a good ol' bucket

Happy Weekend! I am loving the fact that it is Friday night! It's been a long week and next week is going to be just as long, if not longer, so I am going to soak up this evening and the next few days. There are still to do lists, but hopefully there will be fun and enjoyment too!

Normally I would leave Fridays for my Five Things Fridays, but I wanted to get my quick little DIY project up tonight! 

During my childhood, my family had a tree skirt around the base of our tree. I didn't want any old skirt and that is pretty much all I could find. I did find a fabulous furry and soft winter white one at Home Goods and I actually bought it and brought it home. And with a little thought, returned it. I just knew in a year or two there would be water spills and sap drippings on it and it wouldn't look so glorious any more. I couldn't go another year without something around the base of our tree and it wasn't looking good for the whole skirt hunt, so I had to think of some other option. I had seen people do baskets and even silver buckets, but I didn't want it just like everyone else. I wanted it a little different. I had a few ideas, but it would either take more money or more time, neither of which I was interested in spending. So I grabbed a huge bucket, which can be bought at Home Depot. I am pretty sure you can get a 16-17 gallon for around twenty bucks. I also had some gold metallic spray paint on hand so I just gave the shiny steel bucket a once over with some gold paint and wallah, it was done! 

Supplies: Steel bucket (Home Depot, $20)

Metallic Gold (or color of your choice) spray paint (Hobby store - bring a coupon to get it cheap!)

I'm loving gold this year so I have been trying to add in pops of gold so this was my color of choice for this project. If you'd like you could spray it red for a nice bright pop, or cream/white. Anything that goes with your color theme! And, if you are like me and change your color theme from year to year, you can just spray over it next year! 

Be sure to measure the largest part of the base of your tree stand to make sure it fits. Our tree stand is 19" at the widest point and the bucket is about 20-21" so this was perfect. All you do is paint the bucket, and pick your tree up (two person job!) and plop it place it gently in the bucket! And there you have it! A quick, easy, and pretty reasonably priced DIY project! 

Our before was a tree stand on top of white garbage bags. Totally attractive, huh? And now we have a simple gold bucket to complete our tree! 

I have a few more DIY Christmas projects I'll be posting over the next few days. Do you have any DIYs that you or your family have done for Christmas? I'd love to see and have you share your creativity!

Added Light Would be Nice

Behind the larger door in this small corner is our laundry room, with a window. Our kitchen doesn't get a ton of light because the main windows in the room are in the back of the house. A little dream of mine would be to have a little dutch door or possibly a glass panel door there to keep the littles out and the light in! This door has to stay closed at all times because the little men of the house find everything in the small room a lot of fun! The room is very tiny. It is just as wide as a washing machine, dryer and folded up ironing board hanging on the wall. The washing machine door just opens and standing adjacent to that is a tall, cheap, bookshelf from Walmart that we put all of our appliances on (toaster, blender, food processor… all that stuff that I hate on my counters.) That's it. It really is a small room, but the window in there is not serving it's purpose at all with the door closed. Maybe one day we'll put in a new door, but it is a pretty expensive update! Do you have any random house projects that you have on your one day list? 

neat and bright

I posted this picture on Instagram and Facebook a little while back and a sweet friend asked me, "How does your house look like that? So neat and bright?"

While I do live in a home with a large white couch and upholstered dining room chairs, truth be told, chances are here is what you may walk into if you randomly stop by our home during the day.

It's not so neat. Aaannnnnddddd, I'm not so neat. It drives me crazy when there is stuff out all over and more and more I am becoming a slight minimalist with less clutter out, but I am not a neat freak. I wish I was. The Hubs on the other hand, he is. He is beyond neat. Beyond. So in any picture you might see that is extremely neat, it is only because I try to work hard to keep it that way for him. But most of the time, I fail miserably. I wish I could be like him, but at the same time, I'd drive myself to the looney bin. Seriously. Between all the housework, taking care of the little ones, and anything else that is random that pops in, it's not easy to keep a perfectly clean and orderly house. And if you are capable of doing that, I applaud you, because I can't. 

At the end of the day after the boys are in bed and the dinner dishes are cleaned, I clean the kitchen and then the boys toys all go away (we reduced it to only one basket now). The dining room is always neat because we just eat our meals in there. The kitchen stays neat for the most part because I try to not let things pile up in there. Sometimes a pile ends up on my side of the desk, but for the Hubs sake, I have been trying to be real good about no piles on the desk either.

