Tessie Fay

Collecting- Glass Ruffle Bowls

noreply@blogger.com (Tessie) — Fri, 08 May 2015 01:06:00 +0000

I have fallen in love with ruffled bowls. Every time I spot one my heart does a little jump because they are just so beautiful.

It all started a few years ago when I spotted this large pink one at an antique store in Minneapolis. The color was stunning and the delicate ruffles made it feel so feminine.

It is not very often that I really fall in love with something while shopping. You know that feeling when your heart skips a beat? When you get that little butterfly feeling in your belly because something just speaks to you? Well, that's what happened with this little pink bowl. I loved all the little details.... the white exterior, the clear glass rim and its unusual ruffled shape.

After purchasing the pink one my eyes seemed to be opened to glass ruffled bowls everywhere! I kept finding them at various places like garage sales, thrift stores, and antique shops. I started collecting them one by one. They are each a little different with their own unique shape and color. And each one makes me smile.

Hobnail milk glass.

Milky white with a softer ruffle.

Tiny with rose colored glass edges.

Translucent...

Textured...

And quite the little lady with its small dainty feet.

The bowls have been fairly inexpensive... most around $10 or $15 (except for that big pink one). And they are usually covered in dust, but wash up beautifully once I take them home.

Also, I have learned to be very careful to inspect each bowl for chips and cracks. I like to run my finger around all the ruffled edges because those little chips tend to disappear in all those ruffles.

So next time you are doing some thrifting keep your eyes out for these pretty little bowls. Pick one up for yourself or give me a call :)

So what are you collecting these days? Any hidden treasures in dusty thrift stores?

Abby Turns 13

noreply@blogger.com (Tessie) — Mon, 04 May 2015 14:57:00 +0000

Another teenager is in the house!

This is Abby. She is pure sunshine. Full of laughter, joy and silly voices.

And I can hardly believe that she is a teenager! How did this happen?

She loves everything girly and according to Abby, a girl can never have enough bows!

Instead of a friend party this year, she decided to go get pedicures with all the girls in the family.

And now I am the mom of two of the most beautiful, caring, talented and lovely teenagers. Lucky me!

Happy Birthday Abby.

We love you!

Mantel Decor with Pom Pom Truffula Trees

noreply@blogger.com (Tessie) — Thu, 30 Apr 2015 18:28:00 +0000

Pom poms make me happy. Not only are they cheap and super easy to make, but they make me smile every time.

I had been searching for a little something to go on top of our built-ins for our living room. I needed something tall to draw the eye upward. So when I spotted this giant Pickle Jar at the Junk Bonanza I thought it would be the perfect receptacle for my "Truffula Trees."

Truffle Trees? Remember "The Lorax" by Dr. Seuss?

"And I first saw the trees!

The truffula trees!

The bright colored tufts of the Truffula trees!

Mile after mile in the fresh morning breeze." --Dr. Seuss

So here is my little version of the Truffle trees.

I found these little decorative branches at HomeGoods.

Then I made some pom poms with leftover yarn from my stash. If you have never made pom poms before just follow Dana's video here. (And while you are at it, check out all of her videos because she is amazing!)

To attach them to the sticks, I just popped them on. No gluing at all.

Awe... nothing like a few pom poms to brighten up a room.

The Princess and Her Mattresses- DIY Baby Gift

noreply@blogger.com (Tessie) — Fri, 24 Apr 2015 18:16:00 +0000

I have a dear friend that is about to have her first girl after four boys! I wanted to give her a gift that would be special. A gift that could celebrate her sweet baby girl.

The "mattresses" are burp cloths and are super simple to make (tutorial below).

The "princess" is a little more complicated but actually comes together fairly quick. I have made lots and lots of these little dolls. They are the perfect gift for any little girl.

The instructions can be found here from Martha Stewart.

(Just be warned that for the arms and legs you need to add an extra 1/4 inch seem allowance or else they are too skinny.)

The Burp cloths are made from cloth diapers and cotton fabric.

Alright, let's get started!

You will need:

scrap fabric (6" x 20")
cloth diapers

First, iron your fabric and cloth diapers.

Then measure the center section of your cloth diaper. This is where we will sew on the pretty fabric. Mine measured 3 1/2" x 17 3/4".

Add one inch to that measurement and cut your fabric. I cut mine 4 1/2" x 18 3/4".

To save time I piled all my fabrics on top of each other and cut out all 6 at once with the rotary cutter.

Once you are finished cutting, iron the two long sides under 1/4" and iron the short sides under 1/2" . (I always just eyeball this.)

Then pin your ironed fabric onto the center of your cloth diaper.

Top stitch around all four sides with a 1/8" seam allowance and you're done!

Pretty little burp cloths.

Fit for a pretty little princess.

Sleep tight, little one!

Kitchen and Breakfast Nook

noreply@blogger.com (Tessie) — Thu, 16 Apr 2015 02:53:00 +0000

One of my happy places. The heart of our home and where I spend much of my time. The new kitchen.

I wanted the kitchen to be modern, clean and crisp. It still needs a few finishing touches (like bar stools), but it is a joy to cook in and every day I am thankful for it.

I love the little details like the range hood and shaker cabinets.

The back splash is comprised of small rectangular tiles in varying materials. I love it.

We have ample cupboard and drawer space and still have a few empty cabinets.

I adore the five burner gas range. My favorite part- it's a breeze to clean up.

For the counter tops we chose charcoal granite for the outer counters and a white quartz for the island.

A place for my aprons :)

And a walk-in pantry. Oh walk-in pantry, where have you been all my life? I am so glad we are finally friends.

