new projects for the new year

I've always found that many people, myself included, get super inspired by the start of a new year.

This year I didn't make any specific resolutions because I know, as always, I will inevitably break them.

I do however, have several mental and physical lists detailing things I would like to accomplish this year.

Since they aren't technically "resolutions", it takes some of the heat off me. ;)

A lot of the what I have an itch to do are little crafty projects, both for me and others to enjoy.

So, I thought I'd share a few of my top ones here.

1. Gallery wall(s).

This is the very first project I want to tackle.

The hubs and I have taken SO MANY pictures over the years.

Want to know how many are displayed.

Very few. And most that are displayed are at least several years old.

I'm ashamed to admit, that out of all the photos I have taken of Lawson, there is a grand total of one picture hanging up. 

He was 5 weeks old when it was taken.

So sad.

I have a bunch of frames waiting to be hung and a TON of pictures on my computer just waiting to be printed out.

The first things I want to do is spray paint all of my frames white, that way even if they don't necessarily match they still "match".

Then comes the hard part, go through our thousands of photos and choose the ones that will make it onto our walls.

Then, of course, placement and the actual hanging.

Geez. I'm tired already. Maybe this will be my only project this year.

But in all seriousness, though it's a big undertaking, I know that I will be SO happy when it's done.

Here is an idea of what I'm envisioning. 

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2. Entryway coatrack/backpack hanger.

This project caught my eye a long time ago.

Currently, the kiddos' backpacks are hanging near our coat closet on push pins, and my purse gets thrown on the coat closet doorknob.

Not the MOST unsightly thing ever, but it could definitely use some improvement.

I am quite enamored with decorative knobs and often find myself perusing them online. 

Anthropologie has wonderful ones. As does Hobby Lobby.

I think this type of hanger is my answer.

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The knobs also remind me that I need to get new ones for the kids' dresser.

It has been practically knob-less for probably two years (or more). For Shame.

I do love the look of an assortment of knobs on one piece of furniture.

3. Personalized coffee mugs.

I've seen so many versions of this on Pinterest, but the one that really caught my eye was the tutorial on A Beautiful Mess. 

I've heard the success rate for this project is all over the map, but it seems cheap and easy enough to warrant a test run by yours truly.

A dollar store mug, a sharpie, a steady hand and an oven are all you'll need.

I would love to own some of these myself, and if the results are positive (and if I'm artistic enough), these would be super cool and unique gifts.

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4. Faux headboard.

The hubs and I don't have a headboard and have very little decor in our room, so basically behind our bed is a BIG. BLANK. WALL.

This needs to be remedied.

I'm not exactly sure what to do just yet.

I want something easy and CHEAP and whimsical.

So I'm thinking I might have to make do with a banner of some sort for now. 

We'll see.

Here are a few inspiring pictures (both cheap & easy and, well, not).

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5. Magnets

It's no secret, I heart magnets. 

BIG TIME.

I have a bunch of them, some homemade (by myself and others); some not.

But I would like to make some more.

This will scratch my crafting itch in a super simple and affordable way.

Plus, have I mentioned that magnets make me happy?!

And, for these babies, all I would have to buy is the wood.

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Obviously this in no way whatsoever begins to even scratch the surface of my project to do list, 

but it will have to do for now.

As I get them marked off my list, I will definitely be sure to post about it.

Expect it to be slow going.

I'm a busy woman and I also have several little projects on my mind for a certain little girl's birthday in April (more on that soon). ;)

peace, love, and all things sparkly.

kid krafting :: paint with bubbles

One of my favorite things to do is arts and crafts.

I don't know if it's the mom, preschool teacher, or child in me that gets me excited about it, but whatever the reason, I LOVE IT!!

On top of my love for crafting, with summertime in full swing and a semi-bored kiddo at home, pulling out a crafty project (especially a "new" one) can be a sanity saver during long days at home.

Today's craft is brought to you via Pinterest.

But of course!

I went and read the original post and then tweaked it to fit what I had on hand in my own trusty craft cabinet.

Please feel free to check out the post and the rest of the Cakies blog. So pretty.

So here's the scoop.

I mixed a bit of acrylic paint (in various colors) with some bubble solution (which thanks to my mom we have a ton of) in some leftover applesauce containers.

Yes, I am that person. The one who keeps everything, just in case.

Of course, you can make the colors lighter or darker depending on how much paint you use.

Then I spread a towel on our kitchen floor, set some sketch paper on it, and let Kid A blow bubbles to her hearts content.

*Be sure to do this somewhere that is easily cleaned, as the bubbles do tend to stray a bit.*

Ready. Set. BLOW BUBBLES!!!

We chose the colors based on what we wanted to see displayed in Kid A's bedroom.

Aqua. Fuchsia. Yellow. Lime Green. Purple.

The purple was a glitter acrylic paint and it actually transferred to the paper.

Got to love extra sparkle!

These art pieces will most likely be displayed in frames on her wall.

I thought this project would also transfer over to gift giving really well.

You could use the same technique on the front of a blank, white card.

Or even do it on white craft paper or a white paper bag for unique gift giving.

Happy Crafting!!

weekend craftiness :: kitchen display

Another home craft project can now be checked off my list!

In a previous post I wrote about us deciding to renew our lease and the fact that I now had a bunch of projects that I want to do to jazz up our place.

Well, here is the latest one:

  

It's a little display crate for my salt and pepper shakers and various other knick knacks.

