Drab to Fab-$0 Project

I had an old sign that was a great size & shape, but needed a little face lift.

Here it is in this pile of junk. The one that is black and dark and drab. That junk will come to life in another post :)

And here it is AFTER I painted it & prettied it up.

Painted shabby white & painted "Life is beautiful" in sunny yellow. I also added some fabric & felt rosettes to the corner.

 I like it much better now!!

You will have to check back soon to find out how that mess turned out :)

Linking Up:
Someday Crafts
Gingersnap Grafts
Domestically Speaking
Organize & Decorate Everything
Here Comes the Sun

Colors of the Rainbow

Trying to finish up my mantel I needed to find (or make) something else to go with my St. Patrick's Day theme. Browsing through Pinterest I saw rainbows so I tried that.

Yes I do realize I am missing one color if I were being true to the real rainbow. But, it has the rainbow effect I was going for!!

All I did for this project was cut some colorful paper & stick it in an old frame I had. I added the photo of my kids in front & sat it on the mantel. Since my t.v. hangs  above my mantel it really limits my decorating :(  This works though!!

That big ole TV really messes up my look!! ;)

We are having some wonderful temperatures around here & I am definitely getting Spring Fever!! I am really looking forward to some more crafts :)

Linking Up:

Debbiedoos Blogging & Blabbing

You Are Talking Too Much
DIY Home Sweet Home
Keeping it Simple
My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia
A to Zebra Celebrations

Happy Little Bird

I am a follower of Trisha's fabulous blog called The Delectable Home.  I absolutely fell. in. LOVE. with her spring mantel.

Isn't it wonderful!?!?

I knew as soon as I saw her {little bird art} that I had to have one of my own!! I just happened to have (a slight bird obsession) and a rustic looking frame like her's & I dug through my fabric scraps to find some pretty colors. It was a quick project. I would say it took maybe 20 minutes.

I think I have really gotten my $10 worth out of the fabric I bought to do my camera strap. This is some of it :) I just adore this little bird & the way he is sitting on a real tree branch ♥♥

I used the same template I used to make my love birds. I ironed heat & bond onto the bird cutout, then ironed that onto the yellow fabric. Heck, I even recycled part of the branch I had my hearts hanging on for Valentine's Day.

I did not spend any $$ out of pocket for this darling project!!! My husband did look at me like I was crazy when I started this project out of the blue at 9 o'clock a night, but I am totally used to getting that look from him :)

Linking Up:
Here Comes the Sun
Serenity Now
Cherished Treasures
I {heart} Naptime
Flamingo Toes

Sisters of the Wild West

St. Patty's Day Subway Art

I found an adorable Subway Art printable for St. Patrick's Day from this website. It should still be available to print for FREE if you follow the link :)

I printed mine as a 5 x 7 & put some coordinating scrapbook paper behind it. Then framed it with a black 8 x 10 frame I bought at walmart for $1.92.

I think the green paper makes it cuter.

{green}

The fun little shamrocks are from last year. Felt cut outs hot glued to skewers.

I added it to my mantle.

I love subway art, especially when it's FREE :)

Linking Up:
Just Between Friends
Five Days Five Ways
Here Comes the Sun
Ladybird Ln
Tatertots and Jello

A Beautiful Place

Anthropologie has some fabulous decor. It also has some outrageous prices....so when I see a certain plate I need for $28, I take matters into my own hands :)

Here is the Antrho plate:

So sweet & simple & a bit whimsical....and pricey...I found a blog where Lori did a knockoff version. It totally inspired me to do the same!! Here it is!!

I adore this plate. Everytime I get a glimpse of it, I can't believe I did it :)

I used a plain old fine tip sharpie marker for my words. I don't know how this will hold up, but we will see. I found the simple plate at the thrift store for 49 cents!!

Still can't believe I did this :) I found my own saying to put on it. It says "Some people look for a beautiful place...others make a place beautiful." by Hazrat Inayat Khan.

This project really put me in the mood for SPRING.....

Linking Up:
Someday Crafts
Gingersnap Crafts
Chic on a Shoestring Decorating
House of Hepworths
Crafty Scrappy Happy

The Shabby Nest

Getting out my GREEN

I finally got my Valentine's decor taken down & stuck in a box in the dining room put away :)

Time to get out my GREEN!! Last year I didn't have much, so I really needed to come up with a couple new things to put out for St. Patrick's Day this year.

I had these 3 cute mini pots that I painted black & stuck vinyl numbers on. I had intended on putting some kind of fake plant in each one & have never come across anything that would work. I even looked again at walmart yesterday for something, but came home empty handed.

Digging through my craft closet I found this pretty green moss.

And these wonderful foam balls that I only paid 50 cents for. The price says $2.47 originally :)

Here is how they turned out!!

{I love the green moss}

Love them!! The white feathery thing in the middle is a Christmas ornament I picked up on sale at Hobby Lobby. It doesn't look christmasy to me :)

Check back soon for more GREEN to come!!

Linking Up:

 Mommy by Day Crafter by Night

Debbiedoos Blogging and Blabbing

My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia
You Are Talking Too Much
Passionately Artistic

Organize & Decorate Everything
Someday Crafts
Just Between Friends

Save on your Dish Network Bill

Do you ever get your phone/internet/cable bill and it is more than usual?? I hate it when that happens. I swear I break into a sweat & panic when this happens to me. I got my phone/internet bill this month,  it was $25 more than it should be!! I also don't like calling customer service and waiting on hold for the "next available representative", but for $25 you better believe I DID!! Come to find out, when our internet modem went bad & they sent us a new one, they charge $15 in shipping & tack it on your bill. Also, it seems that the package we had "no longer exists", so this means a higher monthly bill....by the end of this 30 minute phone call I did get my bill back to the amount it should be, they are waiving the new higher monthly fee & sent me out a brand new router/modem combo for FREE. They also told me that they could do a package for me if I wanted Direct TV that would save us some money. I really didn't want to mess with a new satellite company, installation, blah, blah, blah....so,

I called my current satellite company (Dish Network) and just asked them if there was any way to lower my bill. Well, low and behold, the nice lady said that she would give us a $15 monthly discount for a full year WITHOUT changing a single thing on our account!!! WOOHOO. I will take that :) It may be worth your time to make those phone calls & just ask. It might save you some money!!

