[dwell] Fall Home Tour

 

This is a small glimpse of fall at the Johnson's. Yes, yes I know: fall doesn't officially start for another week or so. Doesn't matter to me! September = beginning of fall. 

Onward! 

Candy corn paper banner with mini pumpkins...

Top of entertainment unit all decked out...

Wooden pumpkins from Hobby Lobby displayed on the piano...

Dining room complete with scarecrows, a metal pumpkin, and a vintage sign from an antique show (orange and black can mean fall, right?). 

Who else has decked their... walls... and furniture for fall? I can't be the only one who decorates early, right?!

[chrissy]

[dwell] Mason Jar Sweetness

Remember the farmhouse table we purchased at a huge antique sale last fall?

No? Click here.

Anyways, it is beautiful and gorgeous and most definitely the focal point of our home, at least one of the major ones. However, it is so hard to create a centerpiece for the table because it's so huge! It seats 8-10. I mean, HUGE.

I decided to add a bit farmhouse to the farmhouse table. With mason jars. And fresh flowers. Who knew that these two things could make me so happy?!

Of course, I began with a burlap runner. They sell rolls of burlap fabric at Hobby Lobby (this wide: I didn't trim it: perfect fit!) and all I had to do was cut it to the appropriate length. Next, I lined up the jars, placing a tall wicker vase thang in the middle, and put fresh flowers in every other jar. The rest of the jars have a tea light in them for when we feel romantic and all. Let's just see how long it takes me to kill these flowers. I do nottt have a green thumb.

What little touches do you add to your home that make you smile? The little things in life...

Happy Monday!

"And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:7

[make] Book Page Garland

Yesterday, Nate and I went "junkin'" (garage/thrift store/estate sale hunting) with another couple who are friends of ours. We had such a good time rummaging through other people's treasures and making a few our own... we got some GREAT deals that I cannot wait to share with you!

One purchase I made was a hardcover book for $1. It was published in the late '50s and I had no desire to read it, but instead to use its yellowed pages for a craft... I wasn't sure what craft until I perused Pinterest and found Meegan's Book Page Garland... umm yes, I sure did make one too!

Old book. Torn pages. Fan pages into quarters (three folds). Hole punch in the middle and string onto twine. DONE. Super easy, but kind of time consuming. This garland hangs above our mirror in our dining room and it's a little over 100 pages. Not very long, but you can spread them out if you are covering a longer area. The way the pages spin on the twine is fun too!

I start in-service on Friday this week and then next week begins every.day.in-service. I suppose I can say "buh-bye" to summer, but it was a great one! Now to prep for my classroom :) The FUN part!

Have a wonderful week!

"When I am afraid, I put my trust in you." Psalm 56:3


See where I link up: Monday Made it @ 4th Grade Frolics, What I Whipped Up Wednesday @ Sugar and Dots, Craft-O-Manic Monday @ Craft-O-Manic, Monday Funday @ C.R.A.F.T./Lines Across/Uncommon Designs/That's What {Che} Said/Creatively Living, Whatever Goes Wednesday @ Someday Crafts, Show Me What Ya Got Linky Party @ Not JUST A Housewife, {Wow Me Wednesday} @ Ginger Snap Crafts, Link Party @ Destination: Craft, The Inspiration Exchange @ Clean & Scentsible (and others), Before & After Party @ Thrifty Decor Chick, Weekend Wrap-Up Party @ Tatertots and Jello, What I Wore Wednesday @ The Pleated Poppy

[make] Calligraphy Inspiration

Do you read Emily's blog at Jones Design Company?  I adoreee her style both in the home and how she dresses, so classic and chic. Anyways, I think I've blogged about this before, but she teaches an easy way to do "calligraphy" by adding a thicker line to all of your downward strokes. That is my project this week, and ahem... I've already done it ;) BUT I will show you these inspiration photos before I reveal the finished product tomorrow!

This beautiful piece from Life Made Lovely

Source: lifemadelovely-blog.com via Chrissy on Pinterest

This gorgeous art from Kate's Letters (etsy shop)

Source: etsy.com via Chrissy on Pinterest

And this piece from The Nester... stunning!

Source: thenester.com via Chrissy on Pinterest

Classic hymns in beautiful lettering make for an amazing and sentimental piece of artwork. Hint: I also used a classic hymn... any guesses as to what it may be? I'll give you a multiple choice test and maybe you can guess ;)

a. "Great Is Thy Faithfulness"
b. "It Is Well With My Soul"
c. "How Great Thou Art"
d. "To God Be The Glory"

This should be fun! Check in tomorrow to see which hymn I used for my piece of art.

Happy Wednesday!

