tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83912319529876931592024-03-12T17:01:37.527-07:00All with a Manicurea place for DIY home décor, arts & crafts, cooking and a lot of trial and error!Melissa Jeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11761416744672568831noreply@blogger.comBlogger25125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8391231952987693159.post-18268900827534456862012-02-04T08:26:00.000-08:002012-02-04T08:26:41.817-08:00Fresh Bread<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpuUkOK7e9bLbqnC4BaYT4BoXMzFY0Wi29it3xK1jL2wYjHivx0Rboh2RS45TbNRYExRoC_S9wgJJRmcMd90AbYs9Am5sITbc-5VfW3WtHfLBcHB2DBsz6AaCW0DYRLenyvJNom0IF5SE/s1600/yumFinalEdit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" sda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpuUkOK7e9bLbqnC4BaYT4BoXMzFY0Wi29it3xK1jL2wYjHivx0Rboh2RS45TbNRYExRoC_S9wgJJRmcMd90AbYs9Am5sITbc-5VfW3WtHfLBcHB2DBsz6AaCW0DYRLenyvJNom0IF5SE/s320/yumFinalEdit.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Yum! The smell of fresh bread in the house…*drool*<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Do you remember the “trial and error” part of my blog. Well here we are! This is my first ever attempt at homemade bread. My awesome mother in-law had given me a Kitchenaid Mixer a few years back (I LOVE IT I might ad) so I chose a bread recipe that was in the Kitchenaid Mixer recipe book. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s called Cool Rise Bread. It says it’s the easiest for beginners, so I figured I better start at square 1.</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0QGgFR3F-BGfiVwQZLx2Rl2dY6bR5w1jUH56cIOijJCESdp8RQgQ-l-wfVrNkJwB0SnI3xf6krusIPQPyvgHpkhIPiwI6ceTaA9hZv2kYnaZtFxFSDBl297Nj4dKybQScyiK-HeBELEw/s1600/Stuff+needed.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="112" sda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0QGgFR3F-BGfiVwQZLx2Rl2dY6bR5w1jUH56cIOijJCESdp8RQgQ-l-wfVrNkJwB0SnI3xf6krusIPQPyvgHpkhIPiwI6ceTaA9hZv2kYnaZtFxFSDBl297Nj4dKybQScyiK-HeBELEw/s200/Stuff+needed.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Here is the Recipe:</span></span></u></b></div><span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Place 5 1/2 cups flour, 2 T. sugar, 3 1/2 t. salt, 3 packages of active dry yeast and 1/4 c. butter or margarine (softened) in your mixer bowl. Attach bowl and dough hook to mixer. Turn to Speed 2 and mix about 20 seconds. Gradually add 2 cups very warm water (120 to 130 degrees Fahrenheit) and mix about 1-1/2 minutes longer.</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Continuing on Speed 2, add remaining 1/2 cup to 1-1/2 cups flour (1/2 cup at a time) and mix until dough clings to hook and cleans side of bowl, about 2 minutes. Knead on Speed 2 about 2 minutes longer.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Cover with plastic wrap and a towel. Let rest for 20 minutes.</span></span></div><span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">After 20 minutes your dough will have risen considerably. Divide the dough in half.</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Place the dough in greased 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 2 1/2 inch loaf pans.</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdL0nRWhBM8OH7Xz18H_qLWRkevdHgZXjbW2e6fp1GtxZFie4EApcEtV_mxVdmdgdumflilD2X7t-KOSgjQMZ8NC2cNsPzBuJhwGIMdeYC1vReVR2xBV-N-qVnB6Q7cLCrVFLIWbWCxfs/s1600/in+pan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" sda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdL0nRWhBM8OH7Xz18H_qLWRkevdHgZXjbW2e6fp1GtxZFie4EApcEtV_mxVdmdgdumflilD2X7t-KOSgjQMZ8NC2cNsPzBuJhwGIMdeYC1vReVR2xBV-N-qVnB6Q7cLCrVFLIWbWCxfs/s200/in+pan.jpg" width="112" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Brush each loaf with oil and cover loosely with plastic wrap. Refrigerate 2 to 12 hours. When ready to bake, uncover dough carefully. Let stand at room temperature 10 minutes. Puncture any gas bubbles. Bake at 400 degrees 35-40 minutes.</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ4oFYlR9AupbTJWnAPc5JQN9-bbfusbNz43LePzzwUj2GbYK1DMp6vp4qK8SO4swprZNNQG9mJWj8uDW-DsbWthHoGkaZPkcuQYaKh8R6qD76_JA5B4mIhoTeKzOmDrZSqlr4bI_1bdk/s1600/doneEdited.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" sda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ4oFYlR9AupbTJWnAPc5JQN9-bbfusbNz43LePzzwUj2GbYK1DMp6vp4qK8SO4swprZNNQG9mJWj8uDW-DsbWthHoGkaZPkcuQYaKh8R6qD76_JA5B4mIhoTeKzOmDrZSqlr4bI_1bdk/s320/doneEdited.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">My bread didn’t look like a perfect loaf but mmmm it sure was good!</span><br />
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</div>Melissa Jeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11761416744672568831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8391231952987693159.post-49678675117987264272012-02-03T09:18:00.000-08:002012-02-03T09:28:52.971-08:00Melissa Jeans (first) Garden<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0tc3ZVBkT1DvckQQw3acz-M3gIegAJqXF-ON-kL9SeQt4QNWfTVANOkAj7npPt2OSKgcpW1btNLm2GneufXFF6tPCE0zZzfQl6Y7FfjjXmcunZ2Yqu1MdsqwJTy4cnDW3oLEXn5173cw/s1600/garden+pic.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" sda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0tc3ZVBkT1DvckQQw3acz-M3gIegAJqXF-ON-kL9SeQt4QNWfTVANOkAj7npPt2OSKgcpW1btNLm2GneufXFF6tPCE0zZzfQl6Y7FfjjXmcunZ2Yqu1MdsqwJTy4cnDW3oLEXn5173cw/s1600/garden+pic.jpg" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Happy February!! Can you believe it is already February? The past few weeks here in “the south” have felt more like a Wisconsin May to me! We have been in the 70’s- absolutely perfect weather! As if the great weather wasn’t good enough, my amazing husband has been lucky enough to have extra time off from work YAY! We spent much of this time “cleaning” the garage. Haha! Funny though, the only thing that changed was that a new (and much larger) miter saw appeared.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>;) I can’t complain though, as the miter is one of my most used power tools.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Any ways, all of this nice weather has got me itching to plant a garden! Now some of you may know that this is no small task for me. I was not blessed with the green thumb my mother and grandmother have, in-fact I have just the opposite. I can kill any thing that grows and is green! Really! </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">So I set out to gather knowledge about gardening at my local library. I have been there 3 times and checked out almost 20 books about gardening. My all-time favorite is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Grow Great Grub</i> by Gayla Trail. I actually plan on purchasing the book from amazon. (Yeah it’s that good!)</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmhxav5_nULqGcLcRJqqXNq_Ig2BMv8SukGDC2B7X053iF7Z__OJnXFFwVSs8SMl7T5vPpjAGoz65rLwLUyql2ezBQwi9dFusCz44K2Fj6ENYEUon0hI7BnSCJesiFm-kzzmhD0Dq95Vc/s1600/grow+great+grub.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" sda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmhxav5_nULqGcLcRJqqXNq_Ig2BMv8SukGDC2B7X053iF7Z__OJnXFFwVSs8SMl7T5vPpjAGoz65rLwLUyql2ezBQwi9dFusCz44K2Fj6ENYEUon0hI7BnSCJesiFm-kzzmhD0Dq95Vc/s1600/grow+great+grub.jpg" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><u><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Where to put my garden?</span></u></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">After much deliberation on where to place the actual garden I have decided to make a raised bed garden along the back fence in my yard. I decided to do this for several reasons. First I know the soil, or clay here isn’t very suitable for growing. Second I know that location will get the best sun light. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, the main reason I decided to place my garden there and lift my garden up out of the ground was because of my dogs. We have two very large and very <s>naughty</s> curious dogs. They tend to get into everything they can reach, especially our 10 month old mastiff who now weighs more than I do. Do you know how much damage a 120 lb teething puppy can do!??! </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mater (like ta mater, but without the "ta")<br />
with my hubby resting after a long walk</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">George (as in Curious George)<br />
Standing at our 5 ft gate.</td></tr>
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<u><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Raised bed?</span></u></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Do you still remember that this is my first attempt at a “real” garden? ;) I have planned out my raised bed garden, and although my husband thinks I am nuts, it will be 8 feet long and 2 feet wide. The garden will be about 1 ½ feet deep. I plan to raise the “bed” up using 4x4s an additional half foot or so (rather than it just sitting on the ground). This will provide a nice height for planting and maintenance etc. It will also help keep our dogs out. Think something like this…</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5JzTP6oXvVz_MWMS6SSzkXaoIaZBurQ8-EgxkSSd1WiPQK9bJzPX7MT3ahLGi6msALyPTbATpWMys1OzXcGaG-1_uVQCdw8LbDbWz4ic8a9mnkw2c3CWnmlYmhBWdnn1DtnpUSj6ma5Q/s1600/raised+bed+example.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" sda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5JzTP6oXvVz_MWMS6SSzkXaoIaZBurQ8-EgxkSSd1WiPQK9bJzPX7MT3ahLGi6msALyPTbATpWMys1OzXcGaG-1_uVQCdw8LbDbWz4ic8a9mnkw2c3CWnmlYmhBWdnn1DtnpUSj6ma5Q/s1600/raised+bed+example.bmp" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><u><span style="font-family: Calibri;">What am I going to grow?</span></u></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">After reading a lot, and knowing what our family will and won’t eat, I had a list of things I would like to have in my garden. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The book <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Grow Great Grub</i> also touches on what plants grow nicely with each other and which help attract “good” insects.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I sketched out a general plan on paper, and then discovered this amazing website called www.gardners.com. You can actually plan your garden here. The best part is the web site tells you how many plants you can place in a given space. For example you should only have 1 broccoli per square foot, but you can have 2 basil plants, or even 16 carrots per square foot. This tool helped me immensely! Yet another great aspect about this tool is that it will give you planning and care tips on the plants you have “placed” in your garden. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Take a look at my garden planning so far…</span></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbHiBLF-SH5fNzxV-so2q-khUo1tzA1fiOicqMkVlA6mETsCq6SgmEabLBvLku3FDtUzugZ5W3V8zLgP56zg9z4tFf3DRo_9P05va6TcjdABx4LZRNwFDSJCyahfmoQn8pJ1Dm1164Jns/s1600/my+garden.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="166" sda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbHiBLF-SH5fNzxV-so2q-khUo1tzA1fiOicqMkVlA6mETsCq6SgmEabLBvLku3FDtUzugZ5W3V8zLgP56zg9z4tFf3DRo_9P05va6TcjdABx4LZRNwFDSJCyahfmoQn8pJ1Dm1164Jns/s320/my+garden.PNG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I plan on building this bad boy this month, so keep an eye out for the post about that. </span></div><br />
<img height="96" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6iw7EDsPK9Xl0NtlaVeLYUL11CSaCbH6kVNFDmMr1PE8boWXxDPGp5hRH1cMGQYty4v7yzDSI-j5MGB4FE1lZefwnmLwaATJ0nY1Vlf13RyurWpNT6jvTpe-c0WhU7dUnIvx39GjE4Gc/s200/George.jpg" style="filter: alpha(opacity=30); left: 181px; mozopacity: 0.3; opacity: 0.3; position: absolute; top: 371px; visibility: hidden;" width="53" />Melissa Jeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11761416744672568831noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8391231952987693159.post-2090884755887899722012-01-29T18:00:00.000-08:002012-01-29T18:00:43.149-08:00Distressed Letter Signs<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoxQO4sM61DVnBnHpoJXzvVhfyVjA_znXjffjx3xp_BjmI_kIg21Mjc-kYuH7WEkr9_nYEee8l0_PW1qi7xf2tYTnCZAYLTqui36GBU9NL0tEQpJPevt685FhRKGI20rfgYwzf_Lo2N9E/s1600/eat+edited.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gda="true" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoxQO4sM61DVnBnHpoJXzvVhfyVjA_znXjffjx3xp_BjmI_kIg21Mjc-kYuH7WEkr9_nYEee8l0_PW1qi7xf2tYTnCZAYLTqui36GBU9NL0tEQpJPevt685FhRKGI20rfgYwzf_Lo2N9E/s320/eat+edited.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I found the cutest DIY “eat” sign on a fellow crafters <a href="http://craftsbyamanda.com/2010/11/distressed-eat-sign.html">blog</a> and decided to give it a shot. I modified mine a bit, so it could be set atop our kitchen cabinets. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">First I cut the wood and sanded the edges a bit. Then I gathered my supplies, and picked the colors I wanted. I didn’t really fuss over to colors too much. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Then I painted on a different color onto each wood block. I let the first color dry, then I sanded it with my hand sander. I did this once more using different colors. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOBFIS48G1pI_2r56K1aCmwJkUbDS7QChqAkpnaerT0rd4A4JFjBu8mNhQpJcISeNh45UOAf88bPNtC0DQyyo9oA9w8PFEvRNZbIst91ILJRNBTaLsPEgKpwTqxSe0zqFnOGVmHxx4NMI/s1600/227984_697957901808_219700081_36164470_7617287_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gda="true" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOBFIS48G1pI_2r56K1aCmwJkUbDS7QChqAkpnaerT0rd4A4JFjBu8mNhQpJcISeNh45UOAf88bPNtC0DQyyo9oA9w8PFEvRNZbIst91ILJRNBTaLsPEgKpwTqxSe0zqFnOGVmHxx4NMI/s320/227984_697957901808_219700081_36164470_7617287_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I then printed out my letters on paper and cut them out (this was before I had my cricut) I then laid the letters on the wood and simply painted over them. I was careful to keep them in the same spot, but it was pretty easy.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Peel the letters off, let the paint dry and sand again. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXxeRiu3WMKcxF2fUpkT7Cg5sJTpM3pZChoUi50UYZQ7Tpkci41Y-qwPT6FX8ZW7kBXLThfwZhwA0JPKiP2wiQp3_NAXSkmE5aSYh9zwq1MW3NMgns__FReWGpN6JN4aB3NEQwR090H1k/s1600/250664_697978520488_219700081_36164687_7789368_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gda="true" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXxeRiu3WMKcxF2fUpkT7Cg5sJTpM3pZChoUi50UYZQ7Tpkci41Y-qwPT6FX8ZW7kBXLThfwZhwA0JPKiP2wiQp3_NAXSkmE5aSYh9zwq1MW3NMgns__FReWGpN6JN4aB3NEQwR090H1k/s320/250664_697978520488_219700081_36164687_7789368_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Our eat sign is still lonely above our cabinets, but we are in the works for a kitchen remodel… </span></div><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span>Melissa Jeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11761416744672568831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8391231952987693159.post-46134311497988020392012-01-25T13:20:00.000-08:002012-01-25T13:30:07.845-08:00Chocolate Covered Oranges<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDsF4EUSqF-8fS4fZjM7tc8HPRQ0nLppmecI6RrmVKaKhB_z4a99sz3so-b49Z4B1GmY-QgQlPR80KFzqRuIVQFU9hvG4w8uM5bZCjMZBk7VtBL13QckMtfUsczSuoRE8kdBSeJjvOKK4/s1600/2012-01-25_14-26-39_339edited.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gda="true" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDsF4EUSqF-8fS4fZjM7tc8HPRQ0nLppmecI6RrmVKaKhB_z4a99sz3so-b49Z4B1GmY-QgQlPR80KFzqRuIVQFU9hvG4w8uM5bZCjMZBk7VtBL13QckMtfUsczSuoRE8kdBSeJjvOKK4/s320/2012-01-25_14-26-39_339edited.jpeg" width="180" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">It’s about time for a cooking post, don’t you think? Although chocolate covered oranges don’t really involve cooking I thought I would share them any ways.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The school my son attends still allows homemade snacks, and knowing how rare that is these days I thought I would take advantage of that and whip up something with some TLC. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I try to serve healthy snacks, but I know that can be hard with young kids (you have to get creative sometimes). My grand idea- I dressed up some orange slices with chocolate and sprinkles! Will the kids know they are getting a healthy snack, or think they are eating candy? (sneaky sneaky)</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx1I0dlXnt9EG6agKD8vQo_9aWhgpgNcEL42Xu6MpYXFKdZwjStHzqSs9rwI_7CrsbzidKBoNB4z13aZLeslLn5cGamPwD04wYLxtBpCTCmg2Ww4uS_INgISpuqwDsS0cELwk0c5yH3xk/s1600/2012-01-25_10-11-43_537.