Coming Soon! Dressing Up a Dresser

May 29, 2015May 29, 20154 Comments

So, I’ve been a bit busy with work picking up. Since it is summer, and everyone is leaving on vacation, they drop their dogs off at my work where it is my duty to help take care of them. And even though I like having more hours at work, I now have to find a bit more time for the blog. Because of this, I am giving a sneak peak into what we will be showing off next week. It is nothing special, but it was a fun project for my mom and I.

We have some work to do!

We found this dresser for free on Craiglist and picked it up right away. We knew there were some problems with it, like mismatched handles and peeling paint and a broken drawer.

It’s taken awhile but I think we finally have a plan of what we want to do with it. We bought some new drawer pulls at the junk sale we went to last weekend and the drawer has been fixed. Now on to the fun part! We will let you know how it turns out! Stay tuned!

We Went Junking (and Some Other Shopping Too!)

May 25, 2015May 25, 201524 Comments

I was looking for something different to do for this Memorial Weekend, but it seemed like I was just going to do some mundane chores around the house. My husband was going to be working at the softball park, Lauren wasn’t coming home and Haley just wanted to watch her videos. Boring!!! Then as my husband was watching a local baseball game on tv, there was an advertisement for ‘Junk Days’ in a nearby town. Bingo! Something fun and different to do! Lauren was game, Haley was undecided, and I texted one of my friends from work to see if she wanted to go. She hasn’t been able to drive for awhile, so she is pretty much stuck at home. She was more than ready for a day out!

After church, we headed out. After a short stop at Starbucks, we picked up Lauren and drove over to the ‘Junk Days.’ This was one of Lauren’s first finds of the day. We didn’t purchase it, but it sure is fun to dream and get ideas!

Lovin’ the pink!

I have been wanting a rectangle shape table, preferably a trestle table, for my back patio. Just the other night I was thinking it would be cute to get some different wooden chairs, paint them the same color and put around the table. Well, I found the chairs! Aren’t they adorable! I scored five for $20!!

Wooden chairs for my patio.

I will change out the burlap, not because I don’t like burlap, but it would be a little itchy when wearing shorts!

There was also a booth advertising all the benefits of chalk paint. Look at the truck!! It is completely painted with chalk paint! It is so awesome!!

I want this!!!

We also stopped in the store that carried the chalk paint. They hold classes and sell everything you would need to paint. It was so cool! They had this map hanging in there. I love maps! They also had an upholstered chair painted with chalk paint. Amazing!

Chalk paint map

The last really cool thing we found, because the place was full of cool stuff, was this dresser. The drawers were painted to look like suitcases, complete with hardware!

This is so clever!

After our ‘junking’ we stopped for lunch and a little more retail therapy. We were browsing Kirklands and found these little initial blocks. They were on clearance and the only ones left just happened to have all of our initials! So random!!

Great girls day out!

We had such a fun time! Sometimes you just need a day out with the girls! I hope you have a wonderful Memorial Day and a great week!

Starbucks Caramel Snickerdoodle Macchiato

May 22, 2015May 22, 2015Leave a comment

There are many times where we go into a Starbucks or Jamba Juice and someone orders a drink you had never heard of. Did you just miss it on the menu? Or did they just come up with something off the top of their head?

Well…a little bit of both.

These are normally secret menu items. Items that the restaurant may know how to make, but at the same time, the restaurant may not know how the drink is made. You can either take a chance on if they know the drink or you can find a recipe online.

Or, I can make it even easier.

Thanks to hackthemenu.com, anyone can see secret items and how they are made. And I have taken a challenge to try all of these drinks from Starbucks and Jamba Juice and write a review of the drink for you.

This should be fun to see what happens, though it may not be so fun on my wallet.

Caramel Snickerdoodle Macchiato

Now, whenever I think of a snickerdoodle, I think of a warm cookie that just came out of the oven. A cookie that is warm and gooey and super messy and breaks apart when you dip it in a giant glass of milk. Anyone besides myself drooling at the image I have just presented you?

Unfortunately…this drink is a cold drink.

