I used Fireflies and Jellybeans’ Vintage Photo Gift Tag tutorial to make these cool and personalized tags for my family.

Since I have a love of genealogy, these tags were printed off with scanned images from real vintage photos of my family’s ancestors…

so I didn’t need to turn them black&white or change the contrast… they already look old because they are!

How cool an idea is this!

Thanks Fawnda!!!  I loved this idea like you can’t imagine.

I love Shanty2Chic’s easy photo displays! 

I wanted to make some for Christmas presents, but I didn’t have a piece of 2x8 lumber…  so what’s a girl to do?

I did have some of these left-over pieces of beadboard though…. hmmm….

So, I made some easy photo display gifts (a la Shanty2Chic) with my own twist… beadboard!

The beadboard gets an aged look with some Ralph Lauren Glaze in Smoke applied thinly with a brush.

I sawed a small piece of scrap 1x4 at a shallow angle (just eyeballed it) for holding the beadboard… and nailed in on the bottom.

I hammered some upholstery nails on the bottom to hide the ugly nails ;)

Hot glued a scrap piece of cap molding (spray painted Heirloom White) along the top,

hot glued a mini clothespin on the top,

covered the base with scrap paper.

It was pretty quick and definitely painless… until I have to give it away.

Maybe I’ll make one to keep!

That’s my precious baby up there… I really love this photo display!!!   

Finally, here’s a sneak peak of an Ikea furniture transformation I’m working on.

Can’t wait to show you!

Here’s my Christmas Village – the kids love it!

This year I tried something different and put it behind the sofa instead of on the side table in the dining room.

Also, I do not like to have my village sit all flat on the tabletop, so I put some of the packing material under it.

In the past I’ve used vintage tableclothes (very pretty, but they were a little too yellow).  Now I use cheap IKEA sheer curtains.

All the cords run under the sheers in back.  It takes some work, but I’ve got room for (almost) everything.

Pretty cool for a little spot behind the sofa… now where will we put the remote?!?

Well, the kids and I finally got the Christmas tree decorated!

I love that my oldest, now 3½, was able to help me. 

I showed him the ornaments I received when I was little and those that marked important times in our lives… the ornament that commemorates my first Christmas married to Mr. Gorgeous, Bamm-Bamm’s first Christmas, and many more. 

I love that my Mom or I have written the year on each ornament I received, and as I look at them I remember what was happening in my life during that time!

I am so glad my Mom started collecting ornaments for me and my sisters when we were young and has kept that tradition up our entire lives.

Now that I have a family and a tree of my own, I have plenty of ornaments and good memories to decorate it with!

What ornaments have special meaning for you?

I have only one excuse for not posting much lately… genealogy!

I’ve been researching my husband’s family tree- Love!  This would of course be my dream job… researching family trees and getting paid for it ;)

Anyway, when I drag myself away from the census for a few minutes ;) I have been working on Christmas presents.

I made The Creative Crate’s cute mini hand-warmers – so easy!

She gives a fabulous how-to, with pictures, and even with my poor sewing skills, I made 5 in under 2 hours (with Bamm-Bamm helping me!)

I also used some of the fuzzy green fabric left-over from Little Man’s Quilt, which is harder to sew but also hides a multitude of sins.

The red velvet comes from a too-tight dress I bought at the thrift store (before the kiddos came along), and it was time to say goodbye (to the dress and the figure I have been missing for years now ;)

Anyway… I love them!  I think 5 are not enough. I gots lots a nieces and nephews who would love these!