the room that changed our lives and GO TEAM USA!

 You may or may not remember this long ago post.
we waited for years for this room to be finished...and it has been so. totally. worth. the. wait!

 in case you haven't heard, we are in the midst of a drought here. it's a stinking scorcher. except for this glorious room in our basement. i am telling you, it feel likes a meat locker. freezing.

and, as you can see, we've got our olympic spirit going on! 

 we are so pumped for the opening ceremony!

 i love all the tv coverage, the ooey gooey emotional stories about the athletes, the unyielding competitiveness that makes these people OLYMPIC ATHLETES!

it's truly amazing to me.

 so, we will be here, bundled up with flannel blankets, cheering for our favorites! how will you be enjoying the olympics?

summer fun!

i miss silver bella.

holystink. blogger is way different than i remember it! is this an indication that i have been gone too long???

girls. i have to tell you something. i NEED silver bella. or some other art retreat that isn't a million dollars and far from home. the well here has run somewhat dry, and i am thirsty!!!! what are you all doing? please share your plans for creating with me. i would love to hear what you've got going on.

busy.

first of all i want to apologize for the longest blog break ever. not intentional, just life. i'll catch you up very quickly.

we bought the dump next door.



and then we tore it down.



this was evidently a springboard onto a plethora of household projects, because we haven't stopped moving since!

1. the dump is gone.
2. the scary room in the basement is now a utility room. (yay!)
3. our wood floors have been redone, and they are gorgeous! we are so thankful!
4. i painted our living room, and have been slowly putting our home back together.
5. grant organized and completed some slight construction in the garage to make better use of the space there.

now that i type it out, the list looks somewhat short, but we have been getting everything done AND working our regular jobs, AND kid stuff. so. you know what i am talking about. B.U.S.Y.

i will be back soon with pretties.
happy day to you all, if any of you are still around!
:)

oh, i DO love pink roses!

these are coffee filter paper roses.

i l.o.v.e. them!


so pretty, so easy, so forever, so many possibilities!!!
happy day, friends!

l.o.v.e.

february has become one of my favorite months of the year. pretty sure it has something to do with all the pink, the roses, and, of course, the chocolate.


danielle, a silver bella friend, recently hosted a valentine swap. we were each asked to create three stuffed hearts to be sent off and traded with like minded girlies "out there".


this beauty was created by connie at constantly vintage.



so lovely. the white on white with all that vintage goodness speaks to me. LOVE IT! LOVE IT!


and this is simply divine. jana, brown-eyed girl and photographer extraordinaire. seriously check out her blog. holy moley. she is talented.


i was blessed to share a table with jana during charlotte lyon's class at my first silver bella. jana is a wonderful, sweet southern girl, and i am seriously tickled pink to have one of her handmade lovelies in my home.


sigggghhhhhh. and this. THIS precious pillowette was created by kana, who possesses one of the greatest southern drawls out there. kana is also a silver bella friend. just one of those girls you like immediately and can't wait to get to know better.

i am in crazy love with barkcloth, and totally wild about this subtle pink pattern and design. the sweet ruffle, the vintage key hole - doesn't it just melt your heart a bit?


this is a photo of the hearts i sent. the pink fancy work was found in the bottom of an old box at my grandma's. (we have been sorting through her precious treasures since she and my grandpa have become residents in a local care home and have decided to sell their home.) there were about 12 inches of this piece wrapped around a spool. i had been hoarding it, wanting to use it for something really special. this swap fit the bill.

thanks for letting me share my sweet treats, friends!
i have to share this little funny with you. i realized i really wasn't feeling well when plugging in the glue gun seemed like too much work! ha!

much love!

happy valentine's day!

xoxoxoxoxox

l.o.v.e. gift

my silver bella friend, hope, shared these on her blog a couple weeks ago. i was instantly smitten.

an email and payment later, and i am the happy owner of this gor.geous handmade necklace.

great news! hope has just opened her etsy shop! check. it. out!

xoxoxo

valentine lovelies

i participated in a valentine swap hosted by the very sweet and generous laurie at indulge your shelf.

look at that itty bitty embellished dolly shoe. adorable!
i love the idea of creating something with my hands to give to a kindred spirit who shares the same crafting obsession i have.


these little lovelies arrived yesterday, beating the blizzard by a few hours! so cute!


so pretty!


these are the hearts that i sent to laurie, who then bundled our goodies and shipped them to the participants. thank you, laurie!



great way to use up the little scrappies i can't seem to part with.


we have over 8 inches of snow so far! i love winter, being home with my family, piddling in the art room, and knowing that there is no reason to leave our little nest!
much love!
xoxoxo

garland love

i've wanted to make a garland like this forever. a couple weeks ago, i finally got down to business. i used cup cake papers, wadded up music sheets, and vintage french pink toilet paper that i bought from jenni bowlin at silver bella. (i spent 14 dollars on antique pink toilet paper, and let me just tell you, i have not regretted it for a minute! in fact, i have seriously been hoarding it, afraid to use it up!!!)



this is, of course, an attempt at the cool coffee filter garlands pam garrison brought to the creative world years ago.



we have one last mini construction job to do in my art room...that gray electric box you see in the corner has got to go. we have a plan to camouflage it, just need to get on it.
big snowstorm coming our way!!!
yay!!!
i love being trapped at home!

projects 4, 5 and 6:

i am ready to wrap this pinkabella postin' stuff up! thanks for being patient as i relive our fun girl getaway!

the last three projects were fast and fun.

the butterfly wreath: the girls wrapped fuzzy pink yarn around a small hoop. (we actually used round cardboard boxes (cheese?) that a gal from school had shared with me. i just cut the faces out. embroidery hoops would work just fine.)


once the hoops were covered, the girls chose paper butterflies to adorn with. beatrice used glittery white and silver paper. folded in half and layered, the butterflies look ready to take flight. this is a completely different look than the one i created here.


project 5, the burlap banners, turned out so pretty. i'm thinking this mamma is gonna be busy whipping up a few more of these. the girls used a heart stencil, chose their favorite shade of pink, painted right onto the burlap, let dry, and glued a long ribbon along the top. we are talking e.a.s.y. i would like to thank someone in the land of pinterest for this lovely inspiration.



and finally, a stitching project. charlotte lyons shared this adorable snowman on her blog last year, and i was smitten. i prepared the kits for our first pinkabella, but we ran out of time and energy before we got to it. this year, we were IN THE VAN on our way home, but we stitched a snowman.



and there you have it, friends!
we love pinkabella!


i have to tell you something. it might seem sorta foolish to spend a weekend away in a hotel when you could stay home and create these same projects...but it is the getting away from home that ensures the girls our complete attention. i know with all my heart that these days mean more than craft time with mamma, we are creating precious memories and moments. can't wait till next year!
xoxoxo