This is a sponsored post written by us on behalf of The Home Depot- We're so thrilled to have the chance to partner with one of our CWTS sponsors!I'll keep it real right from the start… as much as I try, I don't have a super green thumb. I did last week when I was painting my piano green, but that's not quite the same I suppose. When our friends at The Home Depot asked if we'd like to try our hand at creating a vertical garden, I jumped at the opportunity! Last month, I talked about how I joined the The Home Depot Garden Club and saw so many cool projects and ideas. If you missed the post, you can check it out here- they also have a $5.00 coupon-Score! So, after combing through the site, and looking on The Garden Club board on Pinterest I decided to make a vertical garden. I think they look super cool and I've never tried using my carpentry skills with my lack of gardening skills. Here's what I'm hoping to make… Of course with my own fun twist!
(Hover over the image below… it's like magic!)
Vertical gardens are all the rage this season! I've seen so many cool ones made out of everything from shoe organizers to soda bottles. Here are some of the awesome ones I've seen on Pinterest… Apartment Therapy
Pallet Vertical Garden
Boundless
I'm headed to The Home Depot this week to get all of my materials, but I have to decide a few things beforehand. 1- What flowers do you think I should add to my vertical garden? 2- What color scheme should I go for? 3- How should I add my own fun spin to the style?
I'd love to hear your input! Next week I'll share my building plans and materials- you can build one right along with me. It'll be like a DIY long distance relationship!
It’s home improvement time, and The Home Depot has everything you need to #DigIn for Spring. No matter what projects you want to tackle, they have great values on all you need. They’re ready to help you with renovation ideas and expert advice too!Get over $300 in email exclusive savings each year, sneak peeks on new products, monthly lawn & garden ideas for your region and access to The Home Depot’s gardening experts.
I'm not a huge fan of spring, mainly because I LOVE summer and get a tad impatient for the hot pool-weather days. However, I do love seeing all the new spring trends, products, and ideas. Today we're sharing a few Spring Must Haves from our fabulous sponsors. We so appreciate our sponsors. They make this blog possible and we're so grateful for that! Make sure you check them out and tell them RHBC sent you! ********************************************************************************** Remember the awesome artwork we made for Jess' house? Well, it wouldn't have looked half as amazing without the mad-photo-skills of Stacy Salvatori. She's local to Bucks County and would be a great choice for your family pictures or next big event. Visit Stacy's Website
I'm love with the Just for Girls Collection from Red Letter Words. How fun and springy are these prints? I plan to order a few for Kenzie's room in the next few weeks. I love art that looks cool and will also daily encourage my tween (holy cow that is the first time I've written that. I can't believe I have a ten year old!) Visit Red Letter Words
#1- Make 5 Dinners in One Hour… that's NO JOKE! These crazy affordable meal plans with shopping lists and directions will rock your world. Head over to their Facebook page to try one week for FREE!
#2- We're so glad that 31 Gifts jumped on the Grey & Yellow bandwagon and came out with this adorable line! I'd love an organizing utility tote in this pattern! Contact Mandy to get yours (you can get me one too!)
#3- Have you visited My Best Friend's Hair yet? You definitely need to. If you have a stylist you love, go let the world know by leaving a review or if you have yet to find the right stylist for you, head to their site to read other users reviews and find yourself a rockin' stylist today!
#4- I require a perfect spring candle in my kitchen this time of year. CJ's EcoChic Candles smell amazing, and because they're soy they last forever! (ok, not literally, but figuratively). They best part… you're not going to pay $25 like you would at the big chain stores and you're supporting a great small business.
#5-This is a spoiler alert! Remember the SuperFab room makeover we're currently working on? Well, we have Royal Design Studios to thank for one of the amazing design elements in the room. They have the best stencil selection around! Check out their new and improved website and they have an idea blog with all kinds of inspiration. Guess who was featured there for our Nate Show stencil project? Visit their new website!
#6- Kotton Pickin' Kute is more than just hats! For Spring you need to check out the fun headbands she offers. Seriously, that baby is adorable!
#7- Guess what?? Liberty Thrift listened to its shoppers and extended their hours! Woohoo! It's now open M-Sat 9-7pm. We have a fun outing in the works with Liberty and can't wait to share the details with you!
#8- Moo & Puppy is our favorite digital scrapbook company out there! We love the preppy look of this madras paper pack. (I'll confess that in the 90s I loved and wore lots of Abercrombie before they went all half-naked. But man, I do love me some preppy styles!) Moo & Puppy is giving you 15% off with the code RHBC15.