"The Lord has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy." Psalm 126:3

[make] Chalkboard Glass Bottles

Another summer project crossed off the list! And it is s-u-p-e-r easy too. I actually finished these well before my vacation last week, but we were too busy having fun for me to write a blog post on it! I figured you all would understand :)

I used an old Mason jar, a Sta*bucks Frappucino bottle, and a Sweet Tea bottle. Any glass would work, really! Just depends what you'd like to use.

This stuff is fantastic. Chalkboard spray paint, yes ma'am. 

I took the bottles outside and used an old gift box top that I had on hand as their base to stand on while they got their new look... I did two coats on them, plus laid them on their sides so I could get the bottoms. Consistent spraying back and forth will prevent drips (although I did have a couple of drips still... ugh).

I love the way they look vintage-y and matted. These would look awesome if you had a bunch lined up on a shelf too!

But the fun does not stop there. I plan on using a 3-lettered "theme" word for each month to write on the bottles. This may change over time if I move them to another place in my house, but for now, they will be themed art :) June's word is "SUN" since summer is officially here!

Here's what I have for the other month's so far... the ones that are blank I cannot think of a 3-lettered word that "goes" with that month: I only have half of the months figured out!!! If you have any suggestions, feel free to share!

Jan:
Feb: LUV
Mar:
Apr:
May:
June: SUN
July: USA
Aug: ABC (Since I'm a teacher and all, and it's back to school time!)
Sept:
Oct: BOO
Nov:
Dec: JOY

Happy Monday!

"So I commend the enjoyment of life, because there is nothing better for a person under the sun than to eat and drink and be glad. Then joy will accompany them in their toil all the days of the life God has given them under the sun." Ecclesiastes 8:15






***update: I just noticed that I am TWO followers away from 200. I mean, I know that isn't a big number for many because so many of you are well past that! BUT one of my 30 before 30 (I mean, that is still 3 and a half years away, so I've got time) is to get 1,000 followers. Let's see if I can make it to 200 by the end of the day or at least the end of the week! Tell your friends ;)


See where I link up: Monday Made it @ 4th Grade Frolics, What I Whipped Up Wednesday @ Sugar and Dots, Craft-O-Manic Monday @ Craft-O-Manic, Monday Funday @ C.R.A.F.T./Lines Across/Uncommon Designs/That's What {Che} Said/Creatively Living, Whatever Goes Wednesday @ Someday Crafts, Show Me What Ya Got Linky Party @ Not JUST A Housewife, {Wow Me Wednesday} @ Ginger Snap Crafts, Link Party @ Destination: Craft, The Inspiration Exchange @ Clean & Scentsible (and others), Before & After Party @ Thrifty Decor Chick, Weekend Wrap-Up Party @ Tatertots and Jello, What I Wore Wednesday @ The Pleated Poppy 

[make] Upholstered Bench Top

I did it! I conquered my first summer DIY project, as I mentioned in this post last Sunday. I followed through: go me!

Here's what I did:

Bench top
Quilt batting
Staple gun
1 yard of fabric
Scissors (not pictured)

Lay out your batting on top of the bench top and decide how many layers of batting you would like to have as your cushion. I had enough to keep the batting folded in half, as you can see in the second picture:

 

Flip your bench top over and lay it upside down on top of the batting. This is how you will staple the batting into the wood:

Start stapling by pulling the batting tightly so there are no bubbles, gaps, etc. As you staple, you can cut excess batting off from around the edges. Remember, this is a bench top, so it will still need to be able to fit correctly on the bottom part of the bench!

Finagle the corners and their batting by stapling/cutting as needed. These little "nubs", for lack of a better word, keep the bench top sitting snugly on top of the bench, so make sure they are seen!

 

Ta-da! 1st step down.

 

Next up, lay your fabric over the top of the bench top, where the batting is, so you can cut it to size if needed. I trimmed about two inches off of the length, just so I wouldn't have as much fabric to pull taut while I was stapling. 

 

Flip the fabric/bench over. Same step as before: pull your fabric taut as you staple around the edge of the bench. This fabric has a subtle, repetitive pattern, so depending on what kind of fabric you use will depend if it needs to be aligned straight or if you can just cross your fingers and pray it turns out alright. I did the latter and it worked fine :) The fabric is slightly crooked in some places, but if you can point that out, shhhhhhh.... Don't tell anyone!

Finagle your corners again, trim, and admire your work. I'm sure there is an upholsterer (?) turning in his/her grave because my job isn't very neat or professional looking... but nobody will see this ugly side unless they lift the bench top to store things on the inside of the bench... And those people will only be myself or Nate... and we are very forgiving :)

Front side: smooth, no wrinkles, and the pattern looks pretty good!

