42,000 hits. A Diny. And more.

First of all, y'all who make their beds every day...seriously. You make all us slackers look soooo bad!! (50 percent of you said you make your bed every day on my poll. Gag.) I only make fun because I am seriously jealous. I tried to do this for about three days straight...and was way too lazy to keep it going. I love how I feel when I walk in our bedroom and the bed is made though. You may have inspired me. (Not really, just saying that.)


Also, I have to give out a big Whoot Whoot to all you who have checked out my blog in the past month. I went from 2,000 hits to 44 thousand plus hits in just the month of October. I know, hits don't really tell you much about how many visits you really have, blah blah blah, but I'm happy, OK? I love hits and I love comments!! Yay!! I have to give a shout out to all my friends who got me to 2,000 -- Jenny, AnNicole, Cheryl, the BC girls, the Rocks ladies, and all my girlfriends who supported me from the start. Love you.


Beware if you see this tonight:



It's a ferocious Diny -- a Triceratops to be exact. Thing is, this Diny doesn't like to wear his head, which is the best part of the costume. Really. But we trick-or-treated around Daddy's school today and he at least wore most of it. And he won't take a nap today, which is going to make for a real fun night. Roar.



OK, my next poll is about the music thingys people put on their blogs. I have a love/hate relationship with these. Love them because I love to hear what music people listen to. Hate them because I'll forget to turn my sound down and will wake sleeping Hubby or scare the beejeebies out of the cats. You tell me if you want it on here. I don't care either way. Just so you know, I swear, promise, cross my heart, assure you that I won't play all NKOTB music on mine. (I'm totally lying.)

OH, and

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!

Have fun with your goblins!!

P.S. It's ON tomorrow ladies...get to the Christmasy crafting!!

P.S.S.S.S. I got my necklace from Glitter and Bliss yesterday and it is GORG! Go check her out!

Inexpensive Nature Prints

Botanical prints can be expensive. A great way to have them (or any beautiful artwork for that matter) without paying a fortune for them is to find books with prints in them & tear out or photocopy the pictures & frame them.

I was lucky enough to find a beautiful book of botanical prints at a yardsale & have used lots of the prints in my home. I also scour second-hand stores for unique frames-usually with pictures I don't care for in them that I remove. I purchased all of the frames pictured (above &below) for $1.50- $3.00 each.

Here are some coral & lobster prints I used for a bathroom-in-progress in my dad's lake house:

I do mostly long-distance decorating since it's in Antioch, Illinois, but when I visit, I try to accessorize as quickly as I can on a serious budget. The prints are a great way to accessorize a lake house since they're so fitting and I only had to make 1 purchase so my dad doesn't gripe about me spending too much on decorating every time I come!

Here's a close-up of a fully opened page. You can see the fold in the center, but I think it sort of adds to the charm. Eventually I plan on matting all of the prints, but that's another project on another trip!

Happy hunting!

Last minute Halloween.

First of all, drop everything and get to Target!! ALL their Halloween scrapbooking stuff is on clearance! They have some caaute stuff!

Second of all, Good LORD, when did candy get so expensive?? I dropped $25 on candy and I still doubt we'll have enough for all the kiddos. (Need to keep a few for me. Shhh!)

Third, here we go with a few last minute Halloween stuff I've put together in the past week or so. I had some leftover wood from my laundry room table, so I made an itty bitty Eek sign. Price: free!!


I actually have a ton of extra wood I'm going to try making some fun Christmas stuff with. :) I saw these labels here a couple weeks ago, and have been looking for bottles since. I finally found bud vases at WalMart the other day. (I HATE Walmart!! I just took a quick trip in and was so happy I found them.) I had the cork stoppers, and used green food coloring with water. So fun:



Cheap glitteries (made that word up, thanks) from Joann Etc. stuck in my fake foliage. Yes, I like fake foliage. Sheesh, that bottom greenery looks so bad close up though! Ack!!





