Scensty Warmer Make-Over

So ~ I've been told that it's been way too long since I've posted anything.  This summer has been crazy busy and I just haven't had the time or inspiration to post.  However, due to some prodding (thanks Hayley), I will share my Scentsy warmer make-over.

This was the first warmer I purchased back when we were living on our acreage.  The color of the star matched perfectly with our master bath.

Not so much with the color in our new home.  I thought it was destined to a tote in the basement or to be sold.  Then I remembered a blog post that I read last year about spray painting a warmer.  I decided to give it a try ~ what was the worst that could happen, right?  Ruin a $35.00 warmer, that's what!  But, I didn't want it to sit unused. 

So I went in search of some high temp spray paint ~ which I found at Menards.

Took it outside and ended up giving it 3 coats.  I was worried that it wouldn't stick because the warmer is smooth and shiny, but it didn't have a problem.

After it completely cooled, I plugged it in and let it warm.  Couldn't believe it ~ no bubbling, cracking, flaking ~ nothing! 

So, now I have an all new, one-of-a-kind, Scentsy warmer!  I'm sure that painting it voids the warranty, but I could care less about that.  It fits in anywhere in the house now!

I'm really loving the black.  It turned out so well that I tried painting a wall plug-in Scensty warmer that I will post about later.

Update ~ the basement has sat untouched since my post about it.  The kids started summer vacation and my free time went out the window.  I'm planning on tearing into as soon as school starts with the goal of having it completely de-cluttered by Halloween :)

A Little Disney Trivia!

I thought that I would start posting a little Disney trivia every week. The kiddos have been spending a lot of time lately researching interesting facts about Disney World. I think they are in withdrawal ~ we went to the World twice last year ~ once in May and once in December. The next trip probably won't be until 2013 sometime, so they are trying to get their fix somehow :)



Did you know that Lady and the Tramp have put their paw prints in the sidewalk in front of Tony's Town Square Restaurant? 

I'm embarassed to admit that during our 3 family trips, we've never even walked in front of Tony's , let alone looked for the paw prints.  However,  they have been added to our "find" list for the next trip!

It's another MAKEOVER!

Apparently the bug has bitten me lately ~ I have paint all over my hands to prove it!  So last week (or maybe it's been 2 already), I gave this mirror an updated look ~

Nice enough, but kinda boring and didn't fit in with my color scheme anymore.

Much better!

At the time, I had it displayed like this ~

This was okay, but I wasn't really happy with it. 

I knew that I wouldn't be leaving here for long.  It just didn't pop.  However, I decided that it would be fine there until I could figure out what wall to hang it on.  DH was a trooper and held that mirror up to every wall in the house (some twice), but it just didn't look right anywhere.  I was about to give up and accept the fact that this would be it's home until I was organizing the basement.  Two little treasures appeared that gave me a brilliant idea.

What were those treasures you ask?  Well, here they are ~

Two plain barn stars! 

The idea came to mind and I was just hoping that I could make it work.  The first thing that needed to be done was a coat of black paint.

On their way!

The excitement was building.  They still needed a little something.  How about these? ~

DH and my first initials

Black on black wasn't going to work, so out came the colonial red spray paint. Add a little glue and some time.  

Custom monogram barn stars!

The arrangement needed something to finish it off.  How about something significant from our lives?

The year we were married ~ almost 15 years ago!

Put it all together and this is what you get ~

Perfect!!

I couldn't be happier with how it turned out!  Personalized and one of a kind!  It was worth digging into the basement for this!

Beware of the Basement!

Our basement has been hit by a tornado!  Okay ~ maybe not.  Maybe it was just a bunch of guys in charge of unloading a moving truck and having no idea how to organize according to labels.  I'm beyond thankful to our wonderful friends that helped us move while I was recovering from surgery.  However, guys just don't get how to move.  These are photos of what our basement looked like today at 6pm.  Almost all of the boxes have been unpacked, but everything is scattered all over.

The treadmill is hiding somewhere in this photo ~ not really sure where though :)  There was no rhyme or reason to where they put anything.  Holiday totes are with toy totes, school supply totes are with gift wrapping totes.  UGH!  I like things in their places at all times, so this has been driving nuts since I've been able to go down the stairs again.  Plus, trying to get the upstairs decorated and pulled together has been challenging to say the least.

I wasn't planning on tackling it today ~ the pool opened and I had planned to spend the day soaking in some much needed sun.  However, DH went for a motorcycle trip with a friend and DD went camping with a friend.  That left DS and me alone (which never happens).  So, we decided to have some bonding time ~ we went out for lunch, hit a new bookstore, and then (oh how I love this kid) we spent 2 hours leisurely strolling thru an antiques mall.  I didn't have any luck, but he found a Jurassic Park movie book that he didn't have.  I did pick up 2 new Disney books at the bookstore though ~ one with Disney World trivia and one about the hidden Mickeys.  DS found the original The Lost World in hardcover.

We got back home late this afternoon and talked about heading over to the pool, but decided it wasn't quite warm enough.  So I browsed thru a few of my favorite blogs and started a quick makeover while he dove into the new books. 

Since it was so quiet, I headed to the basement.  No time like the present, I figured.  It's 5 hours later and I'm just emerging.  I've emptied the last few boxes and have separated everything into categories.  There's a good size pile for Goodwill and a pile that I'm going to try and sell.  I can already tell that I pushed my body's limit too far and will pay for it tomorrow :(  I just got on such a roll, I didn't want to quit!  But, as I turned off the lights, I felt much better and the basement looks much more open.

