My Creative Blog [Search results for Canvas People] 

You guys have been so good to us lately! You've dealt with all the blog switcheroo craziness and we thought we should thank you for it! Well, technically Canvas People are the ones doing the generous giving, but we're sharing the love with you! They run this deal from time to time, and this time around we get to share it with you!

Canvas People are offering a Free 8x10 to every EC2 reader! (or if you're more the large print type you can get $40 off of your order)

To get your free canvas, click HERE One of my very first blog posts ever was about a canvas gallery I ordered through Canvas People. Remember this?

So the question now is What to Print?? Pictures or a Printable? Don't worry, we've rounded up an awesome collection of free, legit prints that you can use on your canvas. How's that for exciting?
. To download them, follow them using the links provided to their source sites, save the image to your computer and upload it to Canvas People using the link above.
This would look great in a master bedroom or bath.Download the I love us printable.

Source: eighteen25.blogspot.com via East Coast Creative on Pinterest The school year is almost over, make one of these on canvas for one of your kiddo's teachers Download the Teacher Appreciation printable 16x20

Source: eighteen25.blogspot.com via East Coast Creative on Pinterest
We love the colors in this one!Download the Room in Our Hearts printable

Source: simpleasthatblog.com via East Coast Creative on Pinterest

Love isn't just for the month of February! Download the fairytale printable

Source: simpleasthatblog.com via East Coast Creative on Pinterest
Jess has an obsession with coral, so this would be perfect. Comes in tons of colors!Download the What I Love printable

Source: eighteen25.blogspot.com via East Coast Creative on Pinterest
And my personal favorite is one I made from a quote I saw. Download Straight Gangsta printable

You know by now that our favorite online paper store is Moo & Puppy. I made this monogram printable to put on a canvas, but I was thinking of making one for each of my kids' teachers. All you need to do is 1-visit moo and puppy2- choose your paper pack- you get like 8 papers for $3.00 (what a deal!) 3- Use picmonkey.com to add a background shape and letter4. Use this link to get your free canvas!

Ooh, and we just found a few more adorable printables (comes in lots of colors!) from Paper Coterie that are perfect for Mother's Day, and every other day for that matter! Download Love printables

We hope you have a great weekend and have fun choosing what to print! Aren't FREE things awesome? We sure think so! Enjoy!

We've been looking forward to our fall kickoff for weeks and it's been as awesome as we hoped it would be! Honestly, we have the best.readers.ever! We so appreciate all of your support and feedback on our projects this week! If you missed them, here's what we were up to this week…Jess' Fireplace Makeover & My Foyer Update

So, to start this fall off right, we've partnered with Canvas People again to bring you FREE canvas! Use THIS LINK for your Freebie!

We love that Canvas People offers our readers these awesome deals. Right now their website is offering 25% off, but nope, our readers get an 8x10 for FREE or 50% off! SCORE! And, off course we wouldn't just give you a Freebie without some inspiration! Idea # 1- Back to School Canvas Did you see Jess' daughter's 1st Day of Preschool Pic? (Umm, cutest thing ever!) We were talking about Canvas People and she decided to get this picture on canvas and begin a tradition of getting a canvas at the beginning of every school year and putting them in her upstairs hallway.

My kiddos start school next week and I'm hoping to snap a pic even half as cute at this one! Idea # 2- Shut the Front Door Canvas

Not ready to write it in massive letters on the wall, but sorta think it's funny? We'll I'm hooking you up with a Shut the Front Door printable that you can have printed on a canvas. Download 8x10 jpeg HERE

Idea # 3 Fall Leaf Graphic Art How cool will these babies look grouped together? I am ordering these three ASAP! Of course we used our favorite digital paper from Moo and Puppy and we're sharing the downloads with you for free! Download Graphic Art Print 8x10 jpegs Birch Maple Oak

Idea # 4 Fun Fall Prints Just some random cuties that might work in your fall decor… I really love the 8x10 canvas on a mantle or shelf etc. It's the perfect size to get creative with and use in a less traditional"hang it on the wall" way! Download Autumn 8x10 jpeg HERE

Download Falling for You 8x10 jpeg HERE

Idea # 5 Print a Good Old Fashioned Picture I love this picture of me and some of my best gal pals. So often I'm printing pics of my kids or family etc, but these girls are so important to me! I think I'm going to get a canvas of this pic for my office. My posse on canvas… doesn't get much better than that! (And yes, we're a gangsta posse.)

