The Brilliant Crafty Type

Ella Takes the Cake Birthday Reveal!

2012-07-31T21:19:00.002-07:00

My Ella is a big, big two year old now!
I styled the most darling celebration for her based on her favorite book, Ella Takes the Cake.

Come take a closer look at all the details {and there are tons} at my event styling blog, By J Rachelle.

Events By J Rachelle is up and running!

2012-07-20T17:43:00.006-07:00

I finally feel like By J Rachelle is ready to share!
I posted the first event feature this morning. Come check out Amy, with Our Daily Obsessions, and her Vintage Hot Air Balloon party. It is ADORABLE!

I am hoping that I can eventually transform into Superwoman and manage to maintain a relatively regular schedule here as well as at By J Rachelle. For the time being, both unfortunately and fortunately, my focus will be on By J Rachelle.
Please come visit me there! I'd love your continued support!

Summer Learning Fun

2012-06-25T11:17:00.002-07:00

Most of you have probably forgotten who I am.
I am sorry. I really am.
I can tell you now that I have been working on starting an little ol' local event design business and a blog to go along with it.
It is all still very much in the works.
Feel free to check out my progress over at By J Rachelle, really not much to see yet. She will be up and running at full speed in July {I am shooting for July 1, but that is creeping up on me real quick}.
But enough about that!
I am sitting here with my big kindergarten graduate working on a workbook I printed for her.
I joined education.com to have access to all of their worksheets and workbooks.

Source: Education.com

I chose several of their 1st grade workbooks, 6 of them I think, and printed them out. To give her a nice blend of different types of activities I broke up the workbooks and put several pages from each into our own worksheet bundles. I then organized the bundles by level of difficulty.
We are about half way through the first bundle of worksheets. So far the worksheets have been challenging, but not so difficult that she is getting frustrated.
I highly recommend checking out education.com. You can pay for individual workbooks or worksheets or you can sign up for a membership to have unlimited access to all of their learning activities. I think I paid around $30 for a 6 month membership and it has been well worth it!
What do you have planned to keep your child's brain from melting over the summer?

I have been taken over by an idea {and I want to take you with me}!

2012-05-16T08:52:00.000-07:00

I feel guilty.
I have been a neglectful blogger, and for that I am deeply sorry.
My brain has been plagued by an idea. A big, awesome idea. An idea so exciting {to me at least}, that my creative moments each day have been sucked into building this idea into something real instead of crafty projects.
It will be a bit longer before I can share all the fun with you all, but I felt that I had to pop on here and let you know that I am still alive, still brilliant and still crafty.
I am looking for a few friends to help take this idea where I want it to go.
If you are interested, I'd love to talk it out with you.
I need one {or two} of each of the following:
Brilliant Baker,
Showy Seamstress,andCreator of Profound Printables.
If you fall into one of these crafty categories and are interested in hearing more, please e-mail me!
the.brilliant.crafty.type@gmail.com

One Crafty Contest Entry - Voting Starts Today!

2012-05-13T09:00:00.000-07:00

Do you remember my embroidery hoop name art?

It was just something I started on a whim and it turned out to be a big hit. I just love when that happens.

I decided to enter this precious project in One Artsy Mama's One Crafty Contest.

The first round of voting begins today, May 13. This will determine the 20 contest participants.

How awesome would it be if my pretty little Ella Irene made it?

Go check out all the crafty entries and cast your votes!

My Ella appreciates your support!

DIY Lampshade Cover {Brainstorming Session}

2012-05-02T06:00:00.000-07:00

Okay ladies, I need your help.

I have a seriously outdated chandelier in my dining room. It is bringing me down!

I found a nice big, white drum shade at Cost Plus World Market on clearance for $15. It was exactly what I had been looking everywhere for - and on sale!

Now that I am done planning Maia's birthday {HERE} I can focus on my coat closet revamp {HERE} and making this plain shade not so plain.

My thought is to stencil something on some plain white fabric {maybe linen?} and wrap this guy in it. The colors I plan on using for the stenciling are peacock blue and a light, fresh green.

I will be painting the chandelier white and removing the frosted glass light covers and putting my pretty new shade up there around the whole shabang.

My dilemma lies in the stencil choice.

I was perusing Cutting Edge Stencils and narrowed it down to these two:

Vintage Paisley Stencil

Zinnia Grande Flower Stencil

I haven't seen the paisley stencil anywhere before and it is darling.

The zinnia is a big hit a lot of places and sometimes tried and true is the way to go.

I need your thoughts! I won't keep them... just want to borrow them for a moment.

A Harry Potter Birthday Reveal

2012-04-30T11:25:00.002-07:00

Maia's Harry Potter inspired birthday party finally arrived yesterday!

I think everything turned out pretty darn well.

I can say that without my Silhouette Cameo, a whole lotta this just wouldn't have been possible!!

If you are a party planning gal like myself or you just craft like crazy, you absolute have to invest in one of these. Follow their blog to keep up with their great ideas, free shapes and deals. They did not ask me to say any of this!!

I cut all of the letters for my small pennant bunting using my Silhouette. I would have used it for the letters on the Happy Birthday bunting as well, but my blade had gone kaput and the replacement hadn't arrived yet. Visit my other Potter party posts {see below} to see how I used the Silhouette on my other projects.

The cake toppers were a huge hit. Obviously. Look at them!

My mom made them. Crafty brilliance is in the blood.

The gorgeous mirror I attached the goody bags sign to didn't have one of those standy up things on the back. My dad tracked down a piece of wood. Thank goodness we were at a heavily wooded, waterfront park.

These goody bags are simply dollar store lunch sacks with super cute tags glued on them.

Pyramid O' Frogs. You can read more about these sweet treats {HERE}.

Endless rows of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans. More on these {HERE}.

The kids got all of their wizard necessities here at Ollivanders. Try not to be distracted by the gorgeous water view in the background.

I know you haven't forgotten my way too cute felt Hogwarts' ties. I think these were my favorite part. So hard to choose. I loved seeing all the little ones running around with them on. You can check out my tutorial {HERE}. Or you can skip the headache and buy a set in my Etsy shop.

Every wizard has to have a wand. Kind of crucial to the whole magic thing.

I made these little numbers.

Crazy right?

Forty wands. Every single one is different in some way.

I am not posting a tutorial on these because I loosely followed directions I purchased from Instructables for less than $2. You can purchase their instructions {HERE}. Don't want to step on any creative toes. I did tweak the process here and there, so if you are going to make your own and want some tips - contact me!

Here is where everyone ate:

The book table.

The owl table.

Or, of course, the broomstick table.

And what did they eat, you ask?

How could one decide? I had a Malfoy. It was delightful.

All of the letters are thanks to Silhouette, of course.

