Closet Door Makeover

As most of you know, we recently moved and we are still doing "home renos" on our brand new house.  This was one of our latest projects that NEEDED to be done!  My daughters door opens RIGHT into her closet door.  So she had to remember to either 1. Keep her closet door closed or 2. Open her bedroom door slowly.  She's six.  Neither option EVER happened.

So this is the before picture.  Worst. Build Idea. Ever.

A trip to Giant Tiger got us a GREAT deal on a simple curtain rod ($10) and purple sparkly curtains ($5/each).

And now there is no more crashing of doors and it really "dolls" up (not that it needed it) her room.

Homemade Foamy Soap

One day while shopping at Liquidation World I found these foamy hand soaps and I picked one up to see how I would like it.  Well, I LOVED it but eventually it ran out and for some strange reason, I saved the container.  Then one night while flipping through Pinterest I found the reason I had saved that bottle!  It was instructions on how to make your own foamy soap using my cheap soap that I always buy!

Here are the simple directions that I follow.  I have played around with the ratios but find this one works best.  If you add too much soap, it separates and it still works, but you have to shake it a little before each use.

1/10 or less of soap

the rest water

When you have filled it with water (with the tap running VERY slowly), DO NOT SHAKE THE CONTAINER!  Tip it back and forth, up and down and it will eventually all mix together.

I love this soap because the kids ALWAYS squirt out too much soap from the regular dispenser.  This way, it is watered down a little bit and they love washing their hands.

Car Kleenex Box

Do you ever have the problem of keeping the kleenex box in your car in decent condition?  I know personally, mine always gets stepped on and in the winter, with snow on the boots, it gets wet and gross and I know I'm not alone.  I found this idea and I knew it would work well in our van.  But I did it a LITTLE bit different.  I found the container at the Dollar Store, which was great.  I actually found a wooden kleenex box that I thought would be perfect, but I was with my mom who in all her wisdom suggested that it too, would get wet.  So we took that box with us to compare sizes and went to the plastic containers.  There wasn't one that fit perfectly, but this was the closest.  When I got it home, I tried putting the box into the container and it wouldn't fit.  So I took out all of the kleenex and put that in the container instead, leaving it the same way as in the box so it still comes out nice.  Then I cut a hole in the lid, but it on and voila!  I haven't had to use it yet, but I'm hoping it does the trick!

Homemade Bathtub Cleaning Solution

It works!  It really works!  That's what I kept reading on Pinterest.  So I decided to try it.  I don't like smelly cleaners - I usually use vinegar and clean that way.  I had my own Bathtub cleaner, too.

Laundry Soap + Baking Soda.  Combine the two until the soap is a little bit thicker and use a sponge to scrub away the grime.

However, this idea seemed easier - and people said it was working - so I gave it a shot.
Dawn Dish Soap + Vinegar.  Equal parts of both.  Pour dish soap into a spray bottle.  Heat vinegar in the microwave and then add it to the spray bottle.  Gently shake and you're ready to go!
My personal verdict??  They both work about the same - REALLY well - but I do prefer the Dish soap and vinegar because it is in a spray bottle.  I still use the sponge and scrub, but I prefer spray bottles to apply.  I think that part is a personal choice.

Make Your Own Watering Can

The first item on the Summer Bucket List: Make Your Own Watering Can

I had collected the jug and cap a while back because I knew that we would be doing this ONE day.  I found a hammer and a screw (I figured the screw would make a bigger hole) and I showed the kids how to hold the hammer and how to safely hit the screw into the lid.  They both had a lot of fun attempting.  Mommy's fingers got hit a bit, but they were having a great time.  Goodbye manicure that I just got done three days ago . . .

And this is wha the lid looked like when we finished . . .

The holes were still small, so it was taking a long time for the water to come out.  I showed my daughter how to squeeze the carton so that the water would come out faster.  This worked for a while, but her hands got sore after a while. 

