Fruit of the Spirit Wall Art

For the past few months I've had nothing hanging over my bed. The wall space stuck out like a sore thumb but I couldn't figure out what I wanted there. A little color. Something meaningful. Simple.

Well, back in July I posted about a wall decor idea that I needed suggestions for and was so happy with your ideas! I bought the supplies shortly after but just finished the project over the long weekend.

This is what I started with..

And this is what I came up with..

To make it I needed:

• 9 canvases, each with a length or width that measured the same (mine were all 8'' x something)
• black paint ( I used two bottles of acrylic..inexpensive & easy clean up)
• ribbon
• vinyl (I used contact paper..way cheaper and you get the same results) & a die cutting machiene (this was cut with my cricut)
• hot glue gun & LOTS of glue sticks

I started by painting all of the canvases with two coats of black paint

While I was waiting on them to dry I cut the letters out with my Cricut. (I used the Don Juan cartridge that came with it & they ranged in sizes from 1.75'' to 2.25''). Also, as I mentioned above in the supply list I used contact paper (what people use in their cabinets on the shelves..). I bought a hugemongo roll for like 6 dollars at wally world. And I cut it at a pressure of 5, high speed.

Once they were dry I began arranging the words/letters on the canvases until I came up with the design I liked. I knew I didn't want each one to be the same..similar yes so it would flow but I wanted each to be a little different. This is the part that took me the longest.

After my words were in place I played around with the ribbon (I used a sheer red..I like that it gives it color, but isn't bold) and began hot gluing bows and angles and stripes all over.

The tricky part was the wall placement..centering and equal spacing and all that math..NOT my strong point. I knew I wanted an inch inbetween each canvas so I added two inches onto the total combined width and length of each row and column and got to work making a gazillion few marks on the wall where they'd be hung.

DID YOU KNOW: You can use hot glue to adhere a canvas to the wall?!

I didn't but they've been "glued" there for a few days now with no problems..and I've heard a few teachers say that it can be peeled off without ruining the paint or wall either..we shall see! I wanted to avoid using nails because I didn't want a bunch of holes in the wall and I knew it'd be a balancing act to get each one to hang straight.

I love how my canvas art turned out..and it's a good inspiration and reminder of what I need to strive for in my daily life..

Have you ever used hot glue to adhere anything to the wall? If so, how'd it hold up? Did it peel off your paint? What about canvas art, have you ever made your own? Leave me a comment with a link to the post, I'd love to see it!

PS- I FINALLY got internet at home!!! Woo hoo!! And I have about 5 projects, some before and afters, and several recipes I need to post so please be sure to follow me or check back soon! I'll be posting my fall mantle and DIY Burlap Wreath within a day or so!

This post is linked to: Ginger Snap Crafts, Reasons to Skip the Housework, Cherished Bliss, Thrifty Decor Chick, Pinkapotamus, Home Savvy A to Z, Sugar and Dots, Night Owl Crafting, Handy Man, Crafty Woman, Delightful Order, Serenity Now - A Mommy's Solution to Staying Sane, Tatertots & Jello

Let's Organize: Cleaning Caddy

If you're anything like me, I'm sure you've experienced the frustration of trying to clean, only to find yourself spending more time going back and forth gathering different cleaning supplies than actually getting down to business.

For me, I used to hoard shove keep all of my cleaning tools under my kitchen sink. Most days everything was just thrown under there which caused me to have to clean that area out every.stinkin.time I was trying to clean somewhere else in my home.

Talk about frustrating.

Then I had an epiphany of sorts. What if it all had a place?! An organized, portable place so I never had to dig around for anything again.

I'm a simple girl, this truly was an epiphany. Pathetic? Possibly.

(We used a cleaning caddy at my house growing up..I'm not sure why it took me 5 years of being on my own to realize that there was a method to the madness my parents used. Don't judge me.)

So, I made a trip to Wal-Mart, a woman on a mission. Have you ever tried looking for a basket/bin of some sort at the store? It was overly frustrating.

