baby lifestyles february-march 2012 magazine issue

4 wwwBabyLifestylescom d

Baby LifestylesLAUREN HALPERINPublisher Creative Director

TARA STEINLEManaging Editor

ELLEN FELDMAN KIMBERLY MISHContributing Editors

LOLA STEEVENSSales Director

AUSTIN ldquoMr Zrdquo RAPPAPORTWebsite Architect

MICHAEL GUSTMANSEO Management

Visit Baby Lifestyles online at wwwBabyLifestylescomfor inspiration real baby showers birthday parties nursery reveals hot products news updats

contests giveaways and more

Would you like to contribute to Baby Lifestyles Email our editorial staff at EditorBabyLifestylescom

Submit your baby shower birthday party or nursery to Baby Lifestyles at wwwBabyLifestylescom

For information about advertising in Baby Lifestyles Magazine and onlinecontact Lola Steevens at advertisebabylifestylescom

Follow us on Twitter BabyLifestyles1

Baby Lifestyles is published bi-monthly by Baby Lifestyles LLC All contents copy2011 Baby Lifestyles LLC All rights reserved

On the Cover

If yoursquore a fan of the childrenrsquos classicldquoThe Velveteen Rabbitrdquo then yoursquoll love

this gorgeous baby shower inspiredby the tailer tale on page 134

6 wwwBabyLifestylescom

IN EVERY ISSUE7 LETTER FROM THE EDITOR9 HOT PRODUCTS147 LAST CRY

STUFF WE LOVE9 HOLIDAY CARDS13 DIY ALPHABET ART15 DIY POM NURSERY NAME19 DIY BLOOMING HEART21 DIY PEARL ONESIE24 DIY STENCIL ART26 DIY VALENTINE CAKE RECIPE

PHOTOGRAPHY34 BIRTH STORY88 PHOTOGRAPHERrsquoS SHOWCASE106 UNDERWATER FANTASY

NURSERY REVEALS52 MODERN GIRL NURSERY56 MAKIrsquoS NURSERY64 SWEET RETREAT69 COLORFUL HOME68 GREEN PROVENCE74 BURST OF COLOR ROOM

BEHIND THE DESIGN78 CAROUSEL DESIGNS

CELEBRATIONS30 LEAP YEAR BABY96 FAIRY BALLERINA BIRTHDAY100 ENCHANTED GARDEN BRIS116 VALENTINE SHOWER124 END OF THE RAINBOW SHOWER134 VELVETEEN RABBIT SHOWER142 LORAX BIRTHDAY PARTY

CONTENTSFebruary March 2012

PAGE 142 PAGE 116 PAGE 124


wwwBabyLifestylescom 7

Instead of starting of the first Baby Lifestyles

magazine issue with my resolutions for 2012 I

thought Irsquod let you know a little about who is

running the show instead

I married my high school sweetheart on our

ten-year anniversary Irsquove already begun

planning a sweet sixteen anniversary party to

celebrate sixteen years together Yeah wersquore

those people

I own two thoroughbred horses which I ride

hunter jumper style at 3rsquo I ride up to five days a week for two hours first thing in the morninghellipbefore Irsquove even sent

out my first email of the day

My other kids also have four legs and fur Irsquom mommy to three Lhasa Apsos one of which we adopted last spring

Irsquom an avid marathon runner The picture is me and Tara posing with Mickey Minnie and Goofy at mile 9 during the

2012 Walt Disney World half marathon We ran in Tinkerbell costumes and took over 100 pictures during the race

The happiest place in my home is a spare bedroom upstairs that my husband graciously let me convert into an arts and

crafts room In my little haven I scrapbook like crazy and bedazzle anything I can get my hands on

If the day of the week ends in a lsquoYrsquo therersquos a good chance I have a sushi craving

If I could have any super power I would want the ability to talk to animals

So happy spring is approaching

Lauren HalperinPublisher amp Creative Director

Brittany SchwaigertGreyGrey Designs

Celebrating 2012 meanspresidential elections Olymics

and Leap Years

Brooke MayoBrooke Mayo Photography

Itrsquos important for all babies tolearn how to swim Brooke tookpictures of a swim class for this

issue

Glory AlbinGlorious Treats

If yoursquore looking for a specialValentinersquos Day treat at yourbaby shower Glory has

you covered

Gwynn WassonGwynn Wasson Designs

With a background in graphicsGwynn championed Dr SeussrsquoThe Lorax coming soon to a

theater near you

Jaime CostiglioThatrsquos My Letter

The best nurseries are the oneswhere parents get creative Getinspired by Jaimersquos nursery wall

art tutorial

Melissa Becker and KellieRoberts

Icing Designs

Fall in love with your baby asyou fall in love with this duorsquos

Valentinersquos Day party

We Heart our Contributors

Jennifer BillingsleyHoneycomb Events amp Design

The best myth of St PatrickrsquosDay is the pot of gold at the endof the rainbow Jennifer createda baby shower with this treasure

in mind

JordanKojo Designs

Jordan came up with a greattutorial to personalize yourbabyrsquos nursery room

Kristeen LeBrotKristeen LaBrot Events

Kristeen took the classicVelveteen Rabbit story andcreated a sensational babyshower for a lucky mom

Rebecca LopezThe Crafy Sparrow

Dress your baby girl up for herfirst Valentinersquos Day in a DIYcreation Coco Chanel would

be proud of

Shelley SmithHouse of Smiths

See how one little girl got to be afairy princess ballerina for her

birthday

VanessaPunkin Pattern

Decorate your Valentinersquos Dayparty with Vanessarsquos beautifulblooming heart of flowers


BBee MMiinneeVVaalleennttiinnee

CCaarrddss ffoorr KKiiddss

DDrr SSeeuussssCCllaassssiiccss

SStt PPaattrriicckkrsquorsquossDDaayy CCaarrddssHot 2012 Irish Greetings



E wwwBabyLifestylescom Odd

Jaime Thatrsquos My Letter was inspired to create alphabet card wall art after seeing the vintage alphabet canvas art soldat Restoration Hardware Deterred by the $320 pricemdashand the fact that it only came in pinkmdashshe shows us how you can produce your own custom alphabet card art for a

fraction of the price in the colors you choose

MATERIALS

- alphabet cards- saw tooth hangers- block of wood- stamp ink in brown

- paint in color of Martha Stewart Rainwater- Minwax stain in cherry- 3 black carpet tacks


DIRECTIONS

Step 1To fashion a distressed vintage look NAME distressed theedges of her alphabet cards using brown stamp ink

Step 2 Layout out the cards in order and cut the wood to the sizeof the finished layout ldquoI used 34 plywood scraps cut to 95w x125hrdquo

Step 3 Remove the cards and paint the front and sides of the woodpieces with two coats of paints Sand the edges of the wood to dis-tress Apply Minwax cherry stain

Step 4 Line up the alphabet cards and nail them into the woodusing 3 black carpet tacks

Step 5 For hanging add a saw tooth hanger to back of each panel


DDoo IItt YYoouurrsseellffYYaarrnn PPoomm PPeerrssoonnaalliizzeedd NNuurrsseerryy BBaannnneerr

When looking at her son Burkersquos big boy room one of Jordanrsquos of Kojo Designs favorite decorations is his pom pom name pennant which hangs over his crib Made of fun colored yarn discarded fabrics and a little craftiness she shows you how to create your own name pennant which will be perfect in a

nursery or as a decoration at a baby shower

MATERIALS- yarn in your palette- a pom pom maker- floral wire or craft wire- coordinating felt sheets in 9x12 cut in to dime sized circles

- coordinating grosgrain ribbon (3 yards were used in this pennant)

- a hot glue gun and hot glue

Optional materials- fabrics or Goodwill-bound t-shirts in your palette


DIRECTIONS

Step 1 Start making pom poms ldquoEach letter takes about twentypom pomsrdquo Here are a couple tutorials for using a pom pom makerto make yarn pom poms and jersey pom poms

Step 2 Print full page-sized outlines ofletters that spell your name or word ofchoice Bend floral wire or craft wire inplace to match each letter outline Doubling up the craft wire will give you a solid base for your pom poms HelpfulTip ldquoUse a fairly basic font- since youllbe bending wire to match your printoutsand dont want a ton of loops or serifsrdquo

