Christmas Yard Sign Tutorial

I've been working on a christmas yard sign, Similar to my Fall Yard signs. 

I picked up two pieces of wood from lowes. The horizontal parts were  2 x 6 boards. Had the hubby cut them  into 18 inches, I got 4 out of my 6 foot board. And for the posts I got a 1x6 piece. They were cut in half. 36 inches each. 

Here is my wood cut. I sanded each edge so it wasn't sharp or split.

I just used regular acrylic craft paint for the boards. And my foam brush!

Aren't they pretty!?

And Acrylic white for the posts. 

Of course I distressed the signs! 

I used my Cricut to cut out my lettering. I used the shiny vinyl, since its said to be more durable for outdoors. 

Then I screwed the pieces together, added some raffia and WA LA!

Love it! I will be straightening my boards before the Farmers Market this Saturday. I thought I would like them crooked, but after some other opinions, Im making them straight! :)

End Table Makeover...DONE!

So I started my end table makeover about a week ago, And I finally finished yesterday! 

I started with a Foam brush, but it sucked at staining! I remember reading that a rag works better, So i grabbed an old washcloth and went to town! Wrapped my hand in a grocery bag since I was out of gloves! Worked like a charm! 

I recommend doing this outside, the smell is pretty strong!

Here's a few photos!

Sanded with my Palm sander! Makes it MUCH easier! I recommend doing this outside too, Its quite messy!

DONE! Stained with Dark Walnut. I used Miniwax Brand!

Im SO in love with out it came out!

Vacation!

Even though I'm in the middle of Christmas crafts, we're heading to the beach, for a few days of sun and sand! <---Notice I didn't say relaxation...

I'm SO ready for this trip! I've been cleaning house and getting all the laundry done so I can come home to a nice clean house and RELAX. :) Good planning on my part! ;)

Starting off my vacation tonight with a trip to the movies, Me and my best pals are going to see Pitch Perfect! It looks absolutely HILARIOUS! 

I've got my camera bag packed and ready to go, So I'll be back on Wednesday with some gorgeous sunset pictures to share! :)

Newborn Stats

 Isn't it SO cute!

I needed a gift for a friend who just had a baby, And I've found inspiration all over the internet. 

(I like mine the best)

I had some ply wood type wood leftover from another project. Its 12x12. Perfect right? I painted it white, thinking I would just use a white background, But that was boring! So I found some cute scrapbook paper and glued it down with Mod Podge!

Waiting a bit and sanded the edges so the paper was 'one' with the board! 

Used my Cricut to cut out all the baby's stats and some cut little saying and shapes. I used my shiny vinyl and 3 different blues.

(positioned them a million times)

Used my transfer tape, which has been a lifesaver! SO glad I ordered that stuff!

Took me like 10 minutes to get everything on there after I got everything on the transfer tape! YIPPIE! 

I just LOVE it. Now I must make one for Myles! 

Heath bar poke cake

The original recipe is found here ---> Better than anything cake

It looked so yummy, and EASY! I had to try it!

List of ingredients: 

1 box of chocolate cake (and any ingredients for it)

14 oz can Condensed sweetened milk

8oz cool whip

Caramel sauce

Heath bar pieces

Bake your cake as directed. Let cool for 5 minutes. Then poke holes in cake. Original says to use the end of a wooden spoon, but none of mine were rounded. So i went with a large plastic straw!

Then slowly pour your condensed milk over the cake, but make sure it gets into all the little holes....

I had to help mine and poke a few more AFTER I poured on the milk, It was so thick it just sort of sat on top. Then do the same with the caramel. YUM!

Take your THAWED cool whip and spread it over the cake. Sprinkle with the Heath Bar pieces. I decided to 'decorate' a little with some caramel sauce...just because, Well, you can NEVER have too much caramel! :)

Doesn't that look SOO good! And not healthy AT ALL! haha!

Southwest Chili Con Queso Pasta Bake!

 The original recipe is from Rachael Ray. I tweaked mine a little bit to my liking! :) This is a VERY hearty meal! Easily could feed 5-6 people or more. 

Yum right?! Here's the recipe...

1 pound penne rigate 
1 1/2 pounds ground beef
1 tablespoon ground cumin 

2 tablespoons chili powder 
Coarse black pepper
1 large yellow onion, chopped
3-5 garlic cloves, chopped 
1 jalepeño (I omited this)
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour (2 palmfuls)
2 cups milk
3/4 pound cheddar cheese (about 2 1/2 cups)
1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves (a generous handful), chopped
1/2 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves (a few handfuls) chopped
1 14-ounce can diced fire-roasted tomatoes

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil.  Salt the boiling water and cook the pasta until slightly undercooked--a little chewy at the center.

While the water is coming to a boil, preheat a large skillet over medium-high heat and brown the hamburger.  When the hamburger is almost finished, but still a little pink, throw in the garlic, jalepeño, and onions and finish cooking until the burger is browned and the onion is translucent.  Drain the grease from the skillet and mix in the cumin, coriander and chili powder.  Take off the heat or turn heat down low.

