I recognize that DIY art projects are not for everyone. My love for custom art was born out of necessity (read: lack of funds). Creating my own artwork works for me, and I've found out why:
1. I don't worry about ruining something I already have. With the exception of a few things, everything I own was bought second-hand or for a low price. I don't fear repurposing things, because the originals cost me almost nothing!
2. I am not afraid of change. Actually, I crave it.

3. I am not a perfectionist. Little imperfections in my art/craft projects are endearing to me. They say"I was handmade, and therefore may be flawed, but a lot of thought and care went into making me". I'm not saying perfectionists can't create art (because I'm sure most real artists are perfectionists), it's just easier for me to say this picture is"good enough", than someone who wants everything to be perfect.
Ok, that's that. Recently I bought a yard of fabric for a project (stay tuned for more on that!) that I fell in love with. I ended up having some extra fabric left over that I wanted to use somewhere- anywhere!- in my house. I was feeling inspired by a gift bag in which my husband had wrapped my birthday present. I decided to combine my fabulous fabric, the cute bird, old frames, and some patterned scrapbooking paper into one art project!

First, I started with the bird stencil (the bag had a 3D bird on it, so I just ripped it off to use as a stencil). I laid it onto the back of the fabric in the opposite direction I wanted it to face, and then traced it. After that, I carefully cut along the line, flipped it over, and then mounted it to the scrapbook paper, using regular, old tape!

My husband insisted that this poor bird needed legs, so I drew two legs freehand and cut them out of the fabric, as well. Then I put the whole thing together and…

Voila!

I used the same method with my second art piece, but used the fabric as the background and the scrapbooking paper as the bird. I didn't have a smaller stencil, so I again, I freehanded the bird.

Then I had Kevin hang them on an empty wall in our living room. (I promise that these two pictures are level, it's just a wierd angle)

I love the way the pictures look as I enter the living room, and that I can see them from my kitchen table. Makes that room feel one step closer to completion, or until I'm ready to redo the entire room again for the third time.: ) I may not keep these pictures forever, but for now, they are a cheap solution. Below are some images from a few other bloggers of artwork they created using what they had on hand, or a few inexpensive items they purchased. Click on link under the image for specific instructions on how they made these beautiful pieces of art.

The Nester
The Nester simply scoured her home for items that would look good grouped together in a frame. This could easily be done finding stuff on a hike out in the woods, or on a trip to the beach.

Martha Stewart
These prints were made using memorabilia from trips (like tickets, maps, postcards etc) that were blown up and then framed.

Ashley Ann Photography This is not everyone's style, but these two canvas prints were made for a nursery, and were created using a canvas, scrapbook paper, mod podge (amazing stuff!), and a little paint. Adorable and easy!

Isabella & Max
This look is much more sophisticated and elegant. This piece of art hung above the couch was made using a canvas, paint and a few different paint brushes, and nail heads. My sister who regularly tells us that she is not creative, painted three canvases in varying shades of colors that now hang above her fireplace, that are similar to this one.

' and get more for your money.

A few tips from Swedish Lantliv.

Remember to:

• Bring cash when visiting a farm auction. And bring a chair if you feel like sitting down, which is nice when good weather.
• Check porcelain twice. It might be damaged.
• Gustavian furniture painted gray may be fixed to look old. Painted black has been popular for a while too, check for damages and renovations. Black is an excellent colour to hide changes.
• Small items may switch places in boxes during show. When your box is sold perhaps you should take a second look to make sure everything is in there.
• Don't be too eager. At farm auctions many items may cost much more than at a city auction during autumn and winter.
• Check where bids are starting so that your first bid automatically is the starting bid.
• Check who you're bidding against so no one in your family is bidding on the same item.

Good luck!

 
Source: Lantliv

I thought I would share my top ten blogs I'm reading right now. You probably know most of them but hopefully some of them are new to you. Enjoy!

Christmas is closing up and so my first blog is an amazingly inspirational food blog.

White and beautiful country style.

Lots of beautiful tips and inspiration.

A little red house, adorable interior. Sadly Rickard would scream if I tried to decorate our house with so much white.

Truly a Scandinavian summer dream!

Details, details, details.

Cosy and creative.

Second hand, home made and a shop to go wild in.

True country style. I want this home!!

One of the blogs I've followed for the longest time.

Happy Saturday evening to you!

In the last number of Allt i Hemmet, I found this article with beautiful photos of a house in Mariefred. White floors and walls all over, lots of second hand foundings, no trends, only personal, classic and timeless.

Source: Allt i Hemmet

I received the most beautiful crib for my birthday. Our neighbours have a second hand market every Saturday and Sunday. I have bought several items from there, but when I saw this crib I simply fell in love. So a couple of days ago my Man surprised me with it. I am SO happy! It's from 1821, isn't it just amazing?

The cats thought it would be a nice idea to pose, by the way.

The chair I also bought from there and I plan to paint it white and change the fabric to a blue-grey with a little bit of grey-silver mixed in it.

The blue-white vase I also got for my birthday and I just love it. Blue and white is my middle name. The flower I'm a bit unsure of, is it Amaryllis?

The other images is from earlier in the summer, they are taken just outside the house.

I thought we'd start off this week with the second part of our entertaining mini-series. If you missed my tips on how to avoid a panic attack when you find out you're having company, you can check it out here.
So, one of the first things people worry about when they find out company's coming over is…

