I LOVE Thrift Stores

OH MY Gosh.... you won't believe what I found at the thrift store today!

Are you wondering if that is an Orla Kiely bag?
Well you're right!

Are you wondering if it's been used before?
Nope, it hasn't! {practically brand new}

Are you wondering how much I paid for it?
$12.99 - steal of the year

Thank you Last Chance Thrift Store and thank you to the person that had no idea what your bag was worth!! You have no idea how exciting it was for me to find such a good deal today! I usually get overwhelmed at Last Chance since you have to dig through so much crap to find anything good...but today satisfied all the times I've left empty handed.

Yay for good finds at the thrift store and yay for Eclipse! {don't tell me anything, I have to wait til my roommate can go with me tomorrow}

Toodles!
Julia

Handmade

Hey! Guess what?! I made a little label for the pouches I make. I'm sure I'll change it up soon, (once I learn more about Adobe Illustrator) but for now I'm really digging it.


Stop by the store and check them out. I'll be adding more soon (as in tomorrow).

Night,
Julia

Door Decorations

Okay...I really, really hate to admit this...but here it goes:

Up until a week ago, my front door was still "decorated" with the Christmas/Holiday wreath I put up in December. {I'm so ashamed} At first I was too lazy to take it down, but it still smelled like pine so I figured it was okay if I left it up a little after the holidays...or maybe into Febuary/March/April/May/June...I know, that's soooo bad!! I don't know how my roommates put up with it.

However, as of a week ago, it is no longer hanging on my door. {Yay!} In it's place is this wreath that I made using this easy tutorial from MADE.


All you need is a wreath form, a hot glue gun, a bag of dried beans/acorns, and a can of spray paint. I used pinto and navy beans for my wreath...but I HIGHLY recommend using the largest beans/acorns you can find. I didn't quite think through the project to realize that small beans would take a lot longer to glue to a wreath than large ones.


So, after a couple episodes of True Blood, a bag of glue sticks, some burned fingers, and half a can of spray paint in buttercream, I had a lovely spring/summertime wreath.


Have a lovely day tomorrow and enjoy the summer weather!
Julia

Kudzu Antique Market

I love walking through the Kudzu Antique Market here in Decatur.

I love old/vintage/dusty/rusty/antique items.

I love a quiet hour to myself.

I love (and always end up buying) metal baskets.

I love the crazy things you find in antique stores.

Have a great evening!
Julia

Etsy Craft Party at Youngblood Gallery

I dragged my sister out Friday night for the Etsy Craft Party at Youngblood Gallery and Boutique. We had lots of fun, got some new ideas for crafts...but left before we finished anything because it was a little hot inside. Best part of the night though were the homemade chocolate chip, oatmeal cookies...yuuuuummmmmmm!!! (If you made them - please send me the recipe)

Anyways, here are some pics. I think my favorite part were the name tags. I might have filled out my sisters, but she loves me so it's ok.

A table for handmade cards and paper garlands.

Next up, Robot planters made from old cans and terrariums in old light bulbs.

Finally, time for some sewing. Fabric pennants/banners...and a pic of my sis.

How cool is the photo on the left?! I had my sis take some pics while we were sewing and that one came straight from my iPhone. Cool, cool...

That's my sister - she's a cutie pa-tootie. :)

Have ya'll been to Youngblood Gallery and Boutique before? It's such a cool place! They have some really awesome art in there. Most of it is work from local artists, all handmade, and you might just see some work from a guy you went to high school with. (Mike Germon) It's definitely a good spot to head for gifts. They have a good bit of "guy stuff" there (like really nice looking duct tape wallets!), and we all know how hard it is to shop for the guys in our lives.

Tata for now,
Julia

Etsy Craft Party

Hey Hey crafty people! Anyone heading over to Youngblood Gallery & Boutique tomorrow for the Etsy Craft Party?

Just curious. :)

Good luck staying cool today,
Julia

Summer

I'm a little late on this...but anyone make it to the Virginia Highlands Summerfest two weekends ago? I had a lovely time walking around that Sunday with my roommate and found some pretty cool stuff. Unfortunately I was lazy this year and didn't take cards for the stuff I really liked/took pics of, so I have no idea who these artists are. :( I know, bad Julia.





I think my favorite was the necklace with the bird outline. It is so dainty and sweet, but graphic at the same time. Along with great art, free food samples, and good times with my roommate...I was so excited to wear a new dress that I made the night before! I have a bad habit of starting projects with less than 24 hours before I want to use/wear the project. This dress is a perfect example because I started it at 11pm the night before!

How do you like it? I'm pretty pleased. I didn't use a pattern, so there is a little more fabric in the dress than is necessary, but overall it was pretty easy to make. It's basically two big rectangles of fabric that were sewn together and gathered with elastic. I was pleased that it actually stayed up/in place. I'm not always a big fan of strapless dresses because I hate wearing strapless bras (so uncomfy!).

