DIY PAINTED PICTURE FRAME MAT

So, I got up to some major DIYing this weekend, how about you?  I painted my fall pumpkins gold, gold leafed a ceiling medallion AND spruced up an old picture frame mat to give it some much needed colour. Because I knew it would take me another year to decide on a new piece of art that was a bit more colourful, I decided to go about it in a different way; I painted the mat.

The blase before...

Before

The tools were as simple as craft paint, mini roller and IKEA picture frame (I experimented with an inexpensive frame just in case it didn't turn out the way I wanted).

And the process was even simpler, dip roller in paint and roll on the mat (making sure to get the inside edges so you don't see any white).

After it dried, I popped it back in to the frame and found it a new home.

After

Instant facelift! Love.

CHIC, BUDGET FRIENDLY THANKSGIVING TABLESCAPE

It's amazing what kind of decorating goodness you can find around the house when you put your mind to it. I wanted to whip up a budget friendly, but still ultra gorg, tablescape for our Thanksgiving festivities, using items I already owned.

On hand; our wedding china (always use it when I can), white cloth napkins (an absolute staple when it comes to entertaining), fancy gold glassware (you can never have too many glasses), mason jars (if you don't own a few, stop reading this and go out and buy them right now!) and good old kraft paper (so many uses).

I filled in the gaps with some seasonal foliage (only $10.99) and spiced them up (pun intended) with some cinnamon sticks - these normally just sit in my cupboard because I generally have absolutely no idea what to do with them!?

The cinnamon sticks made another appearance as a decorative place setting detail on the napkins; simply wrap 3 sticks with twine, and place, that's it.

I scattered the table with mini white pumpkins ($3) and a couple candles to add sparkle. I got really adventurous (not) and painted a bit of gold on a green gourd ($5); gold is my world!

And there you have it, for approximately $20 out of pocket, I made a pretty, seasonal tablescape out of items I already own.  Try it!

Happy Thanksgiving!

HOW TO MAKE A QUICK DIY VASE IN A PICKLE...JAR

Hello!!! I know it's been a while, I've been busy getting my life back on track after my loooong vacation; laundry piles, bills and fallen leaves have been top priority; however I did mange to get away for a weekend with friends (they come before laundry).

Last weekend we made the trek up north to a friends cottage to celebrate two birthdays, an anniversary and one engagement! I was in charge of the flowers for the bride-to-be and in my post vacay daze I didn't even think to bring a container to put them in for her to transport back on the 4 hour drive home. Yikes!  

One of my super crafty girlfriends came to the rescue, she spotted a pickle jar in the fridge and decided we could make something pretty to keep these flowers perky.  

We emptied the pickles into Tupperware, washed the vase,  arranged the flowers (not sure why we did this before we wrapped it) and wrapped in twine (taping the first end down and the last end as well).

Ta da...make-shift pickle jar vase!  It turned out beautifully, very rustic-chic.

When you get desperate, your get creative; think beyond the everyday use for items you have on hand...it just might get you out of a pickle.

WEDDING WEEK || custom homemade cookie favours

With my 2 year wedding anniversary just around the corner - July 24th for those of you who would like to send gifts ;) - I thought I 'd take you on a lil walk down memory lane. To clarify, "wedding week" is more like "wedding couple of weeks", I have lots to share; tips, DIY's, a couple delicious recipes, oh and about 1500 pictures from our special day, JK!!! only a few fun pics, hopefully I didn't lose any of you there :) 

chowing down on street meat, I was sooo hungry: this pic makes me giggle 

I want to talk favours; I know favours have been getting a bad rep lately; they're becoming synonymous with tacky, cash sucking, junk. I totes agrees if you're ordering random trinkets online that are meaningless to you or your groom.  If you're giving a favour, which personally I think is a nice touch to thank your guests for coming, they must be meaningful. We customized ours in a way that related to our theme AND had special meaning to us.

Our favours were little brown bags, stuffed with each of our favourite cookies, homemade by our moms the day before the wedding, we included the recipes too.  For me this was the perfect combo of  cost effective, meaningful and custom.  We (and by we I mean I) customized them by hand stamping each bag and fastening them with mini chandelier buttons that I had made to fit.

