A Whole Month Already???

I can't believe it's been a whole month already since I last posted.  It is definantly NOT because I haven't done anything creative :)  I have been busy getting ready for a craft show and I did remember to take pictures.  However, the only time I seem to have to post is at work and I have to bring my camera here and upload the pics to my work PC, which is not real feasible.  So, maybe after the craft show on Saturday I will find the time to upload them.

I am itching to do some painting!  I would like to do my bathroom first.  I just want to update paint, hardware, etc.  No tearing anything down or trying to build something for this girl. (this time)  I have to do these kind of things while J is gone so he doesn't complain too much.  He has said numerous times that there is only 2 rooms in this entire house that you haven't painted since we've been married...  soon to be 0 :)  There is even a room or 2 that I would like to redo already.  I am finally kind of figuring out what my taste is, and making that coordinate with the entire house so it all kind of goes together.

So, be looking out for the bathroom makeover.  I have found lots of inspiration on shanty-2-chic.com  I love their style!  So if you go over there you can sort of get a preview of what is to come.

A Little Something for my Amazing Husband

As I was cleaning out my pantry, I found a bag of pumpkin spice marshmallows and 1/2 bag of rice krispies that I had used for another recipe.  I decided what better way to use them than to surprise my husband who was outside working hard.  They were very good (what ricekrispie bar isn't right?), but I think I would add more regular marshmallows and some actual pumpkin pie spice next time.  I like my rice krispie bars kinda gooey!  I added the sentiment on top just to be a sweet wife :)  Did I mention my husband LOVES anything spiced?  Pumpkin, Apple, Cinnamon, Spice Cake, etc.  It's that time of year!

Organization in the Linen Closet

Before:  Embarrassing I know!

After:  Let's hope it can stay like this for awhile!  All the kid's toys that I don't want them to have access to without my supervision is on the top right.  All the candles on the top left.  Tablecloths on the bottom right and in the 31 tote is all my napkins.  Yes I do have an obsession with pretty napkins.

This is the bottom part of the linen closet- after of course.  I forgot to get a picture of the before.  Just picture the top's before picture on a bigger scale.  The top shelf has my paper goods- cups, bowls, plates, etc.  Middle section is all my cookware that I don't use very often.  Next comes the sheet sets- see below to see how I finally figured out how to fold a fitted sheet- thanks to Pinterest!  I put the queen sets on the left and double sets on the right.  On the bottom is our air mattress and a set of microfiber sheets that are really fluffy :)

 

FOLDING A FITTED SHEET

I should have used a color other than white so it would be easier to see.  Alas, all my sheets are white or off white. 

1.  Fold wrong sides together  sticking the corners inside each other to form a square. 

2.  Fold into thirds lengthwise.

3.  Fold into thirds again

4.  I then folded the top sheet to be the same size as the fitted sheet and stacked one of the pillow cases on top of the set.  Put the set in the other pillow case and fold x-tra under the stack.  ( I learded this part from Martha Stewart :)  Now, whenever you need a set of sheets, they are all in one spot!

Pond Clean-Up

I drove this beast on Monday... and yes I was fearful.  Jake is cleaning out a pond in one of our pastures and rented this to help get the job done.  So, since he wanted to brag to everyone that his wife drove the bulldozer I obliged and made one full round.  I scooped a load up out of the pond and drove up a very steep incline, dumped it off, and went back to my original position.  I politley refused to do anymore.  This machine was terrifying!  I calmly went back home and decided I had never heard of anyone dying in a bulldozer accident.

Here, Corbin took over the bulldozer and Jake brought the skidsteer out so they could get more done.

This is our little laady Snick (short for Snickerdoodle). 

Bill Organizer

My daily sheet where I write my to-do list, what I need to do daily, my fitness goals, and appointments for the day.  I laminated it so I could write on it with a wet erase marker and reuse it everyday.

I made this bill organizer yesterday, as my last one is all filled up!  I did the front cover in PhotoShop Elements and laminated it.

This is the inside.  I used an 8.5 x 11 sheet of scrapbook paper and glued a pocket on the front.  I cut out the months in vinyl and stuck them to the front of the folder.

Just showing you the pocket that I stick all my bills in.  I also made up a sheet of paper to stick in the pocket where I list all the bills, their amounts, and when they are due so I can keep track of what I have in the folder.  This system has helped me so much in making sure all the bills get paid on time.

 

 

 

Fruit & Veggie Baskets

I got this idea off of Pinterest.  They used flat-backed planters for theirs and I found these cute recipe card holders at Wal-Mart.  It was quite the deal trying to hang them up under the window though.  I kind of ruined the nail holes originally because my friend had this good idea of hanging them with Shepherd's Hooks... well, it doesn't work right under the window sill like that, so I had to use even bigger nails to fit the holes.  Regardless, they are now hanging up and I love them!  It reminds me to use potatoes, lemons, etc. when I cook since I can see them now!

I learned (on Pinterest of course) that you can save the white bulbs from green onions and grow them at home.  Here they are sitting in a vase of water on my window sill.  Now, I put green onion in everything!  It is so handy and adds flavor when I cook.  I do change out the water about once a week.  It really does work!  I was skeptical at first because I thought there just had to be more than water to make these things grow, and I'm no green thumb for sure!  But, here is proof :)

A Little Birdie Told Me Card

Front

Inside

I thought this was a super cute saying.  It took me a little bit to figure out the printer and how to print on these cards and make sure the words were going the right direction.  I think it turned out cute!

Best Wishes card

Here are all the different layers for the card.

 



 The mats layered onto the card.

 

 Each layer glued together.

 

The finished product...  Wishing you bountiful blessings.  What I like about this card is you can use it for a variety of different occassions.  

