Home Lifestyle collaborations

collaborations

    Latest

    Nativity Craft Along Auction: Meet Our Guests

    Brittany
    -
    0
    Nativity Craft Along Auction: Meet Our Guests

    To amp you up for the auction, we wanted to highlight our amazing guests and give you a chance to get to know them better. To this end, we’ve compiled the weekly craft along videos of each guest and are excited to share them with you!

    Amanda Seyfried

    Our first guest of the Nativity Craft Along was actress Amanda Seyfried. Yes, you read that right. Amanda Seyfried! Mamma Mia, Mank, Les Miserables, the list goes on. It was so fun to talk with her–we could have talked for hours. We talked about everything from motherhood to the need to make with your hands. I have to say, she did an amazing job painting the angel. Honestly, I wish I could buy it in the auction. Here’s her live video:

    If you can’t watch with sound or need to read rather than watching, we’ve got you covered! Here’s the transcript to her video.

    Here she is with the angel. So cute, right?

    Amanda Seyfried with the angel

    Sabrina Soto

    Our second guest was the lovely Sabrina Soto! Sabrina is an HGTV host, interior designer, blogger and podcast host. Needless to say, we were thrilled to get to craft with her! She was such a joy to have and it was so fun to get to know her. She blew us away with the adorable shepherd she painted. Here’s the highlight:

    All of a sudden I feel like Sabrina is my new best friend. She’s SO fun to talk to!

    Mary Engelbreit

    This next guest holds a special place in my heart. Mary Engelbret is one of my childhood heroes! To say I was excited to have her paint the wiseman is an understatement. I nearly peed my pants. I even did my hair for the event! To give you an idea of just how thrilled I was to have the chance to talk to her, here are some photos of me as a child.

    Yeah, that’s me, and that’s Mary standing right in front of me. Can you even imagine?!

    This one is good. Look closely and you’ll see that I am literally wearing “bloom where you’re planted on my hat” and an iron on illustration on my shirt.

    Brittany and Mary Engelbreit

    Without further ado, here’s our Craft Along featuring Mary Engelbreit!

    I mean, who wouldn’t want a wiseman painted by Mary Engelbreit? Don’t worry, I’m probably as unbiased as you can get.

    Elsie Larson

    THE Elsie Larson of A Beautiful Mess was our next Nativity Craft Along guest. I’m a huge fan–I love listening to her podcast, and the things she creates are amazing! She painted the Baby Jesus for us, and did such a sweet job. It was such pleasure to chat with Elsie and we’re excited for you to listen in on our conversation! Here it is:

    Tracy Reese

    It was such a pleasure to get to craft with our next guest, Tracy Reese. Tracy is an American fashion designer known for her rich, daring colors and feminine silhouettes for modern women. Her work is gorgeous! What a thrill to have someone with such a good eye for color and fashion painting our wiseman. Watch below to get to know Tracy!

    So fun, right?!

    I’ve been such a huge Tracy Reese fan for years–I even own one of her coats, so this was a particular thrill.

    Erin Jang

    Erin Jang was our next featured guest. She’s an artist, designer, and art director who works on some of the coolest projects out there. It was so fun to chat with her about kids, magazines, and trashy tv. What a pleasure to have her paint Joseph for us! Here’s her interview:

    We are honored to have some of Erin’s work in our Lars Print Shop.

    Lisa Congdon

    Our next featured crafter was the one and only Lisa Congdon! I’ve been a fan of Lisa’s work and Lisa herself for years. To know her is to love her! Her work is bright, cheerful, and inspirational. It has been featured in numerous publications and she is the author of 10 books! She also has a podcast — she does it all! Lisa is an artist I admire for her kindness, mission to give, and authenticity. It was wonderful to have the opportunity to craft and chat with her. And wow, did Mary look good when Lisa was done painting her! See her interview below:

    Woo woo! Isn’t Lisa fun? We sure thought so. She’s also a Lars Print Shop artist 

    Courtney Quinn

    For the finale of our Nativity Craft Along, we were thrilled to have none other than Courtney Quinn, of Color Me Courtney, crafting with us! It was so fun to have the Color Queen herself join us, and I loved talking and getting to know her better. She knocked that last wiseman out of the park and did a wonderful job. See the interview for yourself:

    That concludes our summary of the wonderful Nativity Craft Along! What a privilege to be a part of it. It has been so fun, and the best part is knowing we’re helping makers all around the country, through our partnership with Nest, whenever anyone buys a nativity e-book. We’re so excited to top off our donations with the auction this Sunday and hope you’ll join us! We’ll be releasing more details later in the week. If you have any questions about it, please let us know in the comments!

    My Bathroom Remodel Reveal

    Brittany
    -
    7
    My Bathroom Remodel Reveal

    The road to our bathroom remodel was long and winding, and part of that is because Paul and I have such different sensibilities when it comes to style and design! If he had his way, we’d live in a sleek warehouse with Brutalistic concrete floors. Ha! So you can imagine that we had lots of negotiations and conversations during our ideation faze, which ultimately led to “do whatever you want”. I will, thank you very much 😉

    the top of a painted armoire against a red floral wallpaper background. On top of the armoire is a sculptural duck, a candle and candlestick, a paper money plant, and some cute odds and ends.

