You guys!!! You've heard me talking all about the amazing Cricut Explore® - sharing with you the fun projects I’ve been making over the last couple of months using this incredible personal cutting machine!! If you've been inspired and are now itching to get your hands on one you are going to LOVE what I'm about to say...

My team and I would like to GIVE ONE AWAY!!!

All you have to do is fill out the form at the bottom of the post to enter.

It’s THAT easy!!

Wait! Before you do that, I would love it if you would take a moment to vote for the Top 10 Finalists of Round Three!  One of my teammates, Amy from Ameroonie Designs was chosen for the top 10 with her AWESOME Custom Word Art (shown below) and she needs your vote!

Custom Word Art by Ameroonie Designs

Yay Amy! Congratuations!!

Head on over to the Official Cricut Page to vote for your favorite project!

While I'm at it…I want to share the rest of the amazing things my teammates created for our "Floral Woodland" themed projects this month: 

Paper Floral Bouquet by Happy Scraps

Paper Floral Chandelier by Artzy Creations

Instagram Table Number Art by Bree Johnson

Rustic Wedding Invitation by 733 Blog

Wood Monogram Gift Tags by Pencil Shavings Studio

Faux Wood Candle Pillars by Everyday Party Magazine

Wooden Menu Chargers +Place Setting + Floral Garland by Sparrow Soirees

Fun Photo Booth Props by Brewed Together

Floral Woodland Crown by Pen N' Paper Flowers

Aren't all of the projects just beautiful together? 

I LOVE how our team came together to create everything you need to put together a beautiful Floral Woodland themed celebration!! Yay Design Team 14!!

Now…go enter to win yourself the Cricut Explore® Cutting Machine…

On a mobile device or having issues seeing the form, click here to enter!

KEEPiNG iT REAL

Yes…I'm bummed not to have been selected as one of the Top 10…

but have you seen all of the amazing bloggers and crafters out there creating fun things using the Cricut Explore® - and not just the ones on my team! Go be inspired!! This machine is the bomb!!

HOME | Dried Flowers + Pitcher + Pumpkin Spice

Hello pretty star flowers….

I picked up a bundle of these from Hobby Lobby over the weekend and I'm head-over-heels in love with them. They are tee-tiny dried flowers in my favorite color scheme…creamy white…and in my opinion have "french farmhouse" written all over them.  LOVE them!

I'm feeling more and more inspired with regards to finally decorating my house…after 4 years of pretty much nothing.

I've got more of a vision and direction in my mind AND…the energy to actually take on some projects.


So...my first SIMPLE project this weekend was to fill this pretty pitcher I picked up from HomeGoods.

I also found these Halloween napkins and cute wooden box that unexpectedly fit my napkins perfectly!!

It looks like it's an enamel pitcher but it's really ceramic. And again…it looks completely French Farmhouse to me….which if you didn't know is my decorating style.

I have fretted over exactly what to put on the island in my kitchen for nearly 4 years now. It sounds ridiculous, right? I've tried everything from glass apothecary jars to oversized pieces of pretty pottery. All of the things I've tried have either been too tall…too short…to bleh…or just plain impractical. I'm in the kitchen A LOT and most of the time our dinners are served straight from the island so I needed something I could easily move to accommodate dinners.

That's how I came up with the tray idea. I picked this one up from JoAnn's a couple of years ago.
I have loved it. But I haven't necessarily loved the items I've put on it. That is…until this weekend.

When I spotted the bundle of star flowers at Hobby Lobby I was concerned they wouldn't quite be right for the pitcher. But I decided to try them out anyway. I'm so glad I did. The stems are super thin but stiff so because they were originally too tall for the pitcher, I took my garden shears…stood over the trash can and easily cut them down to where I wanted them. I cut the whole bundle of stems at one time. Easy peasy.

I think what I love most about the star flowers is that as much as they are perfect for fall right now…they really adapt to every season - and that makes me happy knowing I'm not going to tire of them or be forced to change them out with every holiday. I'll only need to swap out the candle scent. And honestly…I'd burn pumpkin spice year-round…and anything with cranberry! I just LOVE those two scents. Actually, my two older daughters have me hooked on the scents that have a "fireside" smell to them. We LOVE bonfires and roasting marshmallows…so it only seems natural to gravitate towards those smells.

