Last Name Wall Art

I am one of those people who loves giving gifts.  I love it!  I love to really think about what someone might want or appreciate.  I love to see their reaction when they open it.  I love to design/create something unique that you can't find at the store. I just love everything about it! I love it!

I knew when I saw this tutorial from Full of Great Ideas that I had to make one and I knew exactly who I wanted to make it for...my parents.  Their anniversary is on Christmas Eve.  This means that even if I don't draw either one of their names at Christmas, I still get to give them a gift without breaking the rules.

After searching (and searching and searching) through all of the letters, I finally decided on a good mix of colors and designs that I knew they would like.  It was pretty quick and easy to create the design.  

Plus, I totally lucked out and came across this great frame at an antique mall.  It was originally a picture of a shoe and I only paid $12.  That's right...I said $12.

All that was left to do was print the design.  But for some reason I couldn't get my act together and get that part done.  Next thing I knew it was Dec. 21st and I hadn't done a thing yet.  So, without taking the time to check out the prices at all the different places I could have it printed, I rushed down to Kinkos and just went for it.  I am sure I could have done this cheaper, but I didn't have the time.  There was only 3 days left to get it printed and in the frame.  But, I don't regret it.  I turned out just as I had imagined.  I was thrilled with the final result.  

And more importantly, so were mom and dad!!

A Piece of Family History

A few years ago my brother emailed me these pictures he found online of the U.S.S. Billingsley.  I thought this was so cool since my grandparents are Billingsleys and my grandfather is a retired US Army Colonel.  At the time, I had no idea what I could do with them, but I knew I would someday find a good project. 

I found this great tutorial at Under the Table and Dreaming on how to make your own printable photo canvas.  Check it out here.  When I saw this, I immediately knew which pictures I wanted to try this with.  I did have to make several attempts at getting these printed, but I think the problem was more with my printer than anything else.  But, if at first you don't succeed.....try, try, try, try, try and try again.

Thanks to Stephanie for the great tutorial!!  I love how they turned out and so did my grandpa!

Table: 1 Jenni: 0

A year ago I stashed this little side table in my garage because I didn't know what to do with it.  It has a formica top and at the time I didn't know how to deal with that (now I know better).  It wasn't anything special...no ornate details or character.  It was just an old table that used to be in the waiting room of my parent's dental office.

Finally, I decided to mod podge it with sheet music and give it a little character. 

I covered the top and the legs, but it didn't seem to be working.  It was bumpy and the pages were too thick.  It just didn't feel right.  I tried sanding a little on the top and instead I ripped a few pages. 

I decided to finish covering the whole table and then I would worry about the texture and fix the problems later (aaahhhh...wrong...bad idea).  I got about 90% of the table covered and as I was trimming back some of the paper, I cut it too short. 

That was it.

The straw that broke the camels back.

I just started ripping all the paper off.

Now it is back to the boring table I started with and it is going back in the garage while I move on to another project for awhile.

AAAHHHH!!!

Grab a Seat for Game Night!

I love to play board games, and I know I'm not alone here.  Everyone has their favorite.  Some of you may love Pictionary or Taboo or Monopoly, but my favorite has always been and always will be Trivial Pursuit.  Probably because I have a brother who is so annoyingly smart and good at this game and it has always been my life's mission to prove I can play this game on his level.  Imagine my excitement when I finally beat him, all on my own, for the very first time. 

But, I digress...

A few months ago I was inspired by a set of bar stools I saw at a local antique mall.  Every inch of these stools were covered with Monopoly money.  They were so adorable.  Unfortunately, I was not actually smart enough to take a picture.  Incidentally, I had a pair of bar stools I was in the midst of painting.  I decided these stools needed a little element of my favorite board game to dress them up.

Aren't these so much fun?

The only problem is the answers to all of these questions are on the backside of the card, so you can't check for the answers. 

Just talking about these makes me want to play the game!! 

I am so thrilled with how they turned out...hopefully they will inspire you too!