Happy Valentine's Day!

Enjoy this day of romance my friends!  Here are some pretty pinks from me to you...

I spruced up a bland old swan (from the wedding party favor section of dollar store) with a little sparkle:

crocheted pink heart rests nearby

Roses light up the buffet...

Have a wonderful Valentine's day!!

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A Dreamy Bench

Ever since I saw the French style stool in Maria of Dreamy White's bedroom, I have been on the look-out for one.  You know the one...gorgeous curved legs with perfect patina...check out this post to have a look.  I just love the way Maria mixes the elegant with the rustic!

So you can imagine my delight when coming across this small table at the White Elephant outlet store recently.  I transformed it into a bench with a simple canvas drop-cloth upholstery job on the top.

Cheerful roses rest on top...

Here's how the table looked when I got it.  It needed a good cleaning.

I knew this top needed covering, too.  I thought about painting the table, but just didn't want to lose all the fantastic patina.

To transform it into a bench, I used 1-inch foam covered by batting.  Each was cut to fit the top oval shape.  Next I simply cut canvas drop-cloth (from Home Depot) slightly larger than the oval shape.  I sewed piping around the edge of the drop-cloth, and stapled the fabric to the top over the foam & batting.

It's a nice mix of the refined with the simple and rustic.

Some other treasures I found at the same outlet....this pretty vintage hat:

and these old tattered books.  I love the 'No 3' on the first page:

I've got one more thing to share - all the snow we received over the weekend!  It took us a while to dig out, but it certainly is beautiful.  Yesterday we went sledding in the plowed mountain of snow in our front yard.
FUN!

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Thank You!

As our family digs out of this Northeast blizzard, we can reflect on all our good fortune.  We've managed thus far without losing power (thank God!) and are safe and sound.  There's a mountain of snow in the corner of our front yard, brought on by all that plowing.  I'm sure the kids will be sledding in it tomorrow.
It is truly beautiful outside - a winter wonderland, which I'll be certain to take photos of to share with you.
There's a lot to be thankful for, including friendships with many of you!
That said, I must share some recent goodies I received from talented bloggers.  Sweet Donna of My Shabby Chateau sent me one of her french-inspired peat pots.  She knows how much I love blue (sharing the love of that color with her), and this one has such terrific detail!  Read more about it here:

 
To see more of her delightful peat pots, take a look at this post.
And look how sweetly it was wrapped!:

Thank you Donna!

Another yummy package arrived recently in the mail from Rosemary of Villabarnes.  I purchased one of her unique metal crowns and it is fabulous!!

Rosemary also included this lovely clay cameo. Isn't it beautiful?  I can't wait to use both of these for an upcoming project I'll be sharing.  Stay tuned...

The creative talent of these ladies knows no bounds.  I can say that for so many of you friendly bloggers!
Thanks so much ladies - I am blessed!

Tilda's World - Valentine Postcard Tutorial

I've got another simple Valentine-inspired tutorial for you!  The Tilda's World Winter Memories paper pad I purchased is full of inspiration with soft winter colors.  There's plenty of pink in there, too, for Valentine's Day.  Here's a layered postcard I recently made:

There are several pieces I used to put it together.  Most of them are from this paper pad I got at www.MarthaPullen.com:

The steps are pretty simple.  First I cut out the pink postcard from the paper pad.  The trophy chipboard came from the Etsy store StudioCee.  (Before starting this project, I had already painted the trophy chipboard white and sprinkled white glitter on it while the paint was wet):

In the corner of the postcard, I glued on a folded corner of a paper doily plus a tiny paper clothespin (from the Tilda paper pad):

Next I gathered this paper ticket from the Tilda paper pad, as well as some paper roses I got from the Etsy store 32 Degrees North.
The paper roses were originally a bright pink, so I had lightened them up in a quick (10 minute) bath of tea.  It makes them appear like vintage millinery flowers:

The roses were hot-glued to the back of the white trophy chipboard in a pleasing bouquet:

Next I glued the trophy onto the postcard, and tied the paper ticket to the postcard with thin twine through a small hole in each (I made the holes with a thick needle):

finished result!

