Welcome to the DIY Challenge! Every month, on the First Wednesday, our hostess Terrie from Decorate And More With Tip issues a challenge to a group of fun bloggers. This month’s challenge is to Upcycle! I will be sharing my reversible Spring / Easter sign that I made from pallet boards.

If you are coming from Cindy’s at Cloche’s and Lavenders, I am so happy that you are here! Doesn’t she make the prettiest decor items?

Last week I shared my Spring mantle with you. In the middle of the mantle, the showpiece of the design, was a few signs that said Spring. Guess what? It’s reversible! I have to admit that my reversible Spring/ Easter sign may just be my favorite decoration this year.

When we built our pool last spring, everything that was ordered came on a wooden pallet.

Some we gave away, some we threw away and some we kept, thinking that we would use a few for projects.

Well, today is the day!

I asked The Hubs to grab me a couple of boards to use to make a reversible sign.

And because I’m a sharing kind of gal, here are the instructions to make one for yourself!

Cut your boards

After taking the pallets apart, I had The Hubs cut 2  of each 7″, 6 1/2 ” and 6″ boards.

Paint the boards

After giving the boards a good sanding I painted all of the boards white.

Place the “kick stand” on your boards

You will need a way to ensure that your boards will stand up.

To do this, all you need is a small dowel rod and a hole the circumference of the dowel in the bottom of your board.

Find the center of the board and drill the hole.

Cut the Dowel Rods

Using a small Miter box, I cut the dowel into 6 – 2 1/2 ” pieces.

To make your boards stand up, simply slide the dowels into the holes that you drilled into your boards.

If you are using the “Spring” signs, you will push the dowels all the way through, flush with the front of the board.

The dowels will then stick out the back, forming a “kick stand” to make your boards stand up!

Place Lettering on Boards

To put lettering on the boards, using your computer to print out the lettering of your choice on your printer.

Flip each letter over.

Using a pencil color around the edges of your letter. You should be able to see the letters through your printer paper.

Flip the letter over to the right side and place on your board.

Using a stylus, or your pencil  trace around your letter.

Your letter is now transferred to your board.

Paint your letters

Using the paint of your choice, paint the letters.

Embellish the letters

Now this is the fun part!

I painted a decorative edging around the outside edge of all of my boards..

Added highlights to each letter to make them stand out.

And added a little glitter paint to give them a little depth.

Oh, who am I kidding?

I added the glitter cause it’s fun!

So let’s take a look at my reversible Spring / Easter sign.

Here’s the Easter side.

And here’s the Spring side.

I’m seriously loving my reversible sign!

Now that you’ve seen my upcycled item, it’s time to head on over to CD’s at Pallet and Pantry to see her upcycled project!

Don’t forget to visit all of the DIY Challenge participants to see what upcycled items they’ve created!

DECORATE AND MORE WITH TIP | Blessings by me | JUNK TO GEMS | CLOCHES AND LAVENDER

PATINA AND PAINT | PALLET AND PANTRY | B4 & AFTERS | PURPLE HUES AND ME

SWEET SOUTHERN GRACE

Happy March 2! I know I say this almost every month, but time is flying!  Which makes me so happy as I can’t wait for Spring. We are still working on our kitchen, but progress has been slow due to the weather. So when I can’t be working on the kitchen I’ve been making a few fun decor items. Today I am sharing how to make an easy wooden tray.

I’ve been looking for a round wooden tray to hold my canisters in my kitchen, but so far I either haven’t found the size I need or one in my budget.

On a recent trip to Hobby Lobby I found this “tray” in the wood section.

Since it had a hanger on the back I feel like it would hang on the wall, however it was the perfect size of the tray I wanted.

Plus, the tray was on sale making it $11.89.

All it needed was feet.

I also found these solid  wooden balls for $4.99.

With both the feet and the tray base together the price came in well under $20.00.

Which was more than in my budget!

Here’s just how easy it was to make.

Step 1:

Paint your tray and wooden balls.

I used white spray paint.

Since the center of my tray was not wood, I felt that a spray paint would adhere to the surface better than an acrylic paint.

Step 2:

Glue the wooden balls to the tray.

Once the paint had dried thoroughly, I flipped the tray over and removed the hanger.

Tip: Remove the hanger before spray painting. Don’t be me!

Then, using a ruler found the center of the tray.

If you look closely you can see my pencil lines.

Using E6000 glue, I adhered the wooden balls to the bottom of the tray.

I used my pencil lines to make sure that the feet were spaced evenly apart.

Step 3:

Distress the tray.

Make sure that the glue on the wooden balls dries thoroughly.

I cannot stress this enough.

If they aren’t sufficiently adhered to the tray, they will fall off.

And nobody wants to have a tray loaded with pretties when a foot falls off!

After your glue has dried, give it a quick light sanding to distress the edges.

I just wanted hints of wood showing through, not a full blown distressed look.

So, easy on the sanding.

Once you have finished distressing your tray, you are ready to load it up.

I am so happy with the way my tray turned out!

Also, wouldn’t it be pretty if you added a design to the middle?

Maybe Mod Podge a napkin to the center to match your kitchen?

The possibilities are endless.

Making an easy wooden tray was well… truly easy!

Until next time….

                                         If you loved it, be sure to Pin it for later!

Hey y’all! I thought that I would pop on here and share a quick and easy Easter bunny wreath with you. It literally took me less than 15 minutes to put it together and most of that was more me trying to decide how I wanted to make it.

I’ve had this bunny/ wreath for a few years.

It’s not really a wreath, but since it’s made of grapevine and leaves, that’s what I’m calling it!

Years ago, when I first bought this bunny I put flowers in it.

As with most things, over time it needed to be updated.

I looked for more flowers, but really didn’t find anything that I loved.

So I got to thinking, what would a bunny put on his wreath?

Eggs? Yep, but so predictable.

I know that If I were a bunny I’d want carrots.

So carrots it is!

Add flowers and leaves.

I left the brown crinkle paper in my wreath and added some cute Spring flowers and some greenery.

This helps fill in the background and make the arrangement look full.

Add carrots

After adding the flowers and the leaves, it was time to add the carrots.

I added large, medium and small carrots.

Burlap carrots, orange and white check carrots and carrots made form twine.

Even bunnies like a little variety in their food choices!

Add more filler

Once I had filled my bunny’s basket full of wonderful looking carrots, I added in a little more filler.

A few more sprigs of flowers, leaves and a sweet pale yellow bud vine.

Put a Bow on it!

Now that my wreath was full of carrots, flowers and greenery, it was time to give my bunny a little bling.

I used three different colors and 3 different patterns of ribbon to make this simple bow.

A neutral with furry white edging that reminds me of a rabbit’s furry tail, a beautiful orange and white buffalo check and a small grow grain ribbon sporting carrots.

I think it matches my bunny perfectly!

Easter Bunny Wreath

The last item to add to my bunny wreath was this sweet furry bunny tail.

Isn’t it just too cute?

And I love that it’s a little “unexpected” addition to my Easter bunny wreath.

I’m officially calling it done and ready to hang on my front door!

How to Hang it…

For years I’ve used one of two different kinds of wreath hangers.

One that most people use is the one that is an inverted S that goes over the top of the door.

However, I’ve had issues with the door not closing well with those.

At my last house, the front door was metal so I used a magnet door hanger.

At this house, obviously this door is made mostly of glass and wood so the magnetic door hanger is out.

I found this suction cup at Hob Lob for $2.99!

So far it’s holding up beautifully, I’ll let you know how it goes.

Pun intended.

I have to say that I think that this is one of my very favorite door hangers/ wreaths!

Its cheerful and it just screams Hello Spring, come on in!

Now it’s time to do a little front porch Spring update to match my sweet Easter bunny wreath!