We hope you're as excited about fall and FREE Canvases as we are! We're so glad to be back with our A-Game on! Can't wait to bring you even more fun projects that we have planned for the next few months! Enjoy your Free Canvas and don't forget to use This Link to get the Freebie Deal! Linking up to: Tutorials & Tips

Happy Friday to our favorite readers ever! I've been really excited to share this tutorial with you! I wanted to hang canvas prints of my kiddos in a unique way. Add some wire, screws, and clamps, and I think I came up with something pretty cool!

Industrial Faux Canvas Collage

Everyone loves gallery-wrapped canvases these days, and why wouldn't you? They're fabulous! Although, we don't know about you, but sometimes $60.00+ for one print is a wee bit hard for us to swallow. We were super excited to hear that WalMart came out with a faux canvas:

Now what, you ask, is a faux canvas? Well, we were wondering the same thing, so of course we tried it out. What they do is print your photo on heavy, dimpled paper (canvas look-alike) and then wrap it around a cardboard box. Sounds glamorous, huh? Let me tell you that for the price, we were thrilled!

And, of course, we didn't pay full price… and neither should you! We used a coupon that brought the total down to $9.96 each but… it's expired. BOO! Have no fear, we've got your back! Canvas People will give you a FREE 8x10 canvas and it's not even cardboard! lol. Just use this link to get the deal.

So, you should know by now that I have 4 kids, yup FOUR, and so we got prints of each of the kiddos. We thought it would be fun to add a little boys vs. girls flare, so, inspired by Mandi's Epic Room Makeover we made two graphic canvases as well. We just used some images we found online and Picnik to create them. Sadly, Picnik is actually closing (today in fact!) but PicMonkey is the perfect replacement!

The first step was to add the screw eyes to each canvas. Just measure to the center and screw them in. Since they're made of cardboard it was crazy simple to do. (Umm, please ignore my creepy monster looking hands)

Add screw eyes to the top and bottom of each canvas except for the one which will be at the bottom of your display. The bottom canvas will only get top screw eyes.

Next, add screw eyes to the ceiling. This will require a little measuring, but you'll want them to be even. My vaulted ceiling required some additional math, but we made it work.

Here's where it got a bit tricky. The nice man at Lowe's gave us these clamps to lock the wire in place. Have you ever felt like your hands were made of stone? It's very clear that we're not surgeons. It took about 30 minutes to clamp the first side. Ugh! The hubs finally got home and it took him 30 seconds. We were just happy to have it done!

Now for the fun part! Weave the wire through the screw eyes on the top, behind the back and out the bottom. Repeat for the remaining canvases. Ok, we're all about keeping it Real on our blog, so we'll be honest here too… This is a two person job and preferably with a person you really like, because it's a tad frustrating. The canvases tend to slip down a bit and did we mention our stone hands? We promise it's all worth it in the end.

Once your canvases are threaded through, you'll want to secure the bottom one first. We used a staple gun to hold the wire in place and then added some hot glue (because they were slipping and because Jess is slightly obsessed with the stuff!)

Determine how far apart you want your canvases and adjust them accordingly. The tension of the taut wire should keep the upper canvases in place, but if you want extra support you can add some glue to each one.

The end result is a unique, industrial-looking display that we love!

I couldn't be happier with this project and the unique way to share pictures of my kids! I have to give a shout out to our photographer and friend at Salvatori Photography. These pictures are SO my kids!
This was just the first project in my breakfast room makeover, we have lots more planned. I've switched out the light fixture (thankfully!) and this weekend I'm adding avocado chairs, stenciling my table top, and more! I hope to have more to reveal next week!

So, what do you think? Is the wire style workin' for you?

The day of love is quickly approaching, and I thought I'd let you know one of the things I'm doing. You know that Jess and I love Canvas People and we're super thrilled that they now offer square canvas options! I don't know why, but even before Instagram, I was a huge fan of square pics (call me a trendsetter! lol!) Anyhow, Canvas People has a deal for $55 off any canvas (11x11 or larger)… We did the math and guess what- it works out to…

11x11 for 11… Well, that has a nice ring to it! I've yet to do anything fun with all the pictures we took on our trip to London and Paris, and I think this deal just got me motivated! I ordered a map for Eric back in August, but it arrived all wrinkled, so I've been planing to do a little DIY project with it. I'm thinking square canvases from our trip, paired with map pieces mod podged onto plain canvas just might be pretty awesome!
Here are a few other pics I'm thinking of using.

