My Old Crib to Ben's New Toy Chest

 

 

 

 

 

I meant to write a post oh... a year ago about this transformation,

and you know... I didn't.

 

 

 

 

 

 

This turned out to be a good thing because Ben ended up breaking the thing anyway... more on that in a bit maybe.

 

 

I've written many a time about how awesomely creative my family is,

and here is yet another example.

My uncle, after hearing that I was expecting (the first time), offered to give back to me the crib that my brother and I slept in when we were babies.

And while I was tempted, it was only for sentimental reasons

as the thing is... well... old (we won't say how old).

It's been through at least 3 babies as a crib and had definitely seen better days.

Not to mention my uncle lives in GA. I live in PA. Shipping the thing to me didn't seem worth it.

 

So I moved on, my mom bought Ben his nursery furniture. Done and done.

Broken but not for long!

 

 

 

 

 

Then I get this toy chest in the mail.

My uncle turned (half of) my old crib into a toy chest.

He did the hard work,

and I put it together when it arrived at our house.

 

 

 

 

 

Clearly I didn't do a good job, because once Ben was climbing all over everything, it broke.

In a number of ways.

So while I've been getting prepped for baby number two,

I decided this thing must come back to life.



After first coat

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wood glue,

some reinforcing screws,

some paint,

and we were back in business.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I don't usually paint wooden things, and in some cases am adamently against it.

However, this had so many scratches and teeth marks, it really had to be done.

 

 

Apple/ Fire Engine Red. Always a winner.

 

 

 

 

 

 

For the most part, you can see how it went from crib to toy chest above there.

I'm thinking that you could hypothetically squeeze two chests from one crib.

 

The bottom and the top are pieces of plywood.

 

The top, I upholstered with some 1 inch foam, batting, and coordinating fabric.

And added a handle with cotton strapping material.

 

 

Cute, yes?

And always nice to hide the ugly and obnoxious toys away.

We love it.

:)

Car Birthday Party {DIY Details}

 

 

 

 

For those of you that follow me on Facebook or Instagram,

you've been seeing all my car posts over the past few weeks.

 

 

My little buddy turned two!

And to celebrate, we threw him a car birthday party.

He LOVES cars.

And this is an understatement.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As I mentioned when I shared the invitations with you,

we decided to go for a playful vintage car theme in lieu of the Disney Pixar Cars theme,

and I'm glad that we did, because I loved the way that everything turned out.

 

 

So here are some of the DIY details!

 

 

Since Ben's birthday is in February and we live in Pittsburgh,

all of our set up had to be inside.

We live in less than a mansion,

so we kept it simple, like our Winnie the Pooh Party last year,

and just had some family and close friends over for food and libations.

 

As for decorations, I mostly stuck with the old tissue paper standbys.

As luck would have it, Target had a bunch of their tissue on clearance when I went shopping,

so I got a lot and maybe went a little overboard.

 

 

I made a ton of these pom poms in all different sizes and colors and hung them from the ceiling with fishing line.

They added a fun burst of color when you came in.

 

 

I also made two long fringe tissue banners,

one for over the food table and one for our living room where most of the seating is.

Tissue paper decor is great because you can buy it super cheap is basically any color.

If you're not picky about colors, the dollar store is a great resource.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My centerpiece for the food table was this "road sign" in the shape of a B (ya know.... for Benjamin).

 

 

 

 

 

The letter I bought for a couple bucks awhile ago for his bedroom.

It's just the paper mache kind from Joanns.

I painted it black and then added the dashes.

Simple. Simple.

 

 

 

 

The food table turned out really nicely with some fabrics that I had from other projects.

The route 66 fabric is one of my favorites. I just put it over a box to elevate the cake stand a bit.

 

The "fuzzy dice" are white square boxes that I had which my mom and I added black dots to.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For my food labels, I made a simple placard in Photoshop to look like a license plate.

 

I tried to make them look as much like a PA plate as I could, and added Ben's name at the top.

