Flowers In Pumpkins

Thanksgiving is on the way and I am way behind getting my decorations completed.  I decorate for fall, then Halloween and finally Thanksgiving which is usually last on my list for making new decorations.  This year after looking at so many beautiful fall decorations on Pinterest I decided to give a few of the ideas a try using the inspiration not the exact craft.  I wanted some fresh fall flowers to decorate my porch giving it a pop of color, but as I found out the hard way, the sun beats down on the porch from sun up to late into the afternoon killing any kind of plant or flower I put there.  I really wanted fresh flowers and real pumpkins for that space but I was going to have to settle for faux pumpkins and silk flowers if I wanted the look and color I saw in those photos.

I gathered up some of my fall craft supplies and went to work. The first thing I did was to ask my husband to carve up the pumpkins by using a hot knife to cut the top open so I could insert the flowers and greens. He went through a couple of blades and some muscle to carve out the tops, once that was done the rest was a breeze.  I think they came out just great and will add just the right amount of color; drawing all eyes to that small but useful space.

Look how bright and cheerful the oranges, reds, yellows and greens look against the tan walls and black rod iron.  They also look really lovely with the red front door, very eye catching, just the look I was going for even if I could not use the real thing.

Thanks for letting me share my pretty fall flower decorations with you, I hope they inspire you to make some new decorations for your porch, front door or yard to give your curb appeal a boost.  I still have a decoration or two to finish up for Thanksgiving, I am not sure if I will have enough time to finish them with everything else I am working on, only time will tell. Coming soon are more aprons from the series and the toy room reveal, keep watching for those.

See you soon.

Laurette

You might also like:

Falling In Love With Fall

Fall Windowpane Quilt

What Will It Be?

With the passing of the one year anniversary of my Buttons, Bows & Bling Blog came some deep thought as to what direction I wanted my blog to go.  It started out being about all the creative ventures from my studio featuring a wide variety of projects which included sewing, crafting, furniture painting, upcycling all kinds of items and clothing, home décor, landscaping, flowers, recipes and just about anything else I could dream up.

Part way though the year I began to direct my main focus on more creative sewing and showing less of all the other creative projects I was doing. The blog emails from some readers wanted a variety of projects and others wanted to see the blog go all sewing.  As a blogger it is tough to decide what direction is best for the readers and me to keep everyone interested over the long haul.  We bloggers live and write to see positive comments at the end of each page and to have a long list of viewers/readers join our blog, in this arena I am not seeing participation from my readers, making it hard to judge what is popular with all of you and just who is actually reading the posts.

Sewing is my first great love; it is why I get up in the morning and what I think about before going to sleep each night but… without the other creative projects I would burn out and probably quit sewing and blogging.  With that being said I am going to continue to focus on all kinds of projects which include fabric and sewing as well as decorating and crafting, hopefully appealing to a wide variety of readers as well as keeping me entertained. With that being said I will be sharing two project series with you, the Playroom Makeover and An Apron A Day.  I am not sure yet if they will alternate or follow each other, I guess you will have to check in to find out.

Thanks for letting me share my thoughts with you about the direction of my blog. My next blog post will feature day one of the toy room makeover, there are a lot of projects including, sewing curtains, cushions, pillows, a wall mural and few painting projects as well.

See you soon.

Laurette

***If you enjoy reading my blog please take the time to enter a comment and like us on Facebook, it would really help me to keep creating and writing.

Contain That Clutter Part 3

Recently I shared some of the unusual containers I use to control the clutter in my studio, at least some of it.  Last week while working on several projects in my outside studio, I looked around and noticed some of the containers I was working with and decided to share those as well. I don’t always work inside, sometimes I work in my outside studio when I am doing any wet work like, spray painting, working with foam for flowers or anything which is messy.  All those projects require “stuff” which needs to be contained; here is some of what I use.

This drawer might appear to be a bit untidy but it is in fact organized with several containers, one of which is a plastic style shoe box with a green lid, which is where I keep all my leftover hardware pieces from a variety of projects, you never know when you will need those little bits and pieces.

This little gem holds some of my tools; yes I said “my tools”.  I actually have my own set of hand tools and power tools; I like “more power”.  I am actually very handy with all of them, my husband is so proud.

My mini box contains leftovers from building shelves for my studio.  I found both containers in the jewelry making and embroidery departments of a craft store.  They work well for storing little parts and the removable panels allow for larger items. I could have bought a tool box but I preferred to use the unusual so they would fit in my drawer.

