The Slight Glimmer

As you can see, my blog has undergone some design changes. I decided to become more blog savvy and learn how make it a little bit more customizable. I think it turned out pretty good!

Things have been great lately. I can't believe how fast this semester has gone, it seems like just yesterday I started my second fall semester and its already almost summer. Where did the time go?

*Cue the hallelujah chorus*

My newest update is this:

Last week I filled this bad boy out and this week I am turning it in!

I will officially be an NAU student despite all the work I've already put in towards my Bachelors degree.

I am so thankful that up until now, I haven't had to pay a cent towards my tuition (besides books and other school related expenses). However, when I get to NAU, that will all change. I am not one bit excited about the fact that I will be in debt a few thousand dollars..... I've done everything I can thus far to avoid it. Regretfully, debt seems to wrap its little finger around all of us.

Aside from the debt, I have a plan. I have a direction I will be pointed towards for the next year and some odd months. There seems to be a slight glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel.

I know this sounds funny, but I am excited to be done with school and just work a job. I know that I will be working the rest of my life and that I should enjoy the time that I am at right now, I just can't wait to be done with studying and homework.

Here's to the future!

Kitchen Sprucing: Part 2

After completing my first project, I couldn't wait to start my next one. I took a look at some of the supplies that I had laying around and found that I could put some of them to use instead of going out and buying a bunch of stuff.

My handsome man is the most thoughtful person I have ever met. After a long day, before a date night, or even just because, I find the most beautiful floral arrangements when I walk in the door. I'm not talking grocery store bouquets, I'm talking floral shop arrangements with beautiful bows, gorgeous greens, and the freshest most fragrant blooms ever. They look as though they had just been picked. I am completely spoiled by him.

Many times I find myself wondering what to do with some of the vases that these arrangements come with and I end up sticking them under our sink until I need them for other floral arrangements or other things. This DIY, I was able to utilize some of those vases that I hadn't used as much as others.

I also wanted some accent pieces to go along with the painting I made for our kitchen since I decided not to hang it on the wall, but rather, place it on the shelf of our sunk in cabinets.

Here is the look I ended up with after my last project and this one:

I thought the pieces really complimented each other. On top of that, both projects didn't cost very much. Win/Win.

To make the vases I used:

Two recycled vases

Jute Twine

Tacky glue

Red raffia

I started out by washing the vases since I knew I wasn't going to be able to wash them in the sink ever again. Wrapping the first strand can be a little awkward since you don't have anything to line it up to, so eyeballing the first wrap around so that it is straight with the top edges of the vase is easiest. I took my Tacky Glue bottle and made circle/zigzag marks around the top section of the vase so that I didn't have to apply glue every wrap around I did. Because this glue dries clear, I didn't have to worry about the glue showing through the inside,

As you can see, I didn't cut a length of twine because I wasn't sure how much I would need. Most of the reels you can get at any craft store unwrap from the inside, so I left the wrapping on and kept pulling out length as I went along. Every wrap around I did, I made sure to check that my twine was horizontal with my vase, not angled. I didn't want to get to the bottom and have it be uneven, so I made sure that I placed every length directly next to the previous line. Because Tacky Glue is forgiving and dries clear, if you mess up you can unwind the lines if you mess up the angle. All you have to do is re-apply the glue.

Side note: This project will make your fingers sticky because of the glue. I suggest not doing your nails before.

When you get to a point where glass starts to run out when you are towards the end, I have two tips.

1. If you can stretch the length to meet up with your starting piece at the top, you can hide your ends better. This way they are close to each other vertically and you can turn it away from peoples sight.
2. Make sure you really cover the ends with glue. If you don't, it can come undone/unravel, making it a pain to repair later.

The twine that I bought had such longevity! Even after two whole vases, I still had almost a full roll left for other projects. $2.99 for a roll that will last forever, awesome!

Because I allowed it to unwind from the middle instead of the outside, it made it so much easier to store after as well. I didn't have to worry about it falling out of the closet and unraveling as it hit the floor.

I decided to use raffia as my accent to my vases because it was what I had from another project. It just to happened to match the maroon color in my painting, which advanced my decision. After this project I ended up doing this same procedure to an old candle holder and I added a shimmery band across the top. The possibilities are endless, even seasonal.

After the glue dried, I placed them in their home above our cabinets.

These two projects really helped take up some of that empty space above our barren cabinet space. I was so pleased with the results!

Kitchen Sprucing: Part 1

Our kitchen needed some serious DIY attention. All the lovely wall space along with a wonderful sunken in area above our cabinets was completely blank. No personality, pale, and completely blah. I am the kind of Pinterester that loves to pin all these creative things but can never seem to decide on an idea. I think it's my need for constant perfection. I am always worried it won't come out as good, not to mention, when I go to the art store I always wind up spending way too much time looking because I can never make up my mind.

Thankfully I have a wonderful man who supports any artistic idea I have AND he calms me down when it doesn't go the way I think I want it to.

Considering the time it took to decide what I wanted to do with all the space, it's going to take a few projects to satisfy my need to fill up the empty space. I do have to start somewhere right?

I decided on this:

I have had my eye on this wall art for the past few weeks. Besides the simplicity that it radiated, it seemed like the perfect thing for my kitchen. Since our kitchen lacked a style scheme, it was nice to have a blank slate to work with. (Also, I've been on a canvas inspiration lately. I can't help how much nicer it makes certain projects look!)

 

I started with these supplies:

For me, the most expensive part of this project was the stencils. I think one thing that always kept me from crafting much was the fact that it can be really expensive, especially when you are just starting out from ground zero with no supplies of any sort. After awhile, I realized that crafting for me is a stress reliever. Some people pay therapists, I pay for art supplies.

Hobby Lobby has a great selection of value canvases that come in a two pack. I got two 11X14 sized canvases for $8. The stencils were pricey given the fact that they were flimsy plastic that I ended up having to cut up, but I can save them and use them for other projects. The brushes I already had from a previous project, and the paints were less than $1.50 each.

I started out by painting my canvas a cream color. I knew that our kitchen had a lot of brown, black, and neutral tones in it, but I didn't want to do a off the wall color because I wanted it to be versatile if/when we move someday or taste changes. Plus, I thought it would be better to offset it with subtle colored accent pieces.

 



After the paint dried and I finished prepping for my next step, I dabbed a tiny round foam brush in some black paint and went at it.

 

 

Cutting the stencil letters that I needed out from the big sheet made it a lot easier to place them where they needed to go. When Austin came home and found me upset that my letters didn't turn out so clean cut and perfect, he told me he liked it and it gave it some character. This is why I love him so! 

 

I agreed after my perfection OCD stopped poking me in the side every two seconds. The ruggedness of the letters along with the color I chose for my canvas gave the over all look of a vintage/burlap style.

 

 

 

Mine turned out like this.

(Disregard the slight pink twinge to it, the lighting wasn't working in my favor). I think it turned out pretty well and it made a nice edition to our becoming kitchen. The thing I really like is that it is totally personal and original. Any words, maybe a favorite recipe or phrase tailored to your kitchen's feel, make a nice art piece to look at.