DIY: Last Minute Christmas Table Sprucing

Hope everyone is ready for Christmas! I squeezed in a last minute DIY project this afternoon. We're hosting Christmas dinner tomorrow night for 17! YIKES! I needed a little something festive to add to the table.

I decided to give a quick and easy sprucing to my favorite, go-to water jugs. They're only $2.99 at Ikea and fit with any decor.

I had some extra plaid flannel fabric laying around so I cut a strip about 5" wide.

I then took bottle #1 and started rolling it over the fabric to cover the circumference of the bottle.

Next, take twine, ribbon, twill tape or anything else you have lying around. I used baker's twine for mine and wrapped it a few times to hold the fabric in place.

To make them a little more festive, I added some greenery (I stole it from my wreath!) You could also add some holly berries or anything else festive! (**OK, truth be told..I just wrote twigs and berries....I don't think that would have gone over very well! : )

And the final product....

I hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas Eve!!

Storefront Windows

I have to say, this Christmas is going to be a little bitter-sweet for me. Sweet, in that it will be my very first Christmas with my husband! I'm so excited for us to create traditions and memories of our own. But, it will be a little bitter in that my sister will be missing Christmas at home for the first time - ever! We hold strong to our traditions each year and it would be an understatement to say it will be weird to not have her here. Instead of being in sunny CA, Heather will be in (hopefully) snowy New York City!! She has promised to take LOADS of pictures of all of the storefront windows decked out for Christmas. I'm beyond jealous as this is on the top of my bucket list to experience. Here's what's waiting for Heather in NYC!

This was hands down my favorite. Barney's New York teamed up with The Food Network and created a jaw-dropping window display made of "Illy" products. That dress is made completely of foil coffee bags!

Bergdorf's theme this year was travel.

I love Henri Bendel's take on The Nutcracker. Never has the Mouse King looked so elegant!

No offense to Lord & Taylor, but the mannequin's in their depictions of favorite Christmas memories just came off a little creepy. Anyone else?

John Derian's fun and funky window - love those lights!

A funky vignette in Gump's (San Fran)

No post on window displays would be complete without the Godfather of all window display-ers. Definitely not the best of the season, but as always, creative. Anthropologie's eco-friendly Christmas window display. **Fun fact - I applied to be a window designer for Anthropologie. I soon realized that my creativity isn't "out there" enough. The interview process was VERY interesting!

Heather - I so wish I was touring all these window displays with you! Maybe next year! xoxo

To check out more of the Bergdorf window display process, check out this video.

Tis' The Season

Once again I've been MIA. I was completely taken out by bronchitis last week and am just now catching up. I haven't completely finished our Christmas decorating, but have managed to get a little bit up.

I came home with two Euro Trees after a trip to Roger's Gardens on Monday. If you're ever in the Corona Del Mar area (especially during the Christmas season) you must stop by. It's an incredible nursery that turns into a Christmas spectacular every year around this time.

Cozy (faux I promise!) furry blanket. You can see a little snippet of our new console table. I've been meaning to post - I promise I'll do it soon!

The Christmas tree is up and decorated!

Mama Seagrass made our stockings a few years ago out of scraps of plaid flannel fabric.

Tutorial: The Blanket Stitch

Hello Everyone! I hope you all have recovered from Thanksgiving. We're still working on leftovers here at our house. YUM!

I had a couple of questions on the blanket stitching that I posted here. So, I thought I'd do a tutorial post. Hope this makes sense and helps!

1) Start your first stitch by inserting the needle through the backside catching just a small amount of fabric.

2) Pull all the way through.

3) Start your second stitch about 3/8" from the top of your fabric, and about 3/8" to the right of your first stitch. (Or as far apart as you would like your stitches to be.)

4) Loop your thread behind the needle before pulling your needle all the way through.

5) Pull your thread through leaving a small amount of "give" at the end.

6) Gently pull your stitch directly up and then to the right. You don't want your stitch to be pulled completely tight - there should be a small amount of "give."

7) Begin your next stitch equidistant from the first. Make sure your thread is behind your needle before pulling it through.

8) Gently pull up and to the right so that your vertical stitch is straight.

9) Continue until complete!

There you have it!

This makes an excellent movie project. I don't know about you, but I'm the type that can't just sit and watch a movie. I did this pillow in about an hour. I'm thinking next up will be a set of napkins!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hope everyone had a very Happy Thanksgiving! As you can see, I didn't get my act together to post a day-of post. I was busy rolling....

Cutting...

And baking....

Now I'm off to eat a salad and go for a run! : )

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Pillow Talk

My sofa has desperately been needing some love in the pillow department. So bad in fact that I won't show the before's. I re-did my parents living room this past Spring, and anytime I was hosting something at our house, I would steal my mom's pillows. : ) So, last Monday it was off to the fabric store- and I completely scored!!

I found this red fabric for $3 a yard. And yes - I bought the entire bolt. Which means you will be seeing this in the form of a Christmas-y duvet very soon.

I thought I'd mix things up a bit and tie these stripy pillows with twill tape. I scored this fabric on the remnants table - 7 yards for $5...TOTAL

The plaid pillow received a red blanket stitch edge. I found a 2 yard bundle of this cozy plaid on the remnant table too, and the sweet woman at the fabric store threw it in for free!

There you have it! My new wintery pillows!

This and That

I thought I'd share a few snippets from the week. I'm trying to get better about my posting, but the week just seems to slip away from me.

My week started off with a surprise package. Actually, I had ordered it back in July but had completely forgotten about it until this week. This sweetly wrapped packaged arrived from John Robshaw.

Inside was my new business card holder.

I feel so official!

David and I took full advantage of our beautiful weather we're having here in SD and spent almost the entire day outside. We kicked off our day with a bike ride and tacos at Bull Taco. If you're close by - this hidden gem is a must! It's tucked away in the Cardiff campgrounds, perched right on the cliff overlooking the water and has killer food! (The view's not bad either!)

We headed South towards Torrey Pine.....

...and headed off on a four-mile hike!

On a WHOLE different note, I have a new project brewing. Welcome to the Shed. This shed is attached to our garage and has been everything from a gardening shed to a workshop shed, to most recently a storage shed. I have had big plans for this little shed since the day we moved in. A craft shed.

I am so intrigued by the spaces creative people create for themselves. My mom has always had her "sewing room." I have so many fond memories of that room. Many Halloween costumes have been constructed, matching dresses for my sister and I sewn, and clothes have been patched in that room. I even vaguely remember receiving the birds and bees convo in that room. : )

I have been having an extreme craving for a creative outlet lately, and it seems like the perfect time to finally get this room on its' way. This room has never really been finished but I actually love the open framing and only plan on painting.

I'd love to eventually replace this little window with french doors.

For a look at another insanely creative space - take a look at Alexis's Art Barn.

{via Fern+Feather}

I'm off to dream of paint colors!