Frame Wrapping Paper

I've been wrapping presents for the past two hours and came up with an easy decoration! First off I am in total Christmas mode now! Don't tell my boss! Seriously though I am a little annoyed because I can't seem to find a few packages of gift card holders I bought. I stashed them away and managed to hide them from myself. Hmm. Maybe if I quit thinking about them they'll turn up! Here's hoping because they were just adorable!

Do you like to wrap or would you rather us a gift bag? I like wrapping because I think it's more fun opening a present that was wrapped. Anyhow I finally ran out of the numerous rolls of TARJAY aka Target clearance Christmas wrap so I broke down and bought some at Wally World aka Wal-Mart. I love looking at that kind of stuff. This year I wanted wrapping paper that looked fresh and colorful!

The space above the cabinets in the kitchen needed some color so I used these two frames that I picked up from Ikea and cut my two favorite wrapping paper patterns out and framed them. I turned the one on the left onto its side to offer a little contrast with the one on the right.

These framed graphics make a fresh and modern decoration. After Christmas is over, you can reuse the frames for something else! Or next year you can add a different paper in place! Keep It Simple! I'm sure you'll love it! 

Frosty The Candle!

Wow how the weekend flew. One week until Christmas! How are you doing? I'm definitely in the spirit this year but I have felt way behind this year in all my errands and traditions. Today one of my best friends took some family photogs of us for our Christmas cards this year. We went to one of our favorite places with the kids. Of all the shots taken I don't think we got a single picture where we were all smiling and looking at the camera. It was fun though and my friend has the patience of a saint! Ha ha! I'm thinking that they might get to friends in family by New Years! : ) 

So this week I'm going to be cramming in as many last minute holiday craft projects of home decor and gift ideas as I can fit! Below is a quick tutorial on adding a little wintry mix to make a candle look frosted!

I got this tall blue candle as a Christmas gift a few years back. It came from World Market and I love the color of blue it is. I have a thing for snowmen and so I thought this would be a fun thing to pair up with a snowman tea light holder I have! 

Using Mod Podge I took a brush and swept the glue all around the candle to cover it!

Next using my hand I rubbed Epsom salts on the candle to cover the candle. It didn't take a lot. I let it dry overnight and shook off excess salts!

I think they make a cute pair on one of our end tables!

It is so easy and it will freshen things up with the lavender scent! If you don't like lavender, get the plain Epsom salts and add your essential oil of choice! 

Shake 'N Bake Pine Cones AKA Scented Pine Cones!

As Opposed to Shake 'N Bake Chicken! 

I like bringing nature inside. Let me rephrase that. We have recently had signs of a mouse in our house and I do not like that one bit. I'm terrified of hearing a mouse get caught in a trap. Yuck! Anyhow, I like bringing things inside that make me think of the outdoors for simple decor. It's cheap, easy and more personal.

Did I tell you that we went to the beach over Thanksgiving? It was a wonderful break from reality. I certainly found my share of sea shells (no sand dollars - so surprised aren't you?)  but that isn't all I collected this time! The house we stayed in was surrounded by tall pine trees and there were beautiful pine cones sitting all over the ground. I collected a bag full to try and get crafty with them! 

Above are the pine cones I gathered. They're prickly suckers so careful with your fingers!

 

 

First I put them in the sink and soaked the pine cones to clean them. Next I baked them using a throw away pan I bought and never used for anything else. I baked them at 200 degrees for thirty minutes to kill any critters. After they came out of the oven the pine cones looked like they shrunk up a good bit. I was disappointed but I let them dry for a couple of days and they were back to their regular size. After they dried I prepped them and did the shake down on them!

Once dried I painted on a mix of Mod Podge and water covering the pine cones.

I mixed Cinnamon, Pickling Spice that I ground myself and Ground Nutmeg in a  Ziploc bag.

I shook each pine cone separately in the Ziploc bag and added more spices as I went.  

I let the pine cones sit overnight and gently shook off excess spices before displaying them in a bowl. 

They smell great and make for a warm centerpiece for any room in your house. 

A Glowing Exterior!

