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A Pretty Happy Home

Life, DIY and Random Things That Make Me Smile

  • Home
  • About
    • About
    • Contact
  • Shop
  • Projects
    • Cleaning
    • Clothing
    • Colonial Farmhouse
    • Crafts
    • Decorating
    • DIY Projects
    • Holidays
  • Adventure
    • Moving to Ireland
    • Living in Ireland
    • Visiting Ireland
    • Travel
    • Family and Parenting
    • Humor
    • Learning
  • Privacy Policy
  • Home
  • About
    • About
    • Contact
  • Shop
  • Projects
    • Cleaning
    • Clothing
    • Colonial Farmhouse
    • Crafts
    • Decorating
    • DIY Projects
    • Holidays
  • Adventure
    • Moving to Ireland
    • Living in Ireland
    • Visiting Ireland
    • Travel
    • Family and Parenting
    • Humor
    • Learning
  • Privacy Policy

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  • refinished wood mirror how to label diy furniture
    decorating,  DIY

    3 Ways To Label DIY Furniture

    January 23, 2023 /

    Have you ever thought about how to label DIY furniture? Or even if or why you should label DIY furniture? We’ve made DIY furniture for years but didn’t think about labeling it until a couple of years ago when we had an “oh no” moment. We own a wood-framed mirror that, according to family lore, was made by my husband’s grandpa. Everyone in the family knew it was made by him but no one in the family could remember when he made it, why he made it, who he made it for, etc. The story of this mirror is now lost and that’s sad from a family history perspective. If…

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    annisa 0 Comments

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    Paper Pumpkin Centerpiece

    October 14, 2015
    large fireplace in an old house decorated for christmas with seven nutcrackers of varying sizes on the mantel and an off centered green garland with red berries. Layered on the mantel is a handmade nut garland comprised of walnuts, hazelnuts, and almonds. Sitting in front of the fireplace is a skinny christmas tree with a tree collar that looks like a red drum. The tree is decorated with faux red and white berries and ornaments fashioned out of nuts.

    Nutcracker Holiday Mantel Decor

    December 3, 2025

    Candy Cane Advent Calendar

    December 4, 2015
  • black sunporch bench new bench for the sunporch navy blue sunporch
    decorating,  DIY

    New Bench For The Sunporch

    January 11, 2023 /

    We have a new bench for the sunporch. Yes, it’s a DIY bench because those are our favorite kind. We do not have a shortage of benches in this house. Including the new bench for the sunporch, we now have six benches. All but one of them have been DIYed either fully or partially. I guess we like benches. Why did we need a bench for the sunporch in particular? There should be an obvious answer to that question. However, the new bench is not for sitting. At least, not right now. The bench is for the plants. I needed an elevated surface to get some of the plants off…

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    annisa 0 Comments

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    September 20, 2023

    When Your Husband Takes Your Prank Seriously

    June 17, 2018
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    Paper Flower Garland

    March 19, 2025
  • colonial farmhouse
    DIY

    3 Funny Moments From Recent DIY Projects

    November 14, 2022 /

    We’ve been immersed in DIY home projects lately as we rush to get things done before the winter weather comes. We wouldn’t have to rush if we’d started them earlier, but this blog post is about funny moments from recent DIY projects and not about procrastination. I’ll write that one later. I’m calling these funny moments because they are funny now. At the time they were more like “Are you kidding me?” moments. Or maybe “Are we on hidden camera?” moments. If we had our own tv show we would probably need writers because our actual script would seem too implausible. No one would believe the funny moments DIY creates around…

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    annisa 2 Comments

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    DIY Mission-Style Table Legs from 4x4s

    February 3, 2025
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    Stone Carriage House Gym: Part 4, Pipes In Stone Walls

    May 14, 2025
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    Fieldstone Porch For Our Carriage House

    October 23, 2024
  • DIY recessed toilet paper holder
    DIY

    How To Make a Recessed Toilet Paper Holder

    October 3, 2022 /

    Here’s the thing you didn’t know you needed – a recessed toilet paper holder. I’ll try to refrain from using any potty jokes during this blog post. Okay? Now, let’s flush out the reasons why a recessed toilet paper holder makes sense in certain situations, and then we’ll get to the bottom of how to make a recessed toilet paper holder. Number One: A recessed toilet paper holder makes sense for small bathrooms where space is tight or additional storage is needed. Number Two: You just might like how a recessed toilet paper holder looks. Everyone likes to go in a stylish bathroom. The idea for our recessed toilet paper…

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    annisa 0 Comments

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    All About Our 240-Year-Old Pumpkin Pine Wood Floors

    March 30, 2020

    Cat-tastic Chair Makeover

    July 9, 2018

    DIY Live Edge Wood Coffee Table

    May 23, 2018
  • How To Remove The Engraving On Slate Coasters
    decorating,  DIY

