{DIY} Monogrammed Wreath

 

Alright, so I've seen lots of these types of wreaths on Pinterest and for some time now, I wanted to make one for our home. I had an old wreath with berries someone gave me but didn't love, so I took all the berries off so I could start with a clean slate. 

I then strung a piece of burlap to hang the wreath on. 

I used some floral wire to connect it and attach the bow to. You could also use a stapler for a cleaner look

Ambitious Must Be My Middle Name

So I was sitting here thinking about all the things I want to accomplish this summer. Just like that, with my finger on my cheek. I had so many ideas in my head I figured I had better write them down so I wouldn't forget anything. Mind you, I'm going to school part time and working on top of my normal wifely/motherly duties. So we shall see what I actually accomplish at the end of the summer. I really want to paint my house a tan/grayish color and though I have added that to my list, that costs quite a bit and Mr. Clean doesn't really want to do it himself so that may not even be an option yet.

My List of Projects for the warmer months:

• Paint my long dress/mirror
• Paint my blanket chest at the end of our bed
• Paint Mr. Clean's tall dresser
• Paint kitchen breakfast nook table/benches
• Build Window boxes for my house
• Bodie Island Lighthouse pallet art project
• Paint shutters on house black OR build new ones
• Sell current china cabinet, purchase new/old bigger one and paint it
• Make mason jar wall sconces for living room
• Bamboo trellis for my climbing rose bush
• Paint my house
• Plant day-lilies and hostas around the tree in my front yard.
• Redo my bedroom closet
• Paint the inside of my other cabinet with chalkboard paint and add hooks for measuring cups/spoons
• Paint my daughter's room
• Add shelves in my kitchen
• Make shelves/cornices for my bedroom windows
• Make pallet sofa/sectional for basement
• Finish half-done 3/4 bathroom in my basement
• Paint basement walls/rip up carpet and put down faux wood vinyl flooring
• Install butcher block counter-tops in my kitchen...maybe

I'm sure the list will grow although I'm not sure how many of these I will actually tackle this summer. We shall see!

{DIY} Chalkboard Paint Inside Cabinet Doors

So, with all the snow we've gotten this winter...we've been snowed in...A LOT! Well, one of the days we were stuck indoors I got an itch to do something crafty. Since I had some leftover chalkboard paint I decided to paint the insides of my cabinet doors with it. I lightly sanded them, wiped them clean and then painted two coats. Now I have a great place to keep important info and now I won't have to have little papers stuck to the fridge cluttering it all up!

How to Make a Faux Boxwood Wreath

Hey, Yall! Today I have a great and simple DIY for ya! I love this project which was inspired by this pin on Pinterest. Instead of using real boxwood (which I don't have) I decided to go to A.C. Moore and purchase a boxwood garland. I ended up needing another garland and since A.C. Moore didn't have any more in stock, I had to go to Michaels. When comparing the two, the Michaels garland was actually much nicer because the faux stems were actually brown whereas the A.C. Moore garland was pretty much all green. The Michael's leaves were colored in a more authentic was as well. That being said, I mixed the two and am very pleased with how it turned out! 

Here's the garland. 

First, I bought a grapevine wreath for $2.99. Then I used a 40% off coupon and got the garland for about $7.50 each. On the A.C. Moore garland, there were these little loops every so often. That's where I cut it. Basically, I cut about every 6-8 inches. I also purchased florist wire for $1.99.  (I have a ton left over for future projects) Then, I used chevron burlap ribbon that I already had on hand that I had cut it in half long ways for a different project. I used it to make a bow, which I attached with wire. 

How to Make a Burlap Rose

Hey Y'all! Today I have a great tutorial for a burlap rose for ya! I love burlap! It's got such a neat texture, and these days it comes in lots of patterns as well. I found these chevron patterned burlap ribbon spools at Walmart and couldn't pass them up. I kept trying to figure out something fun to make with them and then I decided to learn how to make burlap roses. I ended up making a wreath with them (tutorial to come). I hope you love them as much as I do! Have you made these before? FYI be careful with the hot glue gun! It's called a 'hot' glue gun for a reason ;-)

{DIY} Old Window turned Work of Art

Hey Everyone! Here's my latest project....and this was a quick one! Prince Charming replaced someone's old windows and I asked him to keep their windows instead of taking them to the dump. I'm so glad I did because I was able to create this lovely piece of art. I've been wanting to do something like this for awhile but wasn't exactly sure how I wanted to execute it. I've seen a ton of cute pallet ideas as well. But if you know me, you know I like easy projects sometimes...especially when it's 3 degrees outside. Another roadblock was "what" to put for the quote/verse. There really are so many great ones out there, especially bible verses that really speak to me. The problem with a lot of them is that they are too wordy. Not too wordy in general, but too wordy for something like this, on the wall...in my dining room. When I saw this verse, I knew it was the right one. I mean, it sort of sums up the whole of Christianity and believing in Jesus as the Son of God. If we love each other as He loved us can you imagine the world we'd live in? I swear, last week the news reported at least 10 dead bodies found in different parts of the city. It seemed like every morning if not twice in a day, my 6abc app alerted me to another one. If we loved each other, I mean truly loved each other, then there would be no need for any other commands. Thou shalt not lie? Of course we wouldn't! Thou shalt not steal? Definitely not. So, in my home, where my children will see this every day maybe it will remind them...and me...to be patient, to be a little more loving, a little more selfless. We are human, and will fail, but we can strive to be better...and if I'm putting words on my wall, they should be profound. 

Anyway, that was a long-winded way to lead into this lovely project...:) First, I printed out the words as large as I could get them. My handwriting stinks, so I'd rather have something a little prettier. Then I cut them out.

Next, I turned the window over and lightly taped the words in place.

Turn the window over to check alignment.

