dreary day - inspiring blog posts

so i've wanted to try etching glass but i've never really had good experiences with contact paper, but Kallen at At Second Street did a fabulous job & the glass looks beautiful.



now - i realize that valentines day was many moons ago - but i was looking back through all of At Second Street's blog posts & stumbled across one where she created a crepe paper heart.
i think it's adorable:


now i also found At Second Street's 'upcycled bracelet' tutorial to be awesome & inspiring. i have many a purse that i don't use any longer & wish that i had the sewing abilities to turn them in to bracelets.


now - my sister is engaged & plans on getting married in June of 2013 (we have a long time to plan!!) but i have been hoarding pictures and ideas for quite a while. i'm sure she is very tired of hearing from me since she isn't really even planning. But once again, i'm still perusing At Second Street's blog & ran across a couple pictures from a wedding that Kallen blogged about & i thought they were a great idea:



i think that's enough for today. enjoy.

a necklace & a wreath

hello all & happy friday the 13th!

in perusing kojodesigns blog this morning, after not visiting there in awhile, i found some awesome-ly inspiring stuff!!

see this cloth & bead necklace??



and how about this great looking butterfly wreath using brown paper bags?! this was on kojodesigns' blog but it was actually pulled from Mary Janes & Galoshes.



so inspiring that i actually have a cart sitting on amazon's website awaiting me to hit 'checkout' to purchase a scalloped paper punch so that i can accurately create the wreath... =) good thing it's supposed to rain all weekend - maybe i'll be cutting up old t-shirts and creating necklaces =)

have a great weekend!

homemade croutons

so last night i finally decided to pull all of the ends of my loaves of bread that i'd been saving out of the freezer and turn them in to croutons.

i cut them up in to bite size pieces and spread them out on a baking sheet.
i drizzled some extra virgin olive oil over the bread and then i sprinkled some of my 'go to' spices on them (salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, oregano, parsley & basil).
then i tossed them in the oven at 300 degrees for 5 minutes & pulled them out, tossed them, and put them back in the oven for another 7 minutes.

this amount of time & the temperature seemed to work fine as i've never made croutons before.

here's a picture:

'new' artwork

so while doing some perusing of blogs this morning - i ran across some artwork created by someone & posted on Ikea Hackers.

They used scraps of fabric from Ikea & just needlework hoops and hung them on the wall as a collage.

I think this is a great way to decorate because you can easily change out the fabric as your style/tastes change.




I've also had a dream to get off my butt and take pictures of all of the beautiful red barns that are all around my house/town. After i get all of these barns photographed, i would love to do what Young House Love did with post cards and put up shelves/ledges in my living room and display all of the barns.

see here, but imagine pictures of red barns =)

pillows

i saw this tutorial for 'sprocket pillows' several weeks ago & have been meaning to state out loud how much i adore them but i didn't get a chance until now.

Cluck Cluck Sew has created a tutorial on how to make them and it looks like it would be easy enough... i just need to start saving all kinds of scraps that actually work together.



how cute?!

on a roll

well now i'm on a roll...

this cake looks awesome. i have always been a sucker for coffee cake & now that Bisquick has a gluten-free version this cake is now a possibility. Maybe it'll happen this weekend...

see the great looking picture & recipe below!

Cinnamon Streusel Coffee Cake (sent via email to me by Gluten Freely)

Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup Bisquick® Gluten Free mix
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 cup firm butter or margarine
• 1 3/4 cup Bisquick® Gluten Free mix
• 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 2/3 cup milk or water
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
• 3 eggs

Preparation Instructions:

1. Heat oven to 350°F. Spray 9-inch round or square pan with cooking spray. In small bowl, mix 1/3 cup Bisquick mix,the brown sugar and cinnamon. Cut in butter, using pastry blender or fork, until mixture is crumbly; set aside.
2. In medium bowl, stir all coffee cake ingredients until blended. Spread in pan; sprinkle with topping.
3. Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown. Store tightly covered.
   
   

a long time coming

hello all! I have definitely been inspired by many, many things, but haven't had a chance to put them up here. Having just recently finished training someone to take over my position at work so that I could take on a new job here has sucked up all my time and energy. I am super excited to be starting & learning something new. I tend to get restless and antsy when I've been doing something for too long.

soo - looking at Jones Design Company's website - I found an awesome wreath that I'd love to make for my younger sister.

see::

this is so cute from Jones Design Company too:




Also - I'm debating with myself over several possible 'upgrades' in my kitchen. I think I need to put a backsplash behind my sink & possibly the counter by the stove... I would ultimately love to paint my cabinets (or get new ones once I win the lottery) and paint the kitchen itself but that is down the road.

I ran across a post on The Little Brown House's website about her using beadboard wallpaper. I think it looks awesome - I'm just worried it won't do the same thing that a tile backsplash would...

see a picture:


talk to you soon & thanks again for all of those past comments that I JUST now published. that is totally my fault =)