Because it's Friday . . . .

Just a cute little video to start your weekend and put a smile on your face . . .

Picture Shopping

Most people use their camera phone to take pictures of their kids, husband, pets or friends . .  . Me? I take pictures of my shopping trips. My sister was going through my pictures once and told me she should just go shopping on my phone. The photo gallery on my phone is full of pictures of things I come across while shopping that I want to possibly buy or recreate. I think I have about 15 pictures of Jeff, 25 of our cat and about 300 pictures of home decor or clothing items. I’m not sure if it is sadder that I have that many pictures of “things” versus people or that I have more pictures of our cat than my husband, hehe.

I’m one of those people who has to look at all of my options and compare the price, color, size, quality . . . and then buy. Which usually means going to several stores. The worst thing for me is to find something that is cheaper and better than something I just bought.

So this past weekend was no different. I wasn’t looking for anything in particular. I just wanted to go to a few places to see what was new. Here are a few items I found. . .   

AT IKEA

Great rugs from Ikea. Ranging from $19-$299. That 4x6 polka dot rug is only 19.99! Oh so cute.

 

 

Black & white print pillow $12.99, Green Throw $12.99 and Hanging Planter $5.99.

 

Fabric by the yard from Ikea. A seat reupholstered in one of these fabrics would be really fun.

 

AT MARSHALL'S

 

Baskets from Marshall's. Perfect for storing blankets, toys or used as a planter base. I believe these ranged from $14-$17.

 

AT TARGET

 

Pillows and puffs. Target always has great throw pillows. I could so easily hoard rugs and throw pillows. I would love to cover half my guest room bed in pillows. Average price was about $25.

I've been searching for some curtains for our master bedroom. Target curtains, $24.99 a panel.

 

And of course I stopped by the shoe section. New shoes for spring, ranged from $12-$20.

 

 

Happy Shopping!

 

Destination Getaways

 

I've been feeling restless for a getaway with spring around the corner. The Texas weather here has been teasing me with a few days of warmth and sunshine, and then going back to being chilly and cloudy.

 

For right now I'll just have to oohh and aahh at these beautiful sunshiny getaway destinations, and maybe a few that would cause some screams. . . .

DIY Ombre Polka Dot Shirt

 

 

Ombre (color fading from dark to light).

 

As I talked about earlier in the week Ombre is very trendy right now and I'm on board! I've been wanting to make something using this effect and with Easter just around the corner I thought it was the perfect timing.

 

Here Is What You Need

T-shirt

Elmer's glue

Fabric dye (I used Rite)

Plastic gloves

Water

Salt

Laundry detergent

Large container

Craft paper

 

I used a onesie t-shirt that I had bought a package of for a previous project but you could easily use an adult t-shirt using the same method.

 

 

Using Elmer's glue place glue dots where you want your polka dots.  I placed a piece of craft paper in the middle of my shirt so that the glue didn't soak though to the other side. To speed up the drying process I used my blow dryer. I then flipped the shirt over and repeated the process of making glue polka dots on the back of the shirt.

 

I boiled some water and placed it in a large bowl (about 5-6 cups). I added 1/2 a cup of salt and a teaspoon of laundry detergent. I started off by placing a third of my packet of Rite dye in the bowl.

 

Place your gloves on and holding the shoulders of the shirt I dipped the entire shirt once. I dipped it fairly quickly. Maybe 8-10 seconds.

 

I then added another third of the Rite dye. I dipped the shirt this time stopping just under the armpits. I let in linger in the dye a little longer than the first time (30-45 seconds). You can pull the shirt out and check the color and re-insert it into the dye if you think it needs a little darker color.

 

I mixed the remaining third of the Rite dye in the bowl and dipped the shirt in the dye about a third of the way up the shirt (1-2 minutes).

 

I hung the shirt outside to dry for an hour then rinsed it with cold water, making sure to wash out the glue dots. I put it in the washer with just a little bit of laundry detergent and then placed it in the dryer.

 

You end up with a cute little ombre polka dot shirt.

 

Now I just need to make myself one ;)

 

Have a Happy Pink Polka Dot Easter!

-

Pattern Love

 

By now I'm sure you know my love of stripes. Along with stripes I have a few other go to patterns that I'm sure you have seen around and I am loving right now.  

Number one on that list is
POLKA DOT

Fresh, flirty and young.

Polka dot table cloth 

 

Polka dot tights.  A must before it gets too hot outside.

 

White Polka Dot Cake

 

Polka dot walls. Soooo cute!

 

My next pattern is
TRIANGLES

This pattern looks so unique, from jewelry to wallpaper.

Triangle Wallpaper. Would look so great in my coat closet as a surprise peekaboo pattern.

 

Triangle necklace. Great touch of color.

Black and White Tea Towel

ASOS Triangle Dress. Lovely little dress.

 

Last but not least  

OMBRE.

Ombre is beautiful in just about any decoration.

Floral Wedding Centerpiece.

 

Ombre Sweater

 

Lemon Ombre cake

Ombre Chester Drawers


I have a little ombre DIY to share later this week so check back in!

PS. Love of stripes DIY's here and here.

 



Reminiscing The Past

I went back and was browsing some of my past blog posts and reminiscing recently. I learned some things looking back. There were definitely a few posts and projects that I would do differently, whether that be the wording, project or picture editing. I suppose we are our worst critic but it helped to see how to improve in the future.

Then there were those that still make me smile. . .

My DIY distressed milk paint magazine rack. I was a little unsure of it in the beginning but I really love it now. It sits just off the side of the entry table in our home.

My DIY Striped chair. You know by now my obsession with stripes. My little chair sits outside my front door to welcome visitors.

My DIY Floral Brooch. Because every girl needs something floral and pink, right?

My Herb Markers. I so want a green thumb but all of my indoor plants die within 2 months, 3 months top! My herb trough now holds aloe and cactus plants. They have to be hardy in this house in order to survive ;)

Our floor photo scenes were my first blog post. They are still probably my very favorite project. Contorting your body into a scene that is smaller than a bed sheet is harder than you think. I still want to do a few more of these. You can see the rest of them here.

My Braided Bracelet. You can still get the look of knitting without knowing how to actually knit.

My DIY Painted rug. My favorite new addition to my home.

One of my favorite fun moments is celebrating our wedding anniversary and birthdays in Dallas. We went to a museum with a balloon installation by artist Martin Creed. The space had 9,000 balloons that you were able walk around and play in. Jeff video taped me going through the exhibit and we made a little video with the footage. Talk about static electricity!

P.S. Our DIY striped staircase was featured on Designsponge! Very exciting. You can check it out here.

Portrait People

I love seeing things that people create that make me think, how the heck did they do that? Twenty-four-year-old artist Alexa Meade is no exception. She paints portraits on people by placing acrylic paint directly on live models that creates an effect that appears that the model and their surrounds are two dimensional.

I am in awww . .

Amazing right?

You can see a short video of her process here.