Spring Burlap Wreath

I have finally gotten to figuring out how the heck to make all those gorgeous fabric flowers out there. Mine aren't quite to 'gorgeous' status but I think I did okay for the first go around. After drooling all over the most beautiful wreaths on pinterest I decided I was going to just do it! I searched the blog world for the most basic tutorial..I am all about basic. I recently discovered a blog that I absolutely adore. Ashley at lil blue boo is such an inspiration. If you are not familiar with her you really owe it to yourself to take the time, get a cup of coffee and just read through her posts. It will change you. Okay back to the wreath...here is the link to the tutorial.  http://www.lilblueboo.com/2010/11/no-sew-fabric-flower-headband-tutorial.html . I am not the best at hyperlinking yet. Work in progress..that's me. Here is my version of a burlap inspired spring wreath. I hope to do some more and make the flowers vary in size more but for now this is working for me.

I may add a burlap "SPRING" banner across the top, haven't decided yet. But for now I am happy that I finally got around to learning. I think I am going to do a small one next, put darker burlap flowers on it and center it in the middle of a white frame. Love anything burlap and white!

Annie Sloan Chalk Paint [Plank Farmhouse Table-Old White}

Well it has been a crazy, crazy two weeks in the Forman household. We had to take Ryan to Seattle to see a specialist at the University of Washington (for another post). A stomach virus took us out one by one and then Sean had to be admitted to the hospital for acute bronchitis. I just finished up a marathon shopping weekend at the Dallas Market Center and have a list a mile long of projects that need to get started/finished. This mom is exhausted! But excited to get going again.

I was able to finish up a plank table makeover that I started before Christmas. As you might be able to tell from previous projects I am kinda' in love with the white/dark contrast on tables. I have been saying I am going to try something different but can't bring myself to do it when in the painting mode. I love this table and reeeaaaalllllyyy wish we had the space for it in our house. It was kind of a challenge to work on because the top had some serious issues. I had to recreate some knots and make them look as though they were 'suppose' to be there. Hope you likey!

Pink Suitcase Table {American Girl Chest}

I have seen so many tables made out of some really cool things lately and I decided to jump on that creative train. I saw this pink chest and instantly thought it would look amazing as a table. So easy and super fun to do! Now I am obsessed with mentally turning everything into a table. I think I will be doing a bunch of these this year!

Annie Sloan Chalk Paint {Burlap Hutch-Old White}

I am going to take the next couple of days to post some of my previous before & after projects. I am addicted to burlap so I sure hope the obsession with it does not fade into 2012 because I am just getting started. Here is a hutch I redid in Annie Sloan's old white. I decided to keep the table top a stained dark walnut but wanted a more 'patchy' look so I decided not to use any conditioner on the wood before I stained it. I then removed the backing and added some burlap. I also found some fun burlap knobs at Hobby Lobby that matched perfectly.  Hope you like!
                                       
                                           Before

                          
                                                     After

Our Life...

I wanted an area on my blog that gives me the outlet to record all those things in life that deserve the time and effort of remembrance. I don't keep baby books, I purge way to many school projects and recently I have joined the 'dangnamit where is my purse, keys, shoes, mind' team. Our life isn't always easy but I am a firm believer that we must go through all things..the ridiculously impossible and the ridiculously hilarious to mold us into who we are meant to be. Kevin and I have been on an unbelievable journey these past 10 years and we still haven't had the chance to pause (or breathe) much for reflection. It is my goal for these stories to be that pause.

Frenchy Ceramic Tile Coasters

I have seen some tile coasters on etsy and was thinking it would be fun to make some for my sisters for Christmas. Coasters seem to be one of those things that you can never find any that are really 'you'. They are somewhat pricey and I have yet to find a set that would look great in my future, perfectly decorated living room.

I did the obligatory googling of, how to make's, and was off to Home Depot in search of my tiles. I decided on getting 2 styles. The stone tiles with the perfect imperfections and the plain slick ceramic ones..I prefer the latter. I then jumped on over to the graphics fairy and found some super cute images of french chairs, birdcages, vintage keys, etc. I printed those images on to some old gospel hymns I had and voila' frenchy theme squares. It was then onto the simple glue and adhere method. I used modge podge at first to adhere the squares to the tiles then I also covered them with several other coats. There was where it all went wrong. I have seen posts where others have done this and they said all was well with them. Not so much. After applying the coats of modge podge I sealed it with an acrylic sealer. I then proceeded to try to see if it could hold up to a hot mug..no go. The mug would always stick to the coaster. Not a great idea when using breakable tiles. I finally just decided to adhere the image squares with the modge podge but not use it as top coats. Instead I used the spray acrylic sealer as the last step. Perfect. I did 4 sets and 2 have sold already (music sheet and frenchy chairs) so here are some shots of the others I did. These make great, easy gifts at about $.25 each!

Craft Room Ideas..

http://pinterest.com/pin/245516617155509144/

Here is a shot of a nice clean organized office...LOVE!  I will be blogging my office/craft room redo in the hopes of keeping me on task! In order to accomodate our unique family situation we recently downsized to a house half the size of our previous one. I don't have a true dedicated office but instead was granted a very spacious den as my work area..sooo excited..(amazing hubby). I even have a fireplace to work with!  I can't wait to see if I am able to use my new found creativity (with help from amazing blogs) on what is virtually a blank slate. For the most part I know what pieces and style I want I just need to see if I can pull off making it look cohesive without breaking the bank. I will be posting pictures of the 'before', mess and all. Here I go!!