Spring Break DIYs

I've surprised myself this week by finding that perfect spot, right in the middle:

Productive,

but not stressed.

Rested,

but not bored.

My school is on Spring Break, so I've been trying to get a few of the "little things" accomplished while also making sure that I do, in fact, take a break.

I removed everything that was crowding my one open shelf in the kitchen. And I changed it up with a few bowls, plates, and misc.

I found an adorable light blue-green in Valspar paint called Beach Blanket. I proceeded to copy a photo I saw on Pinterest and paint my knife block with a little antiquing on the edges.

Then, I decided that I loved the color so much that I'd do the same to the towel rack I made to replace the one that ripped out of the drywall months ago. (Well, I'd better give credit to the hubs for the application of the power tools that don't get along with me.) It's not on the wall yet, but will be soon. (Right, hubs?)

DIY Wedding Accessories: Dress Hanger & Head Table Signs

Dress Hanger

Supplies: Wood hanger (without a metal rod), floral or jewelry wire (between 12-18 gauge), wire cutters, super glue, drill with a really small drill bit, hot glue gun, ribbon, and crafting flower.

Directions:

1. Drill two holes just slightly bigger than your wire into the inside edge of the hanger.

2. Leaving some straight wire at the beginning and room for more at the end, shape your wire into the words you want (e.g. "mrs. so- and so," both first names with a heart in the middle, "bride," etc.). This sounds like a lot harder than it is-- just be patient and remember you can unwind and untwist anything you need to.

3. Cut the remaining wire off, making sure that you have enough length to fit into the sides of the hanger.

 4. Put a little bit of glue into the two holes and insert the wire. Let sit to dry.

5. Hot glue a pretty flower or other decorative item on the top of the hanger. I found some flowers on sale near the scrapbooking department at Michael's that match the bride's wedding colors.

6. Tie a ribbon around the top.

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Head Table Signs

Supplies: wood plaques, craft paint, paint brushes, alphabet stencils, sandpaper, wood stain, drill, and twine.

Directions:

1. Paint the plaques a solid color. It should take about three coats to get it solid.

2. Using stencils, lightly trace the letters you want onto the plaques with a pencil.

3. Paint in the letters with another color (use a tiny paintbrush!). This should take another three coats or so.

4. After the paint is dry, rough up the edges with sandpaper. (I also used keys to ding up the wood as well.) Using the tip of your finger, go over the edges and dings with wood stain. Then smear more wood stain over the top of the plaque with your finger to give the entire plaque a distressed look.

5. Drill two holes in the top corners and string a piece of twine through so that the plaques can hang on the head table chairs.

Pinterest

I'm an avid pinner.

(Ha.)

Some people pin just to waste time.

Other people pin and actually follow through with some of those ideas.

Found this idea on Pinterest. Then proceeded to search high and low for a cute cake stand JUST so I can do this. Finally found one at Target (love that store) for $13.

Mission Curb Appeal: Update

In the past few days we have painted the shutters to match the stained wood, installed a new doorbell button, hung Old Glory, and painted the front door. Mike had to make a metal flag holder because the plastic one that came with the flag broke last year. I'm in love with the new doorbell button from Restoration Hardware. I am somewhat disappointed with the color that the door turned out. It is too much red and not enough purple. It's called Deep Garnet by Behr, but I don't think it turned out like the swatch. Mike also got started on replacing some rotted wood so that I can paint the trim of the garage door.

Up next: New front door handle (that brass door knob makes me want to vomit). Paint trim of garage door gray. Find a cool door knocker. Install rain gutters. Come up with the money to build new front composite steps/porch.

Every Ugly Dresser Has Potential

This post is really for my mom.

She sent my brother down with an old, abandoned mouse-infested dresser that had been in storage for... who knows how long. After adding some wood filler in the top, sanding, priming, painting, applying contact paper, and adding new knobs, it doesn't even look the same.

Cheers to my mom who taught me that a restored piece of furniture can have 100 times more personality than buying something new.

Before:

After:

DIY: Kitchen Cabinets

Problem: Outdated, nicked, ugly kitchen cabinets.

Solution: Spend $15,000 on new cabinets.

NOT.

Our DIY solution: Paint and new hardware for kitchen cabinets.

Mission accomplished.

Before.

After.