Here's the link to get the $55 off deal! Click HERE for discount And yes, you can get $55 off any size as long as it's over 11x11, but we're just loving up that size right now!
So, do tell, what are you going to turn into canvas?

** And I just came across this adorable picture of Kaden (who's now 8-sniff, sniff) but it made me think I just might order some of the kids for the grandparents! Woohoo!

Let's face it, with Halloween on one end and Christmas on the other, Thanksgiving often gets a raw deal. I know that when the holiday season is in full force, being intentional with projects and decor gets really hard. I find it so easy to scoot right by Thanksgiving, without a second thought, and dive right into Christmas stuff, so I decided to tackle a project that would keep my family centered and focused on being grateful throughout November. A Thankful Tree that can be reused every year!

Here's what you'll need to make your own:

• Canvas (mine is 18in x 24in)
• 1/2 yard-3/4 yard of fabric
• Spray Adhesive
• Spraypaint
• Mod podge (not pictured)
• Baby clothespins (not pictured)

Step 2: Locate your tree image (there are tons of free clipart images listed in Google images) and enlarge it to fit your canvas. We love the engineer prints from Staples and use them all the time. Step 3: Use a sharp-edge razor to cut the tree out. Don't worry about all the little limbs, and focus on the larger ones. This seemed super daunting, but surprisingly went quickly and smoothly. I accidentally cut a branch that I wanted to keep on (doh!) but was easily able to use tape to fix it.  

Step 4: Lay your image down on the backside of the fabric and trace it with a pen.

Step 5: Spray the fabric tree with spray starch and iron it to make it stiff. This makes cutting it out with scissors a piece of cake. Step 6: Center the tree on the canvas. Starting at the trunk, lift small sections and lightly spray with adhesive. Smooth out all of the bubbles from the center out to the edges. A little spray adhesive may get on the canvas where you don't need it, but that's ok. We'll be taking care of that later.

Step 7: Place stencils on your canvas and stencil away! I used Martha Stewart's self-adhering stencils which are awesome because you don't have to worry about them moving around while you stencil. (Insider secret: This project was originally posted on U-Create, so there was a deadline involved. I was actually stenciling this bad boy in the car in between a shift at work and tennis practice. Pure craziness, I tell you #cantwasteevenoneminute.) 

Step 8: Mod Podge the entire canvas starting at the center of the tree and working out to the edges. This will seal the tree and make it more resistant to wear and fading. And remember that spray adhesive I mentioned before? The Mod Podge takes care of hiding that, too. Score! 

It's scary at first, but dries clear! 

Step 9: Spraypaint the clothespins and adhere them to the tree with hot glue. 

Step 10: Print out our fun"thankful" labels on card stock (download them here) and cut them out using scissors. Have your family write what they're thankful on each of the tags and then clip them to the canvas.

Voila! You're done and are left with an adorable, re-useable canvas that will help your family focus on what's really important in the next two weeks. Plus, it's super cute, so it's a win-win! 

 So, that's it! I love that I can use this every year. I plan on writing the year on the back of each tag and keeping them to look through each year. I'm hoping my son won't say that he's most thankful for Cinnamon Toast Crunch every year. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Aannnnnd since we've officially welcomed the holiday season here on the blog, we wanted to share something exciting with you! When we were looking around for cool Christmas vinyl options to share with you, we found very few that were modern and stylish. So, since we had several requests for the vinyl phrase we used on the front door last week, we decided to create a few just for you! A limited number of Be Merry Christmas decals are now for sale in our Etsy shop at a very reasonable price- only $8!! That's a whole lot cheaper than buying a new wreath, people. And we have a couple more coming this week, so be on the lookout. Get yours now!

Let the holiday craziness begin!  

Ladies-and the approximately 1% of readers who are dudes-, we have awesome sponsors. They are the ones who make the rest of our posts and projects possible. Not only do they support us, but they have some pretty cool stuff in their stores. We've rounded up some of favorite items for a cozy Fall season. Make sure you don't miss the discount codes and special promotions!

1. We are digging on this Antique Thread Display Drawer from Nachokitty. It could serve so many different purposes: jewelry organizer, craft supply organizer, or pretty display for your tiny treasures. Don't stop there, though. You should definitely take a look at their Etsy shop- I could browse their finds for hours!

2. I love this Industrial Table Lamp from Lucent Lampworks! I can see it snuggled up to some pretty Fall decor on a mantel or side table. Love. it. To get 10% off your purchase use the code EC2TENOFF.

