Eileen

7 Easy Patriotic Recipes for 4th of July

June 26, 2017 by Eileen

With June coming to an end (seriously, where does the time go!?), it’s time to start thinking about the 4th of July. Boy, did it come fast this year. Around here, we LOVE all the summer holidays because that means a day off for Ash and more family time for us 🙂

If the 4th of July sneaked up on you too – don’t worry, there’s still plenty of time to make plans to see a fireworks show, do a cute little craft with your kids, or make some patriotic recipes. Heck, we even have something to help you out.

As part of our summer blog hop, Amy at Health, Home, and Heart is sharing seven patriotic summer recipes. From berry kabobs to fruit-filled patriotic popsicles, her 4th of July recipes are easy and festive. Pictured below is our favorite from her round-up.

Also, here are some fun facts about Amy:

What is one thing you will never do again? Pierce my tongue. Ha! Yes, I actually got the crazy notion to do this in college, and it didn’t go so well…

If you could bring one fictional character to life, who would it be and why? Harry Potter. I think it would be a blast to hang out with him and have fun with all of his wizarding tricks.

Hop on over to Amy’s post for her patriotic recipes!

2017 Summer Blog Hop Co-Hosts:

Listed below are the awesome DIY bloggers that we are collaborating with this summer. When you get a chance, definitely check out their blogs – I’m sure you’ll love them!

From Play Dates to Parties
JENerally Informed
Hey Fitzy
Dazzle While Frazzled
Just Measuring Up
Health, Home, and Heart
Crafting a Family
A Purdy Little House
Confessions of a Mommyaholic
The No Pressure Life
Flourish and Knot

If you missed any of our Summer Blog Hop posts, they are listed below! Also, remember to come back on Thursday for more DIY inspiration.

Homemade Blackberry Lemonade – The Perfect Summer Beverage

June 22, 2017 by Eileen

Welcome back to our DIY Summer Blog Hop, where along with 10 other bloggers we are sharing all kinds of do-it-yourself inspiration all summer long.

So far, we’ve shared free summer printables, a crunchy granola recipe, patriotic banners and wreaths, and a three-ingredient peach cobbler (links to all posts are at the bottom of the page). Every Monday and Thursday, we will be back to bring you new summer DIY posts, so keep visiting for lots of cool ideas 🙂

Today, Amy at Health, Home, and Heart is sharing an awesome recipe for blackberry lemonade. There is nothing better than a cool, refreshing drink on a hot summer day – and boy, have we had some hot ones! This blackberry lemonade recipe is delicious, and it will also cool you off in no time.

Being that it’s made from fresh blackberries and lemons, it’s free of natural and artificial flavors and all those other “lovely” ingredients that are hiding in processed powders and drinks. This is a summer drink recipe you’ll definitely want to try, and you won’t feel guilty in doing so.

Also, here are some fun facts about Amy:

What’s the best meal you ever had? My favorite restaurant here in town is called Flight. The food is absolutely to die for. Last time we were there, I had the gulf snapper with tropical mango salsa and coconut rice, and it was out of this world. All of their food is amazing though.

What’s your favorite zoo animal and why? The red panda. I just think they are the most adorable things ever. They remind me a bit of a cat, and I am a big cat lover. They are also grouped with the large cats at our zoo, so I get to see all my favorites in one area.

Hop on over to Amy’s post for her delicious blackberry lemonade recipe!

2017 Summer Blog Hop Co-Hosts:

Listed below are the awesome DIY bloggers that we are collaborating with this summer. When you get a chance, definitely check out their blogs – I’m sure you’ll love them!

If you missed any of our Summer Blog Hop posts, they are listed below! Also, remember to come back on Monday for more DIY inspiration.

How to Make an Easy 4th of July Wreath (Without Using Glue)

June 19, 2017 by Eileen

It’s another day of our summer blog hop! I hope everyone had a great Father’s Day weekend. Our little guy made a cute craft for Ash and used his alphabet stickers to spell out words like “Daddy” and “love.”

