DIY

Canning Tomatoes for the First Time – DIY Fun!

Canning Tomatoes for the First Time   ~ with Mom ~ I honestly didn’t want to garden. I told my family I would watch with a lemonade in my hand while sitting in a lawn chair as they worked the garden. But I actually enjoyed the planting and working with the flowers and vegis. It was a bit disappointing when the surprise frost took the lives of half of our tomatoes, but you know what they say, as long as you learn from your mistakes… Now my kitchen table is full of tomatoes in various stages, waiting for them to ripen so we can can them. So I will be canning only a few at at time over the next couple of weeks. I’ll keep you posted. Of course I will have to show you a picture of all my filled mason jars when I’m done. We had a dozen or … Read more

Printable Labels for Your Foodie Fall Gifts from Lia Griffith

  I came across these beautiful foodie labels this morning and just had to share. Lia Griffith from Handcraft Your Life designed them and is giving them away FREE! Hop on over there and take a look. She has other interesting items you might like as well. I can see these on all sorts of projects for Christmas…combined with either spray adhesive on the back to fix it to the gift jar or basket or Mod Podged! Oh how I love Mod Podge! Or, you could print them right onto a sticker sheet and then cut them to the size you need. Here are some close-ups of her beautiful gift jars and baskets. They inspire me! So cute! Have you ever given food gifts for Christmas? I just canned some grape jam today and it turned out great. I’m thinkin’ that might just be the ticket! Or maybe homemade candy … Read more

DIY Family Cookbook

A DIY Family Cookbook “Mom, what was that recipe for that stuff Grandpa Woodward brought home from the shop?” “Doesn’t Aunt Penny make that Broccoli Cauliflower salad? Do you know how to make it, Mom?” “My chili doesn’t taste like yours, what type of beans do you use?” I had three teen boys our last two years of homeschooling and the last year we spent a lot of time in the kitchen. We put together a family cookbook and updated it several times. Here are a few shots of our 2010 cookbook. We have gifted it to our kids for Christmas many times over the years as each of them moved out into their own homes. Here is the cover and a few shots of some of the pages. I ordered this book from Picaboo. They had a deal at the time – buy one and get two free. If … Read more

Simple DIY – Repurposed Deco

Simple DIY – Repurposed Decor   DO YOU REPURPOSE OR DO YOU JUST TOSS?   A little bit of money, a little bit of time and a little bit of ingenuity… I’ve added a few little things to welcome fall into my home. I bought on clearance a bulletin board that a graduate would use at an open house and changed it into a jewelry holder. Simple changes can easily repurpose items. Ever heard the expression, “One man’s junk is another man’s treasure”? It’s true! The graduate bulletin board was originally $35.00 at Kohls and I got it for $3.50 on clearance. Don’t ya just love Kohls? At the time I wasn’t sure what I would use them for; I thought I could give one or two to someone for Christmas, and maybe use one in the church office. But now that I’ve discovered another use for them (I bought … Read more

DIY Chalkboard Cabinet Doors {Love My DiY Home}

DIY Kitchen Cabinet Makeover – Chalkboard Paint!

This kitchen is just so adorable. While sitting in church I had a thought…Brad and Jen just re-did their kitchen, maybe they would like it featured. Now, now, it wasn’t during preaching, so don’t think I was playing mental hookey! Grass certainly doesn’t grow under their feet. As I’m printing church tri-folds after church, the pictures are rolling in… I’ve not seen this in person, so just I’m lovin’ what they’ve done. Their space isn’t big, but their ideas certianly are. This just makes me want to grab a cup of coffee and sit down at their table – well, it’s after five p.m., so I suppose it had better be decaffeinated… Enjoy your tour – I sure am! Can you tell Brad and Jen like coffee? They attached rope lights around the window above the sink.    Here is a DIY canvas art that Brad created. I explain the … Read more

