Enjoy Your Day

Well I guess I was really ambitious today. I have three posts for you so be sure to scroll down to see all three.

I told you I had one more card to make for the StampTV CHA Envy challenges.  This one was for Theresa Momber's challenge --  Stamp an image sideways, upside down, or at a different angle than normal. 

The background paper is from the Basic Grey "Lime Rickey" paper pad.  The stamp set used was from Theresa's "Hope Grows" set available from Gina K Designs.  The branch was stamped then cut out with a rectangle Nestability, then sponged with yellow prior to taking it out of the die.  The bird was stamped onto a piece of card stock that I did the "Shaving Cream" technique on.  I only used one color of reinker in the shaving cream and that was Not Quite Navy.  When I stamped the image I mostly wanted to get the blue on the tail feathers.  I really like the way it turned out. The bird was attached with a dimensional. 

Something on the card had to be at a different angle so I stamped the greeting from the same stamp set and cut it out with a round Nestability.  A green scallop was added around the edge.  The main image was also matted onto a scalloped green background.  All the scallops were pierced.  Think the bird is reading the greeting?

To give the card dimension I made five small yellow flowers out of vellum and placed on the stamped branch.  Small green pearls were added in the center.  Three additional large vellum flowers and some vellum leaves were made for the upper left corner.  To complete the card, large pearls were added to the corners.

Tomorrow Melanie Munchinger has asked  her guest designers to participate in a blog hop  featuring new projects created with  her stamp sets.  I will be participating in this blog hop so be sure to check back tomorrow evening to see several new projects I have created for her.

Joan's Gardens - Challenge #8

Have you seen the fun challenge on Joan's Garden this week?   It is to do a fall theme card using pumpkins or fall leaves with either embossing or glitter.  The winner of the week #8 challenge will receive  a Heartfelt Creation Stamp.  Joan will soon be getting in a lot of new Heartfelt Creations stamps.  You can see the picture she posted of some of the new items here.

The stamp set I used for this card is the JustRite "Autumn Blessings" set.  The image and border were stamped using Memento black ink then Koh-I-Noor pencils and OMS were used to color.  The design was cut out with oval Nestabilities.  The background paper is embossed.  A silk ribbon was added and a bow added to the top.  To complete the card I punched out a bunch of small leaves and a few acorns.  They were sponged and the centers embossed with a stylus to give them more dimension.  They were glued down to look like falling leaves. 

Hope you will go over to Joan's Gardens and join in on the fun. 

Thanks for stopping by.  Have a wonderful weekend.

StampTV CHA Envy Challenge #3

Here is another card for the StampTV CHA Envy Challenges.  For this Challenge Melanie asked us to use Navy, Olive and Ivory OR use DP and try to recreate or match the pattern with your stamping.  I decided to go for the first choice.  I used a piece of Basic Grey design paper for my olive background and lined it with navy card stock.  The daisies,  are from Asela's "Flowers For Daisy" stamp set available from Gina K Designs.  I used a navy colored pencil and oms to color.  They don't look very "navy" do they!  Pale Yellow Flower Soft was added to the center of each flower.   Leaves were cut with a BossKut die and sponged then layered under the flowers.  They are mounted on a Nestability Label Ten die cut that was sponged with olive green.  The  verse is from Melanie's "Arranged With Love" set, also available from GKD.  Two different sizes of GKD ribbon was added for the border across the bottom.  To finish the card three navy butterflies and some ivory pearls were added.

The deadline for this challenge is this evening and I have one more card to make for Theresa's challenge. 

July Month in Review!

Hello there! I’m baaaack with another month in review! Can you even believe how fast this month has gone? Nuts!

To start out July, I showed you the progress I had made on my kitchen redo (with help from American Express!):

And see? I said I hoped to get the kitchen done in July, and looky there…NOTHIN’ else has been done. It’s the kiss of DIY death to say it out loud. :) (Well, I did work on the window treatments, but they did NOT go as planned. More on that later!)

I still don’t know where I’m going to place the glass doors in the upper cabinets – but now I’m contemplating doing all of them. Hmmmm…that depends on if I can get the not so pretty stuff hidden away in baskets. There’s that itsy bitsy cost issue too. ;)

Next, my love of Craigslist blossomed. And I had a ton of fun decorating my new, loverly  buffet for our foyer:

I have plans to add beautiful crystal knobs to this beauty, once I find them. :)

I continued my blogging series and discussed how/when/where/why I’ve accepted ads and what’s worked for me:

Many of you asked how long I had been blogging when I was up to the 2,000+ hits a day and decided to start accepting ads. I started this blog in May of 08, so it had been eight months total at that point. My site did not really take off till the fall of 08, so I had been actively blogging for five months.

