found & foraged link party no. 3

hi everyone & welcome to the third found & foraged party! i hope you all had a very happy and relaxing thanksgiving and are enjoying your weekend. did anyone brave black friday??

let's get this week's party going! if you're a blogger, at the bottom of this post you'll find the blue button that will let you link up your posts with us. this is the place to show off your creativity. it's for all those things you've found – vintage pieces, curb alerts, clearance treasures, thrift store gems, and those that you've foraged – from the yard, the basement, the in-laws garage, the garden, and to show off how you've made them a beautiful part of your home.

we will be hosting this link party every saturday at 8 pm (central time). so be sure to add us to your calendar and check back weekly to party with us!

F O L L O W  U S   A T

THE BIG REVEAL blog | facebook | instagram | pinterest | twitter | bloglovin

AVERY STREET DESIGN blog | instagram | pinterest | twitter

HOUSE OF HIPSTERS blog | facebook | instagram | pinterest | twitter | bloglovin

F E A T U R E S

the very best part for me about hosting this party every week is meeting new bloggers, and seeing their incredible and inspiring projects. last week alone thanks to this link party (and several rabbit holes it took me down!) i ended up making snowflake ornaments, baymax sock dolls, and glittered pinecones, and have blanket scarves next on my list.

here are the features we unanimously loved, a favorite pick from each of us, and then one more i can't help but share since there's just no way to narrow it all down. be sure to visit house of hipsters and the big reveal as they had the same problem, and have more features of their own to share!

F E A T U R E D  P R O J E C T S :

DIY gold leaf trinket dishes by make & tell

anthropologie-inspired DIY sweater stockings by confessions of a serial DIY-er

FREE printable gift tags from house of hawkes

G R A C E ' S   P I C K :

DIY drop cloth christmas pillows by meadow lake road

{see the rest of grace's picks here}

K Y L A ' S  P I C K :

thrift store coat by thrift stories

{see more of kyla's picks here}

L A U R A ' S  P I C K S :

DIY starry advent calendar by kraft & mint

twig heart art by so much better with age

another amazing week (i couldn't even believe the turn out again!) and i want to say another thank you to all who came and showed us the beautiful things you're working on. enjoy today's party and i'm excited to be back next time with more found & foraged projects!

An InLinkz Link-up

thanksgiving this & that

hi everyone! tomorrow is thanksgiving. i hope you have a happy one! i won't be posting as i usually do on thursdays, but i thought it would be fun to tell you what i'll be working on over the 4-day weekend. we aren't travelling or having family in town this year, so we have four days wide open in front of us and i'm hoping to get a few things done around the house.

here is my to-do list:

~ paint half the kitchen white (baby steps)
~ order christmas cards
~ photograph the office (no more procrastinating! i AM going to show it to you!)
~ clean out my daughter's room
~ decorate for christmas, yay!

this side of the kitchen never got touched up when we replaced the baseboards and door frame in conjunction with our office project. (the office is the room just through that open doorway where you can see the built-ins). i am kinda over the light blue color anyway so i'm just going to paint this half of the room white. as we do our mudroom project, which is on the other side of that closed brown door, that door trim and door will be replaced, and then i'll probably keep going with the white around the rest of the kitchen. but for this weekend, i'm hoping to at least get this side done!

as if choosing a christmas card wasn't hard enough, now i have to narrow down pictures! i took them myself this week, with my new iphone 6+ and vsco, and i'm surprised at how well they turned out! i'm actually considering designing the card too. does anyone know of a good place to print your own design if i go that route??  

warning, this post just got real. before i can photograph my office, i have to clean it up again. it was just limping back to cleanliness when i started corralling all my new christmas wrapping supplies, all the fall decorations i need to put away, and various trappings for a hampster we are um, hampster-sitting during the holiday. not to mention i turned it into an impromptu portrait studio yesterday. ugh. so yeah, this one needs some work. 

