Friday, March 30, 2012

Aren't These Awful?


What in the world?
1. Would you wear these and if so, with what?

2. Would you pay $2,695 for them?

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Easy Easter Wreaths

My Bible Life group holds craft nights every now and again and I hosted this past Friday night. Can you tell what we were making? EASTER WREATHS! Last year we made a "He Is Risen" garland for our fireplaces. I love crafting and it is even more fun with friends and dessert!


 I made a big batch of my favorite Orange Cookies. These are so buttery and addictive! I've made them twice and both times people have asked, what is in these? It isn't overpowering orange, but just enough!


I also looked around on Pinterest for a really rich chocolate dessert. These Peanut Butter Cheesecake Brownies are AH-MAZING! They are best the second day and served cold. It is like fudge!


After eating brownies like this, I think these napkins are oh so appropriate!


Onto the wreaths, most of us made the plastic egg and grass wreath seen here. You simple glue eggs all over a wreath form and then plug in Easter grass in the visible holes between the eggs. Super simple, quick, and cheap!


We also had girls make the peeps wreath seen here. We all loved this wreath, but seriously questioned the shelf life of it. Between ants, the sun, and kids we weren't sure how long it would last!


I love the color combination of these eggs. And, the lillies are a great touch!


Here is my wreath- I was the only girl that opted for the super bright Easter eggs. I am just not a pastel girl :) You can see I used small and large eggs and tried to be random.


The finished wreath on the front door! The grass makes the spacing of the eggs very forgiving! I love the way it turned out!


I added a lime green bow at the bottom and lots of grass. I have a really hairy wreath, but hopefully not a hairy front porch! hehe!


Happy Crafting!

Saturday, March 24, 2012

Dutch Oven Cooking- Recipes Needed

I had a little extra in the grocery budget this month and used it to buy an inexpensive Dutch oven at HEB, our local grocery store. I have heard people rave about one pot cooking in pots like this, but I have no idea what to make. I started a Dutch Oven board on Pinterest and haven't gone any further.


Any recipes to share? Please send me a link or share in the comments.

Thanks!

Thursday, March 22, 2012

Super Easy Shrimp

We had dinner recently courtesy of Pinterest. I love finding new recipes and trying them out. Marcus almost always like them and I sometimes end up eating cereal or nachos, but that is really more about me than the recipe! ha!

If you like shrimp, butter and easy, this one was great!


Simple Shrimp Scampi


1 stick butter, melted
2 lemons, sliced
40ish shrimp for 2 people ( I used tail off, frozen, pre-cooked and thawed them)
packet Italian dressing mix

Preheat oven to 350. Line cookie sheet with foil. Pour stick of melted butter on foil lined pan. Spread lemons slices on butter. Spread shrimp on lemons. Sprinkle packet of seasoning on shrimp. Cook at 350 for 15 minutes. Enjoy on noodles or as a main dish.

Monday, March 19, 2012

iPhone Help Needed

So, I joined the year 2006 and got my first iPhone for my birthday. We have an iPad so I am somewhat familiar with Apple, but am certain there are lots of cool apps out there that I should have!

Before I even ordered my phone, I ordered this cute case from Nordstrom. I love the orange, lime and gray together- super cute!


So tell me, what apps do you love that I should have? They can be for me or my 3 year old!

Help me out!

Saturday, March 17, 2012

I Love Me Some Green!

Are you on Polyvore yet? It is fun fantasy shopping! You can sort by
 items, colors, etc. and build outfits without even looking 
at the price :)


Green- Formal


I really love all shades of green and there are some great clothes to help prevent pinching today!
green accessories

Happy St. Patrick's Day to all!

Green- Formal by mrsannajenk featuring an empire dress






Thursday, March 15, 2012

Custom Subway Art DIY

Remember here when I showed you paint samples and had you guess what room I was planning to paint turquoise? Well, this past weekend, the paint was purchased and is on the walls! I love my new turquoise laundry room! The finished product is here and I love it! I wanted to share my technique for making subway art custom made to match my fabric. This technique is super easy and makes everything come together in a room!

