A Fun Father's Day Recap

Good Morning! We had an awesome weekend here at casa Damiecki filled with rocket balloons, bubbles and visiting family celebrating father's day together.  The aftermath, not so much fun though, catching up on all those neglected things like laundry and cleaning...borrring!  So I thought I would take a break from the mundane and share what the girls and I put together for Scott on his big day!

The tent (which is totally cozy) is currently taking over in our front living room - for now: )

For the past two months Layla has talked non-stop about camping. So I thought getting a tent, airbed and a few other camping necessities might motivate Scott to take her (and eventually Hadley) on a little outdoor adventure - even if it meant just starting on our deck!

Layla has a bunch of these nature booklets from Target's dollar section - they're easy for her to reference while exploring with binoculars!  The cute field journal, from Michaels, is where she'll be able to keep "notes" about all her findings and check off the animals tracks she encounters!





I found the telescope at a yard sale a few weeks ago ($5!) and the girls have been really excited to try it out.  My parents gave Scott few books about planets and space for Father's Day so he'll be able to teach them a little about the stars and constellations while they're using the telescope or laying in the tent looking up at the night sky.




 

Layla and Hadley love the great outdoors especially the treats that come with it...so the makings for smores was definitely on the top of their list!  So excited for the first camping experience and so is Layla!!

 

A good day for a great daddy!!

 

 

Have a lovely day!

xo!

Kendra

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Bird Watching

Hello!  My girls love all the critters running around out backyard and have recently gained a new love for our feathered friends thanks to a little bird that took up residence in the the birdhouse Layla painted for the deck last summer.  We hung it on the magnolia tree the weekend of her birthday party and soon after we watched with delight as the bird came and went with nest-building supplies.  Two weeks ago it was clear that the house was empty so I took it down and removed the barely hanging on roof to show Layla  and Hadley the cozy nest inside.

So when I found the cute little birdhouse for my brother and sister-in-law I picked up a cute (and pink!) all-weather bird feeder for our backyard.

Now we have lots of birds coming to visit everyday!

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Goodbye Old Hello Sign

Hi! I recently shared a few photos of the progress we've made to the front our house and mentioned not being crazy about the Hello sign I made. I wasn't sure what I was going to do with it until the girls and I were outside the other day and noticed all the soft, green moss that was growing in shady spots all around the porch area. I love how the moss that's growing between the stones in the pathway leading to our porch looks so I have been transplanting a little a time to get it to grow in other spots too. So I thought why not try it putting some moss (dried for now) over the the paint on the sign?



The inspiration!

 

 

The sign before -

during and

 

after!

 

We'll see how it holds up!

 

 

 

Eventually I'd like to do something like the  photo below...but wanted to see how the moss looked before I tried this method out!
 

 

 

 

        

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Fun Finds - Fashionable Insects

Insects ~ such a part of everyday life in the summer.  With the exception of mosquitoes, ticks, and the ones who find it necessary to feast in my flower beds, I find many "bugs" a comforting part of the warm weather.  As long as they remain in their own inhabitant (outside of my home), I love watching an ant carrying an item that probably weighs twice its size, a bee finding the nectar and pollen in the a flower, or a spider creating an intricate web.  And, of course, the night sky lit up by fireflies.  Now with the advent of the 17-year cicada, summer is about to get a little noisy!

To celebrate the "Time of the Insect," I have found some fashionable ways they have been used.



Anthropologie's grasshopper plate

a black butterfly cuff bracelet

a set of bone and white insect snack dishes

Michael Miller's fun "Bugs in Jars" fabric

 

a beautifully detailed papercut butterfly handcut

Have a Happy and Bug-Filled Wednesday!  ♥

 

 

  

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DIY Glitter Magnets + Instagram

Hi there!  Designlovefest is one of my favorite daily reads.  Bri is so over the top creative and stylish - love looking at her photo shoots and reading about everything from fashion, to travel and especially her amazing DIY projects. 

As part of her Make It series Bri is holding a little Instagram contest.  She asked readers to submit their DIY projects, inspired by the ones she and her team have posted.  I had pinned these cute little magnets awhile ago and made them just in time to submit the photo below!

My gorgeous model - she was so patient!!

What about you?  Any DIY projects in your future??
xo!
Kendra Pin It

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Tattered Fabric Flowers with Colored Thread Edging

Recently I saw burlap flowers with a colorful thread running around the edges.  The thread added just a perfect touch, so I gathered some fabric and thread and began making my own.

The process was quite simple!

Cut stripes of fabric 1 1/2" x 44" (this could be adjusted depending on the size of the flower)
Sew a seam 1/2" from one of the long edges and again 1/4" from the same edge.

Using the longest stitch on your sewing machine, sew a gathering seam 1/2" from the opposite edge.  Remember to leave long tails at the beginning and at the end of the seam.  (This could also be done with a long running hand stitch.)

Fold down 1/4" from one of the short ends and press.

Slowly begin pulling the gathering thread.

Pull some of the stitches so that you have a tattered look ~ I did have to trim mine.

Starting with the folded edge,  begin to roll your fabric into the center of your flower.  As you add each layer, it will be a little more relaxed.

When you flower is complete, turn it over and begin to tack the layers to one another.

To make my flowers look a little more finished, I made a felt circle, and attached the flower with fabric glue.

I love the look that the tattered flowers gave to my Giggle and Toots shop's newest pillow listing.

If you try this technique, I would love to see what you make!  ♥




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Pinterest Challenge - Yard Sale Portrait Makeover

I mentioned last year that heading out to yard sales early on Saturday mornings, with my Dad as my wingman, has become one of my favorite summertime shore traditions.  I love looking for bargains and unique things and I think he gets a kick out of seeing the things I buy.  He's not normally a patient shopper but hitting up a few yard sales  (usually when the grandkids are on the verge of a meltdown) seems to suit him just fine.  I love taking him with me too because he doesn't judge my purchases or ask what I will do with them or where they will go (aka making me second guess myself - Mom and Scott) instead he usually does the opposite - whipping out a couple dollars to pay for my latest find!

Onto the title of this post.  I found, among a few other treasures, this portrait of a Native American girl over the Memorial Day weekend.  Yard sales were few and far between because of the rain but so were shoppers which was good for me!  I love portraits and this frame was really lovely but what drew me to this piece was the little girl's eyes.  They were haunting and sweet and vaguely familiar.  After bringing this back to Maryland my friend's Mom said they actually reminded her of my girls' eyes.  Bingo!

Trust me I did my research and found out that Artistic Interiors, the now defunct company who sold this type of art wholesale, provided inexpensive art for the many.   There isn't a high value or demand for this type of art anymore.   And I couldn't find any information about the artist.

Scott isn't a big fan of having people we don't know hanging on the walls in our home, which I understand but I knew this portrait needed to live in our house. So after a bit of brainstorming I remembered this popular pin from awhile back and thought this would be the perfect piece to try something similar out on.

I taped off the top half starting right below her eyes.

 

 

A couple of coats and I left it to dry in the sun.

Tape removed and 24 hours to "gas off" before coming inside.

 

 

I think this look perfect in our living room/kid's library.  That empty wall needed something to brighten it up and I think this little piece of art did the trick.  Except when Scott saw he said "great now I have a strange little girl peeking at me."  Oh well!  I love her: )

 

 

 

Have a wonderful day!!

xo!



Kendra

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