Thrift Store Find Turned Chic White Bunny

When I hit the local thrift stores, I have a mental list of the items I am in search of. They are mostly home decor type items that I can either currently use or will fit in to a future holiday/season scheme. Right now my home is decorated for the Spring/Easter season with a focus on cherry blossom branches and teals, white and pinks in varying hues. Some of you may have seen my DIY Pottery Barn Knock Off Easter Eggs post (Click here.) that I was inspired to make after seeing a Pottery Barn Ad! I absolutely love the collection of white bunnies underneath the centerpiece and knew I needed to start a collection. The Pottery Barn white ceramic bunnies are $29 a pop! Wow! That just doesn't fit in to my budget so I knew I would be going the DIY route with this! I did have two white bunnies to start my collection off, but my darling son managed to break the ear off of one so he is MIA and the second is currently occupying my Peter Rabbit themed hutch this Easter. I am a simplistic gal who LOVES me some white, especially white ceramic! My mind automatically jumps to "Paint that white!" when I see items i the thrift stores that wouldn't match my home decor. Just a tip, there are many an item you would easily look over because it was not the right color or maybe just plain ole' U-G-L-Y! But with a little creativity and armed with a can of your favorite shade of spray paint you can change the look and feel of almost any piece! I spotted this cotton candy pink, childish looking bunny in a local thrift store and paid $2 for it! $27 savings! However it doesn't quite meet my white guidelines, but I knew I could easily change that! I have many a can of spray paint sitting in my garage waiting to be used to transform pieces, so this transformation was just the cost of the ceramic bunny! Score! I happened to have Rustoleum Ultra Coverage in white gloss at home so that is what I used. Normally I would opt for Krylon as Rustoleum says "apply to wood, wicker, metal, plaster or unglazed ceramic" I had no issues though. When working in spray paint read all the directions in the can and work in even light strokes! Many thin coats is better than one or two thick, gooey, dripping coats! It took me about 4 thin coats to get the entire pink gal covered up and I am loving the end result. Here is a brief picture tutorial:

BEFORE & AFTER

Removed all stickers or in this case tape

Used my Krud Kutter to clean and remove any sticky residue left on

                                    

Handy dandy spray paint!

One thin coat

Two coats

Three coats! Almost there but still some pink peeking through in the ears

Four coats and finally done!

{QoK}

Suave Professionals Moroccan Infusion Shine Hair Care System

Have you seen the commercial for Suave Professionals new line of Moroccan infused hair care products? The hair on the model looks so incredibly shiny, smooth and silky!! "I have to have these products!!!!" My exact thoughts when the commercial ended. Then it hit me, the hair on commercials always looks amazing because they have professional stylists! My hair will never remotely come close to looking so smooth and beautiful!! *Insert sad face* I decided to take out my iPad and search the web for some reviews on this new line, but I really didn't find much of anything. It was then I knew I had to purchase it and try it out myself! I have naturally wavy hair that is more on the frizzy side and honestly most nights after taking shower I just go to sleep with it sopping wet. Horrible I know, but being a stay at home mom means that more often than not my hair is up and pulled back so there is no reason for me to spend time and product on blow drying my hair each night. With that said I decided to pick up some of these new products while I was at the store yesterday. I picked up the Shine Shampoo & Conditioner System with Moroccan Argan Oil and the Deep Conditioning Shine Mask with Moroccan Argan Oil all for around $13. Here are some excerpts from their website:

SHINE SHAMPOO WITH MOROCCAN ARGAN OIL

This shine shampoo, infused with authentic Moroccan argan oil, gently cleanses while making hair brilliantly shiny.

SHINE CONDITIONER WITH MOROCCAN ARGAN OIL

This shine conditioner, infused with authentic Moroccan argan oil, conditions hair while smoothing the cuticle to make hair shinier.

Shine System infused with Moroccan argan oil:

• Noticeable shine
• Long lasting conditioning
• Luxurious fragrance

DEEP CONDITIONING SHINE MASK

This indulgent deep conditioning shine hair mask , infused with authentic Moroccan argan oil, noticeably improves hair texture, intensely moisturizing for touchably soft hair that shines.