I definitely had a proud mommy moment when our little guy “read” the words we spelled out. Then, he sang a little Father’s Day song, which was a interesting version of Happy Birthday. 🙂 Ash loved it and I actually got the whole thing on video (usually I forget to hit record…)

If you are just joining us, twice a week for the entire summer we are sharing awesome DIY posts from some very talented bloggers. We have DIY projects, crafty tutorials, kids activities, free printables, and recipes. So much fun, right?!

Today, Laura at The No Pressure Life is sharing how to make a simple DIY wreath for the 4th of July. She uses creative items – like those wicker plates that were so commonly used at BBQs to hold paper plates. What a great upcycle!

It’s a quick craft that only needs a few items – and the best part? For this 4th of July wreath, you don’t even need glue!

Here are some fun facts about Laura:

What is your favorite song right now? “Say You Won’t Let Go” by James Arthur

What is your proudest accomplishment? My kids, hands down.

Hop on over to Laura’s post to see how she made this patriotic wreath!

2017 Summer Blog Hop Co-Hosts:

If you missed any of our Summer Blog Hop posts, they are listed below! Remember to come back on Thursday for more DIY inspiration.

Toddler Room Makeover Reveal – Paint, Decor, and More

June 18, 2017 by Eileen 39 Comments

I love a great room makeover. It’s so satisfying to bring new life to an old or overlooked space.

Our latest project has been turning our current guest room into a toddler room for our son. He’s outgrown his nursery, there’s no longer a need for the changing table, and his interests are well beyond the Winnie the Pooh decorations I hung around the nursery well before he was born.

So it was time for an upgrade.

Kids Room Makeover Reveal - Using Old and New Things for a Brand-new Room In upgrading our son’s room to a toddler room, we wanted to use what we had and buy only what we needed. We usually will try to find the best deals on things we need to buy – and then try to make or find other things. That’s exactly what we did with this makeover, and the toddler room makeover turned out fantastic!

Before

Our plan was to move our son to our current guest room (more details on this below). Our current guest room was pretty ordinary – we just had a bed and a few nightstands on a pretty blue carpet. The walls were painted stark white – as the whole house was when we moved in. It’s very bright and severe, so we have been slowly changing this stark white to softer and warmer colors, but we hadn’t gotten around to this room yet. This toddler room makeover couldn’t come soon enough!

Here are a few before pictures prior to the toddler room makeover, when it was a guest room.

Toddler Room Makeover Reveal - "Before"

Another Before

Ash and I decided to convert the guest room to our son’s toddler room, rather than transform his nursery. His nursery had a very interesting accent wall – there were Charlie Brown zig-zags with colorful confetti squares over the middle of one of the walls. This wasn’t our design – it was there when we moved in, but we hadn’t had time to change it before settling in.

So moving our little guy to the guest room would give us time to makeover this room too. Or at least, that wall 🙂

As you can see, a toddler room was going to be a huge and much-needed upgrade.

After

And, here are a few afters of our son’s toddler room. He was beyond excited when he saw it all come together.

Toddler Room Makeover Reveal - After

Decorating Kids Rooms with DIY Wall Art

A Fresh Color

So, the first order of business in this toddler room makeover was to paint the walls. In prepping for paint, we took down the old black valance as well as the old vinyl blinds, with plans to completely replace these.

For the toddler room makeover, we partnered with Colorhouse Paint, whose paint we loved. They make extremely low VOC paint. The VOC content of their paint is the lowest I’ve ever seen which is 3 grams per liter (this is the amount for untinted painted), and their VOC emissions are zero after 14 days (also for untinted). As for the paint itself, it was easy to work with and the fumes were so minimal.

It was important to us to use a low VOC paint because we always try to keep any kind of chemical use in our home to a minimum. Colorhouse paint was perfect for us, and we love how environmentally-friendly their company is.

