My Creative Blog [Search results for Favorite Things Party] 

One of the things we're most grateful for is our friends. We've talked about them a lot here on the ol' blog, but we try really hard as a group to stay connected and do fun things (we all went to see the premiere of Breaking Dawn together yesterday!). Last year I (Jess) started what will hopefully become an annual tradition with oour girlfriends: a Favorite Things Party! What is that, you ask? We made a little video to tell you all about it…

Basically, you ask your closest gal pals to purchase their favorite thing for under $10- one for each girl coming to the party. Then, dress it up with some fabulous wrapping paper and come bearing your gifts, and of course, your favorite appetizer (or dessert, but I'm partial to apps, so because it's my party, that's what we do. ha!) Here's a peek at last year's gift from myself and Monica:

Last year, I threw the party together at the last minute, but because I want it to be a special night for our friends, I decided to create some invitations. Chalkboard typography is THE biggest thing on Pinterest right now, so I decided to hop right on board the bandwagon. I kinda love it.

I also made a blank template so you can add your own information.
Download it here:

I made the entire invitation in Picasa with the following FREE fonts: 1. Bergamot Ornaments 2. KG Makes You Stronger 3. Handy George 4. Kraft Nine 5. Peach Sundress
Ideas for Appetizers/Desserts/Drinks:
My favorite part of the favorite things party is the food, of course!
I'm crazy about seafood and this party gives me a good reason to sample these Crab-filled Crescent Wontons.

I'm going to give this recipe for homemade hot chocolate in the crockpot a try, for sure:

And then it would be really fun to dress up that hot chocolate with lots of yummy fixin's (yes, all of the sudden, I'm Southern.)

Hot Chocolate Bar
And ohmygoodness, my friends might just receive this Salted Caramel Pretzel Bark as their present AND dessert. Ha!

Ideas for Wrapping:
Monica's favorite part is the wrapping. Did you know that in addition to an obssession with socks, she's also abnormally passionate about wrapping paper?
I'm already ahead of the game (Monica) for my wrapping this year thanks to The Plaid Barn. It's a daily deal type site that I'm addicted to! Honestly, I have to do the whole wants vs. needs thing to resist buying a deal every day! However, this wrapping deal was too good to pass up. It has bags, wooden tags, stickers, clips, and everything I'll need to make sure I have the cutest packaged presents. Mwhahah! (Slightly competitive BFFs, but totally kidding!) I got 45 pieces for $7.42! Major SCORE!

Click HERE to get the Holiday Packaging Kit holiday wrap pack or to see what other goodies they have for sale today!

Here are a few other fun wrapping ideas we found for ya!


Typographic Gift Wrap

Gift Wrap Envelope (For the record, we do not endorse the buying of the wrapping paper used for that envelope.)

We can't wait for the Favorite Things Party next month! After we have it, we'll reveal what our 2012 favs were and share some fun pictures from our night!
So, are you ready to host a Favorite Things Party? We'd love to hear if you're thinking of planning one now too!

Before we get into today's post, we wanted to take a minute to stop and express our extreme sadness over what happened in Sandy Hook Elementary School on Friday. We know that the Lord is close to the brokenhearted, and we pray that that is true for every person affected by this tragedy. Please keep those sweet children and their families in your prayers as you go through this holiday season and beyond. If you'd like to help in some way, you can donate here. Psalm 34:18 The Lord is close

to the brokenhearted

and saves those who are crushed in spirit. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A few weeks ago we filled you in on one of our most-anticipated holiday traditions: a Favorite Things Party (we even explained what we do in a fun video which revealed that we really are dorks). To make it even easier for you to host your own, I created this adorable chalkboard-inspired printable invitation.

Well, because our girlfriends have such great taste, a recap of all the gifts is in order, don't you think?! You know Monica and I can't resist creating pretty things, and our gift packaging was no exception. Let's take a peek: Monica's Gift 

Monica used the fun wrapping accessories she talked about here. Each girl got a mason jar of"Melted North Pole Snow" and a striped paper bag with a super cute wood tag. I'm not going to tell you what her gift was yet, because she's going to show you later this week. It's a good one, friends. Definitely worth the wait.: ) Jessica's Gift

I wrapped my gifts using paper from Target (is there any other store?!), gray and white bakers twine and little paper tags that I hand-stamped with my mini alphabet stamps. Lest you think they were perfect, take a look at Monica's tag.

Haha. Oops, ran out of space, and then the dog licked the tag and smeared it.: ) Our Girlfriend's Gifts 

Before we open any gifts, we go around and guess what we think each girl brought. It's fun to see how well you know each other. It turns out that I don't know them very well I'm a bad guesser. Without further ado, here is our list of favorite things from our closest gal pals to you! 

1. Our most stylish friend, Jane (sorry everyone else!) brought homemade Candy Cane Sugar Scrub. I don't what recipe she used, but I found a recipe you can make for yourself here. She also gave us Eos Lip Balm, which is fabulous if you've never tried it. 2. My gift was so random. It included Brownie mix, because I'm obsessed with the batter. True story: I bought 6 boxes (one for each girl), but the night before the party I got hungry for brownie batter and used one of the boxes. My poor sister got jipped that night, but I made sure to buy another box for her later! Good thing she loves me anyway.;) I also gave Maybelline Illegal Length Mascara which I shared my love for back here. I totally dig that stuff. 3. My sister Chrissie's most favorite thing is getting a large Diet Coke from MacDonald's whenever she can, so we all got a gift card to Mickey D's, along with her favorite candy: Reese's. Her gift wins as most unhealthy, but also the most yummy!

4. Lindsey, our tell-it-like-it-is-friend (which we love, by the way!) gave us some pretty pink lace undies from Aerie and her most-used spice: Tony Chachare's Creole Seasoning. She promised us she'd give us her famous jambalaya recipe, as well. (I haven't forgotten, Lindsey! I'm coming after that recipe!) 5. Steph, our socially-conscious, health food-nut friend, (remember last year? She gave us Spelt flour. Hilarious) gave us her favorite bag from Worthwhile Wear, the company she and her husband started to help save women from human trafficking. Most meaningful gift for sure, but super cute and functional, too! 6. Jane, the sweet, sensitive and ultra-caring book junkie, gave us an Amazon gift card in a handmade card, which just made my day. I love downloading books to my kindle, and now I can do it without feeling guilty! 7. (Or 8, if you look at my picture above. I clearly can't count correctly) was Monica's gift, but like I said, you'll just have to wait to see that one!

Sadly, we didn't get a group shot of the seven of us, even after I made an announcement that no one could leave until we had done so. That's two years and counting that we have more pics of the presents, than of our friends. Boo for us. There's always next year, I guess!: ) So, if you came to our party, what would YOU bring?

After being inspired by Hayley, I hosted a Favorite Things party with 7 of my best girl friends last night. I asked each of them to find their favorite thing under $10 and wrap it up; one for each girl, as well as a favorite appetizer or dessert to share. We had so much fun that I completely forgot to take any pictures of my friends, but of course, we got a few of the goods!: )

Both of us had fun wrapping our gifts up pretty. I printed my adorable {free}tags from Jones Design Company and they were the perfect addition to my gift. Can you guess what our favorite things were based on the packages?