I find the BEST stuff at thrift stores and consignment shops!! I told you about my love of them here. The thrift shops I frequent are various Goodwill stores. Consignment shops are a bit different -- they sell items that people like YOU bring in. It's a great set up -- take advantage of it if you have one nearby!! When I decluttered this year I took a TON of stuff to a local shop. I have received many checks in the mail, but the best part is if you catch them before they send out checks, you have a credit in their computer. So credit = free fun things for you!! I also took a ton of our clothes to a couple shops and we've made $60 so far. Try it out. I found this fun Halloween garland for $3:

These were Goodwill finds. The thingy on the left was a cheese platter -- I painted the wood platter black and added a pedestal to the bottom. Now it's kinda like a cloche. Love it. The little cloche on the right is one of my all time finds just because it's so fun! I think it was a candle holder that sat in a holder. But turned upside down, on a $.35 wooden pedestal I painted black, it's a teeny tiny cloche!

This was the find of the season...the easel part on the back was broken off, so I got 70 percent off...the SALE price!! It was $20 and I got it for $3.50. I was going to string cobwebs all over it but I'm pooping out...Christmas is on the brain you know...

Finally, my little pumpkin/candle my stepmom got me for my birthday. So fun! I threw some little ceramic pumpkins in there:

I made a promise to myself I would NOT work on anything Christmas-related till November 1. I've been pretty good. The projects are lined up, ready to go...but I've been good. We're busy all day Saturday though, so I may have to start around 11 p.m. on the 31st. Shhh!! Don't tell!!

P.S. I said "fun" about 20 times.

P.P.S. Our son is doing great!! Still sore, with a nasty bruise over the fracture, but doing so well. Thanks again for your well wishes. We really do appreciate it. :)

P.P.S.S. (??) OK, I played a kid's Christmas CD in the car for my son last week. Shut it.

P.P.P.P.S.S. I just ate a whole bag of popcorn by myself.

e-design

I'm now offering e-design services! I'm really excited to start it up & I'll keep you posted on how it's going. Check out www.thepurestyle.com/edesign.html for details.

E-clients fill out a questionnaire and then send in photos & room measurements. Pure Style creates a Design Plan accompanied by a Design Board (above) and a Shopping List. Everything the client needs to create the room is provided via email within 2 weeks.

Pass it on if you know anyone interested- thanks!!

Third time is a charm?

I'm on drapery No. 3 in our dining room. And I think I'm finally happy...but not done yet! More about that later. First, another short TOOT on drapery-making on the cheap:

Let's review. Hemming tape: (Have you gotten some yet?? I mean, reallllllly...)


Put your good side of the fabric against the lining and hem. Do I have to remind you how easy this is??




If you are just doing simple drapes, just leave a little hole at the bottom, and turn the drape inside out. Then iron the hem like this, and use the tape to iron the hole shut:




If this is all your doing...you're DONE!!! Done, I tell you! EASY!!! But I like to add a little somethin' somethin' to mine so I kept going. First, I must show the transition of these drapes so you get the full effect. This is another Before and After that I kind of cringe at...I shouldn't, but I just don't like them now. These are the drapes I made when we moved in...



I shouldn't hate on myself like this, I mean, they were pretty. They were a gold and cream stripe. But I was trying to be thrifty so I cut the width of fabric in half, so they were too skimpy. And the color was completely lost against the wall.

So I moved onto to this -- got a deal on the fabric and LOVED. IT. Gorg!! But again, was being cheap thrifty, and did a half panel on each side. And they STILL melted right into the wall. Did I learn the first time? NO:



But you'll notice I did replace the itty bitty teeny tiny candle on that huge massive long table with more appropriately sized candles. I'm getting there, I swear.

So let's continue the Toot. I ended up using some of the flowery fabric in combination with the red fabric, but because I'm lazy, I just hemmed the old drapes onto the new and this left the lining hanging out (yes, I know you can barely see it. I was bothered by it, OK??):



So what's a lazy, thrifty girl to do? Trim!!



Isn't it perfect?? And it was less than $7!!

And this is what I ended up with:

I think I love them. I really think I do. Now, I'm going to work on a new method of hanging them and I have an idea I think will work great...I'll let you know if it works. I'm sure some cussing will be involved, but you'll be spared that. I also have some fun ideas in store for the cabinet...again, that looks fantastic in my mind...but we'll see how it turns out. :) The ceiling is going to get a new treatment too -- but I can just feel the crick in my neck just thinking about it, so that may be awhile. I am trying to get this little redo done before the holidays so it is spiffy for the lavish dinners we make for all our dinner parties. HA!!! Not.

