My Creative Blog [Search results for daughters] 

*Due to some technical issues, Monica was unable to post her Mudroom Tour. Stay tuned tomorrow for the awesome rooms she has found!

Designed by Jones Design Company
Did you know that Fathers generally have as much or more impact as mothers do in the following areas of their daughters’ lives: achieving academic and career success (especially in math and science), creating a loving, trusting relationship with a man, dealing well with people in authority (especially men), being self-confident and self-reliant, being willing to try new things and to accept challenges, maintaining good mental health and expressing anger comfortably and appropriately (especially with men)? (Source: Dr. Linda Neilsen, Psychologist and Professor at Wake Forest University)
Most of you also know that a girl develops her idea of God and her faith by her experience with her father. Dr. Meeker, author of Strong Father, Strong Daughter: 10 Secrets Every Father Should Know, who has more than 20 years of experience working in Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine, says this;
"If [a girl's] dad has not been trustworthy, she will have difficulty trusting God. So if a daughter sees a father who loves God, who turns to Him in times of need, she is more likely to do the same. Also, faith has been shown repeatedly to be a “protective” factor for girls. Research shows that girls who have faith in God stay away from sex, drugs, and alcohol, and are less likely to get pregnant."

All that to say that Kevin and I have realized the importance of developing a strong relationship between him and our daughter. A few years ago we attended a seminar at our church run by the Focus on the Family Institute that talked a lot about being intentional with scheduling quality family time. So, we decided to be more intentional about planning Daddy/Daughter dates. I can not tell you how much both Kevin and C1 love these times together. We are aiming for once a month, but it doesn't always happen that way. Just recently, on a Friday, Kevin told C1 he would be taking her out that night for a"daddy date". C1 was so excited she almost couldn't contain herself, and all day long she kept asking me if it was time for her date with Daddy. When Kevin finally got home from work, she was nearly bouncing off the walls.

These dates do not have to be anything elaborate, and this one certainly wasn't. He just took her to a local pet store, which she loves, so they could look at all the animals and play with a puppy.

Then, off they went to good ol' Mickey D's for some shamrock shakes and french fries (C1 LOVES mint). It was honestly a very cheap date, but it included stuff C1 really enjoys. And that's the goal isn't it? Building a strong, trusting relationship through shared experiences so that in later years, when C1 needs help or advice, she can go right to her Daddy.

Bonus: I got to spend some extra time with my little man, C2. It was a win-win for everyone! If you want to read a little more about this idea, check out this article from the Focus on the Family website.
It's never too early or too late to start investing in your kid's lives! What do you do to connect with the little people in your life?

If we win, Homes.com will give Worthwhile Wear Five Thousand Buckaroos! For a new organization like theirs, that could be a major game changer and we really hope we can win it for them! (If you want to skip the project and just vote you can! lol Click HERE to Vote)
You can read all about our project first, but then you have to pinky promise to follow the voting directions at the bottom of the post okay? Ok! Thanks!
Wood Shim Wall Art I (Monica) have had this project in my mind for a few months now. It was inspired by a printed pattern I had seen in the window of a shop. I couldn't remember exactly where I saw it, but I was pretty sure it was a cool shop we had passed when we were in London in November. Great story right? Crafty DIY project inspired by a European city… Then, two weeks ago it hit me… It was JCrew at our local mall! I just about died laughing when I put it all together! Well, JCrew or London, I sure am glad it inspired me…
For under $20 we created the coolest DIY Wood Shim Wall Art

(You could go vote NOW since you've seen it! Click Here!)
I wanted something with BOLD color, and a modern feel, that married well with a bit of industrial flare!

How's that for a Before and After?
Who knew our dumpy oak piano could be such a show stopper?

Here's a peek at the details- the DIY light isn't my entry, but man I love how it works with the Wood Shim Art! (Light tutorial coming soon!)

(Or you could vote now?)

Want to know how we did it??
You've gotta head over to Homes.com for the full tutorial (but only after you've voted!)
Click HERE for the full tutorial

There were a lot of DIY elements around our Crafting for Charity project, and we'll post about all of them over the next week or so!

