Monday, March 31, 2014

~a new favorite fabric~{made into pillows}

I have been a longtime fan of Urban Grace Interiors for some time now. 

Erika and I both share a love for the color green and her kitchen in her old house was to die for if you ask me. Very homey, colorful, and cozy. 

Besides all the green, I fell in love with the fabric on her window treatments.
It's by Victoria Hagan and it's called Four Seasons, in the autumn color way.


I quickly went online and searched for this fabric. 
It was then that I found 6 Wilson's shop on Etsy.

She has fabulous pillows and other antiques. 
My friends all laugh at me because they think I have a pillow addiction, but oh my goodness, you would too if you saw these right?







Carol shipped these out to me so fast.
They have a hidden zipper so I can wash them, very important in my house.
Every time I walk into this room I smile.
The color makes me so happy!

xoxo

Friday, March 28, 2014

~help for Oso~ {& a Starbucks winner}

The following is from my friend and neighbor Patricia:


As a small business owner, because I don't answer to anyone but myself, I can make a choice to do a lot of things that larger businesses can't. I've been so very fortunate in life - it hasn't always been easy, but God has always provided for me and my family. As a little girl, I remember going door to door for the Jerry Lewis Telethon for MD. I would show up at our local TV station, walk across the set and dump my bucket of money into the pail. It made me feel so good. As an adult, I've been on the receiving end of help from the Red Cross. On 9/11/01, my cousin was one of the victims of the attack on the World Trade Center. The Red Cross contacted me to see if I needed assistance in traveling to NYC for his funeral. While I declined, I was in awe that this foundation reached out to our family. I've had the opportunity to raise money for the Red Cross in other ways - hurricane/tornado assistance, blood drives, etc. I've always tried to help when someone approaches me for a donation for an auction or to help out an orphanage in Africa. I LOVE to help people. It's in my nature. I don't do it for the accolades, I do it because it feels good and it's the right thing for me to do.

Last Saturday, 30 miles away from my home, there was a horrific landslide - the recovery of many bodies is still ongoing. As I have listened to the stories of the victims, I am again reminded of 9/11. The amazing people who are gone too soon. How can I help??? The only thing I know that I can do is ask you to help me help them. I haven't figured out what I'm going to do yet, but this FRIDAY, March 28, I will be donating a portion of my sales to be donated to the Red Cross for assistance to those people of this small town, Oso, WA as they try to put their lives back together again. I don't want you to think that I'm trying to bolster my sales - as a friend said, God knows what's in my heart.

Will you help me shed a bit of sunshine on this little town?

Here's what I'm doing . . . 


OSO FUNDRAISER . . . Let's start this today, through the weekend. 30% OF ALL MY SALES will be donated to the Red Cross for the people of Oso, WA. The need is urgent. Read on . . . 

I spent part of the day yesterday listening to stories coming out of the area. They are in desperate need of so many things - right now the focus is on recovery and the firefighters, the National Guard, and the relatives and friends of those lost are in need of simple supplies. I know that whatever we raise will be put to good use, however it is allocated.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart. I can't wait to see how love grows here. 


http://tippystockton.com/category/all.htm


It's tough to see any natural disaster, but when it hits this close to home it tears you apart even more.
Thank you Patricia for offering to help.
This truly is a tragedy. 


On a lighter note, I would like to announce the winner of the $50.00 Starbucks gift card:

The writer of the blog, 
Congratulations, watch for an email coming your way.

xoxo


Thursday, March 27, 2014

~thrifty thursday~{how to:decoupage tray}

I have been a longtime fan of John Derian, just not the price tags attached.
So, when I was at my local craft store and saw this glass tray for $3.99, I knew I had to try my hand at my own decoupage project.
{Ben Franklin for all you local gals}

This is what I gathered up to get started:

My glass tray {they have plates too}
scrapbook paper
images {I used Cavallini wrapping paper and cut my images out}


I did a little Internet research on this type of project first and everyone suggested sealing their images with acrylic sealer. I gathered maybe that this is only the case for images printed on your home printer, but nonetheless, I bought it anyway just in case. 

