My Creative Blog [Search results for Mother's Day] 

Sharpie projects have been trending all year, but we hadn't gotten to give 'em a try until recently! We shared this post as part of the P&G Have You Tried This Yet program, but it's perfect for a last minute Mother's Day or Teacher Appreciation Week gift!! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
What's a DIYer to do when it comes to getting her Mom something for Mother's Day? Well, DIY a gift, of course! We love a gift that is thoughtful and handmade, and this easy project is both! Plus, no special artistic skills are needed!

These mugs are super easy to make and can be customized in a million different ways. Fill with your mom's favorite tea, candy or even fresh flowers for a sweet Mother's Day gift she won't forget.

Here's what you'll need to make your own:

• White, ceramic mugs (found at any discount store)
• Permanent marker in your color choice
• Stencil (optional)
• Painter's tape (optional)
• Baking sheet

Step 3: Fill in the cutouts with the permanent marker, being careful not to smudge the ink. Let the ink dry for a few minutes and then remove the stencil and begin again.

For the second mug, I free-handed"I Love my Mom". This was actually a little easier than the stencil. I drew on paper what I wanted it to look like before I began on the mug. Then it took a steady hand and in a few minutes it was done!

Step 4: Place the mugs on a baking sheet and heat at 350 degrees for 30 minutes in the oven to set the ink. Remove from oven and let cool.

Now, that you're done, these mugs can be washed, put through the dishwasher and used every day and the marker will not smudge or fade. Love that!

So, for only a couple bucks you can have a custom gift that your mom or teacher will love!

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Did you hear our BIG NEWS?

Click here for our announcement post with all the fun details!!
We can't wait for July 7th!!

Oh man, we love a good giveaway. I mean, really, who doesn't like to win free things?! We've talked about our friend Stacy multiple times because we can't get enough of her photography. Just recently Salvatori Photography did an awesome story session of Monica and her family. Basically, she followed their family around one Saturday morning to capture their everyday moments and they turned out fabulous…
(This is one of Monica's favorites from the session)

Last year, she captured our entire families and as a result, we have photos we will love for a lifetime.

One of her photos even graces my walls in an almost life-sized way- remember my huge shaped frame? And this picture of my kiddos (they were so little!) is just priceless.

And, well, it's pretty nice to have a great photo of me and my best friend.

For Mother's Day, we are so excited to be able to give away a photography session with Salvatori Photography!

Here are the prize details you need to know:

~ 1 hour Session in one location ~ Up to 5 people ~ Over a $300 Value ~ Must live within 25 miles of Perkasie PA ~ Can't not be redeemed for cash value -Must be redeemed by August 1, 2013
Isn't this AWESOME?!! Just think, one of you could surprise your mom, sister, grandma or wife with a photography session for Mother's Day! I would be over the moon with a gift like that (*hint hint, hubby!).
**Please make sure you click to LIKE Salvatori Photography- don't just click I'm a fan, unless you already are. Thanks!**
a Rafflecopter giveaway

We'll announce the lucky winner next Friday, April 19th! Good luck!: )

P.S, We're the ones in a contest now and if we win, we get to give $5000 to a charity we love- Worthwhile Wear. We need your help, though- you can learn more about our project and the charity we chose here, or go vote for us every day for the next two weeks right here. Thanks!!

I'm in love with this food combination. I've made several different versions of caprese salads, appetizers and entrees, but I think these little Mozzarella & Basil Tomato pockets are perfect for Mother's Day, (or any type of gathering where women are present since they're so darn adorable.) We had these this past Sunday for our Mother's day get-together with my husband's family. Sadly, my hubs and his four brothers devoured them without so much a word about their cuteness.

Recipe adapted from All You Magazine

Am I right? So cute I could eat them up. Oh wait…I did. Anyway, this recipe is super easy, involves only 3 ingredients, and has major wow factor. It almost doesn't need a step-by-step, but for those of you who are interested here's what you'll need:
Fresh Marinated Mozzarella (Costco sells a brand called Formaggio that rocks) Grape Roma Tomatoes Fresh Basil Leaves

Is your mouth salivating yet? 1. Slice the pointy end off the tomato (so that it will stand straight) and scoop out the guts of the tomato. I used a vegetable peeler because it was the perfect size, but you could use a small spoon.