Even the exterior of our house has evolved over the years... I used to do nothing but the old school big snoopy colored bulbs. I'm sure they were fine but I started getting nervous about the lights because they got so hot. So for the past two years I've worked to freshen things up a bit.

 

Yay for WREATHS! I have always wanted to put wreaths on the windows! I love they way they look on other houses so I got wreaths for each window on the front side of the house and hung them up. I toyed with placement of the wreaths. I just LOVE the simplicity of a wreath hanging from a ribbon! If you have the type of windows that fold in for easy cleaning, you don't even need hangers to hang your wreath. Simply stand inside and open your window and hang the wreath through the window where you want it on the outside. When you close the window(still holding the wreath by the ribbon) it will hold the ribbon in place. I did take out my screens to do this by the way. If your window lock is in the middle of the window then the lock will puncture through the ribbon but that is okay because the window is locked and your ribbon is secured.

Here is one of my porch trees. The pot is covered in burlap and I put a red bow on top.I would have shown you both porch trees but my front door has all kinds of kid hand prints that need cleaning. ;)

More windows! I love the way everything came together. It's so elegant with the clear lights and red ribbon! Oh I don't have a picture of it yet but I also put some artificial poinsettias in a planter outside. I'm ready for Christmas except that I'm not!

Did you decorate the outside of your home? I want to hear what you did!

I'm linking up to The Blog Entourage this weekend. Come check out some other bloggers with me!

The NEW Tree With Ornaments ON

How was your weekend? Did you get to do anything fun or relaxing? Hopefully a little of both. It was a busy weekend here. It was one of those that was such a blur that I hardly remember what we did. I did get the house mostly decorated for Christmas though! I feel like I can relax more and enjoy things better.


I said I would show you our tree so here it is. :) Don't laugh! I think it's is elegant but also looks like it grew up through the house the way it touches the ceiling so Dr. Seuss comes to mind too! My mother-in-law saw this one in a store and sent me the link and I'm so glad she did. I got a pretty good deal on it and it's very pretty in person, oh and came pre-lit = heaven not to have to add lights! It's slimmer than our old one so it fits in the bay window very well and doesn't take up much room. Gosh I could be a sales person for this tree company! :)


I normally put a silver star on top but since this 9 footer hit the 9 foot ceiling I couldn't. Way to go buying a 9 foot tree with 9 foot ceilings. Not the smartest thing I have done lately but I can take a section off and use it at 7 1/2 feet too. I actually folded down the top of the tree to fit it in the room. Whoops! I added a very wide bow to the top as you can see. The walls in this room are a reddish/brownish/sometimes give a terracotta look, and the blue and silver accents on the tree contrast nicely against the walls.

Now that the tree is done I can focus on other things too. I will be sharing some homemade gifts I am working on and some super simple Christmas decorations anyone can do!

Hope you have a great week!

Giveaway Time!

I just love giveaways and anything to do with simplifying things. I found an awesome giveaway to share with you that offers some great ideas to make things simpler.


Jenny at Home-Keeping Hearts is offering an exciting giveaway now thru December 5th. You still have time so don't miss out.


Enter to win two prizes!
1. A lovely book with several craft projects 
2. A subscription to an inspirational magazine


Hurry so you can get in on the fun! YAY! 

Dress Up Christmas Porch Trees

WHATTTTUP Peeps? How are things going? I am so psyched because our tree came in the mail today. That sounds terrible, doesn't it!?!?! I know it does but we are doing a pre-lit artificial one this year. So glad it has already got lights on it! We retired our old one where all the branches were color coded and you had to basically build it.

I've been looking for a tree and did buy one a few weeks ago but when I got it home it was too skimpy. So I purchased one online Sunday at midnight just to get that special savings and free shipping. I selected standard shipping and didn't expect it until after the 5th of December. To my surprise it was on our doorstep tonight!!!! Game on! Let the decorating begin SOON! I'll show you how it looks when we get it all set up. Can't wait!

So here is a little project I did because I am a cheapskate! Last year we wanted porch trees to put outside and I swooped this set up at Garden Ridge. 

 

I can't remember how much I paid for them but I do know they were much cheaper than another set I was contemplating getting. The other set was much smaller but in fancier pots. I couldn't see spending nearly double for smaller trees so I got the bigger trees and dressed up the pots with burlap that I sprayed with waterproofing spray so they will weather well.