And now for the really important stuff! We're blogging for a charity that we love and are so proud to support. Worthwhile Wear was founded by our close friends Dan & Steph and they've committed their time and talents to make it their life's work.

Jess and I both have daughters and we couldn't imagine any of them having to endure human trafficking. We love Worthwhile Wear's mission…
Worthwhile Wear exists to rescue and restore girls from forced prostitution, and more importantly help prevent girls from ever entering it. We target highly trafficked areas both internationally and domestically, and offer women the opportunity to overcome two primary factors which are at the root of sex trafficking; poverty and lack of education. This solution is offered through vocational training centers which teach women how to make wears, such as jewelry, handbags, and clothing, which are sold to provide them employment. Additionally, the women are offered free education, a safe place to stay, and restorative programs geared toward encouraging personal growth and re-establishing self-worth.

We had the honor of working on the planning committee and doing all the decor and design for Worthwhile Wear's launch in 2012. The following images and statistics were used as artwork at the launch benefit-A Worthwhile Evening.

Those beautiful faces are not stock images. They're from Dan's last trip to India a few months back. The work Worthwhile wear is doing is critical and we hope you'll check out their site and follow along with them on Facebook.
Now it's Time to Vote!
There are 8 bloggers in this competition and some of them have a lot of followers, but none have the amazing fans we do! We know you guys have our back!
All voting will be done via Homes.com's Facebook Page
(On their Facebook Page, there's a little button that says Crafting for Charity. Click there)

Click HERE to Vote

A HUGE Thank You to Homes.com for sponsoring this awesome contest and for spreading the word about amazing charities like Worthwhile Wear. If you'd like more information about the organization and how you can help, click here.

Thanks so much!
Now, Go Get Your Vote On!

If you didn't hear our BIG announcement, stop reading right now and take a look here. We are excited beyond words and are so grateful for your support and encouragement! And to think…it all started right here!: ) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Remember that little contest we were a part of a couple weeks ago? It was a great contest run by Homes.com for an awesome cause- creating projects for a chance to win $5000 for your favorite charity. Well, sadly, we didn't win, but, we're pretty thrilled with our entry and wanted to share this super happy space with you guys.Let's get on with the project shall we?
I (Monica) have had this project in my mind for a few months now. It was inspired by a printed pattern I had seen in the window of a shop. I couldn't remember exactly where I saw it, but I was pretty sure it was a cool shop we had passed when we were in London in November. Great story right? Crafty DIY project inspired by a European city… Then, two weeks ago it hit me… It was JCrew at our local mall! I just about died laughing when I put it all together! Well, JCrew or London, I sure am glad it inspired me…
For under $20 we created DIY Wood Shim Wall Art

I wanted something with BOLD color, and a modern feel, that married well with a bit of industrial flare!

How's that for a Before and After?
Who knew our dumpy oak piano could be such a show stopper? (You can read all about that little makeover right here. )

Here's a peek at the details- the DIY light isn't my entry, but man I love how it works with the Wood Shim Art!

Even though it looks pretty complex, the process was super simple and the longest part of the process was waiting for the paint to dry. Here's how we did it: #1- Purchase Long Wood Shims

We bought 5 packs of these from Lowes for $3.84 each. They sell two sizes, so make sure you go with the longer of the two 11 7/8" (yellow package).
#2- Cut the ends at a 45 degree angle. I used my miter saw and cut each piece- I started with one at a time, then did a little math in my head, noticed it would take an eternity, and then started cutting five at a time. Worked like a charm!

#3- Paint Your Shims I created a little spray paint zone in my basement and used all my leftover spray paint colors. When you're painting, just make sure that you put half with the angle to the left and half with the angle to the right or you'll be stuck with one sided arrows!

After they had dried I was left with this awesome assortment of color!! I used about 13 different colors, but I also think doing the whole project in various shades of one color could look pretty epic too!

#4- Make (or use) a Plumb Line Once we decided where we wanted our center point, we needed to get a straight vertical line to follow.

We took a nail, some bakers twine, and a socket to DIY a little old plumbline. Nail it in and voila!

#5- String Line your Vertical I love my string line… seriously, I use it all the time! We put it at our top and bottom marks (created using our plumb line) and then snapped that baby to give us a guide line.

