the sweetest digs

the DIY files: an easy housewarming gift

April 29th, 2013

Happy Monday, guys! Hope you had a good weekend. Ours was filled with social evenings with family and friends, and two days of work around the house. Yesterday it was gorgeous here (so sunny and warm), so we were out in the garden and cleaning out the garage. I may have even got a bit of a tan! Happy days.

Anyway, here is a super simple idea that I thought I would share. A few friends of ours bought their first house recently, and so when we popped by for our tour I wanted to bring a little “congratulations!” gift. I thought back on when we moved into our place, and remembered how many trips to the store and how much money leaked out of our pockets in those first few weeks buying boring supplies. Things for cleaning, painting, outdoor work, etc.

So, I headed on over to the dollar store and filled my basket with a bunch of useful stuff. Dishclothes, sponges, matches, gardening gloves, painting drop sheets, a bucket, etc.

I also wanted to throw in a few pretty things, so grabbed these fun trellis placemats from HomeSense (in one of my gal pal’s fave colours – orange!), and threw in some of the coasters I DIY’ed here a while ago (I had made a few extra sets to have in my “gift drawer”).

Then I managed to squeeze everything into the bucket, except for those placemats. It looks cute all tucked in there, eh?

Wrapped it up with some brown kraft paper and threw some ribbon and twine around it – and we had ourselves a present. So easy.

The gift went over super well, and I heard this weekend that those gloves have already been put to use. There was nothing terribly fancy or expensive about the gift, but just a little token of “we’re so excited for you!!” sentiment and some useful stuff so that they can hopefully save a few pennies along the way.

What about you guys? Have any go-to housewarming presents? Did you receive any that you particularly loved? Any other gift giving tips? I always have a stack of handmade and store bought (the sale ones!) cards on hand so that I can easily throw them onto a gift or into an envelope in no time. Saves me time if I don’t have to go out searching for the perfect card for every occasion, you know?

Tags: DIY housewarming gift, new house present
Posted in DIY projects, gift guides | 5 Comments »

pieces of love @ magpie jewellery

April 26th, 2013

This upcoming weekend in my Ottawa hood, one of my absolute favourite jewellery stores – Magpie Jewellery – is hosting the final weekend of their bridal month. I actually had my own engagement ring designed and by the lovely folks at Magpie. It was a great experience from start to finish, and ever since I have bought the occasional bauble (or hinted at Dan to!), to add to my collection.

For their grand finale weekend, they asked to use some of the vintage items from my Pieces of Love business, and of course I was only too thrilled to be a part of the event. We setup a little vignette, and dotted a few other pieces around the store.

The bridal month events are coming to an end with Megan Thorne. Magpie is the only store in Canada that carries her pieces and they are thrilled to host her first show in Canada! Megan will be at Magpie in Westboro on Saturday from 11-5 and at the Glebe store on Sunday from 11-5.

Magpie (the Westboro location) is really a gorgeous store – lots of white, glass, beautiful light fixtures and high ceilings – all setting off the beautiful jewellery pretty perfectly.

Victoire and White Elephant are showcasing some vintage wedding gowns at the event. I browsed through them last night and there are some seriously fun dresses at great prices. One of these short dresses would be perfect for the reception/dancing part of the wedding (if you wanted to wear a long, more formal dress for the actual wedding). The lace and detail work is pretty spectacular on these retro frocks.

You can find out more about this weekend’s events here on Magpie’s blog, and check out all the gorgeous baubles from Magpie on their main site here.

*FYI – I was not compensated in any way to promote Magpie Jewellery. I just love the store and was super excited to be a part of their finale wedding weekend!*

What are you guys doing this weekend? Any big plans? Getting out the garden or doing some garage organizing now that the weather is warming up? We’ve got a couple of house projects on the “to do” list — including getting started on a little someone’s nursery!!

Tags: magpie jewellery, pieces of love, vintage
Posted in around ottawa | 4 Comments »

babymoon: the recap

April 23rd, 2013

Okay, so time for the full scoop on our trip to NYC!!

We stayed with Dan’s aunt and boyfriend who live in the Upper West Side (uptown Manhattan neighbourhood that is just west of Central Park). It was so nice to stay with family – not only to get all caught up and do lots of visiting, but it was so comfortable, fun, in a great location, and good on our pocket books!