2. Line the hollowed-out tomatoes on a baking sheet.

3. Add salt and pepper to the insides of each tomato and turn it upside on the pan. Let them sit for 10 minutes to"sweat" the liquid out a bit. (Sorry, no pictures of this step!)

4. Cut the balls of mozzarella in halves (or quarters depending on the size of your tomatoes). Shred or slice the basil leaves and wrap around one piece of tomato.

5. Stuff the tomatoes with the cheese and basil. sprinkle with a little more salt and pepper (if desired) and drizzle with the marinade from the mozzarella. Place upright on a platter and voila!

Delicious mozzarella & basil tomato pockets!

I was pretty excited about these little babies.

What are your go-to appetizers for special occasions?

Don't Try This at Home This mother's day weekend, I had a DIY happy mother's day to me project planned. I bought two inexpensive Adirondack chairs and planned to make them fabulous.

I was all geared up for a perfect DIY, camera in hand

I planned to use this cute paper on the back of the chair and then seal it with mod podge.

However, I forgot that I am a lefty, living in a right-handed world. I stink at cutting! I went through five pairs of scissors before I realized this was NOT working out.

I actually texted Jess a picture of the blister I got from using these dreadful scissors!

Oh, but look how cute this could look. What you can't tell from this picture is that it took me nearly an hour and a half to do that one strip and I had 11 more to do! (I might have been a little OCD and trying to get it perfect!)

I did two more strips and then decided this was a DIY not to try! I quit and peeled off all the paper. Blah!
Do Try This at Home! We're in the middle of the Design Challeng{ed} contest, and we want your pictures! Use the menu tab above to get all the details. Take a picture that shows your challenge room and you could win a professional design consultation by ME! What? What has this lady ever designed? Good question, and one we thought we should answer for you!
Although, I now only do design work on the side, I loved the years I spent making staging and design my occupation. The majority of the homes that I worked in were vacant or semi-vacant. I used a combination of the homeowner's belongings and rental furniture. Having a staged room makes a big impact on a potential buyer. Another home looking Empty and Blah

Simple Staging and ready for buyers!

The tricky part to staging is that you're not designing the room based on your preferences, (or even mine as the designer) we worked off of the demographics of potential buyers and the feel of the space.

This room isn't my personal style, but it was the right look for this high-end condo on the Main Line.

We're really excited to work with our Design Challeng{ed} winner. We hope that this mini portfolio peek gets you excited to think about a room makeover in your home!
So, my advice is to pass on the Adirondack DIY, and instead to use your time taking pictures and entering the Design Challeng{ed} contest so we can work together designing the perfect space for you! Good Luck!

P.S. Don't forget that you can enter the Design Challeng{ed} contest even if you're not in Bucks County! Virtual design is all the rage and this"cyber teacher" has all the right technology to make it happen for you!

Linked up to: The Stories of A to Z, Tip Junkie

Happy Monday, everyone! We hope you had a great day yesterday celebrating all the special mothers in your life. We both had enjoyable days with our families, but ended the day finishing up our fabulous room makeover, ie: SuperFab Room Redesign! We can't wait to reveal the room to you and give you a breakdown of all the fun projects we've been doing. The Room Reveal will be on Wednesday and you won't want to miss it!

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The #1 most frequently asked question recently is what color my kitchen is. Well, here you go:

I love it. It's the most perfect grayish/tan neutral you'll ever see. And, just so you know, I had Lowe's color-match this Olympic paint in Valspar Premium. Oh! And we're pretty excited (and think you will be too!) to start a FAQ page where you can find all the answers to your questions from our favorite products to use and the projects we do in our house to why we always DIY in frumpy clothes. Should be lots of fun, so stay tuned. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- In case you missed it, we offered two pretty awesome freebies in the last two weeks: CanvasPeople (FREE 8x10!) and Paper Coterie ($15 credit towards anything you want! Use GIFTFAVES at checkout). Make sure you take advantage of those before it's too late.: )

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Ok, your turn: What was your most favorite Mother's Day moment yesterday?

Mother's Day, Father's Day, End of school, and graduations… This is present season baby! Now, I know it's tempting to just hit the dollar store and buy a gift bag and tissue paper, but an awesome wrap job goes a long way. Perhaps it could be said that I have two fetishes in life… sneakers (I seriously can't get enough!) and wrapping paper. I might be one of the only people that have asked for wrapping paper as a birthday present. I was so excited to open rolls and rolls of it a few years ago!
So, let's ditch the dollar store and check out some fabulous ideas for prettifying your gifts. It only takes a few more minutes and it will really let the recipient know how much you care!
#1- Yarn Embellished Presents I love the rainbow effect and the tiny little knots. Kids could totally help with this technique!

