“Santa’s coming! I know him! I know him!”

“These toilets are ginormous!”

“Is there sugar in syrup? Then yes!”

Of course, there’s one of my favorites that I always thought would be cool to have in a Christmas decoration. After seeing a couple around the internet, I just didn’t see any prints that I loved. So I made one. And since Christmas isn’t a time to be selfish, I thought I would share it with all my Elf loving friends.

Download the PDF by right clicking this link: Christmas Cheer Print and select “Save target as.” I hope you enjoy this! Even though it goes without saying, please use this for personal use only. Thanks!

• Free Festive Printables: If you don’t already follow Emily of Jones Design Company, you should remedy that. She is so generous in providing cute freebies, including these gift tags and this Christmas art print.
  
• Potter Potions: Harry Potter fans, check out these cocktails inspired by Harry Potter characters. You better believe I’ll be sipping on one of these during my movie marathon.
• Slave to Dry Shampoo: Please tell me I’m not the only one who has become dependent on dry shampoo. The kind I use now is friendly on the wallet, but not so much on the dark hair. Perhaps I’ll give this DIY dry shampoo a try.
• Burlap Can Be Beautiful: Have you guys checked out Bobbi’s decorated Christmas tree? She, her husband and MIL recently completed their decor and I just love the burlap sash along with the glowing lights and bright red. I think I may have to try my hand at a tree sash one of these years.
  

How do you decorate for Christmas?

• Why We DIY: Do you ever get people looking at you funny when you talk about (yet another) project? Kate at Centsational Girl answers this question thoughtfully over at her blog. Why do you (or don’t you) DIY?
• Pineapple Whip: This stuff is only available at the Dole Plantation in Oahu and Disneyland. A nearby restaurant figured it out and now I found it from Prudence Pennywise. I can’t wait to make this. So yummy!
  
• Very Necessary: There are so many of life’s details that need to get in order, and I think we all put it off because we don’t think an emergency or sudden life event will happen. Yet, imagine how much harder it would be if you don’t have all your stuff together. Here’s some help on the subject from Unclutterer.
• Love Map: So cute! Minimoz created this map trio to show where she and her husband met, were married and live.
  

That’s it for this week. So let’s all take a deep breath and say “bring on the holidays!”

• Living in an Iconic Movie: I admit, I didn’t really get what was going on when I first saw Breakfast at Tiffany’s. What I did know is that it oozed style and convinced me again that Audrey Hepburn was awesome. Design*Sponge is awesome again as they did a “Living In” the movie. Yes, please!
  
• Flats or heeled boots? This isn’t a link, but a call for help. I have passed up the boots for the past few seasons because I haven’t been able to decide which I want. Flats seem so much more comfortable, yet I’m used to wearing heels most days, so maybe I would want those? What is your vote? Let me know if you have a favorite pair and share in the comments!
• Marriage in the Digital Age: My mom actually sent this article over to me, about how technology is the glue keeping the writer’s marriage together. She said she thought of us, since we’re often on the couch with both computers, syncing calendars and pinning on Pinterest like crazy. Okay, maybe it’s just me doing those things, but we definitely enjoy the technology and it hasn’t been a hindrance yet. Heck, I just got Matt to finally play Words With Friends with me. It really brings us closer together … unless he beats me again!
• J. Crew in your Living Room: I don’t exactly know how I found Knight Moves, but I’m glad I did. Kyle has a great eye for creating a room, and her J. Crew inspired space is no exception. Click on over to see the room inspired by this latest collection.
  

That’s it for this week. See ya next time!

Want to know what the small jars are for? You can find that out later!!

A little paint is all you need to finish up this project.  I used a paint pen and two different colors of one-stroke (that’s pinstriping paint).  The article said to use spray paint, but Matt said it would not stick. So I just got to work with the paint that Matthew had in the garage.

For the spiderwebs, simply draw them on with a white (I used light blue) paint pen.  Paint black eyes and a mouth and “boo!” on the clear bottle to create the ghost.  Lastly, use tape to make the inverse of the face for the Jack-O-Lantern then paint over it with the orange paint.  Once it is dried, remove the tape and you will have one awesome looking Jack-O-Lantern.  Simple and super cute.  I love how they turned out!!  Have you ever decorated for Halloween with wine bottles?

• Watercolor world: I recently stumbled upon the blog August Empress, which is a collection of all things cute and inspiring. In sharing her love of watercolor art, she linked to Jessica Durrant’s work, which is where I found this. I just love it. She has other cute stuff too inspired by travel and fashion.