There was such a wide variety of favorite things, which made it that much more fun! Each girl wrote what she thought the other one brought and then we revealed our guesses just before we opened each gift. Some guesses were really accurate, and others were waaaaayyyy off. (Based on the packaging, I guessed that one of my friends brought trash cans, but really it was a tub of popcorn!) So what were our fav things? (Clockwise from top left corner.)
1. Homemade Iced Coffee with the fixin's & a Starbucks gift card. Jane used this recipe from The Pioneer Woman, and let me tell you: it was awesome! And that's coming from a non-coffee drinker.

2. Mrs. Meyer's Basil Hand Soap. If you guessed that this was mine, you were right! I've already gone on and on about my love for Mrs. Meyer's, so I'll stop now. 3. A thermal"sippy cup" for adults. Don't call it anything else or Jane might bite your head off. 4. Popcorn in a Christmas tin. Man, we used to get loads of these from my dad's co-workers etc. and so this brought back memories of eating more popcorn than is legally allowed. 5. J.Crew t-shirt and Land O' Lakes Mint Hot Cocoa. Yes, it's good to have friends with good taste, folks. 6. Spelt Flour. A bit unusual, but my friend Steph is unusually passionate about the stuff. 7. My sis made her famous Puppy Chow, because, duh, it's peanutbutter, chocolate and powdered sugar. Everyone's favorite mix! 8. Monica's gift was chocolate chip cookie dough and a pair of tight-fitting ankle socks. She actually buys the children's sizes because she's so particular about the fit. And you wouldn't believe how much cookie dough we consume in a year. It would probably break a record.
Of course, we had great food too! A yummy hot chocolate bar:

And I also made Cheddar Bacon Ranch Bread (aka Crack Bread) that is absolutely to die for. I'm sorry, but if you don't like this, your taste buds must not be functioning correctly. This has been my go-to appetizer lately. No joke- I've made this 3 times in the last 4 days, and it never fails to please.

I'm so thankful for good friends and sharing the little things that make us happy. I'm adding this to my list of annual traditions!

You all know I'm cheap careful with our money, so it should come as no surprise that when I was considering what type of party I should have for my son (Bob the Builder? Veggie Tales?), I decided to go with an All-American Boy party because I could get all the July 4th stuff cheap the day after the holiday (Charlie-man's birthday is the 9th). Even though it was really affordable (yay!), I was really excited about all the cute stuff I got or made for the party. Monica helped me out with a few of the projects and then was there to help set up, so I want to send a big thank you out to her!: )

I made Charlie's invitations on Picmonkey (stay tuned for a tutorial on how to make your own!), and since I didn't have time to mail them because I am a last-minute kind of girl, I just sent them as an attachment to an email. I know that probably breaks all kind of birthday party invitation rules, but I figured my friends and family would love me anyway. I had planned on having the party at a local park so that the kids could play on a big playground, but the weather was supposed to hit 101 degrees, and we Bucks Countians can't handle that kind of heat. Thankfully, a good friends of ours let us move the party to their house so we could be near a pool. Crisis averted! (Or so I thought…)

I hit the jackpot with the Target dollar bins (is there ANYTHING you can't do with supplies from the dollar bin? Seriously, they totally should be paying me!), and cleaned out their fourth of July goodies like big stars, cute pails with handles, adorable sunglasses and a couple of other things I can't think of now.

Changing the location messed with all of the plans I had for decorating, but we managed to tweak some things and come up with this backdrop for our food table (this is pre-food. Darn that I didn't get a picture of it all set up lookin' fine!)

I love this pennant banner that we made, and can't wait to fill you in on how we made it, and what I'm doing with it now that the party is over!

I also made and printed out a few food labels (as if anyone needs help identifying Chick-Fil-A nuggets, right?!). I did these last minute-of course!- and so decided to poke a hole and stick a toothpick through to help the sign stand. Worked like a charm! Monica may have said that this was ingenious.; )

I think this table runner was my favorite feature of the whole party! It was super easy, but deserves a post all of it's own.: )

My mom gave Charlie this chair for Christmas, and I thought it would be the perfect spot for him to open his presents. We added a little banner (from Target) to the bushes behind his chair and two little pinwheels to either side. A red blanket completed our present-opening spot!

Each kid got to choose a pair of sunglasses to take home, and to help them"stay cool".

This is when the drama started. A major storm with lightening, thunder, and high winds blew in fast and knocked down all of the decorations and ended our party rather quickly! I'm thankful for such helpful family and friends who didn't care at all, and helped clean up the place in a hurry!

We took a few minutes to eat our brownie-fruit kebabs (recipe from here).

…and eat our cupcakes, and then wrapped things up.

So, it was not exactly as I had envisioned but it sure was memorable. I love this sweet, funny, little boy more than words can express. Happy birthday, Charlie-man!

Have you ever had any major weather drama during a party? Did it make you wonder why you even bother, too?; )

Happy 12th Day!! Can you believe we made it? Who would have thought 48 hours could have provided us with over two weeks of projects to post about!?! We've really loved sharing everything with you, although if you want us to be completely honest… since we've been seeing these rooms since OCTOBER, we're sort of glad to be done with all of it! Bad bloggers!
To finish off the final day I'm going to be sharing the itty bitty little details that don't quite deserve a post of their own, but do need a shout out at least!

One of the projects that was so simple it made me laugh, was the bracelet Christmas tree. Like most of my projects it came about by accident (and hey, so did Penicillin, so don't knock it!)

I was moving the bracelets onto my workspace and stacked them… Hmm, looks sorta like a tree. Could this be the World's Easiest DIY? And that's how it went down. It's a bit hard to see in the"After" pics, but in the room, the gold looks nice and shiny and kind of adds a funky element that I love.

Jess had this metal letter J floating around, but rather than thinking Jackson I was thinking Joy! I grabbed a black frame, printed out some holiday text and put it all together. I'm sooo bummed I can't figure out where I found the holiday text, but I know I googled something like"Holiday words typed" or something really obscure like that… did I mention I was short on time? Here's the picture I used. If you know the source let me know and I'll gladly add it!

For me, little details like these make such a huge difference. Even if they're never even seen on TV, I just couldn't do a room without them.
Ok, now for a whirlwind of final details…

This no sew gal was thrilled with how the sweater accent pillow turned out! My Epsom salt faux snow made me feel ready to hit the slopes. I'm a wrapping addict, so chunky stenciled presents were right up my alley. Seriously, who can have a horse without an ascot?? That would be just plain wrong! (hehe) And finally, I was inspired by this blog post to try a lighted felt garland.
Well there you have it! Thanks so much for hanging with us for these 12 days! We'll be back to our regularly scheduled programming tomorrow! And can I just mention that I'm fairly certain I'm more excited than my kids about Christmas?? Only 5 more days!!!

P.S. Tonight Jess is hosting a"Favorite Things" party and we're both pretty excited about it. I can't wait to see what our gal pals' favorite things are! Have you ever been to one before?? We'll give you all the details later this week!

We party hard in the Mangin family… We I love themed parties and have for about 10 years… before all the party planning websites and pinterest existed, I actually had to be creative and come up with ideas on my own {gasp!} I used to go a little extreme with the parties, but the hubs made me scale back I learned a little self control. I never went nuts like ponies and millions of dollars, but party prep would take FOREVER and other wifey duties would be ignored. Right now I'm planning Kira's 4th birthday party. She's wants a DOLPHIN themed party… UGH. I just designed her semi-dolphiny, semi-nautical invitations. I'm going to go with an ocean/dolphin party. She's cool with it.

