vacation travel journal

We are on a family vacation this week in the Outer Banks, NC :) I threw this little travel journal together last minute (as in, the morning we left... yes, I like to plan ahead. Ha! ;)) and am using it to document our trip. As usual, I am journaling throughout the trip and will fill it with pictures when we return and I am able to have them printed.

For the cover, I used a vintage map of the North Carolina coast (that shows the Outer Banks where we are!), vintage ledger, some Studio Calico paper and foam letters and paper from the packaging. Inside is solid colored cardstock, a lot of paper from Studio Calico's new line "Atlantic" and some other papers. 

I love, love, love making and using travel journals (like this one and this one from past trips). So fun to look back through after the vacation or trip is over :)

Shop sale this weekend!

Been wanting to stock up on some new (or old?! vintage?) paper goodies? Take advantage of a sale this weekend in the shop - 30% off of your order. Happy Memorial Day weekend and THANK YOU to all those who serve and have served!

a happy, happy birthday to my oldest son

My sweet oldest son turns 6 today :) We started off the day with pancakes, juice, and cupcakes ready to go to school. My hubby and I blew up 70 (yes, seventy) balloons last night and put them in the hall and kitchen to surprise him when he came downstairs this morning. It was SO fun :) He loved it. We have a fun day and weekend planned :) So excited to celebrate this kid :)

Lots and lots (and lots) of balloons :)

Happy Birthday Jimmy! We love you so, so much. 

What a blessing you are :)

paper scrapping

I have a ton of paper scraps all over the place in my workspace. Leftovers from other projects that  are still perfectly usable, just not big enough for journal pages, etc. I've been working on a few Everyday journals. And the covers. Oh, the covers (which I've said before), are the hardest part ;) Well. I had been thinking about how I could use up all of these scraps in my scrapbox(es)..... How could I incorporate them into the cover? How about a collage?! Yes! :) So I started with a 4"x6" base piece of paper and started stacking scraps (and some doilies and tags ;)) on top. Sewed them on there and voila! Some fun new journals covers. Now to punch holes and add them to the journals. Yay for using up scraps :)

a wedding book

I recently had the opportunity to create another wedding book for a sweet bride and groom :) They are using this book as a scrapbook from their special day - their wedding was full of lots of yellow, colors, and skeleton keys! Looking through their wedding pictures, I loved how they incorporated the skeleton keys into their welcome bags for guests (gorgeous yummy-looking cookies in the shape of keys!), wedding favors, and other details from the day. I knew I needed to incorporate a key into the book and was glad to have found this antique key to use on the front :)

I also found some paper that had skeleton keys all over it :) So I used that with a bunch of other colorful papers for the inside pages. I left all of the pages blank, but included lined and blank white pages for them to put where needed in the book as they are filling it up.  I'm super happy with how it turned out and am excited they will be documenting their wedding with lots of pictures and lots of journaling :)

Thank you Jen and Rick for letting me create a wedding book 

to help document your special day :)

color inspiration: teal and seafoam

Two of my fave colors right now are teal and seafoam. So I went on a color hunt around my workspace and found these lovelies. I recently purchased the fabric and thread to start a quilt (multicolored, not just teal and seafoam ;)), the paper is for some baby journals and other journals, the washi is part of my stash, the ink pad is a fave, and some of the other bits and pieces I received awhile ago in a teal goody bag from an etsy seller :) 

Another way I know that seafoam is a fave right now? I just had a pedicure and yes, I had them painted in a seafoam color. Not the norm for me (I'm more of a dark pink/red type ;)), but I love it :)

working on

I'm currently working on a few different projects here and there - including a custom wedding book, some new shop items (!!!), and decorating my baby girl's nursery (yes, it's taken me awhile ;)). I made this fun garland of new and vintage papers over the course of several days and can't wait to hang it up in her room :)

It was super easy to make - I recently purchased a pennant flag punch, so I used that (I debated using the flag punch or the circle punch... the flag punch won :)) to punch a bunch of flags out of various papers and then strung them together using a 1/16" hole punch, a needle, and baker's twine. I love the mix of new and vintage papers :)

a new storage caddy

I have a bunch of bits and pieces that are always moving around my workspace and don't really have a specific storage place. My daddy (who has made 95% of our furniture in our home - such a blessing!) whipped me up a cute little storage caddy for all of those bits and pieces. I was inspired by this one I found via pinterest, so I went to work designing one to look similar. I came up with a design, sent it to my daddy and he and my mama delivered it to me last week :) 

I (quickly) filled it up :) It's nice to be able to see all of the bits and pieces at once. And to have them contained in one space :) The caddy sits nicely on a shelf under a new cutting table (that my dad also created) and can be pulled out and set on my craft table when needed.

