Superbowl Chocolate Covered Pretzels

This year's Superbowl was a big deal for me. Not only was my favorite team playing my boyfriend's favorite team, I need to make a dish that would impress some friends of his. I figured the best way to win over guy's hearts was with these delicious chocolate covered pretzels.

To make these pretzels I used:
-White Chocolate
-Dark Chocolate
-Light Purple Chocolate
-Dark Purple Chocolate
-Red Chocolate
-Red Non-Pareils Sprinkles
-Gold Sanding Sugar
-Purple Non-Pareils Sprinkles 

The 49ers didn't win, but these pretzels were hit with the guys, so I'm sure I'll be making more in the future!

Painted Letters L-O-V-E

Since I decided I was going with a Mardi Gras wreath on the outside, I felt the need to decorate the inside with Valentine's Day decorations. While I was at Jo-Anns shopping for my wreath supplies, I happened upon these paper-mache letters that were on sale. 

  
I picked up L-O-V-E and two bottles of paint. This was a super simple project and looked great on the mantle.

Mardi Gras Wreath

I love Mardi Gras. I love Louisiana. I love New Orleans. So, when it was time to put away the winter wreath and make a new one, I knew I had the perfect. A Valentine's Day wreath would be so typical, why not mix it up with a fun Mardi Gras wreath.

Up against a yellow door, this wreath looked gorgeous!

To make this wreath, here are some things you'll need:
-Wreath form (I used a straw one from Jo-Anns)
-2 Mardi Gras colored boas (Also purchased at Jo-Anns)
-Beads
-Gold Tulle
-Black Mask
-Gold Glitter Glue
-Hot Glue Gun

This is an upclose look when I was in the planning stages...

This turned out to be one of my favorite wreaths that I made. It was super festive and the only Mardi Gras wreath on the street.

2013 Glitter Candles

New Year's Eve is one of my favorite days of the year. It is the end of one adventure and beginning of a new one. This year, I was able to catch some midnight fireworks, and that made the night even more magical. As I counted down to midnight, I got crafty and made these 2013 Glitter candles based on a pin on Pinterest.

This is the original...

Original Instructions: http://www.celebrations.com/content/glitter-new-years-candles-decoration

This is how mine turned out...

To make these candles, you'll need:

4 Candles
Modge Podge
Sponge Brush
Glitter (I used Martha Stewart)
Some type of stencil..I cut out the number on paper and then taped them to the candle. Vinyl numbers would be another (and likely better) option

Here is a picture of in progress, along with a glimpse of the glitter that I used.

While the original ones were much cuter, I think mine turned out pretty well, and they were a fun decoration for the beginning of the year

Christmas Wreath

I loved the way my fall wreath turned out. So once November/December came, I knew I had to make another one. This one turned out great, and again it was under $20 to make!


Here it the wreath on the yellow door:

I was nervous what color would work well against the yellow the door, but the blue and silver worked perfectly.

I purchased the bare wreath at Hobby Lobby.
The other things that are in the wreath I purchased at a variety of stores (Hobby Lobby, Jo-Anns, Michaels, Target, and Dollar Tree)
-Small bulbs
-Silver Ribbon
-Blue Snowflake Ribbon
-Silver Bells
-Various silver and blue picks
-Hot Glue
-Floral Wire 

Here is an upclose look:

Ruffled Burlap Tree Skirt

I'm in the process of finishing up all of my Christmas decorations, and the tree skirt that I made might be my favorite thing that I have made. I had seen different versions of a ruffle tree skirt on Pinterest. The direction that mirrored were from The Johnston's blog. Her versions looked like this:

http://anwjohnston.blogspot.com/2011/10/diy-no-sew-ruffle-christmas-tree-skirt.html

 

These are the materials that I started with:

-2 yds of Red Metallic Burlap ($12.99/yd at Jo-Anns)

-2 yds of Brown Burlap ($3.99/yd at Jo-Anns)

-Cheap Tree Skirt (Purchased for $1)

-Glue Gun & Lot of hot glue sticks

 

I started in the middle of the circle to make sure I had enough burlap to do the whole tree skirt. Probably not the best method, as it led to a couple more burnt fingers than if I started at the edges.

Here is how it looked when I first started:

While I burnt a couple fingers and this project took a few hours to make, it looks gorgeous under my Christmas tree.

Here is the final product:

 

Crocheted Bow Headband

Recently I have been messing around with crochet headbands. Learning to crochet was apart of my overarching New Year's resolution to become a domesticated woman. Knowing that I would be attending a big Thanksgiving day parade, I decided to make a big, fun crocheted headband that I found on Pinterest.

Here is the inspiration from the people webs blog:

http://peoplewebs.blogspot.com/2010/11/bow-headband-tutorial.html

 

This is my version:

 I varied with her pattern in order to make it fit properly around my head, and for the bow to fit as well. It was super easy to make, and was fun to wear during the parade.