Pinable Success...

Have you guys tried Pinterest?  It is such a neat site!  I love that I can "pin" stuff I find all over the internet in one place!  My inbox is so much cleaner... I no longer have to email myself random links all the time.

I have pinned lots and lots of different things... today I want to show you a few of the ideas I have gotten the opportunity to try already...

First... this is not really a craft, but a fantastic video I saw a few days ago.  If only I had known about this method when I took ballet or even when I was doing Auxiliaries in high school and college.  This is so easy... and it stays put with only a few pins... I love it!

Second, these precious cupcakes.  We decided to try them a few weeks ago for bridal shower.  They took a little while to put together, but, overall the process was pretty easy.  

They turned out so cute!  I will definitely make them again!

Third (and last for now)... I made this cake for the 4th of July.  I was so pleased with how it turned out!  I used a cake mix... and store bought icing.  

The recipe shows you a few simple tricks to make it look very fancy!

(Sorry for the poor picture quality... most of the pictures are from my camera phone.)

I will update when I have tried some more of my "pins"... Happy Pinning everyone!

Christmastime in Georgia

Welcome to Christmastime in Georgia... I have a one bedroom apartment... and I have two full size trees.  What can I say?  I love Christmas decor!  I am so excited I get to share it with my blog friends this year!

This is my Georgia tree...

Here is is at night... without the flash... to showcase the lights!

You might ask, "How is it a Georgia tree?"

Because it is covered with ornaments like this...

They are all red, black, or silver...

Most all of them are associated with special memories and people... the UGA landscape above is from my mom (from our favorite craftshow)... the UGA ball below was a gift from my precious friends John and Cassie

This cross stitch one was a gift my freshman year of college from my dear friend (and future roommate) Rebecca Ruth...

Jesus is the reason for the season!  This is my favorite part of all my decor.  It helps keep my attention focused on the true meaning of Christmas.

I have two of these angels... my mom and I got them at a craft show we attend every year... I think they are so neat, each one is handmade.

Last year my mom and I saw similar centerpieces at Michaels... we decided we could make them... and we did for about half the price... I love it!

My second tree... this one is in my bedroom... it has all my crafty ornaments... so it is very colorful!

I also use the ornaments from my childhood on this tree... there are so many memories... like when we went to Disney World.

Or all the ballet classes I took... there are lots of ballet ornaments!

Thank you for spending a little Christmastime in Georgia...

The Dawgs were nestled all snug in their beds... while visions of bowl games danced in their heads...

Merry Christmas Y'all!!

My Christmas list...

For a while now I have toyed with the idea of learning to sew... I have tried all kinds of crafty stuff, but I have never attempted this.

Inspired by so many fabulous sewing blogs... I have decided I want to take the leap... this year I am asking for a sewing machine for Christmas.

I am kind of lost as to what kind I should ask for... anyone have any recommendations about good, basic, beginner machines?

Happy Wednesday everyone!

Ta Da!

A couple weeks ago I wrote about making Christmas crafts...  I said I couldn't show you because I planned to give them as gifts... well, I can't show all of my designs, but here is the first one.

I made these wall hangings to take Patrick's family when we went to visit for Thanksgiving.  I had so much fun playing around with the "font" and colors.  I also got to use my power drill to drill the holes for the ribbon.

I am working on some different color combos, etc... they are for gifts too... so it will be a little while before I can post them.

Hope you like it!!

Paper Flowers

Crafting... yes I made it a verb... is one of my favorite things to do! I love to make creative things. I can wander around the aisles of Hobby Lobby for hours just "looking" and waiting for my creative juices to kick in.

This week my friend Lacey taught me how to make something new... and I LOVE them! Here is how you make tissue paper flowers... they are so easy and fun!

-Cut tissue paper into squares, mine are 4.5 inches... you need at least 5 squares... I usually use 10-12

-Stack the squares and fold in half, then in half again... making a small square

-Hold the folded square with the open sides pointed up. Now cut a design around those sides... kind of like you are making a snow flake... you can make all different "types" of flowers. Lots of petals for daisies, rounded for roses, and jagged for carnations.

-Unfold the squares and poke a pipe cleaner through the center... you can criss-cross the squares so they don't look quite so square

-Starting with the top piece of paper... individually fold each piece up and crinkle it a bit to make a flower!

-The finished flowers are colorful... and always one of a kind!

A Family Tradition

My mom and I have an interesting tradition... it happens each September... it's called, The Yellow Daisy Festival. It is a HUGE craft show held at Stone Mountain Park, just outside Atlanta.

I remember going as a kid with my mom and some of her friends. All the kids would walk around the winding trails looking at booths, asking our moms for all kinds of stuff, and ultimately carrying all their packages around the park and back to the car.

There are so many booths there... all along this trail!

Times have changed, and I no longer ask my mom for nearly as many things, and we both carry our own packages to the car. However, each year we go back and see a few different booths that we remember fondly from years past.

There's the personalized lap desk booth. My brother and I both got one of these desks for Christmas one year, mine had ballet shoes his had baseball stuff. Or, the booth with the wooden foldable chairs, my brother and I and two friends hauled those chairs all over the place one year (we were basically pack mules). My favorite however, is the booth with the wooden stamps. We used the stamps to make "sleep shirts" for my birthday party... the start of my craftiness!

People as far as the eye can see!

The Yellow Daisy Festival reminds me each year that no matter what happens, some things always stay the same, it is a strange comfort each September. I look forward to next September when we can do it all again.

Now, for my favorite vendor this year (and last)... Jann Pietso. I bought one of her pictures last year and a couple more this year. She has the cutest prints about college towns. She told us she talks to people of all ages who attended college there to figure out what to put on her design. Then she compiles all the words to make a collage... it is so fun! It definitely takes you back to your college days! Enjoy!