DIY Disney Antenna Topper Ornaments

Can you believe Christmas is here in a few more days?!?!  I think we all say it every year, but each year really does go by so quickly!

I have a quick project for you today.  In fact, I've shared these DIY Disney Antenna Topper Ornaments in the past, but wanted to give a tutorial on how to make them.

Christmas Gift Idea: Man Crates

Hello there!  I know it's been awhile since I've popped on the blog, but wanted to share an awesome Christmas gift idea.  I don't know about you, but there are a few men in my life that are really hard to shop for!   Man Crates offers unique gift sets for those hard-to-shop-for men in your life!

DIY Minnie Mouse Pumpkin Shirt

Just popping in to share a quick project...I actually made this t-shirt a year ago for my niece.   I got the t-shirt at Michael's (similar to this).  They are pretty cheap to buy & if they're not on sale, you can use a coupon.

There are different brands of iron-on transfer paper.  I'm currently using Jolee's brand, but I've used the Avery brand before too.  Either works fine - just make sure to buy the type for the color shirt you are using (there's one for white fabric & one for colored fabric).  The instructions will be included with the packet, so you can just follow those.

I found this image through a Google search.  Whatever image you end up using, just make sure to reverse the image if it has writing on it - that way when you iron it on, it will come out the correct way.

The shirt was actually too big for her last year.  It's still a bit big for her, so we tied it at the side on the bottom to bring it in.  I also used orange ribbon on the sleeves to pull those up a bit more, but one of the ribbons fell off early on in the day, so I'll need to fix that.

Have you ever used iron-on transfer paper to make things?  I've used it for t-shirts, pillows, tote bags, & even a dog bed - it's a great way to personalize things & make them your own and really easy to do!

Originally posted by Adventures in DIY

Jack Skellington Halloween Jar

***Repost***  I thought I would share this post again since it's one of my more popular ones this time of year...

After I made these cute Halloween jars (using this tutorial on this Not So Idle Hands post), I finished up a jar of pickles leaving me with another empty jar that I could make another one with.  But, I had to figure out what I wanted for it to be.  Then, I had the great idea to make a Jack Skellington one!

DIY "Monsters Inc" Mike Wazowski Costume

Hello!  How is everyone's Fall shaping up?  Here in Southern California, we're still pretty hot, but this week the weather will be cooling down to the mid 80s/high 70s!  Woo hoo!  Seriously, I'm O-V-E-R this heat!

If you've been reading my blog for awhile, then you know I love Halloween.  I've been super busy lately, so haven't had time to put up any Fall/Halloween decorations yet, but I was able to get my Halloween costume done (even before October 1st!!!).  I've had the idea to be Mike Wazowski from "Monsters Inc" for a few years now, but decided that this was the year of Mike!

Summer Fun 2014

Fall is quickly approaching, although, here in Southern California, it still feels like we're in the middle of summer!  It's my favorite time of year and my calendar is already loaded up with things to do!  So, before Fall officially starts, I thought I'd share my summer fun with you.

Disneyland's Rock Your Disney Side 24 Hour Event
(click above for the blog post I previously shared)...We didn't spend the entire 24 hours at the parks, but went down there after work.  There were so many people there - when we left at 2am, there were still a lot of people showing up!  But, they made it like a party atmosphere, so it didn't seem so bad and we had a blast!

Adventures in the Caribbean

Just popping in for another travel report....last month I went on a Caribbean cruise with some friends. Ever since my trip to St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands, I've been wanting to explore some other Caribbean islands and a cruise is definitely the way to do it!

Fabric Bunting

Hello - long time, no blog!  It's been a busy, busy summer and I also have a deadline to meet, so I've been slaving away to make sure I don't fall too behind.  So, things may be continue to be slow on the blog-front in the next few months, but I'll be sure to pop in from time to time.

Today, I'm sharing fabric bunting that I made.  I've always loved the look of these, but there's really no place for one in my home, so when the opportunity to make a few of them came up, I jumped on it.

Sconces & Mirrors: A Master Bedroom Mini Update

Last week, I shared my plank headboard that I finally got around to making.  I still have some other projects in mind to make the room complete, but for now I've added a couple of small touches to give it a mini-update.

