Laughing Place

I know.
 

I had a Disney post not too long ago.
 

But these made me laugh out loud.
 

And everybody needs a laughing place. Right?



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I Spy....Pottery Barn Beauties

Anyone out there love Pottery Barn?

Not as in buy expensive stuff there, but as in love to visit and touch all the expensive stuff?

I do. I once visited a lamp there for 2 years. Seriously. Then one day it was 30% off and it came home with me. This lamp.

Well, yesterday I was having lunch at the mall with my dad, and this is what I saw when I dragged him to the the Barn for a looksie.

Oh my. Talk about wants vs. needs!

Those ducks and ducklings. Adorable!
Fancy glass containers for my desk organization. Swoon!
Entryway filled with all that yellow loveliness. Yes, please!
Table place settings. With gift boxes. With tiny keys. Too cute!
Come on in and  sit down in my living room. So comfy!
Grab a book and an iced latte and get cozy for a bit. Love to!

I know. I don't need any of it. But I do have a happy moment just sitting in the store surrounded by so many beauties!

What store do you like to touch things in? Come on, I know you do it too.....

Declutter (Part 3)

Hello.

I wanted to share my latest improvement to my studio area. See part 1 and part 2.

It's not really a declutter post. But now that I cleaned up most of my studio, I get to move on to the fun stuff. Making it pretty.

Back in early December, I bought a bunch of prints at the Mill Festival of the Arts. Mark and I had picked them out together, and we had intended to hang them up in our bedroom. But instead, I stole them for my studio. Yeah, I do stuff like that. (Art by Urban Octopus.)

I couldn't decide if I wanted to frame them or hang them as is. Finally, I decided to just hang them up with some tape, and live with them for a few days/weeks. Then, if I wasn't happy, I could head over to Ikea and buy some frames. Turns out, the moment I hung them up and tweaked them a bit (the arrangement), I fell in love with the simple frame less display.

Plus, since I didn't spend a lot of money, I won't have to feel guilty if I buy something new to hang there. Sometimes I just like to change things up a bit.

I also redid the book page mirror. It was looking a little squished from the move, so I removed all the creased and flattened pages, then rolled them again and started gluing. I also tried to finish off the mirror edge of the pages by picking out a strip of fabric, twisting it, and hot-gluing it down. It's not perfect yet, but much better. And who knows, perhaps one day I will pull it off the wall and change it up a bit again. Until I get it just right.

I started using my calendar that I bought at back to school time. I use it for blog posting schedules. I write ideas on the board, then once I get the post all ready, I add a yellow sticky note.  It's something I've been wanting to try for a while, but with all that hot mess surrounding the area before, it just never happened.

Finally, I redid my letterpress tray. You can see more info about that project here.

I still have space to add more artwork. I've been seeing lots of free printables out there. And I've been toying with the idea of adding some clipboards, keeping with the idea of quick changing art.

Hope you enjoyed. Next up, working on that pile of old photos on the corner of my desk......

Do you have a project you've been working on? Does clutter pile up in your home too? You could share with me by leaving a comment. If you want to.

Sew

Happy Monday everyone.

I'm going to sew a new throw pillow cover this week. Using that cute fabric in the top picture.

Now that might not sound like much to most of you. But it is.

I bought a sewing machine about 10 months ago. And I have not even opened the box.

Last summer I ordered an online class to encourage me to take that sewing machine out of the box and stitch a mini-album out of random papers and fabric. It would have been adorable. If I had ever logged into the classroom and started the project. But I did not.

Last week I was wandering around my favorite scrapbook/fabric shop, touching all the beautiful fabrics. And I decided this was it! I was going to buy some fabric fat quarters and use that sewing machine. So I spent a crazy amount of time picking out 2 fabrics.

This week I'm going to sew a cover for that old grey pillow (see bottom picture).

Yes! I am!

I just have to go buy thread.

Wish me luck! I'll share a photo when I get it done, like a proud mama!

Do you have something you would like to make/do that you have put off accomplishing for a while? Share with me!

Just Let It Go

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Who me? Overthink? Well......maybe.

Letterpress Tray Redo

Hi there peeps.

A year ago I bought an antique letterpress tray.  And it sat on my dining room table for 6 months (old  house).

Then we moved, and I swore it would not sit on a table for 6 more months. So, I hung it on the wall in my bedroom.

And stared at it. And stared some more. I knew I wanted to alter it, but how?

Paint it? Add colored paper? Use it to store jewelry? Add photos? So many choices.

Well, I finally decided it was time to do something. I love the tray, and I need to make it mine!

So, I decided to go for the paint. And not just 1 color, but rainbow colors.

First I painted a base coat of cream on the entire front surface. This took longer than I expected! But I wanted the colors to pop.

