Autumn Arrangements-Use What Ya Got!

I challenged myself to add touches of Fall inside and out-

without spending any money!

I decided I would use the stuff I have!

Now that is Sweetwater Style!

The mums are blooming in the garden.

 Autumn is 4 days old....guess I have to give in and say goodbye to summer!

I dug out the fall stuff but I REFUSE to start Halloween yet!

 I started with the front entryway!

I am not totally satisfied with the result....but I love the price!

ELegant Pillow from a Sweater!

I was going through my sweater stash last weekend.....it was definitely time to weed them out!
How did I know?  The dresser drawers wouldn't shut!
Seems I have an addiction to beige and taupe sweaters made from silk, cotton and wool....there were 7 of them....go figure!
One little (that was the problem.....too little) silk and linen cable crew knit was on the way to the Goodwill bag when it cried out..."Don't give me away....make me into a pillow!"

 I listened....and here is the result!

Blazers on a Budget!

Fall is in the air...and of course that makes me think about shopping!
I have been paging through the latest catalogs on my iPad catalog App.
There are lots of blazers and jackets featured in all of them.
I guess this classic look will never go out of style!
After shopping the catalogs....I shopped my closet!

Inspiration: Camel Hair Blazer from Brooks Brothers. A whopping $598!

Seriously, who would spend $600 for a jacket no matter how classic and soft?

 From my closet!

Brooks Brothers 100% Camel hair Blazer!

$8.99 from Goodwill!

$30 tailoring tab!

Sweetwater Stye at it's finest!

And....I've got more to show you!
I don't think I have a single jacket that I paid more than $40 for...and most were under $10!

Drying Hydrangeas for Lasting Beauty

I always know that fall has truly arrived when it is time to harvest the hydrangeas!

You can see by my Blog Header that I LOVE Hydrangeas!

Two weeks ago these beautiful blooms were a glorious spot of color in the lower garden!

But after just a couple of cool nights, they started to harden off.  

Time to pick them and bring them into the house to enjoy!

The muted colors are actually prettier in my house than the bright pink!

I love the way these showy flowers look in an arrangement....but I don't like it when they get dry and crumble.....so I use a simple little trick to keep them soft and pliable!

DYI No CREASE Pants Hangers

“Jewelry takes people's minds off your wrinkles.” Sonia Heine

Remind me to go jewelry shopping!

I can't do much about the wrinkles on my face....but I do know how to use an iron to take care of the wrinkles in my clothes!

I don't mind ironing....but I hate it when the pants I iron get creased just hanging in the closet!

Expensive wooden hangers are supposed to work....

But they DON'T!

The bar is still too thin to keep creases out of my light weight pants.

I was getting tired of running down to iron out the creases.....

HMMMM.....what to do?

I came up with a solution using plastic hangers, quilt batting, fabric remnants and ribbon.......

Read on to see the steps.....

Computer Print on Fabric! For a Pillow

These beautiful pillows really appeal to me!  

I love the vintage botanical look of them.
I love the feel of fall and Halloween in an elegant look!
I did not love the price....

$100 for the Pumpkin Pillow from Burke Decor

$100 for the Sunflower Pillow from Burke Decor

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Here is the DYI version I made from fabric remnants I had on hand.

I used free vintage botanical images and printed on fabric with an inkjet printer.

Let me show you how!

9/11 A Tale Of Innocence Lost

A day for remembrance!

This photo is a flashback to 1981...

a little girl on the shoulders of her daddy with the Twin Towers in the background.

Who would have believed 30 years ago how precious this skyline view would become?

Jump forward 20 years to September 11, 2001...

That same girl now found herself in Washington D.C. on the Metro under the Capitol Mall!
Then 24 hours later having to make her way to the Pentagon to talk to family members of victims.

If you are interested....here is an archived blog that she wrote chronicling what it felt like....
Capital City Tales

And finally today....September 11, 2011

Be thankful to live in a country that can recover from such devastation!Remember the feeling of unity as we all came together as Americans!
Hopefully today we will renew that pledge to work together in unity!

Sofa Redo-Would You Believe-Polar Fleece?

Yes....you read that right Polar Fleece!

 Hard to believe....easier than you would think to do!

The couch and love seat are gorgeous....sadly not mine....the story is amusing...(at least to me).

Read on to learn about "thinking outside the bolt....fabric bolt that is!

A Goodlooking Dishsoap Dispenser!

Call me crazy, but I hate looking at the bottle of dish washing liquid sitting next to the sink!
I used to hide the bottle under the sink....but none of the other people in the house ever put it back there...
so it was always sitting there.
Now you are probably saying....."in the giant scheme of things....this is a pretty SMALL thing to get hung up on!"
Yeah....but I found a simple, thrifty, stylish way to solve the problem....SO THERE!

And....my solution saves soap too!
Wanna know how?   Read on!

Stylish Laptop Case!

Fall is in the air....


The temperature when I got up this morning was 50 degrees....brrrr


We went to the State Fair....I bought this cool poster and can't wait to frame it.

We drove along some country roads and cut wild sunflowers.

 AND


Today is the first day of school!



It's time to pack my school bag....or in my case my laptop bag!

My school provides a laptop for each teacher....along with a REALLY ugly laptop bag that looks like a suitcase.
Even worse....when you want to take your computer OUT of the bag.....you have to put the bag on the desk or table, unzip it, take the computer out, rezip the bag.....yadda yadda...

Remember the definition of style and elegance?

I obviously needed to find a "Sweetwater Style" solution....here it is!

Thrifty Shelf/Drawer Liner Idea

Summer's end for me means Fall cleaning and organizing time.
I started on the kitchen this morning.

First off the kitchen drawers....

It is probably a little "Martha Stewart" of me...but I like pretty drawer liners.





I have tried all kinds of things...

contac paper....hard to work with, hard to remove and pattern and color choices are really not to my taste!











rubbermaid shelf liner....yucky...but it does make a great non-slip rug backing...cuz you can't see it!

Fabric...you have to figure out a way to attach it....more work than I want to do!

Then I discovered that using vinyl pre-pasted wallpaper is the perfect solution for me!
Read on to find out how to do this!

Back to School Series #1-Reluctant Reader? Some Tips!

School started for me on Monday.
My days are spent getting the Media Center in my school ready for those excited young faces who will arrive next Tuesday morning.

I've been reading all the fun "Back-to-School" posts that show all kinds of crafts, teacher gifts, posters, etc.
That got me to thinking......there seems to be a lot of interest in "Back-To-School"

Well....since I have been "going back to school" for a whole lot of years, I thought I would do a series on "Back to School" too.

Now I love crafts, fun recipes and cute school clothes as much as any of you...but that is NOT what this series is about.
This series will focus on ways to help your child (and you) connect school and home....sort of your own little Parent Information Night....except you can come in your jammies and you don't have to sit in those little chairs!