Using Colorhouse Paint Imagine .06 in the Kids Room Reveal In choosing a color, we went with a light creamy color called Imagine .06. With a dark blue carpet, we didn’t want any color clashes – even though it was a kids room. Growing up, my bedroom had pink walls and an army yellow-green carpet. And, that was after the paneling that covered the walls was replaced – so I couldn’t go back there 🙂

Ash and I figured that we would do a light neutral color on the walls and then bring in more color with wall decorations, curtains, and other accents.

Perfect Compliment

The color Imagine .06 was the perfect compliment to the dark blue carpet. The previously-painted white that looked so severe was replaced with a warm color that beautifully softened the room.

In the below picture, you can see the white ceiling in comparison to the freshly painted walls. Prior to the paint, both the ceiling and the walls were the same bright white. It was a huge difference because it brought such warmth to previously stifled room.

Kids Room Makeover using Colorhouse Paint Imagine .06 The paint was great to work with. It was thick and creamy and covered the walls really nicely. We did two coats and made sure to stir often while painting.

Here is my pal Zeus, posing prior to painting. He saw me snapping pictures of the paint and jumped in the photo – he loves posing for pictures because he knows he gets treats afterwards 🙂

Furnishing the New Room

With the paint on the walls, it was time to make a plan for furniture. We definitely needed a toddler bed, so after tons of research and reviews, we found one on Amazon that we were comfortable with.

The toddler bed we purchased was the same size as a crib (so crib sheets will still fit), and it was low to the ground, the same as the lowest crib setting. The thing that stood out about this bed was we liked the railings it had. It was completely railed in, except for the middle of both sides.

As an added bonus, the bed turns into two chairs, when it’s no longer needed as a bed. It was excellent quality too – and not bad to assemble.

Furnishing a Toddler Room We also picked out a new dresser and a cubby bookshelf. I love cubby bookshelves in kids rooms because the cubes are the perfect size for holding books.

We have a few of these cubby shelves scattered around the house and love the versatility – they can be used horizontally or vertically. You can use bins or baskets to keep things organized within the cubbies too. We set ours up horizontally to keep everything low to the ground with a little one.

Furnishing a Toddler Room

New Curtains

For drapery, I had my eyes set on thick navy and white striped curtains. Tons of stores have them, but I didn’t love the price.

I thought about making them myself – but the fabric came to about $50, which was around the same price as I was avoiding. I finally found them at Walmart for $13 bucks each! Isn’t shopping around the best?!

Turning a Guest Room into a Toddler Room With the furniture in place, it was time to start moving in the decorations, books, and toys 🙂

Wall Decor

As far as decorations, I wanted to use colorful decorations since we painted the walls such a neutral color. After searching high and low for cute things to decorate with, I decided to make my own wall decorations out of canvas, wall stickers, and washi tape. Buying wall decor at fancy shops and even Etsy can add up – so in creating my own wall decor, I saved money and also made something my son adored.

And, I have a whole post on how you can make these DIY wall decorations too 🙂

Toddler Room Makeover Reveal with DIY Wall Decor The best part? Should my son get tired of the trucks, I can easily remove the stickers from the canvas and replace them with whatever he’s into next 🙂

Finishing Touches

Last, we added the finishing touches. We ordered a toddler bedding set on Amazon after reading tons of reviews. We are so happy with it – the bedding set is made of cotton muslin fabric and is very soft. The bottom fitted sheet is attached to the top sheet – so the top sheet can’t fall off in the night. The comforter is not heavy, but has about four layers, perfect for cold nights.

It also came with a toddler pillow and pillow case. All of these items can add up when bought individually, so we feel we definitely saved buying them together.

As an added bonus, this toddler bed also uses crib sheets – so we can use these too as backups. We’ve spent very little on bedding for our son – I don’t think we’ve even bought new sheets since he was born, so we definitely wanted another high-quality set.

Toys, Books & Other Decor

Next, in decorating, we wanted to use things we had – so we moved in some of his favorite toys. We placed his spaceship tent, that our son LOVES, in the corner of the room. It collapses into a thin circle for easy mobility – and it has survived rough toddler play.

