Customized Rocking Chair

Today's project is NOT a pinterest found project, I just decided to do this randomly.

D's mom (who is an amazing scrapbook-er) got me a Cricut for Christmas. After the craziness of Christmas day and the mess it left behind, I didn't get to play with my new toy until recently.  I was just cutting out letters and pictures and playing around when I started thinking what I could do with all these things I have cut out now. And then it hit me. I can customize things with some paper letters and some DIY decoupage.

Last Christmas, my parents got baby A an unfinished wooden rocking that I was going to paint. I haven't yet and decoupaging seemed like the perfect fit for this handmade wooden rocking chair.

I had cut out A's name and some hearts so I arranged her name on the back rest and put one of the hearts on the back of the chair. I covered the seat with coordinating paper and decoupaged it all. It turned out amazing. You could really apply this technique to anything. I covered it with some spray on acrylic sealer.

I love it and so does Addilyn. Her reaction was: "ooh Mommy, I love it! It's beautiful."

And that makes it all worth it!!

December Birchbox

I was browsing Pinterest a few months ago and came across a really cute blog called "The Small Things Blog"
It's super adorable and packed with great hair/make up/cooking/everything. I was scrolling through her blog and came across a post she did about receiving a Birchbox. I read the post and I had to sign up.

Birchbox is sort of like a magazine subscription. But instead of getting a magazine you will flip though once or twice and then leave around to clutter your house, you get 4-5 samples of beauty products, that you will LOVE. And it's only $10 a month. It comes in a hot pink box, so you will never miss it in your mail. Not that you would, if you are anything like me,  practically sprinting to the mailbox to check for my box every month.

I got my first Birchbox in November and I discovered my new favorite perfume Kate Spade 'Twirl' and Jouer Cosmetics and amazing Alex & Isabella Hair Bows (the hair ties don't leave the weird pony tail hump when you take your hair down, and they are too cute!) 

I got my December Birchbox and I was absolutely thrilled with what was inside, again. They usually show up around the 10th but this month's came a little late because inside everyone got an exclusive pre-launch of  Atelier Cologne Ambre Nue Cologne Absolue. So, they sent everyone 100 Birchbox points, which is essentially a $10 credit to shop on their website. Awesome.

Here is my review of all the December products in my box. 

 It is always packaged up so cute! Ribbons, shimmery paper :)

 In this month's box I got: 

EBOOST Orange Natural Energy Booster

It is a packet that you mix with water and drink, supposed to be a natural energy booster. I have not tried it.

 pre-launch Atelier Cologne Ambre Nue Cologne Absolue

It smells amazing. 

It's elegant and mature and what I imagine classy, old Hollywood smelled like.

Nuxe Huile Prodigieuse® OR Multi-Usage Dry Oil Shimmer 

Amazing product. I used a little on my décolletage and on my legs and it looked amazing. Just a little shimmer, it made all the difference! It really took my whole look up a notch. We were going to a Christmas party that night and it was perfect  On my legs, it gave that flawless sheen that wearing nylon pantyhose can, but without the itchy stuffiness of pantyhose. It only takes a little bit so my sample size is going to last a while, but when it is gone, I am restocking this one for sure. 

Showstoppers® Designer Fashion Tape in Nude

 I love fashion tape, so useful. I have actually used this brand before, it is great.

Jouer Moisturizing Lip Gloss 

The color I got is 'Birchbox Pink'. It is a nice color and consistency, isn't too sticky, and very moisturizing

Oscar Blandi Pronto Invisible Volumizing Dry Shampoo

I use dry shampoo a lot, but I wasn't particularly impressed by this one. I didn't like the smell and it didn't blow me away. A full size bottle costs 28.00 and I didn't think it worked any better than my 4.00 Tresemme Fresh Start (which smells awesome and works like a dream)

I love getting Birchboxes every month and I will most likely keep my subscription forever. It is a great way to find some stellar beauty products without having to do the hard work or buy a full size product that you end up hating.

If you are interested in Birchbox and getting started with a subscription click here.

Pretty Hair Pins

I use bobby pins like crazy. CRAZY.

And I usually buy the ones that at least sort of match my hair color, but I change that so often I rarely have a bobby pins for the current color so it never matches.  Not too long ago I bought some neon bobby pins and embraced using the hair pins to accessorize.

I saw this on pinterest and went nuts. It doesn't link back to a blog or anything, it's just a picture of pretty bobby pins with the description of :

"Paint your bobby pins with nail polish! - very cute & EASY!"

 It is cute and easy. And this is how it turned out: 

the colors are much brighter in real life. and look awesome in your hair!

