New Family Room Curtains

You guys may or may not remember in my Home Goals post, I mentioned that one of my goals for our family room was to buy/make new curtains.  You know, ones that weren’t high waters.
 
These curtains used to be 96”.  Then they got washed and they shrunk to 88”.  We have super tall windows so 96” barely sweeps the ground.  After the wash, they shrunk up about 8”.  Gross.  I was really missing those 8”.  Highwater  curtains don’t really tickle my pickle, ya know?
I lived with it for a long time though.  I guess I was just waiting for the right “deal” on curtain panels to pop up or for me to find the right fabric.  But let’s face it, curtain panels are ridiculously expensive and fabric can be too.  Especially when I needed about 12 yards of fabric. 
Enter Black Friday.
My cousin and I decided to brave some of the Black Friday sales.  There was something at Sears that she wanted to buy for her son.  While there, some sheets caught my eye!  I liked the design and they were gray so they would match our décor.  They were on sale for $10 (for the whole set).  So, I bought 2 sets of sheets.  They sat in a closet since then.  Until yesterday. 
I finally busted these bad boys out and sewed them up.  I just cut the flat sheets in half to create my 4 panels.

I really love that they were super cheap sheets (like 100 count kinda cheap) so they are nice and flowy and sheer.  They let in tons of light!  But best of all……THEY’RE NOT HIGH WATERS!!

Oh….and I moved that bookshelf into the family room.  I’m not sure if I love it there.  I think I might slap some white DIY chalk paint on that bad boy (everything’s a “bad boy” today.  weird.) and see if it makes a difference. 
Anyway, I’m not totally in love with these curtains but they are LOADS better than the high waters.  So I’m happy….for now.    And you can’t really beat 4 new curtain panels for $20!
So that’s that!  New curtains.  $20.  Happy mama!
Thanks for stopping by!! 

Playroom Update {Pt. 2}

Hi friends and HAPPY FRIDAY!!

What are you up to this weekend?  Any big plans for the Super Bowl?  We usually have a BIG party at our house each year for the Super Bowl, but I just really did not feel up to it this year.  We usually go all out and I make tons of appetizers and desserts and we have food catered in and there’s usually about 40-45 people here.  I just didn’t want to deal with it this year so we’re not having the party.  Which, I guess is a good thing since the Giants are playing.  That’s Scott’s team so he’ll be glad he gets to actually watch the game!

Anyway….on to the reason for today’s post!

As you know, most of the rooms in our house are a constant work in progress (isn’t that how it is for everybody?!?).  I made a tiny little update to the playroom.  The last time I showed you guys the playroom, I had just painted it and we installed rain gutter bookshelves and set up a little desk/art area for Emily. 

The wall above Emily’s little desk (which also used to be mine when I was a baby) was blank and needed something.  I thought since the space was right above her art area, it would be a perfect place to display some of her scribble scrabble art.

A while back I was browsing in a thrift store that is right down the street and I found this HUGE gold mirror.  It actually used to be the front of a fancy medicine cabinet.  It was super heavy but there was no way to hang it up, since it was just the “face” to the medicine cabinet.  Weird.  Anyway….I snagged it for $10 and brought it home simply because I loved the frame.

And here is where I’m kicking myself……

I cannot find my before pictures of this mirror!!!  ARGH!  They must’ve somehow gotten deleted off my camera.  Just picture a huge, gold framed mirror.  Got it?

I had to unscrew about 25 screws from the back of the frame in order to get the mirror out.  But I popped it out and was left with just the frame.  I cleaned it up and went to town on it with some white spray paint.  It took a ton of coats (about 4) to get the coverage I needed.

I needed something for the middle.  Hhhhmm…..styrofoam!!  Yes!  I had a huge sheet out in the garage so I simply cut out an oval to fit inside the frame.

I then used some spray adhesive and fabric I already had on hand to cover the piece of styrofoam.

Then I just hot glued the styrofoam to the inside of the frame.

{See the back of the frame in all it’s gold glory?  And all those dadgum screw holes??}

I was stumped as to how to hang it up for a few minutes.  Then the lightbulb went off and I simply took a piece of sisal rope and tied it to 2 of the screws that I had taken out and then just screwed the screws right back into the frame.

And here she is all hung up in the playroom:

 

There’s no art on it yet, but we’ll get there!  It really makes a big statement in the playroom and I love that the fabric matches some of the fabric in the bunting on the wall to the left!

Now I need to make some cutesy, bling-y pins so I can pin Em’s artwork to the board.

So what do you think?  How do you display your kids’ artwork?  I’d love to hear ideas as I’m sure this isn’t going to be a permanent solution.

Thanks for stopping by!

