Blog Tour of Cupcakes and Crinoline and a Few of My Favorite Blogs and Bloggers

Hello dear friends.  Today I’m doing something a little different than I normally do but I think you'll like it! 

I was invited by my friend Heather from Setting for Four to be part of a Tour of Blogs.  I was thrilled to be invited by her ~ we have been blog friends for ages sharing hostess duties for Project Inspire{d} in the past and we also share a birthday.  Heather is an amazingly talented interior designer whose style is Rustic Glam.  I love her attention to detail and the way she pulls everything together without making it look hard.  If you've never paid a visit to Setting for Four stop on over ~ you will LOVE the unique and lovely posts shared by Heather. 

So here’s how this works, the DIY Blog Tour is a chance for each blogger participating to answer some questions about themselves and then introduce a few of their favorite blogs.  So now for some info about me and Cupcakes and Crinoline.  

1.  What am I working on?

I always seem to have way too many things going on at once which means the whole house is torn apart but the biggest project right now is my two youngest sons’ bedroom.  It had 1970’s Brady Bunch paneling on one wall and the rest of the room was painted a dark blue.  The blue was nice but the paneling….not so much, so my husband has been painting the walls and I’ve been doing the trim work.  I went with two shades of gray from Sherwin Williams that I just love and a bright white paint for the trim.  So far it looks great ~ so much bigger and brighter.  I’ll be adding new window treatments and one wall will have horizontal stripes.  I’m also redoing a trundle bed and will be painting an old shelving unit for my youngest son’s Godzilla collection.   I can’t wait to share the after with you.  Hopefully, it won’t be too much longer.  I’m also working on a Halloween costume for my youngest son and some upcoming autumn blog hops and I’m still trying to organize my craft room ~ that process began 5 years ago…yes, it has taken me 5 years to organize that room ~ I purge, I buy more, I buy more, I buy more, I purge….it is truly an ongoing process. 

2.  How does my work differ from others of its genre? I think everybody is unique so my work will always be different than someone else’s.  I draw  inspiration from other bloggers, magazines, books, pinterest and sometimes just from my own mind {that’s scary, isn’t it?}.  The execution of my work is probably the greatest point of diversity.  Right now my budget is very tight and so is time.  With that in mind most of my projects are inexpensive often using  items from the thrift store or repurposed items from my own home and even though I DREAM BIG most of my DIYs and projects are small…..for now!  Someday, those big projects that cost more and are on my ever growing list of to-dos will get done. 

3.  Why do I write/create what I do? 

I love to share what I do and that’s the reason for the blog.  The very first time I ever saw a copy of Martha Stewart Living I knew in my heart what I wanted to do so my blog is that….on a much, much, much smaller scale ~ again with the for now caveat! I like to share the projects and recipes I come up with that are family friendly with budget and time in mind.  I don’t share anything that will be so hard it would discourage others from trying their hand at it as well or make anyone feel like they can’t afford it.    My most popular posts are those that share my homemaking tips and those are almost always cleaning hacks that are cheap, cheap, cheap!

4.  How does your writing/creating process work?

I would so love to tell you that I am obscenely organized and plan my posts months {weeks, days, hours} in advance but most of my posts aren’t that way at all.  When I have extra time I bake, cook or create and try to take pictures of the process.  Those pictures are transferred to my computer and there they sit until I have the time to go through them and then write a post.  I have some pictures from years ago of really cool projects and recipes that have never been posted.  My photography has improved since then so unless I recreate those projects they’ll never be published.  *sigh*

Now it’s time to introduce you to some fabulous blogs and blog friends.

Diane from An Extraordinary Day

Hi I'm Diane...a believer in living life to the full. My favorite day would include time spent on a nature hike with my husband while attempting to capture God's awesome creativity with my camera.  At An Extraordinary Day I share inspiration for living life with joy, easy do-able crafts and ideas for decorating your home, and tips for taking the ordinary and making it extraordinary.  

This is from one of my favorite tablescapes...to me...it's just so happy.  It combines a few of my favorite elements....book pages, blue mason jars, and flowers all in a tablescape.   

Nic from NIbbles by Nic   Hi there!!! I'm Nic and I have been involved in the "world of food" for the past four years with my focus primarily on developing great recipes, blogging, food styling and writing articles for various periodicals.  It is a true labor of LOVE.  To me the ability to create a unique, yet fun culinary experience (usually dedicated to my husband and kids) is motivating and completely satisfying. Food is ALWAYS present in our daily life from simple snacks to celebrations; we even plan our family trips around meals. I'd LOVE to share my nibbles with you too!!!

Jessi from Behind the Red Door   I'm Jessi and I blog at Behind the Red Door, which is a peek behind the scenes at the brick-and-mortar shop I own with my husband (Red Door Furniture Co.). Our blog is a place where we share everything we are passionate about, including techniques, tips, recipes, DIY, and design trends. Stop on by!

Aren’t Diane, Nic, and Jessi talented?