    I get by with a lot of help from my friend, Meta Coleman

    Interior shot of a colorful, eclectic dining room with red chairs, wallpaper and blue wainscoting, a green cabinet, and plants.
    Hannah Carpenter home by Meta Coleman

    I would be sadly remiss if I didn’t start out by singing the praises of my friend and designer, Meta Coleman. Meta is a rockstar designer who’s work is like actual magic. I’m convinced that she knows everything there is to know about interior design because she eats, drinks, and breathes it, and I’m the luckiest to be able to work with her and be her friend. Having Meta at the helm of this bathroom remodel made everything possible. Read more about Meta being my dream designer!

    Meta’s process begins with really getting to know the people who live in the space she’s designing, which is part of what makes her work so immaculate. You can see this part of Meta’s designing process through this video of Paul and me talking about our history and design preferences. I really respect how thorough of a designer Meta is, because even though she already knew me and knew my style, she checked in to get really clear on my vision.

    Four children lounging and laughing on a green bed with a striped quilt. One is holding a dog and there's a window behind them.
    Hannah Carpenter home by Meta Coleman

    Then, with my style clearly in mind, Meta brought in so much magic! I was astounded by the way that she totally understood my taste, then surprised and stretched me through her design. All I can say is that I’m super lucky to be close friends with such an amazing interior designer! I highly recommend it.

    It’s also thanks to Meta’s incredible interior design that our bathroom was featured in Domino Magazine, which is such a fun honor. Get to know Meta a little bit better through her Becoming interview, check out her website, and definitely follow her on Instagram @MetaColeman_ to keep up with her work.

    Our Big Bathroom Remodel

    Like I mentioned, our bathroom started out rough. It was a total bare-bones cavern! I mean, look at this:

    a blank, unfinished room with sheetrock walls and a dusty subfloor. There's a doorway that leads to a dark, grey space in the imagea blank, unfinished room with sheetrock walls and a dusty subfloor. There's a doorway that leads to another unfinished space in the image. One of the walls has mysterious plumbing coming out of it.a blank, unfinished room with sheetrock walls and a dusty subfloor. There's a doorway that leads to another unfinished space in the image. One of the walls has mysterious plumbing coming out of it.

    Depressing, right?

    With Meta’s help, we came up with a mood board that both Paul and I loved. As you’ll see, the final design departed just a bit from the mood board while still very much holding on to the essential spirit of Meta’s original design.

    moodboard mock up of the bathroom, including red floral wallpaper, a green vanity, our towels and paint colors, and lighting.

    I’m a big believer in starting out with a great mood board. It makes everything so much easier and provides an invaluable frame of reference for later, when you’re in the middle of building your design and feel stuck. Check out this tutorial on making mood boards!

    Stuga Studio

    The very first step was to install flooring, and we fell in love with this amazing wood floor from Stuga Studio. The color we chose is called Tivoli, and it’s perfect–warm but not too yellow. It’s such lovely, high-quality wood, and it has so much personality. We installed it throughout pretty much the whole house, and instantly felt so relieved about our plans to totally update a blank slate fixer-upper. Check out this post to read more about the flooring.

    Vertical image of the bathroom. There's warm wooden flooring being laid over light blue plastic sheeting.process photos of Stuga flooring installation

    Signature Hardware

    Early on in the design process, I got this gorgeous vanity from Signature Hardware. I knew that I wanted an accent piece of furniture, but I didn’t have an overarching design planned out yet, so it was a tricky choice. Still, I had a deadline, so I went for a strong color that also serves as a neutral–the Olsen vanity in a deep emerald green. The green vanity informed lots of the remaining design choices for the bathroom remodel.

    I’m so glad I went with the green! I’m a strong believer that green can count as a neutral color in design, and this bathroom is a strong example of that: it grounds the rest of the colors, which is what neutrals do best.

    As you can see, I put the vanity to use long before things were finished or ready. Just keeping it real!

    Emerald green vanity with clutter around and on it. The walls are mostly painted white, but are very unfinished.

    Closeup shot of an emerald green vanity.

    I also got a beautiful wooden hutch from Signature Hardware. It had an unfinished surface, so I wanted to do something to customize it and came up with a Swedish Wedding Cabinet as inspiration.

    Antique swedish wedding cabinet

    So beautiful, right?? I love the intricate floral designs and I think that cabinets make such perfect heirlooms (sturdy and useful? Check and check), so I decided to paint my wooden hutch with flowers. Stay tuned to learn more about that process in a future post!

    A painted cupboard. It is burgundy with green, mustard, and white accents.

    Signature Hardware also has beautiful towel racks and wall hooks, which are so important for a bathroom remodel. I installed the Vintage Towel Bar and the Vintage Towel Ring in brushed gold, and they land at the perfect intersection between simple and refined.

