Coffee Table Book Entry No. 2

Happy Friday, friends! I have many half-finished projects currently taking over my house and garage. My family is thrilled. I would like to believe I'll finish them all this weekend, but I'm not holding my breath. Besides, what fun would life be if my baby wasn't crawling through my pile of fabric scraps, if there wasn't hot glue stuck to my kitchen counter tops, if there weren't cans of spray paint rolling along the garage floor, or if we could find a pair of scissors?

Here is another installment in my coffee table quote book. The quote comes from the lyrics of Elton John's, Your Song, ( lyrics by Bernie Taupin).  Do you love Elton too? I am grateful my parents thought to raise us on great music that was older than us. Don't get me wrong, we listened to then current Janet, Whitney, Tiffany, Madonna and were all jammin' out in the '89 Honda Accord when my Aunt Barbabra got the new Michael Jackson Bad album, but I'm glad they thought to share some of their favorite music with us too.

You can print this for personal use if you like.

 I am linking up with Wow Us Wednesdays at Savvy Southern Style and these awe-inspiring blogs.  

My favorite party trick

Wallflowers have become my go-to party decor for many events and let me tell you why:

• They're colorful and whimsical
• They provide a big impact
• They are ridiculously cheap and easy to make ( you may have what you need already on-hand)

For a grand total of $3 or less, you can have a giant boquet of two-toned napkin flower magic. Of course you can buy napkins at dollar stores, but I've found the Wal-Mart party section has a better selection of napkin colors, they are a little stiffer and easier to work with and the quantites are larger ( packages of 24 are $1.50 each.) Target and Ikea are also great places to find fun napkin colors and patterns.  I use about 1.5 napkins for each flower.

I found the idea for wallflowers from the amazing Dana of the blog, Made. So visit her blog for the Wallflower tutorial and then go cover your next party or even your house in cheery napkin flowers!

*One tip: My petals don't stay together as nicely as Dana's, and the gaps drive me nuts, so I've enlisted the help of glue dots or double-stick tape to join the petals together.

Hey, sole sister! (shoe-themed party invitations)

Hello, friends! It's a party week for me.  I've mentioned before that I'm on a committee that plans activities for the women in my church.  Well, we are hosting a shoe-themed event this week- so fun!  Our activities are always done on a budget, so I was thrilled to find some great free graphics to use for our invitations from the always fabulous, Graphics Fairy.  What would I do without her?  She has the most amazing images.  I've always loved ephemera, and vintage artwork so her blog is one my favorite resources for inspiration.

I made a few different versions, but this is my favorite.  I used these shoe images and this frame  from the Graphics Fairy and changed the colors in Photoshop.  I made the shoes into a patterned background, added the frame on top and used the free fonts Lobster and Walkway Bold for the text.

Here is a mostly blank version that you are welcome to use for shoe-themed parties, etc. (personal use, only, please).  Have  a great day, friends!

I am linking up to Wow Us Wednesdays at Savvy Southern Style and these great blogs.

Don't forget to enter the giveaway for a burlap pillow cover!

Hello, friends!  I am just reminding everyone to enter the burlap pillow cover giveaway from beiFIORI Embellish.  When they reach 100 likes on Facebook, I will draw a winner ( she's almost halfway there)!  The crafty Marilyn from beiFIORI has been busy lately, you should see all of the fun new things in her etsy shop.

Click here to enter the giveaway.


 

Motherhood Matters

Motherhood matters.  What a poignant and beautiful statement.  We have a fabulous local lifestyle show called Studio 5. They have launched the Motherhood Matters campaign and I am in love with the concept.  I think it is easy for moms to fall into the trap of thinking their role is anything but important, so I was grateful they chose to champion the cause of motherhood. I also love that they've expanded the definition of a mother as any woman who " teaches, inspires, nurtures and loves those she comes into contact with."  Please check out their campaign, and try their Ten day challenge.  Studio 5 has also provided this sweet printable that is free for download and the quote it contains is amazing and inspiring.

So visit their site, print a card for yourself and the mothers in your life and remember that you matter.

