DIY: Owl Tree Wall Mural

Miley just loves owls ever since she was a baby (I think it started when she watched a Twinkle Twinkle Little Star video featuring an owl). So when we moved into our new house, there was no question what design her room would be. I knew I wanted to put a tree mural on this wall so I searched online for decal stickers, but they were all so expensive! The ones I wanted were about $100 up!

No way was I going to spend that much when I could make it myself. So, armed with my self-taught photoshop skills (thank you to all those years working in advertising), I found a peg of a wall sticker and recreated it. Now this takes a lot of time and effort, so if you don't have either, then I recommend just buying the stickers.

After I had finished making the owls and the leaves, I had them printed on sticker paper. Each sticker sheet is 1ft x 1ft and I had 12 sheets printed. The whole thing cost about P1300.

After I cut the stickers, I then positioned them on the wall using scotch tape first. After I was happy with the arrangement, I then drew the tree trunk free hand with a pencil.

I then used painter's tape to outline the shape of the tree.

I used this brown paint from Ace Hardware (around P200). They had me choose what shade of brown I wanted then they punched the codes in the computer and it was mixed by a machine. It was my first time to experience that so it was pretty cool haha! Of course I made sure the paint I got was water based so it would have no smell (it didn't) and it would wash off easily on my hands or on the wall if I made a mistake (it did).

I used a paintbrush at first but the paint came out uneven on the walls because of the bristles! I think I spent about an hour just painting and reapplying several layers of paint to make it even but to no avail. I then used a rollerbrush and the paint came out perfect and consistent. I also just spent about 10-15 minutes using the rollerbrush to paint the entire tree! So quick and easy and no drips!

My favorite part! Removing the tape!

Now, this was the problem. There were some parts where the paint seeped through the tape causing jagged edges. What I did was buy a brown pentel pen and just traced over the jagged lines. Problem solved!

So again, this was Miley's boring blank wall BEFORE...

And this is how it looks AFTER! If you look closely on the bottom left part, you'll see the happy occupant of the room =)

After I showed this to my friends and family, I got so many requests to make murals for their rooms! But like I said, this is really a labor of love. If I wasn't so kuripot, I would have probably just gave it and bought the ready made wall decals to make my life easier. But still, its a different feeling knowing you worked on something yourself. I'll probably do one again for Sabre's room in the future. For now I'm just really happy with how beautiful this turned out! =)

Update: Sabe's 1st birthday party plans

I think I've finally decided on the theme for Sabre's 1st birthday party... SPORTS! I've been juggling with the more obvious choices of either Circus, Safari, or Airplane, but I've had friends who did the same themes and I didn't want to "copy" them hehe. Me and Vins finally decided on sports since it isn't that common compared to the others and it would be easy to buy decors and giveaways that fit the theme.

This is basically my peg for the party. At first, I was leaning on the colors blue and orange but when I saw this pic, I sort of had a change of heart. I was also in Toy Kingdom a few weeks ago and saw these green Happy Birthday Sports banners for sale at just P10 and P25 each! At that price, I had to buy them even if I don't know if I'll use them or not. Plus, me and Vins are both from La Salle so I think its a sign we should really choose green right? ;p

from www.projectnursery.com

I've already booked the venue, party decorator, host/magician, photographer, and the photobooth. I'm now working on the layout for the invite which will be the basis for all the other decors as well. I'm also looking for cookie and cupcake suppliers that can do the ball designs like in the photo. Anyway, now you know what's keeping  me busy these days! =)

Haircut, Color & Treatment at Creations Salon

I finally got to redeemed the voucher I got from CashCashPinoy on haircut, hair color, and treatment at Creations Salon.

Creations Salon by Lourd Ramos is located at the 3rd floor of Glorietta 5. The salon is quite small, they only have chairs for about 10 customers at a time. But the interiors and decorations looked nice. You can check for other photos in their website.

complimentary iced tea and magazines

I was seated in the area near the glass windows and it was really warm there. It was like there was no aircon, they just had an electric fan in that part of the salon. This was actually the only thing I didn't like about my experience there.

Anyway, the creative artist who attended to me was super nice (shucks I forgot his name, I think it was Joel?). He was so polite and accommodating. I really wanted to lighten the color of my hair so I chose the color Light Ash Blonde. I had my hair colored last year at a different salon and the artist suggested Light Brown which hardly changed the way my hair looked (and it cost a lot too)! Anyway, I'm really pleased with the finished product. The hair treatment they used was Cynos moisture deep recovery hair mask for that ultimate shine. For the haircut, I just asked for a slight trim since I'm growing out my hair so no major changes there.

