No Sew Window Valance

Last week I asked which valence people preferred. 

Valence 1

Or Valence 2

Honestly, I already had a favorite, but I guess I just needed confirmation on my decision. Valence 2 was the overwhelming favorite of those who let me know which they preferred. Yay! That's the one I wanted!

This is a quick sketch of my measurements I decided on for the finished product. 

I like to sew, but I wanted to do this project as a 'No Sew' project.  That way even those who don't like to sew, or can't sew, can do this valence. 

First thing you will need to do is gather all your supplies. 

• Material
• Iron and ironing board
• Fabric pen (chalk works too)
• Pins (for holding fabric in place)
• Fusible bonding web
• Spray bottle and press cloth
• Straight edge
• Velcro or something similar

Starting with my printed fabric, I needed to make sure I had a straight edge on the top.  Especially since my fabric had a definite pattern that could have turned out wonky very easily. 

Next, finding center was important. 1. For the pattern and 2. To make sure it would be long enough to cover the width of the window.

Next step is to mark your lines. If you don't want to purchase a fabric pen, white school chalk works just as well. It can be found in the kids' art section at Walmart for less than a dollar. 

I decided to mark the actual dimensions for the finished valence on the fabric. I then went back and marked the seam allowance lines. This just helped me keep everything in order in my mind. (I have so many distractions and interruptions, I have to do projects in a way that I don't have to think to hard about what I've already done.)

Next step is to cut out the top piece along the seam allowance lines. 

Now that the top decorative piece is cut out, go back and mark and cut out your bottom fabric.

Once both pieces are cut out, it's time to put it all together. I used Fusible Bonding Web 5/8th" wide to do all the seams and to 'sew' the fabric together.

Follow the directions on the back of the package. This will ensure you don't scorch your fabrics and that the bond holds properly. First seams to press are the point of the top fabric.

Next, put put the two fabrics together in the proper position and pin in place.

Once it's positioned and pinned, bond the two fabrics together along the point edge.

The back will sag if left unattached at the top edge. Looking back, I should have had the solid fabric go all the way up to the top seam of the decorative fabric. Something I'll do differently next time, but didn't have enough fabric to correct it this time.

Next, I did a quick hem along the top of the valence. Try to keep this as straight as possible so it will look right when you hang it on your window.

Now, do the same for the bottom hem and sides.

Your next step will be to add a liner. I didn't plan on this when I first started. Fortunately, I had enough of an other material left over from previous project that was big enough. I just laid the liner fabric on the the back of the valence, pinned it in place and then cut the liner fabric about 1/2 inch smaller than the valence front. Last step to this part was to fuse the top edge together. 

The next steps will be a little different for everyone depending on how you will hang the valence. I have a decorative piece that snaps on to the front of the blinds that are already installed in the window.

Here is what I did. 

The middle of your valence needs to line up with the middle of your window. Find the middle and mark on both. 

Attach the top of the valence to the blind cover with self adhesive hook and loop. I had a moment of panic when all I could find was sew on, but I just had to dig a little deeper in my stash of supplies to find the right stuff. {Phew!!}

Last step is to snap it in place and just stand and look at your finished project!

I love the way this looks in the room and dresses up the space! I'm trying to get my home to look like it actually has a family living in it. It's taken me a while, but after almost six years it's about time. Hopefully, now that I've started we won't be selling anytime soon. 

Let me know what you think! If you have any questions, I'll be happy to try and help. Just contact me through Facebook or email. This really was an easy project. The biggest time spent was in the planning and getting all the measurements right. 

Ok.  Now on to the next project!

Independence and Basic G

I hope you all had a great Independence Day weekend!  I think this is one of the first times we didn't travel anywhere for the holiday.  It was great to spend the time at home with some new friends making memories.  Our kids are now pyromaniacs after Friday night and we only had one very minor burn.

The whole idea of 'independence' got me thinking about life and my kids.  I'm not one of those people who wants their kids to stay little forever.  I LOVE that my kids are getting older and more capable day by day.  Having five kiddos in less than seven years can be very overwhelming.  Every time one of them grows to be a little more independent, I do a little happy dance - not only for myself, but for them.

