DIY Stamped Fabric Chairs

Despite having been very excited about this project it still took me many months to finally buckle down and get it done.

I made my stamps in June 2016 with the intention of using them to decorate fabric and reupholster my dining chairs. I thought I would do it right away when the stamps were done but a year past and I never got around to it.

You may or may not know that I really dislike having people in my space and have therefore barely had anyone over to our apartment. If it’s just Ryan and I then I can live with the space getting a bit messy for a day or two but anytime someone else will be over I stress myself out thinking that they will judge me for not being clean enough or for having a poorly decorated space. In reality, I’m pretty sure no one cares and since I keep things quite neat and clean there is very little to judge on anyway.

All that being said, we had a few friends over (for the first time since living there) on Canada Day. After very thoroughly cleaning everything in anticipation of their arrival I still couldn’t help but think that the chairs as they were kind of ruined the clean look that I was going for. That was all the motivation I needed to finally get this project moving.

The next morning I dragged Ryan out to a few stores to help me choose fabric and paint colors. He didn’t really share my vision but helped to look anyway. Fabricland and Michael’s are some of my favorite stores and I don’t go nearly often enough anymore.

To refinish 2 chairs we used:

-Leftover white paint from when we refinished the table

-1.5 meters of fabric
-2 small bottles of paint (appropriate for fabric)
-Paint brushes I already had
-A hammer, screwdriver, needle nose pliers and staple gun

I have to admit, I expected this to be much more difficult than it was. Taking everything apart and painting the frame was very simple and didn’t take too long. Stamping the fabric, however, was much more time consuming.

I pre-cut the fabric to the proper size so I could wrap the cushion and staple it to the underside. Ideally when stamping there should be an ink pad or a roller to quickly and evenly apply the paint. Also in an ideal world the stamp face itself would be level. Unfortunately for me, because I hand carved my stamps from clay the faces aren’t 100% even and that left me with the lengthy process of painting the stamp every time I wanted to use it, and I used it a lot.

With the fabric laid out flat I would paint the stamp and then gently roll and press it into the fabric. To make the process that much longer, I also had to be quite gentle since the clay stamps are fragile. The type of paint I used also built up slightly on the stamp and would need to be peeled off after every 5-10 stamps or I risked it all peeling off on the fabric and leaving chunks of rubbery paint.

In hindsight I would most certainly carve my stamps from rubber as that would most likely cut out pretty much all the issues I ran into. While stamping the second set of fabric with the whale I actually broke the stamp in half. If I was almost done it wouldn’t have bothered me so much to have to stamp each half separately and hope they lined up, but I was only starting the first of 3 fabric pieces. As a quick remedy I glued the two pieces together and onto an unloved lid from the kitchen.

After 2 days of stamping, painting and stapling I managed to come out the other side with a product I absolutely love. Having never done this before I had high hopes but I was also prepared to be disappointed if it didn’t go well. I’m so pleased to say it looks even better than I imagined.

And now that I’m done I kind of want to stamp everything. Pillows and curtains and everything in between… I think I should resist that urge for now.

Creating Christmas Gifts

The Christmas season is a busy time no matter which way you slice it. We need to make time for shopping, cooking, baking, visiting and still go to our jobs. To make that all go a bit smoother and to keep things as inexpensive as possible Ryan and I did some DIY Christmas gifts this year.

Just like last year, we took our own photos and made cards to send out to family and friends. We made 35 this year and even though it was time consuming I absolutely love the outcome. I think they are much more unique and creative than the photo cards that you can get printed professionally. 

I had the idea to make a tree ornament for Ryan this year, something personalized and meaningful, and even though he had no idea I was doing that he still came up with the same idea. We made ornaments for his little sister and also for our 2 secret Santa's. 

I don't know either of the people we chose so we did a quick little Facebook search and came up with these. Ryan made and painted the Blue Jays logo and I did the lobster claw. I think they both turned out great!

I've been making stockings for several years now and I really love it. Bentley just turned one in October and he finally gets his own stocking. I had hoped to make one for him last year but it didn't work out. I previously made one for his Mom, Dad and sister too.

Though it has my name on it this one isn't for me. Another Dani has been included in the family and this one is for her. I think the 2 stockings I made this year are my favourite ones I've done. 

All the kids gifts were handmade this year in hopes that they might be a little more meaningful and might last a little longer that the typical toy gifts.

For my older niece and a friends daughter I made these adorable little bubblegum machine tree ornaments. They only cost a few dollars to make and are a fun addition to the tree.

For the next 4 kids we made them each a bunny. Yes, you read that right: we cut, sewed, detailed and all-in-all made each child there own stuffed bunny. Each one is slightly different and they all have different coloured tails to keep from being confused. 

Lastly, instead of a bunny, Bentley got a dinosaur. I made this one too. 

Everything seemed really well received and I'm hoping to continue this in the future. I think a meaningful handmade gift is always the best to receive. 

Pre-Christmas Creations

'Tis the season to celebrate with family and friends, and that's just what we've been doing. Ryan and I attended two Christmas parties this weekend and I got to be creative before both. 

