Valentine Ideas

This is a sponsored post. All opinions are my own.

I never really care for the typically Valentine decor probably because I like to make most of my things.

Although I have tons of holiday decor I love creating new things. 

 This year, I found something that can be used all year long. I wasn't sure how I would use it. 

I decided to use it in a tablescape.

So I started with a little color 

...and a little LOVE!

Our Moment A Love Story

Two guys went down the street on a motorcycle.

This is not some Brokeback Mountain story.

No, this is not some silly joke either, this is my love story.

I had just got back from the lake with my girlfriends. Needless to say, I looked my worse with slimy Hawaiian Tropic and lake hair. 

You know lake hair is when your hair sticks together and you seem to have fake dreads like some Bob Marley look alike.

One of the girls yelled to the two guys that just passed my house and I cringed!

Were they crazy look at us! 

Then...

Before I knew it they turned around.

When they pulled into the driveway,

This guy got off the motorcycle , took off his helmet, and looked into my eyes.

He had the most beautiful green eyes. I got a flutter in my stomach.

We talked for quite awhile and then I had to go in and take a shower.

I knew no guy in his right mind would be interested in me now after seeing me like that!

And it didn't stop there...

When I got prettied up I went back out and we played frisbee.

Sweat again! Yuk!

Then we went swimming in his friends pool. It was just a few houses down.

I know I am a glutten for punishment.

That is when we made the plan to go out on a date....

The next day I anticipated how the night would turn out.

You see he had to work but was meeting me and my friends at the Wave Pool.

Do you see a trend?

I was nervous to go out with him alone. So we had this group thing at the pool. I had a wonderful time. We talked for hours and laughed. I think he liked me even with the crud in my hair from the chlorine. What a sight it must have been.

Then he asked me to dinner and I again invited everyone to go with us.

I felt so comfortable with him. I never stopped smiling....

Then we drove to the dam. That is were the couples park. 

But remember we had people with us so the romance was adrift.

Then it happened....they left us and started walking along the water's edge.

We were out of the car sitting on the curb. Again I was talking.

and talking....

maybe it was nerves but I couldn't shut up. (fast forward to now) ok it wasn't nerves.

Then he did it. He grabbed my chin, turned my head to his, looked me in the eyes....

and kissed me.

Everything else disappeared.

Butterflies are still in my stomach when I think of that moment. The moment I fell in love. 

Later, he told me, he went home that night and told his mom that he met the girl he was going to marry. (we dated for 4 years and the he finally asked me)

How romantic!

So today, on Valentine's Day, 32 years later from when we first met, (June 14th), I wanted to share this story with you.

And relive the moment again that I secretly keep in my thoughts and pull out from time to time when I need those "butterflies" to remind me how strong our love is.

When I feel less than beautiful I remember my Bob Marley moment and it reminds me that he fell in love with me anyway.

And I think of those green eyes and I still melt.

So honey if you are reading this....Happy Valentine's Day and Happy Birthday!

Yes it is his birthday today.

I love you!

........................How romantic!

How to make Porcelain Roses/A Flower's Meaning

Valentine's Day is tomorrow and I am sure people are scrambling for those last minute gifts and cards. There will be many flowers purchased and delivered. Or you can make one! This is how to make a porcelain rose. (Well a faux one)You can choose any color. I chose white for Purity and innocence.(Not because I am, I just like the color) :)

I started with a regular silk red rose

I painted it with Annie Sloan Pure White. The paint gives it a shell coating that looks like porcelain.

I then got a floral wire and started to wrap the top to form a stem

Then I started to wrap the wire with floral tape

That is it! Now you can add color or just tint what you already have. I love these. I think it would look beautiful in a vase or just laying on a table.

Remember you can make Paper Roses too! I have a complete tutorial for you! Now here are some meanings of flowers to help you decide.

 Roses are the flower of love! Cabbage Roses are the Ambassadors of love and Rosebuds mean young love. White is Purity and Innocence, Red is love, Pink is sweetness, Yellow is Grace and Orange is Desire or Romance.

 Which one will you choose?

Tulips are a declaration of love

Peach Blossoms say "I belong to you"

Lilacs or Lavender "New Love"

Heartsease/ Pansy is "Think of Me"

Lemon Blossoms mean "I'll be true to you"

Lily of the Valley is happiness

Forget me not means True Love

Marigold is Fertility

I love all flowers and think any bouquet or single stem shows someone you care about them.