Wash it down with a little Luna Lovegood Lemonade. Yes please.

We also had Butterbeer {root beer with awesome labels attached}, but I didn't get a picture. Major disappointment.

We also had a Potter Pasta Salad {a delicious contribution by my mother-in-law}, but I missed a picture of that too. It hadn't arrived yet when I was rushing around with the camera. Poo.

My one nose scruncher about how this all turned out?

I wish I had spent more time on the food table set up. I thought of the cute little names and made the labels and the awesome The Three Broomsticks bunting {I wish I had a picture of the adorable tiny brooms that separate each word}, but I didn't take the time to think about the look as a whole. I was pretty bummed about that.

See?

Little bit chaotic. Kind of takes away from the awesomeness.

Next time.

{Don't tell me not to beat myself up over it... you can't stop me.}

Check out my Etsy shop for some of these Harry Potter inspired party goodies!

Visit my other Potter party posts for a closer look at some of the details.

Potter Inspired Canvas Art

Pages O' Potter Book Page Wreath
Potter Party Invites

Felt Hogwarts' Ties

Chocolate Frogs

Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans

Thank you so much for joining the party!

{I can finally breathe.}

Featured on:

Linking up to these fabulous parties:

Monday: Crafts Keep Me Sane, Craftomaniac, Making the World Cuter, Skip to my Lou, Mad in Crafts, DIY Home Sweet Home, C.R.A.F.T., Cherished Bliss, Lines Across My Face, Destination Craft

Tuesday: Not Just a Housewife, Tip Junkie, Today's Creative Blog, My World Made By Hand, Cowgirl Up!, Chef in Training

Wednesday: 733blog, Someday Crafts, Southern Lovely, Gingersnap Crafts, I Gotta Create

Thursday: The ArtsyGirl Connection, Embracing Change, Delightful Order, 52mantels, Somewhat Simple, Live Laugh Rowe, Hating Martha, Crafty Scrappy Happy

Friday: Tatertots and Jello, A Little Inspiration, Addicted 2 Decorating, Whipperberry, Naptime Crafters, Thirty Handmade Days

Saturday: Six Sister's Stuff, Family Ever After, Be Different Act Normal, Too Much Time on my Hands

Sunday: Homemaker on a Dime, DIY Show Off

Bertie Botts Every Flavour Beans

2012-04-29T09:00:00.000-07:00

This jelly bean journey started with a free printable that I found {HERE}.

When I actually sat down to do the work I decided that wasn't what I wanted. I find this happens a lot in party planning. Lucky for me I didn't start doing this the night before the party.

I decided to splurge and spend $0.99 on another super cool box in the Silhouette online store that had the same look as the actual Bertie Bott's boxes.

I sized the boxes down considerably to fit two on each 8.5 x 11 sheet of white cardstock.

I still wanted the official Bertie Bott's look so I cut the free printable so that I had just one of the sides. I sized that to fit on the side of one of the boxes and then filled the page.

Because I have been trying to avoid using my own printer for these projects I sent these labels off to be printed at Staples. This is where the first kink in my flawless process came in...

I went to pick up my prints Saturday afternoon {should not have waited so long} and they had no record of my order. Well, isn't that wonderful?

I could feel my cool slowly leaving my body. What else could go wrong?

Next stop was Dollar Tree to look for cheap jelly beans. Nope. No luck. They did have itty bitty bags of Jelly Bellys, but one of them would hardly fill one box. Great.

Made the trek a bit further down the road to Fred Meyer. Of course a big ol' grocery store will have plenty of jelly beans. Nope. They only had two bags of the cheap ones and I wasn't about to spend $5 on the Jelly Bellys they had. ARGH!

Cool gone.

Made it home with not enough jelly beans and no Bertie Bott's labels.

I was very unhappy with Staples so I definitely wasn't going back there and since the party was less than 24 hours away I didn't have time to keep running around.

I sucked it up and loaded new color ink cartridges in our own printer and printed away. I wish I would have just done that to begin with.

Boxes assembled.

Labels printed, cut and applied.

Done. Done. Done.

Be sure to check out the rest of my Harry Potter party posts.

Potter Inspired Canvas Art

Pages O' Potter Book Page Wreath

Potter Party Invites

Felt Hogwarts' Ties

Chocolate Frogs

Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans

Harry Potter Party Reveal

Chocolate Frog Delight

2012-04-28T21:27:00.002-07:00

A frog just doesn't taste the same without some chocolate.

True statement.

I found a free printable to make replicas of the chocolate frog boxes used in the movies {HERE}, but I didn't want to use up my ink and I wanted to be able to cut them out using my Silhouette {the thought of cutting 40 boxes by hand makes my fingers cramp up}. I do have the new Silhouette Designer software which is supposed to make it possible to import images easily, but I didn't want to try to figure it out right now.

Soooo, I found a cute little box in Silhouette's online store for $0.99, bought some purple cardstock {hydrangea} and let the Silhouette do the work while I watched Monsters, Inc.

Since I was trying to avoid printing anything I decided not to do labels {ink is so expensive}, I thought cute gold frogs on top would be a nice touch. Once again, I found the frog in Silhouette's online store for $0.99 and watched Silhouette work her beautiful magic.

I heart her.

I assigned the privilege of making the actual chocolate froggies to my sister months ago. I am starting to get better at delegating since planning my wedding. It is really difficult to plan an event with this much detail without recruiting help.

Over time I have come to realize that, while I am super awesome, I am not a miracle worker. I either need smaller ideas or more hands. The former was clearly never going to happen. Well, I guess the latter isn't possible either, but I know a lot of people with hands. And I have learned that people really do want to help, I just have to ask. Asking is hard for me.

I'm getting off track here.

Here are the sweet frogs my sister made.

You can find the mold for this particular frog {HERE} and the chocolate candy melts can be found at most craft stores. My sister bought hers at Michaels {HERE}.

Her first attempt at the frogs was with a recipe she found online somewhere, wherein she was told to melt chocolate wafers in the microwave. From this she learned that chocolate wafers do not melt in the microwave {at least, not hers} and her smoke alarm needs new batteries.

All in all, I'm sure she enjoyed every moment.

And now...

... here we are, all packed up and ready to party.

Be sure to check out the rest of my Harry Potter party posts.

Potter Inspired Canvas Art

Pages O' Potter Book Page Wreath

Potter Party Invites

Felt Hogwarts' Ties

Chocolate Frogs

Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans

Harry Potter Party Reveal

The 5 Musts of Party Planning

2012-04-26T20:58:00.001-07:00

I love party planning.

I love the brainstorming, the crafting, the intricate attention to every detail. All of it.

My love for party planning always leads me straight down the path to insanity.

But, I still love it.

