The Kitchen A-B-C's

After recently buying a wooden framed chalkboard from Ikea for my kitchen, I knew I wanted something additional to hang above it for some added interest.   After little debate, I decided to get large wooden letters and spell out something, just wasn't sure what.  I tossed around "YUM" and "EAT" and even "KEYS" but ultimately went with "EAT" because it is the kitchen after all.  And that's what we do in there... EAT!  I also figured I could rearrange the letters ("ATE", "TEA") to mess with my friends heads if I so choose, and that's always fun. :)

I decided to make my own letters because a.) I love doing anything crafty and b.) the wooden or metal letters you often see at retail stores are too expensive for me.  I just can't justify spending $9.99 for one letter.  That would be over $30.00 with tax for a three letter word!  No, thanks.

How I did it:

I went to Michael's and got my letters ($3.99 each).  They were originally primed white and ready for painting.  I already had black spray paint but I needed to get a glossy spray to finish them so I purchased this and it worked very well.

When I got home I set the letters on an old sheet outside and began to spray them black.  I then let those dry and coated them with my new Triple Thick gloss spray.  Let me tell you... when they say "Triple Thick" they are NOT kidding.  This stuff is like lacquer!  It will make anything shine like the top of the Chrysler Building!  (see: Annie Reference).  

Once they were dry I got my trusty Command double stick squares and threw them up.  

{By the way if you haven't tried the Command double stick hanging tape you MUST.  This stuff is amazing and is seriously the easiest way to hang a picture (light weight of course) or anything else for that matter.}  

Anyhoo, I think they turned out pretty well!  What do you think?

Cheap and Easy Fall Ideas!

It's finally FALL!  Yippeeeee!  My favorite time of year and I couldn't be more excited.  Now if only the weather would cooperate and get below 90 degrees.  I wanted to posted a few things from around my house that I've done recently to celebrate the season.  I have everything from a table top, homemade wreath, glittery pumpkins and yard signs.  I'm sort of out of control...  


My first idea is something I found on Thrifty Decor Chick's blog which you can view here.  She shows step by step instructions on how to construct it, and they are very easy to understand.  I think mine turned out great for my first try!

Here it is:

My second project is the one I'm most proud of.  I saw so many amazing table tops in Pottery Barn and Williams Sonoma that it inspired me to make my own.  Of course my goal was inexpensive so my DIY skills kicked into full force and this is what I ended up with...

How I put it all together was so easy it's almost ridiculous.  The garland in the center with the pretty leaves and white pumpkins and gourd is from Michael's (50% off so it was a whopping $5 for a 6ft strand).  The glass hurricanes were from the Dollar Tree so total for all three was $3.  I also purchased the ribbon at Dollar Tree and used my hot glue gun to secure them around the hurricanes to add some interest.  Lastly the gold leaf chargers were from Target in the those awesome dollar bins at the front of the store.  $2.50 for a pack of two!  I already had the plates and those lovely pine cones... they came from my front yard!  I just spray painted them with some shimmery gold paint to spruce them up.  So total for this entire table was: $19.00!!  

If you don't already have plates they sell those at Dollar Tree also and I spotted some really cute ones yesterday that were fall colored leaf bowls.  I almost bought them but my kitchen is already too small to hold all the dishes I have now!

Here's another view with a few votive candles I had around the house (also from Dollar Tree). I lurve that place!

oooooooooo.....

ahhhhhhhhh....

I LOVE IT!

Lastly I wanted to add a few more touches around the house so I glittered up a foam pumpkin from Dollar Tree and got some fall colored filler for my wall hanging in the living room.  I love these types of wall pieces because you change out the filler with the different seasons or even your mood.  Typically filler is on sale especially at Hobby Lobby.  For the punkin' I used a traditional glue stick and some gold glitter.  Nobody said home decor was rocket science ok? :)  I think it turned out quite nicely if I do say so myself!

That's it for the fall projects so far but I'm sure there will be more to come.  The first day of fall was just yesterday so I'm raring to go now.  Here are a few more random pics of the house I took that I figured I'd throw in.  Hope you guys enjoy!  If anyone has any other good ideas let me know! I'd love to see pics too :)

My craft supervisor, Samson.

Laundry Room Decor!

