25 Days of Guest Bloggers

I’m excited to announce that I’m guest posting today at Type A as a part of 25 Days of Christmas Guest Bloggers!

I’m sharing how to make peppermint bark. It’s yummy…trust me!

Check it out here.

Twelve Crafty Days of Christmas

I’m excited to announce that I’m guest posting today at Before Meets After. I’m joining some seriously talented ladies for Twelve Crafty Days of Christmas!

I’m sharing how to make cinnamon applesauce ornaments and why they are a special part of my Christmas.

Check it out here.

Swap Goodies!

Back in September I signed up to be a part of the Festive Faith Hope and Charity Swap.

I was partnered with Dana (aka Flo) from Atomic Betties.

Guess what I found when I got home from work yesterday? My swap goodies!

(Yes, I unwrapped and took pictures on my sheets. The bedroom is one of the few puppy-free zones)

The guidelines were: £12 (~$19) spending limit, minimum 3 items – maximum 5 items, at least 1 item had to be thrifted, 1 item had to be handmade, and there had to be 1 Christmas item.

Thrifted

Handmade

Christmas

How cute is this Christmas owl? I love me some birds…not real ones…I’m terrified of real birds! No joke!

The pile of unwrapped goodies, including the scarves my presents were wrapped in.

Thanks to Dana for all the lovely gifts! And of course a big thanks to Lakota for organizing the swap! As usual, I waited until last minute and haven’t sent Dana her package yet…I swear it’s in my car and going to the post office today!

Storage Solutions

I’ve been working on prettying up my pantry since I moved in. Although, if you saw it right now you’d disagree….let’s call it a work in progress. Anyway, I’m still planning to paint in there, but for now I’m working on storage. Everything looks better in a glass jar, am I right?!

While I was home for Thanskiving my mom and I found these jars at Goodwill. I’m pretty sure they’ve never been used…or someone cleaned them really well.

Large Jar - $2.99

Medium Jar - $1.99

Small Jar - $1.49

Total $6.47

I knew immediately these would be for flour and sugar.

Yep, everything looks better in a glass jar.

This is just a teaser...wait until you see the rest of my pantry! 

The List – Kitchen

I’m a forgetful person (or I just don’t pay enough attention to fully absorb the information), so I like to make lists to keep myself on track. I have a to-do list for every room in my house. I’ve decided to start posting my to-do lists to hold myself more accountable (I’ve already shared my master bathroom to-do list). And it’ll be a great way for you to see parts of the house I’ve never really shown before. Don’t get too excited…I think a couple areas could qualify as disaster zones!

Today we’re talking about one of my favorite rooms in the house – the kitchen. I fell in love with the house because of its open floor plan. The kitchen, dining area, and living room all flow together. Yep, I can watch the TV in the living room while I cook in the kitchen!

The kitchen probably has the best “before” pictures. The previous owner had already installed new cabinets, countertops, and tile. It was really only missing the finishing touches…and a refrigerator…and a working dishwasher.

Before

Now let’s take a tour of its current state:

Time for my favorite part: Making Lists!

Done:

Paint Walls (unknown color)

New Refrigerator

New Dishwasher

Change Switches and Outlets to White

Paper Towel Holder

Napkin Holder (not shown above)

Menu Board

Weekly To-Do Board

To Do:

Replace Stove to Match

Replace Microwave to Match

Replace Faucet

Sew Roman Shades for Windows

Add Tile Backsplash

Add Cabinet Hardware

Add Crown Molding to Cabinets
Add a Kitchen Island?

Re-Pot Plant

Hang Hook for Pot Holders

Mail Organization

System for Returning Items Left at Our House

Rug In Front of Sink

Finishing Touches

I guess that list isn’t too bad…

Just don’t expect to see a new stove and/or microwave anytime soon. Both of those work really well, so I’m in no rush to replace them - I have other house projects I’d rather spend my money on.

I think adding window treatments will make the biggest difference – time to stop slacking and find some fabric!


Oh, and I posted a funny video of Ringo on my facebook page! Check it out!

Scrooge

As of last night, I think I was the only blogger who hadn’t decorated for Christmas yet. Honestly, I’m having a hard time getting into the spirit. I blame it on living in Phoenix – it’s hard to feel Christmas-y when you’re wearing shorts and flip flops through the end of November, especially when you are originally from a place with four seasons. Oh, and I don’t have kids to decorate for…just a puppy.

Anyway, last night I finally put on my big girl pants and started decorating – starting with my mantle.

It’s pretty simple and natural for me. My Christmas decorating style is usually red, green and all things cheesy. And honestly, I’m stilling thinking of mixing it up and going more bright and fun. I blame it on Wal-Mart for not having any more small red poinsettias - I was forced to go neutral.

And for those of you wondering – Yes, I have thought about poinsettias possibly being poisonous. I’ve heard it both ways, but I’m paranoid so I’ll be eagle-eyeing for any fallen petals or leaves.  Speaking of Ringo, he even got his own stocking.

I’m planning to buy nice stockings and stocking holders for us once they are on after-Christmas-clearance, but for now I love these cheap stockings and glitter letters.

The angel candleholders are from after-Christmas-clearance a couple years ago. I think I nabbed them for 90% off at Wal-Mart. And the wreath was bought last year from after-Christmas-clearance as well. I just hot glued a few pinecones on it.

So there’s our natural neutral (except the stockings) Christmas mantle. Has anyone else not finished their Christmas decorating? Or is it just me?

 

Double Whammy!

I’m baaa-aack!

I don’t know what exactly I did to fix my laptop, but it’s working now. Score one for selecting random options and pushing random buttons!

Now let’s talk master bathroom progress:

3.       Spray Paint Bathroom Vent

I finally finished the easiest project on my list – spray painting the bathroom vent. This is what it’s looked like for the past 8 ½ months.

I took the vent down and used Citristrip to remove the old paint.

Then I sprayed the vent and screws with Krylon Dual Paint + Primer in White Satin. This was my first time using the Dual. I definitely like that it saved me a step, but it seemed to take a long time to dry. 3 hours later it was still tacky. Whatev, it turned out awesome!

Cost

Krylon Dual – Wal-Mart $4something

6.       Add Towel Bar in Master Bathroom

I hung my new towel bar all by my onesies! And it was really simple…I don’t know why I was so scared. I think the hardest part was finding the towel bar! I had to go to two different Lowe’s to find the allen + roth 24” Raleigh Chrome Towel Bar (it matches my toilet paper holder).

Anyway, here’s my towel bar-less wall:

I followed the included directions (duh!) and now here’s my towel bar-installed wall:

Yay!

Don’t judge me by my towels. New towels are on my list, remember?

It’s so nice to have somewhere to hang my hand towels (1 for hands, 1 for face). Definitely better than laying on the vanity:

And finally, proof that it’s level!

Cost

Towel Bar – Lowes $24.98  $2something (tax)

(I had a $25 gift card from my credit card points)

One more small change – new Q-tip holder!

Cost

Glass Holder – Goodwill $1.49

Grand Total ~$8.49

Now I'm on the hunt for towels and artwork!