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gda="true" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx1I0dlXnt9EG6agKD8vQo_9aWhgpgNcEL42Xu6MpYXFKdZwjStHzqSs9rwI_7CrsbzidKBoNB4z13aZLeslLn5cGamPwD04wYLxtBpCTCmg2Ww4uS_INgISpuqwDsS0cELwk0c5yH3xk/s320/2012-01-25_10-11-43_537.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><u><span style="font-family: Calibri;">What you will need:</span></u></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Oranges- I used Cuties brand, because they are easy to peel, sweet and seedless.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Chocolate Chips</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Vegetable Shortening- for thinning out the chocolate </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Sprinkles</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Wax Paper</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Cookie Sheet </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">How to make Chocolate Covered Oranges:</span></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Peel and separate the oranges</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5QV4_xczcWV5oHA6C_Ml77B_fU_rrJukJSKWh0N7E1Ht_vwO4E3HAA8pndJoNOc7QecgGo8t6FSQV06ojpV8spM_Bdy-wwInYBsZ_RQaeTMhaEqkBqFMAdCL68ZNOCSl1i12ECUpsITM/s1600/2012-01-25_10-29-54_304.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gda="true" height="112" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5QV4_xczcWV5oHA6C_Ml77B_fU_rrJukJSKWh0N7E1Ht_vwO4E3HAA8pndJoNOc7QecgGo8t6FSQV06ojpV8spM_Bdy-wwInYBsZ_RQaeTMhaEqkBqFMAdCL68ZNOCSl1i12ECUpsITM/s200/2012-01-25_10-29-54_304.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Melt your chocolate</span></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">You can melt your chocolate in the microwave. I used my fondue pot.</span></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">You may need to add some vegetable shortening to think out the chocolate. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcBvfh092psPR2B1bGmgIoXvP1cR8vlYZYWvZj-jaUm4r2ztvvrKkXyVcg4H9BEI0jcFE5ogCREssDdoatFw6f49D5D2wOFQt_CEn2Un9U97xh1U5Qkj5r1xJsxiWaWLg-5Sa8FsMoAhw/s1600/2012-01-25_10-36-25_847.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gda="true" height="112" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcBvfh092psPR2B1bGmgIoXvP1cR8vlYZYWvZj-jaUm4r2ztvvrKkXyVcg4H9BEI0jcFE5ogCREssDdoatFw6f49D5D2wOFQt_CEn2Un9U97xh1U5Qkj5r1xJsxiWaWLg-5Sa8FsMoAhw/s200/2012-01-25_10-36-25_847.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Line your cookie sheet with wax paper</span></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Dip your oranges in the chocolate then set them on the wax paper</span></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Sprinkle with sprinkles</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhE5MoXUaB6WBgqDQVM8TcKgNW9r41sDFXXeRuNMiL26XxFVEExrQTZaRkM3rtHSwrW_7V-CgpjBg9OhbHYjZ8L6aS-j7x-6RdqDl052izyuElCW-reU2XKYuUYx8qQRdJ1nOQ4t_tjug/s1600/2012-01-25_10-58-54_404edited.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gda="true" height="112" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhE5MoXUaB6WBgqDQVM8TcKgNW9r41sDFXXeRuNMiL26XxFVEExrQTZaRkM3rtHSwrW_7V-CgpjBg9OhbHYjZ8L6aS-j7x-6RdqDl052izyuElCW-reU2XKYuUYx8qQRdJ1nOQ4t_tjug/s200/2012-01-25_10-58-54_404edited.jpeg" width="200" /></a></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Let harden in the refrigerator</span></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Enjoy : ) </span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1PCMcedRDlPhyphenhyphenNZTGmHe-qTYs3AQbOcCH7Ix892PM3dwHYMxSjPiFHPfbWIlg_Xwrd_AHxTZe6R8AAGr0qaaocuBvgF1PVVcObaM2eKs7pVoOlg1Atd_ssmnvhTSLcBhz8Y6JnL91aHg/s1600/2012-01-25_14-27-06_319edited.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gda="true" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1PCMcedRDlPhyphenhyphenNZTGmHe-qTYs3AQbOcCH7Ix892PM3dwHYMxSjPiFHPfbWIlg_Xwrd_AHxTZe6R8AAGr0qaaocuBvgF1PVVcObaM2eKs7pVoOlg1Atd_ssmnvhTSLcBhz8Y6JnL91aHg/s320/2012-01-25_14-27-06_319edited.jpg" width="180" /></a></div></div><div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><br />
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</div>Melissa Jeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11761416744672568831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8391231952987693159.post-44005894510297271222012-01-23T19:24:00.000-08:002012-01-23T19:24:21.948-08:00How to build a Coffee Table<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPPfsOOytCIehs1z3X9ubHKAsNGk8fLdi9Q9ZIVXG1kxNcOBXdR21YWTpfjubFq0N8BkwRpbFAdt077AFiSfb_BXbh0e-5Kp5v49wEyXwdROZgv0ko-Q7rAlbPc1s6NHZ435yACZq-iHw/s1600/coffeetable+8+edit" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gda="true" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPPfsOOytCIehs1z3X9ubHKAsNGk8fLdi9Q9ZIVXG1kxNcOBXdR21YWTpfjubFq0N8BkwRpbFAdt077AFiSfb_BXbh0e-5Kp5v49wEyXwdROZgv0ko-Q7rAlbPc1s6NHZ435yACZq-iHw/s320/coffeetable+8+edit" width="180" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">After we got our "new to us" living room set, we started looking at coffee tables, but whoa were they pricy. So of course I looked on craigs list, but nothing was striking my fancy- well the antique factory carts but remember we are on a budget! So I found <a href="http://ana-white.com/">Ana Whites web site</a>. Like I said before, I am in LOVE! We picked a coffee table we liked, and got to work.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">First we measured the living room, and decided on a 3ft x 3.5 ft table. Then we headed out to the garage to take inventory of our lumber. Because we are using the lumber we salvaged from our garage demo, all we needed was a 4x4. (Turns out we actually HAD a 4x4, oh well save it for our next project) We headed to the local lumber yard, got our 4x4 and some poly for the top of the table. Our total was about $12.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">After we gathered all the supplies we started to cut the lumber, remember to measure twice and cut once! ; ) </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlZxbkJpunClnxgk2GO3BUU71XvLtbaiDz5twgCAPFK8ZvqVlF-xLVaR2J5MXPWsgiFaRrIaztkKyIgsqveBRAXYqtXs5ZOSKNbDn10U7PrYv0G66pigoValpU_62JpXAcwvlYw0f3STc/s1600/397143_816813594048_219700081_37028648_1429634708_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gda="true" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlZxbkJpunClnxgk2GO3BUU71XvLtbaiDz5twgCAPFK8ZvqVlF-xLVaR2J5MXPWsgiFaRrIaztkKyIgsqveBRAXYqtXs5ZOSKNbDn10U7PrYv0G66pigoValpU_62JpXAcwvlYw0f3STc/s320/397143_816813594048_219700081_37028648_1429634708_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">We then laid out our table top to see what it looked like, and we were pleased with it so we continued on. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOtqd4ezLtUWCYl4Dou9HgPwm8shQWlftGB_aR2zCCwiUnF56mb20-StzKhWGlso9BqQqS4SAQJdVYnXiw431TwE5AMHbRMFKBm8ICl8iO28szZj6AakQeR29gWLGNNrH1jdrkYfdKU8I/s1600/coffeetable+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gda="true" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOtqd4ezLtUWCYl4Dou9HgPwm8shQWlftGB_aR2zCCwiUnF56mb20-StzKhWGlso9BqQqS4SAQJdVYnXiw431TwE5AMHbRMFKBm8ICl8iO28szZj6AakQeR29gWLGNNrH1jdrkYfdKU8I/s320/coffeetable+1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><a href="http://ana-white.com/content/tryde-coffee-table">Ana’s instructions</a> were really easy to follow, and the entire project went very smooth! Just remember to take the extra time to pre drill your holes, so you don’t split the wood. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Assemble the table, fill your holes and sand. Be sure to use a wood filler that can be painted or stained, depending on your plans. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJjmBBSAqfTuixGVzaYz6u0_NWR4gmnIIt0fteugYS4c094BkBh-0hlRPQpDGKB0HVdxxN4a2VUX4ggCUR5dCP6sytJvbGumAelOOUSwc9dHtacFNo7MrbGmbn-iT3Hjv_pz8c77RNMzs/s1600/coffeetable+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gda="true" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJjmBBSAqfTuixGVzaYz6u0_NWR4gmnIIt0fteugYS4c094BkBh-0hlRPQpDGKB0HVdxxN4a2VUX4ggCUR5dCP6sytJvbGumAelOOUSwc9dHtacFNo7MrbGmbn-iT3Hjv_pz8c77RNMzs/s320/coffeetable+3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">We decided to paint the bottom of our table white, rather than stain it. I used Kilz primer, with a tad of Glidden Golden bronze added to it, for an antique white color. After it dried, I used my sanding block to distress the edges of the legs to give it an old and worn look. After I did that I used some stain we already had, on the distressed edges. It really made the wood pop with the white. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXVoqkYT3N6cLa-0V07bIPkGpGtxyfOuRn1hDPL3K_KUIkHGFvuyibBG-gIPLmac4h0_yGAtlHi5Q82QuJar6Z748-9-2-yK__iG1jHXL0S1IpU5zmxaSNqK6IzV2fnePC375KszCr5UA/s1600/396781_816986752038_219700081_37029108_1390205341_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gda="true" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXVoqkYT3N6cLa-0V07bIPkGpGtxyfOuRn1hDPL3K_KUIkHGFvuyibBG-gIPLmac4h0_yGAtlHi5Q82QuJar6Z748-9-2-yK__iG1jHXL0S1IpU5zmxaSNqK6IzV2fnePC375KszCr5UA/s320/396781_816986752038_219700081_37029108_1390205341_n.jpg" width="180" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Last but not least is to seal and protect the top of the table! We used Min Wax Polycrylic. All you do is make sure your surface is clean and dry, then paint on. We ended up doing 3 coats on our table. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was so easy to apply, a snap to clean up and it looks great! </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5FHZUo_2fODLchnvYxwBmpGJv006AhjaER3xq42dkoP_j2Jkub55Qnh3nKQL-UUsIiYgaasZff4mili_hvyd9tHBuLUNPabKyae5eIX6oTxv0eJMnnfslAdUKpB6MnSTL6iiru8jpAc0/s1600/coffeetable+4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gda="true" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5FHZUo_2fODLchnvYxwBmpGJv006AhjaER3xq42dkoP_j2Jkub55Qnh3nKQL-UUsIiYgaasZff4mili_hvyd9tHBuLUNPabKyae5eIX6oTxv0eJMnnfslAdUKpB6MnSTL6iiru8jpAc0/s320/coffeetable+4.jpg" width="180" /></a></div><br />
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This table took me one day to make and paint. I let it dry over night and finished it the next day after church. I am so happy with how it turned out! <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrX8AE4tC9TN_59aqcFSTAoeXwJI_yjP4KUzKXIENxcQ3ziCE6zv7nenZ1P7EMqSjCBCHV_aSTxqunv3821a2a9Uov-FeTn6Hw-qFvfUKYl4QRzyW1YflO7e7mwPt0bGwEK2poF_3adPA/s1600/coffeetable+7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gda="true" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrX8AE4tC9TN_59aqcFSTAoeXwJI_yjP4KUzKXIENxcQ3ziCE6zv7nenZ1P7EMqSjCBCHV_aSTxqunv3821a2a9Uov-FeTn6Hw-qFvfUKYl4QRzyW1YflO7e7mwPt0bGwEK2poF_3adPA/s320/coffeetable+7.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Melissa Jeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11761416744672568831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8391231952987693159.post-55144986902124374342012-01-23T15:14:00.000-08:002012-01-23T19:52:49.349-08:00Gift Card Giveaway<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7mE1ytEN7U_pnkgXdRdqxXmI2MSoeWEZgIW1WEBknvfjhofHb8pVwQvYRgmQV0xWiELIs07rN_oxwHgDBIxigBcE9kJLtw0Lq61vvFyrL6j1emjRwSW4QMbo2zJPlNwyZu2IxlrF_QuM/s1600/giveaway-1024x374.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="116" nfa="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7mE1ytEN7U_pnkgXdRdqxXmI2MSoeWEZgIW1WEBknvfjhofHb8pVwQvYRgmQV0xWiELIs07rN_oxwHgDBIxigBcE9kJLtw0Lq61vvFyrL6j1emjRwSW4QMbo2zJPlNwyZu2IxlrF_QuM/s320/giveaway-1024x374.png" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">Want a chance to win a $20 Hobby Lobby, Michaels, or Jo Ann Craft Store gift card? All you need to do is follow my blog and you will be entered in a drawing for the gift card. If you win the drawing, you will get to choose which of the three stores the gift card is for. The drawing will be held March 1<sup>st</sup> 2012.</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">Welcome to All With A Manicure, and Good Luck!</div></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">~Melissa Jean~ </span></div><div align="center"></div>Melissa Jeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11761416744672568831noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8391231952987693159.post-72763285517686126782012-01-22T20:29:00.000-08:002012-01-22T20:29:33.517-08:00Coupon Craze<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong>Coupon Craze</strong></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh74eaHfFdiWtmdIMqANPC5XBfwmcZSr_IRf7yNzZgtWstkOgPo8-yQ5qxuO-rLawCusNx9eMFsmp33N9QPrYGQgYJGoIiuS6HcFn3t1OKhavIwsy1LHDtRjoA3p3ahi5zdWe5onmbxQ-s/s1600/coupons+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nfa="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh74eaHfFdiWtmdIMqANPC5XBfwmcZSr_IRf7yNzZgtWstkOgPo8-yQ5qxuO-rLawCusNx9eMFsmp33N9QPrYGQgYJGoIiuS6HcFn3t1OKhavIwsy1LHDtRjoA3p3ahi5zdWe5onmbxQ-s/s1600/coupons+3.jpg" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I have had a few friends ask me how I coupon, and how they might get started using coupons. The first thing I tell them is that I am no expert but I am happy to share my “madness” haha! </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">First let me say that coupons should be used in the correct way, following the rules and restrictions of the coupon and or store etc… Also I should mention that I am not brand specific, in other words I do not prefer one brand overt the other, and most times I buy generic. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">There are a few things I recommend to people who ask me how I coupon: </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><u>1. Generate a List.</u></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>The first thing I recommend is to generate a list of things you commonly purchase. After you have this list, take some time to price check your local stores, and get the “normal” prices for your commonly purchased items. Make sure you note the size of the item as well. Nothing is worse than thinking you have found an item on sale, only to stop into the next store to find a better deal.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">On my list I included stores such as Walmart, Homeland, Walgreens, The dollar Tree, and Family Dollar.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">You should also ask about the stores coupon policy, and note it on your list as well. For example, I know that my Homeland store will double coupons up to a dollar and that Walgreens has a monthly and weekly coupon flyer/booklet (more about that later)</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg079PvY9oQ5gtVq6XBkYnqc1gSpPvqfk-5aYIxs_dMytgccsGIi-PdoKoC3-_qnEpQOiiNgh-kLot_AFO6LTh655wYd6ZYcqaU9R23EDpH7rBdxyNCEzxT23DaHBruG2io6X89oancxa8/s1600/coupons+4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nfa="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg079PvY9oQ5gtVq6XBkYnqc1gSpPvqfk-5aYIxs_dMytgccsGIi-PdoKoC3-_qnEpQOiiNgh-kLot_AFO6LTh655wYd6ZYcqaU9R23EDpH7rBdxyNCEzxT23DaHBruG2io6X89oancxa8/s1600/coupons+4.jpg" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><u>2. Where to get Coupons.</u></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Now that you have your list of stores and prices, you know where to get the best deals on the items you regularly purchase. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Time to bring in the coupons!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I find coupons all over the place :D here is a list of where I get my coupons</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>*Sunday paper inserts</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>* Store weekly/monthly <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>flyers/coupon books </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>* Online</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>*facebook and twitter</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>*Inside products/on product packaging </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">After I find the coupons, I always clip the ones I am interested in, but I keep the rest in a separate pile just in case I see a sale on those items.