A drill, mason jar, soap dispenser, and glue.
Placemats and napkins are a easy way to spice up a kitchen table. Whether for spring, summer, fall, or winter you can design your very own season fit scheme.
DIY Placemats:
Shopping List:
- 1 yard of 2 different designed fabrics (1 yard of each)
- sewing machine
-needle and thread
- measuring ruler
-pencil
How to:
*Cut 4- 14x18 rectangles (of each fabric design)
*Pin your corners to match perfectly so you will get a straight edge when sewing.
*Sew with a 1 in. hem around the edge of the placemats.
* Begin pulling excess strings on ends to give the edges a frayed look.
Voila- you now have a reversible placemat.
Napkins:
Shopping List:
- A Bundle of Layer Cakes- found here.
- Sewing Machine
-Pins
How To:
* Simply match 2 layer cakes together until there are no more in the bundle.
* Pin the corners to make straight edges (Inside out)
* Sew inside out leaving a gap to be able to pull the fabric through.
*Pull fabric through and sew an outer edge to finish off your reversible napkin.
And that's the #2 post of the kitchen series!
Hope you enjoyed.
With my new crackled island came a desire to paint other things that same color... so...
I found some old picture frames lying around the house that I had not been using and went to work.
What you Need:
2 old picture frames
Paint color of your choice
piece of scrapbook paper
wood letters of desired word (Hobby Lobby- $.49 a letter)
hot glue gun and sticks
Getting to Work.
First of all take all the backing off of both frames. This will allow you to paint the frames without getting paint all over the glass.
Then paint the frame your desired color (you could even spray paint... this would be quick and easy).
Once the frames are done drying you can begin putting the frame back together. For the frame with words (such as my "Cafe" one) you can leave off the cardboard backing and just place the glass back inside. For the dry erase frame- take the scrapbook color of choice and cut and size it to the frame and glue it (I used hot glue) to the cardboard.
Your dry erase board is now complete... I use mine as a "Menu" board and "Shopping List", feel free to use it however it fits in your house!
With your letters, you can leave them a rustic wood color or paint them your desired color.
Once the paint is dry you can hot glue them to the glass of the frame.
Total of Project:
$6
Parker, my handyman came to the rescue when I needed more storage and counter space for my kitchen! Little did I know how much I would fall in love with his carpentry skills!
So, he took perfect measurements for it to fit in the spot we wanted and got to work.
This was the initial build (that actually sat in our kitchen for months- well without the primer marks).
Months went by and while I grew to fall in love with this extra piece of storage in our kitchen along with the amazing whole in the middle to dump trash into... we were a little weary of the basic wood color.
So... off we went to Lowe's to choose our paint color...
Not only did we love this color... but, we decided to "crackle" it. People, if you have never got your hands on crackle... you need to make that a priority! WE LOVE CRACKLE!
After a base coat and several steps of painting... we had a rustic red, crackled island!
We also, found a random mirror around the house that we weren't pleased with the spot it was currently in.... and guess what- crackled it! It fit perfectly above our newly remodeled island... and just like that... we had our very own hand-made red, crackled island!
Most women would agree with me that if the kitchen is clean, organized, and homey... your entire house feels the same way. Therefore, to make our small rental home feel like our own we have started with a few DIY projects in our kitchen. This will be a series of posts, so stay tuned for more projects that you could do simply and cost-effectively.
It makes sense that this was incorporated in our kitchen since Parker is the CEO of Perfection Painting and I am a want-to-be seamstress :)!
Lowes Shopping List:
1- 4x5 painter's drop clothe ($4.68)
Found in my home:
Sewing machine
Ruler
Extra Fabric
Curtain Rod (which was $2.97 at Walmart)
Do It Yourself:
As I attempt at being a seimstress, I have quickly realized the importance of a straight line. Many of you know I am far from a perfectionists.... therefore, I am trying to teach myself to be one as it is very much necessary in this hobby! So, remember when cutting, a straight line is important!
Ok.
-Measure your window to determine the length you want the curtain to be (keep in mind to add 2-3 in.-depending on your curtain rod- for your hem).
- For the width of my window it worked out perfect to simply cut the tarp in half. It may be different for you, so measure the width you want the curtain to be and cut.
-Sew your hem at the top leaving enough room for your curtain rod to fit in.
(I left my edges raw for a unique look. If you want to add a hem around all edges you can do that also.)
-Choose the color of fabric for your accent ties.
-Choose the length in which you want the tie to hang, then cut and add a hem to it.
- Hang and adjust ties to wrap around panels and voila... your curtain is done.
Final Cost:
$7.65
Garden Restored!
You heard about our awful garden flop several weeks ago... and we told you that we would re-post as soon as the flop was fixed. So, here we are with new ideas, recommendations, and maybe a few words of wisdom from ones who tried and failed before!
This time around we started with 3 bags of manure, 3 bags of topsoil, and several bags of coffee grounds from starbucks... along with marigolds from Lowes (which are suppose to help insects stay out of your garden), tomato plants, okra, green beans, green peppers, and jalepenos. Yes, they were not all self-germinated, but it was our last resort!
We spent one Friday evening re-digging up our entire garden and re-planting! We made sure the soil was nice and moist and that we didn't make the same mistakes as before!
We evenly spaced out our garden, watered with some miracle grow, and patiently waited to see what would happen!
I am now a proud gardener! I am out watering my garden at 6:30 every morning and tending to it like they are my babies! I love it and can't wait to bite into my first fruit from this garden!