If ever I need to have a haircut or have my hair colored again, I will definitely go back to Creations Salon (they just better get their aircon fixed). Unless I find another good deal on group buying sites haha! =)

Ash

The title of this post is so fitting because yesterday was Ash Wednesday and I also had my hair colored - Light Ash Blonde to be exact (more on that on my next post)!

It was so funny because I had no idea it was Ash Wednesday yesterday. After I got my hair done, I was walking around and saw people with crosses on their forehead. So it was a good thing I was already in the mall which meant I could catch the mass in Greenbelt. There was a 4:30pm mass but I found it a bit hot outside so I figured I would just wait for the 6pm mass. BIG MISTAKE. There were soooo many people and it was so crowded and hot! I had like an inch of space around me, it was that jampacked! I got a shot of the crowd after the mass and I couldn't believe I was down there in the middle of all those people earlier.

Anyway, I'll be blogging about my salon experience next so watch out for that. =)

The yellow onesie

Miley saw Sabe's yellow onesie on the bed and INSISTED that she wear it. She came up to me carrying the onesie and saying "wear, wear".

Once I put it on, she refused to take it off the whole morning. After a few days, she saw the onesie again and asked her Daddy to put it on her! She even fell asleep wearing this. I don't know if she likes the color yellow, or she misses wearing onesies, or just because it belongs to Sabe. =)

10 Things Never to Say to a Stay-at-Home Mom

Reposting this article I saw online on the 10 THINGS NEVER TO SAY TO A STAY-AT-HOME MOM. It's so funny since I really hear some of these statements whenever I tell someone I'm now a housewife and a full time mommy.

1. When the kids are older, do you think you'll get a real job? 

2. How June Cleaver of you! 

 
3. Oh, so you don't work? 

 
4. Since you have extra time on your hands, could you whip up a few dozen brownies for the bake sale tomorrow? 

5. All day with your kids? I can't even imagine. 

 
6. I'm jealous. I wish my husband were rich so I wouldn't have to work either.
 

7. What do you do all day, anyway? 

 
8. I'm sure you're not the only one who's ever wasted money on a college degree.
 

9. That explains why your son is so clingy!
 

10. Weird. I assumed your house would be superclean. 

-Candy Kirby of thelaughingstork.com, with help from her Twitter followers and friends

 

Photo Credit: Jamie Grill/Iconica/Getty Images

----o----

On the other end of the spectrum, reposting the article on the 10 THINGS NEVER TO SAY TO A WORKING MOM.

1. It must be hard missing all those special moments every day.

2. I suppose it's smart that you're working. You know, in case your husband leaves you some day.

3. I'm surprised you went back to work. Your husband seems so successful.

4. It's cute when they call your nanny "Mama."

5. I just love my kids too much to leave them during the day.

6. Did you see Dateline? The one with the hidden camera in the day care.

7. I could never let someone else raise my children. But that's just me!

8. I hated my mom because she was never home after school like everyone else's mom.

9. You must feel so guilty.

10. I wish I were as laid-back as you and could just let the housework go. 

-Liz Gumbinner of Mom-101.com, with help from her blog readers

Photo Credit: Henrik Sorensen/Iconica/Getty Images

----o----

I've experienced both situations and each has its pros and cons. When I was still working, I did feel guilty leaving Miley at home. I also felt so BAD whenever Miley would prefer her yaya over me. My heart would break when Miley would wake up and cry, and she wouldn't want me. She'd only stop when her yaya would come and carry her. That's when I decided that I wanted to try being a full time mom when I got pregnant again with Sabe. But despite the stress of my job, I have to admit that I also had fun working. I loved hanging out with my officemates. Working in Makati, I could just go to the mall on my lunch break or go out with my friends occasionally after work. I also enjoyed having my own money to buy what I wanted. You're not a bad mom if you choose to work rather than stay at home with your child. I believe some women are really career oriented and are happier knowing that they are providing for their children the best way they can. Or other moms have no choice and need to work because they can't afford to become a single income household.

I consider myself so lucky that I was given the chance to be a SAHM. I thank my husband for being so supportive of my decision to quit my job and take on this new role of being a housewife. I have to say though that now that I'm a SAHM, I've had more free time when I was still working even in a high pressure job such as advertising. When you're a full time mom, you don't get breaks or leaves. You're working every single minute of every day. But nothing is more rewarding than being there when your child does something for the first time or gives you a hug or kiss. Now, I'm happy to say that Miley always looks for me and has now grown quite attached to me. And whenever Sabe prefers me to carry him over anyone else, well that makes everything just worth it.

It's often been said that being a mom is the hardest job of all and I have to agree. So to all you mommies out there, working or at home, lets all give ourselves a pat on the back for taking on the very challenging job of being mothers.