Seriously, there were bins in the laundry section, bathroom section, home decor section, kitchen section, outdoor section...I was overwhelmed. Hey, Wal-Mart, you should try making ONE aisle for every stinkin bin in your store. It'd be a lot more handy. Just a suggestion.

I chose one from the kitchen section, it was $3 I think and definitely big enough to hold all that crap under my sink. I was kind of disappointed that I couldn't find a bin (in oh lets say just one of the 12 sections that had some) that had a carrying handle. You know, over the top of the bin.

But I'd been there long enough circulating the entire store so I gave up & settled for one without. It actually worked out well for me. But fyi, if you want one with a handle, I saw some at Target a day or two later.

Anyways, long story short, here's my cleaning caddy & what I keep in it.

I used my Cricut Expression to cut those letters on Con-Tact paper after I saw Jen's cute letters on her cleaning caddy over at I Heart Organizing. She put 'sparkle' on hers. Talk about adorable!

I decided on labeling it what we call it in my house so I can simply say to the boy "Will you bring me such and such out of the cleaning caddy?" and he has no excuse to not know what I'm talking about or where to find it.

Sneaky? Nahhh. Just clever. He can only dodge housework for so long now!



All of carpet cleaning, fabric refreshing supplies. Gotta keep up with this little booger!

Okay, sorry bout that. I just love that cutie pie so much =) Back to the caddy..

Here's all my other basic cleaning supplies with the exception of toilet bowl cleaner, I keep that under the bathroom sink. Most of the time I purchase off brand cleaners & some from the Dollar Tree. I've found that, for the most part, they work just as well. And I save a few bucks, it's a win-win.

I keep a few extra towels, latex gloves, a Mr. Clean magic eraser, extra swiffer pads, a scrub brush, and sponges in my cleaning caddy too for quick access.

And there's the top shot, it all fits in the caddy so nice & neat! Love it! And the caddy fits perfect beneath my, now organized, kitchen sink! See..

It's fabulous. Really, it is.

Do you have a cleaning caddy? If so, what do you keep in yours? If not, how do you keep your cleaning supplies organized? I'd love to know!

 This post is linked to bouffe e bambini, Delightful Order, Serenity Now - A Mommy's Solution to Staying Sane,  Sugar and Dots,  Sassy Sites,  Remodelaholic, Home Savvy A to Z & Fingerprints on the Fridge

Wall Decor Idea - I Need Your Suggestions!

So, I've got this picture in my head of a wall decor idea that I want to make to hang above my bed since my headboard is itty bitty. Anyways, heres a picture of the layout I'm going to use..

I intend to buy these 9 blank canvases at Hobby Lobby this week because they're on sale (heck yes!) and I'm going to paint them black (my master bedroom colors are black, white, & red).

Then on each one I'm going to use my cricut to cut each of the fruits of the spirit out on white vinyl & adhere them to the canvases. But here's where I'm stuck..

I want to tie red in somehow. But I want all of the letters/words on each canvas to be the same color. I'm not sure, something about the uniformity of it seems right. I've considered several different ideas for incorporating the red, but none of them fit just right for me. If you can help me out with this I'll be eternally grateful! I don't like having "creativity block" and am so ready to have my bedroom's decor finished! Thank you guys so much for your input, I can't wait to see what you come up with!!

This post is linked to: Bella Before & After, Strictly Homemade, Reasons to Skip the Housework, Tip Junkie & Not JUST a Housewife

OH. MY. LANTA.

I'm giddy.

Seriously. I'm jumping up and down I'm so excited.

Look what I FINALLY purchased last night!!!!!

Yeahhhh buddy. I can't wait to use it!! But now I'm questioning whether or not I should have bought the Expression instead of the Create. Do any of you have a Cricut? If so, which one? Any suggestions, tips, or pointers you'd like to pass along? I'd love some input! If you've blogged some things you've created with your Cricut I'd love to see those too!!