Is anyone else as shocked as I am that it’s almost the end of the year? I mean, I know New Year’s comes right after Christmas, but somehow this one snuck up on me anyway. As I’m getting ready to take The Palette Muse into 2016, I thought it would be fun to look back at what happened in 2015. When I did, I realized why I’ve been feeling kind of busy lately. Here’s a quick rundown of some highlights from my 65 (!) posts this last year… The year started with a few organizing projects, my favorite being this pantry makeover. What was once a sad and cluttered coat… Keep Reading
New Life for Old Decor and a Special Blog Hop
I’m so excited to bring you a very special Home for Christmas blog hop today, hosted by Hometalk.com and CountryLiving.com! Hometalk and Country Living are two of my favorite places to go when I’m looking for a little inspiration, so when I got the chance to join them in this blog hop, I jumped off my couch and started looking for the perfect project. Turns out the one I was looking for was right under my nose, in the giant pile of Christmas decor sitting in my living room, which was the reason I was hiding on my couch in the first place! When we brought out our Christmas decorations… Keep Reading
Holiday Crate x10
Welcome to a special DIY tutorial! Today I’m teaming up with 9 other DIY bloggers to bring you an inspiring selection of Holiday Crate Makeovers. What’s a crate makeover, you ask? It’s where decorating meets organization, two of my favorite topics! We’ve each taken on the challenge to transform a plain wooden crate into something beautiful and useful. When I think of the holidays, I think of decorating, baking, shopping for gifts, and making memories. What I don’t usually think about is organizing. And since I don’t think about it, my house ends up in a bit of a mess. This year, I’ve come up with a better plan, thanks to this Holiday Crate… Keep Reading
Deco Foil All the Things!
Today I’m sharing not just one craft tutorial, but two! If this blog were anything but free then that would be a great deal. As it is, I guess that just means more reading for you. So grab a cup of coffee and let’s get started! I’ve recently fallen in love with a new (to me) product called Deco Foil from Thermoweb. You may be familiar with Therm O Web if you do any kind of paper crafting because you probably use at least one of their adhesives: Zots, mounting squares, tape runners, etc. When Therm O Web asked if I’d be interested in using their foil to make a couple of… Keep Reading
Etched Glass Luminarias
I may be a little biased, but I think luminarias are magical. If you’re not familiar with them, luminarias are a Christmas Eve tradition here in New Mexico. Sometimes called farolitos, they have their roots in ancient Spanish culture. They traditionally consist of paper bags with a bit of sand in the bottom for weight, and a candle lit inside, which doesn’t sound very exciting, but somehow in the dark of Christmas Eve, they become a symbol of light and love. Photo credit: chris runoff / Foter.com / CC BY-ND The first year of our marriage, and our first Christmas in our new house, we suffered not a snow storm, but a… Keep Reading
Knit Your Own Fall Shawl with SKEINO
It’s finally scarf and shawl weather! And to get ready, I have a fun knitting project for you to try. Today I’m teaming up with my favorite craft tutorial website, Guidecentral, to bring you this Startup Shawl from SKEINO. SKEINO is a unique yarn company specializing in hand painted high quality yarn, knitting kits, and handmade gift items and accessories. What’s really neat about SKEINO is that all their yarns are hand painted and packed by people with special needs so they can provide these folks with a regular income. I just think that’s cool, and it made me happy thinking about it while I was using their yarn on this project. I bet you didn’t… Keep Reading
Merry Monday Link Party #72
Ready for another week of inspiration? This week, it’s officially fall (even if the temperatures are still summer-like), so we’re bringing you lots of fall-themed projects, recipes, and crafts. Welcome to the Merry Monday Link Party #72 Announcements: Thank you everyone that entered the $200 Cash Giveaway. We’ll be announcing the winner soon! Halloween Spooktacular Link Party. Have a Halloween craft, DIY project, costume tutorial, fun party recipe? Come share it on the 2015 Halloween Spooktacular Link Party! Open until October 29th. Party Theme Features (not everyone will be featured): Fall Outdoor Decor. Share your outdoor decor ideas on September 20th for a chance to be featured on the… Keep Reading
Make Your Own Coconut Oil Sugar Scrub
Do you know how easy it is to make your own sugar scrub? I didn’t! To me, summer means three things: sun, heat, and barefeet. All three of which result in dry skin, especially here in the Desert Southwest of New Mexico. Until recently I had been using a super-posh exfoliating scrub from Origins, which a friend gave me as a gift. But when it ran out, I almost had heart failure when I saw how expensive it would be to buy for myself. ~This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I will receive a tiny bit of the profit at no extra cost to you. Thanks for your… Keep Reading
Pretty Pintastic Party #58
Welcome to the Pretty Pintastic Party where all posts are pinned; features pinned by all! Important: Once again this week, we had to have to pass over a few posts that we thought would make great features…. but when we checked to see if the bloggers had pinned the features, they hadn’t, so we had to choose different features (we check not only the repins, but also pins from that blogger’s feed). Since repinning is the ONLY rule at our party, we will ONLY choose features from those who repin. Thanks for your understanding, and please know that we really appreciate those of you who DO repin! First, let’s meet… Keep Reading
DIY Door Hanger: Hello Gorgeous!
I love having visitors. To me, they’re like the rare handwritten letter in the middle of a mailbox full of bills and advertisements. Having a visitor at my door (not counting the ones trying to sell me something) is a refreshing break in a day that’s often filled with chores and sometimes even loneliness. And any excuse to fire up the coffeemaker and sit down with a friend is a good thing! So to make my visitors feel welcome I made this colorful sign, instead of a welcome mat which would inevitably be covered with leaves and dusty footprints. This one is right at eye level and stays clean, no… Keep Reading