Source: thingsbright.com via Monica on Pinterest
#2 Map Wrap How fun and modern is this? I think the small scale ribbon is a must and adds just the right finished touch. How cool would it be to wrap a high school graduate's present in a state map from the college s/he is headed off to?

Source: marthastewartweddings.com via Monica on Pinterest

Source: thecraftingchicks.com via Monica on Pinterest #3 Monogram Tags & Newspaper These tags are adorable and would be so simple to make with your printer. The baker's twine is really popular right now and much cheaper than ribbon. The newspaper is really easy to work with and makes the red accents really pop!

Source: thecraftingchicks.com via Monica on Pinterest
#4 Picture Presents It's no surprise this adorable idea is from the queen of craft… Martha Stewart. Tell me grandparents wouldn't LOVE a present wrapped like this…

Source: marthastewart.com via Monica on Pinterest
#5 Fabric Wrapped I have tons of scrap fabric that could be used to wrap! This idea would be especially helpful for those oddly shaped presents that are impossible to wrap. You can knot the top or tie it up with some ribbon.

Source: wedfully.com via Monica on Pinterest
#6 Tissue Paper I first was inspired to wrap with tissue paper when I was at a Christmas wrapping party and watched my friend Patty turn a present into a masterpiece! Granted, she only wrapped one present in about an hour, but it was one rockin' present! I think that layering is the key when working with tissue paper.

Source: fig2design.com via Monica on Pinterest

Since I have A LOT of wrapping paper, of course I needed a wrapping area. This is my favorite wrapping station in all of blogland…

Source: pixiesdidit.com via Joia on Pinterest
I've loved it for years and only wish mine would look anything remotely like this (I'm not neat nor organized enough… it would always be a mess!) Here are a few other ways to store your paper (just in case you develop a fetish like me!)

Source: realsimple.com via Kimberley on Pinterest

Source: chicspacesforlittlefaces.com via Amy on Pinterest
So, with Father's Day this weekend (I hope you didn't forget!) maybe you can try out a new wrapping technique… I promise you'll love it!

PS- If you win one of Bethany's Blossom Bands, maybe you can wrap it all fancy-schmancy before giving it to your little one! Make sure you've entered the giveaway… check out Tuesday's post for all the details!

You guys have been so good to us lately! You've dealt with all the blog switcheroo craziness and we thought we should thank you for it! Well, technically Canvas People are the ones doing the generous giving, but we're sharing the love with you! They run this deal from time to time, and this time around we get to share it with you!

Canvas People are offering a Free 8x10 to every EC2 reader! (or if you're more the large print type you can get $40 off of your order)

To get your free canvas, click HERE One of my very first blog posts ever was about a canvas gallery I ordered through Canvas People. Remember this?

So the question now is What to Print?? Pictures or a Printable? Don't worry, we've rounded up an awesome collection of free, legit prints that you can use on your canvas. How's that for exciting?
. To download them, follow them using the links provided to their source sites, save the image to your computer and upload it to Canvas People using the link above.
This would look great in a master bedroom or bath.Download the I love us printable.

Source: eighteen25.blogspot.com via East Coast Creative on Pinterest The school year is almost over, make one of these on canvas for one of your kiddo's teachers Download the Teacher Appreciation printable 16x20

Source: eighteen25.blogspot.com via East Coast Creative on Pinterest
We love the colors in this one!Download the Room in Our Hearts printable

Source: simpleasthatblog.com via East Coast Creative on Pinterest

Love isn't just for the month of February! Download the fairytale printable

Source: simpleasthatblog.com via East Coast Creative on Pinterest
Jess has an obsession with coral, so this would be perfect. Comes in tons of colors!Download the What I Love printable

Source: eighteen25.blogspot.com via East Coast Creative on Pinterest
And my personal favorite is one I made from a quote I saw. Download Straight Gangsta printable

You know by now that our favorite online paper store is Moo & Puppy. I made this monogram printable to put on a canvas, but I was thinking of making one for each of my kids' teachers. All you need to do is 1-visit moo and puppy2- choose your paper pack- you get like 8 papers for $3.00 (what a deal!) 3- Use picmonkey.com to add a background shape and letter4. Use this link to get your free canvas!

