Friday, September 30, 2011

the halloween decor is up!

It may still be September, but I couldn't help myself and the Halloween stuff is up!!!

I LOVE me some Halloween :D

So, come on in!


Do you see those fun silhouette's scurrying around the baseboards and up the stairs?

I've always loved those Martha cutouts and this year I finally grabbed some.

Izzy is very fond of the "mouse house" :)


I always like to use what I've got when it comes to decorating so I used lots of old books, old silver pieces, and tore out some book pages for the back of the owl print.

I found both prints on The Graphics Fairy blog.  They're free and fan-stinking-tabulous!


The crow silhouette pillow was made out of painter's drop cloth and painted on using the same technique I used here.


The skull was originally orange glitter, purchased from Target for $2.50.

I tore up more book pages and used Mod Podge to recover the skull.



Kinda ended up with a crow theme this year by accident.


Oh, and I LOVE, love, love using spanish moss when decorating for Halloween.

You can pick up a big bag at a craft store like Hobby Lobby for around $5 and use it on everything.

I think it gives anything a spooky look.




I picked up some branches from the back yard and wrapped some moss around them so my little birds could have somewhere to hang out.

Found the smaller birds at the dollar store for, you guessed it, $1 a piece!


I think the tree is my favorite part of the decorations this year.



Some unpolished silver and moss even help this glittery pumpkin look spooky.

Ok, maybe not spooky, it is a glittered pumpkin after all ;)



Now if only it would get out of the 90's, it would really start to feel like fall around here.

I'm going to be linking up my Halloween stuff over at Midwestern Sewing Girl.

MidwesternSewingGirl

She's having a major Halloween link party and awesome giveaway starting this Sunday so get your Halloween on and link up!!!

I'll also be linking up to these fab parties!
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Monday, September 26, 2011

so... izzy may be watching too much tv

We've already crossed the point where Izzy repeats EVERYTHING we say.

We're now at the point where if she sees something on one of her videos or tv, it's probably going to be repeated as well.

Here are some of the more memorable examples.

Thanks to Curious George - Follow That Monkey

{via}

  • "Outta my way banana breath!"  Said to her dad as she was trying to get hands on his iPad.
  • "It's like there's a party in my mouth"  Said whenever she's eating blueberries. 
Thanks to Tinkerbell and the Lost Treasure

  • "Just leave me alone!!!"  Said all. the. time.  Thanks a lot Tink.

Thanks to Jake and the Neverland Pirates
  • "Aye!  A booger!" While picking her nose.
  • "Aww coconuts!"  Whenever she drops something
Thanks to Dora the Explorer

{via}

  • "Ruffy no swiping!  Ruffy no swiping!  Ruffy!  No!  Swiping!!!"  Whenever Ruff tries to snag some of her food.

And, these little nuggets are just because she hangs around me too much

  • "Ugh!  Fine!!!" Said while throwing her head back in exasperation and her arms down to her side.
  • "This is A.MA.ZING!!!" Said while her mouth is full of anything incredibly yummy.

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Thursday, September 22, 2011

no way!!!

Seeing as how Crazy Wonderful has just reached 500 followers its...


and, have another giveaway!!!

I have no idea what I'm going to do yet, but plan on it being a good one :D


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Monday, September 19, 2011

mirror, mirror, leaning on the wall - tutorial

If you guys checked out my guest post over at All Things Bright and Beautiful you may have seen a little (ok, a BIG) something something leaning against the wall behind the couch.


Yep, I finally got around to making the mirror I mentioned here!


And, I did a tutorial ;D

What you'll need:

  • mirror (I used an old builder's grade vanity mirror - I recently saw some at my local ReStore for $10)
  • 3/4 inch thick plywood (you could even use an old door from the ReStore, which I wish I would have thought of before buying the plywood)
  • notched moulding to trim around the mirror
  • any trim of your choice for the top and bottom of mirror
  • Liquid Nails for Mirrors and caulking gun
  • brad nailer and brads (or finishing nails and hammer)
  • miter saw (or miter box and hand saw)
  • tape measure and pencil
  • wood filler
  • sand paper
  • paint and roller/brush
  • polyurethane (optional)
  • protective eye gear and gloves - not optional people :D

STEP ONE:  Measure out and mark where you want the mirror to sit on the plywood.