FETE || chic canadiana party

Happy Canada Day eh! My long weekend was pleasantly packed full of family, food and fireworks; my fave things ever...and in that order.  We hosted a Canada Day party on Sunday in our backyard; I had an idea to honour this special day in a way that included more than just red and white paper flags. Chic Canadiana was the theme, think woodland wonderful, beavers and moose, beer and bacon, all things coined classically Canadian. I get ridiculously excited by any occasion that allows me to let my inner party planner, crafter and hostess rear its' obsessive head, and this patriotic celebration was no exception. 

I dug out my wool Hudson's Bay Co. point blanket, with its iconic stripes, and used it as the inspiration for my master plan, bwah ha ha ha.

I prepared a food and bevy line-up that was quintessentially Canadian; Canadian Bacon Burgers, Poutine,  and Moose Tracks Ice Cream with a Maple Cookie topper.  We sipped on Canadian beer from our famed cottage country in Muskoka and cocktails infused with fresh Ontario strawberries.

I also got my craft on; I ordered some of these cute moose gift tags from Etsy and glued them to red take-out boxes from Michaels (I also raided Michaels for scrapbook paper, glue and string), made a catchy celebratory banner and wrapped vases with scrapbook paper to add a little oomph. 

I wanted to keep the classic Canadian red and white colour palette alive, but I freshened things up by using some pretty patterned paper. We handed out maple suckers and sparklers as party favours.

After the feast, we headed out the beach to take in the annual fireworks show, it was a lovely way to cap off the evening. 

The party was a success, everyone seemed to enjoy themselves and we all left feeling uber proud to be part of the true North strong and free.

FETE || stylish outdoor entertaining

Hi lovelies, just wanted to share a few quick pics with you from last night's Palm Springs inspired dinner party; it was the first time we've used the new backyard to host a dinner (promise pics of the yard are coming soon).

We were celebrating summer and couldn't have asked for more perfect weather, although I did ask the weather gods several times to please keep the rain away, it worked.

This was the scene...

Black, white and yellow with a splash of pink was the palette I played with, of course. The table seats 8 but was set for 6 and still a tight squeeze, but it seemed to work. I ended up making a table runner from fabric I had leftover from our wedding (cheated a little and only ironed the edges flat, it actually held together well, great shortcut if you don't like to sew).

Any excuse to craft, I'm on it, so I picked up these cute anchor stamps and some scrapbook paper from Michaels and made these little cards to bring some pink and whimsy into the table setting.

The flowers were meant to be bright and have a California feel to them. The market I go to didn't have the billy balls I desperately wanted, so I grabbed these nifty things, thought they fit the bill.

The menu was simple but risky; don't ask me why I decided to try 3 new recipes in a dinner party setting, I usually test them before hand to make sure they're up to snuff.  This time I just went with it and everyone seemed to like the food, and drinks of course were cold and plentiful :)

The menu; Citrus Marinated Shrimp Skewers with Grilled Pineapple to start, Arugula, Potato and Green Bean Salad, a Smitten Kitchen recipe (so amazing, it was totally delish) and Teriyaki Flank Steak (a fave amongst the group). 

For dessert these super refreshing, light and flavourful Strawberry Paletas I saw in Sweet Paul . TO.DIE.FOR! 

We laughed, we chatted, to be honest most of us were tired from work, but it was a relaxed evening and always great to get together

At the end of the night we lit up the fire and toasted marshmallows; our friends brought over a s'mores kit that came complete with sticks to put the marshies on, genius.

This was first of many summer backyard dinner parties in our household. Now, I'm on to the next, Canada Day party planning; was there a hostess badge in Girl Guides? I would have totally earned that one ;) ! Have a wonderful long weekend!

DIY || mother's day indoor herb garden

Do you have your Mother's Day gift picked out yet? I was scrambling a little bit until today, some of my supplies for my DIY gift didn't arrive until last night, wasn't sure if I was going to end up empty handed. But...crisis averted I got the goods and whipped up these li'l cuties. 

This was a super easy DIY project; I personalized it by choosing paper shades and patterns that go with my MIL's decor, and picked herbs that I thought she would use in some of her favourite dishes.

 

 

 

- empty tin cans, washed and dried

- herb plants of your choice (I went right for the plants that were already in bloom, no patience to wait on seeds)

- potting soil and pea gravel

- shovel and garden gloves (if you're like me and want to protect your mani)

- glue, paper trimmer, stamps, ink pad and kraft paper

- wallpaper samples - these can be left over from an old project or ordered online. I used Lowes Wallpaper Studio .

Indoor tools

Outdoor tools