Love is in the Air!

I've always been a sucker for Valentine's Day. Maybe it's because I'm a bit of a sap, or maybe because my anniversary is the day after, but mostly I think I love it because, heck--it's a reason to celebrate in the middle of winter! (I think from some of my previous posts you might be getting the idea by now that winter is NOT my favorite season lol!) And of course I love that it's a whole day devoted to love. So, we try to do it up for V-Day, and I just thought I'd share a few of the things we've been doing around the house to make it look festive!


I jazzed up our entertainment center cabinets with a love banner, heart doilies and scrapbook paper:




(We don't have a fireplace so I like to decorate this area of our living room as a focal point.)

Added some touches of red glitter for a little bling. :) This Willow Tree figurine is perfect this time of year! (I *heart* Willow Tree!)

I also made this little bunting thanks to some Pinterest inspiration (pinspiration!):

It was very easy to make! Just some scrapbook paper, twine, a heart punch and...Viola! It's the little things like this that just brighten up a room, isn't it?

Here's the original pin that inspired me (although mine is actually quite different!):

Source: familyoffarmers.blogspot.com via Brenda on Pinterest

I also wanted to use this beautiful paper I had leftover from our wedding invitations (gasp!) 9 years ago! It has real flower petals and bits of evergreen embedded in it. I love it! So I made some little dangly floating hearts and hung them between our kitchen and living room. They're especially meaningful to me since they remind me of our wedding!

Here is what they look like up close:

aaaah, so romantic. :)

After seeing a bunch of pins floating around Pinterest on paper flowers, I thought what better time to try them than Valentine's Day? So, I took the plunge and gave them a shot. I'm totally hooked! They are SO easy and elegant! I have to say though, that the pins I found for spiral paper flowers were a little information-light. Most of them just consisted of pictures without much description like this:

Source: blog.craftzine.com via Jennifer on Pinterest

(When I tried clicking on the referring site for this particular pin, it was unavailable!)

And while this is very helpful in somewhat demystifying the how-to of paper flower making, I prefer something with a little more detail. So, I learned somewhat by trial and error on this one, and am therefore, now an expert! (Ha!) But I thought I would attempt to give you a more thorough tutorial than the ones I found. Here's how I made them:

You Will Need:

--thin paper colored on both sides (or white will do for white flowers of course!)
--glue gun
--scissors
--long branches (to use as stems)
--a vase

Directions for Assembly:

1) Start by selecting your paper. Take it from me: cardstock is NOT GOOD to use! It's too thick to roll nicely and ends up looking all wonky. I would recommend thinner paper (think printer paper) that's colored on both sides. Double-sided scrapbook paper or origami paper would both work, too. I used a combination of pink and white printer paper for mine.

(This is what will happen if you try using cardstock. No good!)

2) Determine the size of the flower you want. My flowers are about 2 inches in diameter. To make flowers this size I would recommend using a circle about 5-6 inches in diameter (I was able to make 2 flowers per sheet this way.). For teeny tiny buds you'd need about a 3" circle.


3) Draw a circle on your paper and free-hand a spiral beginning from the outside of the circle working your way in toward the center. Don't stress over imperfections. They actually make the flower look really nice! Stop your spiral about 1/2 inch from the center. I found that starting with a very thin spiral on the outside (approx. 1/8"), expanding to a larger "looser" spiral toward the center (approx. 1/2") made for a prettier flower that was easier to shape. (Note: I just free-handed cutting the spiral to avoid pencil marks. But if you really want to draw prior to cutting, just make be sure to erase any remaining marks or else they will show.)

Notice how imperfect my circle and spiral are? Just go for it!

4) Now it's time for the fun part! Starting from the outside of the circle working toward the center, begin to tightly roll your paper into a spiral. I got mine started by curling it with my finger nails (much like one would do with scissors and curling ribbon), but you could also use a knitting needle, skewer or chopstick if you want something to aid your initial winding. Don't worry about trying to form your flower into the perfect flower shape just yet. That will come later. For now, simply wind until you've reached the center of the circle.





5) Once you've finishing winding, gently cup the spiral in your hands and release it a little to allow it to loosen up a bit. Once you do this you should find that the center is still quite tightly wound and that the outer edges are very loose. Now you can hand-shape the flower to the exact size, tightness and shape you want.

My flower suddenly turned white! LOL! Sorry 'bout that. I took pictures of various steps while making more than one flower. So, some pics are pink, others white. :)

shaping my flower. Aww, so purty!

