Hanging Planter

Happy Labor Day friends!  We're gearing up for the next DIY Workshop at The Home Depot where we will be building a hanging planter.  Today I'm sharing my custom version of the hanging planter and I've got the free plans down below to build your own.

Click here to continue reading »

Read More..

L is for Leather Heart Necklace

diy leather heart necklace

Another candy free diy valentines idea for you today and one that requires no sewing (or wood cutting ;)).  Im over at Pretty Handy Girl with Brittany sharing these leather heart necklaces.

Super fast and easy especially for you hot glue gun lovers - the tutorial is here.

And if youre looking for more candy free diy valentines below is a quick round up:

Another candy free valentine or awesome birthday party favor if youve got scrap wood are these personalized backpack fobs:

Im linking up to:

Creative Collection @ Lolly Jane

Nifty Thrity Sunday @ Nifty Thrifty Things

Inspiration Exchange @ City Farmhouse

SAS @ Funky Junk

That DIY Party @ The DIY Showoff

Tutorials & Tips Tuesday @ Home Stories A to Z

Share Awesomeness Thur @ The 36th Avenue

Pretty Things Thursday @ Scissors & Spatulas

Flaunt it Friday @ Chic on a Shoestring

Frugal Friday @ The Shabby Nest

Furniture Feature Friday @ Miss Mustard Seed

SAS @ Just a Girl

Remodelaholics Anonymous @ Remodelaholic

inspiration board @ Carolyns Homework

Sunday Showcase Party @ Under the Table & Dreaming

Read More..

Big Stocking Stuffer Tool Giveaway

A few of my favorite things all wrapped up for you to win!  Im giving away 5 stocking stuffer packages, a crate full of goodies that any DIYer will love.

Some of the best tools are the little ones so I put together 5 crates full of my favorites:

- Ryobi Tools 56 piece drilling & driving kit with dock it storage & 11 piece drilling kit

- 3M banded style hearing protection

- Gorilla Glue wood glue

- Allway paint can opener

- foam brush

These are tools I use nearly every day and cant live without.  And because I love my readers so much I even made a lid for the crate!

To enter the giveaway click on the link below.

Entry is easy and simple but limited to US residents 18 and older only.

I hope you know someone who would appreciate this stocking stuffer giveaway crate!  Good luck.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

If you missed it earlier today I shared my 10 Holiday gift ideas for the DIYer here:

Disclaimer: I was supplied product from Ryobi Tools and Crates & Pallet for this giveaway however all thoughts and opinions are my own.

Read More..

Built Ins Makeover Using a Paint Sprayer

Who wants to paint a ton of built-ins with a roller and brush?  It's doable but definitely not the smartest, fastest or most professional looking approach.

The last few months I've been making over our upstairs walk-in closet and the most drastic change is painting the built-ins.  I used the Homeright Finish Max sprayer and the results are amazing! 

To be perfectly honest I've never painted with a sprayer before.  The thought of cleaning all the parts was enough to turn me off UNTIL I realized how much square footage there was to paint in all these built-ins.  (There are actually 3 portions of built-ins, the above picture only shows one wall and a small portion of another on the left.)

The smarter person in me decided it was time to give the sprayer a try.  

Click here to continue reading »

Read More..

Repurpose It Challenge Card Catalog Side Table

It's another challenge folks and this time Mindi @ My Love 2 Create came up with the brilliant idea for a Repurpose It Challenge.

I choose to repurpose an old card catalog into a side table but you must see what my 7 other blogger friends came up with:

• Amy @ Her Tool Belt: rustic arrow
• Kim @ The Kim Six Fix: coat rack from hammers
• Corey @ Sawdust 2 Stitches: repurposed dresser
• Donna @ Funky Junk Interiors: reclaimed wood tray
• Gail @ My Repurposed Life: dressing table repurposed desk
• Kathy @ Crafty Chica: repurposed jewelry holder
• Mindi @ My Love 2 Create: succulent planters from light fixtures
• Jaime @ That's My Letter: card catalog side table

I took this dusty and beat up old card catalog that was given to me from a friend of a friend about 3 years ago:

Click here to continue reading »

Read More..

My 5 Favorite Things For Today Friday November 13 2015

My 5 favorite things for today...


1. Vanilla Chai decaf tea from Stash Tea in THIS mug. Add one tablespoon of honey and a splash of lowfat milk and Im a happy girl. I love the mug. I found it at Kohls.

2. Sara when she lays around like this and watches me. Oh Sara, you look so bored! 

3. My fireplace mantle in my music/family room. This is a collection of a few of my favorite things; the ceramic reindeer bust, my thrift store Buddha collection, the tall candle jar that was a gift from my late brother, and the twig and branch peace sign wreath that I made a few years ago. I love the way it looks with the white lights. Want to make your own? Check out the tutorial here!

4. This quote: "Dont ruin a good today because of a bad yesterday" reminds us that each new day is separate from the previous one, and that we should not carry the previous days troubles into the next day but instead try to leave them in the past. Ive been going through a hard time lately, and so I am holding on with both hands to any advice like this.