Just a simple touch adds to the look of the trees and saves so much money! Can I get a big YAY for this one?!?! 

Hanging Dried Eucalyptus

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

It's a time for thankfulness and family.

I hope you all have a wonderful day and get to take time out to spend it with your loved ones!

Here's just a simple tip that has a purpose more than just decorating!

I find it uplifting to bring nature inside the house.

Hang a bunch of Eucalyptus over your shower head for a splash of color and a refreshing scent that will help you breath better!

Enjoy!

Repurpose Shoe Organizer To Store Medicine

YESSSS! M-I-S-S-I-O-N accomplished! 

It may not look like much but this over-the-door shoe organizer is a helpful, simple solution to calming chaos when it comes to finding medicine in our house. The whole family has been sick for a while now and we are all on different meds, which makes it confusing at dosage time! We have three medicine cabinets that have always been crammed full of various outdated items lining the shelves. I found this plastic shoe organizer at Garden Ridge in their closet organization section. It has clear pockets (easy for wiping clean) and I condensed the items by sorting and organizing. I tossed all the boxes unless they had the dosage information. That saved room!  

The new organizer is hanging on the inside of the linen closet.

Baskets make great storage containers but this one in the kitchen was overflowing with medicine. Digging is never fun when you have a fussy child who is in need of a particular medication. I luv baskets but I think they are better suited when there is plenty of room to contain items.

I luv my label maker. :) Have I said that before?!?! I found an opportunity to whip it out and I did just that to label each pocket. I used plastic labels instead of paper and I didn't go in alphabetical order because I needed to keep the bottom two rows of pockets clear of any medicine that would harm a child. I put all the pills and medicine up high so young children aren't able to access and I also installed a safety door knob cover to keep the kids out. Just make sure if you do this too, to keep baby proofing in mind and keep all dangerous items away from child's reach! Anything that can fit through a toilet paper roll is a choking hazard.

All thermometers are in ONE place. Sounds silly but it really does help.

All first aid items are in a place.

I'm happy about emptying the medicine cabinets and reorganizing! We have one place to look for ALL medicine now, so next time a kiddo is crying or fussing, we shouldn't be scrambling around the house looking for the proper meds!  YAY!

Antique Sewing Machine and Chair BEFORE and AFTER

Hey, what's up? Okay I feel like I sound like my son who continuously tells knock knock jokes that really have no punch line. Are you guys getting ready for Thanksgiving?  I am so psyched. This year feels different than years past for some reason and I just can't wait for the holidays to get here. I am soooooo craving Thanksgiving dinner already. The comforts of turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, gravy, deviled eggs... I could go on and on. I LOVE food!!! 

So today I knocked one thing off my to do list! I have been looking around at Christmas trees, pricing and comparing them and tonight I bought one. It's really early but I wanted to get this done so I wouldn't have to deal with it later. I wanted one that was pre-lit to save a little time in decorating and I FINALLY got one! Yippee! I must say though that I didn't get the best deal. I normally shop to get the best deal but people have been saying to just buy the tree you want because you're going to be looking at it for years to come. Anyhow I'll post pix when it gets closer to Christmas and we get it up. Can't wait!

Onto my redo project - Remember the sewing machine and chair (belonged to my grandmother) I inherited from my parents? Well I did a few things to update it and try and make it fit my style a little better. I hope she would approve. :)

AFTER

I spray painted the chair white and covered the seat in a simple fabric that would bring out the white. As for the sewing machine, I like the straight lines and simple style of it so the only thing I did was paint the gold handle on the front in a brushed nickel finish.

BEFORE

Not so much my taste before. The chair was a dull brown with golden legs and a brown vinyl seat.

Legs off the chair so I could cover in fabric!

Stapled it down keeping the fabric taut.

Looks a little hotelish here I guess. Hmmm. Did I make up another word?!?!

I tried to give it more life and make it fit my style. I think it works even though the chair is white and the sewing machine table is a walnut. I hope my Nana would approve! TGIalmostF! Happy Veterans Day! Thanks to all who have served in the military or are currently serving.