This is the fabric that started it all! It can be found online at fabric.com and is called Secret Garden Paprika by Michael Miller. I knew I wanted a turquoise shade for the room and also wanted some red. I dream of a red washer and dryer! 

When I found this subway art on Pinterest- I loved it! I can't spend much on decor- it isn't in the budget and it is a laundry room for goodness sake! My husband would never understand "art" in the laundry room! I loved the words and design of this one, but I didn't love the colors.
 Here is my recreated subway art to perfectly match the fabric in my laundry room. Looks pretty good, huh? 

Here are the tools you need:

Computer software for handling graphics, fonts, etc. You don't want to use word unless you have lots of time to play with text boxes. I used my digital scrapbooking software- Scrapbook Factory Deluxe. I have had it for years and make so many things with it!

A color HTML tool, like this free one! You simply download the free software, paste your photo and then hover over a color you want the HTML code or RGB numbers for. I grabbed the sample photo of my fabric from the website where I purchased it and used that.

I made my art an 8x10 and printed it on 8.5x11 paper. You type your words, change the fonts and select your custom color. It was easy, free, and looks great!

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

My Laundry Room Reveal, take 2

This is my laundry room as of a week ago. It was blah, felt tight and had bad storage. We had one long shelf, but it was too high. Nothing could go on there without me needing a step ladder to get it down. The bottom shelf was only about 3 feet long and that just wasn't big enough. We decided to upgrade the laundry shelving and that led to me painting the room, too!


I knew I wanted a blue color with a little green. Once I found the fabric I wanted on fabric.com, I used it as my inspiration. I took the fabric to Home Depot and found my paint. Since I was going from a light khaki to a rich blue, I used a tinted primer first.


The color looks so different based upon the lighting and my camera. I would best describe it as the color of hospital scrubs. It has more green/teal that the blue/gray of these photos.


Here is the formula if you like it. The color on the left is more representative of the actual color on my walls.


The new shelving is wonderful! Both shelves run the 5.5' length of the room. We made the bottom shelf 12" deep and the top 16" deep. Just above the blue mop bucket below, you can see the "system". 


We have a top bar screwed into the wall and then the vertical pieces hang from it and are also screwed into the wall. We even have the space for a really high 3rd shelf. I think it would be great for off season items, like beach towels and extra blankets.


I love using my inexpensive homemade laundry detergent! I wanted a fun way to display it and make using it easier. While looking around Target and Hobby Lobby for a container with a spout, it hit me! I have three drink containers with spouts and only really need 2 of them. So, here is my drink container as a laundry detergent holder. I love it! I am using a one cup quilted jelly jar as my measuring cup.



I have never placed store bought liquid detergent in my dispenser, but based upon the comments and feedback from this post, it is too thick. You could try to water it down and then use double the recommended dose to make it work. I would do 50/50 detergent/water.

Also, please make sure this is out of reach of your children and they aren't at an age where they may try to drink this. It isn't a safe option for everyone!

We bought this inexpensive clothing rack at Container Store. It holds wet clothes or clothes fresh from the dryer and folds up when not in use. It takes up virtually no space and does the job!


When the door is open, this is the view from the hallway. Oh, it makes me happy! The small artwork you see to the left of the window was inspired by this vintage Better Homes and Gardens Art. I just found vintage washing machines, laundromats, and laundry baskets via Google searching and copied the text from their free printables. It allowed me to use my favorite fonts and the colors of my room. Click here for the subway art I created on the other wall.



In all, our project cost just under $200 for fabric, paint, shelving, and picture frames. If I had more funds, I would have loved a new light fixture, a red washer and dryer, and a vintage laundry basket!


 Lots of links and laundry room inspiration can be found on my Pinterest board here.

See the rest of our home here or keep up on Instagram and Facebook. Enjoy!




Sunday, March 11, 2012

Favorite Easter Pins

Can you believe Easter is less than a month away? Wow! I love Easter and springtime and have loved finding Easter crafts, decoration, and tips on Pinterest. Here are a few of my latest Easter pins:

Did you know that you can use a whisk to help kids dye eggs? So smart- this will be my first year to dye eggs with Abby Lu and I know this will save us some frustration.
via Toddler Boredom Busters
 How cute are these jelly bean bracelets? The pinterest link is broken, but I am assuming they are made with a needle and thread poking a small hole through each jelly bean and then the thread is tied off at the end. I love the many color combinations. This would be great for an Easter themed party.

