Lasso The Moon

February Disciplines

Discipline.

It's no small thing that I chose this word for this year. I've always prided myself in my ability to adapt and let things slide.

That's fine, until your home slides into a state on destruction, and your 6-year-old has no underwear that fits. 

Discipline is about making small adjustments over time that become part of the fabric of who you are. I want "who I am" to continue to grow and change amd improve. And I've noticed that gets a little harder with age. Our ruts are deeper. It's harder to pull ourselves out of them to a new path.

But discipline is about making new "ruts" in fresh ground. A new pathway that will take me somewhere in life I've never been. I think it's worth the messiness of figuring that out.

January turned out to be about establishing a morning routine, and keeping our kitchen sink clean, empty, and shiny. (If that sounds bizarre, it is! But you'll have to check out @the_flylady for why it works.)

February will probably show me what it wants me to learn, but my goal is establishing a healthy evening routine. I'm nervous, because this is where I struggle the most. Sometimes I don't think I even really wake up for the day until 9pm and the kids are in bed! That has to change. Pray for me. Discipline is hard, and my ruts are deep and easy to slide back into.

 

Magnolia Wreath Like the One on Fixer Upper

I don't know if you've ever seen the show, Fixer Upper on HGTV, but the first time I saw it, I was hooked.  It's set in Waco, Texas and stars a couple, Chip and Joanna, who renovate houses for their clients.  The work they do is amazing, but the reason we keep coming back for the show, is the couple themselves.  Chip is hilarious, Joanna is adorable and supportive of his shenanigans, and both of them are extremely talented.

photo credit: hgtv

Seriously, I feel like they are our friends.  This is the kind of show you can watch with your husband, and he might not even complain.  He might even want to rewind and watch certain parts over, because it's that funny.

Anyway, at the end of every show they reveal the renovation to the home owners.  It's inspirational to say the least.  After watching a few episodes, I noticed that on most of the houses, Joanna adds a simple magnolia wreath to the front door, symbolic of her company's name, Magnolia Homes.

I checked out her website and found that she does sell them, but I cannot afford the $88 price tag right now (ever). So I made one.

I checked out Hobby Lobby to see what kind of magnolia leaves they had in their silk flower department.  Those leaves were the wrong texture, and buying enough for a whole wreath would still be more than $30.  I was considering it, but I left without them because of the cost. 

And then my neighbors did a little tree trimming.  Literally the day after I left Hobby Lobby empty handed, my neighbors stacked up a pile of magnolia branches taller than me.  YES!

I asked Donnie to go gather some for me, but since we actually know our neighbors a little, he couldn't bring himself to it.  So I got up really early one morning and went and got my own.  I may have gone a little overboard, but I didn't want to have to go back!

This is the back seat of my mini-van.  You can only see about half of them!

I took them inside and got to work making my own Fixer-Upper style wreath.  All you need is a wire frame, some magnolia branches (about 10.  not 50 like you see here.), green floral wire, a faux magnolia flower (optional)

For instructions, go to my Christmas wreath tutorial here.  It was actually even easier than that one, because I only used the one type of branch.  Also, magnolia is much easier on the hands than pine needles!

Here's the final result:

This wreath is huge! When I first put it on the door, I couldn't see out of the peephole at all, so I clipped a bunch of the leaves in the middle to make it more wreath-like.

I also added the flower on the bottom right, instead of a bow or something.  The flower isn't real, but it was only a few bucks and it blends in well.

I've had the magnolia wreath on the door for a couple months now, and even though the leaves have dried out and turned brown, it is still gorgeous, and I get comments on it all the time.  I kinda love it.

 Now it's your turn!  Find a friend whose magnolia tree needs a trim, and make your own fixer-upper-style wreath!  And be sure to link to yours in the comments so we can see your work!

I sourced some supplies for you, as well as some beautiful ready-made options if you don't have the time to d-i-y!

                   

(affiliate links--thank you for supporting this blog!)

 

Here are some more posts on (cheap or free!) wreaths and painted front doors, in case you are interested:

A Rustic Wreath from the Roadside

Felted Sweater Wreaths

A Giant Book-Page Wreath

Leafy Wool Wreath

A Green Door - Painting your Front Door

XOXO, Anna

A Rustic Wreath from the Roadside

This wild, rustic wreath is exactly what I was hoping for this year for the front door.  And I made it for $0.

I already had a wire frame and the floral wire.  The wire was a continuous roll and was 22 gauge.

