Banners, Bunting, Garland....

Whatever they're called, I love them! Earlier this month I won a Giveaway over at Esther's Blog Pineconeprim. Not only did I win a really cute purse, but she also sent me this darling fabric banner! I've been meaning to make one myself{well actually wanting to and really thinking a lot about it}.

I can't think of any excuse as to why I haven't yet...I love seeing what talented and motivated crafters have done with their version of garland & bunting. Just search flickr and see the endless ideas:

Now if you're unlike me and you like patterns, specific details, and tutorials~ I found some great ones. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE looking at tutorials and getting the basic idea, but I have a really hard time with exact measurements and having to follow specific instructions...I work much better just jumping in and figuring it out as I go.
Over at Sewmamasew.com you'll find an excellent tutorial for a scalloped fabric garland, too cute!! Two more really good tutorials can be found here and here.
If I start cutting fabric now for a Christmas tree garland, I should be able to get it done just in time for Christmas....I'll post any progress I've made :)

Comfy Cozy Cottage Style...

One of my favorite things about flickr is how you can roam around browsing through photo's and create your own Inspiration. In a perfect world this is what my Cottage would look like, inside and out.

1. Cozy Cottage, 2. Quaint Cottage, 3. skona hem white on white, 4. new sofa, 5. English Eiderdowns, 6. mytins, 7. Untitled, 8. Kitchen, 9. My Vintage Pad - Home Tour - Sairer from Malvern in the UK, 10. White cottage bathroom, 11. Re-New Style, 12. Cottage Door, 13. Daily Bungalow - SE Portland, Ladd's Addition Neighborhood

It's about that time to replace my couch cover. I'm not sure it's a project I want to take on myself, but I found a Tutorial for a Chair Slipcover Makeover~ I might want to start there first.

Nothing says comfy and cozy like a home filled with lots and lots of pillows! On the couch, in a chair, on the Bed....just everywhere! I found two really cute{and I think seemed pretty easy}Pillow Cover Tutorials. Here and here.

I think the Silhouette pillow would make such a great gift!

New Finds...

The month of October is always the busiest month for me. Three of my kids have Birthdays, there's back to school night X's 4, Teacher conferences, now we've added Football games, Football injuries{which leads to Doctor appointments} and searching for Halloween costumes~ luckily my boys are finally too old for costumes. I love this time of year, but it's always hectic.
I did manage to do some Thrifting. I found these cute but quirky ceramic heads.

I bought this amazing vintage frame{with plans to turn it into a Chalkboard} and clown painting at the Flea Market. I'm the only one who loves the clown~ my kids think he's creepy!

These last finds are probably my favorite, partly because they were free. I love this corner shelf and couldn't pass up the weathered ceramic hen or chicken?? I was with a friend on the way home from breakfast when we spotted these curb side treasures. I don't always stop, mainly because once my kids see me eyeballing something they usually end up telling me "No way mom...you're not seriously going to get that"!! "Oh my gosh, how embarrassing" then it's not so much fun.


I'm so so glad I stopped for this shelf :)

New Sewing Spot...

Last weekend I decided to move my sewing machine to a different area, thinking I'd get more sewing done there. So far I've only sewn once. I've been meaning to make coasters from fabric and quilt scraps that I've been saving, so toady I made a little stack.
They were really quick and easy to make. I used 5" x 5" fabric squares, then cut slightly smaller squares of batting{I think that's what it is, I have a bunch stored away}. For each coaster I layered three pieces together like a sandwich{with batting in the middle}
I placed a couple of pins through each set to make sure nothing moved, then just stitched around the edges and across the middle a couple times.

No more glass rings on my new table :)