 COLORS USED:

Sally Hansen Hard as Nails X-treme Wear #140 Rockstar Pink
Claire's Cosmetics "Mean Green"
Zoya "Noel"
Sally Hansen HD #01 Cyber
Sally Hansen Insta-Dri #11 Sonic Bloom
Sally Hansen Insta-Dri #22 Jumpin' Jade


If you can't tell, I have a Sally Hansen obsession. Some of the best polishes I've had have been Sally's and the Insta-Dri line is amazing for doing toddler mani/pedis or quick polish changes!

A Blue Streak

If I could, I would have rainbow streaked hair and more tattoos and piercings...but I have a job at a law firm and if you want a professional job (especially here in the deep south)  you usually need to be a little more conservative. I saw this pin (it links to a tumblr page, so the only instructions I have were in the description of the pin) that explained how to get temporary hair color streaks and I was more than excited. This could give me a little fun for the weekends, but rinse out for work.

The pin says to use oil pastels to color on the section of hair you want and hair spray it to hold.

Not Your Mother's 'She's A Tease' Hairspray and Cray-Pas Junior Artist Oil Pastels

So I did exactly that and it worked like a dream! I tried a few different colors and was pretty satisfied with all of them. The flash caught some of the shiny particles from pastels I guess but the color is more smooth and not grainy like that in real life.

Update: It washes out easily! I washed my hair the next morning and it came right out.

Plastic Bag Organization

I have a two year old which means trips in the car can go a variety of ways. But almost every time we travel any distance greater than across town, we usually have some need for those plastic grocery/shopping bags. They are awesome as on-the-go trash bags, dirty clothes containers, or stinky diaper eliminators but they are a nusance to have laying around in your car or crammed in your diaper bag. They also are a bit of a choking hazard. I'm not an over-protective-terrified-of-every-thing-mom, but I do worry about a toddler having easy access to those plastic bags. So finding a way to store them in a cute way was an awesome discovery.

<<<< Turn that into....

                                                                Into this! >>>>>>>


















I saw a pin a while back about rolling your plastic bags to pull out of cleaning wipes containers. It links you back to an awesome website, called tater tots and jello, definitely something to check out!

The instructions are simple and she gives a great photo-full how to guide on rolling the bags.

Its as easy as it seems and you can mix and match the plastic bags you are rolling together.

Once you roll them up and pop them in the container you just load up an 8 x 10 piece of cute, coordinating fabric with DIY decoupage and stick it on the container. I didn't have spray adhesive handy so I just decoupaged it and spread a little fabric glue I had handy on the container and it worked just as well.





This could make an awesome little gift for anyone! But especially an expectant mother (you never realize the things you actually need when you are mom, until you become one!)

DIY Decoupage!

I love to use decoupage for pretty much anything and everything when it comes to crafting, but buying jar after jar of decoupage gets pricey when one jar is almost $8.

When I saw this DIY version on Pinterest, I knew I had to at least give it a chance for my wallet's sake.The pin links you to a super adorable blog who got the idea from a pin she saw that linked her back to this super awesome blog.

The instructions are simple and easy! Mix 1 part glue with 1 part water, shake until mixed. DONE.

This is an easy and cheap alternative to the store brand. (especially if you are a slight supply hoarder like me and stocked up big on random school supplies at this year's back to school sales!)  Lucky for me I also have lots of empty glass containers hoarded  laying around for anytime I might need them, much to the annoyance of D.

Speaking of dear old D....

I only have one further instruction: 

DO NOT LEAVE OUT WHERE YOUR HUBS MIGHT DRINK IT THINKING IT IS MILK!

I am counting my lucky stars that he asked me why I was painting on stuff with milk. This could have been an ugly, yet hilarious situation.

Happy Crafting !

Scotch Tape Manicure

Last night I had a nail polish/spa party with baby A. So I thought I would try out some of the really cool, nail polish ideas and tricks I see on Pinterest. Baby A's nails are too small and so is her attention span so we just regular painted hers.

I tried a Scotch Tape Mani that I found on Pinterest that links you back to an awesome blog called Chloe's Nails . (Follow her blog  if you love nail polish, she has some amazing ideas, tips and tricks!) 

THE FINAL PRODUCT

Finished!

I started out with a pretty nude I have called Cafe Au Lait by Sally Hansen Perfect Manicure.


I put "less sticky" scotch tape at a diagonal. (stick the tape to your skin and take it off a few times so it loses some sticky so you don't pull your base color off )

Then I painted my Rimmel Lycra #322 Russet Flame  color over the tape and exposed nail.








