorry, Anthropologie! But don't be sad, I bought a bunch of beautiful frames from you to go on my other walls. :)

Baby Shower Favors

My dear friend, Sarah is having a baby! HAPPY! For her baby shower, I wanted to come up with a unique favor to pass out to the guests. After searching MANY websites, I found exactly what I wanted at Beau-coup. I decided to go with the "About To Hatch" Kitchen Egg Timer...cute, eh?

I also discovered that Beau-coup has partnered up with Tiny Prints (another favorite website of mine) and I was able to find the perfect personalized label to go with each favor.

Can hardly wait for Baby Fyodor to hatch! :)

Valentine's Day Treats for the Classroom

These didn't turn out quite as cute as Martha's, but still cute, I think. One thing I learned in making these is that Hazel and I may not always be on the same page when it comes to what we want to pass out to her friends on special occasions and I have to remind myself that they are HER friends, not mine.
So, here are the treats that I made...

 

 

And here is Hazel's choice...

 Happy Valentine's Day! :)

Valentine's Day Gift Ideas

It's hard to believe that Valentine's Day is right around the corner and at this very moment, I've got V-Day fever! Here are a couple of crafty ideas that I think are worth sharing...

Felt Fortune Cookies

photo credit: Martha Stewart

1. Using fabric shears, cut a 4 1/2-inch-diameter circle from a piece of felt. Cut a piece of matching ribbon slightly shorter than 4 1/2 inches. Using wire cutters, cut a piece of floral wire slightly shorter than the length of ribbon.

2. Using craft glue, affix the wire to the middle of the felt circle. Glue ribbon on top, covering the wire. Let dry 30 minutes.

 

3. Fold the felt circle in half, using the wire as a guide, so ribbon is inside cookie. Next, angle the sides toward each other, bending the wire at its halfway point and forming a fortune-cookie shape, as shown.

4. Assemble the fortune cookies. Carefully peel back one flap of the felt cookie, and insert a paper fortune and a few candies. Fold the flap back over to close cookie around contents.

And here's what I plan to make for Hazel's class...

Valentine's Day Treat Packages

photo credit: Martha Stewart

 To make these custom treat packages, cut out a picture of your child, scan it, and print onto heavyweight matte paper. Cut tags using pinking shears for the bottom edges, draw hearts, and stamp or write a message on each one. Fold the tags and tape them to cellophane bags filled with sweets.

Loved these ideas as well...

Valentine Treat Box

photo credit: Martha Stewart

Quilled Flowers

photo credit: Martha Stewart

You can find all of these gift ideas, along with how-to instructions on Lady Martha's website.

 

Happy Valentine's Day! Hug hug, kiss kiss, hug hug, big kiss, little hug, kiss kiss, little kiss.

Hazel is turning 7...Let's Bowl, Let's Bowl, Let's Rock-n-Roll!

My daughter, Hazel, has decided that for her 7th birthday she wants to have a bowling party. So, a bowling party it is. She is so excited! 
We found her invitations at Pear Tree Greetings. I love this website! Pear Tree, along with Tiny Prints (another favorite of mine) offers a great selection of designs for just about any themed event. I can always find exactly what I need at either site. Here's the one we chose...

As for the party favors, I found Bowling Pin Water Bottles and Mini Bowling Games from Shindigz. I've personalized each bowling pin by hand painting the names of Hazel's guests on them and will fill them to the rim with goodies. So fun! The mini bowling games will either be attached to the pin with ribbon or just handed out...not sure about this yet.
 

 

Still have much more to do. Will post more as it all comes together. :)

By the way, Happy New Year! I'm looking forward to sharing with you all the projects that I'm going to be working on this year. LOVE!

Christmas Garden Stake Signs

Well, this may be my last post for 2010...unless, I happen to get a dose of inspiration (and free time) to make something before the new year. You just never know when creativity will strike.
That said, here are the Christmas signs that I made just recently. Unfortunately, I started these a little too late, so I was only able to make a few. This could possibly be the easiest (and most inexpensive) gift to make for someone and what a great gift...one that can be used year after year!

All that is needed: wood - cut into 12"-16" slabs, stakes, paint and brushes. The wood can be purchased from The Home Depot...cheap and they'll cut your wood for free! You can find the paint and brushes at Michaels. I used Craft Smart Acrylic Paint. They have every color you could imagine and each bottle only costs about 50 cents. If you don't already have paint brushes, I'd suggest going with a good brand...not the BEST brand, just a good brand. They can be somewhat costly, but it's so worth it. You'll find painting to be much easier and the results to be much nicer with a good brush.

That's all I've got for now. Merry Christmas, everyone! May LOVE, JOY, PEACE & LAUGHTER be with you now and continue throughout the new year. xoxo!

P.S. - Thank you, Lori for giving me the idea to make these and for the time spent together "crafting"...SO FUN!

Baby Sock Advent Calendar

How cute is this? i think...sooooo CUTE! Another great find from Marthastewart.com. I know that we're already into December, but how about for next year??? Click HERE for step-by-step instructions...or just scroll down.

photo credit: Marthastewart.com

"Invite little ones to count down to Christmas with this charming treat-a-day calendar. This hanging Advent calendar assembled from baby socks is full of great things, and it's the perfect way to mark the season for a baby or an older child. A collection of stray socks or a mix of new ones in festive colors looks adorable dangling from a ribbon along a mantle or railing. Stuff each mini stocking with an age-appropriate toy. Then, starting on December 1, take down one sock a day, and let your child pull out the surprise inside (clip socks back onto the ribbon after gifts have been removed). The 24 days before Christmas are sure to sail by."

Tools and Materials
24 socks

Ribbon

Number stickers

Round stickers

Pushpins

Mini clothespins

Calendar How-To

1. Gather 24 socks -- singles or 12 pairs -- in colors that go well together (vary the sizes, if you like). Lay them out in the order you want to hang them, leaving spaces in between.

2. Cut the ribbon to the desired length; to find how long it should be, measure across the row of socks and add 12 inches (ours was 72 inches).

3. Use number stickers to label each sock. If one has a busy pattern, place the number on top of a solid round sticker so that it's easier to read.

4. Tack the ends of the ribbon to a railing or mantle; if you like, you can fasten the ribbon in several places to make a few swags.

5. Use mini clothespins to clip the socks to the ribbon; overlap them if you need to save space.

6. Tuck a gift inside each. If the item is heavy, use a larger clothespin to secure the sock.

Note: Gifts must be small enough to fit in tiny socks but safe for your child's age. Choose bath toys, pacifiers, or blocks for a baby; pencils, notebooks, and toys for an older kid.