#6 Determine your Pattern This step saved us major time. Use the floor to get your layout right and then installing it on the wall is a breeze. We wanted our pattern random and we wanted varying lengths and heights.

#7- Glue it on the Wall Rather than using 300 tiny nails (that could very easily splinter the shims) we opted for Gorilla Wood Glue. It was simple to use, will hold securely, and won't damage my walls completely (the way liquid nails would).

Following our pattern, Jess glued and I placed the arrows. Shims are very imperfect, so I had to be okay with tiny gaps and just kept using the center line to keep things straight.

Even before it was finished, we knew we were obsessed with it!

We finished it off with some fun accessories and the coolest light fixture ever, and called it a day.

There were a lot of DIY elements around our Crafting for Charity project, so to find out details about other projects, you can check 'em out below., We'll be posting more about them in the next few weeks, so just hold tight.: )

Even though we didn't win, we hope you'll still check out Worthwhile Wear, which was founded by our close friends Dan & Steph. They've committed their time and talents to make it their life's work.

Jess and I both have daughters and we couldn't imagine any of them having to endure human trafficking. We love Worthwhile Wear's mission…
Worthwhile Wear exists to rescue and restore girls from forced prostitution, and more importantly help prevent girls from ever entering it. We target highly trafficked areas both internationally and domestically, and offer women the opportunity to overcome two primary factors which are at the root of sex trafficking; poverty and lack of education. This solution is offered through vocational training centers which teach women how to make wears, such as jewelry, handbags, and clothing, which are sold to provide them employment. Additionally, the women are offered free education, a safe place to stay, and restorative programs geared toward encouraging personal growth and re-establishing self-worth.

That beautiful face is not a stock image. They're from Dan's last trip to India a few months back. The work Worthwhile wear is doing is critical and we hope you'll check out their site and follow along with them on Facebook.
What do you thinkj? Could you paint a piano green? Or glue shims to your wall?

I'll be honest, I'm not good at living intentionally. Jess made living intentionally one of her goals about a year back, and she's doing a good job at it. I just kind of go with the flow and take each day as it comes, BUT (and this is a big but)… I am very intentional when it comes to my relationships. Eric and I believe that it's far too easy to let the busyness of life get in the way of maintaining community and authentic relationships. We believe that parenting and journeying through life is tough and would be nearly impossible if we were trying to do it alone. Everyone in the picture below plays a critical role in our life. We've all made a decision to listen to Hebrews 10:25 and make intentional choices to spend time together and encourage one another. We host dinner each and every Tuesday night for this crew and it's a time to connect with one another, be real, and build authentic relationships. (And yes, my house is loud, crazy, and messy each Tuesday and we wouldn't have it any other way!)

We thought we'd just give you a little glimpse into our weekend and the awesome time we had pumpkin picking. We hope it encourages you to take a step towards being intentional with your friends & family.

We might be BFFs, but we're so thankful for ALL the women we have in our lives!

We went to Penn Vermont Farm in Bedminster, PA. We highly recommend it- one of the best farms we've ever been to!

Jess' hubs Kev found a beauty

Me and my love

It could possibly have been the most beautiful fall day ever.

We love that our daughters will grow up seeing us putting a friendships as a major priority. And yes, we secretly hope they're friends forever as well.

We managed to get a family pic of Jess's crew- getting my six together is a slightly harder task.

Thanks for letting us share a peek into our lives. We had an awesome weekend and hope you did too! What could you do this week to Be Intentional with your friends?
************************************************************************** And now to announce the Winner of HTC One X Smartphone: CONGRATULATIONS TO:

Look for an email from us soon! Congratulations, Liz! And thanks to all of you who entered!

And don't forget that we're in the running to be the New Face of Proctor & Gamble Home! There are only THREE DAYS LEFT to vote for Monica. You can vote once a day, now through October 3rd. We SO APPRECIATE you taking the time to vote each day!


One of the many things we love about this blog is that we can share not only the fun projects we are working on, but also things that are important to us as well. One of those things is an organization called Worthwhile Wear that was started by our close friends, Dan and Steph.

