Spring Succulent Wreath

Being heavily pregnant with twins has left me with little energy these days so I'm seeking out quick, easy projects to decorate our house for Spring.  This succulent wreath fit the bill perfectly.

This was my initial inspiration.

Supplies:

• grapevine wreath
• faux succulents
• hot glue gun
• ribbon for hanging

I found my faux succulents at the dollar tree.  Yes - the dollar tree.  I ended up using 15 of them.  I had the ribbon and grapevine wreath on hand (it was also what I used for our 2013 Christmas wreath).

After removing the succulents from their pots and styrofoam "dirt", I liberally applied the hot glue on their stems, and stuck them in between the grapevines.  I added some green ribbon to the top and hung it on the front door.  Simple as that.

I am pretty impressed with the look of the dollar tree succulents.  

I also love the fact that this wreath isn't necessarily Spring-specific (i.e. no eggs, bunnies, etc). Since my life is going to get very busy in late Spring, it may end up gracing our door until Fall.

I hope the warmer temperatures and Spring weather make an appearance in your area this week!  Happy Monday!

Where My Nursery At?

We are finishing up an accent wall in the nursery this week.  Until then, I wanted to update you guys on where we are with things.  The following mood board portrays my vision and most of the items that will be used in the final room.  (The dresser below is just a stand in for our mid-century thrifted find.)

I'm still undecided about the main, colorful piece of artwork that will tie all the colors together (I'll share some options soon) and smaller accessory items, but this is where things are headed.  The main colors will be blues and greens but some other accent colors will make an appearance.  Stay tuned!

Easy Yarn Banner Art

The wall above our "cat feeding station" has been empty since we swapped the dining room and office (then we repainted and started to decorate).  I came across a pillow with the question "Are you kitten me right meow?" on it a few weeks ago and I decided it would be the perfect phrase for this spot.

I didn't want another piece of framed art so I decided to make a banner instead.

Supplies:

  - ~ 1/2 yard of canvas

  - round dowel rod (not pictured)

  - yarn

  - fabric glue

  - string or jute (not pictured)

  - painters tape

  - stain (optional; not pictured)

First, I cut my piece of canvas to the size I wanted.  Mine ended up being 18" across by " long.  Then, I "hemmed" the side and bottom edges using fabric glue and let that sit overnight.

The next day, I measured and used my painters tape to mark off where my words would go.  I am not good at eyeballing things like this.  If you are, feel free to skip the taping.  My words would have been super crooked and uncentered without the tape as my guide.

I had originally planned to sew the words onto the canvas cloth but the canvas is so thick that the needle left a gaping hole when I poked it through.  So plan B was to use the fabric glue.

I "drew" my word with the glue and then carefully laid my yarn on top.  (Sorry for the lack of progress shots.  Bad blogger.)

After the glue dried for a few hours, I folded the top hem over my stained dowel rod and applied more glue.  The next morning, the glue at this top hem had not held.  Plan B was to use a needle and thread and sew the hem together around the dowel rod.  Turns out, hand sewing a straight line is not my forte.  Onto plan C.  Iron on hem tape.  Worked like a charm.

I tied some jute twine around the ends of the dowel rod and hung up my new banner!

I kinda wish I had left room for a question mark but I realized this after I had centered and glued down "meow".  Oh well.

I like the quirkiness it adds to the room.  It makes me smile when I read it.  Crazy cat ladies unite!

Stay tuned for some nursery updates (the accent wall is nearly complete) and a kitchen update (we bought a new vent hood and the floor tiles are going down this tomorrow!).  Have a productive weekend!

Nursery Wall Color Reveal

Lately, a common question that I'm getting from friends and family is "How is the nursery coming along?".  I usually tell them that it's coming along pretty well...we've put cribs together and painted.  They then ask, "What color?"  And when I tell them, I get varied reactions.  I'm definitely not second guessing but I think most people aren't expecting it.  Don't worry.  It will look much better when the room is finished.  And the color we chose is.......

white!  Valspar's Ultra White to be exact (same as our master bedroom and office).

It is the perfect backdrop for the special wall treatment (hoping to do that this weekend) and colorful accessories that I have in mind.

Sorry - no wide angle shots.  The room is a mess and I don't want to give too much away yet. 

What do you think?  Would you paint a nursery white?