So I decided to finish off the water that was in the jug - and this is what happened with my powerful muscles . . .  Verdict: Spend the money and get a watering can.  Not worth it AT ALL!  However, if you are looking for something to keep the kids busy one afternoon - do it!  Just don't expect it to last.

Crayon Travel Case

These travel wipes containers are another thing that we have a lot of laying around the house.  Now that we don't use as many of them anymore (I don't think anyone gives up wipes with kids, until the kids are at LEAST 10!)  Our current mode of transporting crayons is a plastic ziplock bag.  Great in theory, but can lead to spilling and breaking of the crayons.  So with my kids by my side, we created new crayon holders, in which they were VERY excited about.  These containers went into the restaurant bags (more to come on those another day) and now we have a better, safer way to transport our crayons.

Travel First Aid Kit

I have so many of these containers in my house, I hate to throw them out because they are nice containers, but with my son pretty much potty trained, we can't really reuse them anymore.  When we are out and about, my kids always need things that I don't have on me.  I thought was a great idea to have in the car because we are an on-the-go family!

I didn't put a fancy cover on it like the original, for a couple of reasons.  One, I don't honestly have the time to make it look pretty and two, why does it have to look pretty?  I threw in some bandaids, kleenex, lip chap, hand sanitizer, clorox wet ones and an actual travel first aid kit.  I'm not sure where I got that First Aid Kit, but it works here perfectly!

Can of Dates

Original Post: My Creative Stirrings

Our Story:
Every so often my husband and I get to go on a date.  I know, sounds crazy, but we do.  It's always the same.  Supper and movie.  But lately, it's just supper cause there have been no good movies that we BOTH want to see.  I saw this idea as a gift and thought it would be kind of neat to take a look at for ourselves.  But you could use this idea as a gift or just make it for yourself.  You can even order straight from her on ETSY but she does give 36 more simple ideas right on her website.  So that was what I used to get us started.  I just chose some simple ones that I thought would best suit our personalities.  I can't wait to try some of them out - especially the alphabet ones - we could do those over and over again and always come up with something different!  How I made it was simple.  I just cut up coloured pieces of paper and wrote some of her ideas on them.  I am currently using an old cornstarch container that my husband brought home from work.  Once I find something fancier - even a jar would be better - I will move them into there.  Besides, it's not what the jar looks like, it's what inside that matters.

Clothespin Magnets

Original Post: One Artsy Mama

Our Story:
This project is really only halfway finished, but I wanted to share it with you anyways because even halfway finished, it's a fabulous idea.  It just doesn't look as pretty as I had wanted.  On our fridge we have a TON of pictures - as I'm sure many other people do.  For Christmas a couple years ago, my auntie bought me these magnetic frames to use on the fridge!  I loved them!

However, they took up a lot of space, as handy as they were, so when I saw THIS idea I couldn't help but fall in love with how little space it took up on the fridge.  I went to Walmart and bought some magnetic strips with sticky on the back.  I already had some clothespins leftover from other projects and it was as simple as that.  Stick the magnets onto the clothespins and voila!  I want my daughter actually to decorate the clothespins, we just haven't remembered to do it.  You could also spend the time to put fabric or ribbon on it, too, but I don't have that kind of time.  I just like that they are small, simple and can hold more than one picture. However, I wouldn't go more than two.

Framed Maps

Original Post: Everything Fabulous

Our Story:
If you have some old maps that you don't know what to do with now that you have GPS, check out this idea!  I didn't really do this because of that, because I didn't have any maps, but I did love the idea.  There are three frames, one heart in each - where I met my husband, where we got married and where we spent our honeymoon.   I just used Google Maps to print off each location and then cut out a heart shape.  That simple!  I had some extra frames sitting around because of all the ones I took off the wall for the Korea Collage.  Otherwise, I would have just got them from the Dollar Store.  Of course.

