DIY Lampshade Cover {Brainstorming Session}

Okay ladies, I need your help.

I have a seriously outdated chandelier in my dining room.  It is bringing me down!

I found a nice big, white drum shade at Cost Plus World Market on clearance for $15.  It was exactly what I had been looking everywhere for - and on sale!

Now that I am done planning Maia's birthday {HERE} I can focus on my coat closet revamp {HERE} and making this plain shade not so plain.

My thought is to stencil something on some plain white fabric {maybe linen?} and wrap this guy in it.  The colors I plan on using for the stenciling are peacock blue and a light, fresh green.

I will be painting the chandelier white and removing the frosted glass light covers and putting my pretty new shade up there around the whole shabang.

My dilemma lies in the stencil choice.

I was perusing Cutting Edge Stencils and narrowed it down to these two:

Vintage Paisley Stencil

Zinnia Grande Flower Stencil

I haven't seen the paisley stencil anywhere before and it is darling.

The zinnia is a big hit a lot of places and sometimes tried and true is the way to go.

I need your thoughts!  I won't keep them... just want to borrow them for a moment.

...anyone can start today and make a new ending.

"Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending."

Maria Robinson

New day, new year, new start!

I have never been big on the whole New Year's resolutions thing.  I cannot recall having ever come up with a real resolution.  I think I usually just say something silly and go about my business.

This year - I am taking this seriously!

I assigned each family member {except Ella, she still won't talk!} the task of coming up with 5 goals for 2012.

Many people work really hard at their resolutions for about a month and then toss them aside and go back to their old ways.  This is not as easy to do if you broadcast your goals in some manner.  So to keep us honest I created this goal display.

Step 1.  I scrounged up an old frame in the basement and gave it 3 coats of acrylic, white paint.

Step 2.  I cut a scrap of fabric and covered the cardboard backing of the frame with it.  I used glue dots around the back of the cardboard to secure the fabric.

Step 3.  I wrote our goals with Maia's window markers.

Step 4.  I took a nap... yawn.

This isn't a game.  There are no rules, no prize.  I simply want my family to take a moment to examine our lives and come up with some ideas on how to move forward in a positive way that best suits each of us.

Here is how we are moving forward:

Daddy - Lose 3% body fat, read 6 books, take one business class per quarter, lead a one-day sport's camp, improve upon our fruit/veggie garden setup

Mommy - Workout 3 times per week, open an Etsy shop, acquire 200 blog followers {hint hint}, design my craft room and complete it, improve upon our flower garden

Maia - Learn to tie her own shoes, ride her bike without training wheels, swim without a lifejacket, clean her room everyday, complete her morning and bedtime skincare routine on her own {she gets "itchies" (psoriasis = lame) so the routine involves oil and vaseline application - she hates it!}. 

What are you taking on this year?

Linking up:

Monday: Crafts Keep Me Sane, Craftomaniac, Making the World Cuter, Skip to my Lou, Dittle Dattle, Mad in Crafts, DIY Home Sweet Home

Tuesday: Not Just a Housewife, Tip Junkie, Today's Creative Blog, My World Made By Hand

Wednesday: 733blog, Sweet Peas & Bumblebees, Someday Crafts, Southern Lovely, Gingersnap Crafts 

Thursday: The ArtsyGirl Connection

Friday: Tatertots and Jello, A Little Inspiration

Saturday: Six Sister's Stuff, Family Ever After, Be Different Act Normal, Too Much Time on my Hands