Hats Off!

Hats off to celebrations! Last weekend I attended a friend's baby shower that had on the invitation to wear a hat. Dress in your finest and wear a hat! I found this to be a perfect opportunity to come up with something on my own! I'm not a hat person unless it's a ball cap on a sunny day and this was a cheap way to come up with a hat since it's sort of a one time gig!

 

 

I found a brown dress that had some white polka dots. I was kinda going for the "Julia Roberts at the horse race in Pretty Woman" look here. Can you believe that movie is over 20 years old now? Holy moly!

 

I purchased a straw hat, wide ribbon and paper flowers at the local craft store.

I played around wrapping the ribbon around the hat. The hat had two holes and I wound up using them to help hold the ribbon in place. I used fabric glue as well to attach it. I tied the hat underneath in one knot and glued it to hold the ribbon in place better.

 

I took two pieces of ribbon to make a flat bow. 

 

 

I looped them loosely in a cross and glued them to each other

 

 

I glued the bow to the back of the hat.

 

I glued the flowers in a pattern all over the hat but not on the top.

I think it turned out very cute! It'll look cute hanging somewhere in the house too. :)

Freshening Up With Framed Fabric!

Give Me A "T"!  Give Me A "G"!  Give Me an "I" and an "F" What Does It Spell??? Ahhhhh! Lots of exclamation points today because it's Friday!

Okay so I resorted to chanting. Really I'm glad that it's Friday but I went to work this morning only to be called an hour later by my child's daycare center that he had a fever. Darn it! After a fit-in at the doctor's office and a prescription run, I'm home for the day with a sickling child. Cutting molars bites the big one, get it? The double whammy is the double ear infections on top of a tummy bug that I'm sure is all linked. Poor little thing. The meds finally kicked in and he's at least smiling again. Hoping for a solid nap but can't be too pushy.

I'm on the computer and looking at some freshly framed art, I mean fabric on the wall!!! I have a stash of different fabrics in the linen closet that I am in love with! Okay now just so you know I am not a "material" girl. I am not in LOVE with "things", I just merely like to make the house look nice and fresh and attract the eye, that's all. There is lots of freshening up to do around here! 

These two pictures have been hanging in the kitchenette for a few years now. They were very reasonably priced prints that I bought at a chain store somewhere because they looked like they would go with the sage color scheme of the kitchen. 


A few of my friends have asked ask why I don't hang my own art on my walls. Well I would but a lot of my artwork is from college and specific assignments and either over-sized or subjects I wouldn't want hung on the walls in the house. I haven't made the time to do a lot of art to hang but one day I will try and get back to that. Painting and drawing are two things I love to do, especially listening to good music!

So as for these two wall hangings I pulled the pictures apart with tools. I used a razor blade to cut the square out of the brown paper backing.

Then I pried the nails out with pliers and was able to pull the cardboard, matting and picture out. I had some cardboard sheets that I cut to fit the size of the glass. I cleaned the glass, ironed the fabric and moved the wooden frame around on the fabric until I got the images I wanted to frame. Then I placed the cardboard on the backside of the fabric and taped the backing down. I taped the cardboard to the back of the frame and then took brown paper and glued it down to the back of the frame and used Mod Podge to glue the brown paper to the back of the frame to cover the tape. I hung it back up and they are more vibrant than the old pictures. 


It's a feminine, whimsical looking fabric but I think that even though I'm outnumbered by males in the house, they can handle just this one bit of floral! Framed fabric is a super simple way to achieve a new fresh look in any room of the house! I like matted art but I like this even though the mats are gone! I think I'll keep it for a while.   

Hanging Basket With No-Sew Liner

I hope you're having a nice weekend! I'm sitting here taking in what just happened on one of my favorite tv shows. I don't watch a lot of tv but I've been sucked into an HBO show - Game of Thrones. I've heard that the book is fantastic so I'm watching the show. It's fun to have something to look forward to watch and the show is great! 

Having a few days off is pretty nice! It has been a pleasant holiday weekend at home with some time to catch up on things and relax a little. Last night I did this little project before I went to bed. I replaced our old system for grocery bag storage. I put together a no-sew hanging basket to keep our grocery bags organized in. It's simple enough!