I thought it would be fun to pull up some old party pics and get the creative juices flowing. These pics weren't taken for a blog, so go easy on me!
Kitty Party Obsessed with cats, we did a kitty theme. Pink. Black. All things Cat.

Probably my favorite cake ever.

Pumpin Party I took the easy way out and went with the fall theme since it's a November birthday. Pumpkin Mini Golf

Bobbing for Apples

Garr… Pirate Party It's been done 100s of times, but he loved pirates! (Oh, my word… do you love that I accidently drew him a french mustache instead of a piratey one?)

Wish this picture was better, but we made two huge plywood boats so the kids could have cannonball wars and walk the plank!

So, no we're not fancy-schmancy, but my kids LOVE their theme parties, and their mommy does too! All our friends know how we roll and they're great sports… Minute to win it anyone?

Starwars Babyshower anyone?? Little fella was going to be named Lucas after Luke Skywalker!

Ok, looking back at these made me laugh and inspired me to get my butt in gear and get all dolphiny! Here's a few pins to get me going…

Source: newenglandfineliving.com via The Real Housewives on Pinterest

Source: thesweetestoccasion.com via The Real Housewives on Pinterest
How do you partay?

It's amazing to think that it's already been a year since our whirlwind season on the Nate Berkus Show. Jess and I wanted to share the full segments from our Christmas Episodes with you today, but unfortunately the widgets aren't working. Boo! Instead, we're going to share one of my favorite projects from our holiday episode. I was at Jess' house tonight for our Favorite Things Party (re-cap post coming later this week!) and she had her deer hung proudly again this year!
Also, tomorrow we're going to begin our 2012 Christmas House Tours. We're both excited to welcome you guys into our homes and show you how we fancied them up for Christmas this year!
Okay, without further ado, here's a great DIY from 2011! --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I'm so excited to share this project today! It was by far my favorite project in the room! Lots of fabulous Nate Show viewers have contacted us over the last week asking when this tutorial was coming… well, the wait is over, here is is!

First off, I want to give a shout out to a few bloggers that inspired this project. During a Nate Show Challenge we can't be browsing Pinterest or anything, but we do rely on remembering some cool ideas we've seen in the past and are ready to try. Check out Amber's project that she hand painted or this cool canvas on sale on Etsy for more inspiration.
Ok, now get ready, because this project is so simple that you might miss it if you blink! I didn't take any process pictures, and I really wanted to steal the artwork from Jess, so I made a new one for myself last night!
Start with a plain canvas. For Jess' I used an 11x17 and for mine I accidently bought 18x24. During the show, I quickly looked on Google images for a reindeer that I liked and found this picture.

I printed out the picture as an 8x11 and took it to Staples to blow it up for me. It cost all of $1.04! Score!

Have I mentioned that I seriously can't cut well with scissors? I actually had a"Needs Improvement" on my elementary report card for cutting…I still Need Improvement! So… instead, I cut it out using my handy, dandy, Xacto knife.

I used spray adhesive and spray paint.

First, flip your reindeer over and spray a thin layer of spray adhesive.

Position it onto your canvas and then pose for a cheesy picture. Okay, the posing is optional, but will make your hubs really happy, especially if you ask him to do it at 10:30pm!

Did I mention it was getting late? Perhaps all the fumes went to my head! Ugh! After making sure that the template is pretty well sealed down, all you need to do is make a creepy face and spray!

Try to spray from directly above the artwork. Less paint will sneak through under the template. A little bleeding is okay and gives it a pretty cool look though.

I wanted to get the template off right away, so simply peel off to reveal your masterpiece!

Ta-Da! I'm totally in love!

Because I'm a blog slacker, my new artwork is still drying and not ready to be hung on the wall.
So there you have it. Insanely simple artwork that makes a BIG impact!

We Love Simple Silhouette Art! Have you tried this simple DIY yet?

Are you looking for the link party for your Creating with the Stars submission? Yay! We're thrilled to have you! Click here or use the button below to link up. Submissions are now open until February 21st. If you want to read more about the contest and all that it entails, click here.

======================================================================== So, I'm just going to go out on a limb and say that some of you are procrastinators like me. My hubs and I are celebrating Valentine's Day this weekend, but I still have no clue what we are going to do (and my hubs is not much of a planner, so I'm thinking it's kind of up to me!) So I went, looking for some fun and exciting date night ideas to celebrate all that love you've got going on with your special someone.
1. Progressive Dinner. Let me tell you that this is SO up my alley. I love to eat and I love to eat out, so this is a perfect combination. This one would be so much fun because you have a lot of time to chat, the night is a bit longer and you get such great variety! I already know where my hubs and I would choose to go:

2. Compete Against Each Other! This may not be everyone's cup of tea, but man, I love a good competition and so does my hubs. One of my favorite things to do is to go to Dave & Buster's and play all the games (I especially love the basketball games!). Whoever gets the most tickets, wins something of his/her choice. Or, if you don't have a huge arcade near you, try go-karting, bowling, tennis etc…something to get your heart pumping!
3. Play the Tourist I've lived in Bucks County almost all of of my life (minus the college years), and absolutely love it here, but I'm always amazed at what things I've never tried, shops I've never gone to and activities I've never done right in our area. Take some time to research different travel sites to see what you might be missing. Try a restaurant you've never tried before too!
4. Instagram It! I kind of love the idea of an instagram scavenger hunt, since, you know, I can't get enough of the whole IG thing. Make a list of fun activities/places and go to every single one and Instagram a selfie pic in front of whatever it is. You could totally customize the list to fit the two of you as a couple, but here are a few fun ones we thought of: -Favorite Restaurant -Best spot to see the skyline -Funniest sign in town -Best place to grab a drink -Favorite place to listen to music/read books -and my husband insists this one is awesome: take a pic with a farm animal in the background. So strange, people, so strange.; )

Once you've checked off everything on your list, reward your hubby with good ol' number 5…
5. Game of Love (Original OR Travel) I'm not going to go into tons of detail about this one (you can check out all the juicy details on how to play here), but trust me, this is one date night that will not be soon forgotten.

Want to give the travel version a try, even if you're not travelling? It's still super fun and easy to play!

Ok, now it's your time to spill. What's your favorite date night activity? We want to know!! Happy Valentine's Day! We sure do love that you take time to stop and read our nonsense everyday!

