Project Life Nook

A little while back I wrote about starting up a Project Life album.  You can read that post here.  I was hesitant as to how committed I would be to the whole process, but I have found it so much fun and an easy creative outlet for time-poor me.

Once I realised just how much I liked it, I had to ‘organise’ myself and the project.  I set out to create a little Project Life  work station for myself.

In my study makeover, I had created more than enough bench space to dedicate to my Project Life materials. You can read about the study/craft room makeover here.

On a shopping trip to Kmart I came across their new range of office supplies, that just happened to be in red polka dots, like my Project Life album.

I picked up a set of tabbed folders that are perfect to hold layout ideas, kids’ art work, brochures and other nick nacks that I want to include in my album. I had a vertical file going unused, perfect for storing the folders in an easy-to-see manner.

I also scored a binder of cute sticky notes in various sizes.  I use these to make a note of dates, journal ideas or lists of photos to be inserted when I am yet to complete my layout.

Finally, I grabbed a set of two boxes.  The smaller one fits my journaling cards, the larger one holds my favourite journaling pens, stamps and processed photos.

So here it is, all stowed on my craft bench….

If I couldn’t make all my Project Life ‘stuff’  look neat, pretty and coordinated there is no way I would allow it to remain ‘on show’.  Keeping it visible is important to me, it reminds me of my goal to keep a better record of our lives and makes it easier to do so.

The big bonus to organising myself and making it look pretty is that it only cost me $8. Cha Ching!

 

 

Cute Bedroom Art

I was lucky enough to have some kid-free time today to have a browse of the shops.  One store I love to have a look in when I am unhindered by children is Typo. It has great stationery and homewares and is very well priced.

After picking up some great pens on sale to do my Project Life journaling, I was drawn to their range of freestanding letters and letter canvases.  It is ridiculous how much I love typography.

I couldn’t leave without picking up these cute little canvases to pop into the master bedroom, which is getting a little bit of a revamp at the moment.

The letters and symbols are printed on burlap and strung on a canvas frame.

I picked these three up for $10.  I probably couldn’t make them for this price.  However, what a fun project it would be to make your own if you had leftover materials and supplies on hand.  Print or stencil your letters or symbols on your fabric and staple it to canvases or frames.

Until I find the perfect home for these, they will sit on the low boy in the bedroom.  Cute.

 

Time for a Change

The other week I was just not feeling the ‘vibe’ in my lounge room.   The room needed a change.  I needed a change.

Before I had a chance to spiral into a lounge room funk, grab the credit card and hit the shops for a new look, I pulled out the sewing machine.

One of the easiest decorating changes that can be made in a lounge room is to add new throw cushions.  They can change the whole feel of the room on the smallest of budgets.

I had bought some great material some time back in red and aqua.  I loved the patterns and the colours were perfect for the lounge room.  The red was already the highlighted colour in the room, but the blue could help tie in the tones of the photo canvas collage hung on the wall.

Before I really had time to think about it, I had run up 5 envelope cushions.  You can read my tutorial on how to make these easy pillow slips here.

I like the two patterns and colours together. The aqua and white has really given the lounge a lift.

A few days after I threw together the new cushions, I was at Ikea and picked up this warm aqua throw for next to nothing.  It should help to keep us cozy as the cooler weather sets in.

So on a little budget, with just a bit of time invested, I was able to give the lounge room (and myself) a lift.

 

 

A Bedroom for a Dinosaur Loving Boy

It occurred to me the other day, as I was giving Master O’s room a quick tidy, that I hadn’t shown you all the changes we made in his room.

Towards the end of last year, as Master O’s 4th birthday loomed, we struggled to find him a present.  We really didn’t want to buy him toys as we knew he would receive more than enough as gifts from the family.  I really had no inspiration until I found myself staring absent-mindedly into a store window while waiting for my sister.  As she arrived and I turned to leave, I realised what I had been staring at…..the cutest range of dinosaur linen and accessories on a fantastic sale.  There and then I decided his present would have to be a dinosaur room makeover.

The day before his birthday party, while he was a daycare, I set about transforming his room.  Previously it had sported a nautical/pirate theme which I shared in these posts here and here, but this is what it looked like on the morning I started the transformation.

After a good clean up and rearrange, followed by the addition of  the new duvet cover, matching cushions and bunting, the room looked a lot fresher.

I added a few other nick nacks that suited the theme, like these cute bookends.

I had already added a padded cushion to the Trofast toy storage units to make a reading seat, but now I could see how well my colour choice matched with the linen. You can read about how I made the seat  here.  A little rearranging of the Trofast tubs I already owned enabled me to bring the colour green into this area of the room as well.

I had tried to purchase some artwork for the walls in time for his birthday but I couldn’t find anything that matched the colour scheme. Master O didn’t mind, he was chuffed with the transformation.  The walls remained blank until about 3 months ago when I returned to the linen store and found a matching dinosaur canvas in stock.

So with one wall decorated,  I thought I might have to make something for the other wall – but what?  On holidays last month I came across a stall that sold all manner of dinosaur cutouts,  2D and 3D.  The were amazing and so well priced that I had to be restrained.  I purchased 2 x 2D cutouts and after a bit of spray paint, attached them each to a canvas.  It was a such a simple art solution and they really do pop with their shiny bright orange paint.

The other purchase I made was 3D pterodactyl.  After a couple of coats, also in the bright orange paint, I attached him to the ceiling.  I was concerned that he might be a bit scary for a 4-year-old, woken in the middle of the night, but Master O has entrusted the pterodactyl with the task of keeping him safe.

