Excellent Adventures: London: Kensington Palace
A little day out at Kensington Palace, home to royalty for over 300 years.
And a current home to William & Catherine and many other royals.
(their quarters were in a private section of the palace so we weren't able to view them)
(their quarters were in a private section of the palace so we weren't able to view them)
King's & Queen's State Apartment...How'd you like to get through a door in this dress?
Fashion Rules Exhibition with dresses from Queen Elizabeth,
Princess Margaret and Princess Diana.
Princess Margaret and Princess Diana.
Palace Sunken Gardens - just a small backyard.
I want this for my backyard.
Afternoon Tea at the Queen Anne Orangery - so yummy.
And because the weather was beautiful, we got to sit outside.
And because the weather was beautiful, we got to sit outside.
Happy Adventures this summer!
Love, Steph
Excellent Adventures: London: Kew Botanical Gardens
So jet lag has been the boss of me since we got back from our trip to London and Paris (read about the sweet back story here). Am only now getting back to a regular sleep schedule and being able to put two coherent sentences together.
First of all.... BEST. TRIP. EVER.
It's all a whirlwind, but the amount of beautiful, amazing and spectacular things we saw truly "wowed" us.
One day, we took the "tube" (look at me all British-like) out to Kew Royal Botanical Gardens. At over 326 acres, it's the worlds largest collection of living plants. We walked and walked, and walked some more, and kept discovering some truly remarkable gardens. It was created in 1631 and used to besomeone's King George II backyard (for his daughters) before it was later combined with another neighbor's backyard to create the Royal Botanical Gardens.
Kew Palace - just a little weekend getaway.
Princess of Wales Conservatory - they have rooms set up with different climates to grow rare breeds of plants. Such as....
Palm House with it's spectacular gardens and lake.
This was just one morning of our Excellent Adventures. I love, love, love all the gardens - my head was spinning with all the ideas I could implement in my own (slightly smaller) yard.
First of all.... BEST. TRIP. EVER.
It's all a whirlwind, but the amount of beautiful, amazing and spectacular things we saw truly "wowed" us.
One day, we took the "tube" (look at me all British-like) out to Kew Royal Botanical Gardens. At over 326 acres, it's the worlds largest collection of living plants. We walked and walked, and walked some more, and kept discovering some truly remarkable gardens. It was created in 1631 and used to be
Palm House with it's spectacular gardens and lake.
This was just one morning of our Excellent Adventures. I love, love, love all the gardens - my head was spinning with all the ideas I could implement in my own (slightly smaller) yard.
Hope you have a colorful week!
Love, Steph
Excellent Adventures: Woodburn Tulip Festival
Acres and Acres and Acres of Tulips - what a sight!
Isn't it funny how you can live some place, but often never see many of the fun things the area has to offer? Life and schedules so often get in the way. When people come to visit, that's when we see what's around us - when we're showing it to others.
I've decided to try and stay a "perpetual tourist" and always be on the look
out for new things to do and see and try.
Plus, this way I feel like I'm always on vacation (ha).
My mom has lived here for 40 years and never made it to the Tulip Festival in Woodburn, so I decided to take her on an Excellent Adventure to the Wooden Shoe Tulip Farm.
Forty acres of stunning beauty backed by Mt Hood. The fields are striped in color with so many types of tulips. I took one picture after another (me and everyone else). Nothing like trying to balance in the middle of a field trying to get the perfect shot. #graceful
In addition to all the beauty surrounding us, they were lots of vendors, food, games and rides for the kids, as well as their darling gift shop. You can buy fresh flowers or order bulbs to be delivered. #somanytochoosefrom
Makes me want to plant my whole yard in Tulips.
Hope you can be a "tourist" this week and enjoy your little corner of the world!
Love, Steph
You Can Make Your Own Vintage Sign
I love the look of Vintage Signs, so I thought I'd create something of my own,
customized for me, at just a fraction of the cost.
customized for me, at just a fraction of the cost.
All I needed was a few pieces of scrap wood, some paint and contact paper.
I wanted a sign for my art studio door of the Number 13. It's part of my company
name and I've always loved it. (no superstition for me :)
name and I've always loved it. (no superstition for me :)
I dug through my scrap wood pile and found 4 boards (3 1/2 inches wide) and cut them to a 17 inch length. Any size wood will do - just depends on how big you want your sign to be. Pick something relatively thin so it's not too heavy - probably around 1 inch works best.
Lined up the wood and on the back I used some smaller pieces to nail
everything together and stabilize it a bit more.
everything together and stabilize it a bit more.
Assembled the wood. A little glue, a few nails.
Sanded it just a little bit because I wanted it to look very vintage.
A talented friend told me about printing letters/numbers on contact paper so I thought I'd give it a try. I discovered the ink from my printer didn't want to stick to the contact paper,
so I just printed the numbers out on legal size paper, taped them to the contact
paper and cut it out with scissors (worked great).
so I just printed the numbers out on legal size paper, taped them to the contact
paper and cut it out with scissors (worked great).
I chose flat black paint for my base coat. You could also use a stain.
Just remember the base coat will be the color you want your letters/numbers/words to be.
Just remember the base coat will be the color you want your letters/numbers/words to be.
Once the base coat was dry, I wanted to line up the numbers evenly so I drew a very light line with my t-square. (It was painted over with the top coat)
Peeled the contact paper off the number and lined them up on the wood. Because the wood was so rough, they wouldn't stick very securely. I just pressed them down and they stayed in place (sort of).
For my top coat, I chose ivory flat paint. I painted it very gently with the foam brush. I held down the numbers with my fingers and brushed from the inside out of the contact paper in order to get a crisper edge. Used a light coat of paint as I wanted it to look distressed.
Once it dried, I removed the contact paper, and sanded it lightly.
Didn't want to put a hole in my studio door, so I turned to my
trusty Velcro Command Strips and a level to hang them.
Love it!!!
trusty Velcro Command Strips and a level to hang them.
Happy Creating!
Love, Steph
Easy & Elegant Paper Easter Eggs
Plastic Eggs + Paper + Glue = Easy & Elegant Paper Eggs
Create a basket or bowl full of elegant paper eggs. Use them for Easter or to accent a room.
Supplies:
Plastic Eggs (Medium to Large Size)
Paper (scrapbook, Wrapping Paper, etc)
Mod Podge Glue (Lustre Finish)
Foam Brush
Start with your paper. I selected a few complementary colors/patterns. But you could also go with one pattern for all the eggs. You'll probably only need 2-3 sheets depending upon how many eggs you cover.
Cut, tear or use punches to get your paper into small pieces.
I cut
some with decorative scissors, punched some out with a mini round punch, and
cut out thin strips for the rest. (The thin strips were the easiest to apply).
I sprayed my pieces lightly with a fine mist of water before I glued them.
It helped make the paper a little more malleable.
It helped make the paper a little more malleable.
Dip your brush into the Mod Podge (I used the Lustre Finish so there would be a shine to the eggs) and start placing little pieces onto the egg. Overlap the pieces as you glue.
I
found if I worked on one half of the egg at a time, and let it dry a bit in
between, it was much easier to work with and not so sticky. I put them on
wax paper while they dried.
Once they're dry, you can leave plain or decorate with stickles, buttons, ribbon, whatever you like.
Display them in a cute basket or bowl.
Hope you have a creative week!
Love, Steph
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