The idea originally came to me when not only had I run out of space for my (inadvertent) S&P shaker collection, but the space that I did have for them was getting on my nerves.

I used to have them lined up on the back of my stove top and I was constantly having to wash them because they were always getting the splatter from whatever was cooking on them. Yuck!

I have a small apartment kitchen with only one usable wall in the space, which previously housed a small dry erase board.

Going into this I knew that whatever I did would have to be extremely inexpensive, so of course I wanted to upcycle something I had on hand.

Enter a pair of old video/dvd/cd storage crates that I've had for well over 10 years.

Kid A is using one in her room for it's intended dvd storage purpose, but the other one was just sitting in her closet.

A few coats pf aqua craft paint and some scrapbook paper cut to size for the backing and VOILA!

Instant kitchen display!

Eventually I want to change the paint color and the paper backing to a scheme that I like better, but for using what I had on hand, I don't think this turned out too shabby!!

 

 xo

artsy fartsy :: finger knit garland

A few weeks back, I was reading one of my favorite blogs, Gussy Sews, and came across this post where she talked about doing some different crafts, including finger knitting.

In the post she also included a link to a finger knitting tutorial that she did at the beginning of 2011.

After seeing how super easy it is to finger knit, I thought I'd give it a go.

I had just bought a ball of charcoal colored yarn (for a different project), so the timing was perfect.

That first night I made two super long garlands.

I was hooked!!

This past weekend I was at Michael's and saw that they were having a great sale on yarn, so I scooped up a few more colors and yesterday I whipped up a couple more garlands.

And being that I just took down all of my holiday decor I had the PERFECT spot in mind for my new handcrafted garlands.

My mantle!!

I have to admit that I've caught myself admiring my fun new decor, multiple times.

I plan on doing a few more finger knit projects soon.

It really is addicting.

 

HAPPY CRAFTING!!

diy :: wall art

Remember this post from awhile back?

Well, I have FINALLY made some progress on my oh-so-sad piece of wall art.

Here are the deets....

The aqua frame came from my baby shower earlier this year.

We used it to take pictures with silly props.

The butterflies in the corners were made using a butterfly template found on the interwebz and scrapbook paper.

Just trace and cut, that's it.

 

The big mum was made using toilet paper rolls.

I cut them in even pieces, painted them with a pumpkin colored acrylic paint, and hot glued them together.

An easy, yet time consuming process.

And last, but not least, the fabric "l" was picked up last week during a birthday shopping trip to Anthropologie.

 

I'm thinking about possibly making the mum bigger, or moving the "l" over some, or putting something else up there to fill in some space.

Time will tell.

design on a dime :: a double diy post

Lately I've been feeling like my home needs a little sprucing up.

And seeing as we live in an apartment, with limited space and no painting allowed, and  finances are limited, there is only so much that I can do.

Time to get creative.

Using stuff I already had on hand, and less than five dollars, 

I came up with a couple of DIYs that changed two walls in my home. :)

The first thing I did was create a space for a very special painting that my sister-in-law did for us.

Previously, I just had this painting hanging on the wall, frameless, with thumbtacks. Yuck!

Although I had frames that didn't have anything in them, this painting was just a tad too big for them.

So, I took a frame that has housed a bridal portrait of mine for the last 8 years and spruced it up a bit.

I covered the original mat with a piece of fabric that I already had (the opening in the mat was too small for the painting); turned the frame sideways; fixed the painting onto the fabric.

And, PRESTO!!

A brand new piece of artwork for my hallway!!

I absolutely adore it.

And, yes. That is a black broom hanging on the other wall.

Stay tuned for a peek at my Halloween decor.

Now that I had this new piece of art hanging in the main hallway into the apartment, 

I needed something to fill the space that my bridal portrait previously hung in.

Enter some Pinterest inspiration.

I had seen this idea on Pinterest awhile back and was just itching for a moment when I could recreate it.

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SO pretty!!!

I went and bought 4 embroidery hoops from my local Hobby Lobby, for about four dollars,

and, again, using fabric that I already had, I started my "hoop wall".

I LOVE the way this turned out!

I definitely plan on adding more hoops to this wall.

Not only is this project super inexpensive and easy peasy,

it looks awesome and you can add to it as time and finances allow.

Also, you can throw caution to the wind and add fabrics in as many 

different colors and patterns as you want.

Do you have any super simple DIYs that you have done or are wanting to try out?

inspiration workshop! - DIY

Back again with another Inspiration Workshop! post from Gussy Sews!

The prompt for this week is DIY.

For those that read this blog and aren't "hip to the lingo", DIY stands for 'do it yourself'.

I've recently been picking up crafting more and more (again!), and I've been busy brainstorming about all of the lovely things that I can/will be making in the near future.

This week I'm going to let you in on a project that I'm working on for my family room.

Remember this space from my last Inspiration Workshop! post?

Well, I'm FINALLY, slowly but surely, working on a little something to fill the empty space inside the frame.

This is what I envision going in the middle.

photos and inspiration are courtesy of Pinterest

I need something cheap and easy peasy to make.

And what's cheaper than a paintbrush, some acrylic paint, hot glue and cut up toilet paper rolls?!

So far, I've been painting the rolls a mustard yellow color, but I might end up changing it to more of a coral color for a bit of POP.

As soon as this wall statement piece is done, I will post a picture of the finished project.