Making the prefect photo frame....

I don’t consider myself a “crafty person” but I do know how to use a hot glue gun!

I have the coolest photos of Matt and me when we went to New York, and of Katie and me when we went to New York…all taken at the Top of the Rock in Rockefeller Center. Seriously cool pictures that I want displayed. But I could not find a frame that worked for all four photos!

I bought four 5x7 frames, trimmed the photos to fit and then hot glued the frames together to make one big frame for all four pictures.

The frames I used are actually desk top frames so I just popped the little “stands” off.

Super simple and a great way to make one frame out of four different frames. You could do this with different colors of frames, different sizes, just about any combo of frame you can imagine!

Simple and inexpensive.

A TIP: I like these little sawtooth picture hangers but the tiny little nails always give me grief…I just can not hold them and hammer them in at the same time. My trick is to use needle nose pliers to hold the little nails.

You are welcome!

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Another family heirloom...a desk makeover.

As I have mentioned a bazillion times I am all about family heirlooms.

So when my mother offered me “dad’s desk” I didn’t hesitate…even though I have absolutely no use or room for it.

If I remember the story right my dad built this desk when he was 12…he would have been 79 this year…that makes the desk 67 years old…something my dad made when he was a boy….yes, I want it!

Fortunately my son Matt loves family heirlooms as well and since he just moved into a larger home, he has the space and need.

The desk was sporting green. I THINK it is green because at some point I did have it and I painted it green for Matt’s room. When the boys were younger everything in Mitchell’s room was blue and everything in Matt’s was green!

I guess at some point I gave it back to Mom.

Originally the desk would probably have been stained. I remember a time in the 70s when it was red. Then there was the “mauve” phase in the 80s. In other words, I knew there were at LEAST four layers of finish on it!

My original plan was to strip it down to bare wood and stain it.

What is the old saying about “best laid plans….” Yeah…that wasn’t happening.

There was the green…then the mauve…something white I suspect is a primer that was painted over the red…the red was painted over the original finish…whatever that may have been

I used every trick in my arsenal and still could NOT get all the paint off. Industrial stripper, my 1/2 and 1/2 mixture and even sanding.

One thing I will say about both my dad and I…when we do something, we do it to last!

After a few days of stripping and sanding I was able to get all the paint off the top but finally gave up on the rest of it…it wasn’t happening without doing serious damage to the wood itself.

I decided to stain the top and paint the base.

I sanded everything as smoothly as possible, primed it, sanded again, rubbed it down with tack cloth then painted it with a white enamel.

I stained the top with a java stain and sealed it with poly.

It is not exactly what I wanted but Matt and I both love the way it turned out. Right now he is using it as a tv stand in his den.

I was only able to snap a quick picture with my phone but as you can see, it turned out pretty cute.

We are in the process of making some major changes in his new house…new flooring, paint, shelving, etc.

Our plan is to eventually makes some major changes to his kitchen and den and when we do, hopefully I can get some good, staged pictures!

Until then I just wanted to share what one can do with older pieces…and also show that even we “old pros” get stumped occasionally…and when we do, we just drop back and punt!

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Another new living room rug and my thoughts on board and batten... →

Over the years I have been able to remove all the wall-to-wall carpeting and install hardwoods. I learned the hard way (after raising 4 kids and several puppies) that I never want to spend a lot of money on area rugs.

Unfortunately they are a necessity on hardwood and tile. What isn’t a necessity is spending A LOT of money on something that gets tons of wear and tear and may go out of style on a whim. So several years ago I started experimenting with indoor/outdoor rugs…and honestly., I have found that I get serious bang for the buck!

It started with this rug…

….an indoor/outdoor rug I picked up at a big box store for less than $100. I just needed something simple to pull the room together. Since this room only gets used a few times a year, I wasn’t too terribly concerned with having “super comfy” under foot!

I was so impressed with the quality and look of the rug I decided to give the “indoor/outdoor” thing a shot in the den! Let’s be honest…the den is really just a big romper room for the dogs! One reason we don’t even have a coffee table in the room!

I picked up this indoor/outdoor rug at my favorite home improvement store!

Not super comfy but it is neutral and has held up well. If I want “comfy underfoot” I wear my Ugg slippers.

I spent a little more and went a little more “fancy” on the dining room…

…this rug doesn’t get a lot of wear and tear so I was okay spending a tad more. Still love this rug!

When it was time to change out the rug in the living room I found a really pretty and simple indoor/outdoor rug at a local home decor store.

I knew the minute I unrolled it I had a problem.

It was stiff and not at all pliable. It had some serious “crease marks” from being rolled up and the edges curled up. I went ahead and put it down and hoped and prayed the creases and rolled edges would eventually go away.

Nope.

Honestly, I think they got worse and I’m lucky I didn’t break a dang hip on the thing.