aaaaand the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. this is the current state of my daughter's room. she can be quite meticulous about her room, but during a sleepover with a friend last weekend, every toy she owns was dumped around the room, and sleeping nests were constructed out of hundreds of stuffed animals that had previously been bagged up for the goodwill safekeeping in the basement. so we just need to gut this one and start over. (in case you're wondering why i chose olive green walls for this girl, they were that way when we moved in. we've barely touched this room and i'm basically waiting to decorate it until she grows out of the "i want a giant rapunzel wall mural" phase of life). 

for christmas i'm planning to make a branch canopy with some kind of sparkly and twinkly stuff on it over our dining table. i really want to replace these chandeliers next year, but have no idea with what (suggestions?!) and until then they work well for christmas. and to hold up tree limbs.

my littlest guy and i made the pumpkin pie today (and that'll be the beginning and the end of my pinterest thanksgiving around here). my grandma always used to use the recipe on the side of the libby's can and i maintain there's no better way to make a pumpkin pie.

as for my agenda for the big day, we're staying home and i'm sooo excited for a relaxing holiday. my day should consist of starbucks, the black friday ads, cooking, eating, tv, and putting up the tree. and some more giant branches. i can't wait!

i hope all of you have a wonderful thanksgiving!

panic room

this might turn out to be the most appropriately named post i've ever written. picture me, as i'm editing the pictures (ha! the irony! that i actually edited these!), with my forehead propped against one hand, elbow on the table, half slumped over, laughing because the disaster that is this room has moved beyond despair to pure hilarity. i started this blog complaining about my mudroom, and at this point i'm pretty sure i'll still be beating that drum to my dying day.

our original handshake agreement was that the whole space- office, powder room, and mudroom- would be done by thanksgiving. well, the office got there mid-summer. the rest of it, not even close. our new goal (or i should say my new insistence) was that at least the powder room would be done by christmas. i was using the fact that my parents were coming to visit for the holidays as motivation to get that to happen. it wasn't going to happen.

so i really have nothing to show you. there's no way you'll be able to piece together an understanding of the space from these photos, but at least you'll understand my pain! i also promised i'd do better at keeping you updated on house projects. so this is what my powder room looks like right now:

i know.

here's the sink i'm planning to use. while i'd love marble, this $30 clearance baby will really help our budget. i'm searching for a console base to pair with it, or for one ryan can build. we've discussed having him try to make one out of copper pipe.

this is the mirror i have that i got at this barn sale. we also have a toilet. and one 12" square of hex tile. other than that, nothing. the one good thing about taking a project slow (or maybe it's a bad thing) is you have time to decide what you really like. i originally thought i wanted a mudroom painted all green. nope- white for sure. if i've learned anything about myself since buying this house (three years ago, when we moved from a neutral-zone and i promised i'd put more color in the new house) is that i don't like color. i mean, i love color, but only in small easily-changed-out doses. i want the house to feel like a backdrop to the things in it.

i'll back up quickly for my new friends and tell you why we don't have a powder room on our main floor. because when we first moved in we ripped it out. it was an awkward box thrown in between the kitchen and family room that kept them totally separate. when we took it out we were able to open up the kitchen to the family room and have a huge eat-in space between. it's awesome. it took two years.

once we had that eat-in area we didn't need our formal dining room anymore. we carved it up to put in our office, and are using the other side of it to expand the mudroom and add in a powder room. here's the space currently where the mudroom is and where the powder room will go.

that little channel has been affectionately dubbed the "panic room" because it's the remainder of our formal dining room and it was completely enclosed. when we built the office we shrunk the dining room by constructing a new wall in the middle of it. but we never took down the one on the other side. so we were left with a hidden little pocket. that "cut-out" was literally a tiny hole that ryan had punched out of the wall that you could just fit through. we kind of felt like batman or something. secret rooms are awesome.

as for what's next...

step one: take out half of the mudroom wall:

step 2: build a new wall to cut the panic room in two:

here's the plan for how this will all lay out in the end:

wouldn't it be great? we'd come in the house and the kids would each have a spot to put stuff. and we wouldn't fall on top of each other. and i'd have room to put my laundry baskets in the room i do laundry in. and we'd have a bathroom! 

