Kitchen Table From Old Door!

So you all know my obsession with old doors right?  

Well... A dear friend of mine gave me an old door from her shed.

It had already been chopped in half lengthwise.

It was missing the complete side where the handle originally was.

I was unsure what I was going to do with it... 

I had several projects I wanted to do, but because of the way it was cut, I decided to go with

dun dun dun...

A new kitchen table!

 I used the plans from here, for the legs, but adjusted them to fit my space.  I also made them 36" tall to be counter height.  

I think it goes great with my new $4 lights!

In the near future I plan on covering it with a piece of glass to protect it...

What are your favorite upcycled door projects?

Vintage Trunk Redo

A few months ago, I picked up this trunk at a yard sale for $5!

As you can see it was in rough shape.

The inside was worse than the outside and it needed a major paint job.

I used homemade chalk paint in a blue-grey color, and a silver glaze.

I did some stenciling on the top and front...

I lined the inside with scrapbook paper by using a spray adhesive.

I plan on adding some legs to it soon!  For now I love it!

Easy Chicken Pockets!

Hey everyone!

Today I wanted to share this little recipe with you.  It really isn't much, but these are sooo yummy.  The

kids and the adults are sure to love these!

Here's what you need: 

1 Can Grands Biscuits

1 Can White Chicken

1 Container Garden Vegetable Cream Cheese

1 Can Jalapenos

1 Cup Shredded Cheese

This is the easiest thing you will make for dinner.  These are great for nights where kids have games, or plays, or dance etc..

These are also great to make at night and pack in school lunches or hubby lunches for the next day!

Start by opening each biscuit up.  If you are using grands they have a lot of flaky layers and are quite easy to separate...  Don't completely separate them in half, only open them up enough to stuff them. :)

Next, fill the biscuits with a small amount of each ingredient.

Close your biscuits up & seal the edges by pinching them tight.

Bake according to package directions on the biscuits.  

 VWALLA!

I know they don't look like much but they are tasty pockets of deliciousness!

Easy, peasy!  The final cost for these was only $9!

$4 DIY Light Fixture!

Hey everyone!

I have really procrastinated about doing some sort of light fixture in my kitchen, but I finally accomplished this task!

The best part is, that it was only $5 for the domes.  (I am super cheap so this works for me!)

Here's what you will need:

Elmers glue   $1

Twine or String    $2

Balloon     $1

Start by pouring 1/2 C of Glue and 1/8 C of water into a styrophom bowl.  Mix the glue mixture.

Blow up a balloon to your desired size.  

Dip your string in the glue and start wrapping the balloon.  Squeeze the excess glue off of the string as you go.  

THIS IS A MESSY TASK! 

Keep wrapping and dipping and unraveling your twine.  When you think your balloon is covered in the right amount of string or twine, set it aside to dry.

I let mine dry overnight.  

Next, pop the balloon.  You should be left with the shell. :)

Next you need to cut a piece of cardboard for the top so it doesnt slide off the lights.

I cut mine from an old cereal box.  Measure your hole at the top of your light fixture.  Make sure the middle circle is smaller than the width of your light socket.  You can cut slits in the inside circle so it slides on.  

Fold your cardbaord circle in half and gently place it inside of your light.

Then just slide them up onto your existing fixture.

You can also place the cardboard up first and then put your string light on.

 If you are wondering about the pendant lights, you can find them here:

                                                                 

I am happy with it!

Old Door=New Table

Have you guys seen the cool stuff made out of old doors?

I am a huge fan of these!  A couple weeks ago, I got an old door off of our local buy/sell/trade site.

After much thinking (and searching pinterest) I decided to go with the coffee table idea.

First I had to cut the door down into 3 pieces.  I did this using a Skil Saw.  1 piece for the top, & 2 for the sides.

Then I used my Kreg K4MS Jig Master System to secure all the pieces together.  

I added some pine to the bottom for support,(Left Picture) and because I like the way it looks. :)
I secured it with my brad nailer, and stained it up!

I painted this several different colors of chalk paint, and just kept sanding until I got the finish I liked.

I added the original hinges back on, but left the handle hardware off.

I love, love, love it!  If you come across an old door, do something with it!  This is just one idea.  

You can teach an old door new tricks!

Chalk Paint Nightstand

I love how this little nightstand turned out!  It was blah...

Overall in good shape, but the color type just wasn't my fancy.

However, this is what I lived with for quite some time. 

I decided to refinish it in yellow.  I did this with my homemade chalk paint.

On the top I decided to do a Chevron pattern.

I just love how it turned out.  Now it's going up for sale.  :)

But in the meantime, looking at it just makes me smile.

Easy-Peasy Cucumber Salad

My father-in-law, whom I will respectively refer to as {the green thumb}, has completely filled our home with cucumbers... and love, but mostly cucumbers.

He obviously thought there was a cucumber shortage in the town. :)

We have received bags of them, and he has also pickled several quarts as well.

This has led us to find things to make with cucumbers.  My sister, suggested a cucumber salad.

It didn't sound wonderful to me, but we had a potluck to go to, so I gave it a shot!

I can't believe how good it turned out!  I am not a huge cucumber lover, but this salad was amazing.

Fresh from the garden of course!

This is the ultimate "throw together" salad.  Really no prep work whatsoever!

I made my job even easier by using the salsa maker.

                                                              

They make all your chopping go by in about 2 minutes and they are super easy to clean.

I used mayo for the base of this salad, but plain yogurt would work well too.

Here is the recipe:

{Right click & print}

I also didn't have any dill on hand, but that would be a fantastic addition to this salad. :)

I hope you enjoy this recipe.  Summer is almost over, so make the best of it!

Do you have any fast and easy salad recipes like this one?

The Laminate Vanity

When I found this little vanity at a yard sale, I scooped it up.  It was in pretty good shape.  The seat cover was old and dingy looking, but overall not too bad.

I was a little dissapointed that it was laminate and not real wood, but for the price, I thought I'd test out the chalk paint miricle on this piece.

First things first, I whipped up some of my homemade chalk paint with some existing paint I already had.

I painted the top and the drawer in this blue color.  I left the rest of the desk alone.  

The chair was another story.  I painted the upholstery on the chair with the same chalk paint mixture I had made for the desk.
See my tutorial here!

This was my first time trying to paint uphostery but I am wildly happy with the results.  No! It doesn't feel hard and crunchy like you would think.  It feels more like leather. :)

While the vanity desk was cute just as it was, I thought it needed something else.

I did a stensil on the top using the base of a cup and some acrylic paint that I found that matched up well. :)

Those holes you see are from an old mirror that was no longer with the desk.  I filled the holes, and glued a large tack that I had painted to match into each one.

Last step, I lined the drawer with some premium wrapping paper that I got a Pier 1 in their clearance isle.

I have used the mod-podge method in the past, but this time I used Elmers Spray Adhesive.  The stuff is sticky beyond belief, but for this little drawer it worked nicely.

 I gave the painted parts of this piece a coat of wax, (except for the cushion), and called it done.

                                                                     

This was one of the easiest projects I have taken on so far.  I was skeptical about using the homemade chalk paint on laminate, but it went on well and seems wonderful on it.

I am sure the new owners of this little vanity desk will enjoy it for quite a while. :)

Has anyone else had great results with painting laminate with chalk paint?