Gettin' Crafty and Tuesday Tunes

Tuesday seems to be my posting day here lately....what can I say?  If you follow me on Instagram or Facebook, you may have seen some of these little pretties pop up this week.

I can't take all the credit....the paper is pretty much the star of the show.....I think it is GORGEOUS...such vibrant colors!  However, I did think of what to do with said beautiful paper.
I wanted to add some color  and detail to my in progress gallery wall, while also adding letters.  My current last name as well as my maiden name since I will be adding pictures of Zachary with my parents as the wall progresses.  These turned into just what I was looking for!!

With the holidays quickly approaching, I thought that these would make great gifts....not only personalized but also very affordable.  If you are interested, please feel free to contact me for more details. (julesbeautifulday(at)gmail(dot)com)

Although I am pretty partial to this paper....you can definitely customize it with any theme that you would like.

See....I can make anything work! ; )

In other news, it IS Tuesday and you know what that means.....I am linking up with Holli, Leslyn and Lauren  for Tuesday Tunes.

I listen to a little bit of everything, so you just never know what is going to grab my attention, but one thing that never changes is my alarm music.  Contemporary Christian (KLTY 94.9 in the Dallas Ft. Worth market) wakes me up every single morning.  It puts me in the right frame of mind to drag my rump out of bed.  This great new song from TobyMac has been in the morning rotation lately and I can't get enough of it!

Holli & Todd's Guest Book

As usual I am moving at a snail's pace....but I didn't want to let the entire week get away from me without sharing what I created using my precious cargo from Persnickety Prints. If you missed my rave review, you can check it out here.

As a disclaimer, I can take absolutely no credit for this idea.  It was the brain child of the fabulous Becky Higgins.  She is absolutely a game changer when it comes to simplifying scrapbooking.....I am not sure we are worthy!

I digress....I met Holli about a year ago at a blogger meet up that I was co-hosting.  She kind of lights up a room....she is a genuinely sweet, caring person with an electric smile and an amazing sense of humor.  You really can't help but be drawn to her.  Fast forward to December when Holli became engaged to Todd.  I was beyond thrilled for her and quickly offered to address her wedding invitations as a my gift to her and Todd.  In the midst of the excitement of being engaged and planning a wedding....Holli was dealing with her father's grave medical issues....without going into too much detail, Holli's dad had a double lung transplant, and is thankfully, improving every day.  She can now enjoy being engaged and planning her wedding.  At any rate, during this very stressful time for her combined with trying to get a million thing done for the wedding I offered my assistance with anything that she may need.  I have had so much fun doing and helping on little projects here and there.  Her cousin Lauren (from Outside the Frame) took her engagement pictures and she graciously shared the images with me so that I could make the guest book happen.  I had originally wanted it to be a surprise, but I was afraid that she would go out and buy one, so I let the cat out of the bag.

Her bridal shower was this past Saturday and she truly had a wonderful time and it was obvious to everyone there that a huge weight had been lifted.

This is what I made.....

I started out with the Project Life Mini Album in Rain....added some instructions at the front of the album so Holli and Todd's guests would know what to do.

For the filler cards I used predominantly the Olive Edition.  I used a couple of cards from the Wedding Edition mini kit and I also added some coordinating cardstock.  I printed the card with the names, date and location on high quality paper for the main page.  I love the idea behind these particular guest books.  There is plenty of room for the wedding guests to not only leave their names but also notes, well wishes etc for the couple.  It becomes an instant keepsake, rather than just a fancy book with signatures.

Becky Higgins' original called for about 40 pictures.  I only had 17 and so I had to get creative. Enter Persnickety Prints.  I ordered the vertical prints in 6x8" and the horizontal prints in 9x8.  In order to get these sizes to work in the pages....I had to section the photos in either 2 or 4 pieces.  Some of the measurements required separating right in the middle of a face, but overall, I am really happy with how it turned out.

These two are the 6x8 size

These are the 9x8 size

These books would also be great at a bridal or baby shower, graduation party, anniversary or birthday!  It was so much fun to put together.  In total I think it took me about 2.5 hours to put the whole thing together and I think I took the most time just figuring out the card combinations.  Thank you for stopping by and I hope that you have a wonderful weekend!

Table Decorations: 101

Earlier in the year, I was asked if I would be willing to help with table decorations for Zachary's 6th grade graduation dinner.  I am sure I was asked because during class parties, goodies would show up like this: nothing super fancy, but I loved  providing crafty party favors.

