I really like Fall...

...and I'm starting early!

I started making stuff for Fall decor and I'm pleased with what I've come up with already!

Take a looksie!

This is a fall plaque I made from cardboard, burlap and random ribbon and twine I had lying around.

I love this wreath, but I'm not so sure how much it loves me back.  I burnt some wrist skin off making this baby.  Ouch!

This is just a preview of what I have planned for fall...stay tuned for some more sneak peeks!

Last Free Weekend...

for a while!

Monday, I go back to work for the 2012-2013 school year.  Kind of bittersweet since I love my job, but I got so many projects done this summer!  And I feel refreshed and ready to go back for a new school year.  

We're wrapping the summer up by heading to Bass Pro Shops to check out their camping gear.  We're planning a camping trip to a star party in the near future to use the telescope!  It's up in Cherry Springs Park in Pennsylvania and it will great!

Tomorrow is a first birthday party! I love those!  The kid is so darn cute and we got him a little Puma jumpsuit!

Well, here's a little photo montage of this summer and all the fun we had here at the Fensch residence!  I had a lot of Blog-firsts this summer and I am proud to say that I joined a few linky parties, made some new friends on the blogosphere and am ready to get moving on this blog!

1) Chevron Rug 2) My first Pinterest Challenge Party 3) Reorganization! 4 &5) First Anniversary Shoot 6) Telescope 7) Driftwood Decor 8) New Car 9) Bathroom Showcase 10) DIY Bench and Hooks 11) DIY Growth Chart 12) Shellac

How was your summer vaca?  Do anything special? Any big projects?  Are you ready for fall?! (I know I am! ;)

Leave a nice note and I'll come hang out at your blog, too!

BTW, I'm linking up over at tatertots & jello for the Weekend Wrap-up!

DIY Chevron Rug

I had this ratty old rug (sorry, no before picture; I jumped right on this project!) that was under all of our shoes in the front entryway.  Well, it had some stains that I got out with a mixture of vinegar and hydrogen peroxide (thank you, Pinterest!) and it dried overnight.  Today, I painted it my favorite print right now, CHEVRON!

Here is a short and hopefully simple tutorial on what I did!

1.  Tape down your rug in a chevron print.  I didn't use a template for this part because I just wanted to get it done! ;) I just eyed it out and taped it down.

2.  Next, using an exacto knife, cut the excess pieces of tape so you have a crisp chevron look, like below!

3. Tada!

4.  Now, you're ready for paint! I really contemplated painting it a crazy color like, blue or green, but ended up going neutral and painted it a sandy color.

5.  Using a cheapo roller brush, just roll the paint on.  Don't worry about covering the tape.  If it's good tape, you won't have to worry about spillage!

6.  Next, just wait patiently for it to dry!

 7. DONE! (okay, so I didn't wait patiently and ripped the tape off about 10 minutes after I painted it! I was just so psyched to see it!)
Here are a few more photos!

Ollie loves to pose for photos!

So, how do you like?!  Try your own and let me know how it turns out!

I'm linking up over at The Shabby Nest, The Shabby Creek Cottage and tatertots & jello!
Head over for some great project ideas!

DIY Bench

I decided that since summer is slowly coming to an abrupt end and school will start up again, I would finish the summer with a big project.  Yes, this bench is big for me considering the only power tool I own is a drill.  I went to Lowe's and had the handymen cut my pieces for me and took them home to build this darling little bench that took me about 2 hours to make (not including the stain and stencil; that only took about an hour).  Sorry, there is no tutorial for this one, but I was inspired by a great blog I found via Pinterest.  Check out some of her projects, really cute!

Enjoy!

Yep, added it to the bedroom with my cute DIY Hook Hanger! :)

Any last minute end-of-the-summer projects in your line-up?

BTW, I'm linking up over at The Shabby Creek Cottage for Transformation Thursday! And The Shabby Nest for Frugal Friday! And tatertots & jello for Weekend Wrapup! Go check out all the fun projects over there!

Reorganization: One of my favorite words!

This weekend, it was rainy and yucky and kind of chilly (nice break from the heat these last couple of weeks).  So I took full advantage of the inclement weather and decided to

REORGANIZE!

I love to do it and it comes naturally to me!

I started with the kitchen and moved some stuff around; my craft corner, the table and the mess under the sink got revamped.

The living room was easy because there isn't much there.  But right now there is a heap of stuff that needs donated and thrown out.  Kind of excited about junk piles!

My pride and joy is my hall closet!  I totally cleaned it out, moved some stuff to other closets and even threw a bunch of stuff out.  Here are some before shots:

Pretty bad, huh?  That's what a messy loving husband and two dogs will do to your closet.

