Welcome to Its So Very Cheri.  I am proud to share with you one of the gals that is involved in the Crafting with the Stars contest. 

Today we have Mandi from Vintage Revivals.

These gals are a creative bunch. Mandi is not who I am connected with but she is still top notch in my book.

Mandi  made this adorable tea pot lamp for the first round of the competition.  When I first saw it, I thought this was the original and the other was the knock off and while cute I thought this one was so much cuter.

So I was pleasantly suprised to find that the contest did the better project.  Great Job Mandi.

I asked Mandi to tell about herself and blog and then I asked her some fun questions to answer for us to get to know her a little better.

I think that a lot of the time people are afraid to try new things for fear of how it might- or might not work out. I hope that my blog is a dose of courage, inspiration, and humor all in one lovely package. I am a freak about doing things by yourself. I love to sew, invent, refinish, alter and renew just about everything that comes into my home. I am a thrift store junkie and love digging through peoples crap. (No, not that kind.) My style is a mix of old junk that sometimes is refreshed and sometimes not, with some funky colors and ALWAYS something unexpected. I am also the type of person that I see something that someone is doing and think “Gosh I could do that too.” This is where my Vintage Revivals began, at the end of July, after my Grandma had just passed away I was able to see how she had effect countless people and I wanted to do that too. This is a little different forum than the way that she did it, but if I can make someone laugh or teach them how to do something that they can say to their doubting husbands “I TOLD you it would turn out awesome…” then I feel that I have made a difference.

what is  your favorite craft tool/tools?

My favorite product of all time is Ralph Lauren Faux Glaze in Black Silk. There is something about it that makes EVERYTHING look better (I love it so much I would love it to pour it into my hubbies veins.) I LOVE Krylon spray paint too.

What are your favorite colors to decorate in (and if it is different)–your favorite color in clothing.

Every room in my house has white and gray IMO they are the best neutrals that you can have. I jazz it up with one or two bold accent colors. Yellow is my favorite color as of well….forever. I love random color in clothing too like last Sunday the little girls in my primary class couldn’t get enough of my pink and purple tights. But that’s only when I actually get ready, usually I am just a blah mom in jeans and a t-shirt knocking people over at the thrift store to make sure they don’t jack my treasure.

If we went out to eat where would you want to go and what would you order?

My favorite place to eat (not because I am partial but because its awesome) is our family resturaunt Durangos. Its mexican and amazing. Plus you would love it cause if you are with me you would get a discount.

The project that I chose for the 1st round of CWTS was the Anthropologie Teapot Lamp. I love trying to figure out how to make things even more awesome than the original. It was a project that I have been wanting to do for months but never got around to. It turned out way better than the original idea I had. You have to just let things evolve as you create. I think that for $32.00 you could never buy a lamp as cool as this one.

Here is the link Anthro Teapot Tutorial

2 of my other favorites are Great Wall of Mirrors and another is teacup clock and this one also was quite a hit Tin Foil Nightstand
so you can choose which ever ones you love the most!

Tell us what inspires you.

I am inspired creatively by the fact that my brain never stops, it is constantly in re-analysis mode. I get a bunch of my ideas or tweeks on ideas from my 7 year old daughter who is WAY to much like her mother. I love contests like CWTS and The DIY Club, I may seem like a trash talker but I really am nice….pinky promise. My husband and I have been through a lot in our 9 years of marriage and it gives me perspective. Thats why you will always see me refering to my projects as “Crap” or “Junk” becasue in the grand scheme of things its all they are. They way that we treat people, the way that we act when no one is looking, and most importantly the relationship we build with Christ are the things that matter.

What is the best blogging advice you have received.

The best blogging advice that I have ever received was from Michelle @ Someday Crafts. She told me that I was going to be featured as a blog to watch cause she thought I was um awesome. I asked her what she thought I needed to do to build bigger blog and she told me to change the design and especially the font I was using to make it more legible. Thanks Michelle! Each of our blogs is a little window into our lives and it has to reflect you, but it also has to be a window that people want to look through!

Be sure to check out her Tea Pot Lamp Tutorial

Thanks so much Mandi and Good Luck!!