Step 3 Tie your pom poms onto the wire letters all in a row ldquoSwitchup the colors so that you will have an even mix of your color paletteThe pom poms will be a little wiggle-y at this point dont worry aboutthatrdquo

Step 4 Cut out a stack of dime sized felt circles that match yourpalette You will need one circle for each pom pom

Step 5 Once your entire letter is cov-ered in pom poms secure the pom pomin place by hot gluing a felt circle to theback of the pom pom This will alsoglue it in place on the wire Whenyoure finished the back of your letterwill be lines of felt circles ldquoMy pompoms were close enough together thatthe felt circles touched each other in the


shape of the letterrdquo Repeat this process until you have a wholename or word of pom poms

Step 6 Attach a loop of grosgrain ribbon to the top of each of yourletters with hot glue If your letter has two tops (like my u) attachtwo loops

Step 7 Thread another piece or grosgrain ribbon through yourloops to make a pennant Use two coordinating colors of grosgrainif you please

Step 8 Hang your pennant and admire your color coordinated cus-tom room decor


DDoo IItt YYoouurrsseellffAA HHeeaarrtt ooff BBlloooommiinngg FFlloowweerrss

You loved your baby before they arrived so celebrate how much they already mean to you with this beautiful Blooming Heart decoration Whether making an appearance at your baby shower decorating babyrsquos nursery or adding extra loveto your Valentinersquos Day party Vanessa from Punkin Pattersshows you how to make a heart decoration that will wow

MATERIALS

- Cardstock in various colors and patterns- Foam in a heart shape (you can cut a round piece to this shape)

- Two sheets of craft felt- Push pins of 1rdquo- A flower craft punch- Ribbon for hanging


DIRECTIONS

Step 1 To prep the flowers simply punch out of the cardstock with thepunch and bent slightly in on itself to create a dimensional look andput your pin through the center

Step 2 Cover your foam heartwith felt by tracing the heart ontothe felt Cut two pieces one forthe top and one for the bottomand affix with push pins (or glueif you like) Measure the sides ofthe heart and cut strips of felt forsides Attach felt to the sidesmaking sure the entire foamheart is covered with felt ldquoDontworry if its not too accurate this

is just to hide the foam so you cant see it between the flowersrdquo

Step 3 Start adding your flowers ldquoIwanted a somewhat crowded look tothe flowers so I placed mine fairlyclose togetherrdquo Make sure you distrib-ute the patterns and colors well so youdont get clumps of one pattern or colorDont forget to cover the sides

Stetp 4 When youve covered theheart turn it over and add a ribbon forhanging ldquoI tied a little knot in the bot-tom for decoration You can attach theribbon to the heart with push pins orgluerdquo


DDoo IItt YYoouurrsseellffVVaalleennttiinneersquorsquoss DDaayy FFaauuxx PPeeaarrll BBaabbyy GGiirrll OOnneessiiee

What is your little girl going to wear this Valentinersquos Day Whether paired with a tutu or a pettiskirt a great craft to do for your babyrsquos first Valentinersquos Day outfit look no further than Rebecca of the Crafted Sparrow who created beautiful pearl and rosette onesies that would make even Coco Chanel smile ldquoI think this red gray amp black one is my favorite because I lovethe feathers I put with it Although the pink felt ball one remindsme of a cupcakes frosting and who doesnt love a cupcakerdquo

MATERIALS Onesie in the size and color ofyour choice (stick with the solid col-ors) Puffy paint in choice of color to co-ordinate with onesie Fabric or ribbon for the rosette

Glue gun Piece of heavy cardstock or card-board Needle and thread Optional ndash clothing snaps or velcro

Photography by Rhiannon from Raw Canvas Photography


DIRECTIONS

Step 1 Before you start putting painton the shirt you may want to mapout where you are going to place yourstrands of faux pearls ldquoI used a whitecolored pencil to lightly draw thestrands out ahead of time to be sure Iwas doing each strand straight and aseven as possible When everything isdry and set I then took a damp clothand wiped the white lines that werestill showing offrdquo

Step 2 Place a piece of cardboard orcardstock inside between the layers ofthe onesie This will give you a firmsurface and keep it from leakingthrough to the back side It will alsogive you firmer surface to work onHelpful Tip ldquoI also taped back theshoulder flaps if the onesie has thembefore I start the painting That waythey dont touch the paint until its dryrdquo

Step 3 Start with your first row ofbeads ldquoI made this onesie with mul-tiple strandssmallest to largest onthe bottom ldquoI like to do graduatingstrands that go from small to largebeads But you can do anything youwant Make them all small or bigor


alternaterdquo Once you are donewith your strands of beads orpearls you will need to let it sitand dry it a safe place for 24hours

Step 4 Create a rosette in anysize or color to coordinate withyour onesie Helpful Tip ldquoBrightcolors look great against blackonesies with white pearl beadsrdquoAfter the rosette is made attachit to your onesie with a needle

and thread Make sure to sew iton tight enough to withstandwashing and wearing ldquoAfter youmake them fabulous wash incold turned inside out and linedry themrdquo

Optional To change out therosettes periodically try largesew-on snaps

Show off how darling your babylooks in her custom onesie



DDoo IItt YYoouurrsseellffSStteenncciill NNuurrsseerryy WWaallll AArrtt

When it came to making wall art for daughter Elenirsquos room Destri of TheMother Huddle says creating custom stencil art quick easy and took only a few supplies to pull it off Forget stenciling this personalized art project can be made with simple fabric paper and spray paint

ldquoSpray paint therapy is the bestrdquo she said ldquoThe best part of this project is that you can customize it to match the room it will be used in Youcan make it for a boy or a girl and you can customize it to fit the theme and colors of the roomrdquo For Elenirsquos room Destri chose an alphabet but this easy to replicate stencil technique can work with

any word including your babyrsquos name

bull alphabet stencilbull spray paint (use bright white if you have a white mat)

bull scrap fabric or paper for the letters you can even use one sheet

bull glue stickbull frame


Step 1 Start with a clean stencil ldquoKeep in mind that it doesnrsquothave to be limited to just the alphabet there are a lot of fun sten-cils that this project would be fun forrdquo

Step 2 Begin spray paintingldquoI did multiple light layers ofpaint until I reached the cov-erage I liked Let the paintdry in between coatsrdquo Help-ful Tip Destri likes to putanything she is spray paint-ing in a box as it helps tocontain the mess to the boxBy doing this you also wonrsquothave to worry about anythingblowing onto the wet paint

Step 3 Once the stencil has dried turn it over and glue on the paperor fabric You can use small or largesheets of paper or fabric ldquoI had littleswatches of fabric that I cut to fit over theletters Just put a little glue around theletter then stick on the fabric or paperthen rub to sealrdquo

Step 4 Add a frame and you have apiece of personal art to hang So manypossibilities with this one


OOmmbbrree SSwwiirrll VVaalleennttiinnee CCaakkee

From the runways to shower curtains the gorgeous graduatedlayers of ombre colors are popping up all over the placeFor Glory of Glorious Treats she wanted to bake a cake with great texture on the outside of the cake without

creating time consuming fondant ruffles Not only did her delicious cake include rose-like swirls on the outside it also featured pink ombre shading on the inside makingit the perfect dessert for your babyrsquos first Valentinersquos

Day celebration


INGREDIENTS FOR CAKEYour favorite boxed vanilla cake mixBAKING INSTRUCTIONS FOR CAKEStep 1 Divide the batter as evenly as possible between fivebowls and add your color To color her cakersquos batter Gloryused Americolor gels in soft pink electric pink and touch ofelectric purple in only the darkest layer

Step 2 Line your pans with parchment paper and grease andflour them to prepare Add the batter to prepared cake pansBake and fully cool the cakes Helpful Tip If you do not havefive matching cake pans bake the layers separately

INGREDIENTS FOR FROSTING1 12 cup (3 sticks) butter (salted or unsalted)12 teaspoon salt (if using unsalted butter)6 cups powdered sugar1 12 teaspoon vanilla extract (best quality available)3-4 tablespoons heavy cream half and half or milk

