early morning Sunshine

Hey friends!

Happy Wednesday! We are half way there! ;)

So...my parents whom I haven't seen in about a year were in town for a visit the past two days. They stayed over last night...on a blow up mattress in the livingroom. The last time they were in this room it was a familiar mix of tans, reds, and navy blue. I know waking up here today must have been a bit of a "Where am I ?" situation. With candy colored striped walls, tiny pianos, and pink bunnies spying on them. My mom did comment that it was nice to see the house living a new life. My parents moved way upstate N.Y. and are building a log cabin. I've been hearing them talk about "log cabin kits" for about 30 yrs! They are finally living out that dream. I'm happy for them. Not sure when we'd be taking that 5+ hr drive to visit their neck of the woods, but I'm sure we'll make it a sibling road trip.

They hit the road pretty darn early...before we even got out of bed. It's a super sunshiney day so they should have a pretty nice drive. Speaking of sunshine...the livingroom was aglow this morning so I took a few pics for ya! Again, we are still chipping away and moving things around. Feeling things out. :)

Yes...more stripes! This aqua and cream striped wall mirrors the pink and cream stripes I shared with you the other day. It's fun to glance from right to left (while sitting in our aqua nook) seeing the room with an aqua backdrop...then switching to pink. It's so interesting to see how different items in the room pop with a turn of the head and change of background :)

A favorite Springtime treasure.

These incredibly darling altered prize ribbons were a gift from a super talented friend a few yrs ago. She was soooo ahead of her time! I adore these so so much! The vintage trims, glitter, and smile inducing centers featuring vintage dolls, millinery flowers, and ephemera! They just make my heart so so happy!

So hard to pick a favorite isn't it? They are just magical!

We have one wall left to figure out here in the livingroom. We are pretty sure it will be a shade of mocha. It's the largest wall...so it will be a challenge. We'll be keeping it simple but we do have a few ideas swirling around.

Ohh!... I really want to send a Big Happy Blogiversary to my sweet blogland friend annnnd Everyday is a Holiday sponsor, Miss Amanda of Cupcakes & Corsets! Amanda is not only a total sweetie..but oh my gosh! So so talented! You must check out her cookies! They are amazing!! And seriously delicious! She is having a big giveaway to celebrate 4 years of blogging! Hooray!! Pop over and say hi...and enter to win! Tell her Jenny Holiday sentcha! ;)

Okie Doke kids... be back soon!

xo Jenny

A couple more classic kitchen cut outs

Hi guys!

I'm so so excited to share our newest JUMBO diecuts with you!! I have had this super fun vintage vanilla extract bottle sketched on napkins and tiny bits of paper for years! I cannot tell you how happy I am to actually have the "real life" version hanging on our wall! Of course we had to include "Charlotte" in the company logo!.... teeny tiny polka dots ...pastel frosted cupcakes, ... And I love the pop of the red cap...like a cherry on top. :)

We really have to thank you all so so much for all of the incredible feedback on our diecuts! We are so excited to see them hanging in YOUR homes! So please please send us some photos! We'd LOVE to see your vintage kitchens and bakery inspired vignettes! :)

Annnd... a PINK retro mixer!! This is a different style from our Aqua and Red versions. It's more "Kitchenaid" inspired.

Both are now in the shop! We have lots more on the drawing board and we couldn't be more excited! So stay tuned!

And be sure to come back tomorrow for a super duper fabulous Giveaway!!

Thanks for popping in!

xo Jenny

They're here! They're here!

Hey kids!

Just want to thank you guys so so much for all of the super sweet words here on the blog and over on facebook about the new Jumbo diecuts! So happy you like them! We are really just so excited about them. We spent most of today finishing up photographing and listing the first batch in the shop. It is quite hard to pick a favorite. At first I thought the chocolate layer cake was it...gosh, then when we hung the aqua mixer, my face squinched up, and my heart raced a bit.. So for today...it's the mixer. Tomorrow may be the cherry topped cupcakes on a plate. (still to be photographed)

We have 4 in the shop and hope to have 4 more listed tomorrow. Including a BIG Charlotte doll head, and a Chocolate Rabbit! :)

If you'd like one of your own pop over and check them out! They are made to order and will ship in about 1-2 weeks. (unless we get mega orders...which wouldn't be a bad thing.)

Hope you guys have a GREAT weekend!!

ooh oooh....before I go...The Walking Dead comes back tomorrow night!!! YAAAAAY!!

xo Jenny

A girl can dream...

Like I said a million times...the kitchen is the heart and soul of a home. And I promise that you'll get re-acquainted with that idea if you ever move into a new place. Me and Aaron just moved and it was just so utterly essential to get the kitchen in living/working order before even getting all of our boxes over to the new place. We've already had all of our bigger discussions around the table, celebrated a birthday, ate a holiday meal...and now we're trying our best to stock the cupboards with our New Year's resolution diet foods.

Today I took some pics in the new kitchen...just a couple sneak peeks of our new Jumbo solid wood cutouts of sweets. They're on half inch thick wood, super sturdy, heirloom quality... And they are BIG. Great pieces of home decor. Pictured here is our chocolate cupcake and our three layer cake. But these are the mere tippy tops of the iceberg. We've got dozens in progress...including a slice of cake, a large Charlotte doll head, tray of cupcakes, ice cream cone, chocolate bunny, pink paper mache rabbit, and a couple versions of vintage stand mixers...including a fantastic RED one...which peeps have been requesting left and right. The mixers are so fabulous...very big statement pieces for the home...or business for that matter. These will be available very soon. And what we're really thrilled about is that our carpenter is my little brother Walt. He's been working away at making his workshop a visually awesome space...he really had in his mind that his shop would be for tinkering mostly with engines and various greasy objects...but we instantly invaded his space with saws and the requisite sawdust. He's more than thrilled to be our woodcutting machine...but he's gonna need a new shop-vac for all the dust.

