"What's for Dinner?" Just Got Easier To Answer: DIY Menu Board

My latest project was so simple and cheep that I'd considered not counting it as a project at all.  But, since I technically think that it is one, I have now crossed off number 11 of 20 DIY crafts/projects on my 30 before 30 list.  (Holla!)

While I was searching for free printables for my Home Management Binder (which I've almost completed--more on that in another post) I came across some amazing menu board ideas.  I especially loved the variety of menu boards that Home Life Simplified has shown here (toward the bottom of the page.)

Although they're all awesome, many of them looked very time consuming and considering I'm beginning to plan my son's birthday party and the holidays will be coming up soon, I just can't see myself making any of them a reality anytime soon.

So, I stuck with the simplest (and in my opinion, one of the cutest) ideas I found:  putting a weekly menu in a picture frame and writing the weekly menu in dry erase markers so that it can easily be erased when it's time to write on it again.

Here's the one I found at Home Life Simplified that gave me the inspiration to create my own:

Source

I had already found this ADORABLE weekly menu plan free printable at The Nest Effect* that I was going to use in my Home Management Binder, but decided it would be perfect for a menu board:

Source

So, I grabbed a frame that wasn't being used, made a few trial and error prints before I got the correct size and viola, dinner menu plan in a frame was born:

I must admit, I got a little giddy once I added this week's dinner plans with the dry erase marker.  I mean, who doesn't like to write with a dry erase marker?  (Am I the only one who never outgrew that phase?)

So, tada!  Easy as pie!  It now sits in our kitchen window sill beside the herbs we're attempting to grow (no luck with the lavender thus far.  sad day.)  The black frame looks great in the window and it's very functional.  No more thinking about what we have in the cabinets and what to make for dinner that night. It's right there on the board.  And, if we decide to go out on Tuesday night to eat with friends, no big deal--erase Tacos and add it to Saturday.  Done deal.

Oh yes, I'm loving the functionality of such a simple project.  This thing will definitely make our lives easier.  

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* BTW:  The Nest Effect has several other awesome free printables on her site and an Etsy store with even more printables, so be sure to take a look!

Thou Shalt Organize Thy Jewelry: How To Turn A Hanger Into Necklace Storage for $3

Saturday my mother, sister, and I decided to stop into this jewelry store in town.  When we walked in, we realized that almost EVERY piece of jewelry in there was 99¢.  Um, can we say costume jewelry HEAVEN?  This resulted in me purchasing about 8 necklaces, 2 rings, 1 bracelet, and some headbands.  

So, once I got home I realized that I seriously need to organize my jewelry.  I started going through it all, but I couldn't figure out what to do with my really long necklaces.  Then I remembered seeing a neat idea for a hanger turned necklace holder a few months back on Pinterest.  [[Shameless Plug:  Follow me on Pinterest by clicking here!]]

But, since I hadn't pinned it myself and couldn't find it, we had to wing it.  Nonetheless, I'm pretty darn pleased with how this sucker turned out.

Here's what you'll need to make this little beauty:

{1} A drill

{2} A tape measure & pen 

{3} A wooden hanger (Purchased a pack of four at Wal-Mart for $4)

{4} Two packs of hooks (Purchased at Wal-Mart for 98¢ each)

My hubby did all the work for this project, so I can't take any credit for the way it turned out.  It only took him a few minutes to complete it and he was finished before I'd realized he'd started.

First, he counted out how many hooks he wanted to use.  Mine has 16, but we probably could have fit 2-4 more on there.  Then he simply used the tape measure to make sure the hooks would be spaced out evenly, using a pen to mark where he wanted them.  Afterward, he drilled holes for the hooks and screwed them in.  Simple enough.  

Now, all of my necklaces are organized!  I have the jewelry hanger hung on a 3M Strip on the edge of the shelving in our bedroom closet and I love it!  My hubs even made my sister one.  Isn't he the sweetest?  *hold for 'awww'*

So, here she is all prettied up:

YAY!!

Bonus:  My son managed to take four pictures of himself with my iPhone without me noticing in the 35 seconds it took me to put my necklaces on the hanger.  So, I thought I'd share!