We had great weather while we were there. It was beautiful spring – warm and tons of sunshine. Perfect for a lot of strolling around.

On this particular day, we spent a bunch of time in the Park – including lunch at the Boathouse (the restaurant in Central Park) – so yummy and scenic!

The blossoms were out in full swing and was just so pretty. I love the soft pink colour, don’t you?

We did a bit of shopping — some shoes for both of us from Designer Shoe Warehouse (that place has great deals!), a couple of finds from anthropologie, and a maternity top from Rosie Pope. Have you guys seen her TV show (called ‘Pregnant in Heels’?). I was mildly obsessed with the show, and therefore with Rosie! Her shop in the Upper East Side was small but gorgeous, and had the nicest sales girls, They even offered Dan a beer while I tried things on. Way to win over the dudes, Rosie.

Our week was kinda summed up by strolling and eating. A lot of eating. Here we are at Le Pain Quotidien (we don’t have one in Ottawa and LOVED them when we were living in London, England). Such yummy coffee and treats.

Brunch at Sarabeth’s. The lemon + ricotta pancakes were out of this world.

And bagels from Zabar’s. It looks like it was just Dan that did a lot of eating…. I promise I was very much involved in these activities! :)

We did a few evenings out on the town. One was to see tony-award winning musical ‘Once’ (fabulous music!!!), and to see a documentary at the Lincoln Centre called ‘No Place on Earth’ (highly recommended).

We spent another day visiting with Dan’s cousin and checking out the Chelsea Market, Highline, and the Chelsea neighbourhood.

The Chelsea market has this awesome industrial vibe, with some great touches that I fell in love with. How neat are these big orb pendants with paper butterflies?

Or this huge vintage clock? Love, love, love.

Highline is an area of old rain tracks that have been converted into long stretches of garden and walkway. Such a neat way to use the unused space.

Another day was spent out in Brooklyn – walking along the water, checking out the architecture of the Brooklyn streets (I think we were in the ‘Brooklyn Heights’ neighbourhood), popping into the shops, and sitting at cafes.

For $3 at a Brooklyn thrift store, I found these hilarious flash cards. They are all slang words – words that Dan and I embarrassingly use far too often (ex – bling, cheddar, tight, etc) – with the definition and photo with quote on the other side. We had such a good chuckle going through them. I see an art project in their future!

On one of our last days we popped over to 5th Avenue and down to the Plaza Hotel for tea.

The ‘Eloise’ shop in the Plaza is hilarious (remember the Eloise books + movies?). The tea party room was a total pink dream!

There are few things I love more than a good afternoon tea, and the Plaza didn’t disappoint. Yummy scones, sweet desserts, and great ambiance (though the devonshire cream for the scones was way too meagre for this English clotted cream loving gal!).

All in all, an absolutely fabulous babymoon! So nice for Dan and I to unwind, take a bit of time out for each other, and plan and dream about this little baby girl of ours.

Have you guys had any really memorable NYC trips? Ever go on a babymoon? Got any trips planned for this summer?

Tags: 2013, babymoon, new york city
Posted in travel and adventure | 23 Comments »

back to the program

April 22nd, 2013

We’re baaaaaack! Had an absolutely stellar week in New York City – lots of visiting with family, eating, and strolling about. Totally unplugged from work, emails, the blog, etc. It’s great to do that every once in a while (but I’m paying the price this morning – yikes!). Check back in tomorrow for the full scoop and picture overload (need to upload those to the computer tonight..!!).

Hope you guys had a great week! Has spring sprung where you are? We happily arrived back in Ottawa yesterday to green grass and kids playing on the street. Sayonara snow!!

Posted in uncategorized | 2 Comments »

babymoon time

April 14th, 2013

Hubby and I are off this week for our babymoon! Heading to New York City for a week of visiting with family, eating, strolling around the city, and relaxing.

source

I’ve been to New York a couple of times but it’s like London or Paris – there is a never ending list of things to do and see. I can’t wait to do some more exploring! If you have any favourite spots in the city (restaurants, shops, neighbourhoods, sites, etc), let me know. My parents are house-sitting for us, so our little pad will be looked after while we’re away.

source

For a totally relaxing week, I am officially unplugging from the blog. I’ll see y’all back here next Monday! Have a great week!! xo.