Over the next 3 days I am going to reveal what remains of my Harry Potter party projects and on day 4 I shall unveil my masterpiece.

This is my baby.

This is the first party that I have put together that makes me think I might have lost my mind.

But, I still love it.

Are you as crazy about party planning as I am? Or maybe you aspire to be?

1.
Time.

Start brainstorming months in advance.

If this seems crazy to you, then you aren't ready for a party like this.

Depending on the size of your gathering and the complexity of your theme, you will likely need at least one month for the crafting portion.

Plan your time wisely.

2.
Theme.

Make sure you choose carefully. No pressure. The right theme should have you buzzing with ideas.

You will know you have chosen wisely when you can't sleep at night because brilliant idea after even more brilliant idea keeps creeping in...

3.
Delegate.

This is something that is new to me and I'm still not very good at it.

It has to be done.

Hopefully you have a wonderful pool of friends and family that you know well enough to have some insight into their craft skill level.

Early on set aside a few party tasks that you feel comfortable handing off. Make sure you hand out assignments in the early stages of planning.

Over time it gets easier... I promise.

4.
Sleep.

As the big day approaches you will discover a lengthy list of things that have to be done and realize you have fallen behind.

It is inevitable.

You will be tempted to stay up late, crafting until your fingers bleed.

Don't.

Get to bed at a decent hour every night. If you start pushing it you will start to hate your precious party baby. Once your feelings start to sour it will only get harder to get everything done.

5.
Cut.

During the final week of prep time make a list of everything that remains to be done.

Everything.

No task is too small for this list.

Evaluate all that remains and then...

...accept that you will not have time to do it all.

Stick with the projects that you can't live without. If there is anything on the list that isn't a major component to your theme then let it go.

No one has to know.

Be sure to check out the rest of my Harry Potter party posts.

Potter Inspired Canvas Art

Pages O' Potter Book Page Wreath

Potter Party Invites

Felt Hogwarts' Ties

Chocolate Frogs

Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans

Harry Potter Party Reveal

Linking up to these fabulous parties:

Monday: Crafts Keep Me Sane, Craftomaniac, Making the World Cuter, Skip to my Lou, Mad in Crafts, DIY Home Sweet Home, C.R.A.F.T., Cherished Bliss, Lines Across My Face, Destination Craft

Tuesday: Not Just a Housewife, Tip Junkie, Today's Creative Blog, My World Made By Hand, Cowgirl Up!, Chef in Training

Wednesday: 733blog, Someday Crafts, Southern Lovely, Gingersnap Crafts, I Gotta Create

Thursday: The ArtsyGirl Connection, Embracing Change, Delightful Order, 52mantels, Somewhat Simple, Live Laugh Rowe, Hating Martha, Crafty Scrappy Happy

Friday: Tatertots and Jello, A Little Inspiration, Addicted 2 Decorating, Whipperberry, Naptime Crafters, Thirty Handmade Days

Saturday: Six Sister's Stuff, Family Ever After, Be Different Act Normal, Too Much Time on my Hands

Sunday: Homemaker on a Dime, DIY Show Off

My Newly Found Hunger Games Obsession {Better Late Than Never?}

2012-04-19T09:23:00.001-07:00

So I know I am a little behind on this, but I read the Hunger Games trilogy this week.

I absolutely loved it.

I just could not stop reading, no matter how late it was, no matter how badly my eyes wanted to close. Towards the end of the third book I was up VERY late still reading when my husband came home, looked at me and asked if I was reading half asleep. I might have been...

My point being, I love it.

Even now that I am done reading the books I find Katniss and Peeta popping into my brain periodically. Reminding me that even though the books are done, my obsession cannot just simply end.

I found myself immediately drawn to Etsy this morning, throwing myself into Hunger Games handmade goodness.

What did I find, you ask?

How awesome is this mockingjay bracelet/ring? My favorite part is the pearl... aw, sweet Peeta. You can find this at Sevinoma on Etsy for only $6.99. I think it would be too much for me to wear though, a little too in your face Hunger Games. I would want something more subtle so people don't think I am a crazy Hunger Games fanatic.

This is simply, beautiful. Who didn't cry when Katniss sang this to Rue? You can find this beautiful card at Hendersweet on Etsy for $2.50. I would love to put this song on a pallet in my daughter's room. {I think my heart just melted...}

Love the color of the arrow and the string. I think I'd rather the braided bracelet be grey. Beautiful. You can find this at Infinitywish on etsy for $4.99. I could picture myself wearing this.

There are hundreds of pages of Hunger Games craftiness on Etsy. These are just the first ones to catch my eye.

You know where to find even more creative Hunger Games stuff?

Rae Gun Ramblings had a Hunger Games link party HERE. I haven't had a chance to skim through them all yet. Rae has several Hunger Games related tutorials too.

I have to get back to my real life now {sigh}. My husband and I are going to go see the movie this weekend. Until then Katniss... until then...

And the Award for Best Party Invitations of the Year goes to...

2012-04-16T13:53:00.000-07:00

... Maia's Harry Potter Party!

**Cheer. Applause.**

The details are my favorite part...

My favorite part of the wording? The RSVP. Expecto Textum! Oh man, I hope everyone gets it.

The Words.

For the inside of the invites I came up with my own creative wording. I used the landscape layout with two columns in Word. For the font I chose Charlemagne Std Bold in size 13 {size 8 and 10 for the smaller wording}. I printed them in black ink on 8 1/2 x 11 kraft paper.

The Envelope.

I folded them in 3 parts to create an envelope look. To crease the seams I used a cheese knife {I don't have the fancy tools actually designed for such a thing}. The cheese knife was perfect.

I cut the shorter fold to create the triangle envelope closure. I just eyeballed it, so none of them are perfect.

The Stamp.

I bought this on Etsy {HERE}. It also included a little owl face stamp that I didn't use. The ink is black and was included.

I stamped the postage stamp first and then topped that with the Hogwarts post office squiggly line guy. Not sure what the post office refers to this as... but you get it.

The Feather.

I purchased a bundle of 3 feather designs from Silhouette's online store for $0.99. I ungrouped the bundle to just use the feather you see here. I sized it to about 2.5 inches long and less than 0.75 inches wide, filled the sheet and cut on white cardstock.

If you don't have a Silhouette, get one. It is a lifesaver.

The Names.

I printed the names as neatly as possible and in an "official" looking style.

The Seal.

I purchased the faux owl wax seals on Etsy {HERE} in bronze. They come with adhesive on the back so I just had to stick them on like a sticker.

For the invitations that won't be hand delivered I will probably add a glue dot to the back just to make sure they stick well enough to withstand all the handling between here and their destination. I want them arriving perfectly {of course}.

Done.

I hope all the lucky invitees enjoy them!

Want your own set of these fun invites? They are now available in my Etsy shop!

