DIY Succulent Planters {Project Pretty}

I've had my windows opened almost everyday this week, with the smell of fresh air, flowering scents, and the sound of birds chirping strumming through my house. The world is awaking for it's deep winter's sleep. Nature is renewing and refreshing itself as we shift into spring. It's so delightful.

As we transition from winter to spring, I'm craving fresh flowers, fresh linen, and creamy whites. And I've really had the urge to bring a piece of spring into my home, so I decided to succulents was a great place to start. I've waiting several weeks for these cute little plants to arrive at the Lowe's Greenhouse, so I'm really excited to share my weekend project with you.

Here they are-- DIY Succulent Planters.

What you'll need:

• Succulents (all shapes and colors. there are so many to choose from. go wild.)
• Clay Pots
• Dirt 
• Gravel
• Paint
• Stencil 
• Paint Brush
• Paper Towel (optional)
• Cup

 
 1. gathering supplies. lay everything out so it's easy to reach /// 2. pour a little paint inside your cup. dilute your paint with water. this will give you a "white wash" look /// 3. paint your pots. if you applied too much paint, you can wipe some off with your paper towel

4. & 5. with your stencil, add numbers, letters, or words to your pots. I used my oil paints which took a week to dry. cheap craft paint would work a lot better /// 6. & 7. fill your pots with dirt and arrange your succulents. pack them in for a more dramatic look /// 8. not shown, but add your gravel and water your plants well

Happy Planting!

Emmie

DIY Picture Frame {Project Pretty}

Krysta said to me, "Mom, I'm ready for a bigger girl's room. Not a teenager room, but something a little bigger than what I have now."

I was shocked because Krysta NEVER wants change. In fact, I still have a few of her toddler toys and dresses that she insists on keeping, but yet she never plays with anymore. Since she wants a "somewhat kinda sorta, but not really a teenager room", I'm letting her take the reigns as far as picking out the colors and fabric.

Her colors: gold, silver, white, turquoise, and fuchsia. It sounds a little bizarre, but it's coming together really well. We've been working on her room with any small pockets of time that we can muster together.

I'll post each DIY project that we add to her room and once it's complete I'll do a grand reveal with links to where certain items can be purchased and/or made.

So for now, I'll start with the focal point of her room.... the GRAND WHITE HORSE PHOTOGRAPH. The white horse photograph can be purchased from Art.com . Because we wanted to fill a large space with dramatic art, we opted for the 56x42. Since the piece is insanely large, professionally framing would have cost us an arm and a leg, possibly even our firstborn.... so we did what any DIYer would do-- built our own frame.

photograph on Art.com

Supplies:

• modpodge
• foam brush
• wood glue
• nails
• 4 furring strips $1 each at Lowes
• 1/8 inch plywood $13/sheet at Lowes
• molding (I needed 3 strips because of the large size, so just measure how much you need.) I used "Sunburst" from Lowes. It's about $18/strip, but you can opt out for something cheaper-- this was the one of the pricier strips, but I just really like the detail on the "sunburst" molding.  
• clamps
• spray paint or regular paint

Total framing cost: $73 (please note: your cost depends on the size of your photograph and the style of your molding)


Steps:

1. Build the backside of your frame with the furring strips according to the size of your photograph. Add enough to each side to allow room from your molding to be sturdy on the plywood, but small enough to have a little overhang. Example: if your photograph is 8"x10", your molding is 2", make your frame roughly 9.5"x11.5".

2. Wood glue the ends and nail together. See photo below:

3. Wood glue your plywood to your frame. Clamp it down till the glue dries, preferably overnight.

4. Using a foam brush, apply modpodge to your plywood and smooth your photograph on top. I started in the middle and worked my way out-- I found that to be the easiest.

5. Next, Modpodge the top of your photograph for a glossy look and to protect it.

6. Cut each edge of your molding in 45* angles. Wood glue the edges together, again preferably overnight for maximum hold. Spray paint the molding to the color of your choice-- I choose silver.

