Gold Polka Dot Vase

I found this awesome idea for a vase on Pinterest! I knew I had to add it to my decor for Fall.

It's was simple, quick and easy.

Thanks to Sharon over at Lilikoi Joy for this idea! 

(See her tutorial HERE.)

I completed mine no different than hers, other than I used a taller vase I had on hand.

I used a Sharpie brand Gold paint pen. It was perfect. I started at the bottom of the vase and made my way up putting dots sporadically wherever I felt like! 

Didn't it turn out cute? It's housed next to my completed Maple Leaf Decor and Autumn Printable (which you can still grab for free HERE) 

I absolutely LOVE Fall and can't get enough crafting done! 

Do you want to see what else peaks my interest? Visit my Pinterest Fall Board HERE!! 

Also, check out my Autumn Printable at Lil Mrs. Tori today!

Happy Third Day of Fall!

2014 Young Women Binder Covers

It took me forever to get these designs done. I kept having designers block or something. But they are finally done and I am super excited to share them with you!

Here are my 2014 Young Women Binder Covers. I LOVE them and know you will too!

They come in three different color choices, hopefully one or two appeal to everyone. :) 

DOWNLOAD PINK BINDER COVER HERE

DOWNLOAD PURPLE BINDER COVER HERE

DOWNLOAD BLUE BINDER COVER HERE

As with all of my Binder Covers and Door Signs, I will customize these for FREE but you have to get your customization requests to be BEFORE January 1st.

Email customization requests to 281fourthstreet{at}gmail{dot}com!

Of course you can always download them, print them and fill them in yourself. It's up to you!

I am designing bookmarks to match these and will post them soon. 

Enjoy!

General Conference Note Sheet

I had a request from a Young Women Leader for a printable for her young women to take notes on during the upcoming General Conference. I threw around a few ideas and then came up with this design.

I hope it's something everyone can use and I love how cute it turned out. 

Grab your FREE download below. Enjoy!

DOWNLOAD HERE

Have an awesome Monday everyone!

Autumn Subway Art

I'm still at it, decorating for Fall. It stays up for three months in my house. With a new baby coming in November, I'm hoping to finish this week so it will be up for me to enjoy all three months!

I have a shelf in my living room that I decorate each month.
Remember my Back to School decor? That shelf. :)
It's my mantel of sorts, because we don't have one. 

I usually add stuff as I go until I achieve a look I want.  It's taking me long time with my Fall decor for some reason. Anyway, with each of my shelf designs, there are always printables.
I love designing unique ones and sharing them with you!

This year I designed this subway art with all the things I love about Autumn.

Isn't it cute?!

It's a 5x7 and free for you print. I hope you enjoy it and will love adding it to your decor!

DOWNLOAD 5X7 PRINT HERE

(Side note: Be sure to only click the gray Download button beneath the image of my design. The other large buttons are just adds that want you to click on them. I'm not sure if there's been trouble with this, but I wanted to let you know!)

Have a wonderful Thursday everyone!

Fall Crafts - Pinterest Challenge #7

It's been raining all day here in our sweet little town. I love the feeling of a rainy day and was in the mood to get my Fall decorations out and get a few Fall crafts completed. So I did!

I have to say, Pinterest is dangerous for holiday decor, I could waste a lot of time pinning, and I do, but I make sure to try to complete most of my pins!
Each of these items were DIY and it cost me less than $11 for all three! I know, awesome right?! Those, my friends, are successful pins and craft projects. I threw these in my Pinterest Challenge because they were so easy and cute and perfect for you to try out!

My first challenge/interest was a Monogram wreath I'd pinned completed by Linda at Craftaholics Anonymous. (See her post HERE.) She did a little bit different version, but after seeing it, I wanted to make my own. I loved how mine turned out!

This was my costly craft, but it wasn't super expensive!
Here's what I used:
1 Grape Leaf Wreath - $4.99
Wooden Letter H - $3.00
Orange Paint - $.99
Burlap Ribbon - $1.89
Flowers, leaves and spray - I had on hand
Total project cost: $10.87

Onto my next completed project.
I had been eyeing these adorable mason jar lid pumpkin by Kristin at Yellow Bliss Road. (See her post HERE.)
It's canning season for us here and once I saw this pin, I pinned it and knew I had to do it! Luckily for me, Mr. H's Mom is my neighbor and an amazing canner. She had tons of rusty lids for me to use! This pumpkin was super easy and FREE!
I used about 25 lids, tied it together with some curling ribbon, added a cinnamon stick broken in half and used some of the burlap ribbon from my wreath to make the cute leaves! Another craft, DONE!


