Pallet Projects // Gardening Table

Everyone pins pallet projects. Seriously, get on pinterest and just type 'pallet DIY'... OVERWHELMING. I knew when Rob and I moved into this house that I wanted to use pallets to create a potting table. Lucky for me we live near some prime pallet finding locations. We found about eight pallets before I had found the two I wanted to use for my table.

Now when you click on the 'pins' for pallet projects most of them have horrible directions that involve multiple power tools... I decided to wing it with a hammer and borrow tools as needed. Also I threw all directions and measurements to the wind...WHY? because every pallet is different. The wood, the spacing, the way they are assembled. You just have to dive in and execute.

Here is how I created mine over about a 4 week time span... and only one day of having Rob for assistance. **snaps for me for learning how to use two different saws and not losing any fingers**

Step 1 // Figure out which pallet you want to be the table top. I chose a pallet with no spacing in between the boards only because I liked the way it looked. Most directions told me to saw the pallet in half, but I wanted mine to have an overhang. Also if you flip a pallet over, you really can't cut it in certain places because of the beams, so I just kinda winged it. Luckily, it worked out. What do you have to lose except a free pallet???

Step 2 // Saw another pallet in half (or as close to as possible). I made this the back board for my table.

Step 3 // This is where I got kinda disinterested because it required going to Home Depot and spending money. I had wanted this to be a free project. I could't come up with a way to attach all the pieces together without buying some kind of beams for the legs. I tried using pieces of other pallets, but I was worried it would't hold up. So Rob and I ventured to the store and bought two pressure treated 2x4's. We had them cut in half to fit in my car, which actually worked out nicely.

Step 4 // I needed an extra set of hands to assemble the table, Rob was an excellent assistant. We used the worst drill ever, it would hold battery for literally two screws to go in. Then we would wait about 30 minutes and get another two in. Very frustrating. We used 3" wood screws, also had to buy those. WHO IS PRICING SCREWS?? $9 for one box...
**Side Note from Assistant Rob -- The pallet wood is going to be a lot tougher than normal wood. You will need someone with a little bit of strength to get the screws in.** 
Unfortunately, this is a true side note... and I'm strong gal.

Step 5 // Once we got all the legs attached to the tabletop and the bottom shelf we added the back board. We then had two front legs that were sticking out longer than needed. Rob helped me saw those off.
**Side Note from Assistant Rob -- Always use classy eye protection when sawing**
He really wanted me to use this photo! Hhaha! Love it.

TADA // We rocked this project. At times I almost thought I had come to a pinterest fail, but I kept powering through adversity. HIGH FIVE! Rob couldn't believe how awesome it turned out.

Next pallet project to tackle. One of those garden box things... stay tuned.

Workout Cheat Sheets

So if anyone is like me, they pin all these amazing workouts and then when you get to the gym you have no idea what to do? Well I got pretty tired of trying to run on the treadmill or elliptical while looking at my phone. Seriously, one time I fell off the elliptical and gashed my shin... real cute.

I came up with a very effective way to bring the workouts to the gym. Here is what I did.

-I created a folder on my desktop called Fitness and dragged all my workout pins into the folder.

-I then created a pdf of the workouts in Pixelmator (you can use Adobe) and printed it out onto an 8.5" x 11"

-I cut the workouts out and paired similar ones together. Taping the workouts back to back. I then used self laminating sheets (found at Walmart precut to this size $1.50 for 5) and boom DONE!

Now when I go to the gym I just grab a workout and get to it. SO much easier for me and my workouts can't get all gross and sweaty anymore. No idea why it took me so long to come up with this one.

Also this right here is my favorite workout at the moment. I can burn up to 650 calories in 45 minutes, and that's with a 5 minute cool down. It really isn't too hard, I try to beat my previous stride count each time.

Things I Made // Floral Wreath

As my October show quickly approaches I've been scrambling around trying to get all my decorations for the booth completed. This weekend I tackled two projects, this wreath was my small one. I got the original idea from this post.