Refrigerator with freezer on the bottom. I love how easy it is to see all the food. And every family needs a chore chart taped to the front :)

Oven and microwave/convection oven.

Simple sleek handles under the counters.

And knobs on the upper cabinets.

Industrial pendants.

Double sink with goose neck faucet.

And my pretty English plates just for fun.

Next to the kitchen is our everyday dining area/breakfast nook.

I love how the sun pours through the windows each morning.

Green milk glass pedestal bowl from Target.

The table is from Ikea and we have had it for almost 7 years now. We do everything on this table from eating our meals, to coloring, crafts, and play dough. This table has had paint, marker, glue and even sharpie on it and everything comes off with a little soft scrub. I cannot say enough good things about it.

The area rug is the "Paddle Rug" from RugsUSA. It has the perfect small pattern to keep it interesting, but still reads as a neutral.

And here you can see how the kitchen and breakfast nook open up into the rest of the house.

Another view leading to the mud room and formal dining room.

And that's it- bright and airy, clean and crisp. My happy place.

Of course, it doesn't often look like this. We do have a family of 6! It usually has kids snacking at the table, dishes in the sink, popcorn on the floor and a few pots and pans cooking on the stove. Oh, and school papers EVERYWHERE! Sometimes I feel like I am drowning in school papers.

But even with the mess, it's perfect.

Pennsylvania Road Trip

noreply@blogger.com (Tessie) — Sun, 12 Apr 2015 02:46:00 +0000

We recently got back from visiting some dear friends in Lancaster, PA.

Road tripping with a family of 6 is always a bit painful, but after the death march (seriously felt like the never ending car ride) we had a positively lovely time. We only had 3 non-driving days, but I think we made the most of it.

Day 1: Amish Country.

The world's best pretzel. I am NOT kidding. These were heavenly.

Homemade Ice Cream and pretzels.

Shopping- Metal rooster fountain anyone?

Day 2: Philadelphia

Visitors Center and the entertaining and hilarious stories at the free story telling bench.

Heading out to get in line for the Liberty Bell.

Once we finally got into see the Liberty bell, Isaac's patience had grown thin. Ha! That face says it all.

Walking around Independence Hall.

Carriage Ride- a complete tourist trap, but one of our favorite parts of the day and a lovely way to see the city.

Lunch at Reading Terminal Market. Oh man, this was foodie heaven. So much yummy stuff!

I had possibly the most amazing doughnut of my life here at Beiler's.

The fresh apple fritters melted in our mouths.

Up next, the Franklin Institute Science Museum.

Brain exhibit- climbing through the neural pathways.

The human heart.

And the highlight of the museum was "The Art of the Brick."

Mind blowing Lego sculptures.

Day 3: Chocolate World in Hershey, Pennsylvania

The ride home wasn't quite as painful. After driving halfway, the hotel was all booked up so we decided to just keep on driving. We drove through the night and it felt like we cut our trip in half- Sweet! (Except for poor CJ who drove the whole time- you are my hero.)

Now go eat some chocolate.

Happy Spring Break!

Wallpaper.... Fail or Fabulous?

noreply@blogger.com (Tessie) — Thu, 09 Apr 2015 16:55:00 +0000

I woke up yesterday ready to conquer the world! Or at least conquer one tiny corner of our home. Or maybe just conquer my fear of wallpapering.

My victim: this innocent little nook.

This little cut-out is right in the center of our home. We pass it countless times every day.

It is the first thing we see every morning as we come down the stairs...

And the first thing we see coming up the stairs from the basement.

I wanted this little nook to be a place that makes us smile. That says, "Good morning! This is going to be a fabulous day!" And nothing says fabulous quite like a coral desk...

But I also wanted this space to be a spiritual center for our home. A place where we could be greeted each morning by an encouraging scripture or quote. Hence... the chalkboard (which really is a little too small, but I am still on the hunt for the perfect one).

And do you see that little roll of wallpaper in the corner? Next to the desk? It has been sitting there for two months and yesterday was finally the day that I was going to make this little nook into something amazing!

So after much tutorial reading and YouTube watching I began to wallpaper.

I made a few mistakes, but the process went surprisingly well for my first attempt.

After a couple of hours the wall was complete without any major mishaps. I do love the print and I have a bit of an obsession with gold lately, but I was not expecting the paper to be quite so reflective. Do you see how shiny it is?

It is almost hard to see the pattern because of the light bouncing off.

And every time I walk by I think, "man, that is so reflective!" I mean I did want a nice wake up call each day but I wasn't wanting to be blinded!

I keep going back and forth on whether I like it or not. I DO like it, but it is just SO shiny. The thought of all that wasted money and time is discouraging, but at the same time this is the "Forever House" and I don't want to walk past it everyday thinking about how I wish it wasn't quite so shimmery.

I think I will have to think on it for a few more days before deciding how I feel.

So what do you think? Fabulous? Fail? Somewhere in between?

P.S. I woke up this morning and realized that part of what I don't like is the coral desk. It is a little small and perhaps too bold for the wallpaper. Perhaps if I had a simple console or buffet instead with matching lamps and a big chalkboard? I also realized that if I turn on the light inside the nook it is much less reflective... Hmmmm..... much to think about... Any thoughts or suggestions?

Building the House Part 2

noreply@blogger.com (Tessie) — Tue, 07 Apr 2015 19:13:00 +0000

Welcome to Part 2 of building our house. If you missed part 1 click here. And if you missed why we moved back to Minnesota click here.

