Layout of the Week: Halloween Headstone

Even though it seems like summer only just arrived here in Oregon, the calendar says it's time to get ready for Fall!  Never one to miss out on seasonal decorating, these extra large pennant banners just jumped right out at me during the EK Success Craft Fest this fall in Portland.

These large arched chipboard pennants are 10" x 16" and when flipped upside down it just screamed Halloween headstone!

I gathered some fun Halloween papers & embellishments, some new, some older...

I think I used all these papers, except the tiger stripe.  After laying everything together and deciding which to use, it just didn't seem to fit into the look I was creating.  For my first step, I used the Soot Ink Pad from Tim Holtz, rubbing it along the sides and over the enter front of my headstone.  Then I cut strips of paper and attached them with spray adhesive, before adding some fun embellishments like self adhesive strips, ribbon, twine, a tag from 7 Gypsies, punched bats and a piece of jack-o-lantern flair.  We're planning to use the Halloween Headstone as a fun place to attached little notes in our booth during this weekend's Scrapbook Expo.  After the Expo, I'm planning to add some orange glittered THICKERS announcing Happy Halloween!

Tips:

Sand double layer cardstock, such as Core'dinates, to add a distressed look to your Halloween projects.

Don't be afraid to give your tags a distressed look too!  Wad them up & rub with ink to give them that "just found in the haunted house" look.

Trim your patterned papers and lay them over another coordinating pattern.  This diamond pattern takes on a banner look when trimmed.

Punch a strip with your favorite punch and mount it over a thick ribbon for a custom embellishment!  The bats have also been sprayed with Luminarte black shimmer mist (difficult to see in the photo) for and added texture.

Supplies:

Paper Accents

Tim Holtz Ink Pad

Papers-Teresa Collins, Authentique Paper, Core'dinates

Various Ribbon, Paper Twine & Yarn

Tag-7 Gypsies

Spritz-Luminarte

Sticker Strips-K & Co.

If you're looking for other creative Halloween inspired ideas, stop by Today's Creative Blog for Get Your Craft On Tuesdays.  100's of creative types submit their creations each and every Tuesday, I'm sharing this project and I'd love to see yours over there too!

Party Favors the Kids Can Make...

If you're like me, you're getting tired of spending all the time and money to throw your kids wonderful birthday parties only to be left wondering what kind of fabulous gift you should spend even more money on to send home with each little party go'er...

Well, personally, I'm trying to move away from the party favor/gift bag craziness.  Last year for Delaney's party, we had a great American Girl Craft Party where the girls made their own favors as part of the party.  And the year before that, we had a Tie Dye theme for Delaney's party where the girls tie dyed a shirt and wore it home as their favor.  (Click HERE to see the mini album I made featuring all the fun of the Tie Dye party.)

This year, Delaney wanted to take three friends to dinner at Benihana and then back home for a sleepover.  Since dinner was going to be pretty expensive, I wanted to do some cheap little favors for the girls.  While I was thinking about my plan for the party, we got in some fun little tubes at the scrapbook store where I work.

The tubes are about $1 each at the store and are about 1 1/2" in diameter and 8" tall.

We gathered our supplies. (Of course I used my new favorite Willow House piece, the Riverstone Tapas Set...so useful, but I digress!)  Delaney wanted some fun bright colors for the tubes, so she chose Jelly Belly Jelly Beans in the colors she wanted (frankly the most expensive part of this project, you could choose any little candies that fit in the tubes).  Then we used some extra ribbons we had at home and a few little spools of $1 American Craft ribbon from the store.  I punched the tags with my large tag punch and printed out some cute cupcakes from a the Crystal's {Playground} elements pack, a digi scrapping pack I got over at JessicaSprague.com (I made the invitations from this same kit, I'll share them soon.)

Once Delaney had all her supplies, I left her alone to make up the favors while I finished cleaning the house.  I did have her let me know when she finished a step, so I could hurry in & shoot a photo or two.  Delaney's 10, but I definitely think that 7 or 8 year olds could do this project by themselves or as a fun activity during the party.

In preparation, we cut the ribbons in about 4" pieces and wrote the girls' names on the tags.

Then the fun began....

First Delaney filled the tubes with jelly beans.

Then she added the cap.

Next, she tied a few ribbons around the tube, adding a tag to the top ribbon before tying it.

Such a fun, simple & inexpensive party favor!  Give it a try for your next party...birthday, graduation, 4th of July, Halloween...the variations are only limited by your imagination!

