Think Pink

October is breast cancer awareness month. Make sure you’re doing a regular self-exam and follow your Doctor’s recommendations for mammograms.

At Jewelry and Gifts by Rebecca, I sell awareness bracelets in different colors for a variety of causes. If you’re interested in a breast cancer awareness bracelet you can order one here. A portion of the sales will be donated to the Susan G Komen fund.

Be Healthy!

Fall Rocks!!!

I love this time of year. Everything about it makes me feel energized; the fresh crisp air, the changing colors, all the festive décor and the cornucopia of foods of the season. I’ve started changing things over inside and out to display my love of fall. Here is my favorite fall vignette.
(Remember that word?)

How do you decorate for the fall????

Fun with paint (part 2)

Here’s another fun room to paint. I did the same thing as before and collected some random colors from the discounted section of paints at the home improvement store. I bought a gallon of purple for $4.00, a quart of blue for $1.50 and the orange I was able to get for 50 cents thanks to my hubby. He complained to the paint guy about what an awful color it was and that he wasn’t going to pay $1.50, “could ya give me a break on this” he says as I turn three shades of red. (I mean come on, it’s already discounted and I want it, just get it and stop giving this guy a hard time) So far the hubby has not yet learned to read my mind.

Anyway, I already had some greens at home that I mixed to get that lovely shade and some left over yellow was still available as well. This time around, I took some extra time to tape off a stripe pattern on the top half of the room. On the wall behind the bed the stripes are vertical and on the other walls the stripes are diagonal. The whole top of the room was painted purple then taped for the green stripes to be added.

On the bottom half of the room I used contact paper to mark off some circles then painted the walls blue. I traced different sized bowls and skillet lids onto contact paper to get the shapes. Then I cut those out and made a cut in the center of each circle (to get it off the wall later). Then I stuck the contact paper on the wall to keep an area designated for the yellow dots. After the blue paint was finished, I used the cut in the middle of each circle to peel the paper off the wall. Now that gave me a clean circle to go back in and paint with the yellow paint.

The room still seemed too subdued for the child that lives there so I needed to do something fun with the orange. I marked off a random zigzag shape around the door that kind of reminds me of the Flintstones. A few of the dresser drawers are also orange as is the comforter on the bed.

Over on the windows I tried a simple window treatment. I used those roll down shades and attached some orange fabric to them. With the shade unrolled and across the bed I was able to cut the fabric to fit using pinking shears. (Those scissors that cut a zigzag pattern) It keeps the edge of the fabric from unraveling and keeps you from having to sew a hem. Then I used some embroidery floss to tie the fabric to the shade in several random spots. It added an extra pop of color to the room and some extra sun protection. (I know, you’re thinking… “That room needed an extra pop of color????”) But trust me, it all seems to work and the kids love the way their rooms look.

Hmmm, I wonder what I will be painting next????

Fun with paint (part 1)

When it comes to decorating a kid’s room, I like to forget the rules and just have fun. This room has a ton of colors and if you’ve bought paint you might think it would cost a fortune to paint this way. Believe it or not, the paint for this room cost $4.00. OK, so most of the colors were left over from some other projects. There wasn’t enough of any one color to do the whole room but with some creativity, I came up with a design that would use up old paints and make a fun unique room. The yellow, blue and green colors were from other rooms and most were created out of a variety of left overs that I mixed into one can. The magenta was a miss-tint. If you go to the paint department in your local home improvement store, ask if they have any miss-tints. These are paints that were mixed incorrectly and never sold. They are usually drastically marked down so they can be sold and don’t become a total loss for the store. I was able to get a gallon of magenta for $4.00. I used it in each corner of the room to look like some curtains have been pulled back. I used a roll of wrapping paper to draw the shape I wanted and then I traced that shape around the room.

On two walls I painted stripes with the yellow and blue. To make things easy, the stripes are a roller’s width and they have rough edges. I think it adds to the character of the room and it was a time saver to not have to tape off each color.

The other two walls are green. Using acrylic craft paint I put some ladybugs and purple swirls on the walls for some added interest. I made my own stencils for each. The ladybugs are just ovals cut out of paper then traced onto the wall and filled in with red craft paint. I traced coins for their dots and colored them with a marker. To make the swirl, I cut the shape out on cardboard then traced it onto the walls in different areas. The swirls were all filled in with purple craft paint.