Then I chose rainbow paint colors and painted the bottoms of each slot.  I added some walnut brown stain on top of the tan edges. I wanted it to be darker and not so perfect looking and to blend in better with the original brown sides.

Now the fun could begin! I just started to add random things. I bought a few items specifically for this project, but I really didn't need to. I had so many things already. I just opened drawers and picked out things that I love.

That's when I noticed some themes emerging. Cameras, travel, love, keys.

I really love the way it turned out! Not what I thought when I bought the tray that day in Boston.....

But better!

And if my rainbow style is not your thing. That's OK. I included a few other redos I found online.


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This last one is my favorite. I love how funky the pastel army men are.

 

Who knows, maybe one day I will find another tray and will have to redo another one....

 

Feeling inspired? Enjoy your Saturday!


Linking up with The Scoop @ LollyJane

  





Friday Wrap

It's Friday again. That just doesn't seem possible. Some weeks go by so quickly.

So, here is what has been going on this week in our little  corner of the world.

1. Trevor and Chelsey came over and made us dinner. And I did nothing. While they went out for groceries and cooked. I could get used to being treated this way!

2. Mark and I went out for lunch at an old favorite. Hummus and chicken tikka pitas. It's been years and I was in HEAVEN!

3. Warmer temps this week meant I worked on the laptop outside while Mark played with the puppies.

4. Almost sunset.... and I'm such a sucker for solar flare. It just never gets old with me.

5. View from my patio. Not 1, but 3 sleighs on the rooftop. (update: Santas are now down, but some reindeer were left  unattended on the roof).

6. Love, love walking into a room and seeing a kiddo reading, just for fun!

7. My boy. Living the hard life. Not!

8. Buffalo chicken salad. Haven't been to Chili's since we left Casa Grande. It was time. Yum.

9. More outdoor time (Wednesday's high was 78. Crazy! But Thursday we woke up to rain and cooler temps).

10. Mom came over for a sleepover. And we love that she enjoys computer time so much. Especially all the puppy videos we are forced to watch!

11. Game night. First time playing Disney Cranium. I loved how we all had to participate in a wide variety of challenges!

12.  Cut and color day (mom gets a cut while my grey gets covered up...shhhh...don't tell anyone).

Please join along in the fun by clicking on one/both of the buttons below.




And have an awesome weekend!

Flow Magazine

On our last Barnes and Noble expedition, I found this lovely. It had to come home with me.

It is full of beautiful images and papers and goodies, such as coloring pages, a pull out notebook, and wrapping paper.

I had planned on sharing some inside pages with you, but it is overcast and dark today. No bueno for photos.

So whats a girl to do? I used that Internet thing to share some info with you.

First, I found this description (and a peek at a few pages) of the magazine here.

Flow is a Dutch magazine for paper lovers. Flow is all about positive psychology, crafting, mindfulness, and not being perfect. Flow helps readers to reflect in various ways on their busy yet happy lives. We do so by presenting attractive stories around the themes simplify your life, feel connected, live mindfully, and spoil yourself. Each issue is printed on a special assortment of paper and contains creative inserts, such as coloring in pictures, special notebooks, and handy calendars. •Live mindfully: living with focus, paying attention to the here and now, forgetting about those eternal to do-lists • Simplify your life: practical solutions and handy ways to make your life easier, including in your head•Feel connected: stories about the people around you, but also about women across the world. •Spoil yourself: original, feasible, and affordable products that you can really spoil yourself, or somebody else, with.

 

 

And here is a video I found on YouTube that highlights some of the fun products they also have. Ummm. Wait for the journals. Just take a minute and wait for it. Talk about making my heart happy!

 



 It was a bit pricey, but really is lovely. And I feel that I need to support the rare beauties in this world!

 Here are a few other books/magazines I checked out while at B&N. All were candy for the brain!

Have you seen any good brain candy lately? Do you hang out with a coffee and a pile of books at your local bookstore?

This and That

Morning everyone.

I drove the kidlets to school today with the most amazing sunrise unfolding before my eyes. And the sky turned the most gorgeous color of blue!  I think it might be a good day!

So, I'm up and moving at 9 am. Showered, dressed, hair dried, makeup on (not an everyday thing around here).  Bed made. Dishwasher unloaded. Laundry in dryer. I'm in superpower mode!

Going to pick up a few groceries. Stop for a white chocolate mocha latte at Bucks. Continue working on a project (will be shared here soon).  Catch up on blog posts. Pick my mom up for a sleepover. Try a new crock pot recipe. Maybe even watch some Parenthood tonight (I'm 4 episodes behind).

Are you in superpower mode? Share with me!

And I hope you have a great day with super blue skies!

Laters.

I Spy...Art Supplies