Summer Wreath/Door Decor

My mom just put together a new basket for her back door, and I just had to share it!

She’ll be able to use this “Welcome” basket throughout the year and just change out the flowers and accents.  This arrangement will carry on through until fall.

I just love the butterflies and flowers trailing down!I found the cute little moss-covered mushroom while out shopping at a local garden center and knew she would be able to use it somehow.  It ended up matching the butterfly perfectly!

 

What do you have on your door for spring/summer?  I’d love to see, email me at embellishedbayou@comcast.net and I’ll feature you!

If your door is in need of a little welcoming cheer, check out my Welcome signs, they’re the perfect addition to a wreath, or cute just hanging on their own! 

  

Take advantage of my April special and save 10% on your order through the end of the month.  Plus, FREE SHIPPING for Louisiana residents!

Decorating With…..Balls?

Do you ever look around your house and notice you have unintentionally incorporated an element into your decorating over and over?  This happened to me the other day in my living room.  All of a sudden I noticed I had about 27 different kinds of decorative balls arranged in various places.  Okay, maybe not 27, but quite a few.  A little decorative repetition may be a good thing, but perhaps I’ve gone a little overboard. Let’s take a look.

A basket of beaded/bean-encrusted balls under the coffee table:

Mosaic gold glass balls in the candlescape on top of the coffee table:

I got these on clearance at World Market after Christmas and used them in my Mardi Gras decor and just never moved them.

I even stuck one in the entertainment center:

Along with a painted fleur de lis ball on the other side of the entertainment center (fueling another one of my obsessions):

What’s that hidden back there?  Another embellished ball, perhaps the first of my collection.

And finally, gaze into my crystal ball nestled in the built-in bookcase:

It’s hard to believe I don’t have any of the twine or moss covered balls that are so popular now!  Honestly, it really doesn’t look that bad unless you start counting all the balls in this one room, but I do think perhaps I should eliminate the ones in the candlescape and save them just for holiday decorating, what do you think?  Care to share any of your repetitive decorating elements?

Edited to add:  Find a great tutorial for making your own decor balls from House of Hepworths over on Blue Cricket Design.

DIY Beaded Plant Hangers

A great way to jazz up those plain wire, chain, or plastic plant hangers is with glass beads.  I’ve seen these beaded plant hangers for sale in stores and on the internet for around $30.00, but you can make your own for much less.  This is the perfect project for spring and they make great Mother’s Day gifts, too. 

You will need:

~Wire plant hanger (I found mine at Lowe’s & a local garden store)

~Glass beads (Available at craft stores like Michael’s or online)

Use a 40% off coupon and these large containers of assorted beads will be around $6.00.  You’ll be able to make at least two or three hangers with one pack.

~Needle Nose pliers

~Crimp beads (optional)

~Crimping tools (optional)

The instructions are easy.  Simple string your beads on your wire hanger in any order you choose.  Use a crimping bead at then end to keep the beads from sliding off:
You can also just bend the end of the wire up if you don’t want to use the crimping beads.

Once you’re finished stringing the beads, insert the exposed wire end of each strand of the beaded hanger into each pre-made hole in the your hanging basket. NOTE: Factory baskets/pots are typically manufactured with either three or four pre-made holes. If there is no rim with factory-drilled holes, simply use your needle-nose pliers to wrap the wire end of the beaded hanger around the top wire of your wire hanging basket. 

Next, again using needle-nose pliers, carefully bend each end of the beaded hanger strand around the hole until snug and secure.
 
Finally, hang your new bead-accentuated plant on a sturdy hook and enjoy!

At Michael’s they sell the bead packs in solid colors or in multi-colors.  Somehow the purple pack ended up in my cart!

Now instead of being plain and boring, your plant hangers are works of art!  It’s like jewelry for your plants!

I’ll be sharing with Metamorphosis Monday, Bring in the Spring Party, DIY Day, Transformation Thursday, and other fun linky parties found HERE.

Edited to join Sharon’s Garden Party at Keen Inspriations and the special edition DIY Day at A Soft Place to Land. 

Recycled Post: Easy Organizer Make-Overs

Originally posted 07/30/09:

This was a quick and easy DIY that took only a few minutes and a few dollars.  I found this spice rack at Goodwill for $3.99:

After a coat or two of purple spray paint, it has been transformed into a fun and funky….

….craft paint organizer!!

This turned out to be the perfect size for a great space saving solution to storing all those little bottles of craft paint that get jumbled together.  This rack ended up holding about 30 bottles of paint. Now they are all displayed neatly and I can easily pick out the needed color with just a glance! No more picking through a sea of white tops! 

Originally posted 11/01/09:

I have a quick and easy project to show you today.  I’m sure you’ve all ended up with empty plastic containers and just thrown them in the recycle bin…I accumulated a few this past week and decided to put them to better use as storage containers in my office.  I started with 2 Mr. Clean Wipes boxes, a plastic can from some icing, and a large bucket from some peanuts:

I cut down one of the Mr. Clean containers so I ended up with two different sizes.  You can either use fabric or pretty scrapbook or wrapping paper, I chose leftover fabric to coordinate with the curtains and chairs in our office/craft room.  Just cut the fabric/paper to fit your container:

I made this really easy by just ironing down the edges for a more finished look and using hot glue to attach the fabric to the container, overlapping the back a bit. 

And, voila!! Custom desk accessories!

You can either cover exactly to your container or bring up any excess over the top to the inside.  I did it both ways, but I really don’t think it matters, once the containers are full you don’t see the inside anyway.

I didn’t worry about getting the edges or back seam perfect; after all, I’m really the only person who’s going to notice, right? I’ll probably use the larger can to store bits of ribbon and such.  I saved the top, but it is blue so I may have to spray paint it black!

This was such an easy project, I’ve seen it done before with soup cans, too and it really did take only minutes.  Now I don’t have to hunt in drawers or boxes for the craft supplies I used the most, such as paint brushes, scissors, markers, etc.  One more time, here’s the

BEFORE

AFTER

 

This was a great way to recycle and re-purpose.  So think twice before throwing out those empty containers, you can use them in so many ways!  I’ll be linking to the usual parties, be sure and click on the buttons HERE to visit everyone.