Kitchen cupboard deco with antique ware {Love My DIY Home}

A Sentimental Journey3 – Preserving the Past Through DIY Deco

A Sentimental Journey3 – Preserving the Past Through DIY Decor   This is my last post about Lisa’s DIY decor. Meet Lisa Reese, guest writer for Love My DIY Home. Thanks Lisa, for sharing your home accents with us. The Series: A Sentimental Journey 1 A Sentimental Journey 2 A Semtimental Journey 3 (You are here) Here’s a picture of the top of her kitchen cupboards that I’ve thrown in just for fun. Lisa said about her collection, “I have a collection of antique enamel ware and even a very old snow white pitcher and basin set.  They’ve been in the family probably a hundred years, and I’m delighted to have a place to display them that is well out of reach of rambunctious grandchildren or klutzy grandmothers.” Featured below is her framed bobbin lace doily along with her description and tutorial. “In my quest for interesting old stuff, I … Read more

Grandma's hankies made into a valance {Love My DIY Home}

A Sentimental Journey2 – Preserving the Past Through DIY Deco

A Sentimental Journey2 – Preserving the Past Through DIY Decor   As promised, here are the valances Lisa made from her grandmother’s pillow cases. What items to you surround yourself with to remind you that you are/were loved? I have my dad’s Bible on my living room bookshelf – the one he used right up until his passing, 28 years ago when I was 26 years old. It sits right next to an original The Life and Times of Abraham Lincoln, an 1865 book, complete with an old fashioned wood spine and leather cover. Lincoln is one of my heroes of the past. On the bookself next to it is a copper bust of Lincoln, a gift from Jillian and Taylor. Yep, yep, do the math – I admit it – I’m O.L.D. I can see the candle holder my son, Andrew, bought me several Christmases ago, the Woodwick candle … Read more

DIY Foaming Soap

A couple of years ago I bought foaming dish soap with a coupon. I'll try new things if I can get it for a bargain. I decided to try to make my own once it ran out. After all, it couldn't be too hard, could it? There was no way I was putting out $6.00+ for that little bit of soap. Here's my recipe. Hold onto your seats! It's really complicated…N.O.T. I filled it with water to the top of the Dawn sticker – I did think about measuring it so I could give accurate measurements, but after all, it's not rocket science. I added some regular dish soap, and voila! It foamed when I pumped it. I felt so smart! Check this out. Do you think I should be a hand model? I should probably stick with being on this side of the camera. Back to soap… I've been … Read more

Fix Up That Old Piece of Furniture in the Basement – DIY Painted Bookshelf

FIX UP THAT OLD PIECE OF FURNITURE DOWN IN THE BASEMENT   My oldest daughter, April, had an old bookshelf down in her basement that she wanted to use for her homeschooling books. It looked like it had been in a circus wagon! She bought white primer and a gallon of dark brown paint from Menards and used a hand sander on the bookshelf to ready it for the primer. I was supposed to help her, but had guests on the week she wanted it done so she forged on alone. Where there’s a will, there’s a way. Here is the “before” bookshelf. She sanded it, primed it, and then painted it dark brown. After April painted the bookshelf, she took a sanding sponge to it to rough it up a bit to give it the old and worn look. The Shabby Chic look is in these days. Here it … Read more

DIY garden shed handle {Love My DIY Home}

Unique DIY Garden Shed Handle

My friend, Linda, sent this picture to me. She said, “Here you go. This is my garden shed my husband and friend built for me. The original handle fell off and I got another friend to put this up instead. I stained the handle so it looked aged.” It’s amazing the things people come up with! We have an unattractive shed on our property, well, actually two of them that I’d like to spruce up like this. My poor DH. I’m always thinking up new things to do around the house. But the thing is, he’s always saying, “Happy wife, happy life.” Anyone else out there have a cute shed to show? I’m definitely in the market for ideas. Click here for a slide show by HGTV (love that channel) of some really inspiring garden sheds. Please leave a comment below if you have any ideas to share.  

Love My DIY Home