For a reading spot, we moved his stuffed panda up from his playroom. It’s a huge stuffed animal that makes for a very comfy chair 🙂

Last we moved in a few toys and garage sale finds – like the toy garage, a toy fire truck, a few old cars to go with the vehicle theme, and of course, his tons and tons of books.

And, the red alphabet wall hanging (pictured above) is one of my favorites. It’s an alphabet board, where you place the item that goes with the letter in the pocket. It was a $3 flea market find – and I was able to make more items out of felt. I love a good educational tool 🙂

Toddler Room Makeover Reveal Decorating a Boy Toddler Room

Turning a Guest Room into a Cute Toddler Boys Room All in all, we are very happy with the toddler room makeover. It was a much-needed upgrade from the days of changing tables, rocking chairs, and cribs. Our son now has a room which fits his age – that he absolutely loves. Everything came together really nicely – the fresh paint from Colorhouse, the curtains, the decor, and the furniture.

If you are looking to do a toddler room makeover, you can definitely get by with the basics – fresh paint and age-appropriate furniture. Then, you can use DIY wall decor and the toys/books/knick-knacks you already have 🙂 It will come together perfectly!

Toddler Room Makeover Reveal

Easy Peach Cobbler Recipe – Summer Blog Hop Series

June 15, 2017 by Eileen

It’s just another day of our summer blog hop! Summer always flies by – I can’t believe we are already halfway through June. Ash and I have been busy with a million things – from a few room makeovers to building a rolling workbench for the garage to just keeping up with the day-to-day. We haven’t even gotten a chance to sign up for our local CSA. That’s on tomorrow’s agenda 🙂

Speaking of crop shares, is there anything better than fresh summer fruit?! Today, Jen at JENerally Informed is sharing her easy peach cobbler recipe that you can cook at home or while camping. Pretty cool, right?!

It’s so simple that you don’t even need to mix it! Just pour and cook. Now that’s my kind of recipe 🙂Here are some fun facts about Jen:

What would you do if you had an extra 30 minutes in a day? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. If I felt industrious, I might go raid the kids’ secret candy stash to find something to eat while I am perusing Facebook for those 30 minutes.

If money was no object, what would you do all day? Probably exactly what I am doing right now, but I definitely would find tons of ways to give to those who are in need. Philanthropy would be a pretty sweet pursuit.

Check out Jen’s post on how to make easy peach cobbler!

2017 Summer Blog Hop Co-Hosts:

If you missed any of our Summer Blog Hop posts, they are listed below! Remember to come back on Monday for more DIY inspiration. We will be sharing all summer long 🙂

Making a Patriotic Banner from Paper Goody Bags

June 12, 2017 by Eileen

Aren’t summer Mondays the best? Especially because all summer long we are bringing you awesome posts every Monday and Thursday as part of our Summer Blog Hop. We have tons of DIY inspiration coming!

Today, Victoria at Dazzled While Frazzled is sharing how to make a patriotic banner from paper bags and napkins. The banner turned out so cute – complete with patriotic bows. I love when DIY projects use items for something other than their intended use.

So, if you have leftover napkins from your Memorial Day party, you can most definitely use them to make a 4th of July banner. If not, lots of craft stores have their patriotic things on sale – and the dollar store is my favorite place to find crafty goodies.

Not only is this banner perfect for 4th of July parties, it also looks gorgeous on the mantel. It’s a great craft for kids to help with too 🙂

Here are some fun facts about Victoria:

What was the last movie, TV show or book that made you cry or tear up? Probably the last episode of This Is Us.

If you were a super-hero, what powers would you have? Pausing time so I could either get 5 minutes of peace and quiet, or an extra few minutes to get things loaded in the car and not always be running so late.

Check out Victoria’s post on how to make this patriotic banner!

2017 Summer Blog Hop Co-Hosts:

If you missed any of our Summer Blog Hop posts, they are listed below! Remember to come back on Thursday for more DIY inspiration.

