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Fancy This Fridays #44 and a Winner!

September 30, 2011 9 Comments
Happy Friday sweet friends!!! 
It’s the LAST day of September! Where did it go ya’ll?!?
But guess what that means… I’ve got some fun things to share with you sweets today!!!
First. Tomorrow is OCTOBER. 
You might’ve gathered that from the above mention… heehee!
That means MY post as part of this….


Goes up TOMORROW!!! Hope you’ll stop by J&Ms Eye Candy to check it out!
I’m sharing another fun pumpkin treat!!!
And there may or may not be a giveaway involved…. Just sayin’… 😉


*******
October also means… Someone is celebrating a BIRTHDAY!!!
Yep, yep, that’d be muah!
So… 
Be sure to stop by on TUESDAY October 4th for a FUN birthday surprise!!! 😉


*******
Next, a new month means NEW sponsors! 
Since I got my Top Commentators widget to work this week, thanks to 
Mandy at Sugar Bee Crafts, 
I decided it would be fun to award my #1 commentator!
(It’s over there, on the left, very bottom of the sidebar!)
SO, Ami of AliLilly will get a FREE sponsor spot for October! 



We do have a few spots open still, so if you’re interested, check out the !


*******
Today I’m guest posting here:


If you haven’t checked them out yet, you definitely should! 

They’re a fun group of crafty ladies!!! :)

*******

AND one last thing before we get to Fancy This Fridays #44….


The WINNER of the LOVELY
from sweet Lacee of Mommas Like Me is….
Who is… 

CONGRATS KATIE!!!!
Just so happens that Katie is also THIS week’s Bloggie Bestie!!
Cool, right?!?! So be sure to check out her fun . 


You’ll be getting an email shortly!
If you don’t respond within in 48 hours, we’ll pick a new winner FYI.


Thanks to all who entered!
And welcome to all the lovelies following now from the giveaway!
It was a HUGE success!!!


*******


Now… Time to PARTY!!!

Fancy This Fridays Party Rules!!! 

1) Must be YOUR OWN project
 (Everyone’s been doing great at this one! Thanks all!)
2) Must be linked to that project’s specific post within your blog,
not the blog itself
3) Grab our party button so others can party too!
(Put it on your sidebar, on your post, on a linky party page… anywhere visible to readers on your blog… that would be lovely of you!)
4) Share some linky love with the other participants, by visiting and commenting on their projects as well! We ALL love comments!!
(And it would be SUPER COOL of you to say your stopping by from the Truly Lovely or Fancy This Fridays link up!)



Thanks to all for linking with us here at Truly Lovely! 
AND Happy ALMOST October! 😉

Thanks for reading Truly Lovely!!! Like us on Facebook here: http://www.facebook.com/TrulyLovelyBlog
Filed Under: Fancy This Fridays, Giveaways, Sponsor Spotlight

Bloggie Bestie Blog Swap with Katie from Punkin’ Heads and Dooda Loos

September 29, 2011 4 Comments
Happy Thursday friends!!!
Today we have a fun NEW Bloggie Bestie!!!
Katie from Punkin’ Heads and Dooda Loos!
She’s got a SUPER cute Halloween craft to share with us today! 
I’m over at her place sharing my Fall wreath, when you’re done here, FYI! :)

Here’s Katie….


Hello, Hello!
I’m psyched to be hanging out over here at Truly Lovely for Bloggie Besties!
Kassi was so nice to invite me on over.You can find her over at my blog today sharing her Fall Monogram Wreath.Which I LOVE. It’s definitely going on my “to-do” list.{I even have the rope!! You’ll see what I mean when you head over there.}

I was going to pop in a more recent picture of my family and I,
but I figured I’d toss up this little number, taken last September.
It’s a little more “fall-ish”. And since I’m going to share a Halloween tutorial
I figured it was more fitting than us sporting our summer duds.
So, now that the formalities are over with,  let’s start getting crafty!
Since I have a two year old, and I’m THAT Mom….
{you know, that Mom that puts all sort of funky things in their kids hair?}
I thought I’d share with you an easy Ribbon Ghost Clippie.