Posted in travel and adventure | 7 Comments »

blogiversary survey results

April 12th, 2013

Happy Friday, guys. We have a winter storm going on here in Ottawa today (snow in April? COME ON!), and I have a brutal head cold to boot so am at home sick. I think I’m going to sleep the day away, and hopefully wake up tomorrow to a head that I don’t want to chop off and sunny, warm weather.

So remember that survey that I asked you guys to fill out over the blogiversary week? Well, I have finally compiled the results. And guys, it was SO amazing. So many of you filled it out, said such lovely things, and gave me some great ideas about how to ensure that the blog is giving you readers what you’re looking for.

So here goes.

Most of you are gals. Like 99% gals. No big surprise there, I guess. But thanks so the 1% of fellas who filled out the survey! And over 85% of you are between 20 and 39 years old.

Most of you live in North America, but I was happy to see that there were some international readers, including folks from Europe, Australia and New Zealand, and even one from Cape Town, South Africa!

The majority of you own your houses, but there are a good number of renters checking in too. I think because a lot of my projects are so budget-friendly, they are renter-appropriate. Hopefully that’s the case!

This next question was really great. It was neat to see that so many of you enjoy the project tutorials, before and afters, and room makeover posts. Those are definitely the ones I like writing the best, so that’s great! And house tours really got a good review too – I need to do more of those! If you guys are local and have a house/apartment you think I have to crash, write me (thesweetestdigs@gmail.com). Even if you’re not local, feel free to send in photos of your pad for a house tour! Then I asked a couple of open-ended questions and got some really fabulous feedback.

For new post ideas, some of you suggested:

-Things around Ottawa (“store crashing”, events, fave neighbourhoods, etc) and similarly, more Canadian content
-More posts abut my thrift store, vintage finds
-More posts about my own design work for other folks (I don’t do this too often – but when I do, I promise to post about it as long as I have their permission!)
-More product reviews — things from local stores that I have purchased and loved or not loved.

Other feedback included:

-More posts about me, my pregnancy, and just personal stuff in general. I was pretty flattered to read this comment from so many of you! One of my blog new year resolutions was to get more personal, so I will definitely keep trying to do this. You saw yesterday my latest bump watch photos, and I’ll keep ‘em coming for sure. Although I promise that this won’t morph completely into a baby/parenting blog — the project pace might slow down somewhat with a newborn, but I am very much committed to keeping this as a design/DIY blog. Heck, it’s what I love doing and writing about!

-Some of you don’t like the monthly recap posts. I started doing those about 6 months ago, and I have actually found that it’s really nice to summarize the highlights of the month. If anything, at the end of each year I’ll have a really nice “yearbook” of sorts. So for those of you who find them boring, just skip ‘em! No hurt feelings :)

-A lot of you mentioned that you liked how my projects use easy-to-find materials and are usually totally budget friendly (and “skill” friendly). I know sometimes the big renovation posts aren’t as accessible to everyone, so I will always try to maintain a nice balance of those “big project” posts with lots of easier, realistic projects.

-Better tagging of my posts so that archives are easier to find. This is one of those tricky things. I try and tag my posts with as much detail as I can, and always put them into the appropriate “category” (which you can see on my sidebar)… but it’s not the best solution. Things like DIY projects and house tours get their own pages (see up in the main header bar), but the others can get a little lost. I’ll keep my thinking cap on about that one!

So awesome guys. This was really so helpful for me and there are lots of great ideas to incorporate. And the oh-so-sweet comments you left for me gave me tons of encouragement and motivation. So not to make this into too much of a cheesefest, but I love you guys! Thank you so much for popping in here on the regular and making my little corner of the blogosphere such a happy place.

Now go out (or stay in if you’re in this snowy Ontario weather right now), and enjoy the weekend! Have fun!

Tags: blogiversary survey results
Posted in about blogging | 5 Comments »

baby bump watch + some photo editing tips

April 10th, 2013

So I know there are a lot of other exciting baby bump watches happening (Kim Kardashian’s sweet curves and Kate Middleton’s slim belly to name a few..), but here’s an update on baby bump watch: Baby Sprout edition.

Last time I posted any of these photos, I shared the first trimester..

And, well, this babe has definitely been growing!

