I Live Amongst the Trees..

The day after Christmas was a special day spent with my dad, step mom, step grandmother and brother. We exchanged presents, I was given my extremely wonderful heirloom ring, and my father decided to take me to the land. My father is a lot like me a hobby oriented person who kind of keeps to himself with a good heart and a great sense of humor. He's been keeping busy by clearing out land, building roads, and a little house up on a knoll.

To get up to this little house was no easy feat at all. We had to drive about half an hour into a small small town and then up a road towards where hardly any people even live. Then we drove up a teeny tiny road that my father carved out of the earth. We got to a certain point where you could see the house but it was the steepest part of the road. We were stuck and couldn't move up any further. My hand was gripping so tightly to the arm rest. We slowly moved backwards down the hill, slipping every which way. Unfortunately to the left there is a bit of a drop so we didn't want to back down that way. I honestly thought we would tip backwards. But fortunately we got to a point where we could pull into the bottom field safely. 

It is so crazy to think that my father built this place with his own hands. He needs to add a kitchen and bathroom and he plans to add a pond down below in the field. I would have taken pictures of the inside but it was really dark. I can see it all finished..it will be so cute, especially without all the snow. I can't wait to go up in the cupola and see a perfect summer sunset high above the trees.

This land was given to my father after my grandfather passed away. I think that my grandfather would be so proud of my dad for creating something so beautiful. I know I am. 

This house and it's rural atmosphere remind me of Lucy Chadwick and this video of her I first saw on Moorea's blog. I may be exaggerating but a girl can dream of a Lucy Chadwick lifestyle right? :)

Thanks for stopping in and sharing something special with me!

Lo

Photo Wrap Up

So I went to Vermont on Christmas and I'm still here seeing family and friends! It has been so wonderful!

So happy my mom listened to me and got me the Darling Ranges dress pattern! :)

This is Christmas dinner at my Grandmother's, very yummy and festive.

I've been crocheting a lot lately, yes I do have an old soul.

This is me circa 1990.

This is my boyfriend just checking his hair and stuff.

Baxter, the family dog at my dad's.

As you know Vermont is pretty rural and our family actually has land out where no one even lives...like it is that rural. Anyway my father is building a really nice place up on a knoll which I will have more pictures of then. But this was taken on the ride back driving in the car (the blue light was a reflection from inside the car)

And by far the best gift I've been given is this beautiful ring from my stepmom's mom. She is really just like my grandmother, I love her lots. It is something that I will cherish forever and ever. 

Thank you so much for stopping in! I hope that your holidays have been so wonderful and that you've been able to spend quality time with family and friends! 

Lo

Going Natural..

For a little while now I've been deciding to purchase more natural items in hopes that the benefits will be many. I mean think about all the things you cannot pronounce on the back of your face wash. It just started to bother me that all these chemicals are going into my body. I stumbled upon the shop, Rocky Top Soap Shop, right now they are on vacation due to the holiday but boy are their soaps fantastic. 

I'm currently using the rooibos tea shampoo and the cambrian blue soaps. They both have a lot of natural benefits and I actually really like how my hair has felt and somehow it stays cleaner so much longer. I also don't use conditioner but it comes out feeling really soft. I think my next purchase will be the activated charcoal bar because of the wonders I heard it can do for your skin. I would like to continue this into my makeups, face lotion, etc. do you have any suggestions? I am all ears!

Thanks for stopping in! AND HAPPY HOLIDAYS! Hope you get to spend some serious time with loved ones! 

Lo 

DIY: Neckerchief

To make your very own neckerchief you will need:

• 1-2 fat quarters for quilting ~$2.00 ea.
• quilt binding ~$2.00
• glue stick
• sewing machine
• rit dye (optional)

I will definitely make this again another time but the colors I chose were a soft white floral fabric along with light green/blue binding, which made for a very childish combo, but at purchase I had thought it made more of a vintage look. Oops! Is there a fine line between baby and vintage? hmm. Anyway I suggest picking patterns that stick out to you like possibly a pretty plaid pattern I saw. There are so many different fat quarters to choose from in a place like Joanne Fabrics. I also suggest looking at the quarters that are rolled up often those are bigger which is more ideal. Then choose a coordinating quilt binding to go with it..make sure you get one with enough yards to cover the perimeter of your fat quarter. 

It is up to you whether you would like to use 1 or 2 fat quarters, I would suggest 2 so that you don't see back to your neckerchief while wearing it. Here we go! 1. lay wrong sides of fat quarters together       2. fold the binding around each edge and pin along the way, be sure to leave a tiny bit at each end 3. fold in corners a little so that nothing will end up fraying 4. this is where I used the glue to hold down each corner to make it easier when sewing 5. sew along the binding of the whole perimeter

6. sew a box/diagonal in each corner for extra support  7. Since mine was too babyish I decided to use blue dye I had around my house with dip dyed corners, this is totally optional and if you want a dyed look with your pattern it may be very cool. 

8. fold the fabric diagonally and tie around your neck. I really like the outcome after all!


This was fast, simple and fun. I can't wait to try a different color combination! Please let me know if you try out this DIY, if you send me pictures or write a post about it I will either post it or link to it!