As the house was being built, we took a trip out every week to see the progress. It's pretty amazing how quickly things progressed.

Windows...

Then drywall.

Once the drywall went up things started to get super exciting. Rooms took shape and little details emerged like arched doorways.

This is a view from the front door looking towards the back of the house. On the right is the music room and on the left is the formal dining.

As you keep walking, it opens up into the kitchen and breakfast area (below). I love all the huge windows and natural light. Our main windows face southeast so lots of sunshine comes in even during those frigid Minnesota winters.

And the gathering room...

Basement...

Kitchen cabinets...

Built-ins...

Butler's Pantry...

Railing.... (Looking from the gathering room to the front door.)

First glimpse of our exterior colors...

Siding complete!

Garage doors (still unpainted)...

And my most favorite part.... the thing that makes me smile every time I drive home... the pink door!

Building the House Part 1

noreply@blogger.com (Tessie) — Sat, 28 Mar 2015 15:10:00 +0000

I have always loved interior design. I love the idea that I can create a beautiful and peaceful surrounding for myself and my family. I love that when someone walks into my home, they get a sense of who we are and what kind of life we lead. My surroundings greatly effect my mood for better or worse.

I have enjoyed tackling the challenge of trying to give each new house my personal stamp of approval. And after living in so many houses, I have formed LOTS of opinions on what I like and what I don't like.

We tried finding an existing home, but the more I looked the more I yearned to create a house that was all my own. So... the search began. The task of finding a reputable, trustworthy builder was daunting, but after countless visits to various builders we finally fell in love with Robert Thomas Homes. They are a local company with well thought out floor plans and beautiful modern finishes. I can not sing the praises of Robert Thomas enough. They were a joy to work with every step of the way.

So... first things first--choosing a lot! One bummer about building new is the lack of trees. Fortunately we were able to get a tree lined lot with beautiful mature trees in the back. Score!

After picking the lot, it was time for the design center. Now, I have heard horror stories of the design center.... couples getting in huge fights, or being overwhelmed and exhausted. But, of course, the design center was right up my alley and I loved every minute of it. CJ was a great sport and showed great stamina and interest for the first 6 hours then tired a bit in the end :)

CJ striking a manly pose next to the back splashes...

A few of our selections...

Exterior colors. Far right is the main house color with white trim and grey shakes. The bright pink is for our front door.

Hardwood floors...

Kitchen and butler's pantry back splash...

Quarts counter tops for kitchen island..

Charcoal granite for outer counters...

Master bath tile...

And what would building a house be without pony rides?

No? You don't usually ride ponies?

One thing we love about our builders is that every few months they throw big neighborhood parties to attract people to the neighborhood. We were able to meet lots of new neighbors at these parties and also got to do fun things like going on pony rides, bouncy houses and petting zoos.

After the design center we tried to be patient, but it seemed like forever before they finally started digging.

Then one day we drove past and it had begun!

I drove past the house sight nearly every day hoping for a glimpse of something new. I was blown away by how quickly things progressed.

Pouring the foundation.

First story walls.

Second Story.

Roof!

Then, one joyous Sunday we dropped by the house after church (which we did every Sunday) and the framing was complete! For the first time we were able to walk through our new house. I gave the kids the grand tour as they squealed with delight and excitement.

Cora and Abby could hardly contain themselves.

And Isaac would not stop talking! He had to tell us all about his new room and all the cool things he would do once we lived there.

Oh, this was such a happy day with the sun pouring through the window openings!

Well, that's it for now. Next post we will see drywall, siding, paint, cabinets and the pink door!

Home

noreply@blogger.com (Tessie) — Thu, 26 Mar 2015 03:07:00 +0000

I am still blown away by the fact that we are finally "Home". In our 16 years of marriage we have lived in 11 different houses, 3 different states, and 2 countries. As an Air Force wife I quickly learned how to create a beautiful home where my family could thrive no matter what the circumstances. I also learned how to make friends quickly. Friends became everything to us, especially when we lived overseas in England. Our friends became our family... eating holiday dinners together, traveling together, watching each others kids, and being a shoulder to cry on in times of crisis. Our life has been exponentially blessed by the families we have met and the trials and adventures we have had as we have lived around the world.

Mildenhall, England

But through it all I have had a little dream in the back of my head that someday we would finish with the Air Force and move back "Home".

"Home" is such an interesting concept. I have been thinking a lot about "home" lately and what that means. I have certainly loved every place we have lived. I have been happy there and embraced the culture and quirks about each new region. But there is something about THIS place. This place that I live right now... Minneapolis, Minnesota. This is HOME.

Minneapolis Sculpture Gardens

I grew up in Utah. My parents moved there before I was born. I spent my early years in Draper and lived in Sandy right through High School Graduation.

Tessie 8 months

I adore Utah. I love the mountains, the skiing, the quaking aspen in the fall, the dry air, the lack of bugs, the four seasons, and the people! But somehow, Utah just never felt like home. I know it doesn't make sense, but when it came time for college I did not apply to a single Utah school. I applied all over the country and got accepted to a bunch of different schools. I narrowed my choices down to University of Washington in Seattle and University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. I went to visit both of the colleges and as soon as I set foot on the U of M campus, I KNEW that this was home!

About to drive from Utah to Minnesota to start my Freshman Year

I felt like I belonged here in Minneapolis, like my soul had been yearning for this place for years. I looked at all the students wandering around campus and I thought, "This is where I want to be. This is my HOME!"

After starting college it didn't take long before a met a cute boy named CJ. Marriage was not in my original life plan... I thought I would get married some day... maybe when I was 30? But CJ came a long and how could I resist? He swept me off my feet and before I knew it we were married and incredibly happy.