Did you know we have some amazing sponsors that help make our little old blog possible? Yup, they're amazing and I (Monica) wanted to tell you why…
********************************* Stuff See that funky, fun header at the top of our blog? Well, that takes you to the website of one rockin' furniture and accessory store. One of our blog readers checked it out this month and thought it was pretty awesome too! With the holidays approaching, head over and get something fun for your house before company comes! (My personal favorites are the farm house tables and cool accent chairs)

RT. 309 | 927 Bethlehem Pike (3 Miles North of Montgomery Mall) Colmar, PA 18915 Tel: 215.716.3325Fax: 215.716.3431 Email: info@stuffcloseouts.comstuff Open Friday, Saturday & Sunday
********************************* Jet Upholstery So one DIY that I pretty much don't ever plan to attempt is reupholstering furniture. Way outta my league! Thankfully, I have Jet Upholstery right around the corner in Bucks County. Their work is amazing. Today, I hit a thrift store on the hunt for a cool chair to have Jet refinish for me! I'm still looking, but I know that when I find it, they're going to make it amazing! They also have an amazing selection of designer fabrics and can get just about anything you want. I just found this chair on Craigslist… and I've been drooling over this fabric…

So, give Jet Upholsty a call or check out their website. Go find an ugly chair for pennies and let them make it fabulous for you! JET Upholstery3102 Bedminster Road Bedminster, PA 18910 215-795-0881 215-220-3443 fax Store Hours: Mon-Thurs. 9-5 Friday 9-4 / Sat 9-12
********************************* Mandy Hajel, 31 Gifts

So, you probably know about 31 Gifts and how it's taking the world by storm. If not, stop right now and go check out Mandy's site. Really… GO! There are so many reasons to love 31… adorable fabric options, super cute bags, really fun parties, and it's a business that is based off of the Proverbs 31 woman. Rather than going on about the products, let me tell you a bit about Mandy (she's one of my bffs!). You see, Mandy and I used to teach English together… that is before she joined 31. She's been with the company for 1 year and in that time has made enough money to replace (and more) her teacher's salary, she's earned a family vacation to Disney World, a romantic trip for two to Mexico, a Dell laptop, an Ipad 2, a huge Best Buy giftcard, an XBox, and more. Do you think I earned all that as a teacher?? Umm, Nope. So, if you're looking to make a little side money before the holidays, give Mandy a call, she'll hook you up and teach you her secrets to success! Amanda Hajel Phone: (301) 791-3579 Email: hajelfamily@yahoo.com Website: http://www.mythirtyone.com/hajel/ ********************************* Blossom Bands So, what are your kids wearing for Thanksgiving and Christmas? Ok, maybe it's a tad early to know 100%, but you need to get thinking! The only thing you need to be sure of is to include a Blossom Band for your little ladies. I bought a Halloween one this month for Kira and she loved it! Bethany has tons of ready to sell items as well as custom pieces to match whatever outfits you're planning. You know how in decorating it's all in the details?? Well, a Blossom Band is the perfect detail to make your holiday outfits fabulous!

Bethany Lander Etsy: Bands Etsy Store Email: Bethany@BlossomBands.com Website: http://www.blossombands.com/
********************************* Jennifer Black, The Pampered Chef

If you read Jess' post on her amazing Apple dessert, then you know that we LOVE Pampered Chef products. Did you know that I only use stoneware to do all my cooking? Really, I have almost every stone they sell. It's definitely one of my favorite things. With thanksgiving coming, you should peruse their catalog and see what you need before cooking for the masses. I actually never buy something without hosting a party because the benefits are insane. I'm a huge fan of the catalog show because # 1- I don't have to find a date in my crazy schedule and # 2 Did I mention the amazing incentives and FREE products? So, call Jane, host a catalog party, and get a bunch of free stuff! Ok, even if you don't do the party thing, you must own at least one piece of stoneware and Jess recommends the apple corer slicer! Jennifer BlackPhone: (410) 952-1179
Email: Janeniferjblack@comcast.net
Website: http://www.pamperedchef.biz/jenniferblack
********************************* The Land of Nod I've loved Crate & Barrel forever (we actually registered there for our wedding) so of course I LOVE their sister store, The Land of Nod! You'll definitely want to check them out for holiday decor and Christmas presents.

Here is one Must Have item if you have elementary aged kids.

It's the BEST doodle book ever! Taro Gomi draws the coolest Japanese doodles to get your kiddos thinking. Each page usually has a picture and a prompting question. Ex: An empty plate and the question… The Queen's coming for dinner, what do we feed her? My kids ADORE this book and fought over the pages enough that I finally bought a few more! The Land of Nod has offered our readers FREE shipping on most Holiday Toys, so click the pic below to take advantage of it! LMK if you buy a fun doodle book!

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

Did Jess and I mention that life has been a wee bit crazy lately? Each week we keep saying that"it should slow down next week", but so far it just keeps on being awesome and crazy! Dream Dinners has been a total savior in this area! The other night I was over and asked Jess what they were going to do for dinner (because I had nothing planned for my family) and she just pointed to an amazing looking Dream Dinner thawing and ready to pop in the oven. Even if you love to cook, it's so wonderful to have some DDs on hand for the unexpected busy day. Give Kris a call and bring your friends- it's so fun to make meals together!
Kris Petrich, Owner 309 at Advance Ln 262 Bethlehem Pike, Ste 101 Colmar, PA 18915 Tel: 215-822-4055 Email: 309advanceLNPA@dreamdinners.com Website: http://www.dreamdinners.com/
A BIG Thanks to all of our sponsors! Thanks for taking this crazy journey with us! Now, go show them some RHBC love!
If you have a business or a product that you think our readers would love, contact us to talk about becoming a blog sponsor. Thanks!

Happy Monday, everyone! I'm back from my weekend trip to West Palm Beach, Florida (more on that later!) with a round-up of our favorite summer picnic foods and drinks! Whether you're hosting a big 4th of July party, or taking something to a friend's house, these are the perfect recipes for you! ------------------------------------------------------------------ I originally shared this recipe a little less than a year ago, but since no one read our blog then, I thought it was worth mentioning again.; ) This recipe is soooo simple, but looks and tastes fantastic!

All you need are a few home-grown tomatoes and cucumbers (or go ahead and get them at the store) and a blush wine vinaigrette (I used Brianna's which is to die for, but any blush wine vinaigrette will do). Just add enough vinaigrette to cover the veggies and let marinate a few hours in the fridge. If you're really feeling crazy, add some cut red onion to the mix, as well. And voila! A refreshing, delicious salad to enjoy as we celebrate our great country!
------------------------------------------------------------------- Monica and I had a blast making and taste-testing our favorite Summertime Drinks, which include Stars & Stripe Sangria, Lime Rickeys and Pineapple Planter's Punch. They're all delicious and can be made kid-friendly (except for the sangria!) or spiced up a bit for the adults.

Make sure you go see our favorite drinks collection here
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- And finally, these Mozzarella & Basil Tomato Pockets are a crowd-pleaser and a scene-stealer. Easy to make, adorable to look at, and so delicious.

Now it's your turn. What are your favorite things to serve on July 4th? Share the link in your comment!

Good morning, everyone! Before we get into today's post, stop everything and GO VOTE if you haven't already! The ladies did not disappoint with their Round 1 Projects. You just have to see the creative upcycle projects they came up with. These contestants and their stars are gunning for amazing prizes and they need your help to get there! Upcycling is kind of one of our favorite things to do. Last year for the contest, we turned an ugly, beat-up antique table into this:

Now that that's out of the way, it's time to check out our upcycle project this week. We have to say that it feels quite lovely to get to do the projects without all that extra pressure. We just get to do projects that we've been wanting to do in our homes! So, here we go!

