PREVIEW of March/April 2014 issue of Celebrating Everyday Life

Celebrating

March/April 2014

everyday life

with Jennifer Carroll

P R E V I E W

Spring

fresh

Set a Bold, Blooming Table For Easter Brunch, Luncheon, or Morning Tea Spring Crafts Make Your Own Pincushions, Purses, Pillows, & More Recipes for Sharing Hot Cross Buns, Rosemary-Lemon Chicken, Spring Soup, & Other Delicious Dishes Interiors to Inspire Peek Inside a Playful Lake House, a Country Estate's Master Bedroom, & a Garden Shed for Potting and Plotting

March • April 2014

welcome

Spring!

It seems that spring can't quite decide if it's coming or not at my house... it's been in the sixties one week and snowing the next. In fact, it's snowing again even as I write. But, I did just spot the small point of a hyacinth plant peeking up through the soil in my back garden, which is quite exciting to me... surely spring is on its way. Are you beginning to see signs of spring — be they ever so small — in your own garden? Every season has its charms riello photo: Jen Fa and spring is no exception. I am eager to see the fresh spring green leaves proudly waving from the branches of the trees, not to mention the delicate beauty of the cherry and dogwood blossoms! In this issue, my friends and I are excited to share many ideas on how you can welcome spring into your home this year. There are several pretty table settings (from casual to a bit more formal), fun ways to decorate Easter eggs, beautiful rooms that you will want to linger in, delicious recipes and enough crafts to keep your fingers busy all season. We also sit down for an interview with Laura Prince of Sew Inspired, a stitch lounge, who shares seasoned advice on how to start and grow a business (page 36), no matter what your passion. We also take a stroll through a beguiling potting shed (page 78) and flit through a fantastical fairy garden (page 84). Want to add some color to freshen up your home's decor for the coming season? Then be sure to see the wonderful stencil project from Linda Smith and Royal Design Studio on page 92. I love Linda's creative idea to make it easy to switch this out whenever the mood strikes; this opens up so many decorating possibilities! I've just purchased the Pride & Prejudice embroidery patterns featured in our “Products We Heart” column on page 13 and am off to the store to get my embroidery threads for this new project, grateful that I can do this while I watch the snow continue to fall outside my window (and hope that spring doesn't tarry much longer!). I pray that you are blessed by this issue and that it brings joy into your heart. Thank you for reading, and as always... Happy Celebrating!

2 March/April 2014 | CelebratingEverydayLife.com

Jennifer

The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.

Eleanor Roosevelt

CelebratingEverydayLife.com | March/April 2014 3

Contents

March | April 2014 celebrate . everyday

122

22 48

64

8 Contributors

All the lovely ladies involved.

12 Products We Heart

Everything is coming up roses with this collection of treasures.

14 On Our Bookshelf

Books to help you welcome Spring with recipes, crafts and more.

16 April Showers

Dress up your front door with a blooming umbrella arrangment.

18 Iron-on Fabric Transfers

Transform a plain pillow into unique home decor.

20 Handmade Flower Pincushions

Refresh your sewing notions for spring with this lovely DIY project.

22 Ribbon Purses

Turn cast-off ribbon fragments into beguiling bags that will delight girls young and old.

24 Abundant Asparagus

A slow-starter that once it gets going brings a harvest for many, many years to come.

26 Fabric Stationery

These pretty patterned envelopes are sure to inspire the writer in you.

28 Hot Cross Buns

Break bread with friends and family during the coming Lent season with this delicious recipe.

30 Easter Parade

Fill an Easter basket with treats that go beyond the typical chocolate bunny.

32 Lace Dyed Easter Eggs

Stencil a delicate pattern onto your eggs this year with these lace dyed eggs.

98 42

Contents

March | April 2014

28 36 Business Is Bliss

Laura Prince, owner of Sew Inspired, a stitch lounge, shares her insights on running her dream business.

38 One Fine Morning

Don't be afraid to mix your china patterns to create a welcoming table for a cup of morning tea.

42 Lunch in Bloom

Vibrant china, linens and flowers set the scene for a celebratory Spring luncheon.

48 Set a Place for Easter Brunch

Soft greens and vibrant yellows paired with vintage silver and tartan textures create an elegant Easter place setting.

52 Le Beau Chapeau

Whether you don a store-bought cap or dare to create your own, allow a hat to tranform your outfit from ordinary to extraordinary.

38

58 Easter Greetings

Send vintage greetings this season with these free digital downloads.

