A Quick DIY

Like most of the Pinterest world, it seems, I love the chalkboard style.  I have a chalkboard on my front porch where I enjoy posting seasonal quotes and artwork.

While I have several small chalkboards I use in my home decor as well I would love to be brave enough to have a chalkboard wall or cabinet face like these:

(source: Almost Makes Perfect)

 (unknown source)

(source: Junk Chick Cottage)

But, I am also a little bit leery of having chalk dust all over the kitchen. Instead, I opted to create a quick little chalkboard on the inside of one my cupboard doors.  Big enough to write some stuff in a handy location, but can be hidden by closing the door. How's that for commitment?

Since I was too lazy to walk out to the storage building to find painter's tape, I used a piece of the pretty washi tape that Jana gave me to create a straight edge at the top.

Armed with popcorn and some Zipfizz, I gave the surface 3 coats of paint, then pulled off the tape.

I prepped the surface by covering it with chalk and then wiping it off.

Just for fun, I drew a fun little arrow border with a white chalk pen--chalk pens are more permanent, so I won't be erasing that. (You can see here that a bit of the paint peeled off with the tape, so I had to touch that up)

Now it's ready to keep up with shopping needs or recipes or even a fun message.

Knowing that the paint peeled off really easily with the tape makes me wonder if it is going to stick on the rest of the surface.  The cabinets were originally painted with oil-based paint and the chalkboard paint is acrylic.  But, that's the nice part about being a somewhat small surface inside a cabinet---it is not big deal if it doesn't last and in the meantime, I'll have fun with it!

Magnolia Leaf Wreath

I have really been loving the wreaths I've been seeing on Instagram and Pinterest that are made of magnolia leaves.  Several of my neighbors have large magnolia trees and I'm sure they would let me have some of the branches, but I wanted something a little bit more permanent.

I browsed the flower aisles at Michael's today. Their florals are 40% right now, so I picked out a two stems of large silk magnolia leaves.

I knew wasn't enough to cover an entire wreath, but being a bit of a tightwad, I searched for a more affordable option.  I found these smaller leaves (not Magnolia, but a decent filler) for just $1.99 a branch, plus a discount.

My splurge was on this stem of white Japanese magnolia blossoms.  The actual magnolia blossoms looked too fake for me and these were a nice creamy shade.

After cutting off the magnolia leaves, I glued them to a green styrofoam ring and filled in the blank spaces with the ficus leaves.

Finally, I tucked in the blossoms, securing them with hot glue.  Voila! I want to get some ivory satin ribbon to hang it, but until then, this lace ribbon will do.

Coffee and Drink Station

It's January, and I, like many people, are in organization mode.  I started small yesterday, with the medicine cabinet in our kitchen.  It is very narrow space and has been perfect for this purpose, but goodness, it had become a mess.  I took every single thing out of the cabinet, purged the things that were no longer useful and put the remaining items back in a more organized manner--cold medicines in one basket, analgesics in another and vitamins on the bottom shelf.  I am somewhat embarrassed to admit that I had 3 bags of calcium chews hidden in this tiny cabinet that had never even been opened! The baskets are probably not the most idea for this space, but they are fairly functional, so no need to replace them unless I find something better.  Trying to decide if I should add labels to the baskets--I know where everything is, but no matter how many times I show him, Ron will inevitably ask me where the cold medicines are.  ;-)

Today, I tackled the small table in my kitchen. I've had this table for years and the girls spent many of their mornings eating their breakfast here when they were growing up.  However, since they have been grown and gone, it really has been more of a catch-all space than anything else.  I attempted to make it my desk to work on my dad's estate business, but it just didn't work well and just accumulated piles of papers. Sorry, I forgot to take pictures of the before, but trust me--it was not pretty!

This morning, while babyD2 napped, I cleared everything off and turned into a drink station.  I've had most of these things on my butcher block cart, but the cord from the coffee pot had to be plugged in on the counter and it really did pose a hazard when I tried to move the cart in any direction.  Since there is an outlet under the table, this really is the perfect spot for the coffee pot.  I also wanted to include a setup for hot chocolate for these cooler days.

In the little drawer, I will keep spoons for stirring and some napkins.

I think I would eventually like to add some hooks for cups on that wall by the coffee maker. Maybe something like this?

(unknown source)

In the next couple of years, we plan to remove the wallpaper in this room and go with painted walls, and all of the cabinets need to be repainted, as well, so at this point, I am trying to work with what I've got. However, I've been brainstorming ideas for the future of this little nook.  Since we don't really need a table here anymore, I would like to have some sort of cabinet that provides more storage.

Here are few inspiration photos for what I might be looking for:
I love this little table with the drawers and baskets--I would need something wider, though.

(source: In Pursuit)

Here is another one that uses baskets for storage:

(unknown source)

I like the space for pet bowls that is recessed under this cabinet. Emmi's bowl is currently kept in front of this table, so even a drawer to hide it would be an improvement.

(source:  HGTV)

Do you have any ideas for this space?  Let me know if you run across anything that I should consider.

Quick Wreath Re-Hab

I've been saving an old grapevine wreath for a while now.  The flowers on it were faded and it was tired and ready for a makeover.

After looking through some supplies I bought last year and never used, I figured this was the time.   I stripped everything off the wreath while my glue gun heated and then set to work.  I glued on a red, white and blue garland I found on sale at Joann's, then made a large burlap bow and added it to the side of my wreath.