Isn't that so fun? Unfortunately, the lighting in our basement is atrocious and my limited photography skills don't do this space justice. It's so cute and fits right in with the nautical basement makeover Monica gave me during our first Nate Show episode. We were originally going to use this door as a headboard in our Superfab Guestroom Makeover, but it just didn't work in the space.This door is over a hundred years old and has a beautiful, chippy, blue-green patina. It's been sitting in my garage waiting for it's new home and it finally found it! I could not believe that this door fit so perfectly in the nook under the stairs. It was most definitely meant to be!

This was a super-simple upcycle. We already had one filing cabinet on hand, and purchased another at Walmart for only $30. My hubs and I painted both with Valspar Paint + Primer in Beach Glass (a Benjamin Moore color we had color-matched).

The new filing cabinet was an inch shorter than our existing cabinet so Kevin built a base for it using leftover wood from our stash.

Once the filing cabinet was placed on the base, you don't even notice the difference!

We placed the door on top of the filing cabinets and might eventually *wink* actually screw it in to the cabinets, but for now it rests securely right on top. I couldn't stand the thought of making any holes in that gorgeous door.

I love that it blends so perfectly with the nautical lounge behind it!

Let's take a peek at the dramatic before and after, shall we?

Woohoo! That's quite the difference and I'm really happy with it.: ) --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Now it's YOUR turn! We are so excited to see what you guys have come up with!

The winner will receive an awesome prize package from Belmonili and Perfectly Imperfect Shop, and we promise you're going to love it! This link party will be open until Friday, March 15th at 10 PM EST. Monica and I are going to be choosing our absolute favorite upcycle project and revealing the tutorial for it on Sunday! If you win this week, we'll be contacting you sometime on Friday for the tutorial, so be ready!
Please remember a few things before linking up:
1. Like us on facebook!

2. Make sure you link back to us in your post. Only those linking back will be eligible for the prize! 3. Only one submission per person. 4. Choose a project that you've done in the last 12 months.
Ok, let's see what you've got!

If you thought Round 1 was impressive, what do you think of these Round 2 Knockoffs? If you haven't already, stop everything and click here to vote for your favorite 3 knockoffs! We aren't exaggerating when we say we were blown away this round. And… lucky me, I get to share my knockoff today… no pressure right! Ha!

Before I share mine, let's enjoy a Blast from the Past and look at the Knockoff that won us Round 2 of Creating with the Stars in 2012. It appears that Anthro is DIYers favorite store to knockoff. Last year we tackled their Ordinal Dresser (you can see the full tutorial here)

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Now, onto my little ol' knockoff project…

I really wanted Anthro's Woodcut Print, but at ahem $1600… are you kidding me?? At that price, it had better grow into a money tree!! I'll take my $6.99 version thank you very much.

Here's how I made mine… it took about 5 minutes. I searched Google images for a woodcut picture I liked. It was black and white, but I wanted a red tone similar to the original. I brought it into PicMonkey (love that site) and used the tint effect to choose a new color. The options are endless as you can see from my screen shot below.

If I wanted a smaller size this project would have been FREE, but I needed a 12x12, so I printed it at Staples for $6.99. It's not an earth shattering knockoff, but I saved $1593.01- Woohoo! Jess and I love getting a high end look for less… Why pay full price, when you can just Knock-it-Off?
The woodcut art is part of my new Kid Friendly Gallery Wall! Every single item on this wall is plastic, wood, or just plain paper. With 4 kids, and after about 7 broken frames I knew I needed a plan B!

I'll be posting more about this wall after CWTS, but here are a few pics for you to enjoy…

And yes, those prints are just paper, framed in washi tape. Break proof!

That metal print is SO us! Eric and I might be a wee bit sarcastic… It says,"National Sarcasm Society… Like we need your support"

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Alright, enough about me, let's talk about you! Are you ready to link up your favorite Knockoff project?

The winner of Round 2's link up will receive an awesome prize package from Belmonili and Perfectly Imperfect Shop, and we promise you're going to love it!

This link party will be open until Friday, March 22nd at 10 PM EST. Jess and I are going to be choosing our absolute favorite knockoff project and revealing the tutorial for it on Sunday! If you win this week, we'll be contacting you sometime on Saturday for the tutorial, so be ready!
Please remember a few things before linking up: 1. Before linking, please LIKE us on Facebook (Thanks!)

2. Make sure you link back to us in your post. Only those linking back will be eligible for the prize! 3. Only one submission per person. 4. Choose a project that you've done in the last 12 months.
Want to see all the amazing Upcycle projects that were linked up last week? Click here! The Round 1 Link Up Winner was this awesome light fixture!

It's time for a round-up of all our favorite summer finds from the best sponsors in the world! You know those ads on our sidebar? They are all amazing shops and services that you need to know about. Just take a look at the fun things we found for you!

1. It's wedding season, folks! This gorgeous typographical"Beloved & Friend" print from Red Letter Words would be the perfect gift. Plus it's on sale for 20% off right now!

2. Want to make a modern and graphic statement in your home? Go for the new Honeycomb Allover Wall Stencil from Royal Design Studio. Fab.U.Lous. Get 10% OFF when you use the code RHBC10.
3. Love this vintage Golden Yellow Serving Bowl from Nachokitty- has lots of character with a sunny yellow color! You could get lost in this Etsy shop for hours- she has amazing stuff!

4. Lucent Lampworks is our newest sponsor (as seen on Extreme Home Makeover!).They offer some of the coolest light fixtures we've ever seen, like this Hanging Pendant Light with Glass Globe. I'm eyeing up a few of these beauties for my dining room!

5. Have you been over to My Best Friend's Hair Blog? They offer tons of tips on the newest products and trends for your hair. Plus, you can find a stylist near you, and give reviews on your stylist, too! I have to admit- I'm digging this rainbow-hued style done with hair chalk. Who knew?!

6. Going on a trip? Need a graduation or teacher gift? These 4 oz. Candle Travel Tins from CJS Eco Chic come in a variety of scents and can be taken anywhere!

7. I just got a Large Utility Tote from Thirty-One Gifts to use as my beach bag. It's the perfect size for a couple of towels, swimmies for my kids and all the other things you need for the beach or pool! With all the patterns and monogramming options, you can come up with a custom bag to fit all your summer needs!

8. With Charlie's 2nd birthday coming in just a few weeks, I've begun searching for some gift ideas for him. I LOVE this custom toy chest created with Belvedere Design vinyls. Wouldn't this be great to corral all the toy cars and trucks little boys seem to collect?

9. We're going with an All-American boy theme for Charlie's birthday party, and you better believe I'm going to be using this Star Spangled Digital Paper pack from Moo & Puppy to make his invitations and decorations! Use the code RHBC15 to receive 15% off your order!

10. You already know we make a weekly trip to Architectural Antiques (I just got a transom window for my kitchen) because we adore it so much. Put stopping at AA on your list of things you need to do this summer- you will not believe the unbelieveable amount of awesome finds there!

11. Some things are better left to the professionals, and quality upholstering is one of them. Jet Upholstery does amazing work and they can get their hands on any fabric your heart desires. Mention our blog to receive 25% off your next fabric order!

