Pinteresting Projects

My love affair with Pinterest is no secret. While my husband sweetly refers to it as "online hoarding," I like to think of it as fun and unique ways to become a better mom, a better wife, and a better keeper-of-the-home! One of my 2013 goals is to complete one Pinterest craft/project per week. If it turns out to be worth my time (let's face it...some are not!), then I will share the original site and my finished project on this page. Happy Pinteresting!

Project #9 - 
I found the original idea at:
No-Sew Pillows

Here is mine...

I have never claimed to be a seamstress, but I was truly inspired by the above pin. We didn't have any t-shirts that needed recycling, but I did have a few white pillows purchased years ago that needed covers. Remnant fabrics to the rescue! Check Hobby Lobby or your local fabric stores for fabric "leftovers" that will be marked way down from the original price. And, splurge a little (with a coupon!) for the fabric that makes your child's heart sing...hence the "Thomas" pillow! Do the old tie method that the link shows, and you can layer two types of fabric to have more variety. Yes, the right pillow is smaller than the one on the left, so I must have pulled that one tighter. Don't judge! He loves them just the same, and I love that I didn't have to stitch a bit!

Project #8 - 
I found the original idea at:
Plate Wall 

Here is mine...

Honestly, I like my inspirational picture more than my own, but I consider this a project in the works. I made the large plate to remind us of our home in Virginia, and then the other plates either mean something significant to me, or they were purchased at an antique store (for cheap!) because I liked them :-) I'm not very good at asymmetrical wall decor, so you'll see that there is still a pattern with my plates. Do your own thing and make it yours!

Project #7 - 
I found the original idea at:
Home Coffee Bar 

Here is mine...

So...we found this antique bar at a garage sale, years ago, for $10! It has tried to find a home in our dining room, our formal living room, and our entryway. Finally, it seems settled in our kitchen! Our coffee goodies were cluttering up our counters, so I made this a snow day project this past weekend. I love it, my husband loves it, and we didn't buy one new thing to make it happen :-)

Project #6 - 
I found the original idea at:

Here is mine...

While this is a far cry from the original picture (the link with instructions no longer works), it got my brain thinking about other ways we can use cookie sheets. Maybe someday I'll make a cute little magnet board for me, but for now, Caleb is sucking the creative juices out of my brain! Our dog loves taking these letters off the fridge and eating them, so they needed to go. But, Caleb enjoyed playing with them. So now...he gets activity time with the cookie sheet and his letters while the dog is in his kennel. Pack the letters away in a baggy and tape it to the back, and they won't get lost (hopefully). Caleb also had just as much fun putting the letters in the baggy. Go figure!

Project #5 - 
I found the original idea at:
Makeover your Switchplates 

Here is mine...

Okay...I kind of cheated on this one, but the original site did inspire me. It isn't scrapbook paper, but our kitchen switchplates did get a makeover! Truthfully, I don't have the patience to carefully apply scrapbook paper to all of these nooks and crannies, so my hubby lovingly spray-painted eight switchplates for me (he doesn't trust me with black spray paint...). We really like the contrast, and it gives the kitchen an updated look for an extremely small price. I did unscrew them, soak them in soapy water to get all dust and grime off, then let them dry completely before painting. Not bad, huh?

Project #4 - 
I found the original idea at:
Stair Baskets 

Here is mine...

We are a "pile" family, and it drives me NUTS! Well, not anymore. Each of us gets a basket that sits on the kitchen bar. The original idea has them on the stairs, which I like, but our doggy is way too curious to leave things in baskets alone :-) I found these baskets at the $ Store, and I made tags with our initials from scrapbook paper remnants. My hope is that library books will find their home here, as well as papers, earrings, YMCA ID cards, the spanking spoon, etc. Basically, all of the stuff that never has a home :-)

Project #3 - 
I found the original idea at:
Glue Your Bath Toys Clean

Here is mine...

The thought of hot, little boy bath water stuck in toys was enough to make me gag! I saw this idea, and I did it in about three minutes this afternoon. All it takes is a glue gun and some patience. Ah...I feel so much cleaner now!

Project #2 - 

I found the original idea at:

Homemade Playdough 

Here is mine...

Sooooo easy! I followed her recipe exactly, and mine came out perfect! I noticed that she used a non-stick pan in her pictures, but mine worked using stainless steel. There was some sticking, but it didn't seem to alter the consistency. I'm storing ours in a leftover animal crackers container from Walmart. It has an air-tight lid, and there will be room for playdough tools. She says that it keeps for up to a year. We shall see!

Project #1 -

I found the original idea at:  

Newborn Shadowbox

Here is mine...

Instead of keeping these precious treasures hidden away in his baby book that isn't (or may never be!) finished, why not put them on display! I bought the shadow box at Hobby Lobby for $12, after using a 40% off coupon, and I printed the photos for 25 cents at Walgreens, after using a coupon. I lined the back of the frame with light blue scrapbook paper, and mounted a few items to black scrapbook paper, and I used a glue gun and double-sided Scotch tape to arrange the pieces. I love how it turned out, and it now hangs in our master bedroom to always remind us of this special day!