Infused with Moroccan argan oil:

• Noticeable shine
• Intense hydration
• Soft to the touch hair

My hair in its natural state!

I picked up the largest size of shampoo and conditioner I could find as well as the deep conditioning shine mask. Because my hair is on the dryer side I knew I wanted to start with using the deep conditioning shine mask in place of the regular conditioner to put it to the test! I shampooed my hair and it lathered up really nicely and had a pleasant but not overwhelming smell. If something smells bad, there is NO WAY I will be putting it on my hair!  After rinsing out the shampoo I opted to use the deep conditioning shine mask in lieu of the regular conditioner. I didn't want to start using the regular conditioner to start softening my hair because then I could rate the true workings of the shine mask on my very dry and wavy hair.  I evenly covered my hair as per the instructions and left it on for the full 5 minutes. As I was rinsing it out I could immediately yell my hair felt softer and less tangled than normal. I was ecstatic! After jumping out the of shower I began to blow dry my hair. My hair is usually frizzy and kinky even after blow drying so I wasn't sure what to expect. As my hair started drying I could immediately see great shine and my hair was incredibly soft to the touch!! Above is a photo of my hair in its natural raw state, see the frizzy-ness and the waves? BLEH! Below are some photos after blow drying and using the products for the first time. I used no additional products in my hair other than the shampoo and shine mask! Impressive! It was so sleek, soft and shiny it was incredible!

Sleek and Shiny!

Silky & Smooth!

Shiny!

BEFORE-Frizzy and wavy out of control hair that cant be tamed!

AFTER-Here is my hair after blowdrying with a paddle brush!
No straightening or any additional products added!

{QoK}

DIY Vintage-Like Easter Banner

{DIY Vintage-Like Easter Banner}

DIY Glitter Banner for Valentines Day

I am the type of gal who likes to decorate my whole downstairs floor according to the season/holiday we are in. We have been in our home about a year and a half  and this is the first year I have been going all out as far as decorating! Because we are one one income and I stay at home with the boys I DIY pretty much all of my seasonal decor! With Easter soon approaching I knew it was time to get started on some cute decor that would match with the rest of the colors and styles in my home. I have made two glitter banners for Christmas, and Valentines Day (See photo on right) which turned out fabulous but I wanted something with a little more color and texture this time around. While I love cute holiday and seasonal decor at the stores I also like to customize and DIY things for the least amount of $$$ possible! So when Hobby Lobby had 50% off of all scrapbook paper I scooped up a handful to make my banner! One sheet of paper will make two folded circles, so to spell out Easter I needed 3 sheets of each paper. Choose one paper as your larger background circle and another for the small circle you will place your letters on. I decided to do a solid for the back since I have TONS of teal in my home and I wanted it to be the primary color for this banner. I found a awesome chevron pattern with great Easter colors I chose are my smaller circle! I think I spent $3 on all six sheets of paper! Score! This project is super easy, but a bit time consuming!

Here is what you will need:

-3* 12" x 12" Paper for the larger circles (1 sheet makes 2 circles)

-3* 12" x 12" Paper for the smaller circles (1 sheet makes 2 circles)

-Glue Gun

-Scissors

-Ruler

-Glittered Letters

-String or Clear Fishing Wire
-3/8" Ribbon

Start by measuring and cutting all of your paper. I used the teal paper for my larger circle and the sheets were 12" x 12", so I simply folded them down the middle and cut them in half- 6" x 12". Your second set of circles need to be smaller to allow your other to show so I cut the paper to about 4.5" x 12". Once all your paper is cut it is time to fold! This process was time consuming but easy! Fold your paper in an accordion like manner using 1/2" folds as best you can until you reach the end. Then find the center and use string or clear fishing wire to tightly tie in the center.

 

 Begin on the end making 1/2" folds

Use a string or clear fishing wire to tightly tie in the center

Tie in the center!

