Aye Aye Captain

Remember when I shared my friend Jesse’s amazing kitchen makeover? 

[before & after]

Well, I promised I’d be back with some tutorials involved and I’m making good on my promise by signing in today to tell you all about her captain’s mirror and how she made it.

 

    First, the supplies: 
An embroidery hoop
Two long belts
A round mirror
Spray Paint
Caulk
A thread spool (with no thread)
A long screw
Beads (to be used as a spacer)

You’ll need a round mirror.  Most craft stores sell pre-cut round mirrors so you could just go snatch up one of those.  If you’re wanting to make a larger mirror than any pre-cut mirror available, you may have to get a mirror cut-to-size like Jesse did.  She purchased a large rectangular mirror at a thrift store and had it cut into a circle that would eventually fit inside her embroidery hoop.  (Note:  One thing she told me to mention was that she had her mirror cut before she bought her hoop which she shouldn’t have done.  Because she couldn’t find an embroidery hoop that was the same diameter as her mirror, she had to do a little custom fitting.  The point being, buy your hoop first and have your mirror cut to the size of your hoop.)

There are lots of size options when it comes to embroidery hoops:

As mentioned above, Jesse couldn’t find an embroidery hoop that was the same size as her cut mirror (20”) so she bought one slightly smaller.
 
To get her mirror to fit seamlessly inside, she set the adjustable ring of the hoop around the mirror, cut off the joint at the top, and cut a section from the fixed ring to fill in the gap.  (You can see a better explanation in the spray-painting picture a little ways down.)

To hang/add the strap to her mirror, Jesse used two belts she found at a thrift store: 

So that the belt buckles were both facing the same direction, she cut the buckle off of one of the belts and sewed it onto the end of the other belt.  After she did that, she had one long belt with buckles at both ends that would go around the bottom of the mirror/hoop and one long belt without any buckles that would ‘buckle’ into the buckles and serve as the hanging piece.
 

In case you’re a stranger to sewing, you could also just buckle the belts to each other, giving you one long belted strap.  Basically, you’d take the bottom belt in the picture below, buckle it to the other belt along the right side, and send it up and over, buckling it on the left side.  Hopefully all that makes sense.  :) 

Once Jesse had her belts situated and sewn and all pieces of the hoops ready, she spray painted everything with gold spray paint.


Once the spray paint was dry, it was time to put everything together.  First, Jesse laid a string of beads down on the ground and laid the mirror on top of the beads.
[The beads were laid underneath the mirror, touching the reflective side.]

Then she put the hoop around the mirror.  The beads underneath the mirror served as a spacer so that the mirror didn’t sit flush with the front edge of the hoop.  Does that makes sense?  If you don’t have beads you can use any few things that are the same size and, being set under the mirror, would lift it – a few of the same sized magnets, a few of your kids small toy rings, a couple of thin books, etc… 

Next she tied a piece of elastic tightly around the whole mirror/hoop to hold the hoop together and the mirror inside (you can skip this step if your mirror fits inside your hoop perfectly).  She also ran some caulk (clear drying) around the back edge of the mirror.

After the caulk around the back edge was fully dry, she stood the mirror upright and ran some caulk around the front inside edge.  When the caulk around the inside edge was dry, she removed the elastic and hot glued the belt around the hoop, making sure that the area of the hoop where she had to insert a piece of the fixed hoop was along the bottom of the mirror when it hung.  That way all the pressure would always be against that spot, making it stronger and less likely to come undone.

To hang the mirror, Jesse used an old spool of thread (with no thread on it) that she spray painted gold. 

She stuck a screw through it to attach it to the wall and placed a gold painted sticker over the top to hide the screw.

Cost Breakdown:
Embroidery hoop:  $4 (with a coupon at Hobby Lobby)
Mirror:  $10 (a rectangular mirror found at a thrift store)
Getting the mirror cut into a circle:  $10
Belts:  $4 (thrift finds)
Spray paint:  already had
Caulk:  already had
Thread spool & screw:  already had
Total spent:  $28
Note:  If you had to buy the spray paint and caulk, it’d be closer to $34 or so.  Also, if you bought a mirror to fit your embroidery hoop, you could easily cut out $10 or more. 