Until next time…

                                                          Be sure to Pin it for later!

Welcome to the  first Spring Blog Hop. What’s a Spring Blog Hop?  Two talented ladies, Cindy from Cloches and Lavender and Terrie from Decorate and More With Tip rounded up a group of fun bloggers that get together every season and share fun crafts, decor, recipes etc. that exemplify that season. I’m so excited! I can’t wait to see what all of the ladies on this hop  are sharing for Spring!

If you are coming here from Michelle’s at Blessings By Me, Welcome! I’m so Glad that you are here.

Today I’m sharing my Spring mantle with you.

With all of the sub zero temperatures that we’ve had in Texas this past week I am so ready for Spring!

However, I’m not ready for a full blown Spring/ Easter theme quite yet, so while you will see a few bunnies and eggs, you are more likely to find lots of fun color and the fresh green plants against a neutral back drop.

I started decorating in our living room this year since we’ve been huddled around the fireplace so much.

Section 1:

When I decorate my mantle, I think of sections.

Section 1 is the left side when I’m facing it, Section 2 is the right side and Section 3 is the middle.

It just wouldn’t be spring without a few stems of Spring flowers.

These sweet carrots are a few of my favorite things.

I purchased them last year, here, and will probably purchasing a few more this year.

Section 2:

On the opposite end of the mantle from my flowers, you will find the sweetest white bunny.

I’ve had him for many years and he’s still a favorite of mine.

His basket has sported all sorts of fun treasures.

Candy, flowers, and eggs are just  a few.

Section 3:

New to my Spring decor this year is this reversible Spring sign.

If you flip the boards around to the back side you will see the word Easter!

It was so fun to make and I’ll be sharing how I did it with you soon.

Also new, the fun Spring wreath.

If you’d like to see how it’s made, you can see the video here.

It’s hard to say which piece of decor is my favorite, but these  felt ball garland are way up on the list.

Honestly, every time I look at those brightly colored balls they just make me smile!

I couldn’t forget about the hearth of my fireplace.

No big decor switch up here, just add a few eggs to bring Spring down to the hearth.

My Spring mantle is very simple this year.

Which leaves room for me to add in more fun stuff when it’s time to decorate for Easter in a few weeks.

That concludes the tour of my Spring Blog Hop.

I hope that you will join me in hopping over to Corine’s at Junk to Gems.  She always inspires me and has the most beautiful home!

Also, below you can see a list of all of the participants, don’t forget to check them out also.

Until next time……

CLOCHESANDLAVENDER | DECORATEANDMOREWITHTIP | DIYBEAUTIFY

THECROWNEDGOAT | THEHOUSEONSILVERADO | B4ANDAFTERS

BLESSINGSBYME | PATINAANDPAINT | JUNKTOGEMS

FRENCHETHERAL

                                                 If you loved it, be sure to PIN it!

Hey Y’all, let’s make a St. Patrick’s Day Sign! Can you believe that it’s almost March??? With March’s arrival comes the decorating of Spring and St. Patrick’s Day. Honestly, I don’t do a lot of decorating for St. Patrick’s Day. However, I thought that it might be fun to do my two tiered tray in all things green this year.

I had this sign in my craft closet and it’s the perfect size for my tray.

I paid .69 cents for mine as they were on the 90% off clearance.

Word on the street is that your local Dollar Tree has very similar ones available.

These cute wooden shamrocks came from Hob Lob this year.

$2.99 for a bag of 12.

Now all I needed was a little paint to finish my sign!

Step 1:

Remove the beads from the sign.

Once that is done give the  face of the sign a good coat of white acrylic paint.

When the face is completely covered and no writing is showing through, paint the sides green.

Step 2:

Paint your shamrocks.

I painted the smaller of the two shamrocks green and the larger one white.

When the base coats have dried, it’s time for the fun part.

Decorating them.

I decided to give the green shamrock tiny white dots.

The larger white shamrock received a plaid pattern.

What could be more Irish than a plaid?

Now if you don’t want to paint these shamrocks, I think they would be super cute covered in St. Patrick’s Day themed paper!

In fact, had we not been in an ice storm here when I made these I definitely would have done so.

TIP:

Because both the sign and the shamrock received multiple coats of paint and nobody wants to sit and watch paint dry, I used my new heat gun.

Why I  haven’t purchased one sooner is anybody’s guess!

I love this thing.

In the past I’ve always just used a hair dryer – or just watched the paint dry.

The hair dryer works just fine, but it tends to blow the smaller pieces around.

The heat gun has low velocity of air output and dries paint almost instantly.

SCORE!

Step 3:

While your sign and shamrocks are drying, paint your wooden beads.

I did half of mine in green and the other half in white.

Put paint on a paper plate and drop your beads into the paint.

Next, I take them out of the paint, making sure they are covered well, and lightly wipe away the excess paint.

Then I place them on a BQ skewer and lay it across the opening of an old cup allowing them to dry.

Super easy!

Step 4:

Once all of your pieces have dried, glue them all together.

Using a hot glue gun, start with the sign and work your way up.

Step 5:

String your beads onto a piece of jute, then reattach them to your sign.

I like to reattach the beads exactly the way they were before I took them off for the most part.

If you have trouble restringing the twine through the hole, cover the ends snugly with scotch tape.

It keeps the ends from fraying as you re-insert them into the hole.

Be sure and tie the knots securely.

Step 6:

Paint the word ” Lucky” at the bottom of the sign.

I’m just going to go ahead and apologize here.

I did take a picture of this step, however it  was so blurry you have to wonder what I was thinking at the time!

If you don’t trust your handwriting, simply use vinyl peal and stick lettering.

Now that everything is finished on your sign, give it a good coat of a clear protective coating.

Once it dries, your sign is done!

I love how cute my St. Patrick’s Day Sign is!

It gives my two tiered tray lots of color and is the perfect size!

Total cost of the sign is under $1.00.

Cute and economical.

My kind of project!

Until next time…..

                                      If you love it, be sure to PIN it!

Happy Mardi Gras! Here at the Castle Fat Tuesday is one of our favorite holidays. Mainly because we like to eat King Cake. But there are a lot of misconceptions about Mardi Gras. Often  I get asked some pretty crazy questions about Mardi Gras and what it represents. So much so that I thought that I would share just a few fun facts about Mardi Gras with you.

What is Mardi Gras?

Mardi Gras means Fat Tuesday in French.

The Mardi Gras season or Carnival season begins on January 6, Epiphany, the day that the Wise Men found the baby Jesus, and ends on Fat Tuesday, the day before Ash Wednesday the beginning of the Lenten season.

Ash Wednesday is the beginning of lent, so Fat Tuesday has always been a celebration of enjoying all things before Lent begins.

What are the official colors of Mardi Gras and what do they mean?

The official colors of Mardi Gras are purple, which represents Justice.

Gold, which represents Power.

Green which represents Faith.

How old is Mardi Gras?

Mardi Gras dates back to March of 1699!

So…. really old!

Is Mardi Gras only in New Orleans on Bourbon Street?

Nope.

And it’s not all about boobs and beads either.

Several parades take place all over the city of New Orleans .

Including family neighborhoods.

It’s also celebrated coastally.

Mobile, Alabama claims to be the 1st city in North America to host Mardi Gras.

What is King Cake and when do you eat it?

King Cake is very similar to a cinnamon roll.

It is sometimes filled  cream cheese, raspberry filling etc.

My favorite King Cake is with a simple butter, sugar and cinnamon filling.

What sets King Cake apart from other cakes is that a small baby, representing Jesus, is hidden inside the cake.

Whoever finds the baby is said to have good luck for the rest of the year.

So Yummy!

King Cake is only eaten during the Mardi Gras season.

Fact: It’s illegal to ride a float in New Orleans without wearing a mask!

