Shameless Endorsement

Don't you just love your friends? I love that I have a good number of friends that if I called right now and asked for something they would be there and do everything in their power to help. I count myself as blessed beyond measure for this. It's hard not to have family close by and I know that will be more true than I know once the kiddos start showing up. I thank God for the support and love I have from the people who are a part of my church. They really have NO idea how they reflect Christ to me and show me how to be a good mommy when the time comes.

Soooo I have one such friend that is FANTASTIC. She really is beautifully talented and is a huge part of our preschool ministry while raising 5 children and has started a little sewing business that has really done so well. I know she's super woman right? She should feel that way anyway. Her name is Kristy Wilder and she has started a business called Twinkie Boutique. She sells boutique style clothes and accents. Can I tell you how much I love her creations! She is really a wealth of creativity. So go check out her blog and get something for your little people!  

Isn't her stuff amazing? And this is just a little taste. So here's to my shameless endorsement. Love you Kristy! Oh! And Merry Christmas Eve everyone!

We love apothecary jars!

I used to have the prettiest apothecary jars in my bathroom. That was until a sweet husband of mine dropped two of them and they shattered into a million pieces over the tile bathroom floor. Don't you just love when that happens. It took forever to get those little glass pieces up. I have not been able to replace them because I got them on sale at Kirkland Home so you can guarantee they won't be there now. That's why I was pretty excited to see this fun little project from The Shabby Chic Cottage. I have to admit I am a little jealous I didn't think of it myself but no matter, as long as I can get them. 

Here's How:
It took me forever to find the perfect candlestick, because I wanted one that looked simliar to the turned wooden ones that I adore.

Just remember to leave it alone for 24 hours (that's always the hardest part).

Then you get a beautiful jar. Mine was $4 - $2 for each piece. You can get cheaper components if you look hard enough.

They don't have lids like mine did but they are pretty inexpensive. So have fun making these things and I'll be thinking about what I can do next with this fun idea!

All About a Clipboard

I never have been able to make my sweet clipboard look good. I tried writing on it but it ended up looking like a bad Napoleon Dynamite poster. Enter Scrap book paper. My happy friends over at Skip to My Lou have a great way to make a fun addition to your organizing tool box or a fun teacher gift.

 I used  small 6"X 9" clipboards  found  at OfficeMax ($1.69). The notepads are 5" X 8" 50 sheet Jr. size writing pads, found at Wal-mart (6 notepads were only $2.50).

I tried these two ways:

Using Elmer's Spray Adhesive and Krylon Matt Finish

  

and using Mod Podge Paper Matte

First cut decorative paper to fit the clipboard.  For my clipboards 6" X 9" worked perfectly.  I took the extra time to make a template that fit around the top of the clip (a little bit of a pain).  I have also seen where there is just a rectangle shape cut to fit around the clip. My paper looked like this.

Paint the back of the paper with Mod Podge Paper (Matte) or spray with the Elmer's Spray Adhesive. If you are using spray adhesive also spray the clipboard. Cover the the clip with masking tape to keep it clean. Pay special attention to make sure which ever method used that the edges of the paper are completely covered. Working quickly, place the paper onto the clipboard. This is a bit tricky. It is okay to lift up and reposition until it matches all of the edges properly. Be careful not to stretch the paper. Smooth paper and make sure the entire piece of paper is secured.  When I had a spot along the edge that wasn't adhered, I lifted it slightly and added more glue.  Allow to dry at least 15 minutes before putting on top coat. Round off corners with scissors.





Give the top of the paper a light coat of Mod Podge Paper in matte  or two coats of spray matte finish.  I have to say I like the paper feel and look so I prefer the Krylon spray matte finish.


Glue a matching piece of decorative paper to the top of the notepad. Any glue will do.

To give the clipboard an extra nice touch I added a metal label holder. I taped them on with a piece of clear tape exactly where I wanted them and then my husband drilled holes in the metal clip so they could be attached with the brads included in the package.