We ended up only living in MN for a few years before CJ joined the Air Force and we moved to Washington D.C. for medical school. We continued to move around with the Air Force and in the meantime were blessed with 4 of the most amazing human beings.

As we traveled around from place to place, people would ask where "home" was? And I would always answer, "Minnesota". Unless of course they asked where I grew up? Then I would tell them the story of how I grew up in Utah, but I claim Minnesota as home :)

CJ and I both always longed to get back to Minnesota, but life seems to throw so many curve balls that we didn't know if our plans would actually pan out. And now we are here! How did this happen? I can hardly believe that my heart's desire has been fulfilled! Some day I will have to write about the countless miracles that had to happen for us to be here. So many moving parts and so many obstacles to overcome, but everything seemed to work out. Miracle after miracle! And now we are here. We are home.

It is weird to be in this stage of life. My youngest is 6 and my oldest is 14. I am slowly figuring out how to be a new kind of parent. A parent of older kids, a parent to teenagers. After so many years of always moving, we are settled. We are done with school, residency, and that terrifying "just out of training" phase. Now we have arrived. Good job, good community, a loving church family and a brand new house. Did I mention we built a house??? Yes it is more than I could have dreamed of. My cup runneth over.

Welcome home.

Sedona

noreply@blogger.com (Tessie) — Mon, 16 Mar 2015 17:04:00 +0000

I recently took a girl's trip to Sedona, AZ to try to escape the Minnesota winter. Unfortunately Sedona was in the middle of a cold snap and it ended up raining for a few days.

Despite the rain, the landscape was just breath taking.

We did have one beautiful sunny day and we took advantage of the warmer temps to hike and enjoy the beauty of Sedona.

The trip was the master mind of my mother-in-law. I hear lots of horror stories about peoples in-laws, but I struck gold when I married into CJ's family.

Here is my sweet mother-in-law. She has been a constant support to me and my family.

And two of my fabulous sister in laws...

After hiking we were able to stop at this beautiful Roman Catholic chapel on the hill... Chapel of the Holy Cross. It was so peaceful and reverent inside. It made me think of my Catholic roots and how thankful I am for all those faithful ancestors that came before me.

While I was getting ready for my Sedona trip, a friend told me about the "Pink Jeep Tours". She raved about how much fun their family had so I thought we had to try it!

We did have a blast bumping over the rocks and trying to stay warm. Of course, it ended up raining on our tour, but that was fine by me because we saw the most magnificent rainbow.

Just as the tour was ending, the rain stopped and we arrived at a beautiful lookout just in time to see the sun set.

Beautiful!

Rainbow Party

noreply@blogger.com (Tessie) — Mon, 28 Apr 2014 21:10:00 +0000

I can hardly believe my little Abby is 12!

Ever since she was born we have called her our little ray of sunshine. She is so sunny and bubbly. She is a joy to be around and always loves to be part of a good conversation. Abby is almost always willing to help and often asks how I am feeling and how my day was.

So what is the perfect party for a bubbly, sunny, fun-loving 12 year old?

A Rainbow Party, of course!

I wanted the various rainbow food to be the star of the show, so I placed everything on white dishes and a white table cloth. To add a little extra color I used double sided tape to attach a few streamers to the table.

The cake turned out fabulous! I made mine using this recipe then frosted it using this technique from I am Baker.

The rosettes turned out so sweet and feminine. And I promise it is easier than it looks.

The rainbow "happy birthday" candles were from Target.

And of course the inside was rainbow. The girls were all shocked when I sliced the first piece.

Rainbow Jello is a long standing tradition in our home. We make it every year on Thanksgiving. Instead of making it in a large glass pan, I made it in individual plastic cups (more fancy that way).

And to wash everything down.... rainbow juice!

For the rainbow juice I created a printable in microsoft word, cut it into a cloud shape then used a strip of rainbow scrapbook paper to go around each bottle. The glass bottles were empty starbucks latte bottles that you can find at the grocery store. (These were actually the archer farms ones from Target.)

The secret "Rainbow Juice" potion was sprite, strawberry lemonade, and rainbow sherbet on top.

A few more table pretties...

Right before the party I started to cut up the pineapple for the fruit kabobs, but it had gone bad. So our rainbow was missing the yellow. Oh well.

Instead of goodie bags I decided to make these tubes of skittles for each of the girls. I found the plastic tubes and rainbow suckers at Hobby Lobby.

The idea for the tubes and these beautiful printables are from My Sister's Suitcase found here.

Didn't they turn out lovely?

During the party we ate, played color tag, and opened presents. We were also going to paint nails, but I completely forgot.

We also made gumball necklaces from this tutorial. To make things easier I pre-drilled all the holes with a power drill. (Thanks for the idea, Britany!) The girls loved it!

Also Abby made the most brilliant streamer rainbow across our ceiling, but I somehow did not get a picture of it :( I hate it when that happens.

Happy Birthday Abby! Thanks for being my ray of sunshine and lighting up our family!

The Sweetest Little Doll Basket

noreply@blogger.com (Tessie) — Sat, 08 Feb 2014 18:34:00 +0000

Every time I look at this sweet little doll basket, I get warm fuzzies inside :)

I decided I wanted to make something special for Emma's 5th birthday and I knew this doll basket would be the perfect thing!

The pattern is from Dana over at Made. I absolutely adore Dana's blog! It is stuffed full with easy to follow tutorials and patterns.

