DIY Coasters

This past weekend my mom and I brought out our crafty sides that we hadn't fully embraced since she was my Girl Scouts leader, and well, that was a long time ago. She chose to use some scrapbook paper and mod podged it to the tiles and then used three coats of mod podge over the paper. I chose to use some spray paint. We both tried some acrylic paint but didn't get clean enough lines. The one paint we didn't mind was a glitter gold because we didn't notice as many areas where the lines weren't perfect thanks to the glitter.

I used one small strip of tape in between each strip instead of measuring anything-that sure sped up the process.

 

 

Don't spray too much paint-been there, done that, didn't work. I actually love the ombre-esque effect on this set.

This is the really important part! Take tape off right away for crisp lines!

To Finish Off The Coasters:

+ Let dry // I left them overnight just for kicks and giggles.

+ Coat with Mod Podge // I used 2 coats because I didn't want it to get too thick.

+ Cut cork into squares // My mom was a rock star with this. She cut 4x4 inch squares with the help of her handy-dandy X-ACTO knife + a ruler, of course, and I did the gluing {a skill in and of its own I tell ya}.

+ Place books on top of coasters to make sure the cork adheres to tile.

And simply enjoy your morning drink of choice: mine would be Chai Tea thank you very much.

Happy weekend, lovelies! xo

Wedding Wednesday

Remember this wedding I shared awhile ago-one of my best friends' who happens to be Bill's cousin as well {win win for me!}. Well, I wanted to share some of the details today because she did all of the graphic design for the wedding. She truly embodied hers and her husbands personality through the colors and font choices, which I maintain is a hard task to do.  And the theme? Milwaukee's Best. So perfect and again, so them.

They named the tables based on specific Milwaukee landmarks and placed people strategically at tables that there was a story behind {and also a great talking point if the guests didn't know each other}. The escort cards were also a little DIY project-of course, Lexi designed the cards and the kooizes. Then with an x-acto knife, some glue, wooden rods, and some paper confetti, these were created.

Lexi's mom got to crafting on the mason jars. She primed and sprayed them all, and they were beautiful! I loved the mix of sizes and how each jar contained just one type of flower. Stephanie at Sendik's is just amazing. There's really no other word to describe her.

 

 

How great right? If you have any graphic design needs, let me know, and I would be more than happy to put you in touch with Lexi. She just gets it and has an amazing eye. I loved seeing all of her hard work come to life. The wedding was a truly magical day, and I could not be happier for the newlyweds!

.......

Photography by Liz Doering Photographs {and I may just have to include more next week because she and her daughter KK got so many amazing shots and not to mention are two of the nicest ladies I have ever met}

DIY Dipped Denim

Happy Friday! I'm off to the races this weekend, the Indy 500 to be exact.  You bet you will find me in these bad boys while cheering on some of my favorite foreign racing gentlemen. 

I followed Jenni's tutorial found here.  I previously cut these F21 jeans for a ridiculous jorts party last summer {I was Jorty Spice, what else?} but haven't worn them since.  I thought it was time to switch things up, and I can't say that I have any dipped denim in my closet.

If by any chance you are at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway this Sunday {doubtful}, look for me frolicking around in these gems and then come frolic around the track with me.

What do you have going on this Memorial Day weekend?

DIY Travel Inspired Art

First and foremost, I would like to wish the world's best dad a very happy, happy birthday! Hope your day is amazing dad--you deserve it!

On an entirely different note, I have been fortunate enough to travel the world thanks to Trinity Academy of Irish Dance.  I've competed in Ireland and Scotland and performed in Belgium, France, Montreal, and Japan.  The only major trip I have taken not pertaining to Irish dance was a month long trip in Australia.  We volunteered for two weeks and then had an adventure tour for two weeks all through International Student Volunteers (ISV).  The adventure tour consisted of snorkeling, white water rafting, bungee jumping, sky diving, and rappelling.  Needless to say, it was pretty incredible.  

I got inspired when I looked at Alaina's Etsy shop.  Alaina is the brains behind Live Creating Yourself and will be launching The Evergirl with Danielle in February, which I am oh so anxiously awaiting.  I already follow both ladies daily and will be adding The Everygirl to my must-visit list.