My Birthday Girl had a great time with her friends & everyone left with a sweet little memory of the party!

Remember to join me over at Today's Creative for the "Get Your Craft On" link party every Tuesday!  If I'm not posting, I'm over there hanging out seeing what the creative ladies are sharing every week!

Layout of the Week - Quick & Colorful

Some projects are just for fun!  This is one of them.  I've always been wanting to try more of the fun tints on the Costco Photo Center website and this seemed like a fun photo to use.  I love the whimsical look of Andy Warhol's pop art and so does Delaney.  She took an art class last year where she got to create some very cool pieces of pop art!  Thanks to her, I have all sorts of fun, bright pieces around my home.

Since she turned 10 this Spring, I used this photo where a "10" appears to be coming out of her head...don't even remember where this was taken, but it's a fun photo!  Then I used the tints in the editting menu on Costco's Photo Center website to change the colors, saving a copy of the original and then going back to the original and doing it all over again for each color.  I printed each tint as wallets (you get 4 of the same photo, wallet size, for 39 cents...a GREAT deal, if you ask me!)

Next, photos in hand, I headed to Whimzee's to see what I could find.  I knew that my layout needed to be a simple one, with simple papers & embellishments.  I started this project with my ribbon chosen...we needed a sample at the store using this fun white felt flower ribbon from Creative Cafe, so I started with a couple pieces of it.  To add a little texture, I chose the white Bazzill dot paper with it's embossed texture.  Finally to mix in just a bit of color, I used some KaiserCraft rhinestones in colors that matched as closely as possible to my tinted photos.  I ended up with green, blue and red.  I was hoping to find an orange or gold rhinestone to match my sepia photo, but we didn't have any at the store.  So I used what I could find and spaced them out in the centers of the flowers with a few spaces in between.

For a simple layout design, I decided to arrange my photos "Warhol Style" in a square (I know it's a rectangle, but square just sounds better.)  I added a few rows of the ribbon and filled some of the flowers with the rhinestones & I was finished.  I love the look and the layout was super quick.  It's a fun design to use with any photos you have.  Just print out some wallets or crop your photos to wallet or small square size, grab your ribbon and you'll have a finished page!

I know some of you purists will notice I don't have any journaling...but I don't think every photo or layout needs journaling.  Sometimes just a photo or 4 photos tell the story!

Have fun scrapping!

Stop & visit me on Facebook, where I'm putting together a new page for the JulieChats Blog!

Tips

Use a group of 4 small photos and some ribbon or paper strips to create a simple, quick layout.

Try some tinted photos on your next project!

Don't feel like you always have to use tons of printed paper or lot's of color, sometimes neutrals & a little burst of color is all you need.

And DON'T worry if you don't want to journal every page!!!  It's YOUR page after all, there are no rules to scrapbooking!!!

Supplies

Bazzill Dot Paper

Creative Cafe Felt Ribbon

KaiserCraft Rhinstones

Costco Tinted Wallet Photos

Summer's Coming Tablescape

I feel like I'm in the slow lane on the way to Summer...it's taking FOREVER for any Summer weather to arrive here in Oregon.  So I've decided to turn up the heat and get creative.  When the box arrived with my Villa Appetizer Tray, it was just the inspiration I needed.

I combined the tray with a couple of my other Villa pieces to create a light, Summery centerpiece that creates a peaceful feeling with natural, neutral pieces.

By adding a piece of burlap as a table runner and tossing some shells in a pair of martini glasses, you can create a breezy summer look on your dining table or just a fun vignette on a side table.

If you're decorating your dining table, you probably need more than just one small tray for your centerpiece.  If you have two matching trays, great!  Use the second to create this same look and you're ready to go.  If you're like me and have just one tray, look through your dishes for two small ones that will give the other side of your tablescape a similar look, and use the same martini glasses and shells to finish the look.  One side balances the other out, even though they are not exactly the same.

I used two salad plates for my grouping opposite the tray.  For a nice balanced look on a medium size dinner table, place the tray grouping in the center of the table and one plate & glass grouping on either side.  These salad plate/martini glass pieces would be perfect as singles on small tables or in a row on your mantel. (Maybe I'll try this for my next mantelscape...hmmmm....)

