Southern Whim

For the Love of Baskets

2014-02-15T20:20:00.001-05:00

There's a rule in this house. You can never have too many baskets. Nope. Absolutely not. There's always a need for them, especially with a 2 year old running around and 50,000 toys. 50,000 toys that, of course, have to be organized by type, color and purpose because I might be a little OCD... only a little... no way I'll be able to sleep knowing that Batman is sitting in the same bin as the tools.

Surely, I'm not the only multi-tasking mom that has a disaster of a medicine cabinet. If your's is immaculate, I applaud you, I really do; but lets just pretend, it makes me feel a little better. :) I've noticed, this is one of the worst places in our house to get messy so quickly. Mainly because when I'm rummaging for migraine medicine, putting anything back in the right spot is the very last thing I care about. Then something falls and there's a cascade of pill bottles everywhere... that's usually the sign of defeat for the day.

Finally, I had enough and cleared all this junk out.

Ridiculous isn't it? Any of my OCDers cringing inside?

So what on earth could I use? I turned to my "storage closet" as I call it, probably more accurately called a "junk closet". I found two small canvas baskets I had gotten from Wal-mart a few years ago. So I went through and trashed the expired stuff we obviously wouldn't be using and sorted through it all. I finally got it cleared out and minimized to this.

Any reason to pull out the label maker! Here's a side by side.

This little purge sent me onto another purge, the pantry. It was originally 100x worse, shew! I'll fill you in on that one shortly as well. A little teaser for my fellow organizing freaks... it involves Target and canvas totes :)

Shoe Molding... makes a WORLD of difference

2014-02-01T17:16:00.000-05:00

We've lived in this house for almost 4 years now. So you'd think that all the little imperfections that need to be fixed would be done by now, right? So not true, especially when you have a child, are a working student and a continuing to do list. But, I finally crossed another project off the list which really has its one reward. Killed a few birds with one stone on this one. Score!

On occasion, I do make small lists and may add a few items I've already done so I can feel a little more accomplished. :) This is my trick at least, feel free to use it.

I've been on a grout cleaning spree the past few weekends and the lack of shoe molding around the stairs became even more evident... and irritating. It became the big elephant in the room so I HAD to get this done.

Here's how awful it looked before... plus the paint marks from painting when we moved in... horrific

A trip to Home Depot for some quarter round and matching floor stain we were ready to go. Getting the stain to match up perfectly was the hard part since we didn't do the hardwood ourselves. A little trial and error with colors and we finally found the right one, Provincial 211 by Minwax.

I took the measurements and cut out the molding with my Dremel Multi-Max.

Here would be the first attempt with walnut... I just have to laugh at this :) Why did I even think this would be close?

After this step took a plunge for the worst, I decided I would actually paint it white to match the door molding anyway. I think it turned out looking better than the correct stained color would be.

Then, the floor section is where I stained to match the stairwell. While I was down there, there was no way I couldn't do something about those paint marks so I took a magic eraser and a razor blade to those puppies and they were off!

Here's how it finally looks...

Finally! That awful gap between my tile and stairs is hidden! Seamless and no longer catching every piece of dust my 2 year old flutters up while playing.

Now, just to tackle touching up the paint on the side of the stairs

Easy Chevron Picture Art

2014-01-16T21:23:00.001-05:00

Only one word here ladies and gents. Target.

This place is amazing, my knock-off Pottery Barn. I am incapable of walking in there and coming out empty handed. I'll admit that I'm bad about walking in to grab toilet paper and come out 2 hours later sans toilet paper, with 5 dinosaurs from the dollar section for my son, cardigan I already have in 3 other colors and a clearanced item I don't need, but have convinced myself I'll use it for something. Surely I'm not the only sucker to this heavenly place, am I?

A few months ago I came across a section of large frames knocked down to $4 each. With the amount of ideas I instantly had for them, I couldn't resist. So I snagged 2 of them. Almost regretting I didn't get more at that price; but seriously, I don't need them. I can say I have some restraint. :)

I ended up walking around the house for about 30 minutes with my 2 year old trailing behind, placing these up on the walls where I thought they'd go best. He didn't like a single spot. He was pretty consistent with the no's. Go figure. The kid has the choice between yes and no, you'll get a no 90% of the time. I mean, 99%. Ahhh... Toddlerhood.