Below was our old system. It's kind of country with a cat theme and it has seen better days. It was never my taste but it did the job. The problem with it now is that the elasticity on the bottom of it has worn out and so the bags fall out of the hole in the bottom and I was constantly cleaning up bags. Annoying!!!

I found these two hanging baskets at Dollar Tree for a buck a piece. I got three and will use the third as a basket for my bicycle, which I will share when I get to it!

 

 

I wasn't crazy about the color of them so I took some white latex paint and brushed a coat over them. I didn't totally cover the baskets and I left the inside unpainted since I was planning on doing a liner. They're a little rustic.

Below I cut two separate pieces of burlap. I played with the material inside the basket and adjusted how much I'd need. I wasn't precise about any of it. I want to learn to sew but for now this will have to do! It's easy enough!

I just eyed it and reverse-wrapped (wrapped the inside of the basket) it (did I just make up a concept here?) with a glue gun. I started from one end of the inside of the basket and worked my way to the other end, making a flap over the top of the basket and glued it down. 

So that you don't see the cuts in the burlap around the handles on the back side of the basket, I took another rectangular piece of burlap that I cut two slits in below and placed it inside to cover the bottom and then pulled it thru the handle to cover the folds on the back side and I glued it down.  

 

 

On each end of the tops of the basket I poked my scissors thru the two layers of burlap and tied them together with a piece of green ribbon. If you need any more pictures to help see how I did it, please let me know and I'll post. 

It's definitely not perfectly measured but I think it works well in the pantry! Whaddayathink?

Spray Painting is a HOOT

Hey this could be my site's mascot or something! 

 

Spray paints are waaay too much fun to play around with! When I look back at my art portfolio, some of my favorite paintings are those I've created using spray paints. I really like the different textures, cool shapes and bold prints I was able to get using the paints and different objects to help embellish a piece. There are so many things you can do with spray paints. Even though it's against the law, I am forever fascinated with art on trains or walls made by graffiti artists. I am blown away by the details and colors at such a large scale! I would love to be a fly on the wall so to speak to see how the artists do it!

I'm a little random tonight. I have been seriously working to break in my new bicycle so I've been spending a good deal of time outside in the sunshine! It's great fun to ride after work and it puts my youngest to sleep which is just wonderful to say the least! One thing I don't understand though is that when we go for family bike rides, I seem to be the only one swallowing a bunch of bugs. I know it's completely gross but I'm a little disturbed that no one else is having this issue!

Speaking of bugs, I accidentally touched a creepy crawly slug tonight in the yard. Ewww! It was under a piece of cardboard I used in spray painting some decorative objects for the dining room and kitchen. Yuck-Oh!

My object of spray paint was an owl figure. Originally it was a brown speckled owl which was nice and rich looking but I wanted to make it more fun!

Next I made it white. I liked it white but I wanted to make it stand out a little. 

Finally I made it blue using Valspar glossy spray paint. I eventually want to pair up the owl with something else in the kitchen. That will be another project!

Oh I have to add too that our yard looks a little like I tried to test out graffiti painting because I accidentally painted the grass in a couple of areas. Whoops! Hope everyone is doing well!

From Rust to RustOleum!

I'm all pumped about my most recent paint job! A nice end to a good work week and I gave myself trigger finger but it was well worth it! Just kidding but I do have a blister from spray painting tonight. Our rusted metal patio furniture has seen better days but instead of chucking it I just grabbed a couple of cans of good ole spray paint and the furniture looks like new! It's a fresh and cleaner patio just in time for the warmer months! 

I painted 4 adult chairs, one kiddo chair and a bench after I got home from work. They're all wicker with metal arms and legs. It took all of about 45 minutes so that should be encouragement that you can fit this into your schedule if you want to give it a whirl! 

I wiped the furniture with a dry cloth and covered the wicker with newspaper and gently sprayed the metal. I used a brown can of RustOleum with a hammered finish. Heck I ran out of tape to cover all the furniture so I free handed it on the last two chairs and the paint was very easy to control. Just be sure to hold the can about a about a foot away from the parts you want to paint so you don't have any drips! 


Can you tell what pictures are the BEFORE and which are the AFTER? I think it's pretty OBVIOUS! Once I clean off the table I'll take a good picture of the whole set so you can see! 