As crazy as it sounds, this is true and was put into law at the beginning of NOLA celebrating the Mardi Gras season.

The theory behind it was to get rid of social constraints for the day.

If no one knew who you were, then you were allowed to mingle with all classes of people.

Today is just tradition that the city still enforces.

So that’s all of the fun facts about Mardi Gras that I have for you today.

While I am certainly no expert about all  things Mardi Gras, I hope that I’ve given you a few fun things to think about on Fat Tuesday!

Happy Mardi Gras Y’all!

Until next time….

                                                     If you Love it, be sure to PIN it!

Today I want to talk about free artwork. Lately I’ve been all about art. Real art – either I’m motivated to paint or I’m purchasing  prints made by artists. However, art can be expensive.

When we had new countertops put in our kitchen recently, we also decided to go ahead and have both the powder room and the guest bath countertops replaced. Which led to new mirrors, faucets, towels… well you get the picture.

In the powder room I had this paint by number painting that I did awhile back.

It was fine, but I never LOVED it.

Janet Hill is one of my very favorite artists.

Her art has the best sense of humor that just reaches out and grabs me!

A few years ago I purchased “The Disappearance of Lonnie Lightfoot” print from her.

My Granny had a closet filled with her formals, jewelry and scarves when I was small.

If I was very good I was allowed to play in that closet, so this print reminds me of pulling up a chair and getting lost in all of my Granny’s finery.

I had it framed with “gaudy joo-ry” all around it and hung it in the powder room.

This print was my inspiration for making a small gallery wall where my paint by number used to hang.

I recently ordered this print “Selfie at the Mermaid Public Fountain” to go with it.

Someday, if I’m lucky, I will have all of the photos from her collection on my powder room wall.

But not today.

So I set out to find free artwork to go with my prints.

Frames:

The first thing I did was dig around in my decor closet for unused frames.

My JH print was in a white frame, so that’s the color scheme I was looking to go with.

I found several different shapes and sizes that I knew would give my gallery wall visual interest.

After a good cleaning and even a couple of coats of paint on a few, I was ready to look for artwork.

Artwork:

I googled free art work and came up with a ton of sites that you can download just about any style of art you can imagine.

I found several that I felt like would be perfect.

Some of my favorite sites are:

The Graphics Fairy

Pixaby.com

Unsplash.com

Using card stock, I simply printed out the artwork that I found in the sizes I needed.

Framing:

Now it was simply a matter of framing my prints.

And deciding what order I want to hang them in on my gallery wall.

Create  Your Own Prints:

One other thing that I used  for one of the smaller prints was the app Waterlogue.

I’ve used it several times before and love it.

Using your own photos, you can create watercolor prints in your phone.

Again, it’s simply a matter of printing them off and framing.

It really couldn’t be simpler!

The hardest part of this whole process was deciding what artwork to use.

The best part?

It’s free!

Until next time….

It’s $10 on the 10th! I always love this blog hop because there are always some of the best ideas that come from these special ladies.  Our theme this month is Crafts. Which is totally up my alley! Today I’m sharing how to make some last minute Valentine’s Day cards. These cards would be perfect to do with your littles and  if you are like me and just enjoy creating Valentine’s cards they will be perfect for you too. And it doesn’t hurt that they are fast, fun, pretty and inexpensive!

Supplies for last minute Valentine’s:

Cards and Envelopes.

Markers or pens

Embellishments

Washi Tape

Scissors or craft knife

Glue dots

Valentine Stamps

Stamp pads

Step 1:

I found my cute red note cards at Michaels on sale 40% off.

They were originally $4.99 for a pack of 10.

On the front of your card, apply Washi tape of your choice.

You can find this Washi tape here.

Step 2:

I had this felt heart stack in my supplies.

It was the perfect embellishment for the front of my card.

To adhere the heart to the card I used a glue dot.

The front of the card is complete.

Easy, fun and simple!

Step 3:

Next, let’s work on the inside of the card.

Really you could write your greeting on the inside of the card and skip this step, but I already had the stamps and stamp pad so I made a few cards using the stamps and a few cards I just wrote in my message.

Load your stamp with ink from the stamp pad.

Then carefully place the stamp on the card.

Press and hold firmly, making sure all of the stamps surfaces touch the card.

This is what it looks like when you are done!

While the ink was drying I went on to the next step.

Step 4:

The envelope!

Have you ever heard of FriXon pens?

I use them in my Rocketbook, but until I took a recent art class I never thought of using them in art.

FriXon pen’s ink disappears when it is exposed to heat.

Which makes them perfect for sketching out your design or drawing a line for lettering.

Draw your lines, do your lettering, then heat them up with a heat gun or a blow dryer.

Genius!

Draw a curved line.

Following the line, add the last name of your Valentine.

Once that is done, fill in the rest of your Valentines name and address!

Step 5:

Add doodles!

Now this is where this project gets fun for me.

Decorating the envelope.

I mean, who wouldn’t love to get a piece of mail that was pretty?

Since my card’s theme was hearts, that’s what I doodled on the envelope.

Step 6:

Don’t forget the back of the envelope!

I have a stamp that has my name and address on it and I usually stamp the center of the back envelope with it.

Then decorate around the stamp.

Step 7:

Finish the inside of the card.

Once your envelopes are decorated, it’s time to add color and details to the inside area that you previously stamped.

I also like to write a personal note to each Valentine.

This is what my finished envelopes look like.

The addresses have been blurred to protect my Valentine’s…

As you can see each one is different.

Have fun and let your imagination guide you!

One last thing….

For my little’s Valentine’s, I like to add a few fun things.

This year I found these heart puzzles.

I simply painted on Conversational heart slogans.

When I mail them I will take them apart and put the pieces into my hand made cards for the littles to put back together once the card is opened.

The butterflies are wind ups.

Simply wind up the butterfly and carefully place them into the card.

When the card is opened, the butterflies will “fly” out!

So how much did my last minute Valentine’s cards cost?

The cards were on sale for $2.49 making them .25 for both the card and the envelope.

I already had the pens, markers, Washi tape and the embellishments except for the heart puzzles and the butterflies.

Puzzles 12 ct = on sale for $2.49.  With 12 puzzles in each package they cost .21 each.

Butterflies: $8.99 for 18, bringing them to .50 each.

My total for each card is under .75!

I hope that you will join me in visiting the other talented bloggers in this hop to see what wonderful things that they have come up with!

Terrie – Decorate and More With Tip

Ann – The Apple Street Cottage

Patti – Pandora’s Box

Barbara – French Ethereal

Cindy – Cloches and Lavender 

                                 DON’T FORGET, IF YOU LOVE IT, BE SURE TO PIN IT!

When I last shared my kitchen remodel plans with you, this is what my kitchen looked like. A little sad. Very dark. A little outdated. A lot has changed since then. It’s been a few weeks, so I thought I’d share my kitchen remodel update with you!

Here’s a day by day update.

The day before the counter top crew arrived, I emptied out all the cabinets and removed everything from the walls and countertops.

Day 1 :

The countertop crew arrived and started demolition on day 1.

They took out the bar wall and made it counter height.

Moved an outlet that was on the bar wall, tore out the backsplash and put up new sheetrock,  and rebuilt the sink cabinet to hold the new farmhouse sink.

Day 1 was hoppin’!

Day 2:

Not much was going on here at the castle, except cleaning up massive amounts of dust.

Everywhere.

The crew were busy in their workshop making the countertops.

Day 3 :

To say that I was excited for day 3 to get started was an understatement!

The countertops were installed, as well as the sink and faucet.

I am in love with the new sink!!!

She’s so shiny and pretty.

Day 4 and 5:

The original plan was to do the backsplash, then the cabinets.

At the end of day 3 we saw that the weather was going to to change drastically by weeks end.