The kiddo wasn’t available to model,
so my spooky black bird volunteered to do the job!
To make this cute little Girly Ghost you’ll need:

Hot Glue Gun
5″ piece of white grosgrain ribbon {I used 3/8 inch ribbon}two 2″ pieces of white grosgrain ribbon1″ piece of white grosgrain ribbon1 piece of orange grosgrain, about an inch1 piece of black grosgrain, about 1.5 inches.Fray Check or a candle to heat seal the ribbonWiggly EyesPin or Clip**please note, lengths of ribbon are an estimate, make it whatever size you’d like!

Using the 5″ length of ribbon make a 90 degree fold
2 inches from the end.
Use a dab of glue inside the fold to hold in place.

Measure across about 1/2 an inch from the first fold
and make a second fold, glue in place.
Don’t worry if your ends aren’t the same length,
the measurements are an estimate and at the end we will trim them up.

Use the 1″ piece of ribbon and glue it to both “legs” to form an A.
This helps stabilize the body of the ghost.

Glue on the 2″ pieces in the center, attaching with glue at the top
AND to the stabilizing piece in the middle.

Trim the top of the ghost, and the bottom.
At this point you can also trim and “notch” the bottom of each piece.
Be sure to apply Fray Check, OR heat seal the ends of the ribbon over a candle.

To make the bow – take the black ribbon and
fold the two ends back and meet them in the middle.
Glue in place.

Lay the orange ribbon in the middle of the black to for a “t”.
Glue in place.

Trim the ends of the orange and wrap them around back.
Glue in place.

Glue the bow to the head of the ghost.
I like to make mine a little crooked for character.
Now you have a choice…pin or clippie?


I made mine a clip.
I wrapped the clip in ribbon for a more finished look.

Last but not least! Glue on the eyes, and attach to the clip!
BOO!!! 


The black bird did need a little sprucing up :)

Want to make the picture in the background with your kiddo?
Check it out here! It was lots of fun.
I had a great time hanging out over here at Truly Lovely today, and I hope you enjoyed it too.
See you all soon!
xoxo

Katie


How cute is that little Ghostie!!! Thanks SO much to Katie for sharing her little lovely with us today! AND for being this week’s Bloggie Bestie!!!
LOVE their family picture, don’t you!?! I’m kinda partial to other horse people… 😉


Don’t forget, TODAY is the last day to enter for a lovely bracelet!!!
Winner announced tomorrow! 


Have a lovely Thursday friends!!!


Thanks for reading Truly Lovely!!! Like us on Facebook here: http://www.facebook.com/TrulyLovelyBlog
Filed Under: Bloggie Bestie

Ruffled Fleece Pillow Cover

September 28, 2011 4 Comments
Hello friends! :)
Remember for my wedding I made my bridesmaids ?
Well, I have about a yard or so of material left from almost every one… 
So I made a pillow for Kayli to match her paisley fleece blanket!! 

To start with, I based my pillow cover loosely on this tutorial from Jen at Tatertots & Jello. 
A I’ve had saved for a long time, mind you! 😉

So in the interest of full disclosure… This is NOT a good tutorial. 
This isn’t even really a tutorial… BUT there is a good tip for you at the end… 
So stick with me! 😉
This was my very first pillow cover ever! 
If you want a good tutorial on how to make an envelope pillow cover check out that link up there from Jen!

Moving on…

My pillow form was a 12″ by 14″ purchased from Wal-Mart, so I cut my front piece with an extra inch to allow for sewing, so 13″ by 15″. 
The two back pieces (to make the envelope) were each cut a little larger to form the overlap of the envelope. 


Then I cut two, two inch wide strips, about 30 inches long to make the ruffles. 


As per Kayli’s suggestion… 
To create the ruffles, I sewed a top stitch all the way across the top of one side of each strip.
Then gently pulled the bottom thread of the stitch to bunch the material. 
They’ll look like so…


Then you just sew your panels together inside out, flip them around and sew on the ruffles! 


