Summer Carnival Mantel & Fun in the Sun

Summer time! It’s my favorite time of the year.  I love that I can do some fun decorating in our colorful and eclectic family room in progress. I’ll be sharing a tutorial for the gallery wall but the collection is all thrift store items from my decorating accessories stash. The colorful glass were filled with flower arrangements at our wedding reception nearly 8 years ago. My colorful candlesticks were an easy DIY thrifty transformation. 

summer carnival mantel decor

Sunshine, long days, festivals, carnivals, amusement parks…don’t you love that stuff?

summer carnival mantel

Funnel cakes, elephant ears, cotton candy, candy apples, gyros, french fries, snow cones, popcorn, hot dogs,  

summer carnival mantel

Rides. Wait. I’m more of a merry-go-round than roller coaster type girl and avoid things called ‘tornado’ and ’tilt-a-whirl’ or anything that drops. 

summer carnival mantel decor

 Concerts, bands, music festivals and fireworks.

colorful eclectic decor

Duck pond, ring toss, games, balloon animals, clowns, cheesy prizes, face painting and pony rides.

summer carnival mantel decor

 Step right up! 

summer carnival mantel

 Everyone’s a winner!

summer carnival mantel decor

See the DIY foam board accent wall/wall art/gallery template tutorial for more details on a lightweight, easy, cheap way to add pattern and color to your decorating.  

Crazy and whimsical and temporary. Keeping furniture and walls neutral allows me to change things up more often. I’m using the foamboard for another project, so it’s now looking a bit more like this:

summer carnival mantel

Do you decorate for the seasons? Have you been following along with the Fun in the Sun series? So much summer inspiration! Here are the details:

Fun in the sun summer linky party and giveaway

Be sure to visit all of the Fun in the Sun hostesses and their awesome summer projects:

My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia – how to make pom pom lanterns

paper-lantern My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia

Sand & Sisal – summer centerpiece

Summer-Centerpiece-Sand and Sisal

Fox Hollow Cottage – pool noodle summer wreath

AlohaSummerFlipFlopPoolNoodleDIYWreathCraft - Fox Hollow Cottage

Adventures in Decorating – Summer Porch

summer porch - Adventures in Decorating

Setting for Four – summer beach mantel 

beach mantel - Setting for Four

Debbiedoo’s – 5 quick summer craft projects including this recycled can caddy…

recycled-cans-Debbie Doos

French Country Cottage – summer table setting

summer table setting French Country Cottage

Cupcakes and Crinoline – beach inspired desserts

beach inspired desserts - Cupcakes and Crinoline

Domestically Speaking – Ultimate All American Sundae

ultimate-all-american-sundae - Domestically Speaking

At the Picket Fence – DIY outdoor coffee table

chalkboard-outdoor-coffee-table At the Picket Fence

Yellow Bliss Road – sweet & simple summer mantel

summer mantel - Yellow Bliss Road

JoJo and Eloise – avocado, blueberry & coconut cream popsicles

avocado-blueberry-coconut-cream-popsicles-gluten-free-dairy at JoJo & Eloise

DIY Show Off – summer carnival mantel

summer carnival mantel

Coming up tomorrow (6/27): Fun in the Sun Link Party & Kindle Fire Giveaway! 

11 Patriotic DIY Decorating Project Ideas

Looking for some patriotic DIY ideas? Look no further. I’ve gathered 11 easy patriotic DIY projects from show off submissions and That DIY Party links. These talented and crafty blog friends have some awesome do-it-yourself projects for decorating your home for the 4th of July. 

11 Patriotic DIY Projects

I’m married to a former Marine. This time of year reminds me of how blessed I am to be an American and how thankful I am for the brave ones who defend our freedom. I love celebrating with family and friends, fireworks and good food.

11 Inspiring Patriotic DIY Projects 

My friend Amanda shares a great tutorial for creating an American flag pallet art with cross at Mommy is CooCoo

american flag with cross pallet by Mommy is CooCoo

See how to make an easy DIY Fourth of July star garland at Teenah’s Projects

fourth of july garland at teenahs projects

Marji created this gorgeous paper star tree template for the Silhouette online store. Get the details at Ashbee Design – perfect patriotic centerpiece. 

AshbeeDesign Tree of Stars

3 festive patriotic wreath tutorials:

Learn how to make this USA patriotic wreath at His Frugal Servant

patriotic usa wreath by his frugal servant

Red flag ribbon wreath at An Extraordinary Day

Easy-Flag-Ribbon-Wreath-Tutorial-AnExtraordinaryDay.net_

Patriotic mesh ribbon wreath at Snack Cups & Smiles

patriotic mesh wreath at snack cups and smiles

Easy DIY flag canvas tutorial at Create and Babble

canvas-flag-createandbabble

Cristina at Remodelando La Casa has SO MANY awesome patriotic DIY ideas:

Cute DIY wooden star craft:

patriotic star by remodelando la casa

Patriotic drop cloth table runner

drop cloth patriotic runner remodelandolacasa

and a pretty PB knock off patriotic banner

pb knock-off Patriotic Banner at Remodelando la Casa

and a fun free 4th of July popcorn printable at Uncommon Designs

4thofJulyPopcornPrintable at Uncommon Designs

Thank you so much to the awesome ladies above for sharing their creativity! Do you have a red, white and blue patriotic DIY project to share? Head over to THAT DIY PARTY and link up…

that diy link party

and be pinned to the DIY Show Off Patriotic DIY Ideas pinboard

patriotic diy pinboard

Fun Fab Finds

There’s nothing I love more than adding unexpected fun character to a room. My favorite part about room makeovers is shopping for and adding the decorative elements.

smile…Fab.

Are you familiar with Fab? It’s an online marketplace offering {constantly changing} designer products at great prices. I enjoy discovering new-to-me decorating shops and thought you might too. Plus, they’re offering free shipping today and tomorrow (3/27-28) on any size order.  I was recently invited by Fab to share a few of my favorite finds. Just being silly, I call this my THRIVE collection of items I love currently on sale:

thrive

fab-finds

Here’s what I found fab on Fab:

  1. Who else has a spouse who ‘misplaces’ everything? “I Wear Rack” in walnut is perfect for holding items (i.e. wallet, shades, mail).
  2. Great price on this indoor/outdoor Danube 6 x 9 ft. sized area herringbone rug…and I love the awesome pattern.
  3. Industrial touches like this Birdcage Black Lamp catch my eye every time. Love!
  4. Giant Rocky Ram – don’t you just love cardboard animal heads? Maybe it’s just me. ?
  5. Personalizing the dinner table with a cute Placecard Activity Kit.
  6. Vinyl cut-out decals {Huelva}…great for DIY storage labeling.
  7. Chalkboards are trendy, but a US map chalkboard is even more irresistible.
  8. Love notes: Carve Your Own Card.
  9. Rewined Candle: clean burning soy candle in a recycled wine bottle which can be recycled with DIY soy candles again!
  10. Vintage Peace Globe: Peace on one side and a flock of birds on the other. Love it {inspires a DIY project}!
  11. The Garden Deck – set of 48 individual cards packed with tips on growing and harvesting fruits and vegetables. Help for acquiring a green thumb!
  12. Vintage industrial rolling shop storage inspires organization since it’s too cool to junk up, right?

There’s only one shopping day left ’til tomorrow. ~Unknown Author

*This post is sponsored by Fab, but choice of products and opinion is my own.