Make a burlap sacked Charlie Brown Christmas tree

I really wanted to make something burlap for this weekend's SNS theme, so this little $1.50 sandbag came in mighty handy!

How I made a live burlap sacked seedling

What you'll need: (or close)

burlap sandbag
a waterproof container and / or a container with some weight
rocks
masking tape
raffia or rope
evergreen branch

I wanted this seedling to stick around awhile so I had to come up a way to support the branch as well as it getting water. Rocks worked just fine. :)

I chose a wonky branch on purpose. Charlie Brown or Whoville? Take your pick!

The opening was taped crosswise  to help hold the trunk in place.

The works was plunked into something with more substantial weight. I wasn't sure the clay pot was waterproof so that's why I didn't take a chance.

Slip the burlap sandbag on, and create a sloppy rolled cuff.

Stuff the bag with a bit of newspaper,

then tie the rope below the cuff.

Add some spanish moss and an apple for a bit of color, and you're 'nearly' done. :)

Fake snow to the rescue! This made an enormous difference. I appear to be on a big snow kick this season and this step softens all the hues beautifully.

A little fake plastic snow with some fresh cranberries were added to the sill.
Also spraying the lower half of the window offered a glow like setting.

The green branches were hit heavily but unevenly so the snow had a chance to thicken up.
One oversized pinecone was added for an extra dash of quirk.

And there's my quirky slouchy little burlap sacked seedling, totally natural and ready for Christmas. For FREE!

The snow served a very important 2nd reason by the way.
I didn't want anyone snacking on my display. :)

SNS's theme Friday is burlap / rustic / natural Christmas decorating. 
I challenge you to swing all three in one post!

And winner of The Pleated Poppy's $60 shopping spree is
Michelle from This Crazy Life!
Congrats, girl! I'll have Lindsay email you so you can swap info. :)

Help! I need a new vacuum cleaner

Everyone... meet Bissell.

Bissell has been a good friend for so many years, I've lost count. But there comes a time when good things must come to an end. And the sooner the better this round.

My budget has never allowed for a decent vacuum so I just... suffered. To put it mildly.

Oh, I've tried some lower priced hand me downs over the years. I mean, I found a better one than I had on the curb for vacuum's sake! But the day it created my very own personal dust storm, it literally flew out the front door in one big POOF. So Bissell was put into action once again.

Characteristics

Oh... this one's a charmer. She howls. Yep, that's her thang. She howls so loud that I have to bang on the corner of the lid so it gapes open while it's running. That's what those amazing black distressing details are all about.

The hose comes with a detachable... duct taped end.  It's necessary to hold the end against the hose while using this unit. Pure talent to run this one, friends!

Oh gee.. I forgot to watermark this one. I hope no one pins it without asking!!! >:)

Beauty shots

You know me well enough to know at this point that I always attempt to flip a neg into a pos, yes?

Bet you never knew a tangled cord could look so... tangled. At least the grass is green.

It's pretty much customary that every beauty shot makes it's way to this little table. Hmm... needs a little colour...

There ya go. 

"A touch of turquoise garbage playing against the red edge of the duct tape offers this piece new life."

All I gotta say about this is...

I love my swiffer. This is the best vacuum system I've got right about now.

Other than a standard schmandard broom that picks up about 8.5% of the pet hair of course.

I love my swiffer.

Beauty shots

*sniff* You're so deserving.

But... it's time I get a little serious and get a real vacuum cleaner of some sort. Hardwood floors + pets = deserted western town styled tumble weed pet fluff everywhere you look.

So... HELP! What vacuum cleaner would you recommend I look at?

And the lucky duck winner of Katie's Rose Cottage Designs is...

April from Thoughtful Escapes! 

Congrats, April! Oh you will LOVE her things! I'll have Lori email you so you can swap info. :)

Two Giveaway Winners~

Howdy y'all...

I'm popping in on this lovely Sunday evening to announce the winners of the Bagster Bag giveaway and the Elisabeth Michael giveaway.

The Winner of the $100 Gift Card courtesy of the good people at Waste Management in conjunction with The Bagster Bag Bloggers Challenge is Becky who said...