Now, if you're trying to fill a larger dining table, like I was, think of the tray grouping and the two salad plate groupings as the right & left sides of your centerpiece.  For the center, look for a larger basket, bowl or similar container.  The exact size isn't nearly as important as the look of your container.  If you have a piece that matches the other bases you are using in this arrangement, perfect!  But it's fine if you don't, too!  I didn't have a larger piece for the center of my tablescape, so I chose a large hammered bronze bowl as my center container.  I think a large basket would look wonderful here also, in keeping with the neutral colorscheme.  I used this Cyprus Footed Bowl for my tablescape's center.  And to add a little height to the center of my table, I added new favorite thing, the Villa Pedestal with some shells and a chunky summer potpourri surrounding it and a large shell sitting on a bronze candle stand to top it off.

This center grouping can also stand on its own in the center of your table or on a side table.  Combined together these smaller groupings created a beautiful centerpiece on a large dining table.

Remember some of my favorite tips for creating great centerpieces for your table:

Find a color scheme that blends well with your room.

Think of the scale of your room...use larger pieces in larger rooms or rooms with high ceilings and smaller pieces in smaller rooms.

Use smaller, shorter items one the ends or around the edges of a larger center piece.  Then place larger items, progressively toward the center.  Picture creating centerpieces as creating a triangle or pyramid shape with the tallest items in the center.

Think in 3's...groups of items in 3's (or any odd number) are most pleasing to the eye.  For my Summer tablescape, I used 3 separate groupings...the Villa Tray serves as one, the Villa Salad Plates serve as another and the Cyprus Bowl serves as the third.

If you're looking for fresh, summer look, think neutral and stop by your local craft store.  Grab some of their economical burlap for a table runner and a few bags of their bargain shells to fill your containers.  Look around your house for some neutral dishes and containers.  White, ivory or brown would look great with this colorscheme.  Also, a natural basket or two would mix in nicely.  And instead of martini glasses, grab a few of your wine glasses to fill with shells.

If you need some decorating advice...just ask!  I love to help people organize and decorate their homes, just let me know what you'd like help with and I'll work on a post just for you.  I hope you get a few minutes to take a break from all your work and create a more beautiful space in your home.

Find most of the pieces I used in this tablescape over on my Willow House page. I sell these beautiful home decor products and I also share them & more decorating tips on my Willow House Julie page on Facebook. Stop by & visit when you get a chance.

And stop back here soon to see my next Layout of the Week project! Trying to decide which will be next...a Bella Blvd. project or one designed with Webster's Pages???? Hmmm..we'll see! :)

Have you made something lately & posted it to your blog?  If you have,  you should check out the creative links at Made You Monday over at Skip to My Lou....




Join me over at Kim's for THE BEST Linky Party on the web...Tuesday's Get Your Craft On @ Today's Creative Blog.  You'll find all sorts of great crafting & decorating projects, many with DIY tutorials.  Be sure to leave Kim a comment to let you know what you think and tell her Julie sent you :)

Layout of the Week - featuring Bo Bunny's Ad Lib Collection

I'm on a streak right now...two Layout of the Week posts in a row!!  This week, I'm featuring a layout I created with paper & embellishments from Bo Bunny's Ad Lib Collection.  This collection features some fun printed papers decorated with turquoise blue, creamy yellow, grass green & a nice cantaloupe-y shade of orange.

Lately, I've been creating a lot of one-photo layouts and the paper I chose for my background here works perfectly with one photo.  This photo is one of my favorites from last summer's trip to Seattle.  Delaney took this self-portrait of us on the Seattle-Bainbridge Ferry.  I mounted it on Bo Bunny's Licorice Flourish paper from the Double Dot Collection.  I trimmed the floral and dotted papers to use as embellishments.  Next I used two 2" x 12" strips of the Turquoise Stripe paper, also from the Double Dot Collection.  I punched one edge with a Wavy Dotted Scallop edge punch from EK Success.  Then I put the strips through my paper crimper and folded it to look like a pleated ribbon.

For a finishing touch, I added the Bo Bunny Ad Lib Trinkets to the upper left corner of the photo and a little fluffy orange yarn on each side.

Tips

For extra embellishments on your layouts, trim out a few of the graphic elements.  They add some texture to your layout and are very economical embellishments too!

Dig out that old paper crimper & use it to create a ribbon look with paper strips.  To give your layout an up to the minute look, use an edge punch to help your paper ribbon stand out even more.

And I know I've said this a million times, but use a black & white photo!  By printing in black & white, you can make any one of your favorite photos match any one of your favorite paper collections!

