Organizing My Craft Area: The Frugal Way

May I just say:

GO PACKERS!!!

That has been my team since I was a little girl and I feel like a proud Mama right now.

WOO HOO! SUPER BOWL BABY!

Okay, I'm done. Glad I got that out.

I have been having so much fun reading about the projects bloggers did during the MLK weekend. I really wish I had some fantastic craft to share, but in truth, I spent that weekend cleaning and organizing.

Our three bedroom home is maxed out with four occupants, so I don't have the luxury of having an office or craft room, like some of my lucky blog buddies. No, my craft room is downsized to compartments on wheels that I push into whichever room the kids aren't climbing over me in I feel like working in.

Observe, my craft drawers:

and...

and in the end, I counted 42 of these:

Do these things annoy anyone else? I mean, you spill half the paint by just opening and closing them. Then, you can't pour any of it onto a plate for little hands, because what's the point?! I really didn't want to designate a spot for these, so I opened them all and with a stack of papers let these two go to town:

 Monday morning, painting before breakfast: a treat for them

Getting rid of those pointless drops of paint: a treat for me

While the little ones were occupied, I was able to organize and label my craft drawers:

I printed my labels and taped them to the inside (frugal way)

Inside the drawers, I separated all my markers, pens, pencils, highlighters, sharpies, and crayons with freezer bags (this post is called "The Frugal Way" after all, people).

I prefer this method because boxes take up too much room. I had all our crayons in 3 empty wipe boxes. There was always a box in the kitchen, the living room, and in my older daughter's room. Now, they are all together in ONE location so they can be found easier. By the way, the OCD in me went and threw out all the crayons that were broken or missing the paper. ;)

I did use a couple of boxes though. Office Depot was having a buy one, get one free sale. So, I grabbed two small boxes ($2.99) for my ribbon and paint (the real kind).

Then, I grabbed two file folder boxes, $5.99, that were also buy one get one free. One I really needed for files and the other one will probably be used to store all my spray paint.

Total Project Cost: less than $10

Linking up with: Thrifty Decor Chick, Organize with Sandy

Installing Knobs and Pulls for Cabinets

Our bathroom cabinets are D-O-N-E, and I cannot stress enough what a little bit of paint and some knobs and pulls can do for cabinets. They went from looking dirty, old, and dated to new and modern. For under $45, this is how we updated our guest bathroom:

In case you forgot, this is what they looked like before:

After two coats of Behr's "Espresso Beans," this is what they looked like:

Just what I wanted? Yes! However, I wanted them to look really new and custom, so I purchased some knobs and a pull at Home Depot. This is how I installed them:

First, I used a template to mark off where the middle of my drawer was.

Then, I colored the screws with a sharpie and pressed them firmly against my template.

This will give you an exact mark on where you need to drill. I used a similar technique for the cabinet doors.

With the knobs, there wasn't as much measuring. I knew where I wanted the knobs to be, so I marked it on a template. You can use the same template for each door, just flip the paper over for the correct corner.

Alas, the cabinets are done and look brand new:

Our guest bathroom the day we moved in:

And now:

Walls: Glidden "Smooth Stone"

Cabinets: Behr "Espresso Beans

Cabinet Cost:

Gallon of Behr paint: $33

Knobs and Pull (Home Depot): $5

New Hinges: $3.50

Crock Pot Brisket

What a great year this is turning out to be! "Mama's Little Ladybugs" has been featured on two blogs for the Goodwill Sign and has also received the "Stylish Blogger Award" from Tana at Orange It Lovely. You can see my features here and here.  


As we enter the fourth month in our home, I can promise you that this year will be full of crafts, projects, remodeling, and renovations! So, please follow me as my husband and I morph into DIYers and see what can (and probably will) go wrong. ;)

Tonight, I have a yummy recipe to share that was a huge hit with my family. The best part - it cooked in the crock pot (read: super easy)!!! Here is the breakdown on how to make BRISKET:

Ingredients:

4 lbs of beef brisket

2 teaspoons of salt

2 teaspoons of paprika

1/8 teaspoon of pepper

1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder

Directions:
Trim the excess fat from the brisket. In a bowl, mix all of the dry ingredients really well. Once mixed, rub the spices all over the brisket. Place the brisket, fat side up, into the crock pot.

Cook the meat on low for 8 - 12 hours. (At 8 hours, I checked my meat and found it still very pink on the inside. I spread apart the meat a bit and cooked it for another two hours.

