Vinyl - A Good Project for Kids

As a mother, I'm always reading magazines like "Family Fun" to try to find creative projects for my daughter.  But what I've come to realize is that the projects Imani enjoys most are projects that make her feel like she's grown up.

She is nine, after all and gluing macaroni to construction paper isn't really her thing anymore.

So in all of our home renovations and decorating adventures, we try to include Imani as much as possible.  It is her home too, and I hope that by being a part of it all she feels as much pride as we do when we look around our home.

I also hope that by being a part of it all, she grows to develop a good sense of style in decorating her own home some day.

Recently, when I ordered a few pieces of vinyl from Shelley at Wonderfully Wordy, I decided I would let Imani complete one of the vinyl projects on her own.

It was nice to just sit back and watch.  She started with these salt and pepper shakers that I found at Hub's Place a few months ago for $1.

Next, she removed the backing and placed the letter in the center, rubbing it onto the shaker.

She slowly peeled up the paper to reveal her finished product.

How cool are those? Not bad, considering I didn't have to do anything except order the vinyl!

How Does Your Garden Grow

One of the best aspects of a Do-It-Yourself Wedding is that you get to keep all of the things you buy to decorate for your ceremony and reception.

After our DIY wedding (See Two Addicts Become One), we had an abundance of vases, baskets, buckets, and candles . . . not to mention a whole house full of beautiful flowers!  Because our honeymoon was delayed a couple of days due to inclement weather, we were able to return home after a couple of days of staying in our hotel.   When we walked in, it smelled like a florist's and the site was breathtaking.  There were shades of pink flowers in every room.

We couldn't stand the thought of throwing all of these flowers away, so we gave some to friends and relatives, but left the vast majority in the vases when we left for the honeymoon.  Needless to say, when we returned, it didn't exactly smell like a florist's anymore.

Anyway, I still use many of the items around my house that I used in my wedding.

One of the items that have gotten a lot of use recently are the little tin buckets that were used to hold rose petals for guests to toss after our ceremony.  See them hanging on the chairs at the end of each row?

For a long time, these little buckets were stuffed away in closets.  Then I discovered chalkboard paint and used them on my mantel.

Most recently, Imani got busy planting herbs in them for my windowsill herb garden.

I wrote with chalk what was planted in each container and placed them on my window sill, just above my sink.  You'll see that the cilantro is growing the fastest, which makes me happy because it's one of my all-time favorite herbs.  Jason, on the other hand, hates cilantro.  He thinks it's overpowering.

Do you have an herb garden?  What's your favorite herb?

Linking to:  Shop the House Sunday, Metamorphosis Monday

Cupboard Clutter

After reading several blogs on organizing closets and pantries, I decided I needed to tackle a few of my own.  We started with one of our kitchen cupboards where we store bread crumbs, pasta and other crumbly items.  I was debating on the best way to organize.  One thing I was sure about -- gone were the days of big plastic dollar store canisters I used when I was in college.

Do your cupboards look as bad as mine did?

I decided to use old canning jars, mainly lightning jars to get my cupboard in order.  I have always been attracted to old bottles and since I am running out of shelf space, I decided that these cool lightning jars are a way to expand the collection in a functional way.  I am in no way an expert on the value of any jar (or anything old for that matter).  I just know what I like and I also know that I am a bargain Betty.  In other words, I'm cheap.  You won't find me paying $20 for a bottle or a jar because it's worth something. I don't buy old items with the intention of getting rich. I just buy what I like and what I think will look good in my home.

We found a bunch of jars at a shop last weekend and paid $5 each.  We were pretty happy with the purchase but then we went to good old Hub's Place -- a place that could easily make it on an episode of "Hoarders" if they didn't sell their junk.  They have stuff piled in the shop, out in their back yard on shelves (totally exposed to the realities of Northeast winters), and in a three-story warehouse.  It is a junk-lover's paradise and Jason and I are both addicted.

Good old Randy (we're on a first-name basis since we've been there three weeks in a row) gave us the jars for 25 cents each!  I could have given him a big old smooch on the cheek I was so excited.

After running the jars through the dishwasher, we pulled out the handy label-maker and labeled the backs of the jars with their new contents and placed them all on the shelf. 

Here are a couple of other ways I've seen people on the web organizing their pantries.  My Sweet Savannah revamped her whole pantry.  I like how she labeled everything on the front with vintage-looking labels.  She even offers up the website online where she found the labels so you can print them off.

Image: My Sweet Savannah

And then, one of her reader's, Tammi, was so inspired that she organized her cupboards too.  She used chalkboard labels to keep track of what's what.

If you decide to organize your kitchen cupboards, please share!  However you choose to organize, make sure you come up with a way to label everything and don't forget to keep directions on how to cook stuff.  Although we try to eat pretty healthily, we have a few "instant" favorites, namely "Stovetop Stuffing."  Jason was so excited about the jars that he threw out the directions on how to make it.  Needless to say that when he cooked dinner, I had soupy Stovetop.  I didn't complain though because I was just happy I didn't have to cook.

By the way, Atlas jars weren't the only things we found at Hub's today.  I'll be sure to post some of our favorite finds soon, but in the meantime I am happy to report that when we left Hub's Place today, we left without a single coffee can.  I'm not getting too excited . . . the weekend's not over yet.

Chalkboard Containers

Don't you just love these chalkboard containers? They were a fabulous find at Pier One Imports. Jason and I couldn't figure out what to put in the cubbies of our cabinets since I am not a drinker and he is not a wine-drinker. These litte square containers fit perfectly! Love 'em!

Oil and Vinegar Cruet

I wanted to share a recent treasure I found at the >Aurora Arts and Design Center in Aurora, NY. First off, this was my first trip into the Aurora Arts and Design Center. What a wonderful place. The store is housed in a beautifully renovated 1902 building and offers a range of unique items including antiques, furniture, gifts and jewelry.

This oil and vinegar cruet is so unique I just had to have it. It is czech glass, but that's all I know about it. I was worried that when you pour from one side, the other side would leak, but amazingly it works just fine without any spills! Isn't it great?