The vintage looking floral fabric is from one of my favourite designers Camille Roskelly. She designs along with her mom, Bonnie, for Moda fabrics. This particular print is from their "marmalade" line.

The inside of the basket is lined with a cozy flannel (from Bonnie and Camille's Ruby line). I also made a reversible pillow and blanket with a green polka dot flannel from Michael Miller.

And to my complete joy, I found these beautiful Mooshka dolls at Target! She makes the perfect addition to this sweet little doll basket!

I am not sure who likes it more, me or Emma?

Emma's Birthday

noreply@blogger.com (Tessie) — Thu, 06 Feb 2014 19:26:00 +0000

I can hardly believe my youngest child is 5 years old! How did that happen? It seems so weird to be done potty training, done with diapers, and done with sleepless nights. I am quite enjoying this new phase of life, but I must admit it feels awfully weird after having babies for so long.

Emma is the youngest of 4. She has two big sisters and a brother. And now she is 5!!!

As much as I love throwing pinterest worthy parties, sometimes I just do not have the time or energy. This year we decided to keep things simple and let Emma's dance teacher do all the work :)

The party was at Julie Dall's Studio of Dance and Miss Julie did such a wonderful job keeping all the little girls busy and entertained.

They danced and frolicked around the studio with batons...

Played a rousing game of Limbo...

Had a killer obstacle course complete with mini trampoline, tunnels and a giant piano....

Played pin the tutu on the ballerina...

And chased bubbles...

Just to name a few :)

After lots of fun in the dance studio, we all had cupcakes and Emma opened her presents.

Emma is pretty much obsessed with pink, so we had strawberry cupcakes with pink cream cheese icing. I also found these adorable printable cake toppers from Tatertots and Jello here. They say "Tutu sweet!" Perfect for a ballet party :)

After cupcakes and presents, the girls played dress up, did a bit more dancing and ended with the big parachute. It was such a lovely, stress free party. Thank you Miss Julie!

This little impromptu hug around Emma, was my favorite moment of the day...

Adorable!

Happy Birthday to my dear, sweet, pink, Emma! I can't believe you are growing so fast.

Christmas 2013 in Review

noreply@blogger.com (Tessie) — Thu, 16 Jan 2014 04:09:00 +0000

Hello again! Sorry I fell off of the blogging wagon for a while. I know this post is about a month too late, but I wanted to document our Christmas this year.

During 2013, I was definitely dreaming of a white Christmas. First I transformed our living room with board and batten (more on that soon!) then I went and bought a flocked tree for the first time since I was a little girl.

The flocked tree was absolutely gorgeous! Especially during the day.

Our ornaments are a mishmash of memories with special meaning and stories.

My most cherished ornaments were a gift from my Uncle Jim years ago. They are my "Cinderella" ornaments, each one representing a different character from the show. The one below is the fairy Godmother.

The Cinderella story has a special place in my heart because I played "Cinderella" in my high school production. During the show, I felt like a real princess when my Uncle Jim flew all the way from Chicago to Salt Lake City to see me in the leading role. A few weeks later a box arrived on my doorstep with the most beautiful ornaments I had ever seen. Thank you Uncle Jim!

And what tree is complete without a train underneath?

Mantel complete with feather trees and homemade stockings.

Feather Trees (Hobby Lobby), Anthropology vase, and our newest addition "Hubert" the Christmas owl.

Now onto our favorite family tradition... decorating gingerbread houses.

Every year I spend a couple of days making the gingerbread and assembling the houses. It is a big project, but the kids love it so much and the house smells AMAZING all week long.

We all have pretty strong opinions, so each person gets their very own house to decorate to their heart's content.

Isaac went a little crazy with the candy floor this year.

Hubby's roof turned out pretty cool.

And last, but not least, we had a fancy candlelit dinner on Christmas Eve. Complete with English crackers and paper crowns.

After our bellies were full, I surprised the family with our first ever matching jammies! I know they are so cheesy, but they made me crazy happy :)

Happy New Year!

Thrifty Photo Wall

noreply@blogger.com (Tessie) — Tue, 19 Nov 2013 15:25:00 +0000

Today, I wanted to share a project with you that I completed before I started blogging. Let's call it a "Project Flashback".

I had a large wall that I wanted to fill with various photos, but I didn't have a lot of money to spend on it. Introducing the thrifty photo wall!

I began by hunting local thrift stores for various frames. My favorites were ones I found with texture. Most of the frames were only a few dollars and many of them came with their own mats. (Sorry no before picture since this was pre-blog).

After gathering my various frames, I took them apart and spray painted the frames antique white and the mats a nice happy turquoise. It is amazing how a few coats of spray paint can unify so many mismatched frames.

To figure out the arrangement, I placed all the frames on the floor and experimented with various patterns until I found something I liked. I originally wasn't planning on hanging the frames with their edges touching, but once I set everything out on the floor, I loved the look!

*Tip- I discovered a genius way of hanging frames on pinterest.... To get the photos positioned perfectly I started in the middle and hung 1 large frame. Then I built it up around that one. To find the perfect spot to place the nail I put a little dot of toothpaste (or glue) on the picture hanger, then carefully placed the frame on the wall in its correct position. Once you remove the frame a little dot of toothpaste will be left on your wall and you will know exactly where to put your nail in. Genius!

I love how the spray paint really brings out the textures and variations of the different frames.

The photos are all from our time in England taken once again by our good friend Teri from Blue Rock Photos. This is one of my favorites of us in front of the village church.

Cora and Abby are so sweet under the rainbow umbrella. The rain never seemed to stop in England and it was actually drizzling on the day of our photo shoot.

