DIY Kitchen Remodel!!

Our kitchen needed help.  With only a little budget.  Luckily, we were blessed to buy a home that had already upgraded to granite, and that had excellent stainless appliances.  Why they could afford granite but stuck with these cabinets is beyond me... but here's the before and after:

It's amazing what a little sanding, staining, and new hardware can do!  Now, I'm not going to say it wasn't hard!  Here's a photo of the mess "during"

But it all paid off, and here's more after pics!  We are now super proud of our kitchen, especially with all the work we put into it!  Here's more after photos, plus photos of our finishing touches: drapes, table, and wall accessories:

Check out my cute dogs there :)

SO, bottom line: totally worth the money and time invested!

Antique Furniture Flip

For me, this awesome antique sideboard was a huge steal!  I found it at a local antique store for only $180!  It was in great condition, and has tons of storage!  It had much lighter colors than we have going in our house, so I wanted to stain over the old color.  However, it turns out that the finish was a very thin veneer, and could not be sanded down.  So instead, I painted it!  The sideboard was originally two-toned, so I left the darker color original, and spray painted the lighter color dark.  I think it turned out pretty good!! This piece would easily be over $400 if it was new, so I would say it definitely was a steal!

Cute DIY Skirt

Last week, I decided to get extra crafty and make myself a skirt.  I'm not a huge fan of using patterns, so instead I started researching for ones others had made for inspiration.  I found this great example on Pinterest, and decided to give it a try!  http://vievesscrapbooking.blogspot.com/2010/08/party-skirt-tutorial.html

Here's my version!  The best thing about it is that it was very inexpensive!  I was able to finish it with only one yard of fabric, purchased for $6.49 on sale!  With that being said, the only scrap I had left over after was a little sliver no larger than an inch wide, so I might suggest buying a little more.  Because I ran out of fabric, I had to make my bow a little smaller.  I also used metal clasps on the side instead of a zipper, mostly because I didn't feel like putting in a zipper.  Let me know what you think!

Modern Painted Canvas

As those of you who know me can attest, I am a cheapskate.  Totally willing to admit it.  Therefore, when it comes to accessorizing my home, I go for all the deals I can get.  So, to create a sofa painting, I bought a blank canvas at Hobby Lobby (at 60% off, I might add...) and painted it myself.  For this painting, I painted the entire back orange, then covered it with painter's tape and painted brown on top.  My lines are nowhere near straight, much less perfection, but when an art curator asks me, I will simply say that it symbolizes the organized chaos in my life.  Yeah, right...

Hawaiian Barbecue Chicken

 Looking for a quick, delicious dinner that looks like you worked hours on it?  Hawaiian Barbecue Chicken!

Here's how I whipped it up:

Ingredients:
1 1/2 c. barbecue sauce
3 T. ketchup
1 T. teriyaki sauce
1 t. garlic powder
8 oz. can chunk pineapple in juice
8 small to medium chicken breasts
(or 4 large chicken breasts)


To make the sauce, combine barbecue sauce, ketchup, teriyaki sauce, garlic powder, and the juice from the pineapples.  Reserve 1/2 c. for garnishing.  Brush the sauce on both sides of the chicken, place on a hot outdoor grill approximately 7 minutes per side, or until done.  Be careful not to overcook.  Brush more sauce onto the chicken as it cooks, and each time you flip it.  To serve, place pineapples on top and drizzle on the remaining sauce.

I served this up with some zucchini cakes and steamed broccoli. Simple, and oh-so-delicious!

Tutorial: Quilted Nook Case

I got a Nook for my birthday last year, and it has been so wonderful!  I love reading on it, and I love bringing it around with me to read whenever I get a chance.  Since I take it out so much, I have been wanting a cover for it to keep it protected.  Instead of going out and buying one in the $20 range, I decided to use scrap fabrics I had laying around, and make it for practically ZERO!  Much better deal!! Here's the steps I took:

First, I cut out two squares for the back of the cover.  

two layers for the back

Then, I cut out two layers in a box the shape of the front cover.

two layers of a rectangle for the front

Add batting to the middle of the two rectangle layers, then pin and sew the inside box.

pinned with batting in the middle, inside seam sewn

 Add batting between the back pieces, with right sides facing out, then pin both the rectangle front and the back together, and sew around the outside of the front rectangle.

Lay these two pieces together, then pin

Sew together on the outside of the front rectangle, as shown

Trim all excess, to look like this
(Note: I do not like the way this puckers like this, I would have done it differently to make it not pucker on the sides.  It needed a little more seam allowance on the left and right sides)

Finished case without cover

To create the cover, cut two rectangles the size of the front plus seam allowance, place them right sides together, then place batting on top.  Sew around the perimeter, then turn inside out.  When turned inside out, the batting will be in the middle of the two pieces of fabric.

Two layers of fabric, right sides together, with batting on top.  Sewn around, leaving a few inches to turn inside out.

After I turned the front cover inside out, I sewed a top stitch around the edges, sewed it to the top of the nook cover, then added embellishments in a contrasting color.

Finished front cover, sewn to the top of the inside cover

Finished nook case, with cover flipped up

Finished nook case!

Ruffled Onesie Baby Dress

It seems like ruffles have been popping up everywhere recently, on comforters, pillows, tops, and very cute dresses!  So, here's my rendition in an adorable baby dress.

Front

Back

Back of Skirt

Front Close-up

This dress turned out wonderful in so many ways!   It was inexpensive to make. I used fabric on sale, and only needed 1/8 of a yard per color (1/4 for the main skirt print), which came out to about $4 in fabric, about $1 for the black elastic at the waist, and about $2 for the onesie, which I could have gotten even cheaper in bulk.

 It was also pretty simple sewing!  I left the onesie intact, which is nice because it serves to keep it on the baby and also to cover the diaper.  All I had to do to create the skirt was to cut a rectangle in the main skirt fabric: the height of the rectangle is the desired length of the skirt, and the width is double the width of the onesie. Then I gathered the top of it, and sewed it on to the onesie at the right place.  I cut out a V-shape in the back of the skirt, and sewed the gathered ruffles onto another rectangle of fabric, then tacked that rectangle of fabric into place in the hole I cut.  Then finished it with the elastic over the top and a flower to cover the seam in the elastic.