A Way to Help Tornado Victims

Like many people, Eileen and I are deeply saddened by the loss of lives and homes in the south this week from the tornado outbreaks. We are feeling so blessed that our immediate area wasn't impacted. 

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Over breakfast this morning, we were discussing this and how we wish there was something we could do to help.  

We decided that the best way we could help is to involve YOU!  

We will donate 100% of the proceeds of our Number Decals to the victims.  We're paying the shipping so every cent of your purchase goes directly to the victims now through Sunday.

Number Decal

 

Order as many as you like & get cute decals while helping others.

Thanks so much for helping Eileen and I do what we can for the victims of this weeks tornado outbreaks. We truly appreciate it!

James

Pottery Barn Knock Off Lamp

I've been admiring these jar lamps from Pottery Barn for a while now but their price tag...not so much.

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So James and I made this

I recently won a $25 gift certificate in Home Goods' Mom cave Sweepstakes (thanks Home Goods!) and since they are the best place to go for lamps I figured I would look there.  They always have great finds, low prices and their inventory is constantly changing.  

Instead, I found this jar and snatched it right up because I knew if I didn't grab it, it may not be there next time.

$16.99!  Awesome price.

A trip to the lamp section led me to the perfect shade for $11.99!  It's exactly what I was hoping to find.

I love the texture of it!

I had planned to put these treasures away until I had more time to make the lamp but I was so excited I headed straight to Lowes for one of these lamp kits. 

If I were to do this again I would check the thrift store for a cheap lamp to take apart first because this kit was about $10.

I asked James to help me with this next part.  He used two part epoxy to hold the metal lamp kit to the glass.  Apparently there is some timing involved because he had to hold the metal straight until the epoxy "kicked".  

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He then simply screwed the shade on!  Done!  Right?

Not quite...

last night as I was winding down with a PB catalog from a busy three day weekend, I spotted this

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and being a total copy cat I knew that my lamp was lacking!  So we added an etched glass vinyl 5 to it and now it's really done.  

The decal was so simple but really completely changed the look of the lamp.  I like it so much more than the tiny monogram on the PB lamp.  

If you have any questions about this project leave a comment for James since he did the hard part.  Thanks for checking out our lamp!  We're linking this one up to

Spring Decorating

We haven't had a chance to get up to the attic to get the Spring decorations down yet (Read I haven't nagged James enough to get him to do it).  With the warm weather and flowers blooming all over our yard, I had to add some Spring touches inside the house so I moved some things around and used what I had.

We don't have a mantle so I decorated the table behind the sofa instead.  I love the casual look of the mirror leaning against the wall.  

 

I bought those gorgeous sap buckets at The Hooked Fish, I love them!   The cute little bunny was from a boutique in Wilmington, I can't remember which one.  He was in our front window looking out before he moved over to this table.

  The bird cage was from Lowe's, it came in a set with a smaller one.  They have been in just about every room of the house!

For the dining room table I simply put some wisteria and daffodils from the flower garden in a Bell jar (my very favorite thing to decorate with).  I love this pretty look.

On top of the hutch, I tucked a couple little things in my old soda crate from Pottery Barn.  Then just added some candle holders with pieces of a wreath wrapped around them.  On the other side is another candle holder and one of my favorite Willow Tree figurines.

Now I am not in any rush for James to drag the Spring decorations down.  I kinda like the clean and simple look we have now.

Linking up to

The Stories of A2Z

Gallery Wall Reposted

This is an older post that I wanted to reshare with you.  I did this gallery wall and I loved it so much!  But, it had to come down when we added board and batten to the dining room.  I am now scouring my favorite blogs looking for inspiring gallery walls with board and batten.  I'll be sure to post when I am done :)

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In April I started to collect black photo frames and photos for a grouping for my dining room wall. Yes, I do realize that was SIX whole months ago. Mostly what took so long was working up the nerve to start it. I knew that it would be quite a project and I was really concerned that it would come out terrible and all I would have to show for my efforts was a wall that looked like swiss cheese! Well, my fears were unfounded because I LOVE the way it turned out!

My first photos were these from Shaded Memories aren't they fabulous?

Then I found these beauties from Kimberly of Mimi Charmante She is so talented and has a great blog too!

Then I found these (among many others) from Layla and Kevin of Lettered Cottage Art. I especially love the red door photo.

I took this photo, below, myself with a little help from my friend, Gerry. It was taken at Airlie Gardens. If you are ever in Wilmington, you should take a couple hours to tour their amazing gardens!

So yesterday I was feeling down because it was my baby girl's birthday and she is now living 800 miles away. I decided to tackle this project that has been waiting so patiently for me. This is an older picture. Since it was taken we have repainted, replaced the table and chairs with ones that actually match and replaced the light fixture with a new chandelier.

Before

After

First I gathered the frames and the above photos along with some family favorites. I placed all the photos in frames and made white mats for some of them out of white card stock. Then I laid them out on the dining room table, then I rearranged them, then I rearranged them again, and again, you get the idea! This part took me literally HOURS! Because I have such a varied mix of photos I had to be careful that I didn't bunch the family photos together and that I evenly spread out the color photos among the black and white photos, etc. Finally I was ready.

I cut scrapbook paper to the size of every frame (no newspaper to be found) and place them on the wall in their correct place (another hour). I don't have pics of this part because Hubby had the camera at Cub Scout camp. Sorry!

Then we had dinner (I needed a break by this point). Then I re-spaced some of the papers and then started hanging the photos. This was the easiest part of the entire process.

See how I have four "layered" on top of the others? Well, just before I got to those last four I looked at the wall and almost cried! 
It looked like I just randomly hung them! It was a mess! I thought I was going to be up all night filling the nail holes and repainting the wall! Then I decided to finish with the layering and then decide if all my work for for naught. I am so glad that I didn't give up because those four really brought it all together.

I am so happy with it! And so happy that it is all finished!

Now what project can I fret over for the next six months?

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Linking up to

Inspired Room

Thifty Decor Chick