The first place I went to collect my free greenery was Home Depot.  I asked the guy in the Christmas tree tent if they had any broken branches they were throwing away, and he gave me all he had.  I may have to go back for more in a couple days!

Next I called my friend Sarah because I knew she had a HUGE rosemary bush in her front yard.  She said I could cut all I wanted.  And I did.

Then on the way home I passed a big wild part of my neighborhood--the one my kids and husband explored one day and found a tent where someone might have been living (yikes!). I didn't go back there.  But near the road were several juniper trees, some cool twisty vines, some wild-looking black and orange-ish sticks, and some glossy green leaves that I didn't recognize.

Finally at home I cut some pieces from our holly tree, full of red berries.

I set it all out on the table in a huge messy pile.

Then, holding the wreath base in my left hand, I used the right hand to cut, arrange, and wire.  {I don't have any pictures of this stage...because I was making a wreath.}  Each piece of greenery I added was about 12 inches long.  Layer the sprigs thickly, adding them one at a time and wrapping the wire around the middle of each piece.  Continue in a pattern.  Cut, add, wrap.  Cut, add, wrap.  If you have a nice long spool of wire, you can do the entire wreath with a continuous piece. 

Aim the tips of the greenery out from the wreath, and point a few of them in for a wild, messy look.  I love that!

Remember to add some bare sticks every once in a while if you have them.

At the end, carefully tuck the ends under the greenery you started with.  Add more wire and tie off.  Be careful when wiring to not smash your sprigs with the wire.  Ease it in and keep everything fluffy.

When you're done, hang it up as it is, or add a ribbon or other decoration.  These vintage ornaments are the real thing, and I know they'll probably end up smashed, but I love how they look, and I have lots more.

Here's Eli (18 mos) photo bombing while I was trying to get a straight-on shot.  He can't resist a camera.

::

If you are visiting today from the Nesting Place, WELCOME, FRIEND!

I hope you'll stay a minute and poke around!

If you want lots more holiday inspiration, follow my Christmas Board on Pinterest.

Or just for the fun of it, follow me on Instagram.  It's where I share the behind-the-scenes on EVERYTHING.  @lasso_the_moon

Thanks for stopping by!

XOXO, Anna

 

A Pop of PVC

I come from a creative family.  My grandpa paints, makes puppets, and has sewn more bridesmaids dresses than I can count.  My mom cooks without recipes, has a wedding flower business, and makes tile mosaics.  My dad is a painter.  My sister makes prints.  Several of my brothers write music and play multiple instruments...

I married into it, too! Donnie's dad made these planters for several of us last Christmas.  They are giant pvc pipes, cut to size.

The bottoms are filled with concrete.  To keep the concrete from falling out when it dried, he made a wire support system in the bottom, poked into the insides of the pipe, to hold the concrete in place.  I wish I had taken a picture of that part. 

He even left a little hole for drainage.

This week I finally got around to painting them and putting them to use.



The color is "lagoon."  I love this color! I have to be careful, or my whole house is going to be aqua and teal.

First coat.

Second coat.  I didn't prep the pots in any way before I started painting.  I figure if they flake a little, it will just add character.  I'll let you know how they hold up.

Don't forget to paint the insides a few inches from the top.

I was so excited to finally use these that I stole plants from other places in the yard to fill it.  I don't remember what the purple one is called, but it seems to really like this sunny spot. 

I also added some basil, thyme, and sweet potato vines.  Sweet potato vines are my go-to plant around here.  They are pretty much the only thing I can consistently grow without killing them.  They aren't supposed to be winter-hardy, but these ones popped back up from last year's roots early this summer.  I think they look perfect with the teal spray paint.

I love my new planters.  They are out on the new stone patio, keeping our pot-bellied chiminea company. 

Many thanks to Donnie's dad, JB, for these awesome PVC planters.  Such a cool idea.  I love when ordinary things are repurposed to be useful and beautiful.   And it's nice to have family-made items around to remind us of each other.

::

I'll try not to kill the plants.

 

Entryway :: Vintage Mirror Collage

When we first started working on our entryway, it looked like this:

And last time you saw it, it looked like this:

When I'm thinking about a room, and how I want to change it, I have three goals in mind.  I want it to be pretty, functional, and personal. 

We are on our way to pretty, but while the extra hooks have done wonders for function, we could really use a mirror to check hair and makeup before leaving the house.

On my inspiration board, when we first started the makeover, I added a photo of a collage of vintage beveled mirrors.

