Santa Baby Christmas Party

We had a Christmas party at our house for my husband's Veterinary clinic staff and a few close friends.  It was so much fun and I had an absolute blast setting it all up!  Here are just a few pics...

go to my Celebrate page for all the pictures.  :)

The Mashed Potato-tini Bar/main buffet table

Santa Baby sign

Dessert Table

Merry Martini Bar

(please ignore the dirty dishes in the background!)

CUPPIES

(Winter Wonderland & Peppermint)

Click here for the rest of the pictures. 

BTW: I get a lot of ideas from Tip Junkie!

Go to www.tipjunkie.com

Front Door Christmas Decor

I absolutely LOVE decorating for Christmas. 

Here are a couple of pictures of our front door.

 

 

These are the "teardrops" I made, today.

I will add the rest of my Christmas decor to my DIY Decor page

http://www.burlapnbling.blogspot.com/p/diy-decor.html

Christmas Blessings to you!

Kim

Burlap Christmas Wreath

I wanted to do something different for my Christmas wreath this year...and since I still have an abundance of burlap fabric, I decided to use it.

I already had all the materials at home, so it didn't cost me anything extra.

Here's how I made mine...

I didn't have a wreath form so I opened up a wire hanger and shaped it into a circle.
**NOTE**  I would definitely use a wreath form(next time)  and just attach the burlap ruffles to it with hot glue.  :)

To secure my form, I overlapped & wrapped the ends of the hanger around the form (sorry I didn't take a picture of that).

Then, I cut 4 strips of burlap (approx. 6"x60").

I began attaching the burlap around the form by folding it in 1/2 lengthwise and putting the form in the middle of the burlap (as shown above).

I then stitched closely to the form to create a "channel" around the form...tight enough to hold but loose enough to pull and gather to make the ruffle.

As I stitched along the fabric, I pulled it to gather and make a ruffle.

I used 2 strips of fabric to make the first layer of the wreath.

(and...uh...yes, I need a manicure!!!)  :)

For the back layer of the wreath, I just folded the strip of burlap in 1/2

(but not evenly because I wanted extra depth of layers...so I left about 1/2" of burlap sticking out of the back).

Once I folded the strip, I stitched it together about 1/2" above the fold (on the outside) to connect the folded strip together.

Just like the first strip, I pulled and gathered to make the ruffle.

I attached the 2nd strip of ruffles to the back of the first with hot glue (because I prefer hot gluing whenever I can!)

I made a big bow with red & white polka dot ribbon (I love polka dots!!)  :) and attached it to the wreath with wire.

I had this "H" around the house just waiting for a place to live...so I spray painted it red and

attached it to the wreath (underneath the bow) with wire.

And WhaaLaa...

I hung it on our front door...

I love it!!  :)

Yes, that is my reflection in the glass...good thing you can't see that I have no makeup on and my hair is a mess!!  :)

**UPDATE**  I removed the wire and hot glued the ruffles to a straw wreath form...it's much sturdier...here it is!  And I added some **bling**.  :)

My new and improved burlap wreath.  :)

Blessings to you!

Kim

New Home-Kitchen Remodel

We recently purchased a new (to us) home.  Before we moved in, we (pretty much) remodeled the entire interior.  I wasn't thinking ahead at the time and I didn't take many BEFORE pictures of the house but I got a few of the kitchen.

Here are some Before and After pictures of our kitchen:

BEFORE:

AFTER:

I had so much much fun designing this kitchen.  We completely gutted it! 

We extended it about 5 feet,

had new cabinets built & painted (I distressed & glazed them),

moved the french doors (you can see that in a different picture) and added a window.

We put in granite tile countertops,

 a tumbled travertine subway tile backsplash,

new stainless appliances...including a double oven;

a granite sink,

new lighting fixtures,

and new hardwood flooring in the entire downstairs.

BEFORE:

You can see how there are french doors at the end of the kitchen, here.  We moved the doors into

the dining room & opened the dining room up into the kitchen.  We added a window over the bar.

The oven used to be in the island and there was very little counter space.

AFTER:

Since we pushed the kitchen out, there was more room for a larger island.

BEFORE:

You can see from this picture where the french doors used to be...

AFTER:

You can see that there is now a window where the door used to be...

There is also a cabinet on the backside/underneath the bar with double pull-outs

for extra storage.

AND I love my bookshelf for cookbooks!!!

Here's more pics of our new kitchen...

This is the appliance garage...I wanted a door instead of a tambour. 

I love it!  It holds several appliances and has plugs inside!

I got all the drawer pulls, knobs, and plug covers from Hobby Lobby!  :)

I LOVE our island!  I had them build open shelves for baskets...I keep bread in one, onions in another, and potatoes in the large one on the bottom...we have 7 kiddos...we are always using bread and potatoes!  :)

The double cabinet has two pull out shelves and the single cabinet on the right has a pull-out

trash can.

I love our two pantries...lots of storage!  :)

I LOVE...LOVE...LOVE our kitchen. We spend so much time here and

we feel very blessed!

Christmas Projects

Well, I have been MIA for a while.  For the past few months we have been getting settled in to our new life and our newly remodled home.  I have many events to catch up on but my camera cord is still packed away in one of the many boxes (still in the garage).  :)

For now, I have a couple of Christmas projects to share:  (I will post details and tutorials when I find my camera cord...or make it into town to get the pics off my memory card)...

BURLAP CHRISTMAS BANNER

I made this banner using burlap (my fav).  I stenciled the letters on using acrylic paint and hung them on jute rope with clothespins that I spray painted, red. 

CLOSE-UP

I also added a little BLING to the bottom of each flag. 

I just love the way it turned out!  :-)

**View the tutorial on my DIY Decor page http://burlapnbling.blogspot.com/p/diy-decor.html

BURLAP WREATH

I made this wreath with strips of burlap.  Then I added a fun red-polka dot bow. 

 I also spray painted a wooden letter "H" and added that under the bow.

This makes me happy!  :-)

**View the tutorial on my DIY Decor page  http://burlapnbling.blogspot.com/p/diy-decor.html