Gently pull the tape off BEFORE the polish dries. It is easiest to do one nail at a time to avoid the risk of the top polish drying to tape and pulling off.

Chloe gives more details and better instructions so be sure to check out her blog post about it! 

(the link is at the top of the page!)

To do all my nails, base, taped and top did not take long at all. I tried using another pinterest idea ( running nails under cool water to dry faster ) to help speed things along and cut down on nail drying time and it didn't work that I could tell.

This is definitely a do again project. I can see all kinds of things coming out of using scotch tape as a stencil of sorts....


Happy Polishing!

Garlic Chicken Puffs!

We were going to a Sunday School Christmas party Friday night and we were all supposed to bring something. Instantly my brain went to pinterest and all the amazing appetizers and recipes on there. I found a recipe for Garlic Chicken Puffs and thought it would make the perfect appetizer. The blog post that the pin links you to is actually about taking these to a Christmas party so its perfect!

Its a simple recipe and it tastes delicious.
Basically you mix chicken, cream cheese, and flavors to taste and put them into triangles of crescent roll dough and bake for a few minutes. (I added some shredded cheddar because everything tastes better with more cheese)


I had chicken breasts, cream cheese and everything else I need for this already in my fridge so this actually worked out great!


Since I have to work today until 5 and the party is at 7, I went ahead and mixed up the creamy chicken mixture last night.

 

It makes a yummy cracker dip too!

The blogger this recipe came from says
"Unroll crescent rolls and cut each triangle into 2 triangles (when you unroll the crescent rolls, 2 triangles are attached making a big square, I just cut from there following the perforation for one cut and made another cut from the other corners = giving you 4 little triangles)"

That is how you get the little triangles to put the mix in.

I just spoon what I think looks like a good amount and roll those babies up! Bake them for about 10-15 minutes (every oven is different) at about 375.

They are delicious and a definite crowd pleaser!

Glow Stick Bath

Last night I thought we would shake our bath time ritual up a bit and use Glow Sticks! 

bath time fun!

I bought a 15 pack of glow sticks from target for a dollar, and made baby A's night!

She had so much fun cracking them to make them glow, and playing with them in the dark and in the bath that after the bath we ended up playing with them all night and had a mini-rave in her room until bed time!

It was so much fun and I can't wait to do it again.. maybe we will have a glow stick night after her next big potty training victory!

Sticker Removal

Last night I got a sweet UNC tervis tumbler on clearance at Hobby Lobby (random? I know)

It had these annoying little stickers all over the bottom of it so I went to pinterest to find a way to take them off.

I found a few different things that said use a blow dryer to remove stickers.

It links you to a page from "Real Simple" and all it says is: 

"A little hot air quickly loosens price labels—with zero fingernail-chipping frustration."

So I got out my blow dryer and aimed it at the stickers for probably 5 to 10 seconds and the sticker pulled off like magic! 

no stickers or sticky residue!

 

Lettering

Today  I did a pretty cool tutorial I found about lettering

Well its basically how to doodle your way to a beautiful letter!


On the page that the pin links you to there are tons of tutorials for lots of different things that use Sakura products.

I went to Hobby Lobby and bought a couple of the Sakura brand pens, which are amazing and worth the price if you are a hard core doodler. I can't wait to add to my small collection.

I followed her tutorial and I did the letter R like she did.

She makes it so easy!

Joanne Fink is the woman instructing in the video and I loved her handiwork so I googled her and she has some books that I have already put on my amazon wish list!

I think I'm going to have to go buy some gel pens and keep doodling! I just wish I still had my gel pen collection from fifth grade...

Here is another letter I did:

And another: 

Twine Light

The workout posts and videos are on their way! 

But in the meantime....

another craft!!!

This one is a Twine Light Ball.

Materials: 

• Twine- about 2.50 for 500 yards in the hardware section of Wal-Mart
• Ballons - 1.00 for a pack of 15
• Heavy Starch - 0.97 cents! 
• Finisher Spray - 4.99 at Hobby Lobby ( which I didn't even use)

Cheap and Easy

The idea is that you wrap twine around a balloon, spray it with some spray starch and let it dry then pop the balloon.

This was the hardest part!

Honestly, the most difficult part is wrapping the twine around the balloon with out it sliding off, but once you get going its a piece of cake.

All wrapped up and ready to go!

 It finally got wrapped, after some friendly arguing between me and D about who had the better idea of how to wrap it. I can admit defeat, his way worked and mine didn't. You were right, honey.







I have read a lot of tutorials that tell you to dip the twine/yarn/string in a glue mixture and wrap but the spray starch method seems much easier and less messy!