Since part of the painting would be done in a spray tent outside, we needed to get the painting done before the weather turned cold.

We spent 2 days removing doors, hinges, drawer guides, drawers, undercounted lighting, light switch covers and covering all surfaces with ram board, paper, tape and plastic.

Once all of that was done, we sanded, scraped and cleaned all cabinets, doors and drawers inside and out.

By far the hardest 2 days so far.

Day 6:

We sprayed the base cabinets white.

I will say this was time consuming, but so much better than painting and rolling the cabinets.

We purchased a new stationary HVLP sprayer.

Not only was it affordable, but it was so well worth the investment!

This was the half way mark and I was like a kid on Christmas morning.

Day 7:

The Hubs and I had a lot of work to catch up on, so not much was done other than remove all of the tape, paper, plastic etc and give the room a good cleaning.

We still have to paint the drawers and doors.

Fingers crossed we get them done before it gets too cold.

Already it is so light and bright.

No more dark hole!

We still have a lot of work to be done.

Repair the walls where they took out the bar wall.

Paint the doors and drawers.

A few places need paint touch up.

All trim and crown molding needs to be painted to match the cabinets.

The white plug in on the island will be replaced with a black one.

The black towel rack on the island will also be painted gold.

New hardware will be installed onto the cabinets.

And a few places either need caulk or trim moulding.

Of course, everything needs to be put back into the cabinets!

Yep, a lot still needs to be marked off of our punch list, but I’m already loving what we have done so far!

Also, happy mail or should I say happy packages have started arriving.

These are my new counter height bar stools.

That’s it for the kitchen remodel update.

I’ll be sure to share more with you next week!

Until next time….

                                                   If you loved it, be sure to PIN it!

I know…. it’s really a little early for Easter decor. BUT, apparently the stores are full of cute stuff.  I limit my trips to the store and do a lot of it on-line, however that doesn’t keep me from sharing where to find cute Easter decor. And if I’ve learned anything during this pandemic, it’s that if you find and love it you’d better grab it before someone else does!

So here’s what I’ve found so far.

Our first shopping adventure begins at Kirkland’s.

I have thing for door mats.

And this is the cutest little door mat!

If you’ve been around here awhile, you know I love anything for the table and chalkboards.

This bunny place card is so sweet.

I’m in love with this carrot wreath.

Our next shopping stop is at Michael’s.

Have you seen these beautiful faux chocolate molds?

At least I think they are chocolate molds…

Whatever they are they are definitely finding a spot in my decor this year.

I’m obsessed with them!

They come in several sizes and the subject matter is so sweet.

Lambs, chicks and rabbits, Oh MY!

This large wooden bunny would be perfect on the front porch or hanging out around the fireplace.

I’m not sure who needs this ,but this is truly the largest carrot I’ve ever seen!

How could I NOT share it with you?

These beautiful felt carrots are too cute and definitely more my size.

Okay. Let’ just put it out there.

I have an addiction to banners.

And this poofy pom, for want of a better description, is super cute.

The check pastels are right up my alley.

Our Last shopping stop is Hobby Lobby.

They had me at carrot yard stake.

Two different sizes and I can just see them in the garden.

SO stinkin’ cute.

Speaking of cute.

This pink and white check bunny is adorable.

They have a green one, but my heart is set on the pink.

And last on the list today is this cute bunny trail sign.

It wold be perfect for my Easter two tiered tray.

Looking back at all of my favorites, I must say that I feel like I have a theme for this years Easter decor.

Carrots anyone?

Cause I will need them on the bunny trail….

Ha!

I’m sure that I will be sharing where to find cute Easter decor with you again before the big day arrives.

Until next time…..

                                           Remember, if you love it, be sure to PIN it!

I can’t believe that it’s already the first Wednesday of the month. Of February! You know what that means. It’s the DIY Challenge. This months challenge is organization. Which is perfect because I’ve been re-organizing my pantry. Cleaning out, rearranging. My label maker has been used so much this month I ran out of tape! I even made the cutest tags for the pantry. And, because I love you, I’m going to share how I made them with you!

Once you are done here, be sure to head over to Terrie’s at Decorate and More With Tip and  tell her what a genius she is for coming up with the cutest challenges every month.

Now let’s get started!

How many times has someone in your family been in the kitchen and said “Mom, where’s the….?”

And every time you tell them exactly where it is.

And every time you hear ” I can’t find it!”

Well, since we’ve moved into our home a year ago, I’ve heard it a lot.

So I decided to make sure that everything in the pantry has a home and is labeled.

PSA: this DIY is so easy I’d be embarrassed except that it is so functional and cute I just can’t be!

SUPPLIES:

To make these cute tags you will need:

round wooden cut outs.   I got mine here.

Vintage Effect Wash,

Twine

Chalkboard Tape.

Chalkboard Pens

Drill

Scissors

Step 1:

Paint wooden circles with Vintage effect wash.

Simply brush it on, let it sit a little bit, then wipe off excess paint with a paper towel or old rag.

If it’s not as dark as you want it to be, put on a second coat.

Wait, and wipe off.

You can do this as many times as needed to achieve the level of a stained look as you want.

Step 2:

Put Chalkboard tape onto your stained wooden circle.

I can’t believe I’m even saying this but I didn’t know they even made a chalkboard tape until recently.

Mind blowing.

I can’t tell you how much I love it.

Cut a piece of the tape slightly larger than the width of your circle.

Since the tape is fairly wide, I folded mine in half.

Then cut it down the middle.

Using one half of the cut tape, I applied it to the middle of my circle.

It’s so easy!

Just peel off the white plastic off the back of the tape and apply to the the front of you circle.

Rub gently to make sure that it adheres properly.

Step 3:

Cut off excess tape.

After adhering the tape, flip our circle over and using a craft knife cut off any excess tape.

Be sure to cut as close to the circle as possible without cutting the circle.

Step 4:

Drill a hole in the top of your circle.

Honestly, if I had thought about this for a hot minute this would have been step 1.

But we all know that when you craft by the seat of your pants things like this happen.

As it turns out, it wasn’t any big deal.

Thank goodness!

Step 5:

Add twine to your tag.

I cut my twine about 6-8 inches and threaded it through the hole I just drilled.

Step 6:

Label your tags.

Here’s what  love about using the chalkboard tape.

Make a mistake writing?

Write the wrong thing?

Change your mind about what goes in what drawer?

Simply wipe it off with a wet rag.

Let it dry.

And your tag is ready for you to label again!

Making tags for the pantry may have been the easiest DIY I’ve done this month, but I do love them.

Plus, it doesn’t hurt that they make my pantry so pretty and everyone knows where to look for all the things.

AND those tags for the pantry cost under $1.00 for each one!

That’s my kind of DIY.

Please join me in heading to Carol’s at Blue Sky At Home to see what DIY she has for us.

Don’t forget to check out all of the other talented bloggers site too!

Decorate and More with Tip | Patina and Paint

Bluesky at Home | Cloches and Lavender

The House House | Purple Hues and Me

B4 & Afters

                        Don’t forget, if you loved it, be sure to Pin it!

I love a good sale, don’t you? And when the sale is 90% off, well I am hearing the heavenly choir sing! On a recent trip to  Hobby Lobby I made a quick trip down the 75% off isle, only to find out that it was just reduced to 90% off. The first thing that caught my eye was this sweet little lamp. Now most people would take one look and walk right on by, but I’m going to share how I turned janky into swanky!

Repairing the lamp

After carefully looking the lamp over, making sure that the only thing wrong with it was a hanging harp and the socket I snatched that cute little lamp up faster than a monkey jacked up on Mountain Dew.

You see I knew that all I had to do to fix it was gently pull on the cord at the base until all the slack was out of the cord.

Once that was complete it was simply a matter of screwing the light socket to the base.

