Thank you for visiting Smile and Wave time and time again, sweet people. I am thankful for your presence here and all of your encouragement and support throughout the last six years. I hope your Thursday is special and inspiring and that you feel loved.
-Rachel
A few weekends ago we were all tired of being at home all the time because of one person or another having been sick so we bundled up a bit and went out into the sunshine. We ended up driving to Helen Hunt falls and hiking to the top. It's a pretty easy hike up for kids and the view at the top was beautiful.
The falls were frozen on top with a bit of a trickle running underneath. It was stunning. The whole creek that it feeds into along the road up was frozen as well and there were plenty of other people out exploring on a warmish January afternoon.
We got about halfway up and rounded a bend to see the top of the falls (as far as the trails go at least) and it looked like someone had spilled shiny white paint down the mountain. It was incredible to see a frozen waterfall of that size.
We're always seeing mountain climbers in this area but I was thrilled to see someone ice climbing their way to the top.
Sebastian was still feeling a little weak from being sick but was a trooper all the way until the end. I think they were worn out by the time we got to the bottom again although you can't hardly tell by their happy faces.
I've resolved to take as many of these family adventures into the woods as possible while we're in the Springs, even in the winter, to get to enjoy these beautiful mountains and give the kids a taste for exploring and adventure. Next time I may need to wait until everyone's feeling 100%.
-Rachel
I was making a himmeli last week and had a ton of pink and coral straws leftover and suddenly I realized I could string up a bunch of triangles and have a new kind of bunting! I love that it's got negative space, is three dimensional, and won't get easily ruined in storage or if used outdoors.
1. Decide how long you want your bunting to be and multiply by three to get your twine length. I used pink twine from Lowe's but you could also use embroidery thread or really thin rope. You just need something thin enough for two pieces to fit through a straw. You'll also need three straws for each triangle. I used 6" coral straws for the bottoms and 4.5" pink straws for the tops. I placed my pink straw on first and then two coral straws and pushed them to the left end. 2. Then I bent my straws around to arrange a triangle shape. 3. Take your long end and string it back through the top straw as shown. 4. Add your next triangle in the same order of size/color and restring that long end through the top to get your next triangle. Continue until you're out of room.
I hung mine up with glittered tape from the Martha Stewart line and cut little triangles into the ends. I found my straws at Target but you can find darling striped and spotted ones on Etsy or large party stores. Spray painting is always an option if you can't find the perfect shade of mint!
Now, go make some bunting.
-Rachel
I hadn't been excited to decorate for Valentine's Day until this week and then it hit full force. We've never sent Sebastian to school with handmade Valentine's because he's always wanted Star Wars or Transformers themed cards but this year I got him hooked on the idea of making them with honey sticks! He loves them so I knew if I brought some home and explained my idea we might be able to turn it into a fun project to work on together.
I made a little prototype for him to give him an idea of what I was talking about and then used my heart template to trace 26 more onto manilla filing folders. His job is to cut them out and write the names of his classmates on the front and I'll help with adding the arrow embellishments and punching holes. Ruby has already colored a few to send off to relatives.
I made the straw bunting to hang in our dining room (find the DIY here). It's such a fun alternative to paper or fabric bunting and can be used for almost any occasion by switching out colors. The mini cupcakes were from a local shop, Cupcake Girls. I bought a dozen and then dipped a few in bright pink sprinkles from the Target $1 section. I loved how they looked with the dark berries. I split them with the kids and we had ourselves an early Valentine's Day treat.
There are so many darling Valentine's Day decorations floating through Pinterest right now. If you need some inspiration you need to see what Alison has been working on, some of what Merrilee and her littles have been making, a handful of cute card ideas, and I think Ruby would flip over these!
Are you hand-making any Valentine's for someone special this year?
-Rachel
I've got a really simple hot pad and oven mitt tutorial over on A Beautiful Mess for anyone needing a little more pretty in their kitchen. The best news is it's another sewing project most beginners can tackle in one afternoon!
Head over for the full tutorial.
-Rachel
The next project on 40 Projects Just For Fun is a pink straw himmeli. I've always thought himmelis were beautiful and realized it'd be really easy to make one from some of the pink straws we always seem to have in our cupboard. This project took about 20 minutes including taking photos and cost about $2.00. I found these straws in an assortment pack at Target but you could use any kind of patterned or striped straws or spray paint them upon completion to get the look you want.
1. You'll need 20 ft. of twine, 20 straws, and a pair of scissors. 2. Cut twelve straws just under the bend, cut the other eight 2" shorter. The size of your straws will change the shape of your himmeli so you can vary your silhouettes easily. 3. Cut your twine into four 5' sections. Take two and two and tie them in the middle. 4. Stick one of the longer straws over each of the four sections. 5. Take one strand from from one of the sections and another strand from an adjoining section and stick them through one of the short straws in opposite directions as shown. Repeat for the next three sections. 6. You should have the shape shown above. You have four new sections. 7. Add one long straw to each new section. 8. Repeat step five with the next layer of short straws. Finish with the last layer of long straws and bring all of the twine together at the top in a knot. Hang with another length of twine.
Himmelis are fun sculptural elements to hang in a corner of your favorite space, make beautiful modern ornaments at Christmas time, or a sweet mobile for a child's room. I think I'm going to make a bunch of miniature versions for our tree next December in gold.
What have you been working on lately?
-Rachel
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