Worthwhile Wear's mission is to rescue young girls from forced prostitution and more importantly, prevent it from ever happening at all. They target the root issues of trafficking: poverty and lack of education, by teaching these girls a trade (making jewelry, bags, scarves etc) and offering them free education and a safe place to stay. For the past year, they've been focusing their efforts in India where they've been working to create vocational centers.

This year Worthwhile Wear is shifting its focus from overseas to something closer to home. In the final part of 2013 Worthwhile Wear will launch a new program called “The Well.” This is a long-term aftercare and housing program for women who have been sexually exploited or trafficked in and around the greater Philadelphia area.

Why is this so important to us? These are our daughters, Kira and Campbell, and we can't even imagine how horrific it is for young girls like them to have to go through what they do as a result of trafficking. To know that it happens here, right where we live, is a sobering thought and we want to be a part of stopping it before it starts.

So, all that to say that Worthwhile Wear is having a party! It's 2nd Annual Worthwhile Evening and we've agreed to help out with decor for the event again. We had so much fun last year with the"Taste of India" theme and want to make this year's party just as awesome! You can read about last year's event here and here, but we pretty much transformed a big, blank room into a fabulous backdrop for the event!

The centerpieces showcased the amazing jewelry made by women who have been rescued from trafficking.

This year's theme is all about water (get it? The Well…), and the decorating committee has some pretty fun ideas up their sleeves.

1. Unknown (anyone know?) 2. The Yummy Life 3. Amazon 4. Weddbook
We want you to come hang out with us at the event! There will be delicious food, good music, beautiful art, a silent auction and a chance to hear from Shandra Woworuntu, a woman who escaped forced prostitution. Here are the deets you need to know: When: Saturday, November 9th from 7-9 PM Where: Calvary Church, 820 Rt. 113, Souderton, Pa 18964 Cost: $35 per ticket, or $30 for groups of 10 or more Purchase tickets here.
Here's the fun part, we're giving away 2 tickets to the event! We would love to have as many of you come to learn more about Worthwhile Wear and be a part of this awesome event, so we wanted to give away two tickets to make that happen for someone! We'll announce the winner next Friday, October 18th. We'd be thrilled if you would share this post with your friends so that we can help Worthwhile Wear change the lives as many girls as possible! Enter below for your chance to win: a Rafflecopter giveaway

If you can't make the event, then go ahead and start your Christmas shopping on their website! Don't want to come to the event or shop, but still want to help? Donate here to help save young girls and give them the hope for a future.
Have a great weekend, everyone!

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

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

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

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

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

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

Some of the fun details…

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

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

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

Can't forget the cake!

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

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

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

Ok, it's time to get really real with you. About us and our blog. It involves a little something we like to call:

We recently received a very nice comment from a regular follower that prompted us to write this post. Before you read it, I have to say that we were very grateful for this reader's honesty, and the sweet way she voiced her concerns. There's nothing we love more than good, honest feedback from the lovely people who visit our blog every day!

Ack! She nailed our current dilemma right on the head! Let me give you a little back story…when we started this blog a little over a year ago, we did not anticipate it interrupting our lives at all. It was just a place to throw all our ideas and projects. We literally thought that only our moms would read it. Then came Nate (not once, but four times!),

Crafting with the Stars…

local TV coverage, newspaper articles (you get the point) which equalled rapid blog growth. AND WE LOVED IT. All of these amazing opportunities meant that we were doing loads of projects, pouring hours of our time into the blog, and spending a lot of money to keep it all together. The blog is the most important, most rewarding and most fun thing we do (yes, even more than the Nate Show! It's our first love.), so we make every effort to put 5 great posts out per week. We LOVE this blog and it has become bigger and better than we ever expected.

But here's where our dilemma comes in: In addition to the blog, we both work other jobs, raise a bunch of kids and try to be good wives, friends, daughters, sisters etc. Realistically we could not possibly keep up the pace we had been going for the first year, even though we would like to. Not only did this little blog take a lot of time away from our families, but we also spent a lot of our own money to do all those projects! We need to find a better way. We are trying to adjust our own expectations (which, believe me, are sky-high!) and are experimenting a bit with our posts.

