Painting Oak Cabinets (everything you need to know to update your kitchen cabinets the right way AND in 10 days)

I always said I would do it once, and then never again...and now that time has come and gone, and I have lived to tell the tale on how to paint kitchen cabinets. It was a dreaded project that ended up taking me only 2.5 weeks. My project was more burdensome than most of yours would need to be, because most of you don't have kitchen cabinets from the 1970s/1980s, don't mind if you see the grain in your cabinets, and don't need to add trim since your cabinets already have details; however, in the end I am here to share the research I learned from countless articles, which I then applied, as well as from talking to experts, and then applied. I will let you know every product I used, and my thoughts on each, as well as every thing you need, how to do every step, tips to staying organized, and how long each step takes. Plus I will share every cost from the trim, to the paint, to the knobs, pulls, and grain filler. For those of you who hate reading step by step details, just scroll through the pictures and you will get a good idea of how to do your own cabinets, and update your kitchen for less than a few hundred bucks.

Cheap and Easy, Natural Pond Liner

One of the first things we noticed when considering whether to buy the home we are now in, was the waterfall/pond in the backyard. Ever since I had a blast catching tadpoles in a childhood friend's backyard stream, I wanted some water feature for my kids to enjoy. This pond was not a naturally occurring water feature, but still it was exciting. What wasn't exciting was that it did NOT look natural. The "black tarp look" made it an eyesore, and although we enjoyed the sound of the running water, we knew we had to give this waterfall/pond a facelift. Solution: Rock on a Roll. 

Rock on a Roll is an awesome product that was designed by Minnesota based landscaping company, Aquatica Water Gardens. They saw a need when helping their customers with their ponds, and thankfully created a product that solved that need, which they now share with everyone else. Updating or building ponds can be labor intensive and expensive, but Rock on a Roll takes most of the effort and high price out of the equation. 

Let me share how cheap and simple this pond liner cover truly is...

(This is NOT a paid advertisement. Instead it is just one happy customer wanting to share a cheap & easy DIY solution) 

Old Lady Dresser to Rustic Boy Dresser

Right before we moved, our neighbor put a dresser out on the curb with a "Free" sign.  By now, I've learned to not judge a furniture's outward appearance, but to judge a piece based on it's bones and potential. Even though I really did not want to acquire anything additional to move with us, I did hate one of the dressers my boys had, and had to at least look. What I found was what looked like an old lady's dresser, but there were solid wood dovetail drawers, and a sturdy, solid structure. Everything was in good shape, except the outside appearance, so I had to have it. Once again the power of paint and hardware came to the rescue. 

Hall Decor that Brings Generations Together with FREE Printable

When we moved into our home there were so many blank walls everywhere. Surprisingly we didn't need much more furniture, but we definitely didn't have enough decor for all of the walls. One of the most challenging areas for me to fill, were the four walls leading to our three upstairs bedrooms. Since our family would see these walls all the time, I wanted to put something important up. Even after months of shopping around, nothing seemed quite right. It wasn't until I felt the excitement in starting to figure out my family's ancestry, that the idea came. After asking my mom and mother-in-law for pictures of our family's ancestors, our "memory lane" started to come together. Then, with another section of the hallway to fill, the rest of the idea came to put pictures up of our family now, as well as finish off the hallway with a 24" x 30" print of the Family Proclamation.

Read on to hear more about what the Family Proclamation is, as well as get your own large FREE printable (that can be printed as an Engineering Print for $3).

5 Reasons Not to Skimp on Rug Pads

A post on rug pads? Wow, could we get a more boring topic? Probably, but I can't think of a good rival that would beat it at the moment.... Maybe something about how dust bunnies form, or something else mundane like that, but well, that would be boring and pointless. 

This post on rug pads is not pointless, because who knew that a rug pad was so important and could actually make a difference in your life? I didn't. But that all changed when I was emailed by a random, really nice guy from rugpadusa.com who in essence asked, "Wanna try out some rug pads and let me know what you honestly think of them?" 

Before this I had never been contacted by a legitimate company asking me to try out a product for free. I thought this guy was just like all the other scammers, but something seemed different so I wrote him back. Boy am I glad I did, because he was not only legitimate, he and his company rocked on customer service, and their rug pads actually rock too. 

Who knew rug pads could rock? After trying out two different kinds from their company, I can safely compare them with the ho hum rug pad I purchased from Walmart, that I initially didn't realize was so ho hum. Today I would like to share why your rug pad actually matters, and at the same time save you money!

How to Get Office Built Ins using Ikea shelves and old cabinets

As I have gotten older I realize that my motto should be, "Where there is a will there is a way." Today I want to prove that if you are motivated enough, have some power tools, and access to YouTube and Pinterest, you too can achieve a feat you did not know was possible. I am going to show you how I turned our ruined office into my favorite room of the house, as well as conquered my biggest project/goal yet...