Easy DIY Wall Art for Kids Rooms with a Giveaway

June 10, 2017 by Eileen 120 Comments

This post is sponsored by My Wonderful Walls. All opinions are entirely my own.

Recently, Ash and I have been getting a toddler room ready for our sweet little son, which means new furniture, new color schemes, and of course, new wall decorations. His nursery decorations were random things that I put together before he was born. So it was time to decorate with something he really enjoys. With all of the adorable (and expensive!) artwork out there for kids’ rooms, I decided to venture out and make my own.

My goal was to create something special to hang on his walls that he would treasure – and that I wouldn’t grow tired of later. So, with just a few key materials, I was able to create these adorable DIY canvas wraps. They are so simple to make! .

Enter for Your Chance to Win a $50 Gift Card

We are giving away a $50 gift card to My Wonderful Walls to one of our readers. The prize was provided by My Wonderful Walls.

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. A PURCHASE DOES NOT IMPROVE YOUR CHANCES OF WINNING.

Eligibility: Open to legal residents of USA who are 18 or older. Void where prohibited or restricted by law.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

More Freebies

We love My Wonderful Walls products so much that we also have a 15% off coupon code for everyone. Just visit My Wonderful Walls and use JUNE15 at checkout (expiration June 30, 2017).

If you are the lucky winner of the giveaway, you can use the coupon code too. They have some awesome stickers, decals, and stencils 🙂

How to Make DIY Wall Art for Kids Rooms

I had this vision to create something with little effort that would also save others time and money on room decorations.

This vision included using gallery wraps or wrapped canvases. I wanted to avoid the hassle of frames – it’s a lot of work to pick out frames, mats, and work out sizing. As an added bonus, wrapped canvases are super easy to find at craft stores, usually are on sale, and definitely save money- as frames and mats are much more expensive. Plus, I was happy to avoid having a bunch of glass frames hanging in my son’s room.

Next, I searched high and low looking for wall stickers or wall decals that I liked. Yet, rather than stick these directly to the walls to create a mural-like piece, my thinking was that I could easily stick these wall decals to the canvases. It would certainly make for a really simple but elegant project.

The problem? A lot of wall decals for kids look really cartoony. I wanted to find something that looked more authentic and artistic.

Then, I stumbled across My Wonderful Walls and LOVED the vehicle stickers they had. Their vehicle stickers have so many colors and details – they look almost textured. I fell in love with this rusty truck (pictured below). Isn’t it adorable?!

Also, their wall stickers were a really nice size and would definitely fill 9×12 and 8×10 canvases.

Materials for DIY Wall Art

Canvas Wraps – easily found at craft stores
Acrylic Paint – found at craft stores
Painter’s tape – only if painting stripes or chevron designs
Washi tape, if desired
Alphabet stickers, if desired – easy to find at craft stores
Vehicle Wall Stickers – from My Wonderful Walls (15% off using JUNE15 – exp. June 30, 2017)

Budget-Friendly Tip – When buying the canvases, paint, and other materials from the craft stores, check for sales and coupons before going. A lot of times the craft stores run 40%-60% off canvases. You could also use a coupon and buy a pack in bulk. Some craft stores even have surveys you can fill out that gives you a discount off of your next purchase.

In order to get the sizes right on the canvases, I waited to purchase the canvases until I received the stickers. Then, I took the vehicle decals to the craft store with me, so that I would get the canvas sizes right. The wall decals came in one long roll, so it was easy to bring to the store with me.

Because the vehicle stickers from My Wonderful Walls were a really nice size (and this was their mini kit), most of the canvases I bought were 9×12, 8×10, and a few 8x8s.

I also picked up a few little 4×6 canvases for the road signs. With all of the stickers and canvases, I definitely had enough to decorate a large room.

Making the Wall Decorations

After I had my materials together, I first cut out each wall sticker and placed it on the canvas that it would go on. I also arranged groups of canvases together to visualize how they would look on the wall.

