Birthday Chalkboard

Frames Frames Frames -- I can NEVER get enough frames -- or chalkboard paint for that matter.

And with that winning combination, let me share with you today's project :)

Last month was my bestie's birthday.  And not only has she been my best friend since high school, she's also the loving soul behind One Girl, One Beautiful Life.   She had JUST moved into a cute little apartment and I wanted to give her something decor-esque, but also something she could USE too.  Enter the chalkboard frame.  I started with this find from a local thrift store.  The frame had cute little designs on it, so I snatched this puppy up.

This framed print reminds me of the one I used for my fabric whiteboard a while back -- I wonder if they were some sort of set?!?!

I removed the frame and spray-painted it green (one of her favorite colors) and then I painted the glass with my beloved chalkboard paint.  I also took some ribbon (the same I used for my welcome sign) and attached it to the back and tied it on top for a pretty bow.  Ready for the final project?

I also gave her one of those cool chalkboard pens ....which are AWESOME!  Isn't that green fantastic!?!

I just LOVE finding unique frames....I seriously could have my whole house covered in gorgeous, character-filled frames and never get tired of them.   I think Becca likes the frame too. :)

Linking up to:

Mondays:Between Naps on the Porch ; C.R.A.F.T; Craft-O-Maniac; Keeping it Simple; Mad in Crafts; Making the World Cuter; The DIY Showoff; The Girl Creative Tuesdays:  All Thingz Related; House of Grace; I'm Topsy Turvy; Lucky Star Lane; Sugar Bee Craft Edition; The CSI Project; These Creative Juices; Today's Creative Blog Wednesdays:  Blue Cricket Design; Creations by Kara; Debbiedoos; Domestically Speaking; My Backyard Eden; Night Owl Crafting; Seven Thirty Three; Someday Crafts; The Thrifty Home; Trendy Treehouse Thursdays: Beyond the Picket Fence; Craftastical!; Fireflies & Jellybeans; House of Hepworths; Life as Lori; Somewhat Simple; The Shabby Chic Cottage Fridays:  Chic on a Shoestring; Finding Fabulous; Fingerprints on the Fridge; Frou Frou Decor; Frugal & Fabulous Design; It's a Hodge Podge Life; It's Fun to Craft!: Just a Girl; Remodelaholic; Simply Designing; The Shabby Nest; Tatertots & Jello Weekend:  A  Little Lovely; Be Different Act Normal; Funky Junk Interiors; House of Thrifty Decor; I Heart Naptime; Kuzak's Closet; Under the Table & Dreaming

C is for Canister

Sometimes I just CANNOT believe the stuff people throw away....all you other thrifters -- I'm SURE know what I mean.  Even if whatever it is looks like complete garbage, I know it can be fixed up -- so of course I can't understand why someone would get rid of such a "treasure"!  I'm hoping there are other people like me out there who get that item all fixed up and beautified,  and want to bring it back to whoever got rid of it and show them.  As if that is showing people I'm not in fact crazy and there was a "treasure" in there!  

But what I can't believe at all is the perfectly good things people get rid of -- take this Williams Sonoma canister pair I found last week:

Seriously -- Williams Sonoma.  The big one was $3.80 and the smaller one was $5.80 -- yes you read that right the smaller one was MORE than the bigger canister -- whatever, TOTALLY worth those prices. The small one still had the original price tag on it and it was $18.00.  And in my opinion, these were pratically brand new...there was absolutely NOTHING wrong with them except they were covered in dust.  (Probably no dustier than the rest of my house). 

All by themselves they are just fine.....although I wanted something a little more colorful.  Not that I don't love simple, white decor -- I just felt like these needed a little something.  I originally wanted to do vinyl on the front for whatever I used them for; but I can never make up my mind on things, so I knew I'd change what I put in these canisters several times.  Vinyl just doesn't always work for a mind-changer like me. :)    So I decided to go for some chalkboard paint instead.

I loved it ... but it still wasn't very colorful.  It needed some fun hue added to it.  It was calling out for some beautiful accessory to be added.....and so I did:

I took two strands of beads I put together and braided them together with green ribbon.  Then all I had to do was tie them around my canisters.

Each canister bead braid is different but has the same type of beads and color scheme.

And I should be honest with you...there aren't actually cookies in my bigger canister....yet.  I wish there were though!   I better erase that before my hubby opens it up to find an empty canister.  

I do use my other canister for coffee -- so I get to use it every day.   And I LOVE it! :)   It makes me smile just seeing it -- what a way to start the morning.

So my grand total for the whole project is $22.10

$9.60 for the canisters
$12.50 for the beads

Linking up to:

Mondays:Between Naps on the Porch ; C.R.A.F.T; Craft-O-Maniac; Keeping it Simple; Mad in Crafts; Making the World Cuter; The DIY Showoff; The Girl Creative Tuesdays:  All Thingz Related; House of Grace; I'm Topsy Turvy; Lucky Star Lane; Sugar Bee Craft Edition; The CSI Project; These Creative Juices; Today's Creative Blog Wednesdays:  Blue Cricket Design; Creations by Kara; Debbiedoos; Domestically Speaking; My Backyard Eden; Night Owl Crafting; Seven Thirty Three; Someday Crafts; The Thrifty Home; Trendy Treehouse Thursdays: Beyond the Picket Fence; Craftastical!; Fireflies & Jellybeans; House of Hepworths; Life as Lori; Somewhat Simple; The Shabby Chic Cottage Fridays:  Chic on a Shoestring; Finding Fabulous; Fingerprints on the Fridge; Frou Frou Decor; Frugal & Fabulous Design; It's a Hodge Podge Life; It's Fun to Craft!: Just a Girl; Remodelaholic; Simply Designing; The Shabby Nest; Tatertots & Jello Weekend:  A  Little Lovely; Be Different Act Normal; Funky Junk Interiors; House of Thrifty Decor; I Heart Naptime; Kuzak's Closet; Under the Table & Dreaming

Mother's Day Rustic Bench & Herb Pot DIY

With Mother's Day around the corner - let me tell you I have an AWESOME mom!  Not only do I get to work with her and be her daughter, but she is one of my BEST friends too.

And like any Mom on Mother's Day she's in LOVE with homemade gifts and goodies.  So I did JUST that this year (with the help of one of my ABSOLUTE FAVORITE websites......Knock-Off-Wood).

I should preface this little DIY by saying I have NEVER built anything before (except for some awesome Target furniture that came with instructions).  Ana's designs are not only awesome but they are SUPER easy and wonderfully explained. Love love LOVE her blog!  Here is her Knock-Off-Wood's Spa Bench I made.

This bench only took me an afternoon to build and then another afternoon to stain and varnish.  

Curious about her "Herb Pots"??  Here's the deets on that:

I found these cute little pots at Home Depot for $2.00ish a piece.

I taped off a square on the front of each pot. (Be sure to press down any bubbles so the paint doesn't drip or bleed down).

Next I painted Rustoleum Chalkboard Paint (LOVE this stuff) in the squares.  It dries super fast on clay pots so I did two coats in no time.

And VIOLA! Add some ribbon and a HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

 

I'm linking up to the CSI project for their paint challenge: