Bird Nest Topiaries - A How-to

I love a good bird nest, don't you?

I bought a few little white pots a couple of weeks ago at the GW and thought I'd use them for herbs.

But, how many times does something actually turn into the first thing we envision? In my case, not often.

So while I waited to find just the right vinyl font for the herb lettering, I changed my mind.

Playing in my craft room while getting ready for the flea market, I discovered I had moss, styrofoam balls, birds nests, and a slew of embellishments. So, I decided to create topiaries instead.

I gathered all of my goodies and started to see what I could up with.

1. I started by pushing some flat circular foam pieces into the bowls. They fit really snug so I didn't have to bother with any glue at this point.

2. Next, I pushed a small styrofoam ball onto a little dowel rod. I made the hole, then backed the rod out and filled the hole with glue before putting it back in so the ball would stay in place.

I still wasn't sure what I wanted to put on the pots so I decided to go ahead and fill them with moss while I thought about it.

3. I covered the foam with a lot of hot glue and then packed the moss on top.

At this point, I decided to try putting some pretty rub-ons on some of the pots. Worked great.

(Can you see there is no rhyme or reason to my order? I had 4 of these to do, so that's why this one doesn't have the moss yet - Iwas playing, obviously out of order.)

Next, I put a little moss on the nest and glued in a few eggs, then pinned it in the moss bed

(See that turquoise strip? That's some Martha Stewart Crafts decorative tape. Actually, it's an adhesive ribbon that's extra sticky, so I thought I'd see if it worked on the pots and it did. You'll see a pink one also.)

4. The final step was to put the moss on the styrofoam balls. To make this easy, I layed a lot of moss on the table and squirted the hot glue on it. Then I rolled the ball over the moss and covered it up. When it gets fully covered, be sure to press down all over it to pack it in place.

After I got that finished, I remembered that I had some metal birds I picked up at Hobby Lobby that I wanted to put on the top. I burried them in a blob of hot glue and held it in place while it dried. Then I added turquoise rhinestones for eyes.

Here's the finished topiary!

 I completed 4 of them, and here they are.

Aren't those birds wonderful? I wish I could find some more. I took all they had when I found them.

(I made a few more just like these after the market to sell, so you'll see them show up somewhere soon.)

Tell me about the bird stuff you have around your house.

----------------------------------------------------------------------
It's been a while since I made the rounds, so I'm linking to all of the following this week:

Somewhat Simple

The Shabby Chic Cottage

A Room to Inspire

Life as Lori

A Few of My Favorite Things

The Top 7 Reasons Why An Apartment Hasn't Sold

by Richard Grunebaum & Mark Neuwirth, Bellmarc Realty

The most frequent status in our listing database today is not “Not Available” or “In Contract” but, unfortunately, “Off The Market.” OTM apartments those whose owners who have decided not to sell for a variety of reasons. Why haven't these apartments sold? Bear in mind these are only the top 7 missteps, others lurk.

1) The asking price was incorrect. The majority of the time this means that the seller's price was too high. Usually buyers were intimidated from looking and bidding on the property. Most buyers don't believe sellers will negotiate to close a perceived huge gap between the ask price and what they believe is the correct market value. The article “The Top 6 Reasons To Price It Right” in our December 2009 issue outlines more of these issues.

2) The apartment was poorly photographed. The next time you're looking at listings on the web notice how many of the pictures are dark, blurry or unappealing. Only the savviest buyers will take the time to look beyond bad photos and visit an apartment.

3) The ad copy was inaccurate or unappealing. We recently saw an ad for a 500-square-foot studio that claimed the apartment was 800-square-feet. Buyers today understand the difference and move on. And ad copy that references a superior view needs to be paired with compelling photos of that view.

4) Buyers are impressionable people and react to a neat and clean space differently than to a cluttered or untidy apartment. Preparation or “staging” is an invaluable tool that impacts how an apartment looks in photos, but more important, how it shows in person.

5) The time of year. Real estate in New York City is a seasonal business. We know that larger apartments generally have less buyer traffic in the summer than the rest of the year. Buildings located further from subways can experience significantly less attention during the winter months until the spring weather makes the walk to them easier.

6) Lack of access. Some apartments are much harder to show than others. The reasons can include busy owner schedules, renters subletting during the sale or a listing agent who is too busy to show.

7) As we've mentioned before, getting a mortgage is significantly more difficult today than in recent years. Problems include appraisals below the contract price and tough bank guidelines for both buildings and borrowers, each of which are subject to almost weekly change.
Selling an apartment in New York City has always presented a unique set of challenges for owners. This has never been more true than it is today.

Inside New York City Real Estate | March 2010

The Top 7 Reasons Why It Hasn't Sold
First-Time Homebuyer Credits
Going Green And Saving Green
Mortgage Matters
The State Of The Market

Going Green and Saving Green

by Leslie Sikora & Debby Klein, Bellmarc Realty

There seem to be more planters and planted areas in front of buildings of all kinds all over town, and as spring approaches, we will be able to see more and more evidence of the greening of New York City. These are the obvious signs, as some of the 50,000 or so acres of undeveloped open space in the city becomes another flower bed or community garden.

So, aside from making everything look pretty, what other benefits will arise from planting gardens, retrofitting insulation and building ever more green buildings? More plantings bring more oxygen into the air: cleaner air, healthier people – there is great savings potential there. Along with mitigating climate change, all of these efforts will save money over time, far beyond their initial costs: by increasing the amount of planted space in Manhattan, we reduce storm water runoff to the sewers, and the filtering action of soil in a healthy environment cleans the water as it travels through. Better natural water filtration takes a part of the burden off water treatment facilities.

The greening of buildings means more than environmental bling – the expensive solutions like wind turbines, solar panels and roof gardens. It also means updating HVAC systems, more and better insulation, and feedback metering to help save energy. In some rental buildings, just the replacement of lighting fixtures in hallways, the use of compact fluorescent bulbs, replacement of outdated kitchen appliances and updating heating systems has brought about significant energy savings. Buildings that take every possible measure to retrofit and find efficiencies can expect energy savings up to 20%.

Architects and developers are beginning to work together and more buildings are being planned and built to conform to LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) standards. Architects working on these buildings have been able to show developers that building to these standards is no more costly than conventional construction, and indeed, such types of construction are ever more in demand. In the New York Times Real Estate Advanced Search, there is now a checkbox for “Green Building”!

First Time Home Buyer Credits and Other Valuable Incentives

Today is a great time to purchase a home. Home prices are at a record low and housing stock are at an all time high. What is even more exciting for purchasers and particularly first time home buyers are the various incentives that can be taken advantage of. The Federal Government’s $8,000 first time home buyer tax credit has been extended until April 30, 2010. A first time home buyer has until April 30, 2010 to go into contract to purchase a property. The purchase must be completed no later than June 30, 2010 in order to take advantage of the tax credit. Home buyers still have two months to find a home to fall in love with and be eligible to receive the Federal tax credit. Congress is even giving current homeowners who have lived in their primary residences for the last five years a tax credit of up to $6,500 when they purchase a new home. The tax credits are available to individuals whose annual incomes are $125,000 or less and for married couples of incomes of $225,000 or less. Another benefit of the tax credit is that the credit can be claimed on a purchaser’s 2009 income tax return. The tax credit does not apply to a purchase of a property in excess of $800,000.00.

First time homeowners can also take advantage of various grant and forgivable loan programs currently being offered by non-profit organizations as well as by some national lenders. First time home buyers may take advantage of the various non-profit organizations dedicated to providing first time home buyers with education, financial counseling and access to various grants and forgivable loans. Pratt Area Community Council, Neighborhood Housing Services, and Neighbors Helping Neighbors, which have offices throughout the five boroughs, are just a few of the many non-for profit organizations that can be a treasure trove of information for first time home buyers. What is so great about these organizations is that the information, counseling, and financial programs offered are free. That is right. Free, there is no cost to the first time home buyer for participating in any of these excellent programs. Beside the programs being free, these various non-profit organizations offer first time home buyers access to down payment assistance, closing cost assistance and even home buyer grants of up to $25,000. For example, Neighborhood Housing Services offers a grant of up to $25,000 which can be used to purchase either a residential home, condominium or even a cooperative unit. That can add up to large savings to the first time purchaser. In addition, national lenders such as Bank of America, Chase and CitiMortgage will work in conjunction with the non-profit organizations and also provide their own grants of varying amounts.

