Two Fall DIY Decor Projects

I finished two fall decor projects and they turned out so pretty... I had to share them with you!

My first project is PINK SUNFLOWER CENTERPIECE.

This project was due to  my current obsession with pink sunflowers. I love how they look combined with the teal flowers and wooden bucket.

My second project is OMBRE PUMPKIN DISPLAY.

I wanted to add something to sit on top of my entertainment shelves for fall. These small pumpkins in ombre colors- white to pink to peach- look amazing on there.

I will give you the step-by-step to each project, along with some pictures. All my supplies were bought at Michael's craft store, though this is NOT an ad or sponsored.

Hope you give it a try!

PINK SUNFLOWER CENTERPIECE

WHAT YOU NEED:

-2 PINK SUNFLOWERS

-2 BRANCHES OF TEAL FLOWERS

-1 SPRIG OF YELLOW WHEAT

-1 BRANCH OF RASPBERRY COLORED HYDRANGEAS

-1 WOODEN BUCKET

-GARDEN SHEARS

-GREEN FOAM SQUARE FOR FLOWER ARRANGING (OPTIONAL)

I loved how these wooden buckets had copper on them!!

STEPS:

1. Measure the sunflowers and branches so that the blooms reach an inch above the top of the bucket.

2. Use your garden shears to create a mark where the stems need to be cut.

3. Bend the stems carefully back and forth on the mark until they break off.

4. Continue trimming the stems in this manner until they are all the same size.

5. Place them in the bucket together into a nice arrangement. Or put the foam square at the bottom of the bucket and push the stems into a nice arrangement.

OMBRE PUMPKIN DISPLAY

WHAT YOU NEED:

-6 PLASTIC PUMPKINS, SMALL/MEDIUM PREFERRED

-ACRYLIC PAINTS: WHITE, PINK POLISH & FLAMINGO CORAL

-PAINT TRAY & SOFT, FLAT PAINTBRUSH

-LARGE OLD TOWEL TO COVER WORKSPACE & DRY PUMPKINS

STEPS:

1. Lay an old towel to cover your workspace.

2. Lay out your pumpkins on the towel. (Think about what order you want to paint them in.)

3. Get your paint tray and paint brush ready.

4. Paint your FIRST pumpkin white.

5. Add a dab of pink to your white paint, stir & paint your SECOND pumpkin.

6. Paint your THIRD pumpkin pink only.

7. Add a dab of coral to your pink paint, stir & paint your FOURTH pumpkin.

8. Add a second dab of coral to your pink paint, stir & paint your FIFTH pumpkin.

9. Paint your SIXTH pumpkin coral only.

10. Leave pumpkins to dry overnight. (Last thing you want is paint all over your furniture!)

IMPORTANT: Paint the bottom of the pumpkin first, and then brush in upwards, feathery motion. This will create nice, wispy brushstrokes. Making the pumpkins look more natural. Be sure you look over your pumpkin to make sure the paint is going in a clean, upwards motion... this because your brushstrokes will be visible upon drying. 

Finished drying...

I absolutely love it!!!

My living room looks all ready for fall! Love the little touches of pink and peach.

Happy Fall Crafting!

xoxo, Arianne

The Girls' Room

My sweet girls' room!!! I have decorated and fixed up a lot of rooms before, but I must say this one is my absolute favorite! I am sharing over 20 photos and all the little details that went into their room. There is still a couple of things happening soon to the room like a new bed in the fall. But for now, let me tell how I created this vintage boho bedroom!

First off, let's talk about this wallpaper! LOVE, love, love!!! I had dreams about this wallpaper. It is an aqua color with pinkish-peach floral pattern on it. We got it from Home Depot. It was actually lost in the mail for a couple days, so it felt like Christmas when it finally showed up. It was the perfect balance to our 'tropical fruit' Behr paint on the rest of the walls.

I only did the wallpaper on the section beside the bed, because I wanted it to be the focal point of the room and also to make the room appear bigger. Cool trick, huh?!

