Monday, March 26, 2012

MY BIGGEST LITTLE TREASURE

Is it really Monday again!  We spent the weekend finishing  (nothing is ever finished right!) working on projects that have been going for way to long now!  I hope to be able to photograph and post some this week.  But in the mean time I wanted to share with you something very special to me...As you may have figured out by now I love to sew, and my Gramma taught me EVERYTHING I know about it.  She would come over and we would crawl around on the floor pinning drapes, bedding, pillows etc.. She would teach me little tricks like pulling threads to make the ends even, and how to ruffle fabric the old fashioned way.  Those are some of my most special memories, I sew with her old Singer machine, and I love it.  I love the sound it makes, and the smell of the old metal.  But before she was using that machine to make my Mother's wedding dress, my Christening gown, and my son's crib bedding, she had this little machine....



and when I say little... it is the size of a 5x7 picture!


This was her first sewing machine that she got as a little girl.  You turn the wheel with one hand to make the needle move up and down while guiding the fabric with the other hand...


It may be small, but it is one of my biggest treasures...


{jen}
Posted by at 4 comments:

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

SPRING MANTEL {take 1}: "HOPE" IS THE THING WITH FEATHERS...

Spring is definatley in the air, well here in the Midwest I feel like I should be saying Summer is in the air, it has been 35 degrees ABOVE normal!  And while it has been wonderful to have the windows open and the fresh air blowing in, it has also made me late on posting my spring mantel!  What do you do when your three year old only wants to be outside riding his bike, can you blame him!! 

I also have been holding off posting it because I keep changing things...  Spring brings so much inspiration that it is hard to just stick to one idea, so I have decided to share what I have now, but I can guarantee there will be more to come as it evolves, just like nature in Spring! 


.............  "Hope" is the thing with feathers

  

[I made the wreath using a round wreath form and linnen fabric. First I tore strips of fabric to wrap around the wreath form, and hot glued them sporadically while overlapping the fabric...Then using the ruffle setting on my sewing machine I made some strips of ruffles... I tore the strips of fabric rather than cut them because I liked the unfinished look, but you can cut them also. I then just started wrapping and gluing, overlapping the top of each ruffle.]


......................... That perches in the soul
- emily dickinson



Hope to see you back soon for another installment! 

{jen}


I am linking to these fun parties, thank you to all the hosts!

The Lettered Cottage











www.betweennapsontheporch.com
www.myuncommonsliceofsuburbia.com
www.thriftydecorchick.blogspot.com
www.homestoriesatoz.com
www.52mantels.com
www.tatertotsandjello.com
www.southernlovely.blogspot.com
www.atthepicketfence.com
www.itsoverflowing.com
www.fingerprintsonthefridge.com
www.stuff-and-nonsense.net
www.frenchcountrycottage.blogspot.com
www.daysofchalkandchocolate.blogspot.com
www.everycreativeendeavor.com
www.fivedaysfiveways.com
www.homestoriesatoz.com
www.thedelectablehome.blogspot.com
www.livelaughrowe.blogspot.com
Posted by at 12 comments:
Labels: ,

Monday, March 19, 2012

CHOOSING A WINDOW BOX STYLE

I LOVE window boxes, and the fuller the better!  But before I can fill them with beautiful flowers I need to decide which kind I want.  I have four windows in the from of my house, two flanking each side of the front door.  I had iron boxes with coconut liners in them for years, but it can get pretty pricey replacing the liners in addition to the flowers, and they were rotting, so it was time to take them down.  I lived without them for a year, but I really miss the curb appeal and I enjoy taking care of the flowers...well that is until the end of summer when I am sick of being out in the heat and getting bit by bugs while I water all of them!  But I think it is time to put up some new ones, the question is what kind to do.. I definitely do NOT want ones with coconut lines, but here are some alternative ideas I have been thinking about... (all can be found on my Pinterest Outdoor Decor Board)



window boxes.. love the pots in the boxes!
via
LOVE the simplicity and clean lines of the boxwood's, and the pots will be so easy to take down when needed like a bad storm etc.. My flowers always take a beating here in the Midwest when there is extreme heat or storms.

intersting idea for window boxes
via
I also like the country look of the "floating" pots.

PB window boxes
Via Pottery Barn no longer available
Maybe I could just buy an iron holder and put the pots in it rather than the coconut liner... why didn't I think of that 8 years ago!