Source  I have two approaches to this question… There are meals I make when I want a fancy, impressive dinner and then there are meals that I make that are simple, yummy, and no real frills (these are the ones most of my friends are all familiar with!) I could do a whole post on my fancy meals (most of which are stolen from my mother-in-law, who is an amazing cook!) but for this post I want to talk about a Go-To Meal. In my world, a go-to meal is one that I can whip up if I have last minute guests or if I completely forgot that I was supposed to be making a meal (a common occurrence- have I mentioned I'm absent minded??) Monica's Entertaining Rule # 2: Have a Go-To Meal and always have its ingredients in the house.
To figure out what your go-to meal should be, ask a few questions… What meal does my whole family like (kids and adults)?, Is it simple to make and won't keep you in the kitchen once company arrives? Can you keep the ingredients on hand without them perishing?
My Go-To Meal Monica's Chicken (yes, we call it that) Roasted Potatoes Veggie Cheesy-Garlic Biscuits
So, Monica's Chicken started about 13 years ago when we still lived in MA. We had dinner at the house of a family from our church. She made this dish and I LOVED it. Eventually, we changed the name to Monica's Chicken because I was obsessed with it. I didn't take any pics of making it because I'm not doing a cooking tutorial and because taking pictures of raw chicken is creepy to me. (I'll put the recipes somewhere on the blog for you soon!) I use this as my go-to main dish because it takes about 5 mins to prep and then just bakes for 45 mins and voila!
I love potatoes. Really, I think they're the best food in the world, maybe second only to sour cream. Once, one of the million times I was pregnant, we were out to dinner with Eric's family and I ordered potato soup, potato skins, and loaded mashed potatoes as my meal. The waitress' face was priceless and finally someone explained I was pregnant (but honestly, I don't think that had anything to do with it!) Ok, so for my go-to side dish of course I'm going to use potatoes, plus we always have them in the house. These are my pick, because they're awesome, easy, and actually look pretty good. Again, they only take 5 mins and then bake for the same time as Monica's Chicken.

The finished product- I <3 Potatoes!

Ok, sorry if you're all gourmet and offended by Bisquick, but I keep it on hand. These garlic cheese ones are like 99 cents and with a little added cheese and then melted butter and garlic on top are awesome!

In between taking pictures, cooking, doing dishes, and letting this adorable little man help out

…I forgot to make any vegetables. My go-to veggie is actually Costco's Normandy Blend because it's sold in like 47 lb bags and is really good and doesn't taste like most frozen veggies. Unfortunately, I didn't realize my veggie faux pas until we were actually sitting down to eat, so… canned green beans it was! Oops!

So, there you have it, my Go-To Meal in a snap. If you don't have a go-to meal, I totally recommend it and it will definitely make your life easier. This week, think through it, and then grab the ingredients when you're shopping. Hey, maybe then you can do something wild and crazy, like inviting company for dinner at the last minute! So, what are your ideas for a Go-To Meal? Do Share!

Well, well, look what I found:

Remember my post about the game plan for my bathroom? I really wanted a ladder for the space to as a stylish way to hang a few hand towels and other little things we might need in the bathroom. I found one this weekend while visiting my sister in Lancaster. There is a house that we pass on the way to my sister's that has hundreds (no exaggeration) of old windows and other random junk in their yard. Of course, that's like the jackpot for a cheap DIYer like me, so we stopped by. Lucky for me, they had a few ladders like this one and I was able to buy it for $15! (Talked her down from $20. Oh yeah, I drive a hard bargain.) Out of all the things I've bought for my house, besides my statement piece, this one is my favorite. It captures the feel I'm going for in my home (and no, that feel is not old paint shop in case you were wondering.) This really tall little beauty needs some loving, as in, a good sanding and maybe a few coats of a water-based polyurethane to bring out the wood tones. There's just one too many different colors of paint on her for my liking, so once they're sanded out, she'll be perfect.

In other news, we bought a mirror at Lowes for the bathroom. Originally, I planned on thrifting a cheap, unique mirror, but we came across this one marked way down on clearance at Lowes, and I'm totally loving the shape of it.

(Yes, that is my garage filled with lots of old barnwood for my various projects. Yes, my husband gives me the stink eye because of it.)

And how do I like the color of this mirror? Umm, not so much. Black with red undertones? I don't think so.

I'm planning on painting the mirror frame and then doing an antique glazing treatment on it to make it look weathered and well, antique. Something like this:

I've finally chosen my paint colors, Olympic Whispering Wind and Quill, which I'll have color-matched in Valspar paint (that covers better with less coats). You can't tell in this picture, but they are very neutral beiges that are almost gray. LOVE them.

And finally, the lighting. Thanks to some suggestions by our awesome readers (who knew to look at outdoor lighting??!!), I've narrowed down my choices to this large bronze wall-mounted light fixture that is actually meant to be outside. It's from Lowes and costs $39.98. I really adore everything about it, but I'm not sure the color is exactly the feel I'm going for.

Lowes

My second choice is this Raw Steel outdoor wall sconce from Lowes. It costs a little bit less than the other light $24.95, but is smaller. The color is definitely in the cooler tones.

Lowes

So, now, will you help me? The finish of the light will really direct the direction of the other decorative items in the room (bronze= browns & creams, silver = gray, white and black). It's your chance to tell me what you think would work best in my bathroom redesign.

Create your free online surveys with SurveyMonkey, the world's leading questionnaire tool.

Thanks so much! My husband tried to sneak his own decorative touch into the bathroom, hoping I wouldn't notice.

Sorry, babe, the Phillies hand towel is oooooutta here! Nice try.

Happy Monday!

We're pulling a Young House Love and are double-posting today. It's kind of fitting since Melissa is Sherry's partner!. If you missed the Round 2 projects, you can see all of them right here. To see the bloggers you chose to move on to Round 3, . We're sure these girls are already working hard on their Paint challenge this week- ack! We're loving the suspense.: )

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If any knockoff was a bear to tackle, this one is it! All that detail-oriented stenciling makes us tired just looking at it. We love that Melissa took the design and changed it up so that it is unique and matches her home. Take it away, Melissa!

Anthropologie is my very favorite store. I love all the colors, the design, the textures, the ambience and inspiration that I always find there. When I saw this gorgeous ikat hand painted console, I knew it was the perfect piece of inspiration for CWTS Project #2: Knock Off. (and at $1698--it's a great piece to knock off; )

1. I bought a similar looking cabinet base from IKEA. In looking for the right piece of furniture to use for this project, the most important thing was to have flat doors with plenty of space for the ikat stencil design.

2. In order to achieve a wood-like look similar to the anthro console, I did some research on painting IKEA furniture. Leaving the cabinet in pieces, I spray-painted them with three coats of Zinsser BIN shellac-based primer. In between each coat of primer, I sanded very lightly. This stuff is amazing and allowed me to paint right over it with no problems. After letting the primer dry, I painted the cabinet pieces with two coats of paint which I had left over from other projects. I painted all pieces with BM Wheeling Neutral, with the exception of the cabinet doors, which I painted BM Linen White.