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I store the coupons I plan to use in a coupon folder, which you can find in the office section of most stores.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><u>3. How I use Coupons.</u></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">*Gather</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">*Match</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">*Check</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u>gather</u></b> the pile of coupons I am planning on using, I scan the weekly sales flyers for my local stores (mine are Walgreens and Homeland) <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>to see if I can <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u>match</u></b> a current stores sale with a coupon I have. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In other words, say I clipped a manufactures coupon for .55 off one deodorant stick brand X. I also found a sale on brand X deodorant stick at Walgreens for 1.99. GREAT! Now my deodorant stick will only be 1.44! But I need to remember to <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u>check</u></b> my list of my commonly purchased items, because I can get my brand X deodorant stick at my local dollar store. (just be sure to check the sizes of the products remember) </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I know this seems like a lot to do to save 44 cents BUT if you are over paying for every product you purchase, over the course of a month or a YEAR think of how much you could save just by checking prices.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Besides after you do this once or twice you will start to remember where you can get the best deal on the items you normally purchase, and when a coupon will actually save you money.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><u>4. Stacking and Doubling Coupons.</u></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">*Stacking Coupons</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Stacking” refers to using more than one coupon applied to one item. In my experience this can only happen when you have a manufacture coupon and an in store specific coupon. (I am sure there are other ways, but in my little town this is all I have come up with)</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Example: Walgreens has a weekly flyer with “walgreens coupons”, these are often referred to as “in store coupons”. These coupons are valid only at Walgreens, or the store offering them. In other words the store is offering the coupon, not the manufacture. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How to tell? Don’t worry, the coupon will say right on it manufacture coupon or Walgreens coupon.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Some stores will allow you to stack coupons, and some stores will not. Be sure to ask about coupon policies at different stores. In addition some coupons will read “cannot be combined with any other coupon or discount” Be sure to read your fine print.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">*Doubling Coupons</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Some stores will double the value of your coupon, up to a certain amount. My local Homeland store will double coupons up to $1. So If I walk in with a coupon for $1 off brand X cereal, they will give me an additional $1 off the cereal, for a total of $2 off brand X cereal. However, be sure to read your coupons fine print, as some coupons cannot be doubled.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjniI82zVJO9ZlGcaupzDQ7rNTG8-RGw0c6Um_fJWmRwV6s9ZxEpwL55Uq4aFV-2apZ4vlzikGsl4A5KdBKrRqPSPsIqelpFuAhA_7goM1X3-T6N-3ScGs63fTeOsgOafVi_1V1rYZ5zAY/s1600/rain+check.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nfa="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjniI82zVJO9ZlGcaupzDQ7rNTG8-RGw0c6Um_fJWmRwV6s9ZxEpwL55Uq4aFV-2apZ4vlzikGsl4A5KdBKrRqPSPsIqelpFuAhA_7goM1X3-T6N-3ScGs63fTeOsgOafVi_1V1rYZ5zAY/s1600/rain+check.bmp" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><u>5. Rain Checks</u></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">One more thing worth mentioning when using coupons, rain checks. Often times sale items that have a current coupon issued may be out of stock at your local store, but not to worry just ask for a rain check! Example: <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Say your local store is having a great sale on bread, and lucky you because you have a coupon for it too! However, when you get to the store they are all out of the bread, and the sale ends today. You may not be out of luck. Ask the service desk if they can issue a rain check for the bread. What this will do for you is it will give you an extension of the sale price of that bread, allowing you to purchase it “on sale” when they get more in stock, even after the sale has ended. Pair the rain check sale price with your coupon and you have saved! </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Couponing can save you money, and who doesn’t like to save money! I am sure I have over looked a few things, so if you would like to leave helpful tips or pointers in the comments please feel free! </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Happy couponing!</span></div>Melissa Jeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11761416744672568831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8391231952987693159.post-86874777229418172932012-01-22T19:18:00.000-08:002012-01-22T19:18:54.397-08:00Craigs List Living Room<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Hi Y'all! After I re-did our dining room I really wanted to redo our living room. However, like most people, we are on a budget, so we couldn’t just run out and buy a new living room “get up” (as much as I would have liked to do that).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I did what I always do, I looked on Craigs list. I love Craigs list by the way! It’s like the garage sale for our generation HA! <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because the room is still a work in progress, for right now I will just show you a few things I have been working on for the living room, mainly furniture, but as soon as it is all put together I will post pics of the entire room- promise!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">To start off the living room make over I found two cute side tables on CL. I bought the pair for only $10. I popped them into my spray booth, mixed up a “custom” off white color (consisting of Kilz primer and small amount Glidden, Golden Bronze) , and then after they were dry I distressed them a bit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They turned out great! I had intended to turn around and re-sell them, and even though I had an offer or two, they look so darn good in my living room I think I just might hang onto them for a while. Here they are…</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-KHfLIrigmbiHB6cimolYiaMtxJ7voDWmi-A4GLpbVGUUsA5rdV9JY9XR7pLZDvZfRtW7XctDMkHvJRmHKgzjg6FaIM430XHaE6QBKYZCbLw-9AciEoswzVgmZSBKRS7jKXNJSLZQ58s/s1600/Side+tables+before.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" nfa="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-KHfLIrigmbiHB6cimolYiaMtxJ7voDWmi-A4GLpbVGUUsA5rdV9JY9XR7pLZDvZfRtW7XctDMkHvJRmHKgzjg6FaIM430XHaE6QBKYZCbLw-9AciEoswzVgmZSBKRS7jKXNJSLZQ58s/s320/Side+tables+before.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8xli2P8qg3bVu08XVNjFL6Ny8_e0npHlZowc7TATd9rLqnpL8tjoXE9grhFyIX7IUNxB7Nl-hWYLjWJCdJzzja6P224SMhT9vsFAEB0DWQwK3bKESPIFlt4nilB8SRe4JBEOKx5ho3yU/s1600/side+tables+after1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" nfa="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8xli2P8qg3bVu08XVNjFL6Ny8_e0npHlZowc7TATd9rLqnpL8tjoXE9grhFyIX7IUNxB7Nl-hWYLjWJCdJzzja6P224SMhT9vsFAEB0DWQwK3bKESPIFlt4nilB8SRe4JBEOKx5ho3yU/s320/side+tables+after1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhikHjK7F7OLXJJb3UwkZsIAYNyi4gGBf16RhHag_n0yBbef6YFkcsXa68HK-3W7q7VWFTZWGtxOgjthv2OVfC1YeiDUCIcjZvtNMQ825qdLbqDItPpoiC6Hn6BKmy7zMthTwRrlfXKjc/s1600/side+tables+after+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" nfa="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhikHjK7F7OLXJJb3UwkZsIAYNyi4gGBf16RhHag_n0yBbef6YFkcsXa68HK-3W7q7VWFTZWGtxOgjthv2OVfC1YeiDUCIcjZvtNMQ825qdLbqDItPpoiC6Hn6BKmy7zMthTwRrlfXKjc/s320/side+tables+after+3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">My next obstacles were my sofa and love seat which we had previously bought from CL- told you I love CL! They were just not the right color or size for our living room. In fact the sleeper sofa was almost 9 ft long and over 3 ft deep, it was HUGE. Any ways, we sold that set and bought a more neutral color, smaller set. We now have a smaller sleeper sofa and a chair. My husband has claimed the chair, well when the cat “allows it” he he he.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I have had my eye on one of those old factory cart coffee tables for a long time now, but honestly they are just WAY out of our price range. (big sad face) However I did find a few GREAT tutorials on how to build your own coffee table. I have just recently discovered Ana White, and of course am in LOVE! So I chose one of her plans for a knock off of a Pottery Barn coffee table. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You can find the instructions we (mostly) used <a href="http://ana-white.com/content/tryde-coffee-table">here</a>. Thanks Ana!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">We recently tore down a small half wall in our garage, and my amazing <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>husband so lovingly saved all the UBER cool wood for me :D He even took the time to remove all the nails from each board, such a great man he is! So any ways, we ended up using the wood from the garage for the table top. This was not only a great way to reuse the wood (reduce reuse recycle right!) but we will forever have a piece of our first home… or the garage! </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Here are the pictures of the coffee table…</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh92NVRseIb-l6vKjCw2dj74nAQIF4hMZl3_V5EBIlhCU5MgF0buqzIdBNgW8Fwdc-UXGMXyrxgWwFDhaF9gDu51I7H213Pwt8yuVbQiLrpX8Da8BznigP4XE9qJIh1zSsR2-E_b4f8K80/s1600/coffeetable+7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" nfa="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh92NVRseIb-l6vKjCw2dj74nAQIF4hMZl3_V5EBIlhCU5MgF0buqzIdBNgW8Fwdc-UXGMXyrxgWwFDhaF9gDu51I7H213Pwt8yuVbQiLrpX8Da8BznigP4XE9qJIh1zSsR2-E_b4f8K80/s320/coffeetable+7.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Be sure to check out the post on how I made the coffee table, found here. (coming soon!) </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Also be sure to check back SOON to see the finished living room!!! It's almost done, YAY! </span></div>Melissa Jeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11761416744672568831noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8391231952987693159.post-32821842264420680642012-01-10T08:41:00.000-08:002012-01-10T08:41:45.167-08:00Color ChangeHello every one!<br />
I hope your holiday season went well! I know ours did! We have been so very busy, but I am back and ready to continue working on my blog. <br />
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Wondering what is new here in "the south"? Well the color of our dining room sure is!<br />
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We have been in our house for about 9 months now, and although I do like the traditional colors in our very traditional style home, I really love the look of the relaxed or shabby chic inspired style. The very bold colors in our house don't tie in real well with that style so I decided to paint our dining room. Why the dining room you ask, good question I am not really sure what inspired this random act of crazyness, haha, but here we are none the less.<br />
As you can see in the previous post, Birthday Party in the Fast Lane, our dining room use to be red. We liked the red, my husband liked the red a lot actually, but after some persuasion he agreed to let me paint it. I did tell him if he really didnt like the color I would paint it back red, but lucky for me he doesn't mind the new color.<br />
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We ended up painting it "relaxed navy" found at Lowes, and this is what it looks like now...<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin4SF0GS7Jlxw0tT18l8ZbteWcHAhIyddBg1kpFsIrTfoa3ghoygjFO90W2We5woDj86_G923wUG9hfDUDsBDzBpheebtr_jFL-96FBW1Okt593md3F7PmvVb3I0Hr4alV-q5dSWQyQUU/s1600/Dining+room+now+blue.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" kba="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin4SF0GS7Jlxw0tT18l8ZbteWcHAhIyddBg1kpFsIrTfoa3ghoygjFO90W2We5woDj86_G923wUG9hfDUDsBDzBpheebtr_jFL-96FBW1Okt593md3F7PmvVb3I0Hr4alV-q5dSWQyQUU/s320/Dining+room+now+blue.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLfShbGCsWe-dUdknYiMROHD6QFVIswNosn09K2jkPtx-sLO9wzsFMcn8p7jqepw8G9IHIQIVBfEMs_2urVFHoJ8yAiHD0-DvcIAaDrf1w_wbq_0tXlfMwc_ZzYYwsl5yclX283wv3xso/s1600/d+room+number+two+done.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" kba="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLfShbGCsWe-dUdknYiMROHD6QFVIswNosn09K2jkPtx-sLO9wzsFMcn8p7jqepw8G9IHIQIVBfEMs_2urVFHoJ8yAiHD0-DvcIAaDrf1w_wbq_0tXlfMwc_ZzYYwsl5yclX283wv3xso/s320/d+room+number+two+done.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRsXVAkw5aMIuYfAbYbIeywSN_UGwF50feqCqKb-cDY2DOM33NLi_r0mBi-l07vb1WOpOKUJK38vfQVtZ_YkeCtO7cpczBbGLNi5wt78qUs7hal0RdOzuYYsagH4l_Nxt5a887rQwn_h4/s1600/386233_803592569088_219700081_36982566_841061180_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" kba="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRsXVAkw5aMIuYfAbYbIeywSN_UGwF50feqCqKb-cDY2DOM33NLi_r0mBi-l07vb1WOpOKUJK38vfQVtZ_YkeCtO7cpczBbGLNi5wt78qUs7hal0RdOzuYYsagH4l_Nxt5a887rQwn_h4/s320/386233_803592569088_219700081_36982566_841061180_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Well what do you think? I really like it...but... the rest of the house is still painted in a very traditional color palette. Oh well I guess I will need to paint the rest of the house! ha ha ha. <br />
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Do you remember the table and chairs that are now in the dining room? They were the ones in the posting "weekend project". Oh yes, those are the ones! I think they turned out just great, and I am pleased to show them off. Of course now I will need new fabric for the seats, but oh well.<br />
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I would say I am about half way done with our dining room. I plan to get new window treatments, and also a rug for under the table perhaps? I also want to find some botanical prints for the east wall, it is a bit naked at the moment; and you know me, it will be a DIY project. I am thinking about hunting down an old botanical calendar, and framing some of the pictures. <br />
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Overall, we are happy with the dining room...so onto the next room right ;)<br />