I removed the flowers from the old stems and glued the greenery that was left on each side of the bow.  After adding in the carnations and a few of the leftover daisies, I called it "done" and hung it on the door.

The whole process only took about 15 minutes and things are looking a lot fresher now . . . and a bit patriotic, too.

A Camper Mini-Makeover

When we bought out travel trailer a few weeks ago, it was in pretty great shape.  While not new, it certainly isn't vintage and the previous owners kept it very clean. (Thank you, Juliet).  Yet, there were some things that we needed to take care of in order to get it ready for our first camping trip.

The most important order of business was a small leak that had developed around the AC unit.  Armed with MANY cans of Leak Sealant, Ron was able to fix it and do some preventive maintenance around the other rooftop appliances.   While he was busy with that, I set to work with a mini-makeover inside.  The upholstery on the cushions was still in very good shape, but I didn't care for the fabric much and decided to do a little sewing to spruce things up (to which Ron rolled his eyes---numerous times).

I wanted a durable fabric that looked nice and was not too girly, so I picked out a dark denim along with navy polka-dot and paisley fabrics for curtains.

I made slipcovers with velcro closures that can be removed for washing.  The trailer also has a privacy curtain that hangs by the queen-size bed.  I took it down and removed the plastic header tape before stitching up a new one.

I didn't have quite enough denim, so I used a navy polka dot on top and trimmed it with red pom-poms.  I really like how this area turned out.

Next up, I asked Ron to help me remove the "wooden" valances that hung over a couple of the windows.  This request was met with another roll of eyes and a few days of stalling---probably hoping that I would change my mind.   In the meantime, I whipped up some fabric valances to take their place.  In the end, I think that even Ron thinks the changes are an improvement.

Our bed got a major overhaul.

I purchased a new mattress cover, new sheets and made new curtains, trimmed with red rick-rack. Last week, I even had time to stitch up a few throw pillows for our bed.  A couple of years ago, I started collecting the reproduction state/National Park dish towels, but they have mostly been sitting in my kitchen linen drawer.  I pulled them out, folded them in half and made three new pillows.

I found a cute vintage embroidery pattern online and stitched it onto a piece of muslin that I already had to make this little pillow.

Sure beats camping on the ground!

Lastly, while making the vinyl decals for our camping glasses, I cut out this quote and added it to a small metal chalkboard that I found at Joann Fabrics.  I dry-brushed a big of navy paint onto the rope edge before hanging it above our bed.

There are still a few more things to be done.  I still have one more curtain to complete for the bunk bed area and I want to re-cover the boards surrounding the top bunk with denim, and there is still one more "wooden" valance about the door that needs to come down.

But, I am enjoying it's new, fresh look and love that it fits my personality a bit more now.

I'm thinking this little camper of ours needs a name.  Any ideas?!?!?!

As Seen Around the Nursery

Like Callie and Jordan, Jana and Rob had some definite ideas about how they wanted their nursery to look.  Fresh and modern with pops of color and sentimental touches.  Coincidentally, their color schemes are similar, but they are styled differently.  Both included lots of DIY projects, so I was thrilled to be able to help out with some of those.  You've seen some of them "in progress", but now it's time for a room reveal to see them in place.

When I came over in August, Jana and I shopped for fabrics and got the shelves put together.  We made pillows and a cushion for the window seat.  

At home, I worked on sheets and covers for the changing pad.

Rob installed new laminate wood floors (which are BEAUTIFUL!!) and painted the walls gray.  It created the perfect backdrop for a white crib and dresser/changing table.  Jana is using a swivel rocking chair that belonged to my parents and the cushion on it was already a pretty shade of turquoise that goes great in the room.  We ran across the lampshade on our trip to IKEA back in the fall and it just seemed to be perfect for the room.  The lamp they later chose is perfect for the room!

The room has a sort of "adventure" theme to it, with feathers being the inspiration.  Jana made this wonderful dream catcher and used beautiful wooden feathers that she found on etsy.

They added a play mirror near the floor and an industrial style picture collage.

I completed the mobile last week and was able to bring it with me this trip.  Jana bought the mobile at a closeout tent sale at one of our exclusive baby boutiques.  Someone had removed all the pretty parts and all that was left in the box was the mechanical pieces.  The cashier couldn't believe that she really wanted to buy it and only charged a couple of dollars.  It was perfect for our plans!!

My brain wasn't working too well when I made the little "tent" portion.  I'd bought a wooden embroidery hoop that I planned to put under it to hold the shape, but after sewing and lining and trimming and embellishing, I attempted to put it all together---with no luck at all.  It was about an inch too small!  I was so frustrated with myself and Ron's suggestion to "just cut it and add a piece of material" didn't go over too well with me.  It would have been much easier to start from scratch than to "add a little piece".  After some thought, I ended up using a wire coat hanger to form the shape and then added the felt pieces, dangling from grosgrain ribbon.

The felt shapes I made include: a map, binoculars, mountains, tree, compass and arrow.

Rob added some memorabilia from his own childhood with some favorite collectible cars on the shelves.

I think that my favorite parts of the room are
--The quilt I made,

--The banner that Jana made from canvas,

--and the photo that hangs over the changing table.  Rob took a photo of the sprockets on his bike and they had it enlarged at a blueprint printing business before mounting it on a canvas.  I love the industrial look and the connection that Rob has to it.

The room is perfect for baby B and I know he's going to love it as he gets older.