Old sheets are not just for ghosts anymore...

I think curtains make the biggest impact to a room.  I have thought long and hard about curtains and my method for creating them has gradually evolved.  I have always made my own curtains.  I usually buy fabric, hem it, and then use curtain clip rings to hang them.  I have looked in to using grommets, but they are $12 to $20 per panel and at that price you might as well buy pre-made curtains from Target or Tuesday Morning.

Buying fabric is also not always a bargain because you generally have to buy material to line it also.  My newest thrifty trick is to find sheets at a thrift store.  I have priced them in several places and they run between $2 and $5 for a queen or king flat sheet.  Not too shabby.  At this rate you can either buy a white sheet for a liner ($2 more) or buy a canvas drop cloth from a hardware store (less than $10). This means that you can have a quick and easy curtain set for less than $15 and for as low as $5.

I am loving sheets for curtains.  A standard curtain panel is 84" by 42".  Although the popular floor to ceiling length is 95".  A full sheet will alow for 2 95" by 40" panels.  Most sheets have a fold at the top that allows you to hang it without needing to buy the ring clips (saving you $10 to $20).  I am not suggesting slipping the rod through the entire length of the sheet (that's definitely dated and a little frat house-ish), but by folding the curtain how you want it to hang and cutting slits only in the back of the fold you can get a custom look like below.  (I've said before that I need to work on my step by step pictures.  If anyone needs more info, just let me know.)

This is a 'vintage' 70's sheet from a local thrift store for only $2.48.  To give it a little detail, I also bought a bed skirt at the same thrift store for $1.48.  I added this to the bottom of each panel. 

Since my sister is not using these curtains for light control, I didn't even line them.  This means that both panels together cost a total of $4!  I don't know how you can beat $4 curtains...

In her bedroom, I used plain ol' white sheets. They are hung the exact same way as the yellow ones above, but they look completely different because of the size of the folds.

Another one of my favorite things is to use electrical and plumbing pieces to hang the curtains.  Depending on the situation this can cost the same or less than traditional curtain rods.  My favorite is to use a 1/2" electrical conduit as the rod.  This costs about $2 for a 10' rod at a hardware store.  If you need less than 10' you will have to ask them to cut it to size for you or buy a small pipe cutter (~$7).  In her bedroom I used a super cheap method of 2 eyehooks ($0.63 each) and 2 galvanized end caps ($1.30 each- found in the plumbing section).  The rod shown above in total was $5.  For a slightly more expensive version, you will still need the 1/2" electrical conduit (This is much cheaper and lighter than anything found in plumbing. Lead pipes are not practical).  For each end, the cheapest combination is found in the plumbing section.  You will need 2 elbows 1/2" and 3/8" (this is an elbow that has one 1/2" and one 3/8" opening), 2 nipples (3/8" on both ends) and 2 floor flanges (3/8" is less than half the cost of 1/2" flanges).  Each end adds up to just over $5.  The cheapest curtain rods in Walmart or Big Lots will run about the same amount ($10 each).  The metal rods become even more economical for longer spaces and you don't have to use a bracket in the middle for support.

We talked about making the curtains for her living room, but I liked the look of grommets and as I mentioned earlier I have not yet found a cheap way to do these.  So I convinced Jessica to spend a little on pre-made panels from Target.  We went to several places that did not have any navy curtains, so when Target had 84" navy panels I knew we couldn't pass them up.  I did find that they sold 95" panels online, but Jess and I were too impatient to wait.  We bought the 84" panels and I simply added a white border that I cut off of the sheet from the bedroom curtains.  What do you think?  I love them. 

We got both panels for $30.  That makes the total for curtains in all 3 rooms $63- including the rods. 

In the world of curtains, that's a pretty good deal!

First Auburn Game

The weekend before last we took Hudson to his first Auburn game. We actually brought him to Auburn for the first game of the season but we stayed in the motorhome the entire time. The end of August was way too hot for our two week old. Fast forward six weeks and the 75 degree weather was much more appropriate for his first in-stadium game experience. It was a night game, so that morning we were able to go downtown for some photo ops.

I guess my son is already taking after my husband, because I get the feeling that he gets just as tired of pictures just as quickly.  I almost got the perfect picture... If only Hudson had cooperated for another 2 minutes and if I realized sooner that my son can not yet sit up by himself.  While rigging up my diaper bag as a prop, Hudson had a break down and the perfect picture never happened. Here's to almost...

Here's Hudson tailgating.  He's a natural.

We made it through the entire game and he actually slept from half time through the end of the game and the walk back to the tailgate. He is a great sleeper and can sleep through just about anything. Even when Auburn is trying to stop a huge third down conversion in the fourth quarter to hold on to a one possession lead over Florida. It's hard to tell here, but father and son are wearing matching shirts.

