Jack Skellington

Last March, while in Disneyland, the prince wanted a Jack Skellington hoodie. He is a huge fan, it's one of his favorite movies. I wasn't willing to pay $50 for a toddler's sweatshirt however, and immediately thought, "I bet I can make him one." It's been a few months, but I finally made it. I figured now is the perfect season for it. It was my first attempt at freezer paper stenciling, but I doubt it will be my last. 

Let me just say, it's a hit! He doesn't want to take it off and he's been singing "Nightmare Before Christmas" all morning. Just in time for Halloween.

Boo Banner

We are already getting into the Halloween spirit around here. We pulled out the fall decor today, so I thought I'd share my latest addition to our seasonal decorations. My porch was in need of a little something, so I created this burlap banner to hang above the entrance last year. This was a pretty simple project. All you need is some burlap, acrylic paint, and ribbon. Cut the burlap into the desired shape and size. (I cut  seven 13"x9" triangles for the flags.) Paint your design onto the burlap. Once the paint is dry, sew the ribbon along the top for hanging. That's it! Nothing too crazy--just a little planning! I'm still loving how it turned out. This year it is a little more weathered, but it still looks good. Now, I am thinking maybe I should make a couple of matching striped burlap pillows for the chairs out there.

Father's Day Cookies

All I can say is Amy Atlas is a an absolute genius when it comes to sweets! She finds and does the most creative and fabulous things with food.  These cookies she posted on her blog today are no exception and are so fun! Apparently, you can order them from Eleni's. Maybe we'll make the Dads and Grandpas in our lives some cookies for the big Father's Day around the corner. (Secretly, they're probably more for us though--Sshh! Don't tell them that!) Mine would never be as good as these though...they are almost too perfect to eat!

An Edible Easter Bunny

Spring has officially arrived, which means that Easter is just around the corner. I saw the cutest chocolate bunny over at A Cup of Jo, and it made me so happy! Enjoy!

Paper Heart Garland

So I'm not decorating at all this year for Valentines Day since we won't be around to enjoy it, but if I was I would totally make this. This is such a cute, simple, little craft that you could do with your kids, that will give your house a little Valentine's flair. The instructions are over at How About Orange if you'd like to make your own.

Love Letters

I must admit I have a thing for stationery! There is just something about recieving a beautiful personal little note, and it makes me a little sad to think letter writing is becoming a lost art in this day and age. There is nothing quite like opening that mailbox and reading a beautiful little card or letter written just for you. I was so happy when I saw this little etsy shop neither snow featured over at design*sponge, it makes me want to pull out some fancy stationery with coordinated envelopes and gorgeous stamps and write people little notes just because. With Valentines Day around the corner I thought it was the perfect time to start thinking about sending out my own little valentines to people I love and appreciate. I hope these photos inspire you to write a beautiful little note to someone (it doesn't have to be much) for no particular reason other than to brighten their day.

Clock Decor for New Years

With Christmas officially over it's time to think about ushering in the New Year. I'm not really sure what we are going to do for New Years, but I really want to start some new great traditions with the family. As I was looking for inspiration I found this countdown with clocks decor over at Martha Stewart, and loved this idea. I can't think of a better way to countdown to midnight than on a beautiful display of a collection of clocks.

Stockings Hung with Care

I haven't yet hung our Christmas stockings, and while I didn't think it was a big deal, my little princess is stressing out about it. Last night she told me that we really need to hang our stockings our Santa won't be able to find them. I tried to explain that we had plenty of time and I promised we'd get them out before Christmas, but apparently that isn't enough. She then added, "They must be hung by the fire with care!" I love her...she is so spunky and sweet. So in honor of her new stocking fetish, and for a little motivation to get mine out, I bring you stocking inspiration brought to you from The Inspired Room.

And these just go to show that stockings don't have to be hung by the fire at all, there are quite a few other creative spaces for them.

Holiday Table

I'm loving this holiday table featured over at Hostess with the Mostess today. She listed some Holiday Entertaining Tips on a Budget, she always has such great stuff.  Definitely worth checking out if you plan on doing any holiday entertaining this season. Now  back to the table, it would look simply fabulous with my holiday decor, plus it looks pretty simple to recreate the look yourself!

Natural Christmas Ornaments

I've been seeing these gorgeous ornaments around quite a few blogs lately, but I couldn't resist sharing them here as well. These beautiful little bulbs are from Land-Rich, and would look stunning on the Christmas tree.

This Made My Day

I couldn't help smiling when I saw this post over at the Adopt a 'Do. These really are some strange Christmas hairstyles. I don't know where she found them or who would actually wear them for that matter, but I love it! I thought I'd share some of my favorites, because they really do make me happy for some reason...

and my personal favorite...

