Tag Archives: YHL

The Pinterest Challenge: Mod Podge Memo Board

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Did you hear?!?! It’s TIME! Yes, time again for The (unofficial) Pinterest Challenge! You can check out the last challenge we participated in here. This winter edition of the Pinterest Challenge is hosted again by Young House Love and their friendly guest hosts. You can get all the details here at YHL, or at Bower Power, The Remodeled Life, and of course at Decor and the Dog! as well as check out other Pinterest inspired projects and even participate yourself! Enough of the logistics – let’s get our pin on.

So awhile back, well – 41 weeks if you want to be exact (per Pinterest), I pinned this project idea. Simple, personal, and a wee bit chic. Just up my alley. But until now I am embarrassed to say I forgot about it, so I blew the dust off and set out to the craft store with my new/41 week old pinspiration. You check out the original pin here.

Pinned Image

Ok, so when you go to the craft store do you walk right in, get what you need and walk out? Bahahaha, me neither. I am like the cutest kid you have ever seen in the most fantastic candy store ever. Seriously. Ever. On my most recent trip I was pulled in to the scrapbook paper aisle and found some awesome paper that along with the pin above inspired the Marvelous Mod Podge Memo Board below. Isn’t she pretttttttty?

At our house we have been doing a lot of talking about what it means to be thankful and what we are thankful for. Lately we have been talking about it specifically when we sit down for dinner, so imagine the light bulbs going off in my head when I found this little vinyl sticker. I had already found the glass panel and I thought it would be the perfect addition.

After getting everything together I started by cutting the scrapbook paper in to strips. I loved the slightly distressed look of this black frame so I did cut the paper a little smaller than the actual width so it would show through.

Then you guessed it – mooo0000d podge, mo000000d podge – come on sing it, imagine the Dora Backpack song. Maaaaybe too much Dora? Yes I think so.

I left the entire project dry overnight. Look at the nice sheen, I think that is what I love most about Mod Podge projects! Anyway, I simply took a pencil and poked through the dried paper to the pre drilled holes.

After stringing the ribbon through to hang the sign I set to work lining up the vinyl wording. This vinyl transfers are amazingly easy to use, just make sure to know exactly where you want them because once you place them there is no going back.

After pulling off the top layer I had this little gem all done. I must say I was pretty proud of myself. I wiped out my command hooks and hung it on the side of my pantry in the kitchen. It is in close proximity to the dinner table so we can remember to keep the discussions about thankfulness going – even after the fascination fades from our 3 year old’s mind.

Maybe you are wondering what a 3-year-old is thankful for? Well, Miss Addy told me this very night that she was thankful for green beans. She loves them because they are green and delicious. I don’t think you need much more explanation than that!

So there you have it, our second installment of the (unofficial) Pinterest Challenge. If you were wondering, this project cost around $20.00 to complete – pretty good deal!

We would love to see your Pinterest inspired projects, either link them below or head over to YHL and show them off, make sure to let them know we sent you!

Jen

The Thrift Shop Challenge

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It is a thrifting challenge! That’s right Young House Love is hosting a thrift store shopping challenge inspired by the Macklemore & Ryan Lewis song called Thrift Shop. They challenged all of us to visit a local thrift store with $20 and see what we could come out with. There was also a little treasure/scavenger hunt thrown in there too to find one or more items mentioned in the song. You can check out the official rules at the (Completely Unofficial) Macklemore Thrift Shop Challenge post over on Young House love.

Without further ado, I bring you…

Young House Love (Completely Unofficial) Macklemore Thrift Shop Challenge

Jen and I decided to visit Savers to hunt for amazing deals make fools of ourselves taking pictures of the completely silly items we found. In true thrift store style the letter “a” was burnt out in the Savers sign; but we quickly took these 2 parking lot pictures and headed inside. Please forgive me, I look like my lips are blue and my nose is running… it is January in Minnesota, it gets dark out before 6pm and the temperature has been below zero all week! We were freezing ;)

Part of the Thrift Store Challenge was to find one or more of the item mentioned in the song and snap a picture with it: clothing with fringe, an all pink outfit, moccasins, a velour jumpsuit, house slippers, a brown leather jacket, a keyboard, a kneeboard, shoes with velcro, luggage, a plaid button up shirt, flannel zebra jammies, PJs with built-in socks, a telescope, and of course… a big a$$ coat.

