Faux Agate Bookends

Agate has become a very popular part of decorating this year.  I haven't gotten on the band wagon due to not finding the wagon at a price I could swallow.

You know where this is going, right? I decided to try and make my own out of polymer clay!

First step was to pick my colors-

Second Step was cut out the shapes I wanted the Agate to resemble out of foam board.

and then cut out tabs so that they can be free standing.

The third step was to cut all of the clay in half and then flatten each color out and pile them up.  Then roll the stack like a burrito and cut that into halves.

Flatten those out and then cut one in half- this will be the separation of the two ends.

Now you have your jumping off point on each side and you build around it with more clay until you are happy with the size and design.

Follow instructions on your clay and bake as directed.  Mine was 300 Degrees for 10 minutes.  I then let dry and decided I wanted them to have a more aged look.

I wiped on some dark wax and quickly wiped it off and then painted some navy craft paint around the edges and outlined some of the spots to show delineation.

At this point I put Mod Podge Dimensional Magic all over them to add shine and dimension (duh) and let dry for about an hour.  Then used Super Glue to attach them to the foam board.

Are they perfect- I don't know- but agate isn't perfect either- so I am pleased:)
Now just wondering what else I can make with clay!

Hope you have a wonderful day!!
xoxo
B

Linking to:
DIYShowOff 
The Makers Link Party

Thompson's WaterSeal Spray Stain and a Giveaway!

*Disclaimer: Windgate Lane was provided product by Thompson's WaterSeal to complete these projects but all opinions and statements are my own.

I am super excited to share with y'all a new product I got to use from Thompson's WaterSeal! They recently contacted me and offered to let me try out their spray stain in Cedar, the spray sealer and also do an awesome giveaway for y'all... ummm.... YES!

I am not by nature a patient person- I start something and I want it done... in like two seconds.  Staining is never a painless job for me.  It takes time and clean up and waiting and then doing it all over again!

So when I heard about the spray stain, that got me pretty psyched! Admittedly a little skeptical too, thinking it might not cover well or it might show drips, etc.  But I had this adirondack chair that was begging to be stained (I had been avoiding eye contact with it for awhile)....

People... I was Thrilled!! It was the perfect test piece!

I was done staining this entire chair in five minutes- and that includes a couple spots that I could see were soaking up the stain more so I sprayed over then again quickly.  Are you excited yet? Get excited! That is crazy awesome! And did I mention the stain is a waterproofer as well?!

I loved it as is- but wanted to add a little punch of something, so I got out my chalk paint and taped off a stripe to add interest.

At that point I used the spray sealer that Thompson's sent me as well, just to go over the paint, since the stain is already a waterproofer.  Once again- I was not disappointed.  And it is great for sealing all sorts of things- I am going to paint and seal some flower pots using it soon!

Ok- enough chit chat- you want your chance at some Thompson's products too? This is going to be easy!
Thompson's WaterSeal is generously giving away a Deck Care Kit- a $140 value! It includes 4 gallons of Deck Cleaner and 4 Gallons of their New Waterproofing Stain that comes in 5 colors and each one has 3 opacities it can be in- so you have up to 15 different looks!

You can check out all of the options here: Thompson's WaterSeal

You have three chances to enter and the giveaway closes on Sunday, July 27th:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

So exciting- can't wait to see who wins and the awesome deck updates they get to do!
xoxo
B

*Windgate Lane was provided with Thompson's WaterSeal product but all opinions are my own.

DIY Valance

After a failed attempt at making my son a valance out of card board (don't ask), I wanted to make him something that was sturdier!  I did this project during my Five Days/ Five Rooms Challenge but wanted to give you a better tutorial.

I had purchased this navy and white buffalo check at Ikea awhile back, knowing I would use it somewhere... and because I am obsessed with all checked things.

And after a quick search of my scrap wood in the garage- I found this old board that had the perfect aged look that I was hoping for!  I laid out my fabric and cut it down to the size I wanted with about an inch extra on each side.

I then used my trusty staple gun and stapled it along the back of the board.

After that- I folded the sides in that were hanging past the wood on each side and ironed them to the correct width.

I then used my Liquid Stitch to keep it all in place! It's the sewing challenged person's best friend! Just put some on and then iron over.  Easy Peasy!

