diy mama

lifestyle blog sharing diy, family, travel, organization & disney tips

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Let’s DIY

Hello lovely readers! Is anyone else plain ole exhausted from this week? The lil bean has been in rare form all week (possibly teething) and I had to resort to ice cream last night to unwind (I’m not a wine girl and Whole30 is now starting next Monday). I am very thankful the sun was shining and our whole family was healthy! I seriously want to get on these crafts this week but I think I’ll be doing some heavy purge/organizational projects for the #40bagsin40days challenge we’re doing.

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Here were my favorites from this past week:

  1. Stamped Whale by Rachel
  2. Felt Jewelry Pouch by Corey
  3. Marbled Frame by Rachel
  4. Wood Bead Key Chain by Amanda
  5. Magazine Rack by Robyn

Hi, my name is Shelly and I’m addicted to DIY keychains! I’m almost positive that 30% of my DIY board on Pinterest is key chains. Also, I don’t read magazines anymore but how cute would that copper magazine rack be holding kid’s books in Soph’s room?! SWOON! Are you doing any crafting or creating this weekend? I’d love to know what you’ve been working on!

Please don’t forget to pin from the original source.

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House Tour

Hello friends! Today is an exciting day for me because I’m finally posting a house tour! I have wanted to take photos of my home forever but always had an excuse (too messy, too busy, not a good enough photographer etc).

IMG_6226I will always have these excuses but wanted this moment in my life documented exactly as it is.
Mid projects and mid life. I didn’t buy beautiful flowers or fruit to stage my home. I didn’t even dust (shh.) I picked up a bit and will later show you the ‘5 minutes before the shoot photos’ but other than that, this is what our home looks like. Lived in.

This will be a photo heavy post. Would you like a coffee? We also have martinis. Perhaps I could concoct a mocha martini of sorts? Since you are my friend, and not a solicitor or boy scout, I’ll bring you in through the garage which leads into our laundry room.
House_laundry_entryHouse_laundry_shelfHouse_laundry_sinkHouse_laundryHouse_laundry_coatsHouse_Entry  great_room_gallery gallery_rightgreat_room_booksgreat_room_mantleHouse_fam_gallery_birdsgreat_room_tvHouse_kitchenHouse_kitchen_windowHouse_kitchen_tableHouse_kitchen_nesspressoHouse_kitchen_commandHouse_office_desks House_office_deskHouse_Soph_Entry House_Soph_Reading_Nook dresser1House_Soph_toysHouse_Soph_doorHouse_master_entry (1 of 1) House_master_dresser  House_master_bath_sinks House_master_bath_tubhouse_master_bathroomHouse_master_lexi

Thanks for stopping by! Let me know if you want to know where I got products or how we DIY’d projects. I’d be happy to share!

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DIY Valentine’s Day Cards

Hello loves! What month has 28 days? All of them! Get it? Really though, I love that February has only 28 days because it’s almost always gloomy and snowy. Thankfully, Valentine’s Day is smack dab in the  middle to look forward to!

DIY Valentine's Day Cards

I’ll admit, I’m a fan of Valentine’s Day. I do believe it’s a ‘Hallmark Holiday’ but I love sending love to those I care about.
I was excited when Paper Source contacted me to use their Mini Valentine Kit to make my Valentine’s Day cards this year.

Their mini kit was anything but mini! There were enough supplies to make 30 cards! The only thing you would need to complete the cards are a pair of scissors and a pen. I also used glue dots for the pieces I wanted to lay flat. I loved the dimension the foam mounting tape (in the kit) created. I’d never used them before and will be buying some for scrapbooking!

DIY_valentine_stickers

I liked the challenge of making each card a little different and using some of the products unexpectedly. The red circle stickers were meant as envelope sealers but I used them as polka dots.

DIY_valentine_materials

The pens I used were Zig markers, Micron pens and Posca paint pens. Make sure to give all pens a min to dry so they don’t smear. I had the Micron smear on the envelope and Posca pen smeared on a card.

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 DIY_valentine_cards

These cards definitely look hand made but having the pre-cut hearts and coordinating papers made it so easy to mix and match materials to make many unique designs.

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 DIY_valentine_card_envelope_sealed

My favorite part was writing love notes on these mini cards, stuffing them in these sweet translucent envelopes and sealing them up to send to my Valentines!

DIY_valentine_hot_chocolate

I filled little cellophane bags with Martha Stewart’s hot chocolate recipe to go with my Valentines. Sophie decided it would be best if she tested each bag before sending them out! What do you do to celebrate Valentine’s Day? I’m super excited to be able to help Sophie make Valentine’s for her friends in a few years.

For more Valentine’s Day ideas, check out my Pinterest board!
Follow Shelly |DIY Mama|’s board v-day. on Pinterest.

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Watercolor Postcards

Hello friends! Happy Monday to you! I hope you all had exactly the kind of weekend you were hoping for, whether it be exciting, relaxing or inspiring. My weekend was a mixture of all three. Friday night I got crazy with watercolors!

watercolor_postcards_DIYMAMA

For Christmas I received watercolor postcards. I thought it would be nice to do a bunch at once so I’d have them on hand for quick notes. I couldn’t decide on a theme for my stationary so I applied many techniques to my postcards.

watercolor_postcards

Supplies needed:

watercolor_stencil

This was my first time using Magic Medium. It was also my first time using a stencil for watercolor. I wanted to make sure my stencil didn’t move since I knew I would be painting with a thicker consistency. I first taped down the post card, followed by the stencil.

watercolor_magic_medium

I guessed on the amount needed to cover the postcard in a relatively thick layer. I used a sponge brush to smear and dab over the stencil to make sure every hole was filled.

watercolor_dots

Once the medium was dry, I painted some blues and greens over the stencil and carefully removed the tape and stencil. I like how the dots aren’t perfect circles. This postcard reminds me of raindrops.

watercolor_cards

For the remainder of the cards I tried some ombre effects, other stencils and one abstract post card. I will write over the fronts of these cards when I go to send them but didn’t want to without knowing who they’re for.

Have you tried your hand at watercolor? I’ve only done one watercolor project before and I think it is the most forgiving medium. I really want to take this Watercolor Cards Made Simple class online but for now, it’s hard to make watercolor look bad! Which card was your favorite?

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Let’s DIY

Let's_DIY_1

I decided to try a new series out this year called Let’s DIY! It’s a spin off of my Friday Finds series I had last year where I featured some of my favorite projects I’d seen the past week. This year I’m gearing it towards DIY projects that I think are inspiring and fresh!

These were my favorite five from this past week!

  1. Watercolor Stationary by Paper &  Stitch
  2. Leather Keychain by Homey Oh My!
  3. Dyed Favor Bags by Paper & Stitch
  4. Moon Phase Wall Hanging by Almost Perfect
  5. Layered Foam Wall Art by A Beautiful Mess

Jeffrey came home from work yesterday and said ‘I’m calling this weekend ‘Improve Yourself Weekend.’ What are you going to do to improve yourself this weekend?’ Which I thought was kind of funny because I LOVE that idea and had already deemed the entire week ‘Improve Yourself Week’ by learning Light Room, Photoshop, Google Analytics, AdSense and working out! I’m kinda wanting to run out to the craft store when he gets home to buy all the supplies for ALL of these crafts!

I’m really interested in making generic favor gift bags saying things like ‘hello’, ‘yay’ and ‘i love you’ to have on hand for easy wrapping! What DIY project are you excited to get started on this weekend? Any of the above spark an interest?

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