My awesome grandparents live in a retirement community nearby. Momoo, my grandmother, is in large part to thank for my craftiness and creativity. So, it’s only fitting that she be the recipient of some of my handmade creations. Thus, I’ve taken to making Momoo and Daddy Tom seasonal wreaths for the door of their apartment. I mean come on, what is better than having the best looking door in the retirement community AND be able to brag that it’s your granddaughter that is responsible. It’s grandparent heaven and fun for me too.

My previous wreaths have mostly been concoctions made up of faux florals and doo-dads from the seasonal aisle at Michael’s. Not so steal-worthy, my friends.

But last weekend, I came across this Babble article with 10 Simple DIY Fall Wreaths (many adorable) and decided I would rip off this one in a Valentine’s palette for my sweet grandparents.

You can steal this blogger’s instructions for making felt flowers here and use these adorable baubles for all kinds of applications. I really like this craft because you can cut and fashion the flowers while sitting on the couch (felt sticks to itself – so with just a round object to use as a template, a pen, and some scissors, you can make a whole mess of these little flowers before you ever get out the glue gun).

Once I had them all rolled up, I moved from the sofa to the dining room table and in 30 minutes, they had all been hot glued to the grapevine wreath. I decided that some leaves were in order so I halved some green felt, placed a towel over it and ironed a crease before cutting out the leaf shapes (I learned the hard way that the towel is a big deal – synthetic felt does not like heat!).

Pop on over to Little Things Bring Smiles and steal some inspiration for a lovely Valentine’s Day gift!

Will and I have decided to make special dinners on Sunday nights. We spend a nice chunk on Saturday planning and shopping and sometimes prepping. Then Sunday we invite guests over for a nice, long, leisurely dinner.

This week’s dinner is highly inspired by our recent trip to Paris. We’re majorly digging French food right now, y’all.

Escargots de Bourgogne

Our big souvenir from Paris was an escargot set with all of the accoutrements (see below) that we bought at a store called Guy DeRenne. I would liken it to the kitchen/tableware department of Crate & Barrel but with all things French. We ordered our snail shells and canned escargots from Amazon.com and Will whipped up a traditional Bourgogne compound butter.

Roast Chicken with White Wine, Lemon & Herbs de Provence

Will used our beer can chicken rack to make this roast chicken. Instead of beer in the can, we put dry white wine and some slices of lemon. Then he stuffed butter and Herbs de Provence under the chicken skin and generously all over the outside and roasted it in the oven. It was seriously the most flavorful, moist chicken ever. And so beautiful!

Gateau de Crepes

I’m a huge fan of crepes. While we were in Paris, I vowed to learn how to make them. Thanks to my fantastic birthday gift of Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child and Simone Beck, I had all of the instruction I needed. I made up the crepes yesterday and kept them in the fridge until today. Then I carefully followed Julia’s instructions to make a Mornay sauce, a spinach filling and a mushroom filling. Then the crepes get layered with alternating fillings, covered with the Mornay and a bit of extra Swiss, and baked in the oven like a cake. Amazing!

Orange Almond Cake

I saw this Orange Almond Cake on Laura Calder’s French Food at Home and decided I needed to steal the recipe. It only contains eggs, orange zest, orange juice, sugar, almond flour, Grand Marnier, and candied orange rind. I used orange marmalade instead of candied orange rind and it was too bitter – do not recommend. But the cake itself was delicious and seriously as easy as making cake out of a box – no joke.

We are moving into a new era of food adoration in our house. This also means we need to move into a new era of gym attendance. But it’s sure fun to plan a menu that’s not so everyday, work together in the kitchen to bring it to the table and then enjoy it with people we love.

In a post that seems like forever ago, I shared that our family was planning to put a modular home on 4 acres of land about an hour away from Nashville. Well it is finally here! Week before last, our lake house travelled from near Knoxville, TN to near Carthage, TN where my father has purchased a couple of acres on Cordell Hull lake.

Seeing a house come down the highway is quite spectacular. But even more spectacular is seeing one come down the narrow, winding country roads near the property. The final road that our property is on is in fact so narrow that everyone that lives in front of the house was completely pinned in for the 4 hours it took the house to traverse that short stint. In this part of the world, it’s not unusual for a double-wide to create a traffic jam so luckily no one was upset. The iHouse is much larger than a trailer, however, and has a striking aesthetic. There were lawn chairs lined up for miles to see our house travel the miles. And a few folks even took a vacation day so they wouldn’t miss the sight. Does this sound like a lovely place to vacation or what?

After a few brushes with boulders and more than a few branches that had to be trimmed, the iHouse came to rest at the foot of our property.