Happy Mothers' Day!

Last-Minute Mothers' Day Ideas

Technically it's not the last minute.  It's not even close, but time is short to get something for the wonderful moms in your life.  Here are a few things I've spotted lately.

These sweet little monogrammed mugs from Anthropologie are so pretty and less than $10 each!

 For the mom who is always entertaining, I love these cute little dessert makers.  I've seen them at Macy's and JC Penney, but how do you decide between the cake pop maker and the whoopie pie maker?  You simply buy both, I suppose.  There a few other varieties here.



You can get one floppy straw hat for your mum, one for you, you both feel like Princess Kate, everyone wins.

How on earth will you decide which tote to buy for Mom with these fun options from Christopher & Banks?  For only $25, I would use this tote as the gift bag and fill it full of summertime goodies....who am I kidding, I would also buy one for myself.








This delicious apron is from Anthropologie and delightfully priced too.  I am half tempted sew a back on this one and wear it as a dress- so pretty!

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I am actually borrowing this idea from my own mother.  For Christmas, she wrapped up our gifts and tied them with cool scarves instead of bows or ribbon-BONUS!  This pretty frayed coral one form Christopher & Banks would make the package and her outfit pop.

Gift cards might seem impersonal, but in my opinion, you are giving the gift of shopping, and if you wrap it up very nicely with a pair of pretty earrings dangling from the package, it gives it just the right personal touch.  These pretty options are all from Coldwater Creek and all 25% off right now!

Patterned photo mats

I've had this idea floating around in my head for months for a patterned photo mat and finally made time to try it.  I really love patterned paper and photo mats and I thought the two should get together. It is a great way to add some interest to otherwise plain frames. I used it to frame my Mothers' Day Text Art projects that I made for the many mothers in my life.  You can read how to make them here or here.

 You may wonder why one needs to attach patterned paper to a photo mat when one could just use the paper in place of the mat? To that question, I have three answers:

1.  The photo mat provides structure
2.  The photo mat provides depth and interest
3.  I've tried it without the photo mat and it just looks less spectacular

On the easy meter, this project rates somewhere between ridiculously simple and surprisingly fast,  so gather some supplies and give it a go.

Mothers' Day text art ( guest post at thrifty decorating )

Hi friends!   I am over-the-moon excited about this project.  It was so much fun! Warning: You will become addicted to this project and begin searching for additional mothers to make artwork for. I went completely overboard making up designs.  I did a guest post on this project at the fabulously thrifty blog, Thrifty Decorating ( thanks, Nikki!) and have also posted the full project below.

Mothers' Day Text Art

Mothers' Day is sneaking up on us, friends, and I have a fun and simple idea to honor the mother(s) in your life and win you some major brownie points.

I consider myself a student of Nate, meaning I watch the Nate Berkus Show religiously.  If you are a fan too, you've probably heard him preach that your decor should be more than random pretty objects, it should have personal meaning.  I wholeheartedly agree.  So I took inspiration from one of my favorite trends, word art and number art, to create some decor pieces for moms that would have real meaning.   I made text art out of their children's and grand children's names and birth dates.  The concept is pretty basic, but the possibilities are limitless.  Combine some pretty fonts with great colors and the names and/or dates that are most important to your mom, put it in a pretty frame and you've just guaranteed your spot in the will.

Here's what you need to make your own Mothers' Day text art 

• A word processing program like Microsoft Word or Neo Office or Photoshop (you can download a free 30-day trial!) 

• A printer or access to a copy/printing store
• White card stock
• Picture frame

There is not a formal tutorial for this project.  The only instructions are to open your word processing program or Photoshop, type your names and/or dates,  and play with different fonts, sizes, colors and placement and just be creative and have fun.


Tips for Making Mothers' Day Text Art

• Start with great fonts. The font(s) you choose will set the style for your piece.  Your choices are endless from retro, to distressed, handwritten, modern, or calligraphy styles- find the ones that reflect your mom. Sites like dafont.com have a lot of great fonts to download for free!  Here are some links that explain how to install a new downloaded font on Windows or Mac (it's much easier than you think).

