A Cut Above

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I have no attachment to Coco Chanel, but this quote couldn't be more true.  My five year old is living proof.  A few weeks ago, she proceeded to lob off all of her 5 years of curly growth, in 3 snips.   Did I mention her dad's a barber?  Maybe it's in her genes? After an initial (week) of shock, and a lecture about how "we don't use sharp scissors without a grown up," I have come to love her hair and honestly can't remember what she looked like before.  It has changed her appearance drastically, in a good way.  Her eyes look huge and her smile brighter, she just looks so tidy (which, if you've spent any time with a five-year-old girl with long hair, you'll know that's hard to come by. They always look disheveled and dare I say, messy?  hey, it's my blog)  Anyway, we love it.

 But more important, is the way she feels and her reaction to the change.  This kid has a new sense of "freedom"  it seems.  She doesn't care who stares at her, who makes comments positive or negative, she loves the new her.  I'm loving the new her!  The first day after the cut, I saw her walk by a mirror and give herself a little smirk, as if saying to herself "You Rock."  It was not only the cutest thing to witness, but the moment I realized this little person has her own confident personality and and I am proud of it.  She  understands that you don't need hair, or anything else, to make you beautiful, it's inside and let me tell you, boy is it ever shining out of her! 

My daughter has started a little trend and two of her friends have begged their mothers for the same cut...so far one gave in.  

So I'm loving these moments, I know these are going to be stories we share one day with a strong, truly beautiful woman that we will have raised!  

She really has changed her life, with one hair cut.

Custom Window Panels for Cheap

I've been going back and forth with changing out my color scheme in the living and dining rooms, but since I am blooming where I'm planted and everything, I should make the most of what I have right? 
I found these lovelies at The Country Door for less than $20 each.  They are sheer and look like a linen panel, but most importantly, they carry the colors of the living room into the dining room (the pic looks red, but they are that rust orange- which is hard to find in "Summer" textiles). 

 Sounds great right? But they were too short.  I love 9 ft ceilings but it's hard to find 120" length drapes that I want. 

 I decided to take a chance and order an extra panel to sew onto the bottom of the shorties.  I planned to use some type of trim at the seam to conceal where they are connected. But once I finished sewing and hung them, it's hard to tell where the seam even is, so I left them.  
My technique?  I hung the too short panels on the existing rod and measured from the bottom of the panel to the floor. I then sewed the length needed onto each panel.  This way they are exactly the right length.  (I won't divulge how many times I have re-hung a rod because I wasn't happy with where the panel fell once it was hung!) 

Easy and for only $30 !