Viola! Fun, ruffled, fleece pillow cover! :)


So ready for some more full disclosure?
See how I purposefully made that top ruffle a little crooked for that eclectic look everyone’s been talking about? Well that’s a fib. My sewing skills failed me dear friends… 
And the COMPLETE crooked-ness that were happened on accident. 
Granted it wasn’t that crooked when I started, but check it out… 
I went with it. Sometimes you just gotta make it work. 


And sometimes… 
You just gotta listen to your sister saying, “I like it… the way it is” and roll with it!
You never know… Might even like it better that way anyway. 😉

Linking this here and here and .
Thanks for reading Truly Lovely!!! Like us on Facebook here: http://www.facebook.com/TrulyLovelyBlog
Filed Under: Crafts, Kayli, Sewing

7 Creative Ways to Use Your Scarves {Guest Post}

September 27, 2011 3 Comments
Since it’s the first actual week of the Fall season, we have a FUN guest poster with us today to celebrate!
Meet Stacie! She’s going to share some fun new ideas for using all those Fall Scarves you’ve gathered over the years, around the HOUSE!
Besides wearing of course! 😉
Here’s Stacie!!!
____________________________

Hello! I am Stacie, and I am so excited to be posting for Kassi today. I am a new writer for Scarves.net and I have a few tips to share on some versatile uses for scarves that you may not have thought of. :)

7 Creative Ways to Use Your Scarves

When it comes to decorating, I’ve always been resourceful. I use a pair of deer antlers as a necklace holder. I stack suitcases to hold all the things I don’t use very often.

But one of my favorite things to upcycle and reuse are scarves.
Scarves are so appealing to me mostly because of their prints—a lot of times they are little works of art. By thinking outside of that *ahem, scarf box, you can turn your unused accessories into an eye-popping piece of home décor.

1. Table Runner. Drape a clean, long, rectangular scarf over a dining table length-wise.

2. Throw Pillows. Fold a scarf to a pillow-size and shape, and use color-coordinating needle and thread to hand-stitch a throw pillow cover. For those who are sewing-challenged, you can simply wrap the pillow for an equally chic effect.

3. Quilt. Sew old scarves together to create a useful and colorful blanket.

4. Wall Art. In an interesting frame, showcase a smaller scarf or a section of a larger scarf. I found this scarf at an antique fair and I just thought it was the cutest thing. I didn’t want to hide it in a drawer only to be worn occasionally, so I framed it!

Scarf Art

 5. Curtain Valance. Display a colorful scarf as a unique window valance

6. Drapery. Simply tack together some scarves to make a unique curtain between rooms. Thrift stores are a great place to find vintage scarves for really low prices.

Scarf Curtain

7. Liner. Use a scarf to line your jewelry box. This works well for scarves with holes or stains.

How to Store Scarves

Hopefully these tips will help you turn your scarf into a multipurpose work of art! Thanks again to Kassi for letting me write a post, she is a truly wonderful blogger. :)

____________________________

Stacie Grissom is a writer for Scarves.net where she writes about everything from how to clean a scarf to 37 ways to tie a scarf. In her free time, she loves to work on her DIY blog, run, and take lots of photos with her collection of old cameras.

THANKS STACIE!!! 

Those are some lovely ideas for making good use of that scarf collection!
What about you lovelies! Do you multipurpose your scarves?
Filed Under: Guest Posts, Home Decor

Fancy This Features #43

September 26, 2011 3 Comments
It’s the last week of September! Holy smokes another month almost gone! 
And another week of Fancy This Fridays past!
We had an AMAZING 55 link ups this week ya’ll!!!

The Halloween posts are out in full force, delish fall recipes are making their debut, and just a whole lot of fanciness happening all around! :)

Real quick we wanna say THANKS to everyone who links up and grabs a button!
It’s always a treat to happen upon a lovely blog with the Fancy This Fridays button on their sidebar. :)

Let’s get to this week’s features from the !! 

First up… In the spirit of Halloween coming up soon… 
I am LOVING this fun Halloween tutu wreath linked up from Miss Ami over at AliLilly! 
It’s a unique Halloween decoration, it’s a sentimental keepsake… It’s perfect! :)


Next a tasty treat linked up from Anita over at the Rhinestone Beagle… 
Yummy blueberry streusel!! I love blueberry muffins, so this looks right up my alley!!!
And the perfect breakfast for a Fall morning!!