The board already had two holes in it- so I held it against the wall- made sure it was level- and then colored in where the holes were with a pencil.  I did use anchors before the screws just to ensure that this one would not fall down like the old one:)

It's extremely simple, but I really love it! It added some warmth to his room and ensured that there wouldn't be a room in our house without Buffalo Check;)

I am the first to say that I hate blown out pictures- but unfortunately this room is the absolute worst for picture taking! So ya get what ya get!

I hope you are having an amazing day!
xoxo
B

DIY Artwork

When I was on my quest to have a gallery wall around our flatscreen in the master bedroom, I gathered art from around our house and started laying out different scenarios.

I was all set except for an empty spot above the tv.

It needed to be something simple but I couldn't find anything around the house- so next best thing? Make it! I considered word art/ an arrow but nothing was looking right to me.

Then it struck me that I have a couple little horse details in the room and a sketch of one might just be what I was looking for!

I had a blank canvas (go buy one at Hobby Lobby/ Micheals/ JoAnne) and started out by painting a black frame around the outside.

I didn't want it to look perfect so I just quickly brushed on some black craft paint that I had on hand.

After that I used an old horse I had on a wooden compass and traced around it.  If you don't happen to have a random horse sitting around for this- you can always find an image from google images and print it out- which opens the possibility up to really anything!

Once it was traced- I simply took a pencil and quickly colored it in! I didn't want it to cover the space- so I just quickly did sweeps with the pencil so that it would just abstractly form the image.

This was one of the easiest projects I've done to date and also one of my faves! I love it up there and it only cost me probably $3 for that matt because I snatch up a few when I see them on sale.

Hope you are having an amazing day!
xoxo
B

Haven Blogging Conference 2014

This is my second year to attend the Haven Conference in Atlanta! Such a great experience-
I learned so much my brain hurts!

While I go there to learn and grow my blog, my favorite part is seeing my amazing friends from all over the United States and Canada.  Such crazy talented, funny, smart women that I never get to chat with face to face except for this one weekend a year!

There are so many to mention- but I will start with these three... Jess, Charlotte, and Dena.

We are all so different and so much alike too and they make me laugh and laugh at me in the best way!

It is rare to find women that you really don't feel judged by- sad but true.  They have amazing blogs with different strengths that I admire in each one so go check them out!

Jess at Gourley Girl and Guy

Charlotte at Ciburbanity

Dena at Hearts and Sharts

Other highlights included the keynote speaker, Chip Wade, from HGTV.  So fun hearing about his show Elbow Room and dreaming that he may in fact come to my house and transform it!

In as brief a summary as possible, here are the sessions I took-
Working With Brands
Tiling Workshop
Book Writing
Cocktail Reception (I learned a ton in this one)
The Business of Blogging (I got a hang-over from this one and also need a lawyer)
High End DIY with Courtney from A Thoughtful Place (one of my fave reads)

So now I have to just apply what I learned... someday... maybe one thing... next week! I kid, I kid! I learned a ton and am so grateful for the opportunity.

Here are some of my other favorite gals and their lovely voiced blogs:

Sarah at Thrifty Decor Chic (one of my first fave blogs- she never disappoints!)
Melody at My Passion for Decor
Amy at Always Never Done
Leslie at Puddy's House
Anne at Anne Thompson Designs
Shanna at Restoration Redoux

This former Texan is just about the best thing next to sweet tea and red lipstick! She will make you smile on the stormiest of days- go visit KariAnne at Thistlewood Farms!

One of the organizers is dear to my heart- Traci from Beneath My Heart is a sweet soul and so is her sister, Cyndi Spivey at Walking in Grace and Beauty.  Sorry for the fuzzy pic but it was a mad house all weekend;)

These two fellow Texas bloggers were just as sweet as can be to me! Not to mention gorgeous! Their homes are eye candy for sure.
Cassie at Hi Sugarplum
Megan at Honey We're Home

Have y'all visited Michelle at Ten June? I love how down to earth she is and now how she is working with 2 littles under 2! Girl was up and ready to chat when I would have been crashed in bed;)

It's always a bit intimidating to walk up to strangers and just put yourself out there- but not with this group- everyone is ready to chat, eat, and make new friends! Such a great community!