3. We're heading into the holiday season, and it's always good to have small gifts on hand for teachers, neighbors etc. Stock up on these Premium Soy Candles from CJS Eco Chic in the mini 4 oz. and you won't ever have to worry! And oh man, the holiday scents are to die for!

4. We love using non-traditional materials for headboards! How about this fireplace mantel headboard? Not bad, right? Architectural Antiques is hands-down our favorite place for incredible salvaged materials to repurpose.

5. Did you see Mandi's Epic Room Makeover. She used the Nova Trellis, from Royal Design Studio in the bathroom and well, it is fabulous. As a thank you to their 10,000 FB fans, RDS is offering 25% of all orders through Sunday with the code WELOVEU.

6. You've all been waiting for Monica's big patio reveal, and tomorrow, the wait is over! They couldn't have done it without Stone Depot, and their super helpful staff. Now's the time to build an outdoor fireplace or firepit, and they guys at Stone Depot have everything you need to make that happen!

7. We can't seem to control our love for photo canvases from Canvas People! Right now you can buy a 11 x 14 Canvas for only $15 from Canvas People and $1 of every order will be donated to help fight Breast Cancer! If you need some inspiration for what to put on a canvas, check out this post! 8. Not gonna lie, once the holiday season starts (right after Halloween, in my opinion), I often need a reminder to stop and be thankful for all that I have. This 1 Thessalonians 5:16 Print from Red Letter Words makes a perfect visual reminder of that very thing…and it looks cool, too. Check out the fun new turquoise color, too! They also have a really fun, very sweet Print of the Month focused on the value we women have, and you will receive 20% off this entire section through the end of this month. 9. We love Moo & Puppy digital paper so much, we even wrote a post about all of it's many uses! I'm really liking the fall-ish colors of the Retro Digital Scrapbook Paper. Use the discount code EC2blog20 for 20% off your order!

10. We all know that Thirty-One Gifts has cute and affordable bags, but the one item I've had my eye for over a year is this small Magazine Basket. I love it's shape and versatility! Plus, you can personalize all baskets for only a few dollars more. Right now, mention EC2Blog when you order any basket and get any second item in the catalog 31% off. To place your order, click here and shoot an email to Amanda with your order.

11.Liberty Thrift Store is hands-down our go-to thrift store. Did you know that we found the chair we reupholstered for the Nate Show there? You never know what you'll find thrifting, but it's always fun! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Wait, one more thing! We're happy to announce that we're accepting new sponsors! We have a few openings that we would love to fill, so if you have a business that you think we'll love and can help you promote, send us an email at eastcoastcreativeblog@gmail.com! Seriously, what better way to sell your stuff than to have two loud, passionate, crazy women on your side?! For all the nitty-gritty info about our sponsorship opportunities, click here. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Have a great day, and be sure to stop over and say hi to our wonderful sponsors!

This picture is an absolute favorite of mine, for several reasons. First, it perfectly captures the way Kevin feels about C1 and the love he has for her. It also clearly shows how much C1 enjoys being with him. Secondly, it brings back such great memories of the boating trip we went on last year on our family vacation; the weather was perfect, the scenery was idyllic (we saw dolphins!), the kids were well-behaved, and we were getting to spend quality time with my family. It's just priceless to me!

I want to do something with this picture, but I haven't felt any particular inspiration as to what, yet. Here are two possibilities: Modern Bird Studios- Sleek and Modern Modern Bird Studios creates personalized, modern art from your photographs. Each work is a one-of-a-kind, original studio piece created with a combination of digital, hand, and painting processes on an Oak composite, or, for the extreme modern enthusiasts, on acrylic mounted to Oak.

These prints are really fun, and would be a great addition to our basement game room/play area.
Canvas People- Traditional and Timeless

I do love the simplicity and beauty of a wrap-around canvas.
That's as far as I've gotten. Maybe you can help me. Suggestions, please!
Do you have a favorite photo? What is it and why do you love it so much? *When you comment, if you are able, add a link to a location where we can see your favorite picture (facebook, blog etc.) We'd love to see them!

Today we're excited to be a part of Layla's summer mantle link party!

Our new home has two wood burning fireplaces. One in the main family room, and one in what was intended to be a library, but we use a playroom. (It took me a while to finally convince the builder that we were not in the"library" stage of life and that it would be a playroom for 4 messy kiddos!)
My children adore the beach. They ask me all the time,"When are we going to the beach,"… even in the dead of winter! So, we thought it would only be fitting to have a beachy playroom. Since it is a playroom, I resisted my urge for lots of white, and cool faded blues, and instead took color inspiration from these bright pictures of my kiddos.