I had two frames I liked from TJ Maxx that had just been sitting in my room.  Something needed to be done with them.  I referred back to previously mentioned inspiration.  I wanted to capture at least two places I had traveled to in the past several years, and I chose the Eiffel Tower and the Sydney Opera House.  I would later like to add something from Japan as I miss it dearly.  I looked at images here and here for inspiration as well. I loved Alaina's larger frames, but these were the frames I had already so I'm working with them.  Here's the final product:

I used the frames I had and just cut out plain white paper to fit into the 4x6 frames.  I sketched my drawings in pencil and traced over them with a permanent marker.  Nothing too crazy.  If I can do it, you can most certainly do this as well.

Since I'm home for winter break they're residing in our basement next to a globe I bought at TJ as well. I envision them residing on a shelf in my dream office one day.

Do you have any favorite places you would want to remember through some art? 

Holiday Centerpiece

Yes, the blog is still under construction.  Everything is changed except for the title.  Sorry folks.  Even if the blog is not perfect, I had to share this craft with you that my mom and I finished this morning:

My inspiration came from this image on Pinterest:

Source: cleverlyinspired.blogspot.com via Jamie on Pinterest

My mom and I realized that we hadn't crafted together since I was in Girl Scouts.  Seriously.  Needless to say, we had to stock up on supplies.  This craft cost us $14.21 total.  I used several coupons at Michaels.  Never leave home without them. 

Supplies:

Wine bottles (had these already)

White primer spray

Craft bond

Epsom salt

Glitter spray (optional)

Sticks/twigs from yard

Pinecones (had these already)

Ornaments (had these already)

Platter (had one already)

Here's the step-by-step process:

Step One:  I decided I wanted to take the labels off of the bottles just in case I would see them when we spray painted them.  I chose five differently shaped bottles and ended up only using three.  Thanks to our neighbor Mrs. W for saving some of her bottles for our craft!!  All I did was soak them in hot water and dish soap.  I had a lot of errands to run so they soaked for about 3-4 hours.  The labels peeled off easily.  Turns out one of them wasn't a label at all. 

Step Two:   Spray the bottles with white primer.  We probably should have done this part outside, but at least we opened our screen door?  We did this part right before we went to bed and just let them dry overnight.  They looked just as great when we woke up this morning.

  

Step Three: Spread out epsom salt.  Then spray bottles with craft bond and roll the bottles in epsom salt.  During this part, some of our primer was coming off.  Not much at all, but enough that we noticed.  We tried different strategies to prevent this.  I would recommend picking up the bottle and then rolling again or spraying the bottle and then pick up the epsom salt in your hand and spread it on yourself instead of rolling.

 

Step Four: Collect twigs/sticks in your backyard.  We sprayed them with silver glitter spray.  It's kind of hard to see, but I'm still glad we did this to add a little more to the twigs.  Then arrange them how you like in the wine bottles.

Step Five: I asked my mom if she had any trays/platters to put these on.  Of course she did.  We used one from the dollar store and spread the left over epsom salt we had used to put on the bottles.  This way we weren't wasting it.  I grabbed some extra pinecones I had, and my mom grabbed some extra ornaments, and we placed them around the tray wherever our hearts so desired.

I love the natural elements, and we are so happy with how they turned out!  

Are you still crafting at all or have you moved on to wrapping? More on that tomorrow.


Linking up with Tuesday's Treasures at My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Nifty Thrifty Tuesday @ Coastal Charm and Funky Junk Interiors:




 





  

How Sweet It Is

Remember that feeling in college after a really long semester and that first day you're on winter break? Ya, that was me yesterday.  I continued to watch more Hallmark movies.  Why is it that no matter how many times I watch the cheesy Christmas movies, I cry?  I am such a sap.  I was also in denial that I am officially done with undergrad classes.  Where did the time go? On to student teaching with some amazing third graders in the spring! Today, we technically still have two classes, but we're just eating and telling each other how much love each other (that is a very serious statement).  Then I get to go watch my first graders in their Christmas concert - holy cuteness. 

So what will I be doing over winter break?  Well, I would like to master wrapping that's for sure.  Remember these gifts here? This was the first time I ever attempted to make my presents presentable Coincidence the word present is in presentable? I think not.  I used to wrap as fast as possible, and my family can vouch for me on this one:  they weren't pretty. 