I thought this would be no big deal, as I had recently found a pretty oval-shaped mirror at a thrift store for around $8.  But as I started looking around for its mates, I realized what a treasure that eight-dollar mirror had actually been.  Whether on Craigs List, in antique stores, or online, every vintage beveled mirror I found was somewhere between $75-200.  Way out of my price range.  After months of searching, I found one at an antique shop,  covered in a painted scene, for $24.  About a week later I found another one in awful condition at a thrift store for $4.  But when I say awful...well you'll see.

Here is the rag tag trio of mirrors I had to work with.

The oval-shaped mirror only needed to be cleaned. I'd been storing it for about 6 months, jammed behind the TV in the living room.

The octagon, while most expensive, and in great shape, needed the most work. 

I'm sure this scene would be beautiful in the right home, but that home isn't ours.  I wasn't sure if it was wrong in some way to remove the paint.  It had clearly been done a long time ago.  But in the end, on my third trip to the same store to look at it, I decided that it would be better in my house, than waiting in an antique store.

The dress is actually 3-dimensional. I had no idea if it would even come off at all.  I bought a pack of razor blades and started scraping.  (If you do this, wear a mask to protect your lungs from the dust.  There's no telling how much lead was in that paint!)

It worked!  In about 15 minutes, the mirror was completely paint-free.  The 3-D piece had to be gently pried up with the tip of a butter knife.  The glue was stubborn, but it dissolved in a spray of all-purpose cleaner and then wiped right off.

Two down, one to go.

This mirror was in the worst condition possible.  I actually didn't buy it the first time I saw it, because it was such a lost cause.  It wasn't beveled.  It was actually salvaged from the top of a dresser, and that's its broken frame in the photo above, wrapped in tape.  The silver was flaking off pretty badly, which is kind of great, but I had to figure out a way to stop it.  And since there was no wood on the back, there was no way to hang it. 

To stop the silver from rubbing off, I bought a piece of chip board (thin, sturdy cardboard) at Hobby Lobby, and cut it to fit the back of the mirror exactly.  I didn't glue it or anything, just kept the two together until I could get it hung up.

I searched online for the clips that usually hold beveled mirrors to their wooden backs, but there was nothing as far as I could tell.  I had almost given up when I thought of this:

Plate and platter hangers are made from wire hooks, connected with sturdy springs.  They stretch a little bit to fit snugly over the edges of the plate.

Every place in town only had the small size, but I eventually got what I needed here .  Of course. I always end up at Amazon.  I do wish that I had gotten one size smaller.  The hanger wasn't as snug as I hoped, and I had to secure the springs with some twine, to keep them from stretching and releasing the mirror onto one of my kids' heads.

I left the chip board behind it , and the platter hanger holds it in place.

I hung the mirrors with sturdy hooks--30 lbs to be safe.  I measured carefully, spacing them 3 inches apart from side to side.  The middle mirror is 1 inch from the coat rack, and the outer mirrors are 2 inches up from it.

I'm really surprised at how much different it feels to walk into the entryway now that the mirrors are up.   It has brought up the level of natural light a lot, since they face some windows in the dining room, and mirrors always give the illusion of more space.

At this point, all there is left to do is replace that sad little bench.  It is completely dwarfed by everything else going on in here.

What are you working on this week, to make your house into a home?

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Don't forget to like our facebook page.  I just started an "in progress" photo album, where you can see sneak peaks of what I'm working on:

Linking to:

Coastal Charm,  Boogieboard Cottage, Thrifty Decor Chick

 

 

DIY Headboard from a Vintage Door

**Be sure to enter the drawing for Beyond Bath Time by Erin Davis.  Winner will be picked tomorrow at 9am! Enter here.**

When Donnie told me that he was going to build me a headboard from the door that he bought at the Glen Rose antique shop, I never expected it to turn out this awesome.  I knew it would be good--I mean the idea alone is great.  But I never expected this work of art.

 

In its original state, the door was in pretty bad shape.  Besides the chipping paint (which I kind of liked) it was filthy, had been written on in ink and spray paint, and had three bullet holes in it!

Since most doors are not horizontally symmetrical, and we wanted the bed to be symmetrical, Donnie cut a strip from the bottom of the door, and glued it to the top.  You can see that in the picture below.  The glued on strip is on the right side.  We didn't think it would show after being sanded and painted, but we put that end on the side that would be farthest from our bedroom door,  just in case.

Using some measurements from these Ana White plans, we used 4x4s on each end as the posts.  We screwed the door to the posts using pocket holes.  I wish I'd taken a picture of that part, because they are so cool! And we used the jig that Donnie gave me for my birthday!  To get the door in the very center of the post, we rested it on some scrap wood while we were screwing them together.