Anyway…this new flower-filled pitcher and candle makes this island my absolute favorite spot in the house right now. I'm not even kidding. I must've said to Clara at least three different times, "You have no idea how happy this makes me." while dreamily staring at the island and breathing in the pumpkin spice scent. I also told her if I was bride I would totally just carry a bundle of star flowers just like this. That's all I would need…tied with a pretty ribbon.

Once again…sticking with simple makes me the happiest. A pitcher of pretty flowers and a $5 Heritage Target Candle. Done. Not too tall. Not too much. Easy to move for meal prep. I can't stop staring!

The only problem now is I think the pitcher would look really pretty on my farm table…and in my living room…or on my mantle…or on the side of my tub…or in my bedroom.  Ha! And to me…that's a good thing because that confirms even more that this was totally the right choice. *wink*

I'm wondering if this new-found inspiration and energy are a direct reflection from the Whole90 I've been doing? Maybe? Regardless…I'm on Day 72 and I'm feeling good. So I'll take that.

If you love the French Farmhouse look too…you'll find MORE inspiration on my Farmhouse Love pinterest board. 

KEEPiNG iT REAL
All of these photos were taken with my iPhone because I'm too lazy to get out my real camera.
The top one is pretty awesome because there was actually sunshine this morning when I snapped that one! However, the other two are from this weekend when it was raining. They are okay - but blurry.

I went back to Hobby Lobby and purchased a 2nd bundle of these dried star flowers because I love them so! (I've got the Hobby Lobby App on my phone and used my 40% coupon for both purchases!!)  Not sure if I should add more flowers to the existing pitcher or place them in spots all around the house. Still deciding.

SHOPPE | Halloween Witch Brooms Art Print + Posters

And they are up….
the cute hand-illustrated Witch Brooms Art Print I designed are up in my shoppe as of minutes ago!!

The idea was completely inspired by the Hocus Pocus Witch Broom Company Chalkboard Wall created by Inspired by Charm. I LOVE what Michael did and wanted to create something that was printable so that all of you non-chalkart-making friends could have some cute decor hanging in your home too!!

Available with a chalkboard AND white background these are available as an instant download…meaning you can get them right. now. Print this afternoon and have them displayed in your home by lunch time. *wink*

The download includes 12 different printables:

1 - 24x36 .pdf POSTER white background with black text
1 - 24x36 .pdf POSTER Chalkboard background with white text
1 - 5x7 .pdf Broom Group white background (shown above)
1 - 5x7 .pdf Broom Group chalkboard background (shown below)
8 - 5x7 .pdf Single Brooms - 4 white and 4 chalkboard backgrounds (shown below)

Soooo many possibilities for home decor and Halloween Holiday fun!!
I intend on having mine up and displayed this weekend.
Follow me on Instagram…I'll post a pic when I've got them up!

There are MORE Halloween printables in my shoppe…

Like the Apothecary Jar Labels I designed last year for my Witch-Themed Halloween Table

And don't forget about this original Halloween Poem Art Print I posted about last week...

OR….the FREE "Something Wicked this way Comes" Art Print

These fun art prints should keep you busy for awhile…as you are printing and putting them up around your house! *wink*

CHALKBOARD PRINTING TIP:
Black and White Art is super affordable to print at your local print shop - like FedEx Office, Office Depot, Staples, etc.  Which also saves all of the black ink from your home printer. *wink*
The 24x36 Posters will cost you under $5!! Seriously!!