In true me fashion I kind of took over.  Several of the other moms graciously offered to help and I told them I would let them know if I needed anything.  If the truth be told, I prefer to work alone on projects like this.  I firmly believe it is the "only child syndrome" kicking in.  I get the vision and refuse to believe that anyone can be on the same crazy train that I am.  Then I stress....I start wondering if I bit off more than I could chew, are they going to turn out the way I envisioned and it goes on...and on....and on.

I wanted the decorations to double as something that could be taken home by each family (i.e. party favor) and I wanted each one personalized to the student.

Source

Source

I didn't find much on Pinterest that I thought would be appropriate, I think because this was only a 6th grade graduation - but the two pics above were my inspiration. I asked each family to provide me with a Kindergarten and 6th grade photo of their son.  I cropped and matted each one. Then I put each boy's photos back to back on a small stick.  I made some small THEN and NOW circles and also attached those with the coordinating photo.

I guess I should back up....prior to call of this crafty stuff  going on in my world, I did have some help.  I am a drippy spray painter.....I attempted it for the first time back in December and it wasn't exactly pretty.  Luckily, a dear friend was more than happy to lend a helping hand and he spray painted 10 terra cotta pots and saucers.  My mother, who has a bit of a green thumb planted 20 Portulaca in said pots.  And now back to the crafty stuff....

Zachary's teacher had emailed a great class photo of all of the boys at the beginning of school.  I made 10 copies and also matted those as well.

I also made homemade confetti with coordinating paper for the tables, but sadly, somehow managed to leave it at home when I was packing everything up.  I was sad when I realized it, but there was just not enough time to go back for it.

Then there was this banner....I loved the fun colors and the funky font, but once it was hung up, it was really hard to read it....boo!!!!!

Congratulations PRCA Class of 2013

My final pop of color for the tables were Gerbera Daisies.  Luckily, Zach loves Izze natural soft drinks, so there was no arguing when I told him we needed to start collecting bottles.

I added a small placard to each pot with the title of the famous Dr. Suess book "Oh, the Places You'll Go".  I put the finishing touches on the pots over at my parent's house since that is where my mom did all the planting.  We both got a little emotional as they were coming together...the boys are so grown up and the time has just flown by. The majority of the boys have been together since at least Kindergarten.

Even though the actual pot was not decorated on both sides, the picks that I placed in the pots were so that the decorations could be enjoyed from either side of the table.  Here are a few shots  from the party:

Obviously, I still have a lot of work to do with that new camera!  I am so glad that I was able to do this for Zach and his class, but I am glad that there won't be another graduation for six years!

Christmas Mantel Reveal

So, in this post I was debating on whether or not to put up my Christmas tree this year.  Well, I decided to forego the tree this year.  I am not feeling like the Grinch, just don't want to be battling my possessed precious fur babies to keep the tree upright in my tiny apartment.  Instead of focusing on the tree, I poured all my energy into my mantel.  Honestly, in years past it was never anything to write home about.  Not to toot my own horn or anything, but I LOVE how it turned out!  I also did it on the cheap, which makes it all the more wonderful.

I borrowed vases and a candle that we purchased for my mom's 60th surprise birthday and filled them with ornaments that I got at Michael's for 70% off .

I grabbed two printables from Pinterest and displayed them in frames that I already had.

The focus of the mantel was this Santa and reindeer that I adore.  I usually have it on my coffee table, but again, I was afraid that the kitties would find it irresistible.

My mom also loaned me two boxes of beautiful gold ornaments that she wasn't using.  I filled a glass container that I already had and scattered the remainder of them on the mantel.

I also made another banner, using the templates provided by the ladies at Shanty 2 Chic.  So easy, but definitely adds a punch to your decorating!

And finally, here is the finished product:

I would love to know what you think, and would love to see your Christmas mantel if you have it posted.  Just leave me a link in the comments and I will check it out.

I am linking up with Layla and Kevin at The Lettered Cottage for their mantel link-party.  These two have mad decorating skills, so me having anything to link up with them is once in a lifetime!

Also linking up with Danielle @ Silver Pennies for the Home For the Holidays: Mantels Link Party.

 



 

On a completely unrelated note, today I bought myself a Christmas / birthday present.  The deal of the day at Michael's was the Scotch ATG for 50% off!  If you are crafty and use TONS of adhesive like me,  you will know what a great find this was.  And not only that, I got an additional 20% off because it was my birthday month.  Merry Christmas and Happy Birthday to me....all for the bargain price of $17.31.  Regularly price $39.99 + tax.