for now, though, this is the view from that little spot where it says "i took pic from here" on the current floorplan:

that's what it looks like when you stand inside our panic room. like i said, appropriately named. hopefully eventually i'll be able to post progress and (dare i dream) results! but for now, you know me and my house a little better, and you can picture me here, doing my laundry. like, 6000 times a week.

found & foraged link party no. 2

hello and a warm welcome to the second found & foraged link party! first, i want to say thank you and thank you again to everyone who linked up, stopped by, and partied your hearts out with us last saturday. we were amazed at the turn out and we so love you guys!! 

just before we went live last week, i got a text from kyla saying "30 seconds!" hahaha, i have to admit, we were all a little curious (ok, nervous!) to see what would happen. it's always a hard pill to swallow when you throw a party and no one shows up. (oh, wait, that didn't happen to you in sixth grade when you had gels on your lamps for mood lighting and a dance floor cleared in your basement? yeah, me neither). anyway, i told her if six people showed up i'd be thrilled. the fact that 203 of you showed up absolutely knocked. our. socks. off. so thank you thank you thank you for that overwhelming show of support and love.

and now it's time to do it again at party #2!

link up your DIY’s, house projects, vintage finds, shopping scores, upcycled projects, foraged decor, recipes...basically anything else you’ve been working on! found & foraged is a place to show off your creativity and how you’re using found and foraged treasures to beautify the spaces around you. it's for all those things you've found – vintage pieces, curb alerts, clearance treasures, thrift store gems, and those that you've foraged – from the yard, the basement, the in-laws garage, the garden, and to show off how you've made them a beautiful part of your home.

we will be hosting this linky party every saturday at 8pm (central time). so be sure to add us to your calendar and check back weekly to party with us!

F O L L O W   U S   A T

THE BIG REVEAL blog | facebook | instagram | pinterest | twitter | bloglovin

AVERY STREET DESIGN blog | instagram | pinterest | twitter

HOUSE OF HIPSTERS blog | facebook | instagram | pinterest | twitter | bloglovin

and now's the fun part, the features!! not only were we amazed that you all showed up, but your projects floored us! when we convened later to compare favorites, each of us had a list that well exceeded a dozen. how do you narrow that down? we had originally planned to just feature three projects- one for each of us. well, clearly that was out the window. 

F E A T U R E S 

{dipped (dipped!) mid-century modern dresser makeover by the weathered door}

{boys' camp bedroom makeover by dear emmeline}

modernized thrift store pendant by bigger than the three of us 

GRACE'S PICK OF THE WEEK:

DIY collected driftwood garland

{visit grace's blog to see more of her favorites} 

KYLA'S PICK OF THE WEEK:

 type text art by brave new home

{visit kyla's blog to see more of her favorites}

LAURA'S PICK OF THE WEEK:

DIY wood slice hanging plant stand by bre purposed

{and since you're already at my blog, i get to show you more of my favorites!}

wander wood slice art by meet the b's.

twig ornaments by the diy dreamer

DIY gold (ikea hack!) bookshelves from house of hawkes

well that finally completes the laundry list of kudos we need to hand out from party number one. you guys made this decision a full-time job this week! be sure to visit house of hipsters and the big reveal blog for their features too. and bloggers, the inspiration a-game was brought- amazing job and thanks again.

and remember, if you're not a blogger (or even if you are) there's still a whole lot of fun you can join in over on instagram. tag pictures of your found & foraged treasures and projects #foundforaged and we will be regramming our favorites on saturdays. the feed is gorgeous!!!

now let's party...

