Sweet Shot Tuesday...

I wanted to share some more pictures of Griffin today for my Sweet Shot Tuesday post!!

We had another sunny day & he had just gotten up from his afternoon nap which meant he was in a 

REALLY good mood!

Happy Babies + Great Natural Light = Pretty Darn Cute Pictures!

Or at least I think so....

What is it about those little smiling baby teeth that just make you smile right back?!


Linking up here....

My New Craigslist Find...

Hey Everyone!!

Hope your Monday is off to a great start!! 

The weather here is BEAUTIFUL today! 

It almost feels like spring!! :)

I am so thankful for the mild winter we have had thus far in Southern Illinois! Other than just a light dusting, we have had zero snow. And although there have been some cold days, I almost feel like the warm days have out numbered the cold! Very strange, considering it's January, but I'm definitely not complaining!!

I wanted to share some pictures of my latest Craigslist find with you guys today! I'm planning on sanding it down within the next couple of days & putting a coat of primer on, and maybe, JUST MAYBE, I might get it painted this weekend! We shall see!! 

Anyway, here she is....

 Isn't she CUTE?!

Let me just tell you....
I have been stalking Craig & HIS LIST trying to find a dresser to go on this wall in my living room FOR-EVA!! And finally, I found one!! 

The best part about it....I only paid $50.00 for it!!! 

BOO-YAH!!

One thing that I have learned about Craigslist....
You can find what you are looking for & at the price you wanna pay, if you are just PATIENT!

And believe me folks, patience is not my virtue! 

However, being CHEAP is!

So, I was willing to hold out for a while & I am SO glad I did!!

I was thinking originally, that I would have to paint the dresser & change out the hardware, but now that I have had it a couple of weeks, I'm really thinking these little round knobs that are on it,
happen to be really cute!!

Therefore, I am probably going to use them afterall, but I may have to give them a couple coats of 

spray paint to get them the color I want them.

These knobs....

Not so much! 
I will definitely be changing these out!

You can see that the dresser does have some imperfections....

A few scratches here & there

But, she definitely has good bones! She also happens to be REAL wood! All of the drawers slide in & out easily as well, so I think once I'm finished, she is going to be beautiful!!

FINGERS CROSSED!!

Have you bought anything off a Craigslist in the past or recently?!

Has your experience been good or bad?

DO TELL!! :)

Introducing sneakpeeq....

Happy Friday Everyone!!

I wanted to take a minute today & tell you about a new site called....

Sneakpeeq is an online boutique that brings you new discoveries every day!
They have gourmet foods, home products, accessories and apparel at prices so low
they have to keep them private!

There are millions of wonderful companies creating amazing products just waiting for you to use them; all they need is a platform to be seen and shared. That is why sneakpeeq exists! 

Every day, they put a new set of amazing products from new brands on their site. Then they take what they know about you as a sneakpeeq shopper (aka "peeqer") and present you with
3 products that they think you'll like the most.

The more you participate on the site the better they can predict your personal style. You can also browse through the other stores and like, love, share, and peeq to help them learn more about you.

Sneakpeeq is in partnership with Facebook, so when you sign up, you will be 

asked to connect with your Facebook account.

Sneakpeeq is offering a fabulous giveaway today for all of my readers....

It's a giveaway in which EVERYONE wins!!

 

because, just for entering you will receive 20% your next purchase!!

In addition to that, one luck reader will receive a $25 gift card to use on their

favorite food, style, & home products 

And two runners-up prize winners will receive a $10 gift card!

And that might not sound like a lot, but that goes a long way in sneakpeeq's  

amazingly low-priced boutiques!

Go check out all the things you LOVE, but haven't discovered!

Sneakpeeq only has new Products that you've never seen before!

Enter the giveaway by clicking this link....

http://bit.ly/wVRHE8

 and joining sneakpeeq today!!!

You have until Friday, February 10th to enter! 

All winners will be announced on my blog on 
 Monday, February 13, 2012

Shopping Day...Kirkland's Grand Opening

Happy Wednesday Everyone!!

How is your guys' week going?! 

I am back to work tomorrow......BOO!

I'm hoping that my 2 days go by quickly, so that I can get back to doing the things I really LOVE!!
Nothing better than spending time with family & of course,
working on a DIY project or two!! :)

Today, something really exciting happened in Southern Illinois!! 

We got another home decorating store!!! 

This is HUGE people!! 

Because when it comes to shopping here in our area....there ain't much to choose from!
Don't get me wrong, we do have Hobby Lobby, but when you shop there all the time for your home decorating needs, it does start to get a little boring!!

Every once in a while, you want a change of scenery, right?!

Well, we finally got something.....a KIRKLAND'S!!!

