I’m kind of an HSN addict. I keep it on at home when I’m trying to get work done and half-listen.  Okay, okay…I stop and check things out a lot.  But I don’t buy anything that often.  Today they talked about this neat little Halloween Trick-or-Treat bag. It is not only made of burlap, which I love, and made for Halloween, another thing I love, but the purchase of this little bag does good things for malnourished children around the world.  When you buy this cute bag, HSN will make a donation to UNICEF to give a child a year’s supply of vitamins.

Click here to buy the FEED Trick-or-Treat Bag to benefit UNICEF

I can’t decide if I’ll get one for Harper, or one for me, or one for both of us! I’ve been looking for her first official trick-or-treat bag.  Happy fall!

Stumped on what to get your mom or the mother of your child(ren) for Mother’s Day?  Gift certificates for interior design services are available!

Contact me at lindsay @ lindsaychristensendesign . com to get started!  Have a great weekend!

Hello.  So…whatcha been up to?  Oh, I’ve been enjoying the holidays…a little too much!  My December stats for the ol’ blog are stinkin’ big time, but can you blame me when this is who I’ve been hanging out with??

And Glenn has also been off for vacation. And while I’m sure most wives would be able to get MORE done on vacation with him off also…I seem to get less done.

I also seem to try to get this room clean, organized and decorated somehow every other day…but it simply collects EVERYTHING and is constantly messy!

We did manage to take the swirly-90′s headboard and footboard off of our bed! I seriously thought it was part of the frame and couldn’t be done…it technically is, so I need to be careful on the corners, but it gives us a fresh new start! And it has also made me realize how much I need some art in there. And we did replace the bright-as-the-sun light bulbs from our side lamps (look for lower lumen output!), which allowed us to take the black handkerchiefs off. Notice the painted chair rail! No ceiling done yet…

Another reason I’ve been neglecting the blog – WORK! Bills gotta be paid…so I get to play with fun things like this; tile, carpet, paint, furniture, lighting. This is a client’s family room project that is in the works – woo hoo! (They chose the tile and carpet, I’m working around it with the rest).

I also have a few weddings in the works – including one this Saturday (January 2nd) that my sister-in-law and I are styling, and I’m getting the ideas together for presenting to another bride soon.  My current obsession series for inspiration; We Like It Wild on Design*Sponge.

And these are only $3.99 a piece over at Save-on-Crafts:

What else am I loving right now? The portfolio of the husband and wife team of Robert and Courtney behind SixxDesign.  Wow…I wish Santa would have brought me their new book!

I also cannot get over this story of Jenny’s (the design blogger behind Little Green Notebook) Christmas Eve at-home (but not planned to be at home!) super quick birth of her baby girl Evelyn – their little Christmas Evie.  Congrats!  I only hope my next one is that quick…as opposed to my 36 hours of hurry-up-and-wait!

So that’s what I’ve been up to for now…while we’re on this break I’m hoping to do a little painting, but Glenn is over in the next room waxing his snowboard and Harper is constantly bringing me her new toys to play with so I don’t see it happening!

I did get a couple of PERFECT Christmas gifts from Glenn and the in-laws that I’d like to share…lucky me!

Glenn got me this tag combo necklace and I bawled my eyes out when he gave it to me! It’s stamped with Harper’s name, birth date (08.07.08), and it has her birth stone (Peridot) on it.  You can get one here from Mama Beth Bling on Etsy.

And Glenn’s parent’s got me my very own CRICUT!!   If you don’t know what a Cricut is, you need to go check it out. It’s an electronic cutter that you buy different cartridges for – you can cut different shapes, letters in different fonts, etc. and you can cut them out of paper, cardstock, vinyl, magnet material, fabric and more.  Great for cards, banners, scrapbooking, signs, etc.  In searching what I can do with it online, there is a wealth of resources out there to give great ideas!

Anyway – my 2010 resolution – blog more!    Thank you for hanging in there with me!  xo, L.

Is ribbon!  I have used the same red ribbon on my tree year after year for about 5 years now and I never get tired of how it looks.  I also used to use a white one with a red, glittery candy cane pattern but lately I’ve stuck to the solid for a more sophisticated look.  Get the thick, wired stuff (ours is from Costco) and weave different lengths of pieces around the tree on top of the branches.  Ours don’t go in the back, and shorter lengths of ribbon at the top, longer on the bottom.  You’ll see in my pics…this one is from Christmas 2005 in an old rental we used to live in, with our ‘oldest’ children…I love how we left the TV on in the background, ha!  And trying to snap this picture was quite a task (1…using a timer, and 2…trying to get both dogs to look at the camera.  Fun times!).  But anyway, see the ribbon in the tree?