So what does all this mean for the blog you love to read?
1 You'll probably see only a few DIY projects a week from us. Instead of scrambling to come up with a DIY project just for the sake of having one to post about, we're being more intentional about our projects so that they're well done, and have a purpose in our homes.

2. We'll be highlighting our wonderful sponsors every once in a while to expose you to their awesomeness and also, to express our gratitude for their support of our blog that allows us to keep doing our projects. Don't worry we won't be throwing them in your faces at every turn, and we promise to only accept sponsor whose products we absolutely love!

3. We might host a guest poster, or highlight other blogs we feel like are worthy of notice! The design blog world is like a family, and we want to promote other people, like others have promoted us!

4. We'll keep bringing you our thoughts on all those fun, crazy and fabulous design trends out there, and how we're incorporating them in our homes!

So, in conclusion (are you still there?), we are crazy about this blog and all of you, and hope to continue doing this for a long time, and even (crossing our fingers) turn it into a full-time job. We hope you'll stick around for the long haul, and be understanding as we try to find balance and a system that works for us.
And now, a question for all you bloggers/mothers/wives etc. out there: How do YOU find balance?

P.S. We'll be doing a follow-up post on our top tips for Part-Time Bloggers, so get excited!; )

What fun it's been this week at our house, making Valentine's Day boxes with my daughters. Finding just the right shoe box and then gathering the pretty papers, ribbons and glitter (and paper doilies of course!) to help them create their masterpieces. I'll admit it, I think my excitement matched theirs when the note was brought home from school with instructions for this project! Children are such a phenomenal inspiration....

St. Petersburg, former Leningrad, was founded by Tsar Peter I of Russia on May 27, 1703. It was the capital of the Russian Empire for more than two hundred years, until the Russian Revolution in 1917.

The city is considered to be the most Western inspired of Russia and by the Russians often referred to as The Northern Capital.

St. Petersburg is home to The Hermitage, the largest art museum in the world, featuring interiors of the former imperial residence and a vast collection of art. It was founded in 1764 by Catherine the Great and open to the public since 1852. Its collections, of which only a small part is on permanent display, comprise nearly 3 million items, including the largest collection of paintings in the world.

Other famous cultural sites are The Mariinsky Opera, The Ballet Theatre and The Imperial palace and park ensemble at Peterhof.

There are several gardens to see in St. Petersburg. Here's some of them.

The Alexander Garden was laid out in 1872-1874 over what had been Admiralty Square, to a design by the landscape gardener Eduard Regel, as part of the celebrations of the 200^th anniversary of the birth of Peter the Great. The Garden was formally opened in 1874 in the presence of Alexander II, who agreed to having the Garden named after him.

The Botanical Garden is one of the oldest Botanical Gardens in the country. The Garden was founded in 1714 by order of Peter the Great as the Apothecary's Garden, and soon became a centre for horticultural research that was the equal of any other in Europe in terms of the importance and size of its collection. Originally the Apothecary's Garden focused mainly on growing medicinal herbs, but soon people began bringing saplings and seeds of rare and exotic plants — for which a greenhouse was specially built.

The Catherine Garden is the unofficial name for the public garden in front of the Alexandriinsky Theater, between the Theater and Nevsky Prospect. The Garden was laid out in the 1820s to a design by Carlo Rossi, and the statue of Catherine the Great which dominates it and from which it takes its name was erected in 1873. From late spring to early fall — and sometimes into winter — local artists sit on the sidewalk outside the Catherine Garden exhibiting and selling their work and offering to draw portraits of passers-by.

The Summer Garden is located where the Fontanka River flows out of the Neva River. It was founded in 1704 by order of Peter the Great, who was personally involved in planning it, and is laid out according to strict geometrical principles. The Summer Garden is home to marble statues acquired from Europe especially for Russia's new capital, and also to rare flowers and plants, as well as fountains. It was a traditional location for courtly life outside the palace, and balls were held here by the nobility, who also enjoyed simply taking the air in the Garden.

