lovemydiyhome

From Trash to Treasure – Update old brass decor, don’t toss it!

I told you about the cast off treasures I got from a friend in my first From Trash to Treasure post here. Here are brass pieces that NO ONE wants.   After painting the brass finishes with my dark walnut satin Rust-Oleum spraypaint, I decided to mix and match the parts to make new pieces.  Brass decor isn’t very popular these days, but there is no reason we can’t update. When I painted this one, (pic above) the paint didn’t settle in the grooves, giving it dimension. (It’s OK to go ahead and think I planned this.)      I put the painted brass on my kitchen island to dry in the warm kitchen (negative 10 degrees in my garage where I painted it).  Each time I passed by them, I thought about how they would look once I put them together.  I don’t wait very patiently for my projects to … Read more

Aiding Refugees in Lesvos {Love My DIY Home}

Helping Refugees – My Son’s Mission

  To My DIY Tribe:   As you look around you and see all that God has allowed you to have – a safe, clean home, warmth, family, friends, freedom of worship, medical support, possessions, warm clothing, jobs, money, entertainment, hobbies…   Please pray for my son, Andrew, volunteering on the island of Lesvos helping the refugees who are escaping from Turkey.   He is considering a dangerous move to help diminish the lives lost while escaping by boat. He is considering going to Turkey as a scout. He could end up in a Turkish jail if arrested for aiding the refugees.   Here is his journal if you want to read his first hand accounts:   AndrewFrania.com   This is the ultimate DIY – risking your own life to save people you have never met. He is supporting himself with the unemployment from his seasonal job. Please support him, … Read more

DIY Chunky Photo Frame – Re-purpose Old Picture Frames Part 3

I have picture frames up the wazoo! Seriously, I must have more than three or four dozen wood frames packed in boxes… In the garage, In the basement, In my craft closet, In my blanket chest… Nope. There aren’t any blankets in it. Just picture frames. Some day I will paint that blanket chest with chalk paint and actually use it for blankets. When you raise 15 kids like we did and tote a camera around with you 24/7, your house easily turns into a virtual scrapbook. Now we are empty nesters (yay for us!) and have downsized. So I have to justify keeping all my frames and not just “Give them all away to Goodwill to be rid of them.” (That solution was courtesy of my DH.) I’ve been on a mission to justify my frame hoarding and have come up with some re-purposing DIY projects. I’m in process … Read more

Free Printable Christmas Gift Tags

Free Printable Christmas Gift Tags Is Christmas on your mind today? I love Christmas. Since this year has been hectic and unusally busy (as has been for you all, I would imagine), I'm giving you my gift tag FREE download to make your gift wrapping easier. Christmas Gift Tags for You Free Printable Christmas Gift Tags Just click on "Free Printable Christmas Gift Tags" below the pictures and I will send them to you via email as a PDF. I LINK TO THESE GREAT PARTIES

Simple DIY Christmas Decorations {Love My DIY Home}

5 Simple DIY Christmas Decoration Projects for December

  Making your own holiday decorations is a great way to deck the halls with friends and family. There’s no need to waste money on store bought goods when similar and oftentimes superior products can be crafted in the comfort of your own home. Getting the family together to create holiday decorations creates a sense of togetherness, and the beautiful end result speaks for itself. If you love Christmas and DIY crafts, the following holiday project ideas are sure to satisfy your creative urges. Wrapping in Style Photo by PermaCultured via Flickr When we think about Christmas decorations, the first thing that comes to mind is usually the tree, but what about the gifts? Wrapping gifts with style turns your presents into an extra decoration in your home. Functional decorations such as this blur the line between holiday tradition and aesthetic, adding a whole new dimension to your decor. A … Read more

Holiday Crate x10 Challenge {Love My DIY Home}

Christmas DIY Wood Crate Challenge

We were challenged to take a plain wood crate and make it Christmas festive. I bought three and plan to use them under my Christmas tree. BEFORE Box and Snowflakes First I spray painted the inside with Rustoleum’s Painter’s Touch 2x Ivory Bisque. Large wood snow flakes at Hobby Lobby were perfect for an accent. I spray painted them the same ivory bisque as the box interior and then sprinkled silver glitter on it to give it some pinache and then hung it on a nail on the box. It took a bit because it was 10 degrees outside and since I paint out on my front lawn, it was interesting to say the least. I painted a bit, brought it in to dry and took it out for more paint an hour later. After a dozen ins and outs, I finally got it painted. Anyone free to come clean out … Read more

November Furniture Flippin Contest {Love My DIY Home}

November’s Fab Furniture Flippin Contest – Take a Seat!

Once again I have entered a furniture flippin contest. November’s Fab Furniture Flippin Contest challenge is called “Take A Seat” sponsored by Minted. Each contestant was given free fabric from Minted to complete the project. Minted fabrics are designed by independent artists who design a pattern and then enter it into Minted’s ongoing design competitions. Designers submit, and the Minted community votes to tell them what to bring to market. You can check it all out here if you’re an artist or would like to vote. I chose the fabric Herringbone Incomplete by Lehan Veenker for the chair and pillow and Arrowhead by Paper Dahlia for the accessories. I wanted to put together a color scheme that would go with the desk I already had in my guest room. The desk was my submission in the September Fab Furniture Flippin Contest. The fabric is of excellent quality, perfect for upholstering … Read more

4 Homemade Chalky Paint Recipes {Love My DIY Home}

Homemade Chalky Paint Recipes

I know, I know, it’s been a while since I’ve written anything. I have a good excuse – if you are on my mailing list and you’ve read my past two emails, you know what I’m up to! To make up for it, I’m going to share some of my research with you – It will save you some time if you are a DIY painter. I spent a couple of hours researching chalky paint recipes and put together a one page PDF that you can reference if you are interested in making your own chalky paint. As far as I’m concerned, Annie Sloan’s is the best – BUT if you can’t swing the price, you can always make your own. Jillian and I did and here is the result. We used the recipe that calls for baking soda. You can get the recipe here along with 3 others. Just … Read more

Kitchen Cabinet Door Chalkboard {Love My DIY Home}

Cabinet Door Chalkboard – EASY DIY

Peel & Stick! Here is the promised cabinet door chalkboard easy DIY from my fall porch. Seriously, this took me less than 5 minutes. Not everything you see is a difficult to achieve as it seems. Sometimes it’s crazy easy. This is one of those. Here it is on my porch: I started with a clearanced kitchen cabinet from Menards. I paid $3. I bought three of them all in different colors. I would have painted it using chalky paint, but it was already painted! I can deal with that… I pried out the little plastic hinge thingys and used that spot to hang it from my ladder by nails. I had planned to paint the inside part of the door with chalkboard paint like my friends did in their kitchen, but when I went to do it, I remembered I had some peel and stick vinyl chalkboard that I … Read more

Love My DIY Home