Not so bad considering…

I’ll be back next week with a tutorial on her faux marble countertops!  I can’t wait to share that one…and use it!

Gold Buttons

My sister has thee best thrift store down the street from her where she always find thee best and most stylish vintage tops and I always am thee most jealous sister when I visit and see her enviable closet.  So, you can imagine my delight when she presented me with this vintage beauty for my birthday this year:
She took the liberty of taking it in for me as it was a tad wide (being the same size has a ton of advantages including, but not limited to, borrowing, altering for each other, borrowing, and borrowing some mo) but it was still missing some buttons down the back making it the perfect candidate for a little update.

Enter these buttons I found at JoAnn fabrics (at 50% off):
Everybody say hello to Vanna.  Ms. White wouldn’t leave me or the buttons alone.  ;)

All I did was remove the existing buttons and replace them with the new gold ones.  (I made sure when I was buying buttons that the new ones were the same size as the old so they’d fit through the existing button holes because a button hole (re)sewer you will not find here.)

After (sorry it’s a bit blurry):

Here’s a few of the lots and lots of ways I plan on wearing my newest button down: (Note:  the first two of these outfits look really sweet from the back thanks to the new buttons but a photo of my backside just didn’t feel notawkward so frontward it is.)

From left (and speaking of left, apparently it’s my go-to lean?):
1 >>> Standing like a cowgirl with some camel wedges and bootlegs.  Add a scarf for a pop and aviators for UV protection and I’m out the door in one hour flat (because three kids…).
2 >>> It’s still 90 degrees down here in the deep South and I cannot wait for the weather to give me the o.k. on my magenta cords!  I threw on a statement necklace and matching points to give the win to pink.  And speaking of those pink points, you might remember this ‘gram in which I went begging for help on how to fix them as they literally fell apart whilst I was making my way through a store, in public, everyone watching.
 
I reattached them using some Liquid Nails and so far they’re holding up well except they look a little worse for wear where the sole meets the actual shoe because when they separated, a little of the vinyl came off too so I’m on the fence whether to just toss them or not.  I’m not too sad though because they’ve lasted me multiple wears over seven years and I only paid ONE DOLLAR for them at Gabe’s in college.
3 >>> See numba 2 except add a mustard sweater and some blue suede pumps.  Too colorful?  Anthony would say something like, “Yes.  Yes it is.”

Last but not least, here’s how you can recreate this top.  I tried to find one similar to mine but in my limited search time, the only one I could find is this one:
 
[via Fovever XII]

It buttons down the front but since the buttons seem to be hidden, you could always just sew a few buttons in a line down the back to create the same look.  Of course, you could really do that to any shirt just to add that “party in the back”.  It’s a really simple update that only requires sewing (or even gluing) on a button.  If you’re not into the whole sewing/gluing thing, wearing a button-down shirt or cardigan backwards is always an option.  Seriously!  See here and here!

TGIF!

Ding Dong

Remember when we hung the gallery walls in our little hallway?  It looked just great but something else didn’t - the doorbell.


It used to match the once-bisque trim but since we opted for bright white trim, painting it all in the weeks after we moved into this house, it’s been an eyesore ever since.  Not that doorbells are going for aesthetic pleasure anyway, but still…me, perfectionist when it comes to matching, I want it white.

Since there are a thousand other things I’d rather spend budgeted money on than a new doorbell, I grabbed a paint brush and slapped on a coat of some white trim paint (Olympic semi-gloss white) we had leftover from the hundreds of feet of trim we painted in this house.

 
Still an eyesore really but not quite as much of an eyesore, right?

If it were something that were touched and held, I definitely would have sanded and primed before painting or even taken it down and spray-painted it because it’s plastic but since it’s stuck up high with just a sound to make, I don’t think we’ll have any problems with that paint coming off or scratching or any of that.  So, it’s a free update for the win!