Finding green fabric for the curtains was just a fluke. I covered a paint stick with all the colors and took it with me to the fabric store. I just got lucky that there happened to be something in the same green color. I would have been happy with anything that matched any one of the colors. For an easy sew project I used the bias edge for each side. Then a simple hem at the top and bottom and my sewing was finished. I found curtain rings that just pinch the top of the fabric and slide onto the rod. I covered the rings with decorative patches. I bought a pack of butterflies and a pack of flowers while at the fabric store. The patches are taped onto the rings.

This was a fun room to decorate.
Wait until you see what the other room looks like….

It's time for some "me time".

Have you ever really needed to get some “me time”? Maybe you spent the weekend playing weekend warrior and cleaning out the basement. Maybe you bickered with your significant other over what “must have” keepsakes stay or go. Maybe you started your Monday off knowing it was a hat day but leaving the house WITHOUT the hat. Maybe you tried to console yourself with a sip of coffee from your travel mug but spilled the coffee on yourself before you had to get out of the van and talk to the preschool teacher. Ok, ok, so that’s all just a glimpse at my life. I joke that I’m always at the bottom of the list but I do try to make sure that I give to myself regularly. It’s nobody else’s job so I better do it. Now it may only be a minute or two ever couple of days but sometimes that’s enough. Let’s all carve out a few minutes of “Me Time” today.

Go for a walk and really look around. Enjoy the scenery.

Make yourself some tea. Hot or iced and sit down to savor a few sips.

Pour yourself a glass of porto and watch the sunset. Be grateful for living another day.

Sit down, put your feet up and listen to the silence. Even if it is only for a minute.

Rub some lotion into your feet slide on some socks and sit back to relax.

Take in a little nature. Find something green, look for the blue in the sky, watch the birds or smell a flower… take a deep breath.

Find a minute or two or five if you can and do something to give to YOU.

What do you do with your “me time”?

September 11th

Each year as the anniversary approaches, the weeks and days that lead up to September 11th are filled with memories. I think about all the times I went to those buildings. In college, I dated a guy whose Father worked for Merrill Lynch. We stopped in his office a few times. Many years later I would go there with out-of-town visitors as a point of interest. I remember being there when my Husband and I were just dating. The day they came down I remember watching the smoke billow into the sky. I remember that evening sitting around a table with friends making phone calls to check on those we knew. I remember the first subway ride into the city and the fear I felt when we were stopped on the tracks for an hour while they investigated a suspicions package. I remember the visible police presence on every street corner and the filling of buying beers for out of state fire fighters. I remember being pat down and having my hair checked for weapons before I boarded my flight just a day after planes were allowed to fly again.

That was such a hard time and the years that have followed have had some hurdles for so many people on so many levels. I’m glad that sadness is fading into our country’s past and that we are all trying to find ways to heal. As I remember the brave and the innocent I have something positive to focus on as well. One of the most amazing people I have ever met celebrates her birthday on September 11th. She is by far the kindest woman I have known. She is my friend and God Mother to one of my children. She lights up a room when she walks in and makes you want to be a better person. I don’t get to see her often but our time together is always a happy time.
So come this Friday, as we feel the pain of a hole in our land, I will also feel the joy of a dear friend in my heart.

Happy Birthday Michele!

Paint away!

My daughter’s pre-school requested that each student bring a paint shirt in to keep at school for their craft time. I put this together for her in about 5 minutes. Now she has a personalized creative shirt to wear while she does her artwork. I thought this was a fun easy project that I would share with you. I found a large T-shirt on the clearance rack for $3.00. (I think it was even in the boy’s section) For a project like this the color or size didn’t really matter as long as it was large enough that it could go on over her clothing. I already had some fabric paint at home so that didn’t cost me anything. If you don’t already have some you can find it in any craft section or at a craft store for about a dollar a bottle. They are very easy to use. The tip of the bottle has a fine point and you use it like a pencil. Just shake the paint into the tip before you take the lid off and try to avoid air bubbles. Keep the tip touching the fabric and use the tip to smooth out any blobs. I put a cardboard box lid inside the shirt to help keep it flat and smooth while I painted. Be sure to leave the shirt out to dry flat for a day to be sure th

e paint is set.


For another idea on what to do with fabric paint you can check here.

Do you have any fun easy craft ideas?