Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Tippy Tuesday

While I'm at work, Tippy stays in her cage, but sometimes I let her stay out in the afternoon after I come home from lunch. Usually she stays in her cage anyway because she thinks that's where she's supposed to be when I'm not home. Or there's a good chance that she runs rampant and gets in her cage right before I get home so I THINK she's been good while I've been at work.

So last week, I let her stay out one afternoon where she could go in and out her doggy door as she pleased.....Don't worry, I have a fenced in backyard. Well when I got home from work, I heard her barking outside in the back yard. I walked up to the door where she saw me and the look on her face said, "Ruh-Roh, I'm busted! I didn't get in my cage before she got home." Then I noticed her sombrero laying in the middle of the floor. I have not seen her sombrero in months and didn't even know where I stashed it.


I turned around and noticed that the guest bedroom door was open. I walked in and noticed that the closet was open where I hang all of her clothes and apparently she decided to play dress up! That's her pink wig laying in the floor too.


Well, I hope you had fun Tippy!

Sunday, August 21, 2011

Vacation wrap-up

If you'll remember, I took time off the week before last to catch up on some projects around the house. Well, as I figured, I didn't get as much done as I had hoped but then again, I knew it would be a loooooooong shot that I would get even half of 'em crossed off my list. To refresh your memory, here was my list and the progress that was made:
  • Give it a good cleanin'
  • Remove the old caulk around the tub and re-caulk. Click here to see results and to get a good laugh. This is something that would normally be on my Daddy-Do list but I'm gonna give it a whirl. I told my dad that after this manly project, I just may ask for a tool belt for Christmas this year.
  • Go through my clothes and shoes and donate the ones that have been neglected for at least a year to Goodwill.
  • Go through the stuff in the garage (it's only a few boxes) and donate what I don't need.
  • Sew a runner for my vanity
  • Paint my bathroom. Click here to check it out.
  • Spray paint the frame I just bought and hang it in the bathroom
  • Paint the back door
  • Make a small dent of progress in my junk room (soon to be craft room). I've given up calling it my craft room because it's not. It's far from it until I can get some organization going on in there.
3 out 9 ain't too bad, or is it? I don't think so considering painting my bathroom was an all day project and I left town on Wednesday to see my newborn baby cousin since she made her debut earlier than expected. I also found out on Tuesday that one of my cousins from L.A. was in town and we had not seen each other in about 7 years. So I think I did pretty good with my list considering all that.

BUT, hold on just a minute! I did something else that wasn't on my list. Do your remember when I made my headboard?


Well, several months ago my friend Tonya asked me if I would help her fix up her daughter's room. One thing she wanted was a new headboard. She likes more straight, clean lines so this one was easy peasy! I whipped up a headboard for her in about 30 minutes but I also repainted the letters above her bed. They were in pastel colors but I thought they needed an extra punch of color so I repainted them.



After I made Saylor's headboard, her little brother wanted one too. I told Tonya I would come over while I was off of work and make one for him. He's so darn cute and I couldn't tell him no! We had a harder time finding fabric we liked, so I decided to take the colors from his comforter and sew them together in 4 blocks. Tonya is really into all things modern so I thought it would be a cool idea to duplicate one of the colors instead of using 4 different colors. This one took a little bit more time because I had to make sure the center point ended up in the exact center of the headboard. In the end, I think it turned out pretty cute.


I think they like it :)

So there ya have it! My (somewhat) productive vacation. Maybe the next vacation I go on, I'll be blogging about being on the beach while sipping margaritas instead of blogging about headboards, paint, and caulk.

Friday, August 19, 2011

Friday Night Fun

What do ya'll think of me taking THIS approach to showing you my projects?
[For mature audiences only. ]


Tuesday, August 16, 2011

Tippy Tuesday

There's a blog I read called Twenty-Six to Life. Her name is Kate and she not only blogs about DIY projects, but also about her dogs. She kinda has a thing for rescuing dogs, mainly pit bulls. Well apparently there's some test out there called the Canine Good Citizen test and she thought she would put her newest rescued dog through the test. After being out of the shelter for only a couple of months, the dog passed the test on the first try!

