DIY for the Holidays Archives

Lemon Rosemary Hand Scrub

Posted on December 29, 2017December 11, 2019 by Allie Thelen

8F4B366D-F6AA-4BD1-AA04-3E868BF5C75F

Winter often leaves my hands in tatters! This easy DIY hand scrub has been my salvation during these winter months. It also serves as a beautiful yet inexpensive gift during this holiday season.

LEMON ROSEMARY HAND SCRUB

1/2 cup coconut oil, melted

1/2 cup avocado oil

3-4 cups epsom salt

20 drops lemon essential oil

2 Tbsp. lemon zest

10 sprigs of fresh rosemary, stripped

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl. Add more oil or more salt, depending on consistency. Spoon into mason jars and cover with material of your choice and ribbon or jute string.

$8 Outdoor Christmas Wreaths

Posted on November 15, 2016May 11, 2017 by Allie Thelen

Well, hello everyone! Long time no see. For reals. It’s been forever. But jumping back here on the blog just in time for the holidays. Since the last post, I’ve had a baby, the kids have started at school, and I’m finally getting some breathing time to jump back on the bandwagon. #winning

I’m excited to share with you a super cheap and simple way to dress up your windows for Christmas. I have a thing for colonial homes, and I’m so grateful to own one! And one of my favorite things about colonials is the way you can wreath every single window for Christmas. Here’s some Colonial Christmas pin-spiration for you…

c007cab7b3dfb390f9542306fb017c7c

So beautifully simple. But add up the cost of wreaths times the number of windows you have and… sheesh. Money blown. I’m excited to see the Dollar Tree step up its game in recent years. And I was excited to see these medium faux wreaths there.

dollarstorewreath

Add some sparkly bows (that also came from there– in a 2 pack no less!) and I spent a mere $8. Big spender. I know.

bows

The hardest part was removing the screens from the windows (which I had been wanting to do anyways… aren’t screens so 90s? Does anyone even use screens anymore?) It’s not like the screens would stop anything from going out or coming in since most of them were broken anyways, but I digress. Screen removal. Check.

Then I measured and cut jute string to hang them.

jute

Luckily, most of the windows already had a nail (probably for the very reason of hanging something). But the ones that didn’t, I put a white finishing nail in the top.

nail

Our windows probably need replacing, but I just LOOOOOVE our old fashioned wooden paned windows. Do they even make them anymore?!

Then, I tied the jute string around the wreath in a knot so it wouldn’t slip around.

tied

Tie up the ends and hang around the nail and close the window. And there ya go.

easy-window-wreaths

The whole process took me less than 30 minutes, and it was totally worth it! I loved how it turned out. And no one will ever know that I bought $1 wreaths 😉

colonial-christmas-wreaths

door

So for $8, I was able to supply all my windows and my door with a simple holiday wreath! *excited face* Now to add some Christmas lights and garland around the door and electric candles in the windows and our house will be decked out for Christmas! Now to turn on some Nat King Cole.

signaturetransparent

10 DIY Classy Paper Valentine’s Day Decorations

Posted on January 27, 2016May 11, 2017 by Bethany Adams

10 DIY Classy Paper Valentine's Decorations — Images from: TheHouseThatLarsBuilt.com, JustSimpleDesigns.wordpress.com, HGTV.com, ThePerfectDIY.com, Blog.vickybarone.com, and CreativelyChristy.blogspot.com

This year, I’m trying to plan ahead a little more than in the past (read: throwing something together the night before…or day after) to make the holidays special for the whole family. I have fond memories of waking up on Valentine’s Day morning to a cute breakfast table set with decorations, a little treat for us at each table setting and pink biscuits baking in the oven. My Mom took the time to plan ahead to make even us kids feel special on Valentine’s Day. As part of my planning ahead, I’ve decided to put together some simple and cheap decorations for the month of February so of course, to Pinterest I went. So many cute ideas! I went ahead and ordered some pink, white and red construction paper via Amazon to save myself a trip to the store. Here are 10 of my favorite classy paper Valentine’s decorations.

Original_Michelle-Edgemont-Valentines-Day-Heart-Garland-Beauty3_v.jpg.rend.hgtvcom.966.1288 — Photo from HGTV.com

Sewn Heart Garland – How adorable is this? Sewing through paper is really easy and I love the airy look having these hang with thread provides.
Photo from Blog.VickyBarone.com
Valentine’s Day Bunting/Garland – This one would require a trip to the craft store, but you could probably achieve the same idea with some glue instead of these cute little clothespins…you know, if you must.
Photo from TheHouseThatLarsBuilt.com
Valentine’s Day Tree – It’s no secret that I have a penchant for bringing branches inside and decorating with all things tree related, so of course I kind of swooned over this perfectly executed Valentine’s Day tree.
Picture from InspiredToShare.com
Paper Heart Chandelier – Forget using this just as a Valentine’s Day decoration, I’m thinking this would be pretty adorable in my girls’ room above the crib.
Picture from CreativelyChristy.blogspot.com
Framed Hearts – This little piece of DIY artwork would make a nice gift. Those perfectly lined up teeny hearts are so sweet!
Photo from HowAboutOrange.blogspot.nl
Wall of Paper Hearts – Have an empty wall? This would dress it up nicely…this also would be a fun surprise in an office. Cue college prank memories…
Photo from sStrumpetsCrumpets.blogspot.be
Paper Heart Chain – I’m thinking I’ll make a curtain of these for at least one of our doorways to surprise the kids on Valentine’s Day Morning.
Photo from HoosierHomemade.com
Paper Strip Hearts – Even fancier paper hearts!
Photo from JustSimpleDesigns.wordpress.com
Coffee Filter Roses – This post is full of ALL KINDS of gorgeous coffee filter flowers. I really hope I have time to give these a try!
Photo from ThePerfectdiy.com
Folded Heart Garland – Such a lovely way to do a heart garland! I think this is the one we’ll make for our mantel.

So there you have it! I’m so excited to give some of these a try and hopefully include the kids on a few. What do you like to do to make Valentine’s Day special for your family?

bethany sig (1)