The den/family room is where I am found when I am relaxing. That is also where my piles end up. I usually end up with a tote bag filled with my papers, magazines and books, or I will have the things I am working on that day in the corner on the couch, like in the picture below. Even this I am trying to do my best to limit. I have been making sure to put that away in my closet each day, even if I know I am going to be using it the next morning. And in this room really the only mess is the boys toys, which go away at each nap time and then for good at bedtime.

Unfortunately, our bedroom gets the brunt of things. The laundry that is folded and waiting for me to put it away sits in there, anything random. It goes in there. A lot of times you will find a laundry basket and a few random things, or a pile on the dresser. This is the sore spot. I have to work harder at not keeping anything out in that room. Sometimes it is hard because the boys love love love to go in there and get at the electronics, my makeup, jewelry, clothes, all the things they shouldn't get at so during the day I will just toss things in there to do later, when they are asleep and then night time comes and I am still working, but have yet to get to it and the Hubs comes home to piles in there, waiting for me to sort and put away. So that is my danger zone right now. Bed and bath. I will conquer that one of these days. Right now it is neat and tidy (except my bathroom drawer that the little men attacked before the Hubs so kindly child-proofed for me.)

I also put things on the stairs to go up and put away and don't clear that off each night. That should be my New Years resolution is to clear the stairs every night. Whether is is linens to go in the linen closet, the boys laundry, things for the attic, anything, it goes on the stairs, behind the gate, so the boys don't get at it. I am usually running here and there all day with them and whenever I go upstairs without them, they get upset so I try to avoid it, thus the piles. So my goal, along with keeping the bedroom pile free and the bathroom without my makeup on the counter or brush out, should be to clean the items off the stairs each evening.

So, though I truly do try my best amidst the craziness of keeping a home and two little men in check, our house isn't always so neat and bright. Don't be fooled by the angle of instagram or Facebook photos. And if you have any encouragement or tips for avoiding piles or organizing, please send them my way! 

mini kitchen makeover

Slowly but surely somehow we find the time to get some home improvement projects done. I have a very knowledgeable and handy aunt and uncle and they volunteered their time and tools to help with my kitchen project. Our goal was to tile the backsplash in the kitchen. It wasn't a very large area so if I was able to find tile in our budget, this would be doable. My uncle did the cutting, my aunt did the measuring and I did the installing. It was a lot of fun!

Befores:

Afters:

It just adds a little touch, yet isn't a drastically different look. I had made the white curtains when we first moved in and didn't know how we were going to be decorating and as much as I loved the clean and simple look, I wanted a small splash of color in there so I purchased new fabric and made new ones. Same style. ha.

We have a lot of baby items in our kitchen and it isn't any designer kitchen, but it is functional for our family. I'm always changing little things up here and there, but all but one of the big kitchen projects is done. Last is to install a new light above the island. I just have to find the right fixture. I'm always on the lookout, but I have yet to find one I like in my very limited budget.

a before and after

When we purchased our home that we would live in when we got married, the hubs and I each had some furniture to contribute to furnish the house. We were quite well situated and had all the necessities. We knew though that in time there were a few pieces we would like to have. One of the pieces was one for the foyer. I knew I wanted it pretty, yet functional. The foyer is directly off the dining room, so I knew it would be perfect to hold many of our china pieces, etc. We didn't have a huge budget, but being that I wanted something pretty and didn't want to settle, I didn't have too high of hopes. At one point before we moved in, Mom and I were shopping and I came upon a great deal for a piece I loved. I just didn't love the color. I should rephrase that. I liked the color, but the color didn't like our house. I went through with my purchase anyway because I figured one day I could some how figure it out and wing it with re-finishing the piece. I had never re-finished anything in my life so I knew I was semi-crazy, but I couldn't pass up the deal. It was a beautiful piece, very well made, and a great price! So we threw it in the back of Mom's Tahoe and off it went. The purple piece sat in our house for quite a while. Some people loved it. Some people looked at me with a questioning look. And two babies later, it took me an even longer time to be crazy getting it done. One day I had the urge to do it and after the boys were asleep, I began my long project, just praying that as I went, I'd figure out what I was doing. I started with the mirror (another super cheap find- thanks Jilly!) and when that went well, I moved on to the piece of furniture.

