Beach Day

One of my best friends and former college roommate, CJ, came to visit me this weekend!  Her visit was much needed and I enjoyed every minute!  As soon as she got here, we went to the beach and it was perfect! Here are some photos from our day.

CJ actually found that starfish in the water and I fished it out. I’ve never actually found a live starfish before so I was super excited.  There were also crabs scurrying along the sand, but I never could get one to stay out of it’s hole long enough for me to get a good picture.

…considering the fact that I live in Florida, I need to make it a point to get to the beach more often!

On a random side note; we played with our hipstamatic/instagram apps on our phones all weekend.  So fun.  I want to know when someone is going to make an actual camera with all of those cool filters on it!

Don’t forget to enter our Big 50 Giveaway!

Hope you had a wonderful weekend!  

A Failed Project

Well, I am very disappointed.  I had this great project planned for today that I was going to tell you all about and…I failed…miserably.  I’m too embarassed to even show you the pictures.

Oh well.  I’ll try again soon {since I know now what the problem was} and share the success story.

Instead I’m going to brag a little.  Do you remember when I found this great wire drinking glass holder?  I posted about it HERE.

It came from a cute little antique store and I had been looking for one.  When I got it, I bought mason jars that were small enough to fit into the wire circles and it’s worked well as a catch-all {you know, for all of the change, pens, gum, etc. that our husbands dump out of their pockets when they get home} near our front door for months now.

Recently, I’ve seen a couple of different bloggers that have utilized a wire basket with mason jars as vases.  Like this one here from Life in the Fun Lane.  It’s so simple but adds such a sweet touch to a space.

So, I made my own using the drinking glass holder and mason jars that were already it in {minus all of the items that had accumulated over the past few months}.

So, even though I failed miserably at my other project, I still have this arrangement to brighten my day!

Happy Summer!

Spring Things

If you remember, a while back, I posted here about this great idea from Martha Stewart about painting your house number {or apartment number or condo number…or room number, if you live in a dorm} on a pot for the outside of your home.  

In this picture, it added the sweetest touch and I loved it!

Since this is my last year of teaching and I’ve been cleaning out my classroom, I’ve stumbled upon some fun stuff, one of them being a set of large stencils!  I know this may not seem like a really great find to you, but this project instantly came to mind {since I still hadn’t done it}, so I was very excited.

The steps are in the original post {and if you want to skip steps 1&2 and buy your own stencils instead of making them, I would highly recommend it!}, but it basically just requires taping the numbers to a pot a then painting or sponging on the paint. {I used acrylic which is what Martha recommends as well}.

Here is my finished product:

The numbers aren’t as special as the ones in Martha’s article but I still like them–clean and simple.

{I couldn’t resist a close-up of pretty petunias that I love–they withstand our Florida heat!}

While I was moving some of the pots, I noticed that the soil was lifted and broken in one of the smaller pots.  Once I looked closer, I found this little guy just hanging out!

He’s not very cute, and he found his way back the next day…oh, well.

We planted our garden about a month ago and are already getting some great produce.  Since I was outside and the weather was nice, I decided to take some brag shots to share with you:

{this is our first real vegetable producing garden so I am pretty proud}

{tomato}

{jalapeno pepper}

{beans}

{cucumber–lots and lots!}

{banana pepper}

and this little guy was doing all the work…

…I know, not so sweet, but doing me a big favor!

How does your garden grow?

Happy Tuesday!

Pretty Petals

Well, I planted my Petunias and my Geraniums are blooming so I’ve got flowers on the brain.  Putting together a nice flower arrangement is something people pay big money for…it can also add new life to a space, so if you know how to do it right, you’ve got skills .

Here are few tips courtesy of BHG that will help you as you put together your spring flower arrangements:

-Water Temp Matters-

Warm water helps tightly closed flower heads, such as roses or ranunculus, to open fully. Leave them in water for a day or two before using them.

-Use Foam-

Use florist’s foam to keep flowers in place and constantly hydrated so they last longer. Soak the foam for 15 minutes before cutting it to fit the container. Water the foam every couple of days.

  

-Trim, Trim-

Recut stems just before adding them to the arrangement. Strip off any leaves that fall below the water line. {<—thought this was very interesting}

-Picking Flowers-

Add large, heavy flowers first, fill in with smaller, airier blooms, and leave enough space between the stems so individual flowers have room to shine. Include flowers with various shapes and stem lengths.

  

-Height Matters-

Make your bouquet taller than its container by about one and a half times. Also, make the width balance the height.

  

-Fill-In-

Save larger leaves and stems with leaves on them to fill in around the flowers. Drape some of the greenery over the container’s rim.

-Proper Placement-

Keep flowers away from sunlight and heating vents. Recut stems and add water often.

-Make an Impact-

For the most natural look, gather the blooms into clusters of like flowers, rather than placing them individually into a more carefully arranged bouquet.

 Now, get to pickin’!

Paint and Planters

I don’t know about you, but I’m ready for spring!  We’ve had really nice weather here recently (60′s and 70′s) but I think, soon, we’re going to get a touch of this winter storm that’s hit every other surrounding state.  Errr…  Regardless, I’m thinking Spring; bright, sunny, and cheery… and even though this project doesn’t necessarily have a season, it can brighten-up the exterior of a home quite nicely.

House numbers on planters!

Here are the steps according to Martha… 

1. Select a font from your computer. Enlarge and print the numbers in various sizes to see which works best on your planter. 

2. Using a printer and cardstock, print the numbers in desired size, on a single sheet if they fit. Make a stencil by cutting out the numbers with a craft knife.

3. If the numbers were printed separately, tape stencils together, spacing numbers about 3/4 inch apart. Use masking tape to adhere stencil to planter. 

4. Choose acrylic paint in a color that stands out from the planter. Use a sponge or a stencil brush to dab paint into stencil. Let dry, and remove stencil. 

I’ve tried making a stencil on my own before and it can be difficult.  If you’d rather purchase a stencil and use it on a planter–it would definitely still be cute!

Or!  If you’re not into the planter idea, here a few other options for house numbers…

What’s your number?