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Category Archives: DIY

DIY Ribbon Wands

11 / 27 / 1211 / 30 / 12

DIY Ribbon WandsMaking one of these sweet little ribbon wands for Miss G has long been on my project list, and since her last dance class took place today, it was the perfect motivation to not only make one for Grae, but to make one to gift to each of her little friends too. 

IMG 2879If you poke around the internet, you’ll find tons of different styles of ribbon wands and methods to make them, but when we stumbled upon these adhesive picture hanging strips (available at hardware stores), we came up with a way of our own.  

IMG 2878First off, we took  wide satin ribbon and cut it into strips approximately 125 centimetres long, cutting one end straight across and one end at an angle. Then, using a lighter, we sealed off the cut edges.

IMG 2880IMG 2881Next, we took the adhesive backing off of the picture hangers and firmly attached them to the straight end of the ribbon.  At this point I was going to sew the picture hanger onto the ribbon for added security, but the adhesive was so strong that it wasn’t necessary. 

IMG 2885With our ribbons ready, we moved onto the wand part of the project.  Using painter’s tape, we taped off our 6 inch dowels about a third of the way up.

IMG 2890Then using crafter’s acrylic in colours that coordinated with our ribbons, we painted the bottom third of each dowel with two coats of paint.

IMG 2892When the paint was good a dry, we carefully removed the painter’s tape to reveal the handle part of our wands.

IMG 2907IMG 2908Next, we used a tack to poke holes in the top ends of the dowels. 

IMG 2909Then it was time for these guys – small eye hooks available at all hardware stores.

IMG 2910We screwed the eye hooks into the recently made holes by starting the process by hand and using pliers part way through.  (One thing to be mindful of at this point is that if your eye hooks are on the larger side (like ours), you don’t want to force them down into the dowel too far.  You’ll get a pretty good sense on when you should stop twisting, and please do so.  Spoken from experience, if you force them down too much, the dowels will split open.)

IMG 2900Your wand should now look like this.  

IMG 2901IMG 2902Now the final step…  We hooked the metal picture hanging hook onto the eye hooks and use pliers to squeeze the hook shut tightly.

IMG 2904And there you have it – a pretty little ribbon wand.

IMG 2911IMG 2980In order to transport them to dance class without a big tangly mess happening, we simply wrapped the ribbons around the wands, and secured them with a bit of polka dotted washi tape.

 

♥

 
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15 Comments

Nursery Closet: Storage Space Turned Cozy Book Nook

8 / 13 / 1211 / 5 / 13

Yaaaaaaaay!  I’m so excited to say that I finally put the finishing touches on a special little project I’ve been working on for the last couple of weeks…

In honour Miss G’s upcoming second birthday, we wanted to create a special area, something inviting and cozy, dedicated to her love of reading.  She’s always had a ‘book corner’ of sorts in her room, but it’s shifted over time and really only consisted of a carpet or blanket, a pillow, and a basket of books.  This time around, I wanted something more special. Something more permanent.

I had pinned this post from Young House Love long ago, and knew I could use the idea to create the perfect space, not to mention, free up some room for big girl things that may be in her future while I was at it. (A wooden play kitchen? A dress-up station? Mini piano? …Perhaps!)

Here’s the end result… Miss G’s very own closet book nook.

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Although it wasn’t a difficult or costly project, there were lots of little steps that needed to be taken in order to do the job right, and anyone who has a toddler knows that those jobs aren’t always easily done with a wee one at your feet. Luckily for me, Grae is an overenthusiastic helper and was great at holding things, passing things, and transporting things throughout the process.

Up until recently, we’d been using the bottom of Grae’s closet to keep a couple of shelving units that housed her non-hanger-friendly clothes, and for storing bins of outgrown baby things. The bins made their way out to the garage where we have plenty of storage room and the clothes got shifted into a set of drawers that we already had in the room, and the project was on its way.

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With that stuff removed, I emptied the remaining stuff into the hallway, removed the top shelf and bar, took off the closet door, and gave the inside of the closet a good scrub and a quick coat of paint.  The wooden shelf and bar had been {hideously} covered in peach patterned tissue paper and an insane amount of packaging tape by the previous tenants, so that all came off and both pieces were sanded and painted white before being put back in.

Luckily that mandatory Grade 8 sewing class I took over 15 years ago paid off, and I was able to sew a basic curtain using fabric Grae and I had picked out at IKEA.  Next, I installed the spice racks turned bookshelves I had painted, as well as a curtain wire and curtain hook we picked up at IKEA too.

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With those simple things done, I took a blanket we’ve always kept in Grae’s room, folded it in thirds, and lined the bottom of the closet with it.

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Then tossed pillows all along the walls to make it a soft a cozy place to curl up in.

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The great thing is that the top is still a fully functioning closet. Tiny clothes = lots of leftover space.

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Today, Gracen and I picked up some of these frames (I like them because they’re lightweight and use plastic instead of real glass) and chose a couple of pieces of her art work to go on the one side.

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On the other side, we hung this ‘Mama Loves You’ print from The Paper Mama.

