a bright surprise

Don't you love it when something unexpected turns up - especially if it's pretty!

I walked in to the house yesterday afternoon to find a wonderful silhouette pattern on a wall.  The autumn afternoon sun had come down low, and bounced off something shiny outside, through a window, throwing the perfect outline of candelabra, and window frame, as clear cut as if it had been painted.

little things please little minds .... 

it certainly made me smile!

oh, and don't forget the giveaway, running until next Friday

The Do’s & Do’s of Gallery Walls

Nope, you didn’t read that wrong. I did mean to say “do’s and do’s”. After I posted my blog post on Monday about gallery walls I got so many emails with questions about them. Most were asking if there are any rules to creating a gallery wall. I’m here to gladly say that there really are no rules to gallery walls. The only “don’t” that I can think of is “don’t” be afraid to experiment and think outside the box.

Gallery walls tend to be very scary to the general public because there are no true guidelines to them. I’m hoping that for those of you who are intimidated by them, this post will help you out a little.

Do #1: Mix and Match Frame Styles

Don’t feel confined to using one style of frame. You can pretty much use any style and size you want. This is the perfect time to mix traditional with modern, square with round and framed with unframed. 

[image via Decorator Dozen]

Do #2: Feel Free to Use the Same Frame Color

To give your gallery wall a more crisp look you can use the same color frames. When using the same color you can do two different arrangements…1.) All the same shape in a more structured pattern, or 2.) Different shapes in a more loose and scattered pattern. 

[image via Elements of Style]

[image – yhl]

Do #3: The More the Merrier

When doing a gallery wall make sure you go all out. Don’t just stop at 3 pieces. Go big! Feel free to fill up an entire wall. It will make for a truly interesting conversation piece in your home. Don’t feel like you have to achieve this overnight though. You can start small, and then add on as you collect new pieces.

[image via Elements of Style]

[image via I Suwannee]

[image via Kentucky Mama]

Do #4: Mix and Match Art Styles

Combine abstract art and still lifes, portraits and line drawings, watercolors and Crayola masterpieces(…from the kiddos). They will all become one big happy family once they are hung together.

[i^mage]

[image – kate spade]

[image via Rusty Hinges]

Do #5: Have Fun! 

Gallery walls are the perfect way to tell a story about your life as well as let your personal style shine through. So, have fun with it. If the spacing between each piece isn’t exactly the same don’t sweat it. Add some quirky pieces in just for the fun of it.

[image – kate spade]

Designer Tips…

Here’s a great tip for creating your gallery wall. Arrange all of your artwork out on the floor prior to hanging. By arranging your artwork on the floor you can see how it all works together, and you can move pieces around to create that perfect arrangement.  It’s much easier than hanging the art on the wall and having to patch a lot of holes when you need to change the arrangement. 

Another tip that I got from John and Sherry is hanging newspaper on the wall in the shape of the artwork first to make sure you hang the arrangement in the correct location.  I used this technique when I hung the gallery wall in my son’s room and it worked wonderfully.

Happy Hanging!

LiveJournal Tags: gallery wall,kate spade,elements of style blog,art

falling in love again

I have always loved the used of stone, brick and flint stone in the traditional Normandy buildings but I haven't often seen such a beautiful example as this little château, currently up for sale.

This place must have been designed by a man in love and full of bubbling enthusiasm and admiration for the woman he adored !!  He made this château as pretty as possible with intricate designs in the brick work, a multitude of fancy  windows on the roof, carved stonework and a couple of asymmetrical towers, just for fun!

This black and white diamond design, is created using specially cut and split flint stones for the black, and local stone for the grey - the château may be 16th century, this sort of detail is still fashionable today! 

To create beautiful hand carved stonework like this over the main entrance, he would have employed the nomad craftsmen called 'les compagnons de France', who travelled around the country selling their expertise as they went.

In case I've got you dreaming, you might like to know that this pearl is up for sale for just under 800.000 euros.  It has 8 bedrooms and 10 hectares of land.  A beautiful family size château, I am totally under it's charm!  Inside there are fantastic fireplaces, wood clad walls and original window panes, I believe that  major restoration is required.

I love this monochromatic portrait,, framed by stunning stucco leaves and fruit, and more pretty patterns in the brick and stone walls.

Any takers?  I'd love to come and visit if you do buy it!

Perfection

I was about to list everything that is perfect about this kitchen from the copper hood to the leather stools. Then I realized I would literally list every. single. thing. from this picture ....

