12 Handmade Holiday Gift Ideas
I hear supply chains are constricted, so here are 12 handmade holiday gift ideas to consider making for your friends and family this year. The best part is some of these gift ideas are DIY cheats meaning not totally handmade from scratch. They just have a handmade, personal touch. That totally counts! Ready? Let the inspiration flow: Handmade Holiday Gift Ideas: Game Boards Board games are often popular gifts. How about making a handmade checkers board or chessboard? You could keep it a little easier and make a Tic Tac Toe board too. If you’re interested in vintage wood checkers to go with your game board, you can find them on…
Kraft Paper Snowflake Mantel for the Holidays
I hope you’re sitting in a warm, cozy place while you check out my Kraft Paper Snowflake Mantel! I had a jolly good time making all 33 snowflakes on this Kraft Paper Snowflake Mantel. Yes, I counted. “Jolly good time” makes it sound like it was a party. I haven’t been to one of those in…well, we don’t need to count everything in this blog post. That would be depressing. Perhaps it is better to say I was in the mood to create something with my hands, so spending several hours making 33 kraft paper snowflakes was satisfying. Plus, I enjoy making something that looks way more complicated than it…
Thanksgiving 2021
Does anyone else feel like 2021 has flown by? Perhaps it is because the first half was just a blur as we slogged our way through the Covid-19 pandemic. I’d say we are still slogging our way through it, but with many more tools in our toolbelt. Thanks, science! This week I’ll be taking time off the blog to celebrate Thanksgiving with our family. One of the things I’m thankful for is that you have spent time engaging with us over the blog and social media during this last year. The DIY rollercoaster is always more enjoyable when our online friends (Yes, you!) can join us for all the ups,…
Happy List: #235
Hello! Welcome to the Happy List! This week on the blog I shared my new workout routine. No one asked for it, but I shared it anyway! I also shared the new way we are hanging plants on our sunporch! If you don’t follow along with us on Instagram or Facebook stories, please join us there! That’s where all the spontaneous projects in between the blog posts happen. 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! PINECONES If you live in a place where…
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…
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…
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
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 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…
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!…