Supplies

Bo Bunny Ad Lib & Double Dot Printed papers
Bo Bunny Ad Lib Trinket embellishments
Embroidery Floss and Yarn, vendor unknown

Tools

Fiskars Paper Crimper
EK Success Punch

Join me over at Today's Creative for the Get Your Craft On Tuesday Blog Hop!

Thanks so much for stopping by to visit!  I'd love to see what you think of my blog, so if you've got a sec, leave me a comment.  And if you have another sec and are interested in decorating, stop by my Willow House Julie page on Facebook & click "LIKE" to get bargains & decorating tips every day.  Thanks so much!

Layout of the Week - Easter 10 Minute Mini Album

Wow, I can't believe I'm actually writing a post for a Layout of the Week! :)  I know it's been a while!  During the time I've been away, I've been very busy...working a few part time jobs, organizing & rearranging things around my house, being a mom & wife and also getting in a little creative time.

I thought you might enjoy a quick idea using some of those photos you took this weekend of your Easter festivities.  You can make this album as simple or fancy as you like!  Use just the 10 minutes I allotted for my first album like this or go crazy with tons of photos & embellishments and spend an evening creating a masterpiece to share with your friends.

I created this fun mini album a month or so ago, and thought I'd better get on the stick and share it with you!  To create this quick album, I used a template I designed a while back as a quick gift for my mom.  For that album, I chose to use some scraps from a fall layout and the extra wallet photos that come with the Costco wallet sheet (they print 4 for 39 cents). Check it out on the blog I write for the store HERE.

This time, the paper was my inspiration! I chose two papers from WeR's Peep Collection, the Easter Tags & the Easter Eggs.  All you need to create one of these small albums is a few wallet or trimmed down photos (all the same size), a piece of paper just a bit larger than each photo (I used a 1/4" border around all the edges) - plus one for the cover, a hinged ring and a few embellishments.  Mount each photo on paper and punch a hole in the corner with a regular round hole punch.  If you have some fun small coordinating embellishments, use them to add a little flair to a page or two of your album.  Stack all your pages with the cover on top and place them on the ring and close it.  Embellish your ring with a few small pieces of ribbon, if you like.

As always, I'm linking my creative post to the Get Your Craft On Tuesday post over at Today's Creative!  DON'T miss all the great links over there!  And remember to add yours!

Create a Crisp Look for Your Mantel this Spring...

With today being St. Patrick's Day & all, I thought I'd share a few photos of my latest "mantelscape."  I didn't change my mantel very much to achieve this crisp, clean look.  Take a look at my last mantel post & you'll find I didn't move or replace many of my pieces.  I was inspired by another Willow House Consultant's photos using split peas as fillers for this project.  I'm sorry I can't remember exactly whose page I found that idea on.

To me, green isn't just for St. Patrick's Day, although this does make a cute holiday arrangement.  I think of green as Spring, bringing with it all the new daffodil and tulip buds, as well as those tiny green leaves that will soon replace the flower buds on the trees outside my house.

I was very excited to find split peas at Winco in the bulk bins for only 51 cents a pound.  I bought 5 pounds, and after filling these containers, I still have quite a bit left.  So if you'd like to just buy a couple pounds, that should work well for this project.

As I mentioned, I didn't change my mantel much to create this look.  I removed a couple pieces and replaced them with a large hurricane and some fun green items collected from around my house.  Most of the mantel items come from the new Spring/Summer 2011 Willow House catalog.  (I'll put a link to my website at the end of this post for those of you who would like some more Spring inspiration or who would like to order an item or two from my mantel.)

Being someone who loves symmetry, I always try to give some balance to my designs whether they are created on the computer, with paper or home decorating items.  For this mantelscape, I left my two Stiletto Pedestals in the center, filling in around the candles with the bulk split peas. 

My large hurricane is one of my favorite decorating pieces.  Here, I filled it about 1/3 of the way up with the split peas & pushed an ivory candle down inside until it was firmly set into the split peas.  I've used this hurricane for all sorts of fun holiday arrangements that I share during my parties, and I promise to share those ideas with you soon too!  On either side of my mantelscape I placed small Dragonfly Lanterns filled with just a few of the split peas and a small battery operated tea light.

I placed the small lanterns on either end of my mantelscape to help lead your eye up to the next, taller items.  Sometimes I like to create a pyramid shape with my mantel, having the smallest items on the outside edges and then progressively taller items on each side until you reach the tallest item in the center.

With this mantelscape, I chose to place the smallest items on the outside edges and then a tall item next to each of those.  Next I placed a shorter item on each side and then a taller one in the center.  Sometimes I think it's fun to create a look that encourages your eyes to follow the lines up & down as they view a design.

