{Long Overdue & More Free Bathroom Printables}

I know, I know...I have been a very bad blogger!  Man, the past few months have been a crazy whirlwind.  There has been so much going on, and I know I need to get caught up.  However, today, I am again in a rush.  I do want to share another fun little bathroom printable I made for Kevin's bathroom.  We are having the blue version printed on a canvas. While I was at it, I decided to make a couple of other color options as well.  Feel free to download them for yourself by right clicking on your favorite and saving the image to your computer.  Enjoy!

My original bathroom printables were kind of a big hit on Pinterest.  I have had over 100 downloads...such a nice surprise!  Sooooo, I decided to add a couple of colors to match the prints above.  Feel free to grab these as well!

 

 

 Have fun with these!  I should be back to blogging normalcy next week!

 

{Happy Friday}

As we go into this weekend, let's remember that Easter is coming!

They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting,

“Hosanna!”

“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”

“Blessed is the king of Israel!”

John 12:13 NIV

^{Have a lovely weekend, friends!}

{Bathroom Printables}

As I have said many times before, the hubby and I are re-designing our bathrooms on a shoestring budget.  This especially goes for all things decorative.  Kevin is such a man...he sees no need for decoration.  I, on the other hand, LIVE for this part of the process!

Since my decorating funds are so tight, I decided to try my hand at designing some of these cute little printables that are taking over Pinterest and Etsy.  I wanted something that would be fun, pop art-ish, and easy for my 5 year old to read.  I am so pleased with how these prints turned out.  The boys love them, so I am beyond happy!

Feel free to download them for yourself.  They are high resolution images and should print well.  I actually sent mine to my professional printer, so that the paper quality and color are better.  I recommend Mpix.  I use their sister company Millers Professional Imaging for all of my Angel Kisses Photography print orders, and just adore them!  All you have to do is right click on the image and save.  I hope you enjoy them as much as we do!

{Rust-Oleum Universal Metallic Spray Paint}

Our house has approximately 5 different finishes scattered throughout.  I really did not think it was that bad (or I just chose to ignore it). Then one day, I decided to check it out.  I was horrified!  I am all about the little details.  When we started our bathroom project, the OCD version of me had a massive hissy fit for two reasons:

1) We have a billion different outlets, A/C vent covers, door knobs and hinges.  The time that would be spent changing these things out would be ridiculous.

2) The cost of replacing all of those items would be astronomical!  Of course, my favorite happens to be an oil rubbed bronze finish.  This is also the most expensive in most stores. Womp womp.

Enter Rust-Oleum's Universal Satin Metallic Spray Paint in Oil Rubbed Bronze...

This little $7.28 can of spray paint is really a thing of joy!  One can has beautified every item on my wish list and then some. 

Now, we went a little crazy with the spray paint.  I found a chrome faucet with a really great shape at Home Depot for $22.00.  A similar ORB version was a whopping $80.00...Crazy!  That's a big difference, so we figured we would give it a shot.  We sanded the faucet down really well and then spray painted the heck out of it.  After it was dry, we lightly sanded it again and added another coat of paint.  It looked great for the first couple of weeks, but now has a few chips here and there.  We are making it work for now.  The great thing is, that we can just do a little touch up when needed.  Hopefully, in a month or so, Kevin will let me buy the real thing.  A girl can dream!

Fake It Til You Make It, Right?!?!  I am perfectly fine with that.  Anything is better than the situation we were dealing with before!

Here are some after shots.....

REVIEW: Rust-Oleum's Universal Metallic Spray Paint might have just saved my sanity!  For things like light switches and outlet covers, it works great!  The finish is perfect.  You would seriously never know it was spray paint.  We have been very pleased with the finish and durability on those items.  On the faucets, the durability is not as impressive.  But, hey, it was certainly worth a shot.  And, it's given us some more time to save for the real deal.