Moscow Victory Park is located in the south of St. Petersburg on Moskovsky Prospect. It was founded in 1945 to mark the Allied victory in World War II over Nazi Germany. The Park, which spreads over 68 hectares, is home to more than 100 types of tree and bush, and includes elements of formal and landscape planning, being decorated with ponds, canals, avenues, and flower gardens.

The Tauride Garden was laid out in 1783-1789 on the estate of Grigory Potemkin behind the Tauride Palace from which it took its name. Potemkin was one of Catherine the Great's favourites (and lover, allegedly), and the Empress gave Potemkin the land and the title of Prince of Tauridia for his services in conquering ancient Tauridia (now the Crimean Peninsula). The Tauride Garden was landscaped in true Romantic style, designed to imitate nature, with ponds and canals and picturesque rolling landscape. Trees and shrubs were brought in especially from England.

And just for the fun of it, here are a few more photos of St. Petersburg.

C reating a healthy home has been a priority of ours since we began our renovations five years ago. Our motivation was due, in part, to the fact that this was a home in which we hoped to raise children. So naturally, creating the healthiest nursery possible was also main priority for us. It motivated all of our choices, from furniture and wall treatments, down to the rug.
These are the choices we made:

The Cribs: We chose the Da Vinci Jenny Lind crib because it is made with wood harvested from sustainably-managed forests. It's also lead and phthalate free, and stained in a non-toxic finish. Also, the teething rail is BPA free.
The Crib Mattresses: We chose Naturepedic organic mattresses. They offer a non-toxic waterproof surface that includes 100% food-grade polyethylene. They are also hypoallergenic, filled with organic cotton filling.
The Crib Sheets: We chose 100% organic cotton crib sheets.

The Armoire: It was important to us to not purchase any furniture for the nursery that was made with manufactured wood, that may contain glues, adhesives or other compounds which may off-gas over time. Antique furniture provides this safeguard, as well as the opportunity to recycle beautifully-crafted pieces made long ago.

Mike created shelves for the armoire using solid tongue and groove pine floor planks. My Mom then covered them in 100% cotton fabric.

Nursing Chair: We selected the IKEA Jenny Lund slipcovered arm chair for nursing. I was really nervous about bringing a new chair into our nursery, as most new furniture is constructed with manufactured woods that may off-gas. So, I was happy to learn that IKEA strictly procures wood from sustainably-managed forests, and their pressed wood products comply with low formaldehyde standards.
The Rug: We narrowed down our rug choices quite fast in knowing that we would only buy something that was made with natural fibers (with no rubber or plastic backing). We initially looked for 100% wool rugs, but ended up ordering a 100% jute braided rug for its style and shape. It's also reversible, so it should stand the test of time.

Wall Treatments: Like the rest of our house, the nursery was painted using Benjamin Moore's no-VOC line. Everything from the ceiling and the mouldings, to the doors and walls, were painted with the color Simply White in either flat or semi-gloss finishes.
Choosing white for the plaster walls was a natural choice for me as it was the color of my childhood room, from birth until I left for college.
White also has the added benefit of having less pigment added to the mix (pigments most often contain VOCs). I did just recently learn however that Benjamin Moore is one of the very few lines that uses VOC-free pigments. Thus their VOC-free line truly is VOC-free, no matter what color one chooses.

When Mike created the paneled wainscoting, he used solid wood mouldings, assembled and secured in place with a finish nail gun instead of glue.

The Closet: To create extra storage, we relocated the antique dresser from the guest house. We preferred using the dresser for the same reason that we chose the antique armoire. Also in the closet are the toys and books in waiting....until the babies are older.
Purchasing two cribs, two mattresses, two car seats, clothing, diapers, etc.... added up as you can imagine. So we focused our budget on the things we knew we would need from birth through the first several months. Any toys and books we have were ours from childhood, or were given to us by family and friends.
When we do start buying toys, we will focus on brands that offer phthalate-, BPA- and lead-free products.

Baby clothes: We have been very lucky in that we have received lovely hand-me downs from my friend Karen, and my brother Steven and his wife Marna, who have a son and two sweet daughters. The above knit sweater was my adorable nephew's.