The socket had just come unscrewed!

The price?

$8.99!

Total girl squeal.

And it is perfect in my library for a cute little reading lamp!

Revamping the mat and frame

Now, you know I  wasn’t done shopping the 90% off isle!

I spied this chinoiserie print.

In fact, I already own it and it sits on a shelf in my living room.

The mat had some dark marks but the frame was in excellent condition.

So I bought it!

No, it’s not weird to have two of the same prints!

Especially if you aren’t using the print part of it.

I just wanted the frame!

A sweet friend sent me the cutest topiary prints a few months ago and I’ve been looking high and low for the perfect frames!

I unscrewed the back of the print and  took out the print portion.

Once that was done I added one of my topiary prints to see if the mat and frame would work.

It was perfect!

I used a Magic eraser to remove the dark marks on the mat.

A little white paint took care of a couple of chips to the edge of the mat.

Put it all back together and this is what it looks like now.

I couldn’t love it more and it matches my living room perfectly!

The total cost for this janky to swanky?

$2.49. Plus tax.

Woo Hoo!

The moral of this story?

Don’t judge a book by it’s cover.

Sometimes it pays to look a little more closely and think outside the box.

Until next time….

                             Remember, if you love it, be sure to Pin it!

On our Craft With Me Wednesday I shared in a video on how to make felt flowers . If you missed it, you can see it here.

However, there are only so many things that I could put in the video and I promised to share how to make them here on the blog also.

AND I will share where to get a pattern to make a few of your own.

If you have followed me for very long you will know that I use these felt flowers in a lot of my decor.

On 2 tiered trays, tabletops and in arrangements.

A lot of you have asked “did I make them?” or “where you can buy them?”

So I thought that I would share that with you.

Last Spring I bought my felt flowers at Walmart.

Sadly, they don’t have them anymore.

On a recent trip to Michael’s, I found a smaller version of the flowers and it occurred to me that I could deconstruct it and figure out how to make my own.

Supplies:

Felt

Scissors

Cardstock

Hot glue gun and glue

Pen or pencil

Extras: clips and BQ skewers

Step 1:

Make a pattern for your flowers.

I bought a few of the small felt flowers at Michael’s and using a blow dryer to loosen the hot glue I took the flower apart.

Using the felt flower I made a pattern.

You can find patterns to make flowers in the Pattern section on my home page.

Simply lay the felt out on a piece of card stock and trace around the edges.

Once that is done cut out the  pattern on the card stock.

Step 2:

Cut out your felt flower.

Using the pattern you just cut out, lay it on a piece of felt and draw around the pattern.

I like to use a pen that is almost the same color as the felt to do this.

That way, if you can see any of the pen after you cut the felt out it blends into the flower.

Once you have traced your pattern onto the felt, cut it out.

Step 3:

Glut your flower together.

Starting at the small end of the felt start rolling your flower up, glueing it with hot glue as you go.

Be sure that the back side is level as you roll the felt up.

Step 4:

Add leaves to your flower.

I made a leaf pattern using the same techniques that I did for the flower.

Using the leaf that came off of the flower I bought, I traced it onto card stock and cut it out.

Then I transferred the pattern onto felt and cut it out.

Once that was done, I hot glued the leaf to the back of my flower.

There is one exception to adding the leaves at this time. See #5.

Step 5:

If you are wanting to use your flower in an arrangement you will want to add a “pick” to it.

A BQ skewer is perfect for this.

I measure the length that I want the pick, mark the skewer and cut off the extra skewer that I don’t need.

I cut off from the top of the skewer ( the flat end) so that the sharp pointed end remains.

It makes it easier to use as a pick.

Glue the “flat” end of the skewer to the flat part of your flower.

Then add the leaves, hiding the skewer and the back side of the flower.

Step 6:

My large flowers from Walmart came with a clip on the back.

Which makes it great to add it to different things.

Napkin rings, containers etc.

So whether I plan on clipping it to anything or not I add the clip to the back after I’ve added the leaves.

These felt flowers are so cute!

Making them I got to thinking of other things I could use them for.

The smaller ones would be great added to push pins on bulletin boards.

And wouldn’t they be beautiful added to bows on a present?

The uses for them is really endless.

I hope that you enjoyed learning how to make felt flowers.

Thanks for crafting with me!

Until next time….

                                         Don’t forget, if you love it, be sure to PIN it!

Y’all! I can’t believe that next week we start my kitchen remodel. It’s been the way it is now for 18 years. And while I’ve only been in it for about 18 months, It’s time. To say that I’m excited would be an understatement! It’s really a dark room that has a lot of yellow lighting.

I spent the weekend firming up all of the things. Ordered sinks, hardware, faucets, tile…. all the little things that have to happen. I thought that I’d show my plans with you so that you can follow along as I share my kitchen’s journey with you.

There is nothing prettier to me than a nice crisp white kitchen!

I mean, just look at this kitchen!

It was a Pinterest find that Ebay had posted.

It had me at the gold accents.

So my inspiration is to lighten almost everything up.

Countertops:

When we started planing the remodel, I knew that I wanted to put together a kitchen that would stand the test of time as much as possible.

For me that meant white cabinets, white backsplash, white countertops… you get the picture.

But as I started putting it all together I realized how much white was in this room.

The cabinets will be Sherwin Williams Pure White.

The walls we just painted before Christmas a soft  light griege color.

It had zero character.

So I had a consultation with Mario, my countertop guy and he gave me several black samples of quartz to look at.

I landed on this piece of Pittsburg Quarts!

It has very little veining, which I love.

It’s has a little bit of sparkle, which I love even more!

And the best thing for me  is that it’s a not a pattern or color that I will get tired of.

As you can see here,  this kitchen from a Decorated Life is super clean, timeless and beautiful!

Tile

Once I had the countertops picked out, it was time to look at the backsplash options.

I thought that I wanted a simple white ceramic subway tile.

Until I saw this tile.

Let the heavenly choir sing!

It’s Byzantine Arabesque Bianco from the Tile Bar.

I LOVE it!

In the entire kitchen it was my one splurge, however I knew that the texture and sophistication that it would give my kitchen was perfect.

Sink

My current sink is a divided, multi-level stainless beasts that for the life of me always looks dull and dirty.

No matter what I do or clean it with.

So a new sink was definitely happening.

I chose a white apron sink that is one great big tub.

We had a granite composite sink similar to this in our old home and I can’t tell you how much I loved it.

In fact, had I not been doing a black countertop, I would have put a granite one in this kitchen.

I’m okay with no granite this time as this kitchen is a beauty.

Faucet

I fell in love with this brushed gold faucet.

It’s probably not for everyone, but it definitely makes me happy when I look at it.

If anyone would have thought I would ever have a gold faucet, I would have told them they had lost their mind!

But, remember that gorgeous white and gold kitchen earlier?

Nuff said.

The gold faucet is why I chose these drawer pulls.

Well, that and the fact that they come in a ton of sizes.

I want ginormous pulls for the large drawers under the stove and  these will be perfect.

These pulls range from 2.5″ all the way up to 18″.

A size for everything!

That’s pretty much all that I’ve ordered.

I still need to find countertop height bar stools and a few other things, but I think I’m well on my way to being finished with all of the decisions for now.

I can’t wait for my kitchen remodel to start!

Until next time….

                                                                   Don’t forget, If you loved it, be sure to PIN it!

We don’t do  Valentine’s Day in a big way here at the Castle. We are way more laid back. I usually set a casual Valentine’s Day table that has a ton of color, has a few treats and is super fun. This year’s table will be no different!

The Placesetting

While on a recent and rare grocery store adventure I say these sweet valentine dessert plates.

Of course, they had to come home with me.

So my table’s colors are centered around the colors in the plate.