Of course you need mod podge and scissors and not pictured, black felt and spray adhesive, and gold paint. 

Every article I read suggested using a wine cork to smooth the bubbles out of the images after they had been place down on the tray. 

I couldn't find a wine cork anywhere, so I quickly downed a bottle of Chardonnay and set out to do my project. 

With a good buzz going,
{kidding of course}
I covered the backside of my clean tray with mod podge.

Next you want to place your images down, mine being fish.
{seal them with the acrylic sealer first if you wish}
Smooth out any air bubbles with that wine cork.

Apply another thin layer of mod podge where needed and add your scrapbook paper that has been cut to size. My paper was rather thick, so I soaked mine in a water bath for a quick second to make it more flimsy and workable. 

Work the bubbles out of that and apply another thin coat of mod podge over everything. 
Let dry overnight.


The next day you can paint the back of the tray any color you'd like.
 I chose a soft grey green.
{not pictured}
Let that dry completely. 
Next, using a small paint brush add gold paint to the edges.
You could also substitute a gold paint pen.


Once that was dry I coated the front and back with varnish, letting it dry overnight between.
{not pictured}

Then using spray adhesive you want to add a piece of felt to the back. 
This tray will be hung on the wall, so it adds that extra protection.
{these are not meant to be eaten off of, decorative purposes only}


And after that is dry, your plate is ready to be hung up!






And there you have it.
For under $10, a John Derian inspired tray!

xoxo

Wednesday, March 26, 2014

~Starbucks evenings & a giveaway~

I mentioned last week that I would be having a fun girls night at Starbucks.
I was surprised to see that many of you didn't know that Starbucks was open evenings for wine and small plates at  some of their locations.
Well lucky me, because there is one right downtown, about 15 minutes from my house!
Last Thursday night I met my friends there for 3 hours of fun.

Starbucks really made me feel special, I mean, c'mon, look at this sign!
My friend took my picture with it about 20 times, and this is the photo I chose to share~one without my face :)


The even had fresh flower bouquets that they let me take home.
We had so much fun and had some of the BEST food and wine ever!
My favorite was the bacon wrapped dates:



The Starbucks team was so incredibly sweet.
They even served espresso for my friends who weren't drinking that evening.

Here is Holly, the store manager, filling us in on Starbucks Evenings.


And here are some shots of my friends doing what we do best~eating, drinking,
 and gossiping talking.




It was so nice to get out of the house, away from dirty dishes and laundry and just sit back and relax with some of my favorite people. 
I need to remember to do this more often.




What are your favorite daily escapes? 
What is something you do just for you, whether it be everyday, or once a month.

Leave me your answer in the comment section and you will be entered to win a $50 Starbucks card so you too can enjoy a little girl time!

I will pick a winner and announce back here on Friday!

xoxo




Monday, March 24, 2014

~repurposing and recreating~

Jennifer Rizzo sent me an email a little while ago.
She had a great idea for a,
 "she sent me what?" project.

 Basically, you receive a thrift store item in the mail
{good or bad} 
from another blogger, and you have to turn it into something else. 

I, in turn buy something at a thrift store and send it on to the next blogger on the list.
Well, today is the day we are showcasing all our creations! 





Here is the full link of participants:



Donna sent me this pail.
I'll be honest.
I thought it was pretty cute and wondered what the heck I could make with it.
I kinda just wanted to throw a candle in it and set it on my porch and call it good.

But, I knew it had to be more creative than that.
I thought about turning it into a fountain so that the water would come out all the little holes.
I also thought about turning it into a planter and filling it with flowers.
Lastly I thought about planting an herb garden in it for my kitchen.



 After staring at it for about a week, I finally figured out what I was going to do with it.
I was going to turn it into a bird feeder/house and the only thing I ended up having to buy was this 99 cent fluted pie pan from the thrift store!


