Dear Emmeline

Refinished Vanity Stool {a trick for making perfectly circular cushions}

2013-05-20T20:00:00.000-04:00

You may have noticed the little vanity stool in my Fancy Nancy invitation shoot last week. This little stool started out as an outdated lackluster gold wire stool with a pretty disgusting lace edged cushion. We found it at a yard sale for $3.00. I love the shape and knew it could look cute with a little updating. Sorry I don't have before pictures but I wanted to share what I did to

Paper Doily Invitation {Fancy Nancy Party}

2013-05-17T07:38:00.000-04:00

Earlier this week I shared some inspiration for my daughter's upcoming fourth birthday party. The first project on the list was a fancy invitation. No envelope needed! Here's what you'll need: -rectangular doilies -paper or card stock -ink pen (that will not bleed) -ribbon or twine -awl -flexible beading needle (ribbon needle) Directions: 1. Fold doily and paper at their

Fancy Nancy Fourth Birthday Inspiration

2013-05-13T13:24:00.000-04:00

My daughter is turning 4 in a few weeks and I am in the process of planning her a Fancy Nancy themed bash. Fancy Nancy is a children's book series based on a ruffle loving , tutu wearing , always accessorized little girl. She loves all things fancy (and French) and each book teaches readers vocabulary in the form of synonyms...or "fancy" words that mean the same as another word. For example,

My home

2013-05-08T13:22:00.001-04:00

Where chairs become launch pads. Where vintage linens and window blinds make a princess's palace. Where the latest project holds a world of imagination. Where window sills are traffic jams. Where projects meet play. Where furniture plays sardines. Where projects find unexpected new life. Where serious problems beget silly solutions. Where plans are

DIY Trunk to Coffee Table

2013-05-06T12:30:00.000-04:00

After we added the newly refinished sofa to the living room, I decided we needed a new coffee table as well! Today I'm over at The Golden Sycamore sharing the how-to. Hop on over to Allison's lovely blog and read the full tutorial!

gone a yard saling

2013-04-29T15:31:00.002-04:00

My loot: $87.50 Mom's loot: $75.00 Who do you think makes the better pirate? Want an item by item breakdown to help you decide? Me vintage dress form: FREE cream metal wall shelf: FREE wood desk with pulls: $35.00 stamps (pictured) and old school teacher style scissors inside desk: FREE wood desk with knobs: $15.00 (hubby actually bought this one) vintage

A project peek and guest picking at Miss Mustard Seed's FFF

2013-04-26T15:13:00.000-04:00

So today I am FINALLY finishing up the antique sofa we started reupholstering last year. I know, I know! It has taken forever. In all fairness we've been using it for the past month or two completely finished minus the gimp (trim)! We started gluing the trim on last night and I am trying to get it finished up today. Here's a peek! The cushion's off while I glue on the inside gimp.

Simple Stenciled Sweet Mint Cabinet

2013-04-23T06:00:00.000-04:00

We've been working on turning our master loft into my dedicated craft/work space. When a box full of paint and a set of Handmade Charlotte stencils came in the mail I knew exactly the project I was going to use them for. This old cabinet had definitely seen better days and with a little effort I knew it could be beautiful again! Supplies: -old wood cabinet -sample/tester

How to make a disclosure banner {for sponsored posts}

2013-04-17T15:30:00.000-04:00

If you are a blogger who writes sponsored content you may be hearing a lot of buzz about how to correctly disclose sponsored posts. In the interest of fully disclosing sponsored posts BEFORE my readers check out my post I took a cue from 30 Minute Crafts and created a disclosure banner to place at the top of sponsored posts. Stick around if you want to learn how to easily create your own!

Dollhouse Shelf Redo with Plaid Crafts

2013-04-16T06:00:00.000-04:00

Can you tell how excited my daughter was to get to help makeover this little dollhouse shelf I found at a local thrift store! We received a box of crafting goodies from Plaid Crafts that were perfect for this little makeover. The shelf was priced at $3.00 and it was 50% off so we walked out with it for a whopping $1.50!! Steal! It wasn't much to look at but I knew with a

Photo Shoot and Blog Tweaking

2013-04-12T14:56:00.002-04:00

You may have noticed I finally took a minute to add a new, larger "about me" graphic in the sidebar. We recently had some family photos taken and I asked the photographer to snap a few of me for use on the blog. I thought I'd share some of my favorites from our session! Images captured by Liz Hough Photography I've also started the process of branding so

An easy way to fix stripped furniture knobs

2013-04-09T15:25:00.000-04:00

We have a coffee table with about 12 knobs on each side. For the past year, four of the knobs have been sitting in one of the drawers because the screws on the knobs stripped out. A little tip from my father-in-law quickly solved the problem. What you'll need: wood glue toothpicks a pair of nips or scissors (really anything that can cut the toothpicks) Ready for the three step

Better call Merriam-Webster! New words coming through.

