This post isn't about baking, but more home organization. It's really what I've been up to lately. Blame it on Pinterest! I'm pretty proud of these things, so I wanted to share them with you. Better yet, I actually did these things myself, so I know absolutely anyone can do them! And you can probably do it better than me!
1. DIY Cake Plate
First up IS related to baking. Yay! This is a little DIY cake stand. There are tons of tutorials out there for doing this. I found a silver candle holder at Goodwill for $.99 and a little china plate with a silver rim and tiny little flowers around the edge. The plate was also only $.99 at Goodwill! Just lightly sand and clean both the top of the candle holder and the bottom center of the plate, then attach with epoxy. The whole project cost me only $2.00!
This cake plate is small, but would be perfect for a 4-inch cake, for a cupcake, or for some cookies.
The candle stick I found was in good shape and already the color I wanted, but you could also paint one. Look for one that is sturdy, has a little weight to it, and is in good shape so that it can support both the plate and a cake.
Pay attention to the plate, too, to make sure it is food safe. Some of the "chargers" you can buy really cheap are NOT food safe, so be careful about that if you will be using the stand for actual food.
2. Coat Rack
Here is perhaps my favorite project. I got the idea on Pinterest (sorry, but I don't remember who or where!) of taking drawer fronts and turning them into cute coat hooks. The ones I saw were shabby chic, maybe a little rustic, with cute little knobs. I love that, but it's not really the style of my house. So, when I found some really sleek, red, shiny drawer fronts in the "handy" section of Ikea for $.50 each, I grabbed them! I found some modern-looking hooks at Ikea, too, for around $5.00 for 4 hooks.
Here they are up on the wall. Sorry for the picture quality. The drawer fronts are really shiny and there are windows on the opposite wall, so it was hard to get rid of the glare! In this picture, I only have coats on the kids' rack.
Now a close-up of the higher rack.
I really love how these turned out! I attached the drawer fronts to the walls by sinking a hole through the front and using anchors into the drywall. I then attached the hooks and used the end hooks to cover the holes used to anchor the rack to the wall. Depending on the hooks you choose, you might not be able to do it this way, but it worked really well for me.
3. Easy Centerpiece
Can you tell what that is?
If you guessed a butterfly, you are right! It's an origami butterfly. I saw these one day and decided that I could probably make them. Here are the instructions I followed if you want to give it a try. These are seriously easy to master. My 6-year-old helped me and made several of these all by himself. It was such a fun thing for us to do together!
The idea to put them in a tall vase is not originally mine. My mother-in-law has some swans (I think) in a tall vase at her house. The paper they are made from makes it such a pretty decor item. And it is simple. And inexpensive! I used scrapbook paper cut down to 6X6 squares. Make sure you do NOT get the cardstock, though. I tried using some of that first, because I already had it on hand, and it couldn't hold up to all of the folding.
4. DIY Art
I have lived in my house for 6 years now. It is embarrassing how many spaces are still undecorated. Empty walls. Blank space.
This has led to my current Pinterest obsession with DIY art. I love it! I don't have to spend a fortune to put something I really love on my walls and fill those blank spaces with loads of personality!
If you have done any of this, I would love to see it too!
Here are a couple of things I have done.
The first is my favorite.
I started with the three prints. They were a gift to me from my sister and, I believe, were hand-painted in China. My sister and her husband traveled there to pick up their beautiful daughter. These prints have a lot of sentimental value, too! They have been in their little plastic sleeves for two years now. I did not know what to do with them, but I knew they certainly deserved better than sitting unseen on a bookshelf.
I was at Ikea one day and saw this white frame. It was the perfect size to hold all three prints. I thought about putting them on a mat, cut to size, but decided that would be too difficult for me to do on my own and more than I wanted to spend to have someone do it for me. With the help of my mother-in-law, I decided to use archival-quality paper as a backdrop for the prints instead of using a cut mat. I chose black paper so that the little paintings and the colors in them would really pop. I love the way it turned out!
One tip I learned from my mother-in-law (she is really great at this kind of thing, as you may notice from my repeated mentions of her!) I will share with you. If you do this, cut little pieces of cardboard or foamcore board and place them in the corners of the glass inside the frame. They should not be seen through the front but will serve to hold the prints or paintings away from the glass of the frame. This simple and inexpensive trick will save your prized pieces by keeping them from sticking to the glass.
On to the second piece of art I made. A paper "flower."
I had some fun with this one! I spotted this frame at Michael's one day. It was an "oops" custom frame, made for someone but for some reason not sold. The frame was in perfect condition and was only $8.00! I now regret not snatching up the others I saw there that day! The only issue with it was the size. It was an off-size and normal, non-custom canvasses would not fit.
Now, I have been taught how to make a custom canvas and I confess it isn't that difficult. But I didn't want to do it. There. My laziness is revealed!
As a "cheat" I went across the store and bought a piece of 1/2-inch foamcore board. This is the same foamcore I use to make cake boards, so I work with it a lot. I cut it down to the size of the frame using my trusty exacto knife and just pushed it into the back. Fits like a glove! Yay me!
To make the picture, I cut leaf shapes out of several different pieces of scrapbook paper. It doesn't matter whether you use the card stock or regular paper for this project. Cut several different sizes and one round piece for the center of the flower. Once you have a ton of pieces cut, lay them out onto the foamcore to find the arrangement you like the best. Once you have it the way that you would like, start gluing each piece down one by one, being careful to keep them in the same spot. I used a glue stick, but it didn't work quite like I'd hoped. Hot glue would be better or you could probably even use those scrapbooking glue dots.
After you have all of the "petals" and everything glued down, brush over the entire thing (take it out of the frame for this part!) with mod podge. I used a foam brush for this and it went on really well. Let it dry, put it back in the frame and you have custom wall art!
Again, this isn't my original idea (though the way I put it together is original to me). Here is where the idea came from. She has a wonderful tutorial on it, too! Isn't hers beautiful? I love the dark background!
5. T.P. Trick
While admittedly not as glamorous as the other things, I love this idea! What, you didn't think the others were glamorous? Shame!
Anyway, this is what I did with a large empty oatmeal container, some wrapping paper, and toilet paper rolls.
The container is pretty big. Look for the very large containers of oatmeal in the grocery store. It's the perfect size for two large rolls of toilet paper. I removed the label, cleaned out the inside with a dry cloth (not with water - it is cardboard after all), and glued wrapping paper to the outside. Use a glue stick or another glue that won't warp your paper or you will see the lines.
Pretty clever, huh? Just say yes. It will make me feel good! :)
Here it is on my bathroom shelf.
Well, that is probably about all you can take for now! Another long post filled with ideas. I'm sure you are all more clever than me and can take these ideas and run with them. Or maybe you have your own fab ideas. If so, please share!
Thanks for stopping by!
