FOLK christmas winners!

first, thanks for all the wonderful and amazing comments all of you sent last week. you are the best!! i wish i could send all of you copies of FOLK!

since i can't send it to all of you, five six (yes, an error on my part has increased the winners from five to six. the more the merrier, right!?) will have to do. so, without further adieu, the winners of FOLK Issue Two: Christmas! are:

Kim - Home is Where the Heart Is
Jeni - In Color Order
Rachel - Funnelcloud
Miss Effie - Miss Effie's Diary
Cherri Lynn
Erin - Carolina Country Living


Congrats ladies! I will be in touch via email. I'll have your magazines out in the mail as soon as i get your mailing addresses!

thanks again to everyone that entered and for all the amazing comments!!

thrifty thursdays return december 1st

is it really thrifty thursday already? is thanksgiving really next week!? is it just me or is time just flying by these days. things are just non stop around here and i think that's making time go extra quickly...which i'm not too happy about since i just love this time of year.

sorry for the short notice, but thrifty thursdays is on hold this week and next week. we'll pick things up where we left off, with week four on thursday, december 1st. i will also have two categories for submissions, the first will be your normal thrifty thursday projects. the second will be projects inspired by the holiday season! sounds fun right!? i know i have a couple thrifty projects up my sleeve for the holidays.  that is, if i can find the time to actually do them!

if you have projects you wanted to link-up this week, just hang on to them and you can link them up in december. and since i didn't want to leave you completely empty handed, i thought i'd share a thrifty music video.

check out this cover where the 'music' is created with just these gals amazing voices and three empty cottage cheese/yogurt containers.



pretty amazing right!?

and don't forget to enter my little giveaway this week! and thanks for all the love in your comments. you certainly know how to make a guy feel special.

it's here! and a giveaway

well, the wait is finally over. 'FOLK Issue 2: Christmas!' is here and little ol' me is a part of it's amazing pages!!!!

i still am finding it hard to believe, but i guess it has to be true as i'm holding copies in my hands! and not only am i on one page of the magazine, i'm actually on several pages! somebody pinch me.

in this issue i have two columns. the first is called 'inspired by'. This issue focuses on burlap.

This particular column instructs you on how to make these amazing trees and wreath out of burlap. Pretty spectacular, right!?

i spent hours and hours creating this collection of burlap-wonderfulness and i couldn't be happier with the results.

they are now proudly displayed in my gift shoppe for all to see!

the second column, Sweet Endings, gives a tutorial on how to make the 'old fashion' dried apple wreaths and cinnamon applesauce ornaments.

my method of displaying these creations gave them a fresh new life...

...and a christmas project that can be cherished for years to come!

pretty stuff, right!? they also smell ah-mazing!

you'll also find a recipe for these delicious cookies....

cream wafters! my favorite.

plus, tons and tons and tons of other inspiring holiday projects, recipes and stories. i was impressed with the first issue of FOLK but this issue truly takes the cake! and at 160 pages long it will keep you inspired for a while.

issues can still be found through small retailers listed here (my gift shoppe included in that list).

and in celebration of this excitement i decided to give away FIVE copies of the 'Christmas! Issue' to the always wonderful and super kind readers of inspired by charm! i wouldn't be in this magazine without your kind words and constant support!


there are TWO ways to enter...

first, simply leave a comment below. if you are a 'no reply-comment blogger or if you are not a blogger at all, PLEASE include your email in your comment so i can get in touch with you.

second, tweet, blog or Facebook about this giveaway. then, come back here and leave a comment with the link showing you shared this exciting news.

pretty simple, right?

This giveaway will end Saturday, November, 19th at 9PM EST. I will announce the winners shortly after. 