This little drawer came from my upstairs studio, from a set of wheel around drawers, the removable drawers allow me to move my things from one studio to another.

The little blue box my wire and floral ribbon sit in is from a frozen dinner entrée and the mini jars, in the back, holding some small brads, are Jelly sample jars from a past Christmas gift.  Use and re-purpose all those unusual containers, have some fun looking for unique colors and shapes just like I did.

The great old lunch box belonged to my father-in-law; we found it in his storage unit after his passing. My husband didn’t know what to do with it so I suggested I keep it and use it in the outside studio where he would see the box and it would get some real use as storage for my large glue gun and glue sticks.  We are both happy to have it.

 A small peg board sits just above my work bench; it was a scrap from another project and fit just right under my shelves and above the counter top.  The wooden box was re-purposed from a holder for my ink stamp collection which grew out of the box.  It now holds packing tape rolls.


For more storage ideas see;  Studios Magazine.

As you can see storage containers can come in all shapes and sizes and can be used anywhere in your studio, office, home, garage or any place you need to control that clutter.  Don’t be afraid to look at all the items you buy or use, especially those things you might otherwise throw away.  I hope this gave you some good ideas for organizing your special spaces.  Thanks for letting me share with you, see you soon.

Black & White Bling

I have been asked how I chose the name of my blog and business, what was my inspiration? It was obvious from what I do, I use buttons and bows in my sewing, decorating and crafting so it was a natural choice. But where did the bling come from? My answer to that question is an easy one, it came from all the pretty things in my studio.

When I started the re-design for my very first studio I decided on a black and white theme with green and pink accents. I wanted something to reflect the various icons of the fashion industry; like purses, shoes, pictures of couture garments and lots of shiny things. That studio was such a fun and inspiring space to work, everything had a place; it was organized and beautiful to look at. I worked in the updated version of my studio for about two years until we sold it and bought a new home. My studios since then followed along the same themes featuring black and white fabrics, fashion icons and accessories which have a bit of bling.

For my pop of color, this time, I used two tones of an icy blue on the walls and touches of hot pink as minor accessories throughout the room, very feminine and elegant. My newest studio is still a work in progress as I fine tune the furniture and cabinet layouts. Many of the accessories from the last two studios don’t work well in my new space, not enough walls and two extra windows, giving me less space for all my pretty pieces which give it the bling. I am working on new ways to bring it in without making the space seem small and cluttered.

Here is some of the pretty bling I did manage to bring into my studio so far.

This beautiful little piece was a birthday gift from my daughter; it hangs in the center of my studio surrounded by a black ceiling medallion, which I painted and hung.

These trios of candles are decorated with a black velvet flocked print on the glass; the insides of the candles have pretty sparkles embedded in the wax. Very elegant and just the right amount of bling.

These three little dress forms sit on a black floating shelf above my sewing counter, very fun to look at.

Just a few of the couture dress forms and miniature designer shoes I collect. Aren’t they pretty.

I have several of these black and white lamps around my studio both in the floor lamp and desk styles. I added a big black bow around the barrel shade, which my new daughter-in-law made for me. The bow was originally wrapped around a pretty box decorated with couture dresses and shoes. A great way to re-purpose your special ribbons.

This is a photograph of my Mom who is modeling a beautiful 1950’s black velvet dress with white satin ruffles at the neckline. She is also draped in white fur (Fur was not an issue then) and wearing black velvet shoes. Truly an elegant ensemble. She did a lot of modeling in the 50’s and 60’s, but this is my favorite picture of her, it sits above my long sewing counter so I can see her as I sew.

These original sewing patterns belonged to my Grandmother, they were given to me when she passed away along with a big box of fabrics. I mounted them on black and white print papers and placed them in black frames. The original pattern pieces and instructions are still inside the pattern covers and can be accessed at any time for future use. A handy way to preserve the patterns but still be able to see and use them.

Just a few of the pretty little things in my studio which inspire the bling in my work and my blog. I hope you enjoyed this little peak into my creative life. Someday soon when I get my studio just right I will post those pictures for you to see.

On a side note; for those of you tracking the adventures of the computer crash, I am still working on my little notebook computer while trying to learn Windows 7 and getting my new laptop set up. Such a process for someone who was stuck in the dark ages just a few months ago.


