March 5, 2012

One of my new favorite things {Tap N’ Hang}

The walls are finally getting decorated around here. It’s funny how I couldn’t wait to start decorating, yet it has been one of the hardest things for me to do. I was so stuck on what to hang and how to hang them.
And then one day it just came to me and the next thing I knew I was banging tiny holes in our walls and hanging frames. I should have been more organized and pre-hung pieces of paper so I could see where I wanted the frames to go ahead of time, but I was too impatient and just wung it. Sometimes that just works for me.
In the past I used screws or nails to hang our picture frames by. But a few weeks ago I found these Tap N’ Hangs at Walmart and now I have found my new favorite way of hanging pictures.
Seriously, I love these things and they are so easy to use. They have two little spikes that easily anchor into sheet rock or wood studs and can even hold about 25 pounds of weight. Of course I wouldn’t hang something that heavy on them, but I would definitely trust something that weighed a good 5 pounds or so.
What I love most about these hangers is how they are so easy to get the exact location for your frame. I just take the Tap N’ Hang and slide it into the hanger on the back of the picture frame then hold the picture frame up on the wall in the desired location. Then gently press the Tap N’ Hang into the wall to give yourself the exact location of where you want the frame to be. Then take your frame off the wall and tap in the Tap N’ Hangs. So quick and easy with great results.
These Tap N’ Hangs keep picture frames secure and from moving around too much. In the past I always found myself adjusting and readjusting my frames because they were always moving around on me, but now they stay put.
Really, I love these things! Almost as much as I love my newly decorated walls.
It’s so true on how surrounding yourself with things you love can just make you happy. So what do you use to hang your pictures with? Any other great products I need to try?
**And no, I did not get paid at all to post about these Tap N’ Hangs. I just wanted to share one of my new favorite things with all of you.**

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Filed Under: decorating, living room, tap n hang, walls
February 28, 2012

Make your own roman shades from mini blinds

I think this is one of the greatest ideas I have seen in awhile…you can make roman shades from mini blinds. I already knew I was going to make roman shades for the living room, but with 8 windows in that one room making them myself was going to be really costly. Then I saw this post from Nest Candy and immediately fell in love with this idea, how brilliant!

All you need is some cheap mini blinds, fabric and glue. I followed this tutorial here. They were super easy to make and cost about $6 per shade to make thanks to some cheap fabric is purchased this summer. The fabric is home decor weight so it is a little thicker then your regular cotton fabric. It shows the light through a little bit, but its not too bad. Eventually I plan on adding some fabric to the back so you don’t see the backside of the blinds. It kind of bothers me seeing unfinished edges, but not enough to have paid $20 plus dollars for a kit to sew my own.
It is such a cheap way to make your own roman shades.

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Filed Under: living room, roman shades
April 5, 2011

House updates.

Three weeks ago my hubby took the week off to work on the house. Before he could start framing out the walls, he still had more demo work to do. So after an hours worth of work, this was what I saw…Iya-yaI! Luckily my hubby is a hard and fast worker because within a few hours the room was clean and cleared of the debris.

Unfortunately, we had to add a beam in downstairs since we have reworked a few of the rooms. So here is the hubby putting in a beam weighing a few hundred pounds all by himself. Crazy hubby that he is, he rigged a pully system to hoist up the beam and slide it into place.

The beam is in place, and now it is time to start framing.

A few days later we have a room! Yes, a teeny-tiny kids play room, but it’s a room and there are walls. Or at least they are walls to us. And they are beautiful!

Stairs…we have stairs! For a few years now we have been climbing a ladder to get upstairs. So unsafe, but safety surely has not come first in this renovation.

It may not look like much to all of you, but to this momma (and very proud wife) this is huge! We have waited 6 1/2 years to see a living room and dining room evolve. And I can see it more and more each day.

There is something beautiful about a huge box of nails.

And a pile of new wood.

So what’s on the list next?

Well, the upstairs floor joists are as level as they are going to get and it is time to lay down some plywood.

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Filed Under: house, living room, renovations
February 7, 2011

Our home…the planning stage.

The plans for the other 1/2 of our house are underway. While the hubby was busy sketching and figuring out load calculations for the heating and cooling systems this weekend. I was busy picking out paint colors, furniture and accessories. The hubby kept reminding me that it would be close to a year (if not more) before we would be picking out such things, but hey, that is what gets me through this whole process.

Here is what the other 1/2 of our house looks like today.

On the right in front of the big picture window, will be the dining room with the built-in bench seating. To left of that, will be a little room for the kids playroom. There will also be a small doorway heading down to the cold cellar.

On this wall there will be a stairway heading upstairs.

This will be the main part of the living room.

More of the living room and there will be a doorway heading into the kitchen.

The last signs of the old knob and tube lighting. I know it is insanely unsafe, but I love the looks of the old knobs and tubes. Crazy how they did things back in the day!

This is where the stairway will be leading upstairs to the master bedroom.

On the other side of the stairway will be our second bathroom and a closet! Those of you living in an old home know how non existing closets are in these old homes.
Since the house is completely stripped to the bare studs right now, you can structurally see how our home was built. It still amazes me to see all the wooden pegs!

Now do you understand why I need to dream about paint colors, furniture and accessories?

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Filed Under: bedroom, house, living room, renovations