Good luck everyone! And thanks again for all your support! For more information on FOLK, please visit the website and follow the blog!

yep, that's my face. in a magazine. *pinches self*

jelly and hot chocolate

this sunday i had a day off what i thought was going to be a day off. i had been putting off making red pepper jelly for quite some time. it's probably the most time consuming jelly to make. in my opinion.

so, at 12:30pm on sunday i started the process.

five and a half hours and 71 jars later, i finished.

 then last night, i got them all pretty with a piece of polka do fabric and my little labels. finished.

have you ever had red pepper jelly? it's delicious and really not all that spicy.

there's two ways to serve it. first, you can mix it with cream cheese to spread on crackers. or (my preferred mentioned) just pour it on top of a block of soften cheese cheese. again, to spread on crackers. let me tell you. it is dynamite! i loosely used this recipe for the jam.

i also, with the help of my mom, whipped up two extra large batches of charming hot chocolate mix. milk and white.

this stuff is delish! so much better than store bought.  makes a perfect little and tasty stocking stuffer!

slowly but surely i'm getting ready for the holidays. how about you?

is next week really thanksgiving!? oh my! better get busy!

and be sure to stop back here tomorrow! i'm having a little giveaway with five winners!!!

Thrifty Thursdays - Week Three

Thank you so much for joining me for Thrifty Thursdays! Week Three of Inspired by Charm's  link party!

Thifty Thursdays is every Thursday starting at 7pm until Sunday at 10pm EST.

As i mentioned yesterday I was a ginormous slacker in regards to being thrifty this week. Though, while I was creating a winter wonderland in my little shoppe, I did do at least one thing thrifty. The picture above is a tree. For the garland/ribbon, i cut strips of burlap i had on hand and wrapped them around the tree. Instant and free tree trimmings! That counts, right?

I also wanted to recap some of my favorites from last week's Thrifty Thursdays.

First, speaking of burlap, I loved WhisperWood Cottage's Burlap Pillow.

To cute, right!? Simple, crafty and beautiful!

I also love the piano bench makeover from Foreign Domestic. 

I'm always amazed at what a fresh coat of paint and some fabric can do! Super cute!

And last but night least check out this bathroom overhaul from 1829 Farmhouse.

I mean come on! The vintage sink, the sliding door, the artwork, the lighting... to. die. for. 

Thanks to everyone for partying along! And if your blog was featured don't forget to grab a button! 

<a href="www.inspiredbycharm.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1129.photobucket.com/albums/m518/inspiredbycharm/BLOG%20Buttons/blogbuttonFO.jpg" alt="YourSiteTitle" width="125" height="125" /></a>

This week you are welcome to link up any thrifty finds, creations, ideas, etc! As long as it's thrifty, it goes! I'm thinking about adding a 'theme' to next week's party, so stayed tuned for those details. 

Alrighty, now it's your turn to share....

but first a couple small guidelines:

• Be sure to link up thrifty projects only. 
• Pretty, pretty please link back to this party on your post with a link or a button (available in the sidebar).
• And, since i get excited with fun new projects, know that i may share your project here at inspired by charm.

That's it! Pretty simple.

And you are more then welcome to follow me at any of the links below for highlights from the party throughout the weekend!

Have fun! Thanks again for joining the party! 

done ... well, almost

oh my. did you follow along with 'the making of a christmas shoppe'? i sure hope! sorry i was scarce the past couple days. i was knee deep in christmas! 

i honestly spent about about 50 of the past 72 hours completely dedicated to transforming my shoppe. leavening little time for sleep or anything else. today i'm running on about 3 hours of sleep. 

things aren't quite finished but they are pretty dare close. and my mom was amazing and helped me out all day monday and all evening on tuesday. i would have been in deep sh*t poop without her. i'll be posting pictures here later this week. in the meantime head on over to Facebook and check out some unedited shots i took this afternoon. then come back here and let me know what you think! i wish you could all visit in person!!

thrifty thursdays - week three will be tomorrow at 7 PM as usual. i will also be recapping my favorites from last week in that post. i was a slacker and didn't create anything thrifty this week. 

see you tomorrow!!

oh! and a small reminder, the lovely kim over at newlywoodwards is daring us again this year! daring us to diy! the fun begins this sunday! click here to read all about it.

the making of a christmas shoppe

Starting at roughly 12 noon today (actually whenever I publish this post) I'm going to start turning my little gift shoppe into a magical christmas shoppe!!

