DIY Felt Name Bunting

I always make paper buntings for everything and rave about how easy they are - and felt buntings are just as easy! Also, you can readjust the steps below based on how "perfect" you want this to be - I normally would cut the flags using a stencil, but I was somewhat on a time crunch (when am I not?), so they ended up being a little uneven.

Supplies
Stiffened or regular felt, accent trim (optional), string or twine, rotary cutter or scissors, mat, glue gun (or regular glue would work)

Steps

1. Determine what you want to spell out and how many pieces you will need for the bunting (one piece for each letter). I only needed four pieces, so I ended up using one sheet of felt.
2. Cut your felt into the desired number of pieces for the bunting. It's up to you what size and shape you want this to be.
3. Cut the letters out from the felt. I used a piece of stiffened felt so that it would be easier to free-hand cut the letters (or you can use your die cut machine or stencils). I wasn't too concerned on how perfect the letters were, because after all, this bunting was for a dog!
4. Hot glue the trim onto the felt pieces.
5. Hot glue the letters onto the felt pieces.
6. Hot glue the felt pieces onto the twine.

I usually won’t cut the twine until my bunting is done, just so that the length of the twine is equal on both ends.

Here's Vega on her 2nd birthday in her matching birthday hat - she loved it!

Maine Trip Highlights

I am so, so, so excited to share details from my latest trip up north to visit family in Maine. My husband, Josh, is from Maine, and he moved to Virginia after college to be near me (what a guy!). We visit now about two-three times a year - sometimes more if we are lucky! This recent trip was even more exciting because six of our closest friends from Virginia decided to join us! 

We scheduled our summer trip around Josh's mom's birthday and threw a surprise lobster bake for her on the first day we arrived - complete with lobsters (and lobster bibs!), steamers, and grilled corn on the cob. The rest of the trip was mainly spent boating and boozing on Sebago Lake. During our non-lake days, we perused the cute little shops at the Old Port and tried a handful of delicious food joints - including Portland Lobster Company and the East Ender. Every time we are back in Maine, I always have a laundry list of places that I want to go to. Awhile back, I had heard about a restaurant in Portland called Duckfat that was well known for their fries. Well, let me tell you being the fry connoisseur that I am: these were the best fries I've ever had in my entire life! Their fries are fried in duckfat and you can select from a variety of dipping sauces to pair with your fries (I got the truffle ketchup and garlic mayo). And don't forget to try the original Duckfat vanilla bean milkshake, too. It was life changing.

And what about that cute pup? Well, Vega also had an amazing time learning to swim in the lake and was swimming like a pro by the end of our trip! She doesn't swim in Virginia too much - usually she plays in her baby pool on our back patio. So other than that, she's never really swam before - which is crazy, considering she is a Labrador! She definitely got used to Maine life quickly - waking up each morning (she got to sleep in the bed for a whole week because it was "vacation"), running around on the beach unleashed, swimming in the lake, sleeping next to the fire. Oh the life of a happy, loved dog.

We can't wait to be back again this Christmas to spend the holidays with our family...and eat more lobster, too!