Just got the call….my IT people were able to retrieve all my data and photos, I will get a disk with all of it back tomorrow, I saved and shut it down in time, Yeah!!!! Woohoo!!! I am a very happy gal.

Thanks for following along with me today, look for my next post, hopefully on my new laptop, see you soon.

Where I bought it:

Lamps & Picture frames - Target

An Adventure

An Adventure

As I shopped for a new laptop I realized it was a lot like buying a new car, kind of stressful. Different models had different features, no one computer seemed to have it all, each one seemed to be missing some component I needed. It took going to the store I should have started with, not the last one I shopped in, before I finally bought one. A little voice kept saying, “go to the Sony Outlet Store”, where I purchased the last one. Did I listen, no, I ignored my little voice (women’s intuition) telling it to be quiet, we needed to shop around and look at all the laptops recommended to me by the “experts”. After much time spent on the internet, talking with my IT techs and three stores later, I still ended up at the Sony store. Why didn’t I listen and just go there instead of wasting a whole day? I could have been fabric or shoe shopping! The laptop I chose was the up to date version of the one which crashed on Friday, it has all the features I needed and wanted, finally. I guess I am just one of those Loyal Lindas who like to stick with what works best for her no matter what the newest in technology is. I had my laptop for over seven years so I know the brand and service is good. Let’s hope I am right and this one lasts me just as long or at least more then a couple of years. I will no longer be chasing the new technology with a very slow computer, I am now like everyone else flying through the internet at warp speeds. Look out world here I come! Woohoo!!

A couple of side notes:

I still don’t know if my pictures and data can be saved, I won’t know until Monday or Tuesday (still biting my nails, bad for my manicure, very naughty).

Finally, once I get all my programs and data loaded I will be back to sharing all kinds of fun projects and other goodies with you on a regular basis. I have high hopes for Monday or Tuesday.
Some of my future posts will include; Fall decorating part 2, Cut that Clutter part 3, Guest room makeover including all the DIY projects which went into it, some DIY and sewing tutorials, lots more bling and so much more. Look for me, I will be back with fun and photos, see you soon.

Studio Helper

In the spirit of getting to know each other, I want to introduce you to someone very important, my studio helper.  She is always there with me everyday, never late for work, very enthusiastic, upbeat, warm and loving.  She always inspects my work and tools to make sure they are of the best quality and sometimes she is just there for company.  Here is her picture so you will know who she is when you see her in my posts.

                                                

Her name is Honey Bunny, her nickname is Bunny, usually when I don’t have time to call out her full name, and she also gets called Bun, Bun and a variety of other cute little names.  She is a small orange and black calico kitty who I rescued before she was to go to animal control. Honey turned three just this past May but seems more like a kitten with all her crazy antics.  She is my fury little girlfriend who keeps me company in the studio, office and the rest of the house.  The very best part about her is she hardly ever talks back or argues with me, what a great studio helper.

                        

Inspection day, Honey making sure my machine is threaded correctly and my scissors are sharp and ready to cut with.  I believe I did pass inspection and I was cleared to sew. She didn’t want the sewing police to shut down work for the day, always looking out for me.

                       

Honey is deep in her duties as my helper trying to get the correct measurements for the bias tape cuts.  She wanted to know if it was 1” or 2” and were we using the correct fabrics for this bias tape color. 

Oops! Almost forgot my outdoor studio helpers, they aren’t as fun as Honey Bunny but they are loyal and loving as well.  These three older helpers are Fur Ball, the orange kitty who is the oldest at eleven years old, and Toby who is cuddled up with him. Then there is Tyler who takes up a bed all by himself, he was the runt of the litter who almost died, but ended up at about 15 pounds of pure muscle (a big boy).  There is one more helper who was very camera shy; we will get her next time so you can meet her, Sweetie is her name.

All of my little helpers were rescued from people who abused them horribly.  I was happy to take them in, since no one else wanted them, due to all of them having medical problems.  They now have each other for company and a warm and loving home.

 For those of you who need a cute little studio helper of your own, please adopt one from your local animal shelter or take in a stray who needs a loving home.  OK enough for the public service announcement, just thought I would do my part for the employment of future studio helpers.

In case you are wondering if I have a human studio assistant I do, her name is Jolene and she is fantastic, you will meet her in future posts.  Between Jolene and Honey I am a very productive and a happy camper.

Hope you enjoyed today’s post, look for me tomorrow I have a fun post you won’t want to miss.  See you then.