6) Now it's time to glue. While holding your flower in place with one hand, place a dab of glue from your glue gun to the outer "flap" of your flower. Hold in place for a few seconds while glue sets. Once the outer flower is glued you may need to add a few additional dabs of glue to the inner layers if they're not holding their shape (e.g. if the center is flying out of the flower!). Note: be very sparing and careful with your glue application as too much glue will show on your finished flowers! Try to avoid "glue strings" by pulling them away before they dry.

place dab of glue to outer edge of flower shown here.

7) Next you will affix the stem. Turn your glued flower over, exposing the base where the stem will attach. Snip a tiny hole on the bottom to create a space for your stem. Once your hole is ready to go, place a generous amount of hot glue onto the tip of your stem. Quickly and carefully insert twig through hole approx. 1/4" through the center of your flower, holding in place until glue dries. While glue is still wet be sure to arrange your flower onto stem at desired angle. Once glue dries you may need to reinforce with a second application of glue at base of flower. (Don't worry, this probably sounds more complicated than it really is! I just like thorough instructions when I try new crafts, so I'm including all of the extra tidbits of information I discovered along the way!)

Don't worry about getting your hole just right-it won't show once you fill it in with glue!

glue time!

insert twig into center of flower

add extra glue to base as necessary.

ta-da!

admire your handiwork! :) (*and ignore the mess that is my kitchen in the background lol!)

8) Once you've created your blooms, set them in a vase of choice and enjoy! :)

My kids told me they *almost* look real! :)


So, that's what we've been up to lately around here! What have you been doing to spread a little love around your home?

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Works for Me Wednesday

Best Seat in the House

You know the old saying, "If you want the best seat in the house you have to move the cat."

Well, in our house it would go something more like, "If you want the best seat in the house you have to move the...TOYS!"

In our house the toys are always scattered about, pretty much everywhere. This is largely due to the fact that my son Adam is somewhat of a toy hoarder! Wherever he goes, whatever he's doing he is always holding something. (And it's usually more like five to ten somethings!) And, being like most three-year-olds, he often gets distracted easily and inevitably what follows is the TOY PLOP. Whenever and wherever curiosity strikes, plop go the toys. Apparently our living room must be a place of great curiosity because often the proverbial "plop" ends up being on the best seat in the house--our couch.

So, whenever I'm looking forward to taking a load off or maybe folding a basket of laundry (That would be taking a load apart. Heh heh. Sorry. ) there's always a surprise--or twenty-- on the couch awaiting. A mommy gift.



It's always interesting to examine the array. There's usually evidence of some sort of battle that's taken place. Alien takeover. Robot invasion, perhaps.

So for me, part of the usual routine of sitting down on the couch involves fetching Adam to round up his battleground. Unless, too tried and weary to bother, I settle into another quiet corner for the moment. Toys: 1, Mom: 0.




Go ahead, take a load off Superman. I know, saving the world is hard. X-Ray vision, bulky muscles, swooning damsels-it's a rough gig. (Heck, there's even a song or two about it.) Enjoy this bit of peace and quiet while it lasts, because before long the childhood demands of saving the world once more will beckon. Evil villains to fend off, Kryptonite lurking...boo boos to mend, salty toddler tears to soothe. You and I together, saving the world on a daily basis. Duty calls all too often. So for now...just rest.

a little frozen comfort

My poor guy Adam came down with a stomach bug last night. Suffice it to say it was one looooooong, sleepless and messy night of sheet and pajama changes. :( Stomach bugs are just plain no fun. But the worst part for me is the feeling that there's so little I can do to alleviate his pain and discomfort! Well, in a stroke of mommy-genius (rare occurrence) I came up with something to bring just the teensiest bit of joy to him while he rested on the couch: Water Popsicles. This way Adam stays hydrated while not drinking so fast as to induce more vomiting, and there's added bonus of homemade popsicle fun. It's a win-win (or more accurately a "win-win-win," right? Sorry, nerd moment.). Since this one needs no recipe (Ingredient: water. Directions: freeze water) I'll provide a picture of this smashing success instead:

Ok and just one more:

While this might seem like completely obvious knowledge to some of you, this water popsicle thing actually felt pretty inventive to me. (Maybe that's because I got about as much sleep last night as I did when Adam was one day old.) But put your worries to rest, I'm not about to go seeking a patent or anything...I'm not that far gone (yet). Just wanted to share the tiny bright spot of our long cartoon and snuggle-filled day.

My poor little man. Those eyes. I mean, honestly. *Sigh* But anyway...

Here's hoping you don't ever need to use these, but if you do, they worked for me! :)


shared at: Works for Me Wednesday