Surprise Birthday Decor

My big sis is turning the big 3-0 this Saturday.  And to celebrate her big day she and her husband are throwing it at her favorite sushi restaurant, Tank Sushi in the city!  It's a really quaint, fun atmosphere located in Logan Square.  And as a surprise to her I wanted to decorate the room that they have reserved for dinner.  I called the restaurant this morning and they said it would be fine to come in early to decorate the room.  So I have lots to do this week!!  I've put together an inspiration board for the party and will use this as a guide.  I love the pink and yellow color pallette!  I can't wait to get started!  And I can't wait to see her smile when she walks in! Wish me luck :)

 

Photos by Creature Comforts and Martha Stewart

Oh,Deer

Do you have friends and/or family members who call December their birthday month?
Another gift to add to the list, right? I of all people really understand the frustrations that come along with having a birthday during the busiest time of the year, but can you top being born on the day after Christmas? I sure can, because I am one of them! On the day when most people are recovering from holiday travel, overindulgence of all sorts and or just want to hit the stores to stock up on after holiday merch- it's hard to get people to come out and celebrate your birthday.
But for the past several years I've spent the most memorable birthdays with the people that know me the best. Last year we met up for breakfast and then went ice skating at Millennium Park. If there's enough snow this year, I'd like to go sledding!

Anyways, I digress. Like I've mentioned before I'm making all my gifts this year and birthday gifts are no exception ;) So I thought it would be fun for me to share a gift I completed recently for my awesome stylist/graphic designer friend Jill. She's not very internet crazy (I don't even think she knows I have a blog), so I know I will not spoil the surprise for her. I've been craving to make one of these deer head silhouettes that I've been eyeing all over blog land. But I also know that this would be right up Jill's alley too. They are so easy to make that I even made one for myself. So here is a quick tutorial on how to make your own.

Start out by finding an image of a deer head. Print and cut it out. Next select the paper you wish to cut it out on. For mine I used wood grain contact paper I had on hand but for Jill's I decided to go with something a bit more girly. I used a sheet of Martha Stewart craft paper.


With an exacto knife carefully cut around your template and use craft glue to adhere to your frame of choice.

To finish off my deer I mounted it onto a piece of light gray fabric and placed it in an old wood frame. I cleared out a good spot to hang it using these, next to some old black and whites from the good ol'college darkroom days.


For Jill's, I mounted her cutout onto the same light gray fabric and framed it in a faux wood sewing hoop I found at the local thrift shop. I hope she likes it almost as much as I enjoyed making it for her.

Happy winterful Friday to you! Stay tuned next week for more budget friendly DIY's and a guest post over at this awesome ladies blog :)

Loving: Alphabet Letter Freebie

The lovely duo behind Two Brunettes have fun Alphabet banner letters for you to download over at the Ruffled blog. Simply download each letter, print, punch holes on each corner and hang with twine or ribbon. Oh, and it even includes a heart to us as a space! I plan on making one for my nieces 9th Birthday coming up in June, she'll love it almost as much as I'll enjoy putting it together for her. Enjoy!

{ Birthday Wishes }

Happy Friday to all today! It's been a long week, even though I just got back. Funny how that works sometimes. I need time to unwind from all the time I spent....um...unwinding ;) Tonight I'm getting together with family to wish the sweetest boy (who just happens to be my nephew), a happy 6th birthday! Love you Sammy B!
Have a lovely weekend!