I still need to purchase a light kit to fully complete this project, but I am satisfied! I think I mightspray some acrylic finisher stuff I have onto to it just as a second layer of stiffness, but you wouldn't have to.

I count this as a success.

I am also considering doing a couple more of varying sizes and just hanging them in a cluster over baby A's bed.

Or using them as wedding decor...

                 

There are a million cool things you could do with this concept, so get crafting!

Twine Wrapped Wreath with Felt Flowers!

Today you get a two-for-one!

Since I was out of town all weekend, and deprived you of posts for THREE days, I'm gonna do a two in one post tonight! It's a very inexpensive and variable project, good and easy for any time of year, and you can add any theme or embellishment and really make it your own.

Its a twine wrapped wreath with felt flower accents.

No pin today :(

No pin today or for the entire weekend.... I'll pick it back up Monday. We had a death in the family and family comes first.

BATTLE OF THE CLEANING AGENTS

Today I put two pins head to head in a challenge of cleaning some nasty burned up baking pans.

In the blue corner:  baking soda and PEROXIDE

And in the red corner: baking soda and VINEGAR

BEFORE-- VINEGAR

BEFORE -- PEROXIDE

BEFORE--- GROSS and BURNED from my lack of kitchen skills.

I am not much of a cook and so my baking pans that were brand spanking new this time last year, have sadly fallen victim to many ill attempts at baked goods.

The peroxide method uses mostly baking soda and tells you to squirt in peroxide and make a paste. Then you are supposed to rub the paste on the offending item with your fingers or a small sponge or dish brush.

I slathered that paste on there and scrubbed my heart out and did not get the stellar results that I hoping for based on the before and afters of the pin.

After- its better but I'm still using tin foil for everything I bake on this thing

I was getting really disappointed  because I did not want two nights of failure in a row, so I made some macaroni and cheese and drank a glass of wine and was ready for the vinegar test.

Remembering back to my first science classes, I was suddenly struck with the thought that vinegar and baking soda are what makes up the classic volcano project. The outlook for the night was suddenly much brighter, especially since D said he had never done the volcano thing as a kid. (I tend to forget that not everyone was a nerd growing up).

The basics for the vinegar project were put vinegar in the pan, heat  it to boiling then  sprinkle in some baking soda and let her rip! (bring it to the sink first!) After the fizz calms, you are supposed to Rinse and scrub. it suggests to make a paste of baking soda and water and let it sit on the especially tricky stains.

The results I got from the vinegar test were much better than the peroxide results. If I has used steel wool and a little more elbow grease I could have gotten some really rad results, but I didn't feel like putting that much work into scrubbing a pan that I always cover with tin foil anyways.

After- Its not brown! and that is not a glare, that is shiny metal like it was when it was new!!

So, the champion tonight is definitely VINEGAR!

Vinegar worked better and it was totally more fun to do (Addy would have loved to see the fizz)

....and anything that makes scrubbing burnt cookie sheets a little less crappy, wins by default!!!

glass jar + twine + spray paint

Today's pin is a twine stenciled spray painted glass jar.

this is my version.... not so great. 

This brings to mind a terribly chipped  and cracked manicure. NOT a lovely candle pair.

The idea is that you wrap a jar with twine and then spray paint it so that the twine acts as a stencil. 

Easy enough right?

WRONG. 

It is supposed to be quick and cute and easy and fool-proof. But I clearly missed the memo. 

My problems started with the twine, maybe I got the wrong kind but it was fuzzy and smelly and  I couldn't tape the twine and make it hold tight enough around the jars that it wouldn't move and shift. So I brought out the big guns (duck tape and glass of wine) to figure this thing out. After much fiddling I finally was able to tape it down on the bottom and the inside tight enough to keep it somewhat in place. [But don't ask me how because I have no clue] 

Then I sprayed two light coats of a pretty, matte cranberry color and let it dry but apparently I got that step wrong as well somehow.

After a few hours when the paint was dry I pulled the twine and tape off and was ultimately disappointed. 

I ended up with a horrid waste of twine, paint and glass jars. Maybe I will revisit this in the future, but based on the luck I had this go around, probably not. 

Oh well, there is always tomorrow.

Blessing Bags

Today I  was planning on doing a toddler project with baby A but an opportunity presented itself and I couldn't miss it. Today I did a "blessing bag".

The past few days I have seen a couple that is down on their luck. They sit close to the interchange for 75 at a park-and-ride with a few belongings and each other. Today I was headed home for lunch and I saw them sitting in the same place they were when I left for work this morning. I was planning on bringing them some cokes and cookies on my way back from lunch but then I remembered an idea I saw on pinterest called a "blessing bag".
The general idea is that you fill it up with with stuff someone in need might be very grateful to have like travel size toiletries, water bottle of water, snacks, granola bar, etc.