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</div>Melissa Jeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11761416744672568831noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8391231952987693159.post-46199488971542354022011-12-04T08:36:00.000-08:002011-12-14T07:32:58.028-08:00Birthday Party in the Fast Lane<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyCXx8a2_lL0uPcZ5a6aLumdP8S7f9ZhU33MpAn7TtI2go3nK306r5zibuB-ut264SBnOFNjlsHO4uYnxgRdS96Xy5Li7bsXs0voKRkxMyWhVQ0mvWvhecjMC_NnWj4TnagGivLRv7BoM/s1600/chair.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyCXx8a2_lL0uPcZ5a6aLumdP8S7f9ZhU33MpAn7TtI2go3nK306r5zibuB-ut264SBnOFNjlsHO4uYnxgRdS96Xy5Li7bsXs0voKRkxMyWhVQ0mvWvhecjMC_NnWj4TnagGivLRv7BoM/s320/chair.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Here are a few DIY party decorations for a race car theme party. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Our little rock star is turning 5, and we are throwing him a birthday party! We are going to order pizza and have cake and ice cream (easy and kid friendly)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I whipped up a few decorations, using things I already had around the house :D </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span style="font-family: Calibri;">First the tissue balls</span></u></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">A fellow blogger inspired me to make the awesome tissue ball. (you can check out her AMAZING blog <a href="http://www.evelynkatedesigns.com/">here</a> and her "how to" on the tissue puffs <a href="http://www.evelynkatedesigns.com/2011/04/tissue-pom-pom-tutorial.html">here</a>) I decided to make one large tissue ball, and hang it from our dining room light. Then I added 3 paper circles on yarn below it. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSpYu8iA1q5OcCVXJV0Dz8QcHrTJI87muZePQqqfKfir4952wGTQuSsMNa8tQmMEHGRqSmLxSrTX3MdafKq5fVZo5kP8IWp5vi4nOISuATir_W7kCuvY8dOB7FwT_xotBCPMwOm5-Ag0U/s1600/IMG03931-20111204-1047.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" dda="true" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSpYu8iA1q5OcCVXJV0Dz8QcHrTJI87muZePQqqfKfir4952wGTQuSsMNa8tQmMEHGRqSmLxSrTX3MdafKq5fVZo5kP8IWp5vi4nOISuATir_W7kCuvY8dOB7FwT_xotBCPMwOm5-Ag0U/s320/IMG03931-20111204-1047.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0OeGbWTOe2T2sUd-Vo6WZjoT5hyv9bNsY7C56WkKhuW76N9yKBop-thwJvR-oFjjCxLsY8nh5LK_k5Oj6aYJvYnm-gCm12mxE-LVt6jICooPBNMGBLM4tyF6poOQ-VMN1DcM4_t2XMdc/s1600/IMG03933-20111204-1048.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" dda="true" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0OeGbWTOe2T2sUd-Vo6WZjoT5hyv9bNsY7C56WkKhuW76N9yKBop-thwJvR-oFjjCxLsY8nh5LK_k5Oj6aYJvYnm-gCm12mxE-LVt6jICooPBNMGBLM4tyF6poOQ-VMN1DcM4_t2XMdc/s320/IMG03933-20111204-1048.jpg" width="320" /></a></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><u><span style="font-family: Calibri;">How to make the tissue ball:</span></u></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Using 1 pack of tissue, fold it accordion style (think paper fan from grade school)</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Tie center with string</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Trim edges to a point or rounded</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Pull each piece out one at a time, and fluff</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Hang and enjoy!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">*You could even add some of those decorative picks or even feathers into the ball!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span style="font-family: Calibri;">DIY fabric garland</span></u></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">This project was inspired by my high school cheerleading squad. We use to make our hair ties this way. I made 6 small garlands, one for each chair, and then I hung a checkered flag on each. The result is a festive dining room! The best part about this project was the fact that I used scrap fabric and yarn I already had on hand, so it was completely free!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKMFmOjyumrqF8NZFM39j0RYn8Ksmf5NF6NvbGJoQ2pUpq5Az3VEAc_49tERfQXfFXYA0D6KQl1HcCt85mFgfyLU0sZh-mdB0UcGKYazZpRAtj7Bqjs4GGwYlQ9RIgn41L2llTK0nuHNY/s1600/375417_776440896258_219700081_36883546_1714857932_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" dda="true" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKMFmOjyumrqF8NZFM39j0RYn8Ksmf5NF6NvbGJoQ2pUpq5Az3VEAc_49tERfQXfFXYA0D6KQl1HcCt85mFgfyLU0sZh-mdB0UcGKYazZpRAtj7Bqjs4GGwYlQ9RIgn41L2llTK0nuHNY/s320/375417_776440896258_219700081_36883546_1714857932_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><u><span style="font-family: Calibri;">How to make fabric garland:</span></u></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Cut string or yarn to desired length </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Cut fabric into strips. Length and width are up to you ( I did 1” by 4”)</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Tie fabric to yarn alternating colors</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Hang garland and enjoy</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">*you can also use tulle, ribbon, rickrack, feathers etc to add interest.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">*another cute idea would be to tie fabric onto a string of lights, plug in and WOW! </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Silver wear holders</span></u></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">So I drink a LOT of coffee, and always have a surplus of plastic coffee canisters on hand. We have used them for projects, painting, keeping homemade play doh fresh etc. I thought they would make cute silver wear holders for the party. All I did was glue on some ribbon, and make mini checkered flags (I used a black marker and ruler) and glue the flags on. PRESTO! Cute silver wear holders. Again, I had everything for this project on hand.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7upxvKwuTfgy7e2ZigNSLAymLiI1wwyOIgsP0s2G5M7orjuUnDCGndMlli6MjUm6aiO2Hv75pIvim5fHoBWRhgX_T-djwDRv3ZHSBFPvXBYVSbnpwMeWSA9Le668LhclXaBSRqdOacSA/s1600/305394_774719825298_219700081_36874355_67512447_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" dda="true" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7upxvKwuTfgy7e2ZigNSLAymLiI1wwyOIgsP0s2G5M7orjuUnDCGndMlli6MjUm6aiO2Hv75pIvim5fHoBWRhgX_T-djwDRv3ZHSBFPvXBYVSbnpwMeWSA9Le668LhclXaBSRqdOacSA/s320/305394_774719825298_219700081_36874355_67512447_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5Ob7axyvgpJBFuI9qwjeORy9DD7VFmwfPmBqfo9rnhUUfS2_ja_C7whbwoRUWmOl35hCz-lNEF70fRQNRytic4QZ4xvjpFivGARvlU1-3vjL07eSRIjsaVj9dd310WP5gDfEO43KSfJg/s1600/390479_774725858208_219700081_36874374_978753225_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" dda="true" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5Ob7axyvgpJBFuI9qwjeORy9DD7VFmwfPmBqfo9rnhUUfS2_ja_C7whbwoRUWmOl35hCz-lNEF70fRQNRytic4QZ4xvjpFivGARvlU1-3vjL07eSRIjsaVj9dd310WP5gDfEO43KSfJg/s320/390479_774725858208_219700081_36874374_978753225_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Checkered flag banner</span></u></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Using my Cricut, I used the wild Card cartridge and cut out the argyle pattern onto black paper, then glued it onto white paper. I then cut out a triangle, or the flag. After I made several flags that way, I glued them to ribbon, and you now have a checkered flag banner! It was very easy and provides a great end result. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaRvdViUIh28xUqBvPopYW07jQAq2CH1DyVXg0XcqWA39E7RUz2N8zMZo2l2boS0WMDI4c1CPwNZ5tqgHbzzW_4YrvQZ71Rv93PiG_6CkpE_Q_0jnaOaCTpY7cKnz__nITdMbqIMx2kJY/s1600/Robbys+Party+002.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaRvdViUIh28xUqBvPopYW07jQAq2CH1DyVXg0XcqWA39E7RUz2N8zMZo2l2boS0WMDI4c1CPwNZ5tqgHbzzW_4YrvQZ71Rv93PiG_6CkpE_Q_0jnaOaCTpY7cKnz__nITdMbqIMx2kJY/s320/Robbys+Party+002.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"></div>Melissa Jeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11761416744672568831noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8391231952987693159.post-74640221171458871432011-11-19T16:16:00.000-08:002011-12-04T08:03:08.174-08:00Weekend Project Time<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Happy weekend to you all! What are your plans this weekend? Do they involve shoveling snow? LUCKY! However, here in the south (as I always call it) we are going to be somewhere in the mid to upper 70s this weekend (which would be fine if it were September, but it’s NOVEMBER!). So with all this nice weather, I am going to attempt to start my table overhaul! What is this table I speak of you may wonder, here is the story….</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Well, since you asked; Last spring my oh so amazing and very understanding hubby drove me the hour to Oklahoma City so I could buy an old and very beat up table and chairs out of some guys shop. HA! My hubby loaded it up in our trailer, no questions asked, and away we went. I was so excited I could hardly contain myself! Sadly, for the last 6 months it has sat in our garage (big sad face) BUT THIS WEEKEND I PLAN TO GET A GOOD START ON IT! </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">First, I plan on taking all the seats off of the chairs, disassembling them, tossing the old foam and yucky fabric, then sand all the chairs. (That should be the easy part) Then I hope to get started on the table… my only problem is moving the big thing.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I should also mention that I have decided to paint, rather than stain, my table and chairs and here is why: First of all I have never worked with stain on such a large scale… So I was a bit intimidated to start out with. Second I have my new spray gun (YAY) Third, I want the table and chairs to be black to match the hutch we already have. With that said if I don’t like the outcome, maybe I will try to stain it… who knows.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I have already ordered and picked up the fabric for the chairs. I chose this….</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8_vvsW-xBQGpKk6iKgfIyfauoSl4mUryawiyzd182nKs7P-0CN8gJnBSmJExOBjiThPbge-w-dFlUaEYG-KkrlVGlEpldPwjXArgxyDPrxqS2cd12PPrEr3NO3_tEtb4hRJVIHX3YJrw/s1600/318597_734047373218_219700081_36576841_7274792_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" hda="true" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8_vvsW-xBQGpKk6iKgfIyfauoSl4mUryawiyzd182nKs7P-0CN8gJnBSmJExOBjiThPbge-w-dFlUaEYG-KkrlVGlEpldPwjXArgxyDPrxqS2cd12PPrEr3NO3_tEtb4hRJVIHX3YJrw/s320/318597_734047373218_219700081_36576841_7274792_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">A dark red fabric, with branches that are brown and black. Since our dining room is Red, with brown curtains and we have a black hutch I thought it would tie in with everything perfectly! I purchased the fabric at Jo Anns during one of their %50 off home décor fabric sales.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I hope to have enough fabric left over to also make a matching table runner :D </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">As I stated above it’s already November, I had originally<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>hoped to have this project done in time for my grandparents visit in October…. Now I am hoping for it to be done in time for our kiddos 5<sup>th</sup> birthday party! Since we moved away from home when he was 2, he has never really had a birthday party. This year though, he is going to have one! He is really into the Disney Cars 2 movie, so we are planning a Cars 2 birthday party… more to come on that!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Right now all we have is our breakfast nook, and I’m having serious doubts about fitting 13 kids around that table!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">So here we go!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Here they are- my table and chairs! Aren’t they wonderful! (what a steal for $75 bucks)</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEx1ltlUYaUo2wgCteCemQ5qzZm8q-uIoXZeW6ofEfy_-ipqMmKbCgiN4zvXW5maIJbgthJYGDTWrxgfwCZUHkMy7YcVRzXTSyDKyLsBQaCfF-ZyEjtUId82sDHVu8DYefU3ZSQEKUb7o/s1600/table+and+chairs+start+004.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" hda="true" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEx1ltlUYaUo2wgCteCemQ5qzZm8q-uIoXZeW6ofEfy_-ipqMmKbCgiN4zvXW5maIJbgthJYGDTWrxgfwCZUHkMy7YcVRzXTSyDKyLsBQaCfF-ZyEjtUId82sDHVu8DYefU3ZSQEKUb7o/s320/table+and+chairs+start+004.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpaSEPUa5GwW2J0dBmskW74tHCMb5aqtnJL4kDsMETsm2HfITFj9rWRT61tBATbx5REvVH7BNt52DETnU_NC2HLBJltN4wPGmgjMlfnWpthP8DWMPgZ4N5E98hyGbDKLmfb6aFKECAWnA/s1600/table+and+chairs+start+001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" hda="true" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpaSEPUa5GwW2J0dBmskW74tHCMb5aqtnJL4kDsMETsm2HfITFj9rWRT61tBATbx5REvVH7BNt52DETnU_NC2HLBJltN4wPGmgjMlfnWpthP8DWMPgZ4N5E98hyGbDKLmfb6aFKECAWnA/s320/table+and+chairs+start+001.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>And here they are after I primed them....<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3BV60mGQ_e0iiyTYLLG-CEOFJ1ahwXuvjn_rI9ehu3jDJu-ce69KeT2hcYzSfVSI4BCyXeg7iwBMQMzraCPU6VCT7TZ8FwZtwQcYN4zqoHVVQ1RjfOdr1Rlq_sPJ6NdeD0tnnAg-rQ1s/s1600/388980_769330994558_219700081_36854632_658912358_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" hda="true" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3BV60mGQ_e0iiyTYLLG-CEOFJ1ahwXuvjn_rI9ehu3jDJu-ce69KeT2hcYzSfVSI4BCyXeg7iwBMQMzraCPU6VCT7TZ8FwZtwQcYN4zqoHVVQ1RjfOdr1Rlq_sPJ6NdeD0tnnAg-rQ1s/s320/388980_769330994558_219700081_36854632_658912358_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
And here is one painted black... eek! exciting! :D<br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs7ZHUlzIKoSPxmYrZDNNbrSVZNnL_8cpDfqvgdPQMuTZRc0sW5-pBI8kWKKmwplImj_8JN7qOh4v05tqFfyPbhkxXJbZdnvEykQFRfbE_toUNjzeumDUNgR3I45J0XCLQBKxzs9FTBTI/s1600/IMG03895-20111127-1155.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" dda="true" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs7ZHUlzIKoSPxmYrZDNNbrSVZNnL_8cpDfqvgdPQMuTZRc0sW5-pBI8kWKKmwplImj_8JN7qOh4v05tqFfyPbhkxXJbZdnvEykQFRfbE_toUNjzeumDUNgR3I45J0XCLQBKxzs9FTBTI/s320/IMG03895-20111127-1155.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Half of them in the house.... getting there.....</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8dtJAMSCijrgBIR2ySaiMULm0UeZQJmy0B1J497eKcqeagUUGUyzhTGLorMXSQoyTWe51CcSmW-EpEE0TsEOluiWptN7LY-qD9pAfV45Dcc8CE_P7LyBi2xXiY5dj_ZKJT_dMtVVVpd0/s1600/376021_775211569838_219700081_36876548_136431923_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" dda="true" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8dtJAMSCijrgBIR2ySaiMULm0UeZQJmy0B1J497eKcqeagUUGUyzhTGLorMXSQoyTWe51CcSmW-EpEE0TsEOluiWptN7LY-qD9pAfV45Dcc8CE_P7LyBi2xXiY5dj_ZKJT_dMtVVVpd0/s320/376021_775211569838_219700081_36876548_136431923_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Ok, so we ran into a minor snag, (we as in my wonderfull hubby and I... see told ya he's a good sport, helping me out and all) when we were taking the cloth off of the old seats, we noticed the wood was falling apart. It was so old and yucky we decided it would be best to make new wooden seat bases... </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQvobz1wUeNazFO57mDnBIYvoqwfdGa49G31q8sTPQmGeCFGtprX5JcwmNK96H8llduccw9lyB-Jb609SFnsBYp-fVzLaBzXEG2xWBLHcemA8JeZFj4vpTDNpu6sFgg0OSybOE-1oSQsQ/s1600/IMG03893-20111127-1154.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" dda="true" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQvobz1wUeNazFO57mDnBIYvoqwfdGa49G31q8sTPQmGeCFGtprX5JcwmNK96H8llduccw9lyB-Jb609SFnsBYp-fVzLaBzXEG2xWBLHcemA8JeZFj4vpTDNpu6sFgg0OSybOE-1oSQsQ/s320/IMG03893-20111127-1154.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Isn't he a great man!!! :D So darn handy, and never complains about my crazy projects. (I'm so lucky)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_ywQ5jXZLo1BNOOFpambDjf-nHNQwANksSGsGywqmE7LyaOMO3uaZ-zNi7XiqAqsQQMqsAuvgDonoa9IHR-McqK8Wp3lxXSKtUjkdHjnthgEBlidstoRXsaixmZtS7u180noMUaPa9pg/s1600/IMG03898-20111127-1342.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" dda="true" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_ywQ5jXZLo1BNOOFpambDjf-nHNQwANksSGsGywqmE7LyaOMO3uaZ-zNi7XiqAqsQQMqsAuvgDonoa9IHR-McqK8Wp3lxXSKtUjkdHjnthgEBlidstoRXsaixmZtS7u180noMUaPa9pg/s320/IMG03898-20111127-1342.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">And there they are, the new wooden seat bases (well there is one anyways)... </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQof2FxZnlGSnI4L3x0ZuIvPHCVjtXaVeBjZfLwcfqTjSpfoB_wPC_M96jHnr9ojyaqncovHouYVgs1e5ZyOHh0TPuCBnncr_pe9GmHbISJCBIOAz-Glg2xp_Ois_SgmpKPqFffB0N3Rc/s1600/IMG03902-20111127-1400.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" dda="true" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQof2FxZnlGSnI4L3x0ZuIvPHCVjtXaVeBjZfLwcfqTjSpfoB_wPC_M96jHnr9ojyaqncovHouYVgs1e5ZyOHh0TPuCBnncr_pe9GmHbISJCBIOAz-Glg2xp_Ois_SgmpKPqFffB0N3Rc/s320/IMG03902-20111127-1400.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Alright, on to the table... As you can see we took it apart, I have decided to spray only the legs black. I am going to sand down and stain the top a dark drown. I just think if I paint it all black it will look so dark! So thats the plan... so far any ways ;)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAmk774EXnqEU385wMeEV6IiMLb2KxTEvQ2bDrpOFI-qIP3doJP0cQm4FJ4Y8CBYdcRYWci1S-kI_UnHT-4a76jJzsOYrv9nw-MpDG6N0LQRJ5Hs2aD94iboC7SFYSvAvDTjzNtg8udX0/s1600/IMG03904-20111127-1431.