Any free upgrades happening in your nest?  Do tell!

Sebastian: 8 Months

The big boy (95th percentile in height!) turned eight months of age this month.  Can you believe it?  Neither can I.  I feel like this…
 
…was only yesterday.

It’s getting tougher to get his picture because he just doesn’t want to sit…

…still…

…ever.  [Nope, it’s not a spider web or a camera scratch; it’s slobber.  There’s lots of that these days.]

But finally I made a face, the right face, and out shone a little smile and a moment of contentment.
 

And just for kicks, the girls at eight months:


The apples don’t fall far from the tree and apparently they don’t fall far from each other either.  :)

Do Not Be Afraid of Christ

I was going through all of the pictures on my computer this morning, trying to purge those that didn’t need to exist anymore and came across this graphic I made for a youth center project (my husband’s a youth minister) a few weeks ago that I’m going to erase because we decided not to use it due to the fact that I accidentally forgot a few words (whoops) and because we changed our minds on how to display it (originally this was going to be painted onto a big wall).  But, before I send it to the recycle bin, I thought I’d close out the week on the blog by sharing it with you. 




It’s so easy in this crazy world that we live in, to question, to doubt, and to forget to rely 100% on our Maker (because He is waiting with open arms!) so I hope this serves as a reminder to you as it does to us.  There is no shame in living for God; openly living for Him.  There are many risks we take in life, but placing everything in God’s hands is never one of them.  With that decision, peace and happiness will always follow.  That’s something I have to remind myself everyday.  :)

Back to the graphic though, in light of the missing words and a change in framing plans, I made three more graphics that will each be fit into a large frame and set side-by-side.


 
 
 

In case you want to print them out and frame them too, I’ve included the downloads below.  :)
Page 1
Page 2
Page 3
 

Have a great weekend! 

Here & There

It’s 1:23 pm.  I just managed to get all three kids asleep (but not before not one, not two, but four pleas from the crib to be taken to potty) and so now I sit on our couch, eating a bowl of ice cream for lunch.  Why?  Because I love ice cream and because I’m waiting on pins and sewing needles to get a call letting me know if the transmission in the van that we just bought (used but new to us) nine months ago is shot.  In case you’ve been lucky and never had to have a transmission replaced, let me tell you, we’re not talking hundreds but thousands of dollars.  The transmission in my college car went out freshman year and if my dad were here, he would tell you it’s really wonderful and makes people want to poke their eyes out and eat ice cream for lunch as a small solace.  Moving down the family tree, my Grandpa’s words have been playing over and over in my mind all day; that “cars are necessary evils”.  Do they make mopeds big enough to accommodate three car seats and two adults?  Let me know if you see any because that idea is looking mighty fine.  Anyway, why do you need to know all this?  Only because in light of our large vehicle being in the shop, we are stranded at home per the usual but today feels even more restraining because we don’t even have the option to leave SO I don’t have anybody to vent to but you lovely readers.  So, consider me vented. 

Whew, that feels better.  :)

Moving on to greener pastures…

I had the honor of being interviewed by Kristin for her new podcast “This Inspired Life” this past week and the episode aired yesterday.

She and I knew each other in college but haven’t connected much excepting the occasional Facebook comment/like so it was so fun to just chat via the web.  I got to listen to the podcast yesterday during nap time and…isn’t it so weird to hear yourself talk?  I think so.  I learned that God definitely did not give me a radio personality because, hello monotone.  Maybe it was because it was close to 10 at night but I just cracked up at my non-chipperness (is that even a word?)  I also gave myself a cock eye when I said that I basically started blogging because I was, what was it?  Oh yeah - “bored”.  Lame-O Sheena.  I guess I didn’t feel the need to add that I started because I loved DIY and the challenges that DIYing on a budget brings and how I felt like other DIY, budget-friendly bloggers, while cranking out some amazing things, were still doing things out of my price range so blah, blah, blah.  Either way, if you want to have a listen for yourself, check it out here.  And then keep her on your radar because she’s sure to have many an interesting convo coming your way in the future! 