I can safely say that I’m past that “is she pregnant or did she have one too many sandwiches?” point in the pregnancy. I am feeling good and round! According to the books and the baby app on my phone, this little girl is the length of a spaghetti squash and is probably weighing in at about a pound (I have definitely put on more than a few of those since this journey started…!!).

I had an ultrasound this week and my sweet girl is looking good in there. Crossing her legs, waving her hands around, and sticking her little bum out. I’m at the 23 week mark now (I take my weekly photos at the end of each week – sometimes a few days late (sshhh) – so no official 23 week photo yet). But here’s one I snapped yesterday.

And can’t forget about my baby daddy. Here is that handsome guy on week 19. Such a ham.

Okay so now for a little bit of a tutorial if you’re not used to editing photos and want to do a similar photo project (it could be for your pregnancy, with kiddos of your own, or just about anything!).

I use PicMonkey - a free online editing tool. It’s super easy to use. You just open a photo saved on your computer, and then play around with the different options on the left sidebar. There are basic things like cropping, rotating, and adjusting the light, and then lots of specialty features too.

I usually brighten my photos a little, then go into the “overlays” option in the sidebar and apply a label. I like the circles, so I throw that one on and change its colour to white. Then I add the numbers by adding text (the “P” in the sidebar) in the didact gothic font.

Once I have those done, I’ll head over to the “effects” option. This basically has a bunch of different filters, kind of like what you find on instagram. I like using a mixture of the “tranquil” and the “dusk” filter for a vintage-y vibe. Then just save it to your computer, and you’re done! PicMonkey also has a collage tool if you have multiple photos.

And that’s it! Super easy, and makes a great keepsake. It’ll be really handy to have all the photos done and edited to whip up a pregnancy photo book when this gal makes her debut (I have a funny feeling I won’t have loads of time for photo editing at that point..!).

Thanks for being interested in the bump, guys! It’s so fun to get insight and encouragement from you – I really appreciate it! Any of you do a photo project like this one? Got any bump watches happening yourself (friends, family)? It’s so neat to see how everyone’s body changes so differently during pregnancy – such an individual thing.

Tags: how to edit photos, pregnancy weekly photos
Posted in all things pregnancy + babies | 18 Comments »

the ottawa antiques show

April 8th, 2013

Happy Monday, guys! Did you have a good weekend?

Mine started off on exactly the right foot – a little dinner out, and a stop at the Ottawa Antiques Show with two of my favourite gal pals.

The Ottawa Antiques Show happens a couple times a year and brings together over 50 vendors from around Ontario. There is a great selection of goodies – from glassware, to jewellery, to clothing, to furniture, and much more!

Here were a few of my fave finds from this weekend’s show.

Boxes of vintage postcards could have had me glued to that one spot for hours. I love going through these and they can make such great little pieces of artwork. Framed with a crisp white matte in an IKEA Ribba and you’ve got yourself some sweet new art for your pad!

The old valentines ones really had me. The graphics were so sweet and they would be great in a nursery. Plus, on the back of one of them said “To___, From ____” in two of the baby names that D and I love. I was pretty much tearing up right then and there. Can you say hormonal? Haha.

My girl Courtney (who you’ll remember from this apartment tour), browsing through the postcards!

This booth has tons of old metal goods, including some vintage keys. Having some of these in a little jar or hanging in a shadow box can look super fab.

These broaches were GORGE. The vendor sold special clasps for a few dollars that would allow you to turn them into necklaces. Regretting not buying one or two of these now…

I have seen this vendor before, and always drool over the jadite. I would love to start a collection of this stuff one day. Come on big, dream kitchen to actually let me store beauties like these!

Here is my pal Andrea getting into the funky old dresses. I actually really loved this cream ruffled one. With a great pair of bright shoes and some accessories, how fab would it be?

There were a few booths with some sweet mid-century pieces. This metal desk/side table would add some industrial chic to any space.

Oh and here was another art idea. I see these brass plates (I’m not sure if that’s what they’re called?) all the time – some have horses, dogs, crests, moose, and all sorts of other things pictured in the middle. You could gather up a collection of your favourites and mount them in a shadow box for a nice piece of artwork. It would be a great way to inject a bit of brassy gold into the palette of a room, which is super trendy right now!

This vendor from Brighton refinishes old boxes. He sources some really great rare boxes, so you’re bound to find one that has a branding stamp that appeals to you!