Just for the fun of it, I though I would list the requirements and see where Tippy stacks up....
Test 1: Accepting a friendly stranger - If by "accepting" you mean running in a dead sprint toward said friendly stranger while viciously barking but staying at least 6 feet feet away, then yeah, she accepts a friendly stranger alright. FAIL.
Test 2: Sitting politely for petting - Usually if you're gonna come up to her and pet her, she doesn't exactly sit there.....she rolls on her back so you can pet her belly. I should mention she only does this with people she knows. If she doesn't know them, please refer to the results in Test 1. FAIL.
Test 3: Appearance and grooming - Have you SEEN her teeth? I mean, how can you not? They're visible 24/7. FAIL.
Test 4: Out for a walk (walking on a loose lead) - The few times I've actually managed to get a leash and collar on her, I literally had to drag her down the street and when I wasn't dragging her, she was bucking like a wild horse. So no, she can NOT go out for a walk while "walking on a loose lead." FAIL.
Test 5: Walking through a crowd - Walking? That's a good one! The day she walks through a crowd will be the day that I marry Justin Timberlake. Her only mode of transportation through a crowd is ME....carrying her.....while she's shaking because she doesn't like strangers. FAIL.
Test 6: Sit and lay down on command and Staying in place - Her entire vocabulary consists of maaaaaybe 6 words. All of the important words like "outside," "treat," "No!" She knows that last one real well. So no, she does not know words like "sit," 'lay down" and "stay" and she SURE as heck can't do them! FAIL.
Test 7: Coming when called - Hey, Tippy might actually get a point here! She'll come, especially when you have something for her like food, a treat, attention, or a spot on the couch for nap time. She looooves nap time with me. 1 POINT!
Test 8: Reaction to another dog - Are we talking about dogs she knows (and likes)? Or are we talking about dogs she doesn't know and doesn't wanna know? If it's one she likes, then she reacts by backing her @$$ up in his face or straddling his head to get him to play. Yeah, she knows how to get her way. Her reaction to a dog she doesn't know? Well, she gets this psychotic, high shrill bark going on that could break glass. I don't know if that's the kind of reaction these test makers had in mind. FAIL.
Test 9: Reaction to distraction - Yeaaaah.....not so good. FAIL.
Test 10: Supervised separation - The only people Tippy will stay with if I'm out of town is my brother or my mom and dad. She would NOT do well with someone that she hasn't been around much and I can forget taking her to get boarded! No way! No how! Uh-uh! Fuhgetaboutit! FAIL.
Well done, Tippy! Mama's proud.

Sunday, August 14, 2011

Let the Caulk jokes begin!

WARNING: This post is for mature audiences only. Parental Guidance is required.

This next project definitely brought out the 12 year old in me. You'll see why in a bit. Around my bath tub, I've noticed a crack in the caulk between the tub and the tile and some parts looked pretty icky.

Eww.


Double Eww.


I knew I had to do something about this because A) it was gross, and B) I was afraid that water would seep into the crack and get inside the wall. Can't you just hear Jeff Foxworthy now, "You might be a homeowner if...." Yep, I probably wouldn't have thought twice about it if I were still renting but I own those walls now, I own that tub, I own those tiles, and I even own that nasty crack (hehe). Time to say buh-bye to that nasty crack and hello to new, white, shiny caulk!

Before I even began this project, I thought of this commercial, and yes, it makes me giggle.



Just so you know, I've never removed caulk or re-caulked before but I watched a few different videos online and I referred to the master, my dad. This is usually a project I would have on his daddy-do list, but I thought I could take it on.

After watching some videos online and talking to my dad, I knew I needed the following items:
  • A utility knife to cut out the old caulk
  • Some Clorox to clean the crack......haha.
  • Silicone caulk
  • A caulk gun
  • Frog tape
After I made my list, I headed off to Lowe's. I grabbed the tape, the caulk, and the caulk gun. I can't really explain it but for some reason when I picked up the caulk gun, I felt pretty bad @$$. When I told my mom this. She responded with, "Is that a good thing or a bad thing?" Oh mom.

So the only other thing I needed was a utility knife. I asked the friendly Lowe's man if he could point me in the right direction. I told him what I was using it for. He asked me if I saw the tools made specifically for removing caulk. He showed me this tool made of plastic that he says he always uses to remove caulk because since it's plastic, it won't scrape the tile or the tub like the knife would. My dad mentioned to me that I would need to be careful with the knife because it could scratch. If anybody could scratch up the tile and tub, it would be me. So I took the man's advice and bought the tool which also came with a caulk finisher which means I wouldn't have to use my finger (and mess up my nails) by smoothing out the caulk. Oh by the way, they also had the Pro Caulk tool and it was hard difficult to pass up but I didn't buy it.


