joy to the…

November 5, 20125 Comments

It wasn’t supposed to rain yesterday and we didn’t have any big plans so I proposed that we take some Christmas card photos in the backyard.

Easy enough.

Gather branches that have fallen from the Douglas Firs, write a little something on the outdoor chalkboard, and throw in a little vintage red.

Oh, and how about some globes?! Yes, perfect!

Joy to the world!

Get on the trikes.

Move a little closer.

Lorelai, stop looking at your brother.

Reece, stop making funny faces.

Fine.

Everybody look at somebody else and make a funny face.

We look happy, but I had just stepped in the middle of his parenting. It’s all starting to go downhill.

The kids wanted to take more photos…meaning, they wanted to use the camera.

Lorelai took some of the boys.

Reece took some of the girls.

And, then the joy was gone.

It lasted all of five minutes.

We may have gotten one good family shot.

home is…a gold star for effort.

{diy} mason jar pendant light

July 26, 201245 Comments

Yesterday I took a photo of our clean kitchen and posted it on Instagram.

I was just happy to have it clean, but I had some questions about the mason jar pendants hanging above our counter.

So, here I am with my first {diy} post…I guess you could call it a tutorial, right?!

{I use the IKEA Hemma light kit, but you can find something similar in the lighting section at Lowes or Home Depot}

home is…personalizing your space.

UPDATE: I recently cleaned our mason jars and added some vent holes to the top by tapping extra holes in the lid with a hammer and nail.

{thrifting} on a whim

July 18, 20127 Comments

This morning started out with Lorelai asking to paint.

She didn’t just ask to paint, she asked if she could paint a picture for me.

How could I say no?!

Ryan left for a business trip and about 30 minutes after he left the house I got this e-mail from him:

“Did I really leave my phones at home?”

Yes. Yes, he did leave his phones at home.

So, the kids and I were quickly out the door to Fed Ex.

Since we were already dressed and in the car I figured we should swing by a couple of thrift stores we hadn’t been to in a while.

We found some stuff…

hoops, pyrex, a wooden step ladder…

a Yahtzee from 1975, a red colander for plants, a globe…

milk glass bowl with a beautiful flower pattern from Germany, a yellow Samsonite train case with the key…

and some very cool vintage suitcases.

home is…deciding to do something “on a whim”.

{colton+cadence} weight of the world

June 18, 20121 Comment

I’ve added a few finds into the shop in the last week…

I came across some vintage postal and kitchen scales and bought a bunch of them.

Both scales above are from the early 1950’s…postage was three cents per ounce!

I love the color in this one…I kept one like it for myself.

Go check it out!

home is…fun finds.

{colton+cadence} it’s official

May 1, 20121 Comment

colton+cadence is officially open for business.

While my first thought for colton+cadence ran along the handmade lines I have decided that selling some vintage finds is how I want to start out my little venture.

Along with my recent collection of globes I have also started collecting vintage Pyrex!

Some of the treasures that I have chosen not to keep are for sale at colton+cadence!

Don’t you worry, handmade is sure to come…just when I have a bit more time.

A little bit vintage, a little bit handmade.

That’s what colton+cadence is about.

home is…a little bit vintage, a little bit handmade.

teacher appreciation, collections, and a giveaway

April 30, 20129 Comments

Next week is Teacher Appreciation Week (May 7th-11th).

Last year I missed Teacher Appreciation Week altogether.

I was also late with my end of the year teachers gifts.

This year, with a little thrifting and creativity I have my gifts ready early.

Inspired by some ideas on Pinterest and my collection of globes I made these…

I am going to attach a card that reads:

“Thank you for being a bright light in our child’s ever-expanding world.”

In celebration of teachers being bright lights in our children’s worlds, I am giving one of these pendant lamps away!

To enter, leave a comment answering the following question:

What do you like to collect?

Deadline is Thursday, May 3rd at 9pm Pacific.

Winner will be announced on Friday, May 4th on the home is what you make it and colton+cadence Facebook pages (and here on the blog)!

{By the way, I have pairs and singles for sale at colton+cadence.}

home is…being a bright light in someone’s world.

*linking up with…

play games

March 15, 20128 Comments

Inspired by this…

I decided to do this…

in our playroom.

I am not handy with a saw and I don’t think we even have a table saw. So, I just glued a 12″ x 12″ canvas to the back of each game board and hung them up on the wall.

Originally, I used our more current game boards.

Then, after thrifting, I found some “vintage” game boards from the 80’s that I liked better.

So, I took the newer game boards off the canvases and put some thrifted ones back on.

I got the canvases on sale at Michaels…7 canvases for $20…so that’s less than $3 a piece.

The Chutes and Ladders, Candy Land and Life games were all found at Goodwill for $1.99 each.

We had the Scrabble and Monopoly games on hand.

So, for about $20, I added some colorful and playful art to our playroom!

home is…being playful.

*linking up with…

{thrifting} a new adventure

March 8, 20128 Comments

I’ve done my share of treasure hunting and antiquing, but thrifting is a new adventure.

I went last Saturday with the kids.

{these game pieces remind me of baby girl and the little guy}

And, again, this morning while we waited for it to warm up.

Here is what we found…

Not sure what I will do with these, but I picked them up anyway.

I have no idea who Edward L. Lawson is, but he crossed the Arctic Circle before I was born. I thought this was intriguing.

I have big plans for these embroidery hoops.

These guys are already working.

Storing art supplies for the kids.

These beauties are the MAIN reason that I took my first trip to Goodwill last Saturday. I found the white one today and the others on Saturday.

The little guy found this and I LOVE it! Obviously, handmade.

These games will go to good use, too. We have both of them already, but I love the look of these “vintage” ones.

I love the red and white theme here…great for the backyard movie night I would like to do this summer!

Last June, at the Farm Chicks Show, I contemplated over croquet mallets which were $4 a piece. I didn’t get them, but this made up for it…the whole set for $7.