I volunteered to bring a dessert item to both parties and spent ALL day on Saturday baking. 

I made a cake with 5 layers and 3 trays of cookies, my kitchen was the messiest it's probably ever been and I had to walk to the grocery store in between batches to get more eggs. Fortunately the store is only across the street since it was one of the coldest days this year and my poor van died in the garage at home.

After 4.5 hours of baking and with almost no time to get ready, we set off to the party. I'm going to tell you, I made the ugliest cake ever, it's could win awards for its ugliness, but when I arrived with it everyone seemed pretty impressed!! 

Supper was amazing. Curried cauliflower, though I expected to dislike it, turned out to be really delicious. Veggie pies, mashed potatoes and Caesar salad were excellent as well. There was a great selection of vegetarian food, which isn't usually the case at parties, so it was easy for everyone to enjoy. My 3 best friends are vegetarian as well and all in attendance. 

At dessert time I was told that my gingerbread cake was "the best cake I've ever had" by one of my friends and that really made my night. Baking all day paid off I guess!

Our second party was a "tacky Christmas sock" party. Better than sweaters in my opinion. Again, I was busy doing.. I don't remember what, all morning before the party so we were a bit rushed getting ourselves ready. Fortunately I did all the baking the day before so the gingerbread cookies were ready to go when we were! 

A quick trip to the dollar store to buy sock decorating supplies and then about 10 minutes at home with the hot glue gun and double sided tape had us ready. 

Ryan had a lovely oven mitt creation and I went with garland and jingle bells up to the knees. The (approximately 1 million) kids at the party seemed to like our choices, and that's what counts. 

I'm really looking forward to spending more time with people over the holidays and being festive! 

DIY - Making Stamps

On Tuesday night I randomly came up with a DIY project I wanted to start and I’ve been thinking about it since. I decided I wanted to make personalized stamped fabric to use for cushions when we get dining chairs. This DIY goes beyond just stamping and sewing though, I am making the actual stamps! No one will have the same fabric as me!!!

After checking various posts on Pinterest for how other people went about this process, I decided what I would do.

My initial test run involved a box cutter and a rubber eraser. It turned out well considering how tiny my surface was. I made a tiny flower on the end of a pencil and a whale on one end of my eraser.

As simple and mess free as the eraser was, it isn’t big enough for the pattern I wanted to create. My initial plan was to use a piece of mold-able clay and carve into that.

To start I collected up all my tools and found a mobile surface to work on so I could lay on the floor while carving.

I used: 1 box cutter for carving

A painting knife for smoothing and pulling away excess clay

1 pairing knife to cut the piece of clay off the block

Firm mold-able clay from the dollar store

            Print outs of the image I want - for use as a stencil

With everything ready to go I got to it. I cut out my printed image and traced around it onto the clay with my box cutter.

From there I slowly cut deeper and removed all the excess from around my lobster shape, because it’s fairly detailed and not that big this step took quite a while.

When the stamp took its final shape all that was left was to smooth out the surface and remove any unwanted imperfections.

I had wanted to try out the stamp on paper using an ordinary stamp pad but the one I had was too small. I tried brushing the ink on as well but it dried too quickly to make a nice transfer. When I get to the stage of actually stamping my fabric I will be using liquid fabric dye so it should be much simpler then. But I’ll make another post for that part when I get to it!

Happy Stamping!

Capsule Wardrobe - Spring edition!

Having lived with my first capsule wardrobe for 3 months now there are a few things I've learned:

•  It feels pretty much like it did before
•  Because the items I chose to keep were things I loved, I rarely felt limited
•  Some tweaks were necessary because Edmonton got unusually warm, unusually early this year
•  I’ve finally reached the point in life where I want quality over quantity. I’m willing to spend a bit more on pieces that I love and that will actually last. 

And now, because that's how it works, it's time to change it up for the new season! Spring means lighter fabric, brighter colors and retiring some of the heavy and warm clothes until they are needed again.

I started shopping around for new items near the end of March. Mostly just browsing online, seeing what was out there.
Eventually I did order a few things from one of my favorite online shops; Modcloth. I told myself that if I didn’t completely LOVE the things I got they would have to go back. I’m leaving no space in my closet for things that don’t make me feel great.
Early in April after the package arrived and I decided on what would stay and what would go, I did a bit more shopping around here to find other pieces.

My spring time additions:
-[Modcloth] Blue striped sleeveless top

-[Modcloth] Grey polka-dot top --> Sent back (Super cute, but looks like a maternity top on me..)

-[Modcloth] Plaid sleeveless top --> Sent back (Didn't fit)

-[Modcloth] Blue top --> Sent back (Not what I expected)

-[J Crew] Anchor button-down

-[Lululemon] Black leggings
-[Reebok] Colorful running shoes (Similar)

 -Black slit-side T-shirt

Things I would still like to add:
-Shoes:

• Comfy casual shoes (Converse)
• Nice flats for work
• Ankle boots

-2 more tops:

• Light fabric, colorful, short sleeves or sleeveless, maybe ¾ sleeve

All of my mitts/scarves/hats have been put away, my winter jacket is out of sight and my boots have no other home so they are organized but still out. Most of my sweaters are put away too.