FROSTING INSTRUCTIONSStep 1 Prepare a batch of American Buttercream FrostingDivide the frosting between four bowls with one bowl havinga bit more than the others ldquoThe one with the most will be thelightest color because its used for the top as well as one rowof swirlsrdquo Glory colored the frosting with Americolor soft pinkand added a little electric pink for just the darkest colorHelpful Tip You might want to reserve a small amount of frost-ing (about 1 cup) in the mixing bowl to use between the lay-ers and to very thinly frost the outside (crumb coat)


ASSEMBLY INSTRUCTIONSStep1 Layer the cakes starting with the darkest on the bot-tom and frost with a very thin layer of icing between eachlayer Helpful Tip Because I didnt want too much frosting be-tween the layers to detract from the colors of the cake Ibrushed each layer of cake with warmed cherry jam Alongwith any other flavor of jam you could also use a simple syruporange juice or omit this step Step 2 Frost the outside of the cake with a thin layer of frost-ing Smooth as well as you can but it doesnt need to be per-fect Place the entire cake in the freezer about 10 minutes forthe icing to set and the whole cake will firm up making it mucheasier to decorateStep 3 Prepare a piping bag with a 21 Wilton tip a moder-ate sized open star Fill piping bag with the darkest color icingRemove cake from freezer and start along the bottom of thecake creating rows of swirls For each swirl start in the cen-ter of the rose shape and pipe in a spiral around the centerabout 1 12 rotations Continue along the bottom of the cakecreating rose-like swirls Step 4 Repeat with remaining colors of icing ldquoYou may findthat there will be some areas in each row that dont get fullycovered to fill in the little empty spaces just squeeze in someicing in a curved shapemdashlike a Cmdashto mimic the rest of theswirls a bit ldquoFor the top of the cake I used a combination ofswirls and some C curves for a looser wavy effectrdquo5 Once fully frosted store the in the refrigerator until readyto serve


Froggy Leap Year Party

By Brittany Schwaigert


There is one kind of birthday party that you can only have every four years--a leap year birthday party As 2012 is a leap year BBrriittttaannyy ooff GGrreeyy GGrreeyy DDeessiiggnnss decided that to celebrate all the leap year babies in style on their lsquoholidayrsquo Herersquos lsquohoppingrsquo thisinspires you to have a party on February 29 which you can only

celebrate once every four years

Her vision was a birthday party for Leap Year kids to celebrateturning fourhellipor one As a mom to boys who love slimy and grossthings she knew a leaping frog party would be right up their alley

Brittany started with a monochromatic green color palette and usedoversized flowers as a backdrop because they reminded her of

lilypads In addition she found green votives that also had the samelook For the front of the table she used simple chipboard letters

and glittered scrapbook letters to spell the word ldquoleaprdquo



ldquoI love the idea of having all green food and drinks and I knew boyswould love that too Since my son is abig fan of pistachios I added

pistachio pudding or ldquoLilypad Puddingrdquo I garnished the pudding withthese small frog candy melts that I made using a mold from WiltonrdquoAnother addition to the hopping dessert table were chocolate andmint marshmallows A great miniature fork display provided cute

bite-sized treat for the kids ldquoKids love things that are individualizedIt makes them feel specialrdquo She wrapped each fork with a pipecleaner to give it extra color ldquoGreen olives would also be a

cute touch on these little forksrdquo She also added coconut MampMs to the table and called them ldquoFrog Eggsrdquo

ldquoPaula of Frog Prince Paperie made these great drink wraps for mewhich I used with green sparkling juice I added some glittery

scrapbbook paper behind them to make them look extra specialrdquo


BBiirrtthh SSttoorryyPPhhoottooggrraapphhyy bbyy AAllyyssssaa MMaarriiee MMaarrttiinneezz


ldquoHave you ever photographed a birthrdquo asked Brittany to photographer Alyssa MarieMartinez a few months into her pregnancy ldquoNordquo Alyssa replied

with a slight consciousness of where this conversation was headed Alyssa soon after accepted an offer to photograph Brittanyrsquos second birth of her baby girl ldquoI love taking on new challenges with my photography but let

me honest I donrsquot think I have ever been so nervous to photograph somethingrdquoAlyssa did research on other photographers that shoot births to make sure sheknew exactly what to get especially being that she had never even been insidethe room during a birth before ldquoDid it seem strange to me at first Yes but this is one of the most special days in a personrsquos life after a wedding Why wouldnrsquot anyone want to remember this incredible moment being unfolded I have to say this was one of the most remarkable experiences I have ever had so far through photographyrdquoAs the night of September 4th grew late andbaby Mabel was still not ready to come out By then we were aware that her birthday would for sure be September 5th Labor Day The time finally arrived

for this precious little girl to enter the world















Christine of Just Bella Blog has astyle thatrsquos modern and classicbut with a contemporary twistWith a love for mixing old and newwith new pieces thrifty finds andeven a few pre-loved hand-me-downs she created a modern min-imalist nursery for her daughterAlice

ldquoWe didnrsquot know the gender of ourlittle babe so I really wanted a roomthat would work for either a boy orgirl Irsquove always loved the teal gray

combo and added pops of yellowto keep it fresh Theyrsquore such funbright colors that I feel really workfor either a boy or girlrdquo She choseSarah Richardsonrsquos Escarpmentfrom Para Paints or its soothinghue with green undertones

The first piece Christine pur-chased was the Jenny Lind CribldquoIrsquove loved that crib long before Iwas even pregnant and am sohappy it made it into the room Itsuch a classic timeless piece and

A Nursery to MakeYou Smile

By Tara Steinle



my favorite part is seeing howcute and tiny Alice looks whenshersquos in itrdquo

She then chose Tula Pink Rain-drop fabric for the crib skirt whichwas the jumping off point for thecolors in the room ldquoI used coor-dinating fabric from the same lineand along with my sisterrsquos helpmade a baby quilt that matchesthe crib skirtrdquo

As guests enter the room theyare immediately drawn to the

Maskros pendant light as it castspretty patterns and shadowsacross Alicersquos nursery ldquoAt only$7999 it makes such a big impactin the room The key to greatshadows is installing a dimmerswitchrdquo

The ldquoYou are My Sunshinerdquo printwas a happy accidental detail asit matches the shape of the piecesin the chandelier almost perfectlyIt wasnrsquot until it was even in theroom that Christine noticed thesimilarity ldquoI also love the old andvintage books--Alice and Won-derland especially--and the woodcarvingsrdquo The artistic numberword artwork canvas set was aneasy and inexpensive DIY projectldquoI got pieces of canvas on sale atMichaelrsquos and wrapped and sta-pled fabric around them The fab-ric was IKEArsquos lsquoNummerrsquo fabricand was only $399meterrdquo

The last and most difficult piece tochoose was her chair ldquoBut it wasworth all the effort I have loggedmany hours sitting there enjoyingand feeding little Alicerdquo



Nursery by the NumbersBy Tara Steinle



With two parents for architectsand designers Baby Cataldo wasgoing be residing in a fabulousroom ldquoBoth of us have a similardesign style - we love blendingmodern clean lines with pops ofcolor and texturerdquo As soon as herparents Anthony and Naomi knewto decorate for a girl they jumpedright into the design ldquoItrsquos a laborof love for us since we both wentto school for design and thor-oughly enjoy envisioning an ideain the form of a sketch or conceptand seeing it through to comple-tion by doing it all ourselvesrdquo

Naomi knew she didnrsquot want thetypical baby girlrsquos room aestheticwith pink pink and more pinkThey found inspiration from othernurseries online as well as theirweekend trips to Architectural sal-vage shops and favorite retailersldquoAt the beginning of our designprocess we ruled out a lot of whatwe knew we didnrsquot want for theroom to be based on a specificcharacter or animal theme whichallowed us to focus on creating amore graphic element to theroom--the number wall-- as themain featurerdquo

The color scheme they went withis a SalmonCoral with a warmGrey ldquoWe knew we wanted aroom that was in keeping with thecontemporary feel of the rest ofour house but also had lsquojustenoughrsquo feminine touches so itwould feel comfortable as our littlegirlrsquos roomrdquo After coming acrossan image of a nursery with greywalls white furniture and dustypink accents it struck a chordUsing the warm grey as the basewas an easy decision from thatpoint on but they knew theywanted darker furniture for a morecontemporary look and a slightlydeeper accent for the room

