Valentine Gift Ideas

Ok!  Enough about moving, and about "how great it is to be back" crap posts.  I'm in the mood for LOVE.  Ok, maybe not love, not right this minute, but VALENTINES!

Look at this really cute, easy teachers gift idea from Just a Girl.  It's just inexpensive hand sanitizer or lotion with your own little touch of stickers and/or ribbon.  Just click on any of the pictures for more information: 

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These wristlets from Plum Pudding are super cute and fun for a little girl to put toget

her for her friends:

Scraps in Progress has this cute no sew project that would be sweet in the window over your sink, on your front door or to give to someone special:

   

I totally heart this heart from Life in The Thrifty Lane

Here is a great alternative to a sugary treat from from Dollar Store Crafts.  They also seem like great gift ideas for teachers or friends at work.  They can then take them home to their kiddos!

 

Embelishing Life Everyday made these easy chalkboard hearts that are just too cool:   

 Woo your favorite bookworm by making this easy bookmark from marthastewart.com:

Hope these spark a few ideas if you are looking for some unique gifts for that special someone you love. 

Have we mentioned lately that we love you all for stopping by Casa Causpanic??  Well, we do. And we hope you have a beautiful day!

Deck the Halls...or the Mantel

Hey You!  Hope everything is going well over in your part of the world!  All is well here, but we have been such busy bees or poor time managers.  In our defense, though, we have been on the road some, also.   

It's funny.  In October we were very optimistic about selling our house...like "dream on, baby" optimistic.  We were so sure we would be in BC by Christmas we even went ahead and took the Christmas decorations over there.  As I posted previously, Ronnie grabbed them on one of his trips to BC.  But, once we took everything out there was still a few things missing.  Just some glittery poinsettias and glittered eucalyptus leaves and other accessories, but we just could not think back to last year and where we put those few things or even in what we put them away.  We knew they would be in a little box because it was just a few items, but put our finger on it...we could not.  Of course, once we gave up looking for them, they appeared...in the garage...somewhere.  

I digress.  Okay, now the results of our little projects.  Crafting really is fun!  And, it really doesn't have to be expensive!  I was very happy that we did would not have to spend a dime on the tree decorations.  I had spent about five bucks on Dollar Tree 2/$1 tree embellishments to use to dress up our green garland, but did use them for the tree when our other embellishments went AWOL.  Thanks to my sweet hubby for all his help with the tree.  His choosing to decorate the bottom part on the tree was a little questionable, though, since I am 4' 6" and he is 6' 1", but I'm definitely not complaining!

Don't you love digging into the Christmas decoration boxes and re-discovering all the junk decorations that have accumulated over the years?  A lot of times one might get into those boxes and think, "Goodwill...trash...Goodwill...".  But sometimes if you look at them with an open mind you can change them up as your tastes change.  I was happy to find these decorations and decided I could make them fit into our red and gold theme with a can of gold spray paint: 

My favorite way to decorate is with garland everywhere...on the mantel, surrounding the fireplace, in the windows....   But, when I tried that in this house, it just didn't feel right.  So this year I tried something a little different.  First, we changed out mirrors.  Rae, you may recognize this mirror...it is the one you gave us but we painted it all gold.  The Martha Stewart inspired poinsettia wreath looks nice with it and it really "lightened" up the mantel, weight wise and color wise.  The Gold Nutcrackers helped lighten it up some too.  Those guys really added a lot of bang for very little buck!  I love the sparkle in the little gold trees, especially at night.  The little bit of light in the room reflects off the glitter.  It's like having my own stash of diamonds and gold.

 

 

Well, that's it for our decking the halls!  We had a good time getting things together and a differing opinion here and there, but it's done.  Now, we can concentrate more on enjoying the Reason for the Season!

What about you all?  Are you all done decorating?  Any favorite decorations you just cant let go?  Doing ok with holiday stress?  We sure hope so, but if not, come back tomorrow or the day after with a cup of hot chocolate and check out our post on the Christmas program we attended at the First Pentecostal Church in BC.  Hint:  there will be videos of precious little children singing.  Once you see those you will say, "Stress who?"  It is a program you will surely want to check out next year if you live in the area and/or seek out something similar in your area.  Looking forward to seeing you then!

Christmas Crafts

We have been trying really hard to get our Christmas decorations up.  My hat is off to those of you who actually get your decorations up the week of Thanksgiving.  Oh, how I aspire.  But, here it is December 11th and we are just now finalizing our decorations.  Which, that is actually ok since we wait until the Epiphany to take them down. 

The web is chock full of inspiration for Christmas crafts.  The first place I usually look to is MarthaStewart.com.

Love this Ribbon Poinsettia Wreath 

 So I made this one...

Now, I went to one of the major craft stores to buy the materials necessary to make this wreath.  The Styrofoam wreath forms were $3.99 and up. 