 

I am linking up to many of these great parties:

M: DIY Showoff Project Parade, Metamorphosis Monday, Made by You Mondays, Just Something I Whipped Up, Today’s Creative Blog, Making Monday Marvelous, Polly Want A Crafter T: Get Your Craft On, Tip Junkie, Home Stories A to Z, Homework, A Bowl Full Of Lemons W: Uncommon, Twin Dragonfly Designs, Creative Spark , Not Just A Housewife Th: 36th Avenue, Just A Girl, Gluesticks, House of Hepworths, Every Creative Endeavor F: Sassy Sites, I’m Lovin’ It, Remodelaholic’s Anonymous, Frugal Friday, Friday Fun Finds, Feature Yourself Friday, Pity Party, Weekend Wrap-Up, Weekend Bloggy Reading S:  I Heart Naptime, Be Different, Act Normal, A Little Lovely,  Su:  Under The Table & Dreaming, Remodelaholic, Homemaker On A Dime

A Small Dining Room Update

 

Our dining room is still a work in progress.  We still need to add the faux wainscoting to the bottom part of the wall and paint it white.

But, I just can’t imagine starting another big project right now.  I mean, not that adding faux wainscoting is a huge ordeal, but it will be time consuming and involve more paint and paint brushes and after painting the whole playroom by myself…..I’m just not interested in that right now.  At least not for another week or two!  Hehehe! 

Anyway, I did make a couple minor updates since you saw it last.

#1.  I added some décor to top of the buffet table and hung a mirror (and of course I hung it too high and have been too lazy to move it down some).

Nothing crazy and the vignette is still a work in progress too, but it’s a start.  I need to find something to fill the tall vase on the left and I’d like to replace the lamp.  I also STILL need to slipcover those dadgum zebra chairs.  It’s on the list.

The update I’m most thrilled with is the addition of some simple wall art.

You’ll see in the very first picture that the wall to the left of the doorway was blank.  I had to big empty wall spaces to fill on either side of the window.

I found these gorgeous distressed white iron scroll-y doom-a-jigs at Hobby Lobby!  And they were 40% off (which made it about $25 for both of them)!  I knew they would be perfect for the space!  And they are!  I think they were the perfect addition.

Love, love, love them! 

Now if we can just ever get the rest of the room finished.  One day motivation will strike, I just know it! 

Thanks for listening to me ramble about the small things that make me giddy!

 

DIY Mini Pallet Valentines Art

Hey, hey, hey!!  Happy Monday!!
I hope you all had a fabulous weekend!  Our weekend was great!  We just hung out a lot as a family, grilled steaks, tried new recipes, played at the park and on the golf course, and just enjoyed time together as a family.  That’s what it’s all about, right?!? 
I also made this super easy and super cute Valentines Day art!  I don’t really get all crazy with my Valentines decorations.  I hang a wreath and a flag on our porch and I put one or two things on the mantel.  But definitely nothing extravagant.  I love how this sign is so simple and subtle and that it doesn’t look too “Valentine-y”!




I love, love, love the look of pallets in the home.  Pinterest is full of yummy ideas for using pallets in your home from restructuring them to be coffee tables, to beautiful art!  My recent favorite is Jen’s Valentines Pallet Art!  So pretty!
Although I love the look of pallet art, let’s face it…..I don’t have the time or patience to hunt down a pallet, clean it, sand it, paint it, blah…blah….blah!  If you’re new here (hi! and welcome!! and thank you so, so, so much for following along!!), you’ll soon come to realize that I love projects that are 3 things: quick, easy, and cheap!  Oh and it’s gotta be pretty!  Ok, so 4 things!
So while browsing in Hobby Lobby one day, I found these pretty little packages of wood pieces.  They were just wood strips and there were 4 in a package for $2.  I bought 3 packages, came home, and got to work!
Here are the supplies:

• packages of wood strips from craft store
• white paint & foam brush
• vinyl
• wood glue

I was a little impatient and didn’t get a picture of the wood strips in the actual package, but you can at least see what the package looks like. 
So I just laid out all my wood strips to get the size “pallet” that I wanted.  I saved 2 of the wood strips for the back.


Then I just used the wood glue to glue all the horizontal strips to the 2 vertical strips.  Can you see the “mini pallet” coming together?!
Once they were all glued on, I let it dry for about an hour while I did other things.  I came back and got busy painting with some plain white acrylic paint.
It took a few coats to get the coverage I wanted.

I don’t have pictures of this step, but I created my saying in Silhouette Studio and cut it out with vinyl on my Silhouette.  Nothing better than a little Jason Mraz lyrics for V-day!

I used transfer paper to transfer my vinyl onto the “mini pallet”.  And here’s the end result:









I love how it looks on my console table and is just the perfect touch of Valentine’s!
What do you think?
Thanks for stopping by!

I am linking up to many of these great parties:

M: DIY Showoff Project Parade, Metamorphosis Monday, Made by You Mondays, Just Something I Whipped Up, Today’s Creative Blog, Making Monday Marvelous, Polly Want A Crafter T: Get Your Craft On, Tip Junkie, Home Stories A to Z, Homework, A Bowl Full Of Lemons W: Uncommon, Oopsey Daisy, Uncommon, Twin Dragonfly Designs, Creative Spark , Not Just A Housewife Th: 36th Avenue, Just A Girl, Gluesticks, House of Hepworths, Every Creative Endeavor F: My Repurposed Life, Sassy Sites, I’m Lovin’ It, Remodelaholic’s Anonymous, Frugal Friday, Fingerprints On The Fridge, Feature Yourself Friday, Pity Party, Weekend Wrap-Up, Weekend Bloggy Reading S:  Positively Splendid, I Heart Naptime, Be Different, Act Normal  Su:  Under The Table & Dreaming, Remodelaholic, Homemaker On A Dime

Thanks for reading! 