Please, pretty please, if you print and display I'd LOVE to see pictures!
Email them to me: pnpflowersinc AT gmail DOT com
Or tag me on Instagram:  @pnpflowers

KEEPiNG iT REAL
I'm not sure what the deal was with getting my files loaded in Etsy but the process took FOREVER!
Thanks for being so patient! *wink*

CRAFT | DIY Paper Floral Woodland Crown

It's that time again…another fun submission for the Cricut Design Space Star Challenge.
My team chose to go with a Floral Woodland theme for our projects this month. The monthly topic chosen by Cricut® was "Celebration/Wedding" so we decided as a group it would be awesome for each of us to choose a specific element of a wedding or celebration so that all of our projects would blend together to create one giant cyber celebration…so-to-speak.  Here are the specifics we decided on as a team:

Team Project Colors:  Mint + Blush
Team Project Elements should include:  Natural wood elements when possible and eucalyptus. All projects should include elements of a "Celebration" that would lend itself to either a birthday, anniversary, baby shower or wedding. Work as a team to combine our efforts/projects to showcase a variety of aspects of the same celebration. 

We also thought it would be fun to create a Team Pinterest Board to reference as we were brainstorming project ideas.  There were SO many pretty and inspiring pins on our Floral Woodland Inspiration board…be sure to peek at it.

I immediately signed up to do a floral crown since my daughter Clara had suggested it for last month's "Fashion" project.  Our team ended up deciding on a Geo theme for our fashion projects in August and I just wasn't feeling the crown idea for that. BUT…the Celebration/Wedding theme for this month couldn't have been more perfect.

I went with a rustic crown by filling a grapevine wreath with paper flowers and paper eucalyptus.
The concept was simple…and there were plenty of pre-designed florals to choose from in the Cricut Design Space. However, there was no eucalyptus so I created a file myself and I am SO impressed with how the Cricut performed in cutting out the intricacies of the fine stems I drew that made up the silver dollar eucalyptus leaves I designed.

MATERIALS LIST

Cricut® Explore Cutting Machine

Cricut® Explore 12x12 Standard Grip Mat

Cricut® Explore Weeding Tool

Glue Gun

Cricut® Design Space 3D Flower File - search 3D flower

Pen + Paper Flowers Eucalyptus Image/File 

*Small Grapevine Wreath (6", 8" or 10" - determined by person's head size)

Colored Card Stock

much of what I used I already had or found at a local craft store but here are similar items:

Moss Green card stock (for 4 Eucalyptus branches)

Blush Pink card stock (for 2 small flowers)

Mint Green card stock (for 3 small flowers)

Ivory card stock (for 4 medium flowers)

* Look for a small grapevine wreath that has the thinnest vines for a "softer" crown vibe - thin enough to be able to use bobby pins to secure the crown in the hair of the person who'll be wearing it. There were some I purchased from Hobby Lobby when I first started gathering supplies and they just seemed too prickly and thick. (and honestly looked more like the thorny crown depicted in images of Jesus' crucifixion - not to get all holy on you - but it wasn't the look I was going for, if you know what I mean). I later found thinner versions at JoAnn's and Michaels.

INSTRUCTIONS
STEP ONE :: Cut/Create Paper Eucalpytus
Using the Cricut® Design Space, upload the Eucalyptus image file. Cut four separate eucalyptus images from 12x12 Moss green card stock. Mine were sized around 6 inches wide.

Use the weeding tool to remove each of the paper Eucalyptus branches. Mine peeled off super easy...no rips or tears!! Yay!!  I've used my Standard Grip Mat several times now so it's not so tacky. Things peel off like butter now.

Can you believe how amazing these Eucalyptus branches turned out!? I think they are so realistic. With this only being the 2nd time I've used the Cricut® Explore, I was super impressed with the ability it has to cut fine, intricate details. I thought for sure it would just shred the fine stems but nope…perfection!!  The Cricut Explore also has a "scoring" feature…it would be cool to see if it would score lines into the leaves…but I'm still a newbie and haven't tried that feature yet.

STEP TWO :: Cut/Create Paper Flowers
Select a pre-designed 3D Flower from the Cricut Design Space.  Cut 2 small blush pink flowers, 3 small mint flowers and 4 large ivory flowers from the three different 12x12 sheets of card stock. My flowers were approximately 3 inches for the small and a little over 4 inches for the large.

Roll your card stock cut outs starting from the outside inwards to create the flower shape. You can do this with your fingers or use a cute party straw to help…see below. These are the EXACT same concept as the Easy DIY Paper Flowers I shared with you some time back…except I didn't have to hand cut a single flower…I let the Cricut® Explore do all of the work and I just have to roll! *wink* Pluse these have darling scalloped edges too.