The details are the things Naomiloves most about the room and arealso the items that took the longestfor them to finish before unveilingthe room to their friends and family

The cast aluminum ldquoamprdquo sign wasfound at a local architectural sal-vage shop It was part of the origi-nal ldquoBaltimore Opera amp Companyrdquosign on their building ldquoWe pur-chased the ldquoamp Companyrdquo portionsinstalled the ldquoCompanyrdquo in our din-ing room and knew we wanted to


use the ldquoamprdquo in the nursery in someway While putting together the col-lage art wall this piece worked sowell in the arrangement we knewwe found the right spotrdquo

Naomi then decided that theywould hang painted white lettersspelling baby girlrsquos name fromthe rails of the piece to reallybring it all together The monkeyand giraffe on the wooden swingwere spotted in a childrenrsquos toyshop in Prague CZ ldquoWe foundout Naomi was pregnant a week

after we booked our trip toPrague so not only are they cutebut they remind us of our first va-cation as a soon to be family ofthreerdquo

The white ceramic and paintedwood owls are also among theirfavorite items in the room ldquoWelove owls in the nursery but didnrsquotwant it to feel like lsquoowl overloadrsquoso we added just a few aroundthe roomrdquo The ceramic owl wasfound in a local antique co-opshop where they loved the shape


and size but not the finish Origi-nally a mix of yellow brown andorange glaze it got a quick sand-ing priming and spray in glosswhite ldquoAnthony actually made theother two owls He cut them fromsome scrap wood from our base-ment renovation and painted themby hand They add just the rightamount of personality to the room

They had a hard time looking formobiles so when they happenedacross this seed pod mobile atBaltimorersquos Artscape Festival it

was instant love ldquoEach of the col-ored spheres are actual plantseeds from Barbados that are col-ored with a natural dye and at-tached to aluminum tubesrdquo

The number wall was a conceptAnthony and Naomi had seen be-fore sometimes with numbers andsome with letters They loved theidea but wanted to recreate it in away that was both personal andunique to them and also so that itdidnrsquot overtake the small room Tocreate the wall they simply added


some white or black paint to thesamples of the wall color and ad-justed as they liked using somegloss finish on some of them sothey catch the light in the morningand add more dimension to thewall But to start they decided touse numbers that are special tothem birthdays lsquoluckyrsquo numbersimportant numbers ldquoSeeing lsquoourrsquonumbers on the wall helps makethe room feel special and cozy Wethink of the special places orevents linked to them and are re-minded of some great memories It

gets us excited to be able to pointto the numbers on the wall andbegin teaching our little girl tocount while recalling why they aremeaningful to usrdquo

To balance out the number wallthey chose to do a collage artwall Because of their budgetthey used frames they alreadyhad and painted all the non-metalframes white to unify everythingldquoWe see this wall constantlyevolving with new photos printsand artwork but to begin we


have one of our favorite sono-gram images of our little lsquoMakirsquordquo

They also loved this owl alphabetprint we saw on an Etsy shop ldquoThecolors were great and we loved thesubtle owl it was also a nice bal-ance to the numbers on the adja-cent wall We received some reallybeautiful cards from friends andrelatives at the baby shower andinstead of just throwing them awaywe cut the front off of our favoritesand framed them on the wall tooWe bought the tree and birdprinted paper when we were plan-ning our dresser make-over andsince we didnrsquot use it there and stillloved the print we added it to thewall as wellrdquo

To break up some of the rigid linesand add some pops of color theypicked up some very inexpensiveembroidery hoops painted themwhite and then put some leftovercurtain fabric in them

ldquoWe love that each wall and cor-ner of the room has an elementthat allows the overall feel of theroom to be contemporary cre-ative and cozy Our advice to

other parents is to really look forimages of other rooms that inspireyou Therersquos no right way to dec-orate a nursery you should becreating a space that you feelcomfortable inrdquo

Readers will probably notice thelsquoMakirsquo on the wall Anthony andNaomi decided to only share hername with the world after she wasborn ldquoWe had been calling herlsquoMakirsquo as a nickname throughoutthe pregnancy It comes from thename of one of our favorite sushirolls that came to mind the dayNaomi shared the news Now thatshersquos here her name is Gabriellardquo

Crib - Graco lsquoLaurenrsquo crib fromWalmartcomBedding ndash Guava Ground andPink Lemonade Ground fromGarnet HillDresser - Hoppen dresser fromIkea with Zinnia wrapping paperfrom Paper SourceChair - Little Castle Glider withlsquoVerarsquo fabric from BuyBuyBabyMini Chandelier ndash Kristaller fromIkea


MMooddeerrnn aanndd EEaarrtthhyy BBaabbyy NNuurrsseerryyBByy TTaarraa SStteeiinnllee


At 30 weeks pregnant Kris-tine of The Painted Hive ended upin hospital where she stayed onsojourn for the last two monthsof her pregnancy ldquoGiving it asweet name derived from oldFrench makes it sound so muchmore appealing I had many of-fers of help to get the room donethough I felt it was something Ineeded to do myself Irsquom a self-taught interior decorator so I rel-ished in doing it all myselfrdquo

When she was finished herdaughter Charlotte had a perfectneutral space with nothing tooflashy or poppy ldquoI find it hard todefine my style Itrsquos comfortableearthy neutral textural and realItrsquos an eclectic mix of subtle vin-tage and modern cottage withsome provincial elements I drewon elements I love then pulledthem all togetherrdquo The designadage of lsquoform follows functionrsquo isneeded nowhere if not in a nurs-ery So Kristine started with whatwas practical then built around itto design this tiny room ldquoBeing soteeny tiny about thisbig it madeit a tricky little space to decoraterdquo

To give the room dimensioncharm and crispness Kristine

dressed the walls with simplewhite board and batten She re-tained the original Dulux ChalkUSA paint color on the wall be-cause it was already a warm-neu-tral color ldquoIrsquom too fickle to commitmyself to a certain color so al-ways tend to lean towards mutedneutrals I chose warm tones inthis instance so the room feelscozy and invitingrdquo

The wardrobe doors whichKristine considered generic andold had to go Kristine gave thema facelift in the form of chalkboardpaint and custom alphabet de-cals After they were removedshe painted the metal beigeareas with black enamel spraypaint and the rest of the doors gottwo coats of chalkboard paintldquoAfter a few days curing time I at-tached alphabet decals which Ihad custom made in Poor Richardfont They remind me of a class-room blackboard - I really lovethemrdquo

After finding her crib for asteal of $40 on eBay Kristine de-bated about what color and finishto make it She eventually landedon a subtle warm grey usingacrylic paint so it would be safe



when Charlotte grew and startedputting her mouth on it Finishingit with a subtle glaze and light dis-tressing she also replaced theplastic castor wheels with an an-tique porcelain set taken from anold Edwardian chair

ldquoI knew from the get-go that Iwanted an original antique to useas the change table Eventually Ifound a reasonably priced gor-geous old mid 1800s cedar chestof drawers on eBay I adore thepatina and proportions We keepall the change-time paraphernaliain the top drawers so its com-

pletely accessible when neededthough otherwise kept neatly hid-den awayrdquo

The window in the room sitsslightly to the right so to createthe illusion of symmetry Kristinehung the curtains centrally cover-ing the frame and allowing it to vi-sually center To add a lovelyorganic feel to the room shemade the mobile using hand-carved timber birds and laser cutmetal leaves For a personaltouch she even added sometwigs from her backyard Fun afunky touch she created the ceil-


ing light fixture from an old zincbasket and a lamp stand from arepurposed brake fluid drum

Upon entering Charlottersquosroom the vintage gallery art wallbecomes visible ldquoI love the vi-sual interest of a gallery wall andknew early on that I wanted to in-corporate one Most of the mis-matched vintage frames arefrom thrift stores others I al-ready ownedrdquo She decided onbirds to keep with the theme ofthe mobile filling them with freeprintable art