#9- Jet Upholstery is more than just chairs and cushions! Look at that amazing bed! Even for these DIYers some projects are better left to the pros! Visit Jet's Website for more info!
Those links should keep you busy for a while! I actually have about 15 tabs open on my computer right now, because I want to place a ton of orders! Thanks again to our sponsors! You're the best!
Ladies-and the approximately 1% of readers who are dudes-, we have awesome sponsors. They are the ones who make the rest of our posts and projects possible. Not only do they support us, but they have some pretty cool stuff in their stores. We've rounded up some of favorite items for a cozy Fall season. Make sure you don't miss the discount codes and special promotions!
1. We are digging on this Antique Thread Display Drawer from Nachokitty. It could serve so many different purposes: jewelry organizer, craft supply organizer, or pretty display for your tiny treasures. Don't stop there, though. You should definitely take a look at their Etsy shop- I could browse their finds for hours!
2. I love this Industrial Table Lamp from Lucent Lampworks! I can see it snuggled up to some pretty Fall decor on a mantel or side table. Love. it. To get 10% off your purchase use the code EC2TENOFF.
3. We're heading into the holiday season, and it's always good to have small gifts on hand for teachers, neighbors etc. Stock up on these Premium Soy Candles from CJS Eco Chic in the mini 4 oz. and you won't ever have to worry! And oh man, the holiday scents are to die for!
4. We love using non-traditional materials for headboards! How about this fireplace mantel headboard? Not bad, right? Architectural Antiques is hands-down our favorite place for incredible salvaged materials to repurpose.
5. Did you see Mandi's Epic Room Makeover. She used the Nova Trellis, from Royal Design Studio in the bathroom and well, it is fabulous. As a thank you to their 10,000 FB fans, RDS is offering25% of all orders through Sunday with the code WELOVEU.
6. You've all been waiting for Monica's big patio reveal, and tomorrow, the wait is over! They couldn't have done it without Stone Depot, and their super helpful staff. Now's the time to build an outdoor fireplace or firepit, and they guys at Stone Depot have everything you need to make that happen!
7. We can't seem to control our love for photo canvases from Canvas People! Right now you can buy a 11 x 14 Canvas for only $15 from Canvas People and $1 of every order will be donated to help fight Breast Cancer! If you need some inspiration for what to put on a canvas, check out this post! 8. Not gonna lie, once the holiday season starts (right after Halloween, in my opinion), I often need a reminder to stop and be thankful for all that I have. This 1 Thessalonians 5:16 Print from Red Letter Words makes a perfect visual reminder of that very thing…and it looks cool, too. Check out the fun new turquoise color, too! They also have a really fun, very sweet Print of the Month focused on the value we women have, and you will receive 20% off this entire section through the end of this month. 9. We love Moo & Puppy digital paper so much, we even wrote a post about all of it's many uses! I'm really liking the fall-ish colors of the Retro Digital Scrapbook Paper. Use the discount code EC2blog20 for 20% off your order!
10. We all know that Thirty-One Gifts has cute and affordable bags, but the one item I've had my eye for over a year is this small Magazine Basket. I love it's shape and versatility! Plus, you can personalize all baskets for only a few dollars more. Right now, mention EC2Blog when you order any basket and get any second item in the catalog 31% off. To place your order, click here and shoot an email to Amanda with your order.
11.Liberty Thrift Store is hands-down our go-to thrift store. Did you know that we found the chair we reupholstered for the Nate Show there? You never know what you'll find thrifting, but it's always fun! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Wait, one more thing! We're happy to announce that we're accepting new sponsors! We have a few openings that we would love to fill, so if you have a business that you think we'll love and can help you promote, send us an email at eastcoastcreativeblog@gmail.com! Seriously, what better way to sell your stuff than to have two loud, passionate, crazy women on your side?! For all the nitty-gritty info about our sponsorship opportunities, click here. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Have a great day, and be sure to stop over and say hi to our wonderful sponsors!
I'm so excited to introduce you to one of our biggest DIY Projects ever! Over the next weeks we're going to be taking you step-by-step through our DIY Patio Project. I was thrilled when Stone Depot and EP Henry decided to partner with us on this crazy adventure.
So, here's the plan, each week I'll be giving you an update with info and tips on what we've completed. You're going to be amazed at how do-able this DIY really is (just LOTS and LOTS of work- husbands, please don't send me hate mail!) and don't worry, for those of you that definitely don't want to tackle this as a DIY, I'll hook you up with the pros at Stone Depot and they can help you out. I'm way impulsive, so for a Big-Mama DIY, I needed a plan to keep me focused and doing things in the right order (or I would drive my hubs nuts!)