Painting the Canvases

Time to paint! You could do this in a few different ways – you could just paint a solid background or you could create a design with painters tape – like stripes or chevron. You could even do polka dots, if you have adhesive circles! It’s up to you how creative you’d like to be.

I decided to opt for mostly solid backgrounds with a few striped canvases too. The solid background was easy to do. It took me two coats of acrylic paint. Be sure to paint the sides too – to give it the gallery wrap look.

Making the Perfect Stripes

Painting the stripes was a little more difficult, but I eventually got a perfect technique down. I would highly recommend using painter’s tape and nothing else, as you will get the strongest stick.

On my first attempt, I used painter’s tape and then painted the blue stripes – and I got a very imperfect line. After a bunch of experimenting (even tried gesso – which made no impact), this is how I got perfect stripes.

Place your painter’s tape on the canvas.
Next, use white acyrlic paint to seal the edges of the painters tape to the canvas. You are essentially creating a seal, so the intended color (blue in my case) doesn’t leak under the tape.
Wait a minute or two – but don’t let the white dry completely, and paint the stripe your intended color. Do a even stroke, going only one direction, so that your intended color doesn’t get underneath the tape.
Peel the tape off right away (after you are done with the top and bottom line). Once acrylic paint dries, it’s very plastery, so you want to remove the tape before the paint dries.

In the below picture, you can see the first stripe painted, with a perfectly straight line. Above that, you can see the white sealed edges along the green painter’s tape.

Now, some of my blue stripes were streaked with white from the seal I painted, but I much preferred going over the stripe again rather than having a jagged edge.

I also recommend having a practice canvas and painting short stripes, before attempting a good canvas. Once I had the routine down, each of my canvases came out perfect.

Decorating the Canvases

Now for the fun part! It was time to stick the vehicle wall decals to the canvases. The wall stickers were such great quality and so easy to work with. The stick was perfect – and they were easy to move when I changed my mind on placement.

Adding a Few Extras

One of the things I definitely wanted on the canvases was the name of the vehicle. My son is very visual and has taught himself lower case letters just from observation, so I figured if I passively have the names of the vehicles on the canvases, he will learn to spell.

So, I labeled as many vehicles as I could with the alphabet stickers I had. (This involved getting a little creative and “making” some letters).

Last, I felt that some of the canvases needed a little extra touch. I saw some cool washi tape at the craft store and added it to the canvases.

I’ve never used washi tape before, but I’ve seen so many cute creations with it that I thought I could use the washi tape to give the look of roads, construction signs, and railroads. It was the perfect touch!

Time & Cost

After collecting the materials, the DIY wall canvases took about one to two days to make, including dry time for the coats of paint. It was a super quick project.

The cost really depends on how many of the materials you need to purchase. If you have paint and alphabet stickers, then you’ll just need the canvases and stickers.

And, if you are interested in FREE wall decals, enter our giveaway – and you’ll be well on your way to making these adorable room decorations. Free wall decals plus the coupon code (JUNE15) will definitely save you money on the project 🙂

If you are looking for a simple tutorial to make DIY wall art for kids rooms, definitely consider this one. The materials were easy, the canvases were simple to put together, and they turned out great. You’ll definitely save money while creating something your children will adore.

Summer Blog Hop Kick-Off Week – Making Crunchy Granola

June 8, 2017 by Eileen

This week marked the start of our Summer Blog Hop! Ash and I are collaborating with 11 talented DIY bloggers to bring you awesome inspiration all summer long. Every Monday and Thursday, we will be featuring awesome DIY posts, and today is no exception!

Tammy from Hey Fitzy is sharing her recipe for healthy, crunchy granola. The best part? It’s free of natural flavors and unhealthy ingredients.

Just like my family, Tammy is a label-reader, so I LOVE recipes like this. I’m not exaggerating when I say we eat tons of fruit and veggies (I mean, my birthday cake was literally a fruit cake). So it’s nice to have a healthy recipe that adds a little crunch. Doesn’t it look amazing?!