You can't beat having that monkey jabbering through the house with you though. I'll turn him into a DIYer before long... bringing him to the dark side. :)

Once I decided on the master bedroom, I pulled out some old scrapbook paper and a ruler to throw on some chevron lines for a pattern.

I cut out the first section and repeated it down the sheet. Then I cut out the white pattern pieces and just glued them to my main background color. Pretty easy right?

Once I finally got them situated, it was time to pull out my ninja skills. Holding these in place while I put the glass on. Easier solution? Just tape it. I promise you won't look as ridiculous.

These little frame makeovers cost me just $8 total

I'm not sure how I'm feeling about the 3 clashing patterns at the moment. We'll see if they grow on me or get the better of my OCD after a few weeks. :)

The lamps are definitely staying. They're one of my biggest steals thus far. They were $100 at Hobby Lobby for FOREVER. Every visit I made, I'd make a discrete walk by just to check on them. Of course, giving myself enough time to talk myself out of buying them. That much for a lamp was down right insane. So I left a little piece of my heart there every time. Then one day, I happened to make a stop through the clearance section and there they were! My beautiful lamps, only 2 left, it was a sign and marked down to $40. Was $40 a little much? Yes, but I had waited patiently for this moment and no way was I leaving there without them. Plus, after doing a little research on lamps and shades that were similar, it pretty much evened out.

Linked up to
I Heart Naptime, Cedarhill Farmhouse, DIY Showoff

Stripe Painted Curtain Panels

2014-01-11T20:57:00.000-05:00

I'm absolutely in love with this look right now. If I could stripe or chevron everything in my house, I'd probably do it. Cue Elvis' Jailhouse Rock. The simple gray stripes are clean, modern and add a perfect accent to the room. Originally, I couldn't decide between stripes or chevron. To be honest, I decided on stripes because it would be 100 times easier. I took the lazy way this time :). Seeing them hung now, I couldn't imagine them any different.

I actually made these curtains over a year ago. Since then, I've gotten so many people ask me where I got these and where they could get them. I'll fill you all in on my little secret... I made them. These curtains have been one of my favorite projects to date and getting asked about them so frequently is pretty flattering. So thank you to each one of you that has. :) I'm a little proud of them.

So to share my excitement, here's a little tutorial. There are a lot of pictures I didn't find so bare with me. I do have a few, but I'll try to be thorough enough to make this way easy for ya.

Items you'll need:
White Curtains
I bought 2 sets of white curtains from Target. Not too expensive, but if you even wanted something cheaper, check out the clearance sections in different stores and even pick a few sets up from Walmart. No need to splurge here.

Paint
Pick the paint color you want. I actually used several bottles of gray acrylic paint that I had leftover from something else that I decided to use. I picked these up from Walmart in the craft section.

Tools
Paint roller, painters tape and a ruler. I definitely suggest getting a little paint roller for this project. It will roll on much more smooth and leave an even look.

First
I measured the entire length of the curtain and decided about how thick I wanted my stripes. That will determine the amount of stripes I'll have. My curtain length is 84" and divided by 7" for each stripe makes 12 total stripes.

Second
Using my ruler, I marked every 7 inches down the curtain sides. I also did this down the middle of the curtain so that when I laid my tape it would be a straight line going across, no guessing.

Third
Laid my tape out to mark each section I would be painting. WATCH THIS STEP! Line after line, after line, after line, you'll easily lay it on the wrong side if you're not paying attention. Better to catch it before the paint goes down :)

Fourth
Now for the scary part and point of no return! Rolling on the paint. I only did one coat on mine. I would recommend two coats if you'd like to take the time to. You can see a few areas on mine where the paint isn't as thick and the light kind of shines through. However, that's all up to how you want them to look.

Also, pull the tape off slow.

Now just hang them up. You'll love them, I swear. It will probably be no time before you start looking for something else to take your paint brush to. Good luck!

Linked up to
I Heart Nap Time, Flamingo Toes, DIY Showoff, Under the table & dreaming, My Little Birds

DIY Growth Chart

2014-01-05T14:44:00.002-05:00

The DIY stained growth charts have been scrolling through the Pintresphere for awhile now... another pin I've had pinned and had yet to complete. Finally, after a little winter cabin fever and a little spike in the temps, I put it on the weekend to do list.

I browsed around for a few inspirational ideas and came across some really great painted or stained designs that I loved. In the end, I decided to keep it simple so I would be able to easily chart my son's growth. Here are a few I came across.