And finally check out this GORGEOUS dresser makeover from Amy at The Salvage Collection!
She linked up a couple LOVELY furniture makeovers this week! 
But this one was my fave!


Here’s a Featured on Truly Lovely button for you dolls up above!
Also, there were a few features on Friday over on our . 
If you were featured there, feel free to grab a button as well! :)

 

Can’t wait to see what you all link up next week for the first Fancy This Fridays of October! :) 
And did you know… My birthday is October 4th! 
So look for something fun next week as well! 

Have a great week lovelies!!!


P.S. We’re looking for fun, new October sponsors!!! 
! 😉
Thanks for reading Truly Lovely!!! Like us on Facebook here: http://www.facebook.com/TrulyLovelyBlog
Filed Under: Fancy This Fridays, Features

Sponsor Truly Lovely in October

September 24, 2011 1 Comment

We would be THRILLED to have you!!! :)
For the details check out ! 

AND
Thanks for reading Truly Lovely!!! Like us on Facebook here: http://www.facebook.com/TrulyLovelyBlog
Filed Under: Sponsor Spotlight, Truly Lovely Announcements

Fancy This Fridays #43

September 23, 2011 9 Comments
Well Happy AUTUMN lovelies!!!

***
In the spirit of a new season… We have an announcement… 
Did you notice anything new?

Go ahead… Look around… We’ll wait. 
If you follow us on , or you might have seen the news already…
Hmm… Still looking? Or did you spot it???

That’s right all! We have our very OWN domain name!!!
Now instead of having the LONGEST domain name in the world…. 
That’s an exaggeration, but it’s pretty long… 
www.trulylovelyblog.com
It’s now short and sweet and easy to remember!
www.trulylovelyblog.com

HUGE thank you to the ladies over at Crafterminds for sharing the how to. 
It’s really SUPER easy! Much easier than I had ever thought it would be!!!
 You can find the if YOU’d like your own domain!
Oh… and FYI… It’s only $10!!!!! Yep, do it. 

Ok! Now for the first Fancy This Fridays of Autumn! 
What have you been working on??? We wanna see!! 

Fancy This Fridays Party Rules!!! 

1) Must be YOUR OWN project
 (Everyone’s been doing great at this one! Thanks all!)
2) Must be linked to that project’s specific post within your blog,
not the blog itself
3) Grab our party button so others can party too!
(Put it on your sidebar, on your post, on a linky party page… anywhere visible to readers on your blog… that would be lovely of you!)
4) Share some linky love with the other participants, by visiting and commenting on their projects as well! 
We ALL love comments!!
(And it would be SUPER COOL of you to say your stopping by from the 
Truly Lovely or Fancy This Fridays link up!)




OH!! And before you rush off to your next Friday linky party… 
Don’t forget to ENTER the from 
Mommas Like Me! :)

Have a lovely first weekend of Fall!!!

Thanks for reading Truly Lovely!!! Like us on Facebook here: http://www.facebook.com/TrulyLovelyBlog
Filed Under: Fancy This Fridays, Holidays, Truly Lovely Announcements

Bloggie Bestie Blog Swap with Lacee from Mommas Like Me (GIVEAWAY!)

September 22, 2011 73 Comments

Happy Thursday Dolls!!
Let’s WELCOME a new Bloggie Bestie of the week!
Lacee of Mommas Like Me!!!
Lacee is the ULTIMATE sweetheart and one amazing lady!!!
She even has an AWESOME lovely to giveaway today!!
So be sure to enter and leave her some bloggie love! 
I’m over at her place today FYI! 😉

Here’s Lacee!

Hello there all you lovelies! I am so excited to be here guest posting on Truly Lovely! I was completely honored when sweet Kassi asked me to be a bloggie bestie. *blush* Isn’t she just a doll?