Now you are ready to start gluing! Fire up your hot glue gun and run a line down the right of side of one of the ends of your folded paper (see below). Carefully using your hands, attach the glued side to the un glued left side of the paper and firmly press down making sure the ends meet and are lined up. Press down ensure that the two sides are attached to one another making a half circle form! Do the same to the other side and a circle is born!

Run hot glue down the right half of the paper!

  

       Firmly attach side together allowing glue to dry before releasing!

                           

Go through the same process until all your solid and patterned circles are complete. Use hot glue to attach your smaller circle to the larger and then get ready to begin lettering each circle! There are a couple of different routes you can go for lettering depending on your time and budget. There are ready made cardboard cut out glittered letters available at craft stores but they run around $7 and may not include enough of the letters you need. You could also purchase wooden letters and used glue to glitter them, but that is costly as well) I have experience creating glittered letters for my holiday banners in the past and I had everything on hand so I went that route again. This is time consuming but very low cost if you have the supplies on hand. I went on to the computer and chose a chunky font and spelled out "EASTER" and printed it on to some card stock! I used scissors to cut out each letter by hand, (this was the time consuming part) and used some basic Elmer's glue and glitter to cover each letter completely. After drying I use my BFF for this project, hot glue to attach the letters to the center of each patterned circle! I was debating on whether I should attack the circles to clear fishing wire like I have to banners in the past and opted for something a littler nicer this time around! I picked up a couple of coordinating shades of 3/8" organza ribbon and threaded them through the back so I was able to move and space each circle when it was hung on the mantel! To do so, I poked through holes through the back of the teal ( be sure to do this close to the center in a area that will be covered by the patterned smaller circle), larger circles making sure the placement of my holes would allow the lettering to remain as level as possible. I threaded the two ribbons together through the backs of each circle and voila! If you look super close up you can see the seams of the paper but it is hardly noticeable. All in all this project cost me around $6, because I had  some of my items on hand. I love the vintage like look of the banner and you can create the same look for any occasion! There are so many great scrap booking papers readily available at craft stores the possibilities are endless!!

{QoK}

Have You Heard of Birchbox?

A couple months ago I found out about a awesome program called Birchbox! It is a $10 monthly subscription that delivers you the latest and greatest in beauty and skin care product deluxe samples! Sometimes you get a full size product, score! Based off of a profile you create online they customize each months box for you!
Here is an exerpt form their website:

Every month, you'll receive a box filled with beauty, grooming, and lifestyle samples from both up-and-coming and well known brands. Each delivery will include a mix of categories, as well as lifestyle items. Samples are generously sized, with enough product to allow you to figure out if they're right for you.

This months theme was Red Carpet Ready! It had five items this month, one of which I've been dying to try! One thing I immediately noticed about this box was it representing this years "IT" color in term of products! Emerald!!! I have been a life time lover of green so I am psyched to see this shade making a comeback and two of this months items were Emerald! The item I have really been looking forward is the twistband headband! As a stay at home mom, I typically keep my hair up and away from my face while at home. Regular headbands leave indentations in your hair that make it virtually impossible to re style for a date night later in the day! I have heard great things about their products as they also make hair ties that don't pull your hair or leave ponytail indentations! Yay! As a woman with long hair I have a feeling this will be my new hair go to each day! 

 Here is a list of this months items:

*Color Club-Nail Polish  in Wild Cactus

*Dr. Lipp-Original Nipple Balm for Lips

*SKIN&Co Roma-Cleansing Body Gel with Olive & Sicilian Orange Extracts

*twistband-Thick Headband

*Ghiradelli Chocolate Squares-Milk Chocolate with Caramel Filling

{QoK}

Say No to No Breakfast!

We are not big breakfast eaters around here, unless its for lunch or dinner. Waffles...yum yum! In fact, the hubby and I rarely eat anything before lunch time and because he is a store manager for Starbucks Coffee Company he usually downs tons of drip coffee on a empty stomach. We in the process of making some healthy lifestyle changes, which for me includes 4-5 miles of walking/ jogging with my boys 5x a week or hitting up our community's gym. One great thing our HOA fees go towards! I notice that not eating until I am starving is doing no good for me, so I decided to start making myself smoothies as a late breakfast or afternoon pick me up. I don't measure out my ingredients but here is an approximate rundown!