 I like my meat to be WELL DONE because I get paranoid whenever I see pink). Once the meat is done, remove it from the crock pot, onto a large plate, and shred it with your fingers, removing any fat. The meat will be super tender so pulling it apart should be no problem. Now, just place your brisket in some corn tortillas, with whatever sides you want, and you have BRISKET TACO NIGHT!

You can divide the cooked meat into freezer bags and use it for tacos, burritos, hamburgers, or even a hearty soup.

My darkest color yet...

Once again, Behr has made my heart skip a beat! I am in love. Really.

I told you in this post about wanting to give my guest bath cabinets a fresh coat of white.

Well, that was the plan, but then I started looking online for pictures of bathroom cabinets. It took one picture from a dark colored cabinet to change all of my plans for this bathroom. I tell you, I ran to Home Depot and bought a gallon of this beautiful dark color. I didn't even bother with the samples. Daring, I know!

I removed the cabinet doors and the springs inside of the hinges crumbled in my hands. No joke. I'm guessing they were as old as the house, so back to Home Depot I went to purchase new hinges.

I lightly sanded the cabinets and doors and cleaned them with TSP. Since I bought Behr's paint and primer in one, I only had to do two coats to achieve my desired color. The paint is semi-gloss (recommended for bathrooms and kitchens).

Behold, Behr's "Espresso Beans"

Please excuse my dirty mirror. I was so excited to show you, that I didn't even think of cleaning it.

Isn't the color absolutely gorgeous? It's such a deep, rich, brown.

It looks black and I love that. It's not as harsh as black, but against my gray walls, you would never guess it's a brown.

I added tags to our baskets under the sink for my 9 year old because this is the bathroom she uses.

I am hoping this teaches her to put things away in the correct basket. We'll see if that works out.

Also, I found white towels on sale at Target for when guests visit. In a house with two kids, the darker the towels the better. Not only that, but the white towels match the white shower curtain. So, I'm keeping the towels hidden, but close at hand for when company comes over.

Today, the hubby and I are going to attach some new hardware to the cabinets. It will be just a little more "POP" to make our cabinets look new.

Before:

After:

Next for the bathroom:

hardware on the doors

frame the mirror

new countertop and faucet

white door and trim

tile

wall art

I am linking this to:

Thrifty Decor Chick

Keeping It Simple

The DIY Showoff

Goodwill Sign: Before and After

Happy 2011!

I don't know about everyone else, but this was the first year I didn't make a new years resolution. I have to admit, 2010 was a pretty great year, so I'm going to keep doing what I did and hope to have another fantastic year.

Now that Christmas is over, I finally have money time to finish some of my projects from last year. If the children stay out of my way behave these next couple of days, I should have a "Before and After: Bathroom Cabinet" reveal by the end of the week. I know in a previous post about my bathroom redo I mentioned that I wanted to repaint the cabinets white.... well, that has changed drastically, thanks to some inspiration I found online. That will be revealed later, though. First... I must show you my first project of the year!

In November, I found this little treasure at Goodwill:

I loved everything about it, the color, the hooks, the nearly new condition, the PRICE ($4.99). It seemed ready to be hung, except for the minor detail of covering up the wording. I really wish I knew what the previous owner hung on each hook. Seriously, it puzzles me some days.

I cleaned the sign really well and gave it a fresh coat of Behr's "Black Suede".

I've had this sample from a previous project and just love the color.

I had to give it about 3 coats to really cover up the words. Afterwards, I stenciled in my wording, and painted them with a sample of Behr's "Subtle Touch." Why? Because, again, it was a sample I already had from my bathroom redo and it looks white against the black. So, no need to spend more money on paint.

This is what I ended up with:

Simple sign to hang coats, purses, and keys as we walk in the door.

I'm tellin you... I love that "Black Suede." It's purrty!

This sign is mounted onto our entry wall, which is going to see some color this year. I'm thinking a deep red color. My living room and entry have a ton of light pouring in, so I'm ready to see some bolder colors on those walls. Any suggestions?

Once more, my Goodwill sign before:

And after:



Total Project Cost: $4.99

Linking this to:

Making the World Cuter

Sumo's Sweet Stuff

M. M. M. Day at Craft

Thrifty Decor Chick

House of Grace

Christina's Adventure

The DIY Showoff