Cabinet Door Craft Room Organizers

When I shared my first cabinet door reveal for our Point of View project, I hinted that it was the first of many.  Well, I don't know if many is the right word, but I did have a few more up my sleeve.  I was just waiting for some decent light to capture them.  Yesterday, I got what I needed, so today I get to share how I am making my craft room more functional and pretty.

 

First up is this notions organizer.  The cabinet door was painted green then I added chalkboard paint to the inside panel.  I had my sweet husband screw the metal containers (found at Walmart) to the board.  We backed it with some 1X2 pieces of lumber so they had something to hold onto.  I used some buckets from the dollar spot at Target to separate my supplies.  Three of them fit perfectly.

  The next board is my thread organizer.  I have been wanting one for ages and I finally had the motivation (and a gift card to Joann from my Mother-in-law) to get it.  To prepare the board I covered the inside panel with newsprint, using the paper bag treatment that is so popular on the web right now.  I wanted something neutral so the thread colors would pop, but still be textural.  I screwed through the back of the panel into the thread holder to secure it. *tip- make sure you use thin screws or it will split the wood of the organizer.

This last one just makes me smile.  I knew it would be high up on the wall, so storage probably wouldn't be useful.  This was my first attempt at creating my own vinyl.  I'm pretty pleased with it. :)  (I even quoted myself- how's that for making the space about me? lol)

 And since all this organizing led to one terrific mess, the after had to be documented.  I was already hanging things on the wall, so I thought it was time to hang up my old window and some art pieces and frames I've been collecting.  It's amazing how much more finished the room feels to have these in a more permanent place.

I feel so lucky to have so much space to keep and use my craft supplies.  It really is my happy place.  Now it's your turn- where is YOUR happy place?

xoxo,

Amy 

Linked up to Tickled Pink at 504 Main and BFF Open House at The Answer is Chocolate.  Think Pink Sunday at Flamingo Toes, Motivate Me Monday at Keeping it Simple, Market yourself Monday at Sumo's Sweet Stuff, Show and Tell Linky at Snap the conference blog.

Point of View Reveal- Thrift Store

I love going to the thrift store, finding a diamond in the rough and taking it home.  I can't wait to see how all of these bloggers turned someone's trash into their treasure.

Gwen- Gwenny Penny
Leanne- Organize and Decorate Everything
Me- scroll down
Jonie- Just Between Friends
Kara from Happy Go Lucky- our guest this month- please go give her some love from all of us- we're so glad she's participating with us!

Thrift Store Reveal:
For my project this month, I didn't actually go to the thrift store.  Instead, I rescued some items from my pile of things I was planning on donating to the thrift store.

Last month you  may remember my orange project and I hinted that I was working on a homework station for my children.  This is the result of those efforts.   The inset frame on my orange project was actually a frame I bought at the thrift store a long time ago.  But the stars of the reveal today are the two frames holding the collage prints I made.  I was thinking about some simple mottos I wanted for my children and the two that came to mind were WORK HARD and BE AWESOME.

These frames used to house "bathroom" art.  You know, art meant to hang in a bathroom.  I inherited them from my Mom, who no longer needed the botanical prints for her house.  I didn't need them either so I was going to get rid of them.  But when I started thinking about this homework area I realized that these frames would be the perfect size to fill up the wall.  I bought a few cans of spray paint and went to work.  I love the collage look- you may remember from this post my previous collage and every time I look at it it still makes me happy, so what better way to create these messages that will hopefully inspire my children to live up to these aspirations for them.

They hang over this message board, which I also painted.

The paper holder is another item that has been sitting in a pile for a while, I have almost gotten rid of it a few times, but the turquoise paint job has given it new life and now I LOVE it.  You will recognize the button art which hangs over the large calendar.

