My Favorite Projects

I started thinking last night how much I enjoy doing a good project, and the proud feeling that I get afterwards, especially if it’s DIY.  I love it.  As a friend on Facebook said, “Pinterest makes me want to burn my house down and start over!” HA!  While I certainly don’t want to burn my house down, it does make me want to do more little projects that make a big difference in a room!  So I decided it would be really fun to share my favorite projects, and see yours, too!  Please leave a link to your favorite DIY's in a comment!  (We were doing a McLinky, but it wasn't working!)    Maybe your projects will be the next thing I decide to do!

Without further adieu, here’s my favorites:

1.  I can’t put up favorite projects without talking about our house renovation project.  It was not DIY (although I did design everything!) but I have to list it.  It was the biggest project we’ve ever done and it definitely took a lot of time and work, and I am SO proud of it!

Living Room Before & Afters

Kitchen Before & Afters

We did a lot more than just that – and you can see the renovation from beginning to end by clicking HERE.

2.  My red dresser.  My mom bought me a furniture set at a garage sale when I decided to move to Starkville to be close to Judd.  It was just regular honey colored wood.  The furniture moved with us when we got married and we painted it an onyx color from Benjamin Moore that was supposed to be black, but had a bluish tint to it.    Sorry I don’t have any pictures of that color – they’re all on my other computer.  When Amelia took over the guest bedroom in our new house, I decided to move it to an empty wall in the living room – and paint it red!  I’m in love with it.  It’s definitely in my top re-do projects.

We took the mirror that came with it off and got a different one and changed the knobs.  I love it.  It adds a wonderful pop of color to my living room!

3.  Caroline’s Striped Nursery.  We worked our tails off.  We’ve since moved, but that room will live in infamy.  

4.  My Earring Organizer.  Easy-peasy.  Seriously.  It’s a decorative bulletin board and some sewing pins.  I made it the day I came home from the hospital with Caroline.  Yeah, it’s that easy.

Simple, simple.  And cheap!

5.  My Sewing Room Organization Wall. 

Pegboard, peghooks, & dowel rods.  I love it.  My stuff is so much more organized.  My ribbon is where I can see it.  My thread is where I can get to it easily.  My hoops are all where I can get to them.  Everything is within reach.  We really just got it finished a couple of weeks ago…that’s why my corkboards are empty.   I also LOVE my “Sew much fabric, sew little time” decal. 

6.  My chalkboard painted jars.  I love them.  They add some color to the room and they were fun!

Please notice, I still have not purchased chalk.  I can never remember chalk.

Find the tutorial for these HERE.

7.  My picture gallery wall.  If you don’t think this is a project…try doing it!  I had to put them all out in the floor and arrange them 5000 times to get them the way I wanted.  Then I had to decide which pictures should be b&w and which should be colored.  Then we Judd had to hang them all and make them straight.  It was a chore, but I love the way it turned out!

8.  My closet dividers.  They keep my shirts in my sewing room SO much more organized.  I love them! 

Find the tutorial for these by clicking HERE.

9.  My cheapo lamps.  I found some lamps in the clearance section at Walmart that I loved, but I hated the color.  One can of Krylon Oil Rubbed Bronze spray paint later, I had this! 

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10.  My bookcase.  My mother-in-law always has whatever you’re looking for in her shed.  I asked if she had a bookcase, and I got my choice of three.    I am so thankful!  I painted it blue (it was hunter green) and promptly took the books from all the random drawers and cubbies in the house and placed them on my bookshelf!  Now they’re all nice and neat!

If you think your eyes are playing tricks on you, they’re not.  It’s a little crooked…not perfectly level…but it holds the books just fine!

So there are my favorites.  I would LOVE to see your favorites.  They don’t necessarily have to be DIY but that does make it a little more fun!  You can list just one (and it can be a tutorial!) but you must place a link in your new post showing people that you linked up here so they’ll know where to come find more! Just put this link in your post somewhere...

http://juddandkacie.blogspot.com/2011/09/my-favorite-projects.html

So – show me your projects & tutorials!

Book Recommendation

If you’ve been looking for a good book to read – and you’re married (or soon to be married) I have a fantastic book for you.

It’s called Love & Respect by Emerson Eggerichs.  There are DVD’s and Workbooks to accompany the book or you can just read the book alone (or watch the DVD’s alone, I believe.) 

I can’t say enough about this book.  I have figured out that my husband is physically incapable of reading a book.  He just can’t do it. He falls asleep on page 2.  If he ever makes it to page 10 he is proud of himself.  I had pretty much decided he would never read another book in his life (has he ever finished one, I wonder…?)  until I brought myself into the 21st century and realized we have AUDIOBOOKS!  Judd rides on a combine for about 8 hours on any given day during harvest and most books are about 6 hours.  Although he can’t sit there and listen to the book without stopping, I’m happy that he has the chance now to read what I’m reading!

