wednesday: wrap it up

Today is all about gift tags. Like wrapping paper, pretty much anything can be turned into a pretty little tag! Has it happened to you before, you work hard to wrap all the gifts and figure you will tag later, only to forget which gift was what?! Happens to me all the time! This year, I had to open three gifts to remember who it was for. Darn me!

This first tag used was manila shipping tags that I use for my hair clips. I just cut out little squares of fabric and sewed it right on top. Gives the tag a bit more pizazz, though I think it is fine to use just the way it is and often tag gifts that way!

Next, I just cut up tags from pages of an old book. Punched a hole, added some twine and now you are ready to go!

I went back to using my anthro catalog, so for this one I cut up squares of pretty backgrounds and patterns, then glued that onto some kraft paper, and cut up the kraft paper into little tags. If you don't have kraft paper, just use brown paper lunch bag, grocery paper bag, or any paper you fancy! Punch and hole, add the twine (or could use ribbon, bakers twine, basically anything you have on hand) and write a name and gift!

These tags are my favorites. I just cut up some wonderful images out of my anthro catalog (gotta love its many uses!), punched a hole, then added some twine. I think these are extra fun!!!

Hope you like these and remember, just to use whatever you have on hand! It is all about being resourceful and using practical things around you, instead of going out and having to buy wrapping paper and tags (not that there is anything wrong with that). It is just my preference to save 5 bucks on wrapping paper, when that same 5 bucks can go towards shoes (or my child's college education), but you get my drift right?!!

I am so glad to be done wrapping gifts and they are all nicely sitting pretty, but we still have no tree up! Oh boy! We must get on that STAT! And I still have to figure out what to get Ben! He is so hard because I am trying to think of something practical but still fun! What did you get your main squeeze for Christmas?

wrap it up: tissue paper

wrap it up: trim

wrap it up: paper

wrap it up: yarn

and other wrappings...

wednesday: wrap it up

This week I am using tissue paper as gift adornments. It doesn't always have to be the traditional bow, right?!!

For this first gift, I cut various strips of tissue paper, then layered it on top of each other with a strip of glue at the top. After which, I cut slits to create a fringe. It gives the gift a fun vibe, but now that I am thinking of it, it may be cool to do this from top to bottom! Wouldn't that be fun?!!

For this one, I cut a scalloped edge off of a strip of kraft tissue paper, wrapped it around the gift. Then tied a strip of over it. Sweet and simple...

Making tissue paper flowers are always so fun, so this is what this one has! I bunched up some orange tissue paper, cut some slits, and messied it up. Behind it, I gathered some light green tissue paper to act as some leaves. It could probably do with out the green and just have the flower, but it is whatever suits your fancy! It is tied on using some really thin twine.

I finally ordered the girls their main Christmas gift. You know, the one from Santa. *wink* The only one left is Ben. I don't know what to get him! I am bugging him to give me a list, so we will see. I just gave him mine, though there really isn't much on there. I still want that bag that I have really been wanting since my birthday (out of the budget though) and a couple other cutesy things, but seriously, I am so stuck! I will think of some things and share it here soon, along with what we are getting our girls since some of you have asked.

Are you done with Christmas shopping? I started mine in the summer so I had most of them done by the time December hit, but we still haven't started decorating! Oh boy!!! Not enough time in a day...

wrap it up: trim

wrap it up: paper

wrap it up: yarn

and other wrappings...

p.s. if you are wondering about soulie's birthday, it went well (praise God!)! sadly though, i have no pictures to share as i didn't take any. i had christian cruz take them, so i am patiently waiting (breathing down his neck is more like it) to get the pictures back! once i do, i will be sure to share it!

wednesday: wrap it up

Let's face it, you are running out of time, you still have a few gifts to get and tons more to wrap, there is no time to make them look pretty, so you just buy paper bags and tissue paper to stick them in. Well, you can prettify those gift wrappings too!

Tie a bow using ribbon, lace (which is what I used), trim or whatever you can get your hands on, and glue onto paper bag. Instant cuteness!

Take some happy tape and bakers twine and make a little bunting. Tape onto the sides of the bag and you got a little more pizazz!

And what is my fave thing to wrap things with this Christmas? That's right... pages from a catalog, particularly Anthropologie's. Cut out a cute image and glue it on. Just so chic!

Even a little paper gift bag can be spruced up real quick and on the cheap! Makes gift giving and gift opening a bit more fun! Don't you think?