In a medium sauce pot (and you can do this while you're browning the hamburger), melt the butter and add the flour to it.  Cook for 1 to 2 minutes over moderate heat and then whisk in the milk. When the milk comes to a bubble, stir in the cheese, cilantro and parsley with a wooden spoon.  When the cheese has melted, stir in the tomatoes.

(Doesn't that cheesey goodness look devine?)

I completely forgot to add my tomatoes at this step, So don't forget. I just added at the end! 

Once the pasta is cooked, drain it and add it back into the large pot.  Add the contents of the hamburger and all of the Cheddar sauce, and stir to combine.  

Transfer to a baking dish, sprinkle with a bit more cheese if you wish, and place under the broiler to lightly brown.

I baked it for about 15-20 minutes, Or until your cheese on top is bubbly! Then EAT! 

Its Fall Yall!

Another Project I did before having a Blog! 

Happy Harvest

I don't have a Tutorial...well not exactly. I had a leftover piece of wood that I turned into a Mantle Sign. I had the perfect color paint for something autumn-y...So I went to work! 

Painted my wood and distressed it a bit for a rustic look. Cut out some letters with my Cricut and found some artificial fall leaves and Rafia. 

The final product, Which is for sale, But I'm really in love with it, in my home!

And also a Fall Wreath I made...

End Table Makeover

So I've decided that its time to refurbish my End tables! I got them for $10 from a friend who was moving across country. They were the exact style I wanted, but not the right color, Which I knew I could fix! :) I've had them for months! 

I got out my palm sander and went to town (yes, after the spider was gone!) It took me about an hour to get it all sanded, Lots of little groves to get into...It was a MESS! But totally going to be worth it! 

Now I just need to decide what shade I'm going to stain them! 

My next big project will be my TV stand/dresser! I am SO excited to get started on that one! 

SPIDER!

So, After this is taken care of....

Ill be sanding and preping my end tables! Im going to stain them, Im just not sure what shade yet!

Countdown Blocks Tutorial

Ok friends, I finished my first set of Christmas Countdown Blocks! Thought I would share with you how I made them! These are for sale, but you can easily make your own too!

First I bought a piece of wood at Lowe's, I bought the 3x3 kind, after finding out the 2x2 was a bit to small for my project. Im sure Lowe's would (gladly) cut the wood into blocks for you, But I was fortunate enough to have a circular saw, borrowed from a friend, here at home. Turns out, It wouldnt cut through my wood...but luck was on my side and a family friend had a table saw. I sent my husband to have the wood cut, Each smaller block is 2.5x2.5 and the bottom is 5 inches. 

 Then I primed all my blocks with some white acrylic paint. I was just going to paint them white, but I thought  they were too...white? Yes, White. 

 So I found a can of Ivory Spray Paint and took them outside and gave them a good coat of that. Much better!

Let them try for a few hours. While your waiting, you can cut your Christmas (or whatever theme your doing) paper, Since my blocks were 2.5 inches, I cut my paper at 2 inches...Or you can go a little bigger, Just depends how much ivory block you want showing. I used a thin layer of Mod Podge, I had the Matte finish, but I'm sure any kind will work. 

Once I had paper on all sides of my blocks, I cut out vinyl letters with my Cricut! Applied them to my blocks! I'm not excited that my 'Christmas' hangs off my red a little bit, So I'm sure ill go back and fix that. 

Im also going to get a can of 'Crystal Clear.' I keep hearing good things about it. In my opinion Mod Podge makes your projects a bit 'sticky' And since these are sitting on top of each other I don't want them sticking. Ill then tie a nice ribbon around the set! :) Perfect for gifts or yourself!

Sneak Peak!

Guess what I'm working on!! Want a hint?...

YAY! Countdown blocks! I can't wait to finish them tomorrow and show you the final product! 

Gift for a new mommy!

Hope you enjoyed your weekend, Mine went entirely too fast, As usual!

Since I'm not able to cut my wood for Holiday Countdown Blocks just yet, I've decided to work on a gift for a friend. I'm doing the Newborn Stat collage, As I call it.
My inspiration is from A Kitchen Table for Two.
I'm using a piece of wood, I'm not exactly sure what type, but it reminds me of plywood. I had Lowes cut it into 4 squares for me. I'm painting it White and then cutting out the words/numbers in vinyl with my Cricut! :) Pictures tomorrow!! :)

Christmas Countdown Blocks!

So who wants a Tutorial on making Holiday countdown blocks?! As soon as I can drag my Husband out of of our cozy bed, Where I wish I could still be, Ill get started! :) Hope you all are enjoying your last day of the weekend! -Hillary

So change of plans, That will have to wait til HOPEFULLY tomorrow. The circular saw is not able to cut through the wood I picked up...Go figure! Stay tuned! :)

Time for a new Venture!

I guess it's time to jump on the band wagon and create a blog! I love to craft and even more, I love to share and hear peoples opinions. Im always trying to recipes and want to share my experiences with you all! So make sure you Follow me and enjoy! :)