This contributor post was written by Beth of Parsimonia.

For those of us in the four-season states, the temperatures are really starting to drop! I finally broke out my mittens, scarves, hats and other cold-weather accoutrements this week, thus adding a whole new level of accessories to my wardrobe. But, I have to be honest: There are several pieces I acquired years ago that I know aren’t going to see the glint of snow. Just like most women, my tastes change with the seasons, but replacing winter wear always seems a bit more expensive. So instead of browsing online stores, I’ve been hitting the blogsophere for ideas, and these five DIYs are just the ticket for keeping me (and you!) warm, head to toe.

(above) Sew Your Own Mittens by A Beautiful Mess

DIY Leg Warmers by Split the Lark

Snowy Day Hat Pattern by See Kate Sew

Long Pom Pom Cowl via Purl Soho

Yellow Bow Ear Warmer by Delia Creates
(Note that tutorial is for personal, not commercial, use)

Beth is the writer behind Parsimonia: Secondhand With Style, where she blogs about her first love (thrifting) and her second love (cooking), as well as DIY projects, sustainable style and other bits of inspiration. She lives in St. Louis with one husband, one fuzzy dog and lots of dreams, and recently launched an online vintage store.

The weather here in Seattle this week seems super up and down. One day it was as if I couldn’t put enough clothes on before braving the cold and the next a light jacket seemed to do the trick.

If I just had a few more scarves I think I’d feel more prepared for any kind of weather (right now I only have one – and it’s awesome. but I could use a few more). At least, that’s what I am telling myself at the moment. Any excuse to shop, right?

I found a few from Little Birdie Design Studio that I really like. Maybe one of these will do the trick? I really like the grey one and this orange one looks cozy too.

Of course, if I am going to shop for myself, it only seems fair to get something for Luna too..

That’s right. Tori makes doggie scarves as well. Are these not the cutest things ever or what?

Stop by Little Birdie and get 10% off your order when you use the promo code PNSFAN at checkout. 

Okay. I am a fabric girl. And I suspect that you are too.

I collect piles of textiles. I have bins and bins of fabric from my grandmother and thrift stores, and fabric stores, and Etsy, and..well, you get the point. But the (kind of) weird thing is…dun, dun, dun…I don’t sew!

I know, weird, right?

So what do I do with all this fabric I stash in the closets and under the bed? Well, I use it for projects that don’t involve sewing of course, like the bunting from our wedding (yep, that was a no sew project).

But as much fabric as I have on hand, one of the types that I haven’t really tried out is oilcloth. I don’t really know why because it seems quite practical + it’s shiny and fun and easy to clean (bonus!). So I am thinking about giving it a try. And if and when I ever learn to sew, I will be picking up this book, Sewing with Oilcloth, from Kelly McCants…

Is this cover amazing or what?

I HAVE TO learn how to make that chalk runner at the top of this post from the book because I am pretty sure those cream puffs will just magically appear if I do. Yum!

If you are already a sewer, you are one step ahead of me. So kudos to you. And you can get a little sneak peek into Sewing with Oilcloth right here to see if it tickles your fancy.

Kelly has a really awesome selection of oilcloth as well, hence the name of her shop, Oilcloth Addict. So it’s pretty much one-stop shopping. What’s not to like?

Yesterday, Jeff and I strolled down to Barnes and Noble at lunchtime because (surprise!) I’m in the February 2012 issue of Women’s Day magazine. Yay!

Of course, I always get excited about magazine features, but I have to admit it’s partly because I like to send a copy to my grandma every time it happens so she knows I’m legit (she basically has no idea what I do for a living because she has never been on a computer in her life so its kind of difficult to explain it to her. but magazine features she understands).

Anyway, this year is the 75th anniversary of the mag and I am honored to be a part of it. My project for a lacy frosted glass mirror is on page 46. You may remember the original mirror project from the blog a couple of years ago if you’ve been around for a while.

If you’re interested, you can pick up a copy at your local book store or head to the Woman’s Day website and get the full tutorial online to make your own.

Big thanks to Woman’s Day for featuring my project. Really a pleasure to work with them.

When we think of textiles for use in the home, typically our thoughts go directly to towels or sheets, and perhaps to pillows and upholstery. But there are other great ways to use fabric-type items within your modern interior, and a wonderful selection of textile types to use as well.

You can add textiles to your interior environment in the form of screens, wall hangings, lampshades, baffles, blankets and throws. And the materials available in these styles range from macramé to shell, wood to standard fabric. This is a great way to add visual texture and perhaps a pop of color to your room without making a more permanent investment.