Be sure to check out the rest of my Harry Potter party posts.

Potter Inspired Canvas Art

Pages O' Potter Book Page Wreath

Potter Party Invites

Felt Hogwarts' Ties

Chocolate Frogs

Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans

Harry Potter Party Reveal

Oh, and did you notice the gorgeous bamboo flooring in several of the pictures? My husband got the living room and dining room done {with help from some awesome fellas}. I mentioned the other day {HERE} how worried I was, but all is well!

I am going to hold off on the reveal because I have a few other things to do before it is complete.

Linking up to these fabulous parties:

Monday: Crafts Keep Me Sane, Craftomaniac, Making the World Cuter, Skip to my Lou, Mad in Crafts, DIY Home Sweet Home, C.R.A.F.T., Cherished Bliss, Lines Across My Face

Tuesday: Not Just a Housewife, Tip Junkie, Today's Creative Blog, My World Made By Hand, Cowgirl Up!, Chef in Training

Wednesday: 733blog, Someday Crafts, Southern Lovely, Gingersnap Crafts, I Gotta Create

Thursday: The ArtsyGirl Connection, Embracing Change, Delightful Order, 52mantels, Somewhat Simple, Live Laugh Rowe, Hating Martha, Crafty Scrappy Happy

Friday: Tatertots and Jello, A Little Inspiration, Addicted 2 Decorating, Whipperberry, Naptime Crafters, Thirty Handmade Days

Saturday: Six Sister's Stuff, Family Ever After, Be Different Act Normal, Too Much Time on my Hands

Sunday: Homemaker on a Dime, DIY Show Off

Goodbye Carpet! Hello Bamboo!

2012-04-14T05:00:00.000-07:00

I have disliked the carpet in our house since we moved in two years ago.

Note the interesting design. My favorite part...

Despite the disappointing state of the flooring, I simply wasn't ready to upgrade to hardwoods for two reasons:

1. I was pregnant when we moved in and I thought it would be best for Miss Ella to learn to crawl and walk on carpet. I didn't want my soon-to-be sweetness bonking her little head too bad as little ones are bound to do.

2. New flooring is quite the investment. There are tons of things I want to update in this home and since there was nothing technically wrong with the carpet I just wasn't ready to bump it to the top of the list.

Well folks, two years later, flooring has been bumped to the top of the list for {once again} two reasons:

1. Ella bonks her pretty little bean on anything and everything even now as a professional walker {the carpet doesn't appear to be doing her any favors}.

2. I can't keep it clean enough anymore! Ella drops her cereal bowl, throws her spoon, puts food on the floor for the dog, the dog sheds, Maia spills juice, Clinton forgets to take his dirty shoes off and so on and so forth {you have kids, pets and husbands so I know you get it}.

One day I had had enough and I told Clinton I was ready. He had been waiting for this moment!

We went out, took a look, brought home a few samples and BAM! Spent thousands of dollars! Wooo {choke, tear} hooo!

Now the really scary part. My husband, my darling husband, my wonderful, completely UNhandy husband wants to install our bamboo floors.

My husband, the man who despises Ikea {yea, I know right?} because he cannot put their furniture together {he claims it is because he doesn't want to put it together}.

My husband, the man who fixed the leaky kitchen faucet two days ago resulting in a faucet that you had to turn off by pushing on the base of the handle instead of the handle and still leaked.

My husband, the man who fixed said faucet again yesterday resulting in a faucet that you can once again turn off using the handle {phew} but still leaks and now the hot is cold and the cold is hot.

He is going to install our thousands of dollars of beautiful strand woven cobra bamboo flooring.

My stomach hurts.

Sigh.

Pray for me.

If you don't see a flooring reveal on Monday, something has gone wrong... terribly wrong.

A Girl and Her Shoes

2012-04-13T05:00:00.000-07:00

Funny how I can take 50 pictures {in 10 minutes} of my littles playing together outside and manage to fall in love with the shots of their shoes.

You can tell a lot about a girl by her shoes.

Enjoy the little things today {especially little feet}.

Happy Friday.

Felt Hogwarts' Ties {Tutorial}

2012-04-11T05:00:00.001-07:00

I fell behind on the Harry Potter craftathon, but I am back on schedule; and boy, do I feel good!

The invitations are nearly finished too. I've decided to add one more little embellishment {typical}. Can't wait! I really can't.

In the meantime...

{A Very Harry Tutorial}

Step 1. Draw a tie shape in Silhouette Design Studio and cut. I made mine about 3 inches across at it's widest point and about 9 inches long. I'd be happy to e-mail the design to you, but it was super easy to do {I know you can do it!}.

Step 2. Trace your stencil repeatedly on the felt of your choice {I used red, green, blue and yellow - Hogwarts' house colors} and cut {duh}.

Step 3. Cut 1/4 - 1/2 inch strips of felt in the corresponding colors {I used gold, silver, bronze and black to keep with the Hogwarts' theme}. I just eyeballed it when I was cutting so there are minor imperfections here and there and not all the stripes are the same width.

Step 4. Using hot glue, attach brooch pins to the back of the tie's top {I used 1 inch pins found on Etsy HERE}.

Step 5. Use craft glue to adhere the strips of felt to the tie at about a 45 degree angle {roughly, of course}.

Step 6. The glue should set for 24 hours to ensure the strongest hold. Since I didn't do this project at the last minute I was able to abide by that rule {kind of proud, not gonna lie}, but if you are short on time you will be okay. I would let it set for at least 8 hours.

Step 7. Beam with pride.

I've got 40 of these super cute ties burnin' a hole in my Harry Potter supply stash.

How excited am I to see the kids wearing these at Maia's 6th birthday soiree?

Very excited. I am very excited.

I've still got a bunch of felt to use for bunting and/or table runners. What to do... what to do?

Love them, but don't want to do the work? These ties are now available in my Etsy shop!

Check out the rest of my Harry Potter party posts!

Potter Inspired Canvas Art

Pages O' Potter Book Page Wreath

Potter Party Invites

Felt Hogwarts' Ties

Chocolate Frogs

Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans

Harry Potter Party Reveal

Linking up to these fabulous parties:

Monday: Crafts Keep Me Sane, Craftomaniac, Making the World Cuter, Skip to my Lou, Mad in Crafts, DIY Home Sweet Home, C.R.A.F.T., Cherished Bliss, Lines Across My Face

Tuesday: Not Just a Housewife, Tip Junkie, Today's Creative Blog, My World Made By Hand, Cowgirl Up!, Chef in Training

Wednesday: 733blog, Someday Crafts, Southern Lovely, Gingersnap Crafts, I Gotta Create

Thursday: The ArtsyGirl Connection, Embracing Change, Delightful Order, 52mantels, Somewhat Simple, Live Laugh Rowe, Hating Martha, Crafty Scrappy Happy

Friday: Tatertots and Jello, A Little Inspiration, Addicted 2 Decorating, Whipperberry, Naptime Crafters, Thirty Handmade Days

Saturday: Six Sister's Stuff, Family Ever After, Be Different Act Normal, Too Much Time on my Hands

Sunday: Homemaker on a Dime, DIY Show Off

I am still not a morning person {but I do get up early}!