These little steps they make toward being more independent and self-reliant are not without stumbles.  I try to keep my camera {and a sense of humor} handy through the good...

And the 'bad'...

Most recently our son is learning his independence in the bathroom.  And, after it taking what seems like forever to get him potty trained, I'm not about to discourage him.  Even when he uses a little too much toilet paper and overflows the toilet.

Yeah..... And, FYI, it does no good to take the top off the tank and try to control the flow of water.  {Kevin got a good laugh out of that bit reasoning.}

Fortunately, I had just cleaned the toilet prior to this little incident, so it wasn't too much of an ick factor.  However, I wasn't just going to walk away without making sure everything was good and clean after this little incident.

Enter my heavy hitter - Basic G {Germicide}!

This baby disinfects, cleans and deodorizes all in one step.  And, it's so concentrated that one quart makes up to 64 gallons.

Basic G is now my go to cleaner when I need to get rid of bacteria, viruses, and fungi in my home.  It's nontoxic and safe to use all around the house - on door knobs, light switches, in the bathroom and kitchen, sinks and floors, on stainless steel and aluminum, and on hard non-porous surfaces.  We even use it to keep our large outdoor trash can clean and free of stink.  The residual effectiveness lasts up to three days after application (verse only one hour when using chlorine bleach) and it kills 32 pathogens (verses only 8 when using Lysol).

Using Basic G has helped me to know my house is clean.  It gives me a way to clean up after our little steps toward independence and a peace of mind and I have one less thing to worry about when it comes to the health of our family and especially our kids.

Want to give Basic G a try?  Go on over to my website and order yours today.  Shaklee has a 30 day money back guarantee on all their products.  I love having this in my cleaning arsenal, though, and know you will too!  Shaklee even makes Basic G Wipes in their Get Clean Line for quick cleaning convenience.  And, once done cleaning, the wipes are recyclable.

Feel free to contact me with any questions!  I love helping others discover a better, nontoxic way to clean.  Just send me an email or message me on my Facebook page.

Have a wonderful week!

Painting Tips & Tricks: Clean it Up

The final step in your painting project is going to be cleaning it all up so you can enjoy your new prettied up space.  There are a couple of things you can do along the way to make the end job easier.

1.  Keep a rag handy for those little oops's that happen along the way.  I know some people like to have a dry rag and others who say have a wet or damp rag.  I think it's a personal preference.  Me? I use my shirt.  Why?  There is a lot of space I can use to clean with and it is always with me as I go around the room.  I'm already looking for all my other tools, keeping track of a rag is not something I want to do.

These are a couple of camp shirts I've had since high school.  As you can see, I've had to clean up a few times over the years of painting.  I either wrap my finger in the material and wipe the area that needs cleaning or I use my finger and then wipe it on the shirt.  For me, it works.

 2.  Learn what NEEDS to be cleaned up right away and what can wait.  Drips on hard flooring can often times be left to dry and clean up later.  Just make sure they are out of the way and not in a place that will be tracked.  After that little drip has dried, just scrape it up gently with your fingernail.  If the drip gets smeared or is in the middle of your space, go ahead and clean it up.

Before

After

When final clean up time rolls around, it doesn't have to be a big production.   This can actually be done very easily.  Here are a couple ideas to help you get to the point of finally being able to put your feet up and relax after a job well done.

1.  Remember latex paint is water based and your paint brush can be cleaned almost all the way using just water.  For the last little bit, use a gentle cleaner.  My Dish Wash is gentle on everything except the dirt I need to get rid of.

 Honestly, I can't believe my favorite brush came clean.  Please remember to clean your brush soon after finishing your project.  I ended up waiting a month and thought I was going to have to throw the brush in the trash.  So glad Shaklee works!

2.  Don't worry about cleaning out your paint tray immediately.  If you have the time, just set the tray to the side somewhere and let it dry.  Once it's dry, the paint can just be peeled up with very little effort.  Even better.  Hand the tray off to one of your kids and let them do the job.  My kids actually fight over who gets the privilege {ahem} of peeling the paint.