Hope you enjoyed this little wrap it up series. It was fun for me and got me done wrapping my presents really early! May you have fun doing any shopping and wrapping still left on your list!

wrap it up: gift tags

wrap it up: tissue paper

wrap it up: trim

wrap it up: paper

wrap it up: yarn

and other wrappings...

Christmas is almost here... woot! woot!

wednesday: wrap it up

These wrappings focused on trim, particularly rik rak and pom poms. Like all other things craft related, I hoard trim too! And all my trim isn't organized, they are just all shoved in a basket (hidden in my little fabric closet), so you can imagine the tangled mess I have on hand. Wrapping gifts with my stash of trim is the perfect way to clean up and de-stash! I am sure you have your own tangled (maybe not tangled) basket of trim. It's time to use it up folks!

All the gifts are wrapped in plain brown kraft paper. This first one has a piece of a map taped on and some gold poms around it.

This gift utilizes a torn sash of fabric, tied at the back, and both pom and rik rak.

All this one uses is rik rak.

Using trim is so simple and easy, and is really helping me clean out my messy basket! I must say, these aren't innovative ideas. I am sure they have been done time and time again and I am by no means the originator. I am just condensing a little idea list just to utilize all those things we may already have lying around our house. So please share, what other trims do you like to use?

Places to buy trim, if you don't hoard it like I do: darlybird, beautiful additions, the stockroom, joann

wrap it up: paper

wrap it up: yarn

and other wrappings...

Off to figure out a little birthday outfit for Soul. To sew or not to sew... that is the dilemma!

wednesday: wrap it up

This week's ingredient for wrapping is paper! We have all types in our houses I am sure, from newspaper to tissue paper to tons of old magazines lying around. Since we are sticking to utilizing supplies we already have, paper is something I am sure we all have in an abundance!

This first present was wrapped in some old sewing pattern tissue paper that I had on hand. I am always saving patterns, but never use them to sew, thus they are just stacking up collecting dust. It's time I use them for something! It is really a thin tissue so you may have to use a couple layers to hide the gift, but the results are so cute. I added a cut out from a recent anthropologie catalog to create a little scene on the wrapping and top it off with a cute little velvet bow.

The next paper I used was some newspaper from last weekend. You probably don't want the colored ads (or maybe you do), but I just used the plainest page I could find to use to wrap the gift. Again, I cut out some cute images I liked from an anthropologie catalog and glued them onto the newspaper. Makes the simple wrapping a bit more fun (and maybe to hide some news that just isn't so interesting). The bows are some vintage ribbons that I have been hoarding forever.

This last gift was wrapped with torn out anthropologie catalog pages. One page was too small, so I had to use two (depending on the size of your gift you may need more). The page was festive and colorful already that all it needed was a simple velvet bow!

I am sure you all could recreate these wrappings easy! All it was is paper and just grab some of your old magazines or catalogs and start looking and cutting out cute images. Plus, I am sure most of you hoard anthropologie catalogs too cause they are just too darn pretty to throw away, so it is high time to put those stacks of paper to good use! I think their catalogs make such good wrappings, I first got the idea from one of my friends (thanks Jane!).

I was browsing through my local anthro last week and noticed they are selling items to aid in gift wrapping. I think their prices for it is a bit high (as you can find cheaper on etsy or your local thrift shop), but they are nonetheless adorable, so maybe you want to take a peek for some ideas.

Some resources:

- vintage sewing patterns for the tissue paper

- velvet ribbon

Another cute idea, is to wrap gifts using old fold out maps! I am sure your local thrift shop would have an abundance of these fold out papers. Any one have any suggestions of other types of papers that could be used for wrappings? Please do share!

wrap it up: yarn

and other wrappings...

wednesday: wrap it up

We have about six weeks until Christmas, can you believe it?!! I have mentioned that I am pretty much done with shopping (just a few more things to get), so I figured I would start wrapping things up. Yes, I am starting to wrap presents. So as I start wrapping, I am going to share various ways to wrap up your presents using things you probably already have lying around your house. I refuse to buy anything to aid in Christmas gift wrapping as I could probably open up a little craft store with all the crafting junk I have in my house!

I hope you like this little bit as the next 6 wednesdays will be all about wrapping and every week I will utilize one specific element in the wrapping. This week's special element is... YARN!

