Wall Decor- Iron Art

I am a big fan of iron art as wall decor. We have a couple pieces in our home, both were purchased from the flea market but lots of places sell them, Pier One normally has a good selection. There is a vendor at the flea market, whom we call "the iron man" who has a great selection of iron pieces ranging in size. I have purchased so many things from him, I have lost count!

 This beauty is over our couch in our living room. It is about 3.5 feet in diameter and I love it! It is a great centerpiece to our living room. We found it at a booth closing at the flea market for only $15.

 This teal beauty is from the iron guy and is over our buffet in our dining area. I love the color, the shape, and I just love it overall! I think he charged me $30 for it but the next week I went back with my friend Kyla to get one and  he only charged her $20, so as you can see, his prices can fluctuate.

Hope you have a great weekend! I am hoping to finish some new projects this weekend so I will post about them if I do!

Hurry up Spring!

I know it is still winter, but I am in desperate need of some Spring in my life!!! I cannot wait to start spicing up my decor with Spring accents! There are many simple ways of inviting Spring into your home without re-vamping everything. I wanted to share a few of my favorites with you that I have not begun to do in my home but my brain is stirring with ideas!

 I am really big on bringing in colorful natural elements. Fresh flowers are the most obvious great way of doing this but I really love the use of lemons and limes in your decor! I will probably use my Pampered Chef Trifle Bowl with lemons and limes as my table centerpiece this Spring. There are also some realistic artificial fruit options out there as well if you prefer a longer lasting option.

 I also love the fruit in apothecary jars. I love anything in apothecary jars though! I have a set on our island that still have Valentine's candy in them. I may continue to fill them with candy but with bright colored candies. This way they remain functional but add color to the kitchen.

 Changing out your accent pillows is a great way to bring in some Spring color! With pillows like these, you are set through Summer as well. I love the bright colors! If you are like me, you are tired of your dark and neutral color palette that was cozy during the fall and winter and are ready for some excitement! These beauties are for sale on Etsy in the Pillow Throw Decor shop. (There are lots of pretty ones for sale there!) I am planning on fabric shopping soon to take a stab at making my own this year. Remember my post on Napkin Pillows? With all of the new Spring napkins coming out now, why not grab a set of napkins you love and quickly (and cheaply) make some for your home?

I am loving all of the yarn wreaths out right now! I found an Etsy shop that has a lot for sale, including this one! These bright wreaths would be beautiful on your front door or inside your home. If you have the time, this may be a great project! They seem pretty easy to make with the right materials! I may try this out myself as well!

What are your favorite ways to decorate for Spring?! I am eager for more ideas!

Mustache Anyone?

I have really been missing my little brother a lot lately and whenever I see a mustache, it makes me miss him even more! I don't know if you have noticed but it seems like mustaches are everywhere these days, not just on the faces of the men we know. Shopping on Etsy this morning, I was overwhelmed by all of the Mustache items there are for sale. I wanted to share a few of my favorites! I'm debating on the beer mugs, I think Aaron may need them when he returns.

 Mustache Beer Mugs- you choose your mustache style.

 iPod/iPhone Sleeve

 Mustache Coffee Mugs

 Aren't these pacifiers hilarious?!

Mustache Tote Bag- This shop sells shirts and aprons with the same design.

Hope this made you smile, laugh, or want more mustaches in your life :) I miss you Aaron!

Tagxedo Creations from Black and White (Side by Side) Blog!

I have been reading Black and White (Side by Side) for a while now and I love it! Maggie has such creative ideas from home decor, to crafts, to weddings! I wanted to share one of her recent ideas with you. It is so easy and can be used for different things! You can see my Tagxedo Creation above using my blog's URL.To see how to make your own beautiful word cloud, check out Maggie's posts on Tagxedo Creations and how she is using it in her home decor! Definitely check out both links, they are both great ideas!

Represent your man in your home decor!

I find that a lot of women tend to make their home decor all about their tastes and likes without incorporating much of what their hubbys love. At times, I am guilty of this as well. Don't get me wrong, I don't overload our home with extremely feminine things but I don't always consider his tastes. Even if your man likes most of what you decorate with, I think it is really important to incorporate what he loves into your decor as well.

Gabe has recently purchased and rebuilt a motorcycle (shown below- isn't my little butt seat cute?!) 

With the new bike in mind, I decided to look for some ways to incorporate it into our decor. I stumbled upon these Vintage Motorcycle Coasters on Etsy and decided to order them! I really love the character they add to the living room. They are for sale here and they also have Dog Coasters in the same design and they are here.

