Blues and Greens

I decided that I am attracted to greens and blues.  I've been thinking about green curtains in the living room and using accents in the room with this soft blue color...what do you think?

Color

I just love the colors in these rugs.  The patterns and color combos give some great ideas for decor elsewhere in your home. 

White on White on White

I'm in a slump!  I'm trying not having too much color...like I normally do, and instead have hardly ANY!  I have all these ideas of how to add fun pops of color, but then chicken out.  I want to re-cover our ottoman in a fun pop color... but what if I spend all that time (and money on fabric) and then hate it! I want to make curtains for the living room that are a cheery color for winter...what if I get tired of the color.   So...white goes with...white.  So boring!  I need to just make a move and stick with it!


Can you believe it's already Wednesday!  Hope you have a good day.

Applesauce for the Road

I love going to the apple orchard. It brings back lots of memories as a kid.  My mom would always take us and we would eat and eat and eat apples until we were sick. We probably ate as many as we contributed to the bucket. 

One year we went with our cousins.  If I remember right, my Mom and Aunt were both pretty pregnant.  We were driving home in those boxy mini-vans and hit a red light.  We were getting ready to get on the highway at a VERY busy intersection.  My mom stepped on the gas and the back door flew open! All those bags of apples flew out and apples went rolling everywhere!  So there we were, lots of kids and two pregnant women frantically picking up apples. We successfully held up traffic for as far as I could see.  Some people stopped to help us, but others drove through, squashing our precious apples! NOT OUR JONATHAN'S! There was lots of applesauce left in the road that day.

Applesauce... my favorite part!  When we got home, we would all help peel, boil and grind, until we had heaps of applesauce. 

Last year I think I made about 20, quart freezer bags and Justin and I had them with every meal.  They were gone way too fast.  This year I'm going to try to control myself! Portions... 

Here's a few pics of the orchard we picked at yesterday.  I think apple orchards are so beautiful!

Guest Bedroom Update

I hope you had a good weekend.  The weather was gorgeous!  I got to hang out with my sisters and mom this weekend for an evening and loved it.  We made it an extra special night and went to get our nails done, went shopping, and went out for dinner.  I love time with family...it is so special.

I thought I'd update you on the guest bedroom.  We still don't have a bed frame, and may not get one at all.  The bed works as is I suppose...  So here are some pics of what we have so far.

Dollar Lamp

I got this old vintage lamp at a yard sale a few years ago. It was one dollar!  Can you believe it!  I love finding cheap, unique things.  I have never seen a lamp like this one before. I love the combination of the wood and ceramic.  The shade on it is a little worn, but I got one for it at Ikea to replace it. I just have to figure out how to make it fit on the old lamp.  It's the wrong kind of shade....of course.

The lamp was a plain cream color, so I decided to brighten it up a bit and painted it this light blue.  I love blues. 

I need to figure out how to make that other shade work...this one looks really funny!  Oh well, It serves its purpose and gives off light =)

Have a great weekend.

Outdoor Dinner

 Last night we had our very first meal on our back deck! I moved the little green table from our kitchen out there, and chairs from our dining room table...just for the night.  It was beautiful outside.  Not too hot, not too cold, and the right amount of breeze.  I pulled out a table cloth that I hardly ever use and a vintage table runner. We made tacos, lemonade, played music and lit a candle. I LOVED it!  I say all this to encourage you to eat some meals outside too.  There's just something special about it.  It's so peaceful. No distractions with the TV.  No phones.  Just God's beauty and the ones you love...and some good food!

We don't have patio furniture yet, but it would be fun.  We can make it work with what we have, but I love these pieces.

Dining Room Curtains

Remember when I saw these curtains at a Flea Market and wanted to get them really bad?  Well someone told me that they were not, in fact, vintage...but from Ikea.  It made me laugh.  I thought they were some special, one of a kind, old pair of curtains with a neat story behind them. 

We were able to go to Ikea about a month ago and I got these curtains.  Same print, different color. I love them! They bring so much more color to the dining room that the other ones did.

Here's the ones I found in the Flea Market:

Pinning Proof

I  hope you all had a great weekend.  We didn't have too many plans, which I loved.  I enjoy having a weekend to just be able to do things as they come.  We enjoyed a great Friday night football game, watching my brother-in-law.  Then Saturday we had a great rainy day-day.  It was so fun! We lounged around in sweats, played games, watched a movie, and I baked my first German Chocolate cake.  It was really fun to make!

I hope you all had a good weekend too.

I wanted to show you a little sneak peak progress on some of the dresses I started earlier last week.  I'm making several at once, so the green and white fabric I showed you earlier hasn't been touched yet.  I've realized that I can't just do one thing at once.  I like being able to change back and forth between fabrics.  it makes it more exciting.  I'm weird...

Anyway, here's some proof for you that I am in fact pinning!
This is a really soft cotton fabric.  I like how it falls on the dress. The gold is just the edging for the inside of the neckline, but I think the inner details matter too.

