Thursday, April 26, 2012

Champagne Cork Magnets

When we got engaged, and when we were on our honeymoon, we opened bottles of champagne.  I have long been trying to figure out what to do with the corks that came from those bottles, and last weekend, I finally figured it out!

Make magnets, of course!


This tutorial really is so simple it doesn't even need a tutorial...


You need corks, of course...  ;-)

You also need a hot glue gun, and some magnets.  But -- a word to the wise:



Pay attention to your magnet strength.  These were much too weak to hold my cork onto the refrigerator -- which meant an extra trip to the craft store.  *Annoying*.  ;-)  Try to find something a little heavy duty for your keepsake magnet.


These were just the ticket!  Heavy and strong.  Woop!

You just need a thin layer of hot glue, then firmly hold the magnet to the bottom of the cork for a minute or so.  And then...


Proudly display your custom creation.  :-)

love, maria

Linking up!




52 Mantels


Chesterfield Sofa Round-Up

Hi there!  :-)

Well, it is almost Friday, and I am so excited.  Tonight I have a dinner date with my dear husband, and I'm so looking forward to us having a night out together -- this week has been incredibly busy and we haven't seen very much of each other!  It has been a glorious rainy and cloudy day here in Arizona, and there was a point this morning when the rain was coming down very hard.  I sat on a bench (indoors!) with my coffee in hand, and I watched it for a little while.  So.Nice!  Do any of you enjoy watching rainstorms?  I think that has to be one of my (and my hubby's!) favorite things to do.  :-)

Today I'm going to do a little round-up of my favorite Chesterfield sofas!  Chesterfields are luxurious, tufted English sofas that are a little bit on the masculine side but still incredibly cozy.  They work well in many different types of decor, but my favorite rooms with Chesterfields are usually eclectic or modern in nature!











Are you a fan of the Chesterfield sofa?

love, maria

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

A Wreath For Book-Lovers


This? Is a bookpage wreath.

A month ago, my husband, his family, and I took a trip to New Jersey to visit some family.  One of our stops was his Aunt Lulu's house -- we had so much fun!  I had made Lulu a bookpage wreath for her birthday about two months beforehand, and it was hanging up beautifully in her guest bedroom.  

Grey's cousins Doug and Troy took interest in the wreath, as they were staying in that guest room, and they asked if they could buy one from me and have it shipped to their home in Washington.  I was dumbfounded.  Someone wanted to pay me to craft?  Crazy!

When we got home from New Jersey, I immediately set to work on the wreath.  Both times I made these wreaths, I used this tutorial as a guideline.  Although this wreath is very easy to make, it takes a very, very long time.  And for some reason, on this one, I kept messing up, which proved to be very frustrating because I wanted to send this to them in a timely fashion.


But, the end result was beautiful and I was happy to send this pretty wreath off to its new home in Washington.  I walked into the UPS store with a smile on my face and politely said to the man behind the counter, "Hello!  I need you to be extra gentle with this and for it to get to Washington as safely as possible."  There were quite a few funny stares and the occasional, "Oh, that's pretty," -- but I was happy to hear that Doug and Troy loved it upon receiving it.  :-)  That's the perfect ending to the story of my first ever sale, I think.


:-)

Have you ever made a book page wreath?

love, maria

Linking up!



Interesting Tile Love

Hey there, friends!

Well, it has been awhile.  Over a week!  Things have been totally crazy, and without getting too deep into it, I'll just say that I have been adjusting to a new schedule, which means a new time for blogging and the need to make more time for projects and the like.  I laughed, I cried, I'm back.  :-)

How have you all been doing?  I hope last week treated you well and that this week you are full of smiles and good vibes.  The weather here has been very warm, to say the least -- in the 100s!  I can't believe it is happening so quickly, but today it is back in the low 90s with clouds so I am a happy camper.  ;-)  I love overcast days -- probably because they are so few and far between in my part of Arizona; so anytime we are blessed with one, I really enjoy it.  What's the weather like where you are?

Today I want to take a look at some pretty floors -- tiled floors, to be exact.  I am a huge fan of fancy flooring -- I love the floor to be a point of interest in a room.  Here's a little round-up of gorgeousness for you to enjoy on this Wednesday afternoon!









Which one's your favorite?

love, maria

Monday, April 16, 2012

*May Sponsor Swap*

For the months of March and April, I have sponsor swapped with some wonderful bloggers!  It has been a great experience and I have loved getting to know these ladies more and finding some new great blogs to read.  I am planning on swapping with these friends again, but I wanted to open this up to some of my other readers and let you know that if you would like for me to sponsor you and vice versa, e-mail me and let me know so that we can get the process goin'!  I am debating on whether or not to do this through Passionfruit this month, so I would love to get some feedback on that from any of you who read All Things Luxurious.  

My e-mail is maria.e.morley (at) gmail (dot) com.  Send me a note, and we will chat!  ;-)

love, maria

Sky-Colored Ceiling Love

Hey, there!  ;-)

I hope you all had a great weekend.  I spent mine crafting, doing laundry, and spending time with family. It was definitely the most relaxed weekend I have had in a long time.  :-)  It is supposed to be *sunny* and in the low eighties today, so I thought that I would celebrate the blue sky and show off some amazing rooms with sky-colored ceilings.  Enjoy!









How was your weekend?  Are you going to be seeing sunny skies today?

love, maria

Friday, April 13, 2012

Friday Send-Off

Well, friends -- it's that time of the week.  Time for me to sign off and start my weekend.  I plan on doing some serious crafting tomorrow since I am finally finished with the decrapification of our apartment.  Things have been reorganized and donated, and I feel great about starting new projects now and ending the glorious time I have had with Spring Cleaning.  Now, it's time to move forward and create!  I am very excited.  :-)  Tomorrow should be a great day for crafting, too -- it's supposed to rain!  Nothing better than a heavy dose of DIY on a rainy day.  ;-)

In case you missed out, here are some of my favorite things that happened this week on All Things Luxurious...

Our little bathroom updo.  We are so excited about this!

All Things Luxurious was given the Yostie Blog Award, and I chose to honor a great blog, Laid Off Mom, in response!

We were also awarded the Versatile Blogger Award, and I passed that on to fifteen of my favorite bloggers!

And, we talked Tolix chairs and their pure awesomeness.

Here's some inspiration to start your weekend.  :-)

Amazing corner cupboards in a lovely traditional kitchen.

A great neutral office with a dreamy eclectic mirrored side table.  I dig.

Spring crafts are in full swing -- love this mossy letter for your front door.

Something that made me laugh out loud.  BOOP!

Some inspiration for our *Someday* Woodsy Vacation Home -- orange candle votives for a warm glow.

A lovely home with an abundance of windows.  Yes, please.

Have breakfast in bed daily with a delicious breakfast comforter.  Because, well, why not?

Some puppy love.  Sweet, right?

Some lovely words for you and yours.

A cutie pie room for the kiddies.  That chandelier is amazing!

Some fabulous bedding.  Seriously.  Excuse me while I melt.

A recipe for Orange Yogurt Loaf Cake.  Perfect for a Spring brunch.

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!  :-)  I'll catch ya back here in Monday.

love, maria