Remember the black-turned-yellow mirror project? Well, it makes a big impact on the brown wall and I love it so much more than the boring, old black. So here's the mantle, photo collage, and fun curtains…

First, I thought I'd stand on a stool and take some pics straight on… Oops! There I am! The one fun thing about this picture is that you can see my family room mantle in the mirror on the left! See, my lack of photography ability actually got a 2 for 1 mantle picture! Score!

Here's my boat conundrum… love the boats, but wasn't feelin' the boats on this mantle…

What do you think? In the end, I went with no boats… partially because everything in this room has a very high potential of being destroyed by a small child!

The cool blue bottle, and jar were scored at the same flea market we've been posting about, and I got them for under $5.00!

I had bought the white starfish, and was on the hunt for coral, but man it's way overpriced! Thanks to the awesomeness of blogland, I got the suggestion to just buy some cheap fishtank coral and spray paint it! That's totally up my alley! Who knew Pets Plus could be a crafting resource?

It definitely needed some paint… the pink was blech!

Much better!

I also ordered two more of my favorite beach pics from Canvas People but as much as I love them, I can't seem to find a home for them in the room. They definitely don't work on the mantle… hmmm

This will give you a peek of the room… (I did not clean, as proved by the train table, because it's the kids' job and I was sticking to my guns… blog or no blog!)

I just bought a fairly bright green sofa for the room, but need to go and pick it up. It will go on this side with my favorite little people recliners!

So, there you have it… my summer playroom mantle! I think it works and the kids don't even notice like it a lot! One final picture… I realized the blue jars looked awful on the right side of the life preserver, so I moved them back to the left. Much better now!

Thanks for letting me share my mantle and let me know what you think and also if you know where to buy a really inexpensive oar! I think that's all that I'm missing!

**One sidenote… I don't know what's up with the color in these pictures… some are really faded out and for some reason only look that way on the blog. Sorry, if the drab colors are depressing you!: ) **

Are you ready for the 2012 Summer Olympics? Are your kids into it at all? Hopefully this Olympic craft idea will begin to get them in the spirit of the games! Do you have time for a short story? My 4th grade year of school was an Olympic year and my teacher did all kinds of crafts and activities to help us get into the spirit of the Olympics and it rocked! I was SO into the games, the medal counts, and learning about the countries. So, thanks to Mrs. Hanson, here's our first Olympic Craft Idea!

How cool is that canvas? My hubs was telling Kaden that people pay big bucks for cool art like this! I even love the blue paint spill and I love even more that Kade is so laid back that he didn't even mind or think it"ruined" his artwork!
(And just so you know, every pic in this post was taken with my iPhone, because it was really just going to be a mommy-Kaden craft, not a blog post, but it turned out too cool not to share!)

Materials: Blank Canvas (paper would work too) Red, Green, Blue, Black, and Yellow paint (any type works- we had an assortment!) 5 Dixie Cups
Now for my disclaimer. I nabbed this idea from pinterest, but I didn't have toilet paper rolls, so just as I was about to unroll 5 rolls of TP, the brilliant idea of Dixie Cups hit me! Same shape, and no need to unroll my precious toilet paper! (Anyone else find it so annoying that TP is expensive?)

Since this craft is for the kiddos, there's really no instruction needed. Dip, Spin, do whatever to get paint on the cups and then go to town!

Kaden loves to craft. He loves gym etc. at school, but he told me that secretly, art class is his favorite. <3 Just don't tell all of his friends okay? I told him art is cool and he doesn't need to worry about it, his secret is safe with me!

I love how he spaced out his circles and didn't"over-do" them. I promise, I didn't even go into pushy, mom-thinks-you-should-do-this mode. This was all him.

This project was super simple, didn't take much time or prep, and my little man loved it. I guess you could say this Olympic craft is kid-tested and mother approved. What are you doing to make the Olympics Special for your kids?

**Oh and check back tomorrow, because I have an awesome Olympic Printable that my kids freaked out over! **

Jess and I think today's Fab Find is pretty darn fabulous… It's our"Contact Us" tab! Now, before you tune me out, give this post a chance!

