Its that time of year to deck the halls and one tradition I have is to make personalized ornaments for the members of my husband's and my family. This is my 6th year to make custom ornaments and each year the list of names gets a little longer ;). As part of my tradition, I attach the ornament to each person's gift to serve as a gift tag, hence why they have the first initial of everyone's name, then the recipient can keep it as an ornament for years to come. I knew I wanted to create something with resin…
What's one food you always have on hand at your house? For me, its my homemade granola. It's always in the pantry for an easy breakfast, quick snack, or salad topper, no matter the season. A batch of this granola is also a great housewarming gift or gift for new parents, just toss it in a cute jar for presentation and you're all set. I love this recipe because of its versatility, you can customize the ingredients to your liking, and its super easy to make. Also, when you make your own granola, you can ensure the food is comprised…
I'm embarking on another room makeover! This time, my friend Lindsey asked if I would help her refresh her living room. As many of us are spending much more time at home these days, our spaces that we decorated years ago are starting to fall flat. Lindsey and her husband bought their home 8 and a half years ago and aside from updating their sofas and rug, haven't really changed the decor in their living room since they first moved in. Since buying their house, they've added two young children and a chocolate lab to their family, so Lindsey is…
What's on your favorite fall foods list? The foods that you make every year because it just doesn't feel like fall without them. The foods that bring up memories of past years during the autumn season. For me and my family, one of those foods is homemade Chex mix. In high school, my friend's mom used to make homemade Chex mix and she always made two versions, regular and spicy. I'm not exactly sure what her spicy version had in it but I know she added chili powder for the main kick. I don't like my food super spicy, so…
Last week I shared my holiday gift guide for kids, and as promised, I'm back this week to share some gift ideas for the grown-ups on your list. The items on my list are things I've bought, or been gifted, and use often. If you are looking to support some small businesses this holiday season, I've denoted those with (SB). And you can always buy books from local bookstores in your area to support local too. If you are looking for some new candles for holiday gifts, or house warming gifts, or even just to treat yourself, look no further.…
What kind of Christmas shopper are you? Are you like me and have half your holiday shopping done already because you started in July? Or are you more of a well-into-December-before-I-start kind of person? Either way, I've got ya covered with gift ideas for the whole family. I've rounded up a list of items comprised completely of things I personally have bought (for myself or others) or things my family and I have received as gifts and have loved. Some of the gifts are from lovely small businesses (I'll denote those with a 'SB' tag) but remember their shipping is…
A few weeks ago, I shared these DIY mosaic planters from my last Pinterest Party and mentioned there was another craft we created the same night. Well, here it is! Along with mosaic planters, I also sourced materials to make mosaic side tables that turned out equally as cute as the planters. These projects are great because they are completely customizable to the colors and patterns each person likes, that will fit the style of their own home. Again, the idea for this craft was taken from my Better Homes and Gardens June Magazine. We used the directions in the…
I've got a simple and quick DIY for you on this Transformation Thursday. Is that a thing, or did I just make that up? I recently painted my kitchen chairs to refresh my dining space and many of you were interested in a tutorial on how to do your own DIY chair update. This is a relatively simply DIY that just requires a few materials and a little patience. Below you can see our original chair color pallet - Andrew built the black toddler/preschooler chairs and we bought the green stick chairs at a flea market years ago. Before Before…
Hey everyone! I'm back this week to share another room in my Throwback Thursday series, and this week I'm sharing how we renovated what we call our mudroom (although it doesn't function like your typical mudroom). I feel like every time I write a post in this series I declare that room was the most transformative of all the rooms in our house. But I do feel like this room was the most transformed on the smallest budget of all the rooms in our house. Once we removed the horrendous floors and dropped ceiling, a little paint went a looooooonnnng…
Happy Fall ya'll! The weather has finally started to change here in Austin, and we are enjoying the below sweltering temperatures. Last weekend, I had the pleasure of hosting another Pinterest Party, so today I'm sharing the process for making these simple mosaic planters. For anyone who's new here, I host craft nights, which I call Pinterest Parties, about every other month or so (when there aren't global pandemics going on) to spend time with friends and be able to use my creativity. I choose the craft and source the materials, then my friends come over and complete the craft…