Well, really they were made out of plastic....
'T is the season for coming up with fun and unique White Elephant Gift Ideas My favorite place to scout for White Elephant Gift Ideas is the thrift store. This year I was very pleased to find some actual elephants! On the shelf among the woven baskets and dusty eucalyptus, I found some decorative brass elephants.
Well, really they were made out of plastic....
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Cheap Canvas - the Lid from a Shoe Box
My daughter made me a lovely mixed media piece as a personalized gift, using a lid from a shoe-box as a canvas. What a brilliant and frugal idea! And the art is super adorable and meaningful as well. Making gifts is so much more personal than buying gifts any day, and as such, this one it super special to me. I feel honored receiving a gift , knowing that she spent time and thought into making something just for me. Homemade gifts save money, but they certainly do not save time. fun little treats ~ with free printables ~ for girls camp Just some little treats to let the girls know they are special at girl-scamp this summer. To be used by secret sisters or by leaders.... ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Fun times Camp promises to be a blast again: Yippee!! I can't wait to get to know these girls a little bit better and make memories together. Just right-click on the tag you would like to print off, and save (or copy and paste) the imageThen just print it off. Attach it to the suggested treat, and ta-DA: you have a fun little something for the girls at your camp this summer. Girls camp is always a TON of fun for the girls (a TON of work for the leaders - all worth it!!!) This is a great time to show the girls how loved and lovable they are. xox, Crystelle A simple thank-you gift with free printable tag to give to your photographer When Stephanie from Pink Pearl Photography took our family photo's we were delighted. She has a great bubbly personality, so smiling for her only came natural. She was so fun to work with, and we loved the pictures she took. She went above-and-beyond her duties in giving us extra care and service. We really appreciate her. We wanted to give her something special as a thank you from us, so when I found this iconic vintage style flash-camera at Ross, I knew I had found the right item. She has small children, so this metal decorative camera will be child-proof and NOT break (unless they throw it at the window, of course, which might break the window, not the camera.... Hmmmm, I might have to re-think this...). A thank-you tag was attached to the camera and the gift was done. I hope she likes it. Personally, I think it will look terrific on her mantle. Just print off the free tag and attach it to the gift you have selected for your above-and-beyond photographer. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
If ever you are looking for a greatphotographer in South-East Idaho, you have found her today. Stephanie is a hoot to work with and her results are fabulous. xox, Crystelle store essential oils to keep them
I had been brainstorming about a way to store my essential oils and was quite happy to come up with the little apothecary drawers idea. Within a week I found just what I was looking for at T.J. Maxx and brought it home. (It would have been nice had I found a vintage one, but I was happy to run into one so quickly: T.J. Maxx always promises to carry fun stuff)) My four favorite essential oils are Lavender, Lemon, Melaleuca and Peppermint, so I made a tag to go in each drawer-pull with those words on them. Now those are not necessarily the oils that are inside the drawers, but they get the point across that essential oils are stored inside. The six reasons this little cabinet works for our family are as follows:
Tapping into the power of suggestion, I store these oils right smack-center in the hub of our home: the main hall through which all of us walk about a thousand times each day. When the mind is constantly reminded of essential oils and they are more easily accessible than the first aid kit hidden in the linen closet inside the main bathroom, perhaps it will be the first thing all of us will turn to to improve our lives and health a little bit every day. Jillee from One Good Thing made this fabulous overview above of her favorite 4 essential oils which happen to be my favorite oils as well... Go here to download her fabulously informative and easy-to-read outline ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ You know what? One thing I really like about using oils is that they smell so serene and pretty.... Hoping your day is beautiful, xox Crystelle All occasion cards are always a good idea to have on hand. You always seem to need one for this occasion, or that event. I decided to sit down and make a bunch, and this is what I came up with: these were probably the easiest cards I have ever made. I made them all super fast assembly line style and I am quite happy with the results. Simple. Easy. Quick. Fun. What more could you want? The key to making these super simple blank cards was the paper: I used a collection of double-sided paper I found on the bargain table at Seagle Book: it has cute print on both sides. Step one: cut the paper to size so they folded over with inside print peekaboo at the bottom. The cute edging (that the paper came with) did not hurt. The scrap paper that was left was put to good use: I cut out a strip