DIY Floral Arrangement

Supplies:

Bowl/vase

Floral foam

Filler (flowers, sticks, etc.)

Something to cover the foam

Directions:

Step 1:  Fill your vessel with floral foam.  I just grabbed this bowl from the kitchen because (1) it was white, (2) modern lines, and (3) it was there!

Step 2:  Start inserting the main pieces.  I trimmed branches from one of my bushes outside last year and spray painted them white after they thoroughly dried out.

Step 3:  Once the main filler is all in, add in the special pieces.  I used two peacock feathers that I trimmed down to size.

These are cute glitter-covered gold branches that I cut apart into little sprays and added in all over.  They went in last as they were the shortest.

Step 4:  Cover up the floral foam with something cute!  Marbles, moss, fruit, pebbles... the possibilities are endless!

Here is the finished product!  (Yes, more decor for the bathroom!  I have to put something in there while the plans are coming into place!!)

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Bathroom Christmas Decor

I bought these candle rings probably 10 years ago.  I think they were from Pier 1.  I have never used them, and actually bought them in deep red as well (also never used, geesh).

I wanted to use them in my main floor bathroom since they were a greenish gold colour, and I wanted to get away from the same decor that I have done in there in previous years. 

I found a cute polka dot green ribbon in my stash, so I grabbed my scissors and went to work! 

 

I hung all four candle rings on the curtain rod (currently empty as I have been selling the decor to change the colour scheme) and thought it was cute but needed a little sparkle.  So five mini Christmas balls later, it's done.

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Turkey Stuffing Recipe

Ingredients:

Day old bread, cut or ripped into bite size pieces (1 loaf for chicken, up to 2 for turkey)

Butter, all but 2 TBSP melted (1/2-3/4 cup for a chicken, 1+ cup for a turkey)

Onions, chopped (1 for chicken, 2 for turkey)

Celery, chopped (1 stalk for chicken, 2 for turkey)

Parsley

Rosemary

Sage

Thyme

Salt & pepper to taste

Extras:

Fresh or dried cranberries

Diced apples

Raisins

Diced carrots

Nuts

Directions:

1. Place bread pieces in a large bowl and drizzle with butter.  Pour 1/4 of the butter over the bread and stir to mix.  Repeat 3 more times.  This ensures all the bread gets evenly coated.

2. Mix in the celery and onions.  Add any extras as well.  It should be smelling good already!

3. Add in 1 TBSP each of the herbs.  Add a pinch of salt and pepper as well.  

Mix until everything is well blended.  Take a little taste and adjust herbs as desired.

4. Make sure the bird is cleaned out.  The chest cavity should be empty.  

Stuff the stuffing mixture into the cavity and don't be shy about pressing it in!  

Extra stuffing can go in the other end where the neck was.  

5. Tie up the legs and wings if desired (I didn't) and place bird in a roasting pan.  Rub all over with remaining soft butter.  Bake!

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Change Table to Closet Organizer

My hubby built a beautiful change table for our second and it has been a dumping ground for quite a while now since our babes is out of diapers!  I couldn't bear to send it to the basement, so I figured out how to keep it in her room, plus actually make it work as something other than a change table.  Here is the final result!

It was a lucky fit!  The change table just fit perfectly in her closet with less than a foot to spare.  She doesn't have enough room in her closet to fit her clothes (single rack only at this point), so we bought a dresser for her.  Still not enough room.  So I grabbed all of her baby baskets that we used for bedding, socks, wipes, etc., and repurposed them for new storage in the middle and on the bottom level. 

 The top level was relegated to shorts, leggings, pants, and bloomers.  Short sleeve shirts, underwear, socks, and pj's all moved to the dresser.  Short dresses hang on the rack and longer dresses hang on a pant hanger down the side of the change table. 

Tutus and pettiskirts go up top with other miscellaneous things.  And it all fits!  :)


And last but not least, I made some cute tags to identify the contents of each basket.  For now, she has to look inside each basket (or try to remember what goes where) since she doesn't read yet.  But she loves it and I love it!  Click here to make the tags.

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Closet Organizer Tags

Supplies

Cardstock

Ribbon

Scissors

Hole punch

Directions

Print the tags onto cardstock and cut out.   This file (above) is letter size.

 

Punch a small hole in the top of each one and insert ribbon.  

 Tie where desired!

 

Lavender Vanilla Laundry Detergent

INGREDIENTS

1 bar organic lavender castile soap, grated

1 cup washing soda

1/2 cup borax

10 drops vanilla essential oil

DIRECTIONS

1. On the stove, place 4 cups hot water in large saucepan over medium heat.  Stir in grated soap.  

I used Dr. Bronner's Organic Magic Soap in Lavender. 

 

image source

2. Stir gently until soap has dissolved.  Remove from heat.  (Note: I used a wooden spoon but I should have used a plastic one.  The wooden one absorbs too much so it has now found a new home in the garbage can.)

  

3. Add washing soda and borax to soap-water mixture.  

Stir until powders have dissolved and there are no clumps left.  The texture is like medium thickness gravy.  Haha, not too watery and not so thick that it can stand alone.

Cool slightly, then blend in vanilla essential oil completely.  (I left mine to make some phone calls, and it had gelled a lot before I got back to it and left lots of clumps {see below}.  I added the essential oil, gently reheated it, and the mixture went back to the smooth texture shown in the picture above.)

4. Pour 3 gallons warm water into a clean, large plastic bucket.  Use a 5 gallon bucket if you have one.  I didn't so this 4 gallon storage bin is doing double duty for me!

Add soap mixture and mix thoroughly.  Fill to the top with water.  Cover and let sit for 24 hours. 

5. Fill your containers with your fabulous new laundry soap!  I like my clothes extra clean smelling, so I use 1/2 cup (top load washer) per load, or 1 cup per load for hubby's stinky work clothes.  I used to have to wash his work clothes twice but I haven't had to with this recipe.  Plus it has been gentle on my skin and I have noticed that I have less skin irritation with this detergent than with others.  Also, I was a bit apprehensive using this as I was unsure as to whether or not my whites would become dingy, but I am happy to report that they are still bright!

The soap may gel and clump a bit, so give it a good shake before pouring.  There still may be some clumps but they have always dissolved completely in the wash for me.

(Note: some recipes like this call for an extra dilution ratio of 2:1 which will result in 8-10 gallons of laundry soap.  I didn't want to dilute that much so I left my soap as is with 4 gallons, still a hefty amount!)

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