"She left the suds in the bucket...

...and her clothes hanging out on the line!" Suds in the Bucket by Sara Evans.

Heya, lovelies! Today I have a DIY Shirt Quick-Fix Tutorial. I've been on a video kick lately, so you get both a movie tutorial and pictures. :P

So, I have this shirt, which, sadly, got grease stains on it. I expect I'll eventually treat the shirt and get the stains out, but in the meantime I'd like to still wear it! How can I temporarily cover the spots without ruining the shirt!?!?!

Stains make me sad.

With the help of a bow, made out of a scarf I have that happens to match my shirt, and a safety pin...

Safety pin to the rescue!

Taa-daa! A quirky, Zooey-Deschanel-esque fix!

Problem solved!

Mwah!

"We were sailing, sailing, over the bounding main...

...but now we're not." Cabin Fever from Muppet Treasure Island (1996). 

Wow, July went by me in a flash! I can't believe the summer is winding down...and the beginning of the end was marked (in our part of the world!) by the World's Longest Yard Sale on route 127!

Baby and I hopped in and out of the car all along the nearest 20 miles of 127, and we found several treasures, one of which is this darling antique silver sugar bowl.

Not being used for sugar, as you can see.

And Irony is dismayed in the background (James was hollering "Kitty!") Also, on the shelf just below the cat, onions from some amazing (green thumbed) neighbors! 

The house is a general disaster right now, as I bought a bunch of bulk stuff and we're in the throes of canning from our fruit 'n veggie bonanza (thanks again to those neighbors!) so there's crates of tomatoes and squash scattered throughout the house amongst huge packages of paper towels and boxes of water bottles, but after this weekend hopefully order will be restored and we'll have more pretties (and baby) to show you!

For now, this will have to do. Baby is practicing his in-line-skating skills.

Love!

"The rest of it's fine...

...and everybody knows that." We Used To Be Friends by The Dandy Warhols

Today I have accomplished something I have long wanted to do but just never got my act together enough to do it, and, frankly, I was intimidated by it.

I baked bread! From scratch! With no bread machine! With crying baby in tow, no less!

One of the two loaves the recipe rendered.

And it is good. I used this recipe (found on Pinterest, of course) and it couldn't have turned out more perfectly. We had it with slow-cooker vegetable beef stew, and it was deeeeeee-licious!

And the baby finally fell asleep, permitting mommy to not only complete her amazing bread-making, but also to post about it. Bless his sweet little heart.

Love!

"Tyrannosaurus rex means tyrant king...

...he terrorized the countryside and made the giant reptiles hide." The Tyrant King by unknown. (Sang this back in grade school!)

Inspired by this, I made a velociraptor toothbrush holder for my dino-lovin' niece as a little easter present! I thought the pink really added something. <3 nbsp="" p="">

Perhaps Jamesy will get one when he's bigger. 

For the DIY...just find a plastic dino (any plastic animal would work - I found mine in the dollar section of Target) and drill a hole that is (hopefully) the right size for your toothbrush! I also painted this one pink with non-toxic paint. 

Love!

"If I could be yours, and you could be mine...

...our cozy little world would be twice as nice." Personal Penguin by Sandra Boynton

Today, while James did this...

...and Irony did this...

..and Izzy did this...

...and the weather did this...

(...and a squirrel in our front yard did this...)

...I did this on our little chalkboard:

A well-spent morning. 

(And don't worry, the back still has our running Scrabble scores. I'm still winning. Barely.) :P

Love!

"Come and roll your sleeves up (so to speak)...

...and pitch in, cleaning crud up in the kitchen." Happy Little Working Song from Enchanted.

Hello lovelies! Happy Friday, and I'm so sorry for another week of silence!

I've been doing all kinds of projects this week plus we've had doctor appointments and birth class and a plethora of other activities almost every day (catching up after our many trips!)

I don't have any linkage for you today, just a picture of the lovely tomatoes I canned this week - aren't you so proud of me? I've been showing them off on Facebook too...I am just tickled to be so homemaker-y! I sometimes feel like my talents are limited to more modern and expensive skills (like say, manicures) but it turns out I can do frugal things as well. :) My great-granma would be so proud! (I already called to confirm that my mom and granma are proud, which they duly said they were, bless them).

Have a lovely weekend!

"May it be a refuge for their love...

...a harbor for their deepest prayers." Prayer for Home by Fernando Ortega

Hello, lovelies! Happy Monday!

One of my personal pet peeves about rental homes is carpet. I mean, the rest of the house can be perfect but carpet...you get what you get. For example: our current house has a fairly neutral (beige) carpet throughout. It's worn, it's dirty (and cleaning seems to make no difference), but neutral. The only exception is in the guest bedroom where the carpet is...red. With blue polka-dots.