Thanks SO MUCH for your sweet thoughts and prayers for our sweet Bub. He is doing SO much better!! The resilience of children simply amazes me. He had a great night's sleep and was playing like normal most of the day. Every once and a while he moves the wrong way and makes the cutest scrunched up owwie face. And sometimes he still gets upset, but he's doing fantastic. I can't thank you enough for your kind thoughts and words.

P.S. Annoying!! I loaded my pics first and they still won't enlarge! Argggh!

P.P.S. Don't look too close...the trim on the left panel is about half an inch lower than the one on the right. Seriously. Don't look. I only wish you could see the back of these!! Scary.

My poor Bub.

Just wanted to leave a quick note tonight -- would love some thoughts and prayers for our sweet Boy. Nothing too serious, but he's in a whole lot of pain. We were with family tonight...kids were playing...long story short...our Bub got checked big time by a much older kiddo (by accident of course).

We soon realized it was serious, went to the ER and he has a fractured clavicle bone. Should heal in one to two weeks, but he is in a serious amount of pain. Our tough guy has never cried in his life like he has tonight. Momma and Dadda have cried a bit too...as you all know, it's so hard to see your baby (no matter the age) in that kind of pain.

Just wanted to let you all know in case I'm not able to post much this week. I hope that he'll be on the upswing soon, but there's no telling how he'll feel in the next few days. Take care all!!

An announcement and a few things

Well, I am completely humbled by all your sweet comments on my laundry room. You all know how to make a girl feel good about herself, really. :) I am SO thrilled when I hear that I have inspired you. That is what I'm here for and why I started this blog!!

Also, so glad you like the new background. Dunce that I am, I finally figured out how to change it! And the little ghosts and bat (aren't they freakin' cauuuute??) are from http://www.pyzam.com/. It's super easy to install them. (Thanks Jen!!) My son loves them too and is on my lap begging for them right now!! :)

I must say I am humbled by the poll I posted as well -- almost 60 percent of you said you would spend a lot less on the holidays this year. I guess I was expecting it, with the times we are in, but it was a good reminder. So I will do my best to try to include some thrifty gift ideas as well as decorating ideas for the season, of course!

Quick question -- anyone know why my pictures won't enlarge when they are clicked? I love being able to enlarge pics on blogs and haven't figured out how to do that on mine. Any suggestions are appreciated!!

Finally, I am thrilled to announce that I have been asked to contribute to the Blissfully Domestic Web site, under the Creative Bliss section. I am SO excited and honored to be involved with this great site. It's funny how things come full circle -- I have my bachelor's and (research paper short of) my master's in journalism/public relations. I've always been a writer at heart. So between this new gig and this blog, I am so happy I get to combine my two loves -- decorating and writing. I will let you know when I post my first article. (Should be sometime this week.)

Thanks again ladies! I'll be back soon with another drapery redo! Stay tuned!

Accessorize with Balls

I was looking around our house, doing a little rearranging and I realized how much I use balls in decorating. It sounds odd, but whenever I'm out shopping, I'm always drawn to all the differnt types of pretty balls I see. They add a little life & fun to a room & they're so easy to swap around & change the mood of a room. Check out all these different balls you can decorate with.

Moss Balls:

We had moss balls all over our wedding & now have a ton of them! They're great for the Spring & Fall: (Image above from Aidan Gray Home) I must say though, my mom thought they looked like moldy bowling balls-- I disagree... or maybe I just think moldy bowling balls would be pretty.

Our Wedding Centerpieces

My grandparents lived in Hawaii a while ago & the family used to collect Japanese Glass Bobbers that would wash ashore. They're unique & just show how old utilitarian objects can be really beautiful.

Antique Japanese Fishing Bobbers:

image from wikipedia

I like to put the aqua ones in bathrooms:

Twig balls: Tuck them around your displays for the Fall. They'll give your home a relly natural feel.

Aidan Gray Home

My house:

Here are some gorgeous wooden balls featured in Domino Magazine. They're so architectural & warm.