   

 

Okay so on this peewee chair I accidentally sprayed the wicker parts and wound up 

just painting the whole chair. Hopefully it will weather well!

I just love how flawless the paint looks!

Easy Labels With Cricut

I feel like a little kid! I'm trying to get through all the chores so I can play tomorrow. I got a new bike today and I can 't wait to ride it again! I got a really good deal! A store price-matched another store and then they honored a nice manufacturer's coupon. Not that I need to make excuses for spending money but I don't splurge on big ticket items very often. I figure I used to work out at a gym and now it's not realistic so bike riding with the family is the best alternative. I am so excited!

Onto my next lil organizational project!!! I used my cricut to make some easy labels for the laundry room. I have several canvas bins above the washer and dryer and it's always a pain to have to pull them down and search to see what is in them when I need something. Now with my labels it makes things a cinch. If I could just get every other aspect of our life so organized! Baby steps though, right?

I used a card stock scrapbook sheet of paper in off white and cut tags on the cricut paper cutter. Then instead of pasting them to the tags, I used the "negatives" paper and placed them on the tags and using a brown paint pen, I filled in the text. The labels are certainly not perfect. The marker did bleed somewhat but I think they are cute and they get the job done! To attach the labels to the canvas storage cubes, I used medium width ribbon. Very simple and makes life a little easier in the laundry room!

Ready to Play!

I feel like a little kid! I'm trying to get through all the chores so I can play tomorrow. I got a new bike today and I can 't wait to ride it again! I got a really good deal! A store price-matched another store and then they honored a nice manufacturer's coupon. Not that I need to make excuses for spending money but I don't splurge on big ticket items very often. I figure I used to work out at a gym and now it's not realistic so bike riding with the family is the best alternative. I am so excited!

Onto my next lil organizational project!!! I used my cricut to make some easy labels for the laundry room. I have several canvas bins above the washer and dryer and it's always a pain to have to pull them down and search to see what is in them when I need something. Now with my labels it makes things a cinch. If I could just get every other aspect of our life so organized! Baby steps though, right?

 

I used a card stock scrapbook sheet of paper in off white and cut tags on the cricut paper cutter. Then instead of pasting them to the tags, I used the "negatives" paper and placed them on the tags and using a brown paint pen, I filled in the text. The labels are certainly not perfect. The marker did bleed somewhat but I think they are cute and they get the job done! To attach the labels to the canvas storage cubes, I used medium width ribbon. Very simple and makes life a little easier in the laundry room!

New Finds!

Just wanted to send a warm thank you to the new people who are reading along. I enjoy "meeting" new people and reading other blogs and I will follow you back. Hope everybody had a nice Easter and got to spend time with loved ones. Easter was good. The weekend was good... I got an afternoon all to myself Saturday afternoon. YESSSSSS! I can't remember the last time that happened. I used to think it was so strange to hear mommies talk about how the only place they had a moment of silence or time to themselves was in the bathroom but I totally get it now! I adore my children, don't get me wrong, but I do dream of "me" time and need to find ways to fit more of that into the mix.

On my afternoon off, I got in the car, rolled down the windows, opened the sunroof and blasted the music somewhat and tooled around doing the things that I wanted to do. PLAY!!! Sweetness. First off I heard that there was a pretty good Salvation Army nearby, that I have been meaning to test out so I went and checked it out. I'm not a huge thrift store shopper but thought it would be fun to browse to find things that I could fix up and make my own as far as decorations for the house. Salvation Army was pretty cool but I didn't buy anything. If I was trying to furnish a home, it would be a great place to go. I saw many solid pieces of furniture that looked like they were never used. The prices were great too.

After that, I trucked over to Good Will and wooo-hooo! I found two items I knew I could fix up. I picked up a wooden tray that has some sort of Chinese scripting on it and I got the most adorable lime green lamp! The lamp came with a simple canvas barrel type lamp shade. It was brand new and it works! I would have a picture of it but I already put it in the baby's room and he's sleeping. I have plans for it at a later date but for now it matches the baby's room and looks adorable. Hey did you know that Good Will does returns? That is pretty cool. They take returns up to 7 days after the purchase date. Good to know for future reference! I have some plans to turn this tray into something cute!