    A yellow striped towel hanging on a brass towel rack.A yellow striped hand towel hangs on a brass ring on the wall. The out-of-focus silhouette of flowers in a vase shades some of the image.Close up of a brass towel ring. A yellow and white striped hand towel hangs from it, and there's red floral wallpaper in the back.

    To complete the set, I also got the Vintage Robe Hooks in brushed gold.

    A pink and blue batik-patterned bathrobe hanging on a brushed gold hook in a bathroom. You can see a doorway and a red, floral bathroom on the side of the image.

    For the faucets I used New York Widespread faucets in polished brass from Signature Hardware. I’m a big fan of ceramic knobs, so I switched those in for the brass knobs to feel super classic.

    gold faucet on a marble countertop. The handles are ceramic.Brushed brass faucets on a marble countertop with a periwinkle vase of flowers. There's red floral wallpaper in the background.Brushed brass faucets on a marble countertop with a periwinkle vase of flowers. There's red floral wallpaper in the background.

    The Walls

    Apart from all the technical things (like flooring, plumbing, and electricity), the custom DIY wainscoting was a big part of the remodel. Meta presented the concept to me after seeing a photo of it on a door frame in Paris. She directed me to how to make it happen and then I was off to figure it out. I bought square and circular wooden cutouts, painted them in a soft, light, blue, and attached them to wall’s bottom third. Sounds simple enough, right? Well, the workmen we hired to paint and install trim didn’t think so. Haha! You should have seen their faces when I explained my plan! Thankfully they warmed up to the idea.

    The wallpaper came next, and at that point things started getting really exciting. It turns out that having finished walls makes a huge difference! Ha! At this point we started shooting some projects in the bathroom. Some of our eagle-eyed readers may have caught onto a few bathroom remodel teasers in the backgrounds of some past projects. For example, you can see some wallpaper and wainscoting behind these paper pansies.

    Paper pansies on a windowsill. There's a white lacy curtain next to them, and red floral wallpaper on the other.Paper pansies in a distressed terracotta planter. They're placed on a stack of colorful books on a chair. In the background, you can see some red floral wallpaper and blue wainscoting.

    I also couldn’t resist shooting these paper hollyhocks between the sinks, so you can see the countertop, wallpaper, and some of the mirrors in this picture.

    paper hollyhocks on a bathroom counter among ceramic odds and ends with a mirror and red floral wallpaper in the background.

    Hudson Valley Lighting

    Meta selected these light fixtures from Hudson Valley Lighting and I loved the classic feel. For the wall sconces she picked out the Beekman lamps in aged brass, and on the ceiling I got the Flare flush mount light fixture in aged brass. The shower and toilet are in their own separate little space, but I got the Ainsley flush mount in aged brass for that room. The art deco details around the edges elevate it without being too gaudy.

    close up of beekman light fixtures.beekman light fixtures above a two-toned mirror.beekman light fixtures against floral red wallpaper.Interior shot of a bathroom. There's red floral wallpaper and framed art prints on the walls, blue textured wainscoting and trim, wooden floors, yellow window treatments, and eclectic styling.Ainsley flush mount light on the ceiling.

    Adding Finishing Touches

    After we got all the main pieces installed, it was time to style the bathroom. Meta Coleman came back to lend a hand, and I truly love the way she put my bathroom together.

    The mirrors are custom made by Meta, and I love the way the two-tone glass reflects such warm, glowing light around the room. She used this two toned mirror technique on her own bathroom and generously gave me the remains. We tried a few different shapes included a wavy design and a flower, but ultimately, I wanted to keep it a simple oval.

    Interior shot of a bathroom with a dark emerald green vanity and red floral wallpaper. There are flowers on the vanity countertop, brass knobs and fixtures, and a blue custom wainscoting.

    Meta also custom made my curtains using Soane fabric. I love the mustard color, and the fabric’s pattern reminds me so much of Matisse’s paper cutouts.

    Meta installs the curtains over the window. Meta's silhouette is outlined against a glowing yellow and white curtain.

    Our Full Bathroom Remodel Reveal

    Whew! So many things came together for this bathroom remodel, and it was seriously so much work. I’m so grateful for Meta’s help all along the way! I truly couldn’t have done it without her.

    Shot of a green bench in a red wallpapered bathroom. There's also a blue wainscoting at the bottom and a green painting on the wall.Interior shot of a bathroom with a dark emerald green vanity and red floral wallpaper. There are flowers on the vanity countertop, brass knobs and fixtures, and a blue custom wainscoting.Interior shot of a bathroom with a dark emerald green vanity and red floral wallpaper. There are flowers on the vanity countertop,and brass knobs and fixtures.Interior shot of a bathroom with a dark emerald green vanity and red floral wallpaper. There are flowers on the vanity countertop, brass knobs and fixtures, and a blue custom wainscoting.A brass faucet with white ceramic knobs on a white marble countertop. The wallpaper behind it is red and floral.Interior shot of a bathroom with a dark emerald green vanity and red floral wallpaper. There are flowers on the vanity countertop, brass knobs and fixtures, and brown wicker baskets under the vanity.Brushed brass faucets on a marble countertop with a periwinkle vase of flowers. There's red floral wallpaper in the background.Brushed brass faucets on a marble countertop with a periwinkle vase of flowers. There's red floral wallpaper in the background.A yellow striped hand towel hangs on a brass ring on the wall. The out-of-focus silhouette of flowers in a vase shades some of the image.Interior shot of a bathroom with a dark emerald green vanity and red floral wallpaper. There are flowers on the vanity countertop, along with beautifully curated knick knacks.