12. Stone Depot is THE place to go for a huge selection for all of your hardscaping projects. They're the ones who have helped make Monica's patio project go so smoothly! Jim is super helpful and full of information, so make sure you ask for him.: )

So, there you have it! Our top finds from some of our favorite people! Have a great weekend and spread the East Coast Creative love to our sponsors while you're at it.: 0

We promised that during our maternity leave from filming (I love getting a maternity leave without having to have a baby btw) that we'd do a whole bunch of things, and one of them was letting you have more little peeks into our real life happenings. With that in mind, we proudly introduce… Right Now a series that we'll do monthly… well actually, basically whenever we feel like it.

So, here's what's going on in my world right now…
Loving: This amazing fall weather we're having here on the East Coast. Mid 70s during the day and cool, crisp nights!! It's the best sleeping weather ever! September is probably my favorite month of the year and I'm so thrilled to have some time off to enjoy it! Reading: Last night I finished reading Gone Girl. Thanks so so many of you for giving me book recommendations on Facebook! I liked it, but didn't over the top love it. I'm not sure what about it is keeping me from giving it an A+. If you read it, tell me what you liked/didn't like. I'd love to hear!

Waiting For: This weekend, but not excitedly… you probably know we breed Bernese Mountain Dogs with our dog Pennlyn. Well, this weekend the puppies leave and go to their new homes. I LOVE the families that we chose to adopt, but it will be super sad to see them go and I will have 4 miserable kiddos for a few days!

Excited About: A few things… Sunday we're going pumpkin picking and on a hayride with a bunch of our friends!! Our ABC/Live Well Network Season 1 Wrap party for our show- this Thursday night we'll all be celebrating the end of a successful first season. I'm still trying to figure out what to wear… Ugh!!

Trying To: Eat healthier and work out regularly. This is not my favorite thing, nor something I'm good at! But I have a goal of Oct 23rd, and hopefully will come away from this"maternity leave" happier and healthier. Working On: Communicating better with my oldest daughter…my mini-me. We kinda butt heads a lot. She's strong willed and I'm the queen of strong wills and well, let's just say I'm working on it. I want to figure out the best, most effective way to parent her.

Enjoying: The 3 hours each day that I have the house to myself, but then I'm also really enjoying the after pre-school, few hours before naptime that it's just Callen and me. It's really fun and nice to have 1:1 time! Using: Tons and tons of Chapstick!! I'm on a medication that makes me have crazy dry lips, so It's me and chapstick 24-7. Wearing: I'm totally in mom mode and usually wear sweats and my favorite Northface sweatshirt almost every day. What's the point in looking cute, if I'm gonna work out at night?!? Planning: I'm working on and planning my kids' playroom makeover. I totally struggle with designing my own rooms lately! I'm cool doing rooms for other people, but if I'm spending my own money I want to love it. GAH! It's killing me!

Needing: To find a good recipe today that uses a million veggies, bc I have a ton that will go bad soon if I don't use them!! Learning: How to think more before I talk (but don't hold your breath Eric, it's a slow learning process!) Struggling With: Church. We're kind of in this place where we're wondering where's a good fit for us. We've been at the same church for 16 years (and it's a wonderful church! Check it out HERE), but we just want to make sure it's right for us and we're not just there bc it's what we've always done. But, at the same time we're not sure what will be exactly right- it's tricky!

Listening To: The"Sister of the Year" CD mix made for my by my little brother (well, he's 26, not all that little, but little to me). He has the best taste in music and makes me mixes that have tons of songs that are cool well before they become cool. It's a good thing I have him, bc otherwise I'd never have even a sliver of cool within me when it comes to new music. Product I'm in Love With: My Kreg Jig- hubs used it yesterday to build new benches for our outdoor farmhouse table! Doing: Working down my to-do list for the day. I've committed to today being uber productive! (Up next, responding to emails, then making soup, then putting away all Cal's fall clothes) Dreaming Of: Taking another trip to Europe or somewhere amazing with my hubs. Last year at this time, we were counting down the days for our London and Paris trip.

This concludes this first edition of Right Now. I hope you enjoyed my ramblings or at least tolerated them! Want more of our day to day ongoings? Follow us on Instagram! Monica- @Eastcoastcreative Jess- @Jess_EC2blog What are you doing, loving, reading, or dreaming of right now?

Every once in a while, one of our readers sends us an email saying"Hey! I have this cool Etsy shop, and I think you guys might like it." We love it when readers do that. Discovering fun, unique and creative people and shops is one of our favorite things…and of course, we always want to share them with you! When Julia, from In or Out Media, asked us if we would take a peek at her shop and consider doing a giveaway on our blog, we did a little happy dance. (Haven't seen our happy dance? Check it out here)

In or Out Media offers professionally printed Wedding Invitations, Save the Dates, Stationery, Notecards, Holiday Cards, Birth Announcements, Birthday Invitations, and more. Julia also designs and prints typography quote posters, wall art, and offers logo design, both premade and custom. This girl is not messing around, folks. Her stuff is so stinkin' cute that we had trouble picking our favorites. I decided to go with a classy, nautical 2013 calendar print that I can't wait to put on the wall in my new office space under the stairs!

Monica decided to order a personalized state print for her brand new baby niece. The print is adorable and Rylie isn't too bad either!; ) (BTW-that's the big brother, Jax, holding the print on the left- too cute!)

Just take a look at all this cuteness in her shop!

In honor of the big day of love quickly approaching we just had to include these fun Valentines (order by February 7th for classroom valentines!)

Now for the fun part!: ) One lucky reader will win a $30 Gift Card to In or Out Media! The giveaway will be open until midnight on Thursday, February 7th. The winner will be revealed on Friday, February 8th. To enter: 1."Like" us on facebook! 2."Like" In or Out Media on Facebook 3.Leave a comment telling us what you would spend your gift card on!
a Rafflecopter giveaway

And if you just can't wait to get your hands on those cute valentines or anything else in her shop, use the code CREATIVE to get 10% off your order!

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Also, don't forget that TOMORROW is the day you can begin entering your best project in our Creating with the Stars contest. Eeeeek, we can't wait to see what you guys come up with! If you need more information, want to check out the guidelines or take a peek at the awesome prizes, click here.

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Good luck!

When we opened submissions for Creating with the Stars on February 4th, we had no idea how how incredibly amazing the submissions would be. Really, we knew we'd get some good ones, but this was out of control! You guys made choosing so.incredibly.hard! We want to thank all 361 of you that took the time to enter. It has already been a great start to our first season!

Without further ado, let's get down to business… Introducing the Contestants for CWTS2013 (In no particular order)

1. Janel

#23 Boys Bedroom Makeover on a Budgetand her Blog Star is… Brittany from Pretty Handy Girl!

2. Jourdan & Ashley

#33 DIY Barndoor Headboard

and their blog star is…
Beth from Home Stories A to Z!

3. Sarah

#48 80's Chandelier to Glass Mirror

and her blog star is…
Brooke from All Things Thrifty!

4. Jane

#75 DIY Plank Wall

and her blog Star is…
Jamielyn from I Heart Naptime!

5. Amanda & Corey

#131 Handmade Dining Room Light

and their blog star is…
Beckie from Infarrantly Creative!

6. Nancy

# 137 Owen's Nursery Makeover

and her blog Star partner is…
Kari from U-Create!

7. Jessica

#164 Anthro-Inspired Inventor's Bell Jar Lamp

and her star is…
Mandi from Vintage Revivals!

8. Sarah

#223 Herringbone Metallic Artwork

and her blog Star is…
Sarah from Thrifty Decor Chick!