And, today was the GRAND OPENING!!!

(Warning: I will say the word "cute" approximately 50 times in this post!)

So what's a girl to do?!

Load up the kids in the van & meet your momma for a little afternoon SHOPPING!!!

My kiddos weren't quite as excited as Mom & I were about the new store, but they stuck it out!
Griffin was TERRIBLE while we were in the store!  

(Note to self: Kirkland's does not have shopping carts! MUST bring the 
stroller next time we visit!!!) 

We took them to Fazoli's for lunch afterwards to make the shopping trip worth their while....
cuz, garlic breadsticks make everything better, right?!

Anyway....

When we walked in the store it was like I could hear Angels sing.....Ahhhhhhh!!!!

Not only do we have a new store, but its BIG people!!! 

I've been in a few other Kirklands' stores & most of them have been really small. 

This one is NOT!!

Don't you just love all of these baskets?!

 I was dreaming of my next organization project while looking at these :)

(p.s. I apologize for the blurry pics!

Taking pictures with an uncooperative child on your hip....NOT EASY)

They also had lots of beautiful mirrors to choose from....

I was really diggin' this chair.....probably because I am obsessed with the color blue!

It was so short though, so I'm not sure where you would use it!!

I was also LOVING all of the cute & colorful tables....

Again, that turquoise/blue one was my FAVORITE! 

I also like those little round pedestal tables....SO CUTE!!!

And how adorable is this desk?!

It would make such a cute & quaint office space! They had one is black too! 

I just bought a dresser off of Craigslist a couple of weeks ago...I will be sharing it with you all very soon! 

And after seeing this one in the store today, I am CERTAIN I will be painting mine blue!

I LOVE this shade!!

Do you think the people working there would think I was WACKO if I brought some paint
color samples in to try & match it up?! :)

And of course, I was loving this display & all of its shades of blue...

I thought these mail organizers were really cute as well! 

The price was pretty reasonable too, at $19.99

And, I seriously adore these lanterns!! 

I'm thinking I might need a couple for my patio this summer!!!

This little ladder display was really cute & it also had a little chalkboard hanging at the top of it!!

I think it would look great sitting outside, if you had a large covered porch. Would be great to put plants & flowers on during the summer time with a cute little saying written on the chalkboard as well!!!

I did purchase a few things today, that I will be sharing with you probably next week! It is gray & rainy here today, so I am lacking the natural light, that I typically prefer for photos!

Maybe this weekend we will get some sunlight & I can take pictures!!!

I couldn't help but take this shot of Griffin when our shopping trip had ended....

Needless to say, he was DONE!!!

For my Southern Illinois readers:

Make sure you visit Kirkland's website & sign-up for their email list!!

They will send you a coupon for $25 off your purchase of $75 or more!!!

Do you have a Kirkland's in your area?!

What is your favorite store to shop for home decor items?!

Stencil Tutorial-My First Vlog

Hey Guys!

Yesterday I told you, that I would be sharing a video tutorial today on how to do the
wall stenciling that I did for my closet makeover!

This past weekend, I decided to help my friend Mandy, from House of Rose

with a little closet makeover of her own.

It took her a little while to convince me, but she finally managed! :)

Our twitter conversation went a little bit like this....

ME:

 @houseofrose what all do you have in mind for your new closet?! 

I want to know what I am getting myself into...

  MANDY:

@lovefamandhome LOL! I have no idea! A do-over? Hehe! 

Come on...this is blog post material! I don't need to repaint, just stencil.

She had me at "blog post material." :) 

I mean, I AM always looking for something to post about!!

And since so many of you had inquired about how to do the stenciling, I thought what better what to show you than to video the process?! 

Big THANKS to Mandy for the vlog! 

She & her hubby are pretty much vlog professionals, you can tell from this video & all of her awesome editing! She actually made me look pretty good!

I must tell you, I was feeling a little awkward behind the camera! I guess the 

more vlogging I do, the more comfortable I'll get!!

So without further ado, here is our Stenciling Tutorial....

Here are a few more pics of Mandy's closet....

For those of you who are interested, the stencil was purchased at Hobby Lobby. 

You can find it HERE. 

It is regularly $16.99, but don't forget about the 40% OFF COUPON that is available online 

almost every week!

And for those of you who don't have a printer...

I just pull the coupon up on my phone & show it to the cashier....works every time!! 

They just need to 4 digit coupon code!

Thanks for stopping by! 

Now go get your STENCIL ON!!!!

Linking this tutorial up here....