Then we placed a 2x4 on top of the door and posts, lining it up exactly with the 4x4s.

After that we attached the top rail, which is a 2x6. We centered it on the 2x4, and extended it about 1 inch on each side.

Construction finished!

After sanding forEVER, Donnie primed and painted the whole thing.  He used a Kilz primer, and paint tinted in Martha Stewart's Flagstone. It's a warm beigey-grey that I think will go with anything.

My favorite part of the new headboard is what he did to the panels. I never would have thought of it.

We celebrated our "tin" anniversary in April, so this was the whole starting point of his inspiration to build the bed.  His original intent was to find enough old, vintage ceiling tiles to work inside the panels, but we either didn't like the ones available, or the ones we liked were too small to work.

That's when we found Tin Ceiling Xpress online.  We bought three 2x2 foot panels for $7 each!! Even with shipping, it was just over $30.  When you only need a couple pieces, this is the only place to go apparently.  The pattern we got was fleur.

Donnie painted the three pieces of tin with the same bright white that I used on the coat rack in the entryway.  Then he palm-sanded them, but was careful to not go overboard and to keep the wear very uneven.  We wanted it to look as close a possible to the old "found" tin pieces.  I think he nailed it.

With tin snips, he cut the tin to the exact measurements of the panels (they were all slightly different) and attached them using a strong construction adhesive.

My favorite part of this gift is that we got to work on it together.  I like that even more than the headboard itself.  Donnie's a perfectionist, but somehow he maintains a cool patience when he's working with me, who knows nearly nothing about constructing things from wood.

I am in love with my new headboard.  And my old husband.

Now to think about some fun new bedding to go with it!

::

We'd be so flattered if you used our idea to make your own piece of furniture!  Please let us know that you did, and we'll feature a photo and link here on our blog!  And if it's a future project you're thinking of, slap this post on pinterest so you don't lose it!

 

Spring Garden '13

We actually made food this year!

Thanks to Donnie for building me that amazing raised garden last year.  What a gift.  I can't wait to see what else we're able to produce this year.

 

Hair Bow Hangers :: A Tutorial

Getting the kids ready and out the door for school each morning can be a circus. 

We have school clothes, breakfast, packing lunches, teeth brushing, gathering backpacks and homework...the last thing on the list is hair.

And if I don't know exactly where to find a hair bow in that last minute before go-time, Emma's going to have to go without.

She has gone without many, many times.

So I made some of these:

With a few simple elements, I made three hair-bow hangers for Emma's bedroom door.  They are out of the way, easy to reach, and they hold every last hair bow in this house.

Here's how you can make one (or three) of your own.

1. Picture frames.  I had a few extras around the house that weren't being used, and removed the backs and the glass. They were already black, so I gave them a couple coats of light blue craft paint.  When that was dry, I painted on some teal streaks, and then wiped off some of the teal paint with a paper towel before it had time to dry.  The paper towel took off some of the blue paint too, so the black shows through.  So easy, and it matches Emma's room.

2. Use a sturdy ribbon like grosgrain that will look cute with the frames.  I have been a bit of a ribbon hoarder, so I had this on hand, too.  I love projects that use up some of my hoard!

3. Measure three inches longer than the opening of the frame.  Cut 3 or 4 ribbons per frame, and tie a couple knots in each one.  The knots will keep the bows from sliding down the ribbon and puddling at the bottom.

4. Make sure the ribbons are facing the right way, pull taut, and staple with a staple gun. Space your ribbons evenly across the opening of the frame.

5. Now your hangers are ready to fill with hair bows!

We put ours on the back of Emma's bedroom door.  They were wobbling a little with in and out traffic, so I added some hot glue to keep them steady.  It'll just pop right off when we're ready to move them somewhere else.

Organize by size or color, or just get them up there so you can see what you have.

One morning task made so much easier.

Let me know if you make a set for yourself!  I'd love to see your version.

For more pictures of the flowers painted on the walls, click here!

 

 

Hallways, Closets, and Secret Doors

I have this recurring dream.  Not a daydream, but a real asleep-in-my-bed nighttime dream. 

I live in a house.  Sometimes it's a cottage.  Sometimes a ranch or cabin.  Sometimes it's one of my childhood homes.

And at some point during the dream, every time, we find a secret door.

Source: newyorksocialdiary.com via Krystal on Pinterest

 

Or a hallway.  Or a passage or stairway or series of closets.  The details are different each time, but the theme is the same. 

