Tis the season...

I've found some time to make a few new goodies for my home this Christmas!  You know how you sometimes don't know what you're missing?  Well I've been missing creating with my hands.  Apparently. Because now I can't seem to find a stopping point!  The photography suffices to an extent, but I guess every now and then I just gotta get out the spray paint, scissors, ribbon, glue... :)

I'm foregoing tree skirts this year in favor of something simple and lovely.  I cut up a bunch of burlap and made these sacks for the bottoms of my trees instead, and tied them up with lace.  I'm having a mostly white Christmas this year, so it's just perfect.  Perfect and simple.

My husband finds it amusing that it takes me DAYS to get my house decorated for Christmas.  I find it therapeutic!  I gotta do something different every year, not necessarily with all new things, but I like to think of new ways to display things, and just tweak it from year to year.  It makes it so much more magical!  How about you?  How long does it take you to deck the halls?  Do you enjoy it, or is it a chore?  I'm guessing, since most of you love craftiness like myself, that we are all int he same boat. :)

P.S. I am still posting at Brown Paper Packages every other week!  This week we're talking about Christmas bokeh:

{Ah, that's nice... isn't it?}

Come see how to get the great Christmas bokeh at BPP... should be up tomorrow or Friday. :)

P.P.S. Let's see if I can blog twice this month!  I'm also working on an angel wings project... as I have been obsessed with wings lately!

Carnival Birthday Party

My Drewby is 7!!!  This year's party theme was "carnival"... so, so fun and full of possibilities.  Luckily, both Hobby Lobby and Party City have a party line of carnival themed items.  Plus I scored several items from Target's $1 spot for party favors.

I kept the decorations pretty simple...

The first thing kids wanted to do was play in the bouncy house we rented for the day:

This was the main attraction!  But we also played some fun old fashioned games.  We had a potato sack race and raced with plastic eggs on spoons.

The kids loved both games enough to play a few times each.

I also had a little photo area set up:

The kids came in and ate pizza, drank kool-aid and had cupcakes/cake.

Each guest took home a treat (circus peanuts or cotton candy in the plastic containers you see above) and a party favor that included these items from the $1 spot at Target:

Drew was one happy boy!  He had such a blast with his friends!

Giveaway winner! 3 Lads I need your EMAIL!

Sorry folks, I went out of town this weekend and just knew I'd forget to announce the winners last night! I know myself well apparently. Anyway, the 2 winners of the book and tights are 3 Lads and a Lass and One Fish (my cousin)! Congrats girls!!! 3 Lads and a Lass, I need your email address right away!!!

mama.musician.crafter@gmail.com

Razzle-Dazzle Ruby giveaway!!!

If you have a little girl age 4-8, then you are in for a treat.  2 My Many Colored Days readers will receive a copy of the book Razzle Dazzle Ruby and a pair of striped tights just like Ruby!

My official children's book reviewer (5 year old Sasha) and I found Ruby to be a very imaginative child, who like most little girls loves all things that sparkle, spin and twirl! The book is full of interactive pages that come alive with pull-tabs and picture wheels and colorful art that sparkles.  Sasha fell in love with Ruby right away and so will your child!

Here is a sneak peek into the book:

{Watch the video sneak peek!}

From the publisher:

About the book:

Ruby can make the ordinary extraordinary!  Come skate on a shimmering pond, roll a giant snowball, sled down a snowy hill, and create soaring snow angels with her as she becomes a snow queen and transforms a typical winter day into a gleaming-beaming fairy tale. Combining glorious watercolors, elegant paper engineering, and whimsical storytelling, this joyful novelty picture book is sure to enchant children and adults.

About the author:

Masha D’yans is an award-winning artist.  Her line of greeting cards, clothing, and home décor, featuring her alluring artwork, are sold at Target, Macy’s, Urban Outfitters, Nordstrom, as well as other major retailers and smaller specialty shops.  Originally from St. Petersburg, Russia, and classically trained at the St. Petersburg Academy of Art Lyceum and subsequently at Cooper Union in New York City, she now lives and works in Manhattan.  Razzle-Dazzle Ruby is her first book. Vist her at www.masha.com . 

For more, you can also visit www.razzledazzleruby.com!

HOW TO ENTER:

-leave a comment (1 entry)

-become a follower of this blog (1 entry)

-"like" Leilani Rogers, Photographer on Facebook HERE! (1 entry)
**be sure you leave a comment for each thing you do**

GOOD LUCK!  Winners will be announced Sat. evening, 7pm MST!

Painted Pumpkins and giveaway announcement!

Well - I did it.  I made myself sit down and make something this week.  Actually, I made a few things.  I've been missing my paint brushes, fabric and tulle (oh my!).

I hadn't painted pumpkins in a while.  And I needed something to do last week with my kiddos for family night.  You can see their pumpkins here (as part of my photography post at Brown Paper Packages).   My porch this year is predominantly black and white, so this is what I came up with for my own this year:

The striped one was easy... I just followed the lines of the pumpkin. For the chevron pattern I actually used electrical tape. Trying to decide if I think it looks good that way or if I should paint the pattern. The polka dots are painted. And the damask pattern I found on google images. I printed it out and copied it onto the pumpkin. All 3 pumpkins took me about 30 minutes to finish. And I used craft paint, which dries quickly. So it was a fast project.

Here's the rest of my porch... tutorial for the wreath coming up in a few days!

{Just love my big ole spider!!!}

One more thing - there will be a great giveaway here Tuesday!  Let's just say that if you have a little girl age 4-6 yrs. you are definitely going to want to enter!

See you then!