Pinned Image
via
But I do still love the traditional look of the wood window box that I would line with a plastic drainage liner. 

Hmmm.. better make a decision quick if I want to have them up by spring!  What do you guys think? 

{jen}

Posted by at 3 comments:
Labels: , ,

Sunday, March 11, 2012

RUFFLED SINK SKIRT TUTORIAL

I have been asked by quite a few people for a tutorial on the ruffled sink skirt in my powder room..  I only have photos of the finished project, and I am going off of what I remember (I made it quite a while ago) so this is just a rough outline of what I did!


Materials:
1 yard of fabric (or however much your size sink requires to cover from side to side and top to bottom)
2 yards of fabric for ruffles (can be same fabric or different)
Long strips of Velcro

1.  1 yard of fabric covered my entire sink from top to bottom and side to side.. so I didn't have to do any cutting, but if you need to you would just measure how much you need and adjust accordingly

2.  I then figured out the length I wanted the ruffles to be (mine are 10 in each)...I wanted an odd amount of ruffles so I took the total length and divided it by different numbers until I came up with 5, 10 in. ruffles.

3.  I then cut individual strips from a SEPARATE piece of fabric (so now you have the yard, or however much it takes for your sink, AND another piece of fabric to cut your ruffles from)

* I left the edges of my skirt intentionally unfinished, but if you wanted a more tailored look you would  sew the edges first before ruffling

4.  Then using the ruffle stitch on my sewing machine, I ran each strip though to ruffle it (you can also do the traditional way of ruffling and sew a loose stitch all the way down then "pull" the threads)

5.  Once I had all my ruffles done I started at the BOTTOM of the skirt and sewed my first ruffle to my yard of fabric (I have made the mistake many times of starting at the top of the skirt and ending up with it too short at the bottom!) 

6.  Continue layering the ruffled pieces all the way to the top.. you wan to cover the top of the last one you sewed with a little of the bottom of the next one, while still keeping them at the equal widths. 

7.  Once all the pieces were sewn on I used a long strip of Velcro and attached one side to the edge of the sink and the other to the inside of the skirt.


It really was a quick and easy project...
I think the tutorial took longer to write then making the actual skirt!

{jen}

(You can also find a list of all the parties on my WEEKLY LINKY'S page above)

Posted by at 14 comments:
Labels: ,

Tuesday, March 6, 2012

STENCILED BASKET TUTORIAL: WORLD MARKET KNOCKOFF

In an ongoing effort to get organized this year, I was browsing through World Market the other day and saw a basket that was stenciled with the word "Organization" on it.  It was so cute (sorry took a picture with my phone but can't download it, and they don't have a photo of it online!).. and of course I thought "I could totally make that!"

The basket I already had, but I did have to buy stencils because I have terrible writing, they were on sale at Hobby Lobby for a few dollars.  After taping the letters on (I only had one "F" stencil so I had to wait for the first one to dry then add the next one!) I painted using white wall paint and a stencil brush.  It was hard to get in between the weave so after the first coat I took off the stencil and using a small angled brush I filled in the spaces.  Here is what I ended up with...





I decided to write "Stuff" on it because it really is going to be used for just that!  I also didn't want to make it to specific like "Toys" so that I could move it around the house where needed.   I am happy with how it turned out and plan to make another one for my office...any suggestions on what it could say?    

{jen} 

(You can also find buttons to all the parties under my WEEKLY LINKY'S page above)
Posted by at 14 comments:
Labels: ,

Monday, March 5, 2012

HOME SWEET....

Sarah at the blog Home Sweet...  has passed the Liebster Award to Harrison Home!  You can check out her sweet home here...



Thank you Sarah for the recognition and kind words!

You can also view the blogs I had previously passed the Liebster Award to here.

{jen}


Posted by at No comments:

Thursday, March 1, 2012

BAFFLED BY BOARD AND BATTEN

Is anyone else as hooked on board and batten as I am?  I want it everywhere in my house!  I am thinking about it in the master bedroom and have been "pinning" it all week!  I can't decide if I want:


Floor to ceiling:
Board and batten.
via

3/4 of the way up the wall: 
via
 
A wider "block" style:
board and batten
via
or a thinner straight line top to bottom:
board and batten
via
Do I want it just on the "bed wall" or all the walls?   Hmmmmm..... opinions? 

{jen}


Posted by at 7 comments:
Labels: , ,
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)