 

I put the bench top back on the bench and Oliver immediately approved. What a swell guy.

 

Chloe wasn't too sure, so she stayed in our bed. And yes, our bed is not made. #keepingitreal

I am pretty proud of myself that I stuck with a project that I said I was going to complete in the same week! Stay tuned to see what next week's project will be... and it will be simple because I am going to Dallas next Thursday-Saturday :) So fun!

Happy Friday and happy weekend!

"Even to your old age and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you." Isaiah 46:4





See where I link up: Monday Made it @ 4th Grade Frolics, Blog Hop @ Naptime Review, What I Whipped Up Wednesday @ Sugar and Dots, Craft-O-Manic Monday @ Craft-O-Manic, Monday Funday @ C.R.A.F.T./Lines Across/Uncommon Designs/That's What {Che} Said/Creatively Living, Whatever Goes Wednesday @ Someday Crafts, Show Me What Ya Got Linky Party @ Not JUST A Housewife, {Wow Me Wednesday} @ Ginger Snap Crafts, Link Party @ Destination: Craft, The Creative Spark @ Clean & Scentsible, Before & After Party @ Thrifty Decor Chick, Weekend Wrap-Up Party @ Tatertots and Jello, What I Wore Wednesday @ The Pleated Poppy

[dwell] Living Room Rug: Help Me Choose!

One of my goals this year is to purchase a rug that actually FITS our living room. Our living room is rectangular shaped: I wouldn't call it huge, but it's pretty big. However, we only have a 4x6 rug from Ikea on the floor. Embarrassing. I mean, it's been fine for the time being (almost three years... yikes), but we really want the space to feel more cozy, and we think a large rug will do just that!

Here are three of my favorites, all of which are from Urban Outfitters. And they're pretty reasonably priced: a)which is a surprise coming from Urban, and b)for 8x10 rugs, which are usually ridiculously expensive, yet the size we need for our space.

This zigzag rug is fantastic! Love the soft gray and white. I believe the 8x10 rug would be $169. Not too shabby for a rug this size!

I like the navy in this rug: and the herringbone pattern is so pretty: subtle, yet full of oomph! The 8x10 rug would be $199.

I think this pattern is so sophisticated and sleek. And again, the soft gray would be a beautiful choice (our current 4x6 rug is gray). So pretty! This is on sale for $169, woot!

Which is your favorite? Help me decide! I'm leaning towards either of the grays because we are used to that color already. But which pattern?! Or should I take a chance with the navy? Decisions, decisions. Too much of a good thing. What does your living room rug look like? Or do you have wall-to-wall carpet?

Happy Thursday!

"He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart." Psalm 91:4

[make] Island Runner

 

We finally took down (most of) our Christmas decorations this past week/weekend. The house looks so sad and empty now! But it needed to be done and I am glad it's behind me! Putting it all up is the fun part... taking it down is just the worst. Ugh. But I digress.

Once I removed my Christmas-y centerpiece/decor for our kitchen island, it looked so sad. Empty. Just blah.  It needs to be functional for setting things on during meal time or unloading groceries, but I also want it to be pretty while I'm walking by it the other 90% of the time. (And there is a red stain on it from Christmas... just ignore that. I tried a Magic Eraser... nothing. Any ideas?)

Luckily, I had some extra fabric from our entryway curtains that I had to cut down (they were waaayyyy too long). It was the perfect length for a runner! And it has the same green color that the kitchen backsplash is painted in, so double whammy. Here's what I did:

Cut. Pin. Sew. Iron. Lay out. Decorate with mason jars and tea lights! Easy and simple, yet effective. And it matches the kitchen walls! Win win. Since these photos were taken, I have also added some of our prettier cook books on the right side, along with a jar of cookies. You have to have them easily accessible! And by the way, please ignore my messy kitchen in the background :)

Happy Monday! Four more days until Friday: you can do it!

"Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God." Hebrews 12:2

See where I link up: Monday Made it @ 4th Grade Frolics, Blog Hop @ Naptime Review, Tips & Tricks @ Stringtown Home, What I Whipped Up Wednesday @ Sugar and Dots, Craft-O-Manic Monday @ Craft-O-Manic, Link Party @ Uncommon, Whatever Goes Wednesday @ Someday Crafts, Show Me What Ya Got Linky Party @ Not JUST A Housewife, {Wow Me Wednesday} @ Ginger Snap Crafts, Link Party @ Destination: Craft, The Creative Spark @ Clean & Scentsible, Before & After Party @ Thrifty Decor Chick, Weekend Wrap-Up Party @ Tatertots and Jello, What I Wore Wednesday @ The Pleated Poppy