 

 

 

Not all of the food was themed,

but we did make "nuts and bolts" (chex mix), pot holes (peanut butter cup cookies), and dip sticks (pretzels) for the snack food.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We also made pigs in a blanket (because who doesn't like those?),

and my mom made this awesome stop light for the dips (ketchup, mustard, and relish).

 

 

 

 

 

 

She did a great job just using poster board!

So cute.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For our drink table, I also kept it simple. I used more steel accessories that I had around the house and some bandannas from a camping trip.

 

 

The only thing really themed was the gas pump placard I made in photoshop.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The car cake was so much fun for me to make.

The bottom is two round cake layers,

and I carved the car out of a loaf pan.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Since I knew I would be carving the car, I wanted a pretty dense cake

so I opted for Elvis' Pound Cake.

 

 

 

I have to say, it was yummy, but definitely dense.

I could only eat a very small piece.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The tires are chocolate donuts.

The headlights are yellow m&ms.

 

 

 

 

The grass is coconut which I threw in a ziploc and tossed with a few drops of green food coloring.

Shake shake shake, and you have grass!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And I made a road sign to go beside the car which I just posted on a chopstick.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I also made Ben a special shirt to wear.

He was so busy at his party, that this, unfortunately, is the best picture I got of it. :)

 

 

 

 

 

 

I bought a plain shirt at Target, and free handed the car with a bleach pen.

I don't know if it was because the shirt was a little thin, or that it was lighter in color,

but I literally left the bleach solution on the shirt for about 1 minute and then rinsed it off.

Any more, and I was afraid it would all just bleach to one big blob.

 

 

 

 

 

 

And my last detail is our favors. I got these little steel buckets for a buck and filled them with some candy, toy cars, and playdoh for good measure.

 

 

 

 

 

 

And that's that!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ben had such a great time playing with his friends and family,

and he especially liked the cake. :)

 

 

Happy Birthday, buddy!

We love you!!!



Ikea Hack: Kid's Activity Table

Hello again, friends!

In an effort to come to grips with the fact that my little tiny baby is gone

and now I have crazy active toddler,

and also to make our living space more toddler-friendly

I've been searching for the perfect little activity table for Ben.

Not too big, not too small.

DEFINITELY not too expensive.

Not too primary-color-kid-decor, not too blasé.

And here's what I came up with:

A lot of people have this kids' table from Ikea, yes?

I think it's called 'Latt' or somethingorother?

Anyway, it's inexpensive, especially considering it comes with two chairs.

But it's a little boring (white and blah).

Simple fix.

I 'upholstered' the seat with a home decor fabric

and then covered that with vinyl so it will wipe clean easily.

Before assembling the table,

I also painted the table top with some chalkboard paint I had left over for a few other projects.

Easy enough.

Here are more details for the chairs:

Take the seat portion of the chair and cut your pieces of fabric and vinyl.

Note: don't use anything too think.

You want to make sure that it will fit into the slots that hold the seat in place.

Place them right sides down on a work surface.

Cut notches out of the corners as shown.

This helps it all fit together in the end.

I glued the pieces in place,

pulling them tightly.

Repeat with the vinyl

The glue is mostly to hold it in place until you get the chair assembled.

Be sure you don't gunk it up with a ton of glue.

This thing needs to be svelte.

Since this may be a tight fit when you go to put the chair together,

you may consider using a rubber mallet to gently tap the pieces in place.

Just be careful.

The pacifier isn't necessary.

Done. Repeat for the second chair if you wish.

Now let's color!

Quick and Easy Grandparents' Gift

I'm alive!

It feels like I haven't posted in a year!

I have been really busy here with Christmas orders for my Etsy shop,

trying to stay on top of my household chores (although I'm critically losing that battle),

and maybe just maybe trying to squeeeeeze in some time for my own holiday gifting.

I take this time to apologize to my family:

you will most likely not be getting anything handmade, as I'm too busy making something handmade for someone else's family. : /

Apparently, I can't have my cake and eat it, too.

Anywayz,

I thought I would return to you all with a gift that I did manage to complete for my own family.