He gladly said he would “read” Love & Respect if I just put it on the iPod for him.  Of course I quickly ran to the computer and put it on there.  I had been reading the book at night before bed for several days.  I want you to know, in one day of listening he had passed me in the book! 

If my husband comes home talking about a book and how “that guy really seems to know what he’s talking about!” then you know it has to be worth reading.  The beginning of the book (Part 1) is somewhat redundant, but I understand he needed to make sure he got his point across or Part 2 wouldn’t do anyone any good!  Part 2 is fantastic.  He writes a section for women (about their husbands) and a section for men (about their wives.)  He is dead on.  I was reading the part about women, written to the husbands and I kept thinking, “That’s SO true.  This man gets it!”  Judd said he felt the same way when listening to the part written to women about their husbands. 

If you have to ride in the car by yourself at all, have some free moments to read at night, or even some time to watch the DVD’s – I really recommend it.  Judd and I have been trying to put everything we were taught into practice – and I promise you – a week in, I can see a difference in the way we treat each other. 

Whether you have a rocky marriage that needs major help, or a marriage that seems “perfect” or anything in between – this book is worth reading.  Encourage your spouse to read it with you.  It could be life changing!  All marriages have room for improvement, no matter how good it is!  I promise you won’t regret this book! 

Love & Respect Website

Love & Respect Book on Amazon.com

And if your husband is like mine, get him the audiobook!

I already have several more books lined up for Judd to “read” on the combine! 

It’s Working!

I just have to say, someone hold me accountable!  I’ve lost a couple of inches in my waist and dropped a few pounds.  Last night, I tried on a pair of jeans that I couldn’t get to button before Caroline was born.  THEY BUTTONED!  Not only did they button, but there wasn’t a huge amount of muffin top either.  I’ve got to stick with this!  I had been feeling discouraged because my actual weight wasn’t moving very far even though I had lost an inch or two.  That number on the scale just haunts me!  Now I’m totally back and jumping back on the diet bandwagon.  I’m so excited!  Just had to share!  Dieting takes a LOT of work and self control….things that really aren’t my strong points.  Ha!   

 

On a TOTALLY different note, head over to Squiggle Stitch’s Facebook page for a giveaway!  Just comment on the status and tell me your favorite holiday and why for 1 of 3 chances to win! 

Closet Dividers Tutorial

I am in no way a really crafty person.  I want to be.  But I really stink at it.  Most of the ideas that I get are totally stolen from someone else.  So I’ve been redoing my sewing area (it’s not right to call it my sewing room since 3/4 of the room is Caroline’s playroom and I really get one long wall, but I digress) and my awesome mother-in-law just happened to have a round clothing rack from department store that closed.  She dug around in an old shed and found it and gifted it to me!  It was like Christmastime! 

Sorry for the pic quality…phone camera!

My shirts have been a source of discontent for a while.  Everytime I think I have a brilliant idea about how to store my shirt inventory, something about it doesn’t work out like I plan.  I tried a large cabinet with cubby holes that my super handy hubby built me, but once stacked it was impossible to see what I was running out of.  I tried the rubbermaid tub drawers, but I had so many shirts that I needed 4 gabillion tubs…and let’s face it…those things aren’t cheap!  Then the shirts just stayed in the bags and sat on the desk until I could figure something out.  Hooray for the clothing rack!

Well obviously I needed something to divide (if you will) the shirts on the rack.  Now, I live in a pretty small place.  The nearest Hobby Lobby is 2.5hrs away in either direction.  The only place around to shop for things of that nature within my actual town (that is actually 15minutes away…ha) is Walmart.  Unfortunately, Walmart around here isn’t really crafty-friendly.  Don’t get me wrong, I find lots of things to waste money on in Walmart…but for things like awesome ribbon, fabric, etc. I have to travel well out of the confines of my town.  SO…since I am entirely too impatient to order them online and have to wait for 5-7 days for something to arrive because I cannot bear to pay a crazy amount of money for someone to ship something to me quicker, I come up with alternate ways of doing things.  Get on with it, Kacie.  Sorry.

I scoured the internet for closet divider tutorials.  All of which turned up pretty blank.  You either needed the plastic dividers already or you needed to use the “door hanger” version, which wasn’t what I was going for. 

If you are impatient and have few to no crafting stores around you…or you’re just really cheap…these are for you.  Because they are super cheap.  I’m talking, I spent $1.88 on these, and really didn’t even need to spend that much.

