Pinterest.

I think I am obssessed with Pinterest!  Ok...  I know I am obssessed with it!

 What is Pinterest? 

It's a virtual pinboard/photoboard. 

A what?

A virtual pinboard that allows you to collect images and ideas that you've found online, then organize and share them with others.  The best thing is when you "Pin" a photo it links up to the original website where it was found, which comes in very handy for recipes and/or DIY crafts/projects. 

Why would I use this?

A lot of people use it for planning a special day... like a wedding, decorating their homes (me), recipes (also me), craft ideas (me again), fashion inspiration, etc...  the options are limitless.  Saving to Favorites on Internet Explorer just isn't as easy as Pinterest, trust me.

Here's an example of what I've been using it for...  gardening inspiration!

(For when we have a house that I can have my own garden...  never thought those words would ever come out of my mouth, I've always had a dislike for gardening, until recently, but I guess as we get older our interests change too...  OBVIOUSLY!)

Last question I'm sure you're asking yourself...  how can you be obssessed with a virtual pinboard?

OMG!  Because there are thousands of people using Pinterest daily and pinning amazing ideas/images to their boards, things that I never would have found without Pinterest. 

I've found many amazing ideas/tutorials for crafts like these adorable knit baby blanket and hats from Make it and Love it (a new FAVE blog of mine).

Get the tutorial here.

Or this tutorial for Double Potholders from A Little Gray...

And then there's the cool idea of storing your spices in glass baby jars like this...

From Frugal Decor Mom, get the tutorial here.

And if you combine that idea with this "recipe" for Custom Color Chalkboard Paint, from Martha Stewart herself, you have the perfect DIY storage project!

If you would like to join Pinterest please leave your email address in a comment below so that I can send you an invite, otherwise you can sign-up directly on their website and wait up to a week for your invitation to join, like I did.

Trust me you will LOVE this!!

Steph

{ Inspiration. Inspired. } Flowers.

Flowers can be inspiration for so many different occassions, weddings, birthday, bridal shower, baby shower, Valentine's Day...  you name it and it'll work.  I've found some wonderful ways to bring flowers to your cupcakes/cakes along with some decorating ideas, ENJOY!

CUPCAKES!

CAKE!

Courtesy of i am baker

Click here to get the tutorial!  BONUS... You can use the directions to make each rose on a cupcake and it will turn out like the white ones above!

INVITATIONS!

Courtesy of Libby Lane PRESS on Etsy

Courtesy of Good Frau on Etsy

Courtesy of marigold lane on Etsy

DECORATIONS!

Courtesy of Bright Bazaar

A complete tablescape for you to draw inspiration from...  I love the bold colors mixed with the dainty/simple/vintage floral touches.  Check out all of the details of this outdoor party here!

Courtesy of Bridesmaid.com

For a touch of whimsy how about a wall of hanging vases and flowers?!  Check out the complete post here!

Courtesy of Ruffled Blog

And last but not least, a floral tablerunner that you can make yourself, in the colors that you prefer, and it can be for everyday use (in my opinion)!  Inspiration here!

Ok... now I think I need to go buy a big bunch of beautiful flowers to decorate up the house since I don't have any parties to plan currently!! 

Until next time!

Love

Steph

{ My FAVES } Frosting.

The frosting makes the cake...  or cupcake in my case!  There are so many to choose from, there's buttercream (italian, french or the "original"/American that most people are familiar with), whipped cream, royal icing, vegan frosting, fondant, ganache, etc...  the options are endless.

Personally I prefer an icing that isn't overly sugary, otherwise I just scrape off the icing to enjoy the cake...  and that's what I've done for many years.  That was until I tried a cupcake from The Yellow Leaf Cupcake Co in Seattle, it was a Boston Cream Pie cupcake and it was delicious!  The next day I searched the internet for a hint as to what kind of frosting they use... it was a buttery, sweet frosting that I'd never had before, I had to know what type it was so that I could make it for my cupcakes!!  After a little searching I found my answer... ITALIAN BUTTERCREAM.  Next came finding a recipe for Italian buttercream and that's when I found Cake Journal, a wonderful blog about cake decorating, and the perfect recipe for Italian Meringue Buttercream also know as IMBC.

Picture courtesy of Cake Journal, IMBC.

You can find the recipe for this lucious, decadent fosting here.


Here are a couple of frostings that I've made and the recipes...

Mascarpone & Whipped Cream frosting { perfect for Tiramisu cupcakes }

Vegan Whipped frosting { courtesy of Chef Chloe, Cupcakes War award winning recipe }

Do you have a favorite frosting?  Maybe a favorite cake?



ENJOY!

Love,
Steph

Sewing room, yes please!

Just a short 7 weeks from now my family will be enjoying the single family residence lifestyle!  We are giving up on the apartment living and finding a house, more specifically a house with 3 bedrooms... and one of those 3 bedrooms will be my new sewing room (and the Prince's playroom)!

Lately I've been thinking about what I will need in my SEWING room (I just LOVE calling it that) and I drew the inspiration for my DREAM desk from here...

 

This beautiful desk is from Poppyseedliving, a wonderful shop on Etsy that I will have to draw my inspiration from because shipping any of their beautiful creations would just be too pricey (not to mention that they only allow local pickup/delivery).

Now for paint colors...  LOVE!

Sherwin Williams
SW6274 Destiny

Wall color

 { I've recently accepted that gray is my favorite color and what better time to use it! }

Sherwin Williams
SW6859 Feverish Pink

Sherwin Williams
SW6847 Ice Plant

Two options for refinishing the sewing desk I've yet to find.

Sherwin Williams
W6934 Rally Green

Carter' table

{ Since it's a sewing and playroom, I have to consider the table that Santa gave Carter for Christmas this last year...  another color I'm in LOVE with. }

And then the there's my chair...

Boss Segmented Mid Back Modern Office Chair 

Zuo Criss Cross Modern Desk Chair

Office Star White Eco Leather Mid Back Office Star Chair

So many to choose from, but one thing is for sure... it will be WHITE!  I think I'm leaning more towards the style of 1 and 3...  Any recommendations?

As I find more ideas and inspirations you can be sure I'll share them with you, and once we've moved in and had the time to put the room together I will be sharing details!

Wish me luck finding my sewing desk!

Until then,

Love Steph