. -->

2.20.2014

a Touch of Spring

If you're aching for spring to arrive,
try this simple and inexpensive decor idea with an everyday item:
hang a coffee or tea cup from a ribbon tied to its handle,
and tuck a tiny nest inside!

I make my own simple little NeSts from dried daylily and daffodil foliage...
you can too, using my tutorial here !
 'faux' nests in various sizes are always available at craft stores,
and of course you can use a tiny real birds' nest, if you have one.

 You can use other 'handled' items in a similar fashion... 
like this vintage ironstone chamber pot!

I have a precious bone china cup, saucer, and dessert plate with a golden daffodil pattern,
and I love to display it differently every Spring.

This year, I tipped the cup on its side, and tucked a little grass nest inside,
and added dried blossoms from last year's white narcissus flowers.
A lacy white cupcake wrapper adds more feminine detail to the vignette...
Just the tiniest touch of Spring does the trick!


shared online:

One Project Closer | Creativity Unleashed


2.14.2014

Happy Hearts Day!

Wishing you all a Happy Valentine's Day...

and for those who aren't getting flowers from someone else, 
please accept these from me!




Photos taken by me in 2013 on location at:
Roger's Gardens in Newport Beach, California
Sharyn Sowell's private garden in Mt. Vernon, Washington
The Old Irvine Ranch in Irvine, California

Click SHOP label to find my original products for sale now!
for more decorating
inspiration for every season of the year,
  visit HOMEWARDfound on these social networking sites:



2.11.2014

Sweet Hearts Soiree

One of my goals here at HOMEWARDfound Decor is to show you
that decorating is easy, and that it doesn't have to cost you very much, or take a lot of time.

Today I have a perfect example of that philosophy.

I had a bunch of 'stuff' ready for a post with a cute Valentine party tablescape...
but you aren't going to see that.
I ran out of time to stage it and photograph it and blog about it.

So, instead, I pulled all that stuff together and in about twenty minutes, 
created a display with a sort-of 'party' theme on the sideboard in my office/studio.
Some of this stuff isn't what you normally think of as 'decor'...
but since I don't follow any rules, anyway, it worked!

 That's my Tee Shirt Mannequin (Tutorial HERE),
and I dressed her up in a REALLY cute vintage apron and a sweater with cut-off sleeves.
Yes, cut OFF. Those sleeves became the red pom pom hats for my winter Snowmen!
This part of the sweater was the 'left over' part.

Then I took the Found Item Charm Bracelet (Inspiration HERE)
and hung it on her neck like a necklace. A rhinestone Heart pin tops her off.

Then I played with a bunch of other stuff like dishes and party supplies: 
I stacked my white dinnerware to create pedestals to display other things on....
like tiny tinware coffee pots and my grandma's measuring spoons filled with heart-shaped buttons,
and Happy Pincushions (Inspiration HERE) . 
A bowl on its side spills out Fabric Hearts (Tutorial HERE) and a dotted gift box.

I've had this crate of old Coke bottles for several years...
and I have NO idea what possessed me to keep it and move it over 1600 miles
when I barely kept anything else at all... 
but I did, and I LOVE it, and when I dropped the striped paper straws into the bottles, 
which took all of 30 seconds... it made me SMILE.

I also added just a few hearts, cut from old magazine pages,
to my inspiration board that hangs above the sideboard:

This weekend, after Valentine's Day is over, I'll pull it all apart
and put all of the items back where they get stored.
I'll find something else for Miss Mannequin (still un-named) to wear
and will create a whole new display on the wall shelves and the sideboard
using stuff from drawers and the closet that will celebrate Spring.
It will completely change the way my office feels... and that's what Seasonal Decor is about.

It's not about time, or money. It's about Inspiration and Creativity.
I always ask myself' 'What did you CREATE today?'...
It doesn't have to take a lot of effort.
and it doesn't always have to be the equivalent of a masterpiece.
Sometimes, a simple finger painting is just perfect. 

so... What did YOU create today?!

2.06.2014

Tin Can 'Painted Pails'

Last fall, I shared a project that was a 'flashback' to something I had made long ago:
[ like, ah, WAY back in the NINETIES! LOL ]
Painted tin cans - I call them little 'Painted Pails'. 

I just found more photos of that product that I created for different seasons ;)
and since 'tin can crafts' seem to be THE hot trend right now,  
I figure why not share more inspiration?!

The photo above shows the Valentine version,
where the wire handles were bent into a heart shape.