The ones above are from Design, Dining & Diapers, Bower Power Blog and Cozy, Cottage, Cute. I love these ladies. They have offered so much creativity to work off of.

So first thing on Saturday while Daddy was at work, I packed up the monkey and we headed to The Home Depot. I dream of the day we're no longer carrying a diaper bag, back up clothes, snacks and a drink everywhere we go. Quick trips would once again be quick trips... One day Ashley, then you'll be wishing for these days back.

We had to do our ritual Home Depot photo op...

We picked up a 1x6x6 board which was less than $8.00 and a container of Minwax Dark Walnut stain. If you already have all the materials needed, then this project will cost you less than $10 easy.

Once we got home, little man went down for a nap and mom got to work. I sanded the entire board with 100 grit sandpaper. 100 is a perfect level to smooth out the wood. You could sand it again with a 150 grit to roughen the surface area a little more for the stain to adhere to, but the one run through with the 100 worked perfect for this project.

Don't forget to brush off all the dust.

When staining, I would suggest using a cloth instead of a sponge brush. The brush is easier and makes less of a mess, but using the cloth helps the wood soak in more of the stain. Make sure you have latex gloves, this stuff is super sticky and your fingers will turn out looking like tootsie rolls if you don't. Trust me; you'll do that, end up having to run to Walmart for something ridiculous and end up on the People of Walmart site. :)

I used Minwax Dark Walnut for the finish. The deep brown wood grain color turned out beautifully. Also, I DID NOT use polyurethane to cover the stain. I wanted to keep the rough worn look.

Now to let it dry. I always, ALWAYS jump the gun on this step. However, being outside in the cold helped the process along nicely. After 30 minutes this was ready to get taped off for painting.

From the floor, I measured a foot up the wall and decided where I wanted my board to start. The measurements on my board start at half a foot, 6 inches. Don't forget this step when drilling it into the wall!

The taped off sections are for each feet using Frog Tape. This stuff is amazing and has 'Paint Block' on the edges preventing ANY paint bleeding. It worked perfect for me.

The foot marks are thicker than the smaller markings in between and go across about 3/4 of the width of the board. The smaller inch lines (done every 2) I just marked with a pencil. To be honest, instead of taping off each line, I just decided to wing it with the paint. If you do, take your time. Never will a task make you question your age like this one will. My hand was shaking like I was 90 from concentrating so hard!

After the paint dried, I pulled the tape off... revealing my beautifully straight paint lines. :)

For the numbers, the easiest method would be to just print out some numbers and X-Acto knife them. If you have a Cricut machine with this little cartridge, then that would work even better. I on the other hand had to trace these babies because my printer was out of ink.

Just tape the numbers to the board where desired and sponge/blot the paint on. Blot lightly because you don't want the paint to bleed under the paper. There's really nothing holding it down to the board other than your hand.

Finally after letting the numbers dry a little, they were ready to be removed and my finished work was revealed. I feel in love with it instantly. Kind of like that feeling you get browsing through the Pottery Barn catalog, drooling all over the decor and furniture.

When drilling the board into the wall, I would suggest using a screw anchor for this. I don't usually like using them because they're a bit time consuming, like 5 minutes because I'm impatient. Here is what we used. Remember, you're taking up an inch of your screw through the board, so its going to pull out of the drywall more easily without the anchors.

And once it was finally hung... GORGEOUS!

And of course a photo bomb...

Sharing with

Flamingo Toes, DIY Showoff, My Little Birds, Cedar Hill Farmhouse

Homemade Laundry Detergent

2013-12-30T23:21:00.000-05:00

I've seen this all over Pinterest for awhile now and have pinned it about 5 times already. I kept saying I'd do it and never did, along with my boards full of recipes, exercises, outfits... you get my drift :). Like most of my 5,000 pins, they've kind of just sat there making me look either like Super Woman or what most of us are guilty of, pinning spree addicts. I said it, "I have a problem!"

So, then another friend of mine knocked it out one afternoon with 3 kids to handle! If she had the time and patience to handle it with her little ones running around and helping, then surely I could make it work with my one toddler. Not to mention all of the money I'd be saving... no arguments there ladies. So I took her recipe and made it for dry detergent. She has a liquid recipe in case you'd prefer that over the dry detergent. Feel free to pop on over to Abiding Woman to see her recipe and watch her sweet girls helping out.