(above) Modern Macramé Hanging

Textile Shelving + Macramé Lampshade

 Tent-Like Baffles

Foldable Wood Fabric + Capiz Screen

Amy wrote this post. She is the designer and owner of FormFire Glassworks, where she creates modern lampwork glass beads and jewelry, and by day designs custom homes for a small firm in Southern California. You can follow her twitter @formfireglass.

One of my professors in college said something to me on my first day of class that I still remember today. She said, “In reference to scale, if it’s not tiny, tiny or huge, HUGE it’s not important.”

Now, I am sure there are plenty of people out there who don’t agree with what she said, and honestly I happen to love medium-sized paintings because they are perfect for our house, but I know what she meant.

If you want the viewer to have to “do something” immediately, scale is a good way to evoke that in a person. Whether they have to go up to a drawing and almost put their nose to it to see what it is, or step back so far from the piece they are practically in another room to get the full scope, both require interaction from the viewer. So I like that rule of thumb.

And towards the realm of tiny, tiny are these micro-mini paintings from Caroline of Oh Chalet. Many of the pieces in her shop at the moment revolve around winter themes, and they are so cute. I mean how can you not love a painting with a fox in it?

Special Promo: Use coupon code PAPERNSTITCH upon checkout to receive free worldwide shipping! Visit Oh Chalet on Etsy now to check out more of Caroline’s work.

And after you’ve browsed her work, I am curious to know your thoughts on what my professor said to me those years ago. Agree / Disagree?

Saturday night I arrived back at home after a full week (well Tuesday night through Saturday) in Salt Lake City for Altitude Summit. It was super fun and I met some really great people. But it feels good to be home too – it was an exhausting week (but in a good way). Everyone I talked to on the last day kept saying how tired they were, myself included.

I didn’t take as many photos as I thought I would. But I know almost everyone who went is going to post a recap, so I’m sure you’ll see plenty of photographs (this is a super good place to start for Alt recaps – fellow Seattle blogger Melanie put together a pinboard of all the recap articles + there are 100s of pictures on the Alt flickr stream too).

Anyway, here’s how it all went down from my point of view…

(above image) Awesome window display that I saw on the first day. In a lot of ways I feel like Alt is a monster (the conference is huge- as in 500 attendees huge). But it’s a monster that is totally adorable and cuddly and I just want to give it a big hug. Much like this window display.

On Wednesday night, Danni and I went to a yummy dinner at Ruth’s Chris thanks to the lovely folks at HP. Later on that night, I went to a Blog Brunch meet up and then found out that there was a drive by shooting at one of the other Alt dinners earlier in the evening?! So weird! Luckily, no one was hurt.

The next day, the panels started and they were good. But the keynotes were great – Ben from Pinterest was awesome (and I am sure you’ll hear that a lot if you read other people’s recaps). He is a charismatic guy, but he’s really smart too, which makes for an interesting speaker. My favorite panels from Thursday + Friday were Blog to Book, Growing your Readership, Kickstarting your Next Project, and Building a Personal Brand.

I had a few take-aways from pretty much every panel I attended, but one of the themes I heard over and over again was this idea of investing in your business (time, money, etc – whatever investment means to you – just taking what you do more seriously and treating it professionally).

Lillian (left) + me chatting with Piper (who was just outside the photo) before one of the panels. *picture by Justin Hackworth via Alt’s flickr page

Art prints to be released by Minted in March. Aren’t these great? Can’t wait for them to launch in a couple of months. Love that mountain print in the middle.

Here’s the Method smilebooth from one of the Friday parties. After a few drinks, somehow Kate and I ended up taking the largest piece of cake possible back to our room and scarfing it down. It was fun. You know I love cake.

(back row) Kate, me, Zoe (front row) Margot, Sarah, Meg

Fun Friday night party hosted by Uppercase + Squarespace . All the parties were great, but I couldn’t get good pictures of the others.

Swag! Lots of amazing free stuff. I actually barely crammed everything in to my suitcase at the end of the week. But it was all for you, I promise because I am thinking about doing a giveaway with some of the awesome goodies I snagged. What do you think? Would you be interested in a giveaway?

And finally, I ended up with the most gorgeous stack of business cards on the planet. On the planet I tell you! I lost a few along the way. AKA all of the cards I collected on the last day, but I still have a great stash. *I’ll be posting more photos of my favorite business cards from the conference next week because they are so good, they deserve their own post.

Overall, I really loved the conference and was so glad to have been able to meet some new (wonderful) ladies and catch up with old friends. Next year, I hope to see you there. And I also hope that will have the wardrobe to keep up with all the stylish ladies and gents that will be attending.