2012-04-10T05:00:00.000-07:00

It has been 21 days since I challenged myself to become a morning person.

I would still not describe myself as a morning person. I don't wake up with a "go get 'em" attitude.

I do, however, wake up earlier. And my waking up before everyone else has made mornings here a heck of a lot more pleasant! Maia has been on time everyday {except one}!

What did I discover on this tiresome journey?

1. Keep your alarm out of arm's reach. You absolutely have to do this. I guarantee that if you can reach it from the bed you will hit snooze and you will continue to do so for at least 30 minutes.

2. Drink one cup of coffee before anyone gets up. Drink a second cup two hours later. I started drinking coffee in week two of the challenge. It is amazing. I'm not sure how I functioned as a mother before coffee... it is a blur...

3. If you have the opportunity to take a short nap at some point in the day - TAKE IT.

4. It is impossible to get up early and not use the computer during that time.

5. Not cleaning during your morning alone time is crucial.

6. You may discover, as I did, that getting up as early as six isn't necessary. Waking up at 6:30 was more than enough time for me to enjoy some peace and quiet, have a nice warm drink and allow my brain to adjust to the day at it's own pace.

7. If you aren't a morning person already, this challenge will not turn you into one. It will, however, make you an early riser. That is good enough for me.

{source}

The early bird gets the worm.

{source}

Have a great day!

Watch out for tomorrow morning's Potter post!

Our Formally Informal Easter

2012-04-09T12:05:00.001-07:00

We had a lovely Easter.

My Husband's parents are out of town so they were not around to host this year's Easter. Sad. We decided to offer up our humble abode to a few family and friends.

It was wonderful.

I had so much fun preparing the Easter favors and setting up our simple {but fun} Easter table.

We are pretty casual at our house, but we love hosting gatherings and I wanted this one to have a smidge of formality to it.

I wanted us all to be able to sit at the table instead of spread throughout the house. We don't have the room at our dining table for everyone so I improvised.

We have a folding buffet style table that I lugged up the stairs for our version of a formal Easter dinner.

How do you make a folding, plastic table look like a dining table? You cover it up.

I don't have any rectangular table cloths since our dining table is round so I cut a strip of painter's paper and secured it to the table using tape. I adorned the table with the adorable Easter favors I made and added a few crystal votive holders filled with an assortment of crayons {the grown ups were very excited to color on the table}. To give it the final grown up twist I added each guest's wine glass.

Beautiful.

It was great that the favors were able to pull double duty as the centerpiece as well.

I made these potted beauties with dollar store buckets, potting soil, tiny strawberry starters, tasty chocolate mint plants and a glittery easter egg stake from the dollar store.

I wonder if the strawberries will have a hint of chocolatey mint freshness?

The lovely white backdrop brought to you by my trusty assistant, Maia.

I hope you had a fabulous holiday weekend!

Linking up to these fabulous parties:

Monday: Crafts Keep Me Sane, Craftomaniac, Making the World Cuter, Skip to my Lou, Mad in Crafts, DIY Home Sweet Home, C.R.A.F.T., Cherished Bliss, Lines Across My Face

Tuesday: Not Just a Housewife, Tip Junkie, Today's Creative Blog, My World Made By Hand, Cowgirl Up!, Chef in Training, A Little Tipsy

Wednesday: 733blog, Someday Crafts, Southern Lovely, Gingersnap Crafts, I Gotta Create

Thursday: The ArtsyGirl Connection, Embracing Change, Delightful Order, 52mantels, Somewhat Simple, Live Laugh Rowe, Hating Martha, Crafty Scrappy Happy

Friday: Tatertots and Jello, A Little Inspiration, Addicted 2 Decorating, Whipperberry, Naptime Crafters, Thirty Handmade Days

Saturday: Six Sister's Stuff, Family Ever After, Be Different Act Normal, Too Much Time on my Hands

Sunday: Homemaker on a Dime, DIY Show Off

Do you ever feel like your brain might throw up?

2012-04-04T16:11:00.000-07:00

My brain is so overworked as of late, that it has finally crapped out on me.

Perhaps I can describe the feeling in a way you might relate to.

My brain feels like it is in the early stages of pregnancy {no, I am not}.

My brain feels like it ate some bad Thai food.

My brain feels like it is being pulled in 4 different directions and not one of them is the route it wants to take.

My brain feels like Eeyore trying to be Tigger.

Yep, I think that about covers it.

I know of several factors that started me down the path into the depths of yuck. I, however, have less of an idea of what I need to climb out of the pit of blah.

I do know that I am going to try.

I had completely forgotten that I have a 'sometimes i just want to smile' Pinterest board! It is almost like my past self knew that there would undoubtedly be a day when future self would need a pick me up.

So here are a few things that just might help me turn this thing around!

{source}

The sizes and colors part isn't quite as motivating...

{source}

And most importantly, always, yes ALWAYS...

{source}

The next step for me is to visit the world's BEST stylist and get myself a new hair do! Tonight cannot come soon enough...

Go away no good, rotten case of the ho hums!

April Showers Bring May Flowers {Tongue Depressor Spring Pallet Art}

2012-04-01T05:00:00.002-07:00

Here in Seattle our "April Showers" start in... well, actually, some would say our "April Showers" don't start in April because they still haven't stopped.

I would disagree.

Yes, it does rain here in the gorgeous Northwest more than it rains in many other places, but does it rain all the time? Absolutely not. We have amazing summers here. Not too hot. Not too cold. Perfection. But that is neither here, nor there.

Maia wanted to craft something up last week and there was a project I had been dying to try.

U-Create made adorable mini pallets using craft sticks and canvas. Love them! They've got a super easy tutorial {HERE}.

I knew I had a box of tongue depressors that my mother had brought over {she works in a doctor's office} many, many moons ago and those are basically craft sticks, right?

I have a few canvases in stock, but I wasn't sure how well this project was going turn out, so for this first go round we used a piece of cardboard. Next time I will probably use a canvas or several layers of cardboard to get a thicker base. I would also go with smaller dimensions in the future.

Cutting the depressors was an interesting task. Pieces of those babies were flying everywhere. Every time I cut one I told Maia to close her eyes. My husband almost got it a few times, and he was in the other room. Hey, I had warned him.

Crafting can be a dangerous business.

