#562...dollhouse rehab

I bought this plain wood dollhouse on ebay for my nieces for Christmas, and decided to spruce it up.

I painted some of it and added scrapbook paper as wallpaper and flooring.

To adhere the wallpaper, I used matte Mod Podge. I put a thin coat on the back side of the paper and several thin coats atop the paper once it was stuck in place.

I also painted them a wood peg family in their likeness for their house. I used these wood peg dolls from Goose Grease on etsy. My parent's gave the girls furniture for the house, so they are all set to play.

#561...merry christmas gate

For Christmas, Tyler and I got a new gate and fence into our backyard. The old wood one was rotting and falling down, so we had a welder come and make a metal frame. We chose to run the cedar pickets horizontally to give the fence/gate a more modern aesthetic. I still need to put an oil on the wood to help it retain its color. It's a huge improvement in our yard.

#560...scrap skirt

My nieces are in town for Christmas, so I organized a craft afternoon with some of my girlfriends and their little girls. We crafted this scrap strip skirt that my sister Julie found on Pinterest.

It was an easy, no-sew project, (although the Moms did the bulk of the work). The skirts were a hit with the little girls.

...however, running around the backyard afterward was equally as big a hit.......

#559...snood

I knitted this snood to give as a gift to someone who lives in a much cooler climate.

To knit the snood, I used 2 skeins of Rowan Big Wool, which is a chunky wool measuring about 87 yards on each skein. I casted 22 stitches onto size 17 needles and used a single rib pattern of knit one purl one to create a long scarf. After knitting both skeins, I cast off and used a tapestry needle and yarn to sew the ends of the long scarf into a circle, creating the snood.

#558...holiday stories

I have a holiday book collection that I pull out every year. I got a couple new titles this year, based on recommendations found here. My collection includes:

How The Grinch Stole Christmas

Madeline's Christmas

The Night Before Christmas

Babar and Father Christmas

Dream Snow

The Quiltmaker's Gift

Singing Away the Dark

The First Starry Night

The Mitten

Santa Claustrophobia

Stopping by Woods on A Snowy Evening

The Best Christmas Pageant Ever

Skipping Christmas

Holidays on Ice

#557...deer and bear

My little sister Sarah is not allowed to have pets in her apartment, so in lieu, she has Deer and Bear. Deer is a  resale shop taxidermy rescue. Bear is a carved wooden statue...also thrifted. We talk about Deer and Bear like they are real. When it came time to decorate for the holidays, I did not want Deer and Bear to be left out, so I made them some decorations. 

For Deer, I made him a ribbon doll ornament from felt, crystal buttons and a bow I knitted. (Sarah says Deer is scared of his holiday addition). I'll admit, she is a little bit bug-eyed and weird. Last year Deer wore my pom-pom garland, seen here, which he liked better. 

For Bear, I knitted him a bow-tie to help him feel more festive this season.

#556...least likely to be adopted

This is so awesome

#555...candy cane converse

We donned our holiday Converse this past weekend to stroll the neighborhood for the annual LIGHTS IN THE HEIGHTS holiday extravaganza. I got us these matching beauties about 8 years ago, and we get to wear them a couple times during the holiday season, which makes us both feel more jolly!

#554...matte stephens

I've been researching a retro-inspired color palette that a client of mine wants to infuse in her home. In my search, I came across artist Matte Stephens. I have seen his work before, but I forgot how much I like it. Here are a few of his pieces that I thought had a wintry feel. You can see more of his work on etsy here. Also, he lives in New Hampshire, one of my favorite states! 

#553..white christmas on my porch

It's been a few years since I've put up a tree at my house. I guess I'm feeling more festive this year...or less stressed, so this weekend, Tyler helped me put up my white artificial tree. I could not really settle on a place to put it inside, so we erected it on our front porch.