{If you want to see more of our renovation photos, follow us on Instagram at #theburtchsrenovate}

{DIY: Rust-Oleum Tub and Tile Refinishing Kit}

Better late than never...right???  It is a well know fact that I loathed our yellow bathtub, shower and counter tops.  They were seriously the bane of my existence.  However, our tight budget on the bathroom renovations did not allow for us to replace them.  So, we got crafty, did some research and found the  Rust-Oleum 1 Qt. White Tub and Tile Refinishing Kit.  These kits allow you to refinish the bathroom surfaces with a durable, high gloss epoxy acrylic paint.  We watched tons of Youtube how-to videos and read about a thousand reviews before we pulled the trigger and purchased the kits from Home Depot.  They are not currently available in store, so you can check them out HERE.  We are trying to take care of both bathrooms at the same time (crazy, I know).  We ended up purchasing four kits, which have taken care of a bathtub, shower stall, and 2 counter tops.  We were able to take care of 2 coats on all surfaces.  I would have liked to do a third coat for good measure, but we needed a functioning bathroom ASAP.  So, if needed, we can always go back and add that last coat.

Here is the process that worked for us:

Step 1: Clean, Clean, Clean!  We used a hefty dose of Comet to get a really good clean on all of the surfaces.

Step 2: Give the surfaces a good sanding with a fine grit sand paper.  According to Kevin, this was his least favorite part, but it makes a BIG difference in the end result.

Step 3: Pull out the painters tape and tape off all of the surfaces.  If this product gets on your walls or cabinets, it's not coming off any time soon.  Be sure to secure the tape, and you should be good to go.

Step 4: Mix the materials as instructed on the box.  FYI - the smell is pretty intense.  We are fortunate and have an attic fan.  We did this on a nice, warmer day, so we were able to turn it on and cut back on the fumes.  If you have children, you may want to get them out of the house for the day, open the windows and wear a surgical mask.  Seriously...it's tough to take in.  The smell doesn't stick around for too long, though.

Step 5: Start painting the first coat.  We used a foam roller and foam brushes for a more even finish.  I was a little wary after we finished the first coat.  I seemed a little spotty, and like the coverage wasn't going to be great or even.  The first coat dries super quick, so you do not have to wait a long time to start on the second coat...maybe 1 to 2 hours.

  

Step 6: It's time for the second coat of paint.  This will make all the difference in the world!  Once the second coat goes on, you will forget about the crazy color of your old tub or tile or counter top.  It's like magic!

Step 7: We let this paint dry overnight...just to make sure.

Step 8: Remove the painters tape.  Kevin used an x-acto knife to do this.  We wanted the edges to be sharp, so we didn't just rip it off the walls, like we tend to do with regular wall paint.  It was a tedious and careful task, but the edges turned out perfectly!

Here are the after photos of the bathtub and counter top:

REVIEW:  The Rust-Oleum Tub and Tile Refinishing Kit was awesome!  The price is great and we are very pleased with the results.  Are the surfaces 100% perfect?  No, there are a few spots where bubbles dried in the paint.  But, those are few and far between.  Honestly, I don't think you could notice, unless you did a detailed inspection.  I will do an update in a few months to let y'all know how it is holding up.  Fingers crossed!!!

COST: $103.88 (4 units @ $25.97 each + free shipping)

{Bathroom Before & After}

At the beginning of December, Kevin and I bought my great-grandparent's home from the rest of my family.  This home has been more of a home to us than any place we have lived (and we've moved a lot).  I have so many memories in this house from childhood.  I lived here after college.  This is where Kevin and I brought Hayden home to after he was born.  This house is sort of my happy place.  Since moving back from Florida, we have been thinking about pulling the trigger and buying this house.  So we are very excited to get our hands dirty and make the updates and renovations that we have been talking about FOREVER!

We have 2 bathrooms in the house.  The kids and I use the larger of the two, and Kevin gets his own smaller version.  Both were clad in that awesome 70's mustard yellow.  I am sure you know the color...can't miss it!  Well, my Paw Paw must have loved the color when he built this house, because it is everywhere.  Yep...the tubs, the counter tops and even the toilets.  Indeed, I have two mustard yellow toilets.  I bet you weren't even aware that they made colorful toilets.  Oh, they do my friend, and they are pretty special! 