We thought we'd share a recent question that we got from one of our readers! We love hearing from all of you and we want to hear from you even more! We got the following message from a reader"Jess" (and no, we did not send ourselves a fake email just to make us feel good!) Here's her message:
Hi Girls — love your site! So I wanted to ask if you might be doing a post on nursery ideas in the near future (or maybe you've already done so). I'll need to start planning in the next few months…we don't have a lot of space to work with and don't want to spend a lot of money (of course). If you could point me in the direction of any good websites with simple but modern ideas, that would be great. Thanks, you girls are amazing! So… Thanks for your email Jess and here's our answer for ya! Nursery Ideas on a Budget Since I wasn't exactly sure what style the fabulous Jess wants for her nursery, I thought we'd just focus on a few money saving ideas that will still have a big impact. (Click on any of the pictures below for more info) 1. Don't tie yourself down to Babies R Us… Sure everyone thinks they need the standard, crib, changing table, armoire matchy matchy combo, but I beg to differ. Flea market, Salvation Army, Restore, and Craigslist can be your very BFF when furnishing your nursery. I love using a dresser for a changing table and there are plenty of little DIY add ons you can do to make it safe for the little one. Of course I adore this yellow buffet-turned-changing-table… does it remind you of this post?

Source: None via The Real Housewives on Pinterest
Just to prove this, I took 60 seconds and found this piece on Craigslist for $20!! Seriously, I'm tempted to buy it myself! New Paint and this piece would be amazing!

Another repurposed piece. I also love the storage idea they used. You don't have to commit to the standard canvas bins. These little details can go a long way.

Source: blondiensc.typepad.com via The Real Housewives on Pinterest
2. Make your storage pretty, so it counts as art… This is huge when you're wanting to be a frugal fanny. Rather than adding a million accessories and details that add up in cost, just make the practical things cute! I love these fabric book shelves and just think of all the possibilities because there are a bajillion fabrics in the world to choose from. (Yes, bajillion is a real number in my world).

Source: pennycarnival.typepad.com via The Real Housewives on Pinterest
I think these planters-turned-storage-bins are adorable. Now would be a great time to buy these because most likely they're on clearance at Lowes and Home Depot.

Source: centsationalgirl.com via The Real Housewives on Pinterest
3. Use fabric… I wanted some witty name, but really, all I mean is just use fabric. Sure fabric can be expensive, but you can also find great clearance fabrics. Using fabric as part of your decor is both adorable and can be economical.

Source: lh6.googleusercontent.com via The Real Housewives on Pinterest I don't sew. {GASP!} How can she be a blogger and not sew! Well, don't get your panties all in a knot… I have a bundle of fusible web and also a grandmother-in-law that lends a hand. The moral of my confession is that you don't need to sew to make cool things with fabric. It's amazing what you can do with a good pair of scissors. I haven't tried this fabric idea, but it's on my list of things to try. Simply wrap inexpensive painter's canvas with fabric and hang… instant art!

Source: conspicuousstyle.com via Cami on Pinterest
4. Paint your way to a pretty cool nursery… I love using a $30 can of paint to make a HUGE impact in a room. Paint has a crazy return on investment and just takes a little time and creativity. a few years ago I helped a friend do this bold wall for her twin boys' nursery.

Obviously, I am in love with this nursery for about a million reasons, but look at that chevron wall. Tape + Paint = simply awesome. There's so much you can do with paint and if you choose something bold enough, you won't need much in the way of art.

Source: madebygirl.blogspot.com via The Real Housewives on Pinterest No budget for moulding? Just paint it on… how cool is this? The pictures alone are beautiful, but the border really makes it a focal point and hikes up the awesomeness factor.

Source: potterybarnkids.com via The Real Housewives on Pinterest
5. Pin before you begin… If you haven't yet, join Pinterest and get inspired! It's amazing how creative people are, so head on over and make a plan.

So Jess, I hope this has gotten your creative juices flowing! You're definitely going to have to share your finished product with us so we can share it with everyone! We hope the rest of your pregnancy goes well and we're so excited for you guys to welcome your little one into the world!
-Monica (& Jess) So, there you have it… Contact Us! Who knows you might just get your very own post too!

Yesterday we shared 25 awesome upcycle projects and Ikea hacks, but we wanted to give you some of the juicy details for a couple of the projects we actually tackled during our crazy Women's Night Out White Box Challenge.

Wall Paint Colors
First, the paint colors. Everyone always ask us what colors we use and we never remember to share! Well, this is going to change! We're even going to try to get our acts together and post our color palettes for each of our Knock it Off episodes. One of these days!! Anyway, our bland room started off with Oxford Tan (from Lowes) walls, lightened by 25%. In our 30 minute intermission, the top portion quickly got covered in Classic Teal, which is a gorgeous, rich blue. I wouldn't be surprised if you saw us use that color again- loved it!

