DIY Picnic Blanket

Last summer my sister Jordan got her kids into a fun routine with special days of the week.  

Make It Monday, where they made a craft.  

Taste it Tuesday, where they helped cook or tried something new to eat or ate a special treat.  

Water Wednesday, where they played with the water table, went to the pool, ran through a sprinkler in the backyard, etc.

Picnic Thursday, where they went to the park for the afternoon and took a picnic lunch.  

Family Friday Movie Night - where they picked a movie to watch together or went to the theater.

I thought the whole concept was so adorable.  Picnic Thursday gave me the idea to make them a picnic blanket.  I had a lot of fun choosing fabric and then I chose a laminated fabric as the back side, to lay on the ground.

I also wanted to make it big enough for their whole family to use it, so I made it two yards long.

I spread out the black and white vinyl fabric right side down on the floor.  Then I arranged the watermelon fabric on top, right side up.  (So wrong sides were facing each other.)  Then I pinned all the way around.  Then I sewed the two pieces together.

I laid out the blanket again and pinned binding around it.  I made sure to miter the corners.

 

This helpful picture found at Melly Sews.

Once that part was complete, I came up with how it should be folded and then added a velcro closure and handle for carrying.

It made me so happy to see my niece and nephew enjoying their Picnic Thursday!

Engagement Setting

In just a few weeks, my youngest sister is getting married. She and her fiance asked me to take their engagement pictures and left any setting or props up to me - I was SO excited to plan a beautiful, colorful, elegant outdoor setting.

I chose a spot at the Anthony Lake that had arching branches as the backdrop.



We chose a bright fall color scheme.



I spent a weekend going to Pier 1, Hobby Lobby, World Market, Gordman's, Target and antique stores gathering ideas and buying a few items. I was excited to find the brightly colored folding chairs at Target for about $8.00.



I ended up getting most of the dishes from my mom's china cabinet - I love those depression era pink dishes!





I dipped strawberries in chocolate and drizzled white chocolate - it added beautiful color to the table, added a romantic element and was a favorite of the couple's!



Beautiful setting, beautiful couple, beautiful pictures!



I loved the setting so much, I used it as the background for my blog!