We Met, We Married Subway sign

I have been working on bedroom decor signs for our master bedroom. I don't have a tutorial for you today---but---I had to share how this turned out. It looks fabulous!!

Subway art is quite the decor rage these days and I have to admit I am super addicted to creating it. I sell lots of different types of subway art in my Etsy shop and I make it as gifts as often as I can.

If you have a Cricut or Sihlouette machine you could easily cut the words out and line them up on the board. I used several different fonts in mine and kept the words and phrases specific to hubby and me.

I also made one for the Places we have lived

People always ask me "how did you do that?"

I use Microsoft Publisher A LOT! In fact, all of my design work is in Publisher.

Then I create a jpg image from the Publisher file, convert the image to a cut file and cut vinyl out using my plotter cutter.

Adhering vinyl is actually quite simple with transfer tape. Simply peel the paper backing from the back of the vinyl decal. Align the decal on the board, then press firmly with a straight edge. Peel off the transfer tape and viola--->finished sign.

I am working on our bedroom decor over the coming weeks so I hope to post the finished decor soon!

Valentine Wreath

I am addicted to Pinterest!!

I just can't get enough of it. Valentine's day is right around the bend and of course my mantle needed a Love makeover, so, I was searching for some great ideas to add to my Valentine decor.

I found a fabulous wreath over at the Idea Room and I knew I had to make it.

It was really easy to make but a bit time consuming!! I finished it while watching 2 of my favorite one-hour length shows!! Here goes:

I bought a heart foam form at Hobby Lobby for $2.47. I even paid full price---gah--- because my phone would not load the coupon fast enough and it was my turn in line.

I already had red fleece from a few Christmas projects that never got done and I decided to try to cut the circles with my sizzix machine. I have never cut anything but paper on the sizzix but I knew I needed a lot of circles so I gave it a shot AND IT WORKED!!

You will need:

heart foam form

red fleece or felt

push pins

scissors or die cutter

Cut circles out---a lot of them---I stopped counting after 75 and each circle was 2" in diameter. I am pretty sure I used at least 100 circles so cut,cut, cut away.

Fold the circle in half, then fold it in half again. Stick the push pin through the bottom corner and insert it into the foam.

You can see above that I inserted the folded circle flat into the foam and the head of the pin is showing. Simply turn the circle inward so that the head of the pin is facing away from you and fan the circle--like this:

Continue inserting folded circles into the foam.

It quickly begins to take shape. the back of the heart will remain flat. It will look like this when you are finished:

and here is a closeup

Once I was done, I added the heart to my mantle:

I just love it. I had been complaining about having too much red on the bottom half of the mantle and not enough on the top. well the heart helped to balance the color and now I love my valentine decor.

Here are a few closeups of my goodies:

 I love this ribbon garland. I bought it at Michael's with a 40% off coupon and cut it in half so that I could string a portion of it onto each candle holder.

 I am a sucker for all things crafty. The love sign was handcrafted by a local crafter and he did a fabulous job and the cupid cutie below was also done by a local crafter. She does some crazy cool things with clay!!

I hope you decide to try your own wreath. It was easy to make and it looks sooooo good.

Let's break it down:

Foam form ---> $2.47

Push Pins ----> $1.27

Fleece -----> I had it from another project but I originaly bought it as a remnant for $2.25

Total---> $5.99!!!

2012 Goals & Committments

Welcome 2012!!

I can't believe another year has raced by. Time seems to be flying faster than I want it to but I am dealing with it in stride!! 2011 was a great year for me and my family--so much has happened and we have surely been blessed day after day, year after year!!

Many of my friends are posting resolutions on Facebook. I enjoy reading them for sure but I dont dare proclaim any myself for one simple reason:

I NEVER follow them through!!

So...If I never carry out a single resolution I make, why make them???

This year I am starting something new. Instead of resolutions, I am making a Goals & Committments list. I believe in goals and when I set them, I commit to finishing them, so, my hope is that with goals in place, I have a better chance at completing them.

1. Pay more attention to family- I think everyone has this as a goal but not everyone has the crazy busy life I do. I work full time outside of the home in a very demanding job and on top of that I have an online business which has been steadily growing into a busy, busy part time job. I also coach my daughter's volleyball team, am active in the school PTO, volunteer for my son's baseball boosters, and stay involved in the kids activities as much as I can. What I dont do is sit down and LISTEN to my kids. I am always so busy that I often forget to listen to what they have to say about what is important to them. My commitment this year is to spend more time listening to them!!

2. Lose 15 lbs- This is not your typical i need to lose weight resolution. I really need to drop 15lbs this year. I am a diabetic and weight control is very important. The more weight I lose, the more in control I am of my diabetes. I have lost 40lbs so far and the last 15 is the most difficult and requires the most commitment!

3. Learn new camera skills- I want to be a better photographer. I have a DSLR camera and have begun using it in manual mode. I would like to take a class this year and learn more skills and settings to improve the quality of my photos!

4. Take better care of my car- This may sound silly but my car quickly becomes a disaster area. I will devote one saturday a month to washing my car and cleaning the inside of it. I even have a plan to make a very snazzy car organizer for my daughter to keep all of her stuff that seems to be a necessity

5. Make better use of a calendar- enough said!

6. Create a date night plan with my husband- Hubby and I are always so busy with the kiddos that we never make time for each other. This year, I am planning one date night a month for he and I to go and do anything we want without the kiddos.

7. Create at least one blog post a month on this blog-I make so many things and yet I dont sit down and create the posts to share with all of you. Well with that snazzy new calendar system that I implement, I am going to make it happen. I will make at least one blog post a month and hopefully more but for now I want to commit to at least one---so---be ready for some cool projects including:
a. tablet hardcover case
b. valentine photo holder
c. laundry room drying rack
and more...

8. Organize my craft area more often-Creativity is messy indeed and this is why I plan on organizing the area once a week to keep it from getting in too much of a disarray.

9. Grow my online business- this is actually a lifelong goal. I have been working on this forever and I do plan on continuing but this year I have some big plans for my business and so I have to keep it on my list for sure!!

Wow! This is the quite the list!! I wish everyone a healthy, properous, and happy new year! I hope 2012 is the year of many new beginnings and continued success for everyone.