flowers and packages.

just a few images from right before our girly party last night. i made quiche, and it was wonderful. i always swear that i am going to take photos of it before it gets devoured, but that never happens. i'm always in such a rush to get it to the party while it's still hot! i love our dinner potlucks... so much good food to eat! i always leave very satisfied, but feeling that i must have gained 10 pounds over the course of the evening.

these little flowers i made make great gift toppers. and they have an alligator clip on the back so you can wear it pretty much anywhere! i would share a tutorial, but there are already so many out there, i don't know that it would do any good. these are super easy and fast to make though.

the gifts i needed to wrap were a little oddly shaped, but the kraft paper was perfect. and i didn't have time to make tags, so i pulled out my alphabet stamps, and that did the trick. i will have to remember this in the future, i can't believe how cute it turned out.

i really wish now that i had wrapped all our christmas presents like this. so simple, but they turned out so perfect. it's trying to snow here, but not succeeding very well. as beautiful as the snow is, i'd rather it not ruin my travel plans for the weekend.

diy gift list | jewelry & accessories.

okay, now this is the list i'll be pulling from to make gifts for all the girls in my life! i've listed several flower tutorials here - i love to put pinbacks or alligator clips on these so they can be worn however the recipient desires.

leather chain necklace | cumbersome

you could use an old leather jacket to make tons of these!

shabby chic ruffle necklace | poppy chic designs

beaded fabric flower necklace | pretty ditty

fabric flower tutorial | house of smith's

one of many, but definitely a favorite!

fabric rosette tutorial | little birdie secrets

leather/vinyl hair accessories | make it and love it

satin flower headbands | make it and love it

faux gold dinosaur necklace | papernstitch

this would be awesome for a young girl who's into science or a friend who likes quirky jewelry

several other fabric flower tutorials | craftee

autumn blooms | i am momma

diy gift list | upcycling

last year, i remember the rush to finish our christmas shopping. it wasn't much, but there was always that nagging feeling that we had forgotten something. or someone. i swore that i would spend some time next year making some of my gifts. i figured that now would probably be a good time to start... so i'm going to do several roundups of tutorials/diys that i've found that might inspire you to make some of your own gifts this year! i'll be splitting these up into different sections, and adding to them if i find more fun stuff.

i thought i would start out with an upcycling list. i know there's only a certain group of folks this will probably be okay with, but there are some fun projects out there... and a few things i'd really like to make for myself!

diy moss frames | ruffled

mason jar soap dispenser | fresh crush

grandma bling pushpins | a pretty cool life

(these would also make super cute magnets!)

twig push pins | design*sponge

(these too would make super cute magnets!)

decorative chess set | just something i made

porcelain paint pens | going home to roost

(not really a tutorial, but great ideas on using these to personalize a gift!)

denim cutoff wine bag | design*sponge

antique spoon plant markers | shrimp salad circus

recycled cake plates | design*sponge

doily bowl | the happy home

stamped tile coasters | poppy chic designs

recycled calendar coasters | prudent baby

if you find others worthy, feel free to email me or add them in the comments. i really just pulled stuff that i think is appropriate for gift-giving.

gifts for a baby boy...

anyone who knows me, knows that i love paper. any kind of paper. but especially pretty paper. i've had this stash of martha stewart gift wrap sitting in my studio closet for several months now... just waiting to make someone's gift beautiful. since our friend mat and stacie are expecting a baby boy here pretty soon, i decided it was time to put away the gift bags and bring out the paper.

my kitchen, ladies and gentlemen, is the place where i take all of my product pictures. it has the most gorgeous green paint for the backdrop, and my antique vintage table (refinished by my father-in-law!) makes a great place to display pretty things. i promise someday i'll show you my whole kitchen... but it needs to be on a day when it's clean-er :)

i was afraid doug was going to confiscate that little green monster when i brought it home from babies r us. it makes the cutest little 'blaaahhh!' sound. i personally thought that was a sound every child needs to learn how to make.