Home & Garden Archives - Page 4 of 5

Easy No Sew Curtains

June 14, 2016 by Susan 2 Comments

My dad is kind of a jack-of-all-trades. I’ve written about how he has helped me with various furniture upcycle projects for my home. I have an island, a light fixture, and a headboard thanks to his ingenuity.

He also sews.

I never knew it was weird for dads to sew until I started getting looks when I would mention it. I took mission trips to Mexico in high school and college on which the ladies had to wear dresses, in keeping with the tradition of the village we were going to. Every year, my dad sewed me a few new ones. Boy did that get laughs when I told the Mexican ladies!

I realized a few years ago that as much as I’d like it to be so, my dad isn’t going to be around forever and I didn’t have a clue how to hem, stitch, or sew a thing … aside from buttons. I took the required sewing class in 8^th grade home economics and have a pillow to show for it. But without someone standing behind me directing me, I was at a loss.

So Christmas that year became about sewing. I got a machine and learned how to use it. I’m still no expert, but can sew a (relatively) straight line. I’ve made some simple projects with success.

I’ve been thinking about sewing some curtains for a while.

Easy Summer Lemonade and My Costco Shopping List

June 13, 2016 by Susan 2 Comments

Summer is here and that means it’s lemonade time! During the cooler months, I buy an extra gallon of raw milk and keep homemade chocolate milk in the fridge. But in the summer, I like to lighten things up. And so lemonade makes its appearance.

It’s so easy to make from scratch, and it tastes so much better than the powdered mix. Try it, you won’t go back!

Lemon juice is one of the things I always stock up on when I hit Costco. I thought I’d share some of the other things that are Costco stock up staples at our house.

Laundry Lessons

June 8, 2016 by Susan 2 Comments

Isn’t it wonderful to have women in our life who go before us and leave a trail? I feel like it’s what Paul was talking about when he wrote his instructions in Titus 2 for the older women. We need that sometimes, don’t we?

I have always looked to those who were just ahead of me, with kids a bit older, for parenting help. Don’t we all?

Ideas. Strategies. Possibilities.

A lot of times it had to do with expectations for my children. I would hear a friend talking about what chores her child was doing, and would think, “hmmmm, I wonder if my boys could be doing that?”

I had a “hmmmmm” moment when my sister told me that she had her kids doing their own laundry in elementary school.

I don’t hate doing laundry. However, I started thinking about my sister’s system when the sock situation began.

A Unique Headboard

May 23, 2016 by Susan 4 Comments

A while back there was a show on HGTV called “Decorating Cents”. Joan Steffend did inexpensive home decorating projects. Every so often she would visit an architectural remnant store in a segment called, “Trash to Treasure”.

It was filmed in Minnesota, where I live.

I really love the idea of adding character to a home with re-purposing old items in new ways. The first project I ever undertook to do that was creating a headboard.

I knew I wanted to use something that wasn’t a headboard to make a headboard. I thought a door was my best bet. I looked at new doors and old doors. I looked at a lot of doors.

And then I stopped in Art & Architecture, the store that Joan Steffend used to spotlight on her show.

Wow.

Window Light Fixture

May 17, 2016 by Susan Leave a Comment

I’m an idea person…big picture all the way. My dad is an engineer, and can figure out a way to do just about anything. We make a great team when it comes to my home decorating projects!

The hutch that I made into an island was pretty cut and dry. My husband, who is talented in many ways but not especially handy, and I were able to complete it all on our own.

The Light Fixture

When I had the brainstorm that a window would make a great light fixture, it was dad who got the call.

Upcycled Kitchen Island

May 10, 2016 by Susan 5 Comments

I love using things in ways they weren’t intended for. Besides being conversation pieces, it makes your home personal to you. It adds character. And it can save you a lot of money!

You don’t have to be a designer or skilled in construction to create something unique.

I assure you, I am neither.

It does help that I am not a perfectionist, I will admit.

When we moved into our current house, the previous owners had begun a number of remodels that they hadn’t finished. One was tearing out a peninsula counter/cabinets in the kitchen. We loved how open it made the kitchen, but it left me with very little counter and cabinet space, and just one cabinet drawer.

I began looking at islands. Did you know that

Kitchen islands are really expensive!

Also, I saw that they all kind of look the same, and I wanted something a bit more unique. So I thought about trying to re-purpose something to create my own island. I looked at workbenches, dressers, and other furniture before finding a hutch that would work.

In short, we used the bottom of the hutch as the actual island and turned the shelves that sat on top of the original hutch upside down to use as storage. I’ll walk you through how we did it.