Ooh, and we just found a few more adorable printables (comes in lots of colors!) from Paper Coterie that are perfect for Mother's Day, and every other day for that matter! Download Love printables

We hope you have a great weekend and have fun choosing what to print! Aren't FREE things awesome? We sure think so! Enjoy!

We are so happy to have Janenifer from Dimples and Tangles here today sharing all the details on this stunning china cabinet transformation that she linked up last week in our final round of Creating with the Stars. Janenifer has great taste and impeccable style. We know that once you take a look at her blog, you won't be able to stop! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Well, here she is!

After almost two full weeks of work (off and on), it's finally done, and I'm going to make you scroll through way too many pictures.
Let's remember the very sad before…

And the oh so fun after!

I wanted to create a glam, sophisticated look and lighten up the inside, so I used my wedding china, crystal, some other white dishes and thrifted milk glass I've collected to style the shelves.

I like symmetry.

Now for the details, I sanded, filled in gouges, sanded, wiped, and primed before painting three coats of color. Yes, I can confirm that dark colors are tricky and take more paint. The color I used was Behr's Pine Scent in semi-gloss. I used a good Purdy brush for the corners and a foam roller for the rest. Also, a huge trick I've learned when painting with latex paint is to use a coat or two of poly on the flat surfaces that will have something sitting on top of them. Latex paint can stay tacky for up to a month, but with a layer of poly it's ready to go after 24 hours or so…no tackiness!

. One of the knobs on the bottom doors was missing, and a few of the pulls on the top doors. I kept and cleaned up the brass backplates on the glass doors, and found these perfect glass knobs at Hobby Lobby. They are an oval shape rather than round so they fit nicely together where the doors meet.

I also gave you a sneak peak at the chunky hardware on the bottom. The oversize glass knobs were out of my stash. Did you guess what the backplate was? I knew I wanted something big and was coming up empty looking online, and then I remembered I had these…

They started their lives as…Christmas ornaments! I bought them and used them as hangers for an old window treatment (seen here). My handy husband drilled a hole in the middle and they were perfect! Along with the original drawer handles, they got a coat of Rustoleum's Metallic Brass spray paint, and then a coat of Rub-n-Buff in Gold Leaf.

I had planned to add height by adding an extending shelf in between the two pieces to house some cubbies for storage baskets, but I ended up just needing to get this piece d.o.n.e! I probably will still add that piece in the future.

With this project completed, I'm down to artwork and a new table for this room. I have the table but it needs some work so I am waiting for a streak of warm-enough days outside to work on it. That probably won't be happening until later in the spring. Artwork, though, coming up!

Isn't that gorgeous? We're totally digging the kelly green and gold together and how smart was it to use Christmas ornaments as part of the knobs??!! If you think that piece is awesome, you just have to see the Accent panel wall in Janenifer's office…it is to die for!

Thanks so much for sharing with us today, Janenifer! Check back tomorrow for an AWESOME Mother's Day giveaway that you don't want to miss!

P.S, We're the ones in a contest now and if we win, we get to give $5000 to the charity of our choice! We need your help, though- you can learn more about our project and the charity we chose here, or go vote for us every day for the next two weeks right here. Thank you!

You guys get to see my home all the time in projects, you get to read my ramblings here on the blog daily, but today I'm sharing something a little more personal… my family and my life behind the scenes. Our photographer Stacy of Stacy Salvatori Photography spent a Saturday with our family capturing pictures of our real life. No coordinated outfits, no posing, just capturing how we roll. I can't tell you how much I love the pictures and I can't wait to make a big ol' display with them!
(Don't forget that Stacy is giving away a FREE Session for Mother's Day and you can enter until Midnight tonight! Click here to enter!)

Here's how Stacy describes these awesome story sessions… I wanted to try something new. Something real. I’ve seen a few photographers that I admire and whose work I simply love, start a new journey. One of capturing people’s stories… their real life moments. And I kind of dig it. I like the notion of no posing, no planned outfits, and location? Well, how about your own home. The place you feel most you. I still love doing Family Portrait Sessions, and I always will. But there’s something unique, and something raw about snapping those in-between moments of life. The moments that truly define who we are, and that when we look back on, well, they will help us feel what we did all over again. I had the joy of capturing the Mangin Family’s ‘Story’. Them in their beautiful home, laughing, fighting, playing, and crying… living their life in front of the lens. Here’s a few snapshots of their life. What’s your story?
I hope you enjoy this peek into my life… If you would have told me ten years ago that I'd have 4 kids, own a dog, cat, and two ducks, I'd have laughed hard enough to possibly pee my pants. God has some crazy plans up his sleeve and I'm so thankful for this crazy life that's ours.

