Pom Pom Garland Tutorial

Quick little craft to add some fun and color to whatever stands still long enough for you to attack! Today’s victim is the tv stand our playroom. 

I started with two skeins of thick yarn. You could use a thinner yarn but the number of times you wrap the yarn may have to be increased.

I used Mandy’s tutorial for her pom pom blanket at Vintage Revivals as a guide. Head over to check her out, and make sure to tell her we sent you. She is hilarious!

You’ll need an embroidery hoop, yarn, and scissors. Thats all folks! Wrap your yarn around your hoop 25  times. 

Tie in the middle of your wrapping and start again, 25 more times. 

And again…Tie, wrap, and viola! I wrapped mine a total of 75 times. 

You could do more or less, depending on your desired fluffness. Yeah…thats a thing, desired fluffness. Google it. When desired fluffiness is achieved, snip the ends and set your  little monster free!

Word of warning about when you tie your wrapping in the middle (we’re doing this to help prevent stray strands of yarn from escaping): when you tie them in the middle, be careful how tight you tie your knot. Too much tension will snap your hoop.) 

So don’t use Great Granny Boo Boo’s embroidery hoop. It may die, and the blood will be on your adorable hands.

He’s cute no? Now take your little feller and give him a good hair cut! Just keep turning and cutting him so he’s nice and round, and full of…you guessed it…fluffness.

Feel around for the center of your pom pom. Poke a crochet hook (or you can thread a needle and string)  through to catch your yarn. Pull through just enough that you can catch and pull the yarn through.

String your remaining pom poms and find and unsuspecting victim crying for decoration!

You can leave it as is or go hog wild with leftover yarn. Add braids, finger crochet, or different size pom poms. Whatever makes your skirt fly up.

.:Tanya:.

Love me some : Board & Batten

Love me some Board & Batten

Okay, So we have had a lot of snow lately and a bit of extra time on our hands. While I had the hubs home with me a few days we decided (or I decided) it would be a great time to work on this project.
So here you will find my tutorial on how I made the wall below look like the wall above.

So this was the entry wall before. Yes, we had one little hook on the wall that we would hang all of our coats on. I have been wanting to do this project for awhile now. It just took a foot of snow on the ground and more cold weather gear needing a home to give me the push to do it.

 First- before the snow came.. We went to lowes to buy all of our supplies.

Supplies:

1x6 boards

1x3 boards

Nails

Screws

Wood filler

Caulk

Primer

Paint

Hooks

For the boards we used the whitewood. It is knottier than the others but we dug through all of the wood they had and found the best looking and straightest boards we could find. That's what you should do every time, Right? For the paint I always use Valspar "Ultra White" for any of the trim work in my house, also on the built in cabinets and brick in our living room. 



Step One: Find a stud to mark your studs for you.( Or you could do it yourself with the handy stud finder. )

We then started by measuring 60" up our wall. Then measuring across for the top 1x6 board. And then nailed it up there with the nail gun. Next boards were the 1x6 down each side, then the middle 1x6 board. So pretty much all of the "frame work" first. We went back through and inset screws where the studs were just to make it more secure.

Then we started measuring, cutting, using the level a lot and nailing up all of the middle  1x3 pieces. I have found a lot of different tutorials on board and batten. The distance between the boards is up to you. I had to take into account the two outlets below.



Then we added 1x3 boards across the top to make the shelf. (This one we used screws.)

Now for the fun part, Just kidding.. I filled all of  the nail/screw holes and any where there was a knot in the wood. I caulked all of the cracks where the wood met the wall. I let it dry, then sanded everything. Wiped it all down with a wet rag and was ready to prime.

 Here we are below with just one coat of primer. I did 3 total coats of primer.

Then 3 coats of white paint.

I put up larger hooks on top and smaller below in between.

That way the kids are able to reach theirs easier.

The larger ones are the ones that I already had.

The smaller ones I found at Walmart for $1.97.

 And here we are! Finished product! Only took 2 days and less than $100.

And now to find a super cute runner rug to put our shoes on

 and to decide how I want to decorate the wall and shelf above.

                                                                           .:Liz:.

A Deep Down Beautiful Mess: Kitchen Update

Updating you on what may be one of my longest projects in DIY history.

It will pay off...patience always pays off.

These are the things I tell myself when I feel like this one will never be done and we're living in chaos.

When we bought our house (a year ago this month!) it was tan-tastic. Every.Single.Room. I do believe the previous owners must have gotten a great deal on tan paint. Its not a terrible color. Just a little much considering it covers every surface of this house.

I unknowingly dove head first into making my bright, clean kitchen. And it all started with my Ikea Ottava pendant light.

After hanging the light, I decided the wooden piece connecting the cabinets had to go. But first wanted to try scraping the popcorn texture off the soffits. I figured I would start behind the wood piece so if i made it look terrible, I could leave it up.

Terrible it did not look.

So I went ape on the popcorn and scraped it off the rest of the soffit. Super easy, SUPER messy. But with great pay off. 

Spray with water, let it sit for a minute (or 30 seconds if you're as patient as I am) then scrape with a putty knife. I ended up taping the top of the cabinet doors shut because the texture was falling behind the door. 

It does need to be said, if your ceiling was textured before 1980 it could contain asbestos. And you could end up on one of those day-time 1-800-lawyer commercials. So check into that before you want to sue me!

After I decided that mess was manageable I wanted to scrap the whole ceiling. Now, if your previous home owners hate you like mine did, they will paint over the popcorn on the ceiling. It. Sucked. That process required a little more muscle, and a lot more patience (and a shop vac!). 

I had to dry scrape it to knock some popcorn off (so the water could seep in), then spray with water and scrape the rest. Follow that up with spackle and sanding wherever you accidentally gouge the ceiling. Enlist happy husband whenever possible.

Painting the ceiling next would be logical but this project took me right up to Christmas. Since my parents were in town for the holidays, I decided to take advantage of my Dad's handiness and my new miter saw (woop! woop!). 

I painted the wall just enough to attach the crown molding. 

Everything went super smooth until we reached the 45 degree angled wall. 

That took a bit of head scratching, and calling in a reinforcement. 

Then he called in a reinforcement (love having profession construction guys as friends as well as a church family that cares about the small details of our life!) It all made sense! 

I now totally get it. My 90 degree angles I used Sawdust Girl's template method (the crown lays flat on the saw). 

When our professional friend came to help us out, he told me to hold my crown on the saw how it will fit on the ceiling (35 degree angle).

That made the 45 degree angle super easy by cutting two 22.5 degree cuts. Duh! (Palm to forehead). Hey, I'm learning!

I ran some ½ x 1" pine strips along the soffits. The goal is to make them blend in with the cabinets. When the cabinets are painted (gasp!) the soffits will be painted the same color.

The walls are painted Olympic's Whispering Wind in an eggshell finish.

So that brings you up to date on the longest kitchen makeover ever. (Not counting the total gut jobs!) If you need me, I'll be wood filling, sanding, and painting until my fingers are little tiny nubs. 

Enjoying my beautiful mess!

.:Tanya:.