Allow me to introduce myself… My name is Lacee and I’m a 29 year old stay-at-home momma, wife and newbie blogger. My son Carter is 5 and is the apple of my eye. Although there are some days when he drives me completely nuts {like THIS} he’s a definite keeper. My hubby Josh and I just celebrated our 10 year anniversary! I am so very blessed to be married to such a wonderful man and incredible father to our son. He’s a keeper too 😉 


As for blogging, I’ve been doing it for only about 3 months now but I absolutely love it. I started my blog, Mommas Like Me, based on the idea that “us mommas need to stick together.” I really do believe that. Motherhood is a tough journey, and there is nothing more comforting than knowing that others can relate to what you are going through.
And that you are not alone.

Through my blog I hope to inspire, encourage and support other mommas and bring mommas from everywhere together. If you visit Mommas Like Me you’ll also see that I blog about a lot of other things as well; recipes {especially desserts!}, craft tutorials, coping with the loss of both my parents, and whatever else happens to be on mind. So I hope you’ll take a minute or two to stop by and say Hi! I would love to get to know you better and make some new friends!

Now on to the real story…

A few weeks ago, I was having “one of those days.” You know, the kind where you just feel completely overwhelmed by EVERYTHING. Negativity set in and I started dwelling on all that I’m not, and all I don’t have…
This blogging thing will never work. Maybe I should just quit. I’ll never be as good as “her.”
I wish my parents were still here. I miss them. I still needed them.
Why did I miscarry my first pregnancy? Is it my fault? Could I have done anything differently?
I haven’t been to the gym in so long. I’m starting to put on weight again and feel like a frump.
Are we going to be able to pay all our bills this month?
Am I letting my son and my husband down?
Am I failing?
Am I a good enough mom? Wife?
Am I a good enough ME?

By this time I’m in tears. I sit down at the computer. The screen in black. I shake the mouse to wake it up. On my screen appears my “words” board on Pinterest. Little words of encouragement that I’ve pinned for when I need them the most. Things like…


I cry even more, but start to feel a little better. I then open up my email to check out the latest GroopDealz {a good deal always brightens my day}. This bracelet appears on my screen…


Bracelet is from Hope of My Heart Designs. Click HERE to visit their website.
In that very moment, those two little words, “so blessed,” completely changed my day and my attitude. It reminded me that I have SO MUCH to be thankful for…
My beautiful, healthy family who loves me for who I am.
Having had amazing parents who taught me so much and always showed me unconditional love.
Friends who have been there for me through the best of times and the worst and who still continue to support me.
The new friends that I have made through my blog who continue to support it and encourage me with their words.
My body, though not perfect, enables me to take care of the ones I love and pursue my passions.
My faith and the fact that even at my worst, God always sees the best in me.

I had to have this bracelet. It was meant to be. I wanted it to serve as a reminder for me. So that the next time Negative Nelly rears her ugly head I can look at it and remember that I am indeed… 
“SO BLESSED”

So because I believe in sharing the things that I love and the things that inspire me, I am going to be GIVING AWAY one of these bracelets to one Truly Lovely reader! My hope is that you’ll wear it and remember all the ways that you are blessed too.

Here’s how to enter:

*Must be a GFC follower of Truly Lovely
*Must be a GFC follower of Mommas Like Me
Extra entires:
*Like  on fb
*Like  on fb
*Share this giveaway on your fb page

That’s 5 possible entries.
Please leave a separate comment for each thing you do on this post.


*The WINNER will be drawn a week from TODAY! 
And announced on Friday the 30th!! :)

A big thank you again to Kassi for letting me post here today! 
I hope to see you all over at Mommas Like Me!


xoxo
Lacee


Well there you have it! Told you she was fabulous!! :)
I would LOVE to have a pretty reminder like that, wouldn’t you!
Well, enter up then! haha! 
Thanks to Lacee for being this week’s Bloggie Bestie and for offering such a lovely to Truly Lovely readers! 


Thanks for reading Truly Lovely!!! Like us on Facebook here: http://www.facebook.com/TrulyLovelyBlog
Filed Under: Bloggie Bestie, Giveaways

Vinyl + Tile = Booth Sign

September 21, 2011 9 Comments
Remember in having a Scentsy Booth at the County Fair?
Well, here’s a quick little lovely I crafted up to display at my booth. 


