Twigs and Twine... the culprit has been identified

Some of you may have read my Twigs and Twine blog and remember how one of my adorable fur-babies destroyed took creative liberty with one of my projects.

Before

After

I had a hard time trying to figure out who ruined my sticks. While terrified of the 3 lb Pomeranian next door, Nadia (my chocolate lab), is usually oblivious to my yelling, finger pointing and stomping. So the fact that I have a picture of what looks like her sitting proudly by her "work of art" well.... sometimes she's just ignorant.

And then there is Nate. Typically well behaved but he has been known to get into his fair share of trouble. Unfortunately for me he has learned that this Puss n Boots-pouty face gets me every time.

So who did it? Well I think I found the answer today. I was gone several hours having lunch with my mom for Mother's Day and then completed a little craft shopping (yes, a scary situation to let my mom and I run loose in a craft store but we did a very good job... the key, don't get a basket/cart, it'll limit what you can carry). I came home, let the dogs out and after several minutes of this crazy behavior I finally realized the culprit....

Dogs are just suppose to fetch their sticks, right? Keep in mind, she was running around, eating sticks before I started video taping and throwing them for her. I have no idea what's made her so angry at all the sticks in the world. But I think this the only proof I need.

Ivy Tower

More Twigs and Twine!!! Let's hope one of my furry babies doesn't destroy this one like they did with my "Let's Stick Together" project. I'm still peeved about that one!

So this was a quick project I stumbled upon. I was actually looking for ways to create an attractive tomato cage. Living in a condo means finding creative ways to have a garden. I came across Carolyn's site DIY tomato cages and then continue on to find her smaller version where she makes it a Mother's Day Centerpiece.Glancing up from my computer I thought my own ivy plant might be in need of an accessory.

My ivy plant... beautiful. The plain old stick in the middle of
the pot... ugly! Plus with my Updated Plant Stand I needed to
complete the entire project. And how perfect is this pot for this
project? It already has twine (or rope) wrapped around it.
A perfect fit!

You don't need many materials for this one! Twigs and twine
that's all, oh and a hot glue gun. I created 4 different stacks of
twigs. The 1st being the longest and then each stack going down
in size from there.

I started by building one "wall" of the tower so I could
be sure my measurements were correct. (You don't
want to make the tower first and then see if it fits in
the pot.) Use your hot glue gun to hold them in place.

Once I had one wall built I found it was easier to build
the other walls with them already inside the pot. The 2nd
wall I built was the opposite wall using my 1st wall as a
reference for where the twigs should be placed. Continue
on with the 3rd and 4th wall.

Next I brought out the twine and wrapped around each of the
joints. I am not a knot expert so I have no idea what you
would call this but I wrapped them in a cross-cross pattern.

Pull your longer pieces of ivy up through the top of the tower
and let some of the shorter ones fall on the lower twigs and
you have an Ivy Tower!

I admit, my ivy does look like it's having a bad hair day but with a few days of sunshine the leaves will flip over and it will figure out its way around the tower.

Twigs and Twine .... with some help from the dogs

I decided to get a little crafty with some twigs from the yard and some leftover twine.

Twig Votive

I grabbed some twigs and broke them off in even pieces.

I used my hot glue gun to paste them onto a votive

In some areas I doubled up the twigs

And then added my twine

A little gift for my sweetie

I gathered a few twigs about the same length

Using a knife I CAREFULLY shaved off the first layer of bark
on one of the twigs

(A little hard to see) I wrote my quote in pencil

I broke out my wood burner and copied over my text

I used a rubber band to hold all the sticks together

I wrapped the twine around both ends to hold the sticks together

Let's stick together

Grrrr...... so I finished this last night and was going to publish my blog tonight. Unfortunately it totally slipped my mind that my precious little fur-babies LOVE to chew on sticks. And where did I leave my newest little craft project? On a side table... right where they could reach it.... this is what I came home to....

Not much left

So who did it? This one sure loves munching on sticks

But he looks pretty guilty.

A Woodsy Christmas

 A friend recently approached me looking for some ideas. She's a catering director and needs some help with a wintery, woodsy holiday party. So I started perusing some of my favorite websites and blogs. You can check out my all my Christmas decor ideas on Pinterest under my Christmas Board. Otherwise most of them are below.

Check out Simple Solutions blog on centerpieces.

This sounds like my kind of blog. Lynn's Kitchen Adventures displays
Frugal Holiday Centerpieces like this one.

Another great centerpiece from Rustic Art

Martha Stewart gives instructions on using Pinecones

I featured this in Happy Holidays blog but I thought the Alternative Christmas Tree was fitting

A step ladder tree from Funky Junk Interiors is another
alternative to the traditional tree.

I love this bucket from Restoration House.

Little Glass Box's blog makes an affordable Christmas table setting.
The pinecone place cards are absolutely adorable.

And I will have to try using a mason jar and some wire for
a latern-like look.

Ritzy Bee has a cute idea for place cards too

Feather Trees. Elegant and yet still earthy.
From It's Overflowing

At Home with K walks you through creating this adorable artwork

Create Pinecone Garland using Twig & Thisle's instructions

Snowflakes and Dragonflies adds a little sparkle to their light bulbs.

Grab some twigs from the backyard to make a
few quick decorations.
From House of Philia

Babble gets creative with twigs in their blog 22 Fall Wood Crafts

Another Ladder Christmas Tree idea at Eclectically Vintage

Found on Anna K Originals' Seaside Christmas Mantle