An Award and a Giveaway!!!.......

A Giveaway at the SHABBY NEST!!! My big sis has finally opened her own ETSY shop and to celebrate she is giving away this adorable scrabble pendant. (One of her own unique designs may I add.) So hop on over there and try to win a Wendy original!!

And, no I am not tooting her horn because she recently awarded me with this cute and sassy "fabulous" award, (which I love,...thanks Wend!!),...I am actually tooting her horn because she is just plain extraordinary, and I will be trying to win that pendant myself. :) Happy Friday Blogger Friends!!!

Little Curtains.....

For a small laundry room window. (disclaimer....these photos are yellow and leave much to be desired....pffft!!) I always feel the compulsion to have everything decorated cute. Even the little window in my laundry room seemed so bare to me, and wanting for some flowing tresses of it's own. So I had to dress it up. I got four plain orange cloth napkins at Walmart and sewed some pre- made beaded fringe on the bottoms of them. Then I added some pretty ribbon to the top to serve as tab tops. Lastly I screwed 4 adorable vintage knobs into the wall to serve as a curtain rod.

I tied the napkins onto the knobs, and there you have it...a valance/curtain of miniature proportions.

Is it a bracelet?,...Is it a watch?,...Is it super???

I love to accessorize,...It's like a disease,...and this was just too easy and too fun!

Is it an orange watch??

Is it a silver and orange watch?

Is it just silver?

I bought this watch face at my local craft store because of the big wire bails on either side.

You measure your wrist and make as many bands as you want (minus the length of the watch face.) Any color, size, shape,...mix and match,...GO CRAZY!!! Put a lobster claw clasp at both ends to fasten it. YAY!!!

Hairbow Tutorial

I am not the most articulate person on the planet, therefore I do not often do tutorials. But,...several people have told me they would like to know how I make my bows. This type is my favorite. I call it the double decker.

I like two use three semi-coordinating ribbons in different widths.

I take the widest and wrap it around my fingers until I have two complete loops. This ribbon will determine how large you want your bow.

I have no idea what this stuff is called (helpful huh?), but you can find it in the ribbon section of any craft store. It is an inexpensive twine that is some what wiry, but still very flexible.

I wrap it around twice and tie it off. Then spread the ribbon for a desired effect.

Then I use my next choice of ribbon and follow the same steps making the bow noticeably smaller. I plop it on top and tie it off. (Husbands, roommates, and little sisters can be a helpful set of hands if you are lacking in coordination. :))

I flip it over and tie the whole thing securely in the back before trimming off the excess twine.

Sometimes I top it of with a button or a fabric flower, but when I choose to top it off with ribbon I cut a small-ish length and tie it into a loose knot for a decorative finish.

I put a small dot of hot glue in the front of the bow to hold the knot in place.

Use your favorite kind of clip, (I prefer this kind because they slip easily on top of other bows and hold well in fine toddler hair), and hot glue it to the back of the bow. I try to hold it open so that the clip doesn't glue shut. This can be awkward to hold,...so sometimes I just slip something between the prongs.

Once it is really well secured I wrap the top ribbon the rest of the way around and hot glue it between the prongs. This also secures the clip on better.

Trim off the extra and..............Voila.......................Cute hair bow. Nowadays when I give a baby present I top it off with one of these instead of curly ribbon. (For girls of course. ;))

Creative Man

Nothing sexier than a creative man, right? :) (Maybe I'm speaking only for myself,...but creativity in a guy is really appealing to me.) My husband made these masks several years ago and they are still some of my favorite pieces of art in our home. He was in the graduate program for architecture at the U. of U. and this was one of the many odd assignments that he was given. Due to the fact that he is very artistic and meticulous I think they turned out beautifully. They say that most artists suffer for their work,...well he certainly did. He had me paper mache his face, which took a looonng time. Then it wouldn't dry so I had to blow dry it for him. (Which at first was too cold, and then it was too hot......................)
He spent hours marking slate with a utility knife, and then carefully breaking it. he glued it piece by piece onto the paper mache. I watched as these beautiful masterpieces emerged. Then I selfishly bugged him about retrieving them unharmed day after day until they were finally graded.
I searched high and low for shadow box frames deep enough to shelter them, and short of having them made there weren't any. I ended up mounting them on several layers of cardboard and decorative paper. (Tons of glue, and then I even tied them down,...you can never be too careful, eh?) To my delight............they were fantastic. Sometimes I still stop and stare at them. Thank you talented hubby!