Source and Price GuideLinen Curtains IKEA $90Textured Blackout Roller BlindLincraft $80Antique Chest eBay $300Cot eBay $40Rocking Chair eBay $100Lamp Stand DIY Project $5Lamp Sokol $110 (wholesale)Cane Storage Baskets Kmart $14Wire Basket Ceiling Light DIYProject $15Wicker Waste Basket The RejectShop $10Fitted Ticking Sheet Target $15Throw Blanket Spotlight $20


AA SSwweeeett aanndd CCoolloorrffuull BBaabbyy NNuurrsseerryyBByy TTaarraa SStteeiinnllee


Like many parents Sarahfrom Pewter + Sagersquos favoriteroom in her home is her daughterMaurarsquos nursery ldquoWe spend somuch great family time here Welove playing in her room we enjoyquiet time together right beforenaps and bedtime here and Ivelogged countless hours nursingand rocking her hererdquo But besidesthe love she experiences in theroom itrsquos also the best example inher home of her current decoratingstyle ldquoI did something differentlywith this room from a design stand-point when I started putting it to-gether as well I really went for itrdquo

A mix of hand-me-downs andnew items itrsquos also full of gifts fromall the special people in Maurarsquoslife The bedding was a presentfrom her grandma and aunt Thereare also personal items of Sarahand her husband which she hadsaved over the years adding thatspecial vintage and personaltouch ldquoMy aunt painted the Mup-pets painting for me for my 3rdbirthday Therersquos also one of mycopybooks from first grade and apair of my baby shoesrdquo

Some antique finds (like 19thcentury hand-colored botanical lith-

ographs give the room a bit of so-phistication while old school paperchains (that Sarah made forMauras first birthday party lastmonth and decided to hang fromher ceiling afterward) keep it alllight and fun and whimsical

The walls started off creambut were painted Benjamin Moore(Natura) Heaven on Earth andbrought the color up onto the an-gled part of the ceiling to accentu-ate the height Sarahrsquos sister-in-lawand mother-in-law were generousenough to get us the crib beddingshe wanted as part of their showergift Itrsquos Sophie Nursery Beddingfrom Pottery Barn Kids and in-spired the color palette in the room ldquoWe did one of the big no-nos ofnurseries and went with a usedcrib One of our best friends justmoved their 2 12 year old to hertoddler bed and offered us theircrib After checking the model on-line and making sure it was safewe decided to take them up on itrdquoShe decided to put up AlphabetCards above the crib as this wallhad the height

One of Sarahrsquos splurges werefloor-length patterned drapes Afterseeing them while flipping through



a catalog she changed her mindabout what she was going to do forwindow treatments ldquoI love the popof the pink drapes against the bluewalls And theyve got this greatlarge scale floral pattern that playsnicely with the small stripes dotsand flowers in the beddingrdquo

As a gift for her third birthdaySarahrsquos aunt painted the Muppetsfor her She liked the fun and brightcolors they added to the room sothey were the starting point for hershelf vignette ldquoIn our basementtheres a big tupperware tub la-beled Sarahs Childhood - its full

of old stuff of mine that I rescuedfrom my parents house when theywere moving a few years agoThats where I found copybooksfrom first grade where I practicedmy spelling words I also found apair of my old babys shoes that mymom had saved The little woodendinosaur toy was a gift from one ofmy good friends when she firstfound out we were pregnant In thebottom right hand corner you cansee just a bit of one of the cute il-lustrated greeting cards I bought inPEIrdquo


On the right side of the shelf Sarahstarted with this childrenrsquos bookcalled When Pigasso met Moo-tisse mostly because of its yellowcover which helped to balance outthe Muppets painting but also be-cause it was a gift for one of herbirthdays when collected chil-drenrsquos books just for their art ldquoItook the other greeting card by il-lustrator Julie St-Onge-Drouin ofKetto mounted it on some stripedscrapbook paper and framed it forhere And theres the Z the lastalphabet flash card that wouldnt fitin the grid over the cribrdquo



TThhee CCoolloorrss ooff SSpprriinngg NNuurrsseerryyBy Tara Steinle


Wanting something fun and girlywith modern and vintage accentsand without a real theme Nicolefrom Nicole Faby Photographyput together this bright and color-ful room for her daughter Sloan ldquoIwas inspired by colors of springand summer aqua water pinkflowers and yummy yellowgolden summer lightrdquo

Nicole had her heart set on a yel-low crib for her daughter Whenshe was pregnant with her sonLuke she had just moved into herhouse ldquoI did not put the properthought into his room and he

ended up with a very cute andsweet pottery barn baby blueroom But it was boring and so notvery me I wanted this room to re-flect my dreams for our little girlFull of sunshine and color andhappy I think this crib exudes allthese emotionsrdquo It may have takenten cans of spray paint and fourseparate spraying sessions butNicole got the crib of her dreams

ldquoLucas was a pacifier child I amembarrassed to admit how longhow he them I bought an obsceneamount and lost just as many Iknew this time around we needed


a better system for storing themrdquoWith a little ingenuity Nicoletransformed a jewelry cabinet intoa pacifier storage cabinet ldquoWhenshe is done with pacifiers it can beused for its actual purposerdquo

Nicole wanted items that couldtransition from baby to toddlerand one day pre-teen and teenOne of her visions was somethingfun on the ceiling Originally shewanted to wallpaper it but it wastoo much of an undertaking whenshe was in her second trimesterShe instead used fun and colorfulvinyl stickers ldquoI love the pops ofcolor they providerdquo

Curtains and yellow damaskpillow This Little HomePink and teal flower pillow andOwl Pillow Perfect Chance MemoriesCustom Crib Bedding PLJ DesignVinyl Flowers ceiling Urban WallsFrame The Organic BloomJewelry holder used for pacifiersUrban OutfittersSwing Shelves DIY my own ideaSoda CrateShutterbooks Vin-tage Flea Market FindsMirrortrashcan homegoodsRug Ikea


Behind the Designs of Carousel DesignBy Lauren Halperin

Itrsquos quite uncommon to see two men in the baby businesswhere women dominate But Jonathan Hartley and Allan Sicat

have learned to embrace their uniqueness in theindustry With backgrounds in the military and business worldthis dynamic duo leverage their operations and technology

focus combine that with the creativity of their design team andproduce a winning result of gorgeous crib bedding


At its core Carousel De-signs is a family business Myparents started this company in1988 and my siblings and Igrew up working here beforegoing on to college Jonathanrsquosparents started the company in1988 and he and his siblingsgrew up working there beforegoing on to college

ldquoWhen Allan and I tookover in 2007 we kept thename because we respect thetradition and legacy of thecompany and also becausewe like what the termldquocarouselrdquo brings to mind Uvariety We strive to help ex-pectant parents create theirperfect nursery and we try tohave something for everyoneBoth Allan and I hope to passsimilar experiences on to ourown kids maybe as they growolder getting them involved inthe business in some wayrdquo

As they anticipated father-hood Jonathan and Allanwere inspired by how theirwivesmdashwho were both ex-

pecting their first babies--enjoyed spending time in thedesign studio playing withfabrics and creating customcrib bedding for their nurs-eries They knew that if theycould provide the same expe-rience online they could giveprospective parents the abilityto design the perfect beddingand visualize their nursery be-fore making their purchasethey could offer real value toour customers and make surethat every mom gets exactlywhat she wants

After graduating WestPoint Military Academy withthe same major the two pur-chased the business from theHartley family in 2007 ldquoAfterwe got out of the army we de-cided it was the right time totake over the businessJonathan said I wantedsomeone like Allan and he hadmoved his family to Georgia Itseemed like a good idea

Like many things workingside by side with your best


friend is a blessing but canalso be a challenge ldquoThereare times that we agree andtimes that we disagree on cer-tain thingsrdquo Allan said ldquoBut atthe end of the day becausewe have shared experienceslike going to West Point to-gether and serving in theArmy we understand eachotherrsquos values and respecteach otherrsquos opinions Wersquovealso been business partners

for going on five years At thispoint we probably know eachother better than anyone otherthan our wivesrdquo Both of theirwives are also now involvedwith Allanrsquos wife Leah leadingthe marketing efforts andJonathanrsquos wife Sara assist-ing with designing making it areal family affair