I think the postcard looks pretty set up on our dining room shelf, along with some of the other Tilda Winter Memories paper pad cut-outs:

These animals are just adorable:

The soft pink roses are refreshing in the middle of winter:

Hope you are enjoying crafting this winter, too!  We're expecting snow tonight, so that's how I'm filling some indoor time.  :)

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Florals and Romance

Valentine's season especially brings out the romantic in many of us.  It's when I add more florals and pinks around the house, desiring to make the inside more 'pretty' as the outside is dreary.  These vintage pink floral pillow covers are perfect for a romantic setting.

I purchased them from Laura over at The Ironstone Nest after seeing them on Debra's Monday Marketplace.  Have you visited Debra's weekly shopping link party?  It's a great way to find delightful treasures to buy.

I love the soft faded florals.  They cheer up the daybed a bit:

Speaking of cheering up, I got a lovely surprise last week.  Our children like to tag along when Dad makes a trip to the grocery store on weekends.  My daughter was beaming when they returned from such a trip, presenting a big beautiful bouquet of tulips to Mommy.  Her smile was so big!  It's heartwarming to see how romantic my husband and children can be.

The love I felt from receiving these tulips will far outlast them...

This little corner of the dining room got a touch of romance, too, with a new heart sachet:

It was sewn from the same Ralph Lauren pillow-case fabric I used as a liner for this vintage box:

They brighten up the white chair a bit:

How are you adding romance to your days?

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Silhouette Valentine Tutorial

As Valentine day approaches, I thought it'd be a good time to share a silhouette Valentine project.  It's my goal to post more tutorials on the blog this year, so I remembered to take photos as I crafted this project, designing as I went along.  Here is the result...

It is a chipboard Valentine, showcasing a lovely lady in white surrounded by 'love'.  Here are some of the supplies I used -  pink toile scrapbook paper, light pink cupcake liner, chipboard heart and silhouette.
I cut out the silhouette on white parchment card stock, using an image from a Dear Lillie blog post.  (It is the same image I used on my sister's tote bag).  There are some great silhouette images on the Graphics Fairy blog, too.  

I also used white Elmer's glue (not pretty enough for the photo), a roll of white crepe paper and white glittered chipboard letters from the craft store:

Here are the steps I took...

Step 1 - Cut out the scrapbook paper to fit on the front of the chipboard heart.  Glue on top:

Step 2 - Gather together and pinch up the center of the pink cupcake liner:

Step 3 - Flatten out the pink cupcake liner with the pinched part still together.  This is to make the liner a bit smaller and ruffled to fit onto the heart:

Step 4 - Turn the cupcake liner over and flatten it to the center of the heart.  Glue the liner to the heart, then glue the silhouette and letters to the liner.  (You could also use the letters to personalize the Valentine with a monogram):

Step 5 - Fold a section of crepe paper in half lengthwise.  You will need to continue doing this as you work with it:

Step 6 - Starting at the bottom point, spread white glue (that dries clear) on a small area at the back edge of the Valentine.  Begin to gather the crepe paper together for a ruffled effect, positioning the Valentine inside the center of the folded crepe paper.  Press the gathered crepe paper down onto the glue:

Continue gathering and gluing along the edge.  This is how the back of the Valentine will look when you're done gluing the crepe paper.  At the end, snip off the crepe paper and fold under to glue at the bottom point:

The front of the Valentine will look like this, with the crepe paper raised up a bit:

Step 7 - Add some glue to the front edging to hold this crepe paper down.  Press lightly:

Here is the finished result.  I love the soft pinks, white and sparkle.:

Have fun with this idea - use your favorite colors, textures and paper scraps.  Add a loop of string or ribbon at the top to hang it as an ornament, and cover the back with more scrapbook paper if it will be seen.    
Happy crafting!

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