Saturday, July 28, 2012

Garage Door Hardware


Decorative hardware is a great way to add a quick updated look to your garage door.  After reading this post on 320 Sycamore, I decided to freshen up the appearance of our garage door as well.

Before pictures of the garage door in the fall

...around the holidays

and a full view of the front of the house.

Garage door with new hardware.  

I purchased the hardware from Ebay for under $30.

It was very easy to install, but there are also magnetic options if you do not want to put holes in the door.

*Be sure the handles don't stick too far out to prevent the garage door from opening and closing.  I forgot to check before adding the handles and I literally held my breath hoping I didn't jam the the garage door opener. My husband would have loved that one!!


To see more garage door ideas visit Pinterest


Thursday, July 26, 2012

Ricotta Pancakes

While my daughter was away last week, I took the opportunity to spend quality one on one time with my son.

When I sat down and asked my son how he would like to start his day, he asked, "Can I have breakfast in bed?"  My family always serves me breakfast in bed on Mother's Day, so I thought it would be cute to serve him instead.

My son loves pancakes!  They're his favorite breakfast food.

I intended to make sour cream pancakes, but we ran out.  To avoid making a trip to the store I substituted the sour cream for the leftover ricotta cheese we had in the fridge.  And so these delicious ricotta pancakes were born. The ricotta makes the pancakes really moist, light and fluffy. Pancakes are delicious anyway you make them, but pancakes made with ricotta cheese are even more delicious.

My son devoured them, then thanked me for making him such a nice breakfast.  And once my daughter returned  home, he rubbed it in her face that I made him breakfast in bed.

Ingredients
2 cups Aunt Jemima Buttermilk Pancake mix
2 large eggs
1 cup milk
1 cup ricotta cheese
1/4 cup melted unsalted butter (1/2 stick)
Butter and syrup for serving
non-stick spray for griddle


Directions
Whisk together all of the ingredients in a large bowl until combined.
Prepare the griddle with non-stick spray.
On a hot griddle, pour out 1/4 cupfuls to make pancakes.  Cook for 2 to 3 minutes, until bubbles appear on the surface of the pancakes.  Turn and cook until the second side is golden brown, about 2 minutes.  Serve with butter and syrup.


I am linking this post to:
TidyMomFunky Junk InteriorsIt's OverflowingUndertheTableandDreamingToday's Creative BlogHome Stories A2ZTip Junkie handmade projectsThe 36th AVENUEIhookedupwithHoHlamespiceWhipperberry

Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Felt Flower Tutorial

Cute felt flowers just seem to call my name!  I guess because they are so easy to make and felt is super inexpensive.  I had a bunch of felt leftover from previous projects, so I decided to cure my boredom by making a few felt flowers.  If you would like to make your own one day, here's what you'll need...

-felt circles, about 14- 1 inch and 1- 1.5 inch 
-glue gun 
-2 felt leaves
-pom-pom for the center

Glue each of the smaller felt circles in half.

Glue 4 of the folded circles around the larger piece of felt, with the round sides out and the ends touching.

Glue 4 more petals on top of the bottom layer slightly overlapping each petal, creating a diamond shape.

Glue the remaining 4 petals on top of the last row, slightly moving inward with each end overlapping the other, creating a small square.

Pinch the 2 remaining petals in half and glue the bottom of petal in the center of the circle. 

*Place each petal in the center of the flower as if they're facing each other.  Be sure to leave a small opening for the pom-pom. 

Turn the flower over and glue the leaves on the back of the larger piece of felt. 

Lastly, glue the pom-pom in the center of the flower! 

If you like, you can attach a pin to the back of the flower and wear them on your clothing

...or attach a few to lampshade.

You can have fun and use them to embellish anything that you like! 


Let me know if you decide to make any.  I'd love to hear from you.

Monday, July 23, 2012

Remodeling Surprise


The true joy in blogging comes when I creatively inspire others.  I was recently honored to receive an email from Omar, commending the work we had done in our kitchen.  Omar mentioned that he loved the look of the cabinets and would like to replicate.  His wife was out of the country for 30 days on a mission trip.  While she was gone, Omar worked hard to surprise his wife with a complete remodel of their master suite.  How sweet is that!  Needless to say, she loved it!  His wife returned home to her own personal resort after sleeping in bunkers in Africa for 30 days.  After tirelessly working on his wife's surprise, I am excited to share with you Omar's before and after pictures.

Before pictures of the bathroom vanity-

The cabinets are very similar to what was in our kitchen before of we updated them with moulding.

Omar started by lifting the vanity off the ground and adding legs.

He used recycled wood and bead board wall paper to create raised door panels from the flat Formica doors.  He removed the Formica counter top and replaced it with recycled wood from a locally closed restaurant.

Both sinks were reused instead of being sent to the waste dump.

The doors from the cabinets were removed and replaced with wicker baskets to hold personal items.

The ladder was made from recycled ballet bars from a closed dance studio.  Omar purchased a valet chair at a local garage sale for $5 and reupholstered it in a beautiful coral print fabric.

The large eight foot long mirror was left in place, but divided to look like two separate mirrors.

The shelf, made from reclaimed wood is perfect for creating additional storage space.  You can never have too much storage space in the bathroom!

Before pictures of the bedroom-

The first daunting task was to repaint all the wood trim to white and prime the red walls.

The walls were painted a light yellow to give the room a much brighter look.

I love the basket filled with antlers and his wife's jewelry.

The candle sticks on top of the tall dresser were repainted thrift store finds.

The shelf above the bed was also a thrift store find adorned with the couple's initials, hand wrapped with jute twine.

The window shutters were cleverly made from old louvered closet doors found at the thrift store.

Old frames are abundant in thrift stores.  I love the empty frames grouped together on the wall.

Beautiful work, Omar!  You did an amazing job.  Thank you again for allowing me to share your lovely home.

* A special thanks to Design Sponge for featuring Omar's remodel.