host post: summer bedroom inspiration board

Most of you are super excited for the 3-day weekend to get away, perhaps a walk in the sand, float on some water and enjoy drinks with umbrellas! For us, we use the valuable extra day as catch-up time and stay out of the traffic by keeping local! I have a weekend full of purging, organizing and updating! I'm super stoked!

On the list is a much needed update to our master bedroom. When my bestie Kimie was in town a few weeks ago, her Pottery Barn luck rubbed off on me and the Mari duvet was on super sale with a coupon (no longer available online)! This last weekend, Michelle sent good vibes and I found the matching pillow shams!!

To turn a new seasonal chapter, I created a summer-inspired master bedroom inspiration board that will be implemented in full force this weekend!

bedding: Pottery Barn | silver framed mirror: Wayfair | lamp base: Target Threshold™ Lamp Base | faceted hurricanes: Serena & Lily | coastal artwork: bomobob on etsy | rug: West Elm Jute Boucle Rug | pillows: Society 6, Nordstroms, Society 6

Happy Memorial Day weekend friends!

guest contributor: summer picnic staples

Welcome, Michelle!

Nothing says summertime like a backyard BBQ with good friends; sunshine, cold beverages, lawn games and good food - I love it all! The past two weekends we've had BBQs: one in Colorado with our friends and family and one this weekend at the Cotton's house to catch up with friends while we're visiting California! 

I want to share two items that were hits at both BBQs! The first is a yummy cool beverage we call Summer Brew. It sounds like such an odd combination of ingredients -- light beer, vodka and lemonade -- but I promise you it's delicious! If you've ever tried Leinenkugel's Summer Shandy, it's a similar flavor. 

Summer Brew

12 cans light beer (I used PBR)

1 can pink lemonade concentrate (defrosted)

1 can vodka (use the lemonade can as measurement)

Lemon wedges, raspberries (optional) 

- Pour beers into large pitcher or drink dispenser. To avoid foam, tip container at an angel and slowly pour beer down the side.

- Add can of concentrate.

- Pour vodka into lemonade can and add to mixture. Stir.

- Add ice, half of the sliced lemons and fruit into container. 

- Serve over ice and add fruit garnish.

For dessert, I made homemade ice cream cookie sandwiches inspired by Brown Eyed Baker. I tried the chocolate chip, better than brownie chocolate and sugar cookie recipes. My favorite was the chocolate chip followed by the better than brownie chocolate cookies. To make the cookies, follow instructions from Brown Eyed Baker. I am a novice baker so my only tip is to follow the recipes exactly!

For a split second I thought about making homemade ice cream but was snapped back to reality when I remembered I have a full time job that requires me to be at a desk and Martha Stewart's studio (a girl can dream). Instead I purchased half gallons of my favorite flavors: mint chocolate chip, strawberry, cookies and cream, and chocolate peanut butter cup.

Once the cookies are baked and cooled, pair the cookies with similar sized cookies to start making sandwiches! Take the ice cream out of the freezer and allow it to soften (about 5 mins). 

Using an ice cream scoop, make one large ball of ice cream. Flatten the top of the ice cream before setting it on the cookie (this will help make the sandwich without breaking the cookies). Place flattened scoop on a cookie and top with another cookie. Voola - ice cream sandwich! 

Place completed sandwiches in the freezer several hours (or over night) to freeze complete. Wrap in wax or parchment paper hand out to guests for dessert. 

Cheers to summer! Michelle

guest contributor: the forgotten summer holiday

Welcome Kimie!

For some reason, the 4th of July goes by in my house as the holiday I never decorate for. Well, that is all about to change this year! I found a cute table runner on Pinterest from MaidenJane's on Etsy. Something about the combination of jute and fabric inspired me.

| MaidenJane's on Etsy |

It was all over the second I found this red and blue anchor fabric. WIth some simple math that would make my college algebra teacher beam with pride I was on my way. I cut out the dimensions of jute and fabric, pinned, sewed and pressed. 

Presto!! A Summer runner for the dinning room table. I even have extra fabric to make pillows for the front porch chairs! Summer cocktails anyone?!

Happy pinning!! 

IHB april: the etsy edition

April is just about over and I'm catching up with this Etsy roundup of new products and posts! See what's new on the Etsy store and add custom touches to your wedding or event with these made-to-order signs. Find me at etsy.com/store/InspiredHoneyBee.

host post: small pin-spiration round-up

This month was particularly challenging because the Pinterest theme was open: share any project that inspired you to create. I can walk around the house and find a few projects that would never have been finished if it wasn't for a simple pin.

I'll start with my most proud baking moment: ombre frosting. The cake and buttercream frosting was made from scratch, but the real pin-inspiration came with the frosting design! I pinned this amazing tutorial from Trang's Kitchen, and although I can't read the content, the graphics were self-explanatory enough to bring this to Easter lunch:

The front door also received flare with this 'welcome' decal that I created with the Silhoutte. Most pin-spiration includes script type and that's just not my style. I recently downloaded the freebie Abraham Lincoln font (hello 16th POTUS!) and carefully added the decal (pin-spiration).

These two pin-spiration projects have already been on display here at IHB, but they deserve another 15 seconds of fame: turn an unused toothbrush holder into a vase and give an old clay pot some color for indoor flare. (and the fake plant comes from a goodwill score.)

And finally, but not least, shelf styling. I'm not great at this and really want to be better and Pinterest has a treasure trove of ideas. Something that I started is my basket of well wishes. I save all of my thank you notes and announcements here and when I'm feeling a little down, I like to go through the stack and remind myself how great I really have it.

How has Pinterest inspired you this month? I just packed for a business trip based on my outfit pins and most of my dinners are only finished with the steps in my pinned recipes. Even if you can't build a bench this month (that's my next goal), you can take on small projects any day of the week.

guest contributor: birthday interview keepsake

It was exactly one year ago when I was celebrating this sweet little girl's second birthday and here we are 12 months later celebrating another great year (on the opposite coast but who's keeping tabs?)! Welcome back, Carrie, with this amazing annual keepsake that you will want to start right away!

I think I’ve pinned this project multiple times. It seemed only fitting to finally put it together being that my daughter celebrated her third birthday last week. Tiff Keetch at A Day InMy Life has a wonderful printable download and a great tutorial on how to put this birthday interview keepsake together.

It was so fun to interview my daughter and I love that these priceless answers can now be documented and looked back year after year. My favorite response was to the question, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” She answered, “A driver or the Easter Bunny.”

This project could be put together as a gift or by any parent. It’s so easy and something that you’ll be so glad you did!

Carrie  

guest contributor: DIY jewelry box

The biggest lesson that I've learned from Pinterest is that it can make the most craft adverse person take on something on their own! That includes my BFF, Cece. During some stressful studying, a strong focus on jewelry making became a hidden talent. 

After pinning several different DIY bracelet tutorials, I found a pin with the top 10 bracelet tutorials and I used most of those tutorials to start making bracelets. First, I picked up a jewelry kit at Michael's to make this project easier. 

I was inspired to make additional pieces with old earrings that I hadn't worn in some time (see black bracelet below). The gold bracelet I bought but it was too big, so I used my handy tools to take a link out and make it fit just right.

No reason to drop off unused jewelry at Goodwill; this new hobby is great for reusing and my wardrobe!