And here is this year’s tree!  Same ribbon!  Just make sure a piece of it isn’t falling off when you take your picture! Geez…

Do you have any year-after-year tree-trimming tricks?  Please share!!

xo, L.

Wow…have you missed me? If you’re reading this, I guess it means you might! I have been working my fanny off, but am able to spend a little more time blogging today, and I finally took all sorts of photos to share! So I have to say that I am LOVING our new set-up. I hope our pool table is enjoying his freezing cold new home in the garage, because I don’t think he can come back. Sorry, dude. Especially now that we have a giant new dining room table that has taken his place! A F-R-E-E table at that. It was just sitting in the barn out at the ranch (my in-law’s ranch). And I hope she loves her new home (yes, she’s a she!), because if so, the feeling is mutual! Plus with the whole house (inside and outside) decorated for Christmas I am finally able to relax in here and enjoy my home! Isn’t that the best?

I haven’t really posted any new updates on my living room in a long time (it was never my favorite room in the house), but we’ve inherited a lot of free furniture (my favorite kind!) and accessories that I get to borrow for now (more on that later) so it is much more pulled together, which makes me happy. Not my dream living room, but definitely one that makes me happy. So here is an old photo of the living room, from last February, which is the last time I took photos of it.

And here it is today, after the big switcheroo and Christmas decorating has been all done! So here are the photos, in their un-edited glory (wayyy too many for me to have enough patience to edit, plus I just want to get them to you!). Enjoy!

This end is where the pool table used to be (hallelujah!), and it is now the living room.

And this end is where the living room furniture used to sit, so it is now the dining room.  With a real table that will allow us to have more than 2 guests!

Now with the lights on…(Glenn wouldn’t get out of my shot, hehe).  He’s enjoying the new space, too.

Instant dining room!

But now my ‘original’ dining room, which I loved as it was but it was just a little cramped, is now a sad little nook again. Someday we plan to extend the kitchen out there for additional countertop and cabinet space, which will help so much with our tiny little kitchen.

Before…

Today…home to dog beds and high chair.

I can just see an ‘L’ shaped kitchen extension going in there. Okay, back to the living room…husband included.

And the funny thing is, rearranging really breathes new life into furniture for me.  I had stuffed my black cheapie coffee table into a corner in the old arrangement (because I didn’t like it) but now it fits here and I like it again.  And I was also not too happy with my curtains in the other arrangement, but now I like them again!  Before it was because they were stuck behind the sofa and behind a cedar chest on the other window, but now they have space to hang and be shown and just be how they’re meant to be!  Not hidden.  I like it.

Boy Scout wreath…complete with our little hanging puppet, and bow that is falling apart, hung on a Wal-Mart wreath hanger. It smells very good, though.

Dog’s stockings…hung on the metal sun, which I think is going to be moved to the backyard come spring.  I have big plans for that ‘new’ dining room wall!

And our stockings (a la Pottery Barn)…hung on the baby hearth gate.

Did I mention that I love my new table and benches? I do. They just need a little TLC after being out in the barn for a few months.

My house is full of borrowed accessories right now (via my sister-in-law). Her stuff is in storage until they find a new house (they’re staying out at ‘the ranch’ for now), so I get to babysit. And I’m really going to miss them when they’re gone, and by ‘them’ I mean the faux orchids, not my sister-in-law (they’re not going anywhere!).

We’ve even decorated the outside (and have gotten a couple of honks of approval – we live on the highway and are the only house that’s all lit up!). Now, I want to say that we’ve never been on of ‘those people’ with blow-up Christmas characters, but at $20 a piece at Wal-Mart last weekend, we just couldn’t resist. Because Harper would love them, of course.

Maybe tonight I’ll take a night shot for the blog.

And even though it is still technically fall, winter has arrived in Likely.  I can’t wait to let Harper go play in it, but she has to get over her cold first!  She’s excited!

So I’m dying to know…should we bring the pool table back or is the new living room better?  Do tell!  And what do you think of our Christmas decor?  I always miss it when it’s gone! xo, L.