3. The next step included a bit of experimenting, but ended up turning out great. On top of the painted cabinet pieces, I used a soft dry cloth and applied a light layer of Annie Sloan Dark Wax. I wasn't sure how this wax would take to the paint, but it worked wonderfully and gave the piece a great look. In the second picture below, you can see the difference between the boards (before wax on the left and waxed on the right). After all the pieces of the cabinet were waxed and dry, I put the cabinet together, minus the front doors.

4. I ordered the ikat stencil ("ikat pattern #1 repeating stencil") online from Olive Leaf Stencils. Next up was choosing paint colors. I went to the paint store and pulled paint chips to match the anthropologie console. I knew their color palette worked well but I wanted to create a similar palette that would work better in my own home. I played around with paint chips in my hand to create my palette. Then I took the paint chips to the craft store and matched them to acrylic craft paint. (While at the craft store, I also purchased Elmer's Spray Adhesive to help keep the stencil in place while I painted.)

5. I put the cabinet doors on top of the kitchen counter and put the six different paint colors onto paper plates. I measured and marked the various spots where I would need to line up the stencil. Next, I sprayed the back of the stencil with the Elmer's Spray Adhesive and let it sit for about 2 minutes before placing it on the cabinet door. (Waiting the 1-2 minutes helps the spray to be more temporary, and easier to remove. I did not have any problems removing the stencil-and the paint on the doors did not peel off at all.)

6. After I had my stencil in place, I began painting. You really only need to use a small amount of paint for stenciling, this helps to prevent bleeding of the paint. I used a soft jabbing motion to get the effect I was wanting and found that a small firm paint brush worked well. I had sketched the stencil out on cardboard and planned which colors were going where…this was especially helpful. It took me about three hours to stencil the cabinet doors.

7. I let the doors dry overnight and in the morning I used a very small brush and linen white paint to touch up the few spots where little bits of paint had bled.

8. Last, I applied a layer of Annie Sloan Clear Wax over the top of each door, which darkened the colors very slightly and gave it a nice smooth finish.

9. After the wax was dry, I put the doors onto the cabinet base. I styled the console using some of my"real" anthropologie treasures: ) in addition to two old flea market wooden spools with candles, some favorite books and beautiful orange tulips.

It's such an amazing piece and it's going to be a conversation starter, for sure! We snooped around Melissa's blog and found this adorable Secretary makeover. Love that color blue!

You know we love us some reclaimed wood and this barnwood jewelry display is super cute!

Check back tomorrow for our favorite knockoff from the link party this week! There were some great entries, and you all are NOT making our jobs easy.: ) And don't forget that you can begin voting for Round 3 midnight on Monday!

One of the most fun parts of the CWTS contest is getting to see the fun projects linked up in our weekly link party! The girls in this contest are seriously talented, but guess what?! So are YOU! If you want to get a burst of inspiration, check out the fab upcycle projects that were linked up right here.

We were immediately drawn to this end table when we saw it in the party since we're both HUGE fans of rustic industrial style furniture. Allison from The Golden Sycamore put some serious effort and time into this piece and it tells! It's absolutely gorgeous! Well done, girl.; )

As I mentioned a few weeks ago on my blog, I'm really into the industrial look right now. I seriously can't get enough of it! While I was playing around online one day, showing my husband all these cool industrial tables, he got an idea in his head: Why not build one ourselves? One thing led to another and now we have our own custom industrial end table for our living room! (You can see the reveal post {here}). This was our inspiration for the table …

My husband and I are really happy with how our table turned out and I'm excited to share this project with you, but I want to warn you, this particular DIY project is not for the faint of heart. This project is a bit of a process and can be dangerous if you don't know what you're doing and aren't careful. PLEASE do not attempt this unless you feel very confident in your abilities. Please be sure you take all safety precautions when using a power tool or dangerous chemicals or objects and read the instruction manuals before using them. I am not a trained professional. If you are uncertain, please consult an expert before attempting this or any projects on this blog. I will not be responsible for any injuries or damages caused by any attempts to recreate this or any projects posted on this blog.

Alright, now that that's out of the way, onto the tutorial. Aging Galvanized Metal

SUPPLIES: 8 — 3/4" x 10" galvanized pipe ($29.60) 16 — galvanized floor flanges ($116.16) 48 — 1/4" x 1" galvanized lag screws ($22.08) HCl / toilet bowl cleaner Plastic container Small map gas torch ($41.97) Heat safe gloves ($4.46) Vegetable oil Beeswax Metal pan Metal pliers PROCEDURE: Start by putting your galvanized metal plumbing supplies in a plastic container. Add enough HCl / toilet bowl cleaner to cover all the metal and let sit for 2-3 hours. This process will remove the zinc coating off the galvanized metal. **DO THIS PART OUTSIDE OR IN A VERY WELL VENTILATED AREA — YOU DON'T WANT TO BE BREATHING THESE CHEMICALS IN!! (This is a picture of the screws in toilet bowl cleaner. We did them separately, but you can just put everything together.)

After a few hours, rinse all your metal pieces off. Pour some vegetable oil in a metal container. Wearing heat safe gloves and holding your piece of metal with a pliers, heat metal with torch until it is hot enough that it turns orange. Once it is thoroughly heated, dip in vegetable oil. Then reheat the piece of metal to orange hot. Once it is hot enough, set in oil to cool for about 30 seconds. **AGAIN — USE CAUTION. DO THIS PART IN A SAFE AREA AND HAVE A FIRE EXTINGUISHER NEAR BY IN CASE OF FIRE!!

The metal will still be very hot, so take the piece of metal out of the oil with a pliers.

Cool the metal with water.

Once it's cool to the touch, scrub off burned oil residue with water and a wire brush.

Lightly heat metal again with torch (about 30 seconds) and coat with beeswax. Once coated, rub with cotton rag while still warm.

Let cool before handling. Metal will still be hot for a while.

And that's it! Haha! I know the process is intense, but if you really want the aged look, it's worth it! Here is what your finished product should look like. Repeat process for all your pieces of metal.

Now onto the wood shelves.

