Lovelies That I Love

Isn't it fun to shop?

 I've gotten pretty good at window shopping- if I look from a distance, I can enjoy looking at new stuff without spending money:)

I've found some fun products to show you today. . .

 

 

Check out this library drawer by Melissa Frances.

Love it.

It would be fun to use this as a twist on the classic shadow box-

you could either use is as pictured or turn it on its side.

 

 

 

Oh. My. Word.

How cute are these number cards from Jenni Bowlin?

I don't know off hand what I would do with them, but I'm sure I could figure something out!

They'd look pretty cute in the library drawer. . .

I love these tags by Cavallini & Co.

They're labeled as gift tags, but I would use them as journaling tags, too!

 

 

This Washi tape is so awesome- I don't know what it is about wood grain, but I just love it!

 

How great is this stamp set by Tim Holtz?

I love all the different styles on here!

 

So many cute products, so little time (and money)!

Wouldn't it be fun to receive products like this from companies and get to
create projects with them?

That's my dream job:)

 

I am not affiliated with any of the above companies, I just love taking a look at what's out there.

 

Thanks for stopping by and God bless.

 

Depart from evil, and do good

Psalm 37:27

 This post is linked to Embracing Change, Cheerios and Lattes, and My Girlish Whims.

Recipe of the Week #116- Texas Roadhouse Honey Butter

Texas Roadhouse Honey Butter
1 cup butter, very soft
1 cup powdered sugar
1 cup honey
2 tsp cinnamon

Add everything in the order listed, whipping well.

This butter is UNBELIEVABLE!!! It tastes just like the butter at Texas Roadhouse. If you've never been there, let me tell you that one of the best parts of eating there is the rolls and honey butter that they bring to you when you're first seated.

You could use this on any number of things. . . bread, biscuits- we even ate it on cornbread.

Thanks for stopping by and God bless.

The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord,

and He delights in his way.

Psalm 37:23

This post is linked to Between Naps on the Porch, Skip to My Lou, and The Dedicated House.

Thrift Store Trunk Makeover!

A few months ago, I was delighted to find an old trunk at my favorite thrift store.

Believe it or not, but I was needing a coffee table and I was actually hoping to find an old trunk.

What kind of luck is that?

To make it even better, I got the trunk for $3.

I was walking on a cloud when I walked out with my purchase that day!

 

I'm going to start by showing you my "after" photo.

This is how it turned out.

 

 

And this is how it started out.
You can go here to see the post when I bought this bad boy.

  

 

My hubby helped me immensely with this project. (That's cause he rocks!)

First, we cleaned it up and used Oops to get rid of some sticky areas.

Then he covered it with two coats of primer.

Next, he used silver spray paint on the entire thing focusing on the trim.

Once that dried, I applied painter's tape along all the shiny silver edges, so he could cover the rest with chalkboard paint.

We finished it off by lining the inside bottom with 2x 4 strips to which we attached the casters.

 

I think it looks pretty great in front of my door couch.

 

I topped it with a silver tray that holds three vintage books and a wire rack filled with old croquet balls- all of which were bought at the thrift store, except for the croquet balls. They were found while curbside shopping!

 

 

Total cost:

trunk- $3

spray paint and primer- $21

2 x4- $4

casters- $30

Grand total- $58

 

I am loving how my secondhand decor is looking in my living room!

 

Thanks so much for stopping by and God bless.

 

Love the stranger.

Deut. 10:19

 

 This post is linked to Tatertots and Jello, Before and After at the Dedicated House, Sunday Soiree,

Ivy and Elephants, Miss Mustard Seed, and Plucky's Second Thought.



Vinyl Record Wreath

I've been itching to make this wreath for quite some time.

 

It's made with vinyl records.
Records that I happened to buy at a thrift store.

 

I'm on the fence about it.

What do you think?

 

Thanks for stopping by and God bless.

 

 

Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him

Psalm 37:7

 

 

This post is linked to Funky Junk, My Repurposed Life, and Today's Creative Blog.

Thrifty Thursday #114

Yesterday when I was out running around with my boys, they were so sweet to wait while I ran into two thrift stores. They may or may not have been bribed with an offer for a stop at Sonic.

 

 

I spotted this darling vintage wire basket right after I walked in the door of the first store.

I gladly paid $2.50 for this guy.

The photo doesn't quite capture the charm of this gem.

 

 

I found three brand new packs of scrapbooking flowers. Each pack was fifty cents.

Such a bargain- and they will be put to use!

 

I am bound and determined to turn leather belts into bracelets.

Because of that, I've been picking up leather belts when I find them.

This one cost seventy five cents.

 

 

You may not be able to tell, but this is a lampshade- or more like a lampshade skeleton.

I got it for a quarter- and I think I'm going to turn it into some sort of a chandelier.

I got these records for fifty cents apiece.

Believe it or not, but I was hoping to find some of these. I needed a few more for a project that I'll be showing you tomorrow. Come back and see what I made with them.

 

That's all, folks!

Only eight dollars for all these treasures.

 

Thanks for stopping by and God bless.

 

But those who wait on the Lord, they shall inherit the earth.

Psalm 37:9

 



This post is linked to Simple Nature Decor, Junkin' Joe, and Embracing Change.



Layout of the Week #85

Today I have a quick and easy layout to share with you.

I know that I often throw around the term "quick and easy," but this definitely fits that bill.

 

 

Here's the layout we'll be creating.

Yours will end up looking similar, but obviously, not exactly like it as you'll

be using your own products.

I think that's the beauty of this tutorial. You can use products that you already have.

 

To create it, you'll need:

two pieces of 12"x 12" pattern papers

one pre-printed title block or letter stickers for the title

journaling card (note card or postcard will work)

2-3 types of decorative tape

 

Decide which pattern paper will be the background.