Other ideas for this DIY:

• make an easy dishtowel for yourself or a set as a gift (I personally like this fabric from Modcloth for such a project)
• make cute "blankets" for dolls for little ones
• make place mats that coordinate with the colors in your dining room

Thanks so much for stopping in and I hope you enjoyed this DIY!

Lo

Sponsor Little Somethings? (ALL SPOTS FILLED)

    Hi lovely readers! I wanted to start off a new year with January sponsors. I like that my blog isn't too cluttered so right now I am keeping it to 5 sponsors all at 210x210 squares.

..There are 5 open sponsor spots for FREE for your shop or blog..

To be considered for a free sponsor spot please send me an email (printedpeaks@gmail.com) with a button (210x210) already set up for your blog or shop along with a link to your shop or blog. If the content of your shop or blog does not fit into the content of my blog or is inappropriate I will refuse to post your button and will consider the consecutive email. I will take the first 5 buttons sent to me upon approval.

Thanks for stopping in! 

Lo

Happy Holidays Dear Friend

So I currently do not have the wallet wad to spend on all my friends. I so wish I would, but if you happen to be doing so and you have that oh so tricky girlfriend who has everything and you never know quite what to get her, here is a little treasury list I put together. Etsy is so perfect for little one of a kind gifts.

..diamond pillow..

..wallet..

..ring..

..earrings..

..pillow cover..

..print..

..tie..

I also happened to stumble upon this super cute ebay shop that has me wish listing everything.

Thanks so much for stopping in!

Lo

Instagram Wrap Up

what I've been making..

..lip balm tutorial..

 what I've been doing..

..early xmas vintage shopping spree from my boyfriend..

what i've been listening to..

What have you been doing lately? 

Thanks for stopping in!

Lo

A Few Outfits

These are a few outfits I wore this week. I will try to include more daily outfits. The only reason why I haven't is because when I wake up it is too dark and early to take photos and when I get home it is also dark. So I've been fiddling with a tripod and the light issue that is my home. Unfortunately I didn't even get pictures of todays outfit or Mondays which are two of the better ones. haha. I guess that's the way it goes. Anyway that heart sweater was $3.99 at Walgreens and I used this great tutorial and a unwanted black tee to make it a sweet heart sweatshirt. 

I'm really excited for this weekend because my sweet boy and I are exchanging Christmas presents early. For no other reason except we are total babies and want our presents now. We do this all the time and it is indeed a bit crazy, but WE CAN'T WAIT and WE WON'T. My present is a shopping spree at an amazing vintage shop in Brooklyn..and hopefully I can get to the flea market as well! YAY! I'm beyond excited! 

Happy Friday!

:)

Lo

Tradition: Handmade Ornament

My tree is adorned in the cutest handmade ornaments mostly made from my family members. I love them no matter how corny or tacky they may be, to me that tree has "Christmas" written all over it. Keeping in that tradition I decided that I would make an ornament every year. I started last year which was the first Christmas my boyfriend and I spent together as a newly living together couple. I really hope that my one day children will love all these homemade goodies once it is time for me to hand them down. I decided I would share with you what and how I made mine this year. Pop on some Nat King Cole Christmas tunes and your on your way to ornament making.

This year I decided to make the apartment we live in so that we will always remember where we had our first Christmas's. I just made sure I used pieces that were similar to our house...nothing too accurate, white boards, a scalloped overhang (hence the ric rac) and a red door. Step 1: Cut out small strips of fabric (you may want to get different shades or patterns of the same color, I used fat quarters for quilting) also cut out your door shape. Step 2: Sew right sides of strips together and then sew the door, ribbon for window and any other decorative pieces on now.

Step 3: Cut out the back piece (I used an old sweater that I am also making stockings out of!) as well as "'11" out of felt. Sew the felt numbers to the back piece. Step 4: Sew right sides of ornament together leaving a small hole for filling and turn inside out so right side is facing you. I messed this part up but if you want to add the ribbon for hanging seamlessly you will need to face the loop inward. But I just sewed mine on to the back afterwards, which looks fine.

Step 5: Now fill your ornament with stuffing. You can also use old sweaters if you don't either want to buy stuffing or have any on hand.

Step 6: Hand sew the hole. I actually went along the whole bottom edge because I liked the way it looked.

Step 7: You are all done. Hang the ornament in a good spot, turn on the tree, grab yourself some hot cocoa and admire your handy holiday work.

Thank you so much for stopping by!

Are there any holiday traditions you are fond of and want to continue?

Lo

A Very Merry Christmas for Mom

If you are anything like me, you probably try to buy your mom relatively cool but more or less age appropriate items. My mom, I have to admit, dresses really nicely (I've helped her for hours working on different outfits..but I can't take all the credit). If I could buy my mom or someone else's mom something cool I would definitely choose from this hand selected Etsy list.

..Market Bag..

..triangle earrings..

..bracelet..

..brooch..

..knot bracelet..

..flower brooch..

..air plant..

..chevron pendant..

..dome ring..

..afghan..

..clutch..

..antique bracelet..

I got a few comments from this treasury on my facebook as being items that other women would want too. I admit these are all items I would love but they do hold a sense of refinery, which I find holds true when I think of the word "mom". 

Have you found a gift for mom yet? I feel like mom's rarely spend money on themselves so don't get her something useful (unless she really needs it of course) get her something that she would never think of getting but that she will absolutely love.

Thanks for stopping in!

Lo