So will you buy some or makes some?

  Whipperberry

Valentine's Day Mantel {Mantle}

"This is the song project that never ends, cause it goes on and on my friends....."

It all began with a little challenge to myself. (Yes I do that because no one else will lol)
I wanted to do a different Valentine's Mantle. One I haven't seen.

How hard could that be?

.........................................Well that is what I thought!

I mean I came up with an idea and all I had to do was implicate it.

So I started out with a bunch of these......

I wanted to make something with books. And since I have a whole bonus room filled with these babies I just knew I could do.it.

But we have all seen folded pages and mod podged print. How was I going to make something different?

I decided to make a heart out of books.....

So I gathered and built and stacked.

Then I looked for all the red books I could find.

.............................................and that's when the trouble began......

Was this going to turn into an epic fail?

I did't realize how many red books I needed. I also didn't realize that most of my books aren't red!!

Fail
..........................Fail
........................................Fail!!!!

Then I came up with a brilliant idea. I will only use the red ones as an outline. I will turn the others around to show only white pages.

So back to building....

It was like playing Tetris. Do you remember that game? You had to get the pieces to fit within each other. Well that is how the books were. I had to piece them together like a puzzle and they were all different sizes. I had to try and keep them all straight too with all the different thicknesses.
To top it all off, I had to make sure they didn't all come tumbling down.

When I stepped back to see my masterpiece...... I couldn't see a heart.

So I started again. In the mean time are you still with me?  I wanted to add a backing on the wall to give another layer. So I added some brown paper.

Then I wrote in script my favorite poem. Actually it is our favorite poem.

"How do I love thee? Let me count the ways."  My husband and I have always wrote and spoke these words to each other. I knew it would be great for Valentine's Day.

A subtle, lightly inked, handwritten poem to be the message....of love.  Like having a huge card on my wall.

I have used it before in french when I painted my French Hutch.

And after stacking a few hundred books....trying to be creative
                                                                                         and artsy
                                                             I ended up with this.

My problem is I feel it needs something else.

This was supposed to be a simple project.      HA!

So I decided to just go with it. Let go of the obsessive behavior....

Stand back and relax....Take the picture write the post and press publish!

So here it is! I think I accomplished it being something different. My outside the box project.

 Is it an epic fail?

I will let you decide.

 I still want to tweak it. Since Valentine's Day is in a few days, I knew I had to let it be...

Now I am cringing thinking about putting all those books back upstairs!

It is growing on me:)

Do you spend WAY too much time on simple projects sometimes?

I want to thank Donna from Funky Junk Interiors for featuring my Coffee Sack Heart!

Hugs

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Valentine Art {Love Gifts}

Last year I got this idea when I was out shopping. It was going to be a knock off decor project. I wrote it down but never did it. I do that a lot. Do you? I have lots of ideas but sometimes they never come to be.

Not today. Today was different. Probably because it was raining this morning when I started this, or maybe because I found a Christmas heart ornament left out that got my wondering what I can make with it so I didn't have to pull out the box it was supposed to go in!!

 So that's when it happened.....I remembered the project. These days that is quite an accomplishment since I don't remember what I just said

I combined an old handwritten graphic from The Graphic Fairy and a my handwritten chalk print.

If you want to create this for your home or a gift, I have a tutorial for you below

I started with a piece of foam core and cut a square in shape of my frame. NOTE: Make sure you score the board before you cut all the way through and use a sharp knife. My mistake was not changing my blade! So don't look too close.lol

I painted the front with Annie Sloan Graphite paint.

When it dries use a piece of chalk to cure the board. Do this on all hand painted chalkboards
before you write on them.

After this is done wipe with a cloth. Now you are ready to write on it. I chose the word "Amour" I wrote in different fonts. I didn't trace or use anything to make it perfect. I wanted it to look natural.

I downloaded this graphic from The Graphic Fairy.

I love the old style poem. The cupid goes with my Valentine theme.

I glued it to the back of the board.

I then glued a paper clip to the top as my hanger,

You can cover the back with pretty paper to give it a finished look.

Then I applied my "orphaned ornament" with E6000 to the center of the graphic.

I love that it had a little sparkle to it and the glass gave it a higher end look.

This didn't cost my anything to make because I had all of this on hand. I hope you give it a try! I have it sitting on my mantle right now deciding if I should keep it.

I think it would be sweet to paint something on the heart. Someone's name perhaps....

How are you "Giving Your Heart Away"?