After I cut the depressors, I hot glued them onto the cardboard and then let Maia do her thing.

I asked her to paint a person holding an umbrella.

She decided on her own to add a few rain drops. They were so cute and tiny and she was being so careful.

I walked away for a minute. A minute folks. When I came back I discovered that there had been a monsoon. The drops were no longer teeny weeny, she was forcefully pounding the paintbrush here and then there and then there again. All I could do was stare {mouth agape}.

Can you spot the little drops amongst the madness?

Oh, Maia, I love you.

You probably recognize the bouquet of coffee filter flowers I made for the mantel {HERE}.

I do adore the little splashing drops, don't you?

I haven't found the perfect place for this yet. It was on the mantel. Then hanging by the door. Now it is back on the mantel. Maybe hang it on the inside of the entry door?

Yeesh. The decisions I am forced to make each day.

Being a craftateer is not for the weak.

Linking up to these fabulous parties:

Monday: Crafts Keep Me Sane, Craftomaniac, Making the World Cuter, Skip to my Lou, Mad in Crafts, DIY Home Sweet Home, C.R.A.F.T., Cherished Bliss, Lines Across My Face

Tuesday: Not Just a Housewife, Tip Junkie, Today's Creative Blog, My World Made By Hand, Cowgirl Up!, Chef in Training

Wednesday: 733blog, Someday Crafts, Southern Lovely, Gingersnap Crafts, I Gotta Create

Thursday: The ArtsyGirl Connection, Embracing Change, Delightful Order, 52mantels, Somewhat Simple, Live Laugh Rowe, Hating Martha, Crafty Scrappy Happy

Friday: Tatertots and Jello, A Little Inspiration, Addicted 2 Decorating, Whipperberry, Naptime Crafters, Thirty Handmade Days

Saturday: Six Sister's Stuff, Family Ever After, Be Different Act Normal, Too Much Time on my Hands

Sunday: Homemaker on a Dime, DIY Show Off

My Mantel is Finally in Full Spring

2012-03-29T10:49:00.003-07:00

Spring mantels have been popping up all over the place in the last month. So bright. So cheery. So fresh.

I love them.

Despite seeing all of the creative displays I wasn't feeling motivated to transform my drab mantel.

And then it happened.

Sunshine.

It is amazing what a little peek at the big, bright guy can do to a person. I was suddenly inspired and moving full spring ahead!

I got rid of the deep, chocolatey brown wall above my mantel, painting it a less "light sucking" color, Simply Beige by Sherwin Williams {same color as the rest of the living room walls}.

Oh the things a girl can accomplish when the little one is napping...

I haven't gotten around to painting the brick and mantel, they are still the yucky, dated brown color. Thanks to the magic of photo editing I was able to take a peek at what a little white paint might do... I am in love. I can hear the fireplace whispering "paint me" from every corner of the house.

I love my refreshingly simple Spring mantel.

The gorgeous bouquet was inspired by Little Birdie Secrets. The flowers are made using coffee filters! Beautiful. Want to make some yourself? Check out the quick, easy tutorial {HERE}. I did not have floral wire or tape. I used some wire out of the closet. You can't see the sticks in this vase anyway, so no biggie.

I made the "Spring." bunting from paper doilies I found at Dollar Tree and letters cut from scrapbook paper on my Silhouette.

I ran a piece of twine through the doilies and tied them to two dowels I found in the closet. To pretty up the dowels I gave them a quick coat of white paint and then wrapped them in yellow and white twine from The Twinery.

To keep with my yellow, white and blue theme I snatched up two baby blue buttons and attached the bunting to the dowels with those to cover up the knot.

To hold the dowels I dug out two small terra cotta pots and painted them white, yellow and blue. I wasn't worried about terra cotta showing through so I just did one coat. To keep the dowels in place I stuck a little square of floral foam in the bottom, jabbed the dowel in it and then filled the pot with river rocks to keep them from shifting.

The frame was a Goodwill find from long ago that I spray painted white. The simple, elegant vase was a fellow Goodwill pickup. I love Goodwill!

Lastly, the bunny was cut from scrapbook paper on the ol' Silhouette that I hung on the frame's wire using a mini clothespin.

Ta-da!

How pumped was I that I didn't have to run out to buy a single thing to do this??

Linking up to these fabulous parties:

Monday: Crafts Keep Me Sane, Craftomaniac, Making the World Cuter, Skip to my Lou, Mad in Crafts, DIY Home Sweet Home, C.R.A.F.T., Cherished Bliss, Lines Across My Face

Tuesday: Not Just a Housewife, Tip Junkie, Today's Creative Blog, My World Made By Hand, Cowgirl Up!, Chef in Training

Wednesday: 733blog, Someday Crafts, Southern Lovely, Gingersnap Crafts, I Gotta Create

Thursday: The ArtsyGirl Connection, Embracing Change, Delightful Order, 52mantels, Somewhat Simple, Live Laugh Rowe, Hating Martha, Crafty Scrappy Happy

Friday: Tatertots and Jello, A Little Inspiration, Addicted 2 Decorating, Whipperberry, Naptime Crafters, Thirty Handmade Days

Saturday: Six Sister's Stuff, Family Ever After, Be Different Act Normal, Too Much Time on my Hands

Sunday: Homemaker on a Dime, DIY Show Off

**My entry into Strut Your Stuff sponsored by Appliances Online and the Bosch Washing Machines

I remember when Friday used to mean the work week was over...

2012-03-23T22:14:00.000-07:00

You know you need a break when ...

... you catch yourself giving your 18 month old the stink eye when her back is turned.

... you bribe your 5 year old with a late night movie if she rubs your feet.

... you stop thinking "STOP TALKING!" as you listen to your chatty husband go on and on about something which is LITERALLY a waste of time {even he knew it was dumb} and you actually tell him to shut it.

... you tell your husband to go to the match without you and the kids and {for once} he does precisely as you say and you find yourself imagining the soccer ball flying into the stands and hitting him square in the face.

... you throw together a hod podge dinner for your children and completely forget to feed yourself {until it is so late and you are so tired that starving is a risk you are willing to take}.

... you get in bed, realize you forgot to brush your teeth, take a deep breath and say "forget it."

... you look to the heavens and pray that you'll make it to 1 o'clock tomorrow when you can drop your kids off at your aunt's house and walk away for 24 hours.

**deep breath**

Ladies, I need a break.

Book Page Wreath {Pages o' Potter}

2012-03-21T16:18:00.008-07:00

I mentioned in my Potter canvas post {HERE}, a pretty little girl I know is having a birthday soon...

I like to make a big deal out of my sweet little girls' birthdays {I think they enjoy it... but it might be mostly me.}. I start the planning process a few months before the big event and usually need at least a month to handle all the preparations. The parties are always themed, the invitations are always handmade and the decor is always awesome.

