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Thursday, May 26, 2016

Personalized Teacher's Gift

We did it.
 
We made it through yet another school year.
{Although this year flew by, sparing us the pain and agony of
the always dreaded slow-moving year}.
 
I hope your school year is coming to a close and you can enjoy all that summer has to offer.  Late nights, late mornings, bra optional days, Netflix marathons, day drinking - just kidding {not really}, at least those are a few of the things I look forward to when summer break rolls around.
 
Anyways.....
 
A week or so ago I passed on some cute teacher's gifts ideas to all you fine folks with the promise to share what I put together for our teachers {whom we LOVE}. 
 
I had an idea in mind and looked on Etsy, Pinterest, Google, etc. to see if anyone else had done something similar, but came up empty-handed.  No biggie, this wasn't rocket science so I got to work.  I picked up three 8" by 8" canvases at Michaels then hopped on Photoshop to design the graphic. 
 
My inspiration was the periodic table.
 
 
 
I wanted to make each teacher a sign that looked like an element from the periodic table, using their name/initials, the grade they teach and the school year.  I even came up with a cute {cheesy} little saying to put on the card! 
 
 
 
 
 
 






 

 

 
 
So what'd ya think?!  Didn't the canvases turn out great?  
I hope our teachers love them and know how much we appreciate all they do!
 
Have a great day and thanks for reading!!
 
XOXO, Jessica
 
 
 
 


Monday, May 16, 2016

End-Of-Year Teacher's Gifts

Less than two hours and I can kiss this Monday goodbye.
 
(I'm not a fan of Mondays).
 
What's even better is that after tomorrow morning we only have 5 school mornings left (because let's face it, the hardest part of the day is getting out of bed and out the door) before ......
 
SUMMER BREAK!!!
 
That being said, I have yet to put together this year's teacher's gifts (although I do have something in mind).  All that got me thinking that maybe some of you are in the same boat and so I figured I'd pass along some of the great ideas that I've come across.  Ok, here we go!
 

1.  If you're teacher is a coffee lover/drinker, than this would be so cute!  Maybe add a bag of some yummy coffee beans or a gift card to a local coffee shop.
 
 
Click here for more info!
 
 
2.  An apple for teacher.  This sign is ADORABLE and would look soooo cute on your favorite teacher's desk, heck, it'd look cute on anyone's desk!
 
 
Click here for more info!
 
 
3.  Do you DIY??  This project would be super fun and I think it's so dang cute (plus really economical if you've got lots of teachers to get gifts for).
 
 
Sorry, no link.
The image is from Hobby Lobby and the link only sent
me to their site to purchase the jars. :(
 
 
4.  Succulents rule!  And so does this darling little plant holder made from some rulers!  Another fun, easy and inexpensive gift!  Now that's an A++
 
 
Click here for more info!
 
 
5.  This one is so easy, and us busy mamas love it when things are easy, right?!  Oh, and did I mention this printable is FREE?!  Yep!  Just print, frame and voila - teacher's got a new pet!!
 
 
Click here for more info!
 
 
6.  Yeah, I know this is another mug, but come one, how cute is it?  Plus if you're teacher is a tea drinker then the other one doesn't work as well as this one, right?? ;)
 
 
Click here for more info!
 
 
7.  This last one is a bit of a wildcard.  This image is from Country Living Magazine and, for the life of me, I can't find the source of this table runner.  HOWEVER if you're crafty (or know someone who is and has some free time) you could easily make (or bribe them to make) this! 
 
 
 
Alright my dears, I hope that gives you some inspiration for your end-of-year teacher's gifts!  I can't wait to share mine with you soon!  Have a great week and thanks for reading!
 
XOXO
 
Jessica

Tuesday, May 10, 2016

Cute Farmhouse Makeover

Happy belated Mother's Day to all you amazing moms everywhere.  Being a mom is often times a thankless, difficult, unforgiving and exhausting 'job', but please don't ever forget that all your hard work doesn't go unnoticed or unappreciated.  So, THANK YOU, for all you do each and every day.  The world truly is a better place because of you.
 
Last week this mama got to tackle the kind of project that takes me to my happy place.  I was asked to get a local property ready to go on the market.  This time around it wasn't just a quick one day staging job either.  Nope, it was a whirlwind of picking new paint, new flooring, updating lighting, adding some curb appeal and staging nearly all of the 1300 sq. feet, but don't worry, I had a whole week to do it. ;)  Yep, chaos is my happy place.  I've got issues.  
 
Thankfully, this time around, I was of sound mind and remembered to take before pics!  Yay!  Usually I'm so anxious to get the party started that I jump right into a project and forget the important part of capturing what it was like before, and I'm a huge fan of before and afters, so why I always forget that part I'll never know. 
 
For this project I had to tackle the kitchen, dining room, living room, powder bath, entryway, master bedroom, master bath, laundry room and guest bathroom. 

Let's get the tour started shall we??

Here are the before shots.....


Living Room/Entryway

 
 
 
 
Dining Room/Kitchen
 
 
 
 Dining Room

 
 
 Kitchen

 
 
  Hall Bathroom (at the top of the stairs)



Laundry Room

 

Master Bedroom
 
 
 
 Master Bathroom

 
 
 
 
And now for the AFTERS!!
 
 
Living Room/Entryway
Here's what we did:  The dated vinyl in the entryway was replaced with beautiful new laminate flooring.  The fireplace mantel received some character by simply adding molding to the face.  A fresh coat of gray paint replaced the harsh yellow, and we painted the mantel white to really make it pop.  Window treatments, neutral furnishings and hand-picked accessories completed the space.
 


 
 

Dining Room
Here's what we did:  Again the dated vinyl was replaced with the same laminate flooring as in the entryway and the walls received a fresh coat of gray paint.  The recess cans were changed out to these farmhouse pendants, allowing them to be centered over the dining room table.  I refinished this second hand farmhouse table and bench, then added some upholstered dining chairs and a jute rug.  Dishes, some plants and wall art finished it all off.


 
 
Kitchen
Here's what we did:  The cabinets were in great shape so we just freshened up the walls with some new paint, added some modern bar stools, cute countertop accessories, a wall clock, vintage sign and a fun patterned rug.


 
 
 
Powder Bath
Here's what we did:  Fresh paint on the walls, replaced the globes on the existing light fixture and added some simple wall art.



Hall Bathroom (at the top of the stairs)
Here's what we did:  We neutralized the bright blue with a fresh coat of paint, put new globes on the light fixture, updated the accessories, added some greenery and a super cute striped shower curtain to give this bathroom a total transformation.

 
 
Laundry Room
 Here's what we did:   A fresh coat of gray paint brightened up the space and the added shelf, clock, wood hangers, cute laundry basket and small accessories really give this room some added charm. 

 

Master Bedroom
Here's what we did:  Not a lot was needed cosmetically in this room.  The carpet is in great shape (as it is in the rest of the house), so we just changed the wall color and added some farmhouse style furnishings and accessories.  That bed frame was my grandparents and is from the 40's!  How cool is that?! Long, flowy window treatments, bedside tables and lamps, a chippy dresser and a rustic bench pulled everything together.
 
 
 



Master Bathroom 
Here's what we did:  Another space that was in great shape, just a little too neutral.  Fresh paint, new globes on the existing light fixture, updated accessories and some modern towels brought everything up to date.
 
 
 
 
How about some side-by-side comparisons??



 
 
 
 









 






Doesn't it look cute?  I couldn't be happier with how it turned out and really hope that the new owners enjoy it! 

Thanks for reading :)

Jessica