Tiny Oranges – Fresh, fun blog for OC moms

I recently received an email from Rodney, the owner of a modern wall art company called Taut Canvas, and a local OC dad.  They recently launched their company and he wanted to reach out to share their products.

One click and I was hooked.  For more reasons than one.

First off, I have an affinity for websites with the “cute factor” and I was immediately drawn in by the web design and darling logo.   Then I started browsing the Core Value Series canvases and I fell in love.   On the surface, I adore the designs.  They are super stylish, modern and I love the clean lines.   Perfect for a child’s room, but stylish enough to be used in any room of your home.

Each design comes in three different color palates – boys, girls and unisex – and they are ready to hang.

Why do they call it the Core Value series you ask?  Rodney and his business partner Matt  designed the series around 10 core values Rodney and his wife Crystal wanted to teach their daughter Charley.   Values like compassion, individuality and courage to name a few.

Take the “Courage” print for example, it’s a picture of a little bird taking a leap of courageous faith off a modern leaf while mommy bird and brother birds watch.    Does it get any cuter than that?   So, not only will you have a great piece for your wall, but a lesson to talk about on top of it.   As if I couldn’t already love the pieces enough!

{ Shipping is FREE anywhere in the U.S. and 10% of the profits from this series get donated to children’s charities. }

Hooray!  It’s a Tiny Giveaway!

One lucky winner will win one free 18″ x 18″ Core Value series canvas in the “value” of their choice (a $129 value!)

To enter, simply leave a comment below.  You can enter as many times as you would like, just have your entries in by next Thursday, 12/10/09 by 5pmPST.  I will post the winner on Friday.  Click HERE and tell me in your comment – which value do you love?

Hi there! I originally posted another blog today sent to me by Kristin Eldridge (of the fabulous Kristin Eldridge Photography) on an art location for kids in Long Beach, but one of my great readers informed us that the location closed just this week!   Thanks for the info!  Check out Kristin’s blog for some amazing pics that she was nice enough to take of my girls this week.  She is so incredibly talented!

Here is another guest blog for those looking for cute kids’ room decor!  Annika writes…

“Next month we will transition my son to a big boy bed and a new room (yes, we’re a little worried about doing it all at once!) Well, I think I may have found something to make the move a little bit easier for him: adorable wall decals to decorate his new space.

Cutey Baby makes these great removable decals in a variety of designs to add the perfect amount of flair to any child’s room! There are a ton of designs – Monkeys, Pirates, Fairies, Beach Designs and Jungle Animals – to name a few. We picked “Work Trucks #1 and #2” since Adam is such a truck fanatic.

All the designs are hand drawn and very cute. And the best part is when he grows out of his truck phase and embarks on his next thing we can just peal them off and start over! They are available online at www.cuteybaby.com.”

Annika is the mompreneur behind BurpieBlocker, the burp cloth that does not fall off your shoulder. She lives in Orange County, CA with her son Adam and her husband, Chris.

BurpieBlocker is offering Tiny Oranges readers 10% off their entire order! Use coupon code Tiny10 at checkout. 

HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND EVERYONE!!!

I have been in TURBO nesting mode lately! This past weekend, my husband and I worked on the nursery most all day.  I feel so much better!

I posted a few weeks back about my little project to do my own nursery letters to spell her little name on the wall.  It was really pretty easy (with hubby’s help!) and less expensive than buying custom ones in the store.   Here is how we did it:

Supplies:

* 1/8 ” thick plywood cut into the size you want to display the letters (I did 10″ x 10″ squares)

* Wooden letters purchased at any kid’s store or website.  I bought KidKraft 8″ white letters for $4.95 at Bergstrom’s. 

* Enough fabric to cover the front of the wood square. I bought mine through Pixie Dust Decor. Enter coupon code PN20 for 20% off your entire order from now until 10/1!  Or, enter PDHOSTESS for 25% your entire order from now until 7/8!  