Next on this list: get crafty with my mother dearest.  We will be working on this lovely project.  I may or may not have several wine/champagne bottles from our holiday party.

Source: cleverlyinspired.blogspot.com via Jamie on Pinterest

I will update you on the wrapping and crafting for sure.  I have other projects up my sleeve, but I don't quite know when they'll get done.  It's my brother K's birthday this weekend and then Boyfriend B's on the 23rd.  Then there is that really fun day, Christmas, you know? So life will be a tad busy, and I want to enjoy being home with the ones I love.  Maybe I'll just make them all craft with me? That sounds like a great idea if I do say so myself.  

Most challenging task of the day: packing the car.  Dearest dad, be warned as you will not be pleased when you see how much I'm bringing home.  And to answer your question in advance, no I will not wear all of the clothes over break that I'm bringing home, but a girl needs options.  Thanks for understanding.  You're the best.

Do you have any tips on how to pack lighter?  Any signature wrapping up your sleeves?

A Must Read: Simple Details

I thought I would take some time this morning to tell you about a blog I absolutely love and think you just might as well.  Readers meet Pam, Pam meet readers.  Classic cyber introduction.  You are oh so welcome.  Pam resides in the beautiful state of Colorado and shares her DIY projects and creativity throughout Simple Details.  Not to mention she has a gorgeous home and a knack for making things beautiful!  If you're ever in Denver, her Starbucks order is a Venti non-fat latte.  Again, you're welcome.  Here are some of her posts I wanted to highlight, in no particular order because they are all just that great.

 This is one of my favorite before and afters to date.  She did a remarkable job with this coffee table. I also just love the pillows and styling of the coffee table as well.

 A wonderful DIY that adds a special personal touch to your home. Find the tutorial here.

This is one of her more recent posts about her 11th annual Christmas Party.  This year's theme is words and so she used pages from an old dictionary for the invite.  How clever is that?? [insert answer about how clever that is]

Happy reading! There are lots and lots of posts for you to go catch up on over a morning cup of whatever you drink (I come from an extended family of Dew drinkers in the AM)! Do you have a favorite post from Pam? Did you find a project you're going to try?

DIY Kitchen Canvas Art

I'm just going to throw it out there...I have a girl crush on ...love Maegan. I wish I could remember how I first stumbled upon her wonderful posts, but I can't so I can just tell you they are great and that you should read them.  She has a variety of DIY projects and amazing hair tutorials, not to mention some pretty outstanding daily outfits.  Sadly, not all of our hair is as perfect as hers nor our closets as big.  Go check out her site, you'll see what I mean.

One day this summer I stumbled upon this Home DIY.  She included templates and everything--what more could you ask for?!  Thanks Maegan! She put them up in her dining room.

Cool right??

I loved what I saw and decided to put a little spin of my own on the project.  Don't get me wrong, I still used her fabulous template, but I added the word Drink into the mix and got smaller square canvases (I used 12"x 12").

I'm the type of person who loses patience after awhile so I did parts of the project over a span of several days.  If you're the type of person who can sit down for several hours and be fine, by all means go for it, and then teach me your ways.  For some reason, my double sided tape was not working very well so I had to get resourceful and make regular tape work.  I also was not expecting my letters to be as crisp as Maegan's, and I was okay with that so I was not too concerned about the fact my letters were not taped down too tightly.

I chose a more neutral spray paint color since I had no clue what else we would be decorating our apartment with at the time.  Although I do not have pictures of my a step by step process (who would've thought I would be blogging about one day?? Not this girl), here is my final product.  And yes I realize I should have staggered them in my picture so don't get all sarcastic on me and say, "Carly, why did you write Eat and be Drink Merry." Because I didn't.  If you really feel like you need to say it and get it off your chest, fine, go ahead.  After all, I'm only here to make you happy.

 I love the texture the thumb tacks add to the canvases.  And I like that the letters aren't perfectly bright white.

Here they are hanging in our cozy apartment.  I personally love how they turned out, and it's honestly pretty cool to look at something you made and are pleasantly surprised with how well they turned out.

Do you have any DIY projects you're working on?  My roommate J just accomplished a pretty great one if I do say so myself, but I'll have to wait awhile to post about it as it's a present for some pretty cool people.

(Image via one)