This sweet outfit is a combination of a hand-me down (the white cotton onesie) from my niece and a purchase from a baby consignment store (the 100% organic cotton jumper with pink velvet piping). I've found consignment stores to be a wonderful resource for beautiful clothing, often hardly worn, at much lower prices than retail (organic knit jumper was $11).
I hope that everyone had a lovely Thanksgiving holiday! I managed to stay on my feet long enough to make the pie crust... I spent the rest of the day on the couch nodding off and listening to the bustle of kitchen activity made by my mom and Mike.
Happy Holiday Season to everyone! xo

Wow, here we are just 2 years after we started East Coast Creative and we're celebrating 10,000 fans on Facebook! It has been quite a ride for us, from working with The Nate Show to now filming our own TV show Knock it Off! Honestly, we never could have imagined any of this and we couldn't have done any of it without the support of our amazing followers!
To celebrate and thank all of you, we put together a pretty fantastic giveaway. We wish we could give each and every one of you a prize, but in the end there will only be three winners. Bummer, but awesome at the same time!
The grand prize winner will receive a $200 gift card to Wayfair.com.

Whether you need a new bedroom set, coffee table, or a few picture frames, chances are Wayfair.com has what you're looking for. (I just ordered awesome wallpaper and can't wait for it to arrive!) They also have Halloween decor if you're still looking for fun ways to decorate, plus you can get a head start on your Christmas decor shopping as well! Be sure to enter below for your chance at winning a $200 gift card to Wayfair if you're in the market for new home decor.

The second winner will receive $50 to Royal Design Studio Stencils (you know how we love RDS stencils!), $50 to Gussy Sews Shop, and $35 to Vintage Vinyl Journals.

After receiving great feedback on the colorful stenciled accent wall we did on an episode of Knock it Off, we thought a Royal Design Studio Stencils gift card would be perfect for our readers. If you win you'll be able to create you're own accent wall, now don't forget to come back and share your design with us!
At Gussy Sews Shop you'll find an array of adorable handmade tote bags, diaper bags, zip pouches that are great for your makeup and sunglasses and crocheted infinity cowl scarves like the one seen here. Be sure to follow along on Gussy's blog for new product, sales, and a behind the scenes look at her busy, but inspirational life that includes her hubby and adorable baby boy.

Do you have a bunch of unplayable vinyl records just sitting around? Well, local Pennsylvania artist Katie, over at Vintage Vinyl Journals, figured out how to repurpose her scratched collection and turned them into something creative and useful again. She has classics like Sinatra, Elvis, and the Beatles, but can also customize gifts if you're looking for newer artists like Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, or Beyonce. Stop by her site for updates on new journals as well as local shows she'll be selling at.

Last, but certainly not least, the third winner will receive $50 to Frog Prince Cake & Cookie Design (she did all the desserts for our KIO Premiere Party!), a Mila Rose Designs headband that sells for $32.00, and $100 to HorseFeathers Gifts!

Remember Linda from Frog Prince Cake & Cookie Design, who made these amazing mini tool cookies for our premiere party and you might recognize her from an episode of Knock it Off — that's where we met her! Well, now she will make customized cookies for you if you win the $50 gift card to her cake and cookie shop! Please note, she is asking for 4 weeks notice on any order.
Can you believe this cute floral headband from Mila Rose Designs is handmade? Melis has a beautiful collection of headbands, turbands, bows and more. She is currently running a sale for the month of October for Breast Cancer Awareness on a selection of pink bands and head scarves with 20% of the proceeds going to Susan G. Komen for the Cure.
Whether your country chic or just looking for accessories that inspire you, HorseFeathers Gifts has what you're looking for. They are a mother daughter duo who hand create all of their unique designs and feature a selection of jewelry that gives back to amazing charities. My two daughters are crazy about these bracelets!
We can't thank you enough for all of your support, from the very beginning days of our blog to now watching our TV show. We appreciate every comment, email, and like! Enter below for your chance to be one of three lucky winners, each will be selected randomly.

One thing to remember with Rafflecopter… you have to do each entry task before you can click the green button to earn the entry. Clicking the button doesn't LIKE the page for you. And we're super excited about some new IG followers, so be sure to get that extra entry!! Thanks!
a Rafflecopter giveaway