The last and final craft I completed today was my Maple Leaf Art.
This was another pin I saw and new I had to make. Chris at Just a Girl was my inspiration for this one. See her post HERE. Her version was way bigger and she used acutal leaves. Again, I used what I had on hand and needed it to fit on my shelf in my living room. So this is an 8x10 version.


First I printed a maple leaf shape off of my computer onto a regular sized piece of paper. Then I glued leaves I had in my fall supplies to make the shape of the maple leafe. I finished it off with a small twig for the stem and Wah-lah! a completed Art piece perfect for me shelf!

I am in a serious crafting mood and happened to put all my Fall decor up today to! I am so anxious for Fall (which technically comes on Sept. 22nd) and more anxious to keep this cooler weather around. It just means we are closer and closer to meeting our new little guy and I can't wait!

If you enjoyed these links and photos and want to follow my Fall Pinterest Board, click HERE.
I give each of these tutorials and pins a:

status, hopefully you will too! Happy Fall everyone!

Creamy Spinach and Sausage Pasta - Pinterest Challenge #6

I will admit, most of the challenges I've done on this blog are food ones. What can I say, I hate to pin something that looks soooo good and not try it! Today's post is one of those recipes. 

I was at a loss for what to make for lunch today. At our house, lunch is the big meal because Mr. H. works in the afternoon/evenings so I rarely make dinner. He likes to eat before he leaves. 

Anyway, I embarked on making this recipe I pinned just last night. It was easy and most of the stuf I had on hand, minus the sausage and noodles. It was simple, quick and delicious! Enjoy!

Creamy Spinach and Sausage Pasta

(Recipe source: Budget Bytes)

Ingredients

• 6 oz. smoked sausage 
• 1 Tbsp olive oil 
• 1 medium onion 
• 1 (14.5 oz.) can diced tomatoes w/chiles 
• 2 cups chicken broth 
• 8 oz. pasta 
• 3 cups fresh spinach 
• 1 cup (4 oz.) shredded monterrey jack 
• 1 whole green onion 

Instructions

1. Thinly slice the smoked sausage and add it to a large skillet with 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Saute the sausage over medium heat until it is nicely browned (about 5-7 minutes). Drain off the excess fat.
2. Dice the onion and add it to the skillet. Continue to saute until the onion has softened (about 5 minutes). Add the can of diced tomatoes with chiles and the chicken broth. Stir to combine and dissolve any browned bits off of the bottom of the skillet.
3. Add the uncooked pasta to the skillet and make sure it is all submerged under the liquid. Place a lid on the skillet and allow the mixture to come up to a boil. Once it reaches a boil, turn the heat down to low and let it simmer for about ten minutes, or until the pasta is tender. Stir once or twice while the pasta cooks to keep it from sticking.
4. Stir in the fresh spinach, one cup at a time, until wilted. If you add it all at once, the skillet will be too full to stir. Keep the heat on while adding the spinach, so the liquid will continue to simmer and thicken.
5. Sprinkle the shredded cheese on top, replace the lid, and let it sit for a few minutes, or until the cheese is melted. Slice the green onions and sprinkle them over top. Serve hot!

This really was a super easy and simple recipe! 

I give it two thumbs up, and it's definitely: 

2014 Primary Theme - Binder Covers and Door Signs

I was so happy when I heard they had recently announced the 2014 Primary Theme!

I was called to be Primary Secretary about a month ago, and had so many plans for the new theme. 

If you haven't heard, it's Families Are Forever and it will be an amazing theme to work with.

You can find the Sharing Time Outline HERE.

With this new theme/outline comes my newest Binder Cover design and Classroom Door Sign design! 

I used adorable hand sketched artwork by the talented Susan Fitch. Here LDS drawings are amazing, and you can check them out HERE. Thanks Susan for sharing your beautiful talent!

I've designed three different color schemes to change it up a bit from last years design. You have the choice to download them and use them as they are, filling in your Ward Name and Presidency, or you can email me for **customization requests.

Here are your options:

Gray and Turquoise 

Download Binder Cover HERE

 Download Door Sign HERE

Red and Gray 

Download Binder Cover HERE

Download Door Sign HERE

Orange and Blue

 Download Binder Cover HERE

 Download Door Sign HERE

I hope you'll use these for this next year's theme, I absolutely love how they turned out! I will be designing matching CD Covers as well and will post those as soon as they are done! 

**Note: Because of the massive amount of customization requests I recieved last year, I am asking you to submit a request via email BEFORE January 1st. 

Customization includes your Ward Name, Presidency's names, and Monthly Song Titles added to the Binder Cover. It also includes your Ward Name at the top of the Door Sign. I will try as promptly as I can to get your customizations done!** 

Please send customization requests and any questions to: 

281fourthstreet{at}gmail{dot}com

Thank you!

-Lara