Crafting - Washi Tape Inspiration

I am absolutely loving Washi tape. The first tape that I bought wasn't very adhesive, but I've had better success with the mt brand. There is such a huge selection available and I'm struggling not to buy all of them!! I've been using my tape to display my Violet + Percy word garlands, decorate my FiloFax and make envelopes pretty. It did get me thinking though... what else could the tape be used for? So of course I took to Pinterest to find out!

{Mini Bunting}

How cute are these mini bunting! These would be ideal for party invites or even to decorate a wee dolls house.

{House}

I just love everything about this photograph. The colours, the Washi tape, the star...

{Patterned Wall}

I love the polka dot stickers that you can get, but this is just another way of easily decorating a wall.

{Dipped Legs}

This is a great way to inject some colour and try a new trend without having to fully commit.

{Frame Accent}

Such a good idea to add a pop of colour, and then when your scheme changes you can very easily change the tape!

{Hanging Trees} 

I thought this would make good decorations for any holiday... for example hanging little hearts for Valentine's Day or Easter bunnies

Are you a fan of Washi tape, and what do you use it for?

Getting Festive - Christmas Wreath

I used to have a Christmas wreath that went on my front door... note the tense here :( It was a gorgeous wreath from Marks & Spencer and unfortunately it got ruined in the horrendous weather that we experienced last December (some metal parts from the apex of the roof of my house came off in the wind too!).

I'm not going to make that mistake again! Instead, my thoughts were that I could have a wreath on an internal door!! 

Of course I went straight to Pinterest for some inspiration, and here's what I found:

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You can see that I'm drawn to metallics, natural textures, leaves and green foliage.

I'd love to make my own, but I literally do not have the time.

Instead, if I am going to have a wreath, it will be a shop bought one, and with that in mind - here are some of my favourites:

Pre-lit Green Foliage Christmas Wreath from M&S, £39.50

John Lewis Snowy Twig Wreath, £20

Birch Bark Christmas Wreath (comes in white, natural or neon!), £28 from Paper Posies

Metallic Berry Foliage Christmas Wreath from M&S, £25.00

Tesco Gold Ball Wreath, £25

{Christmas Mantle}

I've been giving some thought to my Christmas mantlepiece. At the moment it's not very festive... I have two red candle holders that come out each year, and I have a few other candles that are present all year round (True Grace, Library being one of them).

So, I headed to Pinterest to see if I could find some inspiration. Here's what I found:

Pine cones on a string - love the simplicity of this and I think some gold cones would work really well.

Ivy, fairy lights and letters... I have the letters for NOEL in gold so I could do something similar I think (I cleverly bought the letter V too, so during the year I can change the letters to spell LOVE)

An array of vintage Christmas trees

Red, white & green... Love the idea of filling glassware with baubles, and I particularly like this wreath.

More baubles in glassware, and I love the silver candlesticks and votive holders which could be used all year round.

Twigs and greenery add height in this mantlepiece, and I hadn't considered hanging a wreath over a mirror (there's a large mirror above my mantle).

Twigs feature again in this layout. I love the stags that are on the floor... where can I find some??

Silver and white...

Love the socks hung on a string :-)

{Ooh! That's Pinteresting! Christmas Craft Ideas}

I'm joining up again this week with Tina Gray for her Ooh! That's Pinteresting blog hop.

I thought I'd share some of the crafty ideas for Christmas decorations that I've found and liked the look of. I'm hoping that one day soon I'll be able to join up with Blossom Heart and Mummy To Five to share something for their Pinterest Make Me Challenge!

 Aren't these paper flowers beautiful! Thinking I could make them in red for the Christmas table 

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Another option for Christmas table decorations - napkin flowers

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Love this wreath! {image source}

Perhaps with some festive paper for Christmas decoration? {image source}

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You can follow me on Pinterest here.

{2nd birthday}

Here are some of the photos from my son's Teddy Bear Picnic party...

All photographs were taken by my sister, Ali Stewart. Thanks Ali :-)

{Preparation}

The party preparation is well underway now.  Only 2 more sleeps to go!  I'm praying the weather improves as I think it will be manic with 15 little ones in the house...

Rainbow decorations have been made, teddy bear bunting is currently being decorated by my son's friend and her pals at the childminders, hubby is going to Costco tonight to pick up supplies and my job for today and tomorrow is to make & decorate the cupcakes. 

I was at Dobbies Garden Centre yesterday and found the cutest teddy bear ice cream cones and wafers (love their Food Hall!!), so if the weather is nice and the parents allow it then the little ones can have an ice cream that matches in with the theme of the party!! 

I also bought my son a new top today from Next which has a panda bear on it (closest thing I could find to a teddy bear at short notice)!!