Here is a shot of the photo wall in relation to the new dining room. Our front door is off to the right of this picture, so newcomers always stop and look at all the pics.

A lovely little photo wall for the fraction of the cost.

Happy spray painting!

A Manly Space

noreply@blogger.com (Tessie) — Fri, 15 Nov 2013 13:59:00 +0000

I am slowly, but surely transforming our master bedroom. Recently I finished up a corner of the room for my fabulous husband. Since he doesn't have an office, I wanted to create a space that was all for him.

The desk is from West Elm. I love the clean lines, warm finish and mid-century feel.

Above the desk I hung a mini gallery wall of photos and artwork. I made the sign below after I saw a similar one over at House of Hepworths.

I also framed black and white pictures of us and a couple of prints from the "Travel America" calendar I found at Anthropologie.

The prints are beautiful and remind us of some of our favorite places we have visited.

As much as we adore our children, I wanted to keep the master bedroom free of family photos. Here is one of my favorite photos of us...

We needed a little extra file storage so we purchased this file cabinet from CB2.

Now I just need to recover his office chair and it will be the perfect space for my love!

Refashionista

noreply@blogger.com (Tessie) — Thu, 14 Nov 2013 14:03:00 +0000

Today I am doing my first ever guest post over at I Am Momma Hear Me Roar!

I have been a huge fan of Cheri's blog for quite some time, so I was thrilled when she asked me to be part of her Refashionista series!

Here is a little sneak peek...

For the full post and tutorial head on over to Cheri's blog here!

Have a great day!

Dining Room Reveal

noreply@blogger.com (Tessie) — Tue, 05 Nov 2013 03:34:00 +0000

The dining room is finally finished and ready for Thanksgiving!

I am still completely smitten with the chandelier. It greets me with a smile each morning as I walk down the stairs. The dining room is also the first thing people see when they enter our front door so I am thrilled to finally have this room finished!

The large centerpiece bowl and table runner are my newest finds. It is hard to tell from the picture, but the runner has a nice metallic shimmer to it. It looks beautiful against the deep rich wood on the table.

I filled the centerpiece bowl with a few decorative balls from Hobby Lobby, but I plan to switch up the centerpiece often. The bowl is classic and simple. The centerpiece ideas are endless... mini pumpkins, lemons, apples, floating flowers, etc.

Next to the table is my lovely buffet and sunburst mirror.

On top of the buffet is a hand made table runner, a lamp and a couple of my favorite ruffle bowls.

I found this bowl at an antique store in Minneapolis last year. Isn't it beautiful? It was my inspiration for bringing some pink into the room.

I always love a good gallery wall. The black and white pictures are hung in three different groupings along the wall.

Even though the pictures are getting quite old, I still love them. It is amazing how quickly the kids grow.

All the photos (except for the "Snow" sign) were taken by my good friend, Teri, from Blue Rock Photos. She lives in Colorado now and does some amazing work.

I originally bought enough of this pink and white fabric to make floor to ceiling curtains, but once the curtains were finished, I immediately realized that the pink was too overwhelming. The curtains drew too much attention away from the star of the room, the chandelier. I still wanted a touch of pink, so I bought some pre-made curtains from Target and sewed a smaller pink panel to the bottom.

Now they have the perfect touch of color without taking away from the rest of the room.

And since everyone loves a good before and after...

Before.

After.

Ahh... much better!

Sources:

Table and chairs- Macy's Home Store (old)

Chair Recover- DIY here

Chandelier- West Elm

Centerpiece Bowl- Crate and Barrel

Table Runner- Crate and Barrel

Black Frames- Pottery Barn

Buffet- DIY here

Sunburst Mirror- "Devon" Z-Gallerie

Glass Ball Lamp- Homegoods

Ruffle Bowl- Antique Store

Curtains- Target and DIY

Paint- Rainwashed Sherwin Williams

Painting Tips in the Dining Room

noreply@blogger.com (Tessie) — Thu, 31 Oct 2013 14:05:00 +0000

Our dining room has been brown and beige since we moved in two years ago. With company coming for Thanksgiving it gave me the kick in the pants I needed to finally get it updated.

Before...

And after...

Isn't it amazing what a little paint and a new light fixture can do! I am so thrilled with the new vibe. It feels so modern and fresh! The paint color I used was Rainwashed by Sherwin Williams. It is a lovely muted blueish green. It is one of those colors that changes with the light, more blue or more green depending. In my house it usually reads blue. I had painted another room the same color a while back, so I already knew that I loved it!

And here is a close up of the chandelier...

It is the Large Rectangle Capiz Chandelier from West Elm and it is even more beautiful in person! It is made of hundreds of iridescent capiz shells and has a beautiful sparkle to it.

I won't go through a full tutorial of how I painted, but I did want to share a fabulous tip that my friend, Carrie, taught me.

Have you ever meticulously taped off and painted only to find that when you removed the tape some of the paint had seeped under? Well, this tip will ensure that you get a perfectly crisp line every time!

First tape off your baseboards. When I am taping off I like to leave a hairline of the base board showing (see the little strip of white between the brown and the blue?). This insures that you will be completely covering up your previous color.

I also like to use those disposable plastic drop cloths because you can secure them to the bottom of your blue tape. (I use the same drop cloths over and over again.)

Now for the secret weapon... paintable caulk!

Apply an extremely thin line of paintable caulk to your tape edge and smooth it out with your finger. Once you wipe it with your finger, you will barely be able to see the caulk, but it will create a perfect seal to ensure no unwanted paint on the base boards.