I absolutely LOVE they way these turned out!  I had this idea yesterday when I saw some really cute things at Hobby Lobby for my laundry room.  They were all between $15-$30 though and to me that's way too much money to spend on a sign to hang in your laundry room.  I figured an easier way to get what I want is to make my own sign that I can customize any way I want.  This particular time I did black and white to match my new ironing board cover.  Yes I'm a dork and bought a new ironing board cover just because.  No, I do not iron.  So what!  I loathe doing laundry... literally it's the last thing I ever get around to doing.  Basically only doing it when I'm forced to, when I'm out of clothes.  Regardless, I figure if I'm going to have to do it I might as well enjoy the laundry room while I'm in it!  


Here they are!

How I made them was super simple.  All the supplies were from Hobby Lobby, of course.  I bought two pieces of rectangle craft wood for $1.99 each.  Then the wooden letters were .99 cents a piece.  They have cheaper options but I loved the curly font so I went with those.  Then I bought a roll of sheer black and white polka dot ribbon for $1.99. So the total cost of this project was $13.00 for both signs!  

I spray painted the two boards white.  Next I spray painted all the letters black.  Once they were dry I used the hot glue gun to attach the letters to the boards and then added the ribbon for hanging.  Literally it was that simple!  I love these so much I want to make one for every room of my house now.  Just think of all the color combinations and sayings I can make plaques for.  It's never ending!

Cheap and Easy Wall Art

If you're like me then you hate to spend money on stuff to hang on your walls (or anything for that matter). I especially hate to spend a fortune on something to hang on my walls when there's so much out there that can be considered "wall art".  However, if you insist on getting a painting or print already completed I would recommend Garden Ridge.  They have the largest selection of wall art I've ever seen in one store and it's all reasonably priced.  


If you'd like to think outside the box a bit and come up with creative ways to fill your walls then here are a few ideas that I've come up with that have worked well for me.  Of course all of these can be tweaked here and there and/or added to, but it's at least a starting idea!


My first example is something I made this past weekend on a whim because I needed a little something to fill an empty wall in our bedroom.  I have a damask print duvet cover and I wanted something to match but that I could create myself.  I came up with the simple idea and went to Hobby Lobby to get my supplies.  I bought two small canvas' (2 for $6) and used acrylic paint and stencils I already had.  I also purchased the ribbon ($2 for the roll) to hang them for a girly touch and needed a new hot glue gun ($2.99).  So overall the entire project cost me a whopping $11.00!

Here's another view to get the full effect :)

If you don't already have acrylic paints and stencils around the house they're very cheap as well.  Acrylics are about .99 cents per color for the small bottle and a whole sheet of different stencils was $4.99.  I've found Hobby Lobby to be much cheaper than Michael's.  If there are any other cheap craft stores out there please let me know!

My next project is a very simple one that used very little creativity and was simply the result of a dwindling bank account and a bare wall:)  I needed something for the walls in my spare bedroom and was not feeling very crafty that day so I came up with a simple idea to frame scrapbook pages!  The scrapbook pages I used were in fact from Michael's however they were only.... drum roll...  .59 cents each!  That's a bargain if you ask me!  I got lucky and the frames were also 50% off that day so they were only about $4 each.  So in total, the entire set of three pictures cost me $13.77.  It's also a very cute pink damask print.  Are you sensing that I love damask?   The great thing about this project is you literally have thousands of options to choose from.  Go to your local Michael's or Hobby Lobby or even office supply store and see how many different scrapbook sheets they have to choose from!  Buy a few to change out when you get tired of them, at only .59 cents (or less) a sheet you can't go wrong.

Very first post!

This is my first entry in what I hope to be a very successful blog.  If nothing else it will be a way for me to track my little creations and share them with the 3 people who may be interested now.  lol  I'm hoping that number will grow.  Shout out to Chad, Kristen and Mom!  Woo woo!

Anyhoo- I started out with a website about myself and added my portfolio that's consists only of my own home since that's the only thing I've managed to get before and after pics of.  I'm working on building that up now.

My goal is to post pics of my designs I come up with randomly.  I get these ideas to make things when I'm feeling crafty.  I also want to post before and after pics of homes I do of friends and particular rooms, etc.  Hopefully that will inspire others to make their homes just as beautiful and not spend a fortune while doing it!  Hence the name Dime Store Decor :)  I don't literally shop at dime stores unless Dollar Tree is considering one, then yes, I do.  However I do shop at outlet stores, yard sales, and discount stores and thought "Dime Store Decor" was a catchy little name so I went with it.  Hope you all like my posts and be on the look out for much more to come!