Just had to share this gift guide from Etsy. Seriously…go check it out. Majorly cute stuff to deck your halls in the handmade-way!

If you don’t subscribe to Etsy’s newsletter, click over and sign up NOW! I get goodies like these sent straight to my inbox daily!

Wow…the holidays have already really put a big wrench into my 5-days-a-week of posting!  And they’re not even close to being here yet!  But I guess it’s good (for me, not my readers!) – it just means that I’m busy! New clients (yippee!!), Christmas bazaar prep, holiday decorating and more is keeping me very, very busy!  So I’m just stopping in to say hello and to point you to a few great inspiration posts to get you in the holiday spirit!

And I promise that I’ll share ‘after’ photos of my new living room and our  holiday decorating as soon as I have a chance to edit these photos (but first I have to make room for them on my computer!).  We got a new dining room table (for FREE!!) and I can’t wait to show you everything…but just keep checking in and you will hear more from me soon.

Oh how I wish I had an interesting front porch like this one….

I’m also loving the green (but not CHRISTMAS green) Christmas colors.  Click the links below to see some more beautiful inspiration!

{images via: Homes & Gardens (1,2) and Discover: Interior Design (3, 4, 5)}

Miss me yesterday?  I try to post once per day, Monday through Friday…but Harper needed a couple immunizations yesterday so I was out and about and didn’t have a chance to write.

If you’re my Facebook friend, you’ve probably already seen this photo, but I just can’t help myself sometimes!  My webcam caught this photo of my silly family using Photobooth, but the more I look at it, the more I love it. So I decided to use Picnik to make a Christmas photo (it’s made using the “Collage” function…there are some adorable and easy-to-create holiday templates!).

This is what happens when you put off getting that professional family photo…I’ve been sulking because I missed my chance with the gorgeous fall leaves. But this one is almost as cute.

Happy Holidays from the Christensen Family.
xo, L.

I’m probably going to be regurgitating a lot of crafty finds that I come across online for you all over the next few days and/or weeks…I’m very busy with a couple of new clients (woo hoo!) and with getting ready for the Christmas fairs around here, so I’m looking for inspiration like crazy!  Plus with “the economy how it is” (aren’t you sick of that saying??) I’m sure people are looking for ways to save pennies and a good way to do that is to hand make your gifts!  So my newest crafty find that I’m loving are these adorable ‘Tiny Hot Cocoa Packets’ by LollyChops, that I found through a link from the fabulous Kim of The TomKat Studio on her Facebook page!  Thanks, Kim!

Aren’t they adorable?  The crafty mind behind LollyChops gives you step-by-step instructions for making the mix, how to add it to and make little baggies to put it in, and how to package it up nice and pretty!  And lucky for us, the PDF template is available to download so you can make your own teeny tiny packaging!  And they really are teeny tiny: about 2″ wide x 4″ tall and the baggie holds 10 tablespoons of mix, which is enough for about 3 mugs of cocoa.  I made one this morning from the PDF.  So cute!  Click –> here <– to download the file.  I’ll post the link again at the end if you want to read the rest of the post first.

Here are the directions on how to make the actual cocoa mix.  Yum.  And nice and simple.  And chocolatey.

It takes some nonfat dry milk powder, sugar, unsweetened cocoa, mini chocolate chips (or you can substitute crushed candy cane, mini marshmallows or dark chocolate flakes), powdered nondairy creamer and a little salt, all in one big bag or container.  You put a little bit of it into a baggie, and then put the baggie into the teeny tiny template that you print out, cut, fold and tie with a ribbon.  Easy peasy.  This is what page 2 of the PDF looks like and the photo above is what you get with page 1.  Handy, right?

She also gives you some instructions on making a little sandwich baggie to fill with cocoa mix that will fit inside of the packaging.  I attempted a baggie and it will work, I just don’t have all of the ingredients to make the cocoa mix!  Yet…

First you cut the top off of a sandwich baggie.

Then you fold the baggie in half (side to side, not bottom to top…), but not quite folded all of the way over…then tape.  See photo:

Now fold the opening down around itself, and scoop the cocoa mix into the opening by the tablespoon.  You’re only putting mix into one side of the bag.  You should be able to fit about 10 tablespoons into the baggie.  The instructions say that each cup of cocoa should take 3-4 tablespoons of mix…which will make 3 mugs of cocoa.  After you scoop your mix in, fold the top of the baggie back over itself to close…or tie with a twist-tie.

