Blinging out the Bison

I am in the process of giving several Bison skulls (Courtesy of KSK Outfitters) a little bling.

What do you think? Obviously it’s not done yet but I think it’s fun and festive. A bit of a feminine touch to an otherwise masculine item.

This one is a donation for the Buckaroo Bash, a River City Rodeo fundraiser. I would like to do one with Turquoise as well if I can find some flat inexpensive turquoise somewhere.

Happy Valentines Day!!!

I might not have a Valentine in the traditional sense but I have a mom that is amazingly talented and LOVES me. This was her Valentines gift to me:

I LOVE LOVE LOVE it. I had found a similar (although not nearly as cute and fancy) version on Pinterest and hinted not so subtly that I would sure such an afghan as a keepsake for years to come.

I can’t believe she managed to crochet it in time for Valentine’s Day and am amazed at how gorgeous it is. Something I will have for years and cherish. By far my best Valentines gift ever.

What is your best Valentines gift ever? Any big grand Valentines plans? I have dinner plans with the best date any girl could ever ask for – my 84 year old Grandpa! He’s taking me out to a fancy dinner at Jack Binions!

Glitter Goodness for my Camera!!!

This is something I must steal and recreate!! How perfect is this camera strap?? And just in time for holiday festivities!!

you will need:
course glitter // mod podge // fabric glue // rhinestones

Step One
mix mod podge & glitter, adding one part course glitter to two parts mod podge in a small bowl
Step Two
brush on to strap and let dry
Step Three
apply a second layer and let dry
Step Four
you may wish to apply a third layer [optional]
Step Five
apply rhinestones to the ends of the strap, with fabric or crazy glue
Step Six
and that's it! easy, easy [a glimpse of the finished project here]

I found this idea on this is Glamorous (all images, photography & layout by funkytime, as well as how-to instructions)

It's Great to be Home

Finally home after over a week on the road visiting three different places (work and pleasure). Ooodles of yard work awaited me but I happily accepted. Oh yeah also did a lil of this....

Any guesses?

Easter Peep Wreath

I saw this wreath on a blog full of crafty ideas – Say Yes to Hoboken – and thought it was super fun and cute.

Maybe a lil tacky but fun. I decided to give it a try. I bought enough supplies to make three wreaths.



And set to work on the first one. It took longer than expected but overall I think pretty darn fun!


There is also a tutorial here. What do you think? Fun and funky or tacky??

Salvation Army Love

I have been in desperate need of a coffee table for my living room. But haven’t been able to find anything I love. On a recent Goodwill scouting adventure I stumbled upon these two matching side tables.


Now horrid but not awesome. However the size was right and figured putting the two together would make a cool coffee table.

Bonus that you can move each table closer to the couch when needed for drinks or snacks. I sanded the tables down fairly good (until my arms got sore – ha!) and coated on flat black paint.


After a solid day or two of drying I took a lil sandpaper to the tables and roughed them up a bit for character.


And added a layer of varnish so they would be protected.

Overall I am pretty happy with the results. With more time/patience/skill they could have been even better but for a mere $60 ($25 per table and about $10 in paint/supplies) I have a custom coffee table.

*Sorry about the dark photos my living room never seems to get much sunshine!

Crafty for the New Year

Lately I have been on a crafty kick. I made several pairs of PJ pants for Christmas gifts, sewed curtains, pillows, a Halloween costume, and other fun little projects. I used to be this person – the person who was creative and crafty. Then life got busy. This week is a rare slow week so I really want to make a few festive items for New Years Eve. Like this fun sparkly headband on Etsy.

Party hats like these by Sitting In a Tree - but with a NYE Theme instead of Birthday theme.

And this “Good Luck” favor for my guests to take home as seen on Martha Stewart.

I figure if I even accomplish one of these three I will be satisfied. Anyone else on a crafty kick? The talent of so many bloggers and the gorgeous items each of you whip up is amazing to me.

Cinnamon Salt Dough Ornaments

I remember making salt dough ornaments as a child – well vaguely I remember had to confirm with my mom! So when I saw a great post about the ornaments on Fly Through our Window the other day I figured what a fun idea. So I gathered together supplies.

I was able to use my bread hook attachment for my favorite pink kitchen-aide (first time!)

And put my pretty marble rolling pin to good use.

I ended up buying a random sack of cookie cutters for a $1 at the grocery store as realized I didn’t have any. Ooops.


But they worked out great and the ornaments turned out exactly how I was hoping.

I am using most of mine as gift tags. Figure for once I could be creative with my wrapping. And they smell delicious!


Here is the recipe I used in case you want to try this at home. It really was pretty simple:

Salt Dough Ornaments
3 cups flour
1 cup cinnamon
1 cup nutmeg
1 cup salt
1 1/2 cups of warm water

Preheat oven to 200. Yields 30 to 40 small/medium size ornaments.
Wisk together flour, spices, and salt in mixing bowl {stand mixer if you have one} until well incorporated. Add bread hook* and gradually add warm water until dough ball collects. Using half of the dough at once, roll out on a floured surface until flat and very even {they do not rise at all so try get the rolled out dough as even as you can}. Using your favorite cookie cutters {dipped in flour} cut out shapes. The dough is fairly dense/heavy so a small to medium cutter is probably best. Using a straw add a “hole” at the top of each ornament so it can hang. Transfer to cookie sheets {I lined with parchment, I don’t think you have to though} and bake at 200° for 2 hours, turn off oven and let sit for another hour. Remove from oven and place on cooling racks. Using a basting brush dust off excess flour. Now you can paint your ornaments if desired or not. Finish them by spraying them with a clear polyurethane {outside or in a well-ventilated garage} or a glossy Mod Podge, or if desired, you can leave them all natural like I did!

*If you don’t have a stand mixer you can mix by hand and knead until the dough is well incorporated and all pulled together in a dough ball.

Thanks Darby for the idea! I say this like we are friends - when really I have never met her just stalk her blog and precious children.

Can we still do Crafts with no Kids?

I just saw this very fun and cute Thanksgiving craft on Say Yes to Hoboken blog. You make necklaces out of Indian Corn. How fun!!

Sadly there are currently no children in our family as my siblings and I have yet to reproduce. Sorry mom and dad! Would it be acceptable for all the “big” kids to make this craft?

Recovered Chairs

I found this great dining room table

at a local thrift store in Council Bluffs for $250!! I loved it and thought it was a bargain – my dad thought it was expensive. Men! Anyway the chair cushions left a lot to be desired as you can see:

They actually look better in the photo than in person. They were an off blueish color and not overly clean. A few weekends ago my mom, grandpa, and I were at the cabin so I put them to work recovering:


Oh yeah Izzy helped out also!


(sorry about the slightly blurry photos not sure what was wrong with the camera).
The finished project:


Much better. Nice and clean, material matches the cabin décor, and the best part is they were made with love. Cheesy I know!

Tie Dye Sneak Peek

We decided on tie dyed tank tops for the Half Marathon Sunday as I dropped the ball on getting custom shirts made. I purchased basic white singlet dri-fit tanks at Target, rubber bands, and two boxes of purple Rit Dye. Here is a sneak peak of the tanks that are sure to make us extra fast and full of energy:

Look how nice and dark purple they look:

Turns out dri-fit doesn’t seem to take dye very well? Once removed from the dye and rinsed, the tanks became a very pastel lavender instead of a dark purple. Has anyone had success with dri-fit and tie dye? Photos of the finished product to come after the Half – although truthfully they look a bit dull. I hate when projects don’t turn out perfect! Aeisha loved chasing the rubber bands around the house whenever she got a hold of one. It tired her out as you can tell from these photos.