Once I gathered all of my supplies, I popped a squat in the tub and started scraping away. I won't lie....it wasn't easy. I kept scraping my knuckles on the tile and I didn't feel like it was getting all of the caulk out of the crevices.


I got about half way around the tub and decided that I should've bought the knife. So I took a break to help my friend with another project (which you will see soon) and went back to Lowe's and bought the knife.

Ahhh! Muuuuuch better. I was really able to get to the old caulk that was under the tile. Call me crazy but it was actually kinda fun and I didn't want to stop. Do you remember when you were a kid and you would spread Elmer's glue all over the palm of your hand and then peel it off after it dried? Yes, it was THAT fun! Can you now see why it was hard to stop?


Once I forced myself to stop removing the caulk, I pulled out the vacuum and sucked up all the excess. Then I put a little bit of Clorox in a Tupperware bowl and filled the rest with hot water.


Then took a toothbrush and started scrubbing away. [Side note: I didn't measure out how much Clorox I used. I just poured a bit in there which looked to be about a tablespoon or so.]


After it dried, I taped around the edge to guarantee that extra clean caulk line.


And for your viewing pleasure....


Caulking was even more fun than using the knife to get the caulk out. I'm sorry I didn't get an action shot of applying the caulk but I couldn't maneuver the caulk and the camera at the same time.....That's what she said. :)

Then I used the caulk finisher and smoothed it out. It cleaned it up so well that I probably didn't even need to use the tape. But it's better to be safe than sorry! Oh, and just like with paint, I peeled off the tape before the caulk dried and waited at least 24 before I took a shower in that tub. Thankfully I have another shower.


Check out my handy work!



I gotta say, I wasn't as immature with this blog post as I thought I would be. So with that said, I'll end with this. When I woke up the next morning and saw my good work, I said out loud, "Look at the pretty caulk!".......then I realized what I had actually said.

Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Moving on to the Master Bathroom...

My first day off of work was a success! About 8 months ago when I painted my bedroom, I bought enough paint to paint my bathroom in the same color. So yes, it might have taken me 8 months, but at least I got it done. Do you remember my motto??? Better late than never!

I absolutely love my shower curtain, which I bought at Bed Bath and Beyond when I first moved in about 15 months ago. However I did NOT love it with the walls which I like to call "Builder Blah". It definitely needed some personality, much like my bedroom did.

So here is the before...


And after...


And the sink area before...


And after...


Here's a little detail of my shower curtain. Hello sequins!


Doesn't it look so much better butted up to the bold color? Well, I think so!


When I paint a room, I always tape off the trim, baseboards, etc. (with Frog Tape, of course!) because I tend to get in a hurry and just slap the paint on. However, I never tape off the ceiling. Call me gutsy but I just free hand it. Talk about livin' on the edge!....Literally. I gotta admit, paint ends up on the ceiling and I have several "OH $&#%!" moments. Well, thanks to my fave DIY blog, Young House Love, Sherry mentioned her favorite brush for cutting in around trim was the Premium XL for Tight Spots with a 2" angle and short handle found at Sherwin Williams. Since I use YHL as my DIY Bible, I trotted my behind to my local Sherwin Williams and bought it. Let me just tell you that I love this brush!


It's far from perfect but my lines were so much straighter! My daddy would be so proud :)


In case you're wondering, I'm not exactly done with the walls. I really want to do a stenciling treatment. I was inspired by this pic that I found on Pinterest. This is actually wallpaper but I love love love a dramatic wall treatment in small spaces and since stenciling is the new (and cheaper) wallpaper, I think I may try it out.



If you're expecting my stenciling project to be done in the next few weeks, then HA! Joke's on you!! I'll be lucky to get it done in the next few months! I've been looking at some stencils from Royal Design Studio but there's so much to choose from!

I still have a few other things I need to get done besides the stenciling. Because I love making lists, here's what's left to do:
  • Find storage for my toiletries Click here to check it out.
  • Buy/make art for above the toilet and above the towel rack
  • Make a window treatment
  • Add cabinet hardware
  • I have an idea to add some detail to the mirror but I'm not sure if it's gonna work or not.
  • Buy a hand towel. I can't believe I've lived here this long and never bought a hand towel!
So there you have it! What do you all think of the color? Have you seen any cool stencils that you think would look great on this color? If so, let me know!