Since this was a spur of the moment thing I did not have travel sized stuff and goodies that I had presorted to fill up a bag, so I got a little crafty and made it all up and I think that made it so much better.

Here is what I did:

I took one of those 99 cent reusable bags that I had and starting filling it up. I didn't know exactly what I would put in it so I started to think I stuff I would need if I had to be away from home for a few days, and anyone who knows me, knows I don't pack light.
I included a full arsenal of dental care items, lotion, body wash, wash cloths, a small towel, a un-used hairbrush, some q-tips, etc.
Then I went and raided the pantry. I threw in cookies, crackers, drinks, granola bars, little boxes of cereal, candy, Little Debbie cakes, chewing gum and some fortune cookies. (I sincerely hope they aren't diabetic)
There was no stopping me at this point. I put in a stamped envelope, a small notepad and pen, some coupons for free McDonalds, a small "Message" bible and the information for some local agencies that could help them get back on their feet. I decided to write an unsigned letter to the couple letting them know they were always loved by at least me and Jesus. I packed it all into that bag and put a  ribbon on it and drove to where I had seen them last.

I pulled into the lot where they were sitting, still and I stopped the car and turned it off. Here I am, a little girl in a little car that has ribbons and pearls hanging in front and sorority stickers on the back, I was greeted with a puzzled look from the couple. I got out of the car and got the bag out. I started to walk toward them and the woman stood up. I felt a knot in my stomach, in all my excitement to put the bag together I had never even thought of what I would say to them and its not like I could just drop the bag and run. We got closer and closer to each and finally we were standing there she looked at me and at the bag and back at me. I looked at her and I could see the pain in her eyes, no one wants to have to rely on the kindness of strangers for their next meal or ride or place to sleep. She probably used to be a 20-something with everything going right for her and her husband, she may even have children out there somewhere. Then it hit me that I am only one mistake or unlucky act from being right in their shoes. I felt a wave of thankfulness crash over me and I was humbled instantaneously.  When I finally opened my mouth and spoke to her, I  told her that I put some snacks and drinks and other goodies in the bag for them and that I wished I could take them where they were trying to go but I had to go back to work and that this bag was the best I could do. I wished them well, she thanked me and told me "God bless you, child"  and I walked back to my car. As I was leaving I saw them going through the bag of all the stuff that was just sitting at my house, most it probably wouldn't have really been used or eaten, just stuff in my bathroom cabinet and kitchen pantry. I know that they will appreciate that stuff more than I ever would and the smiles on their faces lifted my heart to a place of happiness that has only been matched by the love of my daughter and husband and the love and grace I receive from God. By giving them a blessing bag, they in turn gave me so much more, they gave me new perspective. I can guarantee that tonight I will go home and hug D and my sweet child and look around that all I have been blessed with, and be a little more grateful.

How To Paint Letters Perfectly

Today's pin is "how to paint letters perfectly"

This pin takes you to a blog where the blogger explains how she personalizes wood that she is painting. Its a pretty simple process and it works like a DREAM!

"take me to the sea"

 The idea is you print out the word/letter/font you want, tape the print out on to the wood you want to paint, trace them with a ball point pen (it makes an indent in the wood so you have an outline! genius)  and you paint within the outline. you can see my first word "take" is a little off but once I got the hang of it, it was easy.

It is something I would definitely recommend to anyone who wants to personalize something, I'm certainly going to use this technique again.  My daughter's headboard is next!

Pasta Cordon Bleu

What better way to start than FOOD!


Today, my inspiration comes from my delish! board on pinterest. Its a yummy pasta dish inspired by the wonderful classic:  Chicken Cordon Bleu.


The pin I'm trying today is: PASTA CORDON BLEU!!!!

About This Blog

A few weeks ago I stumbled across an amazing website for the DIY, creative, wannabes like myself called Pinterest. Its a great resource for...everything! They have food, fashion, fitness, arts, crafts, cars, humor, etc. Its a place to take  all these pictures and links and ideas and to hoard all these things that you want to get around to doing one day. I am the biggest procrastinator I know. I find all these amazing ideas that I know I can do on my own, things  I can cook and sew and pictures I should take, but I find them and pin them on my virtual pinboard and loose them in the mess of my brain. So, in my quest to be a do-er and not a will-do-er I am picking things from Pinterest to actually do!  A recipe, an exercise, a craft, a photo, a thought process, an idea, anything. This blog will chronicle my adventures in pinning!