 Pros:
It's fast.
It's easy.
Total cost was less than $5.
It'll make your heart feel oh so warm and cozy.

Cons:

none.

don't be a scrooge.

This project was so simple that posting a tutorial would be a mockery to tutorials.

I purchased the wooden Christmas tree (it already had the mounting hardware on the back).

I purchased the stars (and have approximately 10 million left over).

Painted them in green and metallic paints, respectively.

Then, I wrote on the stars and glued them to the tree,

making sure to leave plenty of extra stars for "expansion" (if ya catch ma drift).

Finally I added the tag with a verse of Scripture written on it. I found it particularly appropriate because of the stars on the tree and the fact that my mother in law LOVES the seashore.

Done and done.

Hope she likes it.

DIY Rain Barrels

We finally got a new roof with nice new efficient gutters and downspouts

which means that rain is now very specifcally directed right into my new rain barrels.

Collecting rain is great for a number of reasons.

Here are a few starting with my favorite:

1) Rain water is free. I love free.

You can use it to water plants and such, rinse off outdoor items, bathe dogs. You get it.

Note: Do not drink it.

2) Using rain water relieves some of the stress on the environment when utilizing in place of public works water.

3) Collecting rain in barrels allows you to choose where the water goes,

which is really nice especially if you get heavy downpours which can cause runoff and such.

4) It's the cool thing to do.

So, you're convinced? Awesome.

Before you run out and pay a hefty sum for a rain barrel (some are around $100! huh?), consider making one yourself

and upcycling a barrel that has already been used.

It's cheaper and it's better for the environment.

Win/win.

Where to find a barrel:

First things first, you want to find/buy a "food grade" barrel.

I should mention, also, that "food grade" speaks less to what was in the barrel and more to what was not. i.e. no harmful chemicals and such that should not be injested.

They can come in different shapes and sizes. The most common is this 55 gallon.

I found some at a flea market that got them from an olive importer.

Only $15 a piece!

Tips for finding barrels near you:

1) Check craigslist. In my area, there are A TON listed.

2) Check food importers (they probably use them, and who knows? Maybe you'll score some for free!)

3) If you live in a "rain barrel community" like I do, ask your neighbors where they got theirs.

4) If you can't find a barrel, consider using a large outdoor trash can. Not beautiful, no, but just as functional.

 

Alright! Here we go:

DIY Rain Barrel How To:

Step One: Gather your supplies.

Once you have your barrel, the only other items you'll need is a rain barrel kit (sold by many home impreovement retailers online) and a diverter.

Diverter

The diverter isn't necessary, but I highly recommend it. If you're barrel fills up, a diverter will divert the excess water down the downspout instead of  flooding out the top of your barrel, or worse, backing up your downspout.

The kit that I used is by EarthMinded, and guess what? It comes with a diverter.

I also love this one because it comes with absolutely everything you'll need including three different hole saw bits and crystal clear instructions.

You just need a drill and a level. Easy peasy.

*If you want to hook your rain barrel right up, go ahead! :)

Just follow the instructions with your kit.

It will look something like this:

*If your barrel is in a more visible area and you want a more finished look, check out these steps:

Step Two: Sand

I used a 60 grit sandpaper just to rough up the plastic surface a bit so the paint would stick more securely.

 

Step Three: Paint

I used a textured biege Krylon spray paint, one color for the lid and one for the barrel because I wanted it to match my other outdoor stuff since the barrel in the back yard is in full view when you're sitting on the patio.

 

Step Four: Attach your Spigot and Drain

(you'll want to drain it in the winter if you live in a freezing climate)

Be sure to place your spigot about 12 inches from the bottom of the barrel if you want to get a watering can underneath.

You can also build a stand to put the barrel on.

 

Step Five: Attach your Connector Hose









Make sure that the hose is level. If it travels down to your barrel, it will overflow the top when it is full. If it travels up to your barrel, the water will bypass the hose and go directly through your diverter and down the downspout.

Total Costs:


For the unpainted barrel- $42
For the painted barrel- $67
Not bad.

Now I'm just waiting for rain!