Some of the fun green items I collected around my house help create a whimsical, personal look for my mantel.  The little plastic grass in the wood container was originally purchased to place out at Easter, but over the years, I've used it in many ways, my favorite being combined with some sand & sea shells for a summer centerpiece.  On the dark pedestal, I placed a dark green ceramic vase with a small frog and next to that I placed Delaney's gymnastics photo from last year.  Dressed in green with a green background, Delaney's photo adds some fun to my mantel and helps it become a much more personal look.  This mantel is mine and couldn't be found in anyone else's home.

While you're looking through magazines, blog posts & internet articles for decorating ideas, never forget to add a little something to personalize the look.  Of course you want people to oh & ah about the decorating looks you create, but you also want them to see you & your family in your home too.  We live in our homes, they aren't just created for magazine photo shoots, so don't be afraid to use your family photos and keepsakes in your decorating!

If you're looking for items included in my mantelscape, head over to my Willow House website to find the Stiletto Pedestals, large Galveston Hurricane, small Dragonfly Lanterns and Rosedale Plant Holders. (The tall pedestal is a discontinued Southern Living at Home item.)  On my website, you'll find all sorts of decorating ideas and you'll be able to order from both the Willow House catalog and bargain priced outlet.

And if you just can't get enough decorating ideas, don't miss the new MyStyleShare website created by Willow House as an online decorating community.  It's free to join and upload your decorating photos and videos.  Tons of ideas are already on the website and I'm working on adding more to my page during the next few weeks.  My username is julies, and I'd love to hear your decorating comments and questions either here on my blog or over at MyStyleShare.

Enjoy your St. Patrick's Day!  I'm off to add a little green frosting to my cupcakes & make an Asparagus Pizza for dinner!  All green, all the time around here!

This week, I'm sharing my post with the bloggers over at Today's Creative!  Tuesday is "Get Your Craft On" day over there and there are usually about 500 bloggers who link their creations every Tuesday!!!  So this is THE Place to find all sorts of new ideas perfect for decorating & crafting of all kinds every week!

Layout of the Week - Me & U with Bo Bunny

Hi there! :)  I'm Julie and I have a problem....  OK, maybe it's not that bad, but I certainly haven't been a good blogger for...about a year now!  I guess for quite a while, I was in a creative funk.  Now I'm just so crazy busy that this is the first scrapbook layout I've really taken time to create for myself in months.  And in another amazing feat (for me anyway), I even shot a photo of it, uploaded it and Photoshopped it a bit for you.  So I'll share a little bit about it's story & then get back to my 4 part time jobs.  Yes, 4, no lying around here!

If you can remember way back when in this blog, I'm sure I've mentioned that I moderate an online community for the local scrapbook store where I work, Whimzee's Scrapbook Studio.  Well, right now, we have almost 600 project photos posted, so that's where I go to look for layout inspiration.  And just look what I found...

This fun layout was created by Kris, our online member with the most uploaded photos.  I love how she uses only half of the bracket die cut and gives the illusion of the other half by tracing its shape onto her background.  Such an amazing idea and also a money saving one.  Now, she has the other half of the bracket to use in another project.  I'll have to ask her what she did with that other half, or just check her project photos to see if I can find it!

Personally, I think "scraplifting" is the highest form of scrapbook flattery!  It says, "I love your layout so much that I'd use it with my own photos!"  It also gives those of us who are unpublished, the those warm fuzzy feelings of having people love us for our creativity! :)  So please, please use my layout (via Kris, of course) to create something for yourself!

For my project, I chose mostly Bo Bunny products from the Love Bandit line from Valentine's last year.  If you remember, I had another layout of the week, back then using this same collection, Little Love Bugs.  For my background, I chose Bo Bunny's Turquoise Dot paper from their Double Dot Designs Collection.  Such amazing colors and wonderful matching backgrounds, with just a touch of texture.  Now they are available in more patterns than just the dots!  When we were ordering for the store, we just couldn't decide, even after hearing from our loyal Facebook fans, and decided to order them all!  I hear they just arrived yesterday, so I'm heading down today to check out the yummy colors and patterns in person!

