Dan & Brittney's Engagement Party & Gift Ideas

Last night was my beautiful friend Brittney's engagement party. Her parents spent the whole summer planning to have a backyard karaoke party with fire pits and smores. Turned out that we have had an insane 2 week storm with non-stop wind and rain just in time for their party.. They had to forget their plans and move the party indoors. It was fun though! A bit hard to gather everyone into one room. I bet her parents were stressed, but they did such a good job.. Everything was adorable, and the soon to be bride and groom were happy that their family and friends were all in one place.
I wanted to share what I got Brittney for an engagement gift to give everyone some ideas. I knew I was going to make her "Mr. & Mrs." chair signs. She has been pinning them out of my shop for a while now. I made a mental note to go get a gift bag, and thought.. What the hell. I can make one! I have a few thick canvas bags and my "Always & Forever" design is one of my favorite designs I have made as of yet. With my aunts bridal shower that I previously shared with all of you I got her Redneck Wine Glasses and they were a hit. So I got the couple a set of those (They are getting married in a barn), and 3 chalkboard arrow signs to use on the wedding day! Veuve Clicquot is Wayne and I's celebration beverage of choice.. There had to be champagne and a bridal magazine! My mom makes hand stamped jewelry as a lot of you know. I asked her to stamp 'Bride' & 'Groom' into forks to be used on their wedding day. My mom of course loves to contribute as much as I do. It is a good way to get people to interact about our shops too! The adorable forks are available HERE.

I just wanted to share the gift ideas with all of you in case you are having a hard time finding a good gift. I was pretty impressed with how it all came together and with very little effort. Everyone that saw just the gift bag was in awe. My aunt said (direct quote), "I WANT TO BE YOUR FRIEND!". Everyone can make simple gifts that make a huge statement, and if you lack creativity or materials.. That's what keeps me and my mom in business!!

♥

How To Make Wood Round Table Numbers

When we moved into the new house, there were a TON (quite literally) of downed trees and tree dibris. With the doug fir branches that were cut to give us our view of the lake from the house.. We started to cut and chip all of them up, and I thought just maybe I could use these! I asked Wayne to cut a bunch with his chop saw. I put them up in my shop and instantly people wanted them. Rustic themed parties are in these days! So I thought I would show you guys how we do it!

Here is a tip to get you started:
We figured out that young trees are not as tightly bound like the old trees branches. The branches are less grooved and much easier to write on! So go for branches.

Do note that these branches were already dry by the time that we got here. So they will not split. If you are working with green wood. You need a wood stabilizer called Pentacryl to keep them from splitting. This goes for large wood rounds for centerpieces also.

I use Polycrylic as a surface protector. It really isn't necessary though. It helps protect wood surfaces from water damage. I wanted it to kindof glue the moss and reinforce the bark. It gives the wood a semi glossy look.

I drill them, and hang them with twine. The ideas are endless for these little things!

Learning to work with wood is interesting. It is one thing that I never thought that I would be doing, but making wood signs for my shop is my getaway from all of the screen printing! I like doing something different.. I hope you guys enjoy learning along with me! Check out my Etsy shop to see what I have been up to. If it just isn't possible that you can make them on your own I do have them available for purchase in my shop.

Cabin Update: Almost Done!

Update: The electrical work is competed! The floors are in! The fireplace took a LONG time to figure out, but is now also complete! Wayne is now working on the decorative work, and customizations to add as much storage and usable space as possible. Everything will be totally finished VERY soon.

Next we start on the deck. :)

Coburg Antique Fair 2013

Coburg, Oregon has an annual antique fair and I have braced myself to go to every year. It is not only antiques, the entire town has yard sales also! We would have literally been there 4am-5pm if we went to everything, and in every store. Yes it all starts at 4am! There was over 350 dealers from over 6 states. Wayne and his mom and I came to the conclusion that everyone jacks up their prices for the event. Everything was ridiculously priced.. I went there looking for "deals" and got just the opposite. We would have been better off going to all of the yard sales. It was fun to dog watch and look around though, and the weather was PERFECT. We also didn't have much cash on us, and not all vendors take cards or have prices on every item. It was a fun family outing though! They had tons of food vendors and live blues music in the park. It was a good first timers experience. Now I know what I will be looking for in next years fair! I DO recommend going if you live in Oregon. Despite the lack of "deals" it was fun!

Family Day Trip

My family had planned to meet in Coburg, Oregon for an antique fair. We thought it was on Saturday, but turns out it was on Sunday. We had a whole day to play with and no plans! We took a two car caravan sightseeing(Mom,bro,aunt,uncle,Wayne and I). My aunt and new uncle wanted to see our new house, so we gave them the tour. Had lunch at a local brewery, then went to a fish hatchery that has a museum, miniature golf, game bird exhibit, & 8 foot long sturgeon! I thought that would be interesting, and something new that none of us have done. It was really beautiful there..

We ventured on 20 miles past that to the famous Salt Creek Falls. The second largest waterfall in Oregon.

And then.... Our favorite campground and future boating spot. Shelter Cove on Odell Lake. We bought snacks and sat by the open communal fire pit for a couple of hours. It was VERY relaxing.. The kind of place you never want to leave. A soul soother.. and yes this campground has a store, espresso, pizza, showers, laundry facility, boat rentals, cabin rentals, a lodge, and of course flushing toilets. Who knows what else.. It is quite high class on a camping scale. The family seemed quite impressed. We all have plans to go back next summer.

Oh Oregon.... I love you! Up next: Wayne and his mom and I went to Coburg to the Antique fair. I documented the adventure! Check back soon. ♥