Maia's birthday themes {1-5}: Butterfly, Train, Tinkerbell Carnival, Bubbles, Gardening

Ella's birthday themes {1}: Teddy Bear Picnic

I can safely say, this party is going to be my best yet.

Earlier this month I started the snitch rolling with my girly version of Harry Potter canvas art. This week the snitch is taking flight with my absolutely fabulous Pages O' Potter Wreath!

Isn't he a doll?

The best part about my wreath? The little trinkets I made to embellish it!

These were so fun to make and I think will receive the most "oohs" and "aahs" for sure.

Owl: Charm found at Michaels.

Broom: I cut a paintbrush down slightly, sanded it, painted the handle and hairsprayed the brush portion so it was more spread out. I hand painted "Nimbus 2000" on the end.

Wand: I sanded and painted the tip of the paintbrush that I had cut for the broom.

Snitch: I found a random, wooden knob in the craft closet and painted it gold. I cut the wings out using my Silhouette.

Potion Bottles: I bought the Tim Holtz 9 vial set at Joann's on sale. I chose the smallest vials and filled them with water that I then tinted with food coloring {blue and red}.

Dragon: I bought the charm at Michaels and then hand painted it.

Pegasus: Another cute charm found at Michaels and then hand painted.

Frog: And again, a charm I found at Michaels and then hand painted for the "chocolate" look.

Key: An embellishment that came off of a wedding gift card I had saved.

Glasses: I drew and cut these on my Silhouette. I cut out scraps of book pages to fill the glasses.

Scar: I drew and cut this out using my Silhouette.

I attached each of these sweet little things with wire, string or glue {whatever worked best for each item}.

This year's theme was a no brainer because my Maia is a Harry Potter fanatic. My husband recently started reading the books to her and they are loving it {they are on the 3rd book now}! She has all the movies and asks to watch them every chance she gets {there was a short period of time that she was forbidden because of some Serious Black induced fear of the dark}.

I started gathering ideas for this b-day bash after last year's party {was that too soon?}. I have pages of notes in my brainstorming notebook {gotta have paper and pen handy at all times!} and a Harry Potter Party Pinterest board.

Be prepared to see a whole lotta Potta over the next month.

From here until the end of April I will be sharing at least one Harry Potter inspired craft with all of you each week! It will all come together on April 30th when I unveil Maia's Harry Potter Party Masterpiece!

I started this project after I heard about the wreath theme for March in the {new} Pinspired & Rewired Challenge put on by fellow brilliant bloggers Gingersnap Crafts, Southern Lovely, The Gunny Sack and Family Ever After. Have you met these ladies yet?

There will no doubt be some serious competition in this series! Hopefully my wreath can handle the pressure!

Since the challenge is based on Pinterest inspiration, I scoured Pinterest for a wreath that I could tweak to fit with a Harry Potter birthday party.

To my excitement I found this papery perfection.

{source}

You can check out this pin and my other Potter pins HERE.

The blog where this originates, D Reyne, has a tutorial, but I didn't consult her steps until long after my wreath was complete. I simply took the inspiration and went with it! Now that I have read through her tutorial I can see that my path was different.

Since D Reyne has a lovely tutorial I will not post my creation process step-by-step, but I will share a few tips!

My materials:

About 100 Harry Potter book pages from Order of the Phoenix {torn on the left and right side of page}
Stick wreath form from the dollar store {looks to be about 16"}
Strips of linen in a shade close to the book pages
My First Ticonderoga pencil
Embroidery floss in Hogwarts' school colors
Scotch tape
Hot glue & glue gun
Scissors

1. Use a My First Ticonderoga pencil to roll your book page scrolls {these are designed for Pre-K & K students so they are bigger around than a standard pencil}; unless, of course, you want a tighter scroll.

2. To keep each scroll closed use a small piece of scotch tape.

3. Tie scrolls together in bundles of twos and threes and some singles too for a really nice variety and good depth.

4. Wrap your wreath in a fabric that coordinates with your book pages. I used linen. There are bound to be a few gaps here and there where bits of wreath would show if you don't cover it.

5. Use hot glue to attach the bundles to the wreath. Even just tying the scrolls into bundles became tiresome and frustrating at times {my least favorite part}. I can't imagine then also having to tie them to the wreath form.

6. Glue the bundles to the wreath over a period of a few days. Put some on and then turn it so you can see a different angle for the next time you add some. I found this to make it more even and not so monotonous.

I really want to display this on some distressed shutters above the mantel, but I have yet to score any shutters {ARGH!}. For now he stands alone, patiently waiting.

Linking up to these fabulous parties:

Check out my other Harry Potter party posts!

Potter Inspired Canvas Art

Pages O' Potter Book Page Wreath

Potter Party Invites

Felt Hogwarts' Ties

Chocolate Frogs

Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans

Harry Potter Party Reveal

Monday: Crafts Keep Me Sane, Craftomaniac, Making the World Cuter, Skip to my Lou, Mad in Crafts, DIY Home Sweet Home, C.R.A.F.T., Cherished Bliss, Lines Across My Face

Tuesday: Not Just a Housewife, Tip Junkie, Today's Creative Blog, My World Made By Hand, Cowgirl Up!, Chef in Training

Wednesday: 733blog, Someday Crafts, Southern Lovely, Gingersnap Crafts, I Gotta Create, Rae Gun Ramblings

Thursday: The ArtsyGirl Connection, Embracing Change, Delightful Order, 52mantels, Somewhat Simple, Live Laugh Rowe, Hating Martha, Crafty Scrappy Happy

Friday: Tatertots and Jello, A Little Inspiration, Addicted 2 Decorating, Whipperberry, Naptime Crafters, Thirty Handmade Days

Saturday: Six Sister's Stuff, Family Ever After, Be Different Act Normal, Too Much Time on my Hands

Sunday: Homemaker on a Dime, DIY Show Off

21 Days From Now I Will Be A Morning Person {God, I Hate Morning People}

2012-03-19T11:16:00.000-07:00

I am not a morning person. I have never been a morning person.

My genetic code has predestined me to be the type of girl who hits snooze at least three times every morning and then just shuts off the alarm altogether.

I have no choice but to finally drag myself out of bed each morning after a 45 minute battle between what my brain knows should happen and what my body believes to be necessary.

My body has this stupid idea that staying in bed is allowing it more rest and therefore it will feel more refreshed, revitalized and productive when it finally does rise. My body is wrong.

Each morning in this house is stressful.

If I stay in bed until 7:30 that means Maia isn't up either. Maia is a slow roller in the morning. She needs a lot of time to accept the fact that she actually does have to get up and go through her skin care routine {Dear Psoriasis - YOU SUCK!}, brush her teeth, put on her uniform, eat breakfast while letting mommy wet her hair, comb it, put products in it and finally style it {Dear Naturally Curly Hair, While you are gorgeous when done, you are a real pain to do!}.

