Thread This Fabris

Hey guys!  I just wanted to take a quick minute to introduce to you my newest sponsor.



They have some of the cutest fabric over there!  But what I really love is their bundled packages to make color coordinating patterns super easy.  Here are a few of my favs.

Crazy adorable right?!?

But it gets better!  Right now they are offering 10% off your order by using code: FINALLYSUMMER.  So head on over and check them out!

How to add a picture marquee to your blog.

Hello Everyone!

Its way past time for another blog design tip... don't ya think?!

This time I am going to show you how to create a scrolling picture marquee for your sidebar.  This is a great option if you want to display a bunch of pictures without taking up a bunch of room.  Its super easy too.

First, you need upload the photos you want to use to photobucket.  (an account is free)  For the purpose of this demonstration, I only used one photo (repeated 3 times), but you can use as many as you'd like.

Just select what folder you want to upload it to and then browse and select your photos.  You can select multiple pictures at one time by holding down the CTRL button.

Then you want make sure your pictures will fit on the sidebar.  Click on each picture and when you hover with your mouse a tool bar will appear.  Hover  over resize and a drop down menu of sizes will appear.  I chose the 160 option, but pick whatever size will fit the best on your sidebar.

Then its time to add your gadget.  Open a new window to do this because we'll be coming back to photobucket in a minute.  Under design- page elements- click on add a gadget, then select HTML/ JavaScript.

Add the following code.

Now go back to photobucket and copy the direct link to your picture.

Replace the part of the code that says direct link with the code you just copied.  Only replace the text, leave the " " in place.  Your code should look like this.

I repeated the same code 3 times for this example, on yours each code will be linked to a different picture,and you can repeat that line as many time as you need to.

Click save and you will have a scrolling photo marquee.

If you want to take it one step farther and add text links to each picture, use this code instead.

Replace direct link  with the direct link code of your picture, the wed address  with the web address you want to link to,   (sorry about the typo there) and the text Link  with whatever text you want displayed.

Your code should look like this.

And there you have it!

You can see this in action HERE.

Oh, and one more thing, you can change the UP  to left, right, or down if you want. 

Have fun!  Hopefully that all made sense.  Let me know if you have any questions and I'll do my best to help.

Inspiration File

Today's inspiration file is brought to you be The Speckled Dog.  I know I have featured her before, but somehow didn't end up following.  Well, this week I found my way back and I am so glad I did!  I basically read through her entire blog and love everything she has ever touched.  Here is a small sampling of the eye candy you'll find over there.

Ummm, yeah.  I pretty much think we should become bff's so that I can soak up some of her awesomeness.  You can bet I'll be following The Speckled Dog now, and so should you!

Thanks for the inspiration!

Teacher Gifts

One of my good friends asked me to gather some teacher gift ideas.  I have seen a ton of adorable ideas around blogland and was happy to oblige. 

So I made a pinterest board.  :)  I love you pinterest!

(click image to view)

Sooo, if you want to check out some last minute teacher gifts, there you go! 

Now, all this teacher gift searching couldn't have come at a better time.  This week is my son's last week of preschool and I had full intentions on sending him with a little something something for his teacher.  But what that something was, I had no clue.  So I basically gathered my favorite things from my pinterest board and made this.

How fun!  It was super easy too.  All I did was hot glue a bunch (as in about 70) pencils to a pot, planted some flowers (mums), glued on a bow, and stuck in a cute little tag.

And for you more visual peeps...

And what is a teacher gift tutorial without a free printable?

Click on the image to make it larger, save, and then print as a 8x10 on cardstock.  This will make your circles 2.5" because that is the size of my circle punch. :)  Then I just hot glued it to an extra pencil and stuck it in my plant. 



I think it turned out pretty cute.  I hope she loves it and can find a good home for it in her classroom.

As always I'm linking to these great parties and events:

If you sprinkle...

Hello my friends!  How was your weekend?

Mine was pretty great.  We spent the weekend celebrating this little guys 5th birthday.

I threw my first ever "friend" birthday party and it was madness I tell you!  He was over the moon about it all though and it went about a smooth as could be expected.  So all the hard work paid off.  Love you little man!

Anyway, since my weekend was spend in birthday madness I started worrying about what I was going to blog about this week.  So I scrounged around and whipped this up yesterday afternoon.

Haha... love it! 

You see, a redo of my kids bathroom is in the works and I am going to need some new bathroom art.  I wanted to do a sign that looked pretty but was actually just silly.  Although, having kids it would be nice if they did wipe up any sprinkles... but I'm not holding my breath.

The best part, is was made completely from stuff laying around my house.

So... here is my sign making process.