Furniture Paint Colors
The dresser got decked out in four different colors, which really added a lot of interest. We are in love with the color-blocking trend and were excited to give it a go with these inexpensive Rast dressers from Ikea. We used Tuxedo Tie on the frame, English Tea Party on the bottom drawers, Mountain Smoke on the middle drawers and Bamboo Leaves on the top drawers (all from Lowes). Such fun colors that matched our fabrics perfectly! We definitely would have liked to build a base for our new buffet so that it would sit higher, but unfortunately, we ran out of time. So, take note if you're planning on giving this upcycle a try.: )

We shared a whole bunch of fun ideas for painted rugs, but this one that Monica did last summer is definitely our favorite: quick, easy and cute! Check out her Stenciled Outdoor Rug for the step by step deets!

This tufted Lack table turned ottoman was a big hit with the ladies during our event and it's a super simple upholstery project that any one can handle.

This past spring, I made this Ikea Lack Ottoman using the same method as above. The only difference is that we added tufting to the one we made during the White Box Challenge. It looks so good I might just have to add some to mine!
Here's the cheater way to add tufts: 1. Follow steps for upholstering the table. 2. Mark where you want to place your tufts. 3. Use a button-making kit to create some cute buttons using your fabric, or buy pre-bought buttons to use. 4. Using a staple gun, shoot a 3/4 inch staple through the fabric, batting and foam on the mark you made. This creates the tuft, without having to drill through the table and bringing sewing into the equation. 5. Hot glue your buttons in place. That's it!!

We love the way this nail head trim dressed up our plain, old white chair. They were so simple to attach and took this chair to a whole new level!

In fact, it wasn't our first time using nail head detailing- we upholstered a chair and added nail heads for one of our Nate Show episodes!

Finally, this upcycled art was definitely the fan favorite of the night. You wouldn't believe how easy it was to do and what an awesome impact it makes.

If you want to know how to make your own, Monica took this old piece of art and made a completely custom canvas for her powder room using a stencil, spray paint and her silhouette machine.

Phew! I think we touched on everything, but if you were at the event and still have questions, leave us a comment! There aren't many things that are as gratifying and budget-friendly as upcycyling. I'm serious, people. Go give it a try!

Well, it's time for another fabulous sponsor round up. We are so blessed to be able to work with these awesome companies- they really make this blog possible! If you haven't taken some time to take a look at these shops, do it now! You will be amazed at the craftsmanship and ohmygoodness, the talent in these people will blow you away!

1. This Merriam Pink paper pack from Moo & Puppy is super sweet. Use EC215 for 15% off your order! 2. I love this Vintage Metal Cup Pendant from Lucent Lampworks. It would add so much personality to a kitchen, don't you think? Use code ECTenOff for 10% of your order! 3. I can't get enough of this gorgeous Raspberry Suzani Pillow Cover from Chic Decor Pillows. Whatever your style is, you'll be able to find a pillow to fit right in, in their shop.

4. I'm in love with this Flying bird necklace from Belmonili. They're one of our NEWEST sponsors and we love the vintage feel of their products. Know anyone that's depressed that Downton is over this season… Belmonili has Grantham approved gifts for sure! Use the code BelmoniliECC for 10% off your order! 5 and 6. You can totally customize your look with this Henle headband and flower accessory. Plus, these headbands promise not to give you a headache! And, speaking from experience, it's true!

7. Remember Monica's"Shut the Front Door" letters? Well, now 163 Design Company offers Canvas-covered letters which are so fabulous. 8. If you're in need of some help organizing, look no further! Clean Mama's Printable Starter Kit includes the busy mama kit, the budget and bill pay kit, the cleaning kit, menu planning kit and the dockets and calendar kit. You'll be super mom in no time! 9. Isnt' this Get Ziggy with It Wall Stencil super fun? LOVE. Use the code ECC10 for 10% off your order.

10. Wood Wick candles from CJS Ecochic are made from soy and are extremely long-lasting. Plus, they smell amazing!
11. We've gone nuts over these inexpensive FoxGram prints. Print any instagram photo for just 25 cents!
12. We've recently found the DIYers solution to dirty, nasty nails. Gel manicures at Oasis Salon. Monica has been telling the entire world that her polish is lasting a full 4 weeks! I have to admit, they do look awesome even with all our DIYing. If you're local you HAVE to try out their amazing pedicures and gel manicures. We can't get enough.
Visit Oasis, tell them EC2 sent you and get 10% OFF one visit! 13. This adorable"Love You" typewriter key bracelet from Junxtaposition is perfect for this month, but would look great all year long!