to fit on the front of each card. I then took a circle paper punch and punched out a bunch of circles out of the rest of the scrap papers. I ended up with lots of little dots with a cute and different print on each side. I sewed a row of circles onto each of the strips with a straight stitch on my sewing machine. Just a little bit of this print, and a little bit of that one: all of this in an unplanned spontaneous manner. (I admit to putting a tiny dab of glue-stick on the back of the circles to keep them in place, so they wouldn't slide about while I was sewing.) Assembly came next. I then glued the strips to the front of each card. I did not think too much about which print would go with which other print. I love randomness. And that was it: super easy, super quick, super fun. Ready to be mailed out to friends and family all over the world. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Do you like to keep blank cards on hand, just in case you need one? Ideas for items to be auctioned off at a fundraiser. ~ Which items sell well and which items won't? ~ ~ Which things will be great money-makers for your cause, and which won't? ~ This white coffee table is going to auction: We are having a fundraiser silent auction for girls camp this weekend, and I am donating a white coffee table. It is a nice solid wood table: very well made, great quality. Painting it white I figured would match any decor. It is always a little bit hard to think of items to auction off for fundraisers. Oftentimes things sell for a lot less than they are worth, probably because people either don't know what it is worth, or they just don't appreciate it as much as the donor does. Other items sell for a whole lot more than they are worth, which is the way it is supposed to be, of course. After all: this is a fundraiser, and the items come in second place after the funds. I always have a hard time deciding what to bring to be auctioned off.... The following items I have found sell well at the fundraisers I have attended:
Which items have you found sell well at fundraiser auctions? Janet from Crackleberry Boutique shows us how to make a fabulous burlap flower - with focal bling! - which will add pizzazz to all your decorating projects If you ever find yourself visiting in the Idaho Falls, Idaho area, you simply must visit Crackleberry Boutique, owned by Janet Steffen. It is a fun and trendy gift shop in Ammon, Idaho, right off 17th street. Janet is such a fun and creative person. She welcomes you to her store with a happy smile and even agreed to show you and me how to make one of her fabulous dazzling burlap flowers, which she uses to embellish her home decor items such as candlesticks, baskets, etc. Janet is the creative and hardworking owner of this fun shop. She collects all the latest and greatest items on the market today and offers them for sale. She even alters and makes same fun additions..... :) The Crackleberry Boutique has super cute jewelry and so many fun decorations available to match any decor. Check out the HUGE frames Cut It Out made for the Crackleberry Boutique to frame her doors, windows, and displays.... Aren't they so stunning? Make sure to 'like' Crackleberry Boutique on Facebook Tutorial Burlap Flower with Pizzazz Materials 6 (5-inch) squares burlap 5 (4-inch) squares lace 1 (3-inch) cardboard circle hot glue 8 inch jute twine ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ View the tutorial slideshow to have Janet show you how to make this fabulous burlap flower {Just click on 'play' or the forward arrows} How would you display this super adorable burlap flower? The best things in life aren't things ~ Mixed Media ~ Yellow and Turquoise / Blue Sometimes we get so busy. So very very busy.... Doing busy things. That's when it is time to step back and re-evaluate: What am I doing with my time? Is what I am doing important? Will it be important next week? Will it be of importance next year? Ten years from now? Mixed media has become such a favorite for me, because the rules are little bit more relaxed. You can draw, glue, stamp, use found objects, etc, etc. I love it. Basically it is like being back in kindergarten and having permission to just "play" with your canvas.... Everything you do to it is considered to be great. And the adults in you life give you all the kudos you need when you show them your finished product. No judgements made. No-one has to be perfect. Does life get any better than that? ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ I am not quite sure if this picture of the girl with the quote: "the best things in life aren't "things" is perfect, but I had a perfectly great time putting it together...!! I used some cheerful happy spring colors {my favorites any time of year!!}, and added vintage papers, vintage measuring tape, paint, etc. SO fun to do. Funny thing is that the print of the paper I used as her skin-color makes it look like she has tatoos on her arms.... At least that's what struck me.... Now just in case you have a hard time making decisions: here is my go-ahead for you to go-ahead and be as awesome as you can be!!! Watch this short little clip about what things we should prioritize in our lives: Great little reminder of the things that matter most. Never let a problem to be solved be more important than a person to be loved ~ Thomas S. Monson ~ Go ahead and be awesome today!! xox Crystelle |
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