Merry Christmas, everyone! I hope you’re all enjoying the day off from work and celebrating in your favorite way. I’m relaxing, reading, making pancakes, and enjoying the mild weather in Austin. My dreams of a white Christmas faded years ago and have been replaced with flip flops and year round sunscreen application.

Anyway, the change of climate hasn’t dampened my decorating enthusiasm. Mr. Betty and I take pride in our rad ornament collection and last year I gave a rundown of some of our favorites. We added some new guys to our tree this year:

After not having a tree topper for as long as I can remember, we found this awesome cardinal. You can’t tell from the photo, but it’s huge. Like, as big as your head.

I’d like to think our new shark and sneaker reflect our personal style:

A couple nights ago we headed over to Mozart’s Coffee Roasters to check out their light show. While crowded, it wasn’t the insane chaos of the Trail of Lights.

Mozart’s is one of our homesick comfort spots. There aren’t a ton of places to sit on the water in Austin, and Mozart’s sprawling decks make us feel right at home. And they really go all out for the holidays, with lights dangling everywhere. It feels like a caffeinated wonderland. The light show starts at the top of the hour and lasts about 15 minutes. Each of the five or six songs had a different theme and little show. Very pretty, and the hot cocoa and cider were delicious. This lasts till New Year’s, so there’s still plenty of time to go.

The palm trees are next door at the Hula Hut and worth the visit on their own. Aren’t they the coolest?

What’s the key to ensuring your guests have an enjoyable visit? Um, nice towels. That’s all it takes.

Okay, maybe it takes more than that. But fluffy spa towels are a nice start. Providing all the toiletries your guests may need takes the burden off them. Plus, that leaves more room in their suitcases to fill with gifts for you…from Trader Joe’s.

A nice little arrangement of bottled water, fancy soaps, and fun little treats lets your guests know they are special. That you care so much about them and prepared for their visit. And you want them to feel comfortable and pampered.

Planning a list of fun activities and some relaxing downtime helps your guests achieve the perfect vacation balance. Of course, in Austin it’s easy. Everyone wants to come here. Even if you had ratty towels, they’d come.

 

My home office is an important space. Unlike my work office, I can have a comfy chair, chic desk, and place to take a nap. I believe all three are conducive to producing great work.

A frequent note-taker, I’m always scrawling ideas on little scraps of paper and notebooks. I try to keep them contained, but in truth they are everywhere. I’ll find notes months later reminding me that I wanted to try cold brewing coffee or dates of upcoming concerts. Notes that say things like find shoe or calories.

I need my notes right in my face. I like them hanging on the wall. So I wanted a new cork board. Here’s what I made last weekend:

It’s quite large and will hold lots of my scattered thoughts. Anyone can make this. You just need to hoard corks for a few years and know how to use a hot glue gun. Don’t use a cheap frame.

It took me a few hours to fit these in like a puzzle and then glue them in nice and tight. It was a nice walk down memory lane as certain corks reminded me of moments in my life. The winery where Mr. Betty proposed, the bottles of wine we shared in Italy, the dinner parties where we laughed with friends. Maybe this board will do more than hold my thoughts. Maybe it’ll inspire new ones. Either way, it’s a nice addition to my office.

 

New year, new bed. Macy’s was having a huge sale on beds, so we decided it was a good time to upgrade. I searched everywhere for a headboard I liked, but couldn’t find one. But then the crafty part of me said, But what if you made one? And then the hungry part of me said, Can we go get dinner? I’m starving.

Mr. Betty and I decided to go for it. We ate dinner. But then after that we decided to make a headboard. Here are the supplies we used:

• Untreated plywood
• Spray adhesive
• Staple gun
• Staples
• Upholstery foam
• Batting
• Upholstery fabric

From Home Depot we got the adhesive, staples and gun, and had them cut a board to our measurements, 48×78 inches. A standard headboard is about four feet tall and two inches wider than your mattress width.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We bought the foam, batting and upholstery from a fabric store. Bonus, the most expensive part of this project, the upholstery fabric, was 50% off! Do not cheap out on the fabric. Make sure it is thick and of really good quality.

First, we sprayed one side of the board with adhesive and applied the foam. We stapled it onto the back, making sure to leave a couple extra inches on the top of the board.  Our foam and batting was in two pieces, but if you can get them in one, even better.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We repeated the process for the second step. Sprayed the foam with adhesive and covered with batting. Stapled the batting to the back.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Final step, lay the fabric on top of the batting and staple to the back. Don’t use adhesive this time. This is nice, because you can change the look of your headboard by just switching out the fabric. There were so many great fabrics. I can see myself changing it a few times a year.

I am so pleased with how this came out. It’s flawless, cushiony and chic. We used a solid fabric, but if you do this with a print make sure to line it up the way you want it.

Total cost for the headboard was $125, including $25 for staple gun and staples. I highly recommend trying this DIY headboard if you are looking to be creative or save a little cash.

Every year I love picking out a live Christmas tree and decorating it. I have some fabulous ornaments and building my collection is a year-round process. I always look for unique ones when I travel, so when I look at my tree it’s a reminder of how many cool places I’ve been. (And how lucky I am!) I’m going to show off some of my favorites.

I really love beach-themed ornaments. I hope to do an entire beach tree one day.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A few travel ornaments:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My mermaid collection is one I hope to grow.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Two ornaments that represent us:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Some food-themed ornaments:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And finally, a couple Texas ornaments.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Merry Christmas, to all my readers! (Both of you.) May your holiday be creative and colorful.