Thrift Store Treasures

My sister and I had a fabulous time at the thrift store today!! Here is some of my loot :)

An old school Fisher Price little people house, person & horse (on wheels). $1.75

I love the little staircase on the side. Turn the handle and it moves the person up or down.

Vintage 1982 Cabbage Patch Kids tin lunch box. We loved our cabbage patch dolls when we were little!!

1982 Strawberry Shortcake doll. She is the one that blows sweet strawberry smelling kisses when her belly is squeezed. My sis and I used to have one. $0.79

My sister bought me this precious little easter egg stand. $2.49. I am not sure about the plastic eggs, but I will figure out what to do with it by Easter. I bought Kenzee the strand of yellow beads for $1.

Ah yeah...St. Patrick's day. A pair of glasses for each kid. $0.79 each. Some shiny green garland for $0.49. And who could pass up a pinwheel for $0.29!!??!

Some polka dot paint sponges. I needed these for a project a while back, but couldn't part with the $$ for them at Hobby Lobby. Got this whole whole pack for $0.49.

Isn't this little vintage bib sweet? $0.59. And the Playskool duck actually works still from 1983. $0.79. I love vintage toys & will be collecting them as I see them at a good price for my baby niece to have at my place :)

I could never get tired of thrift store shopping. It's my favorite!!

Linking Up:
House of Hepworths
Five Days Five Ways
Crafty Happy Scrappy
Here Comes the Sun
Ladybird Ln
Tatertots and Jello

Scrapbook Layouts

So happy I got to go to a CROP (scrapbook party) this weekend. It was a good time with friends. I always have fun!!

The kids' first day(s) of school. 7th grader and 3rd grader.

I had to snap a couple shots of her on the 2nd day too just because she looked so cute :)

Page 1 of 2 page layout. Kenzee at their Beach themed pep rally.

My tiny girl gets to be at the top of all the stunts. A little scary for me to watch!! I got this super cute paper pack at Hobby Lobby 1/2 off. It matched her beach attire :)

A shot of the whole layout.

Some Eagles volleyball. Our school colors are red, white and blue.

I thought  would use the black, white and gray paper & stickers to tone it down a bit.

Both pages of the layout.

I am not caught up to date on their scrapbooks right now, but I am not too far behind. I should really get it out & work on it more at home. I just have too many hobbies :)

Linking Up:
Someday Crafts
Mommy by Day Crafter by Night
Ginger Snap Crafts
My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia
Here Comes the Sun
Ladybird Ln

Paint Chip Heart Garland

I had my sweet husband grab some red & pink paint chips for me when he was in Walmart the other day. I wanted to use them to make some kind of Valentine's craft. Well, I don't have a heart punch so it took me a bit to figure out how to make a gazillion hearts out of them....the little light bulb finally lit up & I used my Cricut!! I just pressed the paint chips onto my sticky mat & cut away. What an idea ;) It worked like a charm for me.

Hot glued those cuties to some yarn & we were set!!

Draped it over my red shutter.

{love}

♥♥♥♥♥

Free projects make me giddy :)

Linking Up:
House of Hepworths
Someday Crafts
Five Days Five Ways

Here Comes the Sun
Ladybird Ln
Serenity Now

Handmade Birthday Invitations

Well, I am home with a sick little boy today, so I thought I would take advantage of the free time (while he lays on the couch watching Tom & Jerry), to make Kenzee's invitations to her 13th birthday party. Yes, you heard me correctly...I will have a TEENAGER in a matter of days!! So {crazy} for me....

For this celebration she is inviting only her 3 closest friends so making the invitations sounded fun to me :)

Isn't it lovely??

Here are all 3 of them. Each one is a little different.

I love that it has many different patterns & textures.

Buttons & lacy bows ♥♥

For the inside I typed up the wording in a fancy font in word processor & printed it on textured cardstock. Secured with brads.

One last look :)

It feels so much more personal than a store bought invitation. I really like them & I hope Kenzee does too!!

Linking Up:
Debbiedoos Blogging & Blabbing
You Are Talking Too Much
The DIY Home Sweet Home Project
Mommy by Day Crafter by Night
Here Comes the Sun

Getting a Head Start

My sister was over today & she wanted me to help her with some crafts. She is {one of those} that claims she is not crafty. She needs me to walk her through & reassure her that she is doing it "right" ;) Since Valentine's Day is only a week away, we thought we might as well just get a head start on St. Patrick's Day decor!! Oh, AND before you start any craft, a quick trip to the thrift store is necessary :)

This green vase type thing was one she picked up at the thrift store today for $1.69. SCORE!!

She traced my shamrock template onto green scrapbook paper & cut them out. Then, hot glued them to skewer sticks.

Filled the vase with lima beans.

How's that for a St. Patty's Day craft in February!!??!

Linking Up:
Nifty Thrifty Things
Cherished Treasures
I {heart} Naptime
Flamingo Toes
Tatertots and Jello
Sister of the Wild West
Here Comes the Sun
Someday Crafts