Nothing Says Love Like Parsnips!

How cute and handy is this calendar that lists the month as well as what fruits and veggies are in season. Let me answer my own question...REALLY CUTE! Yeah so I am a tad bit excited to not only run across this but then to realize that you can download the first 6 months for free at Cottage Industrialist (the next 6 months are coming soon). So go now, print and be merry and more importantly, never miss the spring cherry harvest again.

Party in My Lamp!

After painting my new purple lamps, I wanted to something a little funky-cool to spruce them up a bit. I decided to line them with a black and white fabric that you would only really notice when the lamp was on. I have mixed feelings on the print that I went with but it was the only black-white print at our local Jo-Ann's fabric so I will learn to live with it. Anyways, here is how to line a lamp...just in case you want to do it too.
Start by tracing out your lamp shade on a piece of paper. I used dollar store paper. This is what it should look like after you are done...just roll it along and mark as you go. Make sure to use a pencil because you don't want to leave marks on your shade.
Next, cut the pattern out and lay it in your shade to make sure everything fits. Trim as needed.
Then lay your pattern down onto your fabric. I recommend using a rotary cutter if you can. Cut out.
Starting on the lamp shade seams (you want to match the seams up) spray adhesive on to your fabric and press firmly to the shade. Work in small patches to make sure you stay on line with your borders.
You might have to trim up your edges a little. Tuck them into the edge of your shade with your fingernail.
Let dry for a few hours then set on your lamp!

What The?

I am all for supporting homemade goods but what the hell is this? A scorpion with green armpit hair and blue balls?
Not for Jack. I can't have anything that strange in the house on account of watching too many PuppetMaster/ Child's Play-like horror movies.

On a lighter note, I am finally sitting down and teaching myself how to sew. Turns out I am kinda ok at it and I really enjoy hand stitching. Still trying to get all my knots down but I am learning quickly with the help of some on-line tutorials.

"So Jenny, what have you made so far" you all ask. The answer, aprons. I have made a crap load of aprons from this apron pattern.
Everyone will be getting aprons here for the next year or so. I also broke down and ordered "sew what? bags!"
I am totally intimidated by this book. I am going to look at the pictures some more before I try and sunglass case. Wish me luck!

Some Badass Wedding Ideas

Yeah that is me on our wedding day. There is something about posing with your two brothers that just makes you go crazy...or maybe just try to appear tougher than what you are. Anyways, a friend of ours is getting married in March and she was asking me for some ideas. Haha! Oh how I enjoy this type of post!

Idea #1: The Wedding Cake
I really, really despise wedding cakes. I do not think I have ever had one that tastes good no matter how much (insert random fruit here) crap they put in between the layers. Our solution? Cupcakes. Yum. Not only do they taste better, but they are pretty low maintenance i.e. you don't have to bring in another set of dishes to serve them off of.

The second best thing about cupcakes are the towers. You can make them yourself and personalize them to go with your color theme without the introduction of fondant (ick). Here are some great examples:


My good friend Byron came up with the idea for this cupcake tower. He spray painted an old water heater tray beige and then lined it with sod. The whole thing was supported by 4 pieces of pipe that screwed into 4 bolts that were glued on to the bottom of a piece of plywood. The other two levels were terracotta pots painted to match the ribbon. I had a regular cake made up for the top of the tower and gave the bakery the ribbon to put around it. Now, when putting the tower together, make sure to glue dot everything into place...otherwise you might get this...
a very slippery top cake when you try to cut it!

Here is another cupcake tower I did for my father-in-law's birthday. I found "milk" glass candy bowls to make up the towers and an old lamp shade to make up the base. Once again, I painted the plywood black and lined it with coordinating ribbon. Those cupcakes were chocolate graham cracker and a regular chocolate...just in case you were wondering why they looked a little funny.

If these don't suit your fancy, there are two other ideas at CakeJournal and Craftzine.

Idea #2: Table Setting
We literally rolled out sod down the middle of the wood tables, cut it in half lengthwise, then lined it with ribbon, again, all Byron's idea. He also found some blue and green place mats for $7 at GoodWill and coordinating fabric for napkins. I bought little terracotta pots and planted each with white flowers and then gave them away as gifts.

Idea #3: The Location
I realize that some people like the whole indoor wedding thing but if you really want to save some money, go outside. We rented out a campsite for the weekend and gave people the choice to either get a hotel room or camp outside. I think the total cost came to $60. Steal! Plus the outdoors is a great backdrop! You can cut down on the amount of flowers/ decorations needed.

There is one minor drawback, everyone will bring their dogs...which in our case, was a lot of dogs. Make sure to get them all locked up before the ceremony.
And last but not least, enjoy the day and make some memories!
Ok no, this is really last but not least. LJ sang me a glorious song! It was awesome but the pictures we have of him singing reminds me of the picture I have of him eating that final slice of pizza in the pizza eating contest....

Feeling Brighter

I am constantly trolling our local Salvation Army for furniture/lamps/dishes and anything else I can makeover. I found a lamp a couple of months ago that had a really cool exterior design. The only problem? It looked like this:
That is right. One can really truly never have enough gold and black items in their house. Loran was cringing when I brought home this beauty and plunked it down on our front porch. However, I thought it would be really cool painted a glossy white.