Blog Sponsor Giveaway: Shabby Fabrics

Last month we had a great new blog sponsor join The Cottage Home blog and I wanted to take this opportunity to introduce them.  Shabby Fabrics has a wonderful giveaway for you all today, so please welcome our newest sponsor..........

Here are a few words from Shabby Fabrics:

My name is Jennifer Bosworth, owner of Shabby Fabrics. I am honored to be a guest at The Cottage Home.  Thank you so much, Lindsay!

The Shabby Fabrics story begins here. All along while growing up, I loved arts and crafts with every ounce of my being. When it came time to choose a career and go to college, I figured I couldn't make a living crafting so I pursued an aeronautical degree and became an airline pilot. I would take my hand sewing with me on trips and stitch to my heart's content while laying over at various hotels.  The love of crafting never left me. 

The events of September 11, 2001 changed the entire world and definitely my own personal world in a very big way.  Soon thereafter the airlines began furloughing pilots. Both my husband (also a United pilot) and I found ourselves out of work with no health care, two children and a mortgage. These were indeed uncertain and scary times. All of the flying experience  I had accumulated over the last 20+ years suddenly meant nothing. No one was hiring pilots. I knew I would have to reinvent myself and awaken a skill set that I never even  knew I had.  After much prayer and contemplation, I felt God urging me to do something I loved and knew a great deal about already. After all, we needed to find work right away! I applied for a business license and  began selling a few fabrics on ebay. 

Ten years later, we are selling fabrics from our own website worldwide and loving every moment. There is no question that God is behind the success of Shabby Fabrics. I have a wonderful staff that I enjoy working with each day. Besides buying products and deciding which projects will becomes kits, block of the month, etc, I also design a line of quilt patterns called Shabby Exclusives. Some of our designs have been featured recently in McCalls magazine. When I think to the future of our company, I remind myself to remain flexible and attentive to God's word and plan. After all, He's the author of this great book.

Blessings to you all,
Jennifer

Thank you so much, Jennifer for sharing your story with all of the readers.  And now I wanted to share some of my favorite items from Shabby Fabrics........

 

I am a big fan of kits, so I love the two pictured above - Annie Basket Quilt Kit and Cupcake Cuties Kit.  You can find all sorts of quilt kits as well as purse, home accessories and more.  Kits are so convenient because you can have everything you need to complete a project delivered right to your door.  I'm planning on doing some kits to go along with The Cottage Mama Sewing Patterns in the future.

Are you thinking about Christmas yet?  It will be here before we all know it and I love the 12 Days of Christmas Collection.

You all know I'm not much of a quilter, but I just love the quilt pattern pictured above.  How perfect would this be for a wedding or anniversary gift?  LOVE it!

So now onto the giveaway........

Today Shabby Fabrics has an incredibly generous giveaway for The Cottage Home blog readers.  They are giving away one $50.00 gift certificate and two $25.00 gift certificates to be used in their shop.

To enter the giveaway, please do one or all of the following.  Leave a separate comment for each entry:

1) Visit Shabby Fabrics and let us know what your favorite item is in their shop (click HERE).

2) Sign up for the Shabby Fabrics Newsletter (click HERE).

3) Become a follower of the Shabby Fabrics Blog (click HERE).

Giveaway is open until October 4, 2011 at midnight (CST).

If you are interested in becoming a sponsor of The Cottage Home blog, please email Lindsay at thecottagemama [at]gmail[dot]com for rates and additional information.

4 Months

It’s hard to believe that today my favorite little man is 4 months old.  My how time flies and my heart grows.  Every day I fall deeper in love… 

**Photos by Angela Wilson Photography.

an amazing dress giveaway

When we get to a change of seasons do you open your wardrobe cupboards and sigh ... what to wear?  I find that a new dress really brightens me up.  The kind people over at Shabby Apple seem to have read our minds, and they want to spoil you, they are offering an amazing giveaway to my readers.  So let's see what you could choose from!

I love that the Shabby Apple collections are really fun and  fashionable yet easy to wear.  Their different cuts  mean that everyone can find something to suit them.

Their dresses are feminine and could be dressed up for special occasions or worn simply for those moments when you want to feel good and look fantastic without looking overdone.

They have some fun photo shoots, I'm loving this line called Oh La La , shot in Paris, or the Roamin Holiday collection shown in Rome.  I'm longing for a vespa at the moment, so I love these red vespa shots!