Front Door Letter

I found this idea on Pinterest...not sure where otherwise I'd give them credit.  I bought a wodden letter from Hobby Lobby and wrapped it in twine.  I used hot glue on all the ends, etc.  I stapled & hot glued ribbon to the back and glued some flowers on the front.  I used one of those adhesive hooks and turned it upside down so I could hang the ribbon over the door.  I really like how it turned out but my husband didn't like how it whipped around in the wind.  He thought it was scratching the glass so I have to take it down when it gets windy... which is A LOT in Kansas!

Command Center

I have been wanting a command center for quite some time now so I can be more organized and I got the chance when we had to move the window for our remodel project.  I did a lot of looking on Pinterest for ideas and I collaborated them into my own...

 

 

 

I picked out the green paint color to go with my "Menu" vinyl and painted the trim around the window.  The wall color is a cream.  I bought some small 6 x 6 canvas and cut out a vinyl saying to put on 2 of them.  I chose "Every love story is beautiful, but ours is my favorite".  I printed a picture of us on tissue paper (I can do a segment on that too if you would like) and modge podged it to the canvas.  I made the three stars out of scrapbook paper that matched my color scheme.

This is what sits on my desk.  I have 3 chicken wire baskets that I bought at save-on-crafts.com for $1.32 a piece.  I also got the rustic flower box and flowers on there too.  The brown drawers holds all my phone books, birthday lists for our family, and other business cards.

I cut this all out of vinyl with my Cricut.  I used chalkboard vinyl for the squares and got a chalkboard marker to write my menu on.  I put it on the side of my pantry and it is so helpful.  I can just look at that every morning and see if I need to get anything out of the freezer. 

I just think this is so cute!  I love the rustic chic vibe that it gives off :)  And I LOVE hydrangeas!

I got this bar stool from my mom who was getting rid of them.  I had my father-in-law cut the legs down so I could put it under my desk and out of the way.  I painted it the same green (Luau- Sherwin Williams) that I painted the trim.

I bought this on the back to school sales at Wal-Mart.  I wasn't even sure what I was going to use it for yet, I just knew it matched my desk area.  I ended up covering some ugly file folders iwth scrapbook paper and using it for its intended purpose.  I have 5 file folders in there right now.  Menu Planning, Budget Planning, Vacation Planning, Family Planning, and Login Information.  I keep all my blank planning lists in them so all I have to do is grab a sheet and go.  It has been so handy.  I keep one of each sheet with the word "original" written in yellow highlighter on it so I know I need to use that one to make copies from.  You can only use the yellow highlighter to make this work so the copier doesn't pick up that word.  I tried the pink... ruined all 20 copies :(

 

I looked all over for these chicken wire wall baskets!  I spent one whole day search the internet for these!  I saw some I liked at Pottery Barn but was not willing to pay the price for them.  I ended up finding these at worldmarket.com and I couldn't be happier.  They are exactly what I was lookng for.  You can even fit a file folder in it.  I labeled one Budget and one Mail.  These are the 2 most common things at our house. 

These are Marketside salad dressing bottles from Wal-Mart.  I had bought the dressing for a potluck salad so I didn't look cheap with Great Value and decided I really liked the "milk bottle" shape.  I cleaned them out and put rubber bands, binder clips, and paperclips in them.  Reuse and Recycle!



Donation Box

DONATION BOX

 

 

I took an empty box from our bathroom remodel project and cut off the "flaps".

I bought argyle, black, and white duck tape and just wrapped it around the box to cover it.  I cut out the "Donation Box" label in vinyl on my Cricut and stored the box in my front coat closet.  Now whenever I'm cleaning or organizing and decide that something is no longer useful and just taking up space I just put it in the box.  I love how helpful this has been in getting rid of stuff!

My Crafting Room

I want to give you a tour of my crafting space to start things off here so you can kinda get a feel for where I work.

Walking right through the door you see my desk the hubby made for me.  He built the base and put a countertop on top.  I LOVE IT!!  (That's a picture of him hanging on the wall.)  The shelf above the table has Cricut cartridges on it.

 

This is my paint & ribbon station. 

 

I got this metal rack from a gift shop that was going out of business.  It has my stamps that are in cases as well as my tulle.  The hanging jewelry organizer is full of all my individual stamps and I used towel rods to hold all mu punches.

 

My craft room has a huge storage closet for which I am very thankful.  Here is where I store everything else!  You can see my vinyl on the top shelf.  The second shelf has all my totes from Thirty-One that I keep things in.  One has all my adhesives, one ahs my stamp pads, one has cards, etc.

 

 

I bought this shelf at a garage sale for $2.00 and painted it white.  Those are just more Cricut cartridges.  My peg board off to the right comes in very handy for all my bling, eyelets, flowers, etc.

I got one of the paper racks from a friend who was getting rid of it.  I bought the other on e-bay.

 

Here is another angle of the same set up.

 

This is the magazine rack behind the door that my wonderful brother-in-law built for me in construction class in school out of an old door.  I LOVE IT!!!

That concludes my tour.  Let me know if you have any questions and I love comments!

Introducing...

...my all things creative blog.  I will be posting anything from cards and layouts to home decor with my own creative touch.  I do own a business called "Creative Touch by Krystal" where I have done vinyl lettering, cards, and other personalized items for customers.  I just want to use this blog to keep all my creative ideas for me to look back on or if I want to try to find a project I did in the past.  It will also be a place where I can direct potential customers of mine.  I will probably throw in some great food posts too as I love to try new recipes and dress them up for a meal worthy of guests.  I hope you enjoy looking and try to be patient with me if I don't post for a few days.  I will try to post several times a week and this will hopefully help keep me in my craft room and help me get some things done!