One Dollar Wednesday...Once there was a teapot

I have to admit, I'm coming up a little short at the Dollar Tree lately. I need to get out to some other Dollar stores, and see what they have to offer. Luckily, I still came up with a one dollar project for today.

Once there was a teapot...a scuffed up ugly teapot. Thank goodness he needed a makeover or I wouldn't have gotten him for just 50 cents! Actually, if it hadn't been sale day at the thrift store I may have still given him a chance for his original price of 99 cents.



After a super HOT, sudsy bath, I taped up his vital parts really good, and sent him out to the Spray Paint Place for a coat of metal primer.


Then I added some color with these vibrant yard sale stickers I picked up at The Dollar Tree...


A couple coats of a pretty Valspar glossy spray paint, and a little drying time.



Pulled off all the stickers, and finished him off with a quick coat of poly. Now he's all ready to get to work.

Milk Steamers

Ugh, January, my least favorite month of the year. Don't get me wrong I love the new beginnings that the new year ushers in, but I do not like January. I spent 6 years in the desert of Southern Utah where I grew accustomed to the lovely desert winters of the bitter cold 50 degrees. :) Though I have now lived in Northern Utah longer, (going on 8 years), I am still in no way used to the long, drab, bitter cold (really this time, 20 degrees or less) winter, and by January I am done. I enjoy the snow for Christmas, but then getting through the very long month of January, where you are stuck indoors due to cold and the worst air quality ever! I guess that is enough of a rant about my loathing of January, but one thing I do like to do when I am stuck indoors is make milk steamers. It is a good alternative to hot chocolate, because sometimes I get a little burnt out of hot chocolate. It can also be a fun, albeit, messy activity to do with kids, I had my nephew and niece over and we made these. Here is the amazingly simple recipe of milk steamers:

Heat milk in microwave until hot, do not boil
Add 2-3 Tablespoons flavoring syrup
Froth for 30 seconds

I usually heat my milk in a glass pitcher and then pour it into mugs to froth. If you are letting kids do this, only pour about a fourth of a cup of milk in for less mess. I really like the Torani flavorings, you can get the sugar free and they taste really good! If you are looking for a milk frother, you can get them just about anywhere.

What do you do in January when you have cabin fever? Does January give you the blues or is it just me?

Dinner Ideas and More!: Weekend Website

I find myself quite often thinking, "What should I make for dinner tonight?", most of the time I am tired of the same staples. If you're anything like me, you need to check out my friend Janey's blog, My Daily Cuisine. It's a food journal of sorts, that goes way beyond dinner recipes, like the photo above, Christmas Morning Rolls, YUM! Janey has a great palette, and you should find photos of all kinds of different cuisine. I have started doing her "Healthy Habits" to try to get rid of my baby body, and I am a big fan of healthy habits vs. dieting. In my opinion, diets don't work, unless you want to eat like that for the rest of your life. I highly recommended you check out this lovely blog, it is one of my faves. Have a great weekend, I am off to the gym! :)

Friday Freebie

I'm thinking of starting a new Friday Feature, but please give me your comments and let me know if it's too TACKY...

I live in a town that has a "Bulk Trash" pickup day. Numerous times I have seen, and collected, items right from the curb...decent stuff! Would it be too tacky to show off the "trash" I've turned to "treasure"?

Here's a great example...

Recently, I found four kitchen chairs. (Same finish, style, etc. as these pictured below. Wish I had taken a before picture...this will have to do.)


Out to the Spray Paint Place. I brushed the chair with a primer...
followed by this GORGEOUS blue...a mistake mix~can you believe it?


Then I sanded it lightly.


Added a brown paint to add distress and "age" it.




Sprayed a quick coat of poly, and it was finished.


I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE how they have turned out! Two down, two to go...

Tidy Tips: Organizing Your Junk Drawer

When the holidays are over I get in an organizing mood, rotating out the old, and in with the new. I have been doing lots of organizing lately, so I will have quite a few tidy tips to share. No matter how you try to get around it, everyone has a junk drawer. There just needs to be a place for all those little odds and ends that don't quite have a proper place. I don't have a before picture of my junk drawer, because I have been doing this for a couple years, thankfully it has worked out quite well. You all know I love IKEA, they have perfect items for organization. I found the KRUS jars in the cooking & eating area with the other jars they have available. Although these are meant to store food, they are perfect for the junk drawer. They are the perfect height to fit in the drawer and wide enough to store pens & pencils. They also have removable dividers, which makes it easy to fit all your misc. junk in them. I also love the fact that they are clear, so you can easily see what is inside, without having to rummage through. The lids just click on and keep everything in place. They come in 3 different sizes, so I am sure you can find one that is perfect for your drawers.


There is even a little room on the side to put that extra one or two things. Call me crazy, but I love to organize!

One Dollar Wednesday

I don't have a dollar store project for today. However, this little project did cost just ONE DOLLAR to pull together, so I'm counting it!

I found this pretty little votive holder at a yard sale this past weekend.


Seeing that I'm not much of a votive collector, I hesitated before plunking down my buck. But she had good form, and I new I could use her for something that I DO collect.


Out to the Spray Paint Place, and she got some quick coats of primer, paint, and poly.


Unadorned...


and all prettied up! I think she's much happier now, don't you?

Around the Town Tuesday featuring.... The Sweet Tooth Fairy

What a wonderful Holiday season we enjoyed! While we spent some time out on the town, we were able to stop into a cute new bakery~~ The Sweet Tooth Fairy. What a darling little shop, and they have a little bit of everything!

There were Cupcakes galore...


brownies...

lemon~bars...


and the very popular cakebites...


Did I mention that there were Free samples~~sitting out, waiting to be sampled? My kids enjoyed one of everything, before I caught them.

I enjoyed a delicious frosted vanilla sugar cookie.

What will you enjoy when you visit?

The Sweet Tooth Fairy
1140 Fort Union Blvd
Midvale, UT