Creative Do-It-Yourself Ideas and Inspiration for Your House and Family. Currently making _______________.
It’s official! We’re finished with the movie room. Or at least, finished for now. Truth be told, most of the work was done towards the end of last year, but all the finishing touches took some time. Instead of posting a play-by-play like we did with the big bathroom remodel, this time around we thought it would be fun to do one big reveal.
Enter if you dare.
They’re up! We just have to get them covered with sheetrock, but they’re looking good already. I’ve never done this, so it was all a learning experience for me. I even got to use gunpowder to nail into the concrete! It took me a few tries, but I finally made it through.
It’s never too early to start thinking about the finishing touches, right? But honestly, we need to start ordering what we want, so we need to decide on styles we like. We’ve picked out most of our tile, so that’s all taken care of. The hardware is taking its cues from the tile color. For the bathroom entrance, I’m in charge. For all things shower, Joe’s the man.
We’ve broken into our bathroom! And we’re still tearin’ it apart. If you’ve got 6 minutes to spare, take a look at our time lapse video below. There are some gems in there. If only we could work turbo time like that in real life…
Hope you enjoyed Thanksgiving! We had a lot of fun doing our annual Turkey Trot, even though it was a little wet and wild outside. We got two rounds of turkey, visiting family all around the metro. And we still have a Friendsgiving to look forward to. Bring on the leftovers!
If you got a little burnt out on Black Friday and Cyber Monday shopping, it’s ok. I actually swore off Black Friday shopping a few years ago. It was after heading out in very icy conditions… I think I was looking for a crock pot or something petty. Long story short, I ended up rear-ending someone because my brakes couldn’t handle a fresh ice patch, and that was a very short-lived little shopping trip. I decided all the madness of consumerism and downright danger were just not worth saving a few bucks. I took a step back and thought about how silly the whole thing is. Thanksgiving is about friends, family and togetherness. Where’s the gratitude in a $19.99 crockpot and fender bender? So that was the end of my Black Fridays. I went cold turkey. (Thanks for noticing the pun.)
But I’m all for Small Business Saturday, the day after Black Friday. I fully support the notion of using our cash to support local shops rather than big box stores. We vote with our dollars, you know? I’m guilty of deal hunting at chain stores, but I really want to try to support more small businesses. It just feels good. While I’m trying to cut back on holiday shopping in general, I think at least being mindful of where I’m using my money is a step in the right direction. That said, I’m hoping to do a lot more Christmas crafts this year! And please, before you throw something away consider first donating it, recycling it or upcycling it. Organize a clothing swap, have a DIY-off with friends, make mittens, sew a quilt, make shop rags or give it to someone in need instead.
Our friends at Cotopaxi have some ideas for recycling and repurposing as well, and have a promo code for you at the bottom of this post if you’d like to check out their website.
What we really love about Cotopaxi is that all the backpacks are handmade by someone who otherwise may not have a job. The person gets to personally design the bag with colors and fabrics that inspire them. No two bags are alike. And all the fabric is repurposed, fabric that would otherwise have ended up in a landfill. It’s a win-win. I’m impressed with their commitment to impact sourcing – the people who make these bags earn a decent wage to actually improve their quality of life.
If you have a certain someone on your shopping list who’d like a unique, socially responsible, durable and useful gift, we’d highly recommend checking them out! There’s a promo code just below. Watch this video for their inspiring story:
Cotopaxi did not sponsor this post. We just think they have a great business model and mission worth sharing and we hope you will too!
Ideally, we’d love to have an actual mudroom or entryway some day, but for now, we are making do with the space we have. If you know us, you know we I have a lot of shoes. There’s really not a great space in our house for our shoes to live, so we’ve been keeping them in the garage.
Well, we’ve engineered a somewhat functional solution that we hope to keep improving. It’s a big improvement actually. With winter on the way, this will give us a central location for all the snow pants, jackets, hats and everything else. And it’s a step up from keeping them all in bins!
We can’t reveal the whole door all at once! Need to keep the theatrical suspense and drama going. For theme’s sake… We officially finished everything just last night, and got to christen in the movie room with all the roommates. Unfortunately it was late and dark, so Joe’s taking some better “after” photos today. If the rain lets up we may even get graced with a hint of natural light. Start here for the beginning of our door, and here for the finished product.
If you’re a Secret Santa who got a little behind this year (like me) have no fear. Sometimes it’s better to do a post-Christmas gift exchange, when the deals are hot and the stress is lifted. That’s what I do with my girlfriends anyway. “Happy New Year! Here’s your present.”
I call these Granny gifts, because they’re a combination of fun little things and handmade crafts. And usually some silly or weird inside jokes. It’s always one of my favorite projects.