    How To Remove The Engraving On Slate Coasters

    September 21, 2022 /

    Slate coasters are popular gifts because they can be engraved with a personal or promotional message. But what if you want to remove the engraving on slate coasters? I can help with that. Our family recently completed a “fun” run together. If you have to put “fun” in the title of the event then it probably isn’t fun, but I digress. For completing the fun run we each received a promotional slate coaster with the name of the fun run engraved into the slate. I now had a set of 4 fun run slate coasters. They were a cool promotional gift, but not something I’d want to use in my…

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    annisa 1 Comment

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    Use a Cake Stand to Corral Bathroom Counter Clutter

    March 23, 2022

    My Design Style Is a Little Bit Funky

    April 30, 2018

    Natural Rock Soap Dish

    July 24, 2017
  • trick to making front door look bigger with paint paint the trim and door the same color
    DIY,  gardening and landscape

    How We Made Our Front Door Look Bigger With Paint

    September 19, 2022 /

    Let’s talk about how we made our front door look bigger with paint and only paint. Once again, the MVP of DIY saves the day. If you want to be all technical about it, I can concede the primary purpose of a front door is to allow access to a home. However, you and I know that the REAL purpose of a front door is to make a darn good impression on all the people who regularly see it like the Amazon driver, the UPS driver, and the FedEx driver. What?!? Am I hearing you correctly? Folks other than delivery people come to your house. Regularly?!? Huh. You must be…

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    annisa 0 Comments

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    Carriage House Interior Makeover Madness

    July 27, 2022

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    September 29, 2014
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    Stone Carriage House: Part 8, Time Capsule

    June 25, 2025
  • kitchen peg rail for added functionality black peg rail on black cabinets
    decorating,  DIY

    Kitchen Peg Rail Adds So Much Functionality

    September 14, 2022 /

    We recently added a small kitchen peg rail to the end of our cabinets and I swear angels sang the Hallelujah Chorus when we finished installing it. This kitchen peg rail added a surprising amount of functionality and, dare I say, style to our kitchen. I didn’t take a true “before” picture of the peg rail, but I found it at the thrift store for $2. I’m sure I don’t have to tell you that we live in a time and age where $2 doesn’t even buy you a cup of coffee in most places. I could not buy the materials to make a small kitchen peg rail for $2,…

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    annisa 0 Comments

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    January 6, 2020

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    May 27, 2016

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    February 13, 2015
  • Reclaimed Kitchen Bar From An Old Piano
    decorating,  DIY

    Reclaimed Kitchen Bar From An Old Piano

    August 29, 2022 /

    We created a reclaimed kitchen bar from an old piano. Yes, a piano. Are you surprised? No, the kitchen bar doesn’t look like a piano. Are you disappointed? If you’ve ever had the fortune (please note I did not say if it was good or bad fortune) to dismantle a piano, you will discover there’s a surprising amount of high-quality lumber inside. Old pianos are SOLIDLY built and typically made with gorgeous hardwood. Below is a picture of how our old piano started out. Please note this piano came with a house we purchased. We already owned a piano. There are a lot of things we need, even want in…

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    annisa 0 Comments

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    Grey Fireplace Mantel in our Master Bedroom

    May 11, 2020
    How to Mount Antlers on an Acrylic Base

    How to Mount Antlers on an Acrylic Base

    February 13, 2019
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    Everything But a Drink Table

    July 13, 2026
  • diy rustic towel bar from an antique harness
    decorating

    DIY Rustic Towel Bar From An Antique Harness

    August 22, 2022 /

    Who needs a rustic towel bar? Me, apparently. And maybe one of you. One of the things we found on our property was an antique harness that would have been part of the connection between a horse and a buggy or horse and a farm implement. At least, that’s what I think it is, but I could be wrong. From what I can tell, these harnesses go by different names: Singletree harness, Whiffletree harness, Whippletree harness, and leader-bars. Ours seems to be missing the center connection though. It looks like it could have been there and broken off, but that’s the only thing that makes me question whether or not…

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    Racing Trophy Display Door

    June 8, 2014
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    Bedroom Peg Rail – One Entire Wall of Storage

    March 12, 2025
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    Tiffany-Style Bedroom Ceiling Fan

    September 23, 2020
  • carriage house interior makeover how to use a headboard as a room divider solid wood headboard divides a room
    decorating,  DIY

    4 Tips For How to Use a Headboard As a Room Divider

    August 15, 2022 /

    Have an awkward space and want to use a headboard as a room divider, but are wondering how to make that work? You’ve come to the right place. We recently used a headboard as a room divider and learned a few things the hard way along the way. Here are four tips for how to use a headboard as a room divider. Tip #1: Solid headboards work best for delineating spaces. I’m sure there’s an exception to every rule, but of all the pictures I’ve looked at and in our personal experience, a solid headboard seems to work best as a room divider. By that, I mean a headboard that…

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    Trash to Treasure: Art for Boys Room

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