Easter's On It's Way (Carrot Cutlery Tutorial)

March 26, 2012

I've been so consumed by other things these days that I haven't had time to get any projects or serious blogging done.  My life is still a bit hectic, what with this being Spring Break and all, so I thought I'd share one of my all-time popular Easter posts.  Those of you who've been reading my blog for a while might recall that every year we put on a major Easter Egg Hunt Extravaganza.  My husband is the ultimate Grand Master of the event and a good time is always had by all.

One of the mainstays of the event is the food.  And to that end I have made it a tradition to create what I call Easter Carrot Cutlery.  Read on for my old post below. 



Since I threatened to keep going with my Easter Egg Hunt 101 tips, I  
thought I'd share another easy idea for a pretty  Easter table.
I'm not sure if you can even see it here, but I
made "carrot cutlery" to go along with the pretty
pastel paper plates (sshhhhhhhhh, don't tell ~
fine china just wasn't feasible for such a large group!).
 I found  this idea in Family Fun Magazine back in 2006. 
It's obviously one of their most popular ideas,
since it's STILL on their website!  It's really easy. 

Here's all you need:

Orange party napkins
green plastic cutlery
green pipe cleaners
(I used two different complimentary greens)

The napkins and cutlery were purchased at a party supply store and the pipe 
cleaners at Michael's.  Since I made these during my pre-blogging days I
don't have as-you-go pictures {sorry!}  


So here's Family Fun's easy instructions:

For each carrot, fold one of the paper napkins
into a rectangle. Don't be afraid to re-fold them
from their original configuration, whatever that
may be (i.e., a square, etc.).  Place a set of
utensils across the lower left corner of the
rectangle, fold in the lower right corner as shown,
then roll it up loosely.


Wrap one or two green pipe cleaners around the
napkin and necks of the utensils, then twist them
to secure, as shown.  Cut down the pipe cleaners to size.


And voila'.









So simple, yet they really make a statement.  I was
pretty proud of mine, and have made them every
year for the great egg hunt.
Hope you like this tutorial, and stay tuned for a
few more Easter-themed crafts/decor tips to come
between now and Easter.
Spring, it's bound to be here soon.


Back to the present:  I have so much work to do this week to get the house and decor and desserts in order that my head is spinning.  AND I have the three chickadees home all week......hopefully I can put them to good work!  Wish me luck!

Have a great week!

xoxo

I'll be linking up here:



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Ball/Mason Jar Palooza and an Unintentional Copy That

March 19, 2012

O.K., how cool is this?  Karen from The Graphics Fairy strikes once again and shares a fabulous blue, {blue, people!} Mason/Ball Jar.  I love these things so much that I have my own Pinterest page dedicated to them.  And the possibilities are endless in the craft/home decor department.  Today I'd like to share with you my most recent Ball/Mason Jar home decor creation.

A while back I blogged about a great flea market find, my vintage canning tub, here.

I knew when I found it that there would be more than a few uses for it, even if I didn't know exactly what those uses would be at the time. Besides using the tub itself as a home decor element, the inside held a more exciting possibility.




For starters, you need 6 jars to fill all the slots.  So I patiently waited, all the while collecting Atlas/ Mason (spaghetti sauce) jars.  It's a good thing we love pasta in my house.  Just sayin'.  Once the jars were assembled (sans labels and lids of course) this is what I ended up with. (Only 6 months after my first post about this lol.)






The metal tray is just the right amount of rusty.  And as much as I loved the look of the empty jars as is, I decided they needed a bit of spring.  Enter Dollar General.

I bought some hydrangeas, (what I'll call ) fuzzy green cattails, and some white flower thingys that I thought worked well with the mix. Can you tell I'm quite the gardener?





And then I got to arranging.  Boy, was I happy with what I got!





So here I sat all proud of myself for my barn sale/dollar store creation.  And I had to smile when I got the Home Decorators Collection catalog in the mail today.  



Page 63.   Iron Baskets with Roses and Hydrangeas.  $64.00  


Maybe I'll add some pinks and blues to my arrangement for Easter.  Then again, maybe I'll just leave well enough alone.




Hope you all have a great week.  Spring Break and Easter's on it's way!  Enjoy!


xoxo






Copy That: Pier 1 Imports Lace Lampshade Knock-Off

March 12, 2012

A few weekends ago my daughter, Chickadee No. 1,  and I had a few hours to kill on a Sunday afternoon.  What's that you say?  Of course we went to Goodwill!  But it was slim pickins there so she asked if we could stop at Pier 1 Imports.  She had never been to Pier 1 and asked me what it was like.  I told her that there would be lots of things she'd like but that they would be seriously overpriced.


