Design Thoughts Pt. 1

The idea for this post came from a friend whose blog I follow (you can follow it here)...Lauren's most recent blog has me thinking about a couple of things. First, I'd like to share this quote (that I copied from her blog, that was copied from her sister, who is reading this book).

"A Christian, above all people, should live artistically, aesthetically, and creatively. We are supposed to be representing the Creator who is there, and whom we acknowledge to be there. It is true that all people are created in the image of God, but Christians are supposed to be conscious of that fact, and being conscious of it should recognize the importance of living artistically, aesthetically  and creatively, as creative creatures of the Creator. If we have been created in the image of an Artist, then we should look for expressions of artistry, and be sensitive to beauty, responsive to what has been created for our appreciation." - Edith Schaeffer, The Hidden Art of Homemaking

I don't know about you, but it's time for me to dust off my Kindle. I am TOTES reading this book. Like, now.

This quote so literally describes what is at the heart of my decorating 'obsession.' I've never been able to put it into words like Edith did, but OH MY GOSH, THIS IS EXACTLY HOW I FEEL! Yes, I genuinely enjoy organizing and painting, but it's more than that. I believe I was created specifically to use these gifts and display creativity in a way that reflects the image of God and gives Him glory...And the perfect venue for me to display those gifts is at our house.

You might think wrapping frappucino and salsa bottles with twine doesn't accurately glorify our Heavenly Father (my husband would certainly question it), but you guys, it totally does! Little details can impact decor in such a big way. Bottles wrapped in twine look MUCH better holding pens and pencils in a pretty office, than a plastic Iowa State cup.

Okay, okay...it was a good solution in college...but the old plastic ISU cups we were all so excited about after freshmen orientation just don't work as part of my household decor anymore (no offense if that's what you currently use in your office...it might totally work! :).

Here's an example of how I believe I honor God with my decorating...this was an old barn shutter I found last fall. I found my inspiration on Pinterest and used acrylic paint to create this for Christmas:

Many of you probably also know that I strongly believe a well-organized home lends itself to good design. In fact, I would say it's central to how I plan and decorate everything in our house. Organization is just another way I feel like I can be a good steward of what God has blessed us with. If our cupboards are a mess and our closets are overflowing with crap...in turn, my house becomes cluttered and messy.

NOT good design.

And NOT what I believe God had in mind when he blessed us with our lovely little gray house.

Obviously our house isn't always perfect and the kitchen drawers aren't always clean and organized...but I wanted to share some of the things God has laid on my heart for the design direction of our household. On the outside I know it looks like I really love glittering light bulbs and canvasses, when ultimately I'm just striving to be a creative creature of the Creator.

And I KNOW there will be, like, pounds of glitter in heaven.

-The Glitter Queen

Crafty Tuesday

While I'm feeling ambitious, I thought I'd share what I've been up to this afternoon. This craft is one of my new favorites because it takes very little time, and it's super cheap.

First, I found some salsa jars, pickle jars, old mason jars, cans, and whatever I had lying around my house. 

I bought tacky glue ($2.99) and some twine ($4.99) to have on hand so I can be ready to craft at a moments notice. :) I love the Hobby Lobby app on my phone, so if I need something that isn't on the 50% off list for the week, I can get 40% off a full-priced item. 

Then it's basically just glue, wrap, repeat. Seriously...it's suuuuuper easy. And I love how spring-y and rustic these jars look (Although I'm not totally committed to the rustic theme, Josh likes farms. So I do what I can to contribute to that 'feeling' in our house, within reason, of course). Here's what the process looked like:

And this is what it looks like when implemented into my household decor:

Here's what the jars look like when I use them to de-clutter and organize...here's a before and after picture of my 'cloffice'...so much better right?

-BLC CEO (Cheif, Executive Organizer)

Chevron Obsessed

Well folks, I wanted to share with you my very first attempt at painting chevron. I wouldn't say it was 100% successful...but for my sister's college apartment I think it looks pretty darn good!

I spotted this small coffee-table at a second-hand store in Nevada called Leftovers. It's the perfect place for finding old junk to experiment and craft with. What I love most about Leftovers (besides the fact that it was the brainchild of my boss who is awesome, Tami Hicks) is that ALL the proceeds are a freewill donation and 100% of the money goes toward sponsoring five kids in Africa. Nothing is priced and people are able to give whatever they are able or feel like giving...way fun, right?

Anyway...here's a picture of the table before, and after we painted it using two coats of high-gloss, black paint. If you know anything about me, you know I always keep a can on hand because I tend to bring junk into my house, then paint it black and call it classy furniture. Josh is always shocked at the junk I can disguise with a little black paint. ;)

Totally worked, right?!

Anyway, I made the mistake of telling Jamie we should do some sort of pattern on the top. Honestly, I sort of fizzled on the project and she was still obsessed with the chevron idea...so at 8pm during the tornado on Sunday night...we set to work.

The theme for most of my crafts and sewing and framing and scrapbooking is 'eyeball it.' This allows me to save a lot of time, but also contributes to me not always being thrilled with the results of my crafting labor. Whatever. I hate measuring.

So I made Jamie do it.