No after photos yet ~ still want to organize more.  Maybe tomorrow I'll share a photo of the Goodwill pile at least ~ that's if I can make it down and back up the stairs :)

Summer is officially here!

I'm sitting here stalking  surfing thru some of my favorite blogs, listening to the sounds of 3 sleeping in the living room.  We have a tradition that on the last day of school the kids get to stay up as late as they can watching movies.  Well, here it is 10 pm and they are both zonked (as is DH)!  I think this is the earliest they have ever caved.  I, on the other hand, am wide awake and so thought that I would do a quick post.

This summer is going to be our busiest yet.  Softball practices and games, swim team practices and meets, dance camps, hitting the pool (probably every day now that we live across the street), sleepovers, day trips, county fairs and the state fair ~ it's going to be full!  I'm hoping to do a few makeovers, if I can find the time ~ not a lot, as we don't have the room for much, but I can't seem to get them out of my system :)

I'm hoping to do at least 1 post a week ~ before and after shots of our home, some Disney tips.  Maybe even include cleaning out the basement.  We had move so fast that DH and some friends had to do all the packing.  They also did all the moving and unloading without any direction from me as to where anything went ~ I was pretty much confined to the recliner and unable to move.  Needless to say, the basement looks like a war zone.  I have been able to get down there and unpack most of the boxes.  All the junk treasures have been put on the shelving that's down there.  I've been trying to sort thru things ~ Goodwill should send me a huge thank you this year ;)  Some stuff has been sold.  But there is still so much down there that I just need to get thru.  My goal is to spend a minimum of 1 hour per day down there ~ we'll see how that goes once things get into full summer schedule next week.

Keep checking for new posts ~ you'll never know what you're going to find in them!

Finish Friday! And a little Disney savings idea!

It's Friday!  Both kids are on their way to field trips today and there's only 3.5 days before summer vacation starts.  They can't wait for the pool to open ~ we moved to a home that is directly across from the pool :)  For the last week, it's been driving them nuts to watch it being filled and all the prep work that's been taking place.  I was a bit disgusted when it was first filled ~ the water was totally brown!  Now it's finally looking crystal clear and very inviting (especially since the temps have been in the 80s).

The makeover is completed ~ it felt so good to get that spray paint out again!  I'm more than pleased with how it looks.

Remember what it looked like before ~

It was a nice navy blue mirror ~ quite plain and boring.  Plus it didn't fit in with the new home's decor.  So I used some creativity and turned it into this ~

Add some colonial red spray paint and a black metal G ~ it's a whole new piece!  It adds such a nice pop of color and goes so well with everything.  I almost (although I can't believe I'm admitting it) donated it to Goodwill when we were moving because I didn't think I could use it. 

Here's how I have it displayed for the time ~

It's sitting on top of the entertainment center in the family room along with our Disney savings jars.  One for me, one for DH, one for DS, one for DD, one for gas, and one for food.  That's an idea I snagged from pinterest :)  The kids are allowed to put whatever money they want into the jars (money from birthdays, Christmas, etc.).  They can then use the money for their souvenirs ~ we usually buy their special one (or in other words, the expensive one).

We give them opportunities to earn Disney dollars through different things ~ chores, trying new foods (for our picky eater), when we "catch" them doing nice things for each other/us, etc.  DH and I "earn" our money from each other too.  We have decided not to buy cards or gifts for each other, but instead put that money in one of the other 4 jars.  Any spare changes goes in as well.

We just started doing this after we settled in to our new home, so there's not a lot of money in them yet.  Although DD did empty my change jar into hers and DS :)  So they have a little start.  But, since we probably won't be heading back to the World for a year, there's plenty of time to fill 'em up!



A Makeover!!!!

Most of the boxes are unpacked ~ a lot has found it's way to Goodwill.  However, there are still a few makeovers to be found :) 

When we purchased this home, it needed a LOT of updating.  The good news was we had time to do it ~ the acreage had not sold so we didn't have to move yet.  The old wool carpet was pulled out, the stuck-on tile was chiseled out, new paint in every room, new light fixtures hung. 

I decided to go a different way in decorating this home.  While I still like the prim look, it just doesn't "fit" in this house.  So I went with a color called cork for all the walls, ceilings, and woodwork.  Yes ~ we painted the ceilings and workwood all the same color as the walls.  We cut our living space in half and felt that by painting everything the same color, it would open the space up and give more of a flow to the house.  Loving it! 

I'm using black for most of the accessories with just a hint of red here and there.  I took my inspiration from a pip berry garland that I have.  So I've been busy painting picture frames and anything else that I have displayed black ~ mostly gloss.  I didn't think I would like the shine of gloss, but it is giving everything a nice finish. 

Because I don't have as much display room, I've been downsizing and downsizing all my "pretties".  Plus with everything that happened during my surgery, I have found myself craving anything with a connection to our family ~ photos, artwork, etc.  Everything that I had out at the acreage just doesn't seem to matter to me anymore.  As I've been unpacking them, I don't want to display them and just want to get rid of them.  I have always loved displaying DS and DD artwork, but now that's about all I have on the walls besides photos.  There is just something about doing this that makes our home so cozy!

I came across a window frame mirror that I have had for years in one of the boxes and an idea came to me on how I could incorporate it into our home.  It was a glossy navy blue and needed some updating. 

Here's the before ~

It's painted, now I'm just waiting for it to dry to finish it up.  Maybe tomorrow I'll be able to post the finished project!