Now you can attach the baggie inside of your paper or cardstock packaging that you printed and folded.  Here is my attempt that I tried this morning.  I printed it onto white cardstock.  Sorry for the low-res photo…I took it with my webcam on my computer.    And don’t mind my messy office!

I would just tape the baggie inside of the little cardstock triangle by the top and bottom of the bag (LollyChops recommends taping the baggie mix to the bottom to avoid it sliding around).  Or tie your twist-tie in with the ribbon where you punched a hole in the cardstock.  Any other suggestions?

It’s also perfect size to add a trimmed-down business card to the bottom…except you can’t sell these exact templates (they’re for non-commercial use only), but if you just made your own packaging templates on the computer you could!  The full template size is 2 1/4″ x 10″, and each side of the template is 4″ tall…just add a blank (or add your info.) 2″ x 2″ square in the middle, which is the flat bottom, and add the name of the mix and instructions to either side.  You’ll see what I mean on the template…

Click –> here <– to download the file.

Do you know of any other cute handmade gift ideas floating around out there on the web?  I’d love to know your favorite resources!

I’m off to browse the rest of the LollyChops site…see ya’!

{all images, except my 2 webcam shots, via LollyChops}

Okay, I just couldn’t help myself with the title.  Only tacky because I’m talking about tape…get it?    I’ve been thinking about Christmas a lot lately; buying gifts, packaging them, mailing them, making cards, and also making cute packaging and craft fair items for Lillie + James.  How can I make my gifts or packaging stand out?  I’m really bad at wrapping gifts and tying cute bows, so when a short-cut comes along that can help me in any way, I try to keep it in mind for future reference!  Enter…decorative tapes.  I know these have been all around the blogs before, but I think that it’s an appropriate time to bring them up, don’t you think?  Especially with new holiday collections coming out!

After seeing a few photos and videos of these decorative tapes in action, I knew I just had to have some. I think the first company that I ran across is called TapeSwell, a unique line of decorative packing tapes. You can easily dress up a plain old brown paper bag gift-wrap job with these (it’s an easy way to recycle – yippee!), or make a conversation starter for when you’re standing in line at the post office to mail the gift! But they’re not just for wrapping packages…you can put the tape on anything you want to dress up; glass, candles, picture frames, lampshades, gift bags, and they even suggest making headbands and necklaces out of the stuff! Check out their “Tacky Ideas” section on their website here! There are tons of great products and patterns, so I’ll shut up and let the pictures do the talking (I especially love their new holiday tapes, though!!).

Okay, I’m piping in again…how great are the containers that they come in?  You can buy the tape as a single roll, or in a combo pack as shown below.  I love those little tins!  Click on the pictures and you’ll be taken to that particular tape on their site.

These are their holiday patterns…

They even carry these adorable Holiday mailing labels on a roll.

And speaking of mailing labels, tape isn’t the only thing that they do.  Check out these Envelope Wraparounds (perfect for sending Christmas cards!).

But don’t let the tape limit you, check out these Tacky Ideas (I like the cards, especially!):

Now check out this video I found, via Daily Grommet.

Cute, right? There is really no limit to how easy it would be to dress up your packages, gifts, envelopes or anything else that you could think of! Prices range from about $7 – $20 depending on the combo that you buy, and I know a lot of people that spend more than that on wrapping paper every year!

I also want to point you over to Happy Tape – a website that distributes Japanese masking tape (Japanese because it’s made out of Japanese washi paper, which is a little different than traditional masking tape that we know and love).

Look how cute the tape looks, dressing up a plain cardboard pastry box.  And they also have ‘new’ holiday patterns in pretty metallics!

This is simply a package wrapped in tape, with a label attached at the seam.  Adorable!  I have to get some of this before the craft fairs come up…

And this is a garland, made with…what else? Tape!  Look at the little fruits on the table with toothpicks and tape flags…perfect for a baby or wedding shower as a placecard!

Single rolls start at $5.50, or you can buy 10-packs for $34.00.  I’d even scour eBay or Etsy to see if I could find some I haven’t heard of, and do a web search for more crafty ideas…you could make some crazy wall art with these for sure!  No painting, only taping, and at $5.50 or less for a roll it would be an easy and cheap project.  Just like I like it!

Happy wrapping, everyone!  xo, L.

{all images via TapeSwell or Happy Tape.}