And in the end, we didn't even really use penciled measurements at all...we just taped and eyeballed the diagonals as we went along. We made sure the tape was sealed so touch-ups due to seeping paint would be minimal. Then Jamie painted three coats with some seafoam-color paint I had leftover from the walls in our bedroom...three coats was necessary in order to completely cover the black. This is what the process looked like:

Peeling the tape off that night was absolutely thrilling. We had NO idea it would turn out this well for our first try and now I sort of want to paint chevron on every single flat surface I can find.

I'll refrain.

You can see as we went along taping from right to left, we got a little better at eyeballing. :) Jamie has a couple little touch-ups to do here and there, and then we're going to seal the whole thing with a couple coats of spray polyethylene. You can kind of feel the difference in the surface because of the three extra coats of seafoam paint, so the the spray poly will help smooth that out a little. Here's a closer shot of the table, with one of the spots that really needs to be fixed:

-DIY Princesses, Mollie and Jamie

Where is Josh?

Ahhh in recent years this question has become the theme to my summers...

People are constantly asking about where Josh is. I realize it's not a ridiculous question since it probably IS kind of odd that I'm on my own so much from April to September...and he's wonderful, so of course people miss him when he's not around. :) But I'd be lying if I didn't say that having to answer, "he's working," (with a smile on my face) doesn't get old.

We're in the midst of the fourth BLC mowing season as a married, business-owning couple. I learned very early in our marriage that trying to force Josh into attending everything and being everywhere during the summer, was NOT going to work. Unless we're in a drought or it's raining...he pretty much works six days a week for 12 hours a day, (sometimes more, sometimes a little less) from March/April until October/November. Things are obviously slower during the early spring and late fall, which is when he's actually able to enjoy his work.

WHY would I be mad at my husband for missing out on things, when the reason he's working so hard is to grow a successful business so we're able to give generously and live comfortably?

WHY would I be annoyed about something that is actually a huge blessing? I know a lot of girls who struggle with husbands who are passive, unmotivated, and even lazy. I, on the other hand, have been blessed with a husband who is driven, goal-oriented, and passionate about working harder than anyone I know so he can provide for his wife and future family.

In the summer my jobs consist of the following: making sure Josh's clothes are clean and laying them out; grocery shopping for certain things he needs for lunch; making his lunch and filling his water bottles; making sure family and friends don't stress him out; organizing his emails; cleaning his bathroom; buying aloe vera, sunscreen, bug spray, and anything else he requests; cleaning out his truck at the end of the night; ordering work shirts, buying other work clothes, and handling some minimal BLC marketing.

My reaction to these tasks the first summer we were married was: "Umm, seriously do it yourself."

Which got me nowhere fast. ;)

I'll admit I'm not always great at all of these things...and I fail weekly. But I like to think I've made leaps and bounds in the area of serving my husband while he works hard. Even when he's so stressed he's driving me nuts...I still go to the store to make sure he has Sour Patch Kids at the end of his day, as requested.

-BLC Marketing Coordinator

Happy NOT a Mother's Day {to me}!

Three generations of Sargent/Keil/Boersma girlies. Happy Mother's Day!

You all probably already know this, but Josh and I have been obsessed with the show How I Met Your Mother since February 2011. We own all the seasons and watch them over, and over, and over again. It's pretty standard in our house between the hours of 9 and 11pm. At Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas, we make sure to watch the specific seasonal episodes. Sorry we're not sorry.

Okay, not the point of this post...the point was that there's an episode called NOT a Father's Day where Barney celebrates not being a father. He gets shirts and hats and cards printed to say, 'Happy NOT a Father's Day!' and hands them out to all his friends at MacClaren's.

For some reason...that episode has been in my head ALL day. 

On New Year's Eve this year, no one knew what to toast to for our second drink, and the first thing that came to MY mind was,"'I'm so glad I'm not a mom yet!" and we all cheered and laughed and toasted to that.

The truth is...if we were parents, road-tripping to Prairie DuChien for a ridiculous getaway with friends would probably not have happened. And in that moment, I was thankful that Josh and I were young, childless, and having a blast with friends we love. 

So we've been married for three years...it seems like everyone we know is having babies...I'm probably asked, on average, two times a week about when we're having kids. My answer used to be, "I'd like new furniture before we have kids."

Then I got new furniture in January. Hmmm...

Now my answer is, "Josh and I want a hot tub." Which is actually totally true! It also makes people laugh, and then the subject is dropped without me having to answer seriously. Perfect.

Bringing a child into this world is a really big deal people...and it's not something we're just going to choose to do on a whim. Partly because we're having too much fun in the meantime, and partly because we have goals about what we'd like our lives to look like before we have babies. Josh would like BLC to be in a better place; we want our current home to become an investment property so we can live on an acreage somewhere between Ames and Ankeny; and we'd like to take some trips with friends and each other before our lives cease to exist as we know it. 

I know children are a gift from God...they are wonderful...and when and if God chooses to bless us with children we will be thrilled. If God had wanted us to have a two-year-old right now...we would have one! It kills me when people have opinions about us waiting 3, 4, 5, 6 years to have babies, when God could give us a baby at any time, despite our best efforts to avoid it. :) And He hasn't. And we're totes okay with that.

Which means...our dream of a hot tub is still alive! 

-Not-A-Mother-Mollie