Jumping on the Blogger Bandwagon

Well, I may be a few years behind the rest of the world, but here I am! Locked, loaded, and ready to blog away about all the things I love! What do I love, you ask? Hmmm...these are a few of my favorite things...(cue singing a la Sound of Music style while dancing around the room twirling fabric in your hands)

- DIY, DIY, DIY. Did I mention DIY?! I love to make things. Small things, large things, things for the house, things for my kiddos, things for the hubster (that would be my husband), things for outside, but most importantly, THINGS THAT DON'T COST A FORTUNE! I'm always looking for neat things to make from scratch or re-purpose that will not break the bank because, let's face it, I'm not sitting high on the hog. And even if I was, I still would rather put my hands to work and feel the satisfaction of making something myself vs paying way too much for it somewhere else.

- Organization. I love to be as organized as possible. And I'll be the first to admit, I'm still a work in progress! But, as I'm progressing I'd like to give ideas to others to help them as well.

- Sewing/Arts & Crafts. I used to sew quite frequently. However, I stopped doing it for many years, and now am getting back on the horse. So, you'll be along for the ride as I re-teach myself and learn new tricks along the way!

There are so many other things that I love to do, but these are the basis for my blog. Hope you enjoy!

A Few DIYs of My Own

The photo above is of the owl pillows I made for my daughter's 6th birthday sleepover party this past October. With her birthday being in the fall and it being a sleepover party with all the little girls in her class at school, I thought owls would be perfect. Instead of giving out junk toys and party favors that would deem useless in a matter of a couple weeks, I thought making these would give the girls something they could keep for years to come. I had decided to do this a couple months ahead, and it worked out beautifully because when she started school come to find out, in her class they were "owls"! They did take a lot more time than just grabbing party bags at the store, but seeing how much the girls loved them was worth it!

 

 

In the name of doing things inexpensively...oh, who are we kidding?! I'm a cheapskate! Anywho...I was walking through Hobby Lobby one day when I came across a super cute picture done on canvas that I thought would look oh so cute in my daughter's room. I was so excited...until I saw the price tag. Don't get me wrong, it wasn't horrible by any means, but I was in the market for, say around ten bucks. Ha! That won't get me far on art work anywhere these days! (The original is below.)

 

 

 

I decided the picture was easy enough for me to give a go at it at home. I already had a canvas laying around just taunting me to do something with it so I figured, what the heck? I took a picture of the one in the store with my phone (which I like to do with anything I see that I could make myself for less) and headed back home.

 

I used water colors - which worked out quite nicely, much to my surprise. And the project was fun. I didn't have to worry about some fancy schmancy piece of art and making it look like a million bucks, and I could go outside of the box from the original design. I loved how it turned out, but more importantly, my daughter loved how it turned out! And she is one tough critic!

 

Why is it then on the top of a book shelf instead of hanging on the wall in her room? Well, that is another story for another day. For now, let's just say it's waiting to be delivered to its home in her "remodeled" room. ;-)

 

 

Like I said, I love to organize. And I'm always looking for better and improved ways of going about it based on what works for me. I'm a huge list person. The only problem is, I tend to lose half my lists.

 

One of the things I've been a stickler on for years is a grocery list. The first time I ventured out into adulthood in the grocery store I ended up walking up and down every aisle, spending a fortune, and finding out a week into my two week supply of groceries that I didn't have anything left to eat but junk and not any money to go get more. So, I changed that real quick!

 

I started making a list. Over the years, I have refined the art of my grocery lists, and I think I may have just hit the jackpot. Originally, I would make a menu for the week or two week period I would be shopping for. Then, I would go through each menu item and write down all of the ingredients needed. THEN, I would make an entirely different list categorizing all of the food items based on the sections of the store they were in. WHEW! But, the great thing about spending all of that time making all of those lists was that I never went down any aisle I didn't need to (thus preventing me from making impulse buys), I only went for the items on my list, and IT HELPED KEEP ME IN BUDGET!

 

So, long story short (not really, if you haven't noticed, I'm kind of bad at keeping something short and sweet) I have now devised an easier system. I print off these lists I designed for each week (I shop once a week now). I plan out my meals and have the ingredients already divided up for me, so it's easy to write it down as I write down a meal. Plus, if I think of something I need to pick up the next time I'm at the store, I've got this handy-dandy list to jot it down on. Then, I don't end up forgetting to get that one thing I was sure I would remember when I thought of it two days ago but end up not remembering now that I'm actually writing out my list to head to the store. ;-) I'm sure no one else has ever done that, right? That's why you'll notice my writing cotton face pads on this list. I just shopped today, and since I wanted you to see a nice clean list page, I removed this week's. My husband got into my stash of face cleaning pads to clean his R/C cars *sigh* and informed me I was running low after I had already gone to the store. So, I wrote it down for next week's visit.

 

All-in-all I love this new list. It keeps me using one page per week instead of three. I have a weekly menu planned and always in sight so I don't ever have to wonder what I'm going to make. And it's just plain easier. I added two magnetic strips to the back of the clipboard, and now it hangs on the side of my fridge. Later, I will be mod podging the clipboard to make it more to my liking and will post pics after I do so. You can find my free template for the menu/grocery list sheet here.

 

 

LAST ONE! I PROMISE! Geeze! And I thought this blogging thing was going to be hard. Guess I don't know when to stop!

 

On the organizing bit...I am SO excited to show you what I've done with the bedding around here! I was so sick of having to dig through the sheets to find what I wanted each time I went to change them out. And after digging through, some would fall over, unfold, and make an even bigger mess. The pillow cases were a disaster mixed in with the sheets, and it was just an all around pain in the rear.

 

After seeing a million different pictures of people and their marvelous organizing, I decided to do something about one of my problem areas (baby steps...one area at a time). I spent next to nothing too! DOLLAR TREE! Holy moly do they have some awesome stuff, and guess what it costs?! You got it! A DOLLAR! (This momma's doing the happy dance!)

 

I bought the plastic totes, ribbon, and safety pins (No, I did not have any on hand. Yes, I am aware that it is a common item to have at home. Well, now I do.) from Dollar Tree. I used a bigger tote for my king size set of sheets. I put all of my extra pillow cases that didn't have sheet sets in separate bins as well...separated by size, of course. I have a bin for each individual set of full and king size sheets (That way you just pull one bin down, and voila! You can make the bed with what you have!). I even have a bin for "scrap sheets". Those are my old, worn out sheets that I keep around for drop cloths or floor protectors whenever the kids or I are doing messy projects.

 

I made the labels as well and decided to attach them via safety pin and ribbon. That way, if I ever move something to a different tote, I can easily take the tag right along with me! This has made my sheet closet look stunning! I do just go in there and stare at it from time to time just because I can now without hating life. Ha!

 

Okay...so there you have it! My first official blog is complete! I do hope I haven't bored you to death with my over explaining. My goal is to write once a week with projects I've done or am in the process of tackling. So, stay tuned for much much more in the world of DIY at 442 Copper Trail!