I found this lovely red-brown luggage that smelled like it had been filled with moth balls for the last 15 years. While Jen found this awesome pair of velcro shoes, so white you would think they were still brand new!

During our hunt to scavenge item from the list we decided that it was much more fun to take silly picture with all of the crazy items we could locate. Like strange shaped dishware. Corncob plate and bowls anyone? Or perhaps you prefer your blows shaped like a baked potato?

Dishes not your thing? We also found this stellar wedding dress, puffy sleeves and behind ruffles for the win! Or a multi-colored jacket covered entirely in clear sequins?

It is true thrift stores are filled with some pretty unique items, but after a while you just start to get the feeling that someone is watching you… you know what I mean?

Ok, maybe we got a little carried away? As for the item we actually took home. I scored this little ceramic owl, which I am planning on spray painting a glossy white? Of course I was drawn to him like a kid in a candy store and Jen may or may not have ripped him out of my hands declaring that the last thing I needed was another owl, remember this post, but I begged and pleaded and took him home anyway. I also came home with a jar of glitter for 99 cents and a bag of faux, well I think they are faux, acorns that I have some fall decoration plans for. Though fall is a long way off no shame in being prepared right?

Jen scored these 2 framed prints for just under $4 dollars each. She has big plans for some sort of craft/rehab mission to turn them into something beautiful. I don’t know about you but I will be on the edge of my seat waiting to see what she is able to create out of these beauties. Hint: She may have shared a clue to her inspiration on our facebook page. Stop by and see if you can figure out what she has planned!

Neither of us spent our full $20 dollars but we did come away with some pretty good finds, and future projects. Plus we had fun and that is all that really matters right? If you haven’t already, be sure to stop by Young House Loves challenge reveal and see what they scored, and visit some of the other that linked up too, I have seen a few really great finds already!

Chrissy

Two Everyday Divas at the Young House Love Book Signing

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Have you ever had one of those moments? You know, one of those moments when you know your life will never be the same? Well, maybe this wouldn’t quite qualify as one of those moments – but you know what? It was pretty darn cool! Chrissy and I had the opportunity to meet our favorite DIY bloggers from Young House Love this past Wednesday! Maaaaybe you have heard us mention it a time or two?

We arrived early and good thing we did! We almost didn’t as we made a few retail therapy stops on the way down at both Charming Charlie and Home Goods and it was so hard to tear ourselves away. Oh my, I get goose bumps thinking of both of those stores – so many items, so little time and money! But anyway, back on topic. When we arrived there was no line so we proceeded to shop around the West Elm store. It was like a game of russian roulette. There were a few ladies roaming around the store, eyeing each other up. When all of a sudden, as Chrissy and I were purchasing our finds, the line started and boy did it start fast. We hastily finished our transactions and headed outside and were lucky enough to nab spots 9 and 10 in the line! Woop, woop! With in 15 minutes the line was all the way down the side-walk and around the corner. Did I mention that  it was only 3:00 at this time? The event didn’t start until 6:00!

The concrete was cold, but spirits were up. We started in the light of day and in the dark of night were still waiting to meet our new/old friends! We did met one lady that had the perfect questions for John and Sherry. She wondered what their home smelled like. Her guess was mint and fresh linen. This topic took up a majority of our wait, lol! As well as other ones, such as what we were going to write in their Book Tour Year Book……eeekkk! I hadn’t even though about that! The most exciting thing while waiting was the sneak peek we received of Sherry and John before the signing. They rode to the location in a taxi and drove by the line where they were spotted and then quickly parked and hopped out of the cab across the parking lot, running it to a restaurant. So mysterious! But then the line started moving! WE COULD SEE THEM…..IT WAS ALMOST OUR TURN! And then pure awkwardness occurred and was enjoyed by all.

If you were to ask Chrissy and I what was said in our exchange with Sherry and John we really couldn’t tell you – no seriously we can’t remember! It was such a blur, I remember smiling a lot and being in a state of awe. But as soon as we took our place at the signing table, took a quick picture, and shared an awkward smile, it was over. And then it was time to sign the Book Tour Year Book, thank goodness we took a picture or we for sure would have forgotten what we had written!

