Monthly Archives: February 2012

Feb29

Easiest DIY ever

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I have a big ole stash of plain white tshirts from some random thing at school and use them from time to time for fun little projects. I came across a SUPER easy DIY on Pinterest and had to give it a try. I don’t even think it needs images. Here are the super duper simple steps.

1. lay tshirt out flat and cut off sleeves.
2. Cut off neck ribbing
3. Starting at the bottom of the shirt, cut up both sides all the way to the armpits.
4. Wear that thing (stick your arms through the hole created where you cut the ribbing off)

I had a box of Rit dye that was left over from a previous project, so I decided to use it and also try out ombre dying. The color was called Dark Green and the vest turned out a greyish blueish greenish. Pretty but not what I was expecting! Here it is!

diy vest front

diy vest back

If you weren’t dying the fabric, you can do this in two minutes. For real ya’ll. TWO MINUTES. It just takes five cuts. FIVE. So easy and cute!

Since I had enough dye, I made an extra one – any takers?

diy vest

Feb26

Winter Weather

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I spent the weekend at the lake with my family while husband was out of town coaching. We finally have snow around these parts and it actually looks like winter now!

The view out the front of the house isn’t too bad!

view

The birds visit the feeders often – it is always fun to see the pileated woodpeckers like this one swoop in!

pileated woodpecker

Some hoarfrost on the tree branches.

hoarfrost

 

Everything looks beautiful when covered with a layer of fresh snow or frost.

woodpile in the woods

Love being at Pickerel Hills!

 

 

Feb22

Big Changes!

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The time has finally come. I have worked up the courage and I did it.

I got a new job.

I AM SO EXCITED!!!!!!

My commute is going from one hour and 15 minutes to about 7 minutes. Do you have any idea how exciting that is?! Not to mention the fact that I’m pretty sure I will be working with some really awesome people for a great company. And I will probably be BUSY which is awesome.  I have some really big expectations for this job – also for me! The two people that I interviewed with were really excited to hire me on (my office is already picked out…OFFICE. I get my own OFFICE. Not a deskicle or cubicle, an O.F.F.I.C.E. ) and I hope that my skills are up to par with their expectations.

It is such an exciting and scary time. My current job has some really great benefits that are really hard to leave behind – hello three day weekends, working from home, flexible scheduling, and free health insurance! And I finally feel like after 5+ years, people are getting to know me around here and seek me out for projects. There is a handful of people who I will truly miss working with. And even though I sometimes complain about my deskicle, I will miss my rounded window and the way everybody acts like idiots when they walk by it.

What will not be hard to leave behind – the commute. Uh. But even that isn’t so bad – I have been commuting with a few ladies (hi carpool friends!) and I only have to drive one day a week. But with that being said – the drive sucks. Especially days when it is blizzarding and freezing drizzle and the wind is whipping like always. Or days in the spring when the interstate isn’t open because it is flooded at the detour takes an extra 45 minutes making the grand total for one day FOUR HOURS of driving. Seriously.

But I am really stoked for my new job. And I still get to go to the conference in Miami! Score! FUDGE

It was hard to turn in my notice that I will be leaving, but it really feels good now that it is done.

My heart is happy.

*UPDATE*
Just realized I will be able to BIKE to work! (in the warmer months) It is about 4 miles one way – the only bad things is that I will only be able to do it when the bridge in the park by our house isn’t raised due to flooding. Should be a good year for that though with this huge lack of snow we’ve been having! Although I could do it when it was raised – it would just be longer – 6+ one way. We’ll see! Just exciting to have the option!

Feb21

Kitchen {before & after}

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After doing the post about organizing the cabinet on top of the fridge, I got to thinking about how much the kitchen has changed since we moved in. The view from my desk is so much better now! Things are not quite 100% finished, there is still a little bit of trim work to do around the new cabinets, but other than that we are pretty much done in there. Here is a before & after of the part of the kitchen I see from my workspace.

kitchen before & after
My next line was going to be “It’s amazing what a little paint can do!” but then once I got looking, realized we have done a whole lot more than just paint. Here is a breakdown…

kitchen after
1. Paint ceiling and have electrician brother-in-law install recess lighting. (thanks elen!)

2. Husband built and installed two new cabinets.

3. Husband build and installed nook for microwave. Also, spray painted microwave white – it was a hand-me-down and was almond color – the bane of my existence.

4. sanded and painted cabinets Behr kitchen & bath paint in “Frost” (thank you mother-in-law for the help there!)

5. Made new countertops out of maple and walnut, extended them to reach over new dishwasher.

6. got a dishwasher! woo hoo – husband built a cabinet surround for it.

7. New fridge! (I seriously think we kept our local Sears in business through the recession) We had switched fridges with husband’s gma who was moving out of her house and had spray painted that white as well – used it for a few years until it started getting really loud and sounded like it was ready to take off. Also, the fridge was in a different location when we moved in – just turned out perfectly to add a dishwasher and have the perfect sized place left for a fridge!

8. replaced windows! We did the whole house at once – LOVE the new windows. They are Hayfield and are made kind of locally in MN.

9. Paint! Wall color is Green Apple by Behr

10. Handyman husband installed a new door. The previous one was insanely leaky – we would get frost buildup on the inside of the door. Not just on the window, but on the wood door itself.

11. New flooring and baseboard trim. Heavenly.

12. Sanded and painted doors and trim, updated hardware.

That’s it! We’ve been in our house about 4.5 years and have just kept pecking away at projects like these. They all come together to make such a difference! To me the kitchen feels so much cleaner and (obviously) brighter. Love, love, love it.