Ghost topiaries for your front porch, $2!

Here is a super fast and easy way to decorate for Halloween.  These are my little ghosts that sit on my front porch that cost me $2 to make.  Using dollar store white table clothes, I draped them over my topiaries that already sit outside my front door.  I drew eyes and a mouth with permanent market and done!

You can make these anywhere you have a topiary sitting in your home.  Large or small!  It couldn't be simpler.

I used a rectangular plastic party tablecloth (because they didn't have round).  Just fold it over to the point where the front and back would touch the ground once they are on the topiary.  Once in place I sort of tuck the tablecloth around to make it stay (mine are in corners inside of an outdoor entryway.  If your are in the open, you might use table cloth weighs to keep them down, or ribbon loosely around their neck to keep the tablecloths from blowing off.

I will admit some small children are leary to come to my door because they think there is a real child in there : )  I just pat them on the head to show them they aren't.  Very funny actually!

I have been using these for 4 years now using the same cloth over and over!  Well worth the $2 it cost to make them : )  Can't wait to see others!

Spray paint your faucet for an update!

Today when I washed my hands in my half bath, I was reminded how corroded my sink faucet is.  Yes I'd love to buy a new one, but installing an 8" on center faucet on a pedestal sink is not the easiest job in the world, nor is it the least expensive.

AFTER

BEFORE

So using my usual rationale (once you want to replace it, try to repair it first...then if it doesn't work, go ahead and replace it :) I set out to paint the corroded parts.  Yes, it was all the gold plated parts I didn't like anyway.  I love killing two birds with one stone :)

Now I know under that gold plating there is usually chrome, but I realized the hard way that it wasn't all of them. The one piece that definitely wasn't chrome underneath was the piece I couldn't replace at Home Depot.  So painting or replacing the whole faucet was the only option.

I started by taking off the gold parts.  Luckily on my faucet that was very easy.  Faucet tip unscrews by hand,  plug handle unscrews by hand, plug rod pulls right out with just a pressure clamp finger pinch, handle screws unscrew with a screwdriver and the center lever handle piece comes off by unscrewing the end cap by hand.

 

These two pictures show some of the corrosion.

 

I then sanded all of the pieces to rough up the shiny surface and smooth out any of the corrosion.  I spray painted them with my favorite silver spray paint.

 

I reassembled everything...and it really was that easy.  Again, if it doesn't hold up I'll just replace. But what a difference!  I'll keep you posted as the painted finish ages.

Too funny

So I ran across this on the Internet this morning, and icouldn't find it anywhere on pinterest. So I'm posting it just to pin it :)

If men don't want women to treat them like their mother, they should quit acting like children.

Soooo true :)

Bud light lime-a-Rita...delicious

I don't know why I'm just now getting around to trying Bud Light Lime-A-Rita, but I am. I'm sad to say I am. This might be the best canned alcoholic beverage I've ever tasted :)

The calories are a little high 220 for 8 oz., but compared to a regular margarita, it's good. I decided to pour it over ice to make it feel a little less cheap and a little more fancy :). Plus the ice will make it last a little longer. Yummy!

Disguise the inside of your glass cabinet with burlap

I currently have two built-in entertainment cabinets in my home, and I've always hated staring at the contents through the glass.

 

I wanted a way to cover them up, but allow the electronics to continue to be controlled by their remotes. Not to mention I didn't want a solution that required an expensive remote extender.

I tried frosting the doors with contact paper, but you could still see the components. I then thought what about a loose weave fabric? Went to Joann's and found this chocolate brown burlap. For 1.99¢ a yard, I thought...don't know if it will work, but it's cheap enough to take it home and try it.

 

Used a staple gun to attach it, and it worked perfectly. No trouble controlling the components and it hides everything perfectly.

 

Ridiculously inexpensive solution to a nagging problem around the home. Happy stapling :)

Notes:
-The burlap frays easily. So I will most likely staple a flip seam when I do this again in my game room. You know fold over about a 1/2 inch then staple.
- you can still slightly see a light or two behind the burlap, but it is almost entirely camouflaged (that's the clock on the right top side...the rest is reflection)

98¢ spray paint to repaint furniture!

 

Well this was an experiment to see how the "cheap" spray paint at Home Depot would work at painting furniture. (yes, that's my favorite spray paint tool on the top of the can : )

I painted my kitchen tabletop the old fashioned way (can of enamel paint, roller, brush, sanding, etc.) and it was a nightmare. Took forever and was a pain! So when I had a white corner table/shelf that I wanted black, I decided...what better piece to try it on. Doesn't get a lot of use, and it just sits there.

I grabbed my can, sprayed one coat and voila! Perfect. So much better! Would I do it on my kitchen table...probably not, but the backs of my kitchen chairs that I still need to paint. Yes! So inexpensive and so fast.

Fun dotted nails!

My first nail post!

My daughter left her nail polish in the living room today, so now mine are painted!

CND Electric Purple base with with Miginailart.com black dots (fine tip applicator).

So fun :)