Plank Headboard

I mentioned previously that I'm working with Duluth Trading Company - they gave me a Kick In The Pants to get whatever project(s) that I needed to finish.  Two plans that I revealed were for a plank headboard & a dining table and I finally finished the headboard!  Several things came up since I originally planned these, including a sprained ankle, school work, & a lot of family stuff, but I was finally get it completed! (I have all the supplies for the dining table & it will still be done, but at a later time).

Projects In The Works

It's been quiet on the blog, but not-so-quiet on the homefront.  There's been lots of things going on, all the while I've been trying to fit in projects when I can.

I think I mentioned before that I've been in the process of making a plank headboard.   I ended up buying a Kreg Jig so that I could go with Plan B, which will make it easier to finish up the project.  I played around with it tonight and am loving it so far!

I actually had to put the headboard on hold for a bit since I helped make decorations for my friend's daughter's birthday party, which was last weekend.  (I thought I was going to have a couple of posts about the decorations, but I sort of forgot to take pictures of the finished products.  Oops.)  But, I'm hoping to have the headboard finished up soon.

I also want to make a few gifts, which I'll need to get done in the next couple of weeks, so I need to get on that - especially because my ideas are pretty ambitious and using processes I've never done before.

So, that's what's been going on - busy, busy, busy and several unfinished projects in progress.  I hope everyone is enjoying their summer - I know I sure am!

Originally posted by Adventures in DIY

Duluth Trading Co. Gift Card Winners - Father's Day Giveaway

Hey all!  I've been busy working on some crafty projects lately - decorations for my friend's daughter's upcoming birthday party.   I'll share those in some upcoming posts.  I also finally got the remaining supplies to finish the headboard I was working on, so I can finally finish that up after I'm done with these party decorations.

So, are you ready for the 2 winners of the $50 Duluth Trading Company gift cards?  This was my very first giveaway, so I was really excited to have this opportunity to do this for you guys!

And the winners are........

Maleficent at the El Capitan

Maleficent opened last weekend - did you see it yet?  I saw it on Saturday at the El Capitan Theater in Hollywood in 3D.  I won't give anything away, but it was awesome and Angelina Jolie was perfection!  She WAS Maleficent.  They did a really wonderful job with the storyline - such an interesting version of this old tale!

Father's Day: Duluth Trading Co Gift Card Giveway

Can you believe it's already June?  Father's Day is coming up pretty quickly here and I have a great giveaway for you guys!

Duluth Trading Company has very kindly given me 2 $50 gift cards to giveaway to my readers in honor of Father's Day!  Check out Duluth's website to see what kind of awesome goodies they have.

Via Duluth Trading Co

Feel free to enter the giveaway below (make sure your email address is included so I can get in touch with you in case you win) and leave a comment letting me know what you buy with your gift card (if you can't leave a comment due to technical difficulties, no worries - you're still eligible).  And remember - I have TWO gift cards to give away, so there will be 2 lucky winners.  Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Originally posted by Adventures in DIY

Rock Your Disney Side 24 Hour Event

How is it already the end of May?  Time is going so fast and summer will be here before you know it.  Today, I'm sharing another Disney post...

Seashell Canvas

Lately, I've been mostly doing major projects, so I decided to take a break and do a quick crafty project.

Downtown Disney - Birthday Celebration

It's been awhile since I've done a Disneyland post (looks like the last time was in June of last year, although I've been several times since then).  My birthday was last month and I wanted to go to Downtown Disney to celebrate.  I would have loved to go into the actual parks, but my annual pass was blocked because of Spring Break & Easter weekend.

Via Disneyland website

Adventures in Fixing the Back Fence: Part 2

Hello!  I previously shared Part 1 of fixing the back fence (and why) a couple of days ago.  So, to continue on...my brother and I made a trip to Home Depot to get some fencing.

(Since we were there with my nephew's truck, I also got the wood I needed for my projects for Duluth's Kick In The Pants challenge.  Woot!).

Adventures in Fixing The Back Fence: Part 1

I've never really shared much of my backyard before.  It needs a lot of work and I'm not ready for it yet.  There's lots of other things that are a priority over it, but eventually one day it will be done.  

There's a city sports park that's on the other side of my back yard.  The previous homeowner's had a gate put in on the back fence when they had new fencing installed on the property.  This gave quick access to the sports park (I never used it because I didn't like the fact that anyone could get into my backyard if they wanted to, plus the gate was hard to open).  Well, apparently that gate is not up to code because in early April, I received a letter from the city stating that I had 30 days to replace the gate with regular fencing.  Oy vey.  So, I called on big brother to help me take care of it.