9. KariAnne

#243 Shutter Wall

and her blog stars are…
Ashley and Whitney from Shanty 2 Chic!

10. Nat & Holly

#281 Living Room Makeover

and their blog star is…
Jane from Tatertots & Jello!

11. Ann Marie

#344 Mom Cave Makeover

and her blog star is…
Shaunna from Perfectly Imperfect!

12. Melissa

#345 Bedroom Reading Corner

and her blog star is…
Sherry from Young House Love!

Aren't those projects amazing? It's going to an incredible season! The first week's challenge is a fun one. Week 1: UPCYCLE

You Can Play Along with CWTS Too! Now, if we could have chosen all of you, we would have. We still want to showcase all of your talent and project. For every weekly challenge, we're going to have a link party where you can link up one of your favorite projects that fit in with the weekly theme. We'll pick our favorite project each week and we'll feature our favorite here on EC2. Get your Upcycle DIY projects ready for week one, starting next week!
And we're sure don't need reminding, but just incase… we have an EPIC prize package! The 2013 CWTS Prize packages Total over $4100!! A special thanks to Homes.com, HomeGoods, HomeTalk, and Home Depot for their generous sponsorship of CWTS. We're so honored to have them!

The Grand Prize Winners (Contestant and Blog Star) will each receive:
$500 from Homes.Com $500 Gift Card to HomeGoods Project featured by HomeTalk

All contestants that make it to Week 4 will be given a $100 Giftcard to HomeGoods to use during the week 4 home decor challenge!

The Semi-Finals Winner will receive:
$500 Gift Card to Home Depot (Contestant & Blog Star) $100 worth of Martha Stewart supplies from Plaid Crafts $125 Gift Card to Lucent Lamp works Project featured by HomeTalk

The Week 2 Winner will receive: $100 Gift Card to Royal Design Studio A pair of $120 Robert Allen pillows from Chic Decor Pillows Project featured by HomeTalk

The Week 1 Winner will receive: $50 worth of 31 Gifts products $60 worth of Twysted Yarn products $70 of Henle Headbands products $100 Blog Re-design from 733 Design Project featured by HomeTalk

Did you ever have one of those"Ah-ha!" moments? I tend to have them in two places… the shower (one of the only places a mom of 4 is ever alone) and church. About a month ago during an"Ah-ha" moment, I came up with an idea that has turned into what we're calling Real Housewives: Design it Forward. We're pretty excited about it and we have a feeling you will be too!
So daily we blog about cool finds, amazing projects, and what we're doing on our homes… sometimes we find ourselves pausing and wanting to look and do something outside of ourselves. We thank God each day for our families and that our needs are provided for. So what do we do from here? We design it forward…

We're committing to using our time, talents, and treasures to help someone else. We want to make someone feel extra special, cared-about, valued, and loved. Here's our vision… quarterly, we want to find a family, a single mom or dad, or just someone who could use a little TLC and do some surprise design for them. We're hoping you'll want to join in and help us and then we're going to challenge you to find someone in your area to Design it Forward for as well (think link party). We love this little old blog, but you know what?? We're called to love people even more, so here goes… Real Housewives: Design it Forward!
Porch Perk Up Through the help of Calvary Church of Souderton, we found a single mom that could use a little extra TLC. Since we adore all things fall, we thought we should do a little porch perk up. How cool would it be to come home and have a porch all prettied up for Halloween and Thanksgiving?

http://www.bhg.com/

Shhh… don't tell, but here's our master plan…

So, how do I help? We'd love to have some hands-on help on the 25th as we perk up the porch, but we know our readers are from all over. So here's our Plan B… Since this is a single mom, we thought it would be cool to accept donations related to # of children. Either the ones you have or how many were in your family growing up. For example, I could donate $4.00 because I have four kids (still shocks me to type that) or $2.00 because I was one of two kids growing up. Your money will go directly towards perking up the porch, we promise not to go get pedicures or anything shady like that! If we collect enough money, we have a second and third family lined up and we'll just do more porch perking! Wouldn't that be awesome! And BTW… if anyone knows the Duggars, have them read this post, because that would be like a Twenty-something donation!: ) Just click the little donate button to donate… Thanks!

If you are local and want to lend a hand on the 25th, please use the contact us button and let us know. We'll give you all the details of our covert operation!
Lastly, share this post! The more people that read it, the more people that just might want perk along with us! (and I guess I can confess now, that I wanted to call it Pimp my Porch, but I got veto-ed! That's what BFFs are for!)

Can I do My Own?
Well yeah! That would be awesome! We'd love to have you find someone in your area and then Design it Forward RHBC style! Make sure you sneak in a picture or two (don't get any house numbers in the pics!) an then link up to our Design it Forward Link Party on October 28th! It's our very first Link Party, so we're hoping for at least one or two link ups!

Can I Pin?
We're starting to plan out our"Perking" and want your help! If you follow us on Pinterest (see the sidebar link) just shoot us an email with your email address and we'll add you as a contributor. We'd love some help finding cool inspiration!

We're really excited about this project and we're committed to seeing it through! We're giddy with excitement about the idea of using this blog to help someone! Thanks for going on this journey with us!

Please go on over to Sew Dang Cute and vote for your favorite Round 2 project for Crafting with the Stars. Thanks!

When Jess and I saw this tiny galley kitchen, we knew we had to help! It's the kind of space that most people on a budget would call"hopeless" because it's really, really tiny and everything was dated. Thankfully, we really love a challenge, so we headed to Matt and Linda's to give them a colorful kitchen renovation for under $1200! To watch this full episode online, click HERE.

Matt and Linda are a great couple and this kitchen makeover meant a lot to them because they have a family of four using the kitchen, but also because Linda owns her own baking business out of their home.

She was the one responsible for all of the amazing desserts and decor at our premiere party. If you're local and in need of any desserts, you have to check her out. Frog Prince Cake & Cookie Design

Take a peek at these before pictures… does this look like a kitchen for a woman that spends a ton of a time cooking and baking?

Two things made the biggest difference in this space… Paint & Opening up the wall. Here's a rundown of all the changes we made to this space.

Painted Cabinets, Counters, & Appliances Paint is one of the least expensive and high impact things you can do to a space. We painted the cabinets a crisp, semi-gloss white and added new hardware. The counters were painted using a Rustoleum paint just for laminate. The appliances we coated with a stainless steel appliance spray paint. We'll give you the full rundown later this week. Flooring- The flooring project we did in this space could be one of my favorite DIYs of 2013 so far! I can't believe how amazing the effect was! We'll share all the details later this week on the blog, but who would have imagined that peel and stick vinyl tile could look this amazing!

Faux Subway Tile Renovating an entire kitchen for $1200 is tricky, so rather than installing subway tile we painted it! It took a LONG time, and I might have gotten a few grey hairs in the process, but it looked amazing in the end! (Full tutorial coming this week!)

Opening the Kitchen Wall This kitchen is tiny and we couldn't change the footprint, but we wanted it to feel bigger and less closed off from the rest of the house, so we removed the top half of the left wall. Instantly, the kitchen seemed twice the size!

Add Open Shelving Once the wall was down, we really didn't want to put the cabinets back up, because it would make the space seem closed off again. Instead, we purchased inexpensive Ikea floating shelves and displayed their dishes added lots of fun colorful accessories.