Trim the other one to 10 1/2" x 10 1/2" and adhere it centered to the background paper.

 

Adhere your first photo in the upper left corner.

 

Place your title in the upper right corner. 

I used a pre-printed title, but if you don't have one that will work for your theme,

you can use letter stickers.

 

Place two photos overlapping in the lower right corner.

 

Add decorative tape strips to your photos.

I also added some to the lower left corner of the pattern paper, too.

 

Write your journaling on your journaling card and adhere it to the left of the bottom photos.

That's it, my friends. It was quick and easy, wasn't it?

 

If you enjoyed this tutorial, feel free to come by every other Wednesday for a new layout tutorial.

 

Thanks for stopping by and God bless.

 

Commit your way to the Lord, trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass.

Psalm 37:5

 

 This post is linked to My Girlish Whims, Cheerios and Lattes, I Heart Naptime,

 and Ivy and Elephants.



Recipe of the Week #115- Chocolate Cake

 

Chocolate Cake
1 chocolate cake mix
1 chocolate instant pudding mix
1 cup water
1/2 cup oil
4 eggs

Mix and bake according to directions on cake box mix. Cool then add frosting.

Frosting
6 Tbsp butter, softened
1/2 cup cocoa
2 2/3 cups powdered sugar
1/3 cup milk 1 tsp vanilla

In small bowl, cream butter. Add coca and powdered sugar, alternately with milk. Beat to spreading consistency. Blend in vanilla. Spread over cooled cake.

I got this recipe from a co-worker. I made it to take to church for a meal and thought that I'd be taking most of it home with me. I didn't even have two pieces left to bring home!  My son said it was fabulous! I'll surely be making this recipe again.

Thanks for stopping by and God bless.

Keep your tongue from evil, and your lips from speaking deceit.

Psalm 34:13

This post is linked to Skip to My Lou, Too Much Time On My Hands, and Plucky's Second Thought.

Mini Album Monday #28- "Happy" Paint Chip Album

Not only do I love making mini albums, but I also love using unusual items to make them.

Things like. . .

 

 

paint chips!

 

Today I'm going to walk you through the steps to make a mini album out of paint chips.

 

 

You'll only need a few things to make this album- and only a little time!

6 paint chips (Mine measure 5"x 6". I chose red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple.)

3 pieces of 12"x 12" pattern paper in black and white prints

1 piece of 12"x 12" pattern paper in colorful print

small letter stickers for the title

office ring or ribbon for binding the album

optional: colorful tickets to use as page tabs- you could also use small scraps of paper

 

I got all the papers and the letter stickers at Hobby Lobby.

I got my paint chips at Home Depot.

 

Start by adhering the paint chips to the back sides of the black and white papers.

I used double sided tape to do this- a glue stick would also work.

I made sure that I alternated patterns so that the same print wouldn't end up back to back in my album

Example: red and green, orange and blue, yellow and purple

 

Then trim around the edges of the paint chips.

When you're done, each paint chip should be backed with black and white pattern paper.

Now we're going to use the leftover pattern paper to place strips on the paint chips.

Start with the orange page- wait to do the red one which will be the cover.

Trim the colorful paper into a three 1"x 12" strips

and the black and white papers into three 1/2"x 12" strips.

 Use small portions of the strips to add a little color to your paint chips.

 





 

I alternated with vertical strips and horizontal strips.

I placed them in different areas on each paint chip.

 

These strips can be adhered with glue stick, double sided tape, or any other adhesive.

 

Easy, so far, huh?

 

For the cover, you need to cut a strip of black and white pattern paper to 1 1/2"x 3 1/2".

Adhere it in the lower right corner.

 

Now trim another strip of black and white pattern paper to 1 1/4"x 3".

Adhere it so that it overlaps the first strip.

 

Using your letter stickers, place the word "Happy" on the colorful paper.

Trim around that word and adhere it across the strips of black and white strips.

 

Using letter stickers, adhere the rest of the title, "Things that make me".

 

Now you should have six cute paint chips.

Optional: adhere tickets or small scraps of paper as paper tabs on each paint chip.

 

 

Now place the pages in order.

The red paint chip is the cover.

 

Then the orange, and so on.

 

 

Isn't the black and white pattern paper cute with all this color?

 

To finish it off, you need to punch a hole in the upper left corner of all the paint chips.

 

Bind them with an office ring or ribbon.

 

I used an office ring and tied a piece of colorful ribbon to it.

 

Voila! Now you have a cute book where you can place photos of things that make you happy.

 

It sure will make me happy to add my photos and finish this book off! :)

 

 

Thanks for stopping by and God bless.

 

Delight yourself also in the Lord,

and He shall give you the desires of your heart.

Psalm 37:4

 

 This post is linked to Sunday Soiree, Tater Tots and Jello, Be Different, Act Normal,
 and Between Naps on the Porch.

Distressed Paper Mache Letter

Recently I was at the Junk Hippy show and one of the booths had large distressed letters. They were $12 apiece and I really liked them, but I figured that I could make some.

Especially once I remembered that Hobby Lobby has paper mache letters.

 

 

Here's my finished product. Not quite as big as the one I saw at the show, but it will work!

(Have you seen pics of alphabet walls on Pinterest? I can't wait until I get all my letters,

so I can get my alphabet hung.)

I started with this plain little letter.

 

Then I painted the entire thing in blue.

 

 

Once it was dry, I finished it off by sanding around the edges.

Now I've got a distressed paper mache letter for less than $3!

 

Thanks for stopping by and God bless.

 

Trust in the Lord, and do good

Psalm 37:3

 

This post is linked to My Repurposed Life, Today's Creative Blog, and Anything Blue Friday.