SUPPLIES: 1 — IKEA Numerar oak butcher block countertop ($129.00) — we used a little over half the length, so the cost of what was used was roughly $70 Tape measure and pencil Circular saw Straight edge clamp Router Orbital sander and sand paper Stain Silhouette Cameo and stencil Paint and paint brush Mineral oil PROCEDURE: Start by measuring your Numerar butcher block to the size you want your shelves and mark where to cut. Our shelves measure 19.5" wide x 24" deep.

Set up your straight edge clamp so that your saw will cut on your measured line. You'll probably have to set it to about a half inch over to allow for the width of the saw.

Cut butcher block with circular saw. Repeat this process for second shelf.

Run orbital sander along the edges to ensure a smooth finish. Then router the edges of each shelf — remember to do the top and bottom sides to keep the look cohesive.

With your orbital sander, sand the finish off the top and bottom of both shelves.

Using Minwax Dark Walnut stain, wipe on stain and immediately wipe off to get a slightly darker color, but not too much penetration. If you desire a darker stain color, either leave the stain on longer before wiping off or apply more layers of stain to darken it.

I don't have pictures of this part, but if you wish to add numbers to your top shelf, here's how to do it. Choose the style and size of numbers you want and cut them out using your Silhouette Cameo. If you don't have a Cameo, you can always print numbers out on your printer and then cut them out by hand. Once you have your numbers, arrange them on the shelf the way you want them and then trace around them using a white or black colored pencil. Once your numbers are traced, use craft paint and a small paint brush to paint inside the lines. Let paint dry and sand lightly with sand paper to desired distressed look.

Once you are done with your numbers (or if you skipped that step) wipe both shelves with mineral oil (or some other sealant like wax or polyurethane) to seal the shelves.

Now to put it all together. SUPPLIES: Drill Wrench or impact driver All your metal pieces Both shelves Level PROCEDURE: Drill pilot holes in each shelf. You'll drill four holes per flange. Drill holes in the bottom of the top shelf. The bottom shelf will get holes drilled in both sides — top and bottom. Make sure to stagger your holes on the bottom shelf so that they don't meet up with each other through the wood. Using your wrench or impact driver, on the bottom shelf, attach 4 flanges with your lag screws on the top side of the shelf. Screw pipe into the four flanges. Attach flanges to the bottom of the top shelf with lag screws. Screw those flanges to the pipe that is already attached to the bottom shelf. Attach flanges to the bottom side of the bottom shelf. Screw pipe into flanges and screw final flanges to the bottom of the pipe — these are the table's"feet". Check to make sure the table is level. If it isn't, screw or unscrew pipes until the table is level.

Alright, if you've made it to the end of this post, I applaud you! I told you it was intense! I definitely can see why our inspiration piece was almost $700! Not only are the materials relatively expensive, but it is also quite labor intensive! In the reveal post, I said that the table cost us about $300 to make. We had a lot of the tools on hand, but we had to purchase most of the supplies. In this post I've added up the supplies we bought and calculated our total cost (using about half the countertop cost since we can use the remainder of the countertop for another project). The total came to $284.27. If you add MI tax, it comes to $301 and some change. That's a pretty good estimate on our part, if you ask me!: ) If I didn't explain something well enough or you have any questions, PLEASE feel free to ask! I'll do my best to help you out! Thanks so much for reading my loooong tutorial!: ) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Isn't that incredible?! Seriously, so good. Thanks for linking up, Allison! Don't forget to check back at midnight tonight to see the Contestants Round 3 projects!

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!

We're finally back to blogging after our amazing trip to Mexico! We had a great time with great friends and have to admit that this vacation was just what we needed: a break from this crazy, packed-to-the-brim (just like Monica's suitcase) year! We have lots to share about our trip, (especially about the amazing resort we stayed in!), but here's a sneak peek at our totally burnt tan selves:

But enough about that, we're happy to continue on with our interesting statistics from year one:

Yes, we are crazy, but we're committed to growing the blog and seeing where it will take us. Five posts a week is a lot if you ask other bloggers, but we are so thankful that there are two of us to lighten the load. We totally recognize that this partnership is rare, and can honestly say that after blogging together for a year, we're still friends. Ha! Plus, we love giving you guys new stuff to read every day, so even though it's a lot of hard work, it's worth it! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
We have two awesome giveaways for you today! The giveaways are separate entities (in other words, if you win, you don't win both!) Please let us know which giveaway you're gunning for in your comment.
Ok, so giveaway number 1 is a service that is near and dear to my heart. I've mentioned Dream Dinners before when I told you that I used to own one with my mom, but just in case you missed it, this place is amazing! You can make a month's worth of meals in less than 2 hours- no prep work or clean-up required! Check out this post for more details.

This giveaway is open only to local readers (Bucks, Montgomery or Delaware Counties) and is valid only for use at the Colmar, PA store.
If you can't wait for the giveaway, use the new customer code DDNC102012 for 10% off any order of 36 servings or more.
To enter: (This giveaway is now closed)
1. Go to the Dream Dinners website, pick your favorite meal and leave a comment here with why it looks so good to you. 2. For an additional chance to win like the RHBC Facebook page, and leave a comment letting us know you did so. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Our second giveaway is pretty awesome, too (can you even handle two great giveaways in one day?!) If you ever see us around, you'll notice right away that we love Thirty-One Gifts! We usually have at least one bag each on hand at all times.: ) Mandy is a killer consultant so if you have questions, fire away!

The set includes a Large Utility Tote, Picnic Thermal Tote and an About Town Picnic Blanket (in colors as shown).These items are perfect for sporting events, picnics, playdates, vacation and countless other uses! For more information about these products, check out the new 2012 Spring Catalog.
To enter: (This giveaway is now closed)
1. Go to the Thirty-One Gifts Catalog and pick your favorite product and comment with your pick. 2. For an additional chance to win, like the RHBC Facebook page, and leave a comment letting us know you did so.
Same deal: if you can't wait to win, email your order to Mandy with the code love31 to get 15% off of your order. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Allright, folks, you have 24 hours to enter! We'll announce the winners of both giveaways on Thursday morning, so don't delay! Good luck! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

And the winner of the Garnish giveaway is Kori!

