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There is nothing cuter than a dog in a bandana! With two greyhounds, we have a lot of bandanas. With so many, we needed to find a compact, easy way to store them.
Steph came up with a great idea for a bandana stand not to be confused with a banana stand! Take a look at how it all came together.
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I've found I like the challenge of creating different alternative Christmas trees and this year is no exception. I started the challenge by looking for suitable materials that I already had on hand.
I found a bunch of mini wood crates that I had gotten at a conference that would prove to be the perfect starting point along with some leftover wood dowels (from last year's tree) and a well aged tree branch!
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What's better than one greyhound? Two! Tosh is the second "dog daughter" to join the Mother Daughter Projects team so a new raised feeding stand was needed. Follow along as we share our DIY version.
Here are seven DIY alternatives to the traditional Christmas tree. All can be made with easy to find materials--some with recycled elements, others with standard lumber. Bonus, most are designed for easy and space saving storage when the holidays are over.
text by Vicki Sign up here to join our weekly email newsletter! The very first piece of vintage furniture that I purchased right out of college was a desk with chair. My first job was in a small north Florida town where I sublet an apartment for two months. My unit was tacked onto the back of a home and featured the smallest bathtub ever. Bonus, it had no shower so I had to connect a handheld sprayer to the tub faucet for a very rough facsimile of an actual shower. Bonus, it also had mice! That gives you a good idea why I was only there two months.
Anyway, the garage apartment was occupied by a lady that moved while I lived in the third apartment. She sold all her furniture and I was given the opportunity to pick from the leftovers. The second apartment tenant made sure he had first dibs on everything. Evidently, he was an antiques collections so he got "all the good" stuff! Not sure what he got, but I was very happy with the desk and a couple of end tables that I purchased. I used that desk for years until the chair fell apart when I then stored them both in the garage. At one point I did try to refinish it but didn't follow through. The Builder's Challenge gave me the push I needed to finally repair and refinish the pieces one and for all!
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Fall and Halloween decorating is in full swing. We're all ready for a little change of season and a little fall decor both inside and outside of our homes. In partnership with the Home Depot, we created a DIY pumpkin topiary for fall that can be swapped out for a spooky Halloween tree complete with DIY ornaments!
Head to the Home Depot to see the full video on how to build the topiary. In this post, we'll go into more detail on how to deck out your Halloween tree.
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Steph received an heirloom pearl necklace from her grandmother and wanted to find a way to display it when not wearing it.
She did a little internet research and found a couple of ideas that she adapted into a DIY design that would work. The surprise material used in this project is a glass vase! She found one the size she needed, took off the feet and inverted to use as the display case--so smart! Follow along as Steph puts together this simple, but perfect display case.
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Steph has always loved snow cones and decided 2020 was the year she needed to treat herself to a professional snow cone machine. She got it and has been making lots and lots of snow cone treats!
Not knowing what flavors she wanted, she started with two, but the collection has grown as others have requested their favorites. Mine is cherry, which ironically is Steph's least favorite! Anyway, after her collection of flavors grew so big, I suggested that it would be fun to create a tray in order to present a "flight" of snow cone flavors to guests. So, that's what we did. Watch the video or read about how we made it.
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During the porch refresh, we decided we needed some kind of decor for the large siding clad wall. After much discussion on the pros and cons of hanging it from the vinyl siding or ceiling, we decided a free standing unit to display succulents would be best. Along the way, we ended up adding to the unit which solved a vexing, ongoing problem on the porch. Happy accident!
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In this time of COVID-19, we have been making good use of the porch at Steph's house. We eat most of our meals out there. Prior to making this C-table, we brought out an indoor table to use in the space. The weather was not kind to that piece of furniture so it was time to make something more suitable.
Nothing is more suitable to the outdoors than pressure treated wood! That's what we used to make our table. It is VERY IMPORTANT to note that working with pressure treated wood can release harmful chemicals. We used all the PPE to keep ourselves safe while we worked.
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Over a year ago when we built the bed-in-a-box, we knew we wanted some kind of decoration on the side of it. We were unsure what we wanted but when we got a Cricut Maker a few months ago, we realized we could design a custom stencil to use to decorate the box and that is what we did.
Read on to see how we did it.
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A few weeks ago, I spotted a piece of plexiglass on the curb at a neighbor's house which was destined for trash pickup. I went back the next day to grab it off the curb. I didn't know what we would use it for, but knew a piece of plexiglass that large could come in handy for a project.
Shortly after I tossed it into the back of my car to take home, Steph came up with a use for it--a really good use! As you may know, Steph has a podcast (totally unrelated to our blog). She and her blog co-host have been remotely recording during the pandemic. But recently they had a guest call in from Oklahoma and realized that the two of them needed to be in the same room to record this episode. Can you see where this is going? Steph designed a portable plexiglass screen that could be used between them to help stop the spread of germs. She designed two different configurations. Pretty cool! This is perfect for her needs, but could also be used this coming fall for someone wanting to sell at a crafts fair or show. There are lots of possibilities for its use.
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This project was inspired by a light bulb--the Feit 3D Infinity Fireworks bulb. We saw it online and ordered one, then we ordered a second, and then a third! Take a look at the statement standing lamp Steph made with the three bulbs.
