easy, cheap & festive party decor + house update

first things first! here's a picture of our house. it was built in 1937 and took a beating over the years. someone bought it late last year, flipped it and sold it to us. we were so lucky to jump on this house when we did - love at first sight and in a neighborhood we're excited to explore. 

..and now to more fun stuff. jon's sister graduated high school this year and all of her brothers and sis'-in-laws got together to throw her a little bash. we were all on a budget, but pulled off a pretty festive fajita soiree in our back yard.

with four kids and lots of birthdays to throw, my mother-law-in-law was smart to invest in a helium tank years ago. the balloons were a last-minute addition to the decor, but they were the best part! we taped fringed tissue paper to the base of the balloon to create these geronimo balloons-inspired floaters.

for the table, i used a dip-dye table cloth and crepe paper to create this striped runner. double-sided tape kept them in place.

to finish the ends, i simply cut out a little wedge.

and throughout the house, i made tissue-paper flowers. they brightened up the windowsills, tables, bathrooms and anywhere that needed a little pop of color.

here's the graduate with her bearded brothers. congrats callie! i was thrilled she happened to match the color scheme with such a pretty yellow dress.

my little nephew max is up-and-running these days. we tied a balloon to him so we easily spot him when he ran off. i think i might utilize this little nugget for when i have kids. my sister-in-law, chelsea, took the most precious photo of max with the balloons. 

that's all, kiddos. xo

no pattern dip dye ombre pillow

it's been a LONG time since i touched my sewing machine. i had every intention of sewing curtains, but instead i just bought tons of unbleached, un-dyed denim and hung it up with raw edges. i love the way it looks.. but more on the curtains later.

it's feeling pretty hot here in houston. we've had such a long spring (actually used the heater in early may!) that the 85 degree feel like a sauna. i don't even want to think about july right now.

in the spirit of summer, i decided to make a bright pink and orange ombre pillow with the extra curtain fabric. i took an old, orange silk pillow and cut fabric for my new pillow with an extra inch for sewing. the old pillow was my 'pattern.'

for this pillow, i only wanted one side to have color -- i think it looks a little more custom and less reckless that way. i busted out my rit-dye... did one end orange (sunshine yellow with a splash of red) and the other bright pink ( red with double splash of yellow).  the i got the fabric completely wet and let it sit in the dye for about half an hour. this will let the dye bleed up the fabric easier. if it's totally try it will have a hard time bleeding and will be a less smooth gradient.

once it was dry, the denim was pretty thick and warped so i needed to put it to the iron.

time to pin and get that pesky zipper out of the way! pin the zipper (zipped!) to one piece of fabric, with the outside of the zipper facing the outside of the pillow. sew the zipper to the first side, then pin the other piece of fabric to the other side of the zipper. 

sew up the rest of the of the sides., before you sew up the last side, make sure you unzip the zipper enough to turn the pillow inside when your sewing is complete.

success! i love the colors it adds to our house.