    I have a closet attached to my bathroom, and I updated that, too! I’ve included a few sneak peeks in this post, but you can stay tuned to see more of it soon. 😉

    Interior shot of the red wallpapered bathroom from inside a pink and green painted closet.

    More Remodel Inspiration

    For an overview on our renovations so far, read about everything we did to our house in the first year of owning it. You can also check out our tiled bathroom progress and our kitchen remodel update.

    Would love to hear what you think! Let me know in the comments!

    DIY My Little Belleville Easter Egg Columns

    Brittany
    -
    0
    DIY My Little Belleville Easter Egg Columns

    I love working with Michelle from My Little Belleville. We have worked together on painted pumpkins for Halloween (twice!), printable Halloween cards, and nativity puppets for Christmas, as well as an illuminating artist interview! You also may have also seen some of her Valentine cards in our shop. Her work has such a playful, painterly feeling that keeps us coming back for more. The House that Lars Built and My Little Belleville fit together like Easter and eggs.painted Easter egg columns perched on colorful books against a pink background.

    For this painted Easter egg project, Michelle sent me wooden easter eggs that she had painted with faces and patterns. Can you even believe the personality that all her little faces have? We’re in love. We stacked them up and voilà! Painted Easter egg columns!

    Colorful painted easter egg columns stacked on books against a pink background.

    These make an excellent Easter table decoration because they add interest and height without getting in the way of your sight lines. There’s nothing more awkward than sitting down to a meal and not being able to make eye contact with the person across from you!

    Colorful painted easter egg columns stacked on books against a pink background.

    Make Your Own painted Easter egg columns

    Materials

    To make your own you will need

    Colorful painted easter egg columns stacked on books against a pink background.

    Instructions

    1. Paint all of your wooden eggs in solid background colors, then let them dry.
    2. Set aside a few eggs that will be the heads. It’s nice to vary the columns in height, so leave 1-3 non-head eggs per head.
    3. Paint faces on the eggs you set aside. Consider adding facial expressions, hats, cheeks, makeup, etc. Individuality is the goal!
    4. Paint patterns on the remaining eggs. Flowers, dots, stripes, and plaid patterns all look great.
    5. Let all the eggs dry completely.
    6. Put a pea-sized dollop of hot glue on the tops of the pattern eggs. Immediately after placing the glue, hold the eggs together so that the glue can set. Repeat for all your eggs.
    7. Set up your painted Easter egg columns in egg cups. If you like, you can secure them with a dot of glue (make sure that it will be able to come off your egg cup completely so that you can use it again later).

    We would love to see your painted Easter egg column tablescapes! If you make this project, tag us with #EasterWithLars.

    Colorful painted easter egg columns stacked on books against a pink background.

    If you liked this post, you might also like

    DIY paper Swedish Easter tree
    Swedish Easter Wall Hanging
    Honeycomb Easter Eggs

    Our New Baby Bonnets Collab With Briar Baby

    Brittany
    -
    0
    Our New Baby Bonnets Collab With Briar Baby

    Our Colorful Collaboration with Briar Baby

    Inspired by our Great Artists! Kid’s Course, the new baby bonnets we designed with Briar Baby are bursting with color, cheer, and love! We designed these to be a refreshing pop of color during the bleak winter months. You know I love color and pattern, and that certainly doesn’t stop when it comes to my kiddo’s wardrobe. Each bonnet is topped with a pom-pom, I love it! With a new little one on the way, I am so happy to add these bonnets to his collection and yours too!

    Baby Bonnets Inspired by our Great Artists! Course

    Our mission has always been to create “an artful life.” This collaboration is a great way to start new life in an artistic way! I love seeing nods to fine art in everyday life. So much of the inspiration for our projects here on Lars comes from a lifetime of enjoying masterpieces from all around the world. Seeing the thoughts and ideas of a talented artist inspire something as simple as a baby bonnet is SO inspiring to me. It makes me feel like my life is a piece of art, down to even the cozy fabrics I wrap my sweet babes in.

    Each bonnet in our collaboration is inspired by an artist we admire. Your family can learn more about the artists below through the DIY tutorials, video lessons, and printable activities in our jam-packed 6 week long Great Artists! Course. We choose these artists with care, to represent multiple styles, mediums, backgrounds, and cultures. The course is a great way to introduce your children to the vast creative world while helping them find their own unique style too. Click here to find out more about our course!

