Craft Week at My House

This week has been spring break for my two munchkins and instead of being filled with warm temperatures and sunshine we have had snow and rain. So my plans have quickly been altered to inside activities and crafting for myself. 

My oldest had been asking for a dinosaur themed party for her birthday for the past year. So like any mom I started gathering ideas. (Do you know how hard it is to find "girly" dinosaur things?) Then, about 2 months ago, my wonderful daughter changed her mind to wanting a Wall-E birthday party. Three weeks later she changed her mind (AGAIN) to wanting a Bambi birthday party. I put my foot down and declared this the last time the theme could be changed. Turns out that finding Bambi themed things is just as hard as finding "girly" dinosaur things. So we are having a Bambi/Forest critter birthday party!

All of that being said, the above is my version of Friend Owl in the Bambi movie. I got the idea from  

Factory direct craft

and it really is as easy as it looks to make.

I found all of the materials I needed at my local Michaels and the project took me a day to complete. (This includes MANY interruptions from two bored children) Let your kids pick the colors and you have a decoration for the kids bedroom after the party.

Color Combinations to Love this Spring

Tiny Prints

Grey has never been very high on my favorite color list or a color I use often for parties, decorating or on clothing. I have had a HUGE change of heart over the past week. I have begun the very enjoyable task of decorating the nursery and shopping in a section of Target that I have never before....the boys department! I am thrilled with the upcoming arrival of our little boy. In my shopping this weekend I noticed a trend in color combination's at the Carters outlet that sparked my change of heart. Combination's of grey and lime, grey and orange, grey and blue. The contrast is so very crisp and refreshing it embodies the definition of Spring for me. The grey of Winter is now being peppered with the bright and bold colors of Spring. (My English prof. would be proud)

creative-baby-nursery-rooms

This nursery idea looks "clean" to me. There could be (and will be) toys all over the floor but the color combination and modern lines create a sense of calm that is essential to a kids room. Like my aversion to the color grey I shared a similar view of modern design. Modern design seemed cold and stiff to me and some of it still does. The revelation for me was that I could accessorize with modern touches and still keep my comfy couch and warm wood tones. The same goes for the color grey. I am not ready to paint an entire room grey but I am planning on creating wall art for the nursery in some of these color combination's.

May you also be open to a change of heart!

Lighten the Mood of your Home

Target

I am in love I tell you. I do not know if it is because I love the colors of the coast or that anything resembling the colors of Greece have me swooning, but this collection by Sabrina Soto for Target has inspired me. This ad has appeared in every magazine that has arrived to my house and I think I cut out every one of them. 

As mentioned in the title of this entry, it is time to lighten the mood of your home. During the cold months you want colors that emit warmth. Burnt oranges, browns, and golds are perfect for creating that "cocoon" feeling but once the weather turns warm I want to break out of that cocoon and fly. 

The blue and white collection at target is classic, affordable, and crisp. I currently own a white sofa so I only needed the pillows to create this look but even if you own a tan piece these colors would work nicely. 

Target

The pillow above has caused me great frustration. I wanted to purchase this pillow to be the focal point of the collection of pillows I already purchased. I could not find it in the store or online. I even asked an employee, directly under a picture advertising the pillow, where I could find it and the response was to keep checking back. I checked online today and I found it....to be out of stock. (UGH!!!!) So my search continues.

The advantage to changing the mood of your home with accents is the affordability and the ease at which it is to change. My tastes are constantly changing (just ask my husband) and I cannot afford to repaint a room every season (or put my marriage to that test) so I change throw pillows, throws and comforters. I believe that every room needs a mood lifter, not just the family room. This collection also includes a bed set and bathroom set. Happy decorating!