Interested in making your own? This was the design my daddy went off of to build it. Feel free to use it as a guide to make your own! :)

DIY: Spring Decor and Projects Roundup

Happy Monday :) And Happy Spring! A round-up of some lovely DIY projects - perfect to celebrate Spring and Easter! I love, love, love, the beautiful colors that come with springtime - and these projects all shout "SPRING!" :) 

1. Fabric Scrap Banner by iheartnaptime
2. Jellybean Napkin Rings by Delish
3. Letter Wall by The Love Nerds
4. Bunny Banner by Pieces of Me
5. Bunny Candy Pouch by Mermag
6. Decoupage Bunny by Little Birdie Secrets
7. Easter Flag by Heather Cameron
8. Yarn and Twig Dandelions via apartment therapy
9. Glitter Vases by The Sweetest Occasion
10. Grocery Bag Easter Basket by ellinee

*all images are from their respective sites

and the paper packs go to...

Thank you all so much for playing along for the giveaway from SaturdayAMVintage's new shop! :) Chosen by random.org, the winners are: Dream-make-share, Lisa Spiegel, and Diane Willams. I will contact you soon for shipping info :) 

Be sure to check out Xenia's blog for a coupon code for 20% off your purchase!

paper packs: a giveaway

Happy Friday :) And Happy First Day of March :)

If you've been reading my blog or following me on other social media for some time, you know how much I love paper. And you probably have noticed how much I love the paper packs from Xenia's shop, saturdayAMvintage. Well. Xenia recently announced on her blog that, while she has had several great years on etsy, she is opening up a shop all her own - TODAY! Be sure to visit her new shop - saturdayAMvintage and look around at tons of gorgeous vintage goodies. I'm sure you'll find something you can't live without! To celebrate her new shop opening, she is giving away three of her new color themed paper packs :) Three readers will win a small paper pack in their choice of color - SO fun :) International entries welcome.

To enter: 

+ Simply leave a comment. Please be sure to leave your email address in your comment so I can contact you if you are the winner.

+ For extra chances to win: Blog, FB or tweet about the giveaway (with a link to the giveaway). Leave a separate comment for each way you spread the word (leave one comment if you blog about it, leave another comment if you FB about it, leave yet another comment if you tweet about it :)).

Giveaway will run through next Wednesday, March 6. I will announce a winner sometime during the day that Wednesday :) And if you just can't wait to hopefully win, stop by her blog for a fabulous coupon code good for 20% off of your entire order! Have a fabulous weekend :)

Thank you, Xenia! Congratulations on your new shop! So exciting :)

food: mini donut muffins

One of my sweet friends made these the other day and raved about them - so I wanted to make some :) Donuts? Muffins? Cinnamon and sugar? All in one recipe!? Yes, please :) They are nothing short of amazing. A quick little sweet snack or dish for a brunch :)

Mini Donut Muffins - adapted slightly from allrecipes.com

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup butter, melted and cooled

3/4 tsp. ground nutmeg

1/2 cup milk

1 tsp. baking powder

1 cup all-purpose flour

Topping:

1/4 cup + 2 Tbsp. butter, melted

1/2 cup sugar

1 tsp. cinnamon

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Grease mini muffin pans (24 muffins).

Combine sugar, butter, and nutmeg. Mix well. Add flour, baking powder and milk, and stir to combine. Fill each muffin cup about half full. Batter will be somewhat dough-y. I used a tablespoon to fill each cup.

Bake for 15-20 minutes or until beginning to brown.  While muffins are baking, combine the 1/2 cup sugar and 1 tsp. cinnamon in a small bowl. Dip baked muffins in butter and coat completely, then roll in cinnamon sugar mixture.  Makes 24 mini muffins. Enjoy!

And P.S. Thank you all so much for the sweetness about my project published in the Let's Make Cards! magazine here and on FB and Instagram. Seriously, ya'll made my day :) Thank you :)