There are several different 3D floral files to choose from in Cricut Design Space. (see below)
I went with the one I starred below…just because I felt the softer, more shallow scallops resulted in a more rose-like flower. But I think they are all really pretty! *wink* Pick your favorite and go with it.

I didn't end up using the more pointy 3D flowers as shown above…

but this was my only photo of the rolling technique with the straw. 

It's NOT necessary at all…but it's kind of helpful.

STEP THREE :: Assemble Crown

Layout the paper pieces of your crown starting with the Eucalyptus pieces. Add the flowers and make sure you like how they look before securing with a hot glue gun.

TIP:

Consider the placement of the finished crown on the person's head when deciding on placement of the flowers. If the grapevine wreath is more oval vs. round you'll want the narrow ends of the crown sitting at the front and back of the person's head so it sits securely. Keep that in mind when placing your flowers.

Not only is this a simple crown aesthetically…the Cricut® Explore made it simple to make too.
It's pretty enough for a wedding yet simple enough for using as a birthday crown.

I hope you love the project.
And I really hope Cricut® does too…they'll be picking the Top 10 projects submitted by all of the bloggers participating in this Design Star Challenge. The winners of the Top 10 for this month will be announced on September 25th. Once they announce the Top 10…voting will open up to the public and an overall winner for September will be chosen. Then we get to do it all again in October AND November. *wink*

My whole team came up with some fabulous projects too!!
I'll be sharing all of them in a separate post…coming soon!!

A special thank you to my daughter Clara for modeling the crown for me!
She's got gorgeous hair…doesn't she?!

KEEPiNG iT REAL
As simple as this project was…it took me ALL week long to find the time to actually get this post finished and up on the blog.

SHOPPE | Chalk Paint + Chocolate + a little Halloween

I'm finishing up my post for the next project I created for the Cricut Design Space Star challenge.
So while I'm working on that…and will be posting tomorrow…
I wanted to share a few things I've added to the shoppe.

With Chalk Paint on the brain…and chocolate ALWAYS on my brain too…I sketched out this cute art print for my Friday Instagram posts…I call them "Funspiration Fridays". It was too cute not to offer as a printable. There are five different versions included in this download so be sure to check them out in my Etsy Shoppe. 



You guys know how much I LOVE redoing furniture and giving it new life with a fresh coat of paint - usually creamy white. I just knew there would be others out there that would totally get the Chocolate + Chalk Paint Art Print above. It's SO fun…and SO me!

Which by the way…the reason I've got chalk paint on my brain more so than usual is that I'm on eggshells waiting for a BRAND NEW product to arrive on my doorstep that should revolutionize the entire chalk paint industry. Seriously!! (more on that later though)


In addition to that...I also added this fun  Halloween Poem Art Print… original poem by me…thank you!! Didn't know I could write poems too…did ya? Ha!!

This one is an 11x14 and comes with a Chalkboard Background too!!!

I've got this Witch Brooms Poster coming to the shoppe in a large 24x36 Poster as well as some small 5x7 Art Prints.  I just LOVE how it came out!! (Chalkboard version too - below)!!

I hope you'll peruse my shoppe and check out the goodies I've added.

I've got Halloween on the brain, (in addition to the chocolate and chalk paint mentioned above), and I'm excited to start getting some of these art prints displayed in my own home!! Have you already started decorating yet?

Have a great weekend everyone!!

KEEPiNG iT REAL
I had all of these grand plans of doing at least THREE different projects for the Cricut Design Space Star Challenge this month but I just didn't have time. Actually, I made an attempt at a 2nd idea I had but it just didn't turn out like I had hoped. I plan on tweaking it though and sharing it with you all down the road.

FREE | Monthly Blog Hop Printables :: Halloween

Remember the FREE "Something Wicked This Way Comes" sign I shared with you?
Well it was for the awesome lineup of FREE Halloween Printables for September's monthly Blog Hop!! I have to say this collection of printables turned out SO adorable!!

Download and print ANY of the cute things you see above right here!!