Email us to claim your prize, Kori. Congrats!

I kill plants on a regular basis.

But Michelle, from Ten June created this Garden Wall which totally inspired me. I've been noticing a lack of greenery in my house (mostly because I don't take care of the few plants I do have) and wanted to rectify that, so I decided to try my hand at creating a garden wall in my kitchen. My internal self warned me that I should only do this if I promised that I would take care of the poor, terrified plants. So I made a deal with my internal self, and off I went!

According to Michelle, Ikea had some great containers that could be hung on the wall. She used the galvanized steel buckets, but after perusing the container isle for a while, I decided that these darling white ASKER containers would be perfect for my kitchen. (Recently, I've been consumed with thoughts of making everything white in my house. I'm not kidding. And I just might do it.) The holes in the backs of the containers makes it so easy to hang on the wall! I love when things are easy.

Lucky for me, Ikea also sells potted plants. I didn't have to go anywhere else to get all I needed for this project, because knowing me, if I did, you wouldn't be seeing this post until 2015. Please, oh please, oh please, don't ask me which succulents I bought. I don't know their names, but I do know for sure that I bought the one second from the left in the picture above. I've decided that I love succulents because they require virtually no care (they need to be watered only once per week, and thrive on indirect, but not hot, sunlight). Plus they are so unique and sculptural-looking!

The wall I used is very narrow, so I went with three plants in a vertical line. I wasn't too concerned with the containers being the exact same distance away from each other because I knew the height of each plant would make it look off anyway. (I'm the one who doesn't need perfection, remember?) I went with two dark green, and one light green plant to add some interest.

Here's a view of the kitchen coming in from the garage. The color in our kitchen is same throughout, but it looks so different in this picture! The most true representation of the color is the one the plants are on. The garden wall adds such a fresh pop of white and green to an otherwise un-remarkable wall. It doesn't overwhelm you when you see it, which makes me happy.

I love how flush they are to the wall! (And by the way, we hung them using white picture hangers.)

You might have noticed these pretty little ladies sitting on my kitchen peninsula. These were a gift from my hubs for Mother's Day, and even though they are now over a week old, they are so beautiful! I loved the colors and the antique look they have. You should have seen them a couple of days ago! Really, they took my breath away. Call me old-fashioned, but it's always SO nice to have fresh flowers in my house.
Do you have plants in your house? If so, what's your favorite kind?

Linking up to:

Today's Creative Blog

Tidy Mom

Antique shops along Magazine Street
My best friend and sister of my heart, Debbie, yes we're both Debs, lives clear across the country from me so once every two years or so we meet up in a different city to play for a week. We decided to meet up in New Orleans since she had never been there and of course there was magazine street to look forward too since we both love antiques. Magazine Street is well known for all their antique shops although there are fewer since hurricane Katrina.

A restored shotgun house with newly added dormer
We stayed in the French quarter and played tourists and the first thing that struck me were the stunning shotgun houses. A single shotgun house is usually 12 feet wide and has 3-5 rooms in a row, sometimes only two rooms deep, front to back, with no hallways and doors that open on the front and back.

(Excuse the dates on the pictures I never learned how to set that on my camera.)
Shotgun houses were popular mainly in southern cities since they occupied a small area of land, usually 30 feet wide at most, so it allowed a great number of homes to be built side by side. New Orleans housing taxes contributed to the shotgun house since taxes were based on the lot frontage. Later when people tried to take the houses to a second story known as 'Camelbacks' the houses were then taxed based on square footage. Since hallways and closets were considered rooms this type of house has no closets or hallways.

'Double-barrel' shotgun houses that consist of two houses sharing a central wall that would have allowed more homes to be built.
They became known as being a shotgun house for the saying that you could shoot a gun through the front door and have the bullet pass cleanly through the back door since the doors line up on the same sides. I love the vibrant colors used for the house colors.

The houses usually had big rooms with high ceilings that helped with cooling purposes, when the warm air rises it helped to keep the lower part cooler. The shutters on the main doors helped as well since the shutters can be locked from the inside and the front door could be left open to allow air flow through the house.

This house is actually two houses the entrances being on the far left and right and each with a window and dormer in the center. The left house is for rent if you're interested.

A modern shotgun house with detailed floor plan that includes a bathroom, the original shotgun houses had no bathroom.

Interior pictures via Southern Accents, December, 2002
These interior shots are from Gerald Pierce' pied-a-terre in the French Quarter of his double-barrel shotgun house that has been turned into a single dwelling. Gerald is a designer of Jim Thompson Thai Silks in Bangkok.

If you notice the pictures hung over the windows in the living room and how far up on the opposite wall the pictures go up it'll give you a sense of how high the ceilings are, usually 14' in height.

Chimneys tended to be built in the interior so the front and middle rooms could share a chimney and each have a fireplace. Notice how slender the fireplace surround is, not much wider then the antique trumeau mirror above it. Typically there was another chimney built in the kitchen.

The kitchen, located at the very back of the house, looks to be a simple gallery kitchen hidden behind silk drapes. This is a man who obviously doesn't cook much since those drapes would get ruined by cooking grease.

If you click on Gerald' bedroom picture you can pull it up bigger to see how narrow the bedroom looks and how high the ceilings are, the ceilings do have cove molding. Notice how he kept the wood floors dark so that they almost disappear?

The bedroom fireplace exactly on the other side of the living room fireplace.

While I love the look and the idea about these little houses I don't think I could live in one since I get claustrophobic. Love the tall floor to ceiling windows and the ceiling heights, so European. I'm also thinking these homes are best for a single person since there isn't much square footage. They're such a charming part of our architectural history and I'm glad I got to see so many first hand with my best friend.

One of my 2012 resolutions was to add more of ME into the style (or lack thereof) of my family room. I might have taken that resolution a tad literally come to think of it, but I'm still happy with the progress so far! Let me give you a little back story…

See that artwork? It was hanging in my family room for the past year. It's fine… if you know me well, when I say fine, I mean ehh… take it or leave it. In this particular case, I was ready to leave it, so I started by taking it apart.