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This post is sponsored by The Home Depot. THD provided the Husky products used in this post.
Steph had the idea to build the ultimate Lego display and storage wall. With help from Wall Control, her dream became a reality!
When she was brainstorming ideas, it became clear that Wall Control panels and a variety of hooks and accessories would be perfect for the wall. As brand ambassador's for Wall Control, we emailed our plans and they provided all the Wall Control products used in this project. Thanks team! Take a look at how it all came together.
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This post is sponsored by The Home Depot.
Up to this point, we've always shared projects from start to finish, but not this one! We're showing the build here, but we are collaborating with our YouTube friend, Christina from Pretty Distressed, who will be sharing the finish.
Christina searched the internet and found a project from Pottery Barn's website to duplicate. It's a rustic Christmas tree that has been discontinued for many years. This is our interpretation of the design using readily available and inexpensive paint sticks. Take a look at the video to see how it all came together!
This free-standing tabletop bookshelf is highly customizable to your needs. We sized ours to fit the book (Steph's memoir, you can find more about it here) we were displaying and for the space where it would sit. Different widths or lengths of lumber can make it fit your needs.
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This post is sponsored by Surebonder.
When Surebonder asked us if we would like to participate in challenge as a way of promoting their new cord-free detail hot glue gun, we couldn't say yes fast enough! We've worked with Surebonder on a number of occasions and use their products in a lot of our projects, so we knew this would be a good fit!
For the challenge, they sent us a curated box of "stuff" which we had to use at least seven of the items in some creative way. Below is the assortment of "stuff" we received! We decided to make the pallet wood the star of the show and developed an idea from that.
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This post is sponsored by The Home Depot.
We built this portable, folding pallet wall for a booth in which to promote Steph's book at a professional conference. There was never any question we would DIY all the elements of the booth!
Steph had this idea for a pallet wall and other elements, and I just went along with what she wanted. Actually, I really never had a clear idea of the end result, but just completed the tasks as she gave them to me. It wasn't until everything was done and put together that I saw the "vision!" Read on to see how we made it and then check out some of the applications it could have in your own home.
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This post is sponsored by The Home Depot.
Several years ago, I found a small collection of vintage magazines including copies of Woman's Day at a yard sale. I eagerly read through them marveling at the advertisements, the article topics, extensive pull-out recipe sections, and the crafts! Oh, the crafts!
The issue that really caught my attention was Woman's Day, November 1964. (Let's see...I was 11 at the time of publishing, in the 6th grade, it had been a year since president Kennedy was killed, and I was in 4-H where I was learning to sew and cook.) In that issue was an article on 100 Christmas gifts to make--everything from scarves to woodworking. Every one of the 100 things were similar in that they offered scant instructions. In the sixties, I guess they assumed you already knew all the things! The mid-century bird sculpture was the one thing that I knew I wanted to make, but without the proper tools, this had to wait!
We almost never say that a project is quick and easy, but this one actually is! We purchased the materials and made it all in a couple of hours.
Steph was fostering a cat, which took a liking to her new sofa. That wasn't going to work, so Steph came up with this scratching post idea to give her a better option other than her sofa! Take a look at how it all came together.
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This post is sponsored by The Home Depot.
This was such a fun project! Upcycle projects are my favorite and this one turned out even better than we imagined.
Steph's neighbor was cleaning house and offered us the lamp you see in the BEFORE pic. These end table/floor lamps used to be pretty popular, but since I see them at yard sales and thrift stores a lot these days, I think their popularity has waned! Lucky us, they didn't want it anymore. I had a couple of ideas on how to reuse it, but we went with this coat rack upcycle for my house!
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Shortly before Steph got her dog Mac, my son Stephen and his family were adopted by a tiny little kitten! Stephen's mother-in-law found the kitty outside, under the car and brought her inside. (We thought the kitty was a he because of a blue hair dry around her neck. Surprise! She was found to be female after a trip to the vet).
No one claimed the kitty, so she was named Axel and became part of Stephen's family. The grands have been asking for a cat condo/tower/tree for Axel, Tyler even drew up a design! Although, really cute and well thought out, it would have taken far too much space. We settled on a Pinterest idea and designed with that idea in mind. As we were working out the design, we decided simple was better. We decided we'd use "found" material rather than going out and buying new. It was fun to gather items and see if they'd make it into the final design.
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Steph has had Mac, the greyhound, about two months. In that period of time, she has acquired a lot of dog gear necessitating a need for additional storage. She came up with an idea of twin wall mounted storage spaces for both she and Mac!
We were recently contacted by the Florida family owned company, Stencil Revolution, to try out some of their stencils. When this idea came about, we knew it was the perfect opportunity to try a a couple of fun stencils. We continued the family owned company theme, by also utilizing Surebonder, the family owned hot glue gun and adhesive company, as well Georgia family owned company, Wall Control. Read on to see how our "we are family" project came together.
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This post is sponsored by Quikrete.
The humble supplies below came together into one of our favorite projects ever! When we spotted those flame light bulbs- we just knew we had to do something with them. At the time of purchase, we had no idea what to do with them, we just knew we had to use them!
With a little bit of engineering, styrofoam, melamine, toy bricks, and Quikrete mortar mix, we were able to cast the perfect faux fireplace! Take a look at how it came together. |