I thought it would be fun to included all of you in the process! So if you haven't already, head on over to twitter and 'follow me' (#makingofachristmasshoppe  #oldcharmgiftshoppe) and/or click over to Facebook and 'like' Old Charm Bed and Breakfast. There may even be a picture or two on pinterest (on my 'i love christmas' board).

peacock tree - 2010

I'll be posting pictures, ideas, thoughts, and other fun and completely random things. I'm sure I'll need your advice along the way and feel free to chime in with comments, replies, repines and retweets!

The Christmas Shoppe opens on Wednesday at Noon so I'm on a deadline! This adventure will only last 72 hours.

We better get started!

Thrifty Thursdays - Week Two

Thank you so much for joining me for Thrifty Thursdays! Week Two of an all new link party!

Thifty Thursdays is every Thursday starting at 7pm until Sunday at 10pm EST.

This week you are welcome to link up any thrifty finds, creations, ideas, etc! As long as it's thrifty, it goes!

For my thrifty project this week, i killed two birds with one stone. As i mentioned in a previous post this weekend i'm switching my little shoppe from fall to christmas. I have 72 hours to make a wonderland! And let me tell you i couldn't be more excited!!

Some of local folk often get confused about what goes on behind the walls of my little inn. So I wanted to create some sort of sign for them to know exactly what is going on and when it's happening. So i thought a little sign would do the trick. Plus this is the best kind of thrifty! Why? Because it was absolutely free!! 

I used a scrap piece of wood i had and painted it white. I printed out the text from my computer and transferred them to the sign. Then, I painted them with some red paint ... and voila! Instant signage. The sign is double sided so both sides say the same thing. 


Unlike some of the other signs I made, I kept this one very crisp and clean so it would be very visible. No fancy distressing this time. 


And althought the sign isn't offically 'hung' yet (The 'Christmas Shoppe' open next Wednesday), this is what it will look like.

Not to shabby right? Now everyone will know that there is a  christmas wonderland inside my little inn AND exactly when they can visit it. The best part ... zero dollars! I'll jazz up the poles with some pine and christmas lights early next week. 






Alrighty, now it's your turn to share....

but first a couple small guidelines:

• Be sure to link up thrifty projects only. 
• Pretty, pretty please link back to this party on your post with a link or a button (available in the sidebar).
• And, since i get excited with fun new projects, know that i may share your project here at inspired by charm.

That's it! Pretty simple.

And you are more then welcome to follow me at any of the links below for highlights from the party throughout the weekend!

Have fun! Thanks again for joining the party! 

i'm dreaming of a pink christmas

Yep, it's after november 1st so christmas is in full swing... around here at least.

Last year after christmas, I picked up a brand new 4 foot tall pink christmas tree for around $10. i mean come on, who could resist? Over the past year i've been thinking about where to put it and how to decorate it.

Well,  I made a few decisions. First, I want to make every decoration/ornament for the tree. This includes the garland, ornaments, tree topper and skirt. Now, this doesn't have to happen all within the next two months. I'm perfectly happy to piece it together over a couple years. Second,  I wanted to use vintage sheets as my theme. Perfect!

Yesterday i got started on the first round of ornaments. I have about 15 or so that are about 80% finished so I can't share them with you quite yet. But soon.

In the meantime, thanks to the search feature on pinterest, I thought I'd share some other holiday decorations, inspired by pink! enjoy!

vintage silver and pink  + tree 'skirt' love  

via

retro aqua and pink

via

pink with scandinavian style

via

'bubble' gum pink

via

vintage ornament love

via

eclectic pink

via

pink on pink

via

pink, perfectly pastel

via

white on pink on black

via

pink goes traditional

via

organized pink collection

via

pink meets glamour

via

shabby chic pin

via

and who would have thought pink could look so positively perfect for christmas!?

what non-traditional colors will you be decorating with this holiday?

and don't forget tomorrow is Thrifty Thursdays - Week Two!! Hope to see there here!