I created this sweet corner for my youngest. Here she can write, do her arts n' crafts, have a tea party or draw on her chalk board. 

I added this vintage style birdhouse and garland to give the space more character. The garland I made from vintage fabrics that I tore into strips and tied to some twine.

The tin bucket on the floor holds books for my youngest. I placed the shelf a little high on the wall, because later this month my daughter will be getting a wooden kitchen set and then her wooden dollhouse will go here on top of the chest...shhh, it's a birthday present! ;)

We are lucky enough to be blessed with an original Peter Rabbit book box set. So I wanted the shelf to be decorated around the book set. We found a Peter Rabbit tin box in the thrift shop. As well as the two ceramic bunnies...love their floral necklaces! I added the wooden hearts my oldest made in shop class and a vase with a rose for the final touches.

This is my favorite part of the room. I created this corner for my oldest. She can sit here to read, listen to her music or have some alone time. I purposely put her vanity desk and chair on this side of the room. That way this is her side of the room and her younger sister won't be 'coming through' making a mess and touching her stuff.

I made this canopy myself using a vintage embroidery hoop and vintage lace curtain. I inserted the top of the curtain inside the embroidery hoop, then carefully inserted the lace ribbon to hang it from the ceiling. Then I when all was in place, I tightened the hoop. 

I found the wooden candle holders, the wooden flower pictures and the wooden basket all in the thrift store. The wooden basket holds chapter books for my oldest. The vintage lamp was a Christmas present from my in-laws, but it was also a thrift store find.

The glass jar chandelier was a hanging candle holder I found in Market Basket that I added crystal beads to the bottom. I found the beads in Wal-mart and used clear thread to sew them onto the bottom of the jar. I love how it sparkles in the sunshine!

My oldest' vanity desk was found at the Christmas Tree Shop on clearance. I added mirrors and glass bowls and vases to give the desk that extra shine and magic. The butterfly painting above was painted by me and was happy that it matched perfectly in the room!

As a mother, I have been more aware of having too much plastic in the house. I went through the kids toys and got rid of most (not all) of the plastic toys. Not only does the room look nicer with no plastic, but I can rest easy knowing that most of their toys are natural materials.

My oldest daughter and I came up with this cool invention. We needed a place for our jewelry and we didn't want to add more furniture. So we came up with this bohemian style jewelry storage idea.

We took this shelf and added big mason jars to it. Inside we put all our earrings and watches. Then we hung our bracelets on the hooks.

Below that we added this bohemian wooden arrow sign with hooks. It was the perfect place to hang all of our necklaces. It's both practical and pretty!

So happy my pretty girls love their room! I was glad I could figure out a theme that fit them both. There is a big age gap between them and I wanted to make sure they both liked it. The room is now simple, pretty and a welcoming place for them both. Peach walls, floral wallpaper, vintage decor and the smell of roses!!!!

Many pretty play times to come!

xoxo, Arianne

10 Family Traditions For The 4th Of July With Free Printable!

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10 FAMILY TRADITIONS FOR THE 4TH OF JULY

WITH FREE PRINTABLE!

By Arianne Plehandzic

The 4th of July means doing fun family activities!

Even back in the prairie days, families would gather in the town square to enjoy some 4th of July celebrations. Watching the parade, listening to the band play, picnicking, drinking lemonade, firing the canons, waving the flags and having bonfires. Though we still enjoy these traditions today, we have some new ones made possible by modern conveniences. 

Our family traditions grow a little every year, but we always make it fun.