And these seashell balls from seahellworld.com have been around for ages. How pretty does it look on the wooden stand?






And terra cotta & porcelain garden balls don't have to stay outside. Bring them inside for a Garden-feel.

terra cotta graden ball from momui home

ceramic garden balls from Germes Online

And, of course, fruit! Everyone knows that a bowl of oranges on the table makes it look pretty & clean. Think of all the differnt fruits you can use in your home: (Perk: you get to eat these balls!)

Aidan Gray Home

On a final note, Aidan Gray Home offers so many beautiful wire baskets, topiaries & urns that go really well with balls of all shapes & sizes. The company has that Neoclassical-Garden feel I love.Got any more ball decorating ideas? I'd love to hear them!

Spray paint finger.

Does anyone have a cure for the pain of spray painting? I have spray painted SO MANY THINGS over the past five days, I've lost count. I even had to sleep with a heating pad wrapped around my arm one night. Not kidding.

So I was trying not to spend any money last weekend, (STOP laughing, I'm for real!), so I figured I'd do a few things in our laundry/mud room. A few things turned into about 25, but I'm so pleased with how it turned out. About a year ago, I had added the black beadboard to the room. I loved the black and yellow combo, so I kept going with that. This is some of the before:

I took the wire shelving down, bought a piece of MDF (for less than $5) and had it cut to size. I painted it black, and used iron shelf brackets (that I already had -- the were cream, now they're black) to put the shelf up:

I found two more canvas storage cubes a few weeks ago on sale at Target, and put all the odds and ends in those. I found a black and white ribbon that I loved, but the white was a little too stark. I actually soaked it in tea and yellow food coloring and it did the trick! Here they are all dressed up!: (By the way, the little white trash can is for the lint from the dryer. I don't know what I'd do without it there!)

The art is another poster from Hobby Lobby that was only $5! I cut them up and framed them:

I'm going to change this one out with the larger frames like up above once I get another mat made. I love the look of lamps in the laundry room, but for more than FOUR years, I've thought didn't have enough outlets. Duh, once I looked, I had plenty to work with. I got the lamp at Goodwill for $6! (It had a price tag of $49 on the bottom, NOT kidding!!) I covered the shade with $1 fabric. I also got the tray for a buck. Spray painted that too. Poor finger! I got the little ceramic container for $3 at a consignment shop, spray painted that! Poor, poor finger!!:

I LOVE how it looks with just the lamp on! So cozy!

I like having a towel near the washer, so I found a little $1 tray thingy at Goodwill, spray painted it, (shocking!) added fabric to the middle, and a cute knob at the bottom:

My favorite part of the redo was another consignment find -- the area next to the door was so bare, and I couldn't decide what I wanted there. I thought, maybe a clock, maybe a chalkboard...and at the consignment shop today...I found THIS!! It's BOTH!! And it was only $9!!!

Whooty who!! Can you even believe how perfect it is?? I will probably add some magnetic paint that I already have to it soon, and then another chalkboard layer. Loooove it!

Here are a few other views of the room -- my Ballard Designs rug that is just perfect and was less than $40 (I got this awhile back):

I got the idea for the table for between the washer and dryer from Shannon -- all it took was wood I already had, cut to size for the top and bottom, 1 x 2 wood cut to size for the legs, and brackets to hold it together. Then I painted the top and added the fabric to the front. I can use it for storage underneath!:

I added the new hardware the folding doors a long time ago. They were brass before (ew!) but now I love them:

The bench was from Overstock.com a couple years ago. The baskets hide the shoes perfectly:

I found little clothespins at Hobby Lobby, and yes, painted them black:

The vinyl lettering is from Uppercase Living. It makes the whole room:

The Southern Living hooks keep everything out of the way, and the little organizer by the door makes it so I HAVE to open and sort the mail as soon as I get in the door. Hate but love that thing!!

Soon I want to continue the black beadboard behind the washer and dryer (I was way too lazy to do it before) and add chunky black crown molding:

I will be sure to show you all when I do it! Here are some of the goodies before -- the topiary thing is the black towel holder now! And check out that tray! Sheesh!:

Oh, and I'm NOT spray painting another thing for a MONTH!! OK, maybe a week!! OK, really, probably tomorrow.