Sleeping like a baby...

Game's over and he's still sleeping...

This is not to say that the weekend did not come with it's share of drama. Between me torturing Hudson to get the perfect pictures on Saturday morning and losing our dog Friday night the game itself was actually pretty anticlimactic. Friday night we drove down to Auburn with Shane's grandmother and met the in-laws at a bonfire tailgate.

There were a ton of people and it was already dark. After hanging out for a couple hours we left to go to the motorhome. For anyone that doesn't know from experience, bringing a baby makes everything more chaotic than normal. Leaving is no longer simply getting in the car. We have to gather blankets, clothes, diaper bags, and our little yorkie, Sweet Pea. We divided tasks. I got Hudson, the diaper bag and blankets. Shane packed up the folding chairs and cleaned up the trash, and Shane's grandmother was in charge of Sweet Pea. Somehow Sweet Pea must have gotten in the car, and then back out when I was loading up Hudson.  Twenty minutes later we got back to the motorhome and realized that no one actually remembers Sweet Pea being in the car.  We assumed she was in the back with his grandmother and she thought she was up front with us. After a brief panic Shane and I ran to the car and left Hudson with the inlaws. We drove back to the park and I ran toward the crowd as my husband starts to search the woods. I immediately see her being walked by a man and I run over to him and say "That's my dog! I mean... is that your dog because she looks just like our dog that didn't get in the car with us earlier."  Fortunately he was very nice and wasn't offended that I started with an accusation. He said a dog with a collar and leash (that no one was holding) came running straight to him. He got the band to announce the lost dog but no one claimed it (because we were driving away). We didn't have her tags on her collar because they rattle and keep me from sleeping at night. Needless to say we are very lucky that she was located so easily. It actually took me longer to find Shane since he went into the woods and I left my phone at the motorhome. What does this say about us? How can we keep up with a child once he goes mobile if we can't keep up with a 7 lb dog? 

Hudson is 2 months old...

Well, technically Hudson was 2 months old 2 weeks ago (October 17th).  I cut myself a little slack as this is a new blog.  I guess I will be moving backwards until I get caught up (I'll post his 1 month pictures soon- Unfortunately I have temporarily misplaced the camera they were taken on).

Back to my little booger...

Look at him sitting up like a little man.  Behind the scenes info: I had to adjust him in between each picture.  For some reason he kept wanting to face plant to his right...  I actually asked my doctor at our 2 month checkup if it was ok that he was not sitting up on his own yet.  She laughed at me and told me that he should still be working on supporting his head.  So, maybe I need to read some more WebMD?

Here's a face plant saved by Mr. Bear.  I'd feel worse about the mild form of torture, but he would laugh each time he started to tank.  It was just as adorable as the pictures themselves.

Look at those eyelashes...

I have saved the best for last.. I'll leave you with a big ol' laugh.  I might be biased, but I think he's pretty adorable.

Crazy Neighbors

My husband and I feel like we are 'that' couple in the neighborhood. Everyone has a crazy neighbor, but no one really wants to be that house.  Not really sure how it got started, but I have a feeling our yard is the #1 culprit. I love working on the inside of my house... the yard, not so much. For one thing there's no air conditioning, for another it is almost impossible to work cheaply in the yard. When we moved into our house we did not even own a rake. It has been hard for me to spend money on yard tools that I despise using in the first place.

Another reason we might be ostracized by our neighbors may be my love for their trash. I try to have a no collection zone (essentially I don't take the items on the side of the road if I can see their house from mine). Unfortunately I had to break this rule when I found the gate (now my sister's headboard). It was only 3 houses down from us and I rationalized that this was for my sister and therefore worth violating my 'zone'. As there was no way I could lift it myself, I waited for my husband to come home. 

Thankfully he has come to understand my love of junk. He even helped me load up cut trees to make the arbor for our wedding. Yes, someone did yard work and I ransacked their brush pile for the straightest wood and used it as the centerpiece of our ceremony (thats just how I roll). This is why he didn't think twice when I told him about the gate on the side of the road.

Now we have a child, which of course changes everything. We could not put Hudson in the back of Shanes car, and then load up the gate in the back also.  So I stayed home and sent Shane to load the gate alone. For some reason he waited until dark (not a good idea because although stealing trash is sketchy already, doing it in the dark could get the cops called on you). Shane told me that as he was struggling to load the 5' x 6' gate onto the roof of his car lights began turning on in the house and people were peeking through the blinds. He did make it home before the cops were called and the gate sat in our driveway for several days before I painted it. Remember the house is only a hundred yards from us.  I know they must know who took their gate. I doubt they'd recognize it now, but I don't think I'll be invited to any neighborhood bunko parties in the near future. See, we really are 'those' neighbors.