3.  While I don't have a picture of this, I think you will get the point of this last idea.  Just go ahead and throw the paint roller in the trash.  Yep.  Just toss it.  New rollers aren't that expensive and it's a lot of effort for not a lot of return.

Those are my little pearls of wisdom.  Let me know what helped you and any ideas you have that would help me and others.  I'm always looking for great tips and tricks to use in my life.

Want to read the other Painting Tips & Tricks posts?  Here are the links to all of them!
Prepping Your Space
Protect Your Throne
Put it Under Wraps

Last Week for June Special

When school ended on May 27th I really thought I was going to have a nice relaxing summer.  Ha!  The joke was on me!  It's all good, though.  We've been busy, and for the most part it's been a good busy.  I just can't believe it's already the last week of June!

Have you seen the June special from Shaklee?  I've been really excited about this one!  For the month  of June, if you sign up as a new member you get a free Stress Relief Complex with a 50 PV purchase.

This stuff is great!  I have some on hand for those busy days I know will push me to the limit.  It just allows me to get through the day a little easier and be fully productive.  My husband will take it on those days at work that are full of meetings and crazy schedules.

We've also had some extreme times when this little pill has helped.

This first example calls for a little background.....

Two years ago we started getting flu shots.  No big deal, for the most part.  I realized it wouldn't be easy with me taking all 5 kids by myself; however,  I didn't plan on my oldest daughter's fear of needles.  While she was cowering in the corner, I had the nurse give the shot to the other three kids.  (One of the kids was sick, so she couldn't get it.)  When it was time to give the last (and oldest) child the shot, I had to pick her up off the floor and hold on to her.  Not an easy task when her adrenaline is pumping and she is fighting and screaming with everything she has to get loose.  At some point we called another nurse in to help me hold her so the first nurse could administer the shot safely.

A year later I told my husband he was going in with us to share in the 'fun' of flu shots.  This time I had to talk our oldest out of the bathroom she was hiding in.  I then had to herd her down the hall to the room where the rest of the family was waiting.  This time my husband was the one to hold on to our daughter who was fighting and screaming once again.  As soon as he had her in a solid hold so she wouldn't hurt herself or the nurse giving the shot, she went really quiet.  We thought, Great! She has decided to cooperate and just get it over with.  Um, no.  Poor baby passed out before the needle even touched her.

A few months later, this same daughter has to go in to the doctor for her well visit.  Guess what she had to get.  Boosters!!  I was proactive this time.  I called to office up a month before her appointment, explained the situation, and asked if there was anything I could give her to help the visit go a little smoother.  Their answer, in short, was 'No.'.  I was trying to think of anything and everything I could do to help my daughter through this.  I even tried to talk with her to see if she had any ideas that would help her handle the situation better - ignoring it wasn't going to work and talking about it with her seemed to make things worse.

I'm sure you know where this is going.  I had her take a Stress Relief before we left the house that day for her appointment.  Did she take the shot with a smile on her face?  Not at all!  We still had a few tears and a lot of mumbling to herself.  But, I didn't have to physically restrain her.  I didn't have to worry about her hurting herself or the nurse.  And she didn't go into full panic mode when she saw the needles.  That's right.  NeedleS.  Plural.  It worked!

 My son was with us and took pictures.  She really did such a good job!  She's already told me to have the Stress Relief Complex on hand when we go for flu shots this fall.

After all that information above, you will understand why we gave our daughter more Stress Relief just last week.  While we were swimming, she decided to see if her teeth were strong enough to take on the concrete.  Which do you think won?

Poor girl was missing 1/3 of her front tooth!  You would think she would be worried about the aesthetics of a broken tooth.  Nope.  Her first thought was the needle the dentist was going to have to use to fix the tooth.  She was shaking and scared out of her whits about the possibility of a needle being used to numb her.  Once more we gave Stress Relief to her to help her through.  We also paid the next day to have nitrous oxide given to her.  I think her dentist would like to keep his fingers.

