Welcome Baby Evie - Vintage Classroom & Storybook Shower

It all starts with a theme - when the mom-to-be is an English teacher extraordinaire and has a vintage flair, choosing a vintage classroom and storybook theme is the obvious way to go. 

As I have said before, an invitation should provide a preview to your guests of what your overall theme will be. Whether you turn to Etsy to find what you are looking for or decide to make them yourself (as I did here), don't settle for anything short of what you envisioned. I wanted the invitation to mimic flashcards and lined the envelopes with actual pages from classic children's books. 

(Note: I am not a "techy" person nor do I have fancy editing or photoshop software - I literally made these using Word and some free graphics found online)

As far as the decor goes, between friends and family most of the books, suitcases and 

Coca Cola items were borrowed (can you say $$$$ saver)!

The entry table to the shower was a landing spot for library inspired advice cards for guests to provide the mom-to-be with words of wisdom and the "Name that Character/Book" came cards where guests were prompted to find all of the character pieces spread throughout the venue and identify the name or title of the book associated with the character. And of course, the winner got a prize!!

(Library advice cards available on my Etsy shop at https://www.etsy.com/listing/234114947/advice-cards-baby-shower-advice-cards)

I loved the Literature (E shaped book courtesy of Anthropologie), Science (B covered with the periodic table) and Mathematics (G with ruler ribbon) themed initials displayed for baby Evie...

I have to give a shout out to my husband for all of his help making the wood game pieces that displayed all of the characters throughout the shower...several coats of modge podge later and viola!

For the centerpieces, I used empty paint cans (found at any hardware store) and added 

ruler ribbon and bakers twine with vintage flashcards displayed on the front. 

I LOVE these custom paper straws that featured cursive font flags. 

I can't take credit for this perfectly coordinated diaper cake, but Miss Kayla is super talented!

Lunch featured popcorn with self-serve bags, sliders (hamburger style & ham'n'cheese), 

cupcakes, fruit salad, banana pudding & super adorable notepad and ruler cookies. 

The cupcakes featured mini flashcard shaped alphabet cupcake toppers 

(available on my Etsy shop at https://www.etsy.com/listing/234172240/alphabet-cupcake-flags-cupcake-flags)

This has been one of the funnest themes I have worked with and thanks to all the family and friends who made it all happen!!!

Let there be tea.

Warning -- this is not your Grandmother's formal tea party...

I had been wanting to throw a ladies luncheon and tea party for some time and had an idea of a sort of eclectic, bohemian theme with bright contrasting colors and patterns. Must have colors were navy (duh), mint and coral.  I have found a greatly decorated party all starts with the perfect invitation. An invitation should be used as an opportunity to provide a visual preview of your event's overall theme. 

I found these blank note cards with coordinating envelopes and instantly knew they could be transformed into the perfect invitation for the event...add a tea pot stamp and some scrapbook paper to make the cards look like tea bags--and viola!! All done for less than $5 bucks for 12 invitations.

Believe it or not this luncheon took place in early November and I was thrilled to have perfect weather on the day of. Although the event was in Fall, I knew I wanted bright & colorful floral centerpieces versus your typical autumn leaves and mums. Tip: don't feel limited by the season or setting as far as your theme goes-- you can transform any space to create your vision. 

Another way to achieve the look you are going for is to borrow key pieces from family or friends. I was thrilled when my Mother-in-Law offered to let me use her authentic Calico tea pot and salt & pepper shakers (the navy and white floral patterned pieces below). This china is only made in Staffordshire, England and really gave a connection to the true inventors of how to do afternoon tea-- the BRITS!

When hosting a party, anything you can accomplish before the event will SAVE you the day of... i cannot stress this enough. I made all the centerpieces two days before the event and they held up wonderfully. Whole Foods surprisingly had a a great selection of bright flowers considering it was Fall.

And now for the details...I found these gift tags at the Crate & Barrell outlet and knew they would be great place settings. Each guest had a personalized name tag attached to mixed patterned mugs (as I mentioned the theme was eclectic, bohemian so no need to be matchy matchy). In fact, I fully embraced mixing my "china" patterns on this one.

And every mug had a different flavor tea...

After lunch at the more formal table inside, we moved outside for tea and dessert (and to take in the AMAZING weather)...

I found this to be the perfect opportunity to make use of my antique snack sets- glass plate sets with coordinating glass punch cups that fit securely on the plate . Snack sets were popular in the 1920's through the 1940's for afternoon tea and bridge parties. Most of them even feature a place around the edge to set down your cigarette (a true tell of the habits of most women during that time).

And I love these sugar cookies shaped like honeycombs from a bee hive...after all, what is a cup of tea without honey??

Always remember that your menu is another opportunity to bring together your theme. I felt Mediterranean classics would be the perfect pairing for a bohemian themed tea party. Lunch featured pita bread with hummus & tabouli salad and chicken kabobs, saffron rice & roasted vegetables.

re/Master-ed

Any new parent knows what it's like to bring home your first child- you pretty much live in your bedroom surrounded by all that baby gear (bassinet, burp cloths, diaper changing supplies, etc.) - you will pretty much bring anything into your room that makes those early a.m. waking hours easier on you and your spouse.

After several weeks spent with our master bedroom cluttered by all things baby, I decided to reclaim the space and do a little makeover. Plus, countless hours of late night Pinterest while tending to baby will make you antsy for a change. I found myself drawn to a more "eclectic" look that was borderline Bohemien-- much like an Anthropologie catalog.

