make a wish

 How fantastic is this candle holder for the cake?  I can't imagine anything more fun than that!  GOSH I wish I had free time!!  Someday.  Found here.

i heart travel

Found this little lovely at We Ski Slow and I think it's fabulous!  We could so easily fill it with the brightly colored maps of the dearest places to our hearts - one would be Flagstaff...one would be our current home...one would be Rhode Island...ohhhhh so fun.

baby blanky

Sunshine day crochet pattern - Posie Gets Cozy

I had a soft yellow baby blanket that I affectionately called, "blanky" - I took it everywhere, and HAD to sleep with it.  Did I mention it was so super soft?   Did you have one too?

If I had any extra time...umm...or energy for that matter...I'd love to make my little girl a pretty baby blanket.  They are so many fantastic (and simple!) designs out there!  Maybe I will...someday.

 check out these baby blanket kits from Purl Soho - they are BEAUTIFUL and remind me of Rotho.

 or squiggles!!  free knitting directions for this blanket at Pickles

 Sugar Hill Baby Throw knit kit  - Lion Brand

I'm thinking about renaming my blog "Someday" - I feel like I'm always blogging about the things that are just out of my reach...a wish list of things I want to do.  Hopefully.

owl family

 via Apartment Therapy

Ohhh!!!  I want to do this.  MAYBE I'll go buy some black construction paper and do it...isn't it fun?  A perfect Halloween-ish window decoration!!  (I'm not into decorating with goblins and headstones and scary things...I'm more of a "fall harvest" type)

Except the thought of having to buy construction paper makes me sick...

...when we moved from Phoenix I had containers full of paper.  Scrapbooking paper, textured handmade papers, construction papers, etc.  A collection that had taken years of savvy browsing and buying.  I referred so often to those containers...pulling out pretty foiled papers for making cards, or backing pictures, or whatever my crafty heart desired.  Yet, they didn't fit in the car.  My sisters inherited my prized paper collection.

I hope they freaking appreciate it. 

to knit

 via the ArtfulYarn

I don't know if I mentioned that while my mom was here visiting, not only did we pick apples, visit the glass museum, and learn how to use my sewing machine...but she TAUGHT ME HOW TO KNIT!  I've been wanting to know this rad skill for a loooooooooooong time now...and I've become quite a knitting machine.  Well - that's not entirely true...I think about knitting a lot...but I'm so busy these days I haven't been able to get a whole lot accomplished (you know how it goes.)  I did, however, make a dishcloth...and I'm uber proud.  Even if my stitches aren't perfectly spaced or quite as lovely as the dishcloths shown above...I just need some practice.

At least I learned a new skill!!  Wahoo!

baby's first book

This is just about the most darling thing I've ever seen!  I so wish I had time to make one for every single one of my friends who have a baby.  I just want to know, who has time to make these things in real life!?   I wish I did, I so wish I did!!  Until then I'll covet all the sweet things that Posie Gets Cozy creates...like this baby book.

indoor tent

Oh man.  I will so have to remember THIS project for the days where I don't want to read a book on the sofa, or in my chair.  You know, for the days when climbing into a homemade indoor tent/fort is the only way to enjoy it all. 

How rad is this?  Found at decor8

conversation heart

I'm a nerd. I know I know. But I sortof love this. Found here.

Happy Valentine's Day of course!

dandy doilies

I have to remember to make this someday. It's BEAUTIFUL.

Ummm...I don't actually own any doilies...but I'm willing to take up crocheting so I can make this for my table. Ummm...I don't actually have a dining table yet...but someday.

I have a lot of "someday" dreams.

via Erin Ever After

machine hunt

My 28th birthday came and went in December. My fiance sent me an I O U for a sewing machine!! It's what I really really wanted :-)

Today I set out to pick one out. No success. The holidays cleared out most of the affordable machines from the shops. So....I'll keep reading up on sewing machines...which brands do what...how I can get the biggest bang for my buck...what machines can handle quilting.... (I am so totally clueless when it comes to things like sewing...)

All I know is that allllllllll I want to do is quilt!!

I love this blog, Posie Gets Cozy...her projects are so delightful.

i dig tacky christmas

here

Growing up, our house was decorated like whoa for Christmas. Our tree was always quite a masterpiece. My mother's exquisite hand-blown glass ornaments and fragile crystal pieces, hung alongside our popsicle and macaroni ornaments. Such a splendid sight. Until I was in high school - then my sisters and I started longing for a more "grown-up" tree.

We began choosing"color themes" for the holiday. We would decorate our tree only in that color scheme, wrap our presents in those coordinating colors, and my mom would even decorate the dinner table to match. We weren't decorating with the macaroni ornaments...and many of our "silly" childhood decorations were kept in their boxes. It was all about the "designer" look.