He came over on a weekend and we assessed the situation.  When we opened the gate to look at the other side of the fence, to my surprise, I noticed that one part of the fence was leaning over into my back yard.  I never even noticed it because it was covered by some foliage!

Studio Reveal! The Details

Yep!  The studio reveal gets another post!  Today is all about the details, so be prepared for lots of pictures.  (You can check out the studio reveal here and "the plan" here).

Studio Reveal! The Plan

Previously, I shared my Studio Reveal - I'm so glad it's finally done!

Studio Reveal!

I'm officially unofficially done with the studio!  Thank goodness!  (I say "officially unofficially" because there's still a few things left to do, but they won't get done for awhile, so I'm calling it done for now).

 

Project Plans: Dining Table - Duluth Gave Me A Kick In The Pants!

I mentioned in my last post that I'm working with Duluth Trading Co.  They're giving me a kick in the pants to get a project completed and I have ambitiously picked TWO that I've been wanting to get done for awhile.

The second project...a dining table!  My current dining table is not something I chose and it's not my style at all.  Quite awhile ago, I found these plans on Ana White's amazing blog (link below the picture) for this X picnic table.

Via Ana White

Spring Cleaning: The Back Patio

Here in Southern California, we haven't had much of a winter - in fact, our weather has been very spring & summer-like for most of the winter.  I've been BBQing a lot more lately, so I decided it was time to finally clean up the back patio.  

I ended up moving the table and chairs over a little bit and moved the solar lantern next to the BBQ where it gets plenty of sun during the day to charge up the solar battery.

Project Plans: Plank Headboard - Duluth Gave Me A Kick In The Pants!

As I mentioned in the last post, I'm working with Duluth Trading Co, who are giving me a kick in the pants to get some projects done!  I've also mentioned previously that life has been quite busy lately, so I haven't gotten as many things done as I've been wanting to.  So, this kick in the pants is exactly what I've needed!  I'm actually going to be very ambitious and try to get 2 projects done that I've been wanting to do for a long time.  

The first project?  A plank headboard for my master bedroom!  I've been collecting some great ideas from blog-land onto my Pinterest board.  These are my inspirations:

Via House*Tweaking

Address Plaque

Well, I still don't have a studio reveal for you.  The last, main part of pulling the room together was putting up the gallery wall.  I did that a couple of weekends ago and wasn't happy with it.  Not.at.all! So, I took it down and quickly formulated Plan B.  Plan B required a few new projects to be done, so I've been working on those and hopefully will get this darn gallery wall up soon.

But, I did get this project done!

Happy Easter!

Wishing everyone a Happy Easter!  I hope everyone is having a wonderful time celebrating and enjoying time with family & friends!

My extent of crafting and decor for this Easter are these jute-wrapped & baker's twine-wrapped plastic eggs and the cork bunny that sit on the end of my mantel.  To make the jute-wrapped & baker-s twine-wrapped plastic eggs, just wrap the jute or baker's twine around those cheap plastic eggs and hot glue them as you go.

Originally posted by Adventures in DIY

Duluth Wants To Give You A Kick In The Pants!

Have you heard of Duluth Trading Co?  They're a company that is known for their Longtail T Shirts, which in their words "...solved the age old, notorious and much feared problem known as Plumber's Butt".  They also have a lot of other workwear, footwear, accessories  - they're pretty awesome and have a great sense of humor.  I love that in a brand!

I'm going to be working with them (more on that later), but right now they are having a great contest on their Facebook page:  they want to give you a good Kick In The Pants to get your project done by having you share your projects on their Facebook page.  They may just award your project with $200 in cash and $200 in Duluth Trading Co. gear!  Pretty sweet, right?  If you're like me, I'm sure you have some that are needing to be finished (or started).  So, head on over there and submit your project.  Let me know in the comments if you do, so I can make sure to check them out!

Originally posted by Adventures in DIY

This post is sponsored by Duluth Trading Co.  All opinions are my own.

Cork Bunny

Hey Peeps!
If you remember, my brother-in-law is a winemaker that I got a ton of un-used corks from.  I've been trying out various cork projects as they come to mind.

After making this cork heart for Valentine's day, I decided to make something for Easter.  A Peep-shaped bunny?  Sure!  Why not?