From then, it took a couple of days and a variety of heavy machineries to see that iHouse make it’s way up the hill to her final resting place. But she made it!

Now we’re just waiting for the decks to be built before we can really get busy decorating and enjoying. In the meantime, we couldn’t pass up this excellent sofa from Costco. We bought the floor model for just $700 and we think it will seat a crowd.

(Not my photo but stolen with gratitude from windsorpeak.com)

Now Mom and I are hunting rugs and planning lots of thrifting, crafting, and DIYing to make our lake house stylish and special. We’ll be posting lots more in the weeks to come!

This weekend, the hubs and I tackled the first part of our master bedroom makeover. And although it might not look like much just yet, we’re both over the moon about the new direction we’re taking. But before I elaborate, let’s have a look at the before, shall we?

BEFORE

When Will and I were still engaged (and long before we ever bought our current house), we bought this blue and white Pottery Barn bedding. We were having a heckuva time agreeing to bedding and this set was the very first (and only) that we could both get on board with.

So we bought it! It’s been great for snoozing, slobbering dogs and is the perfect weight for keeping cold-natured me warm and hot-natured Will cool. But neither of us have ever been totally crazy about it in our bedroom.

We painted the walls in this room to play up the bedding. But somehow it all just fell a little flat. I was always on the hunt for an accent color to introduce into the room to give it some more pizazz. But whatever I picked, it looked good with either the blue or the taupe walls both just not both!

We borrowed my parents armchairs for the Whitland Home Tour (nearly a year ago!) and have kept them since then. Not because we love them, but because they helped to make the room look a tiny bit more finished. A tiiiiny bit!

AFTER

We’re nowhere closed to finished now but we’re liking the new direction so very much more. The curtains and pillow shams are another Pottery Barn find, the Audrey drape from last year. I had purchased them to hang on my sunporch office but never quite got around to it before changing jobs and going to work outside of the house.

One day I brought the drapes into the bedroom on a lark and found that they gave the room just the pick-up I was looking for. Since then, we’ve been on a hunt for the details that would help to bring it all together.

We swapped the tables to opposite sides of the bed (and swapped our sleeping positions in the process … so strange how attached we get to something like the side of the bed!!) to create a make-up table next to the window for me.

The Ballard Designs Bellesol Mirror that I bought at the beginning of the year (on sale and with a coupon!) has finally found a home and will be hung just a bit higher than it’s current leaning position.

Notice the Premier Prints Zig Zag pattern in Village Blue/Natural laying over the Euro sham there. I’m thinking of covering all of my Euros in that pattern. What do you think? Too much?

A strange window in the corner has finally been outfitted with a curtain rod and curtain. We went with an antiqued brass for our window hardware. It seems to be an unconventional choice these days but I love a gold tone in decorating – it just brings so much more warmth!

The Restoration Hardware Heirloom Quilt has proven to be the perfect weight, even if we do have to cover it with an old sheet at night to mitigate the dog slobber. And so soft!

But we aren’t finished just yet! The projects that are yet to go will remain a surprise for now. Stay tuned for more on our master makeover!

When faced with taking a tot on a trip, new moms are always looking for ways to make it easier. So when my mom friends extraordinaire Macki and Kathy collaborated on this Kid’s Travel Toy Blanket with Velcro Loops and Ribbon Tags, I took note of the idea and filed it in the Klepto Files.

The genius behind this blanket is that it is both cute and functional. The ribbon tags with different textures and colors give baby something to concentrate on. The Velcro loops can be used to catch little teethers and other small toys. The tiny pockets are perfect for tucking away a pacifier, stray pair of socks, or even a tot-sized book. Aren’t Kathy & Macki brilliant?!

Lately, I’ve been bitten by the sewing bug again, so I spent the last couple of weekends whipping up 2 of these adorable blankets. I did all of my fabric and ribbon shopping in the clearance section of the sewing store and came away with so many adorable fabrics, ribbons and ric racs that I bought more than I need so I’ll be ready to make these for many munchkins to come!

One was for a very special little girl on the way so I opted for lots of different pinks, whites and a touch of coral and brown.

Following Kathy’s perfect instructions, I completed the little girl version of my blanket in an evening and a morning.

Once I had a better handle on the process, I was able to whip up the baby boy version in about half the time. And I think it’s twice as cute!!

Plus, it will be perfect for this little monkey …

Thank you Kathy, Macki and Merriment Design for the adorable idea! Rip-off accomplished!!

xo,
Julia

You dump it all into the pan*, it bubbles when you take it out**, and then just like that it’s deliciously golden brown***.

