Have You Decorated Your Pantry?

I have a weird obsession about what I call 'neglected' spaces.  Those places in our homes that have a purpose, but we also don't give them much thought.  Don't ask me why, but I think a quick peek under a sink cabinet or a closet says much more about a person or the way a household functions than many of us would want to admit.  Do you shove items so they are out of sight?  Are they organized?  Are the a little of both?  Most of my cupboards and closets are pretty organized but a few, I have actually decorated.  I love opening the door and seeing an unexpected surprise.  Many years ago, many people fell in love with the home pantry featured at www.thehouseofsmiths.com.  I was no exception.  The biggest problem is that I am a renter and my pantry isn't very big.  And while I have a cool landlord that has let me paint in the bedrooms, if I ever move, I don't want to have to repaint a pantry.  So....I took some ideas from the House of Smiths but made it a little more renter friendly by using scrapbook paper and spray adhesive.  Because the walls are painted, if needed I can pull the paper down, give the walls a good scrub and you'd never know this had been done.  I scoured a bunch of thrift stores for the wire baskets, and Hobby Lobby for the others.  I found my glass containers at Walmart, Hobby Lobby and Ikea.  I actually put this together quite a few years ago and my kids are great about putting things back where they belong and it generally stays looking exactly the way it is in the pictures.  I have had a couple people ask me how the paper holds up since I didn't coat it with anything and I honestly haven't had any issues.  Mostly because there isn't every anything wet.  Occasionally I do notice the paper coming loose and a quick spray of the adhesive fixes it right back up.  Honestly, the $50ish I spent on this decorating really has kept me happy and my organized!

The very top shelf holds paper items and food products we don't use often.

The second shelf holds most of my dry goods such as pasta, rice and beans.  We just might eat more ramen noodles than I care to admit.

The third shelf is where my baking supplies are, and probably my favorite shelf.  It looks like I need to refill my sugar container.

The fourth is where the snack foods, cereal and non-refrigerated condiments are held.

And the floor, well, that's nothing special and holds canned goods and a plastic container of cat food and some larger bulk items. 

St. Patrick's Day Porch Decorations

I really haven't done much in way of crafting since my last post in December.  I've done a few things around the house in the decorating department and eventually I would love to do a house tour.  For now, I'll just post some monthly or seasonal porch decoration pictures.  I don't know if anyone else has a love/hate relationship with St. Patrick's Day, but I sure do.  First of all, I'm not of Irish descent.  So the fact I 'celebrate' the holiday at all is kind of silly.  Secondly, I actually work with a lady from Ireland (it takes some getting used to her talking to get past her thick accent) and she find the American St. Patrick's Day customs very strange.  That said, I remember the excitement I had as a child hoping to find that elusive pot of gold.  As I've gotten older, I've decided to embrace the sentiments of 'Irish Blessings' as well as, for me, it is a symbol of the change from winter to spring.

 Anywhooooo......how about some pictures? I live in a townhouse and have a long entrance to my front door.  I like to keep some cheap pillows that I switch out the fabric and don't care if they get wet or dirty. I don't sew them at all, just tie a knot on the square one and tuck under the ends on the round one.  It really is quite simple.

The ladder I have was quite the investment but over the years I've purchased one or two of the kits and now I am definitely getting my money's worth.

The biggest change in this year's porch is the new wreath I put on the door and cute door mat (from Wal-Mart!!! I was quite surprised, lol).  It is so hard to find cute decorations that aren't bright green, tinsely looking things so finally I decided to make my own.  The floral options I used were mostly from Wal-Mart, so definitely not the best quality, but for something that is on my front door in March where it rains (like today) or snows, I don't want to spend a fortune on something.  Enjoy!

P.S.  I have no idea if they saying on the 'chalkboard' sign is actually an Irish Blessing.  However, if it is, I used an example off the internet and only AFTER I had finished making it did I see other examples that had different wording.  I don't know which is correct.  Unfortunately, I liked the other alternative better which read:  Laugh as much as you breathe and love as long as you live (mine says, .....and love as much as you live).  I might have to remake that little sign.

But maybe later.  I'm all crafted out for now.  ha ha

I'm Soda-Lighted...

Hello Internet Land!  Melissa here.  Isn't it crazy how life is so insanely busy?  I'm still a single momma and crafting has taken a back burner.  I had no idea that as children grew from toddlers to teenagers that life became even more crazy!  But, every once in a while I still am able to get some stuff done and will try to post a little more frequently.  Anyway, this year I gave these as gifts to my neighbors and coworkers.  At first I was using flashlights, but then I couldn't find anymore (of the *ahem* less expensive option I was going for) so I was lucky to stumble upon 2 packs of these light bulbs!  Problem solved.  My kids thought I was weird for giving out light bulbs but if that's the only thing that makes me bizarre in their eyes I'll take it!

Merry Christmas!

Signage (such an original title but I'm really tired right now)...

I also made the signs for my ward's Super Saturday.  I really liked the way they turned out so I thought I would also post it on here!  The flowers were a pain in the buttocks so I don't know if I'd ever make them again!!!!

Cutest Coat Hooks and Pictures!

Hey there.  Just a quick post to document something I made that is getting a lot of comments on Facebook.  For my LDS ward I was asked to come up with a project for a Super Saturday craft project.  I was going to go with something else but was asked to attempt to make some coat hooks that have a child's picture hanging over it so they know which is assigned to them.  I really didn't want to make them because I honestly have no where to hang them in my house but boy did people like what I came up with.  I have searched and searched to find the source of the original image but was not able to (it was pinned to someone elses Pinterest so I don't have that image).  These are super cute but a little labor intensive.  If anyone happens to read this and is interested in ordering them, leave me your email address in the comments and I can send you more detailed info.  Thanks!

A Fall Wreath Version 2012

Howdy, Howdy!

You know how sometimes you are blog hopping/stalking/spending-all-your-free-time-at-night-looking-at-crafts-on-the-internet-and-you-wonder-why-your-house-didn't-magically-clean-itself and you stumble across something that you want to make right away?  Well, that happened with me the other day while on Pinterest.  It is such a simple idea and it was super easy, although a little time consuming.  But still, this is easily a make-while-you're-watching-a-movie kind of project.  Now, because I wasn't in blog mode while working on this I didn't take step by step pictures.  So, I'll give credit where I saw it and link back to Becoming Martha's website so you can see her tutorial.  I would like to add a little more information though.

1.  She doesn't ever say how much burlap she actually used.  I think I added more 'bubble's to my wreath than she did and ended up using exactly 2 yards.

2.  Don't take the time to perfectly measure your burlap.  It will NOT be worth it in the end since the burlap frays, and the bubbles are not supposed to be perfect or the wreath would get boring.  I really just eyeballed my cuts and some of them were more like 4 x 6 and it doesn't matter at all.

3.  I used an 18 inch straw wreath from Hobby Lobby.  I liked the $4.99 price tag much better than the $11.99 price for the styrofoam she used.  I didn't even bother taking the plastic wrapping off so the straw would not get all over.

4.  I obviously used a different letter and paper than she did.  This is why I love crafting.....one idea leads to so many different versions!

I took this pictures at night so they're not the best but you can get the idea of what it looks like on my door.  I am thinking about maybe doing this for a craft club in the next week or two.  If you live in the Utah County area and would be interested in attending leave me a comment.  The cost will be $25.00.  If I can get a few people signed up at this late notice I will get a date planned!

P.S. Let's just ignore the 9 month gap since my last post, shall we?  Let's just say, it's not for a lack of projects.  But mostly, I have been working on some personal issues and since I don't blog to make money, it kind of took a back seat.