Thanks for letting me go on and on about the conference- I can't wait to put what I learned into action and give y'all some awesome ideas-
xoxo
B

5 Days/ 5 Rooms Challenge Recap!

When I was last heard from...

I had just completed my 5 Days/ 5 Rooms Challenge and was ready to sleep for the next 10 Days in One Room!

And then this past weekend I attended an amazing conference in Atlanta, called Haven, which I will give all the details about soon:) Awesome time- awesome peeps, awesome tools, learned a ton that I can't wait to share with y'all!

But today I want to recap the projects and let you in on some more details.

Day 1 was the Gallery Wall in my Playroom.

This looks simple enough- but involved painting the wall (Benjamin Moore Revere Pewter) and then hanging these blasted Ikea frames.  Such a love/ hate relationship with them- LOVE the price and look, HATE hanging them with their wires across the back.

Yes, I have seen different tutorials on making it easier, but I just decided to wing it and then tighten or loosen the wires to make sure they were all even.

Day 2 was the Gallery Wall around my tv in my master bedroom.

Keep in mind that most of these projects involved hanging things... if you are a psychologist you might read into that and think that I put off things that have to be hung on walls... you would be right!

I will have a DIY horse graphic up for you later this week~

Due to the walls in our house being made from cottage cheese and also as level as well... something really not level, it is a drive you to drink job!

But I always remind myself that worst case scenario is having to fill a little hole in the wall- and to bring down my stress a bit- I had my 3M filler and paint ready to go incase that happened.  and it may have happened... twice.

Day 3 was my oldest son's new shelves over his dresser.

By utilizing more of the vertical space- we were able to remove his bookshelves on the other wall and now he has so much more space in there! Which, let's face it- boy's just want space to run!

Day 4 moved into my little boy's room and was a closet clean up and organization and then a new DIY valance.

This shoe holder turned daily clothes planner is really more useful for me during school- but he loves it already and is getting us in a good habit.

This valance- which I will be sharing a tutorial on later this week- was so simple and replaced one that was thrown together too quickly and just kept falling down all the time!

Day 5 was making our family room look a bit more summery! I have been collecting these vases sporadically and finally got enough to have two pretty groupings on top of our entertainment center.

I love all of the blue and green tones in them- makes me long for the ocean!

And then a summer wreath for our front door completed the 5 Days of Chaos!

I already had this drift wood wreath from Hobby Lobby and when I saw this ribbon there- I knew the two together would be awesome, yet simple.

I hope you enjoyed and stay tuned for another organizational challenge coming up soon!
xoxo
B

Vase Groupings and an Easy Summer Wreath

Well today is the final day of my 5Days- 5Rooms Challenge! ok... maybe yesterday was... but it was a holiday so cut me some slack... stop giving me the stink eye!

I did a seriously big clean up in our family room today- like you can actually see the floor and stuff.  And you know how you have some bookshelves that no one can really see the dust on? Just admit it, you don't dust them enough either... ok, well I don't.  Truth.

So everything got dusted (yes, I even moved stuff and dusted.  Then vacuumed, even the baseboards. Then I finally arranged a grouping of vases that I have been collecting on the tops of my Ikea Entertainments Center that I did here.  They are perfect for summer colors because they have the prettiest colors of the ocean.

I have been buying different shapes and sizes as I see them at Home Goods, Hobby Lobby, and one from Pottery Barn that I couldn't live with out!

 I messed around with the arrangements and made sure that the hight from one side to another was about equal.

You are getting a sneak peak at our new couch and I have some plans for new end tables and an ottoman that you will of course see as soon as I get my act together!  But for now I am just giving you a sneak peak at the room:)

As a bonus project, I also made a quick summer wreath for our front door.  It was sad and naked and I just wanted to get something up there!  I already had this drift wood wreath from Hobby Lobby and on a recent trip I found this blue and white striped ribbon that I clearly couldn't live without- so I through them together and tada!

This 5 Days~ 5 Rooms Challenge (see all of the make-overs here) has really pushed me and helped me to accomplish a ton! I am pleased that some projects that have been sitting around nagging my mind are done and now I can start on the other 100 I have left;)

xoxo
B