Although we are in a bad economy, there is no better time to purchase a home. Home buyers who take advantage of the various monetary grants, forgivable loans and the federal tax credit can realize enormous savings.

Ryan J. Walsh, Esq.
rjwesq@gmail.com

Going Green and Saving Green

by Leslie Sikora & Debby Klein, Bellmarc Realty

There seem to be more planters and planted areas in front of buildings of all kinds all over town, and as spring approaches, we will be able to see more and more evidence of the greening of New York City. These are the obvious signs, as some of the 50,000 or so acres of undeveloped open space in the city becomes another flower bed or community garden.

So, aside from making everything look pretty, what other benefits will arise from planting gardens, retrofitting insulation and building ever more green buildings? More plantings bring more oxygen into the air: cleaner air, healthier people – there is great savings potential there. Along with mitigating climate change, all of these efforts will save money over time, far beyond their initial costs: by increasing the amount of planted space in Manhattan, we reduce storm water runoff to the sewers, and the filtering action of soil in a healthy environment cleans the water as it travels through. Better natural water filtration takes a part of the burden off water treatment facilities.

The greening of buildings means more than environmental bling – the expensive solutions like wind turbines, solar panels and roof gardens. It also means updating HVAC systems, more and better insulation, and feedback metering to help save energy. In some rental buildings, just the replacement of lighting fixtures in hallways, the use of compact fluorescent bulbs, replacement of outdated kitchen appliances and updating heating systems has brought about significant energy savings. Buildings that take every possible measure to retrofit and find efficiencies can expect energy savings up to 20%.

Architects and developers are beginning to work together and more buildings are being planned and built to conform to LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) standards. Architects working on these buildings have been able to show developers that building to these standards is no more costly than conventional construction, and indeed, such types of construction are ever more in demand. In the New York Times Real Estate Advanced Search, there is now a checkbox for “Green Building”!

Mortgage Matters

Adam Turkewitz
530 Fifth Avenue, 15th Floor, New YOrk, NY 10036
Office: (212)805-1172
adam.turkewitz@wellsfargo.com
https://www.wfhm.com/loans/adam-turkewitz/

The State Of The Market

Inventory of studio, 2 and 3 bedrooms dropped slightly, while the number of available one bedrooms decreased from February’s levels by 1,199, or 22.4%. 204 of these one bedrooms closed during this period, while 577 were taken off the market and 382 contracts were signed. The number of OTMs reflects both continued over-optimism on the part of these owners as well as some of the sluggish sales of the 2 and 3 bedrooms they would like to trade up for.
The snowy winter weather that typically discourages buyers has passed, and the warmer days should see increased studio and one bedroom traffic. Activity in areas further from subways typically improves significantly in the March-August periods.

Dorm Room

As much as I do love the look of a gorgeous bunk room, I have found that bunk beds really are such a pain to make. Lately I have been preferring the look of a large dorm room with rows of single beds like the picture above. I love the lidded basket placed at the end of each bed - perfect for storing each person's clothes in. I personally would be much happier making these beds instead of numerous bunk beds.

image - cote maison via aged & gilded

Need Photography Tips for Your Blog?

I'm sure there are many of us who wish someone would just tell us - errr - show us how to take great pictures for our blog.

Do you want to impress your readers with blog pictures that are more vivid? Clearer? Centered? Focused? Well lit? Taken with a steady hand?

I know I do.

If you want to learn too, then follow me over here.

As part of Funky Junk's WorkShop Series, she is offering a 5 week blog class/series on taking pictures with your regular point and shoot digital camera.

You don't need a special camera for this class, and you'll learn tips and tricks in everyday layman's terms that are easy to understand and put to use right away.

I'll see you there.

Gone Thrifting

Don't you just love it when you run across a great little shop when you're out thrifting?

I DO TOO!

I found this one a few weeks ago and wanted to share.