But, I will say that drink is delicious. This drink really does taste like a Caramel Snickerdoodle. Even cold, it tastes very good.

This drink is based off of the Iced Soy Caramel Macchiato. But, it needs to be made upside down. Why? Well, if the drink is made upside down, the flavors will mix. There is also vanilla syrup and Cinnamon Dolce syrup. This makes the flavor complete in the drink.

I think that this drink is delicious. Even if you are not someone who enjoys a lot of coffee. I enjoy coffee if it’s in a frapp, but won’t drink it by itself. But I do enjoy this drink. Have you ever tried a secret menu item? Let me know in the comments below.

How to Turn Baking Pans into Chalkboards

May 15, 201526 Comments

Sorry that this post is late. I have been busy with finals, work, and getting ready for Haley’s graduation on Saturday. But I digress.

I have seen these chalkboards online and made one for myself, so I have decided to post how to turn a simple baking pan into a chalkboard.

First thing you need is these baking pans. I bought these three at a thrift store for 10 cents each. What a deal, right?

I have 3 pans here, but I only ended up using 2

Next I painted the pan. I wasn’t too particular if the paint for the outside of the pan got on the inside because it would be painted over anyways. I chose pink and turquoise as my outside colors. Shocking isn’t it.

Pink and Turquoise

Next, I taped off the edges of the pan to protect the color and not get chalkboard paint on the outside. This was a little tricky because I wanted to cover the entire edge of the pan. So I had to use quite a few pieces of tape to cover the edges.

Tape for Days

Now, it’s time for the chalkboard paint! I sprayed the inside of the pan completely to get a nice coat of chalkboard on the pan.

And Voila! They are done.

Voila!

I decided to make a checklist on the turquoise pan of things that need to still be finished before the graduation and graduation party. Fortunately, I was able to mark one thing off already. And the last two things won’t be able to be checked off until after the ceremony on Saturday.

GRADUATE!

For the second pan, I decided to put my salutation. Because I love the saying and love pink, it worked perfectly.

Pretty in Pink

These chalkboard pans are really easy to make and really easy to use. I use chalk markers to write on them, and the chalk marker comes off with a wet washcloth so you can change what it says. Check out my apartment bedroom blog here to see the chalkboard pan I have in my bedroom.

How To Make Chalkboard Subway Art-California Style

May 11, 201513 Comments

Hi everyone! First of all I want to apologize for only getting out one post this past week. Life has been so crazy for both Lauren and I! I have been working more hours, plus had activities each night and Haley graduates in a week!!! Lauren has also had more work hours and had finals and many papers to write. Not sure how much better this week will be with graduation preparations, but I am here today! I will share all the good grad tips when I come back!

I did manage to get a project done this past week. I wanted to change out an old decorative window I had hanging in my bathroom. The preschool I work at was getting rid of an old puppet theater type thing. I didn’t want it for my classroom, but it had chalkboard on all 3 sides. Hello!? Yes, I want it!

My husband took it apart before I took a picture, but here are the 3 sides.

I took the smallest piece and taped all the ages. Then I took Rust-oleum Black Chalkboard Paint and sprayed the middle.

Taped off

From green to black!

After the chalkboard paint was dry, I removed the tape. Then I used some Minwax Wood Finish, Golden Oak, that I had on hand. I dipped a rag into the can and then wiped it on the wood frame. I let it dry and then added another coat.

This shows the difference in the wood color.

After everything was dry, I primed the chalkboard. This just means rubbing chalk all over the whole board and then wiping it off. Now your board is ready to use!

Primed

I printed out the names of different California beaches, in different fonts on the computer. My plan was to rub chalk on the back of the paper, then trace it on to the board. It worked a little, but the chalk wasn’t dark enough for me to see. So I ended up just using the prints as my samples and I freehanded as best I could.

California Beaches

This is where it’s now hanging! I like how it looks here, but it’s also nice that I can either change where I put it or I can change what’s on it.

New artwork for my bathroom!

I have an idea for one of the other pieces. I think I am going to use it in my classroom to write all the funny things the kids say, but I don’t know about the other piece. I would love to hear some ideas! I hope you all have a great week!