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" dda="true" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAmk774EXnqEU385wMeEV6IiMLb2KxTEvQ2bDrpOFI-qIP3doJP0cQm4FJ4Y8CBYdcRYWci1S-kI_UnHT-4a76jJzsOYrv9nw-MpDG6N0LQRJ5Hs2aD94iboC7SFYSvAvDTjzNtg8udX0/s320/IMG03904-20111127-1431.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">After I went to the city and got enough foam for the chairs, I covered the seats. I think they turned out pretty nice, for my first time anyways! Jack Jack approves of the first chair. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0MRpRJidCFpfKZx6JF_P3YjIxBL8vb61yyHjLXFTqHr_t8dq4HM0-aFPaN42AtIvJdHHMGHjMxY_QbPwfuO9lpYqhdLf5av1On5yKTyekxRNFVzMeAQsTKYya57TOF53U2gHkUvsKDzQ/s1600/379983_779433878298_219700081_36891857_1769571998_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" dda="true" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0MRpRJidCFpfKZx6JF_P3YjIxBL8vb61yyHjLXFTqHr_t8dq4HM0-aFPaN42AtIvJdHHMGHjMxY_QbPwfuO9lpYqhdLf5av1On5yKTyekxRNFVzMeAQsTKYya57TOF53U2gHkUvsKDzQ/s320/379983_779433878298_219700081_36891857_1769571998_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">*MORE TO COME*</div><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></span></div>Melissa Jeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11761416744672568831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8391231952987693159.post-27204528445084079922011-11-07T15:21:00.000-08:002011-11-07T15:21:19.414-08:00How to Etch Glass<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Here is a glass etching tutorial for you. My husband and I did this last Christmas for gifts, and they went over REALLY WELL! (that’s right my wonderful hubby helped me, he’s such a good sport)</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><u><span style="font-family: Calibri;">What you will need:</span></u></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Glass etching cream (found at craft stores for about 15-20 bucks)</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Rubber gloves </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Small craft paint brush</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Contact paper</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Paper punch or exacto knife</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Newspaper or drop cloth</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">You will also need access to a sink because you will need to rinse the etching cream off the glass.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2tK3388tHEj9hQt6vxMBGPr5zgvgDo3HyNNWdQTtlIKhjzOziXqv-ZfzOIh-IzZfwyoEW3O90yG_GIhOqSx9X-djUfkF1Fh21vf9Xv_HBxQj5Wo7SVXMBhPkgAvetOvj9Sn31dsKxVzQ/s1600/October+2011+more+167.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" ida="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2tK3388tHEj9hQt6vxMBGPr5zgvgDo3HyNNWdQTtlIKhjzOziXqv-ZfzOIh-IzZfwyoEW3O90yG_GIhOqSx9X-djUfkF1Fh21vf9Xv_HBxQj5Wo7SVXMBhPkgAvetOvj9Sn31dsKxVzQ/s320/October+2011+more+167.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The first step is to cut your contact paper to size. Since I was making snow flake etchings, I cut small square pieces. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9E_iVu34OvYjRVoi_ueZd7tCkrCZ-gmsh0TJw-Jy4YxP3B7_QGWs12o89Ref_VZP2vyENnKXto8R4cIWcu1FLmQDqbrvgpY3zVvpAcPd_M9poSrkNupOsINovo2gDUATxBnj06P7Ifhc/s1600/October+2011+more+168.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" ida="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9E_iVu34OvYjRVoi_ueZd7tCkrCZ-gmsh0TJw-Jy4YxP3B7_QGWs12o89Ref_VZP2vyENnKXto8R4cIWcu1FLmQDqbrvgpY3zVvpAcPd_M9poSrkNupOsINovo2gDUATxBnj06P7Ifhc/s320/October+2011+more+168.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Then use your punch to punch through the contact paper. You could also use the exacto knife and create your own design. After you have done that, peel and stick the contact paper firmly to your glass object.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Next, with gloves on, paint on the etching cream and let sit according to the directions on the bottle.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">After you have let the cream sit, and with your gloves still on, rinse with water and take off the contact paper. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">You now have a cute etched gift!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2zLl642dCec3TgHGyQGdCM6rEyChrR2dd9sS2Ujx8bYG3867II3IotZ5mN2fB9tCb26Dxwr0g8ZGgk5_ieND76Sqk9vd_XDVOW-nkD_BtqLbVf5C1EAJNX_kPfHt3dxQgC1X_uvUQTWU/s1600/October+2011+more+169.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" ida="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2zLl642dCec3TgHGyQGdCM6rEyChrR2dd9sS2Ujx8bYG3867II3IotZ5mN2fB9tCb26Dxwr0g8ZGgk5_ieND76Sqk9vd_XDVOW-nkD_BtqLbVf5C1EAJNX_kPfHt3dxQgC1X_uvUQTWU/s320/October+2011+more+169.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Some ideas of object to etch are:</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Glass mugs</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Glass pitchers</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Glass cups</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Glass serving bowls</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Glass plates</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Candle holders</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Mirrors</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">You can even go as far as to etch designs onto windows and glass doors. </span></div>Melissa Jeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11761416744672568831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8391231952987693159.post-2350763130328636392011-11-01T15:12:00.000-07:002011-11-01T17:37:26.189-07:00GIVEAWAY TIME!<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: "Cambria", "serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Today is the day for the giveaway! The winner will receive a hand etched coffee/tea mug, hot coco mix, and a handmade holiday card. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: "Cambria", "serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Using Random.org, I got a random number, each follower had been assigned a number prior to the random number generator, and the winner is….</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Cambria", "serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><u>Coqueta Bonita!!</u></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Cambria", "serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><span style="color: #bf9000;">Congratulations!</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Cambria", "serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Please e-mail me at<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><a href="mailto:allwithamanicure@hotmail.com"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">allwithamanicure@hotmail.com</span></a> <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>and include your name and mailing address,by November 15th, so I can send you your prize!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><span style="font-family: "Cambria", "serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Cambria", "serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Thank you so much to everyone who has followed</span><b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial", "sans-serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></b><span style="font-family: "Cambria", "serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">my blog so far! I hope you are enjoying it, and I hope it inspired you to be creative!</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvGNzgKdpDEAANI-hn36AvWOhFRPRvvIuKsXw5cKvAeO3BiFNpnu7On6YqWFMpPf5PGKnrRN0BgipMxed4ixzoLbi_9m_KDgsxKr494NwkzXAbh-4YbNhOACan6B0BKuDTIJryRavE6W4/s1600/October+2011+more+002.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" ida="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvGNzgKdpDEAANI-hn36AvWOhFRPRvvIuKsXw5cKvAeO3BiFNpnu7On6YqWFMpPf5PGKnrRN0BgipMxed4ixzoLbi_9m_KDgsxKr494NwkzXAbh-4YbNhOACan6B0BKuDTIJryRavE6W4/s320/October+2011+more+002.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It's really hard to see the etchings on the mug- there are snow flakes etched on it! CUTE!</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9al1crvghkIuMNbhIxsuAJnf2lVc0wYM0qjP7bRT_rn_9ZIwsB2vxLLFHtPsWFFVvfyik-MRnkJeaPzPNM-bOHRNiZHOLGj_wOSPt4hgWyqGxMwEBoW5Oy6hetF9UW-5eafMek5FkN2A/s1600/October+2011+more+007.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" ida="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9al1crvghkIuMNbhIxsuAJnf2lVc0wYM0qjP7bRT_rn_9ZIwsB2vxLLFHtPsWFFVvfyik-MRnkJeaPzPNM-bOHRNiZHOLGj_wOSPt4hgWyqGxMwEBoW5Oy6hetF9UW-5eafMek5FkN2A/s320/October+2011+more+007.JPG" width="320" /></a></div></div>Melissa Jeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11761416744672568831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8391231952987693159.post-30237834345939494492011-11-01T07:30:00.000-07:002011-11-01T07:30:00.731-07:00Thank You cards with my Cricut<span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span> <div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I needed to whip up a few thank you cards for my grandparents, after their visit, for all they helped us with. I hadn’t planned these cards out so I needed to use what I had on hand. I wanted to make a card “from’’ my son, so I can up with this cute card…</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvphI7Z-zMSfYPQ-UF9bj2h78Qx73HwQX_5V0ulRCyZbNXbvDJrpMisHSCwgP2DnrWv5Llf6pxCKszHyqeR0CYNHePNT5ZEmJP_9gBe1_7YUelIfRENZd2XTLtY7qKSsjUSIUEdHfkkZM/s1600/October+2011+more+005.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" ida="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvphI7Z-zMSfYPQ-UF9bj2h78Qx73HwQX_5V0ulRCyZbNXbvDJrpMisHSCwgP2DnrWv5Llf6pxCKszHyqeR0CYNHePNT5ZEmJP_9gBe1_7YUelIfRENZd2XTLtY7qKSsjUSIUEdHfkkZM/s320/October+2011+more+005.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I used the Play Time Cricut cartridge for this card.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I also made this cute card, which I used the Wild Card cartridge, for the ‘Thank You’. And then I just layered paper and some fun yarn! Pretty easy, and looks nice. (at least I think so)</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRZcA67VBt685ODwMvO4vpT2ju5uDT2cEwXOJZOsvQM_JZL4ay6eevLuoFzyUOT_tk-y6PNfuuQo0_5EPttNMVcZfciGGRtg6ti9w492ddOqwKQGlEHRZSg86uhyU4XvcLLtE8H2byrp4/s1600/October+2011+more+001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" ida="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRZcA67VBt685ODwMvO4vpT2ju5uDT2cEwXOJZOsvQM_JZL4ay6eevLuoFzyUOT_tk-y6PNfuuQo0_5EPttNMVcZfciGGRtg6ti9w492ddOqwKQGlEHRZSg86uhyU4XvcLLtE8H2byrp4/s320/October+2011+more+001.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP3zF0ox9KOrvk49fO04n7HA_Fs6kqRl8mxtvrY3blXb0pL7D-tQfCcDWi2T470lC_r4VP8ObzmTTtjunWXqEaqbsWWXvOylOqECWO__q44G6E8NIuUZah-8HvGWEcnb6kZUOIYTyD-kE/s1600/October+2011+more+003.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" ida="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP3zF0ox9KOrvk49fO04n7HA_Fs6kqRl8mxtvrY3blXb0pL7D-tQfCcDWi2T470lC_r4VP8ObzmTTtjunWXqEaqbsWWXvOylOqECWO__q44G6E8NIuUZah-8HvGWEcnb6kZUOIYTyD-kE/s320/October+2011+more+003.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I am really having fun with my cricut! I cannot wait to work with it more. Since the hubby has been home on vacation, we have been so busy with the house and having family over. Keep checking back there will be more goodies!</span></div>Melissa Jeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11761416744672568831noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8391231952987693159.post-48909662830686572882011-10-31T19:30:00.000-07:002011-10-31T19:30:06.057-07:00Happy Halloween!<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #b45f06; font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;">Happy Halloween!!! </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh60hkpuGNUdrvih-PtQ6rX7K_iCtjwdzgXUkiTG5PCEDOC1l-yaLWFE5m7IOon9lI3KIYgDeFtV4ymynEKWPQDPnj4Myxadyvw7CUx_CLAjLwi_jG3TYdWxp4Yp8fi1gOTlG9QB4vVDik/s1600/October+2011+more+018.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" ida="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh60hkpuGNUdrvih-PtQ6rX7K_iCtjwdzgXUkiTG5PCEDOC1l-yaLWFE5m7IOon9lI3KIYgDeFtV4ymynEKWPQDPnj4Myxadyvw7CUx_CLAjLwi_jG3TYdWxp4Yp8fi1gOTlG9QB4vVDik/s320/October+2011+more+018.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">My hubby and I spent the majority of the day insulating our garage apartment, but we did manage to take our Rock Star, who went as a ghost, trick-or-treating tonight. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have noticed a trend here in our little Oklahoma City, where the parents drive their kids from house/block to house/block.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now when we were kids our parents either walked with us or when we were older sent us on our merry way! Any who, we had a great time! Hope you all had a great time too!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I wanted to remind you that the drawing for my first ever giveaway will be tomorrow! All you need to do to be entered to win is follow my blog :D </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The prize is a hand etched coffee/tea mug, coco, and a handmade holiday card. If we get 30 followers I will give away two sets! If we get to 40 followers I will give away 3 sets! Be sure to follow and good luck!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div>Melissa Jeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11761416744672568831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8391231952987693159.post-90621039309111967052011-10-29T06:43:00.000-07:002011-10-29T06:43:04.032-07:00Coupons!<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> I wanted to take a moment to post a coupon I found for Hobby Lobby. If you have Facebook, head over to the Hobby Lobby Facebook page found <a href="https://www.facebook.com/adehn1/posts/630902102088?cmntid=631715437158&ref=notif&notif_t=comment_mention#!/HobbyLobby">Here</a>, and locate the coupon tab on the left hand side (you might need to "like" their page first).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They occasionally post a coupon. YAY! They currently have a 40% off one regular priced item, which I used <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>yesterday when I went.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> Also a reminder, if Hobby Lobby doesn’t have what you need (is that even possible) Jo Ann’s accepts competitor coupons. However, I have never needed to use a competitors coupon at Jo Ann’s because they send out a flyer with some great coupons on it, but the option is there. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> Speaking of Jo Ann's They have an online promo code that can also land you 40% off a regular priced item. Check out their site, <a href="http://www.joann.com/joann/home/home.jsp?cm_mmc=Google-_-Brand-_-Brand+%28E%29-_-jo+ann+fabrics_Exact&utm_source=Google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_term=jo+ann+fabrics&utm_campaign=Brand&002=2365735&004=2206806123&005=30959801&006=8616751803&007=Search&008=&gclid=COiL3Z-BjqwCFcyA7QodrVQJ8Q">here</a>, to get it. Also remember that Jo Ann's Friends and Family sale is November 4-6th. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">If you are wondering how you can get the latest sales and coupons from Jo Ann's here is how:</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> Sign up for email <a href="http://www.joann.com/joann/home/home.jsp?cm_mmc=Google-_-Brand-_-Brand+%28E%29-_-jo+ann+fabrics_Exact&utm_source=Google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_term=jo+ann+fabrics&utm_campaign=Brand&002=2365735&004=2206806123&005=30959801&006=8616751803&007=Search&008=&gclid=COiL3Z-BjqwCFcyA7QodrVQJ8Q&enterBeforeGet=yes&_requestid=831283">here</a> (located at the bottom left page).</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> Sign up for their mailing list <a href="http://www.joann.com/joann/common/content_noleftnav.jsp;jsessionid=84082191A619CE64FF8CE3853C569140.a5p2?catName=mailingPreferences">here</a>.</span></div><span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Happy couponing! </span>Melissa Jeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11761416744672568831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8391231952987693159.post-30016738775565895282011-10-27T07:02:00.000-07:002011-10-27T07:02:32.568-07:00Good Thursday Morning! (10/27/2011)<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjNoxmbkm8TY6cZ93VLjfo80TR1XM5EYuE-4KrVSeT8RyLCbWUAJU_y80TjggPpd_wQ0FYYACXK7PPmtkHECkkrGM4xAjgM6xWH4Rh2fq3y12RagFHJsZHQJJvpLoeXcXsG50FYGjJMrY/s1600/glass+mug.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" ida="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjNoxmbkm8TY6cZ93VLjfo80TR1XM5EYuE-4KrVSeT8RyLCbWUAJU_y80TjggPpd_wQ0FYYACXK7PPmtkHECkkrGM4xAjgM6xWH4Rh2fq3y12RagFHJsZHQJJvpLoeXcXsG50FYGjJMrY/s1600/glass+mug.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">image from etsy.com</td></tr>