Cords and Cables

Original Post: Apartment Therapy

Our Story:
This is kind of a continuation of a previous post that I created.  I now needed to label all the cords that were currently being used.  But we didnt' have enough bread tags and we garbage ours as soon as we open a bag and use clothespins instead.  So I used the labels that I had bought before.  Same idea, just different cords and cables.  What a fabulous idea!  Now I know what I am unplugging before I do it!  This was originally on my Frugal Living Board, but because I didn't recycle, I don't think it's frugal . . . however, I did use something that I already had in my house!

Fork Frame

Original Post: Etsy

Our Story:
I thought this was a really cute idea, but I was so lazy to dig out those pliers, that I just wasn't getting around to it.  Finally one day I made myself.  The first fork I pulled out was a good, expensive fork.  It didn't work.  They don't bend.  So I found a cheap fork in the drawer and started moving the parts.  If you don't have a cheap fork at home, check the Dollar Store!  I will admit, my husband put the finishing touches on this, as I could NOT get it to stand up properly.  I had a picture of the kids that I wasn't using (4x6) and I placed it on the fork.  Finished!  It's now sitting on our bookcase in our bedroom.

Verdict:
I would NOT put this picture holder in a young child's room.  It really could be used as a weapon and I wouldn't want anyone losing an eye!

Journal

Original Post: Design Sponge

Our Story:
I have always loved to write.  Maybe that's why I decided to do this blog.  But I gave it up (along with much more) for something that I love even more!  My kids!  I gave it up because I didn't have time.  At night, I was so tired that I just wanted to collapse into bed and go to sleep so I could somewhat function the next morning.  This New Years, I made a resolution to start keeping a journal again - but I was scared about having to write a bunch and then keeping all these journals forever . . . blah, blah, blah.  But I found this AWESOME idea and I went to Staples for all of my supplies.  A recipe box, recipe cards and little index cards for each month in the year.
The idea is, each index card is a day.  Before you go to bed, you write the year, followed by one simple sentence describing your day.  Exampe: 2012: Went shopping with my mom.  The first year - kinda boring.  But after you have completed a year, every time you go to write in your journal, you can read what you were doing exactly a yeat ago (or two or three or four).
I decided to write the day on each index card.  When I was at the Dollar Store, I noticed you can by a date stamp for $1 - so I guess that choice is yours.  It's no extra work really.  I write the day on each night.  Come next year, I won't have to do it anymore.

Verdict:
I enjoy the ease of just writing a quick sentence.  Sometimes it's hard to even think of ONE sentence, let alone a whole journal entry.  It's quick, easy and it's something that I look forward to looking back on year after year after year!

Car Garbage

Original Post: Better Homes and Gardens 

Our Story:
I know I'm not alone on this one, so I hope this can help some of you out!  At all times (I think they reproduce) I have dirty Kleenexes and food wrappers in the van console.  When I saw this, I was very excited!  I got my husband to bring me home a plastic container from work.  He cut a triangle shaped hole in the lid and I put in a grocery bag.  Presto.  Done.  Best garbage ever!

Verdict:
It never spills and I love having it in my van.  I put it in front of the passenger seat because usually no body is sitting there.  Word of advice though: Don't put garbage in it that will get moldy or start stinking up the van.

Bookmarks

Original Post: Altered to Perfection

Our Story:
So we are going on holidays in 8 days and I plan on taking a book with me to read.  I'm not a big reader, but I am part of a bookclub so that I can maybe get more into reading again (I use to LOVE reading as a kid).  Plus, bookclubs are a great social gathering - with ADULT conversation.  Not that I don't love the conversations that I have with my 1 and 4 year old, but come on . . .  Anyways.  I needed to make this bookmark because I honestly don't have one at my house and usually use flyers.  I'm ashamed.  I quickly put this together and I am very excited about how easy it was!  I just used a regular paper clip and some ribbon I had laying around, but it will work.

Verdict:
This was my first bookmark, but it will NOT be my last!   I can't wait to make some more with colourful paper clips and some nicer ribbon.  I plan on putting them in stockings next Christmas and giving them away as little gifts here and there.