5. This photo of leaves in our front yard that my daughter Erica took on her way to school one morning. The colors are perfect.  

What do you think?

Enjoy your day!

Love, 

Laura

Check out my new DIY jewelry instruction books and DVDs!

   

Learn how to solder and make unique jewelry!


My broken china jewelry is always available for purchase at https://www.etsy.com/shop/dishfunctionldesigns

Read More..

Sideboard Makeover

Popping in with a quick makeover of this giant sideboard I built back in February.  As you can see I originally left the wood natural only sealing it with clear polyurethane but I always knew it needed some color.

I mixed equal parts of two Americana Decor chalky finish colors together to get the most beautiful midnight blue that really helps the copper hardware stand out:

Click here to continue reading »

Read More..

V is for Vintage Quilt Makeover

How I took a vintage quilt (that was never quilted) and made it into two proper quilts for my girls beds, if only their great great grandmother knew where her quilt was today!

I received this very thin handpieced quilt from my mother about 10 years ago.  It actually came from her father's home and was made by his mother so now this vintage quilt will span 5 generations.

I cut the quilt in half to make two quilts, gave them a proper backing with batting and then quilted them to enhance the star pattern.  I sure hope my great grandmother is pleased with the transformation.

Click here to continue reading »

Read More..

DIY Tree Shelf

We're back with another diy gift plan for the Handbuilt Holiday series and today it's a beautiful tree shaped shelf that anyone would want!  Ana White and I have the most fun deciding just which project to build each week, like kids in a candy store!  We tend to focus on gifts for kids but this week our build is more geared towards the adults.

Ana has the plans for this decorative tree shelf that's sure to be a wonderful addition to anyone's Christmas decor:

Click here to continue reading »

Read More..

DIY Sliding Barn Door Console Free Plans

Snowstorm Jonas kept me hunkered down all weekend with plenty of time to make proper plans for the sliding barn door console as I've been meaning to tackle for quite some time.

Thank you to everyone who has shown so much interest in the original console post where I shared cut lists and basic construction process.  Your interest and questions spurred me on to make proper plans down below.

You may recall I built this console for week one of the Creating With the Stars series in the Spring of 2014:

Week one of the contest was a 'knock off' theme and I was inspired by Sundance Catalog's Yorkville Sliding Door Console:

image source

The retail version above sells for $2800 plus $400 shipping - yikes!  I'm sharing the plans to make your own DIY version for $300.

Click here to continue reading »

Read More..

D is for Decorator Letters

Grab your jigsaw and some plywood because you can definitely DIY these decorator letters.  They make a huge statement for very minimal cost (and a fun birthday gift for my daughter's friend too!).

Inspired by Pottery Barn Kids Decorator Letters:

image source

Their letters cost $79 each, that's crazy talk too me!  (To do the math 4 letters would be $316 - are you kidding?)  I used 1/2" plywood scraps to make my version but all you need for one letter is a 1/2" plywood handy panel (2' x 4') which runs about $15.  You might even be able to fit two letters on one panel if you're lucky.  Also you could use 1/2" MDF which is cheaper and makes those curvy cuts super smooth.

Click here to continue reading »

Read More..

The Truth About Wealth Fortune

Read More..

Frankenstein Candy Box Giveaway

October is here and it's officially time to start thinking about Halloween projects.  I've got you covered in the treat department with this DIY Frankenstein candy box:

The plans with step by step instructions for this must have build are over at Ryobi Nation here.  In addition the nice folks at Ryobi Tools are giving away a drill-driver set and brad nailer to one lucky reader!

The giveaway entry details are below but first be sure to stop by Ryobi Nation to get the plans for this Frankenstein candy box perfectly sized for kids.

Click here to continue reading »

Read More..

DIY Workshop Hanging Planter

It's time friends for another Do-It-Yourself (DIY) Workshop at The Home Depot!

For this workshop we will be building a super simple hanging planter.

Please come join me at The Home Depot Store #6210 in West Hartford, CT on Saturday, September 12th at 10am.

Not in the Hartford area?  Check here to find your local workshop location.  A few of my other DIY blogger friends will also be co-hosting workshops at the following locations:

Click here to continue reading »

Read More..

Walk In Closet Makeover plus built in plans

Now that everyone is in full-on organizational mode, purging and cleaning all those closets, I thought it would be a great time to share my walk-in closet makeover.

Fair warning there are A LOT of photos in this post because frankly who doesn't love an organized closet ;)  But for real I tried my best to show you the before and after in all cases plus how I rebuilt, reconfigured and added-on to the existing built-ins.  In addition there are free plans down below to match these built-ins if you're feeling tempted.

This walk-in closet has 3 walls of built-ins and the fourth wall is a window.  Above is the long wall and below is the short wall:

Click here to continue reading »

Read More..

K is for Kids Bathroom Makeover

kids bathroom makeover

My kid's bathroom finally got a well deserved makeover and we are loving every inch of it!  Come see for yourself how I kept myself busy during the holiday break - it was totally worth it.

You can see from the before picture I wanted to get rid of the wallpaper, paint the trim and moulding, bulk up the mirror and replace the sconces.

Click here to continue reading »

Read More..