What you'll need:
4 lb. box of Borax
4 lb. box of Arm & Hammer Baking Soda
3 lb. box of Arm & Hammer Washing Soap
4 bars of Fels Naptha Soap (grated)
14oz Purex Crystals (half the container)
3lb Sun Oxi Cleaner (half the container)
Large bucket to store detergent in

*Makes about half a 5 gallon bucket worth

*Oxi Clean can be used in replace of the Sun Oxi Cleaner, its just a little more expensive

How to mix it:

First
Shred the 4 Fels Naptha bars using a cheese grater. I would recommend taking short strokes so your soap pieces aren't long and will spread evenly when everything is mixed at the end. I had a little help with this part; my little munchkin was dead set on working with his safari hat on. Who was I to stop this boy on a mission? And look at him! That is just adorable.

Second

Mix all of your ingredients into your 5 gallon bucket or a new trash bag to make sure it's all mixed together evenly then pour into your bucket. Now you're ready to go.

Third

When using the detergent, you will only need 2-3 tablespoons per load. The scooper in the oxiclean box will work perfect. Also, safe for HE washers.

Linked up to

Flamingo Toes, DIY Showoff, My Little Birds, Cedarhill Farmhouse

Removing water marks

2013-12-15T00:05:00.000-05:00

First let me say, I PROMISE YOU THIS WORKS! I think we've all come across those white water marks on our furniture that makes us wonder how on earth they got there! Then a little twinge of devastation runs through you that your furniture is now ruined. At least it did for me...

This coffee table has been one of my best craigslist steals to date. Large cedar coffee table with a raised top for storage in perfect condition for $40.00. It's best feature is its ability to hide ANYTHING you could want in the rush of company coming over. We all do it, I'll just go ahead and admit it for all of us. That pile of paperwork you have lying out, unopened bills, random little toys you've taken up out of pockets and stuff I somehow have never seen before. I think this phenomenon is somehow related to our socks missing after they enter the dryer. My favorite though, loose jewelry and by the end of the month I feel like mommy brain has one another battle.

My point? I depend on this table WAY too much to let it go so I searched for a fix... and found one! A hairdryer. Yes, so go pull it out right now and knock this out! You'll feel 10x better.

Here is my table before with the awful white water marks all over it!

Take your hairdryer, place it pretty close to the mark and hold it there until the mark is gone. It really shouldn't take too long. I swear, the whole table only took me about 15 minutes.

Here is the after! You can't even tell.

Spot #1

Spot #2

You've can't even see them anymore!! I was speechless. I told the husband to come in and look, to show off my newest trick I swore I had and see the amazed look on his face that was on mine, you know. He looked at me, like I was crazy and was oblivious to the fact that it even had water marks on it. He's crazy, they were like an elephant in the room and now those babies are gone.

Compare the before and after

Linked up to
Flamingo Toes, My Little Birds

Nursery Bedrooom Makeover

2013-09-08T23:23:00.001-04:00

This post is well over do considering our little one is now a whopping 22 months! Everyone said it would go by so quickly but OH MY GOD! I ask him everyday to quit growing, but I don't think he's in agreement with me. Now after 22 months, I've gotten the itch to redo his room soon... into a "Big Boy" room.

My goal: hold off on a "big boy" room and bed until he's actually climbing out of the crib. So far we're good - knock on wood! Fingers are crossed that it doesn't dawn on him to just hike his leg up a little higher and go for it.

As far as this room, we did quite a few projects...

1. Replaced ceiling fan

2. Had the tree mural done on the wall

3. Made the animal canvas prints

4. Fabric bird appliques for the tree

5. Paper mache letter

6. Chalkboard labeled baskets

Bedroom BEFORE:

Linked up to

Flamingo Toes

Playroom Storage, Pottery Barn Knockoff

2012-07-31T21:30:00.002-04:00

If Pottery Barn were a person, we would totally be best friends.

I fell in love with the huge wall storage systems they have on their PB Kids site. The set ups they had were perfect for our bonus room/den where we would make Lucas' play area. The only problem, what I wanted would cost $1300 through Pottery Barn, not including the shipping. Whoa, hold the phone! No way was I going to be able to slide that one by the hubby. I could see it then, that look 'woman, you have got to be crazy' and then saying our then newborn did not need a $1300 storage system for his 5 toys that he had. :) Yes, he was right, but oh men; can't live with them and can't live without him... but someone's got to open the jar lids for me :).