First, I took a scrap of wood and painted it white.  This will be your text color, so whatever color you want your text.  Then I cut some vinyl with my silhouette to fit the board, and placed that on.  After making sure the vinyl was on nice and good, I painted the board with my top color.  I wanted a worn look, so I added a little blue with an almost dry paint brush in a few spots.  Then I removed my vinyl to reveal the text.  I wanted to give the letters a little more punch, so I used a brown sharpie to shadow the letters.  Then I let it dry (hardest part) and sanded the whole thing down.  I finished it with a coat of wood stain and then some spray varnish.

It really was super easy and only took a few hours to complete.

And I'm loving the finish!  I'm not sure yet how I'm going to hang it.  I may staple some ribbon to the back, or I might just hang it as is, it just depends how it looks in the finished space.  And, if you guys are surprised by seeing such a monochromatic piece from me, never fear.  It's all part of the master plan! 

Now I'm pumped to get that bathroom finished so I can see it in the the space!



Too fun!


As always I'm linking to these great parties and events:

Inspiration File

Its been a busy week guys.  Tomorrow I am throwing my first "friend" party for my son's 5th birthday.  I should have about 9 kids that range from 3-6.  I'm a little scared, but my kiddo is super excited.  So... sorry this post is a little late coming.

A couple great things to share this week.  First up, Lella Boutique made this adorable table runner.  I love it and wish I had the skill (aka patience) to sew.  But what really caught my eye here was the centerpiece.  Oh my I love you!  I loved my planter box on my kitchen table but it ended up living elsewhere because of how heavy it was.  (Maybe using rocks as a filler wasn't the best idea.)  So I'm thinking I have to knock off this whole set up.  Love it all!

And secondly, I am loving these pillows from Domestically Speaking.  The texture combo of the velvet and burlap is just dreamy!  If I ever get around to doing my bedroom, I'm going to have to remember these.  Great job!

Thanks for the inspiration!  Remember to grab a button!

EEK!

Guess what?!?!

I am so excited!!!  Baby Lifestyles contacted me a couple weeks ago asking if they could feature Ava's nursery in their Real Nurseries section of their website.  I couldn't say yes fast enough!  Well, my feature went live today and they did such a great job!  I am so flattered and honored!  Please come by and say "Hi"!  (HERE)

Baby Lifestyles is your one stop for baby inspiration.  They have an amazing collection of nursery and baby shower eye candy, baby products, and tips.  Be sure to check them out if you are "in the market." :)

Rapunzel Hair

So I'm going to deviate from my usually home decor creations and show you guys the fun Rapunzel hair I made for my daughter and niece.

It was my niece's birthday a bit ago and I wanted to get her the movie Tangled.  (Have you seen it?  Adorable!)  My niece is the same age as my daughter, who is Tangled obsessed, so I figured it was sure to be a hit.  I planned on getting her a Rapunzel wig to go with her movie, but they were sold out at Toys R Us.  I got online to order it, read a bunch of  reviews, and they all basically said "The wig will fall apart and become a giant mess.  Don't buy it.  If you want Rapunzel hair, get the braid."

Here is the Tangled braid.  This one is $75 from Amazon.  Ummm.... I don't think so.

So I made a few of my own!

(And that's my little princess modeling it for you.)

So, if your little princess is in need of her own Rapunzel hair, here is how I made mine.

Get a bunch of yellow yarn.  You want to stretch a bunch of pieces out.  Mine was about 10 feet long and about 20 yarns thick.  You then find the middle, tie a piece of yarn around it, and fold the whole thing in half.  (image A)

I tied mine to a chair to make it easier to work with, but an extra hand would work too. (image B)

Divide the yarn into three sections and start braiding.  Be careful that your yarn doesn't get tangled!  (hehe)

(image C)

Once you get to the end, tie another piece of yarn around the bottom and give it a haircut so everything is even. (image D)

I hot glued my braid to an alligator chip.  I then hot glued a flower to the top to hide the clip and glued a  few flowers down the braid. (image E)

I finished the end of with a pink bow. (image F)

And that's it!  A fun little Rapunzel hair piece.



As always I'm linking to these great parties and events:

Inspiration File

So.... you may have noticed (but probably didn't) that I have a new icon over there. -->

That little P, it stands for Pinterest and i am loving it!  I'm sure you all have heard of Pinterest by now, but if not, it is a virtual pin board.  As you are browsing the web, you can "pin" images that you want to remember.  This saves them on your boards (with links) so you never forget a great idea!  Love!  So yes, its one giant inspiration file.

I've been on Pinterest for about a week now so I'm just getting the hang of it all, but its fun.  Really fun.  So if you are a Pinterest user you can follow me and see what's catching my eye.  (And I'd love to follow you back!)  I'm still going to feature my favorite ideas here, because everyone like a feature, but a more comprehensive list of inspiration can be found there.