7. Wood glue your "frame" to the top of your plywood. Clam down, so it's nice and tight.

Details: 

8. Attach hardware to the back sides (not the top) AND YOU'RE DONE!

Shown displayed in Krysta's room:

 

Happy Creating!!!

Em

Little Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Wolf {Project Pretty}

Welcome to another edition of "Project Pretty."

We previously celebrated Krysta and William’s birthday with a “Little Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Wolf” theme. I loved how all of the decorations transformed our ordinary home into a cozy woodland --perfect for all of our Reds’ and Wolves. While I’m anxious to tell you about our big day, I thought I’d share the break down on how I created various elements of the themed décor.

Here is the overview of the dining area.

I filled this area with moss, wildlife, colorful ribbon, and lots of wood slices.

tablecloth: 4 yards of natural burlap, tied with twine --no sewing needed
terrarium: filled 1/4 with various moss, displayed with woodland creatures
toadstools + blue birds: sculpted from polymer clay. bake at 325ish for around 10-20 minutes.
table wreath: all supplies from Hobby Lobby (tutorial below)
evergreen trees: Hobby Lobby Christmas clearance
table centerpiece: all from Lowes --Dusty Miller planted in tiny clay pots. given to each kid
cupcake + cake display: supplies from Hobby Lobby (tutorial below)
bunting banner: Sweet Pea Fabrics on Etsy (tutorial below) 
mason jars: chocolate cookie mix in a jar. fabric here, recipe here. given to each family. 

 Krysta's Cake

regular vanilla cake mix. I added fresh strawberries to each layer.
cream cheese frosting recipe, here. 


for embellishments, I used a floral bird and butterflies from Hobby Lobby. I added red gingham ribbon at the base of the two layers. cake is displayed on a wood slice.
 
 

William's Cake

regular chocolate cake mix. I added 3/4 of chocolate chips and one box of chocolate pudding.
cream cheese frosting recipe, here.


for embellishments, I used food coloring to coconut for "grass" and added a blue and white polkadot ribbon at the base. I then added moss balls and a wooden squirrel figurine from Hobby Lobby, all placed on a wood slice.




{Tutorials}

 cupcake stand

use one large wood slice and two smaller slices.
three dowel robs, cut in half to use as your dividers. attach with WOOD GLUE.
with hot glue, place moss around the robs.
for embellishments, you can add butterflies, birds, bees, etc
 

Bunting Banner

base--

cut fabric into triangles
hot glue yard or ribbon to the FRONT


letters--


with felt, cut out your letters (I printed my letters from my computer to use as a pattern)
thread string around the edges of each letter
hot glue the letter onto each triangle (this will prevent string fly-aways from the back)

 wreath centerpiece

start with an extra large grapevine wreath form, hot glue Spanish moss randomly around the wreath and add berries or flowers.
attach various patterned and colored ribbon to the backside of the wreath.

OPTIONAL: add birds and small decorative items (very lightweight) to hang from the ribbon to add interest.

Front Door Wreath

I love the idea of a themed wreath to greet you at the front door. It helps set the mood of the event.

medium sized grapevine wreath. hot glue reindeer moss partially around the wreath.
add miniature bunting banner made from ribbon and attached with fishing line.
I added a Red Riding Hood (McDonald toy bought from Amazon for $1.50) and a wolf figurine. 


That just about wraps up the how-to's from our Little Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Wolf birthday party. Come back next week for another "Project Pretty."

Happy Crafting,
EM

Mustache Bash {Project Pretty}

What better way to soak up the month of Love, than to celebrate the soon-to-be birth of a friend’s baby?

To throw a baby shower, of course!

And so we did. A few friends and I gathered to honor E’s little bambino with a Mustache Bash. It was small and intimate, personal and homey --just the way she wanted it.

The shower was themed around all things little man --pinstripes, bow ties, and of course, mustaches!