With Jonathans experi-ence in technology and ecom-merce and Allans background


in business operations and fi-nance they set out to makesure that Carousel Designsprovided expectant moms withthe absolute best experiencein decorating their babys firstroom ldquoOur unofficial motto isldquoMom gets what mom wantsrdquoAllan said ldquoWe offer a varietyof styles from modern con-temporary looks to more tradi-tional patterns and themesWe really want every expect-ing mom who buys from us to

feel like she got exactly whatshe was looking forrdquo

Theyrsquore not only the brainsbehind the operation they arealso clients When Jonathanand his wife Sara were ex-pecting their third son Hanklast year they created a cus-tom crib bedding set that hassince become a pre-designedcollection for sale atwwwbabybeddingcom Itrsquoscalled Blue and Green GiddyDot ldquoWhen yoursquore designing


your third ldquoboyrdquo nursery youhave to get creativerdquo Parent-hood keeps them busy Allanhas a five-year-old daughterand a 17-month son to keephim very active and Jonathanis father to three little boysages 6 4 and 10 monthswhich keep him on his toes

And while other baby bed-ding companies began toslowly but surely send theirproduction overseasCarousel Designs resistedBesides being unwilling tocompromise our commitmentto quality we also offered ourcustomers unmatched person-alized service and the ability tocustom design their babysbedding mdash neither of which ispossible unless your productis made right here in theUSA So we stayed focusedand concentrated on being thebest at helping the discerningexpectant mother outfit herperfect nursery

Carousel Designs offersmore than 100 pre-designed

collections and over different300 fabrics on their websiteVisitors might have a specificneed in mind when they arriveat the website but theyrsquollspend hours mixing andmatching a variety of fabricsand textures

ldquoWe find that parentsgenerally like to take one oftwo different approaches todecorating their nurseriesrdquoJonathan said ldquoSome usetheir crib bedding as a designfocal point so they choosebright vibrant patterns that re-ally draw the eye like our newLime Solar Flair collection Orthey might have other nurserydeacutecor that they would like tobe the focal point for the roomso the bedding should becomplementary If this is thecase they might choose solidcolors or simple neutral pat-terns such as our new LightPink Linen crib bedding

But what truly setsCarousel Designs apart fromother bedding companies is

their Nursery Designer onlinedesign tool It gives you thecontrol to see all the fabriccomponents of the nurserywithout ever having to stepfoot in a fabric store ldquoNo otherbaby bedding company has atool that allows parents to de-sign their own crib beddingsee it online and choose otherelements of the nursery to pre-view the room prior to pur-chaserdquo explained Allan Withfew clicks of your mouseyoursquoll be tinkering with paint

colors fabric swatches furni-ture finishes and more takingall the guesswork out of whatis often a stressful project

With their new 30 tech-nology you can mix and matchfabrics and component styleschange the color of the nurs-ery walls choose a crib finishand pick flooring to design avirtual nursery ldquoBedding is im-portant from a design stand-pointrdquo Jonathan said ldquobutanother deacutecor item that manyparents feel ldquocompletesrdquo the


room is window treatmentsrdquoThe Carousel Designs websiteeven allows you to uploadyour design choices to yourFacebook page in case youwant some input from yourstyle-conscious friends

Jonathan and Allan al-ways find it exciting whencelebrities choose to outfittheir babyrsquos nursery with theirbaby bedding and from thelist of Ivanka Trump SelmaBlair Jason Bateman andmore they should be gettingused to the feeling SaturdayNight Live alum Rachel Dratchdebuted her nursery on ldquoTheNate Berkus Showrdquo Shechose to use the Carousel De-signs Nursery Designer to cre-ate custom baby bedding forher nursery but itrsquos very simi-lar to their Black amp White Dotsamp Stripes crib bedding collec-tion Interior Designs LittleCrown Interiors also used theNursery Designer when theydecorated Laila Alirsquos nurserywith gorgeous custom crib

bedding Most of the textiles inher room including the fabu-lous blackout curtains weremade by Carousel Designs

More than an American-run company Carousel De-signs is committed to keepingjobs here in the USA Whilemany other baby beddingcompanies have sent theirproduction and manufacturingoverseas Carousel keeps thejobs here so they can controlthe quality of their items andbe flexible to the demands oftheir customers while support-ing American families

ldquoFor us being made in theUSA is a huge advantagerdquoJonathan said ldquoItrsquos the onlyway that we can have com-plete control over our produc-tion process and maintain thehighest level of quality It alsomeans that we can offer un-paralleled flexibility to our cus-tomers Because all of ourproducts are made in our facil-ity in Georgia we can offerturnaround times of 3-5 days


Boxer Laila Alirsquos nursery featuring Carousel Designs bedding


for custom bedding comparedto an industry standard of 6-8weeks Wersquore also proud tocontribute to the economy byproviding jobs to local work-ersrdquo

Over the years CarouselDesigns has supported foun-dations and research organi-zations that work towardfinding cures for illnesses thatafflict our children includingthe Rally Foundation Thisnonprofit empowers volun-teers across the country toraise awareness and funds forchildhood cancer research tofind better treatments withfewer long-term side effectsand ultimately cures

Atlanta Braves catcherand three-time All-Star BrianMcCann along with his wifeAshley are actively involved inraising awareness and helpingto raise funds for the RallyFoundation and serve asspokespeople for the RallyFoundation for ChildhoodCancer Research At the

Foundationrsquos 4th annual Ben-efit Bash in Atlanta with hostAtlanta Braves catcher BrianMcCann and Mizuno BigLeague Players Carousel De-signs was thrilled to be able tocontribute crib bedding for thesilent auction portion of theevent with all proceeds bene-fiting the Rally Foundation forChildhood Cancer Research

ldquoAs a veteran-owned busi-ness we understand the im-portance of selfless serviceand we greatly appreciate thesacrifices that members of ourarmed forces make on a dailybasisrdquo Jonathan said

As West Point graduatesCarousel Designs has a spe-cial place in their hearts for or-ganizations that provideassistance to US militaryservice members and theirfamilies They regularly pro-vide products and financialsupport to non-profit organiza-tions that reflect our valuesand that are working to makethe world a better place


ldquoWe heard about Opera-tion Shower in early 2010 andbecame active supportersshortly thereafterrdquo Allan said

ldquoWhen we heard abouttheir mission of providingamazing baby showers tospouses of deployed servicemembers we knew we had toget involved Both from a busi-ness and from a personalstandpoint our two organiza-tions are a perfect fit and wefeel good about supportingthis wonderful causeWe bothcome from military familiesand wersquove served ourselvesso we understand what thesemoms are going through Dur-ing what should be a joyoustime in their lives they may beenduring a separation due todeployment Itrsquos tough and wewant these military moms andtheir families to know howmuch we appreciate themSponsoring Operation Showerevents and donating our prod-ucts to these deserving momsmakes us feel great Itrsquos a

small way for us to show howmuch we appreciate all thesacrifices military familiesmake for our freedomrdquo

Carousel Designs is al-ready planning for the futureWhat does a parent do whentheyrsquove created the perfectmost beautiful nursery foryour precious baby and theunthinkable happensUtheygrow up With their recentlylaunched Kids Bedding lineCarousel Designs now offers afull line of twin full and queenbedding Their duvet coverspillow cases and shams andbed skirts will help transitionyour little one as they growsout of their crib but you donrsquotwant to completely redecoratetheir room

ldquoThe past few years havebeen an amazing journeyrdquoAllan said ldquoJonathan and I areproud of where Carousel De-signs is today and we look for-ward to what the future holdsrdquo


Baby Lifestyles

Photography Showcase

Photo by Ashley Daniell


Photo by Chalmers Photography


Photo by Chi Photography of Charleston


Photo by Christi Falls


Photo by Jadore la Photographie


Photo by Katie Markquart


Photo by McGaffick Photography


Photo by Megan Hayes


Fairy Ballerina Birthday PartyBy Shelley Smith


Shelley from The House ofSmiths had gathered some re-ally beautiful items to display forAubrielles fourth birthday fun-f i l l ed- fa i ry -ex t ravaganzaGuests kept asking if the flow-ers were real or not becausethey looked so perfect ldquoIm ahuge fan of live flowers at par-ties I think it really sets the toneat an event and a flowerarrangement done the rightway really makes the rest ofyour decor pop These weredone by my amazingly talentedsister-in-law Karlierdquo