 

Source: bookriot.com via Deborah on Pinterest

 

This secret area of the house is HUGE.  And we are all, how did we never see this before?  And as we explore this newly-discovered expansion of our home, we realise that it is sprawling, and it's filled with cool stuff.

 

Source: bing.com via Debi on Pinterest

 

 

Source: 2gypsygirls.com via Najwa on Pinterest

 

The rest of the dream is spent looking through the rooms, taking inventory of the treasures we find, and deciding what to do with it all. Who's going to sleep in this room?  Should we have a big estate sale?  Stuff like that.

It is the best dream I've ever had.  Every time I wake up from it, I'm surprised that it wasn't reality.

 

Source: 2gypsygirls.com via HagAndNagAntiques on Pinterest

 

Anybody out there into interpreting dreams?  What on earth could this mean? 

Because when I think of my dream house, my day-dreaming-while-I'm-awake house, it is not at all sprawling.  And it's not at all filled with junk.  When I dream about my household, and what it could be, it is a happy, bright, tidy, inviting place that welcomes people into its comfortable spaces.  Everything has a place, the layout is simple and functional, and I'm able to keep everything in order with the least amount of effort, because we've edited carefully, and set it up to work for us.

This is the opposite of the house in my recurring dream.  It's too big (but I love it!) and it's full of stuff (and I love it!).  So weird to me that these two ideas are so different.  If I had those secret passageways to deal with in real life, I would be overwhelmed and stressed out.  But while I'm asleep, it's an exciting adventure, and I love every minute of it!

Source: google.com via Dorothy Prudie on Pinterest

 

Last weekend I painted the entryway of my real house.  We chose Vanilla Milkshake. 

It's light and creamy, and has just a whisper of yellow.  I'm very happy with it.

I'm going to continue to edit and refine my real house, and dig through the relics of my dream-state houses, and hope that the two never meet.

What about you?  What plans do you have for your home that differ from the ideas you have for your "dream" home? What dreams do you have over and over?  (I have others, but none so interesting as the secret rooms dream.) Talk to me, friends!

Welcome, 2013!

Do you make resolutions?

I do it every year.  Sometimes I mention them here on the blog.  Like this.

And sometimes they are too personal.

But I always keep them.  Every year.

I love making resolutions. I see the beginning of each year as a fresh start.  A time to take inventory of my life, and decide if I'm really on my way to becoming the person I want to be.

I have never made a weight-loss resolution, or one with a definitive ending (like I'll save $5000 or something like that.)  I don't want to look back at the end of the year and realize I gave up, or just missed the mark.  So my resolutions are always about a direction of improvement, not an end goal. 

Here they are for this year:

I'll explain a little. 

1.  Half-way through last year we had a college student over at our house, and he looked around and asked Donnie and me, "Do you think your house represents who you are?"  To my disappointment, my answer was no.  We have lived here for three years, and we've done a few things to improve the place, but there are still 7 rooms (out of 10) that are the same dingy brown as the day we moved in.  This year that's going to change.  I plan to move from room to room, starting with the entryway, with the goal of making our home pretty, comfortable, welcoming, and functional.  (That last one is a constant concern of mine.)  Some rooms will take very little work--maybe just a coat of paint or something new on the wall.

There's just one tiny hiccup in this plan.  Cash. I'm going to have to be extra clever, because this resolution coincides with an extremely tight budget!  (You know...new babies are small, but they require big budget cuts!)  So I have decided to fund the entire home-making project with money that I'm able to bring in outside of our family income.  My birthday is coming up, too.  I'm asking for gift cards from Home Depot, Home Goods, etc.  I am so excited to see where this resolution get us by the end of 2013!!

2.  I have mentioned before that while I'm creative in many areas, cooking is just not one of them.  This year, I'm working on that.  If you have an excellent, simple, healthy(ish), and yummy recipe you'd like to see me try, please send it to me!  I have already found a few recipes that are perfect for me, and I'm going to share them with you as I go along.  I'd really like to start filling a notebook with family-approved options, and maybe have a few of them memorized by the end of the year.

3. This has continued to be important to me.  At the same time, it is VERY difficult for me. Slow down, keep calm, don't try to do too much, don't try to save the whole world.  Just do small somethings that will make life better for my family, my neighbors, and myself.  The Lord continues to teach me what doing something small even means, and if I listen to Him, surely I'll be able to keep this resolution, one small something at a time.

So, there they are!  Do you make annual resolutions?  Do you keep them?  Do you hate the idea and want to tell me why?  I'd love to know!  Leave me your opinions and resolutions in the comments!