Turn a Cabinet Door into a Jewelry Holder

Happy Monday everybody.  If you're stopping by from Craftaholics Anonymous, then welcome!  I'm so excited to be joining her team with some other amazing bloggers.  

My necklaces have been tangled up in boxes and empty egg cartons for long enough and this project came together so easily, I'm wishing I did it a long time ago!  I've seen a few versions of these, and I even made sure there was a place to hang my earrings.

Here's what you'll need:
cabinet door
spackle or wood putty
empty frame
window screen (or burlap even)
sandpaper
paint
hot glue and E6000
small nails
hanger for the back

1--Remove hinges and knob from the door and fill in any holes with spackle or putty and sand smooth

2--Lightly sand over the whole door (I just used a sanding block...I wasn't trying to take off any of the white paint, just smooth it all out a bit)
3--Paint the door.  I actually added a Tablespoon of water and a 1/2 teaspoon of unsanded grout to 1/2 a bottle of craft paint (in coral color) to make some chalk paint.  I put 3 coats on the door and it worked beautifully

4--Sand to distress, if desired.  I sanded the edges a bit to reveal the white underneath

5--Attach hanger to door back.  I just used a sawtooth picture hanger and measured to be sure it was in the center of the door.  You could also use Command Hook picture hangers.

6--To make earring holder, glue window screen (or burlap) into the frame, pulling it as tight as possible.  I used hot glue for this, and some toothpicks, to try to not burn my fingers too much. 
7--Glue frame to door using E6000 and let it sit for at least half a day.  Depending on the shape of your door and the size of your frame, your placement may need to be a little different than mine.
8--Add nails to several places around the door, especially around the bottom.  Keep them a little offset from each other so necklaces can hang without getting in the way of other nails too much.

9--Then hang it up and add your jewelry.  

For more ideas on things to do with doors, check out this post.  Plus, add your door ideas in our link party!

Point of View--Doors

Ok, so did you catch my announcement yesterday? (Keep reading for my 2nd announcement) I'm teaming up with the Point of View gals!  I hope you'll enjoy as we show you several projects each month, tied together with the same theme.

Up first for January is Door.  Check out what everyone made this month.  Then, be sure to follow each of the blogs so you can catch the tutuorials.

Amy from Ameroonie Designs
Ashlee from I'm Topsy Turvy
Jonie from Just Between Friends 
Leanne from Organize and Decorate Everything
and guest Whitney from A Mommy's Life with a Touch of Yellow

I made the cabinet door jewelry organize and mounted a framed piece of window screen to hang my earrings in.  Stay tuned for instructions so you can make your own.

And finally, for my other news, please visit this post at Craftaholics Anonymous.  It's good, I promise.

Now, let's see those projects with doors!  You can link up through Thursday, then Friday we'll show off some of our favorites.

Come Back Tomorrow

Hey guys, I hope everyone's having a great weekend!  We did fun things yesterday like shopping at Costco and cleaning carpets.  But then we also saw Les Mis for date night. With people being sick, we haven't been out since before Christmas, so that was really nice.

I hinted on Instagram the other day that I have a couple of pieces of big news to share, and here's the first one:  I am joining the monthly theme projects with the Point of View ladies!


If you're not familiar with Point of View, here are the other talented bloggers that make up the group:

Amy from Ameroonie Designs
Ashlee from I'm Topsy Turvy
Jonie from Just Between Friends 
Leanne from Organize and Decorate Everything

So each month we have a theme to work with, we show you each of the projects, then host a link party where you can share your creations that share the same theme!

I hope you'll come back tomorrow to see what we all did, and see what other bit of news I have for you (it's also blog related--and I'm super excited for it)

Clock Makeover

This little clock here has had a couple of different makeovers. First, it was oak brown. Similar to this:

Source

I can't even remember when we bought it, or where it has hung in our different houses.  At some point I spray painted it black to go in the hall bathroom and match a black frame I had there. When the bathroom was remodeled, it was time to brighten it up.

I painted the wood blue and cut a circle from cream colored scrapbook paper with a small circle in the center so I could slide it over the clock hands.  For the numbers I used small glass gems with paper glued onto the back. Then I cut black vinyl numbers to stick right on top of each one.

To make sure the new numbers were in the right place, I made little pencil marks to match the original clock, then glued the gems with hot glue.

Then it was just time to put it back together and hang it up in the new, more colorful bathroom.  One of these days I'll have a whole post up on the new bathroom and you can see how we changed up everything!

"Orange You Glad" Valentines

My kids have been obsessed with knock-knock jokes lately.  The ones by the 4-year-old are almost the funniest because they make no sense at all.  He often starts off with "Banana...  Banana who?" a few times.  And then he'll make up something totally unrelated.  Of course the real ending is "Orange you glad I didn't say Banana?"