I wanted to do something a tad more meaningful. Trust me, I'm all about art just because it looks cool, but for some reason I was determined to create something a little"deeper" for this room.
At first I thought I'd use some cool lyrics I love."American Pie" has always been a favorite song, but then I vetoed that because it just didn't feel right and I'm sure there's some weird deep meaning I am oblivious to.
I decided on Matt Redman's"Blessed be the Name of the Lord", typed it up on an 8x8 and enlarged it at Staples. (Total cost for two was like $5.00)

Here's the deal on the song. I'm not all like,"woohoo it has to be a praise song" or something like that. Truthfully, I hated this song for about 3 years and would actually leave church every time it was played. I wasn't being a jerk, I just couldn't stomach it. You may have heard me mention my twin boys in my birthday post, and this song has a line,"You give and take away, You give and take away. My heart will choose to say, Lord blessed be your name." Let me tell you for a mom that wanted nothing more than to keep holding her babies that line was beyond challenging for me. So why put it on your wall crazy blogger? Well, over time I've been able to get to the point where I do trust and understand that He will give and take and it's not going to be easy, but I'm not in it alone. He doesn't say I'll give and take and see ya later. It's only by grace that I got through each of our losses without becoming bitter and changed. Okay, enough personal stuff, if you want to read about our journey with the twins, you can check it out here. (Who knows, maybe it will be a help to someone.)
So I had my lyrics and needed something to go over them. It took some brainstorming and then it hit me. FINGERPRINTS… our fingerprints!
Here's How I did it! The mat needed a coat of paint. Don't be afraid to change the color of your mat, it's a great, quick fix.

While they dried, I pulled out my kids stamping kit and took some prints. I'm a dork and started with my pointer, but realized a thumb is a better option. Just press, don't roll and don't use too much ink.

Then, I took pictures of our prints. I zoomed in as close as I could get, and then cropped in picasa. Editing the picture to black and white and increasing shadows helped me see the lines.

I happened to have a mini projector on hand (borrowed from a friend about 9 months ago- oops!) and a jar of cherries! I needed the projector a bit higher and they worked perfectly. If you don't have a mini projector an old school, classroom one would work fine too.

Keeping it real… yes, I still have a Christmas countdown on my walls.

I taped the paper on the wall and traced in pencil. I almost went blind. It was not simple to see, but it still only took about 5 minutes of tracing.

I removed it from the wall and traced over my lines with a sharpie.

After reassembling the mat and frame I was ready for after pictures… Darn that my room is bright with a glare 24-7.

Here's my new meaningful, fingerprint art.

I have a second one coming with the hub's print, but I'll show you that when the rest of the wall is finished! I have some fun plans brewing!

So what do you think of my new artwork? It's okay, you can be honest, I know it's a little unique.

Sharpie projects have been trending all year, but we hadn't gotten to give 'em a try until recently! We shared this post as part of the P&G Have You Tried This Yet program, but it's perfect for a last minute Mother's Day or Teacher Appreciation Week gift!! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
What's a DIYer to do when it comes to getting her Mom something for Mother's Day? Well, DIY a gift, of course! We love a gift that is thoughtful and handmade, and this easy project is both! Plus, no special artistic skills are needed!

These mugs are super easy to make and can be customized in a million different ways. Fill with your mom's favorite tea, candy or even fresh flowers for a sweet Mother's Day gift she won't forget.

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

• White, ceramic mugs (found at any discount store)
• Permanent marker in your color choice
• Stencil (optional)
• Painter's tape (optional)
• Baking sheet

Step 3: Fill in the cutouts with the permanent marker, being careful not to smudge the ink. Let the ink dry for a few minutes and then remove the stencil and begin again.

For the second mug, I free-handed"I Love my Mom". This was actually a little easier than the stencil. I drew on paper what I wanted it to look like before I began on the mug. Then it took a steady hand and in a few minutes it was done!

Step 4: Place the mugs on a baking sheet and heat at 350 degrees for 30 minutes in the oven to set the ink. Remove from oven and let cool.

Now, that you're done, these mugs can be washed, put through the dishwasher and used every day and the marker will not smudge or fade. Love that!

So, for only a couple bucks you can have a custom gift that your mom or teacher will love!

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Did you hear our BIG NEWS?

Click here for our announcement post with all the fun details!!
We can't wait for July 7th!!

Pendant approx. 1"
"I once had a sparrow alight upon my shoulder for a moment, while I was hoeing in a village garden, and I felt that I was more distinguished by that circumstance that I should have been by any epaulet I could have worn."

-Henry David Thoreau

American china with bird motif
Bluebird China

'Bluebird china enjoyed a brief but spectacular history, first appearing in the late 1800s, reaching its zenith in the early to mid-1920s, and was almost entirely gone by 1930. China decorated with the bluebird motif was produced by over 50 different American companies including Anchor Pottery Company, Atlas China Company and Atlas-Globe China Company, Chippendale China, Homer Laughlin China Company, and Steubenville Pottery Company to name just a few.'

-Excerpt from the book Bluebird China (Schiffer Book for Collectors), above, which can be found Here

Classic Homer Laughlin "Fluffy Bluebird" Pattern

Homer Laughlin Fluffy Bluebird pattern china

Necklace pendant

Necklace Pendant

Bracelet made from a broken tea cup

Broken china mosaic heart with bluebird
Bluebirds of Happiness
'The mythology of the bluebird of happiness has deep roots that go back thousands of years. Indigenous cultures across the globe hold similar myths and beliefs about the bluebird. It is a widely accepted symbol of cheerfulness, happiness, prosperity, hearth and home, good health, new births, the renewal of springtime, etc. Virtually any positive sentiments may be attached to the bluebird. ' -Excerpt from Bluebird of Happiness, which can be found HERE in its entirety.
Other Bluebird China Patterns

Vintage Lovebirds — Unknown pattern
Some examples of a few less common American bluebird china patterns:

Necklace with freshwater pearl and Swarovski crystal

Necklace Pendant

Pin brooch with freshwater pearls and Swarovski crystals

Bracelet displayed on the plate it was made from

Link bracelet
How about these sweet little birds? Looks like they've made their nest in a basket.