  

• Social media in da house: There’s a new web idea in town and this time it relates to fixing up your house. Called HouseFix, here’s what TechCrunch has to say about it: ”The goal of the service is to the take offline social recommendations — in other words, the advice friends and neighbors often give each other about improving their houses — and bring them online. It’s also looking to become a comprehensive directory of contractors, complete with reviews and profiles of each. And, finally, it wants to help contractors keep track of their own projects and create an online presence.” Could be interesting…
• What is success for a blogger? Blogging is a tough gig, with so much time and energy that doesn’t always bring in a fair return on the investment. We love it and that’s why we do it. I was so glad that Disney at Ruffles and Stuff recently shared her experience with the idea of the ever-moving target of success and how it clouds her focus on what’s really important in life.
• Get ready for autumn: Autumn is a fun season with fun decor and smells  of pumpkin, apple freshly sharpened pencils in the air. It’s still warm here in Northern California — upper 90s this week! — so I have yet to really get in the fall mood. One of my favorite decor tutorials I’ve seen is this wreath from Jones Design Company. Would you believe it was made mostly of coffee filters? Pretty amazing!

  

Jessica posted about these cork monogram letters last week, via The Elephant’s Trunk.  I love how easy they are — and gorgeous!  They would be perfect on our initial wall.

I would love to make a wreath like that.  Emily’s Mom has made some pretty sweet ones before, so I think she would be the perfect person to ask for a lesson!  Her wine cork trivet was a favorite Christmas gift one year!

This tray is pretty and it seems like it would be easy to make.  I also like the idea of making a bath mat, even though it would probably go more with the decor in the kitchen.  The only downside – it would get pretty messy on the kitchen floor!

This is an idea of the table we want to make.  Matt has it all planned out in his head, so I am just waiting until he tells me that he needs my help!

Have you used any corks in your home decor?  Any other inspiration to add?  Now I am thinking I need to run around my home and get pictures of the cork decor that we already have and share those with you as wel!

I’ve already gushed about my relationship with my dad earlier this week. It’s a pretty common occurrence for him to receive a call from me that starts with the phrase, “Hey dad, um, random question for you…” He’s handy and knows a lot about materials and gives me equal doses of reality and encouragement. This time in particular, I wanted to ask if he thought we could weld a bunch of metal washers together to make some art.

He said that I should first try something called J-B Weld.

It’s a super strong bonding agent that’s more like a putty than a glue. You combine both parts together right before you use it. It’s said to be the closest thing to actual welding, which is why I wanted to give it a shot with the metal washers.

I went to Orchard Supply to pick up some washers during their “We Pay the Sales Tax” sale. I just got a ton in all different sizes. I’m not sure that I really paid attention to the weight like I should have, I was too distracted by all the different sizes and how they complimented each other. I lugged — literally — my loot to the car and came back home and just went with it.

At first I liked the idea of a symmetrical pattern. Then I realized that it didn’t take up enough space on the wall that I wanted to fill. Plus, I was looking for something a little more unique.

So then I just played around and put washers here and there.

Once I had a piece that I liked, I got the J.B. Weld and went at it, putting dabs of the goo on with a tiny scrap of dowel or something that my dad gave me. A popsicle stick or a skewer would do the job, too.

Here’s where I get real with you all: I almost gave up at this point. I had glued my washer design, let it dry for over the 15 hours it recommended. I picked it up, gave it a little shake while saying “it holds really well” before it broke into three pieces. It took several more tries until I figured that it had to be structurally sound in order to adhere properly. Duh.

Once my piece was all set, Matt suggested that I keep adding onto it to make it really big. This meant another trip to OSH and more work. I hate that. I decided that instead of adding onto the existing piece, I would make another one in a similar style to help keep the weight down. So there was more arranging, welding and trial and error.

Once finished with both pieces, I sprayed them with a metallic silver to give them a clean look. To give it a touch of reflective sparkle, I taped on 1-inch round mirrors behind some of the washers. Then it was just figuring out a good placement on the wall and hanging them on a few nails.

Here’s the end result!

I like how it’s almost in the shape of a tree, but is still open to interpretation. It’s something that you can’t buy in stores and probably only cost about $30 in materials. (Most of that was from washers and the mirrors were about $2 at Michaels; the J.B. Weld and spray paint were $free.) Plus, it’s pretty dang unique. Try finding something like that in a store!

Have you used washers or some other hardware to make something interesting?

