by ahhyeah

1. Before packing up anything, do a once through of all the rooms of your house, getting rid of things you don’t use, don’t wear, or don’t like anymore.  Sort through everything and donate to a charity of your choice.

2. Do a quick sorting of everything left, making sure everything is in their proper place.  Make sure all “office” things are in the office and all toys are in the toy room.  (Trust me, the worst thing is to think you’re done packing up the kitchen, only to find a extra cup sitting in the living room!)

3. Pack up least essential items first.  For me it’s usually all home decor items and off-season clothes.

4. Notice I didn’t mention winter bedding if it’s the summer in #3.  Before I go out and buy lots of packing paper, bubble wrap, etc. I use what I’ve got.  Extra beach towels, winter blankets, and guest pillows make great packing material for all your breakable items!!

5. Color labels are your friends!  Pick one color per room.  Yellow stickers go on kitchen items, blue for one bedroom, red for the living room, etc.  It helps out both you and your movers to have a quick visual about which boxes go in which rooms!!

6. Think through what you’ll need for the first few days in your new place and make sure you keep that box where the movers won’t accidentally load it up.  Things like cleaning supplies, paper plates, utinsels, etc.

Supplies You’ll need:

Dinner glasses.  I got 2 sets of 4 for 2.39 at Target.  $4.78 Spent

Glass Etching Cream.  Even though 3 oz doesn’t seem like a lot, I used less than half a bottle for all 8 glasses!  Around $8.  (If you use a coupon from Michaels you can get it at 40% off!)

Contact paper/Vinyl/Stickers etc.  Any of these will work to make your pattern with for etching.  Want to stick with stripes?  That’s easy too, just use tape!  (price varies)

Foam Brush

Directions:

Wash and dry your glasses so you have a clean surface to etch.

Lay out the shapes you’d like to etch and adhere them to the glass.  I made the shape I used in Illustrator and then had my Cricut cut it out for me.  (Here are the shapes waiting for the etching cream.)

Paint a heavy coat of the etching cream on the glass and let it sit.  I usually do 2 at a time.  You don’t have to let it sit very long, usually just 4-6 minutes.  (Don’t forget to place some old newspapers or a plastic bag on your work surface to protect it from the etching cream.  Also, please work in a well ventilated area, this stuff is dangerous if used in a closed, un-ventilated space.  We want you to be safe!!)

Rinse off the glasses and remove your stickers.  (I like to make my etching cream last as long as possible so right before I rinse my project I use my brush to scrape off as much of the etching cream as possible and put it back in my container.)  Let dry, and you’ve got fabulous new glasses!

I know what you’re thinking. 

REALLY?

Yes.  They are.  Go out and transition your bathroom tiles right away! 

Okay, not really.  Though I love ducks, I don’t know that I would ever want them staring me down in the shower every morning.  Our friend, Amy sent over this picture above and needs help masking her tiles. 

Enter stage left: 2Jane

They have some wonderfully designed tile tattoos that you can install yourself.  Aren’t they just beautiful?

And they are flexible too.  You can decide you’re own pattern and way of displaying them.  There’s nothing we like more than a little DIY around here. 

Have you ever had to transform tiles in your home?  If so, what did you do?

Do you have a room that needs to be painted, but you don’t know where to start?  Never fear, we are here and will show you how to paint a room step by step.  We’ll start with the supplies needed and how to prep your room so it’s ready for paint.

• Sanding Block
• 1.5″ Masking Tape
• 3″ Paint Brush
• Paint Roller with Roller cover
• Paint Roller extension (adjustable)
• Paint pan
• Paint w/ stir stick & opener
• Painting Tarps
• Ladder
• Extra lighting
• Spackle

Step 2: Paint a swatch (or two, or three!) to make sure you like the color before you invest time into painting the entire space.  I usually paint about a 1′x1′ square on the wall and revisit it after it drys to make sure I like it.

Step 3: Remove all hardware from the room- i.e. light switches, vents and plugs, etc.

Step 4: Spackle holes that you no longer need and patch any repairs on the walls.

Step 5: Use the 1.5″ masking tape and tape to baseboards, door/closet trim.  Use this to cover up any woodwork that you don’t want the paint to get on.

Step 6: Sand the entirety of the room.  Not only the spackled areas, but the rest of the walls too.  This ensures a smooth finish to your final paint job.

Step 7: Use a old towel to remove any dust left by the sanding.

Now that we have all of our supplies and have done all the prep work to our space, we are ready to paint.  Do you have trouble painting with a brush and making sure your lines are straight?  I will be giving some pointers on what works for me and how I keep my lines straight.

Steps 8 & 9: Open paint & stir.  You want to be sure to stir the paint really good so it is consistent throughout.

Steps 10 & 11: Pour the paint into two different paint pans.  I use a large paint pan for the roller and a small container for the brush- just make sure it’s wider than the brush.

Step 12: Start with your paint brush in one corner.  Notice how I’m holding the brush and it’s at an angle {this is called cutting}.  Angle the brush so it comes to a point and slowly work your way to the top of the corner where the ceiling and walls meet.

Step 13: Most ceilings have a slight lip which makes for slightly easier painting with your brush.  Use this lip to guide you.  Again, look how I am holding the brush.  I angle it to make my way toward the ceiling lip.

Step 14: One I have the paint brush where I want it, I start dragging it along (but under) the ceiling lip.  I usually drag the brush for about 12″-18″ depending on how loaded my brush is with paint.