    Alma Pom Bonnet

    “Alma Thomas was an exuberant colorist, abstracting shapes and patterns from the trees and colors around her.” – Smithsonian American Art Museum

    Wow! I want to raise my kids as “exuberant colorists!” I can’t wait to complete the Great Artists! projects with Jasper when he is just a little bit older. With me as his mama, he has had his fair share of crafting experience already, ha! I want to transition that into more and more art history learning together. And with these artists inspired bonnets even Jasper’s new baby brother can join in!

    Click here to shop the Alma Pom Bonnet.

    Andy Pom Bonnet

    “Andy Warhol was a leading figure in the visual art movement known as pop art” – Tate

    Make Baby’s wardrobe POP with this Andy Warhol-inspired accessory. Andy is quite literally the poster child for colorful artwork, with his poster-style pieces. Of course we had to include him in this color-blocked collaboration!

    Click here to shop the Andy Pom Bonnet.

    Claude Pom Bonnet

    “Claude Monet employed seemingly spontaneous brushstrokes to capture the ever-changing effects of light and atmosphere.” – National Gallery of Art

    When I watch my ever-changing little boo grow up, I just want to capture every moment in time as keep it in my pocket! I am so excited to pass down some of Jasper’s baby clothes to our new little boo due next month (wow!) And I definitely plan to keep this new bonnets in the family for as long as possible.

    Click here to shop the Claude Pom Bonnet.

    Rembrandt Pom Bonnet

    “Compelling descriptions of light, space, atmosphere, modeling, texture, and human situations.” – The Met

    I know the “human situations” Rembrandt painted were far more grand than most I’ve experienced. But when I am in the middle of my own situations – with spilled cheerios everywhere, legos creating quite the hazard in my living room (Paul’s legos mind you, not Jasper’s) and my craft projects still unfinished – small pops of beauty make the mundane worth it. For me this especially applies to baby needs. If I can invest in pretty and high-quality items for my children, it does not stress me out when they are left in plain sight.

    Click here to shop the Rembrandt Pom Bonnet.

    Click here to see all of the baby bonnets!

    Start your baby’s creative learning young with these Great Artists! inspired bonnets.

    Briar Baby Has Masks Too!

    Briar Baby has not only been featured in all of my favorite baby clothing roundups, but recently in our list of favorite masks! Their masks are made from the most gorgeous fabrics. Plus your mask could match Baby’s bonnet! A dream, really. And for each mask sold, Briar Baby donates $5 to Baby2Baby – an organization that provides children living in poverty with all the basic necessities that every child deserves.

    I still scour the internet regularly for new fabric masks to add to my collection. Using masks has been such a part of my everyday life now, it has been nice to invest in some I really love wearing. I mean it! Having some mask options you love makes it feel like an accessory not only a kind gesture and safety precaution. Click here to explore our team’s favorite masks out now.

    Can’t wait to hear how you like the collection! 

    Virtual Workshop + Giveaway With Hello!Lucky

    Brittany
    -
    0
    Virtual Workshop + Giveaway With Hello!Lucky

    Since our big move, all of our schedules have been thrown off a little. It doesn’t help that I am still losing everything (thanks pregnancy brain!) Jasper has been the most affected by the move though. It’s a big change for my little boo! It has helped to get back our sense of normalcy by taking any chance I can to spend some time with Jasper, doing something he is familiar with.

    One of Jasper’s favorite activities is reading and, of course, that makes me so happy. Recently I shared “What Children’s Books I am Reading to my Toddler Right Now” and I am happy to share our latest find with you today! It is the perfect addition to your kid’s book collection just in time for Thanksgiving.

    My friends at Hello!Lucky – a women-owned and fun shop in San Francisco – offer the most amazing letterpress cards, stationery, and more recently, children’s books! I have read many of them with Jasper and he LOVES them.

    With their bold style and side-splitting humor, Hello!Lucky is excited to introduce their latest picture book that’s all about gratitude. Thanks A Ton! 

    Thanks a Ton! Is a pun-derful picture book celebrating gratitude! Offering tons of ideas for how to say “thanks” when words just aren’t enough. Written and illustrated by Eunice and Sabrina Moyle from Hello!Lucky. Eunice and Sabrina have created over 15 children’s books selling more than 1 million copies. Their books support children’s social and emotional development, and let them (and their parents) know that they are amazing exactly as they are. Their titles include My Mom is Magical! (my personal favorite ;), a book celebrating moms,  Kindness Rules!, a book about kindness, Thanks a Ton!, a book about gratitude, and I Believe in You, a book about unconditional love. A full list of their amazing books can be found here.

    And! Hello!Lucky will donate $5 for every copy of Thanks a Ton! purchased on raredevice.com to Love For Our Elders, a non-profit organization whose mission is to bring joy into the lives of the elderly and you guessed it, writing letters to them is one of those ways!

    Enter to Win a Copy of Our Picture Hope Coloring Book + A Copy of Thanks A Ton!

    We are jumping on board with Hello!Lucky in the name of gratitude and hope this season. So, we are excited to announce we now offer hardcopies of our Picture Hope Coloring Book!