As I was writing the above line, I felt a bit Iron Chef-ish and can hear all their sound effects and music as they reveal what the key ingredient for the recipes will be. Anyone know what I am talking about?!!

For the first gift, I crocheted a mini scarf and attached some buttons and wrapped it around the present. I think the present scarf is so cute and simple. After, I guess the recipient could use it as a cowl of sorts.

Yarn is so easy to use that for this one, I just tied a knot at the back and then wrapped the yarn around and around vertically, then horizontally and "voila!" You can even mix other colors, keep the lines straight or go crazy with it.

For this last gift, I wrapped yarn around again, but this time I added a bit of a yarn ornament along with it.

Now, you might be thinking how do I make a yarn ornament? Well, I will have the DIY for you tomorrow. It is really easy and you are all such geniuses that I am sure you could make do without my step-by-step, and once you see how I do it, you will say, "Ruby, I could have done that with my eyes closed!" Then, next thing you know you will already have made 10!

I love wrapping gifts. Presents are always nice, but presents with pretty wrapping is just a tad bit nicer, don't you think? It makes opening a gift fun! Scratch that. Opening gifts is just plain fun no matter how it comes, but a little extra oomph never hurts!

Be back tomorrow with a little DIY...

I know some of you have already shared your favorite ways to wrap presents on this post, but if you have any other ideas, do share, and maybe I will use one of your ideas for one of the weeks!

DIY outdoor bench/cushion of sorts

Many of you have inquired about our outdoor seating you have seen pop in our pictures from time to time and I am finally getting to share about them now. Mind you these pictures are from last summer, so our garden looks nothing like this now. Right now it is weed filled and dirty, but I am in the process of cleaning and prettying it up.

Materials:

- 2 pallets of the same size

- High density 5'' thick foam cut to fit on top of pallet (bought at local craft store)

- Outdoor vinyl (to cover entirety of the foam)

- Waterproof tape (to wrap the vinyl around the foam)

- Outdoor canvas or duck cloth (enough to fit around the foam)

When Ben and I were first fixing up our yard last summer, we had such a hard time finding cozy seating that was our style. We wanted something simple and kinda natural looking, but everything we found in the stores looked cheap and were too expensive (not a great combo), and too patio-like. That wasn't for us. After brainstorming, I drew out what I wanted and wanted to see if Ben could make it. I just wanted simple wooden benches with something comfy on top. Then, after more brainstorming, we came up with this pallet idea.

One afternoon we went driving in local industrial areas and just started searching for pallets. We needed two of the same size to stack on top of each other, to make the seating the height we wanted. The first two pallets we saw were perfect and easy as they were just in the trash pile along with some broken ones, so we just stuck two good ones in our car. Then, the next two we came by was more difficult because we found them in a commercial trash container. Ben had to climb up and was carefully checking things out to find two good pallets that were the same size. When he did, he had to carefully lower them down to me (and man, those things are heavy) and try not to fall at the same time. We loaded those up and brought them home.

I cleaned the pallets by hosing them down. I took measurements and wrote them down and knew just how much foam I would need to buy. I went to Joann's to buy the foam and had 50% off coupons because that foam ain't cheap! It was probably the most expensive part considering the pallets were free.

I bring the foam home and place them on the pallets and with a serrated knife, cut it to the exact size I need. The width of a pair of the pallets was pretty wide, so I had to piece two pieces of foam together to get the full width. I took the vinyl and wrapped it completely around and made sure it overlapped, then just closed everything with waterproof tape. Sounds kind of like a quickie way of doing it as I am sure there is a much more chic way, but the foam was hidden and I didn't care. I just wanted it to not be able to get wet or damp.

Lastly, I just cut the duck cloth I got to fit the pallet with extra room to tuck in and under the cushion. I probably could have sewn a nice perfect cushion and maybe i will get to that eventually, but I just wanted something quick and natural. Now, voila! We had the perfect seating for us! There is plenty of room for lounging, reading, and doing some good 'ole relaxing!

Before we had all our rain, I made sure to bring the cushions and cloth in. The pallets stayed outside and have continued to weather, but I think it has a nice worn look. Plus, I love old things so that's cool with me!

Sorry there isn't much of a step by step, but it really is easy peasy and pretty self explanatory. Find 2 pallets, buy foam that fits on top, buy vinyl to go around the foam, close it up, and wrap it in cloth. Simple as that!

This look might not work for everyone, but it does for us. The best part is that it is much more budget friendly and matches our style more than anything we saw being sold out in the stores or online! Don't you just love a good, quick, and easy DIY?