So of course, I was bound and determined to get what I wanted at a much cheaper DIY price even if I had to cut down the tree myself and make it... ok, maybe not that far :). I researched for several months looking at drawers, organizers, cubbies from practically every store measuring out drawings in every kind of configuration I could think of. Nothing was working how I wanted it and my little storage system dream was slowly circling the drain. Finally, the heavens parted and I came across the PERFECT pieces. I found the EXACT parts I wanted, EXACT color with the EXACT measurements to fit each other. I seriously felt like I had won the lottery, felt too good to be true, but it all worked and measured perfectly.

Here are the parts used...

- Drawers are Babyletto and were purchased from Amazon at $100 each

- 16 Cubby System was purchased from Bargain Outfitters for $100

So for $300 instead of $1300, I got the wall storage system I'd been wanting. Hubby gladly put it all together for me and I was one happy wife. It looks great and fills the 10 feet high wall perfectly. Now the real trick, keeping it organized :).

This is the playroom BEFORE...

Playroom AFTER...

Linked up to
Flamingo Toes

Playroom Chalkboard & Numbered Hooks

2012-02-14T14:26:00.004-05:00

As if I haven't mentioned it enough already, I love love love Pottery Barn, but not so much their prices. Yikes! While browsing through their playroom ideas, I fell in love with the little chalk boards placed on the walls and noticed they had pails hanging on the side for chalk, crayons, what not... I'm sure ours will be filled with loose toys or who knows what once the baby is up and moving. Here's the picture I fell in love with.

Of course I could have just purchased these from Pottery Barn, but why would I go and do that : ). So... another project was started.

I was determined to find these little pails and after looking at Hobby Lobby and ACMoore, I finally found them at JoAnn Fabrics, I think for maybe $2 each, if that. I intended on doing just number hooks, but while at Michaels one day, I was browsing through their dollar section and came across these perfect little wooden hooks for $1.00.

Of course I didn't just leave them like that. I whipped out the paint, mod podge and Cricut. I painted each block black. Cut numbers out with my Cricut machine and mod podged them onto the blocks.

This project really took me no longer than an hour. The paint dried quickly and the Cricut cut the numbers out in less than 1 minute. I just let them sit out overnight and that allowed the modge podge to completely dry. I couldn't be banging into the walls with nails at 10pm anyway, otherwise we'd be up with a baby the entire night... you know the saying, "if you're the one to wake him up, you're watching him"... not this momma! : )

Here's the finished product.

Chevron Painted Pillow

2012-01-12T21:30:00.002-05:00

I've fallen in love with the new Chevron pattern floating around in the blog world and knew I would have to find some kind of project to incorporate it. First something small, those are A LOT of zig zags going on.

So I decided an accent pillow for the couch wouldn't be so scary to tackle.

I started with one white fabric square (cut in half) that I purchased at Wal-mart for under $1.00. I picked up a cheap bottle of gray paint, $2.00, while I was there also. This product is easily under $10 if you include having to purchase the stuffing, tape and brush. Super easy!

I measured the spacing between each piece of tape to 1 inch. Just use a wider ruler if you want thick stripes.

Once I got it all taped off, I dabbed on the paint pretty thick to make sure a second coat wasn't needed. If it dries too thick, then it can always be sanded down a little.

My words of wisdom, let it dry! I always jump the gun on this part and really regret it later when either the furniture, dog or I am covered in little paint streaks. It really never fails. My husband always knows when I've been working on something when he comes home to a paint crime scene.

Stuff it and sew it up!

Heres the finished product. I really LOVE this pattern and intend on trying it on our curtains in the bonus room... fingers crossed!

Nursery Sneak Peek

2011-08-18T14:18:00.000-04:00

When we moved into the house, we went ahead and designated one of the spare rooms to the future nursery. We kept all the loose baby items and random things in there so it was never quite presentable... which of course drove me nuts! : )

Finally!!! We're able to make up the room as an actual nursery now, one of my absolute favorite parts about getting pregnant! A decorating dream come true.. a reason to design.

As soon as we found out it was a boy, I went head first into the room getting it ready... still not quite done, but it's almost there. Atleast it's ready for him to come home.

So here is a quick sneak peek at the room so far...

