Creative Juices Decor

There are a few DIY jobs that if someone would have told me how EASY it is, I would have done it a long time ago……this project is one of them.   I hope you get inspired to do your own. The rule of thumb with recovering dining/kitchen chairs is purchase 3/4 yard per 2 chairs , so my 6 chairs needed 2 1/4 yards.  I bought remnant fabric for $7.00 yard. (I folded my fabric in half then divided it up into 3 sections to cut) My recommendation since you are doing it yourself is to not buy stripes or a very distinct patterned fabric, it just makes it harder to line up correctly or center the pattern every time.  Of course if you are super ambitious just go for it and be aware how you lay out your fabric and cut it for every chair top. (you may have to buy extra fabric if you do it that way too) (very simply designed fabric – no lining up stripes or pattern here!) All you need to do is have a staple gun and scissors.   Staple guns...

  I LOVE this recipe because it’s simple and yet so tangy and tasty.  I like to think it’s fairly healthy because it has a lot of raw broccoli in it and fresh grapes.  (it’s healthy - right?)   I do not like to rush around on the day of an event so any recipe that can be made the night before, like this one, is HUGE for me! Broccoli Grape Salad (adapted from cooking second )   4 c. red grapes, cut in half (red looks great against the green broccoli) 1 broccoli head, cut into bite-sized pieces 1 lb. bacon, cooked & crumbled 1/2 red onion, sliced or minced up 1/2 c slivered almonds Dressing: 1 c. mayonnaise 1/3 c. sugar with 1 tsp. Stevia Powder 1 1/2 Tbsp. cider vinegar Directions: Cook bacon. Combine mayonnaise, sugar/stevia & vinegar. Set aside. Combine grapes, broccoli, bacon,  & onion. Pour dressing over salad; toss until combined. Let sit in fridge overnight, if desired (this just lets the flavors me...

I have so many fess ups in my head it’s ridiculous.  I finally decided that I will take pictures of all my little fess ups to make posts like this more fun. Fess Up #1. The Chocolate Chip Cookie Diet   Whenever I decide to start a diet I usually end up making a batch of cookies.  It doesn’t matter that the same day my neighbor brought over a giant batch of garden lettuce.  I still made the cookies and ate half a dozen.  The lettuce??  well I just looked at it throughout the day and thought it would make a great centerpiece.  Here’s what continues though out the “diet” day.  I always take half of a cookie thinking that I’m being “much better” than taking the whole cookie. After a while I’ll look at the cookie plate and see 14 halves of a cookie, and that’s when I  I realize I haven’t been good at all. I just at 7 cookies . Pretty soon my entire mind set changes and I decide that it would be much better for me just to eat AL...

Ends Wednesday August 3rd!   (Now Closed) When I first posted this I had maybe 5 followers so hopefully this will be a new read for a lot of you guys.  I did changed it up AND included a giveaway for you guys!!!  32 oz. of Virgin Tropical Traditions Coconut oil.   This is how you can WIN:   (please include email on one of your entries) 1. Please leave a comment below, have you used coconut oil before?? 2. You don't need to be a follower or subscriber to enter the contest but while you are here   take a look around and if you like what you see and decide to become one , (or are one) please leave a separate comment letting me know as this will give you your second entry. 3. If you would like to subscribe to Tropical Traditions Sales Newsletter    leave a comment you did so and it will give you another entry for a total of three entries .   Originally this post was inspired from my Healthy Food on a Budget post.   Some p...

Most of our house comes “standard”.  I do get to pick out a ton of things like all the colors, finishes, trim work etc... but doing extra fancy custom things isn’t really how the company works that is building our house.  It’s not that I CAN’T add custom things, it just that’s not how they generally build their homes.  (they are a spec home company that has a small custom home division) Anyway, I have always known from day one that I had to have this feature in my new home.  And it was worth “messing” up the smooth building process to get it there! I called up a few local ironworkers, got some bids and met with the guy with the best price.  He was SO fun to work with and did the entire custom iron piece for $365.00.  It is huge and heavy!  3’wide by 4 1/2 ‘ tall.  Creative IronWorks I am really excited.  It will be placed right as you walk into the house on the right hand side and you will be able to see through t...

I always have fun helping my friends out with design ideas.  I like to tell them the idea and then leave and let them “go for it!”  One fine day while at my friends house she takes me into the garage and shows me this beautiful painting but tells me she just doesn’t like it anymore.  She wishes she did (they spent a lot of $ on it) but the picture just didn’t pop for her like it did before.  I looked at it and said, well I know what is wrong, the picture needs some excitement and color.  You need to paint it red!  Being that she is a very smart and witty friend she said, I think that’s a great idea, how about if I give it to you and you can fix it up, and when you are finished you can put it on your blog!  Hummmmm…….did I mention she has a BLOG OF HER OWN? Well, I did take it home (I thought about accidently “forgetting” it) but hey, she just had me and my three kids over for lunch and play date.  Just for the MESS she has to clean up after...

It’s no secret that I am frugal, so I thought it would be fun to show you how I stretch my dollar. Thrift Stores: I buy almost all my kids clothes at thrift stores.  You can get Gymboree, Gap and all kinds of nice name brand, hardly worn clothes there.  As you know, I find a TON of awesome home décor items from the thrift store also. You can see all my home décor thrift store finds by typing “treasure” in my search box. Call a few thrift stores and find out when their sale day is.  My favorite thrift store has their ENTIRE store 50% off on Wednesdays. OK, I know, not sure why I bought this wedding dress but it was so pretty and with tax it was $19.58!  Could I hope that one of my daughters might like it?  Now THAT would save me hundreds!   Garage Sales: In general, you will get the best prices anywhere on clothes and home décor by shopping garage sales.  Just be willing to wake up early as the good stuff goes fast!   Consignment...