Author Archive
Fab Freebie: Modern Family
InStyle Modern sells modern furniture at prices that make it easier on your wallet to deck out your dining room with a full set of chairs or give your kitchen island an upgrade with a new trio of stools. And not only are they giving this week’s winner a $500 gift card, they’re offering up free ground shipping and a special 15% discount. Check out the details below…
- PRIZE: $500 to InStyle Modern
- TO ENTER: Comment on this post with the words “Modern Me” and tell us…
- BONUS QUESTION: … something in your life that could use some modernizing. Does your house need some updating to get it out of a decor timewarp? Could your wardrobe stand to catch up with the latest styles? Or would you love to get a new car with the latest technology?
- NUMBER OF WINNERS: One
- PRIZE SHIPS: We always beg every vendor to ship internationally but some companies are not legally able to vend things beyond specific areas (more on that here). This giveaway is open to the continental United States.
- GIVEAWAY CLOSES: Wednesday, May 22nd or at 10,000 entries (whichever comes first)
- DISCOUNT: Get 15% off with the code YHL15OFF (good through June 5th) – and free ground shipping is standard in the continental US!
- USUAL STUFF: One entry per e-mail address is permitted. The winners will be selected using random.org and announced on Thursday as an update to this post. That’s right, come right back here on Thursday for the announcement of our winners. Good luck…
- ***COMMENT ISSUES? If you’re trying to enter but keep getting a “duplicate comment” warning, click here to see how to solve it!
Note: We aren’t paid or perked for hosting these giveaways, we just do ‘em to thank you awesome folks for stopping in. See our Giveaway FAQ page for more info. Pics courtesy of InStyle Modern.
Another Year, Another Homemade Fabric
Clara turned three on Tuesday (Threesday?) so we’ve spent the last few days marveling at this wonderful little lady before us and wondering where the heck the time went.
And just like we did for her two previous birthdays, we marked the end of another 12 months by customizing the fabric backdrop for her photo project. You might remember that this tradition started on her first birthday, when we used my handwriting to create a pattern that we printed on fabric using Spoonflower (here’s how we did that).
Spoonflower came to the rescue again last year, but we took advantage of Clara’s artistic abilities and converted one of her scribbles into the fabric that time (here’s how we did that).
Last year’s fabric turned out a bit fainter than we would’ve preferred, so this year we knew we wanted to (a) involve Clara again and (b) make sure it came out bold and colorful. So we decided to just unleash Clara on the fabric itself…
Since it promised to be a messy project (if all went as hoped!) we headed to the new house where there were lots of big, not-too-precious spaces (like the deck) and taped down a drop cloth. Then we taped the cotton fabric down right in the middle of it.
For the paints we went with these little pots of Crayola Kids’ Paint (from Target) because it’s what Clara’s used to and it’s washable and non-toxic. We contemplated using some sort of fabric paint so her masterpiece could be preserved, but ultimately these kid-friendly paints were better suited to the free reign we were able to give our budding 3-year-old.
She chose pink first and basically just went to town pouring it right out of the bottle and smearing it with a foam brush.
Here’s a quick video of our painter in action.
She even added some hand prints and footprints. They’re our favorite.
It took about 30 minutes or so for her to fill the whole two yards of fabric with paint splotches. Right as we were wrapping up we got the idea to let her paint her shirt, right where we typically would photoshop the circle with her age on it. We figured why not give into the theme, right?
So with the paint still wet and Clara still a mess, we dragged the whole drop cloth over to the side of the house where we could tape it up to create a spot to shoot her photo.
Despite being dangerously close to losing all light (and losing the patience of a girl who was so far doing a very good job listening) we managed to snag this shot at the start of a jump. Jumping is kind of her default motion these days, so it was perfect. You can read how we add the number to her shirt in photoshop here.
We also caught a bunch of pretty hilarious outtakes, which you can browse over on Young House Life today. Sherry calls this her Stomp The Yard pose.