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</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">ONLY 5 days until I draw the winner of the giveaway! YAY! The prize will be: a hand etched coffee/tea mug, hot coco, (possibly some handmade fudge) and a cute handmade holiday card!!! Keep it all for yourself or give it as a gift this holiday! </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Remember all you need to do to win is follow my blog! Thanks!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Drawing will be November 1st.</span> </span></div>Melissa Jeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11761416744672568831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8391231952987693159.post-25088862278391983382011-10-20T09:34:00.000-07:002011-10-29T13:12:21.770-07:00Fall Cards<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #783f04; font-size: large;"><strong>WELCOME FALL!</strong></span></span></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDYzhyphenhyphenPKuELC9w3f_AZ5nIMTACZBOHl01RJMP-CkS3FYWFCviJFDWHLNyPKfUHebtFRXcuFPnqnrOFa6sAoPhmVi1ddTUy6zVbZVY_wet4abgmmIIdsQdivGefh06fkjqPxG20y7fnGrA/s1600/10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" rda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDYzhyphenhyphenPKuELC9w3f_AZ5nIMTACZBOHl01RJMP-CkS3FYWFCviJFDWHLNyPKfUHebtFRXcuFPnqnrOFa6sAoPhmVi1ddTUy6zVbZVY_wet4abgmmIIdsQdivGefh06fkjqPxG20y7fnGrA/s1600/10.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Image Property of <br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">spartansusscraper.blogspot.com</span> </span></span></div></td></tr>
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</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">It has finally cooled down here in the south! Well a little bit I guess, we are talking 60’s. Up home in WI they are getting down to the 20’s (oh how I miss that!)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The hubby just got back from his trip to WY, where he said they had flurries- Jealous!! <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">But anyways, I am in the mood for fall activities! I’m talking cooking crafts and a pumpkin patch! Last night I made a stuffed pork loin, sweet potatoes and apple pie! YUM!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So my plans for the day are to take my kitty cat to the vet, and then head to Hobby Lobby (YAY) and get some fall inspired paper. After all my new cricut is longing to be used! So I was looking online for some inspiration, and I found the cutest scarecrow card on </span><a href="http://spartansusscraper.blogspot.com/"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri;">http://spartansusscraper.blogspot.com</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(awesome blog) I plan on making something similar.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Alright, here they are...</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">(yes they are very similar to those on the spartansusscraper blog, but what can I say I loved hers! Mine aren't quite as cute, but for my first card using my cricut I am happy, and I am sure my family will love them!)</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimpYRHfJxvdtI0p2RqDV2yAw0CBOeZg_ASLl5uxJ9ngd5cXoUXfAyZAQyncY33TJQLSsRwnWan9bfTGKX7XwYYoKDbq1rOz_vPq3gOQStTRHjvep-xel_lrcS69qvFQE8EtuL9GPDOD2Q/s1600/October+2011+118.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" ida="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimpYRHfJxvdtI0p2RqDV2yAw0CBOeZg_ASLl5uxJ9ngd5cXoUXfAyZAQyncY33TJQLSsRwnWan9bfTGKX7XwYYoKDbq1rOz_vPq3gOQStTRHjvep-xel_lrcS69qvFQE8EtuL9GPDOD2Q/s320/October+2011+118.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3JssjtD7WFNNOBy46OAWkEiUafazuTd4MjxZVdXAfnUpuiE9uaNHXVb4RV83y7-UDRrOujhr35wbAWmSgyRybiKOdGCdhleeh_3uw4ybkeYXMi4vv9vURJZgHiKzizg2LVlrX3xGNeYI/s1600/October+2011+120.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" ida="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3JssjtD7WFNNOBy46OAWkEiUafazuTd4MjxZVdXAfnUpuiE9uaNHXVb4RV83y7-UDRrOujhr35wbAWmSgyRybiKOdGCdhleeh_3uw4ybkeYXMi4vv9vURJZgHiKzizg2LVlrX3xGNeYI/s320/October+2011+120.JPG" width="320" /></a></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Remember to follow my blog<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>for a chance to win a handmade gift! Drawing will be November 1<sup>st</sup>!</span></div>Melissa Jeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11761416744672568831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8391231952987693159.post-9006144232583912722011-10-19T01:00:00.000-07:002011-10-19T01:00:03.702-07:00Happy Wednesday! (10/19/2011)<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">So a few things on this Wonderful Wednesday:</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong><span style="color: purple;">First,</span></strong> <u>DON’T FORGET</u> to follow my first ever blog, All With a Manicure, for your chance to win something hand crafted by yours truly. The drawing will by November 1<sup>st</sup>, and the prize is to be determined. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong><span style="color: purple;">Second</span></strong>, please forgive the lack of posts. I am getting ready for company, dealing with a broken (and now fixed) central air unit, along with dealing with a sick cat. Oh yea that and I had a mini emergency at the house which required me to obtain almost a ton of gravel, get it to my house, and unload it by HAND, alone I might add… so THAT took up quite a bit of my time lately. But I will try to get more pics of my projects, and new posts up as soon as I can. Thanks for waiting! :D </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong><span style="color: purple;">Third</span></strong>, I wanted to thank you all for taking time out of your very busy day to look at my first ever blog. I appreciate those of you who have also taken time out to follow it. As a first time blogger, it feels great to watch as the “followers” count grows. Thank you!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div>Melissa Jeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11761416744672568831noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8391231952987693159.post-21479658808515531192011-10-13T18:29:00.000-07:002011-11-07T15:34:11.229-08:00Block Letters DIY<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong><span style="color: #351c75;"><span style="font-size: large;">Block Letters</span></span></strong></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong><span style="color: #351c75;"><span style="font-size: large;">A DIY tutorial</span></span></strong></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizRBMmnQzcxiBL3KagaCCzrpOvEQMJIAGLhLmzrzuRabENM7jGGQGUImfopQptA1mvd_iNTFYwULx3IKqRjXEYpTOK807c2PKGGSeAiX6PoqUgGAQ6vVnj8r6uNp2ooXr6yF1Xm8cdhr8/s1600/308975_751451470268_219700081_36734295_1031299298_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizRBMmnQzcxiBL3KagaCCzrpOvEQMJIAGLhLmzrzuRabENM7jGGQGUImfopQptA1mvd_iNTFYwULx3IKqRjXEYpTOK807c2PKGGSeAiX6PoqUgGAQ6vVnj8r6uNp2ooXr6yF1Xm8cdhr8/s320/308975_751451470268_219700081_36734295_1031299298_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">So I saw these at the last craft fair I was at, UBER cute block letters. They are wood blocks with letters painted on them to spell out things. CUTE! I thought, "I could so make something like that!" So I did ;) </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><u><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Here is what you will need:</span></u></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">*Wood blocks, size is up to you (I used scrap lumber in our garage and cut it to size)</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">*Paint</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">*Scrapbook paper </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">*Glue (I used mod podge- love that stuff)</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">*Scissors</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">You will also need a way to make the letters, such as</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">*stencils</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">*pre-cut letters (can find these in the scrap book supplies at most craft stores)</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">*Circut ( I used my BRAND NEW Cricut for this project- YAY)</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh16pai4-YqdR4WGhqVZ-ShFOKJtgqIYrkPSsbunvXcUunxOrhDwIvFbmWYhpHrYjwRWHKG42-vIlnysYvTII3LEZo446hmXerk5yL3t4fklhDZnLdYSbH9xnI2kyKV_RiKtPsnQp56zW0/s1600/310925_751412213938_219700081_36734103_1158394584_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh16pai4-YqdR4WGhqVZ-ShFOKJtgqIYrkPSsbunvXcUunxOrhDwIvFbmWYhpHrYjwRWHKG42-vIlnysYvTII3LEZo446hmXerk5yL3t4fklhDZnLdYSbH9xnI2kyKV_RiKtPsnQp56zW0/s320/310925_751412213938_219700081_36734103_1158394584_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Cut your wood into blocks. I cut several sizes, so I have a variety to choose from.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1O46pmjlSTtQJLMg3rlUsDFv4idhFO_XJinmzAzl6Za79kDu8sByUST3N0-OlRtQ74yRNjJFGcnvrWhSGiZn_m3A-XwX5QXg2HR02sW2fSNmbaRmdDzDAfOeQzEvSrbhsLEJQt75tkFw/s1600/IMG03624-20111010-1919.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1O46pmjlSTtQJLMg3rlUsDFv4idhFO_XJinmzAzl6Za79kDu8sByUST3N0-OlRtQ74yRNjJFGcnvrWhSGiZn_m3A-XwX5QXg2HR02sW2fSNmbaRmdDzDAfOeQzEvSrbhsLEJQt75tkFw/s320/IMG03624-20111010-1919.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">After you cut your wood blocks to the size you want, practice arranging them. You can line them all up, stack them, set them up however you want!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6ZRv-a5iILQ5QGSksEqSx3n1YZctjn9vlhEgBzpMsVmrAc1HwFN5_6-395tPHFex_inxpgbTqxJgkiXfQwj3RMh6QoAUphISUZSo9Z5ds3gNS7rXo-1NP97ZUrOcZvw4f_JPt7NOK8ho/s1600/1.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6ZRv-a5iILQ5QGSksEqSx3n1YZctjn9vlhEgBzpMsVmrAc1HwFN5_6-395tPHFex_inxpgbTqxJgkiXfQwj3RMh6QoAUphISUZSo9Z5ds3gNS7rXo-1NP97ZUrOcZvw4f_JPt7NOK8ho/s1600/1.bmp" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Next, pick the paper you want to use. Then pick out the paint you want.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbmSsjOXPWLoITPz0Cy6sHF2_SrmhrHfXrIeYNDsArBSV8FjC9nWjEFwa6MdMlqCmPQ6Zo9DOei0Ljtk2dFy1fQSeofnNf2m_TBGvGryGzMQOGXbceIUWRJHsyvHd3a4bADP4fk1h5HmA/s1600/IMG03626-20111010-19322.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbmSsjOXPWLoITPz0Cy6sHF2_SrmhrHfXrIeYNDsArBSV8FjC9nWjEFwa6MdMlqCmPQ6Zo9DOei0Ljtk2dFy1fQSeofnNf2m_TBGvGryGzMQOGXbceIUWRJHsyvHd3a4bADP4fk1h5HmA/s320/IMG03626-20111010-19322.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Then paint your blocks. I painted the 3 sides, and a bit of the front and back. I did 2-3 coats of paint. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-mT6FbHIJmzv0TNRBe3X3W1cov23Ae53krApkYBuko5aCucBWeDYhm5u-hUD3UmqszaxadIx-_OSPYztvze9gLrOJYLYRq0njnz7Q8Eeo4kW2zNFym-IyLuJj6o7yCZAgP2Lwsm6zKNw/s1600/IMG03633-20111011-1053.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-mT6FbHIJmzv0TNRBe3X3W1cov23Ae53krApkYBuko5aCucBWeDYhm5u-hUD3UmqszaxadIx-_OSPYztvze9gLrOJYLYRq0njnz7Q8Eeo4kW2zNFym-IyLuJj6o7yCZAgP2Lwsm6zKNw/s320/IMG03633-20111011-1053.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">After the paint dries, measure the front of the block and cut your paper to size. I left a bit of the color showing on the front of the paper. Again, up to you.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">After you cut your paper to size, check to see that it fits to your liking. If it does glue it on to the front.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmGOGz49I8Wvsw_LmNmT-YHqCLza_JC4_s2Ld6h9q0onrSAaUH-MikZVsYS-qCYlvFAa6tvM-Vv2KURWc8xRsUcbv2y1IgxcDrMVxKJSUJdbLTdLQMEu2J0SvBDju5l4MOAtYAa42sGhs/s1600/IMG03635-20111011-1159.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmGOGz49I8Wvsw_LmNmT-YHqCLza_JC4_s2Ld6h9q0onrSAaUH-MikZVsYS-qCYlvFAa6tvM-Vv2KURWc8xRsUcbv2y1IgxcDrMVxKJSUJdbLTdLQMEu2J0SvBDju5l4MOAtYAa42sGhs/s320/IMG03635-20111011-1159.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Do this for all of the blocks.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I also did this for the back of the blocks, and added a cute little “Crafted by Melissa Jean” onto the bottom of the back.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkpbiJ9y1vyzu9N35RDfPZBDSqdtKnZmVzD_90CcsQf-p8ZlZ3mM_nXFEllPbqA-VMfksqIZuYEHNmu7NZ31qlsvEHnCPRQJucCBr3zMKD4aYYfDKC9Dl1DLPeKYVGxEALLHsLwlSjCbE/s1600/IMG03636-20111011-1611.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkpbiJ9y1vyzu9N35RDfPZBDSqdtKnZmVzD_90CcsQf-p8ZlZ3mM_nXFEllPbqA-VMfksqIZuYEHNmu7NZ31qlsvEHnCPRQJucCBr3zMKD4aYYfDKC9Dl1DLPeKYVGxEALLHsLwlSjCbE/s320/IMG03636-20111011-1611.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Now you get to cut your letters out. Size, font, color, etc is all up to you. I like the quirky mismatched upper and lowercase look, so I went with that. I also made a shadow for each of my letters. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Glue the letters onto the blocks.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaIlnGwBsgqjY9xUa5o8NmBbN8ZDX5f5rW14bJJKgAhtZ8gi7qYTNybD5cZSVC5BTUGbEpxfjLQynNhCQes8qb902V0x3D9WXLP9x5kGq1JTIU9dNl9_awpJm_zId6Gttq7SEb8niDf6k/s1600/314433_751493560918_219700081_36734433_2123546145_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaIlnGwBsgqjY9xUa5o8NmBbN8ZDX5f5rW14bJJKgAhtZ8gi7qYTNybD5cZSVC5BTUGbEpxfjLQynNhCQes8qb902V0x3D9WXLP9x5kGq1JTIU9dNl9_awpJm_zId6Gttq7SEb8niDf6k/s320/314433_751493560918_219700081_36734433_2123546145_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">You can leave your blocks like this if you want (they look pretty cool huh) But I wanted to add a little something more. I used some ribbon I already had, and wrapped them a few different ways. I used hot glue for this step.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8_tLAHI9_p_gQO4PRiteKrKF7zcyN1WMEh9vgGHsu1DKr5Aivc_jLIykMqrDl7LtUpYYrVTuHPi4tbgww0-TlEq2XvpFpLl6kDd4wBN4s4XgWrDda3RKMqiqXkRPvyOkSXkus1RxK2aU/s1600/298171_751442233778_219700081_36734280_1831262516_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8_tLAHI9_p_gQO4PRiteKrKF7zcyN1WMEh9vgGHsu1DKr5Aivc_jLIykMqrDl7LtUpYYrVTuHPi4tbgww0-TlEq2XvpFpLl6kDd4wBN4s4XgWrDda3RKMqiqXkRPvyOkSXkus1RxK2aU/s320/298171_751442233778_219700081_36734280_1831262516_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">CHECK THEM OUT! (the “give thanks” still needs to be embellished)</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUHud9Bzp748KgC9sp_3PGgXkyT_H697Jxee_hyErRWqow9aAGB-epKUJmhNQhVrKdLTAxSGhvFdJRkMXXcZcmJ0iLCG94vXuhFU1ETxCIcFOUvPC1D-ypGTBY_2N8JPzF8rJipSxU4BA/s1600/312970_751460177818_219700081_36734304_1702077905_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUHud9Bzp748KgC9sp_3PGgXkyT_H697Jxee_hyErRWqow9aAGB-epKUJmhNQhVrKdLTAxSGhvFdJRkMXXcZcmJ0iLCG94vXuhFU1ETxCIcFOUvPC1D-ypGTBY_2N8JPzF8rJipSxU4BA/s320/312970_751460177818_219700081_36734304_1702077905_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCFijVy3Jt9NAVkSRRYGduE7dCejUv4WNYEmExWYaLkZ4FztVF_n7KG20na2QMDqejQE2dlJoTRL-LOqr9NWHzOiffBjnjsHGKsb6H46mbXrTemFMOYukBVG18ywuKw1SyjaqUfclyxzc/s1600/314433_751493560918_219700081_36734433_2123546145_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCFijVy3Jt9NAVkSRRYGduE7dCejUv4WNYEmExWYaLkZ4FztVF_n7KG20na2QMDqejQE2dlJoTRL-LOqr9NWHzOiffBjnjsHGKsb6H46mbXrTemFMOYukBVG18ywuKw1SyjaqUfclyxzc/s320/314433_751493560918_219700081_36734433_2123546145_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Happy DIY </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Here are a few more of my block letter creations...</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfQ4wRRuVdkwS6nrAtLm1PUVjHkBPdZ5f3XaY1avqxklu2mpcAKPJV_npQb0r3bTe0_DQMyv2Z4ilDAVoFw_2MHH_DJnaLyAayyVOrmawWVzBAHmcMWDRgZHwPyAmS1rVAxuwPqodAJ5s/s1600/October+2011+123.