The other half of this wall has 2 small shelving units side by side and a large dry erase board made from another almost discarded piece of art.  A new paint job for the frame, and some pretty yellow fabric behind the glass- easy peasy.
The take home for me?  A few cans of spray paint is a good investment to turn old unwanted items into something you truly enjoy.  I think I need to get a few more cans. :)

So now, it's your turn, I'd love to see how you turn trash to treasure, or treasure into better treasure. ;)  Link up your Thrift Store projects, visit others and have fun!
XOXO,
Amy

Point of View Reveal- ORANGE

I love point of view, and I am so excited for this month's reveal.  The theme is Orange- so I hope you'll pull out all your "orange" projects and link them up to our party. :)

Don't these projects look awesome?  I can't wait to check them all out!  If you feel the same, click the links below and see how each of these projects were made.

Gwen- Gwenny Penny
Leanne- Organize and Decorate Everything
Me- scroll down
Jonie- Just between Friends
Ashlee- I'm Topsy Turvy 

I thought for sure I would be making a seasonal craft for this reveal.  I mean, orange in September, just screams for a pillow, or holiday decoration or something, right?  Well, right now my time is limited.  Very little opportunities come my way to craft right this moment so things need to do double duty.  In this case, I am working on an office/homework station and I've had some projects in mind to finish up the wall.  This is one I've been thinking of for a while.  Are you ready for a closer look?

I adore it!  I love the color and the buttons and the stenciling and well, just all of it!  I have to apologize for the lack of process pictures, but there's not really any magic to what I did so I'll just tell you where I found all the fun products I used and you can make your own. :)

Let's take a look at all these lovely covered buttons, shall we?  I used the i-top tool from Imaginisce.  This tool is amazing and simple to use.  You can make magnets, buttons, brads and pins all with the same tool.  You can also use paper or fabric.  I know I sound like an advertisement, but I really do love this tool.  This fabric is mostly Riley Blake fabric, except for the yellow, which is from Joann's.  All but the small blue buttons are from lines by Doodlebug Designs.  I used scraps left over from the wallets I made a few months ago.  I love the bright colors.  I used three different sizes of buttons.  I used hot glue to attach them to the cardboard from the frame.

The large frame is from Poppy Seed Projects and I used a stencil from Royal Design studios.  I have to admit that I am not the best at stenciling, hopefully I'll get better next time.  But for this project, the blurred lines worked to my favor because I wanted a softer look.  The top frame is one I found in a thrift store and it happened to fit perfectly.  I spray painted both frames orange with spray paint then stenciled with white paint over the top.  I actually used command adhesive strips to put it all together, just in case I ever wanted to change it up.

I love the fun colors, and I can't wait to reveal the entire wall with you in the [hopefully] near future. :)  Now, I'm ready to see what you've been up to- come link up your orange projects and lend some inspiration.

Fall/ Thanksgiving Dual block set {sponsored post}

This is a sponsored post in that I was given the kit of blocks and vinyl to create a project, but it's also a mini tutorial of sorts so you have an alternative way to finish this project besides just painting the entire blocks a solid color (which would also look fabulous, but you might want options. ;) )

This kit (from FabDecor) comes with 2X4 blocks and vinyl.  If you want to cut it yourself, you will need  3 1/2", 4" and 8" lengths of wood.  The blocks in the kit come already sanded- a HUGE plus in my book. :)

 

In addition to the Thanksgiving vinyl, you also get a generic Fall saying- which extends the life of this fun piece by quite a bit- I plan on leaving it out now. ;)  Because of the colors of the vinyl I received, I did end up painting each side of the blocks the same color, but you could easily change it with this finishing technique.

 Instead of painting the entire block a solid color, I only painted the center of each block.  Once the paint was dry, I sanded down the edges so the lines between the paint and wood would look softer and more blurred.  Wipe down the blocks with a rag after sanding to remove any dust, then stain the entire block with your stain of choice.  I used an antiquing medium (found near the craft paint in most craft stores) but you could also use stain from the hardware store.  I wiped it on, then quickly wiped it back off with a damp rag because I didn't want it too dark.  I love the casual feel of the blocks finished this way.

 I finished mine off with an organza bow, but you could use tulle, ribbon, raffia or anything else to embellish your blocks.  You can see how Melissa (owner of FabDecor) finished her blocks here.  I think they're beautiful too!