Don’t forget to follow along on Facebook & Twitter!

Teal & Chevron Kitchen Towels {DIY}

So I was in Target a couple weeks ago and saw some cute black and white chevron kitchen towels.  I snagged 2 of them up!  If you follow me on Instagram, Facebook, or  Twitter then you got a glimpse at the new towels!
So I ran home all excited about my new goodies!  I barely got my foot through the door before I was tearing into the Target bag and pulling out the pretty, new towels to hang them on my stove handle.  I stood back and looked at them and I didn’t love them.  {Enter sad face here}.  Boo!  So they hung there for a week or so kinda plain and boring. 
Then, a couple days ago I ran to Dollar Tree to pick up something real quick.  I was walking to the checkout register when I saw these fun, bright colored terry kitchen towels!  They had a bright green, yellow, orange (I think), and teal.  They were so fun!  So I snagged 3 teal ones.  I knew immediately what I was going to do!

Yup!  The chevron towels took one look at the teal towels and they immediately fell in love.  They got married.  Mr. Brother married them in a very quaint ceremony.  Ok…..enough with the dorky wedding talk!  How do you guys even stick around here??
So my initial thought was to just sew a piece of one of the chevron towels to the teal towel and sew some ribbon on (you know I’ve gotta tie it to the oven so Lil Mama won’t constantly yank them down). 
So I cut the chevron towel in a wide strip to go at the bottom of the teal towel.

I sewed about a 1/4 inch seam at the top so it would look finished.

Then I sewed it to the teal towel and sewed the ribbon on.


Yay!  I loved it.  But I thought this little towel looked a little lonely.  I decided my kitchen needs something more than just teal and chevron.  How about ruffles, teal, and chevron!!  Oh yes ma’am!

Much better!! 
I basically just cut the 2nd chevron towel into 3.5 inch strips.  I set my sewing machine to the longest stitch length and set the tension to the tightest setting.  Another little trick I use when sewing ruffles is to hold the top thread between my pointer finger and thumb as I sew.  This adds a little extra tension and causes it to ruffle a little more.
It took 3 ruffle strips to go across the teal towel and I did two rows.

Love, love, love!  It was just the pop of color I needed in my kitchen.  And I love that they are the same, but not matchy matchy!
What do you think?  These fun, bright towels kind of have me itching for Spring (even though we’ve been having Spring-like weather here in Florida).
Thanks for stopping by!

I am linking up to many of these great parties:

M: DIY Showoff Project Parade, Metamorphosis Monday, Made by You Mondays, Just Something I Whipped Up, Today’s Creative Blog, Making Monday Marvelous, Polly Want A Crafter T: Get Your Craft On, Tip Junkie, Home Stories A to Z, Homework W: Passionately Artistic, Twin Dragonfly Designs, Creative Spark @ Clean & Scentsible, Not Just A Housewife Th: 36th Avenue, Just A Girl, Gluesticks, House of Hepworths, Every Creative Endeavor F: Sassy Sites, I’m Lovin’ It, Remodelaholic’s Anonymous, Frugal Friday, Friday Fun Finds, Feature Yourself Friday, Pity Party, Weekend Wrap-Up, Weekend Bloggy Reading S:  I Heart Naptime, Be Different, Act Normal, A Little Lovely,  Su:  Under The Table & Dreaming, Remodelaholic, Homemaker On A Dime

Top 10 Projects/Posts of 2011

Hi friends!!  I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas!!  I know I sure did.  Santa was very good to me and even better to Emily.  It was so fun watching her open all of her presents and play with all her new goodies!  I hope to post some pics from our Christmas soon!
I wanted to start a new tradition here on the blog.  I would like to post the top 10 projects from this year….according to YOU guys!!  That’s right!  I was looking at my analytics and thought it would be fun to share the most popular posts from this year!
So….here goes!

#10  Under The Stairs Closet Re-do

#9  Monogrammed Pumpkin


#8  Sleeping Baby Sign


#7  Pinterest Challenge Canvas Art


#6  Crockpot Lemon Herb Chicken


#5  Football Season Crafts


#4  DIY Tabbed Back Chevron Curtains



#3  Emily’s First Birthday Party


#2  Burlap & Felt Christmas Pillow


And the most viewed project of 2011 was………..

#1  DIY Mercury Glass


Thank you all so much for your support this year and for sticking around and sharing this little corner of “blogland” with me!  I just love writing this blog and sharing bits of my life, home, and family with you.  I have had several new followers lately so welcome to all of you!!  Thanks to those who have been with me for ages too!  I have big plans for 2012 and this little ‘ole blog of mine!  So I hope you stick around and continue to share this journey with me!
Although I love all of those projects above, I’ll be back to share my favorites from this year tomorrow!
Thanks for stopping by!