One of my very favorite pictures!

Hard to see, but if you look closely you can see my crazy hubs was throwing an ax up in the air and catching it while it was spinning. Did I mention our life is a tad crazy?

I hope you've enjoyed peeking into my world. If you're local, you should definitely call Stacy about setting up a story session. Tell her EC2 sent you and she'll give you the VIP treatment! (I completely made that up, but she's always super nice, so we can pretend it's VIP just for you!)
Later this week I'll be sharing more projects from the Wood Shim Wall Art projects!

P.S. We're the ones in a contest now and if we win, we get to give $5000 to the charity of our choice! We need your help, though- you can learn more about our project and the charity we chose here, or go vote for us every day for the next two weeks right here (click on the Crafting for Charity button on their FB page). Thank you!

T he orchards are in bloom.

This pear orchard is adjacent to our property. I took these pictures last spring. It's one of my favorite orchards to visit not only because they are our neighbor, but because the trees are old and offer the most captivating canopy of blossoms, which eventually unfold into leaves, and then to fruit.
I can already smell summer.

This is a favorite barn of mine. It's tucked away behind the pear trees just pleading to be explored.
Have a wonderful Mother's Day weekend!

I kill plants on a regular basis.

But Michelle, from Ten June created this Garden Wall which totally inspired me. I've been noticing a lack of greenery in my house (mostly because I don't take care of the few plants I do have) and wanted to rectify that, so I decided to try my hand at creating a garden wall in my kitchen. My internal self warned me that I should only do this if I promised that I would take care of the poor, terrified plants. So I made a deal with my internal self, and off I went!

According to Michelle, Ikea had some great containers that could be hung on the wall. She used the galvanized steel buckets, but after perusing the container isle for a while, I decided that these darling white ASKER containers would be perfect for my kitchen. (Recently, I've been consumed with thoughts of making everything white in my house. I'm not kidding. And I just might do it.) The holes in the backs of the containers makes it so easy to hang on the wall! I love when things are easy.

Lucky for me, Ikea also sells potted plants. I didn't have to go anywhere else to get all I needed for this project, because knowing me, if I did, you wouldn't be seeing this post until 2015. Please, oh please, oh please, don't ask me which succulents I bought. I don't know their names, but I do know for sure that I bought the one second from the left in the picture above. I've decided that I love succulents because they require virtually no care (they need to be watered only once per week, and thrive on indirect, but not hot, sunlight). Plus they are so unique and sculptural-looking!

The wall I used is very narrow, so I went with three plants in a vertical line. I wasn't too concerned with the containers being the exact same distance away from each other because I knew the height of each plant would make it look off anyway. (I'm the one who doesn't need perfection, remember?) I went with two dark green, and one light green plant to add some interest.

Here's a view of the kitchen coming in from the garage. The color in our kitchen is same throughout, but it looks so different in this picture! The most true representation of the color is the one the plants are on. The garden wall adds such a fresh pop of white and green to an otherwise un-remarkable wall. It doesn't overwhelm you when you see it, which makes me happy.

I love how flush they are to the wall! (And by the way, we hung them using white picture hangers.)

You might have noticed these pretty little ladies sitting on my kitchen peninsula. These were a gift from my hubs for Mother's Day, and even though they are now over a week old, they are so beautiful! I loved the colors and the antique look they have. You should have seen them a couple of days ago! Really, they took my breath away. Call me old-fashioned, but it's always SO nice to have fresh flowers in my house.
Do you have plants in your house? If so, what's your favorite kind?

Linking up to:

Today's Creative Blog

Tidy Mom

Have you ever noticed how incredibly expensive planters are? For about $40 I could get one itty bitty planter, that's not even cute. No thanks. I decided I would DIY planters that would work perfectly with my new painted door and rockin' house numbers. I didn't want anything to frilly, or girly. I wanted my style inside my house, reflected on the outside too! This project cost me $20 each, was incredibly simple, and totally fits my style.