2013-04-05T19:00:00.000-04:00

No home is immune from messes. If yours is I'd love to know your secret! Unless it requires me to wear white gloves and booties over my shoes. Simply opening up our doors to go outside lets in more dust than you'd ever imagine. The new layer of dust that settles on top of our furniture every

Kitchen Redo: Part Five {Painting the Cabinets with Nuvo Cabinet Paint}

2013-03-28T06:00:00.000-04:00

Before we dive into the details of the painting process, I want to give you a good look at the cabinets before and how they look now. Big difference, right? We painted the cabinets using Giani Granite's Nuvo Cabinet Paint. The top cabinets and large pantry cabinet are painted in Titanium Infusion: White and the lower cabinets are painted in Coconut Espresso: Creamy Soft White

Kitchen Redo: Part Four {Painted Kitchen Cabinet Reveal}

2013-03-26T06:00:00.000-04:00

They're finally done! And I'm loving the new look. Come back on Thursday for a before and after post with details on the products and process we used to transform the space. Feel free to visit the other parts of our kitchen makeover: Hardboard Plank Wall Easy Conduit and Knob Curtain Rod DIY Side Kitchen Reveal

"Every batch made from scratch"

2013-03-21T06:00:00.000-04:00

Every Saturday the kids get up and my husband takes them downstairs to make breakfast and put on his pot of coffee. Usually, we have scrambled eggs, egg sandwiches, or pancakes. It's nice to just be able to sit down to a warm breakfast as a family. It's just a bonus that the kids love it too

Necktie Sunburst Clock

2013-03-20T07:00:00.000-04:00

Today's the day my first Sew-vivor project goes live over at Family Ever After . Our challenge: to sew something, anything with emerald (green) fabric. I've been wanting to make a necktie sunburst for a while now so this seemed like the perfect excuse. My husband and I hit up the local Goodwill stores and asked everyone we know for castoff green ties. We rummaged up just enough!

Antique Sewing Table Redo {Mod Podge Transfer}

2013-03-19T18:00:00.000-04:00

A local lady brought me this sewing table with the hopes that I could fix it to be auctioned off to support a family in the area who lost their home to a fire. The top surfaces had badly chipped and peeling veneer. We came up with a plan to remove the existing veneer and replace it with either fabric or an image transfer. Here's how it turned out. After the entire top surface (both

Pistachio Icebox Pie

2013-03-14T22:56:00.000-04:00

3.14 Oh dear! How could I forget that today is Pi Day? I even had a pie recipe in the queue. Not only did we pretty much finish up eating it tonight but it was delicious! So before Pi Day comes to a close here's a little piece for you. Ingredients 2 cups heavy whipping cream 1 can sweetened condensed milk 1 box pistachio pudding graham cracker pie crust 1 cup chopped

I made the top ten!!

2013-03-14T11:32:00.000-04:00

Exciting news! I entered my Origami Pillow in Family Ever After's Sew-vivor competition..... AND.....I made the top ten! Pretty crazy! Maybe even crazier than the math equations I had to solve to sew my top ten entry! You can visit all of the top ten projects in the reveal post here. Over the next several weeks we will be completing projects in the following

Pistachio Cake Shake

2013-03-12T06:00:00.000-04:00

Ingredients pistachio cupcake (white cake mix and required ingredients [water,oil, eggs], pistachio pudding mix, green dye- optional) vanilla ice cream milk Directions 1. Prepare your favorite pistachio cupcake recipe. I used this recipe from Created by Diane. Allow to cool completely. 2. Put 3 scoops of ice cream and 1 cupcake into a blender or food processor. 3. Blend. Add a

DIY Easy Embroidery Hoop Pendant

2013-03-11T20:00:00.000-04:00

Ever get inspired by someone else's work to create something similar yet so completely different? When I saw View Along the Way's Dodecahedron Pendant Light I fell in love but I also knew that not only did I not have the tools to recreate it but it would be a TON of work. Then I had the thought, "Is there anything I could use to create a pendant with a similar feel with a lot less work?" A

Simple Stir Fry with Minute® Rice

2013-03-08T06:00:00.000-05:00

I don't know about you, but our family is constantly in motion. Between activities and DIY projects we rarely have a spare minute. As far as meals are concerned unless it takes under 20 minutes to prepare you probably won't see it on our table...at least not very often. That's why I really appreciate products that make the job of getting food prepared and to the table as simple as possible.

White Empire Dresser

2013-03-06T06:00:00.000-05:00

This unique empire came to us via a friend of a friend. Old, beautiful, but in sore need of some TLC. I don't know how old this big beauty is but her knobs were attached with wood screws! As per a custom order we painted the entire piece including the wood knobs in ASCP Pure White, lightly distressed, and sealed with clear wax. One of the original little wood knobs was missing

Chocolate Chunk Cookies {4 ingredients}

2013-03-04T12:31:00.002-05:00

Warm, decadent, moist, and super simple chocolate cookies. My 3 year old and I whipped these tasty treats up for her daddy in 15 minutes from start to finish! Chocolate Chunk Cookies Ingredients: -1 box chocolate cake mix -2 eggs -1/3 cup oil -1 cup Ghirardelli Bittersweet Chocolate Chips Directions: 1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. 2. Mix cake mix, oil, and eggs. When they are well