Tippy Tuesday

Tippy is sending you a message loud and clear....


Yes, Tippy has her own Facebook page and she wants all of you to "Like" her page. You can find her by searching for Tippy VanHoose.

Thanks to Casey and Ashlee for buying Tippy this shirt in Miami. Can't you tell by the look on her face that she loves it?

Sunday, August 7, 2011

Look what's going on next door


Yep! It looks like I'm gonna be getting some new neighbors. I can't say that I'm too excited about it. One reason being, it's always been pretty peaceful where I live because I have a great renter on the other side of me, empty lots directly across the street and an empty lot beside me....until now. The other reason is, well, no matter how long I let my grass get, it always looked great next to an overgrown lot.

I noticed that when they plowed down the lot, they left some of those overgrown weeds. Does this mean that these are on my side of the property line? An even better question.....am I gonna have to be the one to pull these??? If so, that is going to.....what's the word....SUCK! Why wouldn't they just go ahead and pull all of it? Seems a bit ridiculous to me. I may have to hire someone to do it for me. Either that, or bat my eye lashes a few times at some unlucky guy....or my daddy :)


They obviously haven't gotten around to plowing down the hill on the back of the property. I'll be interested to see how much they leave for me. You can't tell by the pic but these weeds are literally as tall as I am! While I get a scared that a snake is going to come out and bite me while I'm cutting my grass, it will be kinda sad to see this go because it has been the home of bunny rabbits and even a litter of stray cats. It's probably had more inhabitants but that's all I've seen.


So there are a couple of bright sides to all this. One, I noticed from the concrete slab that the duplex they're building has 2 bedrooms on each side. Since most college students rent a 3 or 4 bedroom apartment, hopefully I'll get a nice married couple or even better, an elderly person. The other bright side is half of the construction workers are Mexican....Holla! Maybe I should invite one in to whip up some chimichangas and margaritas. I even spotted one taking his shirt off....but it looked like he had a few too many chimichangas. Oh, my love for all things Mexican. That means you too, Tippy!

As I mentioned in my last blog post, I'm taking off work this week and I can already feel that it's gonna be a productive week. So keep an eye out for some posts! I'll try my best to not let you down.

Thursday, August 4, 2011

High Hopes

If you're wondering if this post is about Snoop Dogg, based on the title, it's not. It's about my list of things I would like to tackle while I'm taking a much needed week off from work next week. My house is driving me (in the words of Rachel Zoe) BA-NA-NAS! First off, I have to clean it, then I'm gonna get down and dirty and cross a couple of things off my list.

Here is my (hopeful) list for next week:
  • Give it a good cleanin'
  • Remove the old caulk around the tub and re-caulk. This is something that would normally be on my Daddy-Do list but I'm gonna give it a whirl. I told my dad that after this manly project, I just may ask for a tool belt for Christmas this year.
  • Go through my clothes and shoes and donate the ones that have been neglected for at least a year to Goodwill.
  • Go through the stuff in the garage (it's only a few boxes) and donate what I don't need.
  • Sew a runner for my vanity
  • Paint my bathroom
  • Spray paint the frame I just bought and hang it in the bathroom
  • Paint the back door
  • Make a small dent of progress in my junk room (soon to be craft room). I've given up calling it my craft room because it's not. It's far from it until I can get some organization going on in there.
For once, I'm actually hoping we have crappy weather next week so I won't be tempted to neglect these projects to catch some rays on this getting-more-pale-by-the-day body. I have to stay away from as many distractions as possible because I'm planning on heading to Paintsville on Wednesday or Thursday because my little baby cousin is scheduled to make her debut into this world and I couldn't be more excited! She has two beautiful older brothers and I can only imagine how beautiful little Sophia will be!

Tuesday, August 2, 2011

Tippy Tuesday

I had to go on a retreat and left Tippy with my brother last weekend. Well he ended up going to the casino and wasn't planning on staying all night but I guess he was doing really good (or really bad) and decided to stay. So he had his wonderful girlfriend come over and stay with Tippy and Rocky. Tippy apparently got a hold of Ashlee's phone around 11:30 that night and sent me this pic along with this text....


Dear Mommy, Uncle Casey abandoned me to pursue his gambling addiction....Come home soon! :) Love, Tippy Toes



Thanks Aunt Ashlee for taking care of me! :)