DIY Tic Tac Toe Game

I hope everyone is enjoying their gifts, especially all those handbuilt gifts!  Today I'm sharing this tic tac toe game that's great for gift giving all year long.  Inspired by my fellow blogger Amy at Her Tool Belt who built an oversized tic tac toe game with free plans here:

Amy's version uses 4x4's for the blocks and I love the chunky size and Christmas motif!  I made this smaller version using a 1 3/4" square dowel for the blocks:

My plans for this smaller version are down below.

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Three Drawer Dresser Plans

Happy New Year everyone!  Lets get building for 2016.  First up I have the plans for this three drawer dresser:

Click here for the entire plan.

Tons of storage here with open cubbies and drawers.  To be honest I built this as a giant shared nightstand to go in between my girls beds however we couldnt get it up our super narrow stairwells. 

#palmtoface

Measure twice, build once.  Or something like that.  At any rate its still a great piece with lots of functionality perfect for our playroom area and now I get the chance to build different nightstands for my girls.

The instructions including all the steps, cut list and supplies are over at buildsomething.com here.

If youre curious about the finish on this piece the details are here.

Disclaimer:  I have partnered with Build Something to bring you these plans.  All thoughts, opinions and creative ideas are my own.

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Art Cart Caddy Free Plans

Everyone is still in 'organization mode' so I teamed up with Ana White to bring you this art cart perfect for storing and organizing kids art supplies.  We think this would be a very appropriate build for any kids space, maybe you have the perfect spot somewhere in your home or even to build as a gift for that creative child in your life?

And as a bonus I have plans down below for the removable art caddy.  The caddy gives portablility and allows kids to bring the supplies directly to their work table.

Ana made this build so simple and easy you won't believe how fast it comes together.  I choose to go natural with the finish using two coats of clear poly and I didn't even fill in my nail holes!  Sometimes nail holes don't bother me especially on a utilitarian build like this one.

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DIY Fishing Game

Today is the last gift plan for this year's Handbuilt Holiday series with Ana White and we have a super simple and easy to make diy fishing game for you.  I hope you've enjoyed seeing all the gift ideas over the past 12 weeks, it's been a joy to build each and every one and today's plan is no exception.

We still have 6 good building days left and I guarantee this fishing game will only take a few hours to complete.  Make a long box and cut out a few fish then you're good to go!

The box stores all the pieces because we know toys work best when everything is contained and stored together.  (How many times have your kids received a toy with a bazillion pieces and no storage container?!  Makes you want to pull your hair out.)  I also made a lid for the box using 1/4" plywood and applied adhesive backed velcro to keep the lid in place.

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DIY Kids Play Boutique

Paris Party Playstand Week continues today with the boutique.  If you're just joining in, on Monday I shared the diy kids patisserie playstand I had built for my friend Stefanie at Brooklyn Limestone.  She put together the most beautiful Paris themed birthday party for her daughter and I built the playstands below:

All the finish work including the painting and lettering plus all the styling details are spot on, isn't this amazing?!  I want Stefanie to be my mom.

I'm sharing the free plans to build the boutique down below.  

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Smart Door Hardware Giveaway

Everything is getting smarter these days, including home technology.  I must admit our home is definitely not the smartest (yes I manually adjust the thermostat every morning and night) so one of my goals for 2016 is to make small changes that will help our home work better and smarter.  When Schlage contacted me asking to try their new Schlage Sense^™ Smart Deadbolt I had to give it a whirl and bonus they are offering one lucky reader their own Schlage Sense^™ Smart Deadbolt and Handleset!

Look who's smart now?  I can control the deadbolt on my phone.  I can even have Siri do it for me with voice control!  No more fumbling with keys while my hands are full because my phone is usually in my hands anyways.   The Schlage Sense^™ Smart Deadbolt is designed to work with an iPhone, iPad or iPod touch.  And if you happen to have an Apple TV in the home remote capabilities are possible too.

Naturally you would most likely be standing outside to unlock the door but I was having too much fun playing with the app inside I snapped this picture.  The Bluetooth technology works up to about 40 feet in range from the door so you can unlock from the driveway with no problem.

The giveaway entry details are down below.  Schlage has a variety of styles and finish options to choose from for both deadbolts and handlesets, you can see them all here.

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