Here are some fun facts about Tammy:

If your life was turned into a movie, what celebrity would you want to play you? Reese Witherspoon. Probably my favorite actress of all time. Plus…wouldn’t it be fun to meet her!

If you could only eat one meal for the rest of your life, what would it be? Chocolate covered strawberries. No…not really a meal but they would be if someone let me.

Check out her post on how to make crunchy granola here!

2017 Summer Blog Hop Co-Hosts:

From Play Dates to Parties
JENerally Informed
Hey Fitzy
Dazzle While Frazzled
Just Measuring Up
Health, Home, and Heart
Crafting a Family
A Purdy Little House
The Navage Patch
Confessions of a Mommyaholic
The No Pressure Life
Flourish and Knot

Kicking Off the Blog Hop with Free Summer Party Printables

June 5, 2017 by Eileen

Time seems to just be flying by around here. I can’t believe it’s already June! Today kicks off the beginning of the 2017 Summer Blog Hop.

You see, Ash and I are collaborating with 11 other awesome bloggers this summer to bring you all kinds of fun inspiration – DIYs, crafts, kids activities, and printables. Twice a week, for the whole summer, we will be sharing these awesome posts with you 🙂

Today we have an awesome post for you – Leslie from the blog From Playdates to Parties is sharing her spectacular summer party printables! She created 5 sets of cool summer printables, that include pennant banners!

They are perfect for parties, picnics, or summer decorations. I love the color schemes of her summer party printables – they are are so bright and cheery, perfectly encapsulating the feeling of summer.

And, my favorite is her 4th of July printables – I’ll be printing these for my mantel this summer 🙂

Here are some fun facts about Leslie:

If you could hire someone to help you, would it be with cleaning, cooking, or yard work? So, we have a cleaning service that comes every two weeks, but I’d love to just have someone who would come and do all the picking up, cleaning, and laundry. That just sounds like heaven!

What celebrity would you like to meet at Starbucks for a cup of coffee? Steve Martin. There’s nothing better than someone who can make you laugh. And he has the special ability to be funny that isn’t always raunchy or hurtful. That’s a rarity these days.

To view these awesome summer printables, check out her post here!

And, here are the rest of our summer blog co-hosts. If you can’t wait until Thursday for more DIY inspiration, here are the links to their blogs.

2017 Summer Blog Hop Co-Hosts:

4 Proven Ways to Sharpen Your Home’s Curb Appeal

May 25, 2017 by Eileen 51 Comments

Running to the store, I take a quick look in the mirror – smoothing my hair, making sure I don’t have anything in my teeth, checking for food stains on my shirt (toddlers…) because when I go out, I’m on display.

Well, our homes are on display all of the time. If you think about it, people actually see the outside of your home more often than the inside.

When there are twigs all over the yard days after a storm or a rusting mailbox, that’s like having a big chunk of spinach in your teeth when you smile at the store clerk.

Not only is maintaining and updating your home’s exterior aesthetically pleasing, but outdoor projects can tremendously escalate the value of your home.

The following projects are simple DIYs and will undoubtedly increase your home’s curb appeal.

1. Add Porch Railings

Porch railings provide a myriad of benefits. They increase the value of your home, provide a safe place for kids and pets to play, and bring a certain charm to your home.

With selling our first home, Ash and I looked for ways to make our townhouse stand out amidst a large neighborhood of very similar looking houses.

Ash installed white porch railings – and we loved the value they brought.

With the new porch railings, we found ourselves spending more time on the porch. Our dog had a safe place to run back and forth without darting into the road, we loved the porch railings upgraded the look of our home, and our realtor was most pleased to see such a worthwhile update.

For only a weekend of work, we sure reaped the benefits of that project.

If you don’t have a porch area on your home, you can add railings to your steps and entry area. I’ve seen this work wonders on a home’s curb appeal.

Check out how Ash built these porch railings.

2. Paint the Front Door

Doors can get pretty banged up over the years – and a fresh on the front door gives your entry look fresh and inviting.