There are many ways to add a masculine touch and incorporate what your man loves in your decor! My brother in law is a Fire Fighter and his wife (my sista Blair) found this antiqued metal Fireman's Shield at the Flea Market and it is now in their home. I love how it represents Jordan and what he loves while adding to her beautiful decor. 

I hope this gets your juices flowing on how to be a well balancing decorator and help your man to feel more at home in his home!

My Thrifty Birthday

I had the best Birthday EVER! I felt surrounded with love and it was just such a happy day! I wanted to share some of my birthday gifts with you because they were so thrifty, crafty, and so ME! I love my gifts and my sweet friends who gave them to me!

 My oh so crafty friend, Sarah (and Andrew, who trimmed the edges :) ) made me this awesome "N". She used wood grain paper as the background and then decorated with stickers that say different things about our nest, our home, and our family. I love it! Thank you Erdmans!

 So do Josh and Erin know me or what? They gave me this awesome book called The Homemade Home, it has 50 different homemade projects in it! SO excited to dive into this! Thank you Defishers!

Our super creative friends, Dave and Jennifer made me this coat stand. It is hard to see the details from the image on the far right, but that is it's new home in our entryway. In the images on the right you can see that it is made out of a tree and nails are the coat hooks. I love the bottom where they used nails to spell our last name! How awesome is that!? Thank you Heimbeckers!

My sweet friends John and Allie gave me an AC Moore gift card and I can't wait to go shop and get started on my new project ideas!!

Do my friends know me or what? I should also mention that the husband spoiled me as usual. I wouldn't call his gift all that crafty but the Coach Bag tradition did continue and I am in love! I am now the proud owner of this little beauty!

 Thank you everyone for an amazing birthday!!!

Napkin Folded Pillow Cases

I recently subscribed to Martha Stewart's Craft of the Day emails and it got me searching on her site at all of her great craft ideas! One that I loved was her Napkin Folded Pillow Cases. This weekend, while shopping with the fam, mom and I picked out some cute napkins and last night I made a pillow!

Her step by step instructions are here. I did tweak it a little bit, she says you only need to stitch 2 inches down each side and I stitched the entire way down, mainly because the puffy pillow form it was causing it to gape open. It is more work this way but a much better outcome!

I love how easy it is to make and for such a little investment! The pillow forms are around $8 at Wal-mart and I got the napkin for $10 at Target (it came in a pack of 4.) If you go look at the instructions, check out the other crafts she has listed, most of them are so simple! I can't wait to make more of these pillows!!!

Vintage Finds on Etsy

I love looking through Etsy's Vintage section! You can find some really neat things and the prices are pretty good and comparable to antique store prices. I just love these two finds! Enjoy!

 

Isn't this adorable?! It is a vintage dinner bell! I think it would be so cute hanging on the wall in your kitchen!  It is for sale on Etsy for around $30 (includes shipping.)

I love these stacked vintage apothecary jars! It is actually two separate jars that can be used separately or stacked together! They are for sale on Etsy for around $24 (includes shipping.)

Wall Decor- DIY and Shopping options!

 While on the hunt for some good finds and good project ideas I found a couple cute things to share.

 

This beautiful framed fabric display is for sale on Etsy. The price on it is ok, but the seller is shipping from the UK, which doubles the cost.I am not suggesting anyone buy it, but it really got my creative juices flowing. There are so many times that I find a frame I love but have nothing to put in it, or find beautiful fabric but with no idea of what to make with it, or what to cover with it, but this solves that problem. This is such a beautiful display and could add color to any room in your house. This is an idea that my friend, Taylor, has done before, using the leftover fabric from covering chair cushions, framing it, and then hanging it on a nearby wall. This would be such an easy project to do and a beautiful piece for your home!

Those of you who have been to my home know that I have a thing for windows. I just love when they are re-purposed as mirrors. This one is for sale on Craigslist! It is located in Holly Springs and they are only asking $25, and in my opinion, you couldn't make it for that little. This would be beautiful in any room in your home, you could repaint it to match your decor and  add your own plants to the planter to personalize it further.

I am not sure how many of you are Craigslist browsers but I did want to point out that Craigslist has a FREE section where you can find anything from fire wood to furniture. Just today I saw a free piano listed. Since things are free, you shouldn't expect amazing quality but that is where you can get creative and fix something up! You don't have anything to lose if you don't pay anything for it. If you do find a nice item listed, they tend to go fast. In the past, Gabe and I have offered to pay something for it if they will save it for us and it has worked. Check it out! You never know what you might find!