So when I suggested to my girls that we use a similar phrase on their valentines this year, they loved the idea.  Here's what we came up with.

I made up printables that you can use too.  You'll get 4 labels on each sheet...and there are 2 versions.  On the back it will either say To and From  or just From.  I know for my girls it's part of their homework to write out each of their classmates' names on the valentines.  In other places kids may only need to sign their own names. I made both options.

You'll need:
Orange slice candy
Small candy bags (got mine at Michaels...cut or fold down tops if they're too tall)
Cardstock or printer paper and color printer
Paper cutter
Stapler

(If you are required to send "unopened" packages to your child's class, you could use a real oranges or an orange sucker)

To assemble:
Print labels (download links below)
Cut labels--cut paper in half at 4.25 inches and 5.5 inches
Have your child sign the cards
Fold labels in half at 2.75 inches
Place orange slices in the bag and staple the label over the top of the bag

Click to download To and From label
Click to download From only label

And hey....thank you for being my friends :)

An Easy Way to Help the Children's Miracle Network

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of White Cloud for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

So I have this little claim to fame...my youngest sister was Miss Idaho a few years back and competed in Miss America!  She's one of the lovliest people I know, and I could listen to her sing for hours...true story.  

The Miss America Organization partners with the Children's Miracle Network which helps raise money for 168 childrens hospitals all across the country.  But you don't have to earn a crown to make a difference.  White Cloud, the makers of bath and facial tissue are giving all of us a simple way help. Find a store near you!

If you visit this Voting App on Facebook, you can choose one of the tissue box designs created by actual patients, putting it on the shelves of Walmart.  How fun would it be for those kids to see their drawing in a store! The top 10 designs are listed on the Facebook page.  White Cloud will also make a generaous donation to the CMN hospitals with winning designs. Your vote also enters you for a chance to win a Walmart gift card or a year supply of White Cloud products. Go Like White Cloud on Facebook.

 

I hope you'll take just a second of your time for this easy way to make a difference.  I asked my kids their opinion too and we picked out favorite and voted. And until you find out the constes winners, you can Follow White Cloud on Twitter to keep up with them.

Abbrediated rules: No purchase necessary. Void where prohibited. The Children’s Miracle Network Contest and Sweepstakes are sponsored by Kruger Products (USA), Inc. The Contest is open to legal residents of the 50 United States and the District of Columbia, between the ages of 4 and 14, who are eligible patients at one of the 168 participating Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals. The entry period for the Contest begins on November 29, 2012 and ends on December 28, 2012. The Voter Sweepstakes is open to legal residents of the 50 United States and the District of Columbia, 18 years of age or older. The Voter Sweepstakes begin at 6:00 p.m. ET on January 3, 2013 and end at 11:59 p.m. ET on January 30, 2013. For official rules, visit mywhitecloud.com/tissue-box-contest.

Valentine's Crafty Ideas

It's time for a couple of Valentine project flashbacks.  This first one should be a treat for you--it never appeared on the blog.  I used a freezer paper stencil and fabric paint to make this shirt which I made my Facebook profile pic a couple years ago (and wore while running all my errands on Valentine's Day)

Then there's the coffee filter heart wreath

The LOVE vinyl on candle plates

And a collection of cards

And this home printable that works year-round (in a few colors too)

Now to decide what the kids should help me put together for their classes...

Fashion Update

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of No nonsense for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

Last week I decided it was time to analyze my Pinterest fashion boards and actually incorporate some elements into what I'm wearing.  My first attempt: Plaid.

I found a plaid shirt at the thrift store, and then took a brown shirt I had and cut it into a cardigan.

What do you think?  

 

My next mini-self-challenge is color...on my legs.  I'm a jeans girl, who sometimes wears black pants too, until they get white paint dripped on them.  Then it's back to the jeans.

 

From what I can tell, colored tights and leggings are here to stay, and they're a great way to change up the look of a whole outfit.  I created a board here with a couple of otherwise neutral elements, but throw on some colored leggings or tights and suddenly you're noticed!

Comfy and affordable, No nonsense tights and leggings come in a rainbow of colors and are avaliable at food and drug stores and mass retail stores, making them easy to find wherever you are.

 

In the following clip, Jill Martin shows off some of the great points about the colored tights and why she loves them.  If you haven't heard of Jill before, she's a style guru full of fashion advice and on-trend tips.  Check it out:

 

 

For more fashion tips and tricks keep up with No nonsense on Facebook and @benononsense on Twitter. And wish me luck in my quest for color.  I'll be back to show you if I was brave enough to switch out my jeans for some jewel tones!