It's located in an old house, and every single nook and cranny is filled with fabulous treasures. Even the bathroom, seriously. And when you're finished looking in one house, they have another one right next to it full of stuff too.

I just love, love, love to browse in unique shops.

Junkyard Gypsies is located in Bowling Green, KY.

If you're ever in my area, head over and take a peek. And then come by my house for a cup of coffee.

(I have not been compensated for this post. I simply wanted to tell you about a great shop I found.)

Do you know any shops or antique malls in the area that spans from Elizabethtown, KY to Nashville, TN? How about fabric stores?

I'm not having much luck finding many by myself. boo.

Decorating A New Home {Over Time}

When I look at these images I love that they are all so casual and not overly decorated. I am leaning towards this more pared back look in our new house. I want it to be a home where we can relax and not be too worried about the white slip covered sofa when the big 1 year old {yes he turned 1 yesterday} Golden Retriever jumps up on it.

I am dreaming of faded denim fabrics on sofas, washed out florals and checks and stripes and mismatched pieces of cane furniture on the verandahs - not new cane - old mismatched cane collected over time. I will retain all of our Antique pieces of furniture which Brad & I have collected over the years. That's what I love about Antiques...they transcend fashion and trends, they are the pieces we hold onto and they are the pieces we pass onto our loved ones. I find I never tire of my Antique pieces. It's the mass-produced pieces I tire of very quickly.

This time round Harry and Brad have made me promise not to have the floors painted white. My obsession with keeping our current white-painted floors clean is all too much for my boys. All the internal walls will be painted my usual white but this time I think we might just sand back the old wide plank floorboards and apply an oiled, not glossy finish.

Everything about this house will be about living and enjoying and adding to it over time. I find that so many people {me included} rush into renovating or decorating a new home. I have learnt that you must live in a house for a period of time before you start the process of change....something my mother has been trying to instill in me for years!!

This time, I am going to take my time and enjoy the process of decorating the house which my children will call home for many, many years to come.

image 1 - pamela easton's home via creative homes, image 2 - deborah needleman's home via lonny, image 3 - via charlotte, image 4 - via charlotte, image 5 via lonny

Nursery Thoughts...

My friends keep reminding me that I have a baby's room to decorate. With approximately 8 weeks to go I decided last week that I needed to at least get a few things organised.

My few things ended up turning into a complete room scheme for our little bundle. It all started with the original joker water colour by Rupert Hamilton dated 1916 which I stumbled across at a little Antique store here in Brisbane last week. I then decided I would collect a few bits and pieces to work back with it to create an artwork cluster wall full of lovely colour.

From there I selected the watermelon coloured Brunschwig & Fils Ikat which I am having an old chair I have recovered in and a lampshade for a floor lamp will be made in the small patterned chinnoiserie fabric. I also have an old Eastern embroidered piece of cloth which I will have made into a little cushion for the chair.

Over the weekend I started to wonder what I would use as a change table so Harry and I made a quick visit to our friend Nick Wallrock on Saturday morning {the most wonderful European Antique store in Brisbane}. We purchased a lovely circa 1780 Swedish Walnut cabinet from Nick which will be perfect.

I plan to use fresh white bed linen for the turned white timber painted cot which I picked up on Ebay for a mere $57.00 {a new mattress will be made and it will be re-painted with a fresh coat of white paint} and a few little Etsy cuddly numbers will be hunted down over the coming weeks.

So I can now say to my friends...yes it is all under control, I am organised!! {Fingers crossed it will all be made in time!!}

I Love...

Every now and then I spot a room I absolutely love and this one above, as published in Elle Decor, is one of them. I think it's the lovely fresh colours against the all-white background, the dining chairs and the beautiful old marble fireplace which I love most!

image - elle decor via frolic via seesaw designs

Las Vegas Condo Interior Designs

Whew!!!