This was easy to make - I just laid out the corks on a table until I got the shape I wanted.  Then, I hot glued the corks together.  Anyone else have any Easter projects you're working on?

Originally posted by Adventures in DIY

Baked Potato Soup - Recipe Review

It's officially Spring, but here in Southern California we've had Spring-like weather for most of Winter.  However, now that it's officially Spring, we're getting Winter-like weather.  Wait - huh?  Yep - we've had very little rain this Winter (we're in a drought), but over the last week, we've gotten some rain and more rain is in the forecast for this week.   Woo hoo!  So, I decided to try out Hi Sugarplum!'s Simple Crockpot Potato Soup recipe.  I've been on a quest to find the best potato soup crockpot recipe and I think I got pretty close on this one.

I won't go into details of the recipe since you can just click on the link and get it from Hi Sugarplum's blog, but this is what all the ingredients look like once you put them together in the crockpot.

And look at how it turned out!

What did I think?  It was good, but not great.  Although, it's the best creamy potato soup recipe I've found.  I think that one main thing prevented it from being great - the recipe said to put the hashbrown potatoes in frozen, but I really think they should be thawed out first.   After the recommended time of 5 hours plus the additional 30 minutes after adding the cream cheese, the potatoes weren't very soft.  And I like my potatoes soft.  So, I let it cook for an extra hour and the potatoes had softened a bit more, but not completely.  I think if they had been thawed out first, this would have come out perfectly!

Originally posted by Adventures in DIY

So, This Happened...(And An Almost Studio Reveal)

I think I've mentioned before that life has been pretty busy lately (therefore, the lack of posts).  I was starting to get back on a DIY kick and then this happened...

#yesIneedatan

Jewelry Display

Hey there!  I've been slacking a bit with posting - life has been eventful in many ways and keeping me on my toes...So, I actually debated on whether or not to share this project.  I'm not 100% happy with how it turned out, but it will work just fine as a temporary solution until my master bathroom gets its makeover.

Even though I don't really wear much jewelry on a daily basis, I like to throw on a necklace or ring for when I go out on the weekends.  I've seen lots of cute jewelry displays made from cork board and have been really wanting to make one.  My non-crafty friend even made one and I was so proud of her!  In an effort to use my abundance of craft supplies, I decided not to buy anything for this project and use what I already had on hand.  Here is what I ended up with!

Studio Project: Map Wrapped Boxes

Oh. my. word.  Have I really been working on my Studio since July?  Geez louise.  In my defense, I had to wait to get this awesome Vittsjo shelf from Ikea, did some garage organization, reorganized my pantry, reorganized my linen closet, finished a complete bathroom overhaul, and had to deal with the holidays, so at least I did manage to get some things accomplished.  But, the main reason I haven't finished the studio is because the leftover things that need to be organized is all the piddly stuff that don't have "homes".  So, this is why this last part has been a struggle.  I accomplished some things in the room last week and finally came up with a game plan, so *hopefully* that will get done very soon.  

Some of you may or may not know, but I loooooooooooove maps.  Love them.  Always have and always will.  I used to stare & study them and daydream about where I wanted to go.  And since I'm a lover of maps, I've managed to gather a good collection of them (and they were all free! You can get them from your hotels, when you get a rental car, AAA.  I just grab them when I see 'em).   Anyways, I had some old photo boxes that had a nice palm tree pattern on them.  They were still in good condition and although the palm tree pattern isn't bad, it just doesn't fit in with my decor.  So, the boxes were just sitting around, not being used to their full potential.   

So, I grabbed a couple of maps and used them to cover the photo boxes.  On one box, I used Mod Podge, which was a bit of a pain to get the air bubbles out (they never completely came out, so it's a good thing maps have lines - helps hide the bubbly bits) and the other box, I used double-stick tape and a bit of Mod Podge on the edges.  This 2nd process was much easier, by the way.  I just cut the pieces for each side (the maps weren't big enough to wrap the boxes like you would a gift - I figured that you don't ever see the bottom of the box, so I left the bottoms "as-is") and stuck the pieces on.  The boxes already had the metal plates on them, so I used an Xacto knife to cut the paper around it.  Then, I slapped on a label and called them done. 

Now I can use them for much-needed storage, all while they sit there looking pretty awesome.  I'll just have to try not to stare at them & daydream and actually get some projects done.