I tried steaming the edges and curling them the opposite way…nothing worked.

The rug just plain sucks.

If a rug looks like crud when you lay it out, good chance it isn’t going to get much better. I should have rolled it up and taken it back but noooooo….I just crossed my fingers and hoped it would get better.

So now that the holidays have passed and everything is back in order I decided it was time to find a new rug that wasn’t a tripping hazard.

Again, I just wanted something inexpensive that would pull the space together. We have moved the big (ick) brown leather couch back into the living room so I really wanted something relatively neutral. (Why do I still have the big (ick) brown leather couch…because it is Brian’s and he spent a ton of money on it so I can’t bring myself to get a different one)

I try to keep the furniture and rugs in this room relatively neutral so I can add splashes of color with pillows and throws…right now I am enjoying a “pink phase.”

Two major changes coming in this space…first, I have FINALLY ordered new windows for the front…the old ones are the 20 year old original aluminum windows that are terrible…can’t hardly open them and they leak some serious air! And as you can see they dominate this space!!

I would love to change the 1990s arched window to a simple transom but unfortunately I can’t get my brick anymore and changing out the shape of the window would require additional brick…curses!

Regardless, the window seal has broken in the arch window and there is condensation between the panes…nothing you can do about it but replace the window.

I COULD just buy a new window insert but since I am replacing the bottom aluminum window with vinyl I decided to change out the arch window as well.

I changed things up a bit on the style and design and I can’t wait to share! Hopefully those will be here in the next week or so and we will have a decent day to install them!

The second change is the entry. I shared it here….

I’m looking at the date of the original post…3 1/2 years ago….and sadly, little has changed.

But last fall I bought a nifty antique mirror at a local market…at Christmas I put a wreath on it, and honestly, I kinda like the look. So when I took Christmas down, I hot glued a hook onto the mirror and hung an olive branch wreath on it…

Hum…kinda like that look too.

So it looked funny to have a mirror on that side of the entry AND still have the blue “moroccanish” mirror behind the door, so I took that mirror down and gave it to my daughter!

So now I have a blank wall.

So change is coming…maybe…I think…some day. It only took me 3 1/2 years to get this far so what’s a few more years.

Truthfully I am kicking around the idea of extending the board and batten to this wall…from the door to the stairs. And then maybe put some little hooks on it to hang purses and such. I can’t do anything too bulky because the door swings into that wall.

My ONLY issue with board and batten is that I know it will go out of style in the coming years…and while I have the energy and time to install it today….what if I don’t have the time, energy or money to remove it in 5-7-10 years?

I know, I know….”Board and batten is timeless…it will never go out of style.”

Bull…hardwoods are timeless…but yet 40 years ago people covered them with wall to wall carpet. Subway tile is timeless…yet decades ago people ripped it out and put up olive green and harvest gold 4x4 tile.

My point, just because something was popular 100 years ago and came back around, doesn’t mean it is “timeless.” Trust me, something different will come back around and all those painted white cabinets and rooms full of board and batten will be the bane of our existence.

I’m not saying you should live with a dated carpet, tile or wall treatment if it makes you crazy. I’m just saying think carefully and spend wisely when “updating” your home decor!

And if you are like me and procrastinate long enough, you may miss the current bandwagon…but trust me, another will come along!

The upside is I save myself a lot of work AND money by being somewhat indecisive…lol!

UPDATE!!! I WROTE THIS POST WHILE I WAS ALL COMFY IN BED. I got up, put on my grubby paint clothes and had time on my hands.

Something is going down!!!!

Or rather UP!

Yep, board and batten in the entry!

And you know what, I’m kinda glad I did it. It only took about 2 hours to install it and another hour or so to paint it.

There are dozens of tutorials for installing board and batten…much better than anything I can do.

If you want it, JUST DO IT!!!!

And yes…I still believe it will go “out of style” in a few years but whatevs.

See, even I don’t take my own advise…so “grain of salt” people…lol!

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Lego table project!

One of the “littles” in our family LOVES Legos. Course I am all for any child’s entertainment that doesn’t involve electronics.

Believe it or not I managed to raise four intelligent, college educated children without video games or smart phones…imagine that!

When I heard she has to commandeer the family room coffee table to build her Lego sets, I decided she needed her own personal space!

I looked at buying a Lego table as a Christmas gift…but as with much of the furniture today, they were all cheaply made and didn’t seem very sturdy…certainly not pieces a child could lean on for hours.

So I decided to build one!

First thing I had to do was locate “Lego flats.” I found these on Amazon…perfect!

The package SAYS they are 10x10 but when I laid out 3 wide I discovered the measurement was actually 30 1/8” …good to know! I decided to build a table that would hold 3 wide and 2 deep…and knowing the exact measurement of them laid out is important. The inside measurement of the trim on the top will be 20 1/4” x 30 1/4” so there is room for 6 total interchangeable flats.