It's been an eventful 3-4 weeks! We have quite a bit of glass in the OKC Symphony Show House. This year it is a 17,000 sq. foot home on the the east side of Lake Overholser. The address is 2550 E. Overholser Drive, Oklahoma City, OK 73155. The date is May 1 to May 16, 2010. We've also had a ceiling sculpture with an April 1 deadline. We've been busy blowing glass and fabricating the steel structures for our projects. Ron Licklider with J. Kimball Interiors asked us to do a "obnoxiously large" glass sculpture for the show house that needed to be installed before today. Heap big thanks to Ron for giving us this opportunity to get noticed!! We are making the deadlines so far. The large (about 9' tall) glass scupture is in the "Art Gallery" area. We also have several other pieces of glass in different parts of the home. We have a total of 5 pieces consisting of transparent turquoise, turquoise and white, and white cane pieces in the kitchen utilized by "Domain Interiors". Kristi Forhan and Heidi Smith are the designers and owners of Domain Interiors and did a fabulous job with the kitchen and have been so nice to work with. We also have several of our large art vases we call "Redento Raffinatos" in the Mathis Brother's design area by designers Angela Davidson and Todd Stepp. We may also place another set of beautiful Chartreuse with Gold Ruby accents (a stunning color combination!) within the house. We are so grateful to Angela and Todd for giving us the opportunity to get our Redento Raffinatos looked at by over 15,000 people in the 16 days. I just had my 50th birthday. Mixed feelings about that. Not too happy about being that old, but really happy that I am still having birthdays. Growing older is mucho better than the alternative, if you know what I mean. My son, Micah, honored me greatly! Without my knowledge, he contacted Dante Marioni and bought me a signed goblet from Dante. A DANTE MARIONI SIGNED GOBLET! Did I raise a great son or what! I am literally holding it now as I type this! But then....... But then..... But then...... yes, out of the box came another signed Dante Marioni goblet as a gift from Dante Marioni himself! I now own 2 Dante Marioni Goblets! One a gift from my son and another a gift from "The Man". Whew! I have to stop now. I'm getting too excited and all wore out from thinking about it. I'll post pictures of stuff later.

Modern And Elegant Living Room Interior Decorating

Off to the Flea Market!

I'm off to the Nashville Flea Market this weekend, and my partner in crime, The Shabby Chic Cottage, will be there too!

If you're in the area, please stop and see us. We'll be in Shed 4, Booths 417 & 418.

Hope you can come!

Wish us luck. This is our first venture together and I'm so excited. Gina (SSC) has been making things for weeks. Me? Not so much, but I still have plenty to offer!

This Flea Market is among the top ten largest in the US!!  WooHoo!

Hey, what flea markets or craft fairs are in your area?

We may want to travel to some of them.

Let me know. Thanks a bunch!

Friday Flowers

A weekend full of time spent with Harry is what I have planned. I have worked many long and crazy hours this week so this weekend will be catch up time with my boys. Hope you have a lovely weekend. See you next time.

xx

Anna

Gardening.

One of my favorite things to do is get my hands in the dirt and grow stuff. Another very therapeutic activity is pulling weeds. Some garden tips: wear a pair of those garden gloves with the rubber coating on the palms. Don't stand up and bend at the knees and waist to work in the garden but get down with your butt on the ground, your back and knees will thank you. Pull weeds after a rain shower, they come out easier. Take in deep full breaths of the Spring air, listen to all of the different birds and learn their songs and notice what is blooming even if it is the trees or just weeds. Enjoy, Heidi

Domino Magazine

Smith and Hawkins vertical garden

Found on We Heart It

British Home and Gardens

British Home and Gardens

Inspired By

I save so many images in my picture files to keep as inspiration for co-ordinating different colour schemes. It's often the combination of different colours in a picture or different products or different textures which can inspire me to put together a scheme for a client's home. I love the colours in these two product images above. The first image is from Jean Brown, a Brisbane fashion mecca, advertising some of their latest offerings {I adore the bangles by Paula Bianco} and the second image is a product editorial from House Beautiful. I just love all the wonderful colour and patterns and textures in these images. I find them very inspiring.

Aprons, Aprons, and More Aprons - Reader Special

Does absense really make the heart grow fonder?

If so, then you must be super fond of me by now!

I haven't been around much lately and I apologize.

I've been unpacking more boxes, stripping wallpaper, working on my webstore, making aprons, and getting ready for the Flea Market this weekend.

