Costa Rican Independence Day Decor

I've been a little absent lately because we've been having a lot of fun happening around the school! A few weeks ago, we had the annual "La Feria de Mandarin" (The Mandarin Fair)-- but (even though it was AWESOME) I'll get to that later.

Next up on the agenda was Costa Rica's Independence Day- September 15th. It was each teacher's duty to decorate their classroom with recycled materials based on the Costa Rican theme (national flower, national bird, the flag, etc) that they were given. I was lucky enough to receive the "Himno Nacional"- or in other words, The National Anthem. I truly love this song so I was excited to get started! 

Today our classrooms were judged and we will find out who wins the competition tonight at the big celebration. In the mean time, while you're anxiously awaiting the results, I'm going to share with you what I came up with.

["Noble homeland your beautiful flag
It gives us expression of your life"]

["Under the clear blue of your sky"]

My attempt creating a blue sky! (egg cartons + paper towel roll + twine + spray paint)

["White and pure rests peace"]
White dove paper garland, donated by one of my students mom's = perfect! 

Loving this magazine paper flag banner! 

["When anyone tries to besmirch your glory
You'll see your nation brave and virile
The rustic tool transform into a weapon"]

["Hail Oh homeland your prodigal soilGives us sweet shelter and sustenance"]

(tin cans + newspaper + sharpie + magazine paper + sticks + hot glue)

Guess what-- their colors are red, white, and blue so I might reuse some of these ideas next July! 

The lyrics were all written on old magazines & newspapers.

*UPDATE: We won the classroom decorating contest! My students have never been more thankful for my hard work than when they found out that we would be getting a special lunch on Monday (cake included)! I guess that's one way to win 'em over...

Happy Independence Day!

Southern Bride Blogger

Guess what? I am officially a Southern Bride Blogger! If you haven't seen Southern Wedding Magazine, you're missing out! It's an adorable website with so many great Southern wedding ideas. 

I know that my parents from Pennsylvania will be proud. But hey- they're the ones who decided to raise me in the South! I am going to get to show my family from all over the US what a Southern Georgia-Peach Wedding looks like. 

I looked at my calendar today and realized that I only have 4 weeks until I'm back in the US for a month! No teaching for a whole month? That means it's going to wedding planning central up in here!

Here is just a glimpse at my to-do list for my trip back to good ole GA 

(many inspired courtesy of my ever so helpful theknot.com account!). Number one on my list is undeniably "buy a wedding dress" because I keep having nightmares about not having a dress on the big day! :O

Some examples of the DIY inspiration for wedding crafts that I hope start over the break...

hanging decor

Use this idea with "Mr. & Mrs."  for the backs of bride & groom chairs

window pane for menu

quote & verse displays

Wood & pinecone centerpieces

candle holders

cake stand!

table numbers with pictures of
the bride & groom at that age!

Table numbers

ski lift escort cards!

Ring box

...in other words, if you want to see me when I'm back in the States in July- you better be in the mood to get crafty! :P

{ & let me know if you have any rustic but elegant winter wedding DIY craft ideas, I'm on the prowl!}

Treasures in the Leftovers!

Since moving into my little casita, I have been little by little 
('poco por poco') been adding my own (primarily recycled) 
touch on my space. 

The first place that I started with was my dressing table. 

I wanted something that made all of my jewelry easily accessible and aesthetically pleasing! Oh and I didn't want to spend any money. This is what I came up with:

Earrings:

Bracelets:

Necklaces:

Others:

In order to turn the nothing that you have into something that you want, you have to find the treasures in the leftovers! 

Any suggestions or ideas for what I should do next?

Creativity is Contagious: Festival Nacional de las Artes Costa Rica

I really do love a good festival. This week just outside of San Jose was the annual Festival Nacional de las Artes in Santa Ana, Guayabo de Mora, and Ciudad Colon. It is a festival that features completely local talent. 

Here is some of the things I found:

So get this: I was just browsing around, admiring the beautiful, hand-crafted jewelry when I hear "Lauren!" I turn around and find a friend of mine (Ashley, pictured above) from the University of Georgia in the US. Remember, I am in Costa Rica right now. Of all the places in all the world, we were in the same country, same town, same art fair at the exact same time. It was so surreal! 

Carrying our bags of new art treasures!

Last year, I decided to be a mug collector because of my love for coffee & tea.
I was OBSESSED with this beautiful handmade/painted pottery that I found at the festival! And obviously, so was my sweet but mouthy furry friend.

So we might have gotten a little carried away with the pottery...

There aren't many things that I like more than "hecho a mano" or handmade art. It inspired me to do a little crafting this weekend as well! I will include those creations in an upcoming blog post. Stay tuned!