A beautiful textured green placemat hosts a red charger.

White plates, followed by a fun pink and white salad plates are the perfect background for my dessert plates.

Hot pink buffalo check napkins show off the cutest Pom napkin rings ever!

I’m in love with them.

So much so that I bought a set of blue ones too!

The Centerpiece

For a centerpiece I’m using our dessert.

A red velvet cake sits upon a beautiful white cake stand.

Instead of a runner, I chose to set the cake stand on a felt heart.

Instead of real flowers I chose to add a few felt flowers and a heart.

I mean, what’s Valentine’s with out flowers and hearts?

Am I right?

The “back” side of the cake stand has more felt flowers and the cutest little sign reminding my guests that they are loved.

I extended the color around the cake plate by using felt ball garland with more felt flowers down the table.

Treats:

For a small after diner treat, I added some wonderful chocolates to each plate.

I’ve also been making these fun heart candies too.

I tuck them into small boxes and they are perfect for a little gifty to take home.

After all, there can never be too much candy!

A casual Valentine’s day table may not be everyones cup of tea, but it’s perfect for us here at the Castle!

Do you go all out for Valentine’s Day or are you more like me and go super laid back and casual with it?

Until next time….

                                                           Don’t forget, if you love it, Pin it!

Hey y’all! I hope that you had a great long weekend. We didn’t do much of anything. Just a few things around the house and watched a little football. My kind of weekend. I thought I’d share a quick and easy Valentine’s craft with you, just in case you need something fun to do.

I found everything for this craft at Michael’s, except for the ribbon which I already had.

Here’s what you will need:

Supply list:

Valentine’s paper ( really if you have scraps I’d use those as you use so little of the paper.)

Wooden sign – Michael’s $1.50

Wooden Heart – Michael’s  .39

Ribbon – I used 3 different patterns as well as some raffia. All were from my scrap bin.

Scissors

Mod Podge

Ruler

Glitter

Paint brush

White craft paint

Hot glue gun and glue

Step 1:

Measure the inside of your sign and cut out a piece of scrapbook paper using those dimensions.

Set the paper aside.

Step 2:

Paint the sign white.

Let the sign dry completely.

Step 2:

Decorate the heart.

While my sign was drying I cut out some paper using my wooden heart as a pattern.

Once that was done, I used Mod Podge to apply the paper to my heart.

Now that my heart is completely dry, it’s time to add some glitter!

Simply paint the edge of the heart with Mod Podge, then dip in glitter.

( Yes, my glitter tray is a hot mess! Someday I will attempt to clean it. Maybe….)

Quick Tip

Use a clean, dry brush to clean off any small glitter that you don’t want on your heart.

Step 4:

Finish decorating the sign.

Paint the base of your sign with a quick coat of Mod Podge.

Add the paper and give it a gentle rub to adhere the paper to the sign and get rid of any bubbles.

Next, give the paper another coat of Mod Podge.

Set aside and let dry.

Step 5:

Make a small bow to add to your sign.

I made a simple small bow X bow.

You can see how to make it here.

Step 6:

Glue the heart onto the sign.

Step 7:

Add your bow.

I hot glued mine on the corner to finish off my Valentine’s sign.

This really is a quick and easy Valentine’s craft.

It would be great for both older children and adult.

And not only is it easy, it’s super economical too!

I made this sign for under $2.00!

Until next time….

                                                Don’t Forget, If you Loved it, Pin it!

Hey y’all! Today I want to share a couple of super easy projects that I promise will help you get organized for the new year! I like to call it Command Central.

Even before the holidays I started looking for some kind of chalkboard/magnetic board/ calendar system to put on the side of my fridge cabinet.

I just wanted something that looked cute but that would also let me keep track of things like my grocery list, reminders etc.

Also, if it had a place for me to put a few photos of my littles that would be a huge bonus.

I thought that it would be easy to find, but boy was I wrong.

What I found was either too big, too small, too expensive or didn’t function as I wanted it to.

So  I made my own!

After looking through my stash of unused stuff, I found a red metal decor piece.

I painted it a pretty navy blue.

Once it had dried, I took it into the kitchen and held it up against the cabinet and was so disappointed.

It looked flat and drab.

PLan B!

I painted the metal sign white.

Two good coats and a little distressing with sandpaper and this is what my new sign looked like.

So much better!

To protect the paint, I put a satin top coat on the sign.

This metal sign was the perfect size and I would be able to post reminders and photos on it easily.

While rummaging through my stash, I also came upon a piece of 12″ x 24″ chalkboard.

I normally use these to make back to school chalkboards for the littles in my family.

And it was the perfect size!

However, it didn’t have a finished edge.

After very little searching I found this frame at Hob Lob.

It was the perfect size and color.

And to make it even more perfect it was 50% off!

I simply dropped the chalkboard into the frame, then because it didn’t have any way to hold the chalkboard into the frame, I simply put a bead of silicone around edge fo the frame.

I put some weight in the center to hold the chalkboard down until the silicone dried.

After leaving it overnight, I removed the mugs and my chalkboard was secured to the frame.

Once I added a picture frame hanger to the top of the board and it was ready to hang.

Command central is complete!

I have to say that having a place to see all of my favorites every day sure makes my heart sing.

And the chalkboard grocery list?

Works so well for me!

No more having to walk into another room to write it down – or forgetting to write it down – or forgetting why I walked into the room….

I love it!

One last tip.

Prime your chalkboard!

Before using any brand new chalkboard take a piece of chalk , lay it on it’s side and rub it all over the board!

Wipe the chalk off and your board is ready to be written on.

The priming helps you  keep from getting ghost images of what was written on the board.

Until next time….

                                                         Don’t forget, if you love it be sure to PIN it!

How it’s Made

Yesterday I partnered up with Terrie from Decorate and More with Tip to share how to style a Two Tiered Tray. We both shared  our videos on Facebook. Every Wednesday we share either a craft or how to decorate something in your home. And Every Wednesday we get asked the all important question “Can you tell me how it’s made?”. So this week, as well as sharing the video we thought that it would be fun to share how we made several things that we put on our trays. If you would like to see my video, please go here. Don’t forget to visit Terrie here.

Valentine’s Day Mug

I love the look of the Rae Dunn mugs.

However, I don’t like the idea of storing a ton of mugs for each holiday.

So I make my own holiday mugs by taking plain white mugs and adding vinyl lettering to them.

I have a Silhouette machine that makes it super easy for me to make a design.

Once I’ve decided on a design, it’s simply a matter of cutting it out and adding it to the mug.

Don’t have a Cricut or a Silhouette machine?

No worries!

Your local craft store has a ton of peel and stick lettering that you can use!

Mini Rolling Pin

In my video I had taken one of these sweet little rolling pins, cut out vinyl  lettering and attached it to the pin.

Well, since you may not have a cutting machine I want to show you just how easy it is to use peal and stick lettering.

Simply choose the letters of the word you want to use, the stick them on.

Once I have my lettering on, I like to add a bit of bakers twine tied in a bow for a little extra embellishment.

Seriously, it couldn’t get any easier and it takes very little time!

Mulit-media Sign

A few years ago I made the multi- media heart signs.

If you missed it you can see it here.

I made all sizes, shapes, and colors with a ton of different embellishments.

They are so easy to make and I have used them just about everywhere here at the Castle!

Conversation Heart Mug

The last craft is the centerpiece on the top tier.

It’s a cute mug with a conversation heart.

I found the heart at Hob Lob and it’s originally intended to be used as a floral pick.

However, it was much too long for my mug.

I simply cut it to my desired length using a small hack saw.

Placed a piece of styrofoam into the mug.

Next, add the heart pick to the styrofoam and cover it with crinkly white paper.

The centerpiece is done!

I hope this answered your question “can you tell me how it’s made?”