Halloween Printable Bottle Labels - Skip to My Lou

Creepy Spells and Potions Printable Labels - Hostess with the Mostess 

"Something Wicked This Way Comes" Sign - Pen N' Paper Flowers 

Free Printable Halloween Candy Bar Wrappers - Living Locurto 

Candy Corn Cheese Wedge Printables - No Biggie 

Favorite Fall Things Printable - Nest of Posies 

"Take One" Halloween Sign - Kori Clark 

"You've Been Booed" Printable Kit - Catch My Party

I hope you love them and will hop your happy little self from blog to blog to download them and then use them for your upcoming Halloween festivities!! Tell your friends too! *wink*

KEEPiNG iT REAL

I've got more Halloween stuff coming to my Etsy shoppe too!

Think cute signage…if I can ever find the time to upload it! 

SHARE | Something Wicked This Way Comes

It just feels SO wrong to be posting something about Halloween when Summer isn't officially over until September 21st. It seems wrong to me anyway…

HOWEVER…Halloween is coming…and it's coming fast.
The industry I'm in...you really have to be working 2 months ahead of each season in order to stay ahead of every holiday. I've been working on some Halloween stuff over the last month, (so I'm actually a little behind), but I'm already full focused on Thanksgiving and will be starting Christmas stuff soon. I don't LOVE it…but it's the nature of the industry.

Anyway…since Halloween is coming whether I want to say goodbye to Summer or not…
I'm forced to share one of the printables I've been quietly working on for you…

Something Wicked This Way Comes - Halloween Art Print

I actually had a customer reach out to me about designing a "Something Wicked This Way Comes" sign for her home…but she ended up thinking this version was too "pretty"- which I completely get.
But I'm okay with "pretty" more than "spooky"…so I'm sticking with this version here at my house.

I thought you might like it too so I'm offering this FREE 5x7 Art Print to all of my sweet blog readers.  It gets better though…how about this...

CHALKBOARD "Something Wicked This Way Comes" Art Print

Use this free 5x7 printable to get a headstart on decorating and perhaps even…party prepping.

Do you all host Halloween parties? I typically don't…
unless you count the playful meal I serve my family on the night of Halloween just before heading out for trick-or-treating. Ya know…the "mummy dogs" served with individual bowls of ketchup and a mustard spider web spun in the middle of the ketchup.

I love decorating the inside of my house for Halloween but the outside is usually pretty sparse, except for this cluster of really cute signs I bought years ago that I stick at my front door.

They really need to be spruced up a bit…or maybe the fading black paint adds to the "spooky" vibe of the season? Haven't completely decided yet.

I got the Cobweb sign from an Arts and Crafts festival like ummm…10 years ago?
And the two smaller signs, "Boo" and "Mr. Skull" were from Target. I'm a sucker for creamy white and when you add black for Halloween…well…you know I'm going to cave.

I also stay away from all of the "scary" stuff. I've tried turning Halloween into more of a "light-hearted" holiday for my kids instead of focusing on all the yucky "wicked" stuff. (Remember our annual Phantom Pumpkin tradition)?  I don't allow scary costumes typically…no masks…no gory stuff. I think I'm just a wimp so I guess I'm passing all of that along to my girls. Ha!!

On a good year, you might find a giant inflatable stack of lighted jack-o-lanterns in our yard. I picked it up on clearance at a grocery store years back and if I'm feeling the urge…Mr. Jack comes out to play.
I wasn't feeling it last year…maybe this year though?

Anyway, if you like the FREE 5x7 you are more than welcome to DOWNLOAD IT RIGHT HERE.
Also available in my Etsy Shoppe are the 16x20 and 24x36 sizes of this same print.
And stay tuned for the Monthly FREE Printables Blog Hop coming next week - all about…you guessed it…Halloween!! *wink*

KEEPiNG iT REAL
I do have to say I grudgingly let Clara and Ema dress up as Vampires one year and we recently stumbled upon those photos on my computer. Clara actually asked me, "Why did you let me go out looking like that!?" Ha!! I think they liked the way they looked at the time…but neither of them liked the way they looked when looking back at photos. They were pretty creepy. Ha!!