Here are some of the decorations and how-to’s that we incorporated into the theme.

baby shower cake made with regular cake mix with strawberries in the middle. for frosting recipe, see below. and for the bow tie on top --sculpted out of fondant and food coloring.

 small tissue pom-poms 

1.  fold the tissue in a front to back motion (like an accordion) 
2. cut the tissue in half, then secure each one in the middle with a pipe cleaner, wire, or string 
3. carefully spread out the layers of tissue. The more tissue you use, the fuller your pom will be 

"boy, oh, boy" banner printed on card-stock paper and hung on twine --I designed this in photoshop. It's super easy, but if you'd like this FREE printable banner, I will email it to you.

 striped garland using twine and 4 spools of ribbon

5x7 "Keep Calm and Grow On" I designed in photoshop
If you'd like a FREE printable of this, I'll email it to you.

bow tie mason jars

"W" wreath.

1. wrap twine tightly around the wreath form
2. modpodge your choice of paper onto a plain wooden letter and cut off the excess, then hot glue the letter onto the wreath 
3. make your bow tie out of 2" ribbon and attach with hot glue

and for the frosting on the cake (literally), here is my Cream Cheese Frosting recipe. It’s delish; you won’t be disappointed.

Elizabeth, I hope you enjoyed your baby shower! I can't wait to meet your new little mister man!

I will return later this week with a birthday post, deployment post, and another Project Pretty.

Happy Week,

Em

Love, love

Yesterday it snowed. 

Truth be told, I doubted my weatherman when he said snow was in the forecast --he let me down many times in the past, but now he’s rightfully redeemed. We woke up to a nice thin sheet of white snow --neither fluffy nor powdery, but good enough to get my winter fix.

7:30 hit and we were out the door, sledding down our side hill, sculpting snowballs, and making snow angels.

Oh, how I have missed you.

On the way to school Krysta said, “I miss the snow so much. When are we going back to Alaska?”

With those words, my heart aches. It’s a question that I honestly don’t have an exact answer for, but I do know this… one day, one day we’ll return.

Growing up on the East Coast I’ve always considered myself a beach girl; I lived for the summer; I breathed in the salty air as much as humanly possible; stayed outside until my skin burned from the sun. But over the years I’ve grown to realize, as much as I love the ocean, I’m perfectly content living up North --extreme North-- surrounded by mountains and birch trees and alpine creatures. I now live for Autumn and Winter; I love breathing in fresh crisp air that rolls off of the mountain tops and I’m over-the-moon when snow flurries begin floating down and wildlife perches itself in my front yard. One day, I will live that life again.

All morning, her words weighed heavily on my heart --her longing to be back up North, enjoying life as she once knew. I recognized that the snow would melt and disappear as quickly as it came, so we picked her up from school early to squeeze the bejezus out of any remaining snow patches.

starring wide-eyed with anticipation for more flurries

William was completely smitten. He ran out the door before I could get his shoes on!

********************************************************************************

Today is Valentine’s Day. Love Day.

The kids and I awoke to chocolates and flowers left by my handsome devil. And I may or may not have sent Krysta to school with a sugar buzz…

Instead of purchasing cards and candy, we created our own little Valentine gift baggy for Krysta’s classmates.

Here’s how you make it--

What you’ll need:
Snack ziplocks
Cardstock paper and a printer
Staples and a paper cutter

For the tag:
In Photoshop create a file size 6.5x2
Place your image to the size you’d like, and then add scripty fonts and a message. SAVE
Then create a second file, sized 6.5x4
Copy and paste your SAVED image twice (flipping ONLY your second image horizontally). SAVE
Almost done… create a third file, sized 8.5x11
Copy and paste your 6.5x4 images. You can fit 3 images on one sheet of paper.
PRINT

Now cut and fold your tag.
Fill your baggy and candy of your choice, then staple your tag onto the ziplock.

VOILA, easy heartfelt Valentine’s gifts.

I’m heading off to prep food with a friend, clean my house, and set up a few decorations.... there’s gonna be a baby shower tomorrow!

This month's cup is spilling over the rim in love, love it.

Big Hearts,
em