Pinterest idea: DONE.

I pin a LOT of ideas on Pinterest. [ If you don't believe me, go check me out: http://pinterest.com/lauragoins/ ] So whenever I actually accomplish a task or idea I've pinned, I feel like I should shout it from the rooftops. "HEY!! I actually DID this!!"

Yesterday, I saw this pin:

[ source ]

I didn't intend to go out & do it the NEXT DAY. But I found myself in Target, and I saw those placemats, and I just happened to notice the clearance price:

I couldn't resist, since they were on clearance. So I brought a few home & got to work. This is my fridge before. ICK.

 [ Yes, I have 2 pitchers of tea. I like tea. Leave me alone. ]

[ Milk crust. I hate milk crust. ]

I didn't want the mats sliding around, so I used this adhesive stuff to make them grippy on the bottom. This isn't great glue; it doesn't hold well & using the dispenser will nearly make you lose your religion. But it provided a bit of grip for my mats, so I'm thankful I held onto this useless piece of crap stuff.

And here is the made-over fridge! Tada!! The mats don't reach all the way to the back, but I don't care. The back of the fridge is no-man's land anyway. Scary stuff goes on back there.


Now that my fridge is prettier, maybe I will actually keep it tidy from now on! HA. ;-)

8.28

Normally on our anniversary, I post about how much I love my husband.

And how awesome he is.

And how amazing it is that God brought us to each other, and has woven our lives together.

And how he is an incredible husband, a wonderful father, and an example for everyone, especially me & Natalie.

All of those things are true. And I could sing of my husband's praise for a long time.

But this year, I'm doing something different.




I'm showing you a little decorating project I did.

Ha!

I wanted something personal & meaningful in the space above our bed. We don't have a headboard, and I keep changing my mind about what I want to do with that space. I see lots of super awesome ideas on Pinterest, but of course this project is pretty close to the bottom of our "to do" list around the house, so this area gets neglected. Anyway, for something quick & easy, I decided to incorporate our favorite verse - Romans 8:28. If you know us, you know how much this verse means to us. If you don't know us, well...read around on my blog some & you'll see. :-)

Anyway, here is the finished product! Thanks for reading!

Oh, and...happy 8th anniversary, Baron!! :-)

 

Want the scripture art for yourself? Click on the image below to download it for free!

the big bow conundrum

When I did Natalie's nursery, I put her dresser/changing table in the closet. There is a lack of wall space in her room due to a double window on one wall & a wide closet on the opposite wall. This was a great solution at the time, because the closet was so wide. Well, she has grown, and her wardrobe has gotten bigger, and she needs more closet space. So I recently moved her dresser/changing table out of the closet to allow for her growing clothes collection. One of the rearrangements I had to make was moving her bows; I'd had them clipped to ribbons just hanging in her closet next to her changing table. I decided to jump on the frame-turned-bow-holder bandwagon, and here's what I came up with! I found a creepy poster in a perfectly-sized (and priced) frame at the flea market, and with a little spray paint and some ribbon, made it into a cute bow holder...and a piece of art. :-)

Before - creepy Mother Goose:

After - hair bows on display:

Thanks for reading! Have a great weekend!

our most budget-friendly desk. EVER.

Hi y'all!

It's been awhile since I posted an update on our home office makeover. That would be because it's a very slooowwww process. See, when you don't have money to spend on a project, it tends to take its time completing. :-) We are far from finishing this room, but I couldn't WAIT to show y'all the desk! We were blessed to acquire an old desk from my employer that was once property of the State of Alabama, sold at auction. It was one of those that you piece together, ya know? I don't have a before picture, but it looked something like that would belong in this collection:

Picture an administrative assistant at a bank, or something of the like. :-) Which is fine, for an office, but I didn't want that fake-cherry-wood-super-gloss look in my house. So, we decided to paint it. Which sent up a red flag in my own head. Can you paint formica? Or whatever this stuff was? It's not real wood, that's for sure. And no, you can't paint it, for future reference. ;-) Actually, it probably is completely doable with the right primer, but obviously we didn't have that. So, we flipped the desk top over & painted the underneath side, which was just the particle board, or MDF, or whatever. {Clearly I know LOTS about these materials.} And, voila! Here it is!! It's not dressed yet, obviously, but I will get around to situating everything to make it all pretty. We are so happy with it!!

{why yes, that is an exercise ball chair. merry christmas to me! :-)}

christmas wreath: the simple edition.

Wow. It's been almost a month since I last posted, and that post was also about a wreath. I'm the best blogger EVER. [insert sarcasm here]

Anyway...I was browsing Pinterest for Christmas wreath ideas, and I was totally inspired by this lovely yarn Christmas wreath. However, I have made a few yarn-wrapped wreaths, and I DESPISE the wrapping. It's simple, yes. But very time-consuming. So, I decided to make my own version using fabric.