Wood Hanging Note Board

2011-08-16T20:39:00.001-04:00

This little project resulted in a weekend of boredom... so what else is there to do, but a project!

We just got a new desk step up, that I haven't finished the post for yet, but I will add that soon. It's amazing and an incredible craigslist purchase. It has a lot of shelving space, but I needed a little something for the wall between our bookcases for the quick notes I just jot down and then the post it gets lost because I randomly set them down in the house to never be seen again... incredibily irritating : )

So I took a piece of old wood we had lying around from something else and cut to about the size I wanted for a little note board. Took some dark stain (dark walnut) and stained the front and sides of the piece of wood. I didn't put a coating over it as to leave it a rougher look, not like I just purchased it from Target.

After I let it dry I stapled and glued on twine wrapping it around the board pretty tight so that I could slip notes or cards behind the twine and it stay.

After that, I added a wall hook on the back and put it up.

I'm pretty pleased with it and one of the easier projects I've done.

Linked up to
DIY Showoff, Under the Table & Dreaming

Remodeled Dining Buffet

2011-03-22T21:33:00.003-04:00

First of all, if my grandmother reads this, she will absolutely hang me. She had given me this old dining buffet with a hutch which is beautiful. However, it just needed to be updated just a smigin to this era. That's a proper form of measurement right?

We don't currently have a dining room table, but within the next few years, I'll find a way to convince hubby that it's not just a waste of space.

So this is what I started out with...

I recently unloaded the car so it's quite a mess. Note to self - Clean the house.

Since this piece of furniture was real wood and still in great condition, I decided to prime it up before painting. I took drawers, doors and screws out and patched all the holes. I think primed every part that I was going to paint.

After making a few modifications and about 2 coats of black paint, this is what it turned out to be. I'm very happy with it. Now I'm working on making baskets of some sort to put on the shelves. They're just dying for some attention.

{After}

{Before}

I think it looks great and will work just as well with a dining room set when we decide to get one.

Just to follow up; here are a few painting furniture tips...

1. Before painting, sand down the furniture. This allows for the paint to adhere better and gives a fresh surface.

2. Priming before you paint can be pretty important. If you don't, the paint will not stick and will just peel right off especially with laminate. I suggest having your primer tinted if working with dark colors.

3. Make sure you put enough coats on and get in the little crevices. I use a roller and then a regular paint brush to get into the small spots.

4. Let it dry! : ) I know I have a problem with this and when I let my excitement get the best of me, I later pay for it and have to remove paint from something or repaint a certain area.

Jute Decor Spheres

2011-03-20T12:41:00.001-04:00

This is one of my favorite Pottery Barn/Pier 1 knock offs. I got an apothecary jar at the new Kroger Marketplace near our home... just $14.00!! I of course couldn't resist. So then of course I needed something to fill it with. Instead of spending $5.00 a ball at one of my faaaaaavorite stores I decided I'd buy a pack of of 6 styrofoam balls at Walmart for about $3.00 and cover them with my jute string I already had.

Don't mind the mess in the background : ). It was midterm week and not much got done.

In order to get this to stay, I just used a hot glue gun. I just started the string in the middle and started wrapping it around until I got to the other end. I think they came out great.

I LOOOOOOOVE IT!

Bathroom Shelving

2011-03-08T22:24:00.001-05:00

I came across an old unfinished shelf I had from the old house and was trying to think of a way to use it. I knew I needed a "hook" system of some sort in the bathroom for towels, robes, clothes... you know, all that stuff that gets hung over the shower rod or ends up on the floor : ). Since it was free, I figured it would be a perfect opportunity to test my staining skills - I might have to eat those words later. So I pulled out some walnut stain I had left over from something else and went to town.

You'll probably notice my hardwood floors in the background : )... that would be a lack of judgment caused by my impatience and the fact it was raining outside and 40 degrees. *Note to hubby: we need a heated garage* I made sure that the area I was working with was completely covered though.

I got it stained and let it dry. Hung it up on the wall and added 2 hooks below for towels and what not. The hooks were purchased at Walmart in a bronze finish for about $2 each.

{Before}

{After}

Much better I think and I have somewhere to put our stuff. Now I just need my cricut machine I've "requested" for my birthday. : )

I'm in the middle of redoing the master bathroom so I'll add full pictures soon.

Ribbons, bows, oh my!