Also, in case you missed Monday’s post about The Traveling Scarf, you should hop over and read it and then, if you’re an Instagrammer, you should head over to @the_traveling_scarf to sign up to receive the Deloom scarf (and see which one was voted “the scarf”)!  It’s as simple as getting the scarf in the mail from another girl, wearing and styling it, posting how you styled it to Instagram, and sending it along with a little treat – a handwritten note, candy, a knick-knack – to the next girl who will do the same thing.  Then you can sit back and watch as it goes from person to person, carrying with it a little smile and a little encouragement.  :)  The only thing you’ll have to pay for is its shipping to the next person.  So easy and so fun!  Go!

Bethany made my day Monday with her comment telling me she was inspired by my DIY cap toe flats and made her own version for her girls.  Check them out:

Aren’t they so cute?!  Go over to her blog to get the whole tutorial and pin them because you know you want to!  I am officially on the hunt for some ballet flats for our girls so they can have some glittery toes too!  


Have you ever heard of Treat? 

They’re a greeting card company that I collaborated with this past April by coming up with ways to display greeting cards.  During my time working with them I fell in love with their whole company.  Let it be known, they did not ask me or pay me to bring them back up.  But, we have a bunch of family birthdays coming up soon and so I’ll be making birthday cards over there.  Their greeting cards cost the same amount, if not less, than the store-bought ones except that you can personalize them with pictures and such.  I mean, getting a greeting card in the mail is nice but when it has a picture of someone you wuv on it, it’s 100 times better, right?  All you have to do is choose from their boatload of designs, personalize with your own words and snapshot, and tell them where to mail it and they’ll do the rest!  And if you’re a big planner, you can create every card for every family member’s birthday for the whole rest of the year on Jan. 1st, schedule they’re mail dates, and let Treat take care of mailing them out when said birthdays are coming up.  And you can even have them slip a gift card inside before they make the send-off.  No more making a quick trip to the greeting card section at the store for your sister’s birthday which is tomorrow to tell her via generic card that she “is the light of your life and our childhood was full of sunshine and sparkles and…”, no.  Anyway, you should totally check them out and ditch the greeting card aisle for the easy breezy.

Do you have an Amazon Prime subscription?  If you don’t, you might wanna think about it because it’s pretty awesome.  If you do and you have kids or babysit, you should check out the kids’ shows Wishenpoof and Tumble Leaf available via the instant video you get with your subscription. 

[images from here]
Let’s just say we’ve made very, very good use of the entertainment they provide because when I just need a half hour to unwind or clean a certain mess they’ve made, one of those shows goes on (and sometimes Dora even though she drives me batty).  Wishenpoof only has one episode airing (with more to come soon) so far but the girls haven’t tired of that one yet and even I like watching Tumble Leaf.  I promise your kids won’t be disappointed…and neither will you.

Last, what would a random post filled with lots of linkage be without a sneak peek of what I did last night:
 
I bet you can guess but, in case you can’t, stay tuned.

.           .          .

With all that, have a great rest of the week!

The Traveling Scarf

Introducing…

 

More details to come but for now, go visit Camille - @lifeinmod & me - @beaninlove on Instagram to sign up for some fun via your snail mailbox!  In short, Deloom is sweetly sending one of their gorgeous scarves our way so that we can set in motion a way for it to go from lady to lady along with any sort of uplifting or encouraging treat you want to send with it.  All you have to do is sign up, vote for which scarf you think should be “the one”, wait for it to come to you, style it and share via Instagram, and send it along it’s merry way to the next lucky lady!  That’s it!  It’s an awesome way to uplift your fellow women and for us all to be connected via this one scarf! 

Hope to see you on Instagram!  :)

.           .           .

P.S.  All thanks goes to Camille for coming up with this great idea!  She thinks sweet thoughts!  :) 

P.P.S.  We’d love for you to spread the word!  Repost either of our ‘grams and include the hashtag #thetravelingscarf