Unfortunately some of my favorite items have seen better days and it’s looking like time for them to go. I’m going to have to say goodbye to at least 2 pairs of shoes, 1 pair of boots and a few tops. I suppose when you have clear favorites that you wear constantly for several years the time will eventually come when they just don’t cut it anymore. I had a pile of clothes sitting on my floor for a while now too, trying to convince myself I would still wear them and I haven't. They will all finally be going as well!


My final item count for spring is 30 items!

My Home Garden

As I’m sure you can tell by now, I’ve gotten to be a bit obsessed with having plants at home.

It all started long ago with my avocado pit. I saw something online about how to grow an avocado tree from the pit of the fruit and I had to try it out. It was quite simple and took minimal care.

Around that time I bought a few other plants too. An orange tree, lemon tree and two cacti. The fruit trees are lost and 1 cactus died, but I still have the second and he’s going strong.

In our new apartment Ryan and I first bought a fern, Jade and English Ivy. Their greenery and warmth pleased me so much that we had to get more. A “Hope” Philodendron and another cactus.
Among all those I am also starting a new avocado pit and attempting to re-grow a bunch of celery! Both seem to be going well.

And finally, the actual garden; I was inspired by yet another online find - egg shell gardening. Basically, seeds are planted in small amounts of soil inside an egg shell and left to sprout inside the house. Eventually when they are ready, the whole egg shell can be planted outside where it will continue to grow and, in my case, hopefully provide me with beautiful veggies. The internet tells me that the roots will eventually crack the shell and as it breaks down will provide nutrients to the plants.

I started with lettuce, cucumber and tomato. I love eating all those things and also, none of them grow underground so planter depth isn’t as crucial. Keep in mind that when they are planted outside it will be in a plant box on a balcony.

Initially there were 2 shells with lettuce and 3 each of tomato and cucumber, but about 2 weeks in I added 1 more each of tomato and cucumber and 2 more lettuce. I’m hoping that means I will get more veggies throughout the season.

Within about 1 week all of the seeds had sprouted. Lettuce first followed by cucumber and then tomatoes. Once they broke the soil there was really no stopping them, they grow a noticeable amount in just one day and it thrills me.

I can’t wait to see if they are successful little producers and will feed me through the summer!!

Apartment Styling - Plants and Pictures

I decided long before we even moved in that I wanted to have lots of plants in the apartment. They bring such a warmth and vibrancy to indoor spaces that I find very cozy and appealing.
Having worked in a greenhouse for a few years I also just grew accustomed to being around plant life and I know how happy I felt in that place. I have also seen a number of plants that I always wanted to bring home.


I already had an avocado tree that I grew from the pit of one delicious avocado about 2 years ago. Its 2-3 feet tall now with big vibrant green leaves and I adore it. I fully intend to start another avocado tree or 2. Unfortunately they don't produce fruit, but I love them no less.

I also already had a chubby little cactus. I think I've had it for about 2 years now as well and since it's nearly doubled in size since I bought it I can safely safe I'm a reasonable plant parent.
And speaking of parents, mine have been babysitting both of these plants for about 10 months now so I am quite pleased to have them back.

As lovely as the 2 of those plants are I still really wanted more. I was thinking at least one big plant, but Ryan wanted smaller ones that we could nurture and grow into that bigger plant. I've given in. For now.


At the greenhouse we had limited options, mostly because we went in January, it's not exactly plant season. We did find some little beauties anyway. Ryan picked out a Jade plant and I got English Ivy and a Fern. We also picked out some standard clay pots and soil for them to live in.

Back at the apartment we set up a little work space so we could re-pot all 3 plants. I don't know if we were technically doing it correctly, but it worked out okay. No leaves fell off, no limbs were broken and all 3 seemed to be solidly situated in the soil.

The next part of my plan to cozy-up the house is getting pictures and art on the walls. Bare walls are so boring and uninspiring.


I already did a bit of painting, but if those actually end up hanging on the wall is as of yet undecided.


Something that will go on the wall for sure are pictures and I found just the way I want to display them. String and clothes pins. I've seen pictures of this in a few variations and I absolutely love them way it looks. Plus, its so easy to change out based on the season or simply what you feel like showcasing.

Considering how many trips and adventures Ryan and I have been on, I love that this doesn't restrict me to any number of photos fitting into a frame or on a pin board, but instead allows me to post as many as I desire simply based on the length of the string and the number of pins I buy. If you "sign up" for Shutterfly you can get 50 free prints too!

This wall shows a little bit of everything. Pictures of us, scenery, animals and photos we like just because. I'm absolutely loving the way it looks and considering making another string photo wall in the bedroom.

Just below it is our "shrine" to the sea. This was one of the very first things that got set up in the apartment and one of my favorite places to look. A map, sea glass, shells, stones and my nautical mirror. A perfect little corner.