14. These One Word prints from Red Letter Words are so sweet and I think they would look adorable in a nursery or little girl's room.

15. Liberty Thrift Store is having a President's Day Sale all week long- get 25% of all furniture through February 23rd. What would you do to this piece? Can anyone say color blocking?!?

16. For every $31 you spend at Thirty-One Gifts, you can get a Keep-It Caddy for just $5. The perfect bag for while you're on the go, gift bag, cosmetic case, and so much more! But you KNOW we'd use it to store all those little craft odds and ends.: )

Also, our pal, Mandy, has found the job of a lifetime with Thirty-One Gifts and you can too! If you join now through April 1st and sell $1000 in your first 30 days, you'll get your $99 back! There is nothing to lose and so much to gain!! Last year one of our EC2 readers joined Mandy's team and was so glad she did! Check out Mandy's guest post HERE to hear more about her story and how she was able to leave her full-time job when she joined 31! Go ahead and contact Mandy at hajelfamily@yahoo.com or check out her website for more info.
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Now, the fun part…GO SHOP!; )

Grow old with me, the best is yet to be.
E.B. Browning

I have great parents. I mean, really great, Totally in love and fully committed to each other, God and their three daughters. Not only that, they are tons of fun.

In early September, my sisters and I threw a 40th wedding anniversary celebration for them and it was so much fun to plan! The party was held at the country club my parents belong to, Saucon Valley Country Club, which is absolutely breathtaking. My wedding reception was also there, and I have pics of my hubs and me in that very courtyard above in all of our wedding finery (do people say"finery" anymore, or have I been working with the elderly a bit too much lately?). They do a top-notch job on all their events, and this was no exception! My sisters took care of the order of events for the evening, which included a roast of my parents by one of my uncles (stinkin' hilarious, I tell you), a special song sung for them by David Felty, a family friend and broadway musician, and a dance to their wedding song played by Lou Lanza and his band. They got the hard part (at which they are amazing!), but I got to do the fun stuff: the decorations!

The welcome table housed an old window on which I wrote the guest's names and seating arrangements. I absolutely loved the way this turned out and added just the right touch of vintage. I also included three cute photos on canvas from different decades in their marriage, a guest book where each guest was encouraged to leave a note or a memory, their wedding album, and a bouquet of dried lavender.

I used this method for making the canvases and they turned out awesome. My only wish was that I used matte Mod Podge, instead of glossy, but I just didn't have time to run out and buy it. If you're going to attempt this, buy the matte kind!

The invitations were Tiffany blue and chocolate brown, so I wanted to use that color scheme in the centerpieces. My sister, Chrissie, and I toyed around with a bunch of different centerpiece ideas, but finally settled on using dried lavender from the Peace Valley Lavender Farm. We loved the subtle light blue color, the rustic, organic texture of the stalks and the smell, which was heavenly! We placed coffee beans in the bottom of simple vases, cut the stems of the lavender to the appropriate height and then placed the bouquet in the vase. Finally, I wrapped the vase with a brown grosgrain ribbon. We bought round mirror chargers form Michael's that reflected the light of the votive candles we placed around the vase. The centerpieces were very simple, but oh so pretty, and we were thrilled that we could incorporate a local Bucks County product into the decor!

Some of the fun details…

Mmmm…sangria. I prefer the white wine sangria, in case you were wondering.

We told our guests that they should expect heavy hors d' oeuvres, but we ended up having a pasta bar which was a blast and so delicious! Guests could choose their pasta, alfredo or marinara sauce and a variety of toppings like crabmeat, scallops, chicken, green peppers, onions, artichokes, olives and more. Perfect!

Because of all the miserable rain we had prior to the party, we weren't able to use the courtyard, so most of the party was held on the terrace where the band played and the guests danced.

Can't forget the cake!

All in all, it was a beautiful night of celebrating an inspiring couple. Here's to 40 more!

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Please don't forget to head over to Sew Dang Cute to place your vote for the best fabric project. We are only one step away from the final round, so we need every vote we can get!
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Happy Monday!

*Thanks to Steph and Ammon Perry,, for taking the photos for us!