I showed you how I took Walmart and Target jars, and black craft vinyl and made adorable cereal jars and “chalkboard” labels:

The vinyl is the stuff you use for craft cutters, like the Silhouette. I found mine at Meijer, but I think you can find it at Walmart and Target, and for sure at Hobby Lobby and Joann’s. If you loved the idea of Chalk Ink markers, you can find them here.

Some of you asked if the cereal has stayed fresh, and so far so good! The lids aren’t air tight, but they provide enough of a seal. I just munched on some Cheerios to double check, and they were nice ‘n crunchy. :)

I showed you my next Craigslist find, which was actually my first Craigslist find, but whatever. I originally bought a dresser for the foyer, but it was way too big, so I ended up moving it to the family room, and now this spot:

Now looks like this:

Sigh. Isn’t she lovely?

I admitted to my love of faux and showed the nonbelievers that yes, it can look good!:

At least I think so.  ;)

I showed off Emily and some of her fab projects, including these DIY Willliams Sonoma candleholders:

Oh yeah, hers were only two bucks EACH. I do believe Dollar Trees all over the country are cleaned out. :)

Next, I dissected the beautiful catalog pictures we all drool over:

And I still love them, even with the fake menu falling off the wall. ;)

I showed you the chore I loathe…and the torture I go through to get this:

To this:

Let’s just say there’s some sweating involved. And a clear schedule for the day.

One of my lovely readers let me know that these bins were recalled:

I was annoyed with them anyway (they “shed,” you can’t sit on them and the lids don’t stay up – hence the recall). I took them back and got a store credit – if you have them, you may want to see if you can do the same!

I discussed one of my most frequently asked questions – how to pick out and mix metal finishes in your house:

And also mentioned my hatred of shiny brass. ;)

Many of you have asked if I have tried spray painting door knobs – I haven’t, but my friend Beckie has, and she gives you the low down here. I think they’ve held up pretty well for her!

Last weekend, Saffron Marigold offered a fantastic giveaway of their luxurious linens.

One of my favorite (and mostly FREE!) changes of late was taking the massive hutch off the beautiful buffet in our dining room:

I “made” a mirror, Emily’s candleholders (from above) and got some fabuloso lamps from HomeGoods, and it was complete! (And loverly!!)

Finally, I showed you how some of our rooms have progressed over the years, from this:

To this:

It’s taken six and a half years to get from the before to the after, and there’s still more I’d like to change up!

I have to give a BIG shout out to my wonderful advertisers for July as well! You can click their buttons to get to their sites:

If you are interested in a photography class that teaches you the basics of beginner photography, how to better use your camera and its settings, etc., then Angie’s class is for you!:

If you need quick, easy dinner recipes and family meals, check out Quick and Easy Dinners for a ton of ideas!:

Dimples and Dandelions is a family owned company that sells the most adorable and unique products available for both baby and child!:

Bomobob’s shop is full of fine carnival, bird, flower, nature and travel photography -- all shot with vintage film, digital, and Polaroid cameras. And ALL unique and original!:

PhotoJewelryMaking.com is the world's largest photo jewelry supplies super store, offering a large selection of photo jewelry making items such as bracelet, brooch, pendant and ring blanks. (And more!):

Need help decorating a room in your house? The designers at My Design Guide will help with everything from choosing the perfect paint colors to picking furniture, lighting and accessories:

And thanks to my additional lovely advertisers for July – The Vintage Pearl, Thirty-One and The Rusted Chain:

 

And thanks to YOU for what was the BIGGEST month ever at TDC!!

HOLY CATS.

I couldn’t do this without you Squeeeeeezies!!  ;)

* The Before and After Party is on for this coming Monday – it will go up that night!

** If you are interested in my primary or secondary advertising, or a giveaway post, email me at thriftydecorchick (at) gmail (dot) com.

*** If you have any additional questions about this month’s posts that I didn’t answer, please leave them in the comments and I’ll respond back this weekend.

SNS #41 brings you ~ mantels

 

~ Happy summer! ~

For this SNS event, this mom and son team have some weekend summertime plans and computer time will be minimum. However, I'm still happy to host and will peek in when I can. Enjoy the party!

Intro

Welcome to Saturday Nite Special #41!