I really wanted to bring this guy home, but just don’t have anywhere to put it. Boo. (Moo?)

Lots of great country style furniture at the show. I love these shabby, rustic pieces – though most were out of my price range. How fab would that long minty bench look in a big entryway?

Here we are at the end of the show. I think we were actually the very last to leave. Tired, a bit sore, but oh so happy with our purchases. (And yes – my bump is getting bigger! I owe you guys a bump update soon… but this little gal is definitely growing – I can’t hide it like a certain Middleton Princess apparently can!)

As for what I brought home? I was very restrained (much to hubby’s delight). I got these two blue crown jars for $10, so added them to my ever-growing collection for the business.

And I couldn’t resist bringing home a few of the valentine’s postcards (the top one is for D next year – hence why it’s turned over – and I’m thinking I’ll use the bottom one in the nursery).

Have you local folks ever hit up the Ottawa Antiques Show? Brought home any goodies? Any antiquing or thrifting recently for the rest of you? I can’t wait until garage sale and flea market season is upon us. C’mon spring/summer!

Tags: ottawa antiques show
Posted in around ottawa | 8 Comments »

a roundup: freebie printables for your walls

April 4th, 2013

I don’t know about you guys, but I always get re-invigorated in the spring and am ready to get going on projects I have been putting off on the to-do list, switch up the accessories in our pad for brighter, spring-y things, and add or switch out artwork.

One great (and affordable) way of adding some artwork into your home is with free printables. There are tons of lovely graphic designers and bloggers out there who whip these up for the masses. The gist is that you download the image (usually in JPG or PDF format) and then bring it in to your local printers (like Staples, for example) and have it printed in the size you want (usually an 8×10 looks great). Best to do it with their highest quality paper and ink – it’ll still be super reasonable!

Here are a few of my faves floating around out there. None of these are particularly new, so apologies if you have seen them before – but I still love ‘em!

available here

So there you have it! A little round-up for your Thursday afternoon.

Are you guys getting antsy to start some new projects? Switching out your artwork? Getting your paint brushes out? Pulling out new throw pillows? I’m sure I’m not the only one…!!

Tags: artwork, downloads, free printables
Posted in artwork | 8 Comments »

the highlights reel: march 2013

April 2nd, 2013

April already!!!! Can you guys believe that? Time is whizzing by – though I’m quite happy to get closer to Spring/Summer. I am ready to say goodbye to chilly days and this last bit of snow that seems to be sticking around (I don’t know about you – but winter is lasting FOREVER in this neck of the woods this year).

Time for a little March recap of the blog.

We started out crafty, making this music sheet bunting for the wed by hand trade show.

Finally finished up our basement project – check out the after of project basement organization here.

I made the switch to velvet hangers - it’s a few weeks in and I’m still love, love, loving it.

Gave you guys some instructions on how we DIY’ed our digital photostrip pregnancy announcement.

Found out that our little Baby Sprout is a girl and revealed it to our family with a pink cake.

More deets on how I made the cake here.

Got crafty for the holidays and whipped up an easter egg garland out of paint chips.

easter egg- edited

And lastly, you got to know a little bit more about me as we celebrated the 3-year blogiversary here on the sweetest digs!

I hope you all had a lovely Easter weekend! Ours was super. My birthday fell on Easter Sunday this year (happens every so often!), so it meant an extra long birthday weekend and lots of chocolate to boot. The hubby and I went and stayed at a swanky Ottawa hotel for a night (we had a gift certificate so it was free!), went out for a yummy dinner and delicious brunch the next morning, and just had an all around lovely day. Then a big Eater egg hunt was on over at my parents place for my nieces and nephews – such a joy to watch the kiddos get so excited as they try to solve the clues and find their eggs.

How about you guys? Did you have a nice Easter weekend? Feeling a little bit ill today from food overload? I know I am.. this belly I have this morning ain’t all pregnancy, that’s for sure! Haha.

Tags: march 2013 blog highlights
Posted in monthly highlights reel | 6 Comments »

the DIY files: an easy housewarming gift

pieces of love @ magpie jewellery

babymoon: the recap

back to the program

babymoon time

blogiversary survey results

baby bump watch + some photo editing tips

the ottawa antiques show

a roundup: freebie printables for your walls

the highlights reel: march 2013

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