Family Rules, Sort of

All of this rain we have been getting is not helping me mark things off my project list! I have a GREAT dresser sitting in my garage, just waiting for the finishing touches. But, I can't work on it without it getting soaking wet. So, for at least the next few days I am going to have to settle for projects I can work on indoors!

Before I share a recent project I finished, let me just show you a little glimpse into life with my family! We went to have family pictures taken this weekend, in hopes of getting a FANTASTIC shot for Christmas cards. All I can say is "Thank Goodness" our photographer was a dear friend, because my children acted like they had never seen a camera before in their lives! I have no doubt that there will be some great shots to come out of the shoot, but this is the first one the photographer sent to me:

It TOTALLY sums up our day!

It's much funnier now than it was while we were there!

In the famous words of my mom..."We were making memories!"

Anyway, I show you this so that you will have no misconception that we are perfect. We are a normal family, with normal flaws. My kids fight. My house is messy more often than not. Sometimes we eat cereal for dinner and wear our pajamas all day. But, we are a family. And deep down, underneath all the chaos that is our life, we wouldn't want to be on this journey with anyone else.

In my process to redecorate my house, I am making conscious choices to surround myself with things I love! I have needlepoint that my grandmother made, art by my kids, furniture passed down from family. Nothing new is coming in unless I truly adore it. When I saw this sign a few months ago, I knew I wanted one!

It is so perfect! It sums up everything that we are as a family and everything that we strive to be.(I'm sorry I don't remember where I saw this! If it is yours please let me know so I can give you credit!)

Ever since I found this photo, I have been plotting my own take on this design. I have notoriously bad handwriting, even with a pen. So, I can't imagine how illegible it would be with a paint brush. Painting was OUT! I had to come up with a better plan.
Then I ran across this tutorial on how to make distressed canvases. Delia gives you step-by-step instructions. It was so easy and perfect for this project. (I already have plans for many more creations using this technique.)
So here is my finished project:

Luckily, I had a unfinished frame that a friend gave me! It was perfect! I painted and distressed it!

Just look how it all turned out:

I haven't hung it yet. I am waiting on few more projects to be finished so I can do a collage in my kitchen, but I will be sure and show you when I do.


I have added a new page to the blog. The "Where I Party" page will show you all the places I link my projects to, that way I don't have to post a button every time. Please go check out some of these other blogs. You will find tons of inspiration.

Thanks for stopping by