It’s very trendy nowadays to see brightly colored doors – such as yellow or bright green. Red can be really common. It’s awesome if you can make a blast of color work. Yet, you don’t have to go that way if you aren’t sure that it will work for you and your home.

Even just a fresh coat of paint also goes a long way. Before we moved out of our previous home, I painted a fresh coat of white paint on our front and back doors. It made a huge difference. It got rid of any marks that accumulated over the years and gave the door a brighter, fresh appearance.

Painting your front door is a quick, inexpensive, and easy way to make your home more attractive. It’s another simple project that yields great benefits.

3. Install a Walkway

Another way to pump up your curb appeal is by having a direct and well-maintained pathway to your home. A clear front walk not only leads one in, but it shows that your home is inviting, bringing warmth, character, and direction to your home.

Ash and I put a walkway in our first home, digging up the ground and laying down the rocks to make this stony pathway. We actually built this in our backyard – to connect our back patio to our floating deck; however, this would work as a great front walk too.

It was an easy project – lots of digging and carrying stones. Yet, in just two weekends, we had a fabulous stone walkway. The hardest part of the project wasn’t the labor involved in making the path but carrying all those stones.

Additionally, other ways to dress up these walkways is with bright lighting and pretty landscaping. You want your home to be well-lit at night, and beautifully spaced plants highlight the pathway.

If your home is missing a direct path to your front door, or if you are looking for a pathway that’s simple to maintain, check out our stone walkway tutorial for step by step instructions.

4. Fix Up Your Mailbox

Last, and my personal favorite – the mailbox. Sprucing up your mailbox is an easy project that really escalates your curb appeal. Fixing up your box with either a new post or even a fresh coat of paint goes a long way. Plant a few flowers around it, and you’ll have the prettiest box on the street.

When we moved into our new home, our mailbox was an eyesore. For one, it was rotting. Not to mention its terrible slant. It leaned so far toward the road that when getting the mail, it would practically fall out.

In looking around the neighborhood, the neighbors’ boxes weren’t much better. Many boxes were slanted – some had splints to hold the post up. One neighbor even had duct tape wrapped around his mailbox to keep in on its post.

In fixing ours, we realized just how straightforward it was – and what a huge impact it had on our curb appeal. A little fresh paint and a brand new post made our beautiful orange tulips finally feel at home. A mailbox makeover is a simple project that you can do in a weekend, and it will definitely impress the neighborhood.

And, if your mailbox looked anything like ours did, I’m sure your mailman will be a happy camper.

Check out our mailbox makeover tutorial.

Just as you want to look your best before a party or before leaving for work, your home’s appearance is important too. Your house’s façade is always on display for everyone to see.

This spring, it might be time to take care of that leaning mailbox or give your front door a fresh coat of paint.

If you aren’t sure where to start, choose one project and set aside one weekend. With our step-by-step tutorials, we guide you through these DIY outdoor projects, sharing tips, tricks, and what worked for us.

You may even be surprised at the massive impact it has on your home’s curb appeal.

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Eileen

2017 Summer Blog Hop Co-Hosts:

2017 Summer Blog Hop Co-Hosts:

2017 Summer Blog Hop Co-Hosts:

Before

Another Before

After

A Fresh Color

Perfect Compliment

Furnishing the New Room

New Curtains

Wall Decor

Finishing Touches

Toys, Books & Other Decor

2017 Summer Blog Hop Co-Hosts:

2017 Summer Blog Hop Co-Hosts:

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More Freebies

How to Make DIY Wall Art for Kids Rooms

Materials for DIY Wall Art

Making the Wall Decorations

Painting the Canvases

Making the Perfect Stripes

Decorating the Canvases

Adding a Few Extras

Time & Cost

2017 Summer Blog Hop Co-Hosts:

2017 Summer Blog Hop Co-Hosts:

1. Add Porch Railings

2. Paint the Front Door

3. Install a Walkway

4. Fix Up Your Mailbox