#CreativeCubbyTop10 of 2013

2013 was a big year in our family.  We sold our house.  Lived with my in-laws for 5 months.  I changed {real person} jobs.  Built a new house.  Moved into said new house.  Spent countless hours painting and decorating the new house.  And didn't have nearly enough time to be as crafty as I wanted to.  However, y'all stuck with me and made this a big year for me.

So, what were your favorite projects?  See them below!

#10 Ultimate Drain Cleaner

#9 IKEA Expedit Media Center Makeover

#8 Egg Carton Bird Feeder

#7 DIY Cabinet Makeover Round-Up

 #6 Preparing a House to Sell Checklist

#5 Popsicle Stick Bird Feeder

#4 How to Freeze Avocados

#3 Free Printable Moving Labels

#2 Tips for Staging a House to Sell

#1 DIY Gel Stain Cabinet Makeover

Thank you, Cubbies, for making 2013 a wonderful year for me.

Stay tuned in 2014 for more ideas and inspiration!

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas to you and yours. Wishing you all a day filled with joy and love!

Thank you for joining me for a Mardi Gras Christmas.  I hope you enjoyed the bright and colorful decorations and were inspired to have your own fun holiday!

This is my husband's childhood shoe that was dipped in red wax and given to his mother for Christmas one year.  She puts it out every year for decoration.

I absolutely love how creative and sweet this is. 

Merry Christmas to you all!

Dear Santa...

... Do you use Pinterest?

Happy Holidays!

You've Been Elfed!

Have you been elfed or jingled? 

This is a great neighborhood tradition spreading across America.

I've even created a "work edition" because I think it's just so much fun!

Don't know how to play?

Find out now!

Simply print off two sets of the appropriate tags {below}.

Create a goody bag of seasonal fun.

You can include candy, toys, and other gifts.

{This year I received a sugar cookies mix!}

Place the "You've Been Elfed" notice on the outside 

and the "We've Been Elfed" notice on the inside.

To deliver...

Leave the goody bag on the doorstep...

Ring the doorbell...

AND RUN!

Oh yes, it's a grown up version of ding-dong-ditching!

Once you've been elfed or jingled, 

be sure to hang the "We've Been Elfed" tag in your front window

so people know you've already played.

Give it a try and start a new tradition today!

You've Been Elfed

You've Been Elfed - Work Edition

**See the updated You've Been Elfed Printables here.**

Happy Holidays!

Mardi Gras Plate Decorations

It's Mardi Gras ... Christmas!  You can't have Mardi Gras without over the top, bright and shiny decorations.  Masks, music signs, crowns and of course, fleur de lis.  You have to have them.

Lucky for me, we had chargers leftover from our wedding that were begging for new life.  A little paint, a little fun accents and we have some awesome art pieces on our wall.

The great thing about this project is you can do this with icons for ANY holiday.  I got idea after idea while I was doing this... I think there are many more charger plate crafts in my future.

I bought all of my materials at Michaels (including the chargers). One stop shopping is your friend.  :)

Materials
Chargers
Martha Stewart Metallic Paints: Silver and Gold
Glitter Glue
Gemstones
Feathers
Hot Glue
Scissors and X-Acto Knife
Pencil
Paint Brush

*  This project is done with acrylic paints.  An alternative to this method is cutting out vinyl and adhere it to the plate - if you have the tools to do so.

1.  Prep your chargers for painting by cleaning them with dish soap and warm water. Dry thoroughly

 2.  Print off your stencils online. I simply googled the icons I wanted and printed off the best images that would make stencils.  Look for images with clean, simple lines.

 3.  Cut out your stencils using scissors and an X-Acto knife for the small pieces.

 4.  Trace your stencil onto the charger with a pencil.  Press firmly.

 5.  Paint within in your stencil.  It will take multiple layers to get a solid look.  Allow the paint to dry thoroughly between coats.  Otherwise, you will pull up the previous coat of paint.

6.  Outline with glitter glue ti give your icons a little POP!  Allow to dry overnight.

 7.  Embellish with feathers, gem stones and whatever else your heart desires.

Hang and marvel at your craftiness!

Happy Mardi Gras -- Christmas!

Decorating for a Mardi Gras Christmas

Deck the halls with boughs of... beads?

That's exactly what we did!  Our Mardi Gras Christmas is full of wildly colorful beads and ornaments. Last year, we took advantage of the end of season Christmas sales by purchasing $75 worth of multi-colored ornaments, bead garlands and various wreath decorations.  Just a add a few masquerade masks (post-Halloween sales!), strands of beads from Oriental Trading and our decorations from years passed... and TA-DA!  You have a colorful array of decorations.

Please join me for a tour of our decorated home...

I finally have a stairway to decorate.  Inspired by the draped balconies of New Orleans Square in Disneyland, we attached the lighted garland to the railing using clear zip-ties and loosely laid bead garlands and necklaces over the edge.  We finished it off with a collection of ornaments.

 Downstairs, instead of using valuable hand railing real estate, we wrapped the base.  It's a beautiful small touch of garland without overwhelming the space or being inconvenient.

I had a few empty wreaths sitting around a ton of wreath pieces.  Using floral wire and the built-in wire on the accents, we were able to decorate the wreaths for the theme without making a permanent commitment.  Not a single element in the wreath below is actually "adhered" to the wreath - just bent into place for easy removal at the end of the season.

 The fire place is my favorite part of all the decorations.  I had chargers left over from our wedding that were just begging for a new life.  Stayed tuned for a tutorial on how to make these theme-y pieces!
Pst...my tip for putting a garland on the mantle?  3M Hooks - easy to place, easy to remove - no damage!

 Even our moose got into the spirit!  I bought this a few years ago on sale at Michaels.  He's being a good sport covered in additional beads and ornaments.

Beads ended up everywhere!  Even over our seasonal sign.
Printable is available over at the blog Eighteen 25.

The kitchen got it's own jazzy treatment with this beautiful wreath on the pantry door and a jar of lighted goodies.  The wreath, like the one above, was made by temporarily placing items in the foliage.  The jar was inspired by having a ton of pieces leftover.  Don't store them away - add them to the decor! 

The advent was hung above the bar with care... in the hopes that we'd actually stick to the schedule this year!
Ha!  In all seriousness, I love our advent / 25 Days of Christmas calendar.  I'm glad we've found such a great location for it in the new house.  You can find the tutorial to make your own here.

  What's Mardi Gras without a little beverage fun?!

 I've always missed the chandelier decorating boat.  I'm always fearful it'll get too heavy and come crashing on my dining table.  This year, I finally got brave enough to give it a shot and it turned out so cool!

Our evergreen accents got a little additional love this year with beads, streamers and ornaments.
Don't buy these accents-  make them yourself!  It's so easy and inexpensive - find the tutorial here.

I have this season tree branch pieces in our house now... trust me, there will be a blog about it soon.  I love it and it became the perfect place for additional lights and party fun!  It looks like it got caught up in a parade!

O' Christmas Tree... O' Christmas Tree...
How party-tastic are your branches!
We layered in lights, colorful ornaments, our traditional ornaments (a must for us), bead garlands and necklaces, masks and streamers.  Our tree went to a carnival and brought back the fun!

 And finally, the outdoors.  We added a subtle accent of wood fleur de lis pieces (Hobby Lobby) on our front pillars with ribbon and dressed up our wreath.  There may or may not be beads strung over our coach lights...

Thank you for coming to visit.  I hope you were inspired to add a touch of Mardi Gras to your life!  Keep checking back for tutorials and more fun and colorful crafts!

Joyeux Noel!