What you need:

1 cardboard box  (Size depends on how many you want to make.)

1 pair of sharp scissors or a box cutter (I already had this.)

1 marker (Obviously, already had this.)

Some pretty scrapbook paper or fabric if you prefer (I already had this.)

Spray adhesive or a glue stick (I already had this.)

Label Maker (I put this because it’s what I used, but you can totally just write it with the above marker I mentioned.)

Two round things, different sizes…one large, one small.

Straight edge.

Time.

That last one might be your hardest thing to come by.  They really don’t take too long.

First, take your two round things (I used a pot lid from Caroline’s play kitchen and half of a plastic easter egg.  Get creative, folks.) and trace around them on the cardboard, putting the larger thing on the outside and the smaller on the inside.  Don’t fully join the circle.  Make a “C” shape.  If you’re a good freehander, just do that instead…I am not.

 

Using your box cutter or your scissors, cut the “C” shape out. Use this one as your template for the rest. 

Spread them out over the cardboard box.

Stack them up nice and neat…or don’t, it doesn’t matter.

Using a marker or pencil or whatever, place your cardboard “C” on the backside of some cute scrapbook paper or fabric and trace your shape.  You need to do this twice, once for the front and once for the back.  Since you’re doing this on cheapo cardboard, I suggest you flip your “C” shape over and keep the correct side with the same tracing so it matches better.

Cut out your scrapbook paper “C”

Using your spray adhesive or your glue stick or whatever you chose, spray the “C” cardboard piece and place the paper (or fabric) down on top of it and press it firmly.

Do the other side the same way.  Trim up the edges if your paper didn’t fit just perfectly. 

Make a pile.

Take your label maker or your marker (if you don’t have a label maker…go get one…it’s so fun to label everything in your house.  Oh, that’s not fun to you?  Well you’re missing out my friend.)  and put your sizes on your divider.  Since the cardboard gives a little bit, just give it a slight bend and stick it on your rack.

Since you’re being cheap and using cardboard, know that the cardboard edges will show between the two pieces of paper.  But let’s be honest, this is going in your closet only to be seen by your children, your husband, and yourself – so don’t beat yourself up over it.  Your husband will thank you for spending less than a Sonic large Diet Coke on the entire project.  Mine did!

These are great, especially for new baby closets.  Their stuff is so tiny and it’s hard to tell one size from another…not to mention they grow out of their clothes so quickly!

So all of you cheapos with no Joann or Hobby Lobby near you…you’re welcome!

As a sidenote, Squiggle Stitch is going to have a giveaway when our FB page reaches 300 fans!  Invite your friends, please!

Coupon Chief

I’m super pumped because today I’ve been asked to review a super cool website called Coupon Chief!  Now, let me tell you what is so cool about it.  Ya know those other websites where you can look up coupon codes and printable coupons for retail stores?  Well, Coupon Chief is like those, but with a BIG perk!  Wait for it….are you on the edge of your seat yet?

You get PAID to submit a coupon!  If you just fell out of your chair, you need a life I understand completely.  I mean, how many times do you get coupon codes in your email from newsletters that you don’t even bother using?  Well, with Coupon Chief you can share the wealth…and get wealthier. The program is called “Pays-2-Share” and it pays you 2% commission.  You can get up to $25 from a specific store in a month.  There is no limit to how much you can earn per month.  Obviously, you’re not going to get rich doing this, but it’s still a cool way to make a few extra bucks here and there.  If you’re considering, I suggest you read their faq & terms of use.  (Make sure that the coupons you upload are from a store with the little yellow cent symbol.  Those are the stores participating in the payback program.)  You can be paid via check or Paypal once you’ve reached $25 on your account!  You can even get paid for using your OWN coupons!  It’s basically cash back on your own transactions.  Why not?  Seriously!

You can only have one account per household, so don’t try to sign up the whole family! 

Don’t really feel like taking 2 minutes the time upload coupons?  That’s fine!  Use them as your personal source for other people’s coupon codes! 

They also have a really cool program called Coupons-4-Causes.  It’s exactly what it sounds like.  You pick a charity, school, church, etc. to donate your money to.  Here’s what they say about the donations:

“We partner with thousands of online retailers that pay us a commission when purchases are made through our site. Instead of keeping this all for ourselves, we decided to donate 50% of this revenue to the cause of your choice”

If you would like to add your own “cause,”  all you have to do is e-mail them and they’ll get to work on adding it to their site.  They’ll even start your new cause off with $25! 

I think it’s safe to say that Coupon Chief is going to start catching on!  It’s really easy to set up, so what are you waiting for?!