Friday Finds: September 17

I have a spot in my front entryway that would be perfect for a collection of vintage umbrellas. This week while I was browsing Etsy I came across these lovely umbrella items. I love a good rainy day every so often, don't you? (I have to admit, we live in a primarily sunny place, and by 'every so often' I really mean 'maybe once a month'. I don't know how you people do it in the Pacific Northwest. I suppose you all have cute umbrellas, don't you?

I love this sweet pin...

Under my Umbrella Pin from So Passe

The saturated blue color of this one is stunning...

Singing in the Rain Vintage Umbrella from Robin's Vintage

Since I'd be displaying my umbrellas with the handles showing, I was drawn to the red...

Vintage 1950's Umbrella from Unforgettable You

Aren't old photographs so endearing? This was what started my little collection for today...

1900 Little Girl Black and White from Main Street Books

This just made me laugh, and it's a toothpick holder! She is too cute, and would be a fun little lady to have sitting next to the stove...

Antique Toothpick Holder from The Enchanted Attic

I'm off for another weekend away...this time at a woman's retreat for church. It's the first one I've ever been to, and I'm having some mixed feelings about it. I know the time away will be refreshing. I'm sad to leave Brett and Maren behind, although I know they'll have a brilliant time together. Can you believe Maren is 2 and I've never spent a night away from her? I'll miss her sweet kisses tonight. Believe it or not, I'm an extremely introverted person and I don't do large group things very well. Nevertheless, I'm excited to step out of my comfort zone and I look forward to what the Lord has in store for me this weekend.

You just might find an invigoratingly poetic post of reflection and introspection waiting here for you on Monday morning. Please do your best to contain your anticipation though...no promises!

By the way...have you noticed that {oh write} is nearing 100 followers!? I've got a little something fun planned to celebrate...stick around!

New in the shop!

I'm excited to share my newest addition to the shop! I've started making standard-sized composition book covers.

This little lovely is making it's debut here.

Go sneak a peak...
And, because I'm so thankful for you wonderful readers, if you'd like to have this cover sent to your door, mention the blog in the comments for free shipping. There's only one listed for now, so hurry on over!

Autumn Planter

Okay...here's my confession...I have been waiting for a lovely fall-like day on which to decorate my home for autumn. Sadly I decided to let that idea drift away, and the fall decor came out yesterday while the air conditioning was still running. Ah, Colorado!

Here's our front planter all decked out for the coming months.

My camera battery died as I was putting the arrangement together, but it's quite simple. I started by securing the obelisk-trellis-like piece in the center. (What is the proper name for that? It has escaped me for the moment!) Next, I placed a wispy wreath around the base of the trellis. I purchased two larger stems that had a vine-like look to them and wound the branches around and through the trellis. I also picked up a few fall picks at Hobby Lobby. If you're not familiar with 'picks', they're basically just objects or collections of silk flowers with wire sticks attached. I placed the picks around the base of the trellis for some added color. The picks are nice because there's really no need to secure them in any other way. My planter is relatively protected here, so I've not had any problems with it coming apart.

This is the finished arrangement...



Now we just need a crisp 60 degree autumn day to make the season feel complete!

For more signs of the season, visit here...

One Fun Chair

I might have mentioned a few times before that I have a wonderful, helpful, hard-working husband who typically helps me execute all my crazy ideas and home projects. For the time being, he is in the process of building a few walls to make our basement user-friendly for children, so I flew solo on this particular project.

I found this lovely chair at the thrift store for $10. I have to admit I was initially intimidated by the whole upholstery situation. It was a bit more involved than my previous projects, but I figured there was no time like the present for learning something new! And, for $10, I could not pass up the opportunity to have a new-to-us seat in the family room.

Hello, sticky arms and worn-dirty-who-knows-where-this-chair-has-been gold velour!

I stripped the chair of it's dirty fabric and sanded down the wood. A few coats of spray paint, some fresh foam (do you know how expensive foam is? Pricey stuff! Thank goodness for a well-timed 50% off sale) and some lovely zebra fabric all came together quite nicely to give us this little beauty...

I used teal trim for a little added flair. Our new seat is actually very comfortable, and I love the personality it brings to our room.
I did take about 47 pictures of the entire process, so if I get so brave you might just see a tutorial for this project sometime in the future. For now I'm off to make some pillows to complete my autumnal decor. I can't wait to show you the rest of the room all decked-out for fall!

I'm sharing my chair here this week:

Primitive & Proper Piece of Work Wednesday

Friday Finds: September 10

One of the fun things about blogging is the ability to schedule posts ahead of time, which is what I did for today's finds! Maren and I kissed Brett goodbye, and we're spending the weekend in Minnesota with some special family members. I'll share more about our little trip next week.

For now, here are some fun travel-related finds from Etsy. Hope you enjoy!

Passport Cover from jenn maruska design

Luggage Tags from Very Verdant

Map Pendant from rachelaustin

Tic Tac Toe Travel Game from Evgie

Zippered Make-Up Pouch from KaraMia Sophia

September Anniversary: A Card

Have I mentioned that Maren and I are hopping on an airplane tomorrow morning? We're going to Minnesota to see some family. My parents will meet us there for the weekend. I can hardly wait!

On Saturday, my parents will celebrate 34 years of marriage. Isn't that amazing? They have taught me so much about so many things, and now that I'm married myself, I have such respect for the way in which they have cultivated their marriage throughout the years. Someday maybe I'll tell you more of what I love so much about my parents. Today I just want to show you the neat little card I'll give them in a few days.

I designed the card to have a bit of an autumn feel while still maintaining the integrity of being an anniversary card. I think it turned out to be quite sweet. I might even use the design for some artwork in the near future, we'll see.

Two little love birds sitting on a wire...




For some more autumnal inspiration stop by:

Have you seen this site?

Have you heard of MealBaby? This is one of those sites I wish I would've created. It's brilliant!

If you've ever been the recipient of the gift of a home-cooked meal, you know how appreciated they are, particularly after surgery or after the birth of a new baby. I was blessed by some amazing friends from church after Maren was born. We received 3 or 4 meals a week for four weeks. Isn't that amazing? We felt dearly loved and spoiled!

Me and my 5-day-old little girl. Oh, I loved those snuggle times!

MealBaby is a website that makes the coordination of meals for a new mom or friend in need so easy! You have to create an account (for free), and then you just email the link to friends and/or family members. They'll see a calendar with dates to choose from, and they can see when others are bringing meals, and even what they'll be bringing. For out-of-town friends and family, there's an option to purchase a gift card to a selection of restaurants. All of the information you need is right on the 'registry' including any food allergies, likes and dislikes, preferred time of delivery, address and contact information. The site even reminds you a day before your scheduled to bring the meal!

I received so much positive feedback during a recent registry I set up for a dear friend, and I thought I'd share the info with you! Go check it out!

By the way, I didn't receive any compensation or perks from MealBaby for writing this...just wanted to share a neat spot with some online friends!