{Modern} Baby Monogram Quilt

Every now and then, I get an idea in my head that is all my own.  That sounds funny, right?  I've had this vision of a quilt I wanted to make for a while, and finally got down to making it!

It seems that all my friends are expecting right now, so baby everything has been on my mind.  

I really love how these quilts turned out.

****THE FULL TUTORIAL CAN BE FOUND HERE!****

The "Henry" Quilt

Close up of that cute monogram:

Love it!

Colors of the quilt:

Lots of polka dots in white, orange and lime green.

The "Taggart" Quilt

Close up of that super cute monogram:

I really liked the fabrics on this one!

Aqua-ish blue, brown and white.  Pretty classic colors!

I thought they turned out darling!

Pretty much what I envisioned in my head; not always easy to translate into a finished project!

Linking up here!

Evolution of a {Lamp Shade}

Every once in a while, I find some great stuff at Goodwill.  If you thrift at all, you know it's totally hit and miss. 

I've been on the hunt for a lamp for Miss E's nursery.  I found this awesome crystal lamp base (that is currently sold at Target!) a few months ago at Goodwill.

I wanted a drum shade, and luck would have it, there was one in great condition at Goodwill.

I decided to go ahead and recover the drum shade with some extra fabric that matched the crib bedding I made.

It turned out like this:

Yep, I realllllly didn't like it.  Ick.  It has been sitting in her nursery for months, waiting for another re-do.

I didn't like how match-y it was to the rest of her room.....

Then I saw this lamp shade at Attemping Aloha.  It's a great knock off of Pottery Barn's.

The only problem is that I do NOT have the patience this late in my pregnancy to make a million tiny fabric rosettes.  No way!

Cruising the fabric section at Hobby Lobby, I made a great find!

Shabby rosette trim by the yard!  Pre-made frayed rosettes.  Awesome!!

So, I stripped my lampshade....and spray painted it white.

  I didn't worry about it looking perfect; it was just going to get covered up again!

Using my trusty glue gun, I attached the trim.

It turned out like this......

It is EXACTLY what I wanted!

Close up of that ruffly sweetness:

Linking up here

Cake Pops {Tips & Tricks}

I LOVE to make cake pops!  

They are so classy looking, and pretty easy to do once you get the hang of it.

I know there are a meeeellllion tutorials out there for a basic how to, so I'll list some below. 

These blogs all have great instructions and pictures if you need a refresher on how to make these little gems.

Little Miss Momma

Love from the Oven

Bakerella

 

{My} Tips and Tricks

After you roll out your cake pops into balls, you want to put in the lollipop stick.

I dip my stick in melted chocolate {or} candy melts BEFORE I insert it into the cake ball.

Put your stick about half way in; don't push it all the way through your cake pop.

Do this for all your cake pops, and then put them in the fridge for a few hours to get nice and firm.

This is a CRUCIAL STEP if you want your cake pops to not fall apart when dipping them.

When you are ready to dip, work in small batches.  I only do about 6 at a time.  This will keep your pops firm for dipping, and they won't fall apart when you coat them.

I use my spoon to drizzle on the coating, and then I lightly tap off the excess.  

I tap on the stick near the cake pop.

If you tap too far back on your stick, your pop will fall off. Experience speaking!

If you are adding sprinkles or sugar sparkles, you must do it right after you coat your cake pop.  Do it before the coating hardens.

Don't those look yummy??

A whole platter of sweet goodness....

 

 Linking up here!

Easy Frame {Update}

In this post, I let you tour our "new" home office.

Remember this little spot between our bookshelves?

I love this little nook! 

Let me show you how I updated the black frame.

 Easy Frame {Update}

I started out with the frame looking like this:

I like this black frame, but I already had WAY too many pictures in our office.  I knew I needed to switch it up.

I took out my super cute pictures of Miss J, and started with a blank slate.

I measured the opening of the frame....

And then cut some fabric a little wider than the opening.

(LOOOOVE this fabric!)

I just taped it to the frame backing, using super high end tape:

Just kidding.  I used plain old scotch tape.

I made sure to pull the fabric tight around the edges.

Looking good!

I found a quote I liked about faith, and printed it off on some off white card stock.  I centered it on my board, and Voila!

Much better!

Linking up here!

Nursery Reveal: The finished product

Well, I have about 6 weeks until little Miss E gets here. 

Yikes!

Her nursery has been finished for quite a while.  I just haven't gotten around to posting it!

I posted here about her Crib Re-do, here about her Dresser Makeover, and here about Stenciling the Curtains.

And, here is her nursery!

Monogram above Crib:

Dresser and Changing Table:

Pretty Purple Knobs on the Dresser:

Close up of bedding made by *me*

Inside of the bedding:

The vinyl tree (that I looooove!)

Stenciled Drapes:

oh, and just for fun, here is what the room liked BEFORE it got a makeover:

SCARY!  Right?!

Sources:

Paint color is Easter Morning by Valspar

Vinyl Tree & Branch above Dresser from Simple Shapes

Monogram above Crib from Toodles Design Studio

Upholstered Recliner from Lone Star Baby

Crystal Knobs on Dresser from D. Lawless Hardware

Window Treatments and Hardware from IKEA

Crib and Dresser from Burlington Coat Factory (new paint job by me!)

Linking up here!

& Sugar and Spice!

Where have I been??

Sorry for the lack of posts!  We took an 8 day family vacation, and these are some of the places we've been!

First we visited my family, and my favorite little sister!

Next, just me and the hubby went here for 2 nights while my parents watched our kiddos.  Ahhhh. Relaxation!

Then we hopped over to Sea World and Miss J got to do a lot of this:

She got to be one on one with the dolphins for an hour and a half before the park opened.  Yeah, she LOVED it!

Then we stopped in Austin, TX

And then we finally came home.  It was a FUN trip, with lots of things to do and see. 

Now I'm just trying to get unpacked and all our laundry done!  I'll be posting a project soon!