The labels evolved from the very first Painted Pails I made in the Spring of 1995,
which looked like garden seed packets and fruit pie filling labels:

I also made versions of Painted Pails for Holiday | Winter:


The Happy Snowman versions had wire handles bent into 'top hat' shapes,
and also stackable snowmen made from several sizes of cans.

I made Painted Pails in Spring, for Easter:

... and the wire handles were bent into 'floppy ear' shapes.

and of course, there were the Pumpkin Painted Pails
 that I shared last fall in my Tin Can Painted Pail Post
 click for my TUTORIAL!...

I also made Painted Pails that looked like crayons. And Leprechauns. And Firecrackers.
But I really don't think more photos are needed for you to get the general idea.
If I were to guess as to how many tin cans I painted back then,
over a five year period that I was selling them at street fairs and in my tiny store,
I'd have to say it was about 50 cans a week. Yes, really!

I tell ya', I was pretty sick of painted tin cans by the time I was done!!!

The various holiday versions of these came about because every holiday,
I would go overboard to create a fun breakfast table setting for my four young children...

Balloons, streamers, napkins, and centerpiece would decorate the dining room.
The food would even match the holiday: 
pink milk and pancakes for Valentine's Day, green for St. Patrick's Day, orange for Halloween.
 I didn't spend a lot (I bought most of the stuff at thrift shops)
but it was so much fun to decorate the table after they had gone to bed,
and then watch them get all excited the next morning!

And at each place setting, they'd find a Painted Pail -
filled to the brim with art supplies and candy and a little stuffed animal.
It was just a simple thing I could do to make them happy.
For me, that is always the best part of crafting & decorating...

shared online:

One Project Closer | Creativity Unleashed
 

Cupcakes & Crinoline | Project Inspire{d}

2.04.2014

I'm Stuck On You, Valentine!

I have a PRIZED collection of Mary Engelbreit Home Companion Magazines
[EVERY issue!] and turn to them often for seasonal inspiration.
Mary is such a champion for independent artists, small businesses, and creative spirits,
filling the pages of her lovely publication with color, fun, and 'Breit Ideas'...
Like so many others, I miss this magazine - but I do understand why she discontinued it.

Recently, I was thumbing through past winter issues of MEHC,
and saw a really cute and simple craft idea on the pages.
Since it's something I have already done myself, I thought I'd share it with you.


Before I drafted this post, I messaged Miss Mary on facebook,
and asked her permission to show a few pages of her marvelous magazine in my blog post -
and she replied 'That would be great, Deb! Thanks for asking first!'
SO.... with permission from 'The Queen of Everything', I shall proceed!

Here are the pages I saw in the February/March 2005 issue of MEHC Magazine
... when I saw them, I immediately thought of THIS little creation of mine:
I made this tiny 'foofoo faux food'TM ice cream sundae pincushion a long time ago.
I MAY have even been inspired back then by this very article in Mary's magazine!
.
Inspired all over again, I made use of some stuff that I had on hand:
red sweater scraps, leftover trimming, polyfil stuffing, and some miscellaneous containers,
and created a few MORE pincushions:

An errant cupcake wrapper and an ironstone creamer are perfect pincushion bases,
and my Original Sweet Sweater Snowmen are pulling double-duty as happy pincushions!
[PS: I still have a FEW of them left - for sale now in the HWf SHOP ]
I unearthed several of those 'tomato' ('strawberry'????) pincushions, too,
and popped them into other containers just for fun.

How 'Fast, Cheap & EASY'TM is this?!!!

As the article in Mary's magazine suggests,
this would be a simple craft project and great gift idea for Valentine's Day!

My quick collection of pincushions now populates the wall shelves in my office...
Joined by a pair of sweater-covered pillows and a cableknit throw on the sofa,
it's a happy corner with easily changed Seasonal Style!

[oh, and that 'D' on the shelf? It's a lil' something I just whipped up, using
a pressboard letter, some old giftwrap, and two round pieces from a place card kit.]
Does it look like something specific? Like maybe MOUSE EARS? IT IS!
I'm celebrating... because my lifelong dream came true last Friday afternoon...

I now work for the Walt Disney Company!!! 
____________________________________________

I'd like to offer my deepest thanks and gratitude to Mary Engelbreit,
for her permission to show the pages from her treasured MEHC Magazine!
This woman has a heart of gold, and I admire her so...
Connect with Miss Mary on her 
website, blog, and facebook page!

OhMiGosh...have MERCY!

Miss Mary shared my blog post on her own facebook page today!


shared online:
 
Cupcakes & Crinoline | Project Inspire{d}