-1.5 Cups Frozen Strawberries

-1/4 Blackberries or Blueberries

-1/2 Cup Organic Vanilla Yogurt

-1/2 Cranberry Juice

-1/2 Cup Whole Milk

-1 Banana

-1/2 Ice

-2-3 Fresh Spinach Leaves

-2 Tbl Protein Powder

-3 Tbl Honey

*Sometimes I add a bit of sugar if it needs sweetening. 

 Blend until everything is well incorporated and smooth. Add juice or ice as needed to get a pourable and smooth consistency. It seems like a lot of ingredients but for example, I am not a milk drinker so I like to add that to get some dairy in. You can tweak your smoothie to fit your tastes and needs! I have been blending these up just about every morning and they keep me full for a good 3-4 hours and give me plenty of energy to go work out or walk with the kids. You can add or substitute just about any fruit or juice that you prefer. I am a strawberry girl at heart so the majority of my fruit will always be them! When strawberries are on sale I will purchase and use fresh berries rather than frozen. Trader Joes sells 1 pound frozen bags regularly for $1.89 and that price is hard to beat around here! If you aren't a big breakfast eater or find yourself cranky and run down try blending up a delicious smoothie!

{QoK}

Giving the Dining Room Table a Much Needed Makeover

So here is a lovely before photo of our dining room table. Usually our table is set with a centerpiece and dishes but I took this right before starting work on the table so you can get a chance to see what I was working with. This table came from a local Salvation Army with some solid wood ladder type chairs that didn't go with the table. My mom scored for a great price for the set, but in reality she only wanted the chairs because they looked similar to some Pottery Barns chairs she had coveted for ages. At the time we had a small dining table and I was looking for something larger to accommodate more than four people and spare others from sitting on the floors... just kidding! But really, we needed more table space! So I made a trade for my french provincial like chair that I never got around to re doing and has been sitting in my garage since we moved in to our home for this table, which also included a leaf! Score!!

 This table was a BEAST to carry in to the house! I'm pretty sure it weighed more then ten elephants!! I wasn't super thrilled with the dark wood finish on the table, as I have been trying to escape all the dark wood that haunts me from earlier in our marriage. I LOVEEEDDD the details around the table and the brass appliques on each of the legs. I knew I could make this piece the star of the dining room with some TLC & DIY loving! It was added to a mental list of to-do and re-do and has been on the back burner ever since it entered our home. Except for when I randomly decided to paint part of the detail that goes around the table grey (it looked green for some reason) and immediately hated it but couldn't remove it because it was too ridged to sand out. There are many items in my home that I stare at... loathing and think to myself, I need to re-do you!  I need to paint you! I need to cover you with fabric! or, I need to burn you at the stake, there is no hope for you. Well, the time finally came when I could not bear to see the dark table anymore so I did some online research on whether or not I could go from a dark stain to light stain on a table like I had. I didn't find much information online as far as actual tutorials or DIYers who had accomplished this feat. I figured that if I screwed it up I could always paint over it!!

 Here is what you need to go from dark to light stain on your tabletop:

-Electric Sander

-60 Grit & 220 Grit Sand Paper 

-Tack Cloth

-Classic Grey Minwax Stain

-Old Rag

-Foam Brush

-Wood Conditioner

First things first, if you have a veneered or laminate wood piece this WILL NOT work for you.  Grab a sand paper round and go to a inconspicuous area of the table and light start sanding the finish off to see what lies beneath if you aren't sure if the table is SOLID wood. A option to get a lighter finish and look for your table would be to paint over the entire piece. With a great primer and paint that is very do able and if you seal it correctly you will have a beautiful table for years to come! Back to this project though. I was pretty certain my table top was wood so I just started sanding away with the electric sander with 60 grit sandpaper (the lower the number the rougher the sandpaper) and sure enough it exposed some raw wood underneath! Don't go too crazy like I did and start sanding through that layer unless you are 100% sure your table is SOLID wood.  I assumed that the table was solid wood due to the sheer weight of bringing it in to the house when we first got it, well I was wrong!! Bah!!! It looks like there is a layer of wood attached to particle board that makes up the table top! Lame! I found this out by accidentally sanding down too far and exposing particle board spots on the table...opps! Nothing a nice table setting and runner (that i have yet to make) cant cover though! I sanded enough to get all of the old dark stain and finish removed completely without sanding through the wood layer. Because I did this while the hubby was at work and on a random whim I didn't get a chance to drag the table to the garage or outside. Big mistake! This was one of the messiest projects I have tackled! It coated most of my downstairs in a fine layer of dust and my boys probably could have created some wood angels on the floor if they so desired. I did, however, banish my boys upstairs and or backyard to save them from inhaling flying dust and opened up all the windows and front door of the house to keep it aired out during this process which helped. Here are some photos from after I sanded off the pre existing dark finish! There was still a layer of fine dust on the table in these photos.

After vacuuming and dusting off everything with some tack cloth and giving it s light wipe down with a damp towel to ensure all the dust was gone I was ready to stain. Now I have had experience staining and I have incurred a couple bumps in the road, like splotchy and un-even stain taking to the piece. So I bought some Minwax wood conditioner to see if it  wold help and make a difference this time around. I would say if the wood appears to be very dry, as mine did, I would spend the money to get the wood conditioner to ensure a nice even finish. The wood conditioner cost around $11 and I used hardly any so it will last for many projects to come.
*Always read instructions before use.
Here is an excerpt from the Minwax website:

Minwax^® Pre-Stain Wood Conditioner penetrates the grain of the wood to promote uniform acceptance of wood stain. Minwax^®Pre-Stain Wood Conditioner helps prevent streaking and blotching to help ensure a beautiful, even stain. It is specifically designed to condition wood before staining new, bare softwood or porous surfaces.

 In a nutshell, I just used my sponge brush to apply a even amount of wood conditioner and waited the minimum amount of time before you can start applying stain. I believe it was 5 minutes. There is a window of time that you NEED to apply stain to your piece by, so make sure you are able to complete your staining in that time window when you set out for your project. I applied a generous coat of Minwax Classic Grey and allowed it to sit for a good 15 minutes. Then I used a old rag to wipe of f the excess and check out the results. I allowed it to dry and buffed on a couple of coats of clear wax to protect the top. I am likely going to do a wipe on polycrylic to make sure this sucker is sealed for realsy and can tolerate everyday use. So far so good with just the wax. I used some left over Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Paris Grey mixed with some random white satin paint I had in the garage to paint the legs and base of the table. Because it had chalk paint in it and I was too lazy to prime I put on two coats to get a perfect finish! 

 Here is a close up of the finish. It is warm with hints of grey! *Swoon*

 Here is a after shot of the table after I finished the second coat or paint on the base and legs!

DIY Pottery Barn Knock-Off Easter Eggs

Pottery Barn Ad

When it comes to any holiday decorating I do what most women do...spend countless hours on Pinterest and the Internet scouring for great ideas I can do myself for a fraction of the cost!*Insert one cheesy grin* Often I look to Pottery Barn for some timeless and classic decor ideas and they have yet to disappoint with countless sparks of creativity or ideas for blatant copying! This photo in particular stuck out to me as inspiration for a Spring/Easter themed centerpiece for our dining room table. I love the faux cherry blossom branches with the hanging eggs spelling out "Happy Easter" in particular.  Our dining room is the first room you set foot in our home and our dining table is one of the first things you see when you walk in so I like to spruce it up according to whatever season or holiday may be around at the time. In my ideal world I would be moderately wealthy and able to purchase anything at Pottery Barn to decorate my home to my hearts desire each holiday and season...Things would be set out and lovingly gazed upon without grubby chocolate covered fingers and the potential of being knocked down and destroyed by our sons. Actually, they are pretty good about not touching things or playing with my decor in our home but they are rambunctious and mistakenly bump into tables while running around racing cars or the like. 