Hey, That's Pin-tastic! - Cork Wreath

I'm so excited....and I just can't hide it!  OK, I guess I just dated myself, because yes, I was singing The Pointer Sisters.  But seriously, I have completed my first Pinterest inspired project and I am stoked!  I think that I would refer to myself as a Pinterest wanna be.  I "pin" all these cute projects and recipes and am never brave enough to try.  Well, when I saw this pin, I was so excited - finally something to do with the plethora of wine corks I have been hoarding saving - waiting for just the right project.  Well, just my luck - the pin linked back to nothing but the picture...GRRRR!  Shortly after finding the picture, I also came across this tutorial on Heather's blog, Our Life In A Click.  She gave great step by step instructions, and although I didn't follow them precisely it did give me the confidence to give the project a try.  I also can't leave out the fact that I had a secret weapon....Megan was supervising.  I knew that it wouldn't end up a complete mess as long as she was there to point me down the right path!

I didn't take enough photos to give you step by step instructions via pictures, but I will do my best to describe how I got to the end result.  I am just forewarning you, some of the pictures leave a lot to be desired - especially the end result, but I am going to try to get a better one once I have some natural light to work with...it was dark last night before I remembered. 

I started out with a white foam wreath form.  In order to keep pieces of the wreath from crumbling off and to help protect the wreath from all of the hot glue, we wrapped the form with tulle.  I had originally purchased ivory, but Megan had a brown color that we decided to use instead.  I could have done this myself, but it was so much easier with 4 hands!

Next, we attached a very long ribbon to the wreath form.  I am still not sure how I am going to hang it, but at least I have plenty of ribbon when I finally figure it out.  Gluing corks over the ribbon will also help to secure it even more.  Then it was time to bring on the corks.  Honestly, there was no rhyme or reason to it - just started gluing the corks to the form trying to obtain as much coverage as possible.

 

 

Once I was about a third of the way around the top, Megan started working on the outside portion of the wreath, using the same free form pattern that I was using on the top.  The only portion that we used a concise "pattern" was the inside. I stood a cork on an end vertically and it was the perfect height to cover the remaining space not covered.  

Once that was done, I filled in any gaps or bare spaces that looked like they needed a little something extra.  For the larger gaps, I glued corks, which in addition to covering the gaps also added a little dimension to the wreath, which I loved.  We tried to save the more interesting corks for this portion since they would be more visible.  We also used clusters of red and gold berries to add a little pop.  The berries were part of full branches that I purchased from Hobby Lobby.  Megan cut them off of the branches but left a small stem on each bunch.  Instead of gluing them on, we were able to push the stem into the wreath form though the small gaps in the corks.

Finally, to add a little more interest to the wreath I purchased a "Noel" ornament and an "F" for my last name.  The ornament was perfect the way it was, but the "F" was unfinished.

Megan spray painted the "F" in a beautiful shade of red.  I then attempted to paint a stencil design in a metallic gold.  It was an epic fail and although another coat of spray paint covered the gold the design was still raised on the letter.  Megan ended up sanding it and giving it another coat of paint.  From the first sanding, we decided that we kind of liked the look, as it gave it a bit of a distressed finish.  Once the final coat dried, Megan sanded the entire letter - we ended up really loving it!

So that's about it....once you get the corks attached you can really make this wreath your own.  Adding whatever details and extras that coordinate with your holiday theme or decorations.  I was thrilled with my results and am chocking this Pinterest inspired project up to beginner's luck and superb guidance from a DIY, crafty super hero - yes, Megan that is you!

In case you are wondering, I am not sure how many corks I ended up using, but it was quite a few.  Luckily some years back a friend gave me an entire quart size zip lock bag full, otherwise I would not have had near enough to complete this. I love wine, but come on!  I would say just on the top alone I used nearly 100...you may have to recruit friends to help you stock up.  This was my first time attempting a tutorial, so if you have any questions that I didn't answer or if something wasn't clear, please leave me a comment and I will do my best to help you.

I can finally participate with all those crafty ladies that are busting out Pinterest projects on a weekly basis!  I am linking up with AP over at I Love You More Than Carrots for:

 

Emily at Sweet Bella Roos ,Kelly at The Grant Life , Jill at Two Yellow Birds Decor, Jaime at CraftyScrappyHappy , T'onna at Navy Wifey Peters, and Savannah & Mallory at Classy Clutter.