 These projects have been wonderful because while I have been desperate to get crafting, my time is severely limited by my darling 7 week old baby.  A kit like this gives me enough room to be creative, without requiring tons of time from me- a perfect fit for this moment in my life.

I hope you're having a wonderful week!  I'm reveling in the transition from summer to fall and drinking up lots of newborn snuggle time. :)

We'll see you soon.

xoxo,

Amy

4X4 pumpkins {tutorial and sponsored post}

 

 Today I am participating in a group project of sorts.  I was given the opportunity to receive some kits for various wood and vinyl projects.  I was asked to create my own version of the project and then link them up with other projects.  This is a project that will be going on for a few weeks- but will be full of fun projects you can purchase kits for, or just make for yourself.  So it's a win/win. :)  I am working with Fab Decor.com to bring you these fun projects.  You can find her instructions and the full link party with other versions of this craft here at Fablify It.com.

But, since you're already here, I'll give you my quick tutorial on how I made my version first. :)  I started with the kit, which includes 3 4X4 pieces cut to lengths of 4", 6" and 8", which have been sanded as well as 3 small pieces of 2X2 as the stem.  The kit also comes with 3 layered vinyl faces.  If you want to do this on your own, you can just cut the 4X4 to the correct lengths and sand them down.

I wanted my pumpkins to have a very rustic feel to them, so I took a hammer and chisel and notched off the corners as well as made some cuts into each side.  You can make them as deep or as shallow as you like.  Sand down the notches after you're done to make it easier to paint. 

This shows the wood after notching, painting and sanding to distress the paint.  I used a color called Cadmium Orange.  You could leave the pumpkins like this, which is very bright and fun, but again, I wanted mine a bit more aged, so I decided to stain them.  I used an antiquing medium in a mid-brown tone and wiped it on with a rag the followed quickly with a damp cloth to take most of the stain back off.  I also stained the stem pieces.  

I used floral wire wrapped around a marker for the vines and strips of fabric tied to the vines for leaves.  I used a small nail to create a hole on the top that I just slide the wire into, this will make it easier to store since I won't have to worry about crushing the wire. :)  I used hot glue to put the stems into place.
This was a fun, quick project that I would recommend anyone try.  If you're interested in purchasing the kit, you can do so here.  She also sells just the vinyl faces if that's all you need.
Melissa is hosting a Rafflecopter giveaway so head over there and enter to win- she's giving away finished pumpkins as well as kits- so lots of chances to win!!
I am looking forward to many more fun, fabulous projects like this over the next few weeks.
Are you ready for fall, or are you soaking up the last bit of summer vacation?  We are already into the swing of school and everything, and now that I have these pumpkins made, I'm kind of ready to pull out the fall decor and change things up a bit.  But, it might have to wait until I've had just a bit more sleep. ;)
Have a wonderful Wednesday!!
xoxo,
Amy
** I was given the unfinished wood and vinyl to create this project, but the opinions and statements are all mine.**
If you have any questions, or would like more detailed pics of the process, let me know and I'll elaborate.

Do Your Best Block

I was recently asked to be an assistant Den Mother in my son's Wolf Den in Cub Scouts.  I am excited to be involved with him in this fun adventure, but I have to admit, learning the scouting "ropes" is like learning an entirely new language.  I don't understand half of what they're talking about in meetings, but I'm hoping I'll learn quickly. ;)
We have a pretty large den- 10 boys now.  With many of them just barely joining our den, we decided it would be a good idea to help them get their Bobcat right off in our Den.  But, since not all of them need their Bobcat, we thought it would be fun to have a project all of them could take home- even the more 'seasoned' scouts in our den.  This is what me made:

It's the Cub Scout Motto and it's something all scouts should know.  We thought it would be a fun reminder the boys could keep in their rooms.  (plus, it's a pretty good motto even if you're not a scout ;) )  We cut 4" blocks from a 2X4, sanded them and then let the boys get to work.  The painted them blue and then used glue sticks to glue down the letters we had cut from cardstock using a Cricut.  It might be easier to use vinyl, but we were trying to keep costs down.
The boys seemed pretty happy with them, which is what really matters. :)
xoxo,
Amy