I had heard people raving about Annie Sloan's chalk paint so I thought I'd give it a try. I do like how it worked on these pieces, but when I went to use it on a few other pieces, I became less of a fan. I am glad I went with Annie Sloan for this piece of furniture and am truly pleased with the outcome, but in the future, I would definitely consider trying to refinish with another brand, less pricey. I am not really sure what the big deal with the paint is. It does look nice, but I am not sure it is worth all the hype. Maybe it is, but I just don't realize what the difference would have been with regular paint.

First I painted the pieces with Old White Chalk Paint.

Once it was completely dry, I used some antique glazing. Again, I was praying as I went alone that I wouldn't destroy the piece with all the black glaze!

And while I don't have a great DIY or step by step pictures, here is the after. Although purple is one of my favorite colors, I do think this looks much better! I'll let you in on a little secret... I still have to wax this piece, but at least it looks finished. Maybe when the boys are a little older I will have the time... college age older. wink.

Don't be afraid to try to refinish a piece yourself! It's not too hard, just time consuming and a little tedious! So don't pass up that cute end table or desk just because of its color or finish! 

My Not-So-Green Thumb

I may come from a family that has has successful gardens, but I've never actually planted and cared for one on my own. Growing up, living in New York, we only had a small garden that consisted solely of tomatoes... mostly cherry tomatoes. So this year is a first for me; planting a whole garden.

Mono bought me a raised bed kit, that came with two 4x4 areas and a few extra goodies.

I have everything in my garden that I wanted to try except lettuce, but there is absolutely no room left for any more plants. As it is, I probably have way too much growing in a small area. I didn't want to waste any of the plants that came in the packages so I planted them all. Now I am just hoping that not only bugs nor deer kill them, but that I don't either.

Here are a few pictures, no fancy angles anything special. I was hot and tired when I was done planting. I had just been out dealing with lots of weekend traffic and long lines at the stores I had to run errands to, plus it is 90 degrees and sunny and I wanted to be inside. So just a few quick pictures for you to see what it looks like. I still have to trim the landscaping fabric and I would like to make some sort of garden tags for each section so I remember what is planted there. I could just use the ones it came with, the plastic flags, but I wanted to do something cute. We will see about that though. My main concern is just to keep them alive and producing veggies!

  

 

A Trip Across Time Zones to my IKEA Adventure

The other day I posted a nice, long, post about our day in Atlanta. 

Not only did it not post, but it didn't even save! I was beyond upset and I just don't have it in me to try and re-write all that I once had. For now, you'll get a few tidbits and you will see some not so great pictures. 

 

Welcome to the family! Hello free frozen yogurt cone!!!

I wanted to take this canvas of NYC home with me. Only problem... it was gigantic! This is just a portion of the picture.

Neither Mono nor I had ever been to IKEA before and we were on the hunt for a few items, low in cost, and I thought we'd give IKEA a whirl! 

I mentioned in a previous post that we had a project we were hoping to start working on real soon and after our visit to IKEA, we have successfully accomplished what we had in our plan for our little kitchen office. It's still slightly a work in progress, but it is nearly done. All we need is a few organizational things for the cube under the desk. It's streamlined and very simple. Nothing fancy about it. That's how we wanted it. 

After our big and tiring adventure in IKEA, we headed to another slice of Heaven, The Container Store. We picked up drawer organizers for our new desk and a pack of little things to hold our wires... whatever they are called.

After that, we stopped at Trader Joe's just to see if we could find any little yummy treasures, and did we ever. Nothing exotic, just a few tasty basics.... and a few goodies for the ride home.

Italians at heart.

 

Goodies for Mono.

This baby honeycrisp apple could not be passed up. Mono put a bag of them in the cart for me! They are sooo tiny and adorable. The apple it is next to is one that I had in the house, but it was on the smaller side itself, so you can't get a real clear idea how just how small my new apples are. Just a few bites and you are done!

 

I had only been to Atlanta a few times before this trip because before moving to my current home, I was a bit further away and it wouldn't make for as fun of a time. Now that we live close it will be fun to hop on over there a little more frequently. I must say, from what I saw today, I love that city! I have to now find out all the good go-to areas for dining and shopping!

So there you have it. A quick post on our adventure. No nice wording, not detailed, just a quick post because I want to be done with it and move on to happier stories after I lost the original nice version.