That’s right, I have declared it! I love YHL MORE than spray paint – and that is a lot because holy Hannah I love spray paint! Once we were out of sight we did a little happy dance and took a look at our new treasures!

That sweet little owl was my find at West Elm, a little cliché to have them sign it, but I love him all the more now! All in all the day was an utter success and we wouldn’t trade our experience for the world! Thank you John and Sherry for visiting Minneapolis and sharing the YHL love! And if you are reading this, what does your house smell like?!?!

Update: Wow, we are definitely feeling the love today – our traffic has sky rocketed over the last few hours! So WELCOME to all you wonderful YHL fans! Make sure to check our other posts and leave us a comment to let us know you stopped by – also share your website – we love visiting new blogs!

A Little Pop of Color

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My family and I have lived in our current home for almost a year now. When we moved I had just found out I was pregnant with our second child and I was sick as a dog….I mean sssss-ick! So needless to say I didn’t feel like decorating – at all. There was no painting, no hanging, and barely any unpacking. I went from sick to a preggo coma soon after and still nothing got done. Once nesting hit I finally managed to get everything unpacked and ready for baby. Now I sit here today – holding my 3 month old son staring a stark white walls. I think the people who lived here before us must have been allergic to color. While I don’t have time (or energy from the sleepless nights) to paint yet, I still have felt my home has needed some decorating rehab – a nice pop of color if you will. So when I found this beauty this past weekend it inspired me to keep going.

Isn’t she bea-utiful ? My friend, whom I have affectionately named Buffetta, was a steal of a deal! I picked her up from a local up-cycle shop for only $169.00! So once I got her home I started looking for accessories. When we moved I got rid of a lot of our old and out dated decor, but I did save this mirror. Here is a shot of the frame – ick.

The gold and burgundy stained wood frame had potential, but not in it’s current form. This was a perfect opportunity to get my pop of color. But what color…..hmmmmmmmm. I headed out to our local Home Depot to find the perfect hue and some other supplies. I ended up getting a color called Lagoon by Rust-Oleum. Risky, but I was desperate.

Before I started I cleaned the frame with some household cleaner and covered the outside perimeter of the mirror with blue painters tap. I paid special attention to get as close to the frame as possible to avoid getting excess paint on the mirror. By the way, do you know how hard it is to photograph a mirror and not get yourself or your messy house in the shot? Very hard if you were wondering!

Then I covered the inside with newspaper as you see here. Not so hard to take those photos now, ha ha, I win!

I think it is important to note that this project was started at 10:00 on a Saturday night – hot times here at this house, whoop, whoop! Oh how life changes when you have kids! But with much excitement and a bit of a Mountain Dew buzz I headed to the garage to spray on a primer as I wanted to ensure nice coverage with my beautiful Lagoon paint.

After spraying on the primer I was even more excited about this project once I seen the pattern with out that gawdy gold and burgundy stain! I left the primer dry overnight, however once I woke up I was having second thoughts on my color choice. What was I thinking – Blue Lagoon paint? That won’t match anything….oh my gosh, what will people think? Am I trying to be too trendy? I walked around my house holding the cap of the Lagoon spray paint up to other things in my house and proceeded to talk myself right out of Blue Lagoon Rust-Oleum. Lucky, I had another color on hand that actually seemed to coordinate better with the other sparse decor in my home. Leafy Green. I could live with Leafy Green.

And wouldn’t you know it – I LOVED IT! Even though it was wet I wanted to run right in to the house and place it next to Buffetta! Take a look!

How about an up close shot? Ok…..

Oh this color makes my heart flutter! After it dried for a good day I finally was able to bring it in to the house. It ended it being the exact pop of color I needed! Making my white walls a little less stark and a little more trendy. See?!?!

Isn’t it beautiful? A whole new look for under $10 bucks! And look what else came the other day, Young House Love’s new book! 1 more week and Chrissy and I will hopefully be lucky enough to meet them at their book signing in Minneapolis! Seven days! SEVEN DAYS! You can bet your button (yikes – I’ve been talking to my 3-year-old too much) that you will see a post on that amazing experience, but until then – what have you given new life to with a fresh coat of paint? What pop of color makes your heart flutter?