My Favorites from 2011

Whew… another year in the books!

This past year has been so much fun at Queen of my Nest!

I have officially made it through my first full year of blogging and I must say, it was better than I could have ever expected!

Here’s a quick look at some of the fun projects from 2011.

** Revised to include direct links to each project post. 

Most viewed:    Fall Burlap Wreath

Celebrate the 4th of July  - Rag Wreath / Uncle Sam / Wooden Firecrackers




Haunted Halloween -
 Spooky Frame / Haunted Mantel / Spiderville Wreath / "Boo" Pillows





Christmas Spirit - Glitter-and-Glam Christmas Trees





Sewing a few housewarming gifts - Pretty Apple Kitchen Set






Valentines Fortune Cookie - Paper Fortune Cookies

I told ya I had a whole lot of fun in 2011…

What do you say we make 2012 even better!!

Glitter and Glam Christmas Trees

I made these pretty little trees as part of my Holiday Mantel décor and I’m so jazzed at how cute they turned out. They are just the perfect touch to add some extra glam to our mantel and holiday decorations.



My inspiration came from a great blog - Madigan Made. Shannon posted a beautiful trio of black and red topiary trees several weeks ago and I immediately knew I wanted to make them for my Mantel. She has a the perfect tutorial on how to cut a pattern and fold the paper.


(If you’ve never visited Shannon @ Madigan Made you really should stop over and check out her blog. I always enjoy her post and projects!)




Now, if you are a Pinterest junkie like me, I’m sure you have seen (and probably pinned) several different versions of these great little trees. It’s amazing what you can create from a few simple supplies.

I made my trees using three simple items…

• Glittery Cardstock (Hobby Lobby)
• 3 Wine Glasses – (Dollar Tree)
• Tinsel Ribbon (Wal-Mart)

  
  
  

Note: 
1. The size/height will depend on the type/style of wine glass used. 
2. Thick/heavyweight cardstock is hard to shape and easily creases.
3. Cut a template of your paper cone and use it as your guide to cut cardstock (you will be glad you did).


                           

I just love them… What do you think???

Okay – Okay, last picture…






I will try and post pictures of our Christmas Tree and Mantel along with the story behind this years Christmas blessings!


Thanks for stopping by and I hope you enjoyed this project.  I hope you come come back and visit again real soon! 


Wishing everyone a very Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! 








** I will be linking to several great parties… check out my sidebar for details!!

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Fall Burlap Bubble Wreath

Have I ever mentioned that I L-O-V-E Burlap?

Yep, it’s true… Here is my latest Burlap obsession!


My inspiration came from Janet @ Today's Fabulous Finds. A few months ago, she gave her readers such a treat when she revealed her beautiful Burlap Bubble Wreath. From the moment I saw her beautiful wreath, I knew I wanted to make one. Oh yes, this will be one of my go to wreath patterns!

I will warn you now… this post is heavy on pictures (most of you know photography is not my specialty) but I am just so pleased with how it turned out {insert happy dance} I must share!


I had plenty of Burlap on hand for this project; try a stash of 18-yards of Burlap. Yes, you read it correctly - I had almost two bolts of this stuff. Now, before you say, “she’s gone loco”, the Burlap was used at my Son’s outdoor wedding reception last year and even after giving the church some Burlap – I still have about 18 yards left.

Nevertheless, look what you can make with all that burlap!


Today is your lucky day because I am going to spare you from my version of a tutorial. Why you ask… because Janet @ Today’s Fabulous Finds has a wonderful tutorial {HERE} and honestly I would not change a thing about it.

I can however, share a few Do’s & Don’ts because you know we always try our own short cuts, substitutions and creative spins {you know who you are}. Who me????


My wreath was bigger than the one she used – it was a 14 inch so I had to cut more squares (over 150) but I still used her dimensions of 4x4 square. I did try a little bigger square NOT good, so I recommend sticking with her dimensions.

1. Use Burlap or a heavier fabric – it will form and hold the bubble shape better. I played around with some Burlap that I had washed to make my table runner and the soft washed Burlap didn’t’ work well at all.