Advent Calendars

I'm really getting excited for Christmas already. I really want to make Christmas simply magical for my little ones so I'm constantly thinking of traditions we can start as a family. One of my favorite traditions out there is the advent calendar. I know it's already December 3, but I really can't decide on what exactly I want to do. There are so many incredible options out there, literally for every budget and style. I really need to make up my mind quickly or we will completely miss out on one this year.

Almost every year Pottery Barn comes out with a couple of advents. I'm loving this one!

I also love these garland advents from Garnet Hill. They always have some great options.

Now if you are in the market for a luxury calendar, this beauty costs just over $1,000. Sigh. A little more than I can afford, but it is gorgeous. If you have the budget for it, it can be found over at FAO Schwartz.

I fell in love with a train advent calendar awhile ago that was also quite expensive, and I couldn't find it now. But I did find the great little wooden train advent on a cute little Swiss family's blog. It got me thinking that if I could find a simple wooden train like this (with lots of cars), I could totally paint it to match my decor and it would be perfect!

Now once you find the perfect calendar, what do you put in it?  Well there is always the traditional little toys or candy, but there are a ton of other options here too. Jordan Ferney over at Oh Happy Day! has listed a bunch of activities that they do with the family to get in the Christmas spirit. Go check them out, you are bound to find some that will work for your family, or at least it will get you thinking of your own ideas. Another option I heard about was putting the title of a Holiday picture book in each day on the calendar, and then reading that story together. I love this idea, but don't have that many Christmas stories yet. I'll have to start building my collection! So many choices! I'd love to hear what your family does.

Happy Halloween!

Here's my little Ladybug and Dragon just in time for tonight...

I think their costumes turned out pretty cute! (I realize I'm a little biased though.) Hope everyone has a great night!

Spooky Treats

Where do I go when I need some Holiday inspiration? well, Martha Stewart of course! I've been in the mood to bake something and have found so many great, creative ideas all over the internet. Seriously, the creativity of people absolutely amazes me. I found so many fabulous ideas browsing through Martha's Halloween photo galleries and thought I'd share a few of my favorite.

So what did we end up making? Well, nothing that elaborate--just some Halloween sugar cookies. I bought some adorable Halloween cookie cutters, but when I went to use them we couldn't find them anywhere. So we improvised and used our little gingerbread cookie cutters and made mummies. They turned out pretty cute, and they must have tasted good because they were gone before I could get a good photo.

Monster Mingle

So I absolutely adore cute monsters anytime of the year, but I thought now was as good of time as any to share some of my favorite monsters--especially since most people think of monsters most around this time of year. These may not be the most frightening monsters, because let's face it-- that is the last thing I need in this house, but they are guaranteed to bring smiles upon the faces of young and old alike. How fun would it be to get a loved one a non-sugary Halloween treat that can last all year long?!  

 

The little creatures above are from Uglydolls. They are also being sold at Garnet Hill right now and really are the perfect accessory to their monster kids room.

These colorful little guys are the wonderful creations of Jennifer Strunge over at Cotton Monster. Each monster is a one of a kind made from recycled textiles.

Now if you have some knitting skills and feel like making a little monster friend of your own, you need to stop by the DangerCrafts Shop over at Etsy. Her knitting patterns are simply adorable!

Pumpkin Picks

Lately I've been getting into the Halloween spirit, probably because I'm in the middle of (well more like the beginning of) making Halloween costumes. Sigh...I've got a lot to do, but I'd thought I'd procrastinate a little more and share some of my Halloween cheer. My posts over the next couple of weeks will be Halloween inspired, and what better way to kick it off than...PUMPKINS!

Here are a few pumpkins from Pumpkin Way carved by Nathan Wesling. All of his jack o' lanterns have such wonderful expressions, definitely check out his site if you're looking for some great faces!

I can always count on Martha Stewart for some gorgeous inspiration. I'm especially loving the toadstool and snail pumpkins on the left--so creative and cute! The lace pumpkins (middle) or glitter pumpkins (right) would look absolutely beautiful too though. (Although I don't think I could carve that intricate lace.)

For those that don't feel like carving pumpkins, I'm loving these no carve pumpkins from BHG too! Use an apple corer (top left) to make perfectly round holes and mix and match using different colored pumpkins and gourds. Using a doily as a stencil (top right) would be a much simpler way to achieve that gorgeous lace look. Using sequins or ribbons to accessorize your pumpkin can give you some gorgeous results (bottom left), but the idea of making "mumkins" (bottom right) is totally ingenious!

Now these have really got me thinking about what I want to do with my pumpkins, now I just need to make the trip to the pumpkin patch.