Spruce Up Your Machine

I saw a simple pin cushion that someone tied around their machine for easy access.  I was inspired to make my own. I always have a huge pile of pins on my machine after I use them... So I decided to use velcro and make a really fun cushion that would make me WANT to put them where they belong.

To begin, cut out two heart shaped pieces of fabric. ( or any shape you want )

Next,  cut a smaller shaped heart out of different fabric and stitch it to the top piece of the heart with the machine (now is a good time to try out some of those decorative stitches on your machine if you have them).  

Then, turning good sides of fabric facing each other, sew around the heart, leaving a small section opened ( to flip )

I used scrap fabric as my stuffing.  It is a great way to get rid of some of your scraps and still be able to use them!

So it begins...

I've had enough.  I realize that I make excuses for myself.  A lot.  I'm sure my husband would probably agree with me.  He is so patient with me though.  I decided that I don't know what I'm waiting on.  I can either be sad for myself and mope about not having a cute little storefront, or a booming online shop...OR, I can just work towards it!

Here's the fabric I bought to start working on a new dress.

Breathe

I came across this photo on pinterest (pin # 189547092). 

I love it. It's perfect for a Wednesday. We need to remember to just stop sometimes, breathe, and be thankful for what we have.

Have a good day...

Season for Crafting

Here is the Fall garland I made with Becky.

Fabric and Lace

I recently came across this beautiful site with beautiful photos. The shop is called Whippy Cake.  I love this girl's style. Her creations are exquisite and the photos are all so fun and unique.  Here are a few pics from her site.  She sells really cute accessories!  You should check them out!

Fall Projects

I've had a few projects I've been working on. I just finished ten new pillows for Pickwick House.  They are a part of Sharon's fall inventory.  We spruced them up a bit this time with some textured ruffles.  Here's a sneak peak.

 
I also saw this cute idea for a fall garland on Elsie's site.  Becky and I decided to begin our fall crafting season by making this and some fabric pom poms.  I'll share photos of ours soon, but here's Elsie's Isn't it cute??

Have a great weekend!  See you Monday.

Picnics in Fall

We had a picnic last night for dinner and I decided I could do that every night.  I LOVE Fall and I LOVE picnics!  There's just something so relaxing about eating outside on a blanket and enjoying the breeze.  I do want to try and do things like that more often.  God's beauty is so amazing.

 Have a great day!

my dream...a little shop

I have wanted to have a store to call my own ever since I can remember.  When I was little, I would spend hours setting up my little shop with all my doll clothes and accessories.  I love designing and creating new things.  If I'm not, I go stir crazy.

I have had the opportunity to have some of my designs in local retail shops, I did the whole Etsy thing, and now I'm ready to start something again. (whether that be Etsy or my own site)

I just bought my first cuts of fabric for an online store I'm working towards.  I can't wait to get it all up and running (although, it might still be a while).  I know I have lots of work to do, but I love the adventure!  I have been blessed with so many people in my life who have helped me to grow in my passion for designing.

I'd love for my shop to be a collaboration of all the things I've learned over the years.  I don't know when it will be up or how...but I'm working towards it. I just have to be working towards something...it's itching inside me.

Here is the first piece of fabric I bought...

I'd love for you to share in my journey!

Neutral Cowgirl

As long as I can remember, I have loved dressing up.  I guess I just like how clothes offer options.  I love prints and fabrics and texture and how so many styles can be thrown together to make something new.  Every time I look at blogs that have clothing posts, I get really excited.  I thought hey, why not do some of my own.  I am not AT ALL trying to say "look at me"...I just wanted to share how it is fun for me.  Hope it is fun for you too...

I couldn't believe how amazing it was this weekend...I mean PERFECT.  We opened every window in our house and let the breeze flow in.  That also meant that I got to dig out my fall boots!  I love fall.  It is my favorite season.  Nothing like crisp nights, hot cider, and a little breeze.

Have a great Tuesday... and go dig out your cowgirl boots!

My Chalk Board Calendar

Well, I gave the calendar a try. I love changing my chalk board...it is a soothing thing for me. You get to wipe the slate clean, and begin with a new piece of art. Here's what it was before...

And here's the calendar now...

I just got online, found a calendar set-up that I liked, and found a font that caught my eye.  Here's the font I used...or shall I say "attempted to use."

 Hope you are all able to enjoy this weekend with family.  Thanks for stopping by.

How time flies...

It's time to change my great big chalk board. I was thinking I'd like to make it into a big calendar.  I love type and bold numbers, so I'll have to give it a try.  I can't believe it's already September! It seems like yesterday we were so excited to turn off our heaters and open the windows up to let in the fresh air...now summer is coming to a close.  How time flies...  Have a great weekend!  I hope you get to enjoy a day off.

I love this photo montage calendar of different numbers and images.