 .49 Eggs @ Hobby Lobby

Back to reality... the set is no longer available through PotteryBarn.com but I believe the retailed somewhere in the range of $15-$20 for the set. They are oh so adorable, but I can use $20 to buy a couple days of groceries or some new bow-ties for the hubby, haha. I just cant justify paying that much for fake eggs. So I went in to thinking mode and remembered the paper mache eggs that Hobby Lobby sells! Light turns on in my brain, I can make these for a fraction of the cost! They are a "true egg" size at 2 1/2 inches tall. Is "true egg" even a real description? *shrugs* They also have larger sizes available for more Easter craft fun! My local Hobby Lobby sells the 2 1/2 inch eggs for .49 a egg and if you go at a time when paper mache items are 30% they are a steal! 

Here is what you will need:

-11, 2 1/2 inch paper mache eggs

-White Spray Paint or Craft Paint

-Spray Primer

-Pearl Straight Pins

-Glue Gun 

-White Ribbon

-One Nail

-Print out of " HAPPY EASTER"

-Scissors

You need 11 paper mache eggs to spell out "HAPPY EASTER". Start by using either craft or spray paint to get a white base on the eggs. I experimented with Krylon's Satin finish in Ivory and thought the eggs were coming out too yellow. So, I re-sprayed all the eggs with a gloss white I had on hand. To do this I just threw them all in a shallow cardboard box and sprayed, let them dry turned them over and sprayed again. It probably took a good 2 coats on each side to get them covered well. I would suggest using a primer if you are going the spray paint route it will save you some time and paint! I would also like to take this time to talk about the awful stickers they attach to these babies and the PAIN IN THE BUTT they are to remove!! I tried many ways to remove them, knives, scissors, razorblades, dynamite, and there was no better way than to scrape them off with my finger nails! *Note knives, scissors and razor blades started to cut in to the paper and dynamite, well bon voyage egg!! It was a time consuming and annoying process but there was honestly  no around removing them with my fingernail... Insert one amazing, patient, and loving hubby who is willing to do this for you, such as my own did for me, and you can avoid doing it all together! Thanks hubby ;) 

 EXACT ribbon I used available
 in the fabric section of Hobby Lobby

I bought some 1/4" white satin ribbon at Hobby Lobby and cut 5" pieces for each egg. I thought I would easily poke a hole into the egg with my straight pin and be on my merry way to creating some Easter bliss but it took something a little stronger than a straight pin to cut through those puppies! I ended up using a extra nail I had laying around to puncture a hole in to the top of each egg so I could easily slide the pin in...is it weird I have nails and screws and random tool like items in a drawer in my kitchen for emergencies? Haha. Fold your ribbon in half lining up the ends as best as possible and slide the pin through near the edge and add a bead of hot glue over the hole you created at the top of your egg. Slide the pin through and hold down to make sure there is contact between the bottom ribbon and the glue to ensure a good grip! You could go the route of writing each letter on the egg with sharpie, but I wanted a uniform and more professional look that I know my shaky hand could not provide by handwriting each letter. You could modge podge each letter or use sticker letters from your local craft store, but I like to do things in the fastest, easiest way so I just printed out the words "HAPPY EASTER" in a 96pt size font. I picked a fairly chunky and bold font so the words were easy to cut out and wouldn't be prone to ripping apart before I even applied them. I just used my handy dandy glue gun to glue each letter to the eggs. *Once you lay the paper word on you CANNOT move it or you will rip the paper off the egg, trust me on this. Because of the roundness of the egg the letters aren't perfectly flush to the eggs surface but I am okay with that. The project cost me around $7 to make and I am thrilled with the results! I picked up two cherry blossom like branches at my local Michael's and hung the letters off to create a Pottery Barn-like centerpiece!

FInal Product <3

                                             {QoK}