If you're new here, join in! There are three categories to link to. Home Decor as well as Crafts, Sewing, Recipes, plus the themed link! Check below for this weekend's theme.

Party starts Fri night and ends Sunday 11pm pacific, so you have all weekend to join!

I LOVE to highlight inspiring posts during the event on the sidebar, so make sure you check in several times over the weekend. You may be next. :)

~ This weekend's themed link ~

mantels

A fireplace is generally a major focal point to a room. So when a substantial mantel is staring back at you, it's fun to come up with different looks!

I have a couple of mantel tricks to share that seem to work with my beefy darker variety.

1. Let scale guide you.

My mantel is very beefy, so it requires some serious accessory weight to it.

But nearly all fireplaces need some visual height interest, so play around with mirrors, windows, shutters, pictures, etc. Bring in that one major impact first, then work around it.

2. Dark fireplace? Lighten it up with a mirror.

One trick I like to use with my particular mantel is the mirror. I've tried over and over to change it and put something else in it's place, but I keep finding the mirror really helps to illuminate an otherwise dark area. This old dresser mirror always promptly goes back up. :)

3. Add some safe illumination for a fun twist.

I've used mini lights year round to fireplace vignettes over time. You could say it's a safe version of candlelight and casts the coolest look in the evenings.

Don't be afraid to change out and try new things on your mantel. Customize it with the things you yourself love that work with your surroundings, stagger the height in your objects so you don't end up with just a parade of items, and enjoy!

What's your favorite thing to plunk on your own mantel? Feel free to link yours up in the 3rd themed linkup below!

~ Upcoming themed linkups ~

kitchen islands

old chairs

your fav project

front doors

There! Now you can plan some projects so you can join in easier! I'll post them in the order you see here.

What other themes would you like to see on SNS? Let me know in comments! 

And let's not forget, next week is...

 

on Wed Aug 4th! Are you ready?!?

 ~ SNS blah blah linkup rules ~

1. Please link up your intended post, NOT your blog homepage url. (post, then click the title of your post, cut and paste that url)

2. Please put a link in your post that leads back to the party so others can see what's up! (scroll button on sidebar if you wish)

 3. This party is geared for DIY type projects we can all attempt to make ourselves. Items for sale may be linked up IF your entry is posted on your blog and in tutorial style (unless making the item is self explanatory).

5. For Home Decor and Crafts, Sewing, Cooking, please link projects up that are new to SNS and within 1 month old. The 3rd weekly themed link may have older posts and not brand new to SNS.

If you can't decide which category to enter yours in, please just pick ONE and go with it. It's all good!

I am BACK! Nearly. :)

I have a little secret to share with you.

We just got home from CAMPING!!

Right after my son came home from camp, we head out to a campsite for 5 nights,  to Hope, BC, Canada. And as you can imagine, I have some fun stories and spectacular photos to share with you!

However, as it's a long weekend here, we're going to continue the sun and fun good times for a few days longer. So although I'm back, I'm not fully connecting to the computer as yet.

BUT ... a post wouldn't really be a post without a LITTLE story, correct? See that wonderful cup of coffee above?

I love my coffee. And my son knows it. So he surprised me in pouring me a cup. Awwww...

But, the grin never left his face. So I knew something was up.

Only moments ago, my cup was adorned with these camping creatures... hmmm... let's add things up here...

Yup. Curiousity confirmed. My coffee had become a swampy lagoon for one of these creatures. Ah well. A mom can dream she was being serviced in the grandest of style for JUST a moment, yes?

And then more play-hem followed.

And so did the stories after this. After all, camping is known for fun and games for a good reason. :)

SNS is still scheduled to fly tonite. See you then for... mantel madness!

StampTV CHA Envy Challenge #2

There are three StampTV CHA Envy Challenges and today I am posting a card I made for Lee's   CHA Envy Challenge #2.   She  challenged  us to use Yellow and Black as the main colors. 

The card opens from the top.  I used a square Nestability to create the flap on the top.  A flourish from Heartfelt Creations was used for the decoration along with a bow made with ribbon from GKD.  The black design paper is from the Making Memories "Wedding" paper pack.  The flowers are from the StampTV Showtime Stamp kit "Picture It".   The inside of the card was lined with yellow dotted paper.  The verse is from Melanie's "Say It With Flowers" stamp set available from Gina K Designs.  It was stamped on a Nesties Label Ten die and sponged prior to taking it out.  The butterfly is from the Picture It stamp set.  The card is held closed with a round Velcro dot.