I constructed the table out of 1/2” plywood, 14” furniture legs, 1x3 pine boards and 3 1/4” trim.

I bought a piece of 24” x 48” 1/2” plywood and cut down the width to 34”.

When cutting plywood with a skill saw, make sure you “score” the line you will be cutting with a utility knife…

…then cut on the OUTSIDE of the scored line…this will keep the plywood from “splintering” when you cut it with a skill saw.

After cutting the plywood 24” x 34” I “banded” the entire board with 1x3 pine… then added the leg brackets to each corner. The legs just screw into the brackets.

Banding the plywood top with 1x3 pine does several things…it increases the width and length of the table by 1 1/2” …remember 1”x3” boards are actually 3/4” x 2 1/2”. It also strengthens the plywood and the “skirt” it creates will hide the leg brackets.

Also remember…glue AND nails. ALWAYS USE GLUE!!! The glue is what actually holds everything together!

After the base of the top was constructed, I flipped it over and added the trim to the top…cutting it so that the opening on the table top would be 30 1/4” x 20 1/4” to accommodate 6 flats with a smidge of wiggle room so they can easily be changed out.

Once it was all constructed, I puttied all the holes and caulked all the joints. I primed it with primer, sanded everything smooth, tacked and painted it with Krylon satin white.

A few of the tables I looked at had storage drawers or the tops lifted for storage…cute idea and something I could have incorporated into the design…but truthfully if you have a “lego kid” you know the table would have to be the size of Montana to hold all their pieces…so you are better off finding bins or stackable containers that suit your needs!

This table is strictly so the little doesn’t have to clutter up the family coffee table when she wants to build and tear it all down when it is time to put it away…she can just remove the legs and slide it under the couch or bed!

Super cute and hopefully sturdy enough for hours of leaning.

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My New Years resolution....

So many take this time of the year to reflect on the year past…and then make “resolutions” for the new year…lose weight, exercise more, make better grades, be a better parent, find that “dream” job, etc.

I have one resolution year after year.

Be happy.

Sometimes that is a tough one to fulfill…”life” just seems to throw us one curve ball after another. But it really is a simple goal…pretty much encompasses every aspect of my life….and it ALL depends on the choices I make. Not a choice to BUY something, or BE something, or DO something, and especially anything I have ZERO control over which is just about everything and everybody… but on how I CHOOSE to “feel” about everything…what “emotions” I harbor…my “attitude.”

The handful of people who follow me will know there is something (or rather someones) missing in this photo. (Years past HERE)

Yep…this is the year I have dreaded.

I had kinda-sorta grown accustom to my oldest son occasionally missing Christmas morning…but this year my youngest son got married and they spent Christmas morning with her family. So both boys were MIA.

I knew the day would come when our traditional Christmas morning gathering would be “fractured” by other commitments.

I knew it in my head.

I prepared myself mentally.

But oh the heart.

This is one of many things in our lives that we know and understand in our HEAD, but our heart struggles to grasp.

This is one of those times when I have to focus on the positives!

Katie came home…just for the day, but she was here.

Sarah and her family always come for a few days..

Brandon and Taylor are always here for the morning.

Mitchell managed to sneak in for a few days the week before Christmas.

Matt and Hannah traveled safely Christmas day and were here Christmas night.

Head vs. Heart. For me it is a constant battle.

I know something is what it is, but my heart seems to have a mind of its own…or maybe it has no mind at all, just a lot of emotions that try desperately to over-ride the brain.

Fear, frustration, hurt (the 3 biggies that almost always manifest in anger), resentment. bitterness, hate, disgust, jealousy…just a few NEGATIVE emotions we may experience when life seems to throw us a curve.

Scattered babies at Christmas is a “curve!” Sadness…a negative emotion.

The perfect time to double down and focus on the positives. Grateful for the amazing kids I have. Pride in the wonderful lives they have made for themselves. Joy for the love and respect we all have for each other.

Remember…you have a CHOICE as to whether those emotions will be negative or positive. It doesn’t matter whether you are dealing with family, your career, a DIY project, school, etc.

The choice you make in ANY situation will determine whether you have a happy and fulfilling 2020, or a really crummy year.

Choose wisely.

If you question the affect choosing to focus on the positives can have on your life, please take 15 minutes of your day to hear Kelly Fohner’s story. Her son Josh and my son Matt are friends and played ball together throughout their youth. If you think your life is tough…if you think the choices YOU make to focus on the positives seems silly, listen to this mother’s story. I have watched it many times and it ALWAYS reinforces my desire to be grateful…to focus on the positives…to see and appreciate my life for what I HAVE and not what I don’t have.

Have an AMAZING 2020!