2011-03-07T23:56:00.000-05:00

Just another thing to add to my plate right? : ) Of course!! I definitely enjoy a little sewing. I also recently acquired an embroidery machine so I've gone nuts with it! Here are a few things I've made so far.

Also, everything I've made is for sell. I already do special orders for family, friends, etc. Feel free to contact me at Ashamrick@aol.com.

{Hair Bows}

{Burp Cloths}

{Applique Onesies}

{Pacifier Pals}

{Pacifier Clips}

{Jewelry Sets}

Just a little extra of what I do in my down time. Not that I have that much to spare, but gotta keep myself from going crazy : )

Corkboard Cabinet Door

2011-03-06T15:06:00.000-05:00

Not sure about you guys, but loose papers like take out menus, coupons, phone numbers, intructions (Anything!!) hanging out on my fridge drives me nuts : ). And you always get those heavy pieces that regardless what magnet or how many of them you use, it still slides to the bottom. Am I right? So of course, my wheels started turning with ideas. Ironically while I was at work one day cleaning out a spare office, I came across a spare corkboard so I thought, hmm I'll just take it home and cut it out.... Didn't work.... Why? : ) because it didn't dawn on me that it might be glued... duh Ashley.

Lesson learned. So I made a trip to walmart and they have a pack of 4 12x12 corkboard pieces that didn't cost much.

I laid out the pieces how they'd be placed inside the cabinet door and marked where they needed to be cut.

I got all of my pieces put together and put some glue on the back. The set comes with square foam sticky pads to go on the back, but they've never worked for me and I have no intention of taking this down for a long time. So I used tacky glue and then a little gorilla clue.

I finally got all the pieces up and let it dry.

: ) I'm sure it'll be cluttered in no time.

Jute Cloche

2011-03-05T18:12:00.004-05:00

I caved! Made a trip to Goodwill and I had no idea it would be so addicting! I can't believe I haven't been going before. It's a DIYers dream. I tried to control myself a bit so it cost me about $16.00 for all of this. The cheese tray being the most of it. I wasn't going to get it, but just kept walking by and couldn't let it go so I splurged : ) ... $8.00.

I also purchased a brand new looking plant with metal pot holder and a small mismatched plate, but it was currently drying from its paint job as I was taking this picture... I couldn't wait : ). I have an idea for each one. Very exciting.

So first project at hand is the Jute Cloche I made. I love it. I used the red candle/vase thing in the picture above, the glass cover for the cheese ball tray and the plate that isn't shown.

I already had the jute (or twine) along with the glue and spray paint. I spray painted the plate with an antique white so I could use it in my kitchen, white was just TOO bright. Next I wrapped the red candle in the jute/twine string.

Honestly, it didn't take me long. I started using the gorilla glue, but it doesn't dry fast so I used my back up tacky glue with gorilla glue so when it dried there would be the extra hold. I finally got that wrapped and secured my ends with just a little extra glue.

Next I placed the plate on top and flipped it over. I traced a circle around the top of the candle so I would know it was centered. Placed glue on the rim of the candle and placed it on the plate. Flipped it over to dry and stuck the glass over on top and this is what you get.

I've very happy with it. And I can always change the color of the plate when I change my mind. : )

{Love our Realtor}

2011-02-28T19:00:00.002-05:00

I just posted my last post a few minutes ago and mentioned that I didn't have any pictures of the house prior to us moving in... well, I got an email from our realtor just minutes later with a link to the MLS listing with that information. I love her! So thank you to Allison for providing me with that, now I can post them to the blog for everyone and you guys can get the full affect.

Side note, if you need a realtor or just want to talk to someone about potentially buying, contact her. She was amazing to work with and made the horrible house buying process so much easier for us. We loved her.

Check out Platinum Realty and Check out Allison Oaks

Living Room: Before & After

2011-02-28T17:34:00.003-05:00

Who doesn't love a little before and after? I certainly do! I turn into stalker mode full force when I see before and after. I may or may not even post these to Pinterest. That, my friends, is God's gift to use... my never ending idea board. :) I just love seeing the transformation and creativity that someone else does. So here's a little living room before and after for you.

Before:

After:

The color in the picture is a little off from the real thing, but it's Sisal from Ralph Lauren. I fell in love with it over at Thrifty Decor Chick. She used this through her entire house. I got into DIY mode and decided one weekend I was using this in the living room. Spend the entire weekend, but I got the living room, hallway and hall bath all in this color. It's a great neutral color that you can accent quite well with.