Step #1- Plan Patio Layout This was honestly very, very tricky. I learned a few things… As I planned, my patio mysteriously got BIGGER and BIGGER and planning is not as easy as I thought it would be. I had a few requirements 1- A large space for a BIG Dining Table (I feel another DIY table coming soon!) and 2- An area for a fire pit and sitting. Here was brainstorm number one… Now, remember I'm NOT an artist or a landscape designer. This looked pretty on paper, but having an opening for stairs off the patio only about 3 feet away from the opening for the walkway was weird.
Brainstorm Number Two looked like this… Still had the weird stairs/walkway combo and I also added a bump out area. Why you ask? Well, I love sitting in the sun! The way the sun crosses our house, that little area would have sun 24-7 (Well, not really, but you get the idea). Eventually I talked myself out of that because it was weird and made me seem a tad vain (enter the Carly Simon music).
The Final Plan is different than both of our initial ideas, but it's clean, simple, and big enough for all my requirements!
Now, it looks kind of small in these pictures, but it's about 600sq/ft and will be perfect for parties and lots of outdoor fun. DIY PATIO TIP: Use leftover spray paint to draw out your design on the grass to make sure it's what you really want. I had about 7 colors going on at one point.
Step #2- Choose EP Henry Stone from Stone Depot Once we had our plan, we headed off to Stone Depot in Perkasie. They have a HUGE selection and their guys know their stuff! We were able to walk around outside and see actual patios and samples of each of the different paver options and colors.
Here's what we picked! Bristol Stone in Blue Spruce. I think the color will go really well with our house.
Here's a better picture, but in a different color. We're going to have sitting wall, like this, along the back and we're going to add fun lighting too!
I love how the stone sizes are varied and I like that they're larger than traditional pavers. At our old house we had Old Town Cobble, which is nice, but the Bristol Stone has a more contemporary feel to me. The next step is measuring and planning outside the house. Here's a picture to give you a general idea. Next week I'll give you all of our tips for the measuring, trust me we learned a thing or two along the way! DIYing with my hubby is a tad different than DIYing with Jess! HA!
So be honest, are we CRAZY for taking on this DIY? Any tips or advice?
We were really excited when one of our very first blog sponsors, Mandy, approached us about sharing her story with our readers. This is a little different than our normal DIY post, but it's a pretty awesome opportunity and story we've watched unfold. So sit back, relax, and we'll tell you a little story…***************************************************************************This is Mandy. In 2010 Mandy was a mom to two girls, a wife, and a full-time English teacher.
Mandy was happy with her lot in life, but she was a tad stressed with juggling it all. One weekend, one of Mandy's best friends ever came to visit. During the weekend they had a conversation that went like this…Friend: Hey look at my super cute bagMandy: It's adorableFriend: I just got it from a cool, new company called Thirty-One Gifts. Mandy: Cool bag, strange nameFriend: It's a Christian company and 31 is from the Proverbs 31 woman. They do parties to sell their products. You should check it out, you'd be awesome at it. Mandy: (walking to get laptop) I want to check our their site.-5 minutes pass-Mandy: This is my New Passion!(Mandy proceeds to sign up as a 31 Gifts Independent Consultant)Seriously, the conversation actually went like that. True Story. This is Mandy. It's 2012 and she's a mom to three girls, a wife, and a stay-at-home-mom who's also an Independent Executive Director with Thirty-One Gifts.
Who would have thought starting a business would actually bring calm, growth, and encouragement to a persons life? That's exactly what happened. Mandy went from maintaining the juggling act to joining a group of women that she loves working with, making relationships that will outlast any tote or product, increasing the time she has to spend with her family, gaining personal confidence, and growing leaps and bounds in her faith. People always want to know about money, so we'll keep it real for you. Mandy left her full-time teaching job and is now making three times her previous income. They've been to Cancun and are leaving Friday for a week in Disney, all through Thirty-one.
Mandy wanted us to share her Thirty-One story with you because she knows how it has changed her life and now is an amazing time that Thirty-One could change yours. Thirty-One Gifts- Opportunity to Join Incentive!
Mandy is super passionate about helping other women, that like her, feel ready to stop the juggling act, and start doing something that will be encouraging, help to put family first, and making working fun! She'd love to talk to you more, so if you have any questions, leave a comment, click HERE, or use Mandy's Ad on the sidebar to contact her.
Mandy, Thanks for sharing your story and this opportunity with our readers! We love you Girl!