If you’d like to see just how this two tiered tray was put together, don’t forget to head on over to my Facebook site ( link above).

Also, be sure and visit Terrie @ Decorate and More With Tip to see the cutest tray ever!

P.S. she actually MADE her tray.

You don’t want to miss this!

Until next time…

                                                   Don’t forget, if you loved it, be sure to PIN it!

With the Rona still hanging around it’s hard to get together with friends and family. It’s especially hard when the birthdays are milestones and you can’ get together. Normally, all of the Queens would be gathering together to celebrate my BFF Roxanne hitting a big milestone. And even though we aren’t celebrating her birthday like we have in the past, I  can still  pretend to have a little Birthday party fun.

IF we were getting together, the party would be low key and all The Queens would be invited.

We would show up in our finest attire bearing birthday presents.

We would eat a delicious Apple salad with apple poppy seed vinaigrette.

( trust me when I say that this salad is so yummy!)

Followed by a chicken artichoke pizza!

I’d make sure that the table was set for a queen and  her ladies!

A turquoise placemat, a pink champagne charger, and white dishes.

A beautiful turquoise napkin would be put into a giant diamond napkin ring.

Of course no Queen would eat lunch without her crown.

Diamonds  twisted into a curly Q shape could hold a place card that would let each Queen know where she would be seated for the day.

The birthday Queen would have a very special crown of her own!

One filled with jewels  that only a Queen would love and wear.

The Queen would sit at the head of the table and naturally her place setting would match that of the rest of the Queens.

Beautiful flowers would grace the table to commemorate such a wonderful occasion!

I did make our Queen Roxanne a wonderful  chalkboard poster to mark the occasion.

One that announced just how very special our Queen truly is!

And last, but not least, we would break out a beautiful cake complete with a crown and birthday candle sparklers!

We would laugh, tell stories, be silly and celebrate just being together.

That’s how Queen’s celebrate their birthdays.

I don’t know about you but I can’t wait until we can all celebrate and have a little birthday party fun once again.

So, Happy Birthday Queen Roxanne!

We may not all be together physically, but know that we are with you in spirit.

Until next time…..

                                                       Don’t forget, if you loved it, be sure to PIN it!

*The turquoise napkin, glasses, napkin ring and diamond placecard holder were all purchased at  Hobby Lobby over the years at their 75% off sale.

Its $10 on the 10th! Where a few blogger friends and I share fun decor, ideas and crafts for under $10.00. This months theme was Winter Blues/ Winter decor. Nothing helps beat those Winter blues like a little decorating that makes you smile. I recently painted a few winter snowflakes and put them in an unusual place!

The best part about this project is that it was super easy, especially since it gave a lot of wow factor to my decor.

This would be the perfect craft for younger children as well as adults!

Here are the supplies that you will need to make your own:

Wooden snowflake cutouts. I found mine here.

Twine

White paint

Holographic glitter paint

Paint brush

That’s it!

Step 1:

Paint your snowflakes white.

I gave each of my snowflakes 2 coats of white acrylic paint on each side.

Since I loved the dark brown edges, I didn’t paint those.

The brown edges give the snowflakes a rustic look that I love at this time of year.

I will admit that my first instinct was to put glue on the edges and dip them in big chunky white glitter.

However, I’m looking for a little less glam and glitz now that Christmas is over.

Step 2:

Paint with holographic glitter paint.

Give each side of the snowflake a coat of the glitter paint.

Make sure to let each side dry thoroughly before painting the other side!

I know!

I said a little LESS glam and glitz, not NO glam or glitz! Ha!

It’s hard to see it in this photo, but the holographic glitter really sparkles and shines!

Step 3:

Thread  twine through your snowflakes, tying off the ends of the twine.

My snowflakes came with 9 pieces of 13″ twine, however you can use twine, ribbon, baker’s twine – basically whatever you have on hand.

Step 4:

Hang your snowflakes!

While I hung mine on my chandelier in my breakfast room, I think these would look super cute in other places too.

Nestled in greenery on a fireplace mantle, string them on a 6 ft length of twine and hang them as a garland on the mantle, if you still have your trees up they would make great ornaments.

How about hanging them from a topiary or potted tree on your porch?

See?

I told you they give  a lot of bang for your buck!

Now, please join me in visiting the other blog hoppers and see what fun Winter blues items they’re sharing!

Allyson @ Southern Sunflowers

Patti @ Pandora’s Box

Anne @  The Apple Street Cottage

Barbara @ French Ethereal

Until next time…

Decorating for winter can be tricky. Especially if you are like me and after the holidays are ready to pack all of the Christmas decor away, including the greenery. However, just because I’m ready for a clean decor slate doesn’t mean that decorating for winter has to be hard. In fact, you can achieve a wonderful warm design in just 3 steps!

Step 1:

Light a fire.

The past few days have been cold, wet and dreary.

You can tell by the photos that there was very little light.

On days like these I love to light a fire, curl up on the sofa and read a good book.

Lighting the fireplace both mentally and physically warms you up!

I added a ton of candles to the mantle of the fireplace.

There is nothing like lighting them all in the evening.

It not only looks inviting, but smells great too.

I love them so much that I’ve sprinkled candles all through the castle!

Step 2:

Add texture.

Heavier fabrics like fur, velvet, corduroy and wool all just scream winter to me.

Add a warm fuzzy throw blanket to your decor doe instant warmth.

Can’t you just imagine curling up with this furry throw?

It is just the softest!

These velvet pillows on the sofa really cozy up the living room.

Don’t forget to add texture through out your home.

My bedroom has a very cool color scheme with a lot of neutrals paired with steal blues and mid-tone greens.

The addition of a warm furry throw as well as velvet pillows really helps to warm this space up.

In the guest room I took away the bright hot pink throw pillows and added these off white corduroy pillows complete with fuzzy poms!

I love them so much that the old pillows may never come back!

Step 3:

Add  a little nature.

Think greenery, pinecones, and sticks from trees.

All too often we shut ourselves up inside when it’s cold.

Bringing nature inside is a must for me!

Not a lot, just a few elements here and there.

As you can see here, I added scented pinecones to a large lantern.

On the coffee table I’ve added a woven basket to hold all of my decor.

The basket adds warm texture as well as shows off the pinecones, greenery and a candle.

Even the burlap bow adds warmth with it’s nubby texture!

This tablescape is the trifecta of decorating for winter.

It has a little nature, tons of texture and a candle to give it that warm soft glow.

As you can see, decorating for winter is as easy as 1, 2, 3!

Until next time….

                                                            If you liked it, don’t forget to PIN it!

Welcome to Plans for Cumberland Trail  part 2! Last week I shared just how busy last year was for us.  I didn’t realize just how busy until I did that walk down memory lane. Needless to say, it was a full year for us. Today I’m sharing what we plan on doing this year here at the castle. Don’t worry, we all know that there will always be small changes and projects to do! Nobody wants to hear ALL of those, which is why I’m only going to share some of our bigger projects with you.

The first thing on my list is to finish up the laundry room.

This room has come a long way since we moved in.

It had linoleum flooring.

Wallpaper from the 80’s… maybe even the 70’s.

Fluorescent tube lighting on the ceiling.

The cabinets may have been a cream at one time, but over the years they had yellowed and just looked dirty.

The first week we were here all floors in the house were replaced.

The second week I striped the wallpaper and gave it a good cleaning.

Everything in this room from the ceiling to the floor has been painted.

The fluorescent lighting was replaced with a pretty crystal one.

So what’s left?

The countertop, new sink, faucet and tile on the wall above the sink.

I have all of the  supplies to do this and have for a few months, I just never found the time.

I’m making this my number 1 project.

The Kitchen.

I knew before we moved in that there needed to be big changes in the kitchen for it to function for our family.