"I could use a couple of these. I'm determined to declutter and minimalize by the next time we move. Hopefully that's not for a couple more years, but I want to make myself think it could happen any day."

The Winner of the Elisabeth Michael giveaway for one free pillow or $30 off any shower curtain in the Elisabeth Michael shop is Bethany who said...

        "All the items are gorgeous! Think I'd choose the Decorative Pillow Cover Premier Prints Mystical Denton Chevron Zig Zag! :)"

Congratulations ladies!! Please email me and we'll get you set up with your prizes!!

xoxo

Wendy

A Couple of Giveaway Winners~

Hey Everybody!! Just popping in on a Sunday to announce the winners of two recent giveaways....

First, the winner of the CanOrganizer.com giveaway was AnneMarie who said "I need these so badly - the pantry size would be perfect!"

And the winner of the MattieLuxe giveaway was TheCulbertsons5 who said "What a great giveaway! Thanks for the opportunity!"

Neither of you ladies had contact information on your profiles so PLEASE email me and we'll get your prizes all set up!!

Thanks!!  Happy Early Halloween!!!!!

Giveaway Winners~

I want to start first by thanking all of you for the Boys' Room love!  I'm so thrilled that you all loved the room so much!!  It does a heart good. ;-)

Today I've got two giveaway winners to announce...

First, the winner of the Pick Your Plum box of craft supplies is

Rachel @ Wooden Parlor

And the winner of the Matthew Mead's Entertaining Simple book is

Sarah @ Renewed Upon A Dream

Congratulations Ladies!  Please email me and we'll get you set up with your fabulous prizes!!

Frugal Friday goes live tonight at 8 PM MST.   See you then!!



La Posh Style Giveaway Winner~

I bet you all thought I forgot to announce the winner of the La Posh Style giveaway....sorry for my tardiness. 

But without any more delay, the winner of a dress of her choice from La Posh Style is....

Project Hope 7 of Operation.  Blessing Brigade!  Congratulations!!!

Please drop me an email and we'll get you set up with your fab new dress!

And, don't forget, Frugal Friday goes live tonight at 8PM MST.  Last week's party was the biggest to date...Holy Cow! The inspiration abounds!!  Hope to see you there!!

Giveaway Winners~

Howdy Y'all...

Pulled myself away from working on the boys' room (yep, I'm really trying hard to finish it this next week) to drop in and let you know the winners of the Rosie Posie Designs and ScotchBlue giveaways.  Because I just know that you all have been dying to find out. 

So without any more pointless commentary from me, here we go...

The winner of the Rosie Posie Designs store credit is Tiffany from The Babbling Brunette.


The ScotchBlue giveaway actually has THREE winners. 
They are:

Korrie from Red Hen Home
Marianne from Songbird
and
Ann-Kay from Ann-Kay Designs

Congrats to all you fabulous ladies!  Please email me and we'll get you set up with  your prizes!

Okay, off to paint (furniture not walls this time.)  

And because it is against my personal philosophy to post without a photo, here's a bit of eye candy from my Pinterest wanderings...

Source: rashoncarraway.com via Wendy on Pinterest

And this one because I am sooooo missing New England at this time of the year. Sigh.

Source: mochatini.org via Wendy on Pinterest

Have a great day~

NestKeeping: August Monthly Recap AND The Hometalk Giveaway Winner~

August was a busy month around here.  We spent it getting a little more settled into our new house, and getting the kiddos ready for and off to their first day of school.  But I did manage to get a few posts up which I think are worth sharing again (just in case you missed them the first time!)

In Painting 101, the Hubby shared some of his tried and true tips to prep your walls for a flawless paint finish. Seriously, when it comes to painting, the man knows his stuff.

I shared some great tips for renters (and homeowners) on how to make a space your own in my DIY Renter's Repairs and Tips post.

You won't want to miss the FABULOUS smores recipe I shared for National Smores Day.

And check out the room I came up with using this pretty outfit as inspiration in this month's installment of If This Room Were an Outfit.

Finally, if you missed any of the great Frugal Friday Link Parties (serious inspiration here folks) you can find them here, here, here and here.