Here is a peek at our before photos:

There is also a lot of dark wood in the house to spruce up, as seen in the picture above.

Our goal in renovating this house is to do it as inexpensively as possible.  We plan to stay here for a while.  But when we do move, we hope to use this house as a rental property.  That being said, we don't want to dump a ton of money into it.  We are getting creative with our updates and it has been so much fun!  This week, I will share with you some of the great products we used to renovate the bathroom.  For now, I will leave you with the after photo.  I am very proud to share this.  I think I am still washing paint our of my hair, but the end result is worth every bit of it!

If you would like to follow our progress and see additional photos of the process, you can follow us on Instagram at #theburtchsrenovate

{Happy Valentine's Day 2013}

This is the Valentine we sent out to the grandparents and a few others.  Seriously...how precious are these boys?!?  They look so grown up!  I designed the card using a Photoshop template from Crave Designs.  Andee Tate is a creative genius in photography, editing and design.  I really love her work and use her designs frequently.  I did change some fonts and slightly altered the colors to make them as "boy" as a Valentine card can be.  If you would like to take a peek at the original, click HERE.

Valentine's Day in our house is celebrated a bit differently than in most homes.  I sort of feel that it's silly to promote a day to celebrate something we are called to do EVERYDAY!  God called us to love one another.  I think some people wait until V-Day to show the love and affection that we should express daily.  I also believe that it is a commercial holiday...big time!  Jewelry stores and chocolateers are salivating about right now, knowing that their bankroll will be enormous come close of business.  While I love V-Day, and enjoy exchanging little gifts with the boys and Kevin, I like to take this time to celebrate God's love for us.  We are shown God's grace and mercy and love with every single breath.  We are his children and he is madly in love with us.  I am pretty sure HE deserves the special day far more than I do!

That is one reason I am so thankful that Hayden goes to a private Christian school.  We are free to express that notion and speak openly about God's love with his friends and teachers.  Below is the Valentine that Hayden helped me put together for his friends (again using a customized version of the Crave design).  I saw the bible verse on Pinterest and thought I would "barrow" the idea.  I love how it turned out!

This year, I had a ton of goodies left over from my Valentine Mini Treat Basket.  We were able to put together a special V-Day gift for the girls and boys in his class.  All items were purchased at Hobby Lobby.  I bought them right after they were loaded on the shelves and took advantage of a 40% discount they had just put up.  The bags were ordered last year for Hayden's birthday from The Party Fairy on Etsy. I ordered more than I needed because they were cute and knew I would use them again at some point.  I loved the football for the boys and the "My Heart Belongs to Jesus" bracelet for the girls...so cute!

My favorite items are the God Is Love Conversation Hearts. Hob Lob again. Man, I love that place!  Hayden picked out the Love themed magnets for his teacher at Kohl's.  They were originally $12.99 (way more than I would normally spend on something like this), but I had $10 in Kohl's Cash, so I got them for $2.99.  SCORE!

Here is the final product!  I added a little name tag on each one.  This is a Freebie on the Crave Design Website.  It's a pdf, so you can use them even if you don't have Photoshop.  There are several really cute designs. 

This particular Valentine is for Simone.  This precious little girl has been Hayden's girlfriend since the second week of school  They go everywhere together at school, and he just adores her.  Ah, young love!  What can I say...he's a one woman kinda guy!

Hayden & Simone - Fall 2012

I hope everyone has a wonderful Valentine's Day!  I pray that God blesses you all with an abundance of hugs and kisses from the ones you love!!!