Here's What you'll need to DIY your own color block, tiered planters: Plastic planters (mine were from Target) 2 colors of spray paint 1 color of latex paint Dirt, Mulch, Plants, Etc.
I started with these plain Jane planters from Target (find them here). You can't really tell how big they are, but they're pretty big (I can't wrap my arms around the top of the large one- I tried, so that gives you an idea and a weird mental picture. Sorry about that!) They cost $7 for the medium and $13 for the extra large.

The first step was to spray paint the middle color. I used Valspar's grey primer because I love the color.

You don't need to worry about the top or bottom at all. Just get a nice, even coat on the middle. I did two light coats on mine.

I painted the top color block with the same color I recently used on my front door. I'm a bit obsessed with it. I didn't need to tape for a clean line, because the planter had a lip that I was able to use as a guide. Also, make sure you paint down pretty far on the inside. I'm assuming your house guests will be taller than the planters, so they'll get a peek down inside.

The next step, made this DIYer do the dance of joy (remember Perfect Strangers?) because it saved me so much time! I used a paint can opener to pop the bottom of the planters. I'll warn you, it will sound like you're breaking them, but you're not! They'll pop right back on when you're done painting them.

Taking the bottom off, meant no need for tape or cutting in. Just spray paint the bottom whatever color you'd like. This was my little work station (aka messy garage).

Put the pieces all together and you're left with cool, color block planters.

They're nice like that, but I wanted to take it up a notch! I wanted some height, so I stacked them up. I didn't do any permanent attaching or anything, just fill the bottom with dirt, plant your flowers, add the next planter, and repeat.
Again, remember the angle people will see them from when they walk in… mulch is a must. No one wants to see this…

I used white wave petunias on the bottom and a boxwood on top.

Here was my porch a few weeks ago. It was a sad situation… trust me, I know!

Take a look now! I think it's just a tad more welcoming don't you?

For a grand total of $40 and less than an hour, I got two color block, tiered planters that perfectly match my style and house colors. (You can see the door and house numbers Here) Now… if only I can keep the plants alive… What do you think of my DIY Planter Upcycle?

**Since my mom loved my planters, she kind of hinted around to wanting one of her own. Here's what she got for Mother's Day! Black and Red to match her house!

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Did you hear our BIG NEWS?

Click here for our announcement post with all the fun details!! We can't wait for July 7th!!

This is a sponsored post brought to you by The Home Depot! We love them for sponsoring CWTS and challenging us with this awesome project! --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A few weeks ago, I introduced you to the vertical garden project I'm working on (if you missed it, check it out here). I'm super excited about the challenge of pulling off such a cool look with a pretty simple DIY! Today it's all about the shopping!! Woot woot!

I wear a lot of hats… mom, teacher, blogger, wife, and now TV host (still sounds crazy!!), but that means that sometimes project shopping trips look like this… 4 kiddos ready to shop till we drop at Home Depot!

Yes, we get a lot of strange looks from people- I wish I took an after pic of the full cart with all the kids on it! Crazy town I tell ya! Thankfully, my kids are pretty awesome and were excited to be" on a special project for The Home Depot!"

Here's a funny story… while we were shopping, we were approached about five times by helpful Home Depot employees offering to help us. One thing I love about Home Depot is that they'll make cuts for you! This plywood never would have fit in my car and cutting it down to the exact size I need, will save me a step at home! Sweet!

Okay, so back to the story… after the nice fella helped us cut the wood the kids decided that The Home Depot must know we're here on a special project for them, because they're being so helpful and nice! Ha! I promised them they had no idea who we are and they're always just nice. The kids totally didn't buy it, and they walked with a little extra spring in their step thinking they were kinda famous at HD! (Even Kira's very dirty Teddy was proud to be Home Depot famous!)

If you're planning on building your own vertical garden along with me, here are the exact directions and material list I'm following. The Home Depot's huge library of how-to-videos and project planning tools are super helpful for actually getting you to do the projects you've been thinking of! It's updated often, so there's never a lack of awesome ideas!

Now let's talk flowers… I'll be 100% honest- I picked my flowers almost completely based on looks! I wanted a mainly orange-yellow combo, but then the purple-ish blue petunias added such a fun pop in the mix! But, I didn't want all my work to result in a bunch of dead-as-a-doornail flowers in a few weeks! So, of course I visited The Home Depot Garden Club website and checked to make sure they were all okay for my zone. So I knew I was good there, but here on the East Coast there's always a"you can't plant until after Mother's Day" rumor… Rather than risk it, I checked out the Home Depot Garden Forums and posted a question… Boom! Got my answer- the green light to #Digin and start planting!

