Hey everybody, how’s your week shaping up ?  Mine is soooo full of activity -  I’ve got one daughter finishing kindergarten and another graduating from high school this weekend – how crazy is that ?  It makes for plenty of excitement around these parts. 

Last week, I finished the laundry room makeover, and many of you inquired about the window treatment.  Here’s the play-by-play on how I made this fixed flat fold shade.

The room is on the second story and never in need of darkness.  I’ve made roman shades before, but this time I made it a fixed shade.  Yep, it’s true, this one’s a big fat faux, fake & phony – it doesn’t go up and down.   I wanted just the ‘look’ of a functioning flat fold roman shade since I never intended to raise or lower it for light control.   When I was researching fixed shades online, I found this fantastic tutorial by Darby and I was completely inspired.  

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I was just fa la la la la-ing my way through the fabric store the other day, in search of more velvet for those stockings I have every good intention of sewing whenever I get around to it. 

Darn it, why did I have to spy those bolts of faux fur ?  I was completely stopped in my tracks.  I couldn’t think about stockings, I could only see a fabulous tree skirt trimmed in that cream colored fur.  I’ve never ever ever had a tree skirt -  it’s one of those luxuries I’ve just never bothered to purchase.  In years past, I simply wrapped a piece of crimson velvet around my tree trunk.  In truth, that worked just fine since the fabric always seemed to be covered up with Christmas presents relatively quickly. 

This year, after spying that fur, I just had to make myself an authentic tree skirt.  I wanted a skirt with a luxurious look, but without the big price tag. 

So I came up with this purty little number. 

Here’s the quick and easy way to make this simple sew faux fur trimmed tree skirt in one afternoon.

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When I first got married ten years ago, I started collecting Christmas decorations.  Christmas is my favorite time of year, and I’d always dreamed of having my own home filled with the sights, sounds, and scents of the season.  Every year, I like to add something new to my growing collection.

This year I was inspired to create some decorative pillows with felt. The nice thing about felt is that it is inexpensive, it doesn’t fray, and it adds just the right amount of coziness for those upcoming winter months.  I wanted to create something bold, something stylish, but nothing too busy.  Poinsettias were my inspiration. 

Here’s what I came up with:  

Red version, up close:

If you want to create your own version of these simple sew poinsettia pillows, here’s the step-by-step.

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One of my most favorite things about blogging is the friendships made online with other fantastically creative people.  One of my many blogger friends is Kim over at Newly Woodwards.  Kim doesn’t really have fingers.  No, in fact she has ten green thumbs.  Don’t believe me?  Check this out.  And this.  And she’s kind of famous in her hometown.  I truly envy her gardening skills.   But Kim doesn’t just garden, she cooks, she decorates, and she does it with style.  She’s my kind of gal.  So when Kim wrote up this post about her desire to sew a retro apron, I leapt at the chance to join her in her endeavor.  And today we’re both featuring our apron projects. 

Off to visit my friends at the Material Girl fabric store I went, to select my fabric.  Which designer should I choose?  Heather Bailey ?  Amy Butler?  How about both ?!  Today, I came up with my own version of a reversible apron – just for futzing around the kitchen.   No pattern at all – just a series of simple steps and straight stitches on my sewing machine.   

Here’s a peek at the final apron, and my step by step.

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I’ve been “hired” by my younger brother Nate to upgrade his bedroom in his bachelor pad that he shares with his roommates in San Francisco.   One of the projects I’m working on is a fabric covered headboard.  When I was at Joann’s Fabrics over the weekend, something in the clearance rack popped right out at me: some suit fabric on sale for $5 dollars a yard.  Score !  What better way to cover a headboard for a man’s bedroom than with material designed for a suit ?

Well of course the handsome lad must have a proper complimentary bolster to go with it.  Is there a better way to impress the ladies ?   So I whipped up a little accent pillow to compliment his future fabric covered headboard.  I was a little envious that he was getting a special pillow of his own.  After all, we gals love our stylish suits too.  I couldn’t help but select another suit fabric to create a decorative pillow for myself.  Equal rights !

Here is brother’s:

Here is mine:

Here’s the skinny on how I made them.

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I hope you’ve had your coffee, cause I’m getting up close and personal this morning. 

When you step out of the shower or bath, what is your first layer of choice, after drying off your bum with your towel?  Are you a robe person?  Do you immediately dress?  Or do you dance around to bad 80s metal in your skivvies?  (Don’t tell us, if the latter is you.)

Quite frankly, I am none of the above.  (Although Mr. CG loves to belt 80s rock ballads while shaving, but don’t tell him I told you.)  Robes make me sweaty (except on the coldest mornings), and I can’t imagine getting dressed right away.  And I’m much too bashful to run around in my underwear.  Day after day, I turn to a spa towel wrap because it covers me with cozy terry cloth, but frees up my arms for all that I must accomplish between 7 and 8 a.m.

My old storebought spa wrap was getting a bit tattered after years of use, so I thought I’d just make myself a new one.  My five year old daughter is just as “anti-robe” as I am (“It’s too sweaty mommmmmmiiiiiieeeeeee” ) so I also made her one too. 

One clearance towel + 1/2 yard of cute cotton fabric + one afternoon = glam spa towel wrap.

Here is the pink version I made for my girl:

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I have a thing for French style chairs with pretty legs.  I am drawn to any piece with traditional lines, and love to revamp something and give it modern flair.

I really needed an extra chair in my new home office for a co-worker or a visitor.  So when I spotted one on the floor of the local thrift for $15 dollars, I quickly grabbed it with the intention of repainting and recovering the seat.  In anticipation of my friend Amanda’s Decorating Dilemma’s party at Serenity Now, yesterday I repainted the chair, and recovered the seat this morning. 

Here’s a glimpse of the Before and After:

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There’s a little saying that goes through my head every time I see woodwork that is extremely unattractive.  I don’t know where I picked it up.  Was it during those embarrassing days as a teenage cheerleader?  Is it from a movie? The little ditty goes something like this:

“U.G.L.Y. You ain’t got no alibi, you ugly, yeah yeah, you ugly.”

Sometimes you own see a piece of furniture, and at that moment it strikes you.  You simply must grab some paint and transform the piece that very instant.  When I feel the need, the need for speed, I turn to my trusty spray paint. 

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A few weeks ago, I picked up a mini ottoman at a thrift store for $5 dollars.  It was a beige patterned fabric that was ordinary, but nothing special.  I dreamed of a perch in my office for my feet and my morning coffee, so I set my sights on reupholstering it in a pale blue silky fabric. 

Here’s a peek at the end result:

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Last year, I purchased a long iron sofa and matching outdoor chair from our local antique fair.  I love the look of those iron outdoor sofas from Restoration Hardware, but was completely unprepared to pay those prices. 

I bargained the vendor down to $300 for my set – she didn’t want to have to load it back up on her truck, so it came home with me.  My next mission was to have custom cushions made with Sunbrella fabric, but I had sticker shock at the amount the local upholstery shops wanted to charge me for foam, batting, fabric and sewing.  So I decided to make them myself. 

Last year, I found an online retailer to custom cut high density foam and wrap it in Dacron. 

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