Aubriellersquos party took placeduring lunch and the birthdaygirl knew exactly what shewanted to serve her little fairy-friends These ballerinas dinedon a dancerrsquos diet of ham and

cheese and peanut butter andjelly sandwiches potato chipslemonadeand pickles ldquoYesits a bit odd but Aubrielleloves pickles so I had to workthem in I found a tall apothe-cary jar skewered some largepickles with kabob sticks andthey were added to the decortoo

Shelley knew she wantedto do something cute on thelemonade glasses the fairieswould be drinking from Sheused her custom round stickerlabels on the fronts of small can-ning jars and topped them witha gray striped paper straw andcute flower cutout lids

ldquoI had Aubrielle and each ofher fairy-friends sit in this cuteyellow thrifted chair I found in


front of a polka dotted piece offabric that I hung from the wallIt was the perfectly adorable in-expensive backdrop for a lot ofour photosrdquo

After our lunch the fairieswere ready for our their activi-ties They included Find theJewels Fairy Freeze Tag FairyBallerina Dancing and ofcourse crown making

The land of fairy sweetshad candy pink doughnutsflower shaped sugar cookieshome-made flowering cakepops a white chocolate coconutcake and fairy favors To createthese magic wand cups Shelleytook the cups filled them with

some of the crinkle paper andcentered a fairy favors stickeron the front Then she used herscissors and carefully twistedthe sharp end into the top ofeach lid to make a circular holeto put our little wand through

Fairy MakersFrames Orange Blossom ShopInvites and labels designed byBrightside Prints Gray striped paper straws fromQueen Bee Market Balloons from Polka Dot Marketand Balloon ManiacsTutu - Target Leotard - Danskin Bow - Childrens Place Wings - Party City


An Enchanted Garden Brisby Jose Gratiol



This Brit Milah was held in Aventura Florida The roomutilized many unusual sizes and configurations for thetables Long rectangular acrylic tables tall acrylic

barstool-height tables rounds and squares There was a central lounge area with a grand centerpiece

Moss bunny rabbits in two sizes played amongst moss balls cymbidium orchids and topiary trees Green and white were

everywhere making this indoor Brit feel like you were in a garden Flowers Jose Gratiol

Event planning Flornaments PlannersBenches and acrylic chairs Bubble Miami

Dessert table Frida Getzel



wwwNewspaperAnnouncementscom

Newspaper AnnouncementsAnnounce your baby to the world with a completely

customizable nuewspaper

hCcedilwxUumlatildetagravexUumlYtCcedilagravetaacuteccedil

cEacuteagraveEacutezUumltNtildeccedil uccedil UUumlEacuteEacute~x `tccedilEacute

Photographer Brooke Mayo captured these incredible picturesduring an Infant Swimming Resource (ISR) lesson ldquoMydaughter started when she was 6 months oldrdquo Mayo saidldquoShe went daily for eight weeks for ten minutes per day upuntil she was a year oldrdquo Babies in these classes learn tofloat flip over and swim and then float again until they reachsafety

Each lesson is one on one with the instructor and focused onteaching the children survival swimming skills Unlike traditionalswimming lessons these lessons focus on water safety andeach lesson is tailored to the developmental needs of thestudent For more than 45 years ISR has been teaching chil-dren from six months to six years its Self-Rescue technique Tolearn more visit wwwinfantswimcom








AA PPiinnkk aanndd GGoollddVVaalleennttiinneersquorsquoss DDaayy BBaabbyy SShhoowweerr

BByy MMeelliissssaa BBeecckkeerr aanndd KKeelllliiee RRoobbeerrttss ooff IIcciinngg DDeessiiggnnss


Tell baby you love them already with a scalloped gold table-cloth hanging a pink hand-glittered je taime letter garlandacross it Large and miniature hearts were punched from glit-tered gold paper then glued to lollipop sticks The smallones were placed in a pink vase where they sparkled Thelarger hearts were added to pink ribbons to create a three

piece cake topper for the white ruffled cake

Miniature cupcakes were topped with je taime jadore andlamour ruffled cupcake flags Gold glittering heart cookies invarious sizes shimmered on a white tray and apothecary jarslooked sweet filled with white and pink meringues ldquoWe loveusing apothecary jars to add height and color to our tablesThey can be filled with a variety of things from candy tocookies and meringues always look lovely in themrdquo







OOvveerr tthhee RRaaiinnbboowwSStt PPaattrriicckkrsquorsquoss DDaayy BBaabbyy SShhoowweerr

BByy HHoonneeyyccoommbb EEvveennttss ampamp DDeessiiggnn


If you canrsquot wait for the green days of spring a great way tokick off the season is with the greenest of all holidays StPatricks Day If yoursquore pregnant this season you will fall in love with this upscale modern baby shower Based on the Irish legend that youll find a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow this theme is a reminder that nine months of pregnancy brings about its own precious treasure



ldquoWith this new golden vision dancing around in our heads wedecided to use gold coins and other gold accents throughout the showerrdquo said Jennifer ldquoWe also wanted to bring in afew fresh and vibrant floral arrangements but decided tokeep it modern by only using green and white plant liferdquo

Kale was used prominently throughout the table both for itsunique look and how it mimics the blossom of a flowerrdquo




The dessert table highlights a sugary treasure in bite-sizemagic with a lattice pattern backdrop framing this green

fantasy Moss covered pebbles surround the treasure chestof gold coins and intricately decorated shamrock rattle

cookies sparkle with just a hint of gold shimmer Lucky cakepops also get the green and sparkle treatment with

shamrock sticks and a sprinkle of dazzle Refreshing basilinfused limeade was the perfect refreshment for a palettecleanser Layered green tea and ginger custard minidesserts were a beautiful end to this dessert rainbow


When playing games at this Golden Treasure baby shower what activity would be more perfect than atreasure hunt Fabulous moss topiaries with golden

stems are the holders for the ldquoTreasure Huntrdquo banner signShamrock clues led the way towards the pot of gold Clue One read ldquoI can end a drought with what comes

out my spoutrdquo

If you were to attend a Golden Treasure baby showerguests should leave with trinkets of gold to remember the day For a twist on the traditional pots crafted cones in a custom stand were filled with gold coated Jordan almonds The potted favors finish off this delightful

pot o gold moment


Pot of Gold Leprechauns

Party Styling Graphic Design and Party Printables - HoneycombEvents amp Design

Photography Sarah Anderson Photography

Flowers Samantha Farrington

Wood Cake Pop SticksEtsy seller WoodCandy-Sticks








AA VVeellvveetteeeenn RRaabbbbiittBBaabbyy SShhoowweerr

BByy KKrriissttaa MMaassoonn PPhhoottooggrraapphhyyaanndd KKrriisstteeeenn LLaaBBrroott EEvveennttss


What is REAL asked the Rabbit one day when they werelying side by side near the nursery fender before Nana came

to tidy the room Does it mean having things that buzz inside you and a stick-out handle

Real isnt how you are made said the Skin Horse Its a thing that happens to you When a child loves you for a longlong time not just to play with but REALLY loves you then

you become Real ---The Velveteen Rabbit ---

For this gorgeous baby shower the theme was chosen because The Velveteen Rabbit was the mom-to-bes favorite book as achild It was the perfect gender neutral theme for mom Janae

who did not know babyrsquos gender



ldquoWe had tons of detailsrdquo said event planner Kristeen of KristeenLaBrot Events ldquoI loved the napkins that I had custom made The favors were a huge hit I designed labels for vintage style

soda pop bottles that said lsquoJanaes about to poprsquordquo

Kristeen designed the invitations herself They were printed on a soft cardstock and sewn to pieces of burlap with a button accent The guest book was a copy of The Velveteen Rabbit

where guests were asked to leave a love note for baby

Little rabbit touches were everywhere but by far the biggest detail was on the cake ldquoThe cake designer from CAKEGoodnesspicked up the design from the Anthropologie glassware we usedrdquo