What a goofball!  :)

"Candy Wrap" Gift Certificates Using your Wrapping Paper Tube: DIY Tutorial

Let's face it, sometimes things get done a little more last-minute than we'd like.

Tonight I printed off the gift certificates I'd purchased for my mother and sister as Christmas gifts only to realize I hadn't put much thought into how I was planning on wrapping them.

Yes, you heard me right. I wanted to wrap gift certificates. I'm a big kid and I love seeing someone tear open wrapping paper before getting their gift. It's part of the fun!

So, I walked around the house looking for boxes to throw them in. I strongly considered using granola bar boxes, before it hit me...

I could use the wrapping paper tube that was laying in the floor. Then I got excited because I realized if I did that 1) they wouldn't realize they were gift certificates and 2) I could wrap them to look like candy!

So, here's how I did it & how it turned out....

Each tube could be used for three certificates at 8.5 x 11 each.  Since I only used two, I'll be stashing the other piece with my wrapping paper to use again in the future.  

Since we started recycling earlier this year, I've tried my best to reuse materials whenever possible.  So, besides how stinkin' cute these are, I'm also thrilled to be reusing something that would have just been thrown away other wise.  

I will never look at a wrapping-paper tube the same again, ever.  

And I couldn't be happier about it!

DIY Angry Birds Birthday Invitations

Hello friends!

I've been absent from blogging for far too long (TWO months... YIKES!) and I think the best way to jump back in is to share this ADORABLE little craft with you!

My son turns six soon and he wants an Angry Birds birthday party.  Well, although Angry Birds merchandise is popping up everywhere, the brand hasn't officially started marketing birthday party paraphernalia.

But, with the help of my good friend Google, I was able to steal find an awesome idea, which made for great invitations!

Meet helmet pig:

Picture Source

Did you just fall in love?  I did!  And I knew I had to make him mine!  It's actually pretty simple, although if you plan on making 30 like I did, be prepared to spend some time.  

Supplies:  

1. Green, black, grey, white, and brown card stock
2. 1/2 inch circle punch for eyes
3. 5/8 inch circle punch for the nose holes
4. A "large circle" punch for the eyes (about 2 inches in diameter)
5. A "large oval" punch for the lip
6. Glue sticks
7. Blue ink pad
8. Green ink pad
9. Sponge
10. Foam adhesive stickers 

We purchased all of our supplies at Michael's.  

If you want to keep costs down, here's what I recommend:  

1. Skip the expensive card stock for the whites and blacks and buy one poster board in each color.  The use is so minimal on the finished project that no one will notice it's not card stock.  
2. Skip the foam adhesive stickers.  (We purchased these, but ended up deciding we liked the way the pigs looked without them.)
3. Borrow or steal the punch holes!  They're pretty freaking pricey (between $4 to $15 each)!  Ouch!  We choked down the cost and justified it by saying, "Well, at least we'll have them for future projects."  (Yea right.)  But if you know someone who will lend you theirs, do it!  Or, if you have some laying around that aren't the exact sizes I have listed above, don't sweat it.  No one is going to notice if the black circles are 1/2 inch rather than 5/8 inch, trust me.  
4. Gotta sponge in the garage?  Got a Dollar General down the road?  Great, you've just saved at least $4.  Michael's sells theirs for about $5 each.  It's a freaking sponge people.  Ridiculous.  
5. Don't have a sponge?  Don't care to buy one?  Great, skip the ink all together.  No one will miss these minute details.  
6. Instead of making a card that opens up with details on the inside, put the details on the helmet!  You'll use half the green card stock this way!

Okay, so now that we're past all that... let's get down to business!  I promise this is ridiculously easy.  All it takes is time!

Click here to get the pattern.  That's right... there's a pattern!  BUT it will cost you about $5 to download IF you're not already a contributing member to Scribd.  Contribute something, and you can download it and save it to your computer for free.  OR, if you know someone SUPER AWESOME (ahem... ME) who already has the PDF downloaded, you can email HER through the email address conveniently located at the top of her blog and ask her if she'll email you the PDF.  Something tells me that she'll gladly do that.  But just for you, because she likes you.  A lot.  