Shabby Apple's offer is most generous, the giveaway winner will choose a dress from any collection except for the Green Leaf.   To enter is easy,  just  pop over to their site and come back and tell me which dress you like best.

To get an extra entry share this giveaway on facebook or twitter and come back to tell me.  Bonne chance!

The giveaway is open until Friday 7 October - I'll draw a name and tell Shabby Apple which dress the winner would like to receive.  The giveaway is open to anyone, but if you live outside the States you'll have to cover postage.

Good luck and happy shopping!

The Cottage Mama Sewing Patterns

I am very pleased to announce the release of my first two printed sewing patterns!

Shortcake Reversible Romper and Dress

Janey Jumper

These two patterns have been a labor of love for me and I have been working them for the last four months or so.  I've learned a lot along the way in regards to publishing printed patterns and I'm looking forward to working on more in the future.  

So without further ado.....here are the first two The Cottage Mama Sewing Patterns:

 SHORTCAKE REVERSIBLE ROMPER AND DRESS:

Size 6 Month - Size 6

DESCRIPTION:

The Shortcake Reversible Romper and Dress is an adorable, quick-sew essential for your little one’s wardrobe.  The perfect coordinating look for sisters!  Both garments are fully reversible (two looks in one) and tie at the shoulder.  The dress can easily grow with your child by turning it into a top. Take these outfits from summer into fall by layering them with a long-sleeve shirt and pants/tights.  

Neither garment includes any buttonholes or zippers, so this pattern is a great introduction to sewing for a beginner and a fun pattern to play around with for a more advanced seamstress.

 
Shortcake Reversible Romper:

 Shortcake Reversible Dress:

The dress is designed to have a lot of swing to it, so it's really a fun piece for little girls to wear.  The final picture, with the ruffle front is a variation, is a look that I will eventually be demonstrating on the blog so you will be able to easily add that to your Shortcake Dress! 

The Shortcake Reversible Romper and Dress pattern has a color printed front and back cover and includes full-size printed pattern pieces in size 6 month through girls size 6 as well as pictured step-by-step instructions for completing the romper and the dress.  All sizes included in each pattern.

JANEY JUMPER:

Size 6 Month - Girls Size 10

DESCRIPTION:

The Janey Jumper is an A-line dress with a back-button, loop closure and is offered in three different design variations.  View A has a unique scallop detail down the front in two contrasting fabrics.  View B, the ruffle variation, adds a bit of whimsy to the traditional A-line dress.  And, View C, the patchwork variation, offers a fun way to use up scraps of fabric or charm squares.  Both View B and C give you the opportunity to use beautiful, unique trims. 

Neither garment includes any buttonholes or zippers, so this pattern is a great introduction to sewing for a beginner and a fun pattern to play around with for the more advanced seamstress.

Janey Jumper View A and B:

Janey Jumper View A - Scallop Variation:

Janey Jumper View B - Ruffle Front Variation:

Janey Jumper View C - Patchwork Variation:

So, as you can see there are many different design options with the Janey Jumper sewing pattern.  The jumper is designed to fall at the knee which is a perfect length for playing and running around.  For fall and winter, I would suggest layering this dress with a long-sleeved shirt and leggings or tights.  The 6 month size can also be used as the perfect matching little doll dress for a cabbage patch or other baby doll. 

The Janey Jumper pattern has a color printed front and back cover and includes printed pattern pieces in size 6 month through girls size 10 as well as pictured step-by-step instructions for completing the three different design variations.  All sizes included in each pattern.

Additional Information:

For right now I plan to do printed sewing patterns, but I may venture into a few PDF's on more simple designs further down the line.  Both of these patterns have very large pattern pieces and, believe me when I tell you, that you would not want to have to print these on your home computer and tape them together.

I'd like to give a special thanks to my design artist, Natalie Michalski of Moon Cookie Gallery.  Natalie designed the front and back cover art as well as several different graphics that are used in the instruction portion of the pattern.  We hope to collaborate on some projects in the future to combine her whimsical artwork with The Cottage Mama sewing design.  To view more of her original work and to order prints, please visit her website www.mooncookiegallery.com.

To purchase one or both of The Cottage Mama Sewing Patterns, please click "add to cart" below.  Or you can visit my online shop at www.thecottagemama.com.

Size 6 Month - Girls Size 6

$12.50

Size 6 Month - Girls Size 10

$12.50

For pattern wholesale inquiries, please email Lindsay at thecottagemama[at]gmail[dot]com for ordering minimums and additional information.