If you remember in a previous post, I said I was thinking about some storage bins and trying to decide what to use.  Well, Target's dollar section came to the rescue!  I got these cuties for $2.50 a piece and did my own little bit of hocus pocus on them to fit my decor.  I love them and they are the perfect fit for my shelves.  

I am still working on covering up my other bins and debating whether or not to spend the $29.99 on the amazing wire basket at Marshall's for my hair dryer/irons.  The cardboard box would go up in flames after one hair-do!

Those towels are not purple...yuk...they are brown; but my phone is stupid and takes really bad pictures.

The left side of the closet is waiting for a privacy curtain to go up.  Just need to find the right fabric/curtain!

How do you like?  Do you randomly reorganize too?  What kind of weekend mischief did you get into?

~Ami~

Linking up to TheShabbyNest: Frugal Friday

Bathroom Showcase

I'm linking up today over at Thrifty Decor Chick and her "Show Us Your House: Bathroom Edition" party!

Mr. F did a nice panorama on his iPhone...thanks hunny! (click on me to see closer details)

I've done a little bit of DIY in our bathroom...just a little bit.  But I plan to do more once we have our own home and more bathrooms.  When we registered for our wedding, my dearest hubby we chose brown and red {a little too country for my taste, but he insisted}.  So right now, our "master" and only bathroom is in red, brown and ivory.  We've had the shower curtain for some time and the rug is so old that the ivory is turning pink from so many washes! So that will be upgraded soon enough...

The "friends" plaque was a gift from a dear friend a few years back.

I DIY'd the "bath" plaques.  I love Michael's wood section.  They had adorable plain, ready to paint frames for only a buck and I grabbed four.  I had paint, twine and floral wire on hand and just kind of went at it and came up with the cute {country-esque} plaques.

{Needless to say, this will probably become our guest bathroom in our own home or maybe even just scraped...but it works for us for now!}

Thanks for stopping by!

~Ami~

Brainstorming Storage...

I've been all over Pinterest and the world wide web looking for a super duper free cheap way to either buy or make some storage bins for various areas of our little box we like to call "home".  

I don't have kids so the famous diaper box bins may not be feasible unless I go a) dumpster diving or b) raid my fellow teachers' classrooms for leftovers.  I thought about just biting the bullet and going to Ikea or Target and just buying some and revamping them to match our decor but I just can't bring myself to pay more money than I have to for storage options.  

So I've been collecting some ideas.  Hopefully, I'll pick one and stick with it before my overflowing closets get the best of me!

source

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Here are some other options that would be feasible for decorative storage that would hold "out-in-the-open-for-the-world-to-see" junk.  Thinking about it...

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And last, but certainly not least...if I could afford these puppies, you better believe I would buy out Anthro and they would ALL be mine!! I love me some chevron!

Source: Anthropologie shout out!

Hopefully, I'll make a decision soon and be able to share my results or perhaps a tutorial on my own twist on homemade storage options!

Stay tuned, readers!

~Ami~

 

Pinterest Challenge Party!

I'm linking up to Centsational Girls's "Pinterest Challenge Party" today! I am so excited because it is my first real blog post onto another blog!!

I chose my Ballard Designs knock-off project I found from Mrs. DIY and the Tennis Guy.  

 Ballard Designs Knock-Off

I wanted to add some more pillows to our bed so I thought these would be perfect.  Mrs. DIY gave a great tutorial for how to stencil the letters onto her burlap.  Below is my tutorial on using drop cloth and stamps.  Enjoy and go check out Centsational Girl's Blog Party!

I started off with two pillow forms I got from Ikea a long long time ago and my 4X5 foot piece of drop cloth from Lowe's.  (I love that stuff by the way!)  Put that together with my handy dandy tape measure and scissors and pencil and we're ready to go!

Since my pillow forms were 13 inches by 13 inches, I measured my drop cloth at 16 by 16 for some extra room. I cut a total of four pieces, two for each pillow.

Next I ironed my pieces so they were nice and flat and smooth.

I haven't invested in a sewing machine yet, so I pulled out the most awesome stuff: Stitch witchery!  Love it and it works for so much.  Since these are decorative pillows, I figured it would suffice.

After each pillow was fused, I flipped them inside out to paint.

Then came the fun part: printing!  I used my super cheap stamps from Joann's to paint with acrylics and then just stamp onto drop cloth.

Here's what they looked like after a quick stamp.  Then I filled them in by hand painting them with a small brush.

And now, the final project! All in all, these took me about 2 hours.  It would have been less if I had a sewing machine, but well worth it and I love that they match our bed set.

Try it if you like it!

"4' x 15' Canvas Drop Cloth 58908"