Allow the caulk to dry then paint as usual. Once the tape is removed, you will have a perfectly crisp line every time!

I usually tape and caulk the base boards, but for the rest of the trim I do all my cutting in by hand. Below is a picture of my new favorite brush for cutting in...

A similar one was recommended by Sherry and Peter over at Young House Love. They are possibly the cutest blogging couple on the universe! I found my brush at Home Depot. The short handle gives you a lot more control and this particular brush holds a ton of paint! If you have never tried cutting in by hand, then you can watch this video tutorial by Young House Love. Sherry does a great job of explaining it.

I can't wait to get the rest of the room put together and show you a full reveal!

Pumpkin Carving 2013

noreply@blogger.com (Tessie) — Tue, 29 Oct 2013 17:57:00 +0000

Sorry about my disappearance last week! I have been busy painting the dining room (more on that tomorrow) and Christmas shopping! I am getting crazy excited for Christmas :)

But before I get ahead of myself, let's focus on Halloween for a moment, shall we?

Last night we got out the carving tools and the dance music.

Carving pumpkins is a favourite family tradition. The kids look forward to it all year.

Since I am the master carver in the family, I usually help the kids while Daddy makes the treats :)

This year we had hot cocoa and Krisy Kreme doughnuts. Yum!

After we finished carving, everyone abandoned the mess and started busting a move.

Pumpkin carving would not be complete without some impromptu family dancing.

We've been practicing our slow motion walks...

Emma was rocking it like a diva...

Abby started busting out the break dancing...

And Isaac wowed us with his epic moves...

And don't forget the big finish! Complete with air guitars...

Finally we all cleaned up and admired our creations.

Emma was the mastermind with me doing all the dirty work

Happy Halloween!

DIY Flapper Costume

noreply@blogger.com (Tessie) — Mon, 21 Oct 2013 02:53:00 +0000

With Halloween quickly approaching, I wanted to share our costumes with you.

We had so much fun with the family theme last year (remember the Nerds?) that we wanted to do it again. Settling on a family theme is never easy, especially with a teenager in the mix, but after much debate we agreed that flappers and gangsters were the way to go.

Since it was near impossible to find a decent flapper costume, we decided to DIY our own.

The dresses turned out just perfect and they were SUPER easy! Anyone with the most basic sewing skills can make these.

Here are the supplies:

Dress (found ours on clearance at Target for $8)
Long white beads (costume store)
Fringe (we used white from Hobby Lobby)
Head band and flowers (Hobby Lobby)

After I gathered my supplies, I pinned the fringe to the bottom of the dress and sewed it on using a zig-zag stitch.

*Note- You can see in the picture above that most fringe comes with the bottom edge attached. This makes the fringe much easier to sew. After you finish sewing the fringe on, you can easily remove that bottom thread with your fingers and the fringe will fall freely.

Once the fringe is sewn on... your done! Just add beads, headbands and flowers and voila! It's a flapper...

Now as for Emma, I knew she would have nothing to do with a blue dress! Luckily I found an old pink one from her closet with a perfect 1920's drop waist.

I added fringe to the bottom, slipped on some beads and a headband, and my little pink flapper was complete!

She had the most authentic 1920's hair with her cute little bob! These two are way too cute...

And Cora was classy as ever...

The three girls...

My big girls! How did they grow up so fast?

And me being silly, because that's what I do :)

And Emma wants YOU to be a flapper :)

Happy Happy Halloween! What is your family dressing up as? Any family themes going on out there?

Linking up to Project Run and Play and...

Pegboard Wrapping Station

noreply@blogger.com (Tessie) — Wed, 16 Oct 2013 04:44:00 +0000

Who ever knew that some pegboard and wrapping paper could make me so happy?

Introducing my new wrapping station....

This lovely corner of my craft room holds everything I need to wrap a present worthy of Martha Stewart :)

Let's take a closer look....

Here is the pegboard filled with paper, scissors and a handy dandy tape dispenser.

I love my little discovery of the wrist tape dispenser. I know it's nerdy, but I just can't resist its little pop-up strips.

Right below the pegboard sits my wrapping table. It is actually my cutting table that I use while I am sewing, but it does double duty for what ever else I need to do while standing...

To create the table, I used an old work bench that I found at the thrift store. I painted the legs white and covered the top with oilcloth. Also under the table I have some plastic drawers for all of my empty boxes and gift bags.

I purchased the oilcloth from the etsy shop Oilcloth Addict.

To the left of the table sits two old DVD shelves. These turned out to be the perfect place for all of my extra wrapping goodies. The black and white bins were fabric shoe boxes from Ikea, but they fit perfectly on the shelves.

I have a place on top for washi tape and pens.

And this antique server is the perfect place for my ribbon scraps. (Mom, thanks for the great gift!)

The bins below hold things like note cards...

ribbons....

and pom poms...

Pom poms are my absolute favorite thing to add to a freshly wrapped present. To make your own, follow my tutorial here.

I honestly had no idea how to hang pegboard and I don't really know how to use any power tools, but
with the help of the Internet and my sweet husband we figured it out.

I love this silly picture of him! Not sure if he is being tough, doesn't want his picture taken, or just smelled something funny... but it totally cracks me up!

The tricky thing about pegboard is it needs to hang away from the wall so that the pegs can easily move around.

To do this we mounted two long pieces of wood behind the top and bottom edge of the board.

First we used a stud finder to figure out where the studs were. Then we drilled the holes and used 2 1/2 inch wood screws to attach the pegboard to the wood strip and the wall.

*Note- it helps to have two people for this part so one person can hold the board while the other is drilling.