1. MAKE RED, WHITE & BLUE WIND SOCKS AND BOHO FLAGS!

TO MAKE THE WIND SOCKS:

1. Let the kids pick out either a red, white or blue piece of construction paper.

2. Glue one inch strips of corresponding color construction paper on the top and bottom of their original paper.

3. Then let them paint with stamps on their paper using red, white and blue kids paint.

4. Allow to dry; then staple into a round tube.

5. Hole punch two holes on the top to add your string or ribbon.

6. Staple long strips of tissue paper or ribbon to the bottom of the tube.

7. Hang outside to enjoy!

HOW TO MAKE BOHO FLAGS:

1. Using a craft stick, staple large ribbon and lace in red, white and blue colors around the stick.

2. Tightly tie a string or rope to both ends of the stick to hang. 

OPTIONAL:Hot glue the string on the ends so they won't slide off.

2. MAKE CONFETTI POPPERS!

HOW TO MAKE CONFETTI POPPERS:

1. Decorate a toilet paper roll; you can use wrapping paper, markers, paint, crayons... whatever you wish!

2. Tie a knot on a  balloon that has not been blown up. 

3. Cut off the tip; stretch the balloon to fit over one side of the toilet paper roll.

4. Use tape to keep the balloon on the roll.

5. Fill the inside of your toilet paper roll with confetti or tiny pieces of paper.

TO USE:

*Gently pull on the balloon knot with the opening of the toilet paper roll facing the ceiling...and let go! The confetti will come flying out!! Fill back up and reuse.

3. MAKE AN AMERICAN THEME WINDOW CRAFT!

 

HOW TO MAKE AMERICAN THEME WINDOW CRAFT:

1. Give the kids one laminate sheet. 

2. Have them open the laminate sheet.

3. Let them use a black permanent marker to write a festive word or two.

4. Give them pieces of red, white and blue colored tissue paper... star confetti... glitter and pieces of lace to decorate.

5, Carefully laminate the sheet and hang in the window!

4. MAKE A BLUE AND RED FRUIT SALAD!

*Make a fruit salad using strawberries, blueberries and bananas!

5. MAKE CROISSANT WRAPPED HOT DOGS!

*We live in an apartment and we can't grill here. So we were so delighted to have a fun alternative! 

Buy refrigerated croissant dough. Wrap the dough around the hot dogs and bake on 350 degrees for about 8-10 mins. Fun and delish!

6. MAKE A 4TH OF JULY CAKE WITH WHITE FROSTING AND FRUIT -OR- M&M'S!

HOW TO MAKE WITH FRUIT:

1,Use a vanilla cake mix or pound cake mix, make as directed. 

2. Frost with whipped white vanilla frosting.

3. Decorate with fruit to look like an american flag!

HOW TO MAKE WITH M&M'S:

1. Use a chocolate cake mix; make as directed adding some m&m's to the batter.

2. Frost with creamy white vanilla frosting.

3. Sprinkle the frosting with red, white & blue m&m's!

7. MAKE 4TH OF JULY PUNCH!

HOW TO MAKE 4TH OF JULY PUNCH!

1. Fill glass 1/3 full with cranberry juice.

2. Add ice cubes.

3. Add 1/3 full with lemonade.

4. Add blue kool-aid to fill to the top!

8. WATCH THE FIREWORKS & PARADE!

9. DO SPARKLERS, POP-ITS AND GLOW STICKS!

*Of course always be safe and have fun! We enjoy having glow parties before bed on the 4th of July. We put a fun concert on our dvd player and we all dance around with our glow sticks...so fun!

Btw- Katy Perry concerts is one of our favorites...especially the 'FIREWORKS' song!!

10. GO TO THE BEACH, GO CAMPING OR HAVE A BONFIRE!

*Plan ahead and do something adventurous! Leave early in the morning for the beach. Reserve a camping spot a few weeks ahead of time. Or just enjoy a local bonfire at night. Many farms and some state parks have a fun bonfire going on with s'mores for dessert!

**NOW FOR YOUR FREE PRINTABLE!**

**RIGHT-CLICK, SAVE AS AND PRINT!**

(Please remember that this printable is for PERSONAL USE ONLY!)

HAPPY 4TH...HAVE FUN!
XOXO,Arianne

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