Bathroom Update

With two teenage boys in the house finishes can take a real beating.  Floors.  Walls.  Doors.  Nothing seems to escape their touch.  The upstairs bathroom is the primary bathroom for the boys and it was starting to look like two monkeys boys had been hanging out in there. 

The walls were still the builder beige color and showing every little mark.  Nothing that a good coat of paint wouldn't take care of.  But what color?  I'd put a couple of colors up but didn't really like them. 



"Oops" Paint Color


While at Home Depot I found a $5 gallon of "Oops" paint.  I didn't get it because I was having paint paralysis.  The associate told me it would be gone by the afternoon however when I went back a couple of days later it was still there.  Was it fate?  Maybe. 

The price was right and any color at this point would make the bathroom look better so this can found its way to our house.  

Note: I'm not certain if it's all HDs but our store's policy is that if a tinted can of paint is not purchased they add more colorant to it to change the color so the consumer can't come back later to purchase the color they wanted at a discount.  There's not a name for this gray or even a formula since the employee just added and mixed till they got a different color. 

Once on the walls all I can say is....L.O.V.E it!!!!

Unplanned Spring Cleaning

With the warmer weather and days getting longer lots of people start getting the spring cleaning bug.  They want to redecorate and freshen things up just like Mother Nature renews herself this time of year redecorating the landscape with lovely flowers and green grass.  Here in Kentucky spring also brings storms - which we had today - that create an all together different type of spring cleaning. 

I scheduled a couple of vacation days this week to get some spring cleaning done as well as some painting and various errands.  Because of the kids schedule I knew my days would be interrupted with their activites so the projects I wanted to get done had to be planned.  Well, you know what they say about even the best laid plans.........which is exactly what happened to my well thought out and organized plan of attack for the next few days.  Here's what I came home to tonight.....



It all appears to be wind damage not tornadic.  The wind was so strong that the portable basketball goal that is weighted down with 150 pounds of gravel was turned and moved from its spot.


Needless to say my list just got longer.  Luckily, the damage is not severe so it shouldn't take long to take care of.  Off to look up the phone numbers for the insurance company and the contractor.

Psst....Today was also trash and recyle day and I just realized I don't know where my bins are............

Spring has Sprung

As of this weekend it's officially spring!  In our house spring means dirt.  And grass stains.  And lots and lots of laundry.  Yep, spring means baseball season is in full swing.  Between practice clothes and game uniforms my laundry seems to triple.  Noticed the baseball puns yet?  Anyway, here's a sample of what I mean....

This is very mild compared to what he normally brings home......

That is red clay dirt (or mud for for most of the spring) covering those clothes.  Lots of soaking, spraying and scrubbing go into getting those whites white again.  My washing machine also goes into extra innings just trying to keep up with the game schedule.  It feels like I've used everything under the sun to get those stains out including floor cleaner and degreasers.  Some work, some don't.  But I digress.  This post isn't meant to be about how to get ball pants clean.  It's about how trying to get them game ready has really fouled up the cleanliness of my washing machine.

 

YUCK! 
The marks are where I was seeing how bad it really was.

With already having spring fever and cleaning on my mind I decided to hunt down the best way to clean the washer.  I found various options and decided to use the white vinegar solution that Ask Anna featured on her blog in February.  

I added 2 cups of white vinegar to a fully filled machine and let it sit for one hour.  Then ran a complete cycle. 

There was also a mention of using bleach and letting it sit for one hour and running another cycle but I didn't do this step.  

And the reason why is because the machine was no where near clean and I really didn't think the bleach step would do any better job.  Epic fail. 

Perhaps it's because of hard water or fabric softener build up or both.  I really don't know. 

 

However, I did continue with the washing of the washer since I had already invested an hour in the process.  I started by just wiping down with a sponge with more white vinegar but the yuck was being stubborn.  I began looking in my cleaning supplies and found a new package of Mr. Clean Magic Eraser Bath Scrubbers. 

I don' remember where I picked these up at but it was probably Wal-Mart and had not gotten around to trying them - yet.  Since they "contain soap scum eliminating solution" it was worth seeing if they could tackle hard water and fabric softener build up. 

With Mr. Clean's help and a little more elbow grease than I had really planned on here's what I was left with......

A nicely cleaned washing machine just waiting for that load of ball clothes from today's scrimmage.  

And just so you can see what it looked like before compared to the after.....

Has anyone else tried vinegar and/or bleach to clean their washing machine and had better luck than me?  I'd love to hear.

Psst..I wasn't paid or perk'd to talk about/use any products mentioned in this post. 

Thrifty Finds

Happy Friday everyone!  With the time change earlier in the week I'm really glad it's Friday.  I've not gotten adjusted to losing an hour yet so it's been a really long week.  Been staying up too late and still sleepy in the mornings.  I really don't like getting up when it's still dark. Anyone else having problems adjusting to the time change?

Well with the time change and being busy with the kids there's not been a lot of projects going on in the house so I thought I'd share some of my recent finds. 

