Weekly Pinterest

Project inspiration from the week, thanks to Pinterest.

Much like my sewing this week, I didn't do too much making.

The one thing I did try was this recipe for strawberry honey butter.  Not only does it taste good, but it's beautiful, too!

I've also been enjoying cleaning and sorting for my 40 day challenge.  Purging all the "stuff" is just so satisfying.

Want to see what else I'm pinning?  Check it out here.

xoxo

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A rainbow shirt for Sister

This little shirt was pretty much the extent of my sewing this week.  My poor, neglected sewing machine... ;)

Inspired by both Mini Boden and Meg, I used my favorite Sienna pattern (again and again!), shortening it to about 12 inches to make a shirt rather than a dress, and I then sewed happy polka dot and gingham bits into a  messy rainbow.  Simple as that!

xoxo

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A useful dining room centerpiece

This has been our dining room centerpiece for awhile now.

Nothing that hasn't already been done a million times before, just a wooden crate filled with some mealtime essentials: trivets, napkins, straws, etc.

I realized I was spending the first minutes of every meal back and forth from the kitchen fetching forgotten things.  Why didn't I think of this before??  Keeping everything together right on the table has made my life a teensy bit easier.

Now if only I could keep Sister from smearing the graham crackers in her hair...

Oops.  Edited to add sources:


crate: Homegoods
trivets: Ikea
cracker jar: WalMart
aqua canister: vintage
rainbow straws: Ikea
napkin holder: World Market
napkins: hahahaha! Costco

xoxo  

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Happy Paczki Day!

My husband and I are both of Polish descent, so Fat Tuesday is known as Paczki Day in our family.


Like jelly doughnuts, only better, we spent the day stuffing our faces with them. Chicago has a huge Polish population, so there's no shortage of authentic bakeries filled with every variety.  (I chose strawberry filled this year!) 

And tomorrow is the start of Lent, so along with waving bye bye to my beloved candy for the next 40 days, I'm revisiting last year's 40 bags in 40 days challenge.  I've got a fresh box of Hefty bags and I'm itching to purge.  I can't wait!! :)

xoxo

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Weekly Pinterest

Project inspiration from the week, thanks to Pinterest.

We squeezed in one last Valentiney project and used toilet paper rolls as stamps.  The delicacy of a stamp made from cardboard was lost on a 3 year old, so he ended up with a crunched up, paint soaked wad of tp roll in his hand after just a few minutes...come to think of it, that may have been the best part for him!  Big Brother enjoyed it, too, and stamped the "right" way into a proper heart painting.

Did you see the tip about wiping down your faucets with waxed paper?  It's supposed to keep water spots from appearing.  I just did this yesterday, so the jury's still out if it works or not.

I have a jar of French roast chilling in our fridge in the name of DIY Frappuccinos.  Like I needed more caffeine in my life.  :)  But they're pretty awesome.

And did you see that a regular mouth mason jar will fit on your blender?  The perfect size for making drinks (ahem, see above), one less thing to try to fit into the dishwasher...and my husband teases me that I look like I'm drinking moonshine out of a jar! :)

Follow along with all my pins right here.

xoxo

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Sponsor welcome: 13 Pumpkins and Daisy Decals

I'm so excited to welcome two new sponsors that joined the blog over the weekend!

First, meet 13 Pumpkins.  As soon as I saw this shop, I was in love.

The hand painted, distressed wooden signs are perfectly imperfect and I could see many of them hanging throughout our home.  


I'm having a hard time deciding between the Walking on Sunshine, You're Pretty Much My Favorite, and the You Have My Whole Heart! I think any these would be the perfect little pick me up to welcome a little bit of spring and fresh color in your home.   And who wouldn't want to receive one as a gift either?! :)


And not only do they have hand painted wooden signs, but there is also a selection of vinyl wall art. This shop has a ton of must haves, so go check it out!

a pretty cool life. readers can get 20% off your entire order from 13 Pumpkins between now and Saturday, February 25, using the coupon code PRETTYCOOL20. Many thanks to 13 Pumpkins!!!

And next, meet Daisy Decals.



This fun shop specializes in selling retro and vintage decals that can be applied on your laptop, ipad or pretty much anywhere else you can think of!  

Who doesn't want a little bit of personalization for their laptop? I think any of these would be the perfect way to add a little bit of fun onto otherwise boring electronics, not to mention they make it easy to spot your device right away!   

With all the designs, it was hard to narrow down just a few favorites, but the VW bus, the View Master, and the retro camera decals all made me smile.


This shop has a bunch of super fun items, so go check it out!


a pretty cool life. readers can get 20% off your entire order from Daisy Decals using the coupon code DAISY20. Many thanks to Daisy Decals!!!


Happy shopping!!

xoxo

If you have a blog or shop you'd like to promote, please email for rates and details.

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The infamous no-sew fleece blanket

You know the one.  The one that 7th graders everywhere make as a first project in Home Ec. :)

There are probably tutorials everywhere, but the gist is lay two layers of fleece wrong sides together, make 2 inch slits every inch all the way around, and then knot them all.

To back up, and let you know how this project came to be:

I outsmarted myself.

I thought I could make a quick run into JoAnn's for a package of batting and a pillow form.  Nothing. Else.

No dilly dallying by the spring fabrics and seersucker.  No wandering down the Valentine section.

Pillow form.  Batting.  Focus.

To make sure of it, I even brought Little Brother with me.

3 year old boy + fabric store should guarantee that I left with no more than I intended on purchasing, and in record time.

The plan was brilliant, except I happened to push the cart by the aisle of fleece.  Little Eagle Eye saw it.

Red fleece.  With firemen!  With hoses!  And fire trucks!  There's even a rescue dog!!

How could I say no?

If the little guy is excited about fire trucks with "yadders," I'm happy to oblige.

So after snuggling just a raw piece of fabric for the past few weeks, he finally parted with it long enough for me to snip and knot the edges.  And an episode of Project Runway All Stars later, he's tucked under it again.

xoxo

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