• DIY plant hanging rod
    DIY,  gardening and landscape

    DIY Plant Hanging Rod Secured to the Ceiling

    We recently built a plant hanging rod on our sunporch, so I guess I’m a plant person now? Perhaps I should have ended that sentence more declaratively. I’m a plant person now! Nope. That label still feels more uncomfortable than that time I touched poison ivy. I have some house plants. Not a lot. More than what’s on the barren surface of the moon and less than what’s in a tropical jungle. I also have some outdoor plants that I had the wild idea to try and keep alive over the winter. Three of those outdoor plants are ferns in hanging pots. They really liked hanging on my front porch…

  • sea shanty squats
    Exercise

    Get More Movement in Your Day With Sea Shanty Squats

    Sea Shanty Squats? Yes. You read that correctly. What does that have to do with home improvement, old houses, and DIY? Absolutely nothing. I just didn’t want my regular readers to get into a reading rut. I consider it my duty to keep you on your toes. Hence the Sea Shanty Squats. Are you saying, “What in the world? Has she lost her ever-loving mind?” Possibly? Not every day, but almost every day around 5 o’clock when I’m tasked with the chore privilege of making my family dinner that one of them will inevitably complain about, I find the time to do some Sea Shanty Squats. What is this brilliant…

  • living room window fall 2021 on the happy list
    happy list

    Happy List: #234

    Hello, hello! Welcome to the Happy List! I hope you are doing well. This week on the blog I shared my 2021 Holiday Gift Guide for Tweens and Teens. If you need help with someone else, I’ve got nothing for you. Hahahahaha! I also shared a very specific tip that I hope you never have to use: how to get stuck on protective film off of plexiglass. If you don’t follow along with us on Instagram or Facebook stories, please join us there! That’s where all the stuff in between the blog posts happens. Also, here’s your weekly reminder if you create something that makes you happy however big or small,…

  • how to remove plexiglass film that is stuck on
    cleaning,  DIY

    How to Remove Plexiglass Film That is Stuck On

    After much trial and error, I can definitively tell you how to remove plexiglass film that is stuck on. I’m talking baked-on protective plexiglass film that no amount of prying or peeling will remove. If Google brought you here to fix this specific problem then this below photo of plexiglass film that is stuck on probably looks familiar. Hopefully yours isn’t dotted with tears of frustration. We had a piece of plexiglass that was installed over a broken basement window. We don’t know how long the plexiglass had been filling the role of a window but suffice to say it had been years. No one had ever removed the protective…

  • 2021 holiday gift guide tweens and teens
    gift and learning

    2021 Holiday Gift Guide for Tweens and Teens

    Shopping for tweens and teens this holiday season? They can be tough to shop for any time of the year and especially without breaking the bank! I’ve heard this is not the year to procrastinate on shopping, so here’s my Holiday Gift Guide For Tweens and Teens that are tween and teen-approved. Yep, I informally polled my kids and their friends, and here is the consensus of what tweens and teens want this holiday season. Kidding. There wasn’t consensus. Everyone mainly wants something different. Then there is REALITY because this mom knows what her kids can actually handle and what she’s willing to spend. For reference: I have a boy in…

  • grey fireplace morning light
    happy list

    Happy List: #233

    Welcome to the Happy List! I hope the first week of November (!) has treated you well. This week on the blog I shared how to fix a sagging wood bench. No one wants a saggy anything! I also recapped a recent thrifting adventure to two new-to-me antique shops. If you don’t follow along with us on Instagram or Facebook stories, please join us there! That’s where all the stuff in between the blog posts happens. Also, here’s your weekly reminder if you create something that makes you happy however big or small, please tag me! I really do love to see what you are making. Now, here’s the Happy List!…

  • chelsea forge antiques and design
    thrifting

    Happy Thrifting: Chelsea Forge Antiques and Quaker Antique Mall

    A few weekends ago I left the ten-mile radius surrounding our house to explore some new-to-me antique shops. As you can see, I’m really branching out. I even crossed over the border into Pennsylvania! Although, that’s not saying much because as the crow flies we practically live on the border of New Jersey and Pennsylvania. I figured if I was going to leave my comfort zone, I’d better check out an antique shop that had a ton of square footage, so I chose the Quaker Antique Mall in Quakertown, Pennsylvania. As luck would have it, Chelsea Forge Antiques and Design (pictured above) was right on my way, so I stopped there…

  • how to fix a sagging wood bench
    DIY

    How to Fix a Sagging Wood Bench

    So you have a sagging wood bench and want to know how to fix it? You’ve come to the right place. If there’s one thing we can help you avoid in life it’s the potential emotional and physical trauma that would come from sitting on a sagging wood bench and having it break. No one wants that to happen to them. But if it was caught on camera and you were okay…Alright, not even then. Now on to the tutorial! First of all, I’m going to assume that the wood that is sagging on your bench is not rotten. You need to double-check that. If it is rotten and you…

  • halloween turkey vulture in cemetery on the happy list
    happy list

    Happy List: #232

    Hello, hello, and happy early Halloween! Welcome to the Happy List! This week on the ol’ blog I shared the Star Ring Story. It was one of those moments in life that just seemed to stick with me in all the right ways. I also shared the inclusion of my Halloween mantel on the U.K. magazine Living Etc.’s website. That was a lovely Halloween treat! If you don’t follow along with us on Instagram or Facebook stories, please join us there! That’s where all the stuff in between the blog posts happens. Also, here’s your weekly reminder if you create something that makes you happy however big or small, please tag…

  • diy witch's broom Scandi-cool Halloween Trend
    holidays

    Proud To Be Part of a Scandi-cool Halloween Trend

    Last week I learned Living Etc. featured one of my photos in an article titled “These 5 Scandi-cool Halloween Trends Maintain Your Home’s Style This Spooky Season.” I’m not exactly sure what Scandi-cool means, but if you want to group me in with anything cool, I’m pretty sure I’m down with that. Maybe? I’m not sure. This coolness thing is an uncomfortable feeling. How do all of you cool people handle the pressure? This photo of my witch’s broom leaning next to my dining room mantel is the photo that was featured in the article along with photos from other contributors, including Studio McGee! Yep, THE Studio McGee with a decorating…