I  rummaged through my stash of old hardware and found a tiny door handle.


It happened to fit perfectly in one of the holes for a perch.

Then I drilled a small hole so birds can go in if they choose.


Next, I used liquid nails to attach the pail to the pie pan, let it dry, and filled the pan with wild bird seed!





To see what I sent the next person on the list, please visit Kristin at

xoxo

~exciting news!~

I am over the top excited to share with you all that I have been selected to participate in the One Room Challenge this year!
The genius behind this is Linda from Calling It Home.


I am nervous yet excited.
Look at this lineup of people in this years challenge!


I won't tell you just yet what room I am taking on,
 but I will say that originally I was going to tackle our basement.
However, it rained here in Seattle, and rained some more, and rained some more.
{I think it's still raining}
Our basement started taking in water…..
Needless to say, I will not be taking you along on our basement journey because 
that would be just one big hot mess. 

If you would like to find out more about the One Room Challenge, please click here! 
Linda also puts on a link party so you can all join in on the fun. You can read about that here.
xoxo

Saturday, March 22, 2014

~EAT signs are back~

It has been forever since I made these, but I have had so many emails about them that I thought I'd bring them back one last time. 


Click here to take you to my etsy store!
xoxo

Friday, March 21, 2014

~lighten up!~

I really need to get serious now that spring is here.
It's my wake up call to stop making cookies and to start eating cleaner.
Summer will be here before you know it!
{or, at least I keep telling myself that!}

Here's a recipe that is delicious and won't leave you feeling weighted down.

Shrimp avocado salad:

 You can adjust this recipe to your liking.
This is the ratio I used, but you can certainly
 add more or take away from any of the ingredients.


xoxo

Thursday, March 20, 2014

~thrifty thursday~{paper organization}

I love being organized. 
When I am looking for a recipe or a document, I want to be able to go right to it.
 However, my paper piles have been accumulating and I have been feeling a bit overwhelmed. 

So when I found this large wooden box at the thrift store for $4.99, I knew just what to do.


The first thing I did was paint it a less "shocking" color.
I chose Rosmary by Sherwin Williams.


Then I headed to Staples and picked up 50 file folders and
 an adjustable metal rack for them to hang from.



 I printed out labels for the tabs on card stock in the Asterism font.

 Then I spent the next two hours organizing and filing papers.
I feel so organized now!

This is jus the beginning of my Spring cleaning!

xoxo


Wednesday, March 19, 2014

~obsessing over John Derian~

I have been a fan of John Derian's work for a long time now.
Do you remember when Target had a small collection?
They sold out so fast.

I am loving these plate walls using his trays and plates.
What do you think?






My friend Jill told me that in this months Country Living there is a article on how to make John Derian inspired plated…..
I might just have to give it a try!

xoxo

Tuesday, March 18, 2014

~Starbucks and wine? OK!~

I'm sure that most of you die hard Starbucks fans, like me, have seen some of the coffee shops offering
Starbucks Evenings where they are serving wine and delicious appetizers and desserts!

I myself am a Starbucks aholic.
I've been known to eat breakfast, lunch, and dinner there. 
It's so easy when you are on the go, especially with all the drive-thrus.

Recently one of our local Starbucks began offering the evenings menu.
Starting at 4 pm you can have a variety of tasty foods, and of course, wine, and beer!
Regular menu items are also available during this time.
Later this week I am heading there with 15 friends for a little girls night out. 
It doesn't get more relaxing than that.
Check out some of their great foods that can be paired with their wine selection:

Blue Brie Cheese Plate:


Truffle Macaroni And Cheese:


Artichoke and Goat Cheese Flatbread:


And of course, dessert!
Salted Caramel Cheesecake Brownie:


To find out if there is a Starbucks Evenings by you, click here.
I will be sharing pictures with you shortly of our girls evening out, as well as a little surprise!

xoxo