Aren't the colors awesome? I still have some work to do on my garden, so stay tuned next week and I'll walk you through my build. So far it's been pretty simple- can't wait until it's finished and hung!

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. Click here to join the world’s largest garden community today! Or go to http://gardenclub.homedepot.com/ to see some of the many benefits of membership. This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of The Home Depot. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Did you hear our BIG NEWS?

Click here for our announcement post with all the fun details!!
We can't wait for July 7th!!

Before we get into today's post, we want to announce the winner of the Mother's Day Giveaway from Salvatori Photography…

Congrats Holly! We know your session pics are going to be amazing! If you missed it, Wednesday I shared the awesome story session pics Salvatori Photography did for my family. Check it out here. Even if you didn't win, Stacy would love to take pics for you! Contact her before her schedule for late spring/summer is full! -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I don't play the piano… well, that's not entirely true, I took lessons for about two years, so there are about 3 songs I can pluck out- Ode to Joy, Hey Jude (talk about random!), and one nameless song that is kind of my signature song. Long story short, I stink! Eric however, is an amazing pianist. I absolutely love listening to him play. Our kids have names for all the different songs,"The Angry Song" is a fast song and the kids run around our house like crazy people when he plays it. I love watching him play and it reminds me how crazy talented (in so many areas) my hubs is.
As much as I love the sound, I have never been a fan of the look of the oak piano. It's just so dated and not me…

Because the piano was so blah, I let two years go by with our front living room looking pretty much like this… no style, Eric's choice of colonial blue on the walls, and just an overall hot mess.

My living room is attached to my dining room, so the difference between the two rooms was pretty stark…

We finally decided to take the plunge and paint the piano! I knew I was going to for ages, but I didn't know what color, so I wanted until I was positive!

I decided on Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Antibes Green. I'm sure you know all about ASCP, but if you don't it's one of the coolest paint products out there! It is a chalk paint, but not chalkboard paint. Basically it adheres to all kinds of surfaces and wait for it… you don't have to sand!! Boyah!

Since I didn't have to waste time sanding, I got right to taping. I needed to make sure that I was super careful and no paint would damage the piano since the hubs actually uses it.

The prep work took me about 5 minutes and then it was time to paint. Eric was working on painting stripes on the ceiling for me (post coming on those soon) and we just put"Hit List" on Fios and got our painting groove on.

Yeah, I don't look too thrilled, but I promise I was…

How's that for a comparison… bye bye nasty oak!

I did two coats, but after the first I knew I was in love!

Chalk paint looks really uneven when it's drying, but have no fear- it looks nice and smooth once it's fully dry.

I used Annie Sloan dark wax to seal the piano and give it the darker, rich color I wanted. I'm not going to give you any tips on that part because I completely did it wrong! Apparently I was supposed to wax with clear wax and then dark… I just tell people, I was going for a more imperfect look! Ha!

The bench got ASCP on the legs, but to add a little awesomeness, I upholstered it with this fabric from Spoonflower.

Ahh! I love the fabric with the green!

So what do you think of the before and after? I hear so many people say,"but you can't paint it- it's REAL wood!" and I want to go on the record saying,"It can be REAL wood and still be REALLY ugly!" Don't be afraid to paint!!

And now for an onslaught of after pictures… I'm so happy to finally have a living room that I love!

And don't forget… We're the ones in a contest now and if we win, we get to give $5000 to the charity of our choice! We need your help, though- you can learn more about our project and the charity we chose here, or go vote for us every day for the next two weeks right here (like their page and then click on the Crafting for Charity button on their FB page). Thank you!

And just because this absolutely made my night… look at the picture I found on my computer! I recently taught Kaden how to use PicMonkey and apparently he's having a good old time with it! I actually might frame this pic I love it so much…"ther is monsters"

Have a great weekend and watch out for those darn monsters!

I'm so happy. Even though I carry my mother's health in my heart, there's room for a man's love there too. We have grown so close these days and I just want to sing like the birds in the sky and hug everyone I meet.

I hope you all have this kind of love in your hearts!

Kisses to you all!