DIY: Rustic Bible Verse Flower Planters

With my first wedding anniversary fast approaching I thought I would start to do a few posts with all of the amazing pictures I have from that wonderful day!

These flower planters with 1 Corinthians 13 on them are quite lovable... and they were a complete family DIY project. My mom, my sister, and myself all painted the wood signs and my dad built the planters and attached the signs!

Before I say anymore I should mention that all of these amazing wedding pictures were taken by my wonderful photographer Sara Thiry of Wonderful Life Photography in Hayward, WI. Aren't they beautiful!?

I always knew that I wanted to incorporate these verses somewhere at my wedding. When we decided to get married out in the woods at my parent's house, the plan became to "scatter" the verse along the trail that led back to the ceremony site. 

Using pretty flower planters is how we did it!

Here they all are from the beginning of the trail to the end.

These scattered all along the edge of the woods from side to side.

They were one of the very first wedding projects we started working on, because we could paint inside during the long, cold winter.

Our wedding colors were plum, green, and white - I chose green specifically so that we could incorporate a lot of plants. I love plants!

We had the old, weathered wood for the signs next to a fire pit, ready to burn. Good thing we didn't burn it before we realized we needed them for this project!

My mom white washed the planters, which I think helped the signs to stand out more.

And there ya have it! Love never fails.

And here I am with my love at the beginning of the trail as we were walking back to the front yard area for the reception. You can kind of see in this picture what the spacing of the planters was like on the trail. 

I hope to share more of my favorite day later on!

Blessings,

Olivia

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Outdoor Table Makeover

I'm sharing one of my creative mother's most recent projects today.

My parents had an outdoor patio table with a glass top, but the top shattered in a storm because the umbrella was left in it. Instead of throwing away the metal base, my mom came up with the idea to cover the top with wood boards (because my dad has a lot of that kind of stuff laying around). :)

So dad cut and attached the wood to the base. 

Then, instead of staining the wood, my mom got some mini paint samples in light blues, greens, and grays and did a sort of "white wash" technique by watering them down.

After that she sealed it to help protect it from the rain and glorious Wisconsin winter weather. 

I think it turned out pretty darn cute, don't you!? Way to go mom!

Before I went to take the pictures of the table it had rained, so I was bringing a towel outside to dry it off.

My mom comes out with me and lifts up one end of the table to let all the water run off before we use the towel on it. Then she looks at me with a little smirk...

"Would you have thought to do that on your own?"

I was like, "uhhhh...no?"

Mom goes, "Huh? No?? Well stick with me kid - you'll be a star."

Hahahaha! She's just so lovable!

Thanks for stopping by!

Blessings,

Olivia

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Party in your PJs

Going on a Camping Trip {and reasons why you should go too!}

Camping is one of those things where people either love it, or they hate it. I think it all depends on what they grew up doing with their family.

I grew up going camping. Camping trips were considered mini vacations, and we would often go with my closest cousin's family, so there was much excitement about it!

Recently I had been dying to go camping for the first time this summer. Then, I discovered the "outdoors" section on Pinterest, which made it that much worse! I started a new board called I'm a Happy Camper! and have been pinning pictures of cute vintage campers like crazy! You should definitely check out how cute they are.

Then, this last weekend I finally got to go and satisfy a bit of my outdoor craving. I wasn't in a cute vintage caravan...just a tent, but it was still so fun.

We were camping on the Holcombe Flowage and our campsite even had it's own dock!

I am ready to go back out again!

I've thought of a list of reasons why camping is so lovable to me and why it's such a good idea to go.

Hope all those wonderful things inspire you to go camping this summer!!

Blessings,

Olivia

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Words to Live By...

I wasn't sure what I could post about this week (it's kinda hard when I don't have a house that I can decorate and show you pictures of!!). Anyways, I decided to create my own pictures with some of my favorite scriptures. You really can't go wrong with God's words. They are so beautiful, true, and comforting.

Enjoy!

What are some other great verses? Tell me your favorites! I love reading comments!!

Thanks for stopping by.

Blessings,
Olivia




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DIY: Simple Door Hanger

Simple may have been an overstatement. I'm pretty confident that a 4-year-old could do this. I mostly just wanted to share my G's new home.

Up until now it has spent its time sitting on top of our desk, leaning up against the wall. We just never got around to hanging it because I couldn't find it a good home on the walls.

Then, this idea hit me! Like I said, so simple! But now my "G" has a new home and my door looks happier!

My husband and I got this G a few years back at Hobby Lobby (before I was even Mrs. Godfrey!).
Recently I went back to Hobby Lobby to get the burlap ribbon...chopped a chunk off and tied it, then looped it on.

