DIY

Dining Room Update

June 28, 2018

In our ten years of marriage we have never purchased a dining room set. During our apartment living we used a cardtable. When we bought our house we received a hand me down table that Aaron refinished. We rummaged his parents attic for some mismatched chairs to go with it that I painted.

Last year a friend had some chairs they were looking to get rid of. I wasn’t sure how they would match with our table, but once assembled loved the brightness they brought to the room. Once I saw how the chairs lightened everything up I decided to trade in the brown curtains for some off-white ones (waiting for the day they get covered with spaghetti sauce).

It’s amazing by how just changing out the chairs and curtains the room really transformed and seems a lot brighter, cheerier and bigger. I decided the room wouldn’t be complete without a new piece of art work. Absolutely love the quote from St. Teresa of Calcutta.

Before:

After:

Before:

After:

Lighten Up

May 1, 2018

Cabin fever, April snowstorms and the absence of spring most certainly had the four walls of this house closing in on me thus giving me too much time to dream up some home projects. The longest lasting winter ever has pushed me over the edge to wanting to lighten up everything in the house, making it brighter and hopefully giving the feeling of freshness and cheer.

One can of Chiffon Cream Chalk Paint and I set to work eyeing up my targets. Picture frames and candle pillars were the first to go.

I probably could have done a primer paint, but who has time when trying to get a project completed during nap time. I did 3-4 coats of spray paint letting each coat dry a few minutes in between. After drying for an hour I took fine grade sandpaper and distressed the corners and ridges lightly. Loving the end result! Watch out end tables, you may be next.

Fixer’ Up!

January 22, 2018

It seems like nesting, but it is definitely not. Perhaps it is the cloudy, cold days of winter or cabin fever. Maybe the walls are closing in our 1550 square foot home filled with six people. Could be the fact that my mom announced a trip to Magnolia Market in the Fall! Whatever is the driving force I have the itch to makeover, paint, update and refresh our house. I blame Joanna Gaines.

Our house isn’t that old, so no major renovations are necessary. It was a foreclosure when we bought it with a horrendous smell so we repainted all of the walls including the ceilings and re-carpeted every room. We have been here now for almost eight years and I feel like it’s time to make it more our own.

It’s a cookie cutter house. You can drive down the streets around us and you will find the same exact house multiple times, some even the same exact color. Same sinks, kitchen appliances, flooring and countertops. Although we have made a few changes, recess lighting, ceiling fan in living room and a light above the kitchen sink I want to put our stamp on this place we call home.

I may even be channeling a little Joanna Gaines and trying to convince Aaron that we should shiplap a couple of our walls…the convincing continues. Check out my Pinterest account and follow along to see some of the inspiration I am eyeing up.

Follow along on Bloglovin’ to not miss a beat!

Kitchen Makeover

July 20, 2017

I feel like the nesting has begun…7 weeks to go!! Although I seem to have no energy I have all of these great ideas of home projects I want to do before the baby comes. One down and we will see what motivation I have left.

I have had my old handmade wooden kitchen set from when I was little in our unfinished basement for awhile now. Grace is at the age where she really loves going down there and playing with it, but I don’t want to necessarily be bringing the baby in the basement especially during the colder months because it’s not really heated.

Even though Grace’s room is pretty small, Aaron came up with a new floor plan to be able to fit everything plus the kitchen sink. So I decided before moving it upstairs I would repaint it and give it a little face lift.

Cost of the project a gallon of paint and a can of spray paint. I kept all of the original hardware and just spray painted it gold, with the exception of the plastic knobs on the sink. We had some gold ones laying around from an old project that matched perfectly.

Before…

After…

Homemade Body Butter

June 30, 2016

Ever since we returned from Ghana I have been meaning to make an attempt at making my own body butter for the boys’ skin. Knowing their skin would need extra moisture I bought raw shea butter while in Ghana, but not exactly sure what to do with it. I was told by a few Ghanaian friends that I could just apply the shea to their skin without mixing anything in, but it seemed pretty crumbly and I wanted something easy for them to use.

I took to pinterest and found a recipe for body butter making a few of my own adaptations. It turned out better than I had expected and the boys love it and the glow it gives their skin. I have even been using a little for some extra moisture. The one thing I didn’t expect was how greasy it would be, so unless you rub it in well you may need to wash your hands when done.

Whipped Body Butter:
3 cups Shea Butter
1 1/2 cup Coconut Oil
3/4 cup Almond Oil
1 1/2 tsp Vitamin E Oil
Optional essential oil for extra fragrance

In a double boiler melt the shea butter and coconut oil.