* All these pictures were taken last summer. I have been meaning to share this DIY for so long now!

snap it pretty :: a photography workshop

Danni and I started planning this workshop in February and had a location picked out in March, but then life happened and we didn't have it until July! Thankfully, we had 15 wonderful ladies be brave enough to test out our first workshop ever and we think it went pretty well. We are so thankful for their emails and evaluations and now know what we did well and what to do better for next time. We are so excited to have another soon!

Our featured photographer who was sharing the know-how part of the workshop was Jennifer Young from I ART U. It is great to have someone who knows her camera, has great pictures, but is also very familiar with the blogging world. She was the perfect fit for Danni and me!

I think Danni and I were a ball of nerves, but super excited and couldn't wait to get the show on the road. We had one heavy crafting day and about 300 emails going back and forth between the two of us. It was pretty crazy for a couple of weeks; plus throw in my rascally 3 girls and her insane craft shows, and you just have two crazy ladies running around with our heads cut off. Our husbands are patient men (Thanks Ben and Nick!).

The workshop was held at the beautiful George Key Ranch and ran from mid-morning to mid-afternoon. Danni and I love making things looks pretty, hence our email welikeitpretty(at)gmail(dot)com, so we wanted everything to be absolutely perfect for all our guests! I hope they enjoyed it as much as we enjoyed planning and making everything perfect for them.

At the welcome table, we had handmade crepe paper flower pins for name tags, moleskine notebooks with a cute little camera stamp, pens, and a little program for the day.

For the "talk" of the day, the ladies sat on vintage folding chairs and we hung up a little backdrop on the trees.

After the "talking" portion, everyone had an opportunity to practice what they learned. There were various lighting conditions with the bright sun and shading for the trees that you definitely got to practice adjusting for the varying brightness.

We had a pretty table set up with all the lunch goodies. The sandwiches were from Rialto Cafe, cake pops from local baker Pop Culture Desserts, and macarons flown in from Salt City Patisserie, baked chips and drinks. We made fabric wraps to wrap the sandwiches and chips together; it was color coordinated depending on the type of sandwich they ordered. I must say, I loved both the cake pops and the macarons so much! But I am a dessert girl, so it ain't hard to please me in that area. We laid picnic blankets out for everyone to sit and everyone was chatting up a storm and usually it involved blogging. What more do you expect?!

After lunch, we had two stations set up with boxes full of props. We separated everyone into a Nikon or Canon group and they went at it styling their little table. Both groups did great and were so natural at it that I want them to come over and decorate my house now! After they styled their areas, everyone practice snapping away at those and just continued with the area surrounding them.

Danni and I could have not done this day without these two ladies... RJ and Linda. They are simply the best in letting us boss them around and doing everything with such a cheerful heart! We love you guys!!!

The workshop ended with some questions and Danni and me sharing our tips for taking good pictures. We don't claim to be pros, but we just shared the little things we do know and use for our own pictures.

Of course, we couldn't end the day without without raffling off some pretty cool camera goods. We had 4 big raffles: This Lisa Leonard necklace, a polaroid camera, a Ketti Handbags camera bag, and this bag from JoTotes. Seriously, such good prizes. If that ain't enough, anyone who didn't win a "big" raffle prize went home with an iMo camera strap. On top of that, we had a goody box for every single person to take home. There was so much goodness in those boxes that those boxes (and the raffle goods) will get its own post, just so we can outline each little goody. Seriously.

The best part of the day was getting to spend time with all of the lovely ladies. Making new friends is always a good thing. Everyone was so kind and sweet and it was seeing their excitement that makes us want to do this all over again!

Bloggers in attendance were: Cinthya from Lo Fidelity Love, Tiffany from See the Skyline, Katie from A Day with Kate, Kira from Her New Leaf, Bri from Hello I am Bri, Becky from Little Wickies, and Vivien from The Eclectic Life. If you check out these blogs you will also see their views and thoughts of the workshop. Sorry if I missed anyone, but just leave me the link in the comments and I will correct it.

And if the picture overload wasn't enough, well, here is a little video of our day (if you read in google reader, the video won't come up)...

Above photos courtesy of Jen and Danni. And a huge thank you to Salt City Patisserie & Pop Culture Desserts for sharing with us their delicious sweets!

Danni and I are definitely planning more workshops soon, so if you are interested be ready...