How cute are these "carrots"? I plan to make these for my daughters MDO friends next month. She loves Goldfish so I'm certain she'll have fun handing them out. The paper looks like the simple clear cones sold at Hobby Lobby in the cake/cookie/candy making aisle. 

via Loralee Lewis

This would make the most beautiful tablescape. I love the colors!
via Be Different Act Normal
 I bought everything I need at Hobby Lobby to make this exact wreath last week. I love the simplicity of it and all of the supplies including more hot glue sticks was less than $20.

via Mom & Wife
 As a Christian, I can not decorate for Easter with just bunnies and eggs. I don't want to forget that this holiday is about He who gives life and gives it in abundance.

Free Printable Here

I am decorating for Easter this week and will share my collection of bunnies with you soon! Happy Pinning! 

Thursday, March 8, 2012

Seeded Glass Love

This is the light fixture in my powder room. The bulb and forsted glass came with the house and I have never thought of changing them. My house is only 4 years old, it isn't like they are bad and out of date. All that was true until I saw this post on Living with Lindsay.


I went to Lowe's the next day and purchased a seeded glass bulb cover and a vintage light bulb, called Edison style in Lindsay's post. They only had 1 cover in stock, so I bought it home and upon my husband's approval of the change, we went to another Lowe's to purchase the second one. The glass bulb cover is $6. What an amazing change for just $6!


The seeded glass is beautiful and vintage and shiny and bubbly and I love it!

The vintage bulbs are amazing! The glow in the bathroom is soft like a lamp is on. They cost about $8 each, but are said to last up to 3000 hours. They are also sold at Ballard Designs and Restoration Hardware for a little more.


What do you think? Do you love the impact it makes?


I plan to slowly change all of the frosted glass in our bathrooms to seeded glass. The Edison bulbs won't likely follow, but I do love them in my powder room!

Monday, March 5, 2012

My Nana's Banana Nut Bread

My Nana passed away about 10 years ago. She was my favorite- a Godly woman who raised 8 strong kids (many years as a widow), a seamstress, over the top accessorizer, and a wonderful cook. She is all the things that I want to be when I grow up. There was always hard candy and a big hug to greet you.

She met my husband for which I am so grateful. I only wish she had met Abby. Sometimes Abby will stick her tongue out when she is thinking (a trait my Nana had) and I think they met in heaven. I am grateful her church had a cookbook each year and I have some of her recipes within in. 

I made 2 loaves of her Banana Nut Bread for church recently. It feels full circle to bring my Nana's bread to my church as I serve and hopefully make her proud.


Nana's Banana Nut Bread


2 1/2 cup flour
2 cup sugar
1/2 t. salt
1 t. vanilla
2 t. baking soda
4 eggs, well beaten
6 lg. ripe bananas
1 c. nuts (I like walnut halves and use more like 2 cups!)
1 c. shortening

Stir flour, salt, and soda together in small ball. Set aside. In blender, cream shortening, sugar and vanilla.Add bananas, eggs, and nuts to sugar mix. Mix well. Slowly add in flour mixture while blending. Put in well greased loaf pans (2). Bake at 350 for 45 to 50 minutes. Enjoy!

Friday, March 2, 2012

Birthday Month

I received a 15% off coupon from Anthropologie since it is by birthday month. I love all of these things and can't wait to use my coupon!


The pitcher is my favorite and my most likely purchase. The plum and gold bag is gorgeous, but not affordable even at 15% off! Next time you are in the store, sign up for their card and you'll get a coupon, too!

Thursday, March 1, 2012

March Desktop

I love the month of March- the sunshine, thoughts of Easter, sandals, eating dinner on a patio, sunroofs, green grass and the sound of a distant lawnmower, my birthday, a breeze through an open window in my living room, planning summer vacations, playgrounds and popsicles!

Enjoy the month of March!