2. Use large head straight pins – I ran out and tried to use my quilting straight pins with smaller heads and believe me when I say you will use 3 pins to the 1 large head pin. I also had to glue a few areas down because the small pins did not feel secure enough around the edges. Save yourself some time and money… Use large head straight pins

3. The only wreath I could find locally was one of the squared circle (green foam) wreaths and I really think that the rounded circle (covered) foam that Janet used would work so much better.

4. I should have covered the backside of the wreath with Burlap because my front door has glass panes and you can see the naked unfinished side from the inside of the house. It really isn’t a big deal I’m just a perfectionist!



If you haven’t ever visited Janet over at her blog Today’s Fabulous Finds, I encourage you to go check it out. Seriously, you will find it full of crafty inspiration. The Thanksgiving Mantel she created is beautiful and just wait until you see the Thanksgiving subway art she made and is sharing with her readers. I think it will quickly become one of your favorite blogs!



This is by far my favorite wreath that I have made. It was very easy and super fun to put together and I think it has such a classy look.

How about one more picture…

I hope you are inspired to make one of your own and if you do, make sure to let me know because I would love to see it!

Thanks for hanging in there and letting me share my latest obsession!

Until next time…


 

I’m linking this project to my favorite parties listed over on my sidebar

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This project was featured at these Awesome Blogs... Thank You!

Pretty Apple Kitchen Towel Set

Today, I wanted to share a little kitchen set I made as a small “happy” for a friend of the family. She is a sweet young lady who has just moved into her very own first place. It’s my Daughter-in-Laws sister and she told me that her sister was decorating the kitchen in Apples. Now, here’s the ironic part… 
This Apple print fabric was a lucky find at Joann’s when we were in Florida this past September (It’s sad, but I don’t have a Joann’s close by in my small AL town). We have a set in stone routine, no matter what, we will make time for me to visit Joann’s when we are in Tallahassee so I can stock up on items that I normally can’t get unless I order online.


So anyway, the sales clerk told me that this fabric was new and they had just put it out that morning. How lucky is that?? I loved the print and without any project in mind, bought a few yards for my stash.
Well, when I heard about my DIL’s sister using Apples to decorate her kitchen I knew exactly what I was going to do…

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This was my first attempt at making a potholder but after searching around Pinterest and getting a few pointers, I made my own pattern and started sewing. I took the measurements from one of my favorite potholders and added a little extra for the seam. I decided to add solid red binding. I think it turned out great!    

Side note: The padding should be fire resistant if you can find it other wise regular padding will work. I just made sure to tell her that the potholder was not fire resistant.


The dishtowels are just basic kitchen towels from Wal-Mart. All I did was add a band to the bottom to jazz them up a bit. This is such a super easy way to customize any towel to match a theme.





Note: I always pre-wash my fabric and towels so the colors won’t bleed and the fabric can shrink.
     

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This makes such a simple but personalized gift whether given alone or dressed up in a basket surrounded with various kitchen utensils.
I am very pleased with how it turned out and my little friend just loved them! What do you think… pretty cute, huh??


I am finishing up my Fall wreath and a few other decorations that I hope to have posted by the end of the week. I can’t wait to share them with you! 


Until next time…
Simply AJ




I'm linking up with all of the fun parties listed below... stop by and check out all of the great projects and grab some inspiration! 