Now here's all that's left:

1. Get to cutting!  You'll use the pattern to cut out the helmet, straps, head, and nose.  (If you choose to make a card that opens, you'll want to fold your card stock in half before cutting on the pattern.)
2. Get to punching!  (Notice: the eyes, nose holes, and lip are NOT to size on the pattern.  You'll use the punches for those.  Easy peasy.)
3. Get to inking!  If you choose to do this step, you'll lightly ink the outer rim of the pig's head, nose, and lip in green.  You'll lightly ink the rim of the white eyes in blue.  (You can also ink the helmet in white as shown above, but we tweaked ours a little so we skipped this step.)  
4. Get to gluing!  Everything is glued down with regular glue except for the helmet and the nose.  Those are glued with the foam stickers to make them stick up, if you choose to use those.  
5. Admire your awesome work.  

Here's how ours turned out:

{The helmet looks crazy because I erased the address and date of the party, 

as well as my phone number using photoshop in about 20 seconds.}

Rather than going by the pattern exactly and making invitations that opened up, I decided to put the details of the party on the helmet.  (This also insures that when the invitations get displayed on the fridge, it's the front of the pig that's showing, rather than the inside.  Haye, I didn't do all this hard work for nothin'!)

Ours obviously aren't as amazing as the one we modeled them from, but considering that 30 of them were made, I'm pretty impressed with myself.  And, of course, I'm using this as one of my DIY projects on My 30 Before 30 List!  Woohoohoo! (<--in my best Angry Birds impression)

Oh, and one more thing.... we purchased 6 x 9 envelopes from Walmart (about $3 for a pack of 25) to mail our invitations in.  The pigs are about 6 x 6 when complete, which makes for a snug fit.  My advice is to keep an envelope in front of you as you're gluing the helmet to the pig so that you can do a quick sight check to make sure you're not putting the helmet up so high that it won't fit into your envelopes.  ;)

The party is quickly approaching, but I hope to have time to for one more Angry Birds project before then.  If I get a chance to make it, I'll be sure to share!  And of course I must say, thank you to all of my followers and readers who have stayed with me during my bloggy break.  I really appreciate you all!  

{Note:  If you need some Angry Birds cake inspiration click here.  Or, you can also see how my son's party and cake turned out by clicking here.}

How To Create a Facebook Page for your Blog & Import Your Posts

Today I set out to create a Facebook Page for my blog and to import my blog posts onto my Page.  Unfortunately, this was slightly more complicated than initially anticipated.  But, after searching Facebook (and the internet) for a little while I was able to figure it out.

If you're interested in setting up a Facebook Page for your blog and/or having your posts imported never fear!

I'll walk you through it!

How to Set up a Facebook Page for Your Blog

1:  Log out of your personal Facebook Account.  This will take you to the home screen.  Toward the very bottom, right below the green "sign up" button, click Create a Page.

2:  Select Brand or Product.

3:  Select Website and enter your blog name (which will be the name of your page).  Select Get Started.

4:  Then you'll be asked to create a Facebook account.  If you have one already, simply enter your login information.  If not, take a minute to create an account.

You'll then be directed to your new Facebook Page (yay!) where you can upload a picture, enter your basic information, etc.  Your page is now officially set up.  

Importing Your Blog Posts to Your Facebook Page

But now, it's time to add your blog to your page so that when you publish a new blog post, it's automatically updated on your Facebook page.  (This was the part that made me want to pull my hair out.  But now that I know how to do it, it won't be difficult to explain.)

1:  Click Edit Info.  (It's difficult to see, but it's directly under the words "Get Started.")

2:  Now, on the left-hand side of the page, select Apps.  

3:  Under the Notes heading, select Go to App.

4:  Then, on the left-hand side select Edit Import Settings.

5:  Then enter your blog URL.

6:  And confirm, and you're good to go!  Your previous blog posts will begin importing.  And from now on, your posts should automatically be uploaded to your Facebook page!  YAY!!