64 Romantic Spring

Surround yourself with beauty to heal and refresh your soul.

70 Washi Eggs

Give cottage charm to your Easter eggs this year with this Japanese art form.

74 Lake House Living

Step inside this light-filled living room touched with colors inspired by its lakeside setting.

78 A Creative Nest

A simple potting shed is turned into a space for dreaming as well as planting.

84 An Enchanting Fairy Garden

Explore a miniature secret garden where fairies can flit and flutter.

celebrate . everyday

92 Fresh Style

Inspired home decor is just a brush stroke away with this beautiful stencil project.

94 The Art & Craft of Doily Cookies

Humble doilys make a delicious impression on these cookies that are almost too pretty eat... almost.

98 A Masterful Retreat

Step inside the bedroom of a grand country estate with its soothing tones and luxurious touches.

112 Spring Wrapping

Pretty ribbons and tags make pulling together a fetching present simple and quick.

84

116 Luck of the Irish

Add even more luck to your St. Patrick's Day festivities with this petit-fours-style dessert.

118 Rosemary + Lemon Roast Chicken

Fill your home with the comforting and savory scents of this delicious roast chicken.

120 Spring Chicken Soup

A light and satisfying soup that is filled with a tempting array of fresh greens.

122 Lemon Meringue Tartelette

The crunch of meringue perfectly complements the creamy tang of lemon in this individual dessert.

124 Make Your Own Vanilla Sugar

This aromatic sweetner will become a pantry staple.

126 The Manual

Your source for recipes & instructions to all the inspiration featured in this issue!

145 Resources

Details on where you can find many of the items featured in this issue.

146 Next Time

A quick look at some of what's coming up in May/June!

52

Contributors

If you could fill your own Easter basket with anything, what would it include?

Lucy Ancheta-Akins www.craftberrybush.com

Beth Bryan unskinnyboppy.com

Jill Flory www.sewafineseam.com

It would definitely have to be a bouquet of ranunculus and dusty miller.

Cadbury eggs, wine and a hard copy of Celebrating Everyday Life!

Fresh flowers, Starbucks Veranda Blonde coffee beans, and cash to go shopping for vintage finds!

Angelina Fracchiolla www.jojoandeloise.com

Robin Gay

Jacqueline Greenwood blissinimages.com

Daffodils & Chocolate Eggs... ahhhh, now that feels like spring to me!

I'd fill my basket with rewards for getting through a dastardly winter: heaps of exotic tea and exquisite flowers!

Round-trip tickets, all-expenses-paid (for my whole family) trip to Alaska. We have always wanted to see this beautiful state and experience its Natural Beauty and Wonder. Now, if that would only find its way into my Easter Basket, this would be the BEST Easter ever!!

8 March/April 2014 | CelebratingEverydayLife.com

www.allthingsheartandhome.com

photo: Rebekah Musser

Anita Joyce www.cedarhillfarmhouse.com

Dara Powers Parker www.darapowersparker.com

Amy Renea www.anestforallseasons.com

Reni www.blissandtellblog.com

I would welcome any type of dark chocolate with a little sea salt in my Easter basket.

I might not even share it!!

Novels! Or, if it is a rather large basket, many pairs of shoes!

Stale Peeps. My preference would be two-and-a-halfweek-old, opened Peeps.

Yellow bunnies, please, but any variety will do!

I don't have much of a sweet tooth...so my ideal "treat" would be a basket full of all my favorite magazines (old and new issues).

Kelly Rinzema www.thelilypadcottage.com

Lisa Tutman-Oglesby www.celebrate-creativity.com

Aimee Twigger www.twiggstudios.com

If I could have anything in my Easter basket it would be a bag of chocolatecovered pistachios, a croissant, and a caramel latte!

If I could put anything I wanted in my Easter basket it would have to be a brand new 35mm camera lens for good fun and a bag of pastel-colored Jordan almonds for good taste.

If I could fill my own Easter basket with anything, I would have a chocolate bunny, some spring flowers like pink tulips and some cream eggs.

CelebratingEverydayLife.com | March/April 2014 9

food, decor, and inspiration for

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5 W O N T YI $ 5.9

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March|April 2014

CelebratingEverydayLife.com

food, decor, and inspiration for

March|April 2014

CelebratingEverydayLife.com

food, decor, and inspiration for

he

et has

te ple com age c

Pur

p n 146 itio d e ital dig or only f

5 W O N T YI $ 5.9

BU

March|April 2014

CelebratingEverydayLife.com

Celebrating everyday life

with Jennifer Carroll

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