Much better.

So.  Anyone signing up as a new member in June with a 50 PV order will receive a bottle of Stress Relief Complex FREE with your order.  Anyone signing up as a new member or distributor with a 200 PV minimum order gets the Stress Relief Complex AND 180 Mango Energizing Smoothee FREE.  This is a retail value of over $80 and a couple of great products!

Even better, Shaklee is giving a loyalty reward!  Those who take advantage of the June special as new members and place minimum orders of 50 PV in the second and third months, they earn another free product of their choice in the fourth month!

One of the best ways to become a new member and get the June special is to order Vitalizer.  This item will get you the PV you need, is the best supplements on the market, and you will receive FREE lifetime Shaklee Membership!

Anything I can do to answer questions or help you find items that will make your life healthier, please don't hesitate to contact me by email or message me on Facebook.  Helping others improve their health is one of my favorite things to do!

Painting Tips & Tricks: Put It Under Wraps

How often do you get to do a big project start to finish?  I always have to allow time for unscheduled breaks.  Always.

This can be difficult when painting a room.  Not only is there a paint brush for doing the trim work, but you have a wet roller once you start the main area of the walls.  Leave either the brush or the roller out for too long and both will start to solidify and be impossible to work with.

Here's a tip I learned from my mom when I first started painting.

Put a plastic bag around a wet roller when not in use, and plastic wrap around an idle paint brush.

The paint will stay fresh for several hours and sometimes even a couple of days.  Just try to get the plastic tight with little to no air around the paint.  Next time you are ready to paint, just pull one of them out and get to work.

Once the project/room is finished, then you can wash everything up one time.  Much easier than washing  everything up multiple times while working.


Here are links back to the other tips and tricks posts:
-Prepping Your Space
-Protect Your Throne

Painting Tips & Tricks: Protect Your Throne

So, what's up with the big delay between posts?  I decided to head out of town for several days and left my laptop behind.  Such a typical thing for me to do, but I'm back now to reveal my next post in my painting series.

As I stated in my previous post, I've been painting for years.  I started helping my parents when I was a teen, and that was several years ago.  I know there are lots of people out there who would rather do anything BUT paint - my husband is one of those people.  (And, to be completely honest, I would rather he not paint.)  I'm not one of those people, though.  I actually really like to paint!  It's a relatively cheap home improvement that can change the look of a room in a short amount of time.

Here's a little secret for you, though.  Ready?

I HATE painting bathrooms!

It's my absolute least favorite room to paint - I try very hard to avoid it.  All those corners and tight areas!  The fixtures that have to be removed or meticulously painted around!  There are also all those spots that a step stool or ladder just don't fit in to allow easy reach to the top of the wall.  Total frustration!!

My biggest problem with painting in a bathroom?  The Toilet!!

How are you suppose to get behind that without making a mess?!  You could always just get as close as you can without actually painting behind it, but then you will always know that there is this big white spot behind the commode.  Or, even worse, someone might see said big white spot and question your mad painting skillz.  Nope.  It just won't do!

What to do?  I've already avoided painting the two upstairs bathrooms for the past five years. However, with the walls looking like they do in the kids' bathroom, it was time to suck it up and get it done.

Then a moment of genius struck.  I can cover the back of the commode with a  kitchen trash bag to keep it clean!  Sweet!

So quick. So easy.  Plus, my type of trash bag was stretchy with a draw string so it really hugged the tank and stayed out of my way.

I used an extra little piece of tape to get the bag a little tighter around the tank.

I also put a hole in the bag so the toilet could be flushed.  With all my interruptions, we never know how long a project will take.

The whole thing worked out perfectly!  I didn't have to be careful when using the paint roller - even though I had a much slimmer profile roller, it still got paint on the bag.  The toilet was still functional until I was able to finish painting.  And... clean up was a breeze!

Other ideas:

• split open a paper sack and tape it to the tank so the back is protected.
• use wide tape and use several strips to tape the back of the tank
• do nothing and just be really careful
• put pre-painted panelling on the wall behind the toilet  
• hire someone to do it for you 

Those are my ideas.  What do you do when painting in tough spaces?  Share here in the comments or on Facebook.

