strung along.

I absolutely loved this post from Design*Sponge a while back and was inspired to do a little variation just right for Valentine's Day, so now that I've strung you along for a couple of days: here's what we're making: Cute, i know. They're great because they are inexpensive, look pretty spiffy and on top of the that they are super easy to make. Here's the instructions:

Gather your materials:
- paper or lightweight cardstock
- stapler
- x-acto knife
- metal ruler
- cutting mat
- thread or some fishing line

Here's what to do:
Set out your cutting mat and use your x-acto knife and metal ruler to cut the paper or cardstock into 1" strips. I used a few different colors obviously but I think this would be beautiful even if you just used all white copy paper and strung them up in front of a dark wall!

Lay out your color combinations, I used a few colors per ornament, and sometimes repeated the colors on the inside, but do what you think looks best. Cut 2 strips that are 11"long, 2 that are 9" long, 2 that are 7" long and one that is about 4" long. Once you make one you can vary the sizes so that you have larger and smaller hearts. After I made a few and started to really get into it, I began to vary the width of the strips too. Stack the strips with the longest on the inside followed by the shorter ones on either side. Line up the tops by tapping them on your mat, then place the shortest strip in reverse so that it's end is sticking out of the stack in the opposite direction, staple these together. Next loop the strips around and line up the bottom edges on the opposite side, so that they are flush, and staple that end too. I trimmed mine on the bottoms because I left some uneven tails.

Now make a bunch more hearts- repeat lining up and stapling to turn the rest of your paper strips into hearts too.

I got so excited I made a whole pile, which was good because when I was finished I wanted some to hang in the window in my office as well as a few for the window in my kitchen!

Tie the thread or fishing line at the top of the heart - you can punch holes if you like or just thread it through the spot where the strips are joined. Hang them in your window, door, or anywhere you like, they'll add a touch of Valentine sweetness to any place you put them!

I can see the hearts hanging in my kitchen window from my side of the bed, so when I wake up and the light is streaming through the blinds it looks so beautiful!

Be sure to leave me a comment linking to pics if you make these, cuz' I'd love to see yours!

i'm so happy . . .

that it is the weekend, it just makes me go to bits.

actually I'm mostly excited because I've been working on this totally cute valentine's decoration project that I can't wait to show you on monday.

sneak peak

a little preview of a how-to project coming on monday. . . stay tuned.

sweet thoughts

some sweet little things for your valentine. guess which one of these I want?

1. red mug

2. graphic plates

3. forget me knot

4. pop-up card

ikea style

I just took the Ikea style quiz thanks to John & Sherry's post about it on the This Young House blog and here's my results:

I'm apparently a modern minimalist, I don't know how I ended up with more country then I did Scandinavian! Take the quiz here.

be mine outfit

1. j.crew pink sweater

2. glass beaded necklace

3. flirty flats

4. drop earrings

winter wear

1. ae jeans

2. circle belt
3. navy zip-up
4. warm wellies

fashioned

I'm no expert in the area of fashion photography . . . I do a little work now and then but it's the most fun when you have a great model to work with who's willing to stand out in the cold with bare legs.

images by caro

it happened.

I can't remember how old I am. I've been sitting here thinking about it for at least four minutes. If you've ever asked someone and they had to think about it while you stand there wondering if "really? you actually don't know how old you are?" then you'll understand how crappy this is. I'm usually the one who's shocked that people don't remember, I never realized that at a certain point it just becomes unimpotant. welcome to being an adult.



ps - I'm 24 I think. really? hmmm. i only have a half a year until I'm twenty-five

setting up

Setting the table for dinner guests can add an instant touch of sophistication to the most casual of get-togethers, and since I find it particularly satisfying to arrange (and rearrange) plates, napkins, glasses, and flatware; I'm prone to doing this even when we're just having lasagne.
here's a few ways I've set our table in the past couple of months:

I grabbed these lavender-colored spider mums from the grocery store thinking they'd look cute in a centerpiece but after setting the table I made a last minute switch to individual blooms in some glass votives we had on hand.

Our table and chair set we purchased from IKEA a few years ago and the glass tabletop is actually from their office desktop collection, but I snagged it in the as-is section for about $10. The runners and chargers I picked up at Target while they were having their after-Christmas cleareance so I got those on the cheap too. The flatware was my gift from Timothy for Christmas and we were ecstatic to have friends over so we'd have an excuse to lay the table with them!