We secured the board with 2 screws on top and two on the bottom.

The strips of wood created a nice little space behind the board so that our pegs would hang easily.

Now that my wrapping station is complete, I am ready to go buy some presents!

Bring on Christmas Baby!

The "Handwork Tote" Tutorial

noreply@blogger.com (Tessie) — Thu, 10 Oct 2013 18:06:00 +0000

Recently I have fallen in love with embroidery. I find it so calming and relaxing. I love picking out the colors and seeing the image come alive. There is something so delicate and feminine about it.

I just love this pattern (above) from Sarah Jane Studios. You might recognise it from Emma's Bedroom. I ended up turning it into a pillow.

If you have never tried embroidery, you should give it a try. Sarah Jane has some beautiful patterns in her shop. They are fairly detailed with color and stitch guides, and if you have trouble on a certain stitch, you can always look it up on youtube :)

Embroidery is such a great little craft because it is completely portable. It is the perfect project to take on a long car ride, or to bring to the kids' various activities. Oh, and it's cheap! You can buy the hoop, floss and needles at any local craft store for only a few dollars.

I have enjoyed toting around my embroidery, but my large Ziploc bag was less than desirable to hold my new found love. So I decided to create a special bag to hold all my handwork supplies.

Introducing the "Handwork Tote"....

This small tote bag is perfect for little projects on the run.

The inside pockets can easily be customised to whatever your needs are. I made pockets for scissors, needles, thread, and patterns. But you could easily turn this into a knitting bag by making larger pockets for knitting needles etc.

It keeps it's shape and stands open so that you can easily reach inside while you are working.

Here is what you will need to make your own:

1/2 yard felt (good quality from the bolts- not felt squares)
Cotton in a coordinating print for handles and faces
Scissors
Pinking Shears
Thread
Heat n' Bond
Small strip of interfacing or extra material to stiffen up the handles

First, cut your felt pieces as shown (I included measurements for my pockets, but you can do these whatever size you would like).

Next, cut your patterned fabric. The 10x10 pieces are for the front and back of the bag and the longer strips are for the handles.

We will begin by sewing our pockets to the inside of the bag. To figure out how large you want your pockets, simply lay out your items and cut your felt pieces accordingly. I wanted a place for my scissors, my box of needles and my embroidery floss.

Pin down the pockets.

And sew around each pocket using a 1/8 inch seam allowance.

On the other square of felt, I made one large pocket to hold my patterns.

After you are finished sewing the pockets, you are ready to add the pretty patterned fabric to both of these square pieces. You could leave your bag as is, with just the felt, but I wanted to add a little pattern so I ironed on a patterned fabric. To do this I used Heat n' Bond.

First cut out a 10" square of "heat n' bond". Place it on the wrong side of your patterned fabric with the shiny side down. Make sure you are ironing on the paper part and not on the shiny side. Once it is ironed, peel off the paper backing.

Next, place your pattern fabric on top of your felt square (you just sewed pockets onto these). And iron the patterned fabric onto the felt.

Now, it should look like this (below). On one side you have your pockets and on the other side you have your pretty patterned fabric.

Repeat this process with the other square piece of felt. Then we are ready to start sewing our bag together.

This process is very easy. Just piece each of the felt pieces together in a bag shape. Remember that your seams will be on the outside of the bag. So you will pin each of your rectangle felt pieces to the wrong side of your felt squares (the side with the pockets) like so...

Sew each seam with a 1/4 inch seam allowance and stop sewing 1/4 inch from each end. Continue sewing on each of the rectangle pieces: two sides and one bottom, remembering to leave 1/4 inch at each corner.

Sew on your second patterned piece..

Then continue sewing all the edges closed to form a bag shape.

After you finish with all the seams it should look like this....

*Note- I also sewed along the top edge of the bag, just to ensure that my patterned fabric stayed put.

Now use pinking shears to trim all the edges. This adds a cute little detail and prevents the edges from fraying.

We are almost done! Next up is the handles. Take one handle piece and iron it in half lengthwise (1). Open it back up and use this middle line to fold each of your edges in (2) and press (3). Last fold your fabric in half again and press (4).

My handles were a little flimsy, so I added a small piece of interfacing to the inside. If you don't have any interfacing around you could also use a piece of scrap fabric. If you are using a heavier fabric you can probably skip this step.

Now fold each end down 1/4 inch and sew 1/8 inch around your openings.

Pin handles to inside of bag....

And sew the handles to the bag in an "x" shape.

Here is a shot o f the inside of the bag...

Fill up your pockets and you are finished! Now you have the perfect tote to carry around those great little projects.

As always, feel free to ask any questions you may have. And if you make your own, I would LOVE to hear about it!

Happy Sewing!

Time For Apples!

noreply@blogger.com (Tessie) — Mon, 07 Oct 2013 18:39:00 +0000

Oh how I love fall! The crisp air, the crunchy leaves and the apples!

This is our third year going apple picking and making fresh pressed cider. The kids always get so excited when the weather starts cooling off, they immediately start asking about the apples! It has become one of our most cherished family traditions.

I wrote all about the process of making the cider last year (here). This year, I just wanted to share some of our pictures to remember that sweet appley evening...

Washing the Apples

Emma

Abby discovering a nasty one.

Isaac on the rope swing.

A little slice of paradise... what a beautiful place!

More time on the rope swing.

The big guys cutting out the nasty parts.

Abby

Cora

All of my favorite people.

The whole family.

The beloved "Gator".

And here is the end result. Sweet, fresh appley goodness. We like to call it liquid gold...

Happy Fall!