E

Wanting a fall-garden feel cotton bolls were also added to tie in softness of a rabbitrsquos tail to the theme Flowers were chosen by Fujikorsquos Flowers not only for their bright colors but their different textural attributes Amaryllis CockscombDahlias Dusty Miller Hydrangea Ranunculus Scabiosa

Roses and Balsa Wood Flowers were used in a mix of vintage Depression Glass and birch wrapped containers

Over the center tables was a decadent chandelier that was made up of paper doilies

Janae welcomed a baby girl in late December named Josephine


VendorsPhotography Krista Mason Photography Event Designer Kristeen LaBrot Events

Florist Fujikorsquos FlowersCake CAKEGoodness

Graphic Design and Soda Bottle Favor Labels Kristeen LaBrotEventsrsquo Etsy Shop

Rentals Elegant Event Rentals Linens Stephaniersquos Linens

Lorax Themed Birthday PartyBy Gwynn Wasson Designs


Irsquom the Lorax I speak for the trees

On March 2 Dr Seussrsquotale of the Lorax will be return-ing to movie theaters It is thestory of the man who lsquospeaksfor the treesrsquo and lives in apsychedelic forest thatabounds with bizarre wildlifeuntil greedy capitalists per-sonified by the evil Once-lerdescend upon the forest andstart to fell the beautiful trees

in order to turn their foliageinto a completely uselessclothing item Thneeds At thisLorax-themed birthday partyGwynn Wasson created color-ful Truffala Trees and kept thetheme of preserving naturalresources close to the heart

Gwynn used items thatwere either ones she alreadyhad up-cycled items or recy-clable items An up-cycledgreen nubby cotton rug servednicely as a table cloth and gave


the feeling of soft grass As In-stead of paper plates and nap-kins and plastic cups andcutlery she used bambooplates and cutlery and cottonnapkins An easy change sheused cardboard straws insteadof plastic ones and added or-ange Lorax mustaches to eachfor a touch of whimsy

The Truffula Trees are thebrightly colored stars of thestory and make up the forestthat is home to The Lorax andthe other animals Gwynn

recreated these light and fluffyTruffala Trees in red orangepink and purple out of featherboas and birch twigs

Her brightly colored desserttable had vividly colored treatsand cupcakes with icing flowersLorax and Barbaloot cookiesand cake pops Vibrant gerberadaisies added color pops on thegreen table and more remindersof the beauty of nature Recy-cled glass milk jars held orangejuice and were tied with a purpleribbon


Unless someone like youcares a whole awful lot

nothings going to get betterIts not

As an educational gameGwynn created ldquoRelay Recy-clingrdquo She discussed the valueof recycling with the childrenand split them into two differentteams with each getting a binwith various items Each team

got to sort their items and runthem one at a time to the ap-propriate bins The first team tofinish wins if their items are cor-rectly sorted

Staying true to the envi-ronmental themes of the bookGwynn created a potting sta-tion where children could plantseeds and then takes themhome For favors each childwas given a small pot and a


packet of seeds as they canplant their own Truffala Tree

- Party Styling Graphics andParty Printables by GwynnWasson Designs- Cake Pops - Moms KillerCakes and Cookies- Cookies - All Things Exquisite- Small Icing Flowers - Cup-cakes By Christy- Striped Straws - Polka DotMarket

ldquoIll love you foreverIll like you for alwaysAs long as Im livingmy baby youll berdquo

~Robert N Munsch~Photo by Christi Falls


IN EVERY ISSUE7 LETTER FROM THE EDITOR9 HOT PRODUCTS147 LAST CRY

STUFF WE LOVE9 HOLIDAY CARDS13 DIY ALPHABET ART15 DIY POM NURSERY NAME19 DIY BLOOMING HEART21 DIY PEARL ONESIE24 DIY STENCIL ART26 DIY VALENTINE CAKE RECIPE

PHOTOGRAPHY34 BIRTH STORY88 PHOTOGRAPHERrsquoS SHOWCASE106 UNDERWATER FANTASY

NURSERY REVEALS52 MODERN GIRL NURSERY56 MAKIrsquoS NURSERY64 SWEET RETREAT69 COLORFUL HOME68 GREEN PROVENCE74 BURST OF COLOR ROOM

BEHIND THE DESIGN78 CAROUSEL DESIGNS

CELEBRATIONS30 LEAP YEAR BABY96 FAIRY BALLERINA BIRTHDAY100 ENCHANTED GARDEN BRIS116 VALENTINE SHOWER124 END OF THE RAINBOW SHOWER134 VELVETEEN RABBIT SHOWER142 LORAX BIRTHDAY PARTY

CONTENTSFebruary March 2012












those people















and Leap Years



issue



you covered



theater near you



art tutorial


Icing Designs






in mind

JordanKojo Designs






be proud of



birthday













MATERIALS




DIRECTIONS















DIRECTIONS














MATERIALS




DIRECTIONS













DIRECTIONS




























Day celebration




















































By Tara Steinle












































































































































Baby Lifestyles























































































out my spoutrdquo


pot o gold moment































E









































those people















and Leap Years



issue



you covered



theater near you



art tutorial


Icing Designs






in mind

JordanKojo Designs






be proud of



birthday













MATERIALS




DIRECTIONS















DIRECTIONS














MATERIALS




DIRECTIONS













DIRECTIONS




























Day celebration




















































By Tara Steinle












































































































































Baby Lifestyles























































































out my spoutrdquo


pot o gold moment































E


































and Leap Years



issue



you covered



theater near you



art tutorial


Icing Designs






in mind

JordanKojo Designs






be proud of



birthday













MATERIALS




DIRECTIONS















DIRECTIONS














MATERIALS




DIRECTIONS













DIRECTIONS




























Day celebration




















































By Tara Steinle












































































































































Baby Lifestyles























































































out my spoutrdquo


pot o gold moment































E


































in mind

JordanKojo Designs






be proud of



birthday













MATERIALS




DIRECTIONS















DIRECTIONS














MATERIALS




DIRECTIONS













DIRECTIONS




























Day celebration




















































By Tara Steinle












































































































































Baby Lifestyles























































































out my spoutrdquo


pot o gold moment































E









































MATERIALS




DIRECTIONS















DIRECTIONS














MATERIALS




DIRECTIONS













DIRECTIONS




























Day celebration




















































By Tara Steinle












































































































































Baby Lifestyles























































































out my spoutrdquo


pot o gold moment































E

































DIRECTIONS















DIRECTIONS














MATERIALS




DIRECTIONS













DIRECTIONS




























Day celebration




















































By Tara Steinle












































































































































Baby Lifestyles























































































out my spoutrdquo


pot o gold moment































E









































DIRECTIONS














MATERIALS




DIRECTIONS













DIRECTIONS




























Day celebration




















































By Tara Steinle












































































































































Baby Lifestyles























































































out my spoutrdquo


pot o gold moment































E








































MATERIALS




DIRECTIONS













DIRECTIONS




























Day celebration




















































By Tara Steinle












































































































































Baby Lifestyles























































































out my spoutrdquo


pot o gold moment































E

































DIRECTIONS













DIRECTIONS




























Day celebration




















































By Tara Steinle












































































































































Baby Lifestyles























































































out my spoutrdquo


pot o gold moment































E







































DIRECTIONS




























Day celebration




















































By Tara Steinle












































































































































Baby Lifestyles























































































out my spoutrdquo


pot o gold moment































E
























































Day celebration




















































By Tara Steinle












































































































































Baby Lifestyles























































































out my spoutrdquo


pot o gold moment































E



















































































By Tara Steinle












































































































































Baby Lifestyles























































































out my spoutrdquo


pot o gold moment































E











































































































































































Baby Lifestyles























































































out my spoutrdquo


pot o gold moment































E




















































































































out my spoutrdquo


pot o gold moment































E






























































E
































baby lifestyles february-march 2012 magazine issue

Documents

baby lifestyles magazine

real baby showers

baby lifestylesmagazine

babylifestyles1baby

birthday parties

classicthe velveteen

ourtenyear anniversary

anniversary party tocelebrate