It is nearing the teens outside so my in-depth picture/documentary of my lamp makeover is non-existent. However, my better blogging half, Anne from The City Sage, has fully detailed instructions on how to paint a lamp. (I swear we did not meet about this project beforehand and her lamp shape is WAY prettier than mine...oh wait! Mine actually works...score one for the big girl!)

Since my lamp is textured, I did not have to worry about sanding it to get a fine finish like Anne did. It also didn't really matter if the paint sagged a little (that is the term the pros use when spray paint runs a bit...thanks dad!). After four coats of my lovely white RustOleum gloss spray paint, I let the base cure for 2 days. This is what I got!


I found a plain lamp shade from Ikea during a trip to Portland that works well. Total cost:$17.07
I will eventually choose some fabric to cover the lamp shade but I like it how it is right now. Yeah for lamps!

Linus is Going to Be Jealous...

...of Jack and his sweet new blanket for his stroller. The best part, I did not have to bust out the sewing machine. The worst part, I still can't sew. Bahhhh! Here is how you can bless a little baby with their own little blanket for the holidays.


First off is selecting fabric. I went with anti-pill fleece from Joann's Fabric Store. They were having a sale so I got a yard of each fabric (plaid and stripes) for a total of $10. Grab some SHARP (please note the emphasis on that) scissors and binder clips and you are ready to go!


Cut off and nasty ends (I think the guy had used pruning shears to cut my fabric from the bolt) and trim the fabric to the size you want. Remember that the fringe will make the blanket part even smaller. Line your two separate yards of fabric up on top of each other and clip with the binder clips.


Next, you need to cut a square off from each corner to form the edge of the blanket. I realized this after I started cutting. The square you cut out and your fringe should all be the same length. I did mine about 6" long.

After cutting out the squares, lay something down that makes a straight line from one edge of the cut out square corner to the other. Then all you have to do is cut to that line to make your fringe. This will keep them about the same length. I recommend cutting either 1" strips or 1/2" stripes (I did 1/2"). 1/2" is easiest to do if you cut 1" strips first and then just snip those in half. This isn't an exact science so don't worry if you mess up a bit.


Now it is knot time! I have heard all different ways of making these blankets, some people say tie them separately then together others just tie them together. I really liked the look of a knot. I hope you can tell from this picture. I just tucked the ends pointing to the left back through the knot hole. Try to tie all the knots the same way for a really uniform look.


Make sure to work the knot back up to the beginning of the fringe before tightening down. You can leave the knots tight or loose, I chose tight.



And there you have it! A pretty, warm, snugly little blanket. These are so great because you can make different sizes. A yard of fabric makes a perfect stroller or car seat blanket that any baby would cherish (that is my best Martha Stewart impression).

Taking the Week Off..

My husband just informed me that no one checks blogs during Thanksgiving. Instead, I will leave you with this cute table/napkin sets from the purl bee that I will one day sew together...when I get the time...hopefully before next Thanksgiving...and after I teach myself how to sew. So much to do. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!

Sweet Kitchen!

Oh! If only Jack had been a girl! This adorable kitchen play set from Our Sweet Life sure beats the pants off the plastic "made in China" sets at the stores. A little Goodwill trolling and you would be all set! Check out their blog for more inspiration and the total cost of the project.






Maybe I could still make this for Jack...who knows? He might be the next Gordon Ramsey?!?!

That Is Mrs. Rattle-Can Queen to You

Sooooo my next Halloween decor project was a little more time consuming then planned. I got the idea for this wreath from Martha (yes, I still visit her site even though she dissed me). Her wreath called for silk roses and floral paint...umm expensive. I settled on plastic roses and my handy-dandy black high gloss spray paint. This is Martha's wreath...


And this is my wreath!

It actually came out pretty cute...in a dark and Gothic way. The ribbon is black but for some reason keeps coming out chocolate colored in the pics. I like the bow off to the side...cause I am cool like that. Ok not really...it wasn't big enough for the top and plus, I really do think it looks kinda' cool on the side.

This is a really easy wreath to make. If you want Martha's here are the instructions. If you feel like doing it on the cheap, here is my plan:
Materials:
about 5 bunches of dollar store red roses
14" floral foam wreath (also a dollar store purchase)
1/2 yard 2" black ribbon
glue gun
black spray paint (a.k.a. rattle can...shout-out to LRobb for the new terminology!)
wire cutting pliers


Snip the roses off the flower stems and put into a big pile. Hint: Make sure to mix the flowers up because not all dollar store roses are the same. This will keep your wreath looking balanced. Use your hot glue gun to glue the roses to the foam wreath. Keep them pretty tight so no gaps are peeking through. Spray paint a light coat on the back of the wreath first...covering the lovely green wreath. After it dries to the touch, flip it over and coat the flowers with paint. You can go lighter for a not too dead look or heavier for a morbid and icky but still chic look.

Baby Food Jar Contest!

Before I started making all Jack's baby food, we bought little bottles of it from the store. Now I have tons of little bottles but no use for them. If you can think of a fun/crafty/chic idea let me know. There is no real prize except admiration for your very original idea. However, if you suggest making a Christmas Tree light thing out of them..you will be blocked from this site.




(Hmmm...Christmas Tree light thing)