My daughter Sommer’s birthday falls in early April, and here in New York, there is no guarantee of gorgeous, spring weather. So for her first birthday, I’m just going to do it up at home. We have a pretty big living/dining/kitchen “open-concept” room and I’ve been trying to figure out what broad-stroke decorations I can create to really give the room a transformation. I took this photo last weekend at Erica Tanov (best store!) and decided on pink and yellow, with a splash of navy, for the color world. The store has a Parcel pop-up shop in the back which is where these sweet garlands came from. Depending on how you make and then use garlands, they can do the trick to really take over a room.

My criteria for this project are… (1) Bold & Impactful (2) Quick & Easy (3) Inexpensive & Accessible.

Oh crepe paper, how I love you so! These big fringe garlands are so easy to make and can seriously take over the most blah of spaces. By Oh Happy Day.

I’m a little tired of the circle garland, but the half circle? I’m okay with it. But really, it’s how they used this garland that really works. You can use it to take up a whole wall with this elegant swag. Via Pinterest, by Fellow Fellow on Etsy.

I love the watery, washy quality of these painted book pages from Lilla A. What if they are strung up around a room, sort of like the traditional Tibetan prayer flags? Hmmm….

Don’t rule out paper chains as a totally viable throw-back DIY garland. They are super simple to make and you can craft a lot of them to really fill a space. Via Pinterest, via Parcel Post.

I think adding a little glitter twinkle into the mix is a good idea. I love how these strips of fabric looked dipped in glitter. And the idea of my guests leaving with a little glitter in their hair is just plain nice. Via Pinterest, by Michelle Edgemont.

If you tried to register for Alt Summit NYC, then you know the agony that I went through on Friday at 12pm EST. Servers crashing…error messages…it was nasty. And sadly, I didn’t get a spot.

But, by the grace of the design-blogger gods, I got an email yesterday that, in fact, I’m in! I just had to finish my registration and click submit. Best submit button ever.

This photo illustrates my extreme elation that I get to rub elbows with the craftiest ladies of the interweb!

{Precious bird and bunny garland from Parents.com.}

So, I didn’t grow up celebrating Easter, and every year that I worked at Parents magazine, I needed a refresher as to how Easter worked. What happens with the eggs? Do you hide the ones you decorate? Do you hard-boil them and eat them? And the bunny…what’s his role again? I swear, I have the whole Christmas-Santa-Mistletoe thing down, but Easter confounds me every year.

But, this confusion in no way reflects upon my awe of the Easter Egg. This will be the first of a few Easter craft posts, I imagine…so I’ll start with what is its own miraculous transformation—the plastic Easter egg. Scroll down and you’ll see ways to use it that have nothing to do with Easter!

These play teacups are made from half of a plastic Easter egg and a button glued to the bottom to make it stable. By Creativity in Progress.

I’m obsessed with these plastic egg maracas made by MADE.

Put an educational spin on your plastic eggs with this letter matching game from Playing House.

I believe these are a product, but how cute would this chicken egg be as a craft? Note to self. Found on Lulusoso.

{image via pinterest}

I’m not sure that there has been an invention of a craft material in my lifetime as monumental as washi tape. I can’t get enough of the stuff. I’m hard-pressed to find a tacky washi-tape project. If I see it in a store, I can’t not touch it. Should I see a doctor? Maybe. There are a gazillion awesome uses for the stuff; here are totally clever (and simple) ways to use washi tape on your walls.

Image via.

Image via Plenty of Colour.

Image via Objects & Use.

Image via Design*Sponge.

Image via.

Image via At Home In Love.

Image via Stylizimo.

Image via Studio Tout Petit.

Buy washi tape to your heart’s content here at happytape.com. And find the new giant washi tape here! I need some!

I thought I’d just finish out this week of family/photo love with a little post about creative ways to preserve keepsakes. Right now, I have 2 boxes, one for each kid, where I toss all of the little meaningful objects from their short lives…their hospital bracelets, their Welcome to the World cards, their sonogram photos. At some point I’m going to need a new solution. Here are a few thoughts…

I’m so crazy about the lovely shadow boxes pictured above. They are just the right amount of delicate, with their soft colors and simple white edging. For the life of me, I can’t figure out where they are from (if you know, leave a comment!), but I think they are pretty DIYable. Image via Pinterest.

Have you ever seen Darcy Miller‘s (from Martha Stewart Weddings) scrapbook shadow boxes? They’re amazing.

I love the idea of this sweet book keepsake box for love letters, gift tags, or photographs. Image via One Sunny Afternoon.

And for the most nostalgic (read: sappy), I can’t get enough of these clean and modern, enamel lockets. I’d love to wear a few together. (Husband, if you’re reading, bookmark this.)