Using black acrylic paint and a tiny brush, begin to paint on the window, tracing the letters.

Remove the words off the back and Voila! A lovely, meaningful addition to my dining room!

Best of 2013

Hey Y'all!

Have ya missed me?? I know, I know....You thought I fell of the face of the earth. I did not..I assure you! I've just been insanely busy! I was in charge of our church Christmas play, which went amazingly well. (I sure am glad it's over though!) That took up a TON of my time...plus you know...all the extra stuff at the holidays. I took my first teacher certification test and passed! Yay! I have 4 classes to go till my student teaching in the fall...So I can FINALLY see the light at the end of the tunnel. I will be SO very glad when school is over. You have NO idea! Maybe I can become a normal human being, perhaps spend more time with my family, actually do a load of laundry and help my Prince Charming out (not that I actually miss doing laundry). So, even though I've been MIA I still wanted to share some of my favorite posts from the year. Mostly recipes and a few DIYs. I'm still in LOVE with my dining room table and record player. I'm itching to paint my bedroom furniture but again...I need the time! So, if you've been one of my faithful readers, or if you're here for the first time...click the pics, they should take you to some of my favorites. Thanks, everyone!

Happy New Year!

Dining Room Table Makeover

A few years ago, we got the table below for the apartment we lived in. It was tiny and the table was round but had a leaf so that we could expand it if we had company. I was never in love with the color but liked the style. We got it because it's what we could afford. Well, after moving into our new house we got a corner nook kitchen table and used this as our dining table. However, the only thing is the largest I could make this table was to fit 6 people. Since we actually had a dining room, I felt it was time to graduate to a real dining room table. So I was on the hunt....I posted this on craigslist and then found a great table and four chairs for only $65. It was in need of some serious TLC but was sturdy and simple, yet had a little bit of character as well. PLUS it came with not one but TWO leaves! 

 The drawback...other than the need for a makeover, it came with only four chairs. We used the table and stored our former table in the basement while waiting for it to sell. I kept going back and forth on whether to keep the chairs and paint them a color I like, but (per Prince Charming's advice) sold the table and chairs as a set. I put them on our local Facebook yard sale page and got 3 offers within a minute...SCORE! 

Next, I took the table outside and got set up. First, I sanded it down with my Black and Decker Mouse detail sander (Love that tool!)

Then I started painting. We used Valspar Pale Bloom. It's a great white, not too cream but not too bright white. One thing I wish I'd have done is put on a coat of primer. I put on three coats of paint, sanding lightly between coats with the above hand sander that has refillable sanding pads.

My princesses helping me out.

 

Here's my oldest princess painting.

Ta-dah! Then I put on 3 coats of poly-crylic in satin. Since it's going to be used as our dining table I wanted to make sure it was protected and I didn't want to use polyurethane because it yellows over time. 

The table right after it made it inside.

The chairs after I recovered them. Then, since I didn't have enough chairs, I used the money I got for selling my old table to purchase new chairs from an antique store. I had intended on painting them but decided that since all the chairs were a darker color they actually looked nice that way. I love the mismatched chair look. Now I'm loving my dining room! 

Homemade Chalk Paint Record Player Re-do

Sigh....life has been C-R-A-Z-Y!!

I know, I know.... I've been MIA lately...but it's been a necessity. There is just way too much going on in my life so the RHP is on the back burner for now. I am still crafting and cooking and re-doing stuff so I have some things in my blogging arsenal but my family and school are first....so the blog suffers....don't give up on me yet!

Okay, so anyway...I got this Awesome record player years ago for FREE on craigslist...and even posted about it HERE and how it's one of my favorite things. I love old pieces that are nostalgic like this. I wasn't in love with the color though so after much deliberation and hemming and hawing (and Pinterest research) I decided which direction I'd like to go....homemade chalk paint. I tried a few recipes on a trash-picked end table and on two yard-sale night stands and wasn't too impressed. They all seemed to make the paint WAY too thick! And the result wasn't to my perfectionist OCD standards...I still love the pieces I painted but they were my guinea pigs. THIS piece, however, I loved how it turned out. I painted TWO coats with NO SANDING OR PRIMING!!! Then I applied wax. This post won't be a step by step tutorial, that'll have to come later when I've perfected it...maybe I'll even do a video...because I totally had to watch some youtube video how-to's to decide what to do.
For my recipe:
I mixed two cans of Valspar sample paints in tropical oasis and one can of gray mountain smoke in a plastic paint container. (You can use to old plastic ware) Then in another bowl I mixed 1 Tablespoon of plaster of paris and 2 Tablespoons of HOT water. I bought a few forks and a whisk from the dollar store to keep in my paint supplies for this. I whisked it together until there were no lumps. Then I added only half of the mixture to the paint and stirred. It thickened up but not TOO much. All the other ones I tried were awful. Maybe they worked for them, but it DROVE ME CRAZY! This stuff dries seriously fast too! I re-coated in half an hour. The next day I used Briwax clear paste wax which I got off of amazon to coat the entire piece. Make sure to use a rag to wipe the wax into the paint and wipe off the excess. Then after about 20 minutes I sanded it to give it a little distressed look. I read somewhere to sand AFTER the clear wax so you have less dust and since I painted inside the house, this was what I was going for...less dust. Then I added Minwax DARK paste wax and wiped off to give it a more aged look. I would have applied another coat of clear wax if it was painted on the top, but since I only painted the sides, I didn't bother. Ta-dah!! The most lovely record player re-do ever!! I may end up stripping the top and staining it darker at some point, but for now...it'll do. :)

You can kinda see the sample paints next to the container.

I used this Wooster size 10 stencil brush from amazon for the clear

 wax  and a Wooster size 6 stencil brush from amazon for the dark wax.