:: a happy nest ::

an autumn wreath.

I know most everyone is moving onto anticipation of the winter holidays, but I'm holding onto autumn for just a bit longer. I was late in making my autumn wreath for the door, just getting it up a couple weeks ago. It makes me happy whenever I look at it, so I'll keep it up for at least a few days more.

Thea and I made the main part of the wreath together. She helped me tear strips of fabric and wrap them around the wreath, and picked which colors would go where. We used a mix of modern and vintage fabrics, including one of my favorite vintage prints featuring sweet little flowers and mushrooms. Bits of yarn and lace finished it off. She proudly hung it on the door.

I loved it, but felt like it was missing something, so I decided to try making a few rolled felt flowers. They ended up being super easy and were just what this little wreath needed. I'll be sad to take it down.

And now I'm a bit addicted to making these sweet flowers!

I hope you're having a lovely week!

grateful.

feeling grateful...

to be finally feeling better after nearly two months of illness.

that I get to be my sweet girl's mama: oh, the ways she opens my mind and my heart.

for how hard my mister works to take care of our family.

for the season of lights.

for her.

for colorful tights and warm boots.

for a bit of order in the studio.

for family date nights at a favorite local spot. and good dark beer too (my first in months!)

for big piles of leaves to jump in.

for family, dear friends, and all the love that surrounds me.

what are you feeling grateful for today?

 

 

thea's room: sneak peek.

Most of my free moments have been spent working on the details of Thea's room. There is still so much to do - a quilt to finish, curtains to sew, the finishing touches.

I've been having so much fun, particularly in learning how to paint and distress furniture.

I'm so grateful I learned how much working with my hands fills me up.

I've even been working on a few tutorial based on some of the projects I've been working on. These are just a few glimpses. I'm so excited to see the rest of the room come together. Now we're just waiting for Thea's new mattress!

Have a lovely week!

grateful monday.

feeling grateful...

for my mister making sure I got plenty of rest this weekend (I've been sick for almost a month straight!).

for you tube tutorials.

for warm autumn sunshine.

for family adventures.

for the joy of teaching myself something new.

to be reconnecting with old friends.

what are you feeling grateful for today?

 

grateful monday.

feeling grateful...

for warm autumn afternoon adventures.

for roses blooming.

for colorful zinnias, fresh cut from our garden.

for a day of hard work tidying our yard.

for {hopefully} being on the final day of painting Thea's room.

for my mister making sure I got lots of rest this weekend {I'm recovering from a cold}.

for hot tea.

what are you feeling grateful for today?

in progress: thea's new room

For the past couple weeks, I've been working hard on transforming Thea's room into a sweet space for our curious and playful three (and a half!) year-old.

Here's a little peek at what I've been up to:

deciding

 

painting

stitching

crafting

and some new {old} furniture too.

There's still a lot to do, but I'm excited about how it is coming along. I'll be sharing more details soon!

 

autumn afternoon.

Yesterday, Thea and I took my mom to Maymont Park. We often find ourselves at Maymont, but we usually spend our time visiting with the animals in the farm area of the partk. 

Recently, with some friends, we explored the Japanese and Rose Gardens. Ever since, they have been a source of fascination for Thea.

Oh, it was a beautiful afternoon - warm with golden sunlight.

We spent a long while looking at the huge koi, who seemed to follow us around as we explored.

One of Thea's favorite parts is the stepping stones. I don't think it will be long before she feels brave enough to cross them by herself.

We played chase,

 

explored the park's many benches,

and of course stopped for a snack.

We're trying to soak up every bit of warmth before it turns cold for the winter.

I actually brought my DSLR camera (lately, I have been shooting almost exclusively with my iPhone), and I had some fun playing with exposure. I still have so much to learn about my camera, but it felt good to have it in my hands once again.

I hope you're having a lovely week!

halloween fun.

{Thea, our orange flower fairy princess}

We knew she would want to be something orange, it was only a question of what she would settle on. For months, she asked to be an "orange sled," before changing her mind only a few weeks ago. I must say, I breathed a huge sigh of relief when I could stop figuring out how I was going to make that costume!

The costume wasn't complicated, and didn't even take that long. For the flower necklace, I used this tutorial from Martha Stewart (though there was no template for the flowers, so I used this one from her pet costume tutorial).

For her dress, I dyed a white cotton jersey sheet orange - though it turned out much more peachy in color than I intended, which actually worked out quite well. I used this super easy pattern, by chicken hill on etsy. To finish off her costume, I dyed some white tights green for her flower stem and made her a wand from felt scraps.

Thea came down with an awful cold a week before Halloween, so she spent the week home with me. We spent our mornings working on things to get ready for her preschool class Halloween party. We stuffed treat bags and mede these little monster treat cups from recycled egg cartons.

{sick, but still silly}

On Halloween day, she was finally well enough to return to school, and it was a good thing: I think she would have been heartbroken if she had missed the festivities.

The kids took part in a parade, and then sang sweet songs for the parents. We finished the morning with a party for her little class.

By the end of the day, I was the one who was sick. I went out for a few minutes to watch Thea start out trick-or-treating, but I didn't last long. I managed to snap a few {blurry} photos of her in her costume before I headed to bed.

John continued on, accompanied by our wonderful neighbor friends and their two sweet daughters.

They made it up one street in our neighborhood before it started to pour. Which was probably just the right amount of trick-or-treating anyway.

All in all, it was a good day. A good day indeed.

grateful.

feeling grateful...

that our family is feeling better - after a long, long week.

for my mama.

for a clean house.

for the work of my hands, and the comfort it brings me.

for happy preschool songs and parades.

for the way she speaks her heart.

what are you feeling grateful for today?