Miley's Jungle Safari Party: DIY party hats

One of my most favorite projects I did for Miley's party was these DIY party hats. There are so many templates online that you can use and you just need to print these on cardboard paper, cut and roll them up, then stick the edges together with double sided tape.

The original hats I made looked like these. They already looked cute on their own, but I wanted to make them look extra festive. So I decided to add pompoms at the top!

The pompoms are actually very easy to do. I got the full tutorial here and I think these make a great addition to any party!

STEP 1: Get strips of crepe paper

STEP 2: Cut fringes along both sides

STEP 3: Scrunch up the strips just like you're crumpling a piece of paper. 
I used 2 strips of paper per pompom.

STEP 4: Tie a piece of string in the middle to keep the pompom together.

 STEP 5: Poof up the fringes at the top and bottom until it looks like a little ball.

 STEP 6: Put some masking tape on the top of your party hat.

 STEP 7: Stick the pompom on top.

Tada! Super cute hats both kids and adults can wear!

Miley's Jungle Safari Party: DIY cupcake toppers

I really enjoyed making these toppers for Miley's party which I used for her cupcakes and birthday cake. So easy to do! I got the design from the internet then I just used the following materials:

- cardboard paper
- toothpicks (for the cupcakes)
- popsicle sticks (for the cake)
- masking tape

Each cupcake from Cielin's cost less than P20 but I think they look so much more expensive thanks to the toppers. I want to do the same for Sabre's 1st birthday but we'll be having waaaay more guests so we'll see...

The cake design came up last minute. Thanks to extra toppers, I had the idea to also stick them on the cake to tie everything together!

Even the birthday girl couldn't keep her hands off them! =)

Miley's DIY Jungle Safari Party

I've been so busy these past few weeks in preparation for Miley's 2nd birthday. We weren't really supposed to do anything, but one thing led to another and suddenly we had friends and family coming over to celebrate with us. Being the OC/perfectionist/stage mom that I am, I wanted Miley to still have a fabulous party despite just celebrating at home.

I initially planned on just making a banner and some cupcake toppers at first, but when I found out we were having guests, well let's just say I went wild! I just love anything to do with parties, planning and organizing. I spent hours online looking for inspiration and tried my best to execute everything according to how I had envisioned it. I kind of wish I had more time to buy other stuff especially for the candy buffet I wanted to do, but I'm still extremely satisfied with how everything turned out.

Miley just loves animals so the obvious theme for her 2nd birthday party was JUNGLE SAFARI! I also love colors and prints so I also incorporated a lot of these in the decors. Did all the layouts in photoshop and printed them on bond paper or cardboard.

Bunting banners printed on bond paper and held up with yarn. So easy to do plus they make great backdrops for picture taking.

Did pom-poms out of crepe paper. Such a fun an inexpensive way to dress up a room for any occasion. Got the tutorial here.

Personalized bottle wrappers.

Party hats, one of my most favorite DIY projects! See how I did them here.

More decors! The zebra printed glasses where I placed the plastic spoons and forks are actually part of a toothbrush holder set. I wanted to do a candy buffet but didn't have time to buy glass containers to display them nicely. I just served Potchi (one of Miley's favorites) and Jelly Ace.

Bought cupcakes from Cielin's Cakehouse in BF and just added the DIY toppers. Loved the overall effect of the assorted designs!

 Chocolate cake also from Cielin's. Used the extra cupcake toppers to decorate the otherwise plain cake.

I still had too much cupcake toppers left over so I had an idea to stick them on upside down plastic cups and use them as centerpieces.

My mother-in-law prepared the loot bags filled with candy. I made the thank you tags and also did a JUNGLE JUNCTION (one of Miley's favorite shows) coloring book. I just went to the Disney Junior website and printed the colouring pages already provided there. I did the cover in photoshop and bound everything together with yarn. Viola!

Food, food, and so much food!

We invited Miley's neighborhood friends to come over for a playdate and they had a blast! No one wanted to go home.

Here's Miley on her brand new slide! A gift from her Mama and Lolo.

The kids had so much fun playing together!

Pure PANDEMONIUM! haha!

I had so much fun working on Miley's birthday that I made a promise to myself to try and do a themed party every year even if we're just celebrating at home. I have so many ideas already for next year!

I just have to share this photo! Miley looks like an elephant since the photo was taken right when she bit on the plastic cup! hahaha! Even Miley can't help but laugh everytime she sees this picture! She points to herself and says "cups!"

Happy birthday dear Miley! Now, off to work on Sabre's 1st birthday party which is happening this April!