Handmade Frames

You guys!  Have you ever ordered something online, and just enough time passes before it arrives that you've kind of forgotten about it?  That happened to me and today was delivery day!  Such a fun little surprise.

I ordered these frames and I'm so glad that I did!  They are handmade, from real wood, and they are lovely.  The smaller one is a standard size frame in 2-Tone style in the Robin's Egg color.  The larger frame is a custom size in the Escalante style in Vintage Dark Wood finish.  These frames are sturdy and the paint and stain are rich and beautiful.

I sought out these frames for two specific pieces of art.

The Robin's Egg frame will hold a sweet little Rainbow Row (Charleston) print from C. Brooke Ring.  The color of the frame makes this print pop and it's just the little room brightener its future space needs.

The dark frame is for a darling painting by Kendall Kirk.  If I had my way, I'd buy every single one of Kendall's paintings.  The colors are happy and the thick paint delicious.  I plan to stare at this one for several minutes every single day.

I can't wait to show you where these two pieces end up.

Summerville Flowertown Festival 2017

It's Flowertown Festival time, again!

Why is it that I love this event so much?  After the holidays end, I usually hold off on taking any time away from work until the festival.  You know how when you hold out for something for a while, it is just so good?  This day off was SO good.  Also for me, the festival is this strange mix of amazing people watching and time alone, because the people here aren't "my people."  Being the introvert that I am, I like a little time alone.  Can you blame me?  This event represents spring and it means that warm lowcountry weather is on the way.  Thank goodness!  The festival is wholly outside, so you can breath in delicious fresh air while you walk to booth after wonderful little booth.  My favorite part of all though is the ideas.  All of the amazingly creative ideas!  This event refreshes and inspires me.

If you're here near town, you've got to get out to main street and take it in!  Maybe you'll find something special to take home, too.

Here were a few of the things that caught my eye this year -

Custom Garden Rocks Whisky Rock Dispensers by Dan Dunleavy

Barn Painting by Rachel Walker 

So you guys.  At this booth last year, there was this gorgeous painting of an angel.  I have been kicking myself for not buying it all year and was so hoping that she would be back and have a similar one this year.  See, I haven't been able to find her online.  No luck, no angel paintings this year.  She did have this gorgeous barn painting though, and the little cottony looking flowers give it such a whimsical touch that I love.  Anyway, if any of y'all know how to get in touch with Rachel, please leave a comment.

At this booth they also had a bunch of Chip and Jo Jo Magnolia style home decor including various sizes of dough bowls, wooden silverware (or crayon) holders, cotton wreaths, etc.  Cute booth.

Unique Wreaths 

Southwest Pepper Grillers 

Perfect for Jalepeno Poppers.  I bet I could alter one of my recipes to work with these cool contraptions.

Art by Bri by Briahna Wenke 

I love the cotton and the sky in this painting!

Oakville Ironworks 

JK Designs

Jessica was so sweet and she can customize the necklaces for you by using different metals and switching out the stones.  She said that she's also at the Charleston City Market.

If you love these craft festivals as much as I do, look back at my posts from 2016, 2015 & 2014.

The weather was most ideal this year, but because we had a late freeze just a week or so ago, none of the Azaleas were in bloom today.  Blah.  Luckily, a few of the vendors were selling some pretty flowers to take home and plant in your garden, like these -

Until next year!

Super simple Lorax costume with Truffula trees

I often find myself wondering how our parents survived our early school years without Pinterest.  For example, let's say they were to find out about Dr. Seuss week theme days with hours notice.  How did they come up with ideas, or help shepherd those ideas to reality?

I know that my mom spent a ton of time driving my brothers and I around to libraries or book stores to look through books for ideas.  And, I have good memories of those times.  That said, I'm so thankful for the abundant resources at our fingertips, and for the people who share their creativity.

Let's go back to that Dr. Seuss example.  It is Dr. Seuss week at school and dress as your favorite character day is one of the theme days.  Luckily my son knew he wanted to dress up as The Lorax.  A starting point is always good!

Because of the time crunch, we perused the internet and Pinterest for quick ideas.  And, we found some good ones!  We decided to start with this clever but easy idea for a Lorax mask.  We also thought making Truffula trees to hold as an accessory could be fun, too.  No tutorial necessary there, we considered materials and made it up as we went.

A few quick pictures of what we put together -

Supplies used:

Mask -

• Cheep sunglasses
• Yellow sheet of foam
• Scrap paper to make a template to trace the mustache and eyebrows onto the foam (it's much easier to fold paper to make symmetric pieces, if that's important to you)
• Scissors
• Tacky glue

Truffula Trees -

• Wooden dowel
• Foam sphere
• Pipe cleaners
• Cheep feather boas
• Tacky glue

Orange t-shirt or sweatshirt.

We picked almost everything up at Hobby Lobby.  If you frequent Hobby Lobby, you should get their app... they almost always have a coupon for 40% off one item.  Anyway, several of the supplies, including the orange t-shirt, are less expensive via Amazon Prime (if you have time to plan ahead ;) ).

Hope this helps one more mom or dad pull an idea together.  Good luck!

[03.01.17] Update - the Truffula Trees were a huge hit with the kids at school and the teachers.  If you were to throw a Dr. Seuss party, you could consider making them as a decoration or even a party favor.

SEWE 2017

Some say that a "day date" isn't as significant or special as a traditional evening-time date.  I say, the day date is absolutely underrated, especially if you're a parent.  Take the day off of work, drop the little one off at school, and set off on a several hour adventure!

The annual Southeastern Wildlife Expo (SEWE) kicked off today and the weather in Charleston is unseasonably warm.  Perfect day date scenario.

Many artists and craftspeople bring their work to SEWE to show and sell.  So many interesting and beautiful things to look at and appreciate.  Here were a few of my favorite -

These handsome belt buckles are by Red Fish Brand and were part of a display by Grady Ervin & Co.  Also, how cool is the old tackle box they are displayed in?

I've been following Chic Verte on the social medias since SEWE last year.  The oyster shell necklaces are so pretty up close.  I may just have to go back and buy one tomorrow.  The are so very lowcountry, especially in the winter months.

Landrum Tables has been a favorite of mine for a while, but this Fly Rod table is such a unique piece.  My husband would love to have a setup like this one.

Aside from the art, jewelry and whatnot, SEWE also includes lectures, demos & shows.  Today, we caught a fly fishing demo with John Irwin from Charleston Angler.  Stay tuned for an upcoming posts with some of the tips that John shared.

Sunday update -

It just wouldn't be SEWE without catching a bit of the dock dogs competition.  The summer-like day in February made it fun to get right up close.

Introducing our 2017 Valentine's Day box

These days, we're often flying by the seat of our pants when it comes to school projects.  It's not unheard of for us to pull something together the morning it is due.  Terrible, I know!  I also know so many mamas who can relate.  Because it's hard to balance the work projects, and the house projects & the school projects.

I have so many memories though, of my mom helping me or my brothers with this or that school project.  Memories of her guiding us through making our vision came to life.

My son happens to love arts & crafts as much as I do (at least for now), so when he wants to create something, I try to help him go big!  The latest project?  The box to collect valentines, of course.  We brainstormed ideas... a dinosaur, a monster, a dog, one of our dogs.  Boykin Spaniel box was the winner.

We found some inspiration by way of the Puppy Dog Valentine Box on Pink Toes and Power Tools.  Of course ours would be brown, need curly hair, and maybe a short cut for the head. Putting ours together looked like this -

Maybe we went a little overboard, but my son sure is proud!  I think it turned out pretty cute!