Materials needed:
A tile from my local Home Depot (they cost less than $1)
Purple Krylon spray paint
White vinyl 
(Did you know the vinyl you can purchase at Wal-Mart for the Cricket machine works just lovely in the Silhouette SD? You just gotta trim it down to size.)
And a small tabletop easel

I spray painted the white tile with a couple of coats of the purple paint. 
(Purple for Scentsy of course)
Cut out the wording in the white vinyl using my Silhouette SD.


Then using transfer paper applied the lettering to the tile. 


By the way, if you’re interested in hosting a Scenty Catalog/Online party to earn FREE Scentsy products, let me know! We can ship all over the U.S. and Canada, so you can host a party anywhere!

See the sign? There toward the left corner of the picture.
And speaking of the County Fair… 
How cute is my niece, Taylor, showing her VERY first lamb! 
She won THIRD place in the fair and was able to sell her lamb at the auction. 
We were all VERY proud of her! 


Well done Miss TayTay!!! 

Have a lovely day friends!!!

Thanks for reading Truly Lovely!!! Like us on Facebook here: http://www.facebook.com/TrulyLovelyBlog
Filed Under: Crafts, Tutorials Tagged With: , Tile,

A-Z of Kassi – What’s yours?

September 20, 2011 7 Comments
Let’s try something fun today! 
Here’s a little bit more about me (Kassi)! 
Then, when you’ve read through, or not, haha, we wanna know more about YOU! So link up your A-Z at the bottom of the post! :)


A. Age: 20-something… heehee! My birthday is next month!

B. Bed size: Queen. We’ve had really bad luck with bed frames… Both the ones we had/have were hand me downs… It’s time for a new one. 
C. Chore that you hate: Folding white clothes… matching socks is the devil… haha
D. Dogs: A mini Aussie named Penny. She’ll be 5 years old the day before my birthday! 😉 and a mini Aussie/Shelty mix named Pandy. She’ll be 3 in December. 



E. Essential start to your day: A good cup of coffee with Cinnamon Vanilla or (in the fall) Pumpkin Spice creamer!
F. Favorite color: Currently it’s turquoise. 
G. Gold or Silver: Silver. Absolutely. 
H. Height: 5’8″ I was always considered one of the taller girls… The hubs is 6’4″ and wanted me to wear heels so I didn’t look so short next to him at our wedding… haha. 
I. Instruments you play: I took piano lessons as a kiddo, but all I can really remember is ‘Mary Had a Little Lamb’… And I played clarinet in high school concert and marching band. You read that right… I was a band geek. 😉


*** FYI – This is a clarinet…. bahaha!

J. Job title: Marketing Director for a small software company
K. Kids: Someday. 
L. Live: Arizona
M. Mother’s name: Lillie. Hi Mom! She does read this sometimes I think…
N. Nicknames: Kassarie. It’s a combo of Kassi and Marie. Thus the twitter handle @kassarie. My family has always called me that. 
O. Overnight hospital stays: Only a couple times that I stayed there with my Granny. Never for me… Knock on wood. 
P. Pet peeves: Someone trying to take credit for something they didn’t do or deserve. 
Q. Quote from a movie: “I didn’t come here to tell you that I can’t live without you. I can live without you. I just don’t want to.” ~Name that movie, huh??? 😉
R. Right or left handed: Righty
S. Siblings: An older brother, Toby. Younger brother Brent… and of course Miss Kayli! :)


Brent, The Hubs, Me, Mom, Dad, Toby, Kayli

U. Underwear: Yes. Really… what do you say to that?
V. Vegetable you hate: Peas. Not a favorite. 
W. What makes you run late: Forgetting something in the house and having to back in to get it.
X. X-Rays you’ve had: Just at the dentist. Again, knock on wood. 
Y. Yummy food that you make: Hmm… I like to think I make lots of yummy things. The hubs might beg to differ though… haha. 
Z. Zoo animal: Zebra! Hands down!

Now it’s your turn! It can be a new post, or an old post! 
The link up will be open for over a week if you want to write one in the next few days… 
Have a great week friends!!!


Thanks for reading Truly Lovely!!! Like us on Facebook here: http://www.facebook.com/TrulyLovelyBlog
Filed Under: Kassi Tagged With: Penny and Pandy
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