Necklace pendant, vintage American china

Necklace pendant
Entry May 18 'Your words are born not spoken. Dimensional soft-vowelled words palpable to the eye or to the fingertip. Exquisitely curved as the young that flowers conceive. Often I have watched your lips shape words... and your tongue nudge them out like small birds not wholly certain of their wings. Your sweetest words are those shaped ovally like plums or wild birds' eggs. And the long bright ribbons you laugh, the multitudes of hyacinth and bluebells.'
-Walter Benton, This Is My Beloved

Pin brooch with freshwater pearls and Swarovski crystals
An older, unusual bluebird china pattern, probably circa 1920:

Necklace pendant

Pin brooch with freshwater pearl and Swarovski crystal

Necklace made with Amazonite, Rohodonite, and sterling wire

Necklace

Necklace, unknown pattern
Mount Clemens Robin pattern

Heart Pendant

Heart pendant

Pendant

Pin brooch with sterling beads and Swarovski crystals

Heart pendant

Charm bracelet with pearls and various crystals and gems

Silver spoon bracelet

Silver spoon bracelet

Silver spoon bracelet

Pin brooch with crystals
Another unusual American bird pattern. These look like lovebirds or budgies. Notice the motif surrounding the heart design in the second photo below.

Necklace pendant

Pin brooch
Bird of Paradise & Pheasant Patterns
"The bird of paradise alights only upon the hand that does not grasp."
-John Berry

Unusual, ornate pattern. Pin brooch with Swarovski crystals and freshwater pearls.

' The birds-of-paradise are members of the family Paradisaeidae of the order Passeriformes. The majority of species in this family are found on the island of New Guinea... with a few species occurring in the Moluccas of Indonesia and eastern Australia. The family has forty species in 13 genera. The members of this family are perhaps best known for the plumage of the males of most species, in particular highly elongated and elaborate feathers extending from the beak, wings or head. For the most part they are confined to dense rainforest habitat.' -Excerpt from Bird-of-paradise, which can be found HERE in its entirety

Antique pattern. Pin brooch with heart-shaped coin pearl and crystal.

Heart charm, approx 7/8"

Pin brooch

Beautiful colors! Pin brooch with Swarovski crystals

Pendant
Parrots & cockatoos

Art deco china pattern with parrot motif, American china

Same pattern as above. This pin brooch was made from the design on the center of the plate.
This Parrot pattern is from England:

Pendant

Pin brooch

English china, necklace pendant
Blue Willow birds:

Pendant

Blue willow porcelain from Japan. Necklace made with glass beads, glass pearl beads and sterling wire.

Necklace
A few other bluebird and bird china patterns:

Pendant

Pin brooch

Silver spoon bracelet with 7/8" heart charm

Bluebird china earrings

Heart charm approx. 7/8"

Shelley fine bone china. Flow blue bird motif with gold overlay.
"One must ask children and birds how cherries and strawberries taste."
-Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Pin brooch with amethyst briolette drop. Newer porcelain.

English transferware with swan motif. Pin brooch

Heart charm, approx 7/8" English transferware

Vintage American pottery with doves motif. Pendant
Birds are flyin' south for winter.
Here's the Weird-Bird headin' north,
Wings a-flappin', beak a-chatterin',
Cold head bobbin' back 'n' forth.
He says, "It's not that I like ice
Or freezin' winds and snowy ground.
It's just sometimes it's kind of nice
To be the only bird in town." -Shel Silverstein Weird-Bird

Birds are one of my most requested china patterns for jewelry. Because they can be hard to find, sometimes even rare, my finished jewelry pieces made from these patterns on average cost a bit more than other patterns. I hope you enjoyed this look into the world of vintage bird china! No matter how often I look at these patterns, they are still delight me each time I see them! -Laura (all jewelry shown above was made by me!)

This spring the Mangin family (that's us) decided to plant a garden! I grew up with my dad having a huge garden and I have fond memories of weeding it, going out to cut swiss chard before dinner, harvesting squash, and I'm 100% sure I hated every second of those chores as a kid. LOL Isn't it funny how we can tweak our memories over time! So we planted a medium sized garden and so far- so good! One thing I really wanted to try was potatoes!! I went to our local Agway and they were super helpful in teaching me all about growing spuds! Today I'm gonna share what I learned!

So, first things first… did you know potatoes don't grow down into the ground?? That's right, they actually grow UP! What the What?? I was seriously confused and shocked by that info! It was recommended that for a potato rookie like me, that I try a potato container garden first. You can use a plain, plastic trash barrel, but I had a metal bucket on hand. Any container that's a few feet deep will do.

Since my container wasn't intended for plants, I drilled some holes for drainage…

Next, I ripped up some old newspapers and put them at the bottom. Potatoes like really damp soil, so the paper will help retain the moisture better!

I bought Yukon Gold potatoes because they're my very favorite for mashed potatoes. Did you know that mashed potatoes are in my top 3 favorite foods??? Yup! And it was always was a tell-tale sign when I was preggers because I would want potatoes 24-7! One time we hadn't told Eric's parents yet that we were expecting baby #2, but I went and ordered Baked potato soup, mashed potatoes, and a baked potato for dinner at a restaurant. Ha! I think it was a tad obvious!

If you want to grow potatoes, you can't just use store bought ones- they can introduce disease to your whole crop. You have to buy seed potatoes (you can use store bought ones and grow your own slips, but it's super complicated sounding and seed potatoes cost like a buck!)

Add 2 inches of dirt on top of your paper- potatoes like really loose soil, so don't use hard rocky stuff. Each potato should have some eyes and you'll want to plant them with eyes facing up! My spuds had really sensitive eyes, so I loaned them my shades. (#cheeseballblogger)

Layer another 2-3 inches of loose soil over your potatoes and you're done… for now…

Your potatoes will begin to grow and once your shoots are about 3 inches tall, you'll add more dirt to cover them up again. I told Kira and Callen it's like potato hide and seek. They helped me plant these and we're excitedly waiting for our little shoots to be tall enough to"hide" them again!
So, if my pals at Agway are right, later in the season we'll be harvesting our first potato crop! This was such a fun and quick project that the kids and I had a blast doing. I definitely recommend giving it a whirl!
Have you ever planted spuds? Any potato lovers like me out there?

PS- Did you see the invite to our premiere party? We want YOU to join us! Click here for all the info!