* Ribbon to hang squares. I got 10 yards of ribbon, and did the ribbon pretty long (2′ each side.)

* Staple gun or regular stapler

* Small wood screws & a drill bit (husband had to help me with this part!)

Steps:

1. Cut plywood into the size squares you would like to mount the letters on.

2. Cut fabric into pieces to cover the front side of the wood.

3. “Wrap” the fabric around the backside of the square, almost like wrapping a present. Staple fabric to wood with a staple gun or regular stapler. We got by with using a regular stapler, but a staple gun would likely work much better.
P.S. Those are hubby’s hairy arms, not mine!

4. Cut ribbon into the sizes you want to hang. Staple ribbon to the top of the square in the back and tie a pretty bow at the top so you can hang them.

5.  Attaching the letters to the front of the fabric square (this part written by my hubby who did them for me!)

A. Use small wood screws that are long enough to go through your wood squares and adequately screw into the wood letters.
B. Center the letter on the wood square. Lift the letter and mark 2 spots on the wood square where you would like the screw to hold the letter. It is best to screw the letter in 2 spots, preferable in opposite corners.
C. Make a small (1/8″) cut in the fabric where you made the 2 marks in step B. This prevents the fabric from gathering around the drill bit. Drill small holes through the wood square.
D. Turn the wood square over and screw in your wood screws. Do not screw in all the way, but allow the screw to protrude slightly through the fabric side of the square.
E. Again center the letter on the wood square. When it is in position push the letter down on the protruding screw tips.
F. While holding the letter on the wood square, flip the square so the letter is face down on a solid surface. Screw in the wood screws into the letter.
G. Make sure the letter is flush with the wood square and secure.
    

Step 7 – TA DA!  You are done!   I did mine in alternating fabric backgrounds.  It looks SO cute on the nursery wall!  I don’t want to post a picture just yet of the finished product in her room as I don’t want to reveal her name just yet!  Will do so after she arrives!   And no, it doesn’t start with “R!” Hee hee…  

Happy Crafting!

 
So I am starting a fun little DIY project in baby’s nursery.  I found these letters to spell baby’s name to hang on the wall at a baby store recently.  They were custom, the letters backed on a square of fabric and hung with a ribbon.  Very, very cute.  Problem was, they were like $31 each, plus tax and shipping.  We have chosen a 6-letter name.  Eek!  The husband thought that was a bit excessive, so I had to get creative.

I thought, hmmmm, how about I buy the plain white letters that are $5 / each (and they were 20% this past weekend – even better!) and make something myself? The plan is to mount the fabric on square pieces of wood and they have have hubby find a way to attach the letters and hang with a cute ribbon. So, I got the letters and then I went on the search for fabric.      

It is surprising how hard it is to find REALLY cute fabric out there!  I went to several major fabric stores and couldn’t find anything I loved.  

I was very excited when I found the most darling fabrics on Pixie Dust Decor!  They match my bedding perfectly.   If I didn’t have the bedding already, I would have totally looked at their crib bedding sets.   So adorable!  So, those are my swatches I got above.  I will do another post when I (hopefully) finish the project!

BONUS!  Pixie Dust Decor is offering Tiny Oranges readers a special coupon code for 20% off any purchase!  Enter Pixie Dust Coupon Code PN20 through 10/1/09 to redeem.     Happy sewing!  

The stainless steel refrigerator has probably posed the same challenge for moms everywhere - where do we display our child’s art when you can’t stick them on the fridge door??  Now that Emma is coming home from her little weekly (pre) pre-school class with art projects, I have been sort of struggling with how to display them. 

My girlfriend sent me this link to a product called Work of Art Clips on Land of Nod.  It’s a cute and decorative way to display your little budding Picasso’s first works!    Perfect solution to the display challenge, and at $9.95, it’s easy on the budget too!

Email me by 5pm today to enter the Baby Loves Disco giveaway of 4 free tickets for Saturday’s event!  Click here for details!