Step 15: I go back over the section I painted in the previous steps to make sure my paint coverage is good and there aren’t any places I missed.  I usually leave about a 2.5″-3″ paint line on the top and bottom of the wall to provide sufficient clearance for the roller.

Step 16: Paint along the baseboards in the same section that you painted the ceiling.  The baseboards are a little more simple as there is tape there protecting the wood.  However, don’t overload your brush with paint.  If you have too much paint, it will start to bleed underneath the tape.

After you have gone along the wall with the paint brush for about 4′-5′, the roller can start rolling.

Steps 17 & 18: Start about half way down the wall with short rolling strokes in the letter of a N or M.  Then start to straighten and lengthen your rolling strides.  Be sure to watch for ridges that are coming from your paint roller and flatten them as you go.  Get as close to the corners and ceilings as you can without scraping them.

Step 19: Remove all masking tape from the trim as soon as you are done painting.

Enjoy your new paint job, now it’s time to decorate!

Paint is by Behr and is called Mediterranean Blue.

Ashley Ann made these great paper bird paintings with a couple canvases, scrapbook paper and Mod Podge.  Don’t you just love the paper she used?  {Of course it’s Amy Butler}.

One of my favorite parenting blogs is Made By Joel.  He’s amazingly creative with his children and I can’t believe what he comes up with.  What an amazing dad!  He whipped up this paper city with vehicles for his children to play with.  He has downloads available with his graphics, but you can always have your children help you create your own unique city too. 

{Picture via}

Want to make your own disco ball?  CraftBits.com has a step by step tutorial that is kid friendly. 

How do you keep your children happy and productive over the summer?  What projects are you working on to keep your children involved?

Perfect and beautiful.

BUT then I saw the price.

$4400.

Cha-right.  Not going to happen.  Granted it’s for an 11×19 which is bigger than I need, but still.

So I rolled up my DIY sleeves to see if anyone had attempted to recreate a chevron rug themselves.  Lo and behold, look at these great DIYers.

Camila from High Heeled Foot in the Door took a little fabric, a drop cloth and rug gripper to make this beauty.  It cost her about $55 plus a little tacky glue and scotchguard.  Amazing right?  I think this yellow fabric might work for the job.  You can see all of Camila’s step by step instructions over on her blog.

This Little Miggy Stayed Home did this excellent fabric painting for her new chevron rug.  They spent about $30 plus a little paint starting with a rug similar to this and a couple sample paints.  You can see all the step by steps on their blog.  I love having the flexibility of choosing the exact colors I want and having it look a little worn out of the gate.

So what do you think?  Time to roll up the sleeves and create?  I’m thinking so.  Now if my birthday could come a little faster so I have a sewing machine at my beckon call!

]]> http://www.freshnestdesign.com/2010/06/24/diy-cheveron-rug/feed/ 0 http://www.freshnestdesign.com/2010/06/07/how-to-pillows/ http://www.freshnestdesign.com/2010/06/07/how-to-pillows/#comments Mon, 07 Jun 2010 15:55:03 +0000 deb http://www.freshnestdesign.com/?p=3985  

So remember how I confessed a little while back that I don’t know how to sew?  Well, I’m making an effort this year to learn how.  I figured I’d start with an easy project to get me going.  So here you have it, a step by step tutorial on how to sew your own pillows.

1.  Gather your supplies: Scissors (straight & pinking for raveling fabrics), measuring tape, pins, pillow stuffing, and a seam ripper.

2. Cut your fabric {I did 21″x21″ square pillows for the green ones & 13″x19″ for the patterned pillow} 

3. Pin the fabric together {Have the inside of the pillow fabric facing out}

4. Sew three sides completely {leaving about 1/3″ on the edge}

5. On the fourth side, leave enough room to flip the pillow inside out and stuff it {about 3″} 

6. Tie off the ends near the opening. 

7. Cut the corners diagonally so the corners will lay correctly. 

8. Flip the pillow inside out. 

9. I used a seam ripper to help the corners lay correctly. 

10. I added the rosettes and then stuffed the pillow. 

11. Close the pillow using the machine or a whip stitch. 

For my first official sewing project, I’m feeling pretty good.  And as a bonus, my bedroom is looking even more complete.  I will keep sharing my progress of the room with you.  Be patient with me as I hunt for accessories and wall hangings!  {These last couple weeks have been a doozy}.

Hope you’re having a great Monday.  Are you working on any fun sewing projects lately?

My gears immediately started turning when I saw this wall art over at Design Mom yesterday.  Brilliant and so, so fun.  She took what could have been a $500 printed piece of wall art and instead used a little Photoshop, projector and paint for a cost of only $20. Go on over to her blog for step by step instructions.

And if you ask me, this is a whole lot cooler than a printed piece of art.

Design doesn’t have to be expensive to make an impact.  Don’t let anybody ever tell you differently.  Also, don’t let anybody ever tell you that you can’t make a difference.  Cause that’s just not true.

Do you have projects of your own that you’ve been able to save a little dough?  As always, I love hearing from you.

Look at these beautiful faux sheepskin cloud rugs that Lifeflix created.  She has great step by step instructions over on her blog.  Don’t you just want to lay down on them and read a book?  Sounds like a perfect afternoon activity to me.

Combine a $1 decorative ceramic pot from IKEA:

A bag of nice decorative rocks:

Add the few utensils I use all the time:

Much better!  Nice, clean, and organized!