Matt and I have been trying to find the perfect scheme for our entryway table/wall for quite some time.  Awhile back, okay, last year, I posted about wanting to finish the Ns and put them up around the house.  These have turned out to be perfect for our entryway table.  But none of them stand on their own.  So they looked kind of goofy just laid flat on the table — or leaning against a candle holder!  I asked my dear hubby to hang “the two pictures” one day, and look at what I came home to….

Our last initial is no secret in our home!

That’s right, he put all of the Ns up too!  Why there is reindeer stuffed animal on the table is beyond me, but other that that, it looks awesome!  I had printed out pictures from our Hawaii trip with my family back in November, and lucky for me, Walgreens already had a print from my wedding in the order box.  Since the largest wedding pic we have is 4 x 6, I decided to just print the 8 x 10 and find a frame!  The deal was a free photo collage for Mother’s Day, I ordered that and then paid $3 for the 8×10.  Not a bad deal, especially since pickup was free in store (no shipping).

I swear this picture was centered before -- and the top wasn't cut off...

I used Katie’s technique for redoing thrift store frames with spray paint and fabric for the wedding frame.  I had made the frame before, and was lucky that it went perfectly with the picture!  The Hawaii picture went in a spray painted frame as well.  Oh yeah, and Matt drew the family thing on paper.  I am guessing he wanted to make a sticker, but his sticker computer is broken.  :(  I tried a variety of techniques for the Ns.  Let’s get closer and you can see what I did.

Three little Ns

So the first three are small and only one is handmade.  The top one was wrapped in lots and lots of yarn.  It just may be my favorite.  The blue one was a find at Michael’s dollar aisle.  The bottom one is a stamp, also found in the dollar aisle.  (Which is now the 2 for $3 aisle and I am super bitter about it).  I digress. I wanted lots of variety in our Ns, so I like the random assortment.

Two larger Ns

The lower two were handmade.  I created the frame as a gift, but decided to keep it. haha.  I painted the frame brown and the N green, with green accent dots on the frame.  The N was hot glued to the frame and then the whole thing was covered with mod podge.  A picture of the N side of the family is in that frame.  The last N is decopauged in newsprint.  I really like how it turned out, but Matt suggested giving it an older look. I may try to put a brown wash on it.

A hidden N

The last N is too small to be hung from the wall, and I like it’s hiding place in the shells and candle.   It was another dollar aisle find — and my favorite N so far — just barely beating out that yarn-wrapped N.  So there you have it, our entry way.  What greets people as they enter your home?  Have you used your initials for decor?

Step One:  Pick out towels and cute fabric to match.  I usually find towels in the dollar aisle at Target.  Although, they do not stay long once they are there, so be sure and stock up!  Cut your fabric into strips (one strip per towel) about 5″ long and the width of the towel plus 2″ for neatness on the back.  So if your towel is 30″ wide, cut your fabric to a 30″ x 5″ strip.  Make sense?  Okay, moving on…

Step Two:  Fold your fabric in half and iron.  Then unfold and fold the two edges in to the middle ironed line (hot dog style) and iron.  That is how I did the white fabric.  You can see that below.  For the blue fabric I just ironed each side in about 1/2″ which created a much larger fabric strip.

Step Three:  Pin your fabric onto the towels.  You will be pinning it exactly as it will appear on the finished product, so make it nice!  I followed one of the lines on the waffle weave, to keep it nice and straight.  I forgot to take a picture of the back, but I will try and explain what  I did.  Fold the short side in on itself and then pin down.  It should create a crisp folded line on the back, and you will sew it down while you sew the front.  Put your last two pins right on the edge of the back folded part, this way you know to sew over the pins to catch the back part.  Make sense?

Step Four: Sew!  This is a really easy sewing project, perfect for beginners!  You will just sew about a 1/4″ in from the edges of the fabric on all sides.  I usually use the edge of my sewing machine foot as a guide, it is a little bit further than 1/4″ from the needle,  but it works for me.  Remember to go over those last needles, and then sew down the short side, so you catch that fabric on the back.  Just sew back and forth a bit at the beginning and end to knot the thread.

Step Five:  Admire your handiwork as you hang your towels on the oven door.  Give yourself a round of applause because you just created super cute decorations to last for years to come — in less than 15 minutes!  Woo hoo!

You can be creative and create towels like this for any season or holiday.  Your best bet will to make them this year — after each holiday.  That way you can get fabric on super sale!    Have you made any decor like this before? Any tips for making it easier?