Festive Flags

Even though we are keeping baby #2's nursery the same as it was for Lula, I still wanted to add a few elements to spice things up and make it more personal for this baby. I've been seeing a lot of fabric flag creations on etsy and other places and decided to make one of my own!

I followed the directions for the flag banner in One Yard Wonders, although you don't really  need many directions at all! I basically made 2 triangles of fabric, sewed them together like you would a pillow, leaving the short end open.  Then, just attach all the flags with bias tape. That's it! 

I can't wait to see how this will look up in the nursery!

Painted Chandelier

It's been almost a year since we moved into our house. I can't believe it! There were many projects to be done when we moved in, and this chandelier was one of them.  Everything in the house was original from the 1970's. Curtains, wallpaper, carpet...everything.  This chandelier was in the dining room and was ugly gold with giant crystals hanging from it. Instead of spending hundreds of dollars on a new light fixture, I simply took it down, took off all the crystals and spray painted it a glossy teal color. I absolutely love how it turned out!! A new chandelier for about $3 isn't bad.  We have orange and teal accents in the room, so it's perfect.

I am now on the hunt for another ugly chandelier that needs a new home. I've been searching craigslist and garage sales. Hopefully I will find one soon because I think Lula's new room will need a  spray painted chandelier much like this one  from Pottery Barn Kids:

Kitchen Towel Pillow

I found this adorable kitchen towel and thought it would look great as a pillow in my living room! It was a super simple project that was very cheap!

Since the towel is an odd size, I made my own under pillow using muslin.  Then, I just folded the towel in half, stitched up two sides and put snapson the remaining side. I wanted to do this so that I could easily remove the outside of the pillow to wash. 

I sewed buttons over the snaps to make it look a little more finished.

The finished product! I think it looks great on my favorite vintage chair (yes that is the original upholstery from the 1960's).

18 Months and Tour of Lula's Room

Lula turned 18 months a couple of weeks ago. I can't believe it! I hadn't taken any pictures of her in a little while so we had a little photo shoot in her room. (Notice the flower hair clip she is modeling) I just had to share them!

I also thought some might be interested in seeing a few of the projects I did in Lula's gender-neutral nursery before she was born. We had little to no budget, so everything was sewn or re-painted ourselves! (along with my mom's help)

This is the bedskirt I made using some cute fabric by Alexander Henry. The orange dot is by Amy Butler.

Another one of the many things you can do with freezer paper! I made these to match the animals in the fabric. It's just fabric that I stenciled and stretched onto canvases, then stapled with my trusty staple gun . They are hanging over the changing table/dresser.

We found this 100 yr old rocking chair at a garage sale for $20! I painted it white and re-covered the cushion, then made a matching pillow. It's super cute, but not the most comfortable for those late night feedings. Thankfully we are past that stage, but I may be investing in a more modern glider for future babies!

We did not have a budget for furniture, so we just re-painted my old bedroom furniture from when I was a little girl.  We replaced the hardware and did a little sanding to achieve the "shabby chic" look. The dresser doubles as a changing table which I love.

And lastly, panel curtains using that same orange Amy Butler dot.

Making things for Lula's nursery was so incredibly fun for me. I also love the fact that it's totally gender neutral and can be used again for a boy! There you have it, a little piece of the life of Lula Maureen!

diy felt stockings

One of my many projects for the Christmas season was to make stockings for our family. I found this great Amy Butler stocking pattern here. It's free and super easy! I'm kind of obsessed with felt right now. It's such a great material to work with if you are new to sewing. Because it doesn't unravel, you are able to sew leaving raw edges which makes things so easy!

I bought my high quality wool felt from Erica's and Heather Bailey

I followed the Amy Butler stocking pattern, but wanted to add felt details to personalize the stockings. Before sewing the pieces together, I made a paper patterns of the shapes that I wanted to sew onto the stocking.

After cutting out the shapes, I sewed them directly onto the stocking pieces

I really wanted our names on the stockings, so I tried embroidering them. This was my first try at embroidery, so it's not perfect, but oh well!

I love the little bit of fabric that shows on the outside and lining

The finished product!!

If you want some personalized stockings, you should try it!