Anthro Inspired Letter Ornaments

Every year for the last several years I have been getting each member of my family an initial ornament. 

Last year I "crafted" these:

When I walked into Anthropologie this year.  I fell in love with the book pages ornaments.  But at $8 a pop (times 6) it adds up quickly.  I just knew this was a craft I could tackle.

Please click on this link for a downloadable, printable tutorial:
http://www.scribd.com/doc/75686234/Anthro-Inspired-Book-Pages-Ornament-Tutorial

 My final product. 

Just for fun...linking here this week:

  

Halloween Mantle

 I have a 2 story mantle...

It is a bit difficult to decorate because it is a 2 story....

 Cricut cut bats

in 3 different sizes

sewed onto a really long crochet chain stitch...with a sewing machine.

I think they help to give some motion...

 3 D letters with Cereal Boxes

Slightly obsessed.  

But I love my Pinterest inspired witches feet.

I sewed magnets into the tops so when we need or want the fire place we can just take them down.

Favorite Fall Recipe

I love fall

I love the leaves changing

I love the cool night air

I love everything that screams fall

like pumpkin spice lattes

pumpkin scones

pumpkin bread

soup simmering on the stove

rolls baking in the oven

Cozy evenings spent near the fireplace

and Amazing Spiced Chai Concentrate:

I found this recipe on Tasty Kitchen and I <3 it!  

It is such a good base recipe but completely customizable.

You can use black tea, white tea, herbal tea (honeybush tea is delish in this recipe)

I made a fresh batch this morning 

and we didn't have any oranges in the fridge so I left the zest out.

Still amazing. 

Click Here----> Amazing Spiced Chai Concentrate

Back to School Mantle

I was in the mood for some new colors on my mantle.

Red and Lime green seem the perfect color combo for back to school time.

The kids all commented on how excited they were that I finally painted my D.

Love these vintage apple canisters.

I filled the smaller ones with white flowers and tied a red ribbon.

Refashion: Summer Jean Revamp

My daughter is almost 11.

*Which means she is growing like a weed.*

We decided to re-do her favorite jeans into wearable summer wardrobe.

Favorite Black Jeans:

Cut off and rolled twice for the new capri look

Favorite Embroidered Hearts Jeans (Way too short):

Edges cut into a lovely scallop.

Then I used my machine to stitch hearts around

and a little hand sewing to embellish one of the legs.

Jeans that still fit but have a gaping hole in the knee:

I inserted a piece of fabric that matches her new shirt

(which I sewed using elastic thread around the top)

I also made the cute flower by cutting a pink flower out of the fabric, layering denim underneath, adding a double stack button and an alligator clip on the back so she can clip it where she wants. I made the straps long enough that if she wants me to in the future I can put a button in the back, but she likes the halter top look for now.

A very inexpensive "new" wardrobe for an ever growing girlie.

Dumpster Find

This is my FIRST refinishing furniture project.

And I am SOOO excited for it.

I found it by the dumpster of our apartment complex 6 YEAR ago.

Can you believe that, 6 years AGO!

We have moved it 3 times since then.

I started stripping it a couple of weekend ago,

and

I can't wait to show you the finished project.

It's going to be a beauty!

Grey, Yellow and white

I love gray, yellow and white combined.

I love yellow anyway,

maybe that is why I am so addicted to it right now.

For mother's day we got my mom one of the awesome double wall starbucks tumblers.

But I also snuck away to her sewing machine to make her a mother's day flower.

She can clip it anywhere....(I love the double button)

Then when I got home I realized I was really jealous of her flower

so I made my own.

See similar, but different.

I already had a front door wreath planned.

And I had just enough fabric left over from the flowers to tackle it.

I braided the strips of fabric

and

then wove them in and out of the heart shape wreath I snagged at HL.

Then I made some rolled fabric roses,

tucked a button and a pearl in the big one for bling

I painted my "D" with yellow paint,

then painted just the top with Tim Holz crackle paint in white.

I loved the aged look of the D (even though the picture isn't very clear)

Here she is in her glory. I love the heart shape can be used clear into the spring.

And the white "D" just pops off the gray and yellow color.