Walla!!



Blessings,
Olivia


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Spring Time in the Country

I was back up north for my little sister's high school graduation this last weekend, and although summer is in full force here in southern WI, it was only just beginning up there.

The pond was so full from all the rain, and all of the trees were starting to bud out.

My sister and I spent many sunny days by the pond catching tadpoles, frogs, water bugs, and turtles.

This picture will either fascinate you or gross you out, but it is a true "spring time in the country picture". The thousands of tiny black dots that are inside of the intestine looking stuff would be little baby tadpoles! This is all along the edge of the pond...
I even saw a little dad frog helping to squeeze more eggs out of the big, fat mom frog. ;) it was like 6th grade science class all over again!

Now back to something a little cuter ...this little guy was the only one brave enough to stay as I took a picture. There were 4 other turtles on the stump (all different sizes) as I approached.

On second thought, maybe he was just stuck. Either way I'm glad I got the picture. He was cute, about 3" in diameter. (I had seen a super tiny and adorable one, about a 1" diameter shell earlier - that's when I ran to get my camera, but it was long gone when I got back.)

Duke and two of the ladies...

I adore the shelf of birdhouses my dad built. And they look even sweeter now that they are getting older. I think they are the same age as I am! (20). This last winter was a rough one and the shelf came crashing down...that would be why the wood brackets are bright and new.

Some beautiful blooms below the birdhouses (say that 10x fast!).

So welcoming... There is no place like home.

As if I wasn't lucky enough to grow up with a pond in the front yard, there is also a creek in the back yard!
The lovely... Mosquito Brook

I could sit down here and listen to the water all day ...if it weren't for the mosquitoes of course. And the fact that this chair could break at any moment. ;)

The Marsh Marigolds sure are beautiful, aren't they?


I hope you enjoyed the country tour!

Blessings,
Olivia


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5 Easy DIY Bridal Shower Ideas

My friend Whitnie recently had her bridal shower. ( I showed you Her Wedding Venue a while back.) Being one of her bridesmaids, I of course helped out. It was interesting being on the other end...now I know a bit of what my bridesmaids and mom went through!

Here are some simple yet creative ideas for throwing a bridal shower.



1.) Use Pictures as Decor

Pictures are affordable, and everyone loves them! Try to get pictures to hang of the bride-to-be with each of her bridal shower guests, plus some extras of her and the groom. Using jute with miniature clothes pins is cute and easy.

2.) Use Large Picture Frames as Serving Trays

When you put some pretty paper in a large frame and lay it flat - BOOM - insta tray. The best part? You can go back to using it as a frame afterwards. :) After-all there will be a lot of pictures from the wedding.

3.) Make the Game Prizes Worth Competing For

I was in charge of prizes, so let me show you how! It was quite simple really... I made little gift baskets that contained items that would actually be wanted by the guests. This can be done pretty frugally too, because none of the items are too expensive.

I did three different themed baskets.

This one had a gardening theme with seed packets, garden gloves, and gardening tools all in a little flower pot.

Then there was a baking theme with cake mix, cupcake liners, frosting, and an oven mitt in a plastic container.

And a relaxing theme with a book, tea, a tea mug, and chocolates, also in a plastic container.

...I promise...you will see those you thought were not competitive become very competitive. 



4.) Decorate "Shabby Chic"

This is a great way to go because it is all affordable items or things that you most likely already have laying around. Canning jars? Floral saucers? Candles? Mmmhmm. And especially right now because the rustic/romantic vibe is in!

5.) Make Too Much Food

Because you know you are at a good party when there is a ton of food and you feel like you can pig-out and not worry about saving enough for the other guests. We had a few different people making a few different things so that it wasn't too stressful for anyone. As you can see, I was in charge of mini cheesecakes.

Looking back, I'm not sure why I did all cherry. Wish I would have done some blueberry and some as caramel and chocolate.

  

I was also in charge of the fruit skewers (because we needed something to make us feel healthy).

Here is a behind the scenes photo of my husband's plastic wrap job on the fruit skewers. They weren't going anywhere! haha   ...(does he not look like a really tall 6 year old in this picture!? hahaha! aww..)

Bonus Tip: Use A Small Book As The Gift's "Card"

This, of course, could be used for any gift giving occasion. Just think about it though - cards are like $5 now! You can get a cute little book for that price and write on the inside flap. I got the bride-to-be a very appropriate book about the promises love brings.

Hope this helps anyone planning a bridal shower!

What are some other easy and creative party ideas ya'll have done?? I love hearing from you.

Blessings,

Olivia

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