Made-by-you-Monday @ Skip to my Lou

Get Your Craft On @Today’s Creative Blog

Tutorial and Tips Link Party @Home Stories A 2 Z

Tuesday Time Out @Reason to Skip the Housework

Tuesday Confessional @Confessions of a Stay at Home Mommy

Tuesday Talent Show @Chef In Training

Time to Shine @A Diamond in the Stuff

What’s Up Wednesday @Sew Woodsy

Wow Me Wednesday @Ginger Snap

Whatever goes Wednesday @Someday Crafts

Linkin' with Lil' Luna @Lil Luna

Show & Share with Southern Lovely @Vintage Gwen

Made by ME @JAQS Studio

Hookin up with HoH @House of Hepworths

Kissed by a Frog

A Little Knick Knack

Somewhat Simple

Crafty Scrappy and Happy Me Thursday @Crafty Scrappy and Happy

Friday-Flair @Whipperberry

BFF Open House Link Party @The Answer is Chocolate

Friday Link Party @Creative Corner

Refresh your Nest Friday’s @Making Lemonade

Freestyle Friday @Happy Hour Projects

Frugal Friday @The Shabby Nest

Weekend Wrap Up @Tater Tots and Jello

Whatcha got weekend @Lolly Jane

Strut your Stuff @The Saturday Morning Blog

Saturday Nite Special @Funky Junk Interiors

I Heart Naptime

Think Pink Sundays @Flamingo Toes

Passionately Artistic

Haunted Mantel Reveal

Today is the very first Mantel reveal at Queen of my Nest  {Insert - Happy Dance}.

I am so excited to share this reveal with you for a couple of reasons.

#1 - I get to cross Mantel project off my blog “Bucket List”

#2 - I’m so pleased at how it turned out and lastly,

#3 - I am so over Halloween decorating and ready to move on to my Fall and Christmas projects.

First, I must make a disclaimer! Photographer… I am NOT!!!


I knew taking pictures of my Mantel was going to be hard enough but when you throw in a huge mirror hanging above it – well – it was downright challenging! I just don’t know how so many of you get such great Mantel shots because it just didn’t work out for me. Maybe one of you talented ladies would want to do a How-To for us camera illiterate gals. I’m just putting it out there. Anyway, the pictures don’t do it justice!!





I rolled a couple of projects into one big post and just thought I would do an overview because all of the projects are basic and very easy to put together. If you have any questions on what materials I used or any details, don’t hesitate to leave a comment or send me an email. I would love to hear from you!


Okay, let’s get started…

Haunted “Boo” Tree

I saw several versions of Halloween trees around the web, some with ghost and others with spiders. Wanting to keep things simple and not too scary, I decided to make cute little ghost with googley eyes. This entire project cost $0 because I already had everything on-hand.


The ghost were made from thin interfacing which I cut out using my Cricut (make sure you have a good sharp blade and use high pressure/med speed). I made several different sizes by using SCAL program and a SVG Ghost file from Lettering Delights. I used fishing line to hang the ghost.


The base was one of my clay square pots with a block of floral foam placed inside. I recommend using floral foam because it really grips the stick whereas Styrofoam tends to wallow out to easy. The Hubby went on a search for the perfect stick (took a few tries) but he found it. The black crows and cobwebs were my husband’s idea and he wanted to make sure he got credit for it… Ha - Men!




Next up… Polka Dot Pumpkins

Aren't they adorable?

I just love the way they look nestled in the orange raffia.


Picked up a bag of cheap crappy small foam pumpkins for $1.00 (I think at Dollar General) and used acrylic paint to dress them up. Tied some twine on the stem and tucked them into a bed of orange raffia. The wire basket was a score from Target - found in dollar bin with the Halloween stuff. I had the raffia left over from my son’s wedding last year so the total cost for this project was around $2.00.

Now onto to the “Boo” Banner

This was my first time making a fabric banner and I think it turned out pretty good. The fabric came from Hobby Lobby, I fringed the ends and cut the letters out of black vinyl. I used twine to string it across the Mantel.

                

Many of you will recognize the Subway Art  - I did a post on the distressed picture frame a few weeks ago, you can find it HERE.

Finally the candles – All I did was cut a witch out using my Cricut, glue it in place and tied the orange raffia around the candle base. Super easy way to dress up any candle.

            


And one more picture…   I just love the clean simple look!

I hope you enjoyed the tour and you found some ideas and inspiration. I know it sounds silly to be excited over a Mantle and a few simple decorations but for me, it’s another step towards getting my groove back.

Now I have to get a move on with my Fall decorating. I have some great projects on the drawing board! 

Drop me a comment letting me know whatcha think!
Thanks so much for stopping by my Nest!


Until next time…


Simply AJ