Have a lovely evening!
Julia

Sneak Peek

Just wanted to give you a sneak peak at part of my next project! I'm 3/4 of the way done with it and should be able to show you the completed thing tomorrow. I can't wait to finish it -- it's going to be so unbelievably cute!

(Photos taken with my Nikon Coolpix...I need a new camera)

So these little guys are a bird pattern I got from a blog/store called Spool. They made the most adorable bird mobile using sticks and brightly colored birds! I really like the bright colored fabrics they used for their mobile, but I wanted to stick with a solid top and a patterned base.

(Photos taken with my Nikon Coolpix)

For the eyes I simply tied a French Knot with embroidery floss. Don't know the French Knot? Here's a good tutorial.

Come back soon and I should have the finished project for you!

Toodles,
Julia

Time for a change

After recently acquiring Adobe Illustrator, I decided to make my own blog banner. It's totally simple, I know, but I actually have NO idea how to use Illustrator, so I've been learning as I play around with it. I'm hoping with a little help from the lovely Lauren from here, I'll be able to make some fancier things.


In the meantime, let me know what you think! I'd love some feedback.

Happy Monday!
Julia

Road Trip - Part 2

Alright, we left off with Hidden Falls in the Tetons. After hiking two different hikes in the Tetons we headed to the condo we rented in Jackson. It was soo nice! Especially after we had been camping in the snow, hiking in the snow, and riding in cars for about 4 days. My pictures of the condo don't really do it any justice, so I'll just show you our view out the back porch. Absolutely amazing!

View right before sunset.

Views the next morning. I wish my back door looked out onto that.

Beginning the hike up Angel's Landing in Zion National Park.

Crazy switchback staircase in the hike.

We hiked to the top of that, but it was part hiking and part rock climbing.

Pretty views from the top.

On the way back down.

After Zion, we went to Vegas. My pictures of Vegas are kind of boring, so we'll move on to San Francisco. Unfortunately we only had about half a day in San Francisco, but I go to see the Bridge and have a Ghiradelli Sundae. Yum-my!

Me and the BF at the Golden Gate bridge.

Well, that's the end of our road trip! Hope you enjoyed the pictures. Let me know if you need any road trip suggestions or tips! I feel like a pro, now that I've done it twice. Like I said before, if you haven't been on a cross country road trip, I highly suggest and recommend it!

Toodles!
Julia

Stuffed Owl Tutorial

I found a really cute tutorial on Make It and Love It and thought I would try my own version of it. Instead of re-purposing an old scarf as in the tutorial, I used leftover flannel from some baby blankets I made recently.

So, without delay...here's how to do it!

1. Draw your pattern and trace it onto two pieces of fabric. After it's traced, cut out your shape leaving an extra half inch for seam allowance.

2. Pin together your edges.

3. Sew around your pattern line and leave a 2 inch hole on the bottom so that you can turn it right side out. (Sorry, no picture for this one)

4. Next, start stuffing your shape. I used polyester fiber stuffing. Make sure you poke the stuffing into the ears/corners.

5. Pin together the hole and use a hidden stitch to close the opening. Don't know how to do a hidden stitch? Learn it here.

6. Now it's time to give your owl some character! Cut out eyes, a beak, and wings from a sheet of felt. You could use a different fabric, but keep in mind that felt does not fray and other materials might.

7. Now it's time to sew on the wings, beak, and eyes. I used embroidery thread because I wanted the stitches to be seen, but you could also use regular thread if you want to hide the stitches. Don't forget to hide the knots of your thread under the felt pieces.

After you sew on your wings, beak and eyes...you're done!

(Please excuse the random thread next to the beak on the brown owl.
Didn't see that until after I'd taken the pictures)

Aren't they cute?! They look so cute with the blankets I've made using the same flannel. Hopefully my soon to be little brothers will enjoy them as they grow up.

Let me know if you have any questions about the tutorial or how to make these little guys. You certainly don't have to do an owl. You could do any simple animal shape.

Hope you had a lovely day! I'll be back tomorrow to show you a dress I made this past weekend.

Toodles,
Julia

Road Trip - Part 1

A few weeks ago I headed off on a cross country road trip with my boyfriend and two friends. If you ever have the chance to take a trip across the country I highly recommend it. It's amazing to see how the country changes as you head from one side to the other! Here are some photos from our trip. I hope you enjoy!

Badlands, South Dakota

First wildlife sighting inside the Badlands.

More Badlands - really cool to see the layers in the land.

Mount Rushmore

Camping near Jenny Lake in the Tetons, Wyoming.

Chopping up some firewood.

S'mores...mmmmmmm.....

We went to bed with it raining and woke up to snow on the campsite.

Hiking through the snow in the Tetons.

More hiking through the snow.

Hidden Falls

I'll leave you with these for now. More to come tomorrow.

Hope everyone has had a good weekend!! Mine was filled with lots crafting, sun, a cute little baby, and catching up on Season 2 of Tru Blood. Haha. :)

Toodles,
Julia