I recently made the curtains hanging up over there on the left and made custom curtain rods for the baby window. You can see that little post here.

{Apple Red Themed Wedding}

2011-02-22T15:12:00.004-05:00

The day finally came, my oldest brother got married! I still can't believe it, it still feels like yesterday I was walking him to the school bus and then class to "show him the ropes". I definitely miss those days. Now, he's turned into a spectacular man that I couldn't be more proud of. He married a wonderful girl who is by far the best sister-in-law ever : ). She asked me to be her Matron of Honor so we had a lot of planning to do. Might I add... I love weddings!! My dream job growing up was to be a wedding planner so I definitely enjoyed the experience. I thought I would share a little of the wedding in case anyone else would also enjoy the ideas.

Wish I had some better pictures, but I'm working with what I got : )

{Bride's Bouquet}

{Programs that I created less than 12 hours before the wedding!}

{Bridesmaids Bouquets}

{Groom's Bout}

{Headpiece - She was ABSOLUTELY beautiful}

{This cake was to DIE for. 3 different fillings with chocolate drizzle on each layer}

{Extra lighting down the aisle}

{Yep... they did it. Chuck Taylors}

{Finally Married!}

{Fireplace Repainted}

2011-02-21T00:24:00.001-05:00

One feature I love about the house is the gas fireplace. The only thing, it had a brass finish. What were people thinking! lol... I wasn't going to opt out for getting a new one, I'd be nuts so I researched painting it. I found that I could spray paint it (with good ventilation!) fairly easily. If you plan on doing this, make sure you purchase the high heat (pictured below).

Our fireplace hadn't been used in quite awhile so I wanted to make sure all dirt was removed and the paint would stick. I would advice roughing the surface up a little with some sanding and then cleaning up a bit so you're working with a fresh surface. Of course, be sure to tape off ALL areas around the painting surface. And this stuff DOES travel. I had some on the floor, but my steam mop got it right up.

I let the paint sit and dry before I started removing any of the tape and paper. I did NOT want black all over my walls... accidents do happen. Here's the before and after pictures. We've gotten a mantle for it recently and I'll post those up soon.

Don't mind the shadow on the bottom : )

{Half Wall Makeover}

2011-02-13T10:56:00.001-05:00

When we moved in, there was this fantastic "in the way" half wall as you walk in the front door... hehe. I prefered not to have it there, it added dead space to the living room so when we decided to remove it, started with the baseboards and turns out the hard wood was only put down to the halfwall, so guess what..... you got it, it stayed.

It had a wooden ledge on top which of course was the wooden finish and was just an eye sore to me. It was the first mismatched thing you saw when you walked in the room. Well maybe it was just me : ), but that counts right?

It didn't blend in with the room so I wanted to do something. Here is how it looked before...

So I used the color of the trim to match it up and here's how it looks after...

I love it!! It looks so much better and I don't have this big mismatched wall staring at me every time I walk in the room.

Give yourself a pat on the back Ashley.... : ). It's a miracle how just some touch up paint can make something look 10 times better.

What do you all think?

{5 Minute Cabinet Makeover}

2011-02-09T22:30:00.002-05:00

Don't believe me? I promise it's really not that hard. All I did was pick a cabinet, undo the screws and then strategically placed a few things. : )

I've always liked the idea of the open cubies with cute baskets; didn't matter where, the kitchen, office, living room, anywhere. Normally kitchen cabinets are a little too wide for this, but I've got this one weird kitchen cabinet over in the corner that hasn't been used ONCE since the day we've moved in.... wait, that's a lie, I did store stuff in it the day we moved in and it's been there ever since. : )

So here's the picture of the cabinet before...

I don't know about you guys, but we've got a Keurig coffee maker and having thousands of those little K-cups lingering around drives me mad. For Christmas we got a 60 variety pack.... what!? 60!, yes!.... and I don't know what on earth to do with them all. The box just takes up space in my pantry so this new little idea I have is coming quite handy. One cute basket please!

Big box to a cute basket get up... hehe

So I decided instead of having my loose recipe books, cards and print offs scattered around on my countertops or end up getting misplaced somewhere else, my new little cubbies would be peeeeeerfect. I'm pretty pleased with the outcome. Just trying to decide if I should paint the inside of the "cabinet". Here's the after picture, let me know if you like it!

Thanks for visiting!