Simply Connected

This past Sunday we had the privilege of spending some time with an amazing Calgary photographer getting some family pictures done. Her name is Brandi Murray and her business is called Simply Connected Photography.

Patience must be Brandi's middle name for working with a three-year-old over-actor who wants to pose too much and an eighteen-month-old with a mind of her own is no easy task I assure you! But, she took it all in stride and managed to capture the true personalities of my little family!

The following are just a few of the images Brandi captured!

If you are ever in the need for a great child, baby or family photographer in the Calgary area I highly recommend Brandi! Her relaxed personality coupled with ability to capture the perfect shots makes her our first pick!

Wordless Wednesday

Fly Me To The Moon

A week of sickness for the whole family creates cooped up, stir-crazy kids with cabin fever! In these times you don't dare cough, sneeze or take a runny-nosed child out in public without getting the wide-eyed look of horror from strangers that says they believe you are not only sick, but that you are the actual virus on a mission to destroy them!

So home you stay where everyone gets a little crazier as the minutes go by and the sickness slowly subsides. What to do at such a time?

With a little creativity and a cardboard box not only can you get everyone out of the house - you can fly them to the moon!

The ABC's of Alphabet Nurseries

Photo courtesy of Project Nursery

With nursery trends leaning towards modern and contemporary, alphabet nurseries are becoming all the rage! Here at Bouncing Off The Walls we've had the pleasure of assisting a few crafty moms in their quest for an original alphabet nursery. With some thinking outside of the box you can create a nursery that is unique, educational, not too babyish and certainly eye-catching!

To recreate this look start by looking around you. You would be amazed at some of the objects around you that can represent letters! For different textures and letters made from different materials visit craft stores. Some sell metal, plastic, fabric and wood letters. Glue some into frames or onto some other shape.

Bouncing Off The Walls can help by cutting letters in various sizes and fonts and we can paint them for you or send them to you unfinished for you to paint or decoupage yourself!

The ideas are endless. This is one nursery design that is sure to be fun to put together!

Big Success!

This past weekend I spent my time in a little 10x10 booth at the Calgary Home & Interior Design show peddling my wares and chatting it up with everyone who stopped in. It was great to meet some of my past customers face to face, create new relationships with future customers and network with other businesses. Trade shows are, indeed, tiring but fun all at the same time!

Thanks to all those who stopped by to chat and I hope to see some of you at the Calgary Baby Show on October 3rd and 4th, BMO Centre at Stampede Park!

Toy Boxes Are Here!

Finally!! One of the most requested products has finally been added to the line up at Bouncing Off The Walls! Why did it take so long for me to sell toy boxes? Because I had a hard time finding quality ones that I wanted to paint! Who wants a toy box that is cracked, lopsided or just plain cheap and flimsy even if it is painted beautifully?

Our toy boxes are none of that! (Well, ok...they're painted beautifully, but there not any of those other things!) Serguei from Khorin Custom Woodworking builds my toy boxes for me and he builds the best toy boxes around! Out standard one is solid pine with reinforced corners, anti-slam hinges and an air space for in the event a child should end up inside it. It measures 34"x20"x20" so there's plenty of room for even larger toys.

Every toy box is built to order which allows for changes to the design of not only the artwork, but to the box itself. Serguei is a woodworking genius and can craft the toy boxes from different woods and change whatever you want! It's as easy as contacting me with your ideas and I will give you a quote!

Match Made in Heaven!

You know how some people just seem to have been made for each other? Well, recently I found the perfect mate for some of my hand painted drawer knobs! These gorgeous chocolate and pistachio throw pillows were made by Lily from Two Stray Cats on Etsy and as soon as I saw them I knew I'd found a match for my Chocolate and Lime drawer knob set!

This set of two 12" x 18" (30 x 45cm) pillows have been made with co-ordinated chocolate and pistachio toned cotton fabric with an envelope opening made from a lighter chocolate fabric that has been secured with gorgeous chocolate bronze looped edge ribbon.

Please check out Lily's shop; she does absolutely amazing work. Oh, and did I mention she's a fellow Albertan?! Like I said....a match made in Heaven!