A Few Cut Projects

I realized that I never gave you any sneak peeks from the latest Cutting Edge Magazine.  Let me fix that right now.

Don't forget we also have a Facebook page for the magazine where there are sometimes giveaways, and always loads of projects being shared by the creative team.  It's a great way to get an idea of what kinds of projects are shared in the magazine, and see everyone's style to see if you'd be interested in the whole magazine!

My most recent cut project is this cute little heart box.  It's perfect for slipping in a few little chocolates for someone special.

Using my cougar machine and Make the Cut, I cut the box file from white cardstock.  To make the pink heart outline I "broke" the layers to get the heart shape alone, then made a copy of it, enlarged it, centered them and joined the shapes together and cut it from pink cardstock.

Instead of covering the window with clear plastic I cut a square of polka dot velum and taped it over the heart cut out before folding and gluing the box together.  The final touch was to wrap a strip of floral washi tape around the edges of the box.  It's another one from Le Paper Cafe, and I think it's so pretty!  

Burlap Valentine's Banner

**Click here for the post about this large DIY picture frame**

Since Christmas we've battled all kinds of sickness around here, and I'm so glad to finally feel back to normal!  The crafting and organization bugs lost out to all the other bugs we've had, but now I'm ready to jump in again.

First up is this sweet and simple burlap and heart banner for Valentine's Day.  This is one of those projects where you can pretty much take a look at the finished result and figure out how I made it, but the secret is in the little hearts.

First, steam iron your burlap.  This removes bumps and wrinkles, and actually stiffens it up a little, making it easier to cut and work with.

Next cut a cardboard shape to be your pattern to help cut out each piece of burlap.

Using washi tape or painters tape mark off a strip on each flag and paint white.  I used DecoArt Americana Titanium White.

To make the hearts, cover white cardstock heart cut outs with strips of washi tape and then trim off the extra.

You could also cut the hearts from patterned paper of course, but how could I resist this red houndstooth!

When the paint is dry, attach hearts with small drops of hot glue.  I found it useful to work on top of a metal cookie sheet so that I didn't glue my project right to the table.  Be careful of fingers too, since the hot glue can squish right through the holes in the burlap!

Finally, glue banner pieces to a length of twine and hang it up.  Hope you like it--and hope you're all healthy where you are!

FYI--the red houndstooth washi tape came from LePaperCafe and the pink polkadot came from Downtown Tape

Fashion Challenge

Raise your hand if you have a Pinterest board dedicated to fashion.  Yay, me too!  Something about pinning an outift I love must make me think it will magically appear in my closet.  It hasn't worked yet.  But I've noticed that while I collect inspiration, I then go back to wearing the same 7 shirts from my closet. 

I am in no way trying to turn into a fashion blog (that would be laughable!)  But I am hoping to make a conscious effort to see how I can use this inspiriation I've gathered and apply it to what I'm wearing.  

Source 1 / Source 2 / Source 3 / Source 4

Aren't these all great looks!  My goal is to identify some of the elements I like--I see plaid, browns and cardigans!  If I can come up with something fun, I'll show you next week.

Do you have any tips for actually building off of your inspiration, without breaking the bank by buying every piece?  I'd love to hear!

2013 Word: Aproveitar

Source: promisetangemanblog.com via Caitlin on Pinterest

I had the hardest time picking my One Little Word for 2013.  Last year it was Reclaim, so I worked on getting back some things in my life that I needed.  The year before that was Do, so I tried to actually get things done instead of just thinking or talking about them.

Source: spirituallythinking.blogspot.com via Liz on Pinterest

But for this year I was stumped.  I looked at lists where other people shared their word and still nothing was jumping out at me.  I kept coming back to the idea of "not wasting."  Like not wasting time, resources or opportunities.  But I couldn't come up with a good word to encompass that feeling for me.

Source: supermarkethq.com via Susan on Pinterest

Then I decided my word didn't *have* to be an English word, and I remembered one of the words I know from Portuguese..."Aproveitar"  (ah-pro-vay-TAR) It means "to take advantage of" and it was exactly what I was looking for.

During this new year, I hope to really make the most of all my time, resources and relationships.  Wish me luck, and good luck to all of you in this new year too!  If you'd like to share you're word here, I'd love to hear it!

Source: flickr.com via Kerra on Pinterest

Skirt from a Tank Top

While wandering around JCPenny the other day, my daughter and I came across this clearance tank top.  Not quite right to fit into my wardrobe or on my body, but a really fun shimmery purple fabric.

I cut it right about where the arm holes were, sewed a casing and added elastic, then ruched up a few places with some elastic thread.  

I used the scraps from the top to make this flower 

and with a couple other items from her closet, she had a whole new outfit for church.

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All-Earz Jewelry

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