STEP TWO:  Using caulk gun, squeeze Liquid Nails onto the plywood where the mirror will sit and put mirror into place.  You'll want to wear gloves and get help when moving the mirror - those mirrors are really heavy and can easily break.



STEP THREE:  Miter cut the notched trim for edges of mirror.


STEP FOUR:  Paint the inside part of the the trim.  Once attached to the mirror the inside will be reflected, and you don't want the raw wood color to show.



STEP FIVE:  Attach trim to edges of mirror using brad nailer or finishing nails.  You'll want to keep in mind where the edge of the mirror is so that you don't nail into the mirror and crack it.  Only nail the part of the trim that meets up with the plywood.  Use protective eye gear peps!


STEP SIX:  Cut and add trim to top and bottom of mirror using brad nailer or finishing nails.  I topped of my crown moulding with left over pieces of wood.  If you decide to use crown molding and are having issues getting the angles to cut correctly, Google tutorials for cutting crown molding.  There are tons of great tutorials out there on this, and they do a FAR better job explaining it than I can.


STEP SEVEN:  Fill any gaps and nail holes with wood filler and let dry completely before sanding.

STEP EIGHT:  Paint mirror desired color and let dry.  I did two coats.


STEP NINE:  Lightly sand any rough areas (or heavily sand edges for a distressed look), add a coat of poly (if desired) and let dry.

STEP TEN:  Wipe or scrape off any paint/poly that got onto the mirror.  You could tape it off before hand and avoid this :)

STEP ELEVEN:  If you have small children (or are just plain accident prone like myself) you will want to anchor the top of the mirror to the wall so that it can't be pulled over.  I used a heavy duty hanging system from Lowes and made sure it went into studs.  That way it has the look of leaning against the wall, but can't be pulled away from it.


DONE!!!


Now get someone to help move that beast into place and enjoy!






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On a side note - can I just say how hard it is to get a good picture of a mirror without seeing your reflection.  Sheesh!  Maybe it wouldn't have mattered that much I had been cleaned up :D

I'll be linking up to these fab parties!



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Tuesday, September 13, 2011

needed it - weekend getaway

Mike and I recently got back from a little weekend getaway, and boy oh boy did we need it and enjoy it!

We headed out to Monterey, CA and did practically nothing... it was perfection.

We thought about hitting up a small winery here and there, but decided we'd just drive down Highway 1 and see the coast.





We were heading back north towards Monterey from Big Sur and saw this great place to stop off and check out the beach.

Mike went off in one direction and I went in another to get a picture of Izzy's name in the sand.

While I was clicking away I heard a large group of people behind me start yelling in another language and then laughing non-stop.

Come to find out there were trying to warn Mike about the monster wave that was getting ready to pound him, ahhh hahaha!!!


I know, I know, I shouldn't be laughing at him, but I can just see in my mind how it played out.

There he is standing on those rocks behind him (you can see another big one headed for those same rocks he was on), hands on hips, and taking it all in.

Then he slowly turns to look down the beach all while smiling and nodding his head at how beautiful everything is...

BAM!!! 

SLAM!!!

WHAMO!!!

Never saw it coming.  Hehehe :D

He should have taken some pointers from ocean fearful me.


You never know what could be rolling up on you in those waves!

Our last day in Monterey we went on a whale watching tour.  I can't even tell you how excited I was about this.

Some of my husband's friends say we're just soooo touristy going on something like that.  I could have really cared less, I was pumped.


An hour and a half into it...


I got so excited every time I saw a bird thinking FINALLY... it's a whale!

Another hour...

Nothing.

Oh, wait for it... wait for it...


Yeah, this is the best I can do for you since we didn't see anything.  Bummer.

I did get quite a kick out of the seagulls and their spunky attitudes though.



And, if I could have gotten away with bringing one home with me, I would have ;)

I'd love to hear where you have gone for a little getaway?  Anywhere you really loved?




Psst!!!  Also wanted to let you guys know that my friend Katherine from Harper and Ollie's House is having her first giveaway!!!  Head over here and enter in for your chance to win a free scrapbooking suite!  Contest ends tonight (September 13th) at 11:59 pm CST!
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