What do you like to do to be friendly to our planet and to $ave you money?

A few of the ways Joe and I save money and help "recycle":

Water Your Plants with your Dehumidifier!
In our basement we have a dehumidifier which we have to empty twice a day. (A dehumidifier keeps the moisture out of the air to prevent mold & mildew.) We have saved gallon milk containers (cleaned!) and every day we pour the water into the gallon containers. We have many saved up a lot of water from before spring time watering was needed. Every day we use about 4 gallons of water to water our plants and small garden! 
Boo yah! No getting out the hose and wasting good water!
If you don't have a dehumidifier, get a rain barrel! You can put it by your gutter spout and catch all the water to use for watering plants, flowers & gardens!

Wash Your Clothes on Cold!
Did you know you save almost $100 a year by washing your laundry in cold water vs hot?
Even washing on warm compared to hot saves you around $50 a year!
Save on your electric bill!

Change Your Light Bulbs!
We use all CFL (Compact Fluorescent Light) light bulbs. In our first full month using them it took $45 off our electricity bill! I was amazed! We have become more conscious about turning off lights and using natural (sun) light whenever possible too. Our electricity bill has been so much lower! (Like consistently saving $50 a month now!)

Those are just a few of the ways we like to save & help 
do our part of keeping our world healthy. 

What are some of the ways you are being green & saving 
along the way this year?

---Laura---

p.s. We have a new project that we are working on today! After I finish posting this I shall get back to it so you can guys can see a post! :)



So, in a lot of magazines I have seen this type of thing going on. Clothes pins or paper clips that dangle photos or polaroids from a string and you can hang it around at events or as a unique way to show off pictures in your house. Well, I decided to make my own!


I got a roll of mocha ribbon from Jo-Anns for $2.99

A whole bag of mini wooden clothes pins from Jo-Anns for $2.99

I used Picnik.com for free editing. (Sweet!)
First I uploaded my photo. Went to the "Create". Clicked "Effects". "Black and White".
Next I clicked on the "Frames"and the last one when scrolling down is called "Polaroid" Click on that one to get the same look as mine.
Next click on "Text" and there you can write something on your picture with lots of choices of fonts & colors! Ta Da! Hit Save and you are done! 
Here is how a couple of my turned out:



Not a random guy...it's my little younger brother :)
I use the internet for so much because it saves on gas & time. With that said.... I use Walgreens Photo Center to print my pictures! 
All you do is upload them from a folder on your computer, add to cart, change quantity/size if needed, then process the order. You can even pay for it online so all you do is walk into the store & pick them up. (That's what I do!)
Bring them freshly printed photos home & start clothes pinning!



Here's what mine looks like finished! :)

I'm super duper happy with how this turned out!
It gives the perfect vintage modern look & for cheap!


It's not staying in the living room on this wall...I just hung it with tape so you could see how it looked if it were hanging somewhere! :)
Can't wait to get this put in it's home! (Guest room/office hopefully!)

What do you think? Have you thought about doing anything like this with photos before? Maybe for a bridal shower or a birthday?

p.s. I'm still brainstorming on other projects so hold on to your seats! ;)

---L---




I painted the peacocks and "Lumiere"! I'm thinking wanting some plum purple colored candlesticks for "Lumiere" or I want to paint him purple or something bold and use regular old candlesticks..I'm not sure yet! After a day or so I will probably walk by it enough to see what I really want to do with it...


Does have a for-the-better-change so far. But I'm really thinking I might want to paint it a different color...even black? Hmm...

Okay, now to the peacocks....that I L-O-V-E!



I love these little guys white!

For now, I have put them on our book shelf in the living room. (With my duck head book ends..which I also spray painted..) 


A step back for a better look...The aqua storage bin has got to go. I know. But, it is currently holding our Xbox controllers & Kinect games so it's staying until the bin gets replaces with perhaps 2 small woven baskets..

Another shot of the living room which is still a work in progress...


The frames..they still need to be filled properly! Some are empty, some are awful and then maybe one will stay..I'm wanting to do black & white photos & fill some frames with things like postage stamps or newspaper articles!

This morning, (After a little cleaning) I have been sitting here writing out my ideas & hopes for our dining room & living room & bedroom...okay maybe every room haha. But it's a good way to keep my thoughts organized and to not forget what we want to see our home become. Back to that for me & then I must go to actual work (my job) in the early afternoon. I hope you guys are having a good wednesday morning!
(I just might be posting a couple of my ideas in a bit, depending on how much time I have!)

---Laura---

p.s. sing along to have an even better morning :)






Our chair has been transformed and is now in our bedroom!





Just a few coats of color for about $6 and it's my favorite chair!
A few picture's of it in our bedroom...



Super happy :) 

Our bedroom is coming along..slowly but it's getting there! I wanna start on getting a few shelves on a wall and a string of polaroid vintage photos..but more on all of that later.. :)

Share with us your house projects on our Facebook page!

---L---

A Day Off=A Little Thrifting!

Found some "gonna-be-cute" items at the thrift store today!

Funny, I know but ever since watching Beauty & The Beast when I was little, I have wanted a candle holder with the three arms. (Like Lumiere)

lumiere-and-cogsworth2.jpg



Today, I found one! (& for only 3 buck-a-roons!)
Too bad mine doesn't sing & dance too...This guy coulda been famous..

Not as handsome as Lumiere, but I think it'll do just fine with a little love.

I'm always on the look out for figurines that can be spray painted and use for decor on book shelves, etc. Take a look at these two peacocks I got for 5 bucks! So $2.50 a piece ain't too shabby! Not digging the gold, but maybe a white or perhaps I will go bold with these little guys and throw a pop of color in a room!




On top of all these small treasures, I found a chair for our bedroom! 




$12 for a very sturdy, solid wood chair. 
*happy dance*
Now watch the boldness of color be shown in just a little bit! 
(And hopefully it turns out how I'm hoping! haha)

Now let the transformations begin!

---Laura---
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Joe & Laura have purchased their first house after almost eight years of marriage and are thrilled to be making it into their home. They love to share their journey of DIY's & projects around the house as their goal is to inspire others. Check back often as they tackle many projects around Joe's full time work schedule & Laura's life of being a stay-at-home mama to their baby boy!

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