~ Kids Corner and for the love of Brown! ~

Dear Friends, as much I have a passion for white things I still can't think of having a "White Sofa". Why? Well, I don't have "little devils" at home. I should say, I have little artists and two little puppies who love to dig in the dirt! Our 5 year old is in love with pens, crayons, paint...maybe he's been seeing "me" painting too much around and he's getting inspired! Other day, Nick( my hubby) came home with new "sharpie pens" (those ones you can't remove it, for nothing). He brought from Univ. to work in a cardboard and Ewan found them. Can you imagine what happened? Yes, he draw beautiful dots on his white duvet. Luckily, the cover wasn't there (it was for washing) and I couldn't say much, except to show him he ones he can play with...

So that's why I can't YET have a nice, bright, white sofa in our living room and in our family room.

OK, here is part of our basement. The other part is under remodeling.

I'm not a "basement person". When I first moved to Canada I used to live in a apartment, close to UofA. Beautiful views and could see the city from above.

Then, moving to a house with three kids, it was the first experience I had having a basement.

I love to see the day light, the green(when is green) and the snow. So, I barely come to the basement, except for laundry and for a quick movie. It made me a bit claustrophobic. But since I made a few changes I can come more often and enjoy sewing, watching family movies with the kids and having a good time "underground".

So, for the love of "brown" and a few whites around, here is a pic of the "kids corner" I finished and the space we hang out with our blankets (it's always cool down there).

I hope you guys enjoy it and like it!

It was the closest thing I could make it to feel good down there.

Any suggestions to make it better are very welcome here!

This wood box was a gift from a nice neighbour from a block away from where I live. What a lovely gift! I left the way I got it (I think the old look is gorgeous!)

This one is from IKEA. It used to be pine and I painted in cream color and the drawers with chalkboard paint

This dresser I bought for $20 at Kijiji and painted, distressed and changed the pulls. They're all from LeeValley.

This chair above was another free gift from someone who didn't want it anymore.

And remember the little bench I reupholster a while ago for my bedroom? The left over fabric I used for these two chairs!

 

These are some Art Work from our kids. Oops...this blue one, the frame is a bit uneven...sorry Folks

I saved a few can and spray them for extra pens and pencils and the other two ones from IKEA-$.99cents each, and the table I got at Salvation Army, for $10 and sanded and wash painted.

An overall look from the stairs...

 

That's it everyone, I think I'm going to enjoy my little one a bit now until I have to pick the other two.

I wish a wonderful weekend for all of you!

Until next time :-)

Li

~ A Ruffle Flower for You ~ DIY

Dear friends, thanks for all the lovely and supportive comments on my last post. In fact, the snow melted after a few days and now we can enjoy the real spring in here. It's just gorgeous the weather right now!
I miss coming here, posting, looking for your posts! But I got pretty busy here with the kid's competitions, so that's why I've been away from the computer. After all the driving around I also needed some time for myself to just relax. So, that's what I did. Every Spring I have allergies (pollen, dust, etc.),so that's another thing that's been  happening with me right now, but I have to  live with that. Now, I feel much better and have to carry on with my life and projects that has to be done here.

I know I missed so many posts from all of you, but I'll try to catch up with all when the sun goes down.
OK, when I first started my blog I met this wonderful lady, far far away from where I live and I connected with her right away. I love her blog, her simplicity in how she live her life and do her projects. Her name is Ange, from Chair Up. If you never been to her blog, now it's a good time to take a visit and leave Ange a comment. I'm sure she'll be happy to meet new friends!
Anyway, when I first did a ruffle flower, Ange asked me kindly if I could show it how to do it, so this post I am dedicating to Ange and all of you who would love to learn an easy project to decorate your home, your purse, a tiara, a flip-flop, anything your imagination can think about. 
It's such an easy project and you can do it with any piece of fabric. This one was made with white cotton and it was a left piece I had from the shower curtain I made as well.
So, dear Ange, this flower is for you and the ones who love ruffles flowers!
So dear friends, enjoy this simple project. As I missed Mother's Day here, and sending warm wishes to all of you: a mother, a mother to be, those that are not mothers, but are caring (so they are mothers anyway!), to all of you, beautiful, creative,caring women I've met here and I'm still meeting every time I come here.
I have a piece I'm working right now to my first client. I'm very excited to see this project done. So my kitchen...Oh, my kitchen, has to wait a bit.
So soon I'll show you this cute piece of furniture ready to go to my friend's cozy bedroom.
I hope you had a wonderful weekend and are having a sunny and warm week!
Here is the DIY for the ruffle flower:

You will need:

• 
  
  a piece of fabric (this one was 1.20cm long) and the width I cut about 6cm wide.
• 
  
  scissors
• 
  
  sewing machine or you can do it by hand as well with a thread and needle

I like to iron the fabric before start any project made with fabrics

make a little pic in the fabric with the scissors

And tear the fabric all the way to the end ( I love the rustic effect!)

Sew in the ruffle mode (I hope that's how you say this)

when done with sewing, start pulling the thread for the ruffle effect

tie a knot on both ends to make sure it won't loose the ruffles and leaving some thread on both ends as well;start a flower by making a circle and continue until you finish with the fabric;

now, with the end of one thread, pull in through the center of the flower to meet the end of the other thread

flip it over to meet with both threads together and tie a knot to make sure the flower is secure.

That's it! The Ruffle flower is done!

these flowers are going to be on our daughter's room. She loves flowers, butterflies, dragonflies, fairies...

I hope it was understandable the way I explained the process of making this ruffle flower. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask me. I'll be pleased to help you!

For some, enjoy the spring with the beauty of the flowers and the warmth of the sun and for others, the cozy fall, with the leaves changing colors and the breeze of the wind.

have a beautiful day everyone,

Cheers, Li

Xmas In May???

Good Day everyone! Today it was hard to get up from a cozy, comfy bed. Why? Well, you know when you get up, around 5 am because your little one needs help to go to the bathroom and you see everything white?So, I thought I was still dreaming... Ewan got back to bed right away, since he had a few more hours to sleep, and I went to the living room to check if I was really dreaming or if it was real what I was seeing.

I could even pinch myself to see if I was sleepwalking, but no, it was very real. Sometimes the weather network is not a 100% and I wish they were wrong this time... As my brother-in-law says, I live in a place that is white inside and out!!! Literally!!! He has such a good sense of humor.

When I woke up my kids to school, they asked if school could be canceled today and if they could go back to bed. Poor kids, I know we've been waiting for Spring to arrive , and they couldn't miss today, they both had a big test this morning. So, sorry kids, you guys have to go to school. It could be worse, you know?

So, as I'm a very positive mom, I promise when they come back a nice hot chocolate with cheese bread I make. Just to warm up their spirits!

My son Nick said it looks like Christmas!!! In May!!!

I love their imagination, and to complete his one,he said they should be allowed to have gifts as well... Smart boy.
Here are the pics from my reality today:

No flowers in the pots yet

Even the dogs are lazy today...

I would love to be sitting there now

I was supposed to start a post about a ruffle flower I made, but I will leave it for another day...Sorry Folks, but for those who can't believe this can happen at this time of the year, this is just a positive  way of looking for a snowy day with warm heart!
AS we can't enjoy the green grass, the flowers (I'm glad I didn't plant mine) and playing outside, we can at least enjoy the warmth inside and hang out here, in our own place where is always warm and cozy, right? We have to look in the bright way, always!
Wishing you all a warm (inside and out) lovely week!

Until next time,

Hugs,

Li