I painted the metal holders and brads with gloss paint.  Open the clip as far as you can so you can attach the metal label holder and spread the brads apart on the back side of the clip.

Finished! I think I will put the recipient's name in the label holders.










So there you go. Frugal, fun and oh so pretty. Have fun out there!

Such Cute Personalized Photo Magnets

Photos are so fun, right? My sweet husband is a documentary photographer when he isn't blowing me away with his mad graphic design skills. So you can imagine our house has quite a few photos in it. Our computer has thousands. This one is one of my favorites. There's just something about capturing an important moment or communicating so many words with a single image. Photos are emotional, stale, amazing, appealing, fascinating, and at times ironic. They are iconic to those they capture and keep a piece of history for the person taking the photo and all those who take a look at it afterward.

So that's where these really easy, frugal, and chic photo magnets come in. I found them over at Vanilla Joy.

This is a great idea to give as a Christmas gift or anytime gift really. I'm thinking I will give these to a few sweet family members who love photos as much as I do.

Just buy yourself a little sheet of magnetic canvas $5 for an 18''x24'' from Roberts Crafts. Just pick a pic place it on the magnetic sheet, trim and you're done. I think I will do mine with names on the pics with some scrapbooking stuff. Lots of fun to you and don't forget to have a little fun this holiday season!  

All Those Christmas Cards

Every year I get wonderful Christmas cards from family and friends. I really like Christmas cards. They are simple and while they're not necessary, it's at least a way to stay in touch with people over the holidays. My grandmother had 15 children so you can imagine trying to keep up with everyone. So we send out a little Christmas card and newsletter to feel a little more connected. So when I was on one of my favorite sites Dollar Store Crafts I found a great idea to use those 101 Christmas cards that have been collecting.

So here's how: 
Project Estimate:

• 3 greeting cards per house, on hand
• Battery-operated tea lights, 2 for $1
• Tissue paper (optional), on hand
• Tape & scissors, on hand

Total: $.50 per house (unless you prefer unlit houses, and then this is FREE!)

It's even look on well by all the tree-huggers of the world. Now who wouldn't love decorations like that?

Steps:

1. From your stash of cards, find three that are identical in size. If you have to trim a couple to make them all the same, be sure to save the scraps, as you can use those to make your window panes.

2. On one card, cut out a small window on each side. On the other card, cut out a window and a door. Cut down one side and top of a long rectangle for the door, being sure you can fold it to the side to make it look like it's half way open.

 3. Using card stock or your extra card scraps, make window panes on your window openings. Tape the pieces on the inside of the cards. You can tape sheets of tissue paper if you'd like as well.

4. Tape the two cards together from the inside to create a box shape. 

5. Cut the third card in half along the existing crease and tape each half to the sides of the box. Attach the two pieces together to create the finished roof.

6. To make my houses look cute and whimsical, I put tape on the top corners of each roof.

 7. To create a snowy effect, place fiberfill around your card houses.

8. I also tried lighting up my houses by putting in an enclosed tea light candle. To make things safer, I think I would put in a battery-operated tea light candle instead. It looks so pretty at night!

Have fun if you have time to make this. I think we will do it while I am in Knoxville with the rents. Happy crafting and Merry Christmas!

Free 2010 Calendar

I happily get the Pillsbury newsletters in my recipe inbox each week. They really have some fantastic recipes and they are updating and adding to them all the time. So you can imagine my excitement when I looked in my inbox today and there awaited my happy email. Then what to my wondering eyes would see, but a free calendar with 12 happy recipes. So here's the link to go and get yours and happy 2010!

Welcome Home

It has been a few days since I got back home from Africa and I am not feeling well today so I'll post a little something I would find useful and a pic from Africa. Then I'm going to drift in and out of consciousness.

Skip to My Lou posted a fantastic book label for teachers. I know I would love to get a set of these cute things so give them to a teacher you love!

And lastly here is a picture of me with a sweet orphan boy in Kampala, Uganda. I'm sure you can guess I wanted to take him home with me but I'll have to wait for just a little while.