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I suggest that you march yourself to the nearest Farmer’s Market, buy a bushel of peaches, rush to eat them before they get wrinkly, and the ones that inevitably do get wrinkly you must cobblerize immediately. It’s my most favorite taste of summer.

xo,
Julia

Say that five times fast, why don’tcha?

I’d like 2 of these unnecessary accessories for either side of the television in our bedroom. Since Will has managed to mount 50-inches of television on the wall above our dresser (and continually lobbies to add another 20″ to the size of the television), I think it’s only fair that I be allowed, nay, encouraged to flank that electronic with something lovely.

These fit the bill.

Check out the other options (and other fun accessories) that I pinned to my Pinterest board. Why all of the effort toward bedroom accessorization? I’m planning a little mini makeover! Before and after pictures are forthcoming. In the meantime, here’s a preview.

And yes … I’m back to blogging! Hopefully this time with more regularity and more longevity. Thanks to all of you who have encouraged me to get back to my little slice of the Internet here. You are lovely!

xo,
Julia

Remember how I made custom cornhole bags for my friend Sarah’s wedding? They made their debut in Folly Beach this past weekend. Sure, they were cute and fun. But not nearly as cute and fun as the bride and groom.

xo,
Julia

I’ve had this post in draft for 2 months on my WordPress account … this idea thief has been working too much and not blogging enough! Anyway, February 11th-14th was Nashville’s Antiques and Garden Show at the Convention Center. The weekend after that was the Tailgate Antique Show at the Tennessee State Fairgrounds. In February I was really getting my antiques on … but shockingly I didn’t buy a thing (read down for the one that got away … still upset 2 months later!). These two antiques shows are very different but equally fab so I thought I’d share some of my favorite finds.

2011 Nashville Antiques and Garden Show

The show is full of lovely (and pricey) things but it is a lot of fun to peruse. I think the pillow above are especially lovely. The chairs they are sitting on I just can’t get excited about though. I’m seeing these deconstructed, burlappy, show-off-the-innards upholstered pieces all over the blogosphere. I guess my point about these chairs is that they look ok when they are staged in a vignette. But in my very own home? Not an idea that I’ll be stealing.

Now these super sculptural lamps on the other hand? These I love! A little more modern and organic than a barley twist but still hinting at that classic motif that never goes out of style (at least IMHO).

Shadowbox frames for botanicals still give a classic look but with a hint of contemporary style.

My hubs helped me draw a conclusion about oriental rugs. It’s the ones with a salmony color palette that I FAR prefer over the more typical deep reds.

We know I can’t stand fake florals. But sometimes you just need something a little more low maintenance. Hellllloooo, moss in unidentifiable, super-cool, weathered vessel, I think I love you.

2011 Tailgate Antique Show

A week later my mom and I hit the Tailgate Antique Show at the Tennessee State Fairgrounds. We actually went looking for some good items for the lake house but quickly realized the lake is more suited to flea market prices. There were some great deals to be had for the everyday house, though … and even more great ideas to steal. Here are a few of the best ones …

Mom and I thought these bird prints would be adorbs at the lake. Even though they were only $19 apiece we held off … because they are just framed fabric scraps! Stay tuned to see this idea ripped off for the lake.

We thought this old, chippy, metal box made for a great planter. When we brought the pics home and showed my husband he informed us it was an old ammunition box. Seeing as there will be lots of hunting that happens with the lake house as a home base … even better.

I loved the look of this piece to replace the dresser in our current master bedroom (the one we have now is also getting toted to the lake). As much as I love it, it just doesn’t have enough storage to be practical.

This mirror is just darling, IMHO and you can’t go wrong with a good silhouette.

And now for the one that got away. The hubs has been interested in putting a ladies writing desk or dressing table under one window in our master bedroom so I have a place to put on my makeup. Before you go thinking he’s super sensitive to my needs, realize that we have one small vanity in our master bath and it can get a little snug in there when two people are trying to get dressed. I saw this one and thought it was probably perfect. But sensitive to buying anything without consulting Will, I snapped this cell phone pic and emailed it to him while he was busy taking a hunter’s safety course:

Momma and I walked on, continuing to browse and I kept thinking about that darned desk. Finally Will called, said I shouldn’t have hesitated, if I like it he will too. So Mom and I high-tailed it back over only to find a woman purchasing the desk right out from under my nose. 2 months later, I’m still upset! Just goes to show that it’s always best to strike while the iron is hot!

Keep on stealing, theives! More from me soon.

The Saturday before Valentine’s Day I got an itch to make a homemade Valentine for my hubby. He’s a man who has everything and we’ve never made much of a big deal over Valentine’s day. In fact last year we had Will’s delicious chicken marsala on our good china by candlelight. It was honestly a perfect evening. That’s one of the great things about my husband. He’s an excellent cook and it’s totally sexy!