Spring has Sprung Inside

Martha Stewart

My seasonal calendar varies slightly from the official calendar the meteorologist follows. Spring, or warm time as I like to call it, begins on March 1st. I may not be able to change the freezing temperatures outside but inside it can look like Spring. I own two slightly deranged cats that like to eat any living plant or flower I have inside so I resort to silk plants and flowers. The good thing is that I can store them in my basement and bring them out when I'm ready for them. The downside is that they do not emit the wonderful smells that daffodils possess.  Regardless, I encourage you to invite an "early" Spring into your home and I hope to give you several ways of doing that this week.

Anna's Toy Story/Jessie Party

According to my last post (which was a LONG time ago) we just announced to the world that we are expecting our 3rd munchkin and I was in the throws of morning sickness. Well I have now surfaced from that 1st trimester "fun" and can now watch food commercials without feeling sick. YAY!!

My Anna turned 3 this month and she has been in love with everything Toy Story. Christmas was an explosion of Toy Story toys and that proved to be a very good thing for my decorating needs for Anna's party.

Wouldn't you know that all of the cute western themed scrapbook paper and decorations I've seen up till now magically disappeared! This happens with every birthday party and forces me to be more creative but this time I wanted to not have to be very creative! 

I did turn to Etsy for party invitations, which I had never done, and I think I am now hooked. It was SO easy and the results were adorable. I would definitely recommend it. 

The birthday banner is made of bandanna's with a piece of paper glued to the back of them to make them more stiff. I cut out the letter from brown construction paper and used a Toy Story stencil to make the characters for both ends. Hemp string and clothes pins held the banner together.

I got the inspiration for the cake from various images of Toy Story cakes I gathered online. It was a Devil's Food cake with store bought icing that I tinted for the top layer. I cut the cow spots and clouds from fondant and used some of Anna's toys for the topper. It was very easy to do and Anna absolutely LOVED it.

Jessie hat cookies

Cowboy hat jigglers

 Mr. Potato Head Creation Station

The kids made their own Mr. Potato Head's from foam cutouts. We had ears, nose, arms, mustache, lips and googly eyes. The kids loved being able to take their own Mr. Potato Head home with them.

Party favor station

*Balloons came from Oriental Trading Co.*

Cowgirl cookie mix

Each family took home a jar of Cowgirl cookie mix. I got this idea from Bakerella and the parents loved having something to take home with them as well.

Kid's party favor

Each kid took home a bandanna filled with Toy Story memorabilia. This was extremely simple to put together. Walmart and Michaels were my places to get bandanna's. 

The party came together very nicely and it was the perfect theme for my spunky Anna. The one piece of advice I would give to those of you throwing a party based on a licensed character or movie would be to think outside of the party box. I pulled the western theme from Toy Story and I've read of some people pulling the outer space theme from the same movie. Just be creative and you'll be surprised at the results. 

Early Christmas Gift

Martha Stewart

I've been keeping a secret and I can finally reveal it. I'm having a baby! 

Our third little one is due this July so that means I am in the middle of the joys of morning/afternoon/evening sickness. That would explain why I have been MIA lately and will be for the next month. 

I know I could of picked a better holiday to skip than Christmas but I will just have to make it up to you next Christmas. 

So from my family to yours I wish you all a Very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Christmas Entryways

My Home Ideas

As I have said before, the entryway to your home sets the tone for what is behind that front door. 

Make it pretty!

All of these ideas are from a fabulous website My Home Ideas which I gather many a great idea from. These are just a few of my favorite Christmas entryways but they have many more beautiful ones. 

Enjoy!

My Home Ideas

I am a big fan of wreaths on the windows. This year I simplified things and only put wreaths on the inside of my bedroom windows. I did not want to put any wreaths on the front of the house this year but still wanted to use them. I will enjoy them as will the cows in the pasture behind my house.

My Home Ideas

I LOVE monograms. I don't know if it's a southern thing or just a Lisa thing but it is a statement of "This is who I am and I am proud of it" kind of thing. Make sense?

I am now on the hunt for wooden letters like these that I can paint and put my own spin on for my front door.