{Edit on 12.01.11:  It seems that sometimes Facebook is super fast about importing my posts and other times it takes it a bit.  Nevertheless, looking back it does appear that they are all importing on their own.  So, for me at least, the process explained here has been successful and it should be for you as well!}

{Edit on 01.17.12:  For some reason my last few posts have not been automatically importing.  I'm sure this has something to do with the fact that Facebook is--yet again--making changes (rolling out Timeline).  I'll keep paying attention to see if this is a problem that's only temporary.  Hopefully it is.}

Okay, so now is the part where I ask very nicely for you to LIKE My Facebook Page!  Pretty pretty please, with sugar on top?  I'll be your best friend!!  :)

DIY Fabric Magnet Board

Number 5 on My 30 Before 30 List is to complete 20 do-it-yourself projects.  I've had a few ideas rolling around in my head but I haven't had the time to complete any of them thanks to those pesky law-school finals.

However, today I made a fabric magnet board for my sister's bedroom (which is pink and black).  It was very easy and cheap to make and I'm happy with the way it turned out.  Want to know how to make your own?  Here you go!

Here's a list of everything you'll need in order to complete your fabric magnet board:

• A Frame (I purchased a mirror at an antique store for $3 and used the frame from it.)
• Fabric (I purchased mine from Jo-Ann's.  Click here to find one near you.)
• Hot Glue Gun & Hot Glue
• Sheet of Galvanized Steel (I purchased mine from Lowe's for around $10.)
• Scissors or Metal Sheers (I used regular scissors and they worked fine.)
• Piece of Foam Board (I purchased mine from Jo-Ann's.  Click here to find one near you.)
• Spray Paint (and primer if needed)

1) Start by wiping down your frame to remove excess dirt or chipped paint.

2)  Set it up to be spray painted the right way.  Now, the reason I'm including this step is because, while I'm sure all of you already know not to set the item you'll be spray painting directly on the paper because it will get stuck, I learned this lesson the hard way.  

3)  Next, prime it.  I primed the frame using Rust-Oleum and added a second layer after it dried for good measure.  

4)  Next, measure and cut your foam board to fit perfectly inside the frame.  After I did this, I placed it inside the frame just to make sure I measured correctly.  Feel free to skip that part of this step, but I just don't trust myself.  

5)  Get ready to cut your sheet of galvanized metal.  Note:  For this step and any other step where you directly handle the metal wear gloves to avoid getting cut!  

Before cutting I traced around the foam board onto the metal.  Then I measured about 1/4 an inch inside the line I had traced, making the steel slightly smaller than the foam board.  

6)  Now your primer should be dry, so it's time to make your frame pretty!  I applied a semi-gloss spray paint (again I chose Rust-Oleum) and allowed it to dry before applying a second coat.  The frame is now complete!  :)

7)  Glue the sheet of metal to your piece of cut foam board using a hot glue gun. 

8)  After ironing the fabric to get out all the lines and creases, lay your fabric face down and began gluing it to the back of the foam board.  It helps if you have an extra set of hands on this part to insure you pull the fabric tight enough to keep the fabric from sagging or wrinkling.   

9)  Finally, you're ready to place the fabric-covered magnet board into the fame!  I think I jumped for joy when I completed mine because I'm now one step closer to finishing My 30 Before 30 List!

10)  Put that cute little thing to work!  

Now, everyone knows the basic uses of magnet boards, such as holding pictures, receipts, and cards, but Shelterness suggests using a magnet board to hold your makeup!  GENIUS!!  

It's easy!  Just purchase a roll of magnet tape and stick a small piece onto each of your makeup items!

Look at this awesomeness and tell me this isn't a fantastic idea?!  What a great way to get all of that makeup out of that drawer and off your bathroom counter!

Picture Source

Stevie hasn't decided how she's going to use hers yet, but that's her job.  My job here is done!

Special thanks to Shanty 2 Chic for creating the tutorial that helped me through this DIY project 

and allowed me to share my experience with my readers! :)