new christmas prints in the shop!

 I know, I know.  I've broken the cardinal rule: no Christmas before Thanksgiving.  But you know what?  This is how I'm looking at it: how fun to celebrate two of the best holidays at the same time?!  

That being said, head on over to my shop to view the cards and prints or click on the image you'd like to be directly sent to.  Side note: last year's prints are discounted!

* Note about shipping : All orders placed between November 20th - November 26th will be shipped on November 27th.  All orders placed between November 27th - December 5th will be shipped on December 6th.  Thanks!

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before + after : living room mini-makeover

You guys.  I tried stenciling a wall for the first time and it was insane.  Crazy hard.  Crazy rewarding.  But really, just all-around crazy.

Here's my process and what I learned.  Take what you will--this is just my experience.

I ended up using an inch and a half Master's Touch brush.  I tried the sponge that's made for stencils, the high density roller that's also made for stencils and about a billion other brushes I had on hand.  Nothing but the aforementioned brush worked for me.  That's not to say they wouldn't work for you, but I think the combination of my plaster, uneven wall and the metallic, thin paint I used made for a disastrous pair.  (For the record, I used Martha Stewart's Metallic paint in Bone.)  Am I being dramatic enough yet?  All that to say, the brush worked perfectly for me, but it took so much longer than if I'd been able to roll the pattern on the wall.  Instead, I pulled the paint from each corner of each diamond shape into the middle so that the paint wouldn't bleed under the stencil.

Ok.  Enough whining.  You know why?  Because I love my wall.  Moving on.

You know what else I love?  My brand new floor lamp (see the last image)!  Geez louise, were we in need for some lighting in a bad way.  This whole room has no above-head lighting so this beauty has recently saved the day.

MORE LINK LOVE FOR THE ROOM:
lamp, Fashion For Home | stencil | amber pillows on bench, World Market | kilim pillow on bench, Pottery Barn (sold out) | gold sequin chevron pillows, TJ Maxx | bench, Craigslist | couch, ZGallerie | ikat pillow, Target | black and white smaller pillow, Ikea | yellow and gray pillow, TJ Maxx | black and white larger pillow, Urban Outfitters (sold out)

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holiday gift : custom address stamp

I wanted to remind everyone of the custom address stamps I offer before Chrsitmas-card-season was knocking at your front door!  I've copied the info I send to clients below; please email me if you're interested.

Keep in mind that if you'd like the stamp by early December for Christmas gifts or cards, the stamp should be ordered before Thanksgiving.  Also, I will be out of the office from November 20th - December 6th, so make sure you factor that into your timing if you'd like to give the stamp as a gift!  xo!

The address stamps are $45 and are about 2"x2".  They include a wooden handle and can be inked with a stamp pad, which is not included.

If you're interested, please send me the wording you'd like for your stamp, the PayPal address to which I can invoice the $45 and the address you'd like the stamp shipped to.  Once the invoice is paid I can send off for the stamp to be made!  The turn around time is about 2 1/2 weeks from payment to arrival of the stamp.

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DIY thanksgiving placemat

 With Thanksgiving just two weeks away, I thought it'd be nice to post a super easy, super cheap, super quick DIY for your Thanksgiving dinners!

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

- as many 20"x12" (roughly) pieces of kraft paper as you have people at your table

- white paint pen / I used Recollections' broad tip marker that I picked up from Michaels

- this printable template that reads i am thankful for... to trace onto the kraft paper

- a window or other surface that can be used to trace on

This is a pretty straightforward DIY and if you've ever traced, you're good to go!  I included the curve on the left side of the template to give you an idea of where your plate will sit, but it doesn't need to be traced.

Unless you're spoiled like I am and have a light for tracing built into your drafting table, you can trace through a sunny window.  Or, if you feel like getting redneck, make yourself a hillbilly light table like I used to do: sit in a chair with a table lamp on the floor, between your feet.  Balance a large casserole dish on your lap and use it as your light table!  My dad would call that "Redneck Ingenuity."

To give your script the look of calligraphy, go back over the parts of the lettering where you pulled down with the pen to add weight and variation to the script's lines.

Also, as a side note, this new white marker is my new favorite toy!  It seems to be pretty opaque on just about everything, which you probably know is hard to find with white pens.  It even wrote on the leaves and dried fairly quickly.  Oh, and one other side note: These leaves had been pressed and ironed to rid them of their moisture and to keep them fairly flat.  I found that lettering on the "back" of the leaf was much easier than the front, FYI.  My inspiration for the leaf lettering was from this post on Once Wed.

Place a white colored pencil at each table setting or fill a jar with them and incorporate it into the tablescape.  Ask your guests to fill in their placemat with what they're thankful for and then, if everyone is feeling brave and sentimental, take turns reading what you're grateful for!

Happy autumn, happy holiday season, happy two-weeks-til-Thanksgiving!

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