Here is a word for you today... "If your garden flops the first time, try again!" :)
Garden Flop:
I have to admit... I had big dreams and visions for our self-germinated garden this year... it was going to be great! Well as all of you crafters or DIY people out there know, every project doesn't turn out the way you hoped... and I am here to be vulnerable with you and let you know when mine did not!
I planted my self- germinated garden a little after April 15th (the garden date, or AKA tax day). It was a perfect evening and the weather was beautiful! Well, that didn't last long... many of you who live on this side of the country realize that rain has been nothing but our best friend this spring season. To say the least a day after my garden was planted, it rained for at least a week straight to then only bring more rain after. This would have been great had I not self-germinated my plants... but, since they needed rain and sun and did not get that... they drowned :(
My heart was broken, all that work into all my little plants.... and now all it is is a pile a weeds...
Such a sad day....
But, I do not leave you with that... because my herbs have been doing great!!!
And there is hope for the future... tonight me and my ever so helping husband are going to replant... no it won't be with my self-germinated plants, but they will be with plants that will survive the storms!
We purchased lots of manure and got Starbucks coffee grounds to help nourish our renewed garden!
So, we will have tomatoes, peppers, jalepenos, okra, and lots of fresh flowers!
I am ok with this...
Our Self- Germinated Garden
So this year we decided to go with the DIY Garden... in other words, the cheap way! We germinated our own seeds and watched over 8 weeks as our jiffy cups went from being dirt to baby plants!
This post will take you step by step on how to germinate and grow your own garden (keep in mind this is the first year we are germinating... so mid summer you can determine whether this was a successful DIY or not!)
What you will need:
*Jiffy Cups (you will need 1 jiffy cup per plant)- $1.79 @ Lowes
*Seedlings (flowers, fruits, and veggies- whatever your heart desires)- apx. .$70 a piece @ Lowes.
*Top Soil- apx. $4
*Water
*Shovel if desired
TOTAL COST: (for my garden)
$15.00
Step 1:
-Sketch out your garden.
Where are you going to have your garden?
Do you have enough room for all the plants you want to plant?
Will your dog attack your garden?
These are all good questions to ask yourself when you begin sketching out your garden.
Me and Parker talked about the herbs, veggies, and plants we wanted this year and then went from there.
teiling
(sorry for the late night image... and thanks to my hubby for your awesome landscaping abilities and tilling the ground for my garden!)
Step 2:
-Prepare your jiffy cups.
Simply fill your jiffy cups til they are almost full (leaving apx. 1 1/2 in. at the top)
Step 3:
GERMINATE!
Place a couple of seedlings in the center of the jiffy cup on the top. Then cover the seedlings with dirt til the jiffy cup is full of dirt and your seedlings are good and covered.
Step 4:
Water! Watch! Water!
Place your jiffy cups near a window inside where it can get good sunlight (especially if you are doing this near early spring, you do not want your plants to die). Be sure to water daily or as needed. Continue to watch.. maybe for the next 8 weeks... you can continue on your daily tasks... don't feel as if you have to hover over your first garden! :)
Step 4:
SPRING IS HERE!
PLANT!
- I am organized and a planner therefore I made a layout of my garden before planting. This is important because if you do not give certain plants enough room in the garden they will overtake your whole garden. Or if you plant mint in with your garden all you will have is mint and you will be eating mint in your sleep! SO, PLAN or you will regret it come July when you wish you had tomatoes!
I decided to put my herbs in clay pots this year. I added a little bit of chalkboard paint to it and voila... I was able to label my pots!
Hope your garden turns out GREAT... I hope mine does too! I'll keep you posted on how it's coming!
Wood pallets... who would have thought that they would come so in handy.... besides for the Lowe's crew who needs to use them for transporting.
Ok... so we simply went into Lowe's and asked the front manager if we could snag a few of his pallets... willing to get rid of them, he let us have however many we wanted as long as we didn't take them all!
Materials Needed:
-Wood Pallet: FREE
-Stain (If desired)- we have one with stain and one without- my husband will only let me put 2 in the house :).
- Stain Paint Brush
-Scrap piece of wood if you desire to make a extra shelve. (We used a 1x8) You can tack this down with wood glue and brad nails.
- Sand paper to
To Do:
Simply stain your pallet and wait for it to dry! Figure out a place to put it... you could always put it in your kitchen for a country feel to display cookbooks or pretty platters... or in a bathroom for extra shelving for decoration... or like I did... in my TV room with mood lighting!
Check out other ways to make a wood pallet useful HERE.
For my target fans out there... have you seen this is the past several months...
Yes... adorable... and kind of pricey, don't you think?!?
I passed this pillow for several weeks and so desperately wanted it... but #1 it didn't match my house and #2 it was $25.00... and for those of you who know me I hardly spend $25 on furniture!
Ok so there is a solution... DO IT YOURSELF and save money!!!
Materials Needed:
-Either a pre-bought pillow or a self-made pillow (I used a neutral pillow that was lying around that wasn't being used)
-1/2 yard of the color of fabric of your choice. This will be for the rosettes.
- Hot Glue Gun.
- 30 min. of time
1. Start by cutting 9- 3 in. wide and 1 1/2 feet long strips of fabric.
2. Begin forming the rosettes by knotting one end of the fabric and twisting the fabric around the knot... placing hot glue randomly to secure it.
3. Once all the rosettes are together you can begin placing them evenly on your pillow.
4. Once all the rosettes are complete... your pillow is complete! Enjoy... I know I sure am!