We need at least 30 minutes for all of the "getting ready" business and at least 15 minutes for eating a bowl of cereal {slowest eater this side of the Mississippi}. You must also factor in a "slow moving vehicle" cushion. Since Maia drags her feet from the second they hit the floor it takes her extra time to get from point A to B and then C and D and E... etc. Realistically we need at least 5 extra minutes for "transportation."

50 minutes is what we would need for Maia from eyes open to walking out the door at 8:10 {we never get out the door by 8:10 so she is frequently sliding through the classroom door right before the bell or she is late}.

Now that 50 minutes is if it was just Maia. Little Ella is of course interfering with this entire process.

The Ella Factor:

Getting into the bathroom garbage - 10 second delay

Throwing her eggs on the floor - 15 second delay

Escaping the baby gate and running down the hall - 30 second delay

Climbing onto a dining chair and falling off - 1 minute delay

Poopy diaper - 2 minute delay

You get my point...

If we weren't so rushed in the morning it wouldn't be a big deal for me to stop for 5 minutes to hang out with Ella and if she had a little more attention she probably wouldn't be getting into so much trouble.

To allow for a smooth flowing morning wherein we are all more at ease and therefore more productive we need at least an hour. Maia needs to be up between 7 and 7:10.

I dislike waking up and immediately being put on mom duty. It is not a warm, happy way to rise and is probably part of the reason I stay in bed as long as I can.

Wouldn't it be just dreamy if I could wake up, have my chai, work on a project or brainstorm some new ideas all before anyone else is around?

Um, yes.

An hour each morning to myself. An hour of Jennifer time, not mommy time. No cleaning and no computer allowed during Jennifer time.

But you know what this means? In order to have an hour of Jennifer time I will have to get up at 6. I do not get up at 6.

Right now my alarm goes off at 6:30 and I never get out of bed before 7. This morning I got out of bed at 7:30. I'm not sure why I even set the alarm at all...

There is no way around it anymore. This has to be done. If I am going to make it in this torturous world of stay-at-home motherhood I am going to have to do what I thought could never be done. If I am going to make it through this alive, and actually smiling about it, I am going to have to defy science and alter my genetic code. If I am going to live the dream I am going to have to become a morning person.

Here is my strategy:

1. Picture it. Write it. Draw it. Say it. Dream it.

2. Do the dishes and straighten up the living room, dining room and bathroom before I go to bed each night {Mess will distract me in the morning and I will inevitably be drawn to it}.

3. For the first week set my alarm for 6:30 and put my phone on the dresser, not my bedside table. If I have to get up to shut it off I will probably stay up.

4. For the second week set my alarm for 6:15. Phone still on the dresser, not by the bed.

5. For the third week set my alarm for 6:00. Phone still on the dresser, not by the bed.

By April 10 I will have officially developed a new habit and I suspect I will be more productive, more relaxed and happy about it!

I know I am not the only person who despises morning people, but secretly wishes to be one. Try this out with me!

Embroidery Hoop Name Art {In Less Than 60 Minutes}

2012-03-12T21:12:00.024-07:00

I have been wanting to take a stab at needlepoint for the longest time and what better day than today?

During Ella's afternoon nap I sat down with some bright, happy about life, bring on the sunshine, raspberry fabric, a natural wood embroidery hoop, yellow cheer and baby's breath white embroidery floss and just did it {it always helps when you just happen to have everything you need lying around - lucky me!}.

It took me less than an hour to create this melt my heart piece of art for my tiniest Ella Irene.

Each detail is hand embroidered with my own freehand design. No stencils. No tracing. Just creating as my crafty fingers saw fit.

I love the contrast between the two writing styles. I feel like the combination places the perfect emphasis on each part of my girl's precious tiny little name.

This would make an amazing gift for pretty much any occasion. So thrilled to add this to my bag of tricks for the next baby shower or birthday!

My Maia Rachelle has already put in a request for one of her own.

I think I like this needlepoint business!

This simple elegant piece of awesome made the top 10 in the CSI Project challenge this week!

Look at all the places she's been featured! Be still my heart!

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This project has been entered at:

Linking up to these fabulous parties:

Monday: Crafts Keep Me Sane, Craftomaniac, Making the World Cuter, Skip to my Lou, Mad in Crafts, DIY Home Sweet Home, C.R.A.F.T., Cherished Bliss, Lines Across My Face

Tuesday: Not Just a Housewife, Tip Junkie, Today's Creative Blog, My World Made By Hand, Cowgirl Up!, Chef in Training, A Little Tipsy

Wednesday: 733blog, Someday Crafts, Southern Lovely, Gingersnap Crafts, I Gotta Create

Thursday: The ArtsyGirl Connection, Embracing Change, Delightful Order, 52mantels, Somewhat Simple, Live Laugh Rowe, Crafty Scrappy Happy

Friday: Tatertots and Jello, A Little Inspiration, Addicted 2 Decorating, Whipperberry, Naptime Crafters, Thirty Handmade Days, Hating Martha

Saturday: Six Sister's Stuff, Family Ever After, Be Different Act Normal, Too Much Time on my Hands

Sunday: Homemaker on a Dime, DIY Show Off

Entering this tantalizing challenge:

Liebster Blog Award

2012-03-10T16:10:00.000-08:00

Last month I was the proud recipient of the Liebster Blog Award! Kimberly over at Simply Living found my little blog inspiring enough to give it the thumbs up {THANK YOU!}. Simply Living is a great spot to check out, if you haven't already. In fact, I would give HER the Liebster Blog Award, but I feel like it might be an unwritten rule NOT to give it back... {hmmm...}

What is The Liebster Blog Award?

The Award is given by a Liebster Award recipient to other "small" blogs that they find interesting/inspiring. How cool right?

It is so nice to know that someone is paying attention and appreciates your content! As a blogger who is still far from "the big time" it means a lot to be acknowledged!

The rules are:
1. Thank your Liebster Blog Award presenter on your blog;
2. Link back to the blogger who presented the award to you;
3. Copy and paste the blog award on your blog;
4. Present the Liebster Blog Award to 5 blogs of 200 followers or less who you feel deserve to be noticed; and,
5. Let them know they have been chosen by leaving a comment at their blog.

Sorry for the delay in doing this!

The five "little guy" {by Liebster standards} blogs that I feel most inspired by arrrrrre:

{in no particular order}

My Gluttonous Gluten Free Life

A Perfectly Crazy Life

Life on the Bay Bush

Destination: Craft

Tales of a Domestic Mama

Congratulations ladies! You inspire me {and so many others}!