Suggestions Please

Next week my blog will be one year old!
I'd love to do a giveaway.
I'm thinking that the prize could be something
that I've done a tutorial on this past year.
I could make one & personalize it just for you.
I want the gift to be something you would like.

I'D LOVE ANY SUGGESTIONS!!!

(To review my tutorials just click the tutorial label
at the bottom of the page)

Shelving Memories

I finished decorating my bookshelves. I did use a few books, mostly vintage ones that I've collected with wonderful titles like How To Be Happy Though Human, Rest And Be Thankful, How To Live. And books with foreign titles that I would love to be able to pronounce.I packed the shelves full of mementos from foreign places; places where family and friends have been, places I hope to one day visit. I wanted each shelf to tell a story. This may be too much visual clutter for some, but I love it!
There are remembrances of Germany, where my husband spent two years on a mission for our church, and of Russia, where my middle son served. There are souvenirs that my daughter brought back from Africa, where she volunteered at a school for the deaf. Tokens from Holland, Denmark and England are under a cloche, safe from toddler hands.There's keepsakes from the time my daughter spent serving the people in Argentina. One shelf has things from France. When I was in junior high I took French for two years and dreamed of touring Paris. This shelf keeps the dream alive.
I added in photographs and paintings and even old silver trays. The silver trays reflect light back into the room and are a great place to add more personal photos and postcards held on with pretty magnets (the next thing for me to do). I thought about adding small lamps, but since my boys and their friends spend a lot time in this room, I knew it wasn't practical. That's why there's no pillows on the love seat. The pillows just got their way and ended up on the floor. Instead of letting it make me crazy, I just removed the pillows.
Decorating should include your family's lifestyle. It should be comfortable, inviting, inspiring, stir positive emotions, and create wonderful memories. That's my goal when I decorate. I think I achieved it in this room.

A Regal Pair

I've been trying to get some spring rearranging done. I love to rearrange things to help motivate me to clean and dust. The shelves in our office/computer room are in need of a new look, so I emptied everything out. I've never posted about these, so I thought this would be a great time to do it. We made two of these handsome bookshelves from old doors cut in half. They flank each side of the leather love seat and our huge map on the wall.We made them mirror images of each other, with the doorknobs facing opposite the love seat. They're topped with big, chunky molding that's meant for the exterior of a home. They're tall and lean and the details are reminiscent of a castle turret. I love how they give such presence to the room.
Now, I'm off to find some wonderful items around my house to fill them up.

That's A Wrap

Here's an inexpensive, quick and easy way to wrap small gifts. I've been doing this for years because it's done with materials I almost always have on hand. All you need is newspaper, a paper lunch sack, twine and a stapler.Send the newspaper through the paper shredder to get your sack filler.Place the gift inside. Fold the top of the sack, accordion style, about have way down and then staple the middle. Pull the two ends together and staple.Cut several lengths of twine and thread them through the small opening in the fold. Wrap the twine around the sack and tie. That's it! You have an inexpensive, cute gift wrap idea that's very versatile. To make it fancy, you can use a white paper sack that's been embellished with stamps or scrapbook decorations, and then tie it with colored raffia or pretty satin ribbon.

Bring On Spring

I'm still trying to bring on Spring, despite the fact that there is snow falling outside.
I decorated my foyer table with a vintage floral print, flanked by two huge urns topped with grass balls. The theme was there, but it looked a little BLAH! It needed a little freshening up.I went outside and clipped a few branches and spray painted them a pretty cream. (I'm sure you've done this trick too. It's such an easy and inexpensive way of bringing in nature.) Then I took it one step further, thanks to my faithful glue gun and a garland of pearls. I simply clipped off the pearls and glued them onto the branches to simulate buds.I added a few more layers in the tablescape by adding bright green ribbon to the urns, a small little faux floral arrangement to compliment the floral print, and a sweet little bird that I found last week at the dollar store.

Now it looks like a fresh Spring scene.