And last but not least, the winner of the Hometalk giveaway for a $100 Pottery Barn giftcard is...
Something Nice and Pretty!!  Congratulations!  Drop me an email and we'll get you set up with your prize!

Have a lovely day~

Around the Web and the Winner of the Apartment Guide Gift Card~

Hi Everyone! 

Been busy getting the kiddos back in school, and starting to finalize plans on how we want to decorate this place (while driving past the hardware store with the Hubby 3 times before we realized where it was- ahhh life in a new town!)

So today I thought I'd share with you a couple of places that I can be found around the web...

Check out my post on how to Brighten Up Your Summer Space (before good old autumn arrives) at Fifthroom Living.

You can also find me at Little Black Dress/Little Red Wagon talking about my addiction to love for Pinterest.

And now for the winner of the Apartment Guide $50 gift card giveaway.

Congratulations Nikol Spencer!!

Please drop me an email and let me know whether you'd like a Home Depot card or a Target Card! 

Have a great day~

Apartment Guide Gift Card Giveaway Winner!

Howdy Kids!  Just poppin' in today to announce the winner of Apartment Guide's $100 AmEx gift card.

The winner is.....

Mimi from Mimi's Vintage Charm!  Congratulations Mimi!  Please drop me an email and we'll get you set up with your prize!

Have a great day~

Bunk Bed Update & Stella and Dot Giveaway Winner~

We finally found a bunk bed for the boys.  And we got it for a steal!!  The trick is finding a wholesale warehouse and then being able to buy the floor model at an additional discount.  (Actually it just amounted to some serious good luck.)  Oh yeah, baby! 

The only problem is that Boy 1 who is 11-years-old was fine with the idea of white bunks when I came up with the inspiration board below.  But when he saw them in person, he declared that they were too "girly".  Sigh. 

So it's back to the old drawing board.  That's okay, though.  That's what design is all about, right?  And the good news is that the bed we got looks similar to this Marlowe bunk from Restoration Hardware that I shared with you previously.  But for about 1/6 the price.  Oh yeah, baby (again)!  The bunk should be coming home today...so hopefully I'll have some  pics to share soon.

And now, the winner of the Stella and Dot giveaway.

Congratulations Kendall from Songbirds and Buttons!  Drop me an email and we'll get you set up with your gorgeous earrings!

Frugal Friday goes live tonight at 8:00 MST as usual.  Hope to see you there!

xoxo
Wendy

Giveaway winners for Silhouette and Shandell's

Who won?!? Who won?!? 

The below lucky gals won, that's who! 

But first...

My take on these items

I really enjoyed both these giveaways. I found them equally useful and both offered free reign of one's own creativity as the only limit. I hope to bring more like minded giveaways on board that help us achieve more beautiful and inspiring homes.

Do you sell an item that falls in this category? Check out the advertising packages avail HERE.

If you don't win, I'm sorry. :( 

But... good news! Both these items are on sale for a VERY short time!

#343 as per random.org (forgot to screen shoot it)

Rachelle was saying she'd like to make signs all over her house. I'd say Rachelle is certainly on the right track to accomplishing just that. Lucky girl. :)

Congrats Rachelle! You are going to love creating with this amazing machine.

I'll have Silhouette contact you. :)

Silhouette special

1 Silhouette SD

2 Packages Temporary Tattoo Paper

for $199 

(US only)

  

That’s a $120 savings! Plus...

25% off all other products 

in the Silhouette shop (excluding gift cards and download codes) 

Offer until June 29.  That's tomorrow!

Use code FUNKY JUNK to get the deal.

Click the above button to order.

 Linda, I hope you have that ball jar ready because your wish just came true. :)

Congrats! I'll have Susan from Shandell's email you so you can swap info. :)

Shandell's special

10% off 

any of the 6 lighting kits avail!

(US and Canada)

Offer until July1st

Use code funkyjunk (no spaces) to get the deal.

Click the above logo to order.

Congrats to both lucky winners!

I really REALLY hope you'll post about your wins and what you do with your new treasures. I'd love to share them. :)

And a very special thanks to both Silhouette and Shandell's for their generosity!

Stay tuned for more reviews and tutorials on both items above.