And with that folks, we’re calling it a wrap on her monthly pictures. I know it would be fun to keep them going, but we think she has started to outgrow enjoying them (read: it’s becoming more challenging to convince her it’ll be more exciting than doing whatever else she’s doing). So rather than force it, we’ll use this as a natural stopping point – although we’d still love to break out a new fabric for each birthday – and maybe even for her half birthday – depending how she feels.
The 25 pictures above are the ones that we took between age 1 and age 3, and the 52 weekly photos that we snapped during her first year are below. You can see all 77 of them at full size over here.
Oh and speaking of photo traditions – Clara’s also lucky enough to have spent all of her birthdays (including her actual birth date) with three of her grandparents. Our favorite thing about studying those photos is noticing than each adult re-wears the same shirt at least once.
Is anyone else out there making their own fabric? Wrapping up a photo project? Letting your kid loose with little pots of paint? Happy weekend everyone!
Halfway Through May
It’s time for our monthly moment of thanks to the sponsors who make the other 30+ posts possible. Without them we might not have food on our tables or clothes on our backs (and hungry, naked blogging doesn’t make for good DIY morale). So feel free to check out some things that caught our eye this month, and peruse our usual round-up of discounts at the bottom of the post – plus a hint about Monday’s $500 giveaway!
 |
 |
 |
 |
- This “Splatter Stacks” print from Hoot Design Co. Because books make me happy.
- Shades of Light‘s dhurrie rugs, like this honeycomb guy that comes in five colors.
- Our pal Dusty’s DIY backsplash install as featured on The Tile Shop‘s homepage.
- This “Ava” bed frame from a Southwest inspired Joss & Main sale.
 |
 |
 |
 |
- Kendra Scott‘s statement necklaces, like this Valora piece in matte green.
- Entryway monogram vinyl decals from WallQuotes. This one’s for Burger.
- This office-ready paper clip inspired key hook rail from Liberty Hardware.
- Jewelry for every occasion from Lisa Leonard, like this true friend necklace.
 |
 |
 |
 |
- Custom growth charts from Urban Tickle. I, of course, like the one with the bikes.
- Fish Window Cleaning services (clean windows = more spring sunshine).
- The feline reference on the Naked Binders website that literally made me LOL.
- Royal Design Studio‘s new Bonnie Christine stencils, like this herringbone one.
 |
 |
 |
 |
- Speaking of herringbone – Cozamia‘s Wild Herringbone print rocks our socks.
- This cool vintage postcard from Ruby Lane, featuring flowers framing the US Capitol.
- Freshline Illustration‘s cheeky nursery print that can be customized too.
- These stellar house notecards from 1 Canoe 2. I kinda wanna live in them.
 |
 |
 |
 |
- Smock Paper‘s earth friendly printing methods that produce pretty cards like this one.
- Keeping up with the charm-tastic inspiration on the Heart & Stone Jewelry blog.
- The crisp line drawings available at A Vintage Poster, like this brass trumpet.
- Mirror Mate‘s Pinterest page, especially the board of blogger bathroom makeovers.
 |
 |
 |
 |
- Audrey + Gem‘s colorful watercolor animals for nurseries (including a Clara worm!)
- Food & leftover minimizing meal planning for two from Couple Supper.
- This summer ready woven bag from Red Barn Mercantile. Bring on the beach…
- And a hint for Monday’s Giveaway, which will be $500 strong!
Here are the details on those DISCOUNTS:
- Shades of Light: 10% off with the code YHL0811
- WallQuotes.com: 15% off with the code YHL15
- The Tile Shop: 10% off when you use the code YHL10
- One Canoe Two: 10% off with code YHL10
- Heart & Stone Jewelry: 10% off with the code YHL10
- Royal Design Studio: 10% off stencils with code YHL10
- Freshline Illustration: 25% off with code YHL25
- Urban Tickle: 10% off with code YHOUSE10
- Audrey + Gem: 10% off with code YHL10
- Hoot Design Co: 10% off with code YHL
* None of the products or services shown above were provided to us for review or for free (check out our no-swag policy here).