Create Additional Workspace We never like to waste anything, so rather than just getting rid of the cabinets we removed, we used them as base cabinets in the dining room. All we had to do was build a counter using inexpensive pine, and for almost no cost, we created a huge workspace and kept all of their storage!

Lighting and Window Mirror We added a fun pendant light and backed an old window with a mirror to add more light to the room. We love using old windows to decorate a space. This really helped make this tiny space feel larger!

DIY Bake Marquee Sign This was Linda's favorite project in the space. It was really simple to make, but added such a fun pop to the room! Jess will be back with the full tutorial later this week!

Fun Accessories Of course we added lots accessories to complete the space. We don't have a full source list, but most of the items were from Homegoods and Ikea! We really keep our eyes open for clearance and sale items!

This kitchen took a lot of hard work. All of the projects saved us big time budget-wise, but required some serious (wo)man hours. We were SO excited with how it turned out and actually, we were even more excited with how happy the homeowners were!

Our first Knock It Off kitchen renovation was a huge success and we can't wait to tackle another one! Kitchens are usually the most expensive rooms in a home, and to think we did an entire kitchen and dining room for about the cost some people spend just on countertops alone makes us pretty sure that Knocking It Off was the best route to go!!
Check back later this week for all of the tutorials! To watch this full episode online, click HERE.

The other day I mentioned that my favorite decoration from Charlie's All-American boy party was this super easy paper table runner. It's almost laughable how easy this thing was to make, but I figured that some of you like a simple DIY as much as I do, right? In less than 15 minutes, you can make a completely custom table runner for any occasion- the possibilities are endless with this thing! Plus, a paper runner is perfect for something like a kid's birthday party or an outdoor BBQ because it adds some color to your table, but can be thrown out if it gets messy.

Last week I bought a huge roll of drawing paper from Ikea for $4.99. I measured 7 feet of paper, grabbed red and navy paint that I had on hand (I used regular latex paint, but you could easily use acrylic paint-actually that would be easier!), and then used a chalk line to create a straight line on either side of the paper for my stripes. We didn't worry at all about painting a crisp line, because I was going for a rustic feel (that's imperfect, in layman's terms: ).

I also bought a wooden star at Michael's for about 50 cents. Buying an actual stamp that was the right size would have been expensive, and I knew this would work just as well. I hot-glued a stone onto the back for a handle- it's all about using stuff you have! You can find these wooden things in any shape you want so making a runner that fits your theme is easy!

I painted one side of the star…

…and rocked the stamp all around to get full coverage…

…and when I lifted my stamp, this is what I had:

I love the wood grain affect this created!

That's it! I love my paper table runner, and the fact that it took me less than 15 minutes to make allowed me to not feel bad at all to throw it out without batting an eye!

I thought it would be fun to see some other paper table runners people have created around blogland. Some of these things put my little table runner to shame!: )

Pinwheel table runner from Green Wedding Shoes

Crepe Paper runner from Good Housekeeping

DIY Wrapping Paper Runner fromMartha Stewart Weddings
Cheap and cute- just my style!; ) Have a great weekend!

The day is finally here! Submissions for Creating with the Stars are Open! We are so excited to see all of your submission projects!

This group of blog stars is pretty epic! One of them could be your new partner in crime! 1- Sherry from Young House Love 2- Whitney & Ashley from Shanty 2 Chic
3- Brooke from All Things Thrifty 4- Jane from Tatertots and Jello
5- Sarah from Thrifty Decor Chick 6- Beckie from Infarrantly Creative
7- Mandi from Vintage Revivials 8- Jamielyn from I Heart Naptime
9- Shaunna from Perfectly Imperfect 10- Beth from Home Stories A to Z
11- Kari from U Create 12- Brittany from Pretty Handy Girl------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Let's just recap CWTS a bit and then we'll get onto the How To details! If you missed the announcement post with ALL the details, click hereYou can submit one project that shows everyone your best stuff into the linky party below. Projects must have been made October 1, 2011 or laterand must be your own work. You have until February 21st to enter your submission. From those entries, 11 will be chosen by the blog stars and us as contestants and will be randomly paired up to work one-on-one with a Blog Star, to duke it out in a four-week competition to see who's the most creative. The Star will give suggestions, ideas, encouragement, and help so you can come up with the best project possible. Each round will have a theme and the bottom three will be eliminated based on reader votes. Once the contest is started, weekly projects are anonymous, so big blogger or rookie, everyone's on the same, even playing field! Find your favorite project to link up and be prepared to put your best foot forward if you want to survive!---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- How to Enter CWTS: 1. Link Up your Project. Use the Linky below to submit your project entry *Reminder: Be sure to link to the actual project page, and not just your homepage. 2. Grab a Button. You need to add a link back to EC2 in your submission post. Even if it's an old post, just grab the button code below and paste it into the post.

</figure><figure><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj94gFCdkl5XvfYfY0cmc6bAe7QBJMLiECl-2TRMqt4zNyp-App9z1rXNO1gQXFI1Re3zJ4trv2YJiIwsAEnpzzwhi4X5BtSd7XKOcfQ5H864evyCgGXOy0V6z4GaAbt3dfmA4_B8Z3ML-y/s1333/CWTS+button+grab.jpg" alt="Creating with the Stars" /></figure><p><!--end button code box-->
3. Follow EC2 on Facebook. Make sure you LIKE East Coast Creative so you get all the updates and info we'll be sharing there as well. (This step is a requirement to your entry- sorry to be big, bad, rule enforcers- We promise we aren't mean!)

4. Start Spreading the Word! The first 11 contestants will be chosen by the Blog Stars and East Coast Creative, but #12 will be chosen by popularity in the link party. Get your readers to come over and give your thumbnail a click- yours could be the most viewed!! (Just don't act like some weird robot and click on your own entry a million times, that's lame-o!)

And, as if you need any more motivation to enter, we have the BEST.SPONSORS.EVER!! The 2013 CWTS Prize packages Total over $4100!!
A special thanks to Homes.com, HomeGoods, HomeTalk, and Home Depot for their generous sponsorship of CWTS.nWe're so honored to have them!
The Grand Prize Winners (Contestant and Blog Star) will each receive:
$500 from Homes.Com
$500 Gift Card to HomeGoods
Project featured by HomeTalk

All contestants that make it to Week 4 will be given a $100 Giftcard to HomeGoods to use during the week 4 home decor challenge!
The Semi-Finals Winner will receive:
$500 Gift Card to Home Depot (Contestant & Blog Star)
$100 worth of Martha Stewart supplies from Plaid Crafts
$125 Gift Card to Lucent Lampworks
Project featured by HomeTalk

The Week 2 Winner will receive:
$100 Gift Card to Royal Design Studio
A pair of $120 Robert Allen pillows from Chic Decor Pillows
Project featured by HomeTalk

The Week 1 Winner will receive:
$50 worth of 31 Gifts products
$60 worth of Twtsted Yarn products
$70 of Henle Headbands products
$100 Blog Re-design from 733 Design
Project featured by HomeTalk

Okay, enough talking, let's get submitting! We're so excited to have each and every one of you!! Good Luck and May the Odds be ever in your Favor (sorry, two Hunger Games lovers here!)