Originally posted by Adventures in DIY

Cork Heart

I'm usually not big on Valentine's Day - to me it's just another day.  I don't mind doing something small for it, but I feel like there shouldn't be a special day to show the people in your life that you love them.  It should be something that you do on a regular basis, right?   But, Kim at Sand & Sisal shared her Valentine's Cork Heart project and I just had to make one for myself.  I mean, I do have 2 huge bags of never-used corks sitting around waiting for me to create something with them!

So, here is my "something small" for Valentine's Day.

It was really easy to make and only took about 15 minutes.  I just placed my corks in a heart shape on the table and glued the corks together (using hot glue) one by one.  It was seriously that easy.  Now go make yourself one.

Originally posted by Adventures in DIY

Chair Style Guide: One Kings Lane

I was recently contacted by One Kings Lane to feature my style profile for their Chair Style Guide.  I jumped at the chance because One Kings Lane is pretty awesome!

If you look at the guide, there is a chart and you start by picking your style:  Classic or Modern.  Next, you'll choose which material you prefer.  Then, you'll choose another style among the list, which will then lead you to pictures of chairs.  It's a great way to help you choose a chair if you're on the hunt for one!

Winter Blooms

I know a lot of our country is experiencing some crazy winter weather right now, but here in Southern California, we haven't had much of a winter.  In fact, up until last week, our temps were in the mid- 70s to mid-80s.  We ended up getting some much needed rain and clouds at the end of last week, but still pretty mild compared to other places.

I think with all the nice weather, it's been freaking out my plants.  My calla lilies are starting to bloom.

My gerber daisies surprised me by blooming 5 flowers!  They've never grown in that many at the same time.

And my snapdragons, which I thought were long gone, are making an appearance.

For those of you who have been stuck with some bad snow & icy weather, stay warm!

Originally posted by Adventures in DIY

Garage Organization: Inside the Cabinets

My garage organization has been a work-in-progress for the last couple of years.  I work on it when I'm in the mood - mostly because it is a huge project and I didn't want to get overwhelmed and totally abandon it.  In the beginning, I made a list of what needed to be accomplished and broke it down into smaller projects so it would be easier to get done.

I previously mentioned in other posts that I was able to get some organizing done over the holidays and this was one of them.

What a great "before and after", right?!

DIY Dropcloth Dog Bed

Since Sally has become more of a fixture around here, I've been trying to incorporate her things with the decor of my house.  Although she sleeps with me on my bed, I decided to make her her own bed for when she wants a place to lounge throughout the day.

In the past, I got Sally a store-bought bed, but she didn't like it.  Since she's been staying here, I noticed that she always tries to lay on my pillow.  This a no-dog-butts-allowed zone!  So, I decided to make her own dog bed out of an old king-size pillow I wasn't using anymore.

Hall Bathroom - One More Post

A couple of things that I didn't share on my hall bathroom reveal post?

Hall Bathroom Makeover Source List

I recently shared my hall bathroom makeover reveal - so, so excited to have a pretty bathroom now!

Linen Closet ReOrganization Part 2

One of the other spaces I reorganized last month was my linen closet.  Last year, I shared how I reorganized it here.  It was only temporary - I knew it would need to be reorganized after I remodeled my hall bathroom (I had a white storage cabinet with white baskets in there and part of the plan was to take it out of the bathroom for good).

Pantry ReOrganization

Last month, I took the time to reorganize a few of my spaces.  I started with my pantry - it was already pretty much organized, but there were a few problem spots that needed to be fixed.  My pantry is really deep, which in a way is good for storage, but at the same time it's not because it makes it hard to access stuff in the back.  Because it's so deep, using baskets & bins was going to be my best bet.  Throughout the last year, I bought baskets & bins from the Dollar Tree, knowing that I'd be able to use them in various spaces around the house, including the pantry.

Hall Bathroom Makeover: The Reveal

Hello and Happy New Year!  How quickly time flies, right?  This past holiday season was a busy one for me, but I managed to complete some projects - just didn't get a chance to share yet.   And this month I'll be busy & stressed at my job, so I'm hoping that doesn't get in the way of projects I'd like to get started on.  At least I have some completed projects to share with you soon.  ;)

So, now for the hall bathroom reveal - FINALLY!  The bathroom was finished since before Thanksgiving and I added a few final touches in the last few of weeks.  I have one more project planned for it, but not sure when I'll get around to it, so for now I've officially called it done.  D-o-n-e!  Bada-bing, bada-boom!