I found some glittery felt fabric at Hobby Lobby, cut it into strips, and wrapped my 18" wreath form. Then I wrapped some red yarn around for a simple stripe, cut my holly leaves from green felt, and stuck some shimmery poms on for holly berries. Voila! My easy Christmas wreath! I may add a cute painted "G" later, just for kicks. We'll see. Also, it's a shame you can't see the glitter in the fabric in this picture, but I assure you, it makes for a happy moment when standing at my front door. :-)

simple fall-ish wreath

For the fall, I wanted a good transitional wreath. Something for September-November, and possibly even for Christmas with a few added touches. I found this on Pinterest courtesy of Our Celebrated Life, and I LOVE it. So, here it is, my simple fall-ish wreath:

{wrapped with upholstery webbing, which I got from Hobby Lobby}

{felt flowers same as my houndstooth wreath; tutorial courtesy of Little Things Bring Smiles}

Thanks for stopping by!

cute & easy roll tide wreath

My sister-&-brother-in-law are moving soon from Tennessee to Arizona, and we went to visit them this weekend. I wanted to give them something to represent The South over in the desert, and they are big Bama fans, so I decided to make this super easy Roll Tide wreath! I got the idea from Jamie at Two Plus Jilly, just doing a random Google search. I made the felt flowers using a tutorial from Katie at Little Things Bring Smiles, also found through a Google search. I realize everyone's been making these flowers forever, but I'm always late to jump on the bandwagon. :) I also decided to print a little Roll Tide banner and string it across with yarn. I love how it turned out, and it was so quick & easy to make!

DIY yarn + pinwheel wreath

I was inspired by Kimba of A Soft Place to Land to do a yarn-wrapped wreath for spring. Since doing my daughter's pinwheel-themed birthday party a couple of weeks ago, I've been kind of obsessed with pinwheels, so I wanted to include pinwheels on mine...I mean, who doesn't love pinwheels, right?

So here's how I did it:

I bought a wreath form {for some reason Hobby Lobby only had these straw ones, and none of the styrofoam kind, but whatever...it was 50% off of $3.99, and I was ready to get started instead of shopping around}, a skein of this fun green & turquoise yarn {ok I bought two, just in case, but I only used one}, and 3 pinwheel picks {also 50% off right now at HobLob}. Total cost: under $7! Holla.

Tape the end of the yarn to the wreath, and start wrapping the yarn around the wreath. Recruite help from an adorable 1-year-old if you can.

You will begin to think it will take all day to finish, but it won't, I promise. Keep wrapping. Distract 1-year-old with puffs if necessary.

Whew! Finally finished.

I wanted my pinwheels to still turn once I attached them, so I cut off the sticks but left the pinwheels intact. I then glued them to floral pins so I could stick them into the wreath. {Sorry I didn't include the floral pins in the "ingredients" pic above...they were an afterthought. :)}

Attach the pinwheels to the wreath and hang. I decided to use regular ole twine instead of cute ribbon, just to keep it simple. Voila!

It makes me smile as I walk up to the door! Especially when Natalie starts "blowing" the pinwheels. :)

flower bows

A couple of weeks ago, I got a hankerin' to make some bows for my daughter's headbands. Of course, I wanted her to wear one to church Sunday morning, and this was Saturday when I got the hankerin'. So I was looking for something in my house that I could use to make a bow. So, I found this green ribbon & went to town. Here's the how-to:

1. Cut up your ribbon into different sized pieces. I used wired ribbon, because it's easier to shape (you'll see later). I cut the edges all curvy-like in an effort to make it cuter.

2. Stack the pieces with the largest on bottom, and turn them every whichaway. (Is that how you spell "whichaway"?)


3. Sew a button in the middle to hold the pieces together, and to serve as the center of the flower.

4. Trim the edges to round out the flower.

5. Shape the flower to make it...flowery. Or whatever.

5. Spray the flower to keep the edges from unraveling. I used FolkArt Hi-Shine Glaze, because that's how I roll. I guess any kind of clear sealant will work. I put about 3 coats on & then let it dry before the next step.

6. Glue a ribbon to the back of the barrette you'll be using. (The back being the part that touches the head, not the part we're gluing to the flower later.) This step is optional. I did it because I have a baby & I'm overly protective of her scalp. No metal on my baby's head, please. :) Also...your choice as to what kind of barrette you want to use. This is the snappy-bendy kind, only because I was impatient at Hobby Lobby & they were out of the good kind so I just got these. Oh, and that glue...awesome. It's called Craft Goop & I love it.

7. Glue the barrette to the back of the flower. Again with the Craft Goop. Good stuff. Let dry.

8. Attach to your favorite headband or hat...or use alone as a barrette! Voila!

And here's my little model! I'm pretty sure she's in love with her flower. After all, green IS my - uh, I mean, her - favorite color.

revamp: generic florist vases

Over the years, my lovely husband has sent me many a flower arrangement. I LOVE getting flowers, and I hinted/flat out told him to send me flowers for special occasions. Anyway, I've collected lots of the clear generic florist vases, and I have a small tidbit of a hoarding tendency in me, so I've kept them all. Well, awhile back I saw this centerpiece project idea on HGTV's Trash to Treasure, so I decided to try it out - and I love the outcome! It's been awhile since I did this project, but I wanted to do a post about it just for fun.

I started off with the plain glass vases, and simply spray painted them - some in the robin's egg color & some in white. On the bigger vases, I was able to spray paint the inside, keeping the "glassy" look on the vase. On the smaller vases, I painted the outside and then used a high-gloss topcoat to maintain the look of glass. Simple, cheap, easy!

Maybe someday I will put something in them... :)

I'm linking this up to pure + lovely's site...go join her linky party! Fun stuff!