These all came from the local Goodwill store.  I love the pattern in the metal candle holders ($2 each) and despite being very, very dusty they will clean up nicely and I plan on using them outside on my deck.  Did I mention they were dusty?  

The bulletin board was also $2 and despite the cork being a little loose in the frame it's in good shape.  I'm planning on painting and adding patterned paper or fabric to make a menu board. 

I didn't even realize until I got home that the picture was of daffodils which are my favorite flower.  In the store I was only looking at the size and finish with thoughts of painting the entire piece in my mind.  It's not a canvas print but it is frameless and about 2 inches deep.  Not quite sure where this will end up - or even what it will end up as - but I'll be sure to let you know when I figure it out 

I also picked up this large 43"x35" glass front picture.  Originally priced at $99 I got if for only $30.  I plan on painting the frame and possibly the mat, covering the picture and adding a vinyl saying to the glass.  Not sure where it will fit on my walls so I may be gifting it.

I also picked up a scrapbook bag for $3 that I plan on using for corralling my favorite go to craft items. 

So those are my thrifty finds this week.  Have you found any great buys in need of a little TLC?

Have a great weekend!

Window Shopping: Spring at Rose's

The weather today was great!  Everyone's starting to get spring fever and I can't blame them since I've got the fever too!  Spring fever that is, not Bieber Fever! ha ha So with the nicer weather on the horizon I'm starting to think about getting the outside spruced up. 

I had some time to kill again before picking my son up from baseball practice so I stopped at Rose's to see what they had out.  There were lots of goodies to get ready for spring/summer entertainment so let's do a little window shopping......

Check out these market umbrellas from only $30.  Love the dark burnt orange color.  There were also brighter colors and some stripes.

Updating Frames

This is my very first diy craft post and I am super excited to share it with you!

I ran across some frames at Goodwill for $2.25 each.  Only two had matching frames but all three were the same size.  All were in great shape and I even liked the colors of the frames and main mats.  Can't say the same for the weird gold plastic piece.  No problem though.  These along with the picture were simply taped to the main mat and with a little help from a crafting knife I was left with this....

A Bright Idea

Since I'm on the topic of updating lighting I want to share this super easy project.  I updated the fixture on my front porch myself but have left most of all the other electrical work to friends who have more experience with wiring or my electrician friend.  I really shouldn't be afraid of updating fixtures since it's really only two wires and a ground that need to be connected but I've just not overcome that hurdle.  Note:  I did recently rewire a lamp and was very impressed with myself!  But this project was right up my non-electrical phobia alley. 

I have one lonely single can light in my kitchen.  It is centered over the sink that's in the peninsula.  It had the original bulb and really didn't give off much light.  When the bulb burned out I went to Lowe's bulb in hand to find a replacement.  I bought the same model number and went home to replace it.  BUT the bulb didn't fit inside the can light!  Even though it was the same model number they had updated the design slightly since the original bulb was purchased back in 2000.  I tried a couple of others but no luck.  I had to settle for putting in a regular bulb and it was u.g.l.y. since you could see inside the fixture now.  Boo.

While on the hunt for other lighting fixtures I found this product.....

This Little Light of Mine...

When I bought my house five years ago it had enjoyed survived a previous life as a college rental.  Everything was basic builder grade and had seen better days in many instances.  One of the first things I began changing was the lighting.  All the lights were brass and glass and you could see where the painters were not too careful when getting the house ready to sell.  I am not a brass and glass kind of girl so my first update was the dining room.  Here's the before...

And this Lowe's fixture found a new home above my table.  It was about $60.

All the flush mount ceiling fixtures were these....

That were replaced with these that I got from eBay for less than $10 each since I bought a lot.

Decisions, Decisions...

While waiting for my son's baseball scrimmage to start I killed some time at my local Rose's store.  For those who don't have a Rose's it is similiar to a Big Lots where they have a variety of merchandise that has been bought on a close out basis. 

I didn't get a cart because I wasn't planning on purchasing anything however I walked out of the store with two new lampshades!  I had gotten a lamp at Goodwill a couple of weeks ago for $7 that was in need of a shade.  I found one at Wal-Mart for about $15 but didn't want to pay that much.   I found these two for $5 each and they are the same brand Wal-Mart carries.  I wasn't totally smitten with either shade but liked the shape of each (they can always be recovered, right?). 

Forgive the paint swatches on the wall.  I've been trying to find the "right" color for my bedroom.  A winning color has been chosen and will be detailed soon in another post.

Now, I have to make a decision on which shade is staying and which one gets returned to the store.  Any thoughts?  The one on the left has been speaking a little louder to me.......

The Beginning....

After enjoying so many other people's blogs it seemed the next logical step for me was to start my own!  So after many weeks of going back and forth Honeysuckle on the Vine was born!  It is obviously a work in progress and hopefully will grow into a great place for others to find inspiration.  I will be updating the About Me and Blog Lists in the very near future.  Here's looking forward to growing this little blog.