If you need an invite, just leave a comment with your email and I'll send you one.

On to this weeks inspiration file!

First up, remember the mason jar key holder that I featured?  Well, I love it.  Then I came across this shelf from TRwoodworks and I love love it!  SO cute huh?!  Anyway, the wheels are turning and you can bet a knock off is in the works.

Next, did you see the drink tub flower pot that Every Creative Endeavor made?  LOVE!  I just love the pop of color and the welcome sign.  I was 100% planning on making one for my front steps and even went to the store to pick up my tub.  But I made the mistake of taking the hubs with me and he vetoed the idea.  You see, I don't have a front porch, just steps and he was convinced there wouldn't be room to walk and it would just get knocked over by kids.  Rude.  Ruin all my dreams! 

And finally, I'm in love with this headboard bench from Scissors & Spatulas.  It doesn't even need a description... just look at the picture and swoon.  (And yes, she has a tutorial.  Time to raid the thrift shops!)



So that's it!  Thanks for the inspiration and don't forget to grab a featured button.  

Sofa Table Vignette

You saw hints of it when I showed off my planter box for Wood you like to craft? but I wanted to show you guys my sofa table vignette.  I didn't snap a before picture, but if you can imagine an empty table sitting behind a sofa, that's what it looked like..... and had looked like for a long time.

You see, I don't have a true entryway.  When you walk into my home you walk into our family room.  I have the sofa situated so that it acts as a divider between the entry and the family room, and the table hides the back of the sofa.  When we first moved in I had decorated it, but this was before I had children that were mobile and eventually everything that was there got moved or broken.  Such is the life of a mother!  And so it sat.... empty.

To be honest, the emptiness didn't bother me until recently.  You see, directly opposite the sofa table is my mantle shelf which I installed this last fall.  Those who follow this blog know that it is decorated to the hilt!  So the contrast of decorated and not, was starting to get to me.  When the Crafty Sisters announced this months project, it was just the kick I needed to get something done there.

Okay guys, sorry that intro was a little long winded, onto the table display!

It all started when I won a giveaway from my E-BFF Sarah over at The Bird's Papaya.  I won this adorable Silly Mama Quilts table runner.  I originally picked it to go on my kitchen table, but it fit so perfectly on the sofa table that I knew that's where it had to live.

The colors and patterns in it are just dreamy!  So when I made the planter box, I picked the turquoise to go with the runner.  I planned on placing the planter on top of the table, but it looked a lot better on the bottom shelf.

So for the top I got a couple of "book boxes" from Micheal's. I love the colors of them and they look super cute stacked.  I placed a rose candle holder on top of the stack. 

To balance out the other side, I stole an angel from above my kitchen cabinets.  I have a thing for angels and you'll find them scattered throughout my house.

And that's it!  Its a pretty simple display, but its bursting with color and is so fun for spring!  It just feels great to have something (anything) there. 

And the best part? So far my kids have, surprisingly, left it alone.  Yipee!

As always I'm linking to these great parties and events:

A Planter Box

In case you missed it last week, here is my project for Wood you like to Craft? this month.  Crafty Sisters is hosting so be sure to head on over and check it out and link up to the party.  There will be a prize!

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Hey everyone!  This is Krystal, the crazy lady behind Sassy Sanctuary.  I'm so excited to be here today!  I hope you all are having a blast with Wood you like to craft?  I'm lovin it!  (ba da ba ba ba)  It is so much fun to create something each month and to stretch myself.  Everything that I have made is something that I probably wouldn't have done without the push, but I LOVE them.  Some of my favorite projects yet.  I sure hope you'll join in on the fun!

Anyway, I was super excited when Candace and Nicole announced the project for this month.  So many directions it can go!  I love their tool box to bits and knew I couldn't compete, so I went a little different with it and made a planter box.

And I love it!

Its super simply constructed.  Just a box made from 1/2" wood.  I gave it a little more style though by angling the sides (15 degree angles), adding rope handles, and a decorative medallion to the front.

Of course the finish totally makes it.

Did you know that you can go to Home Depot, and for $3 get an 8oz sample made up in any color?  And you can get it in a paint and primer in one.  Who knew?!?

The color is "teal zeal" from Behr.  I just painted it, beat the crap out of it with my sander and a fork.  (yes, you read that correctly, a fork) and then did a top coat of wood stain.  To keep it looking beautiful forever I also did a coat of wipe-on poly once it had dried... but that's optional.

The rope handles are my favorite part.

But the best thing about a piece like this, is it is so versatile.

It looks great on the front step.

I love it on my kitchen table.

But its final home will be as part of my sofa table display.

But that's for another post.  ;)

So that's it.  I'm totally loving my planter box, now go make one too!

Thanks for having me ladies!

As always I'm linking to these great parties and events: