because your house smells funny, that's why

I made these cute little Christmas potpourri bags for some friends recently and thought I'd share the recipe with you in case you need a last minute hostess/teacher/mailman/asst. to the regional manager gift.



I wrapped these in squares of cellophane (approx. 20"x30"). Inside, I put:

1 small green apple
1 small red apple
1 small orange
10 whole cloves
3 star anise
a chunk of fresh ginger
3 small sticks of cinnamon

You can buy all of these in bulk and save a ton of money. Each bag cost me about a dollar.

I also added these instructions:


Then I just wrapped it all up and tied with a ribbon!

I have some on the stove right now and it smells SOOOOOO GOOOOD!!!!

the most wonderful time of the year

It's beginning to feel alot like Christmas!

Okay, not really. But some of my favorite bloggers are feelin' festive!




I can't wait to see all these great Southern homes decked out for the holidays.

Also, The Nester is going to teach me (& about a thousand other Nester-lovers) how to make this gorgeous garland.

rub-a-dub-dub

Erin recently posted on her blog a new photo that she was going to put up in her bathroom. I thought it was a great idea, so I let the girls have a "treat" by taking a bath in the middle of the afternoon and snapped a few photos for their bathroom wall. Aren't they cute?

it's fall ya'll

at least it feels like it. We dipped into the 80s this week. WooHoo!!

I decided to start bringing out the autumnal decorations before we go back up into the 100s.

I've been collecting the supplies from Hobby Lobby to make a new wreath. If you're patient, eventually everything ends up 50% off.

Yesterday during nap time, I started with this.


Normal people would stop at this point.


But gaudy is GOOD!


I also updated my Nester-inspired candle arrangement with some cute punkins.


Happy Fall Ya'll!!

idhtbptbb

I came across The Nester about 3 months ago. I immediately fell in love with her style and straight-forward approach to decorating. No complicated patterns or long lists of supplies. She is the ultimate McGyver of crafts. Her "it doesn't have to be perfect to be beautiful" mantra is something I need to apply to more than just decorating.

I knew I wanted to attempt one of her window mistreatments, so I started with my kitchen window.



She was right! It was easy AND beautiful!!!! (did I mention cheap???)

Note: Please be careful when mistreating your windows. It is very addicting. Trust me, you'll be looking for naked windows everywhere. Even in other people's homes. It's a sickness, I know.

So, a few weeks ago I went to JoAnn's during their 4th of July sale. I was looking in the decorator fabric section for some fabric to use on my living room windows. That's when I found this:



In the clearance section.

And it had a red dot.

This thick, gorgeous designer fabric was marked down from $27 a yard to...wait for it...$4.50!!!! Wheee!!

I snatched up all that was left. Unfortunately there was not as much as I had hoped, so they don't reach all the way to the floor, but idhtbptbb.

I would still like to eventually add a fringe to the edge, but I had them put together in about 10 minutes. Justin hung the curtain rods for me (cuz he's handy like that) and TADA!







And do you know what the best part is?? I finally get to add this to my blog!!!





Thanks Nester for all of your inspiration and generosity! If you're ever in Texas, we'll make a run to Hobby Lobby together!

My next Nester project is going to be this. I just have to work up the courage to cut up the girls' old baby clothes first.

reduce, reuse, recycle

One other fun thing I got to do in Mesa was browse some of the shops downtown. I came across this boutique (I guess I've outted myself as to the source for my blog name, lol) and fell in love. I would move in there if I could. It was so me. One of my favorite pieces was a centerpiece on a dining table in the front window. It, however, came with a price tag of nearly $500. I took mental notes and decided to try to pull it off myself.

So, I stalked Hobby Lobby until the pieces I needed were 50% off. I started with this:


then added pieces from my old centerpiece


then used some of these from my kitchen


and finally added a few of these from the side table


and ended up with THIS!


It was easy-peasy and cheap!

Please consider this as my contribution to the environmental movement.