This is a very simple layout to create.  Just choose your background and a die cut shape.  Cut the shape in half and lay one half down on your background.  Then take the other half and a pen in a matching color and trace the die cut onto the background.  I loved Kris's idea of moving the background askew a few times and tracing it over & over.  Don't worry about your lines not matching up perfectly.  Just use a paper stripe or a page length sticker (or both, like I did) to cover up the edge of your die cut and the area where the lines meet its edge.  Then have at it!  Lay your photos and embellishments on top and play with them until you like the way they're arranged and get gluing! :)

Being a fan of a beat up or distressed look, I took a large brown Bo Bunny "U" and sanded it with some sand paper from the garage and then rubbed some brown Technique Tuesday ink all over it's surface.  Always being one to add extra texture, I had a piece of thin pink twine on my table (left over from creating samples for this weekend's workshop at the store), so I wrapped it around the "U" a few times and tied it in a knot.  For one more distressed item, I used a tag from Creative Cafe.  Now, I've had this sheet of tags lying around FOREVER, just waiting for the perfect project.  I HAD to have these tags, but was never sure what to use them for.  They look exactly like the tags that The GAP used to use on all their clothes, I worked there in college and they brought back lot's of fun memories.  I chose the brown tag that says "Just Because" at the top and in fine print "I Love You" in the center.  My love of distressing took over at this point and I remembered a previous layout where I took a new tag and made it look old in my, Children of the Corn layout.  So I wadded up the tag as much as I could and then rubbed the TT brown ink over the ridges, not too much, I still wanted to read the writing.  Then I punched a hole and added a small piece of the BB green dot ribbon.

Overall, this was a pretty simple project.  I gathered my supplies and then put it together in about 15 minutes.  So the next time you're looking to "scraplift" an idea, try looking online in one of the many scrapbooking communities like ours.  These communities are a great way to meet other scrappers, share ideas and ask questions.  Remember...all scrapbookers love to hear that you like their layouts & ideas.  So when you find something you love, be sure to leave a comment for the creator and if you want to use their photo on your blog, like I did, always ask permission first.  Thanks, Kris! :)

Tips

- Browse online scrapbook communities for layouts to "scraplift".

- Don't be afraid to use left overs from another project to create something totally new.

- Holiday collections aren't just for holidays...this collection was a Valentine's collection & I've used it here to showcase a fun summer photo of my kids.

- To get a distressed look, use your imagination & items from around the house.  Here I wadded my tag & sanded my chipboard before inking both.

Supplies

Papers, Stickers, Chipboard & Ribbon

Bo Bunny

Miscellaneous

Rhinestones by Kaisercraft

Tag by Creative Cafe

Ink by Technique Tuesday

Unknown...Sandpaper & Twine

Organize the Clutter in Your Entryway

By the time you're reading this, I'll be in Phoenix getting ready to watch the BCS National Championship football game.  My husband & I are taking the kids and heading to Phoenix to watch our beloved Ducks play in their first National Championship.  It's sure to be a blast, I can't wait to share a few of our stories after we get back.

Since it's January and we're all trying to get organized and find places for all those Christmas gifts, I thought I'd share the way I keep my everyday items organized in my entryway.

The next you look at all those keys, sunglasses, electronic items and other things that clutter up our countertops and tables, remember these tips:

* Grab a basket, bowl or box and use it to stash those items that you need close by but don't want just hanging out on the counter.  You might want to choose a container with a lid to really hide your items.  If your container doesn't have a lid, don't worry, just gathering them together will help give your entry an organized look and you will have one place to find those things that seem to wander around the house and lose themselves just when you need them.

*  If you have a plug in close-by, use it for the cords to your electronic items.  Cut a hole in the back of your basket or box and stick the end through, now you can use your container as a charging station.

*  Of course, any container will help you become more organized, but a pretty one also lets you add a bit of your own style into an area where everyone coming & going from your home stops.

For my organization project, I used a couple of my favorite Willow House items.  The Farmhouse Tiered Basket gives me a place to organize my stray items in its bottom basket and a place to display some seasonal decorations in its top basket.  To keep things even a bit more organized and divided into sections, I used two of our small Gail Pittman Alfresco Collection Servers.  In the top basket, I used a grouping of 3 IKEA vases and 3 silk flowers.  At 79 cents each, the vases were my big bargain for this project.  To give my entryway a seasonal look, I change out the flowers every once in a while.  During the fall, I used some sunflowers from my garden to create a cheery, sun-filled look.

Next week, I'll give you some how to tips for the tag I added to my arrangement.  It was a fun craft project we created at the scrapbook store during one of our events last fall.

If you'd like to see the Farmhouse Tiered Basket or the Gail Pittman Collection items, stop by my Willow House page.