DVD Storage

I am absolutely in love with our new DVD wall. We had to clear a closet to make room for our expanding family. Now the coat closet in the living room is actually a coat closet and no longer home to our DVD collection. I haven't decided yet if I am proud or ashamed of how many DVDs we own, but it looks awesome either way!

We used shelf brackets from Home Depot, and we used 1x8 wood planks instead of buying the cheap shelves they have in that section of the store.



This was a pretty easy project. The most tedious part is staining the wood, but I always feel that way
about any project.

DIY Rustic Frames


Hey folks. In my mind this post started like a month ago. You see, I bought these really awesome posters on Amazon for BigE's room. Each one features a different national park, and they are really vibrant and beautiful. I love them so much that I question whether I bought them more for Eli or myself. Either way I needed some frames for them. However they are a pretty irregular size (13x19). Yes, I could find these frames, but they were either crappy or ridiculously expensive. So without settling or paying too much, I decided to build the frames myself. I had access to some beautiful gate wood that I had been waiting to use for the perfect project. So I cut my wood to length at 45 degree angles to make the frames look more professional. Then came the hardest part of the project. I do not have a 45 degree angle clamp so joining these boards together perfectly was a bit of a struggle. I used wood glue, my hands as clamps (sad day), and my porter cable nail gun. Once that part was over I gave the frames a quick sanding without my sander just to make them a little smooth. Now the majority of the work is done, and the rest was really fun.


At this point I knew that I would need something to back the posters, as they are not very thick. I decided to go with some thick, foam poster board from the craft aisle at Target.  I cut the poster board about a quarter inch longer than the posters to be able to staple them into the wood without damaging the posters themselves. Once the poster boards were cut, I taped the posters to them with masking tape so that I could center everything in the frame easily. One each poster was centered, I flipped it over and used a staple gun to attach everything.


Now, the hardware that you choose to hang your frames with it up to you. I used what I had on hand, so that I didn't have to take a trip to Home Depot. That happened to be some simple screw eyes and wire. DONE.

This project took me less than 3 hours to complete. I spent about 5 bucks total if you don't count the actual posters and factor in all of the supplies I had at home already. Pretty preferable over the flimsy, over-priced crap they sell at the store.

Handmade Beds and Vintage Quilts

Let's take just a second here to soak in the glorious fact that the car-bed is out of my house and our lives forever. Yes, the new baby on the way has forced us to upgrade BigE's bed so that the crib mattress can be put back into the crib. Bye bye, super ugly, bulky, cheap car-bed....on to bigger and better bed options! I knew I wanted to build Eli's bed because I refuse to pay what they charge for solid wood these days. I also knew I wanted something simple and sturdy because this thing is going to see some wear. Also, I didn't want anything too fancy because it would really go with the theme that will eventually be in his room.

I am shamelessly thrilled to brag that I did this for less than 100 bucks. WAY less. It also would have taken about one day to complete if my sander hadn't crapped out on me. Also, factor in that I am 4 months prego and haven't built in months....if you have basic woodworking skills, you can do this in less than one day. I am sure.



I didn't take any progress pictures for this build. It's pretty straight forward if you have had some practice joining. I used my trusty KregJig. If I had planned it better I would have angled out the trim on the headboard and footboard at 45 degree cuts. It turned out very noticeably two-toned, which was not my intention. I usually use a much darker stain, and you can't ever tell that I'm using two different wood types. However, it was super obvious with this stain and the wood I used. But overall I am thrilled with this bed and so is BigE.


I struggled finding a good selection of twin size comforters anywhere, but not to worry. A vintage, twin size quilt will do just fine (even better really).


All of the effort is really just for moments like this :)

Big E's Wall of Art

Hello Facebook followers and Pinterest fanatics, and welcome. I have decided to step away from my purchased site to save some bucks (a lot of bucks), and I will now reside here where the land is free. It feels pretty good to be blogging, creating, and breathing for that matter. See I landed a full time gig as a 3rd grade teacher in this past summer. Having a steady paycheck for the first time in my life has been amazing, but I have zero time/energy for anything that goes beyond the luxury of falling asleep on the couch. That being said, at this moment we are right in the middle of our first winter break. Notice that I said "we". Yes, Hayden found a job as well. He is a 4th grade math teacher. We are just living the dream, folks.

Aside from our enthralling professional lives we have recently had some big huge news. We are expecting Big E to have a brother or sister come July of next year. We are so darn excited, and I really wish I could find a way to fast forward in time. As is life though, I will have to endure the joys and pitfalls of pregnancy in the sweltering heat of a Texas summer.

Now I know you are not here to read about all of my glorious personal news. But you see, all of these changes in our lives have caught up to our house. We have said goodbye to our beloved office, but it's a small sacrifice for what is to come. We are now moving Big E into the used-to-be office (because it's bigger) and the new bundle will set up camp in Eli's old bedroom. I have been so beside myself with plans and ideas for both rooms, and I'm sure Hayden has had it up to his ears by now. We have so far to go though! Aren't you excited? Do you see all of the upcoming posts?

I will start this marathon off with the first project in Big E's new room: the art wall. With Hayden and I both working Big E has been in school, and he brings home these cute little creations with his handprints and fingerprints all over them. I am no hoarder, but I just could not throw them away. On the other hand, I could not allow them to pile up on a shelf, taking up valuable real-estate. I figured that since they are adorable hand-printed works of his they should be on display somewhere. So, I decided to dedicate a wall in his new room to his work. I overwhelmed myself with methods of hanging kid art on Pinterest, and none of them were what I was picturing. I wanted to cover that entire wall, but I didn't want to spend a lot to do it. A trip to Home Depot, a mere 20 bucks, and a few hours later it was complete.

Feast your eyes. 



Not too bad for 20 bucks, eh? Below I will do a step-by-step tutorial.

First I gathered my materials at Home depot (all except for the mini clothespins). You will need:
> 2 1x2 lumber strips; I used 6 foot select pine strips
> Screw eyes; the size is up to you
> Multi-purpose wire; I used 4 strand, 20 gauge 
> Clothespins; I used mini clothespins


The next step is to measure out where you will twist in the screw eyes. I began two inches from the top of the strips and marked at 15 inch increments all the way down. You are going to want to pre-drill just a tiny bit so that your screw eyes have a starting point. Then simply twist them in. I had room to twist in 5 on each strip. 




Next, you will pre-drill holes so that your wood doesn't split when you drill it into the wall. I pre-drilled 3 holes in each strip. I use a bit that also creates a pocket for the head of the screw.


Now you are ready to mount the strips on the wall. They can be as far apart as you like as long as you bought enough wire to accommodate the distance. Once you have them mounted you are ready to string the wire through the screw eyes. 




The only thing left to do is fill this bad boy up with your kiddo's work. 
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