Painting Jitters

While we are waiting for our special order grout for the fireplace I decided to pick up a paint sample for the kitchen cabinets.  Originally we wanted java cabinets, but with the installation of the darker laminate we are are afraid that things are getting too dark.  I thought that a charcoal gray would be a good compromise and picked up Benjamin Moore's Kendall Charcoal sample and did this:

     

It is darker in person and really dark at night.  Will a charcoal gray kitchen be too dark?   I started playing with PS using this tutorial and came up with these "samples".  The problem is our flooring is dark not light and I failed to notice that when I made these. 

  

What do you think?

Recipe Organization

I had a goal last week and that was to organize my recipes.  This was no easy task and I spent HOURS doing it, but I am more than please with the end results.  I organized both my paper recipes and online recipes.  I love Pinterest, but without search options within personal boards I was searching through 350 pins to find that must have recipe.  The first thing I did was tackle the loose recipes and cooking magazines in three steps.  

Once I had my recipes divivded into categories I purchased a binder, page protectors, and Post-It tabs.

I found the cutest cover sheet and spine label from Banjelope.  I love it because it matches my kitchen!

Love the re-positional tabs.  I am sure that adaptations will be made over the years.

I created my own divider pages in Word and printed in a soft gray.  Again, obsessed with this coordinating. Someone help me. 

I used 4x6 photo pages for the loose cards. Clipped recipes were glued onto white sheets of paper (not pictured).

Adding the handwritten note that Grandma included with her famous cole slaw recipe is priceless.

Organizing my Pinterest recipes was time consuming and made me really hungry!  I created boards for each category as I did in my binder.  Now when I pin a new recipe I add it to the appropriate board.  This will reduce the number of re-pins and time spent searching in the future.

Although this project took me three days to accomplish I feel motivated to cook with organized resources.  And for the record this post contained the word "recipe" twelve times.  

Super Spot Remover Review

I am an avid pinner, but I will admit that most of those pins are just wishful thinking.  I picked up this chevron sweater dress for Madeline at a thrift shop for .52 cents! Can you believe that?!  I saw that there was a red waxy stain by the pockets, but decided that it was worth trying to save.

I have seen this pin a thousand times and decided to test it out.  All you need is blue Dawn dish soap, baking soda, and hydrogen peroxide.

Mix one teaspoon of Dawn with two tablespoons of baking soda, and three to four teaspoons of hydrogen peroxide.

Apply to stain and rub a little. Because this was a sweater dress I kept the rubbing to a minimum to reduce pilling.  I let the solution sit for an hour, rinsed,  and then machine washed the dress.

Before

When I pulled the dress out of the wash the stain was gone!  I love that this super stain remover is inexpensive and uses ingredients that I already have on hand.  

After

Our First Tiling Project

Our fireplace tile was in good shape, but when we replaced the flooring we thought that it was a good time to update the tile.  We said goodbye to the ceramic tile and hello to glass  subway tile.


 Fall 2010 

Fall 2011

Fall 2012

The tile still needs grout and we have narrowed it down to three choices.

Hopefully we will make a decision soon and get this project (that was started the beginning of July) completed.  It has been worth the wait! I love the shiny subway tiles.  More details coming soon on the fireplace transformation!

In Anticipation of Fall

I painted an old beverage tray with chalkboard paint and drilled holes for my bow.  I can switch the bow out for different ribbons to match the occasion.  The glass pumpkins are from the Dollar Tree (thanks for the tip LaNae)!  The faux white pumpkin is a Target score for $2.

Last year we had a thankful tree. I wanted something a little different so I cut leaves out of package wrap and used tiny clothespins to attach to our wire dome.

Jute wrapped candle and an inexpensive twig pumpkin along with cute word art for a touch of fall in the corner of the family room.

My fall mantle has not changed much from last year, except we are sporting our new deer prints.  I did add some jute twine to the hanging vase.

It Only Took Six Months

to hang those kitchen prints, but I finally did it! I have been waiting and debating the right spot and when I picked up a coveted "mystery" plate as my kids call it from The Shops at Target I knew where the perfect spot would be.

Before

After

Here are some more pictures of my new little wall.

I love the little Give Thanks print.  It was originally blue, but I changed the color in Photoshop to a light gray to match my decor.

The rug arrived and I think that it was meant for my kitchen.  Thanks to all my friends for voting! It just the right size and the colors are amazing in person.  It is also soft and that was a surprise. I was expecting it to be a little rough as it was labeled as an outdoor rug.

And now to sound completely ungrateful: I love the floor, but hate the honey oak. It is a good thing that we were planning on painting the cabinets anyway.  I am happy that we decided to install the floor prior to painting though because we are changing our thoughts on the paint color.  Originally I wanted a dark java, but now I am thinking gray.  That will be a post in itself I am sure.

Firefighter Luke

A couple of weeks ago Luke was able to meet some local firefighters and walk through the engine.  We learned a lot about fire safety and I am gearing up for fire safety month this October.  I will admit that we are not prepared for a fire.  I have started a pin board for vital information and will share next month the changes that we are making.  For now enjoy my little firefighter!

Because someone always has to be a nut!