Barrettes...so cheap.

My ipad2 came in. I installed an app called craftgawker. It is filled with links to different crafts. I found a tutorial for barettes with buttons.  I didn't have any fabric to make covered buttons but I did find some cute silver buttons. 

The pictures are a little grainy (from the ipad).  I found the bobbi pins with the round pads ($1.50) and buttons ($0.67) at Hobby Lobby.  I took a pair of pliers and broke off the piece for attaching with thread to fabric.  I then hot glued the buttons to the round pads on the bobbi pins.

The finished bobbi pins are super cute.  I am excited to try some different styles and make fabric covered buttons to attach. 


Have a sweet day!

Wedding Present

This is the time of year for weddings.  Kevin and I have 2 weddings coming up next weekend.  Both couples have lived together for quite awhile and have just about everything they need.  So I decided to make one of the name collages found here.  I had already created a couple but not printed them.  So I made the collages including the couples new last name and anniversary year.  I uploaded the JPEGs to shutterfly to print and then send them my way.

(Thanks for the ferns mom).  I printed the name collages in 8x10.  Through shutterfly an 8x10 is about $3.00.  I bought the frames with mats on Michael's for $9.99 a piece using a gift card.  The entire project cost app. $6.00 and the time spent picking the different letters.



Have a sweet day!

Mom to the rescue...AGAIN

I have been working on decorating this house since the day I moved in.  Our guest rooms are much bigger and up until yesterday the tv was sitting on the ground.  Mom (and I guess Nathan) donated this little shelving unit for the guest room.

It was unpainted wood and would hold the tv.  Score!  I wiped the whole piece down.  Then I primed the piece.  I sprayed the piece with a coat of white spray painted and then covered with almond colored paint.  I painted the edges/trim brown to add some contrast.

Please ignore the cords.  I am looking for some baskets to put in the shelving unit (hopefully in a blue that matches the comforter). 

I distressed the edges to match the weathered look of the rest of the furniture in the room.  The best part is that the tv is off the ground and the total cost was $4.00 (almond spray paint and brown paint).

Have a sweet day!

Out of Town

Kevin and I left Oxford last week for my hometown of Columbia, TN.  One of my cousins was getting married over the weekend.  Mom and I volunteered to decorate for the reception and has a great time doing so.  Lee and Lauren are big UK fans so the primary color was Kentucky blue.  The whole wedding was on a budget so Mom and I had to be creative.  All of the table centerpieces were different.

Nathan painted this tree.  All the family added their thumbprint in dark green while all the wedding party added theirs in the lighter green.  I am jealous and want one of my own.

The bride and groom table decked out in blue.  The chair covers are monogrammed with their names and the UK symbol on the back.  The best part is they can be used as pillow cases.  The blue vase was my grandmothers and is filled with Christmas lights.

These 2 glass pieces were from my mom's collection.  We filled with crinkle paper added blue Ws (the new bride's monogram) and surrounded with candles. 

This was our table's centerpiece.  I love the branches.  The reception site has 2 exposed brick walls and the branches and blue looked fantastic.

My grandfather always sent my grandmosther flowers.  She passed away almost 2 years ago.  We had the florist use her vases for all of the flowers.  On a budget note, these were the same flowers used at the rehearsal dinner. 

The cakes looked great and tasted even better.  Neelley from the Sweet Life, a high school friend of mine, made the cakes. 

We had a great time.  The wedding went smoothly.  The reception was a blast.  And I got to spend the weekend with some of my favorite people.

Have a sweet day!

Free at Last

I have been working on my Master's in Education Leadership from UT since summer 2009.  I worked full-time and completed 2 classes a semester.  The work was never that difficult just extremely time consuming and tedious.  I am proud to announced that as of Saturday, May 14, I am finished with school.  I didn't walk across the stage because of the SEC tournament but I am officially done.  Kevin, my parents, and my in-laws bought me a fantastic grad gift.

I am super excited.  I am getting an iPad 2!  It should be in mail later this week and in my house in 2 weeks.  I have already found a cute cover tutorial on somebody's blog. 

Have a sweet day!

Goodwill Treasure

It has been a crazy week.  I have been unofficially offered a job at the local high school.  I was approved by the school board and am waiting for contracts to come in.  Ole Miss took finals this week.  All of my student athletes had finals scheduled so we had cram sessions.  I am sure (hoping) that they all did fantastic on their final.  Kevin has been busy with the SEC Softball Tournament.  Ole Miss is hosting the tournament and while he doesn't have any particular job, he is doing everything. 

I did work on a project yesterday while Kevin spend the whole day at the field.  I found this gem at Goodwill for $3.99.

The table is brown with gold supports.  There is a piece of glass that sits in the top opening.  It was beaten up on the top and had quite a few drink rings.  Trot wanted to get in on the action.  I started with sanding the entire piece.  I gave it a weak coat of brown.  Then I added 2 coats of flat black paint.  After the paint dryed, I sanded the piece on the corners and edges to distress it a bit.

I am thinking about covering the glass with fabric to give it a different look.  We will see.  I placed the table in the entryway across from the table with the lamp that I refinished a couple of months ago.  I added Nathan's painting above the table.

The table is bare but I am working on it.  I found a metal bucket at Goodwill for $1.99.  I added Dollar Tree rocks and placed branches in the bucket.  These brances are awesome.  They are covered in Christmas lights that are battery-powered.  The lights were a birthday present from my Mom, we found them a TJ Maxx.

Have a sweet day!


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I am kind of a big deal...

Or at least I think I am.  I am trying to get more people to follow my blog.  So in order to do that, I have been linking up to a ton of different craft parties throughout the week.  My letter wall has been a huge success and check me out here.

Name Collage

I have been in love with these picture collages.  I always see them when we travel and just seem to forget to look for cool letters to make my own.  Stephanie over at Full of Great Ideas has the entire tutorial ready to go.  She even links to Leo Reynolds galleries of letter and number pics.  Her instructions are great.  I created this one for my mom with her wedding year on it. 

Letter Wall



I have finally finished my letter wall.  I had a vast blank space of wall in my living room.  I was weary on buying any large piece and then not liking it.  So I decided to do a letter wall with several (and I do mean several) smaller pieces.  I have been working on this for a quite a while and you can see some of my work here, here, and here.  I finally gathered all of my Cs, laid them on the floor, and got to arranging.  After about an hour of playing with the arrangement, I was happy and ready to start nailing to the wall.  I started on the top at the center and worked my way out.



My husband came home from a road trip and found the wall finished.  He was impressed with the number of Cs and the layout.  His only question was the price.  After doing a little mental math, I guesstimate the entire wall cost $30.00.  I was able to use several Cs multiple times (tracing, painting, mounting).  I was also able to use frames separately, the glass for one and the frame for another.  What do you think?

If you like what you see become a follower.  I will do the same.


Have a sweet day!

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