• Don't be intimidated.  Say it with me, "I can do this project!"  You don't need a background in graphic design or amazing computer skills to make text art.  If you can type, change the size and font style of your words, you can do this.  If you need some creative inspiration to get you going, check out sites like tinyprints.com or photoaffections.com that create invitations and announcements, they have great ideas for word art.

• Choose your frame first.  The frame you use will determine the size of your artwork ( 5 x7, 8x10, etc).   This is especially important if your frame is an irregular size. The frame can also help you choose the style and colors you use in your artwork.

• Print wisely.  Print your artwork on card stock to give it a more professional look. If your artwork has a lot of color (see image below), that will require a lot of ink, I recommend taking it to a copy or printing store where they can print a nice smooth copy, free of flaws (and save your toner cartridge on your home printer).  It cost me about 70 cents per 8.5 x 11 sheet to print my artwork on card stock at my local copy store.

{ fonts are Walkway Semibold and Jellyka Bee's Antique}

Here are some examples of Mothers' Day text art I have created.  I have used a good old word processing program for some and Photoshop for others, but all designs are very basic. I am happy to answer any questions you have, so feel free to contact me. Below each example I have listed the name of the fonts I used in case you want to download them (fonts without links are standard fonts already installed on most computers).

 {Fonts are Lobster and Jellyka Bee's Antique}

{Font is Walkway}

{Fonts are Hoedown, Jellyka Western Princess, Orator Std, Zapfino and Carnevalee Freakshow}

{Font is Payday}

 {Fonts are Honey Script, American Typewriter, Viper Nora, and Budmo}

{Font is Viper Nora}

{This is a great design for a mom with LOTS of grandchildren.

Fonts are Callie Hand and Fairfax Station}

{Font is Viper Nora}

{Fonts are Walkway and Payday}

This weekend I will also be sharing some fun and simple ways to frame your Mothers' Day text art.  I am also hosting a giveaway for a burlap pillow cover from beiFIORI Embellish which you are welcome to enter.    Thanks for reading and have a great weekend, friends!  

 I am linking up with Wow Us Wednesdays at Savvy Southern Style andthese awe-inspiring blogs.

The Next Best Thing for Summer

I was thrilled to see the Spring/Summer clothing line from Next Direct, it made me believe that Summer  is more than just a myth.

Have you ever purchased from Next? I bought this jacket and these shorts for my baby boy a few months ago and I have been impressed with the quality.  My order arrived very fast, within 48 hours.  My only complaint is that the jacket, a size 12-18 months, was really big on my baby.  He wears this size in many other brands ( he is a BIG 10-month-old) so I was surprised how big the jacket was (hoping he will grow into it for Fall).  The shorts fits great.  I will definitely purchase from them again.

I have yet to try their women's or men's clothing lines. Has anyone else?  Here are a few Next items on my radar for Summer...and when I say "a few," I mean one hundred.

A home for the leftover jelly beans

Hello, friends!  I hope everyone had a great Easter weekend.  I am a little sad that one of my favorite holidays is over, but am taking comfort in the grocery store clearance aisles full of Easter candy. Speaking of left over candy, how about a cute way to display it?  My mom, the craftiest of crafting divas, took a page from our beloved Martha's book and made these sweet little favors to adorn her table for Easter.

Martha Stewart-Inspired Daffodil Candy Cups

Supplies

• Patterned paper
• Mini cupcake liners
• Left-over Easter candy
• Scissors
• Adhesive
• Printer

Martha came through for us again with her great templates.  My mom printed this template from MarthaStewart.com, traced it onto patterned paper and cut it out.  She glued a cupcake liner to the center of the flower and filled it with sugary goodness.  It doesn't get much simpler or much cuter.  It's a great way to add some color and Spring whimsy to the table especially since things are feeling a bit dull with the Easter decor gone.

Spring Pancake Art

We had far too much fun with this project.  By filling squeeze bottles with colored pancake batter, you can draw just about any shape you can imagine and enjoy colorful pancake perfection.