Holiday project #2: Photo Garland

 This was one of the most fun projects... I had visions of garlands dancing in my head and this is where I ended up, with inspiration coming from these amazing little clippy-hooks, and a desire to use  nostalic-feeling, winter-wonderland-y photos. I relied on my trusty ball of twine and super-fancy 1/8" hole punch (I think it's 1/8 ... maybe 1/4 who can keep track) and started hunting down some of our own favorite winter time pictures. I used lightweight matte photo paper and lightened the photos a bit to give them a slighty aged look. The white borders were easy thanks to my paper trimmer (best invention ever) and I left extra white space at the tops to give the hole punch some breathing room. It definitely feels festive but at the same time pure, simple, and beautiful... which I guess you could say is our guiding theme this holiday :)

Holiday project #1: Fun with Paperwhites

So we're hoping to tackle a handful of decorating projects this Christmas. So far, so good with the first two (yes, we've tackled TWO so far!)  I've always loved paperwhites and with a little research discovered they're quite simple to "grow" indoors. We purchased a few bulbs from our local nursery and set them up in individual canning jars with some rocks we collected from the beach just down the hill from our house. Ideally you stick a bunch of bulbs together in the same container so they grow in a nice, full, bunch. However I had this notion of setting them up in the jars, and there isn't much room. We'll see how we do. It's an experiment. I just adore the jar trio though. We got them all assembled mid-month, so they should be blooming around the middle of December. Can you believe we were that organized? :)

Growth chart

I know I featured one in this post a while back, but ultimately we chose this burlap growth chart (also from Etsy). The shop owner was kind enough to modify the font style for us since we wanted something a bit simpler and more modern (big surprise, I know). We are SO happy with  how it turned out, and it now lives cheerfully in our mudroom (so far with one marker on it from about the 14-month mark :)

Calm before the chaos

Have I mentioned I love this time of year? Especially now, before the frenzy of the holidays kicks in. The colors outside are beautiful, things just feel relaxed and peaceful, and we've got the giddy anticipation of Thanksgiving and Christmas just around the bend. I captured this moment the other day and it just makes me melt every time I see it.

We're also starting on a new project, which is always a lot of fun with ideas swirling as the final vision starts to come together. A renovation and addition to what was once an old fishing cabin (built in 1900!). We'll post more as we get underway.

Hope you enjoy these next couple of weeks! I'm thinking leisurely strolls, salted carmel lattes (yes I've got  my own recipe down, and thankfully Starbucks is always happy to oblige), and crisp fall air. Oh, and being able to complete pretty much any task or outing crowd-free :)