We saw a lot of springy and Eastery things.  But I fell in love with a lamp.


 Or should I say a lampshade?

Up close and personal this lamp just really spoke to me.  I saw the price tag (no surprise there) and said to my daughter, "I can do that."  I knew exactly what I had at home that would help me do it.

First off, an old Wal-Mart lamp we've had for years and I've always been ambivalent about.





This is one of those items you run out and buy right after you move in and realize that the house just doesn't have as many overhead lights as you thought it did.  From a distance I guess it looked harmless enough.  But up close it was another story.  I mean, it's time had come.




So, are you with me now?

Enter my $1.99 drum lampshade from Goodwill.


And a crocheted lace blanket I picked up so long ago that I can't even remember where I got it from. It might even be a tablecloth. Now that I think of it, it was Goodwill, too. $1.49. Seriously.



Look at the detail on this thing!  Best part is that it's huge and there's a lot more where that came from!  But I digress.  So, I measured the shade's height and circumference and added an inch to each.  Then I cut out a template based on those measurements.  I taped the paper template to the table and laid the lace on top.  Then I just cut the lace according to the template.  I was lucky in that this material was very pliable cotton, but not too stretchy.


Lampshade in Progress...it gets better! 

And I have to admit that I even skipped the glue gun this time (not being the type who LIKES to burn her fingers) and used plain old Elmer's glue.  It was just easier all around and it dries clearer than a glue gun would so I liked it better for this project.  Once glued I used clothes pins to hold it all in place until it dried.  This took like no time.

In the meantime I was revamping the actual bad boy brown metal faux woodgrain lamp. Yes, you read that right.  First I primed it with a basic gray interior primer (think I should have used a metal primer, though) and then painted over it with an old favorite off-white paint I've used for many projects before.  It really needed two coats since the primer really did a crappy job. (Probably should have sanded first, too, but who has time for that? lol)   But it dried quickly so I was a happy camper. 

All right already!  Are you on the edge of your seat?  I present to you...my version of the Pier 1 Vintage Lace Lamp.



Okay, I'm talking Anthropologie-like here, people!  (Well, at least that's what I'M thinking!)


Are you in love?  I am!



Look, you know it's good when your husband likes it.  Mr. CBD actually commented (without prompting) that he liked it!  Doesn't happen every day around here, if you know what I mean.  And my son, Chickadee No. 3, asked if I was using the lace for a pillow.  You know, he's a pretty smart kid..... think I'll be trying that next.

Ok, I'm done tooting my own horn here.  Just don't ask me to wipe the smile off my face.

So what do YOU think of my Pier 1 Copy That?


Have a great week.


xoxo
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I'll be linking up here (among others) when these parties go live later in the week:

Copy That: Ballard Designs Round Side Table with Burlap Tablecolth

March 8, 2012



For a while now I've been making a wish list of home decor items that I want to eventually buy or make.  One is from Ballard Designs.   

Theirs: $65.00
Mine: $4.99 Goodwill


Burlap Trio
Table, glass top and tablecloth
$139.00

Sorry about the blur, I had a really hard time capturing this vignette!
Here's how mine breaks down:
(All from Goodwill unless otherwise noted)
Table $4.99 
Crocheted topper $1.49 
Lamp (base only) $2.99 
White stoneware pitcher: $2.99
clock: Pottery Barn (free with gift certificate)
flowers: $2.50 Hobby Lobby sale
lamp shade: $8.99 Wal-Mart
Burlap "tablecloth" less than $5.00 Wal-Mart fabric dept.


So yes, I'm pretty proud of myself cause I can cross T.H.A.T. off my wish list.
I've had so many crafty decor ideas lately but I'm also trying to get my Etsy shop back up and running....seems as soon as I add items to the shop someone buys them!  I know there are worse problems but it has been a bit stressful.  I'm going to try to add more items tonight and then share another "Copy That" with you tomorrow or Saturday.  
Any ideas?

 Bet you won't guess in a million years!  But I think you'll like it!
I love it!  
Until then,
xoxo



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I'll be linking up here:

Faded Charm
My Romantic Home
French Country Cottage
The Charm of Home
No Minimalist Here
The Answer is Chocolate
Cedar Hill Ranch
Vintage Inspiration Friday
Savvy Southern Style
Ivy & Elephants
House of Hepworths
The Shabby Creek Cottage
The French Cupboard
Debbidoos Copy Cat Challenge

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