The week before Valentine’s Day, my friend Jaime from Prudent Baby wrote a post on Valentines Poems for Every Personality. And on that list, I found one that was PERFECT for him. It’s called The Love Cook by Ron Padgett and it goes a little something like this:

Let me cook you some dinner.
Sit down and take off your shoes
and socks and in fact the rest
of your clothes, have a daquiri,
turn on some music and dance
around the house, inside and out,
it’s night and the neighbors
are sleeping, those dolts, and
the stars are shining bright,
and I’ve got the burners lit
for you, you hungry thing.

HOT! HOT! HOT! I love it. And I wanted to do a little something more with it than write it on a card. But what to do? Put it in a frame? Hand-embroider it on a dishtowel? Paint it on a utensil holder at one of those paint-it-yourself places? Of course I came up with this idea on approximately February 12 so I had to work fast.

Enter Prudent Baby once again! They were featuring a potholder contest at the same time for a chance to win a Brother sewing machine. That’s when I saw this:

And I decided that yes in fact a potholder can be sexy. So I went to the fabric store and picked out some Valentine-y but not too girly fabrics and some notions. Then I ran on over to Michael’s and grabbed some heat transfer paper and I got to work using the instructions that Prudent Baby provided for their contest.

You are definitely going to want to click on that hyperlink up there and look at Jaime’s tutorial for sewing a potholder if you are going to tackle this yourself. But below I’ll summarize the steps with a few tips on what I learned in the process. I must admit – sewing a potholder is a very satisfying little project. It really only takes an hour or so and with some cute fabric, what a sweet little hostess gift or thank you gift it could be.

Here’s how it goes:

1. Cut two 8″ squares of fabric, two 8″ squares of batting, two 5×8″ rectangles of fabric and two 5×8″ rectangles of batting. Pin batting to each fabric piece comme ca:

Now the fact is that you could just use one piece of dense batting in between two pieces of pretty fabric and that would be just fine. But the batting I bought was light so I wanted the extra layer to protect against heat. I was also planning to applique the heart to the potholder and I didn’t want the thread to show through on the other side. That’s why I opted to quilt each side separately, which brings be to point #2.

2. Place a pretty fabric square on a batting rectangle and quilt. I chose to do 1″ parallel lines which I estimated using my little handy ruler. (This is, by the way, a great project to practice sewing straight lines if that’s an issue for you – not that it is for me (cough).)

3. You’re going to do the same parallel line quilting on your second fabric square and batting set. Then move on to your rectangles. The rectangular fabric cuts will be used for the little hand mit portion of your potholder. Since my mit rectangles weren’t getting any appliques or special decoration, I just sandwiched the pretty fabric on either side of 2 pieces of batting, pinned it tight, and quilted away. Jaime says a walking foot for the sewing machine is great for this. I didn’t have one and I did just fine.

4. What you’re going to do next is press your message on to a heart-shaped bit of fabric using heat transfer paper. I didn’t get any photos of this but it’s pretty easy. Just make sure you give yourself some leeway to do a little trial and error with the transfer paper as it is NOT an exact science.

5. Then use the satin stitch setting on your sewing machine to applique the heart on to one of the fabric + batting squares. You’ll wind up with something that looks like this:

5. Now you are going to sew some bias tape to your rectangular pocket on one side and then base the rectangle on to the square while basting the squares together. If you have never sewn with bias tape (I hadn’t), check out Prudent Baby’s tutorial here. But be forewarned, you may become obsessed with bias tape as I now have. Bias tape makes me want to sew a LOT more often because it hides the ugliness! But I digress … here’s how we’re looking now …

6. Now it’s time to apply the bias tape all the way around. Don’t forget to make a provision for the loop to hang you pot holder with. And again, if you haven’t already, check out Prudent Baby’s Bias Tape Tutorial.

7. And that just about wraps it up!

8. Unless of course you are me and you have already decided in your head that a set of pot holders would be way cuter than just one.

I thought the conversation heart motif was kind of fun. Do you see that that one actually has iron marks on it? I suppose maybe the iron was a little too warm, the press was a little too firm, and the hold was a little too long on that heat transfer. But I decided that especially given the message of this pot holder that the iron marks give it more character. So I decided to go with it!

My Love Cook loves his new pot holders. And for less than $25 (I had to buy every single thing I used here … no scraps to be had), I made a cute, custom and funny valentine for my love. Handmade gifts are fewer and far between these days. Who better to give one to than the one you love the most?

Thanks, Prudent Baby, for the poem and pot holder inspiration. Clearly, I was inspired!