My beloved friends, let us continue to love each other since love comes from God. Everyone who loves is born of God and experiences a relationship with God. 1 John 4:7

{DIY Photo Plaque}

Two weekends ago, I had a BIG DIY weekend.  First the flag, and then 2 photo plaques to complete my new mantle decor.  I have seen these floating around Pinterest and decided to take a swing at it.  We actually managed to get an awesome family portrait at the beach this year, as well as a pretty dramatic shot of the boys.  I wanted to display them both but didn't want to spend the money for frames.

I started off by purchasing two wooden plaques at Hobby Lobby, one to fit a 5x7 print and the other an 8x10 print.  I purchased both for less than $5.00.  I then printed the photos out on matte photo paper, which I already had handy.  I chose to leave the plaques as they were.  I toyed with the idea of staining them dark, but didn't want the mantle to be too heavy.  It was far less time consuming this way...just sayin'...and I think they balanced out the flag nicely.  If you want to try this project, you will also need Modge Podge (matte version), a paint brush or sponge, and a dry rag.

 Yes, I use my washer and dryer for projects.  It's the perfect height.  Don't judge!

Step 1: Brush a thin layer of MP on the wood plaque and let it dry completely.  This will establish a perfect base for your print.

Step 2: Once the first layer of MP has dried, bush another layer on the wood, as well as a the BACK of the photo.

Step 3: Carefully position the print onto the wood plaque.  I needed an extra set of hands for this part.  Once the MP has been brushed on the back of the print, it will become flimsy.  So, you really only have one shot at getting this right. 

Step 4: Once the print is positioned how you want it, use a thin rag to GENTLY smooth out any air bubbles.

Step 5: Add a thick layer of MP to the top of the print to seal it in.  It will be cloudy at first, but will dry clear.

Once it's dry, you are ready to display your photos.  This was super easy and much cheaper than purchasing frames.  Not to mention, your options are limitless!  You can paint them any color you want and the plaques come in tons of different shapes and sizes!

The finished product!!!

{DIY Flag Project}

My family was wondering around Kudzu Antiques Market (one of my favorite places on the planet) a few months ago, when something jumped out at me.  It was a super awesome, handmade, reclaimed wood flag that used seashells instead of stars.  Anyone who knows me, knows that I love all things red, blue and beach.  This piece cost an arm and a leg, so there was no way I could bring it home...especially since Kevin was in the store with me.  So, I waited patiently until I had all of the pieces to create my own version, with my husband's help of course.

We started with plywood that Kevin has been hoarding in the garage.  I love the texture it has!

I picked up these craft paints at Hobby Lobby a while ago.  We do so many projects, so I knew they would come in handy eventually.

We starting out with a light coat of the cream paint.  I wanted the texture and the grain to show through,

so it was kind of a haphazard paint job.

 Once the paint was dry, we taped off the lines for the stripes.  This was definitely the toughest part of the project.  But thanks to my handy husband, it went pretty quickly.

Once the paint was dry and the painters tape was removed, I took this wonderful, magical metallic glaze and bronzed it up.  I seriously cannot tell you how many times this stuff has been used.  I got it at Michael's about a year ago and there is still a TON left.  It lasts forever!  To apply, I used a good paint brush, but them followed behind with a wet rag.  This way, it really only built up in the cracks and accentuated the texture of the wood.

Close-up: It has an aged feel to it.  Sort of like it's been hanging out in the basement of my Nanny's house for the last 30 years. PERFECT!

Done with paint!

On vacation this year, Colton and I scoured the beaches for seashells.  We came back with three bags of them.  So I went through and tried to find shells that were similar in shape and size.  I wasn't particularly worried about the color, though.

During this process, I got a new phone.  Which was really exciting, since it has a much better camera than I'm used to.  The only problem is that I forgot to take final shots with my actual camera.  Oops!  Here's a close up of the shells in their place.  I used super glue around the edges to make them stick.  It seems to be working just fine.  If you try this out, or anything similar, I highly advise wearing gloves.  I wasn't thinking and wound up peeling super glue off of my fingers for two days.

 Ta Daaaaa!  The flag has taken its' rightful place on my mantle.  It makes me happy!