Did you catch the first Painting Tips & Tricks post?  If not, or if you want to read it again, here's the link Painting Tips & Tricks: Prepping Your Space.

Painting Tips & Tricks: Prepping Your Space

Welcome back!  How was your long weekend? Ours was filled with lots of family time and trying to get a few projects done around the house.  Not something a lot of people would necessary think is fun, but I love DIY projects.

My latest projects have been painting a couple of rooms in our home.  I'm hoping to have reveals to share with you soon.  In the mean time, I thought I would share some of my tips, tricks, and lessons learned from my years of painting.

The first little nugget of wisdom for you is:

Prepare Your Space

Clean the Baseboards:  How you prepare your space is going to be somewhat dependent on what room/area you are painting.  One thing that will almost always be the same is baseboards.  This may seem like such a minor thing and a waste of time, but it could make all the difference in the finished product.  It doesn't have to be a big production.  Usually all that needs to be done is a good dry wipe down to remove any dust.  Failing to do this before taping will allow paint to seep between the tape and trim (since the tape would rather stick to the dust) and give you something like the picture below when the tape is removed.  Not so pretty.

"What if I don't tape my baseboards?", you ask.  Well, you will still find it beneficial to give a quick swipe to the room.  Dust picked up by the paintbrush is hard to get out and can make the new paint look bumpy and dirty.  Not the finished look anyone would want after working so hard.

Clean the Walls: Most of the time this isn't a big deal.  Paint today does a really good job of covering all the little smudges and such.  However, if your kids are like mine, you can always have some interesting surprises.  Needless to say, lip balm and gloss do not allow latex paint to adhere to a wall.  It's best to just do a quick once over on the walls and take care of anything before you start.  Otherwise, you will be scraping areas of the wall and having to repaint.  No fun!

Tape:  Next thing you should do after cleaning up those baseboards is tape.  There are several options out there now.  I still use the blue painters tape by Scotch 98% of the time.  This time I ran out of my supply (thanks to my youngest making a trap for bad guys in his room) so I used some of the Frog brand to finish a doorframe.  No big deal.  Just find one that you like and feel works the best.

The amount of tape you use, in my opinion, is a personal comfort thing.  What does that mean?  Each person has their own level of ability when painting.  A little secret here for you - I rarely tape.  Almost never!  But that's because I've been painting for years.  Would I recommend not taping to a person doing their first painting job?  Absolutely NOT!!  Even if a person has been taping for years and still wants to put blue tape on every piece of trim in the room, so be it.  Each person needs to do what makes the job easiest for them.

That being said, there are places that I still have to tape.  Tight corners are a place that still has me getting the tape out and meticulously placing it on the trim.  I don't want to have to worry about where the paint goes even if no one will ever see the mess.  I'll know the mess is there and it will bug me even after moving out of the house.

Take Care of the Floor:  Sometimes you will need a tarp down, sometimes you won't.  If working over carpet, it's a great idea to have something down under where you are painting.  It doesn't have to be much and it can be moved as you progress around the room.  Working over a hard surface like wood, tile or linoleum are a little more forgiving and small 'oops's can be cleaned up rather easily.  Always put your can of paint in a safe place with the lid on no matter what surface you are on.  Accidents do happen.

Corral the Kids:  Now, if you don't have kids, this won't pertain to you.  Go on and enjoy your painting solitude.  If you have young kids (or pets), put a barrier up at the door.  Baby gates are great at keeping the kiddos out of the mess but still allowing them to see you.  Have kids that are a little older?  Get a movie going or get a game out for them to play.

Regardless of what you do, you will have interruptions.  Be ready, and don't be surprised.  It's easier to leave your area when you are needed than to have the kids constantly coming into the room and getting too close to a wet wall, a full paint tray or tripping over a can of paint.

Do you have some tips or tricks you like to do when painting?  I would love to hear them!  Comment here or on Facebook.  I'm always looking for new and easier ways to do things.