Reading

The final touch was adding a battery-operated push lamp to each side so that there’s always plenty of light to read with.

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The best part is that Gracen absolutely adores her new book nook.  I’ll often find her in there, curled up on the platform, telling herself stories with a book in her lap.  Other times, she can be found hard at work, switching out the books and carefully choosing new ones to replace them.

IMG 8406

  Encouraging reading while creating a cozy hiding place for my precious girl, I’d say it’s a win-win.

♥

27 Comments

Simple Wall-Mounted Bookshelves

8 / 4 / 122 / 8 / 13

Let me tell you, we’ve been busy around here.  I’m not sure what it is about 30 degree heat that makes me want to redo patio chairs, modify step stools, sew curtains, paint walls, put together felt boards, redo toy chests, create alphabet books, AND organize engaging coordinating/helping projects for my little miss, but that’s how we’ve spent the last week.  We’ve got a few last jobs to finish up, and then we’re taking a well-earned break and celebrating with pool days and trips to the beach!

That being said, one of the other things we’ve been working on is a quick and easy Pinterest-rampant project for Grae’s room.  

IMG 7868While we were at IKEA picking up a Bekvam stool for Miss G’s pretty new toddler bench, we also picked up a couple of these Bekvam wooden spice racks… (Pinterest people, you all know where I’m going with this, right?)

IMG 7865While Gracen was happily painting rocks, I added the spice rack parts to my ‘to paint’ pile and gave them all two coats of a glossy white primer-and-paint-all-in-one spray.

IMG 7935After a day’s drying time, my little helper and I assembled them according to the instructions provided.

IMG 7944Then we mounted them to the wall using plugs and long screws (this was by far the hardest part of the project – really should have used a drill instead of doing it all by hand) and voila – Gracen had instant wall-mounted book shelves.

IMG 7949These little shelves are all part of a bigger project which I’m doing in honour of Miss G’s upcoming 2nd birthday (which I’ll be sure to share upon completion), but for now, Miss G is loving her toddler-height display-style bookshelves.

IMG 7942 ♥

4 Comments

Plain Jane Step Stool Turned Pretty Multipurpose Toddler Bench

8 / 3 / 124 / 16 / 14

Ikea Step Stool Turned Toddler Bench | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

Ikea Step Stool Turned Toddler Bench | Mama.Papa.Bubba.

The other day while we were at IKEA picking up supplies for a little project I’m working on in honour of Miss G’s upcoming 2nd birthday, we decided to pick up one of IKEA’s classic step stools too… The Bekvam.

IMG 7869

 There’s no doubt that modified versions of this little stool has been featured dozens of times on sites such as ikeahackers.net, apartmenttherapy.com, and pinterest and rightfully so – it comes unfinished and just begging for some prettying up.

IMG 7871

Since the stool was for Grae, I chose to use leftover paint in one shade lighter than her bedroom walls.  While Gracen happily painted rocks, I gave all of the pieces two coats front and back, and let them dry in the sun for the remainder of the day.

IMG 7881

The next day, while picking up some paper for a couple of block orders I’m working on, we came across this beautiful cherry blossom print, which really couldn’t be any more perfect. Anyone who knows me well, knows my love of cherry blossoms.  I love them so much, in fact, that we hired an artist to paint a cherry blossom mural in Grae’s previous nursery in Kuwait.

Pretty paper in hand, it was time for the second part of the project… Beautifying the top.  To start, I gathered a pencil, ruler, and a pair of scissors.

IMG 7882

I cut the paper into a 12″ by 7.5″ rectangle, attached it to the the bench top (leaving a 1 inch border around the edges), and used a couple of pieces of rolled tape to hold it down temporarily.

IMG 7883

Next, I flipped the bench top over and traced the oval cut out onto the backside of the paper.

IMG 7887

After carefully removing the paper, I cut the oval out just outside of the traced line.

IMG 7888

Next, I busted out some matte Mod Podge and a foam brush and spread a thin, even coat of Mod Podge over the entire surface of the bench.

IMG 7889

After waiting just a minute to let the Mod Podge get tacky, I carefully placed the paper onto the bench top and smoothed it from the centre outwards to remove any bumps and bubbles that had formed.

IMG 7890

Next, I topped the entire bench top with a couple of Mod Podge layers, letting it dry fully in between.

IMG 7892

For added protection, I took it outside and gave it a couple of coats of a matte spray-on sealant, again letting it dry in between layers.

IMG 7914

After a day of drying time, my little helper and I assembled her pretty new toddler bench.

IMG 7916

I was excited to have her test it out and it turns out that her first instinct was to use it as a table and chair combo, rather than a step stool (I thought I might have to show her that, but not needed). She collected her baby and her jar of snacks and wasted no time putting her new bench to use.  She’s used it constantly since, for everything from drawing, to sticker play, to meal eating, and game playing. The best part is that not only can this little stool be used as a toddler table/chair combo, but it can also be used the way it was designed to – for hand washing, teeth brushing, and kitchen helping too.

♥

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