An InLinkz Link-up

pumpkin cookies with cream cheese frosting

with fall and thanksgiving solidly here (and winter banging down their door), my brain naturally turns to the one thing that's arguably the best part of the season: pumpkin baked goods.

we have a tradition of getting together with friends on halloween for trick-or-treating with the kids and a big pot luck meal (which always involves lots of yummy soup). this year, my friend stephanie brought uh-mazing pumpkin cookies and i pretty much ate half the batch. i immediately told her i needed the recipe for the blog, and she sent me home with a few to stage and style. well, friends, i ate those before they could see the light of day or the camera's lens. aaaand so, i had to make them for myself. this is good news, however, because i can now attest that they are reproducible in a novice's kitchen.

steph got the recipe from allrecipes.com, and then gave me her tips and additions. first, head to this link to grab it:

pumpkin cookies with cream cheese frosting (the world's best)!

BUT then be sure to include stephanie's tips when you write it down. she is a master of baking. i followed her instructions exactly and they were per-fect. here is what she said (and i quote):

~ use an extra cup of flour for the dough

~ use an extra ounce of cream cheese AND at least a half cup extra powdered sugar for the frosting

~ use a piping bag and a star tip to pipe the frosting onto the cookies in a rosette pattern. the dough is soooo goey that it is hard to make them pretty. piping the frosting helps that i think. i never have patience for frosting with a knife!

if you've never used a piping tip to do this trick, check out this awesome video (with the cutest british lady ever) on how to pipe a rosette. i do them all the time so i can vouch they are ridiculously easy and the prettiness factor is huge for so little effort! 

enjoy!

thanksgiving according to pinterest

my friends, today it's thanksgiving. i have unlimited time and money, a luxurious accommodating home, and very nimble smallish fingers. my body does not require sleep (and yet i look perpetually dewy and youthful). i have seven nannies, an in-house chef, and at least two maids. my garden is also full of fresh bounty (both the floral and the food variety), which maintains its colorful luster and flavor indefinitely inspite of frost and snow. my mom, who totally lives in town, spent long but joyful hours leading up to today laughing and cooking with me in matching aprons in my gourmet kitchen. my friends, this is a pinterest thanksgiving, and oh we are gonna have it.

come on, pretend with me...it'll be amazing.

my table will be perfectly curated to look uncurated, with draping garlands, seasonal blooms, and dishware mis-matched just so. (at this point you're wondering if there is sarcasm in my tone. no! this is really what my house and life would look like if all the above variables were true).

{via apartment 34}

my walls would be adorned with gorgeous wreaths and draped with vines and fruit and fresh garden foilage. i would make all of this myself, of course, after a quick jaunt to LA for a design love fest wreath-making workshop. 

{via greige design}

i would have a few minimalist touches to balance all that lush greenery, like these adorable pear placecard holders. they'd be perfect take-home favors as well, because i would make them with wooden pears.

{via almost makes perfect}

food would be left to the chefs because it's not really my thing (well, eating it is my thing for sure, but not cooking it). here is a sampling of what would be on the menu:

{martha stewart's maple glazed turkey

warm brussels spout & pomegranate salad by free people

cast-iron skillet cornbread stuffing with leeks by adventures in cooking

roasted butternut squash & apple brandy soup by local milk}

ok, i have no idea if those flavors will really go together to create a well balanced meal, but the food styling is so good, who cares?! i'll be saving my culinary energy for pie-making:

{via the williams-sonoma blog, and guess what?! i actually own the leaf pie crust cutters and emile henry pie dishes in real life, so i have a shot at these outside of fantasy land!}

{this apple pie with rosettes is all over pinterest and the web so i looked long and hard to find the original source. after reading all 158 comments on the post, i have determined that yoli deserves the credit. aaaaand my pie-making plans slide solidly back into fantasy land.} 

what else do we need for the perfect thanksgiving? um...how about adorably packaged leftovers for you to take home?

 {tutorial and FREE printable at pizzazzerie}

ok, i can't help it. one more favor for your goodie bags, because i love you so much: 

{DIY flavored finishing sea salts via free people blog}

ahhh, that was great. i never knew a fake thanksgiving could be so grand. thanks so much for coming! i'm about to spend the rest of the day on the couch in a food coma, pinning christmas decorations. my butler will see you out.