Tips & Tutorials Tuesday at The Stories of A to Z

Tuesday Treasures at My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia
Uncommonly Yours at Uncommon Designs

Show & Tell Wednesday at Blue Cricket Design

Overflowing with Creativity at It's Overflowing 

 Crafty, Scrappy, Happy Me at Crafty, Scrappy, Happy

Transformation Thursdays at The Shabby Creek Cottage

Delightfully Inspiring Thursday at Delightful Order
I'm Lovin' it at Tidy Mom

Frugal Friday at The Shabby Nest

Feature Yourself Friday at Fingerprints on the Fridge

Flaunt it Friday at Chic on a Shoestring Decorating
Frugalicious Friday at Finding Fabulous

Weekend Wrap-Up Party at Tatertots & Jello

Sunday Showcase Party at Under The Table & Dreaming

Sweet Shot Tuesday...

For this week's Sweet Shot Tuesday post, I thought I would share some pictures I took of Griffin last week. They were taken just a day before he turned 17 months old! 

And again, I know I say it every time, but GEEZ where does time go?!

Isn't he just a handsome little man?! 

This little smile absolutely melts my heart!

He is developing quite the little personality these days & is starting to say all kinds of new words!

I managed to get a few shots of him, but unlike his brother, he is a little bit harder to photograph!! 

This boy is constantly on the go!

I love this last shot & the way the light catches his eye!

Just like his brother, he has a circle of green around the pupil, while the rest of the eye is blue. 

Their eyes are so beautiful & so unique!

Before I know it, they are both going to be breaking hearts!!

Oh, how I am not looking forward to that!!

Linking up here....

DIY Jewelry Hangers...

Hey Everyone!

Sorry, I haven't posted in a few days! 

This weekend was a little crazy & with me being back to work on Thursdays & Fridays, I'm having a hard time getting posts put together! I need to get ahead instead of posting projects as I get them completed! One of these days, I am going to be one of those organized bloggers who have weeks worth of posts just sitting in draft mode & ready to go! 

Maybe that should be one of my new years resolutions?!

Anyway....I just got the boys down for their afternoon naps & I thought I would drop in to give you all a quick little tutorial on how I (with the help of my dad) made my jewelry hangers for my new closet!

I needed somewhere to hang my necklaces & I wanted to tie the hangers in with my new glass knobs I purchased for my dresser along with my little chandelier lamp, so this is what I came up with....

They are simple, but with little bit of glam, thanks to the cute glass knobs I purchased for them!

I bought the knobs at Hobby Lobby. They were $6.00 a piece, but I got them half off, 

so I only paid $3.00 for each one.

I also purchased these wooden oval medallions (I guess that is what you would call them) at Hobby Lobby. You can find them in their unfinished wood department.

I liked them shape of them, plus a just 50 cents a piece, you can't go wrong!

I painted each one with the same blue color I used for my dresser & shelving. It's called "Sparkling Lake" & it's a Valspar color that I found at Lowes. I will tell you, that I purchased it a couple years back, so I don't know if they still have it or not. I just happened to have the can of paint from my last project, so I took it in & had them re-create it using the information on the label. Whether or not you can still purchase the color is beyond me! 

Then, I had my dad drill holes in the center of each one to make way for the new knobs!

In order to hang these, I knew that the backside of the medallions would have to be flush with the wall, so my dad also drilled a larger hole in the back of the medallion where the nut could be embedded inside the wood. (Scroll down if you don't know what I'm talking about!)

Then, we (& when I say "we" I actually mean my dad) screwed the knob in place on the medallion & then used a pair of pliers to grab the nut & tighten it further into the wood.

Once the nut tightened down inside the wood, we then used the pliers to break off the excess screw on the backside of the medallion, in order for it to hang flat on the wall.

I also purchase some sawtooth picture hangers at Hobby Lobby like these, to put on the backside of the medallions to then hang on my wall.

(via)

And that's it! 

Cute & inexpensive hangers for your necklaces!

I'm really happy with the way they turned out & I have even purchased a few more supplies to make a couple more! A girl can never have too many accessories ya know!

Be sure to stop by tomorrow to learn more about the wall stenciling! I spent my day this past Saturday with my friend Mandy, from House of Rose.

We decided to do the same wall stencil on her closet wall & I helped her to organize her space a bit!

Since we were stenciling, and because so many of you asked for a tutorial on how to do the stencil, we decided to shoot a little video tutorial (or vlog) to show you how!!

You won't wanna miss it!!

Linking up here...

Tutorial & Tips Link Party at Home Stories A to Z
Tuesday Treasures at My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia
Uncommonly Yours at Uncommon Designs
Overflowing with Creativity at It's Overflowing
Transformation Thursday at Shabby Creek Cottage
Crafty, Scrappy, Happy Me Thursdays at Crafty, Scrappy, Happy
20 Below Thursdays at Christina's Adventures