    Picture Hope: The Social Distancing Coloring Book, is a compilation of coloring pages designed by 64 of your favorite artists from around the world. It is meant to lift spirits and calm anxious minds with its bold message of hope. Each artist has contributed a drawing of what hope means to them along with a few of their own words. The pages are designed for all skill levels and ages, kids and adults. It’s a perfect activity for staying at home and practicing mindfulness and meditation while filling in your hope through color. The profits of the book go to seasonal charities, which are announced here. Through downloads of Picture Hope, over $8000 has already donated!

    The idea is that the artists provide the blank canvas and YOU add the hope through color. And you know what? It works! I can’t even tell you the goose bumps I got while I was working on it! COVID-19 has indeed changed so much of our routine, yet in the confusion and uncertainty we’ve also witnessed countless moments of compassion and the strength of the human spirit.

    I’ve spent my career developing The House That Lars Built, whose mission is to encourage people to make things with their hands. We believe that the act of making has the power to heal and improve your well-being. The goal of this book is the same and it’s needed now more than ever. Coloring is a simple yet profound act that allows for meditation and mindfulness and this coloring book is even more profound because of the many voices of support behind it.

    A new version of Picture Hope is available now!

    Up until now, Picture Hope has only been available for download to be printed at home. We have been working hard (read: months!) to create this physical copy, so that you can order it totally ready to color! This version is also ideal to gift to others this season. Click here to order your hardcopy of Picture Hope!

    This high-quality coloring book includes varying levels of intricacy keeping you inspired to color! There are plenty of beautiful motifs to choose from: including botanicals, flowers, animals, cities, people, decorative, quotes. We designed this book for every skill level and age to enjoy! Each page is it’s own unique art piece from one of the 64 contributing artists. 

    For the next month, ALL proceeds from the Picture Hope Coloring Book go to the nonprofit Love For Our Elders. This comforting nonprofit fights loneliness with love in senior communities and has spread to over 70 countries, all 50 states, and hundreds of schools. Keep reading for more info about the impact of this nonprofit! 

    How to Enter Our Giveaway

    Enter to win your own copy of Picture Hope + Hello!Lucky’s best-selling latest picture book, Thanks A Ton!

    To enter, head to our Instagram post here to let us know what you’re grateful for in the comments below, and join the virtual THANKS A TON launch event on November 14th. The winner will be announced live. Click here to RSVP for the virtual event!

    Write Gratitude Letters With Us At Our Virtual Party With Hello!Lucky

    I (Brittany!) will be hosting this event along with Eunice & Sabrina Moyle founders of Hello!Lucky, Jacob Cramer founder of Love For Our Elders, and Giselle Gyalzen owner of Rare Device.

    Letters are especially wonderful during times when physical barriers are keeping us apart. A hand-written and a handmade card is a thoughtful, personal expression of care and kindness and can keep us connected to those we love, and to help everyone feel like they matter. During this event we want to share ways your family can help more people receive hand-written letters and cards during the Thanksgiving season.

    Our virtual event will take place on Saturday November 14th at 11 am PST. During this event you will have access to these exclusive free printables created by Hello!Lucky and The House That Lars Built – including printable gratitude cards and a template for a fun DIY card! Download the free printables here and print them out to get ready for the event!

    What will happen during the virtual event?

    I will be leading a DIY craft tutorial that your whole family can recreate this Thanksgiving season. Plus I will share some of my top tips for holiday card making!

    During this event you will also learn more about Love For Our Elders, the charity that proceeds from Picture Hope and Thanks a Ton! will be donated to. The founder of this nonprofit, Jacob Kramer, will be joining the event to share stories of the people your gratitude letters and donations can affect. He will also share tips on how your family can write to people who need it this season!

    There will also be a live reading of Thanks a Ton! so this is a virtual event the entire family can log on for. RSVP here and make it a family activity.

    At this time we will also announce the winner of our giveaway! (Details above.) 

    RSVP here for a creative afternoon full of conversation and crafts on Saturday November 14th at 11 am PST.  All ages welcome! 

     

    How to make Pysanky Eggs with Betsy Croft

    Brittany
    -
    0
    How to make Pysanky Eggs with Betsy Croft

    How to do Pysanky

    What isa Pysanky Egg? Simply put, it is an Easter egg decorated using a wax resist method. It literally means “to write” as you’ll soon learn in the video.

    But, it is so much more than that. Ukrainians have been decorating eggs, creating these miniature jewels, for countless generations. The design motifs on pysanky date back to pre-Christian times and many date to early Slavic cultures making these eggs incredibly meaningful and full of rich history!

    Pysanky Eggs

    You can find the Pysanky instructions in our e-book here.

    You may feel daunted looking at these but Betsy breaks it down easy as can be so that you and I can get started making them. Download the E-book now so you can get started!

    And in case you need something special to display those beautiful Pysanky eggs in that you are about to make, checkout these incredible Ceramic Totem Egg Cups that we collaborated on found in The House Lars Built Shop plus so many other projects to keep yo occupied during these hard times.

    Be sure to tag us with #Larsmakes so we can see how your eggs turn out!

