creativity

I've been busy lately.

I finally decided that 2013 was the year that I would let go of the fear and do it anyway.  You know that fear that says don't do something, in case you fail...  

I opened a little shop. I'm loving it. Come take a look.

Let me know what you think.

recycle this wallpaper?

the renovations are coming along, and today I spent the morning removing the wallpaper in the hallway. it was a bittersweet feeling. it couldn't stay - McKenzie saw to that in her early days with us, and we'd always intended to take it down. but it had just grown on us, as most of the wallpaper in this place has.

everyone told us it would be a b*tch to take down (since it has probably been there for 40 plus years) but it peeled off so easily and in perfect sheets for the most part.I was left with these great whole sturdy pieces and thought what a great craft project it would make.
imagine the right little cabinet lined with this bright and sunny pattern.so I got online to come up with a few ideas to justify hanging onto this stuff. and was instantly inspired...

here

here

herehere

and here.

now I just have to find a place to hide it that Bryce won't throw it out on me :P

PS - if you'd like some let me know and I can send you some, there is a bunch of it.

happy friday!

this weekend they have predicted snow in California. they got 4 feet in Tahoe last night and they say it might snow in San Francisco - but I'll believe it when I see it :)

none the less it is still pretty cold here and I am looking forward to the weekend in. I am feeling the creative vibe so am going to try making this soup

this necklace

and this slow cooker recipe

I'll let you know how they turn out.

I hope you have a wonderful weekend whatever it is you're doing!

crafting fun

bryce bought me some flowers the other day that were wrapped in this pretty pink fabric and after putting them in a vase, I was inspired to make something of the fabric instead of throwing it in the garbage. here's what I made:

I'd bookmarked this diy wedding pom poms a little while ago, on once wed (love that site!) and decided to modify it a bit to make a cute hair pom pom. it was so easy, took about 20 mins and didn't cost me anything. here's how I made it:

you will need about 1 sq ft of fabric, a glue gun, scissors, and a bobby pin, and gloves
1. cut the fabric* into about 18 to 20 circles (I used an illy coffee can as a guide). the size of the circle is a rough estimate of how big the pom pom will turn out

2. fold the circle in half

3. then half again

4. add glue to the pointy end

5. fold another circle and pinch it together to the one with glue (my glue gun was on a cool setting so I was able to pinch it without burning myself, but you might want to wear gloves when doing this)

6. continue adding the folded circles and layering them to keep a rounded even shape

7. when you get closer to the bottom fold the circles an extra time to give it more puff

8. keep layering the circles

9. make sure you turn it over as you go to check the shape it is forming

10. you can see from the bottom as well where the gaps are

11. when it got to the very lower layers, I found they needed to be shorter so they kept the roundness, so I snipped the end off to make them fit

12. once all the circles are added trim the any parts that might need it
13. next you will need a scrap of fabric and a bobby pin

14. thread the scrap through the bobby pin

15. then turn the bobby pin upside down and apply lots of glue to make secure it, and press down with something other than your finger so you don't burn yourself (I used the silicon mat that came with my glue gun - after finding out the hard way how hot it was...)

16. once the glue is dried the bobby pin should feel really secure, if not add more glue and press. I used black glue so you could see what I was doing, but I'd suggest clear glue

and ta da!

* I don't know what the fabric was that I used but it is quite stiff and shiny, perhaps organza?

flufflefritz make over

one of the things on my list on my time off was to redesign this blog, and although I didn't get it totally done, I have come up with a concept and just need to create the artwork. I started doodling with this one a few months ago, and like the title but think the blogosphere has seen oh so much bunting these days, so scrapped that ideabut I was inspired by this photo the other day and since our blog is about fluff that floats our way thought that dandelions might be just the thing.

since you guys are the ones who look at my blog, I thought I'd get your opinion - what do you think? got any other good ideas for me?

am loving rhino heads right now!

are rhino heads the new deer head? ever since I saw Antonio's pink rhino head on Antonio Treatment the other night, I have had a slight obsession with rhino heads, and trying to figure how to work one into my home design (which might come as a slight surprise to Bryce...)

but look at this guy, isn't he awesome!? and I think his horn could come in handy for hanging hats or coats on :)I have been looking around online to see what's out there and surprisingly picking up a rhino head is not as easy as it sounds... well there is this guy from anthropologie but he's not quite fierce enough for me, but the paper mache idea is a good one... do you see where I'm heading with this??? :)

this guy is cool

photo here

but this guy is my absolute favourite!

photo here

next rainy day weekend project to make a fierce life like rhino head out of paper mache - what do you think?

finger knitting

bryce and I were having a conversation last night and he said, we don't pass down knowledge anymore, we just google it... and while I didn't totally disagree with him, I guess I am still from the generation of people who learned things from their grandparents. and I like to think that I will be able to pass talents onto my grandchildren.

one of the many things I learned from my nanna was finger knitting, but I must admit it took a prompt from the world wide web for me to remember that skill. thanks to katherine over at making chicken salad, it's a skill I can now pass onto my grandchildren :)

I made some of these for Melita's party to hang round the room, out of a really cheap multi coloured ball of acrylic from wallmart, and I was really happy with how they turned out. it's a great way to pass the time on road trips, or when you just can't keep your hands still (does everyone have this problem?)

for the tutorial go here

wedding invitation inspiration

after my wedding invite post the other day I got inspired to get some ideas down on paper, so last night I dusted off the box of pencils and had some fun little McKenzie oversaw things (can you see her little black face?)and although I'm no Anna Bond it's fun to doodle while watching (the very frustrating) Lost... and so far, I kinda like my mish mash of all the ideas I posted the other day...

but especially my addition of the party lights

I'll post the finished version soon

wedding inspiration/ garland obsession

what a wonderful way to combine garlands and lights!! I think this would be perfect at our wedding or any party occasion... :P

the instructions on how to make these lovely garlands are here at once wed

free printable invitations

speaking of invitations... look what I found over at the new nonpariel magazine a new online magazine that inspires you to create budget-friendly weddings and events with lots of very cool do-it-yourself projects and inspiration!

I love these downloadable Bunting Wedding Invites created by Haley that you can download, add your text to and print on lovely paper (she even suggests which fonts to use - how handy is that?)

there are many other gorgeous freebies to be had too! so make sure you check out nonpariel magazine

great invitation idea

isn't this the cutest idea for an invitation? I found it here amounst the many gorgeous designs on d*lish

a McKenzie Cozy - update

I'm happy to report that McKenzie doesn't mind wearing the little coat I made her (phew). We just got back from a walk and she didn't seem to mind it at all - maybe because it was quite a brisk morning and it actually kept her warm... :)

a McKenzie Cozy

when we first got McKenzie, the weather turned cold, and when we went for morning walks her skinny little body would shudder against the cold... so one morning when it was kinda rainy I put Cooper's rain jacket on her. It really didn't fit her properly but I thought it was better than being wet and cold, but no... she really didn't like it - she would walk funny and wouldn't sit when we asked her, basically, she was just ashamed... so I decided that it was the size of the jacket and that it made a funny plasticy sound perhaps? so I bought a ball of wool and set out to make her a cute warm jacket that fit...tonight I finished it by adding the buttons.

not trying to make it too girly, I added a mohawk (mimicking the one she has on her back) and made it brown and redit seems to fit well

but... she hates it :(

look how dejected she looks (that is her tail tucked all the way up to her belly button)
I think this photo just totally sums it up... 'but, Why???'