For unto us a child is born-Christmas Vinyl

Next time you're at IKEA don't forget to check out their scratch & dent area. At the Burbank,CA location it's just before the registers to the right. In the section you are sometime lucky enough to find a diamond in the rough. Many months ago I found a large, black cabinet door for $3!! The front side was in perfect condition and the backside has some white scuff marks around the outside. It took me a while to decide what to do, but I finally decided on some "subway" style vinyl with one of my favorite scriptures Proverbs 3:5-6

I knew I still needed to do something with the backside so I could get double use out of this wonderful find. I decided on Isaiah 9:6 and am very happy with how it turned out. It's hard to tell, but I did paint the outside with a greenish black and the vinyl is silver. It almost gives it a chalkboard feeling.

Here's the mantel ready to go for Christmas!

 

Holiday Sayings on Wood

A while back I made a double sided 2x8 with  a Christmas/Halloween theme. Well this week I was back at working with 2x8's only this time they had Thanksgiving or Christmas sayings. Locally there is a Facebook group where people can list items for sale (kind of like Craigslist, but on Facebook). I posted these two images and got lots of positive feedback (and sales!).


A few people requested different sayings and I made these:


It was fun to make and sell completed projects rather than just the vinyl and it will help us with our upcoming trip to Disneyland!

Simple Vinyl Nativity on Wood

I know it's the middle of October but I'm always in the mood for Christmas crafts and I have a pile of wood calling my name. Every time I go to Home Depot I check out their cull wood section to see what's there. A few weeks ago I went and hit the jackpot! There was a stack of end cuts from 2x6's that weren't marked. I went and asked an employee and he said they were free for the taking. So I took them away!

I was pinned my inspiration a while ago, but it was still in my mind. I knew I wanted to make my own (and maybe make a few as gifts for Christmas!).

Source: classyclutter.blogspot.com via Rachel on Pinterest

Mine is a smaller version, but I love how the 2 I made turned out.

I did one with a red/maroon paint and one with a creamy paint:

I love that since it's on thicker wood it will stand on it's own. Perfect for a mantel or bookcase this Christmastime!

Double sided 2x8

I have high hopes that Fall will be hitting my part of the country soon. We're still hitting triple digits each day, but our evenings are just barely making it to bearable.

So on the thoughts of Fall I decided to make a new Halloween craft. I had some scrap 2x8 that I white washed with watered down craft paint and made a festive Halloween design. Who doesn't like a cute skeleton!

But there is a backside to the wood that is just a great as the front. Why leave it blank when I can just as easily make it a Christmas decoration? I love the Hymn "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day" and decided to put part of that hymn on the back.

Happy Fall decorating!

Summer Daily Schedule

Summer is almost upon us! Our last day of school is Thursday. We have loads of trips and activities already planned, but the day to day that we're home I wanted something fun for the kids to look forward to. I came across this idea on Pinterest and was taken to one of my favorite blogs: Somewhat Simple. The idea was originally posted back in June of 2010 when she was featuring some summer boredom ideas. I wanted to rework it  a little bit. I think it's perfect for my kids!

Each weekday there is a different theme that allows you & your kids to plan the week ahead. My kids like to know what's coming. I wanted to be able to write it down for them (and me!) to see what we had planned. So I made it into vinyl and added the words off to the right.

I put it on the top of my fridge and now I can simply use a dry erase marker and write down our weeks activities!

When the summer is done I will take down the words (make something Monday, etc) and use it as my meal calender!

For those interested in a paper copy I have a down-loadable version as well.  This is my first time doing this, so be kind. It would be simple to print and write in each week, or laminate and reuse!

Summer Daily Schedule

I'm linking up here:


 

Bathroom Hooks

I hate doing laundry. With 4 little kids I do a lot of laundry! In my efforts to reduce the amount of "unneeded" laundry I was doing, I hung some hooks in our bathroom.

My kids would take their bath or shower and toss the, only used once, towel in the laundry basket. By hanging their towels on hooks I have reduced the number of towels I wash by 8 each week. Basically a load!!

Well worth it in my book!

Hooked Entryway

Here is the wall just behind our front door before:

and here it is after:

Much better!

I used 6 packs of hooks (purchased at Walmart for about $2.50 per 2 hooks) for a total of 12 hook, 2 per person. Then I made some vinyl with our names so we would know where to hang our stuff! I used a square piece of scrap paper to layout the vinyl & hooks:

Then I marked a level line on my wall and evenly spaced it out. For each hook & vinyl- I rotated the layout and alternated top or bottom of my level line so they wouldn't all be in the same space:

and now I should find no more backpacks, coats, etc on the floor!

Ok, that might be wishful thinking. But now when I find them on the floor I have a spot to put them and the kids have a spot to go and find them!

A little redo...

At our home we've been doing a little room swapping. We swapped our "TV room" and our "Piano room". With this we did a little painting, I did a little vinyl and we got a few new pieces of furniture. We still need some more, but we're getting there. Here it is in the mist of painting:

I received a temple print from my parents for Christmas and was happy to finally find a home for it:

I also changed the layout of my hand trees:

We got a new TV as well, which required a new entertainment unit! (We still need another shelf on the other side, but it wouldn't fit in our van with all 6 of us)!

Here's another shot of the room:

I would really like to get some table lamps to go next to the couches, as well as a ceiling fan.

So what do you think?

Baby food spice jars...

In my online browsing I came across some cute baby food spice jars here. I decided I just had to make some myself, but I changed it up a bit!

Here's what you need:

• baby food jars (I used #1 jars, the smallest) washed and dried


• strong magnets


• E6000 or another strong adhesive


• vinyl with spice names (or a sharpie if you have nice handwriting!)


• spices

I found it to be easiest to place the vinyl down on the counter

and line up the jar through the bottom.

It made it easier to center the vinyl on the jar.
Rub your vinyl

Remove your application tape!

Then get the lid, magnet & E6000, and apply and let it fully dry. (in this image I have 1, 8mm magnet. I ended up using 3 magnets in the end to get it to stay put. I have ordered larger magnets, 20 mm, and it shouldn't be a problem).

I like to order my magnets at dealextreme. They have free shipping, but be aware it can take about a month to get your order.

Now you're ready to fill your jar

And your set!

Depending on how many you are making they would great on the back of the stove:

I ended up putting a metal bar under my cabinets so I could have more:

They also would be great on the side of a refrigerator. This same idea would be great in a craft room with pins, buttons, etc!

Have fun!