Super easy I shouldn't even call it a DIY. So simple and no glue needed, great holiday project for the kiddos as well.

Supplies // Wire cutters, floral wire (I picked mine up at the Dollar Tree), wire leaf garland, fake flowers, and some ribbon or twine.

I began by cutting a piece of wire, I didn't really measure as I wanted them all to be random sized circles. I then shaped the wire into a circle to wear the ends almost touched, I found the Dollar Tree wire was very soft and easy to manipulate. Next I started wrapping the leaf garland around the circle, when I got the where the ends of the wire met I made sure the leaf garland connect the two. I kept wrapping until there were no more gaps, I believe I went around the wire 2 times and then cut off pieces to fill in. Then I added some flowers, they had a two inch wire attached to them so it was very simple to wrap into the wreath. Lastly, I added a piece of twine so I could hand the little wreath in my booth.

I plan to make five total, two larger and two much smaller than the one show here. Can't wait to show you all my finished booth from the show. Next week I'm going to share another tutorial that I'm pretty proud of. I spent all of Sunday sitting at a sewing machine and the end result is amazing. Have a wonderful Monday.

Ring Display // DIY

After last weekend's show, I knew I needed a better way to display my rings. I had a few ideas bouncing around in my head and then I just decided to try something and work from there. I roamed around my local store and found a wooden spice rack ($6), a 1/2" wooden dowel ($.87) and a can of ivory spray paint ($4). I really had no idea exactly how I was going to execute the project, but here is how it unfolded.

1 // I sanded the wooden spice rack down with medium grade sandpaper. 2 // I placed a few of my rings on the dowel to see where I wanted to make my cuts. 3 // Cut the dowel down into three 3" lengths. I used a hand saw and struggled a lot, wishing I was back at home to use the electric. 4 // Since my lengths were kinda uneven I played around with the best way to situate them and then made marks. 5 // I used a glue gun to attached the dowels to the wooden spice rack. **Honestly, at this point I thought I had failed, it wasn't too pretty. 6 // Two coats of spray paint. Love this brand. Allowed it to dry for 24 hours.

AND TADA!! An very inexpensive ring display for my next show. I'm thinking of mixing in some earrings as well so it isn't too overwhelming.

Okay opinions? Comments? Any better ideas? I'd love to hear them!

Sharpie Mugs // Pinterest Project

First, this is hands down the easiest project in the world. I did very little investigating beforehand, and just kinda went for it. Here is what I did and some tips for picking out the right kind of mug.

I bought dishwasher and microwave safe mugs from Target. They were $5.99, but I wanted a porcelain mug so I could use the sharpie method. If you pick up cheap ceramic mugs you'll need to get a ceramic paint pin.

The boyfriend and I wrote messages on each others mugs with a regular sharpie. It was very easy to write on the porcelain. We placed them on a cookie sheet in the oven (350) for about 45 minutes. Then we let them cool and didn't mess with them for about 24 hours. This morning I was pretty nervous to wash them, but they did great. Nothing came off and now I'm drinking a homemade chai tea latte out of mine.

Highly recommend this DIY project. So many possibilities. Leave me a link if you tried a different method :)

3 Ways to Store Your Jewelry

**sources // x, x, x, x **

1) use dishes // Using vintage cups and dishes are a great way to keep your lovelies on display in the home. I really like the idea of using ice cube trays and porcelain fruit crates for my rings and bracelets. I'm gonna start keeping an eye out for pretty plates and cups now.

**sources // x, x, x, x **

2) store bought "trees" // there are so many cute jewelry trees in stores like anthropology, mod cloth and urban outfitters. I'm in love with the lace spiral display, sadly it is sold out. You could even get creative and make your own tree display from a vase and twigs. 

*sources // x, x, x, x **

3) frame it up // what a great way to add some art to your walls and be able to see all your jewelry. There are some great tutorials online on how to make your own and also some pre made frames on etsy. I'm planning on making one out of an ornate frame and spray painting it white. 

Have you found any creative ways to display your jewelry? I'm obsessed with finding the perfect solution.