Headboard and Lamps

I am going into week 8 of maternity leave. I work for a large company with an unbelievable benefit package.  I actually get 16 weeks!  I had a list of goals to accomplish while I'm out. One of these was to start a blog. Well half way through and I haven't made a very large dent in my list. Been a little distracted...  It's finally time to get down to business. Create blog... check. Help decorate my sisters first apartment... Uncheck.

My youngest sister recently graduated from college, got a job, and moved into her first solo apartment. We are working with a teachers salary, so we are trying to save on everything we can. I'm giving my self about $200 to furnish her entire apartment. Did I mention she only has a couch, bed, and dresser?  We've got a long way to go.

Project 1: Headboard
Jessica mentioned that she really wanted an old door as a headboard. I was worried this would come off a little too country, but I told her I'd keep my eyes peeled. No joke 3 days later on my walk with Hudson I found a gate on the side of the road.

The size was right and much more substantial than a door. To keep the gate from looking too country, I decided on a modern color palette: turquoise and brown (her bedspread) with orange accents. For some reason I thought a sample size of paint was enough to paint the entire gate, but I was wrong. To keep from making a trip back to Lowes I watered the paint down as I applied it. I ended up only using half of the can for the entire gate. After painting the whole thing, I added depth by dry brushing a little white and black in a few places. The whole project took about 2 hours on a Sunday, and the eight year old neighbor next door even lended a hand (you can't mess up when painting with colored water). Total Cost $3.88 for the paint.

                     Before:                                                            After:
                           
I like it horizontal instead of vertical.  It takes a little of the "this is a gate" aspect away.

Project 2: Lamps (orange accents)

          I purchased 2 tacky brass lamps at a yard sale a few weeks ago.  I wasn't really sure what I wanted to do with them, but at $2 a pop I figured I could find something eventually. 

I thought about spraying them white and putting them in my master.  But since I already have lamps and my sister is in need, I realized these would be really neat in a bright color that would look good with turquoise and brown.  Why not a bright orange? My sister was a bit skeptical, but I convinced her that if she hated the color she could re-spray them for less than $5.  In order to spray paint brass you need to scuff it up a bit with steel wool, then use a paint designed for metal.  I put painters tape on the cord and that's about it.  This took less than an hour.  The only real cost for this project was finding the right shades.  After contemplating making our own, I convinced my sister to buy 2 from homegoods at $15 each.  So total cost for both lamps was $37.00.  We could have gone cheaper, but I don't really want her place to look too homemade.
 

Welcome...

I have decided to join the blogosphere. To the five of you that will read this, I hope I do not disappoint.  I'm not really sure exactly what will come out each day, but my only goal is to talk even if no one is listening.

I will start by saying that I am a new mom. I just celebrated my two year anniversary and my son is eight weeks old. We had not exactly planned on having a child so soon and I actually cried when I read the results (my husband was a lot more excited and he literally jumped up and down).  I was terrified the entire pregnancy and I started to think that I was the only rational person that actually realized no matter how miserable I may be at 39 weeks, the baby would be a lot easier if he continued to stay on the inside.  Hudson had been measuring large the majority of my pregnancy and I ended up having a c-section to deliver a 9 lb 4 oz boy. It's pretty cliche, but everything I was scared of immediately disappeared. I have a laid back, easy baby who slept over 5 hours each night in the hospital and is now averaging 9 or more hours a night.  Before all the mothers out there start hating me, I have already resigned to the fact that I will have a difficult and high maintenance baby next time around (which will not be for a while). Although my little one is more than I've ever wished for, I have to admit that I basically stumble through most days. I have been peed, pooped, and spit up on (often!). I regularly think that I am keeping Hudson from becoming a genius because my 2 month old is watching the Vampire Diaries (my guilty pleasure) and Auburn football instead of Baby Einstein. I'm also reading my own books aloud instead of baby books that teach him colors, numbers, or algebraic equations...  When I'm not on maternity leave, I have a full-time, full-stress job. I am keeping my fingers crossed that I will be cured of 'mommy brain' before I return in January. I thought that preggo brain was bad, little did I know... My husband thinks my son ate my brain, or it was removed during the delivery. I'll candidly share those moments as well as my many other trials and tribulations of motherhood.

I have a passion for 'designing' (I use the term loosely because I am not a professional) rooms using my yard sale, thrift sale, and the occasional side-of-the-road finds. Although having a baby has limited my time, I still have a long list of projects to complete. Would you believe that Hudson actually takes better naps when I have my powertools going?