PSS- Don't forget to enter to win $400 in Ryobi Tools, just in time for Father's Day! Click HERE to enter!

I told you in my last post about our barn that the carnage wasn't over and just look at what our contractors did! Can you imagine my face when I walked outside and saw our barn hanging by a thread? It was necessary in order to fix the water problem since water and wood don't mix. I know it's a little dark but if you look inside under the barn you'll see that our foundation for the barn is made from stacked boulders. It won't fall since it goes back into the earth twelve feet! The foundation for our home is like that too in our basement and it's stunning! Isn't the barn pretty nestled in the forest?

The earth came up on the sides of the barn and was rotting the wood so in order to stop that little problem we decide to use something that would never rot from water'stone! Both end walls will be built up out of antique granite block to the second floor crossbeams. Since this is the granite state and our home foundation is all granite we weren't going outside of what is normal for our home.

That would be the husband laying the footers for the walls, he's very handy to have about. No he isn't a mason by trade but used to do it once upon a time in another life. You would think I would be married to the hulk since those cement blocks weigh 67 pounds apiece. Good thing he didn't get mouthy with me since he's already standing six feet under'.;)

Up go the granite blocks, those only weigh 18 pounds apiece and he's doing a double wall, one inside the barn, and one outside. The cement and one or two of the granite blocks will be buried once the earth is graded on the outside. The rebar in the middle helps to stabilize the walls.

Mister man had to hand cut those thick solid granite blocks to fit snugly around the boulders. Everything had to be precisely measured so when he reached the beam he wouldn't have to cut any blocks or end up with any gaps. It's amazing how he worked it all out but he has a saying: prior preparation prevents piss poor performance and trust me he did his prep work.

A corner that wraps around to the front or face of the barn, that corner will support one barn door when finished.

This is the end of the barn you can see from the street and as you're coming up our drive.

Look at that, to the left of the picture, see that support beam hanging out in thin air'another water incident that will soon be taken care of and look, the wall is up to the beam!

Mister man finally got smart and hired our contractors' 18-year-old son to labor for him and the kid didn't whine once'.now that's amazing!

You can see from the inside how the block wall came right up to the crossbeam. Look right there in the very middle, you can see how the blocks were fitted right into the boulder wall. Oh and that yellow tubing you see snaking through several of my pictures....yeah, that would be the propane for my stove and oven. Imagine how exhilarated I was to see people cutting and sawing around it?

One wall up now to get mister man to clean up this colossal mess! Yes, this whole mess is just from the husband not to forget that the contractors were here working and making messes of their own!

Not only did everyone have messes working on the driveway but they took over my front yard as well!

And then more trucks arrived with more deliveries. The excavator thought it a good idea to park his bobcat on top of the husbands' stone dust. To top it off the cement guy thought the stone dust was a great place to wash leftover cement into, do you know how that stuff sets up'it's concrete! Trust me ladies this sort of work is not for the weak of heart to live around!
Stay tuned for next week when we feature'.oh yeah more mess!

T he nursery is finally complete and ready for the arrival of our sweet babies.

At first we thought we'd wallpaper the nursery but we never did find a pattern we absolutely loved, nor a pattern that was in our price range. We also considered stenciling the walls but couldn't find a pattern worth the effort or cost.
I have been wanting to do panel wainscoting ever since I tore out a 'how to' article on it from This Old House magazine years ago. It turned out that the nursery was the perfect room to do this. It added a wonderful detail and even better, was very affordable ($200 for materials). The walls are painted with Benjamin Moore's Simply White in flat. The trim, doors, windows and wainscot are painted with semi-gloss Simply White.
You can go here to see what we started with when planning the nursery.

From the very beginning, I knew I wanted the nursery to have a natural earthy warmth. I find rich wood hues provide that warmth, especially with abundant natural light. I used white and gold colors to provide additional lightness to the room. I also thought that this color scheme would offer a nice neutrality for our baby boy and girl.

From the opposite end of the room, you can see the paneling detail and the antique French armoire.
Draped over the chair is my old baby blanket.

Update: we added a changing table a few weeks after I took these photos. The talented Patricia Banner from Cottage by Design made this for me!

I wanted an armoire for easy access to baby clothes and linens. I also liked the idea of having a beautiful antique in the room and the rich warmth of the wood.

Baby girl clothes are on the left and baby boy clothes are on the right.

I chose a Da Vinci Jenny Lind crib in cherry to match the armoire and brightened it with white bedding.

I went with basic cotton bumpers to save on cost, but did dress them up by sewing white satin ribbons to secure them to the spindle railings. The second crib is upstairs in our bedroom where the babies will sleep at night.

I love the ornate detail of this antique frame and its beautiful gold glow. To go in it, I ordered a print of The Screech Owl by Albrecht Durer. In addition to the picture rail, we secured it to the wall as an extra precaution.

The art next to the nursing chair is a beautiful watercolor landscape my Grandmother used to have in her bedroom. I've always loved it and knew that one day it would go in our nursery. To freshen it up, I added a new mat.

The armoire mirror reflects the natural light from the windows.

After a considerable search, we finally settled on a 100% jute braided oval rug, which offers a nice softness to the room. We also like that the oval shape leaves more of the original wood floors exposed.

I bought this beautiful antique crocheted baby blanket years ago.

I absolutely love these curtains! They're a very lovely brown and white old-fashioned rose floral pattern.
Putting together the nursery was a unique experience for me. Besides finding the armoire, (which I purchased early on in my pregnancy when I was much more mobile), I wasn't really able to get into Portland to shop for things. All of the items in the room are ones we already had on hand, or were able to purchase online.
I hope that you enjoyed visiting our nursery. We know it will evolve over time and we'll be adding things and making adjustments as the babies grow. We're looking forward to welcoming our babies home very soon. xo
Here is a resource list of some of the items we used:
DaVinci Jenny Lind crib $199. (from Target) Oval 5 x 8 jute rug $130. (from here ) Jenny Lund slipcover chair $199. (from IKEA ) Floral curtains $24.99 per panel (from here ) Antique brass curtain rod and drapery rings $110. (Home Depot) Owl print $40. (from here )
Go here to read posts on the green nursery.

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!