I'm sorry you haven't seen me around your blog, but I'll be returning next week. Really, I will.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I had a super sale on my aprons over at Funky Junk a couple of weeks ago, and I've been sewing ever since. I shipped out the last of the aprons from that sale a few days ago, and I've been working on getting some new spring aprons in the shop.

Like this:

and this:

Aren't they fresh and fun?

If you've read my blog then you know that I specialize in making work aprons for women.

I want function and fashion when I work, and I want to offer that to others as well.

Up until recently I've only sold my aprons in the wholesale market. I decided a few months ago to also start trying to sell them to retail customers. This way, I can offer many more fabric changes in my line. Rather than making 100 in one pattern, etc, I can make more fabric combinations in smaller lots. This allows me to give you more choices.

I love my readers!

....and because I do, I want to offer the same special to you that I offered to the Funky Junk readers. I've changed all of the prices in my Etsy Shop to reflect this special.

The prices will remain until midnight March 25. These are the LOWEST prices I will ever offer them for, so grab one now if you want it at the best price.

If you're a crafter or seamstress of any kind, you know how important it is to be able to have all of your supplies at the ready. How conveinient to be able to carry them right at your waist.

You won't find frilly kitchen aprons in my shop. That's not my specialty.

These are serious (and seriously cute) aprons for people who are dedicated to their craft, and know how important it is to work efficiently.

Here are just a few of the specials I'm running for you right now.

Our most popular selling apron is the one that Layla from the Lettered Cottage wears.

She was kind enough to do a feature on her blog, and she's given me permission to use this collage she made. (Isn't she just the most darling thing you've ever seen?)

Here is that full apron. Please note that the little tools in the collage above was a special addition for Layla, and does not come with the apron. (If you want some of your own, snag them up at Hobby Lobby during Christmas time in the small tree decorations.)

This apron normally sells for $48, but right now I'm offering it for $35!

There are several fabric combinations in this style.

Our Farmer's Market apron is also very popular. It's what we sell the most of when we set up to sell at a market. It's so flattering and flirty on.

This one normally sells for $46, and I'm also offering it at $35 right now.

We have three new fabric combinations coming in this style soon.

I only recently started making this one in denimn, and it's selling like hotcakes to wholesalers already.

The Everyday Crafter is the "go to" apron for the general crafter,  and flea market vendors seem to love it. This style is selling for $28 during this sale. You'll get your own name on the patch.

Wanna know which one my great friend Donna over at Funky Junk wears?

She's promising a video soon, and knowing her sense of humor, it'll be something

funny. Can't wait to see it.

And here's what I wear, and some of what I carry in it. Mine is 3 years old, so it's extremely broken in. Although, you can see how well they hold up!

Here it is new.

And here's my 3 year old partner.

On this particular day, I have screws and nails in one pocket, a box of staples in one, a stapler, a stud finder, a hammer, a pair of pliers, a staple remover, a chalk marker, a pair of tweezers, and scissors.

I'm going to show you a side view so that you can see the slide-on pockets. (Just keep in mind that I'm wearing a bulky sweater! lol) I have a calculator, a note pad, a camera, and my cell phone in here.

So see, they really are functional!

I could use your help.

I'm still considered fairly new to blogland, and I'm still growing my readership. So many of you have already been there, done that, so to speak, and your wonderful blogs have lots of loyal readers.

Would you mind helping me spread the word about my line of aprons? I would be truly grateful for the help. (And if you have something you'd like me to spread the word about, I'll return the favor.)

If you're up for it, please grab my shop button from the sidebar and share it on your blog.

Help a fellow DIY gal make a dream come true!

If you already have one of these aprons, please leave a note in the comments about yours, the quality, how you use it, or whatever you want to say. It'll let others know that real people like us are wearing them and using them.

How do you feel the quality compares to the price? It's so hard to convey quality online, so those of you that have them can help me out here if you will.

If you've blogged about yours, or plan to, please include a link to your blog or the post in the comments.

Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Don't forget to head over and grab your apron!

*** If you have a brick and mortar shop, or you set up at large markets, and would like to offer these to your customers, please let me know. We have a vendor program and a wholesale program. Write and tell me a bit about your business, and a link to your site. ***