Normally, I wouldn't care, but we are really trying to find the best deals possible now-a-days, so I went to the trusty Dollar Tree and they had a plain, wood wreath for $1.00! Ok, it IS a little different, but it is workable.  Not only that, but I am making some glitter trees and the cones at the craft store were $3.99!  Dollar Tree...yep...$1.00.  Yes, they are a little shorter and smaller, but I can make it work.  Take the four bucks you saved and go get ya a latte or a Peppermint Chocolate Chip Milk Shake from Chick Fil A (stay tuned and maybe we will have a homemade version that will save you some calories.  We sure are going to try!) 

It worked fine.  I went there tonight to get a few more things and they had Styrofoam wreath forms also for a buck which they did not have the other day.  Save yourself some money and time and check out the Dollar Tree first. 

Next, I so loved this blue spruce wreath trio, also inspired by Martha Stewart 

Which led to this:

I had some old Dollar Store wreaths we had used at our house in BC.  I am so glad I found a way to put them to use here in Dickinson.  And then there is the nutcracker idea I found at House of Hepworths.  I bought these at the Dollar Tree.  I had actually been there the day before I read HOH's post, but I did not remember seeing any nutcrackers.  So, of course I went back.  This is them before:

 

Then I stripped them of their hair.

Don't they look much younger??  At first, I painted them white, like Allison's, because I really love them white. 

But it didn't really go with my Christmas colors so I took a chance and tried painting one gold.  I like it. I did not think it would be as pretty as the silver one Allison did, but I think it is.  Now, I just have to finish them.

 

And this garland we have had for years.  I am the type that likes everything.  Aren't multi-colored lights so awesome? But white lights are beautiful and elegant.  But, blue or green or red lights are unique and always look great.  Same thing with Christmas trees.  I like a multi-colored tree, I like monochromatic trees with white lights.  I like it all...which makes it very hard for me to pin down an exact "style" for myself.  Anyway, these are from my multi-colored decor days. 

I am going to transform them to fit into our golden decor of today.  Me and my friend, Can o' Krylon paint! 

For real, folks.  Final Christmas decor pics between now and Monday.  I know, I know...I said that a week ago, but like I said...For Real!

Home Office Dream Land

As Ronnie would say, "I've got the cart before the horse" looking for different office ideas for the studio.  We still have to build a fence and add a bathroom, at least.  But, it helps me feel like we are making some progress when we are really at a standstill.

Hence, my escape to home office dream land.  The space we will have for an office will be about 8' x 12'.  Plenty o' room for all the functions I want our office to perform.  That includes:

1. Area for the the computer and printer
2. Area for gift wrapping/scrapbooking/crafts
3. Storage for gift wrapping paper, scrapbook paper, office supplies, files
4. Seating for reading, relaxing, talking and research on the ipad (I know, I know...I don't have an ipad, but someday I will, I'm putting it out there God =))

Dealing with the City is a real pain in the como-se-llamas (Spanish for "what 'cha ma-call it").  Permits, inspectors, clerks...geez.  I tried to get the electricity turned on and the electric company said, "Gotta have it inspected and approved by the City before we can turn the electricity on."  Ok...call the City, get the permits, Inspector comes out and says, "You need to isolate the lights and get a couple of constructions plugs."  Ok...call the electrician, he comes out to do the work and says, "I can't isolate the lights if you don't have any electricity."  Whaaaa???  We tried a new approach today and we are keeping our fingers crossed. 

We truly are glad you dropped in so, until we get word from the City, grab a cup of java, pull up a seat and join me in home office dream land.  If you could have any office you wanted what functions would it serve?  Would it be all work and no play?  What colors do you think would get your mind in work mode?  Go on dream it on up and share it with us when you get a chance!

Falling for Fall

As I've said before, I Love Fall!  The weather has been so incredible and the web is chock full o inspiration for fall decor.  There was a time I would decorate for every season.  Somewhere along the way I lost the motivation to do it.  But, thanks to Young House Love I decided to look for inspiration for fall decorating. 

Check out what I found at one of my favorite sites, HGTV.com:

 Love this look created by a Rate My Space User.  Sleek and simple,

Like something more rustic?  This one might inspire you:

There are many elements to this photo but my favorite is the stacked pumpkins inspiring the thought to make a "Pumpkin Man".  Those are actually foam pumpkins, so they can be used year after year!

I found this at marthastewart.com and definitely plan on implementing it today.  It's called Pumpkin Pie Potpourri.  You just cut off the top, scrape the inside, carve out vents and then rub cinnamon on or push cloves into the the lid.  Just click on this link for mored detailed how-to information.

Just a few pics and ideas to get your creative juices flowing so you can make the most of and delight in the season.  Enjoy!!

Note:  Photos courtesy of HGTV.com and marthastewart.com