First off, it’s much smaller than our previous kitchen so I’m having to learn to let go of things and be more intentional with my space.

Plus, it’s not my style.

At all.

At one time they had lime washed the cabinets.

The finish has worn off in some spots, making it very porous.

At certain times during the day the cabinets look almost peach.

Fluorescent tube lighting under the  upper cabinets.

And I’m not sure what the granite was finished with but it always looks streaked even after polishing.

It’s the darkest room in the house.

When we moved in the first week we replaced all of the appliances.

We plan on painting the cabinets white.

Replacing the sink, faucet and undercounter lighting.

If it fits into the budget I will be replacing the countertops. Fingers crossed.

Long term, I’d also like to take the upper cabinets all the way to the ceiling for extra storage and put in a new simpler style of doors.

The Master Bathroom

There is nothing terribly wrong in here.

It functions, but it just needs a few repairs and updates.

Right before Christmas we painted the vanity, walls and trim.

It had a bad antiquing treatment on the vanity and the walls were builder beige.

The vanity was painted a blue gray color, the walls a greige and the trim pure white.

I’d like to get rid of the wall of mirrors.

Aint nobody need to see that much of themselves!

And remove a few of the light fixtures.

They are blinding!

The ceiling needs to be painted white.

The window treatments in the master bathroom and the bedroom are Duets.

At one time I’m sure they were super nice, however they are tired, worn and there really is no good way to clean them.

They are going.

I’m going to replace them and put in some kind of valance to give the space a little color and texture.

We do have one issue, the wall between the tub and the shower moves.

Yep, it gives just a little.

We are betting that it will need to be replaced before long.

Bathroom Countertops

The last two really large things on my list are the powder room and the guest bathroom countertops.

It’s hard to tell in the picture, but the tops are a biscuit color.

Nothing else in either room is that color and they stick out like a huge elephant in the room.

Not sure what the plan is for either of these rooms is at this point, but I’m working on a quick fun solution!

That’s it for Plans for Cumberland Trail Part 2.

As you can see, we have our work cut out for us!

However, I’m really looking forward to getting started and make Cumberland a little more “us” every day!

Until next time…..

Happy New Year! Here’s to hoping that 2021 will be much better than 2020. I don’t do New Year’s resolutions, but ringing in the New Year has me thinking about all the things that we accomplished here last year and all of the plans for Cumberland Trail in the coming year. Today in Cumberland Trail part 1, I’m sharing what we’ve done in the past year and in Part 2 I’ll be sharing our plans for the next year.

Here’s what we got done this past year.

We moved into our new home in late October of 2019.

We bought this house knowing that we were going to be doing a lot of projects.

They would include small facelifts and some big remodeling in almost every room of the house.

In other words, we were on a mission to make it more our own.

Moving in late October didn’t give us much time before the holiday season.

However we did get a few projects completed before then.

Like the Fireplace.

This is the before.

And this is the after.

We put in all new floors and  remove the dated wallpaper in the laundry room and bathrooms.

Added a quick coat of paint in each of those rooms and we called it good until after the holidays.

Winter 2020

Then came 2020

My first project was to participate in the $100 room challenge working on my office.

I loved how it turned out.

Next, came the Dining room.

Not just once, but twice!

The Laundry room was next.

While it’s still not totally finished, it is so much better than when we moved in.

Spring 2020

While all of this was going on, we had signed on with a contractor to put in a pool, a small kitchen and fire pit in the back yard – las OCTOBER.

However, it took forever to get permits etc..

The backyard that was suppose to be finished in late January – mid February didn’t even start until March.

And then COVID hit.

Everything came to a screeching  halt for awhile.

It finally picked back up, but due to material supplies in high demand progress was accomplished at a snails pace.

We had put everything on hold inside the house for the most part to focus on new landscaping in the front yard and painting the exterior of the house while the pool was being built.

Summer 2020

Finally in the first part of June the pool was completed.

Fall 2020

We took July and August off.

It was nice not to have workmen around the house.

Plus, we like doing as much of the projects as we can ourselves, so it was much needed time to enjoy the pool.

September had us back in full swing on projects with the $100 room challenge.

This time I spruced up one of the guest rooms with a ton of color.

Then it was time for the holidays again!

We did however have a new roof put on and FINALLY after 6 months we built our pergolas in the back yard!

Just in time to ring in the new year!

Looking back through this crazy year, I realize that we did a TON of work.

Our new home is starting to look and feel like us more and more every day.

But there are always going to be projects here at the castle.

And we have so many plans for this next year!

I hope you enjoyed plans for Cumberland Trail part 1.

If you did, stay tuned for part 2 next week.

Until next time…

My friend Cindy from Cloches and Lavender and I got together and decided to share out Christmas Dining rooms with you. Only one problem. I don’t have a formal dining room any more. So I decided to share my breakfast room with you. Normally, this room would be a lot more formal, but with the Christmas celebration being scaled back quite  a bit this year, I’m decorating more for casual Christmas dining.

But don’t worry, just because it’s casual doesn’t mean it has to be plain!

On one end of the breakfast room is our coffee bar/ hot chocolate bar.

If you missed how I set up my hot chocolate  bar, you can see it here.

Also, I shared my Christmas hutch with you early this month.

If you want to see a step by step how to video you can see it here.

Casual Christmas Dining

As always, I  start with a clean table.

In fact, I give everything that’s going on my table the once over to make sure it’s clean, no smudges, or fingerprints.

Once that’s done, I add a tablecloth.

However, this year I am using this furry white runner that reminds me of snow.

Start in the Center of the table.

I like to start from the center of the table and work my way out.

See this cute felt holly ribbon?

I think it’s my favorite this year.

It mimics the felt garland and flower pics on my hutch.

I simply laid it on the center of my runner for a little color.

This years centerpiece is a bowl from the kitchen that I filled with small pots of Poinsettias.

I added in a few glass ornaments and my centerpiece is complete.

I’m mad about plaid this year.

Not sure why, but years ago I used plaid just about everywhere.

Over time I was a little burnt out.

I started with a black charger plate and for some fun and color laid a plaid napkin across it.

If you follow me at all, you know that 9 times out of 10 I’m going to use my white hob nail plates.

Love them.

They go with everything!

Next, I added my Christmas salad plate.

I purchased the whole set years ago from Better Home and Gardens.

Best Christmas purchase ever.

My Silverware has a tiny gold bead on it that picks up that light and gives the table a little understated bling.

You know I love some bling!

Now for the fun part!

I took another plaid napkin and folded to look like a Christmas tree.

Normally I  stay away from folded napkins because when I fold them they never seem to look quite like they do on Pinterest.

However, these were super easy to fold and surprisingly they look exactly like the inspiration photo.

I love to put a piece of candy, a treat, or a take home on my plates.

So this year I added in one of my hot chocolate bombs to go with dessert!

Trust me, these bombs are so rich they are almost a dessert in themselves.

And last, but not least, I added my hand painted water/ wine/ tea glasses.

In a former life I painted wine glasses.

I love this size glass because it’s so versatile.

And these glasses are just a few of the ones I made for myself.

Since they are all the same and my family tends to use the same glass most of the day, I added cute wine glass markers.

If you look closely you can see a cute little Santa.

My place setting is complete.

Simple, casual, but I think super fun and colorful.

Oh, one last thing!

My place cards this year were wreaths with Christmas ornaments tied to the center that were hung from the back of the chairs.

I love a fun and unusual place cards and try each year to come up with something unusual.

This may be one of my favorites ever.

See? Casual Christmas dining doesn’t have to be boring!

Now, that I’m done please head on over to Cindy’s and check out her formal dining room. I’m sure that it’s going to be beautiful because everything she does is spectacular!

Merry Christmas!

                                                   Remember, if you liked it, be sure to PIN it!