We hope to have most of the collection photographed and listed in the shop this weekend! So stay tuned! And for up to the minute news and SALES like us on facebook! :)

Ok, well being that I'm in a kitchen state of mind...and vintage/retro is the only way I go...I wanted to feature some amazing "new vintage" appliances from SMEG! For many years I've had tear sheets of these beauties pinned to my cork board. The colors are so dreamy and creamy...the streamlined/chunky designs are right out of my fantasy sketchbooks. I'm so in love with British kitchens...and that's where I spied SMEG fridges and stoves most often. Buying all those import magazines used to be so expensive but Pinterest certainly solved that financial obstacle. You can get these kitchen cuties on-line here. It's a super fab source for all your SMEG needs. Customer reviews for all of these pieces are stellar. My dream kitchen will certainly come to fruition one day...and there will be SMEG appliances for sure. I love the chunky hinged door handle especially. Heck, for years I've been wanting one of their refrigerators for our bedroom! We wouldn't plug it in...just use it as a dresser for sweaters and other warm clothes. A girl can dream...can't she?

Alright, just thought I'd check in from my corner of the kitchen. I'll be back really soon with more pics and links for shop listings of our brand new solid wood cutouts.
xoxo, Jenny

Scroll down for more SMEG eye candy!!


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Sweet Shop Ornament tutorial

Is it weird that I'm such a HUGE fan of our new full-color sticker sheets? And I swear, this isn't one of those tootin' my own horn moments...I honestly love these sticker sheets! They are exactly what I'd hope to find in the fantasy scrapbooking/art journal shop of my dreams. I cannot wait to make more! We have endless ideas and mock-ups for future sheets...the only issue is finding the time! One thing that I promise to do is always compliment any forthcoming creative elements of ours with tutorials here on the blog...just some simple examples of how to put this good stuff to good use.

We're still at work on our very own hand painted patterned paper packs...so for now this little project will make use of some of your own favorite patterned papers for the backgrounds. These are simple ornaments mounted on wooden discs that we purchased at Michaels...but you can probably find similar ones at A.C. Moore, Jo Ann Fabrics, or any store like these. Look for wood, mdf, chipboard, whatever you like really. Ours measure approximately 4 inches across...and ours were CHEAP! They came in a multi-pack with all different shapes and sizes and the whole pack was like 5 bucks!

What you will need:

- Everyday is a Holiday full-color sticker sheets!!

-scissors, pencil, artist paint brush

-wood, mdf, or chipboard discs in shape of your choice,
approx. 4" across.

- patterned papers for your backgrounds

-Decou-page by DecoArt. You can also use matte finish Mod Podge or clear gel medium

- heavy duty glue like E6000 or a hot glue gun if you prefer.

-colored glitters of your choice. (We used Martha's tinsel glitter in florentine gold, feldspar, and kunzite.)

-ultra fine clear glitter

-bakery twine or pretty string or ribbon of your choice

-ric rac or ribbon to hang them with

Step 1. Trace the shapes of your ornaments onto your background papers and cut out paper backgrounds. Also, cut out the stickers of your choice, eye-up your designs and match the stickers with their respective backgrounds.

Step 2. Adhere your backgrounds. We used Decou-page by DecoArt...but again, you can use matte finish Mod Podge or gel medium. With a paint brush apply a thin even coat to the disc, lay corresponding paper on it and gently press down...then gently smooth out any wrinkles or bubbles with a clean, dry paper towel. Let dry. You do not need to apply a top coat of the Decou-page or Mod Podge. We will be doing this later on. ( hint: most people have a tendency to brush a coat of Mod Podge over top of the paper they just glued down...doing this will always result in lots of wrinkles and bubbles. When applying a topcoat it is essential to let the paper that you've just glued down to fully set-up and dry. You'll know it is dry when it is no longer cool to the touch.)

Step 3. Once the backgrounds that you've glued down are fully set-up and dried, peel backs off of your stickers and apply them to their corresponding ornaments. Then, apply a thin even coat of Decou-page medium (or Mod Podge, or gel medium) over the entire front of the ornament...then dust the entire front with a coat of ultra fine clear glitter...let dry and shake off excess glitter. Next, apply a thin even coat of Decou-page medium (or Mod Podge, or gel medium) to the outside edge of the ornament and dust with an even coat of colored glitter (tip: using a glitter tray or paper plate, roll/press edges in colored glitter.)...let dry, shake off excess.

Step 4. Tie bows...we used classic bakery twine because we just love the stuff...you can find small rolls of it in all sorts of colorways at Michaels, A.C. Moore, or the crafty shop of your choice. Also, you can use ribbon or whatever you like instead. Just tie simple bows and using your more heavy duty adhesive or glue gun, attach the bows to the top-center of each ornament.

Next, make a loop of ric rac or ribbon to hang your ornament...attach to the back using your heavy duty adhesive or glue gun. To finish it off and make the backs prettier, we often used a 2" paper punch to punch out a circle of patterned or colored paper, and then we decoupage the paper circle right over the cut ends of the ribbon loop thats on back...it looks good and reinforces the loop hanger at the same time.

Taa Daaah! You've got a gorgeous, glittery set of Cupcake & Cake ornaments!...And you only used a few of your Everyday is a Holiday stickers!...You can make more...do a mixer ornament...or find a long thin base and make an ornie using one of the Retro Baking Gals! The format is no big deal...that's the easy part. But now you've got a simple idea of how to use your stickers in a really fun way...just follow the same steps, use the same methods, and you can't go wrong. We'd love for you to share what you've done with us! We can't wait to see your projects! Email us photos!
xoxo, Jenny