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" ida="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfQ4wRRuVdkwS6nrAtLm1PUVjHkBPdZ5f3XaY1avqxklu2mpcAKPJV_npQb0r3bTe0_DQMyv2Z4ilDAVoFw_2MHH_DJnaLyAayyVOrmawWVzBAHmcMWDRgZHwPyAmS1rVAxuwPqodAJ5s/s320/October+2011+123.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ3bF-ENKwi71EY46Ue1tiR7mbmWzgZSfWu-Qy57tG9gDH4e3VGZpbvZ_v4sJMPVLWl8RVZXjI3twTBT1PZYrEQS7h7sTg7PwWDvYwg-ubKHwWXHO6Zvnqi2DDuAnczxRI5o8cm5xQFIk/s1600/October+2011+124.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" ida="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ3bF-ENKwi71EY46Ue1tiR7mbmWzgZSfWu-Qy57tG9gDH4e3VGZpbvZ_v4sJMPVLWl8RVZXjI3twTBT1PZYrEQS7h7sTg7PwWDvYwg-ubKHwWXHO6Zvnqi2DDuAnczxRI5o8cm5xQFIk/s320/October+2011+124.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtWIinqF4LDGW-rwsrc2aZJa5h2AlNjzUY8SgrFYcv0fRVzb7L8uhjH6RC3vuVLaZXQv3H8mQNKtsc7Jz3Xm6mRXVoNRBtwZxjxVWfFgfhYZHmv0iAXtXJO5qKOJLmkscXusGuHB4sXps/s1600/October+2011+125.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" ida="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtWIinqF4LDGW-rwsrc2aZJa5h2AlNjzUY8SgrFYcv0fRVzb7L8uhjH6RC3vuVLaZXQv3H8mQNKtsc7Jz3Xm6mRXVoNRBtwZxjxVWfFgfhYZHmv0iAXtXJO5qKOJLmkscXusGuHB4sXps/s320/October+2011+125.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUA702xxmNDIY3FPXxAK0OFFV03hj2UlK_FuAmaVjXuRdiFJu3fOmFUwrbfI37pPmYGK8BYRl_e0dbGbPrR7EF0CcTQLFNe89PWg3j97tRrWsHr3PKVVveiwWJFS_3N4XhpBT5KZT-PeE/s1600/October+2011+129.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" ida="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUA702xxmNDIY3FPXxAK0OFFV03hj2UlK_FuAmaVjXuRdiFJu3fOmFUwrbfI37pPmYGK8BYRl_e0dbGbPrR7EF0CcTQLFNe89PWg3j97tRrWsHr3PKVVveiwWJFS_3N4XhpBT5KZT-PeE/s320/October+2011+129.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhw1thQewbUZIbP4wQPgwvBZxwhwdu8NV4eFcoaEPpzkXwMgJB1GLDE9kvvPyT3_wgW6IWiNHuNA12EYHJJgQjCk-C5WAL78_qtTvWOaj8qrLQEJuRDWEUiKNcmpT9llS7Khuv07hQ1v8/s1600/October+2011+131.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" ida="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhw1thQewbUZIbP4wQPgwvBZxwhwdu8NV4eFcoaEPpzkXwMgJB1GLDE9kvvPyT3_wgW6IWiNHuNA12EYHJJgQjCk-C5WAL78_qtTvWOaj8qrLQEJuRDWEUiKNcmpT9llS7Khuv07hQ1v8/s320/October+2011+131.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCvstWlr2jQqAdg_PGXNY_xAFKjNE3dxZNHoP4J45t_acLUnbjFJwDlizuusHF_Lv7wN3J1ChyG5GdpG24mdhESalo7VSy4gQQm9MzBgzOfkOEABfFCqD6kNN26p2lMYJlXlQcqJtrQB4/s1600/October+2011+132.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" ida="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCvstWlr2jQqAdg_PGXNY_xAFKjNE3dxZNHoP4J45t_acLUnbjFJwDlizuusHF_Lv7wN3J1ChyG5GdpG24mdhESalo7VSy4gQQm9MzBgzOfkOEABfFCqD6kNN26p2lMYJlXlQcqJtrQB4/s320/October+2011+132.JPG" width="320" /></a></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2HrZMdpLHiBjgCip4iycwKHVzmv3RIWEQJPzViif2gq_Jn9VBYR6u1zOUv3DJwXphKerOPDOfObAtf2QrpwPJFSddTSbTeLktSesui-JuoiKQn3uGIYfQB_hQe3gqVnhPQ1de0oEHp7Q/s1600/October+2011+more+160.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" ida="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2HrZMdpLHiBjgCip4iycwKHVzmv3RIWEQJPzViif2gq_Jn9VBYR6u1zOUv3DJwXphKerOPDOfObAtf2QrpwPJFSddTSbTeLktSesui-JuoiKQn3uGIYfQB_hQe3gqVnhPQ1de0oEHp7Q/s320/October+2011+more+160.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiREPCRlImm40OcAhjULudAMwqQFY5DHCRcCnraYki7M-sz1z2thH99oxRz3Mek7ZT0XhnIAe9kgA4E0K_cp-lfS3O53jN4jjv31H-NxBV73eMtOgyj-xebwz3YSu9GnKt4j448ZFWN2fk/s1600/October+2011+more+163.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" ida="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiREPCRlImm40OcAhjULudAMwqQFY5DHCRcCnraYki7M-sz1z2thH99oxRz3Mek7ZT0XhnIAe9kgA4E0K_cp-lfS3O53jN4jjv31H-NxBV73eMtOgyj-xebwz3YSu9GnKt4j448ZFWN2fk/s320/October+2011+more+163.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyujJXw6VrAKhdc1mN2DUy-qB6Db_RW78bN6vqWMJHop07knE0ZmTW5RTlsvLlEkvLlqEZ4BI0lPc5Ttc6vui1NxLU7VSnyvAOAgKnCbi-oYH3JCx71s6Ft9_39TEesKQKHsQqidbW1Ws/s1600/October+2011+more+166.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" ida="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyujJXw6VrAKhdc1mN2DUy-qB6Db_RW78bN6vqWMJHop07knE0ZmTW5RTlsvLlEkvLlqEZ4BI0lPc5Ttc6vui1NxLU7VSnyvAOAgKnCbi-oYH3JCx71s6Ft9_39TEesKQKHsQqidbW1Ws/s320/October+2011+more+166.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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</div>Melissa Jeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11761416744672568831noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8391231952987693159.post-73668733272565766972011-10-09T13:06:00.000-07:002011-10-09T13:06:51.738-07:00Giveaway Time! <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Image "giveaway time" courtesy of <a href="http://www.manoneileen.com/">http://www.manoneileen.com/</a> </td></tr>
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In order to celebrate my very first blog I have decided to do my very first giveaway! <br />
<br />
Q: How do I enter you may wonder?<br />
A: For my first give away, all you need to do is follow my blog and you will be entered to win in my first ever give away. <br />
<br />
Q: When is the drawing?<br />
A: The drawing will be November 1st, 2011.<br />
<br />
Q: How do you draw?<br />
A: I will use Random.org to draw a random number. Each person who has followed my blog by November 1st,will have a number assigned to them, via list form. <br />
<br />
Q: What do I win?<br />
A: Good question! Not quite sure at the moment, but it will be home made for sure :D<br />
<br />
GOOD LUCK!<br />
<br />
Please be sure to check the GIVEAWAY page often for new giveaways :DMelissa Jeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11761416744672568831noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8391231952987693159.post-2424045235803088962011-10-09T09:30:00.000-07:002011-10-12T15:13:27.545-07:00DIY Roman Shades<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKAdHHndgjQ2n_8yHABXg4glwZtcfDsxwaIPqAZYEgSs6Hp85sJKJwwcUq2epu7Am3jrYlk5QWKTz9jYv5NKYfG5xRPzsthfhGn7Ms1QJbk_n02AnOOHx9329PKPwSE5w2uo2eg_q_-EI/s1600/309001_731222579128_219700081_36532482_4303023_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="238" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKAdHHndgjQ2n_8yHABXg4glwZtcfDsxwaIPqAZYEgSs6Hp85sJKJwwcUq2epu7Am3jrYlk5QWKTz9jYv5NKYfG5xRPzsthfhGn7Ms1QJbk_n02AnOOHx9329PKPwSE5w2uo2eg_q_-EI/s320/309001_731222579128_219700081_36532482_4303023_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Any one LOVE the look of custom roman shades? I DO! Now what about the cost? YIKES!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well thanks to a wonderful site I stumbled across, <a href="http://littlegreennotebook.blogspot.com/">Little Green Notebook</a>, I learned how to make my very own roman shades. Big deal you say. You can get patterns and do this right. Well yes, but how about making them for as little as 5 bucks?! WHAT?! Do I have your interest now? :D thought so! </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">So here’s the deal. These custom looking roman shades are made from material of your choice and mini blinds (oh and glue too). There is no sewing involved, which is great if you’re a beginner like myself, or maybe if you don’t own a sewing machine. Whatever the case, these are fun and easy to make. Oh yea they look great too! </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">You will need to measure the window(s) you will be making these for, and then get the appropriate size blinds and the correct amount of fabric. I recommend going to <a href="http://www.familydollar.com/pages/home.aspx">Family Dollar</a>, <a href="http://www.biglots.com/">Big Lots</a>, or something of the like as mini blinds can run as low as 3 bucks a pop! <a href="http://www.walmart.com/">Walmart</a> isn’t bad either for about 6 bucks a pop. There is no need to spend a ton on the blinds because you will be tearing them apart any ways- This could be a great way to jazz up your mini blinds, or even salvage mini blinds in rough shape :D Take a look at my BEFORE windows.... </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpdy8ImccS93pmGbCEYnN9UEI5FVS62jrL4CavfgtNhwqmWPOg-VNOFrHY6mpGltK3ykLyrlUSkzMUA6xqAkcyl4dHPsLXvd7HXBgSAsrFVzJd-5s9DCxPk44g5H3hTJf-_nB3r6gCK7A/s1600/untitled.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpdy8ImccS93pmGbCEYnN9UEI5FVS62jrL4CavfgtNhwqmWPOg-VNOFrHY6mpGltK3ykLyrlUSkzMUA6xqAkcyl4dHPsLXvd7HXBgSAsrFVzJd-5s9DCxPk44g5H3hTJf-_nB3r6gCK7A/s1600/untitled.bmp" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kitchen Window Before (see my helper Jack)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYx85XtjPz4qG-f-yEDfr7A-etpb53YzNmRzg2EnbxVxbDG9gBJBdWJEUF3Uwno_519o5up9VcRRoYiDg_wWglio_0ipTXtvmr-ybKs7o-VumAX7uIZxfuOmt_zec7hXqIHfKLxGRnYfI/s1600/297525_731090917978_219700081_36530278_4302779_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYx85XtjPz4qG-f-yEDfr7A-etpb53YzNmRzg2EnbxVxbDG9gBJBdWJEUF3Uwno_519o5up9VcRRoYiDg_wWglio_0ipTXtvmr-ybKs7o-VumAX7uIZxfuOmt_zec7hXqIHfKLxGRnYfI/s320/297525_731090917978_219700081_36530278_4302779_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Laundry Room Windows </td></tr>
</tbody></table></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Now if you want to make these for UBER cheap, check out your local thrift store for some blankets or sheets. If you get a quilted blanket, it will provide some insulation, a nice plus for an already great deal! For the windows in my kitchen I picked out fabric from my local <a href="http://www.joann.com/">Jo Ann</a> store. I had some %50 off coupons, so I used those :D For the windows in the laundry room I used my birthday gift card (from my wonderful in-laws) and got the material from <a href="http://www.michaels.com/">Michaels</a>. Either way it was a great deal.</span></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpK0QCkcHbdsUIi1M06qzJxazeyKQ_5bC59FMbSEepk0h_BR_nxRiPiL0JJ2THm6IBK-7X2hmFsmFejPT4U8K91L_-VGbbQjZFowhP5hxX0xNlLMphonjtr0LHVs1HaXhzu9eftStMAvE/s1600/305015_731094680438_219700081_36530338_4729891_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpK0QCkcHbdsUIi1M06qzJxazeyKQ_5bC59FMbSEepk0h_BR_nxRiPiL0JJ2THm6IBK-7X2hmFsmFejPT4U8K91L_-VGbbQjZFowhP5hxX0xNlLMphonjtr0LHVs1HaXhzu9eftStMAvE/s320/305015_731094680438_219700081_36530338_4729891_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The article I read that inspired me to make these doesn’t have you line the shades, but I went ahead and purchased the cheapest white fabric I could find just to line the back of the blinds. I thought it would help keep the sun from washing out the color and help keep our house a more comfortable temp. This step is up to you of course. If you are planning on lining them, you can buy pretty much any ol' fabric to do this with but I do know they have insulated fabric too. Just a thought. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">So any ways after you have<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>your window measurements, you will need to decide how many pleats, or folds you want your blind to have when you roll it up. This is the number of blind slats you will need to leave on the strings. The rest will come off. In order to take off the rest of the slats, you will need to extend the blinds fully and remove the bottom slat. To remove the bottom slat, take the small plastic plugs out of the holes on the bottom, then untie the knots from the cord and slid the bottom slat off.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtS4j7QrgCpEgbHai1Dk0iVMsw-8NJcaeKJnWF9LL-ABFLxyl0n3LWng2uS8EnYcUBJWw12pf_2qZpJJUKIz85Rx7TlXa5nw7Mcfs7ProtX1hQkGNJuil2HNgF-XH7TT2SnoIl28w13jU/s1600/4.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtS4j7QrgCpEgbHai1Dk0iVMsw-8NJcaeKJnWF9LL-ABFLxyl0n3LWng2uS8EnYcUBJWw12pf_2qZpJJUKIz85Rx7TlXa5nw7Mcfs7ProtX1hQkGNJuil2HNgF-XH7TT2SnoIl28w13jU/s1600/4.bmp" /></a></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Next cut the “ladder cord” ONLY THE LADDER CORD! Do NOT cut the thick cord, as this is what will pull the blind up and down. I took the advice of the other article and just ran my scissors up the ladder cord. Remove the cut ladder cord fragments. Next remove the blind slats, leaving only the number of slats you have chosen for the folds. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Now put the bottom slat back on the cords, then measure the length you want your blind to be and tie a knot at that point.(do this on both sides) I wanted my blinds to be flush with my windowsill, so I didn’t leave any extra at the bottom. The length is up to you. You should now have something that looks like this... (the extra slats are pushed up at the top)</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1gXm9MUSLcSxEEtQ2Rhj4kWoyGOwT6zUbxj8f-WK884V7eowpg5PL8pO8DI6Viz3PU8NxzL2qzW36uAlgh9vbSDbwC-SVXeSmriaRvMe-l_q3RxTxiOQFCKAAqtP-BXqkGT8KQ5D5jHE/s1600/311935_731234250738_219700081_36532738_8217019_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1gXm9MUSLcSxEEtQ2Rhj4kWoyGOwT6zUbxj8f-WK884V7eowpg5PL8pO8DI6Viz3PU8NxzL2qzW36uAlgh9vbSDbwC-SVXeSmriaRvMe-l_q3RxTxiOQFCKAAqtP-BXqkGT8KQ5D5jHE/s320/311935_731234250738_219700081_36532738_8217019_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">After you have re assembled your blind lay out your fabric, right side down and put your blind on top of it. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong>A few important notes:</strong> </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">You may need to iron your fabric/blanket. If you need to do that, do it before you start gluing.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgplZo60gbGU6vhfY2NtSeCm7eA0ZlPKgykX4o-XsIi1ZffK_pzLwRTjcDsAybpvq-c_INuB-UyE7yMhcJBtqEK8q2YZUmV8sNx_5KmX7HlKrYYVKL9LcbR5lY0kYnScGINWRsP9h-y1ko/s1600/untitled2.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgplZo60gbGU6vhfY2NtSeCm7eA0ZlPKgykX4o-XsIi1ZffK_pzLwRTjcDsAybpvq-c_INuB-UyE7yMhcJBtqEK8q2YZUmV8sNx_5KmX7HlKrYYVKL9LcbR5lY0kYnScGINWRsP9h-y1ko/s1600/untitled2.bmp" /></a></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">If your fabric has a pattern, make sure it is straight at the top of your blind. For example, if you have a row of flowers in the pattern, make sure your blind is lined up straight on that row, otherwise when you hang the blind, it will look like it’s hung up crooked. This is one of the trial and error things I talk about. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Also, as the article from <a href="http://littlegreennotebook.blogspot.com/">Little Green Notebook</a> states, do not use hot glue for this project. I used Tacky glue, and its holding up fine so far. I love tacky glue :D</span></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">If you are going to line your fabric, just cut the liner and fabric to the same size and glue them together using your glue. You can just glue around the outer edge, that will be fine. Proceed with the project.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbZgJCvxFf6Z5f26SukbNhdRDWXGd-LrsjkxtY20s55Od_PrF7OO0FdhHd3wFcYvMKdz5agIFmW_vjFJsYa1eI0t2p_OkrOWXSa2GMaBMTlbMUtoij6DS35VKhp-8IsqsUWNqHOb0cv18/s1600/3.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbZgJCvxFf6Z5f26SukbNhdRDWXGd-LrsjkxtY20s55Od_PrF7OO0FdhHd3wFcYvMKdz5agIFmW_vjFJsYa1eI0t2p_OkrOWXSa2GMaBMTlbMUtoij6DS35VKhp-8IsqsUWNqHOb0cv18/s1600/3.bmp" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">After you have double checked that your blind and fabric are straight, position your slats where you want them. There is no right or wrong way to do this really, just make sure they are straight. To check to make sure they are straight, just measure from the top down. They should be equal distance down on each side. I found that two tape measures helped me a lot. </span></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIIiowGFAyiuVM4d0x_7ZIiDUWAe4-DqDBH8n7lkMzYcAyhRsHLynJK_NiXhIQisyzZCnPJ5at7mHgVC-U4h1omMg-z34iEAIoO_JdUNQjkrCzmwdgYXt_Is92OK094Gs47m0eE-M2e5A/s1600/254783_731117679348_219700081_36530796_2698257_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIIiowGFAyiuVM4d0x_7ZIiDUWAe4-DqDBH8n7lkMzYcAyhRsHLynJK_NiXhIQisyzZCnPJ5at7mHgVC-U4h1omMg-z34iEAIoO_JdUNQjkrCzmwdgYXt_Is92OK094Gs47m0eE-M2e5A/s320/254783_731117679348_219700081_36530796_2698257_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxk941tttL5fXTxnqycKDwLKZxtikOw___FEmRBDYAymN8b3uNi_Z0IjAaJKEA_KVKq3odUSvG6a8gHDGybASC8obtuNri6WHDjjwDwLfmZGvz-tXaseQXf9PJZSwIqraAFf2rwsuxI9k/s1600/315387_731241376458_219700081_36532841_1207313_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxk941tttL5fXTxnqycKDwLKZxtikOw___FEmRBDYAymN8b3uNi_Z0IjAaJKEA_KVKq3odUSvG6a8gHDGybASC8obtuNri6WHDjjwDwLfmZGvz-tXaseQXf9PJZSwIqraAFf2rwsuxI9k/s320/315387_731241376458_219700081_36532841_1207313_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Now it’s time to bust out the glue :D <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I started gluing at the top. MAKE SURE you do NOT glue the fabric to the two very ends of the top of the blind. You will need to be able to hang them later. (there’s that trial and error thing again) You can glue it after it is hung if needed. Next just glue the slats to the fabric, working your way down to the bottom slat. Do NOT get glue on the cord, as this will prevent the blind from working. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">After all the slats have been glued to the fabric, fold over the edges and glue those down too. YOU ARE ALMOST DONE! </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWFA0HvpefsYg-QUfQc9bNtmXudg-DFq-chmT3G1D9HSWmkuLs1Ei4yOZrfPxYm0JwbCN8I_pKdpVvXQZsR_2YFrXTJoHgHsSjVSnePbo4BZi3donVOhusj6j6Va72gWMyyT9IDhgXDPA/s1600/293953_731121356978_219700081_36530881_6458966_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWFA0HvpefsYg-QUfQc9bNtmXudg-DFq-chmT3G1D9HSWmkuLs1Ei4yOZrfPxYm0JwbCN8I_pKdpVvXQZsR_2YFrXTJoHgHsSjVSnePbo4BZi3donVOhusj6j6Va72gWMyyT9IDhgXDPA/s320/293953_731121356978_219700081_36530881_6458966_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipn1a78Ew7Za3y-mvjAv3alIi2733SPwmnkhF33wgEItsvFB7E2yu24C7ddzXvAgDYna3L7gBcpPEdlTSXM-P0I1E6DkDBWBfmlL2dHY4UnbZXkA-9-nLafrwkqnCSnPshdy81c0I4ZEc/s1600/299986_731245353488_219700081_36532967_7530584_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipn1a78Ew7Za3y-mvjAv3alIi2733SPwmnkhF33wgEItsvFB7E2yu24C7ddzXvAgDYna3L7gBcpPEdlTSXM-P0I1E6DkDBWBfmlL2dHY4UnbZXkA-9-nLafrwkqnCSnPshdy81c0I4ZEc/s320/299986_731245353488_219700081_36532967_7530584_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrWaiaXZJHV4lVoJaJtmH8hZ7a0BLUfEF2-KmNPB2p55mB2_z6lhaP_GSZE-CG9tcIR5B_yE87VafoSSy_ZiTnBqGru9KKbNI0KVMtPoVVATxISJOOL_5A-fowB9DFNIMNam_w6UHJmgg/s1600/5.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrWaiaXZJHV4lVoJaJtmH8hZ7a0BLUfEF2-KmNPB2p55mB2_z6lhaP_GSZE-CG9tcIR5B_yE87VafoSSy_ZiTnBqGru9KKbNI0KVMtPoVVATxISJOOL_5A-fowB9DFNIMNam_w6UHJmgg/s1600/5.bmp" /></a></div><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Now just let this dry over night!!!!! It needs to be good and dry before you hang it up. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">You can also add some trim on the top or bottom to jazz them up a bit. I added red trim to the top of my shades in the laundry room. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEio1zcR4a_F4nCKLEoIwFeL5gttUK4W8XBNBS410ecPeN7F-YZ640RbcXAcR8JfrDnyhmDnKWi5iaj4FpmprjOyOd8jMJe9-EfCEwQdtHFMSqmRK8iklDIxRBJdhhsohKJABlAzd2VDUwc/s1600/301424_731437069288_219700081_36537521_2203936_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEio1zcR4a_F4nCKLEoIwFeL5gttUK4W8XBNBS410ecPeN7F-YZ640RbcXAcR8JfrDnyhmDnKWi5iaj4FpmprjOyOd8jMJe9-EfCEwQdtHFMSqmRK8iklDIxRBJdhhsohKJABlAzd2VDUwc/s320/301424_731437069288_219700081_36537521_2203936_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH7xCf_VA8vCH8O3fm1ehphM0KSut-IVJe4rs0desiZUlBAVrGO2_pY1qDT6z4lOCXP30s1h-Vb10_DTcinPJ_UtyMfoococxszGvsvwIskEabE0CzsXEG2I69qp2LYPfdW5R2kekDWCE/s1600/IMG03629-20111011-0742.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH7xCf_VA8vCH8O3fm1ehphM0KSut-IVJe4rs0desiZUlBAVrGO2_pY1qDT6z4lOCXP30s1h-Vb10_DTcinPJ_UtyMfoococxszGvsvwIskEabE0CzsXEG2I69qp2LYPfdW5R2kekDWCE/s320/IMG03629-20111011-0742.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Happy DIY</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Special thanks to the <span style="background-color: white;"><a href="http://littlegreennotebook.blogspot.com/">http://littlegreennotebook.blogspot.com/</a></span> for my inspiration! </span></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Melissa Jeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11761416744672568831noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8391231952987693159.post-45549982590351268682011-10-08T11:09:00.000-07:002011-10-09T13:00:48.718-07:00Dresser Overhaul<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGL79ztCXOyYRUz_4HVaPlkIZRL2yziS-_OkDT2ubRrKleRNjAuCp58cVHKKsKhhOGBtVDm3M5dwn00LLXPKRs3h_-Ofgy8llbRRhVcEzvDV63Jcpe0cQOfETXkbB66289ZU4eQskTvq0/s1600/untitled2.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGL79ztCXOyYRUz_4HVaPlkIZRL2yziS-_OkDT2ubRrKleRNjAuCp58cVHKKsKhhOGBtVDm3M5dwn00LLXPKRs3h_-Ofgy8llbRRhVcEzvDV63Jcpe0cQOfETXkbB66289ZU4eQskTvq0/s400/untitled2.bmp" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">With the holidays around the corner, and our families planning their visits, I decided it was time to get to work on our guest room. You might remember that we just purchased our home not too long ago, so it’s still getting put together. To top that off we are recent college grads, and much of what we have is hand me downs or thrift store finds. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Our guest room consisted of… well nothing! Haha! We didn’t even have a bed for it, we had to start from square one all while keeping our budget in check. After the bed situation was solved I found a great deal on my local Craigs list (which I LOVE btw) for two small black chairs. The chairs had been used in a waiting area of an office that closed, but I thought they were cute, and the price was GREAT! The fabric on the chairs however, not so much!(that’s another project)</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">So anyways, on to the dresser. I had a dresser sitting in our garage for quite some time (well it use to be in storage) It was my sons dresser that my mom had painted for him. Before that it was my youngest sisters dresser. It’s a very solid piece and I am happy I decided to keep it. Check out how cute it was for my rock star! (yes that's chalk board paint on the door and blocks turned knobs. My moms amazing)</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4wq4w8y71ONpnr6nW4rvKMukdTtZM743U11VRtmOzeArRKe0F7DJDQulc6fNEt39mtK5eVmrlf489pPpZ4d3NBxnU5c1cqO4fHdsAG2NJnd6_FX_jkAL0evF0Qbvry5QP1iP3V2ImHfY/s1600/Dresser+before.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4wq4w8y71ONpnr6nW4rvKMukdTtZM743U11VRtmOzeArRKe0F7DJDQulc6fNEt39mtK5eVmrlf489pPpZ4d3NBxnU5c1cqO4fHdsAG2NJnd6_FX_jkAL0evF0Qbvry5QP1iP3V2ImHfY/s320/Dresser+before.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Keep in mind this is really my first furniture re do, or as some people say up cycle. With the exception of my desk I guess. (yet another project I should post) I didn’t really know what I was doing. I of course googled a few things, and called mom and dad. I needed to know things like what paint to use, do I need to sand and prime (the answer is YES) etc. (Have I mentioned that my parents are professional painters, yea I call them a lot. “mom how do I do this” “Dad how do I do that” I’m sure they are sick of me by now.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So after I decided I was going to paint this gold with black crackle I set out to Lowes to get the supplies. I got <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>primer, gold paint, black paint, crackle glaze, and a protective top coat. Then I got to work.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiu1XQaznvpnDHJBHA0GxJzqCRa26_Uskmhf7JD-jOm7mDzWRBaqo0p39pX0diUD6Cp9HiuJYLlfnv3b4E2MF-QAxBl8aMzJjDNry5lXhTZCI1MrGPpa0dfJ-l8IJmAw0QUjyV_6jwkPlw/s1600/Dresser+prime.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiu1XQaznvpnDHJBHA0GxJzqCRa26_Uskmhf7JD-jOm7mDzWRBaqo0p39pX0diUD6Cp9HiuJYLlfnv3b4E2MF-QAxBl8aMzJjDNry5lXhTZCI1MrGPpa0dfJ-l8IJmAw0QUjyV_6jwkPlw/s320/Dresser+prime.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">My first time using my spray gun was with the primer. It was a lot of trial and error to say the least. I also got a crash course in a clogged spray gun. GRRRRR Luckily my hubby helped me take it apart and clean it. Thanks babe! <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For anyone who is also just learning, I recommend thinning out the primer/paint at a rate of about 3oz <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>of water per half quart of paint/primer. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of course I am no expert and this may not be correct, but it worked for me, and I am happy with that. After I primed it, I let it dry overnight. Then I used the same technique to put my gold color paint on. The color reminded me more of someone who tanned too much, rather than a gold but I went with it (trial and error right?!?!)</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRIrqmu2FwaithDMbHQ31ctl0FBffblrbU4baw5YZ5xC1K7xZsw2r3R-J91uKedhyphenhyphenp_s59X9TfCl1JZzBsG0CQaxuEJdE-jkpfTn7mn_8k_45hOG8p8vK-r7ypn4x2iHx5aSWfPhTH7eU/s1600/Dresser+Glidden+paint.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRIrqmu2FwaithDMbHQ31ctl0FBffblrbU4baw5YZ5xC1K7xZsw2r3R-J91uKedhyphenhyphenp_s59X9TfCl1JZzBsG0CQaxuEJdE-jkpfTn7mn_8k_45hOG8p8vK-r7ypn4x2iHx5aSWfPhTH7eU/s320/Dresser+Glidden+paint.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">After I let the gold paint dry overnight I brushed on the crackle glaze. This part needed to be done with a brush. A good tip for those of you who are doing this for the first time, when you apply your crackle glaze if you paint in a very neat “row, after row” or straight lines, your end result will produce a very neat (as in tidy) crackle pattern, If you kind of slop on the crackle paint and brush it around, you will have a random crackle pattern. Personally I like how the very straight cracks look. After the crackle glaze has dried for 1-4 hours you can paint your top color on. This will also need to be done with a brush. When you apply the top color make sure you don’t back brush if you do the crackle will be less likely to work. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG1EqKi6vtRKAwX3YIgypTkeVAz4mATX8cYjXUZZTtUpW-fgC0pw5g9TKTsIoIoPsf9YN9GYMvImyBZiFKKBofz8DF0fQh5b6DBH09caiMkEEIz5v7k5HbSwf09YXDk8zIyEEUZu1AOSk/s1600/Dresser+Drawer+crackle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG1EqKi6vtRKAwX3YIgypTkeVAz4mATX8cYjXUZZTtUpW-fgC0pw5g9TKTsIoIoPsf9YN9GYMvImyBZiFKKBofz8DF0fQh5b6DBH09caiMkEEIz5v7k5HbSwf09YXDk8zIyEEUZu1AOSk/s320/Dresser+Drawer+crackle.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">After the top color dries overnight you can apply the clear protective coat. I used my spray gun for this, but it could be done by hand too. Now all you need to do it let it dry and you are done! </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">My dresser is up in the guest room, but I have yet to get knobs for it. Well yet to find knobs I like! I plan to make the hour drive to my “local” <a href="http://www.hobbylobby.com/">Hobby Lobby</a> next week, I am sure I will find something there. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">UPDATE! I have found knobs! The last 6 of their kind :D it was fate ;) Oh yea, that and they were %50 OFF YAY! Hobby Lobby always has such great deals! I thought they were so pretty! </span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQINZsNKbWXLfLdsBzal3i58P9dyUmUxxqcwbSD58FwLGrHvAcjY7J7lRLAjVfLHnVX4gWYe92hHxQ7ab0zLiasUtJ2e_8ePmNg93EmK6cZgrfZWtYvaFrX8x3hx0_B8zxg9BR_WPr6uo/s1600/untitled3.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQINZsNKbWXLfLdsBzal3i58P9dyUmUxxqcwbSD58FwLGrHvAcjY7J7lRLAjVfLHnVX4gWYe92hHxQ7ab0zLiasUtJ2e_8ePmNg93EmK6cZgrfZWtYvaFrX8x3hx0_B8zxg9BR_WPr6uo/s1600/untitled3.bmp" /></a></div><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Dresser is almost done. I just need to put the latch on the door, and it's done. :D What do you think? (sorry for the bad pics, all I have is my camera on my phone. The hubby took our camera for his trip) I think I will stop downtown to the local glass store and see how much it would be to have a mirror cut for the door. Maybe etch some floral design onto it? I'm not sure, it just needs something, don't you think?</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilkNoyBXK9SBBdyIuR_Je-0i6pf77eO2f-pmoHt58q9N4KAuEqC8Wbazcm-fCyRJvX9_WI-azmVygmHieYERChZLGlaGWnx2m6DIDtcE4H24hURPnPlF0_nvzHX3hVvzFzIUnV_pbLs3c/s1600/untitled.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilkNoyBXK9SBBdyIuR_Je-0i6pf77eO2f-pmoHt58q9N4KAuEqC8Wbazcm-fCyRJvX9_WI-azmVygmHieYERChZLGlaGWnx2m6DIDtcE4H24hURPnPlF0_nvzHX3hVvzFzIUnV_pbLs3c/s1600/untitled.bmp" /></a></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><br />
</div>Melissa Jeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11761416744672568831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8391231952987693159.post-53884972818305236972011-10-07T19:44:00.000-07:002011-10-09T13:00:22.814-07:00A Friday Frugal Find<span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif";">A Friday Frugal Find</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif";">Haha do you like that title ;) Any ways thought I would share with you a great deal. (well I got excited about it any ways)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif";">Cottonelle 12 rolls for $3.50 at <a href="http://www.walgreens.com/"><span style="color: blue;">Walgreens</span></a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif";">Heres how:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif";">Cottonelle 12 rolls are $5 at walgreens</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif";">Use their $1 in store coupon, found in their October savings book</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif";">Use the .50 off manufacture coupon found <a href="http://bricks.coupons.com/Start.asp?bt=vi&tqnm=qkylcsy49115519&o=55011&c=KC&p=cRdOCWhv">here</a> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif";">Voilà 12 rolls of Cottonelle Toilet Paper for $3.50</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri", "sans-serif";">Happy Friday!</span>Melissa Jeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11761416744672568831noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8391231952987693159.post-44849813513058015112011-10-07T09:52:00.000-07:002011-10-11T10:46:05.964-07:00Welcome!<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVU_IsPv9_9hVsCqMxQivi9-6qBo6s5zxOllhMBPMkyJQ4v7E-1HPyTbzNdgg_hQ9WCMTTXjWaVSa13JiD3q2pHd2REb3dNszrZy8dALKmY14yzrHcWCN12oXBNiL-nCUJk-F2M_hTq-w/s1600/JEEP.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="230" kca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVU_IsPv9_9hVsCqMxQivi9-6qBo6s5zxOllhMBPMkyJQ4v7E-1HPyTbzNdgg_hQ9WCMTTXjWaVSa13JiD3q2pHd2REb3dNszrZy8dALKmY14yzrHcWCN12oXBNiL-nCUJk-F2M_hTq-w/s320/JEEP.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Welcome! My name is Melissa Jean, and this is my blog, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #134f5c;">All with a Manicure</span></b>. I plan to have my blog contain my DIY projects, cooking fun, some frugal finds, and all of my learning experiences along the way. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">A bit about myself, and my first ever blog (that’s right this is my FIRST blog-eek! :) Try not to critique too hard) First of all, the title, “All with a Manicure” is a bit misleading. I very rarely have my nails done, not that I don’t LOVE to get manis, I just ruin them the second I get them done! Being a busy mom of an almost 5 year old boy, and loving to craft, pretty nails and I don’t mix. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you had hopes to find pretty nails on this blog, I am sad to tell you that you may be let down. Then why the name you ask…. Good question! </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Oh, and yes I said a mom to an almost 5 year old boy. Some of you may know what that means: dirt, cuts, bruises, bikes, sports, pretty much craziness! Who am I kidding? My son is as good as they come, but I am bias. ;) <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am also a wife to an amazing and very patient man. (Lord knows he needs to be with me as a wife) Although my hubby isn’t home much, because his job requires him to be gone a lot (big sad face) when he is home he never complains about my crazy projects, or pulling the car over so I can pull something out of some ones garbage. Yes I really do that. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">One last note worth mentioning, I am horrible with grammar, spelling, well let’s just say writing in general. Let me take a moment to apologize about all of the above. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Now let’s get on with the DIY shall we! </span></div>Melissa Jeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11761416744672568831noreply@blogger.com0