    DIY Floral Headpiece Inspired by Maleficent: Mistress of Evil

    Brittany
    -
    1
    DIY Floral Headpiece Inspired by Maleficent: Mistress of Evil

    How to make the floral headpiece inspired by Maleficent: Mistress of Evil

    Materials:

    • 1” wide headband (we love these ones!)
    • Variation of Silk flowers in pinks, whites, and a spot of blue
    • Hot glue gun
    • Scissors

    Instructions:

    1. Start by gently pulling the flowers off of the plastic stems. Some of the flowers may need to be cut with scissors if there is a wire base.
    2. Pull and cute a sufficient amount of flowers to cover the headband, you will probably need more than you think if you’d like a full crown.
    3. Start glueing the flowers about 2” up the the start of the headband.
    4. Glue the large flowers on first and then use the smaller flowers as fillers.
    5. You may find that glueing some of the smaller flowers directly to the larger flowers will add height and dimension to the crown.
    6. You will want to add the most height to what you have decided to be the back of the crown. To attain height you can use the flowers that have longer stems on them and glue from the stem of the flower instead of the base of the flower.
    7. Continue all the way across the headband repeating the glueing and filling process until you have reached the other side stopping about 2” from the end of the headband.

    Tip: For added effect, add in some florals loosely into the hair. It’s the perfect little touch!
    Tip: To keep the floating flowers in her hair, we sprayed A TON of hairspray in. Worked like a charm 🙂

    Ok! Have you already seen the movie? What did you think? Will you be watching on New Year’s Eve with me? Show us your floral crowns by adding it to our collective hashtag #LarsMakes

    This post is sponsored by Walt Disney Studios. We love our sponsors who allow us to make original content for you!

    DIY Fruit Ornaments

    Brittany
    -
    1
    DIY Fruit Ornaments

    DIY FRUIT ORNAMENTS:

    Materials: 

    Directions: 

    Pear: 

    1. Print out your template on the color of your choice OR cut them out on the craft cutter. We used a Cricut. If you decide to use A craft cutting machine be sure to add in the scoring marks so you don’t have to do it by hand! 
    2. If you cut out by hand be sure to follow the marks on the PDF and score in the appropriate spots. 
    3. Fold the scored spots. 
    4. At the flaps on the body of the pear place a small amount of glue, be sure not to put too much or it will spill out leaving you with a messy edge. 
    5. Attach the flap to the piece just next to it at the appropriate spot.
    6. Once the body piece is formed move to the top of the pear and take the top flap, apply a small amount of glue, and attach it to the opposite side of the flap. 
    7. Gently pop the unglued sides out a bit and they will hold their form. 
    8. Fold tab on leaf. 
    9. Apply a small amount of glue to the top of the pear and place leaf. 
    10. Fold the tabs on the stem. 
    11. Place hot glue on the tabs and connect it to the flap next to it. 
    12. Repeat on all tabs. 
    13. Glue bottom tabs to each other to create bottom. 
    14. Place a small amount of glue at the bottom of the stem and place it on top of the leaf just glued on.

    Apple:

    1. Print out your template on the color of your choice OR cut them out on the craft cutter. We used a Cricut. If you decide to use a craft cutting machine be sure to add in the scoring marks so you don’t have to do it by hand! 
    2. If you cut out by hand be sure to follow the marks on the PDF and score in the appropriate spots. 
    3. Fold the scored spots. 
    4. At the flaps on the body of the pear place a small amount of glue, be sure not to put too much or it will spill out leaving you with a messy edge. 
    5. Attach the flap to the piece just next to it at the appropriate spot.
    6. Once the body piece is formed move to the top of the apple and take the top flap, apply a small amount of glue, and attach it to the opposite side of the flap.
    7. Once the main body is formed take the top flaps, bend them, and begin glueing them together to form the final shape. 
    8. Glue top tabs together and push gently inward so create the apple form. 
    9. Fold tab on leaf. 
    10. Apply a small amount of glue to the top of the apple and place leaf. 
    11. Fold the tabs on the stem. 
    12. Place hot glue on the tabs and connect it to the flap next to it. 
    13. Repeat on all tabs. 
    14. Glue bottom tabs to each other to create bottom. 
    15. Place a small amount of glue at the bottom of the stem and place it on top of the leaf just glued on. 

    Banana: 

    1. Print out your template on the color of your choice OR cut them out on the craft cutter. We used a Cricut. If you decide to use a craft cutting machine be sure to add in the scoring marks so you don’t have to do it by hand! 
    2. If you cut out by hand be sure to follow the marks on the PDF and score in the appropriate spots. 
    3. Fold the scored spots. 
    4. Once the flaps are all folded chose a spot on the banana to begin glueing, we started at the top and worked down both sides of the banana simultaneously, you will need to add glue in as you go. If you place glue all at once it will dry too quickly. 
    5. Once the banana body is assembled you can create the top and bottom pieces of it. 
    6. Fold all the scored parts on both pieces. 
    7. Place a small amount of glue on each flap and attach it to the piece next to it. 
    8. For the top of the banana you will not have any flaps at the bottom. 
    9. On the top of the banana body you will use the to flaps to hold the piece in place. 
    10. Place glue on the two flaps at the top of the banana and slide the banana top piece into place. 
    11. Assemble the bottom piece of the banana, this one has flaps to close the piece off completely. 
    12. At the closed off bottom the bottom piece apply a small amount of hot glue and attach it to the bottom of the banana! 