So after stalling for nearly 4 months with the artwork, the room is pretty much complete now.  Master O received a couple a big dinosaur figurines for his birthday and Christmas that fit in perfectly with the colour scheme so they now reside on top of his Trofast unit and look very much at home.  We also picked up a hat stand shaped like a tree on sale at Target.  It is the perfect place to hang his Kindergarten and library bags when it is not some how involved in some imaginative dinosaur play.

This really has evolved into the perfect room for our dinosaur loving boy.  What are you favourite themes for little boy’s rooms?

Easter Tradition: Easter Egg Seeds

Last Easter I posted about a new Easter tradition we started that involved planting a garden with Easter Egg Seeds.  You can read the original post here.

Basically, what happens is that at some point before Easter, the Easter Bunny leaves my kids a packet of seeds to plant in the yard.  If they are good and very lucky, they will grow into Easter eggs by  Easter Sunday.

The Easter Bunny left our seeds for us to plant today.

Master O is taking his gardening role very seriously, watering and watching for any growth.  We are certain that a few eggs will sprout before Sunday

While on the topic of preparing and looking forward to Easter, we had a little poke around the shops this morning and bought some Easter decorations on sale.  I think they are just adorable, so I had to share them with you.

These lovely bunnies cost me just a few dollars each at Bed, Bath and Table.

And this ceramic Easter egg, also from Bed, Bath and Table, pairs nicely with my big bunny and is perfect for holding chocolates for our guests to help themselves to.

There were so many lovely decorations on sale that I know I will cave and be back to buy more before the end of the week.  Stay tuned!

 

 

Thumbprint Easter Egg Sign

Yesterday I showed you the cute thumbprint Easter egg cards the kids and I made for their teachers.  You read about that post here.

As we had such a ball making them, we decide to also make an Easter sign for our entrance using a blank canvas.

A bit of stamping, some paint and a few stickers later and it was proudly on display on our hall table.  Cute

And don’t you just love the moss bunny? He has been my favourite addition to our Easter decorations this year.

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend.

 

Easter Decorating and Activities

I don’t know about you, but it scares me just how fast Easter is approaching. It seems to sneak up on me….every year!  Over the weekend we completed a few fun projects that have helped get us into the Easter spirit, so I thought I would share them with you.

The boys had fun hanging some egg-shaped decorations along with this cute ‘Happy Easter’ banner.

I ‘helped’ (although the correct term would probably be ‘cleaned up after’) the boys as they painted some plaster Easter decorations to display about the house.

I experimented with my chocolate lollipop mould and made these cute bunny shaped ones.

This week the boys and I are decorating some props for our Easter Egg Hunt and making some more chocolate creations.  I hope to share them with you soon, but until then, take a look at some of my other Easter posts……

Click on the images to link to the post.

 

 

 

Easter Craft: Fingerprint Chicks Revisited

Today the blog has hit a time warp.  This is a post from last Easter, but it is such a fun craft, we will be doing it again.

The lead up to Easter is one of my favourite times of the year.  I think it has a lot ot do with the weather and the fact that the mornings are crisp but the days are warm with clear, blue skies (well, maybe not here at the moment).  It may also have to do with the fact that I am absolutely addicted to Hot Cross Buns.  I am NEVER the one who complains about the fact the grocery stores have packets of buns for sale on Boxing Day.  However, I always feel if you blink you will miss enjoying the lead up.  With the craziness of the Christmas/New Year season you seem to just get back into the ryhthm of life and Easter is at your doorstep.  So it was Friday just gone that it dawned on me that I had only 2 weeks until the Easter Weekend.  I had not even thought about Easter at all.  So I seized the day and created a craft project for Master O and I.

Last Christmas I fell in love with the Fingerprint reindeer  Bianca at A Little Delightful  completed with her son.  Taking inspiration from this and these cute little chicks you find everywhere at Easter time,

I created a fingerprint chick project.

With little time or effort, I designed and printed some placecards for our Easter table.  Then with some yellow paint, Master O fingerprinted the cards. 

When they were dry, I added the chick’s features with black and orange felts.  To make sure they were going to be sturdy and last if we wanted to use them next year, I laminated them.

I think they are super cute.  Tomorrow we plan to make some matching cards and present tags.

Easter Craft: Fabric Rabbit Artwork

Here is a simple and easy Easter artwork to make to grace your mantel.

You may have seen versions of this about the traps, there is really no wonder, as it can be whipped up in no time.  It can also be made on a budget.  I made mine using, and reusing, items I had sitting around the home.

Here is how I did it…..

I attached my background fabric to a piece of cardboard using adhesive spray.  The rabbit silhouette, which I cut out using a template I found on the net, was also attached to the artwork using adhesive spray.  I was going to leave the rabbit as is until I came across a yo-yo I had left over from another project.  A bit of glue later, my bunny was jazzed up.  To learn how to make your own yo-yos, check out the tutorial here.

Once the glue was dry, I popped it in a frame and placed it on my sideboard. Done!

Easter Craft: Rabbit Napkins

Here is a quick craft project that will pretty up your Easter table – rabbit napkins.

Firstly, I printed out a rabbit silhouette from the internet.  I traced this silhouette onto some scrap fabric, then cut out the rabbits.

I used a straight stitch to attach the silhouettes to my napkins by sewing around the inside of the rabbit’s outline.  I am far from perfect on the sewing machine, but I just went slow around the curves and it turned out more than satisfactory.

And that’s it.

You know what I love about this craft idea? It can be tailored to all sorts of holidays or events.  What about a flower for Mother’s Day, a tie for Father’s Day, Pumpkins for Halloween or stars for Christmas? I am going to have to keep my eyes open for great sales on napkins during the year, I don’t think I could bear to unpick those cute little bunnies.