Feeling Crafty

Since we moved in almost one year ago (WHAT?), I have done very little to actually decorate. My thought was that I would wait until our house in Maine sold to get busy on this house. Maybe I just needed a break after putting so much effort into Maine, then moving twice in one year? Whatever it was, I'm feeling like it's definitely time to get down to business here in the woods of Western Massachusetts. It's lacrosse season, and for a coach's wife, that means lots of time to futz around on my own.

So futzing, I have begun. Last weekend I dusted off my trusty sewing machine and created a curtain and two valences for my office at work. (In the middle of these projects, Coach made a really great point: "So, you do remember that we don't have any curtains in our house, right?")

Our school has a vintage feel - and because my office is right on the main hallway, I wanted to pick a fabric that worked for me...and for the existing decor. I think I succeeded (and even managed 100% cotton for $7.99/yard at my local Joann's!)

I made my door curtain double sided so that when the door is closed, it still looks nice and put together.

I lined the valences so they last for a LONG time. I feel like I made them too short, but my office doesn't get much sunlight and I definitely didn't want to lose the little bit that I get.

So what should I tackle next? Our house is still painted with "contractor's choice neutrals," which are great and non-offensive...but our bedroom is a light moss green color that I don't mind...but isn't my first choice. So paint and curtains for the master bedroom is next. Okay - I've said it out loud, in writing. First step to getting it done, right?

Baby Shower!

This post is incredibly overdue, but better late than never - eh? At least it will be finished before my friend's baby arrives!

For Ruth's baby shower, my friend Beth and I got to work on some cute theme-focused favors for the guests to take home. Everyone loves a party when they receive gifts too! You'll remember that we had a "sweet pea" theme for the invites...so what better than a little homemade sweet pea to take home?

I found this adorable blog post with plans for DIY felt sweet pea ornaments. Due to lack of time, the realization that the only felt balls I could find were in Australia, and a few other factors...my friend Beth and I had to make a few changes to the design. I think ours came out pretty cute anyway! Instead of felt balls, we used wooden beads.

The shower was so fun...and I believe it achieved its purpose: our dear friend Ruth was showered with love and support. We are so fortunate to be surrounded with a sisterhood of such strong and wise women. We are also lucky to have our friend Cathy's "barn"...which has become the go-to party space!

A few more details for your viewing pleasure:

Our friend Beth brought line and clothes pins to hang up some of the gifts. Easy and quick decoration!

Kate brought these amazing deserts.

Adorable...and all gone by the end of the party!

Instead of silly games, we asked that every guest write a favorite piece of advice for the new mom on a card. We put the advice cards in a basket...and as Ruth picked out the advice cards...she would read the advice out loud for everyone to hear before opening that guest's gift. It made the gift opening really interactive...and we all learned a lot!

Some of the food and drink that we made for the party. My contribution: non alcoholic punch and alcoholic white sangria (thanks Martha Stewart!).

DIY Baby Shower Invitations

Paper turns me on. I think it all started when I was about 10 years old and my parents sent my brother and me to Colonial Camp at the Peter Wentz Farmstead. The farmstead was built and established in the mid- to late- eighteenth century outside of Philadelphia. It served as headquarters to George Washington in the fall of 1777 and now the site (farmstead and 90 surrounding acres) has been restored and furnished to reflect its appearance at the time of the Revolutionary War. Every summer they have a camp where campers learn trades and activities of the Colonial Period. During camp my brother and I made 3 legged milking stools, dipped candle sticks, pressed flowers, weaved ticking tape, painted theorems (that are now framed and hanging in my kitchen!) AND made paper from cotton pulp among other activities.

In my childhood diary I still have pieces of the paper that I made at camp. It's highly texturized and blended with lavender from the Peter Wentz kitchen garden. I'm pretty sure I was hooked right away.

I spend stupid amounts of money on paper, unique letterpress cards (especially anything from Saturn Press in Swan's Island, Maine), and nice pens. My own stationary is navy blue with a white monogram and the envelopes are lined in kelly green. It makes me happy to think of people receiving my thank you notes...navy blue envelopes must be eye catching amongst the bills and catalogs, right?

So when it came time to create baby shower invitations for my dear friend Ruth...I couldn't just go out and buy pre-made or printable invitations. Here's the catch...I'm temporarily unemployed...and not exactly flush with cash at the moment. So, I needed a DIY invitation on the cheap.

First, the theme: We don't know if Ruth is having a boy or a girl so I needed a color/theme that was gender neutral. Ruth's favorite color is green and before she was even pregnant, had a fascination with peapods. Perfect...that was easy!

Second, card stock: I went down to my favorite store in Northampton, essentials, and found bundles of 4" x 6" white card stock. The paper is texturized, which makes it feel more expensive than it was. I got 4 bundles of 10 cards for $12.00, because I needed to make 36 invitations. I figured I would need at least one test invitation and a few mess-ups in my printer.

Third, design: Recently, I watched "The September Issue," in which Vogue-chief Anna Wintour says, "Less is more." I agree! I wanted a simple, straight-forward design that wasn't too cutesy. Ruth has fabulous taste...and doesn't buy into consumerism one bit, so I figured she would appreciate a simple design as well. Here's what I came up with (personal info has been deleted/altered). All 36 invitations were printed on my cheapo HP printer that came free with my MacBook 4 years ago:

Fourth, envelopes: I like to make my own envelopes. I figure it's eco-friendly and unique. Several years ago Santa brought me these awesome envelope templates from Paper Source and ever since I've been making envelopes out of old maps, old Patagonia catalogs, used wrapping paper, old New Yorkers, and anything else flat that I can find. I wanted an envelope that would grab attention, reflect Ruth's eco-friendly interests, and be beautiful. I stopped in at an art supply store and found some gorgeous paper (you'll notice it from my header) that matched the green I used on her invitations. I also used the same peapod design for my address labels. Here's the end result (with personal info altered):

And that, my friends, is one of the ways I have kept busy during funemployment. I love projects.