Boy am I over that. Now, I'm all about the Christmas decorations that not only make memories, but help recall special memories. Bring on those popsicle creations! Bust out the macaroni! Screw the stuffy department store decor that looks impersonal. I long for a good old fashion (tacky?) Christmas.

pretty presents

I remember when I used to obsess over creating the most perfect Christmas packages for under the tree. I would slave away making raffia bows tied up with dried flowers, or lux lacy ribbons paired with textured handmade wrapping papers. I'm not even kidding. That was back when I was an undergraduate no less. In more recent years I've barely managed to wrap my presents at all - and they tend to look like more like a 6 year old did it. Eh. I've been busy.

But then I saw these. And I'm inspired. For some DIY goodness find it here.

*it alllllmost makes me rethink the whole standard gift bag with tissue thing I've got going this year...almost.

cardboard wall sculpture

This idea is pure bangarang. I remember seeing an exhibit sorta like this at the MET a couple of years ago (completely forget the name of the artist...whoops) and the idea always stayed with me. The design at the museum used small circles of varing sizes and it took on the appearance of bubbles. I loved it.

And this is such a GREAT way to make a visually stunning wall! Using left-over cardboard cylenders is so clever...and with the holidays coming up, this gives you a reason to keep those wrapping paper rolls! Gotta remember this. Via Growing Up Creative.

book covers

I'm clearly on a "book" kick. I think I miss mine and am having withdrawals living so far away from all the comforting tales resting on my bookshelves back home.

Would you believe me if I told you that I've always wanted to wrap my books in Kraft paper and write the titles in pretty pretty handwriting? Well. It's no lie. I saw this picture and my former fascination has been reinstated.

Once I even purchased a huge roll of it and couldn't really figure out how to conquer the quest...so I wrapped Christmas presents in it instead. I think bookshelves full of matching books would be so nice to look at. Found at Elizabeth Anne Designs.

christmas presents

here

I've been humming Christmas tunes for the past three days. I'll tell you why...

In one week I move away from my wonderful, beautiful, lovely Phoenix existence. I am moving to Massachusetts for the month of September. And then it's off to Philadelphia for a month...then upstate NY for a month...and then it's Providence for a month. Then I relocate to Tuscon for a few months.

A part of me is excited for this adventure! But a part of me is terrified...and really sad to leave.

So. I wrapped some of the gifts that I have purchased throughout the year. I'm one of those people who buys gifts for my fam all the time, but I'm good about saving them for the holidays. So, I put on some festive tunes and wrapped away.

I cried a little...there's no place like home for the holidays. I'm gonna miss them.

At least I can check this off the list.

a lil memory box

Design*Sponge

Creative and cleaver...one couple created this lil memory/love box. Each card is represents a special day in their relationship and includes details of that day...but written like a book's information! What a lovely memento!

little wooden buildings

Praise you Black*Eiffel. This is the bomb. I grew up with rockin' wood toys and I immediately asked my sister to buy these for my future children (if the occasion ever arises!). And then we decided we HAD to get these for our mom. She would get a huge kick out of this radness. Check out The World In A Bag....or check 'em out by city.

i want to rest my head on arizona

Found these at Whispering Pines and had to share! So random...and radical!

There are state pillows, country themed pillows, region pillows, great state park pillows, ski area pillows, and a selection of city themed pillows. I think I love them.

draw on your walls

her outcome...totally amazing

How often are you totally inspired by something you see in a magazine or catalog? It happens to me every time I flip through those glossy pages. I dog ear all the lil lovelies I see and then they get put aside, forgotten about and probably recycled. I guess I just never really thought about re-creating those looks because it seems like such a daunting task, not to mention so crazily out of my pricerange. I do consider myself quite crafty, but I am surely not an artist, so my talents can only take me so far. Except, after seeing this before and after, I am more inspired to try those projects I come across. Maybe I'll start tearing those glossy pages out and putting them in a notebook instead of trashing them next time.

Check these pics out from scraplog....one reader loved the wall design from an ad campaign and with the help of a gold pen, created the look on her own wall!! Too cool.

her inspiration

a lil pillow talk

SarahFerguson

SarahFerguson

SarahFerguson

thetinderbox

I am feeling all sorts of creative these days. Perhaps it's because I keep thinking of fun projects to do for our future wedding. See, A.Mountain.Bride for all the jazz on that fun stuff! But this is not the space for wedding talk...nope...this is everything else...like my bedroom design.

Here's the deal. I refuse to spend money on any sort of decor for our house. Nothing really needs replacing, I mean, all of our furniture has been with me through my college years and was all hand-me-down free furniture to begin with. There are some great 80's pieces, like our huge slightly wobbly dining room table....but it's not broken...so why get something new? You get the idea. I'm also like this for decorative items. I have plenty of beautiful treasures to fill our space. Except when it comes to our bedroom. It's kindof the hodge-podge of where stuff goes when it doesn't harmonize anywhere else.

I want to make some pillows for the bed. We have our sleeping pillows of course, and a couple navy corduroy shams...but we are missing the style mark. I'm thinking about making some of these great bold felt embroidered pillows for our bed. Maybe three would do the trick to bring some of the rad colors out of our comforter (it's navy with striped down the very center in awesome shades of greens, yellows, oranges, and blues....oh Nautica rules.

bonjour teaspoon

Modernality


Sew English