So on our initial moving-in, I was stymied. I don't own a lot of red, it's not really my color, and the room felt hopeless to me.  But as the rest of the house fell into place and certain decorating pieces were left without a home, it soon became clear how I would decorate that room. It would be French!

And so, all my college-era French-obsession prints and provincial-style beddings found a home at last! And with the orange-stained inherited furniture, I must say, the red carpet isn't half bad.

Ah well, I tried. I mostly just wanted the room to be welcoming and convenient for visitors. As I have never actually stayed there myself, I can only hope that it's functional and reasonably comfortable. And with the baby coming in October, I anticipate the guest room getting quite a little workout!

Speaking of decorating, I was directed to this fun home-style quiz by my sister, and as it turns out, I am apparently:

A COUNTRY CLASSIC

You have a naturally refined sensibility with an appreciation for tradition and history. You value beauty, craftsmanship, and family heirlooms, but you like to open things up with pretty, easy-going pieces like painted wood or distressed furniture, lovely florals and other patterns, and bunches of fresh flowers that give your home a breezy, relaxed feeling. You love unique finds, have a thrifty, creative side, and can make these things work together.

You value creativity. You are stylish and fun loving, and can be an inspiration to others. You have a natural sense of drama, and you know you have to be willing to take risks—whether with colors, finishes, furniture choices, or ideas—for your home to stand out. Your home can be happy and lively and the place all of your friends want to be.

So now we all know! :) 

"We will see it through...

...for our love is true." Grow Old Along With Me by the Postal Service.

To kick off the fun things I have to share with ya'll this week, I want to let you have a little viewing of the book I made as a present for my sweetheart on our two year anniversary last week.

Irony is so helpful with creating the book.

The lyrics are from our first dance song at our wedding (the same as the title lyrics, above).  I was inspired by a valentine's book my mom made for my dad last year. <3

Love!

"Rudolf the red-nosed reindeer had a very shiny nose...

...and if you ever saw it, you would even say it glows."  Rudolf the Red-Nosed Reindeer performed by Gene Autry. (My favorite version...simple, cute, and it takes me back to my childhood.)

Another Delightful DIY today! (Hmm, link label, anyone?)

These are not Christmasy at all, but I've been wanting to do them for a long time. I did all mine in orange because they were going in my "studio". :)

Again, dollar store animals (I chose dinosaurs....you could also do army men, other animals, or other random things. I was thinking dice would be cute), jars with screw on lids, super glue, and paint.

Tools.... (plus spray paint)

Result!

Rawr!

I love my newly spiced-up craft storage!

Much love!

"I want a hippopotamus for Christmas...

...only a hippopotamus will do." I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas by Gayla Peevey.

Another fun DIY today - and I'm pleased I can offer you not only a hippo, but an elephant, a rhino, a lion, tiger, zebra, sheep, cow, pig...and possibly a jaguar.

I am still working on a name for these cuties - my best efforts so far are "Farm Friends Mini-Candle Perchers," "Safari Friends Mini-Candle Perchers," or, finally,  "Jungle Friends Mini-Candle Perchers." Or maybe just the "Animal Adventure Mini-Candles."

They are super versatile. Anywhere you need a quirky little decoration, you can set one of these. I like having them perch on picture frames (as you can see below) but they're super cute for tablescapes, cake-toppers, and any other random thing you can imagine!

This takes three simple items to create - plastic toy animals (dollar store), spray paint, and sparkle birthday candles in sconces (dollar store). Simply paint the animals (several coats per side), drill a hole for the candle sconce, and viola!

"I wonder-wonder (boom-ba-doo-doo)...

...who wrote the book of love?" Book Of Love by The Monotones. (Maybe not technically  Christmas song, but I always think it is...)

So, friends, fun DIY today!!! I got a thesaurus at the Dollar Store and it has given me a whole plethora of fun little ornaments and decorations. All just made with various shaped scissors, hole punches, and simple tacky glue (and rhinestones).

I just wanted to add a little more festivity to my house before all the relatives get here this weekend! (YAY!) My decorations were nice, but I felt like they were so limited...no more!

Made with pigment ink and letter stamps on my circle pieces of paper. 

Pretties! I love the texture they add to the boring wall. 

Varied lengths to give more dimension.

Layered squares, cut with wave scissors, glued together abstractly with rhinestones.

Inspired by this etsy ornament, 

Simple paper snowflake.

Gift tags galore. :) 

Get yourselves a cheap book to destroy and go crazy!

Much love <3

"Take the straight and narrow path...

...and if you start to slide, give a little whistle!" Give A Little Whistle by Pinocchio and Jiminy Cricket.

More Senex campaigning pics. :)