Tuesday, November 29, 2011

I am so excited to announce the line-up for the holiday house walk next week!

I can't wait to see all of the magic these ladies have done to their homes.
And make sure you mark your calender's for the following Monday, December 12th for the linky party where you can share your holiday home!!
I am so  excited! I've been pulling out all of my decorations. I hope you'll join us!

Jen

Monday, November 28, 2011

Make a MERRY banner....

I had so many questions about how I made my banner for 3 French Hens, That I thought I would show you by doing a really cute, holiday banner project, it's super easy too.

 You'll need white cardstock. Your letters printed on your printer (The templates are at the end of the post.), a hole punch, a paper edger, eyelets, scissors, a grommet tool  and twine.
 These little buggers are officially called eyelets. I want to call them grommets. You can find the brass ones at Micheal's. But I know Joann's and Hobby Lobby also carry the gold and silver and in the scrap booking section I've seen multi-colored and shapes. Go crazy! :)  They also carry the grommet-squeezer thing. I don't know the official name for it. If you don't have eyelets you can skip this step, the paper might be more likely to tear.
 After printing your letters to size, trim them till you have about an inch around each letter.  Sometimes it helps to line up all of the letters and trim them at the same time as long as the paper isn't too thick.

 Punch with your shape puncher around the edges. I bought mine at Joann's with a 40% off coupon.  I think it's by EK.  I like this one because you can line up your previous punches.
I found out that if you also sign up your husband at Joann's, you get two coupons in the mail each month.
 Punch all the way around. If you get  a funky edge like this, no sweat, just give it a little trim; no one will notice.
 punch your holes in about the same place on each letter sheet.
 Then it's time to do your eyelets. Place one in the hole and then like up your tool.
 press firmly together like a hole punch.
 and viola! You have eyelet magic! I will tell you, one you figure it out, it is addicting!
 Then you are ready to add your twine, or ribbon.
 String it through the last card first, into the first hole and then behind to come out the other hole, so that your string is behind the letter. Do the same thing for each letter.
 Once they are all strung, tie a loop in each end, and hang! If you wanted you could totally glitterazi it up!

And you have  a cute Merry, banner!  You can double click each letter below and then right click it to save it as a picture. Depending on your computer, you might have to play with the size to get what you want . My letters all measure about  4-5 inches across, but you can make them any size you like.

Happy eyeleting!
 You can see more projects at Home stories A to Z!
Jen







Saturday, November 26, 2011

Small Business Saturday....

Today is Small Business Saturday! It's a great way to shop local. I want to take  a minute to thank all of the retailer's who have been carrying my items. If you are out by them please take a minute to stop by and peek around!



Stella  2116 Central Avenue, Evanston, IL

Denise's Adornment's  221 S. Third St. Geneva, IL

The Vintage Nest  1891 Tower Drive, Glenview, IL

The Antique Shoppe, Fairbury, IL

The Resale Connection  1719 Ogden Avenue, Lisle, IL

Promenade shops at Briargate, Colorado Springs, CO

Friday, November 25, 2011

Adding the finishing touch with a faux fireplace.....

My hubby wanted me to name this post "If you build it, he will come."
I thought that was quite clever, and I was so excited to finally have a mantel.
  I've dreamt of having a fireplace with a mantel from the minute we went house shopping.
 When we bought this house(sans fireplace)I hoped that my next house would have one.  Well, 11 years later we are still on our "starter" house and I was still mantel dreaming.
I knew even  a fake one wasn't currently in the budget.

 However, a few weeks ago, I was headed to the store and lo and behold, one of my neighbors had put this one out to the curb for the trash. They were even kind enough to tape the screws to it. Thank you thoughtful  neighbors.
 It was a golden oak color and made of press-board, but I didn't even care. A coat or two of paint, some sand paper and a fake backer, and she was ready to go. It's not perfect, there a hole cut in one side of the base, but she's all mine.
 I used her in my booth at Morris and had quite a few offers, but I knew it was coming home with me.
I was so excited when we finally got it put together in my living room, I was bursting. I am looking forward to decorating it this holiday season, and when the kids saw it, they were so excited that we had a real place to hang the stockings this year.

Best. Roadside.Find. Ever.

Yes Virgina, there is a Santa Claus.... and he likes to leave stuff in the trash.
And it's awesome.  

Jen

P.S.Make sure you stop over at Fishtail cottage for all of her amazing giveaways! I am giving away some earrings!

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

3 French Hens pt. 2..

There were such amazing vendors there and the best part is, I got to see some old friends too...
 I met both Kathy and Mindy , who were so sweet and  purchased things from me for their own shops,

 There were the girls from the Past Present shoppes.


 And the fun girls from Ruffles and Rust design.

 And Jeanine from Chippy Shabby always has a fabulous display and amazing things. I wish I had had more time to shop! And Mark who braved a ladder for me in a display emergency, and sweet Janice who was across from me.

It was beautiful how everything was set up and I am really looking forward to next year!
Happy Thanksgiving!!!
Jen

PS. Diana56 you left me  a message, but there is no e-mail back! E-mail me!!!!

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Virtual Chirstmas house walk 2011...

I have some exciting news! December 5th through 9th I'll be hosting a virtual Christmas house walk featuring some of your favorite blogs!



Then the following Monday the 12th, you can join in with your own home for  a housewalk  linky party!

If you think you are going to join in, here's  a button for you to put on your sidebar! Just right mouse click, save as a picture and you can then link it as  a widget.
I hope to see you all there!

Jen

Monday, November 21, 2011

3 French Hens pt. 1...

I want to thank all of my blog readers who braved the cold and came out to 3 French Hens. I was so excited to meet all of you and it really meant  a lot to me! Especially those of you who drove from so far away....
My wonderful hubby and Father in law helped me set up the first day. I couldn't have done it with out them.






 and my booth was right next to Polly and her gorgeous things...





I hope you had a great weekend!
I have more vendor pictures tomorrow.....


Jen


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