    Turning it into an ornament: 

    1. Thread a needle with a coordinating color to your ornament. 
    2. Decide how you would like your piece to hang and gently poke the needle through to string it up. 
    3. Create a loop to the size that you would like the ornament to hang from and tie off. 
    4. Your ornament is ready to be hung! 

    You can find the PDF and SVG templates in our shop
    You can find prints of her artwork in our Print Shop
    You can find Amanda Jane Jone’s book, Yum Yummy Yuck here
    You can find her clothing collaboration with Winter Water Factory here 

    Be sure to tag us with #Holidayswithlars we love seeing your creations!

    Giving Tuesday: Giving to artisans

    Brittany
    -
    0
    Giving Tuesday: Giving to artisans

    What is Nest all about?

    1) Global economic inclusivity. Nest is focused on increasing the supply and demand for responsible handcraft, generating economic opportunity for (the 300 million) home-based workers at the bottom of the supply chain.

    2) Women’s well-being. Craft-based work is the second largest employer of women globally—providing a source of livelihood to those limited in their ability to work outside the home. Using universal standards for homes and small workshops, Nest is making female handworkers visible while promoting their fair access to social and economic opportunity.

    3) Cultural preservation. Around the world, time honored cultural traditions embedded in craftsmanship are in danger of being lost. Nest is committed to reviving these techniques through business innovation and a shift in consumer perception surrounding the value of handcraft.

    Why are we working with Nest?

    When we started developing our collaboration with Eighteen B, a woman founded business, and ours, all women founded and run, I knew I wanted to find another women-focused organization to partner with for Giving Tuesday and Eighteen B was right on board to make our partnership with Nest happen.The genesis of my interest in supporting home-based artisans stemmed from my time working with an architecture group led by Travis Price called Spirit of Place – Spirit of Design, based in Washington DC right after graduate school (see above). I spent some time in Nepal with them in a tiny village for a few weeks where they constructed a monument to memorialize their ancestors. It was there that I learned about the importantance of cultural and language preservation and how so much of it is being lost or forgotten.

    Now that I work in a craft-based job myself, I’ve come to realize the necessity and vibrancy that craft-based work offers to the world in addition to their own livelihoods. And I’m lucky to have a platform to share this message with you.

    How to give?

    So, how our partnership is working today is that for every The House That Lars Built Eighteen B holiday set you purchase, Eighteen B will give $5 to Nest. If you’ve been waiting to purchase one, consider this a wonderful way to give and support a beautiful cause.

    You can purchase a holiday set here.
    Learn more about Nest here

    Our Year in Review with Mixbook

    Brittany
    -
    0
    Our Year in Review with Mixbook

    As we get ready to say goodbye to 2019 and enter 2020 it feels like the perfect time to jog your memory and show you our Year in Review book from The House That Lars Built x Mixbook collection and how to maximize its functions. 

    If you’re like me, or really anyone, you have a million photos dispersed between your phone, computer, and camera. While being able to capture moments on camera at basically any moment is wonderfully convenient, I’ve found that some of these memories get lost in the masses. This is precisely why I loved going through and making my Year in Review book.

    Continue

    Amanda Jane Jones joins the Lars Print Shop!

    Sammy Jameson
    -
    0
    Amanda Jane Jones joins the Lars Print Shop!

    We couldn’t be more thrilled to welcome graphic designer and author, Amanda Jane Jones to the Lars Print Shop! A few months back, Amanda was looking for a home for her new collection of prints that are inspired by her new book co-authored by her husband, Cree, Yum, Yummy, Yuck. I didn’t have to think twice about it. I knew that we wanted, no needed those beautiful prints of Amanda’s in our shop. So I reached out and awaited her response with butterflies in the tum tum. She got back to me, and as you may be able to tell the response was “Yes!” and so we set her shop in motion!

    This is Amanda’s first line of illustrative prints and she is “over the moon excited with how they turned out” as are we! The pieces were designed with versatility in mind, they are fun and bright enough to be in a child’s room, but also bold and graphic enough to be on the mantle in your living room. They are the perfect pop of color for any room in the house! From children to adults these are fitting for everyone!

    Continue

    Our new holiday collaboration!

    Brittany
    -
    1
    Our new holiday collaboration!

    Reveal day! We’ve been keeping an awesome collaboration under wraps for months and we are so excited to share the news with you TODAY! Teaming up with our favorite new beauty brand, Eighteen B, we’ve developed the branding and packaging for their holiday campaign with the theme of gratitude. Because what better way to celebrate this time of the year than with a grateful heart.

    Continue
    123...11Page 1 of 11
    © 2020, The House that Lars Built. All rights reserved.