The room as it was featured a blue wall which I had painted when we moved in (and still loved), an old headboard and some very thrown together, drab bedding.

I made my way to Home Goods with a budget of $250, but made it out of there for under $175 and found these key pieces for our master makeover...

I also knew that we were in desperate need a new headboard and thanks to Pinterest, power tools and a husband we were able to get one for under $100...(visit thatredheadedsister.com for the DIY headboard project information). 

-- AND DRUM ROLL PLEASE --

When I saw this painting I had to have it, but sent a picture of it to the hubs first to make sure it wasn't too girly to cramp his style-- I win.

Love this authentic CHANEL magazine advertisement I found on Etsy from the late 60's. Add a simple frame, and viola!

So pleased with the new look, and now I'm off to the next space to re/do.

~ Heather

Cute as a Button...'B' Turns One!

I was thrilled when asked to organize and decorate this "Cute as a Button" themed birthday party for 'B' when she turned one year old!! The color inspiration was teal, purple, red & gray with pops of yellow.

'B's Mom is an avid seamstress, so we were able to use spools of thread and button jars straight out of her sewing room as part of the decor ($$$ saver). 

The adorable Happy Birthday banner was ordered from Etsy and was also used in the photos taken prior to the party which were used for the party invitation and as part of the party decor as seen here. (Another $$$ saver- photos are very inexpensive to print)

The cupcake flags were handmade (by yours truly) out of gray chevron scrapbook paper and toothpicks for a total of less than $1- there is nothing some "re/vision" and glue dots can't do!! And the super cute faux drawer found at a local craft store made for the perfect cupcake holder.

And of course, a first birthday party 'aint a party without a SMASH CAKE!! !! !!

For an easy and inexpensive way to decorate a highchair (and jazz up all those photo ops of baby's first cake) simply buy different width-sized ribbon and cut into streams, then hot glue onto twine/string and tie to highchair.

And after the party is over, my advice would be to KEEP EVERYTHING you can. You never know what you can "re/vamp" and  "re/use" at your next party. Happy hostessing!!

-Heather

A Boy Named Indiana

When we found out we were having a baby boy we were absolutely thrilled, and our "little guy" made his debut appearance in January (just seven short weeks ago). Insert proud mommy love here...

Once we knew the baby's gender, I hit the ground running to start pulling inspiration for the nursery. I am a big fan of inspiration boards and you can pretty much use any online photo editing software to create a collage in order to pull together all of your favorite images. I was instantly drawn to the mint green, grey and orange color scheme. I felt it was gender neutral enough and captured the sort of retro-vintage vibe I was going for. (View full images of inspiration room at babylifestyles.com) 

 

After days of online browsing, I was not having much luck locating any kind of bedding that fit the bill. Completely frustrated at this point, I knew I would have to go a slightly different direction and started leaning towards using a different shade of green while still using grey & orange and accenting with pops of red & yellow. I ordered very basic grey, geometric patterned sheets from amazon, found the pillow at hobby lobby and was lucky enough to have my friend Sarah make the crib bumper (believe it or not the green & cream chevron material came from a curtain panel)!! And as a bonus, the white crib was only $125 bucks at Burlington Coat Factory's Baby Depot.

 

 

 

The nursery walls were originally a kind of pale flesh tone (cream-colored) and we ended up painting them two shades of grey with the darker shade on the bottom (roughly 18" from the base board). This helped make the room appear larger and brighter than before. I knew I did not want a traditional changing table and opted for this grey, weathered dresser from ikea with ledge shelving above (also from ikea) to display all of Indiana's books and the changing pad cover was custom ordered on Etsy.

  



 



 

The next task was to start pulling together items for the wall hangings behind little guy's crib. Some items we already had and others were found at Hobby Lobby and on Etsy (such as this antique abacus).

 

 

 



 

And the end result...

 

 

Other decorative elements in the nursery include model biplanes (found at Ross) suspended from the ceiling with clear wire, a drawing on a painted burlap canvas inspired by Where the Wild Things Are (done by his awesome Aunt Rachel) and an orange and cream chevron patterned rug.

 



 

 

We are so pleased with how the room all came together and didn't have to spend tons of money to get the look we wanted. If you find yourself faced with decorating a nursery & the joy of planning for a baby here are a few tips:

• Ask yourself 'what is the overall vibe you want to achieve in the room?' Do you want to use elements that are more graphic & bold with a twist of vintage or do you prefer something that reads more organic & soft with hints of modern. Or maybe you want it all and want a completely eclectic look. There is no right or wrong.
• Browse, Browse, Browse! Do your research. With the ease of use of sites such as pinterest, finding inspiration for your room is as easy as typing in "nursery" in the search tool. Looking at what others have already done will allow you to narrow in on what you want to do in your own room.
• Don't limit yourself by feeling like you have to use the bedding and decor options offered at major retailers (they can tend to be a bit generic). You can now opt for custom orders on sites like Etsy and most "shops" will allow you te set up registries so that guests of your baby shower can contribute towards the cost as their gift to you & baby.
• There is no exact science to the order of pulling the room together. If you fall in love with a paint color for the walls before you even have a crib, that's fine. Or if you find a curtain panel (or any fabric) that you know is just perfect from the room first and center your design around that, no problem. The most important thing is to chose color schemes & design styles that speak to you.



~ Heather