Another new find was the HomeGoods store. It was fantastic! I have been dying to check that place out for a while and boy was it cool. There were so many inviting things to look at. I think I walked down every aisle looking at all the modern home decor. If I ever need a super cool lamp or anything for the house, I'll go there! They have so many classic, stylish pieces. I did purchase a cool, glass cannister and it was CHEAP compared to most stores. I have lots of ideas of ways to use it! Psyched! I know I'm a goofball!


So the rest of the week, I will be spending my nights preparing for a neighborhood garage sale this weekend. Pricing, making signs and cleaning out the attic! Lots of work to come this week! I'll keep you posted on that one!

Inexpensive Play Room Wall Art

Anybody else suffering from the pollen and allergies? Hack Hack Hack!!! I can't stop coughing and my voice has been nonexistent for over a week, which a certain someone in the household has probably enjoyed a break from, not mentioning any names!! I'm kidding! I'm not sure if it's allergies or a cold or what, but I am ready to shake it off to shift back into high gear!

In playing catch up on projects, here is one I did soon after hanging the curtains in the boys' playroom! The room has felt bare and unfinished for a long time so I feel like it's more complete with wall hangings on more than just wall in the room now! 

 

 

I've been looking for some sort of simple something to go on the wall for a while and I finally came up with an easy solution. My favorite book of scrapbook paper is one of thick, card stock types and they are more modern patterns and designs. There just so happened to be a cool one with cars, trucks, planes and bikes, just perfect for a little boy and a mama who doesn't care too much for super cutesy patterns that they'll outgrow in a year. I like to make changes that will last. If I get tired of them, I can still change them easily but it's not something I have to change right away.

I found three black wooden picture frames at IKEA for $2.99 each and cut the scrap book paper to fit. I hung them over a toy shelving sorter unit thingy in the playroom! I think the wall art adds a nice clean, more contemporary flair to the room and it was a very easy solution. The colors matched the curtains almost perfectly and the background of the paper is blue/green with a shiny copper embossed design, which is very close to the color of the curtain rod.

It's amazing to see some of the cool papers that come in bound scrap book pads.
Happy to have the playroom more complete! What projects have you been up to lately?

Garage Redo Reveal

Things have been super busy lately between work and home life and everything in between that I have been a bit slack getting back to this but certainly not intentionally slack! 

I'm sooooo excited to FINALLY show you the garage redo! It's something we've been wanting to accomplish for a while. I have loads of pictures too so watch out! We don't have tons of stuff in the garage but we park the cars in there and wanted more order to all the tools and toys to make it easier to get to them. Plus we wanted to get the chemicals locked up so the little men wouldn't ever be tempted to get into them. A big goal was to get most of it off the ground and hung in an orderly fashion.

Before Pictures

We hung dry wall on the left wall since it was unfinished. I can't take credit for that part. My husband, his buddy and my brother-in-law did that. They mudded the walls painted them gray, which wound up taking a little longer than planned. They ran into some snags along the way but finally got it up.

During Pictures

 

 

We weren't planning on painting the ceiling but decided that if we didn't do it now, then we would never go back and do it later so we did. We got textured white paint and painted that with the help of my dad and brother-in-law. It's nothing fancy.

After Pictures

A small touch was the decorative plate where the door opener button is.

 

After much research on the tracking system we decided to go with the Gladiator Garage Works Organization System. The heavy duty cabinet has a lock and key so that was helpful. It's a simple easy-to-hang solution with different hooks and shelves and hanging units, including baskets and trays that can be moved around for more versatility. 

We kept one shelf that we had before to store paints and misc items on.

My beach cruiser bicycle is really heavy so we're looking for more lightweight bikes to ride.

We still have a sheet of pegboard that we are trying to decide if we can use. 

Those two tables folded up will be hung over the garage door, up high, eventually.

We want to eventually so some sort of treatment on the floor but there is some research to do.

Car cleaning items are together!

We reused some old pegboard for small hand tools.

There is a hanging basket for balls. All of our other stuff is up high! 

Cabinet can be hung on shelves but we kept it on the floor to use the wall space for other things.

 

Added a striped rug at the back door for a splash of color! The old rug didn't survive the mud part of the redo. Whaddayathink? I love it! I feel a little less stressed when I get home every day and park the car. It's nice and clean and organized now! An organized room can sure boost the spirits!