Monogrammed Fabric Wall Decor

We made this for Cruz's room and I love it. It is simple and sweet and a bonus!, incredibly easy to make. It also was inexpensive. This is a simple flour sack towel with some Curtain Grommets. You can purchase the the flour sack towels at Walmart or Target for about $1 each.

The Painted "C" was used with spray paint and a stencil. It was a bit of a windy day and that was the hardest part because I ruined my first flour sack towel when spraying against the wind so that is my biggest piece of wisdom: Dont be an idiot like me and spray on a windy day. I have done this before and have still not learned my lesson. Anyway, I ended up blowing some paint outside of the stencil because of the wind and had to start over. Once the wind stopped, it was simple.

I created the stencil myself but you could easily purchase one on amazon.com. I made my own by purchasing a poster board and then I hand drew the letter and cut it out with a utility knife. It might be even sturdier and better with a foam board if you want to use it more than one. The poster worked well but I did have to tape it down really well so the paint doesn't bleed.

IMPORTANT: I placed the stencil backwards because I wanted to give it a faded look and I realized that by painting backwards and then hanging it up on the other side that had not been painted on would create that look. You can still easily see the paint from the other side.

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DIY Gray Wooden Shutters

I have had the yucky vinyl shutters on my house since we moved in. They are generic and boring and they well, they look as fake as they are. I have wanted some real wooden shutters for years but that project kept putting at the bottom of our long diy to do list. I am so happy to say that we have finally made the shutters and actually, we want to make for our other windows now too!

First, I researched. I read a billion a lot of tutorials from other bloggers that had made wooden shutters and eventually decided to go with the "How to Make Wood Shutters for your Home" by Petite Elefant. They have some great tips on how to make the shutters with ease and little cost. Please go to their tutorial for instructions on building them since we followed their tutorial pretty much exactly. I will say that our shutters are a few inches shorter than our window and we like it that way.

Now I want to talk about painting. I chose a simple gray color. I love gray as everyone knows. Choosing a shutter color was not easy because I have a beige color house and a light teal color door. I don't like being too "matchy matchy" so I didn't want to do the light teal but did want something that would match the home on the inside and outside. I am glad I went with my gut and did gray. It feels homey and matches the light fixtures since their are a silver-gray color so it works.

I chose Behr Exterior Paint & Primer and I used a roller to get it on. I also needed a small brush for touch ups to get in between the 3 slats of wood. I only did one coat and it looks great. You will need a primer! I love the paint and primer combo because it saves me time. You could also spray paint instead but you will want a primer to make sure it lasts. I have plans to lay down a paint called Never Wet to help with water protection on them soon so keep checking back for that. I will link it in this post once it's up.

happy painting & creating some curb appeal!

WHAT I LEARNED TIP:I realized it would have been a lot easier to paint if I would have not had space in between the slats of wood but at the same time, the wood pieces were not completely straight and if they were so close together without space I think you would have noticed that more. I would just think through those two points before choosing how to make your shutters.

 

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A Journey into Our World with Autism.

Many who knows me personally often hear about my son Logen. He is well, pretty special. He loves to run, count, and play with his brother. I am incredibly proud to be his mom. Logen has Autism. He was diagnosed about 2 years ago and it's been quite a journey for us. Logen will be turning 4 at the end of this month.

Kelly Parker, a graduate student at Westminster College and also the founder of Parker Time Potions, asked me to tell my story about having a son with autism. I scrambled to think of what I might say. Their are so many emotions and anxieties that really never go away as a mom. Your son is perfect but he also needs help. You can't do it alone and you hate that you have to depend on so many other people and professionals but you also are grateful for the help. You feel like a failure and a go-getter all the time. My story is below in a short video and I hope you as my readers will understand a little more into my life or into the life of a child with autism.

I appreciate all of the support I get from my family, friends, and the community. I feel truly blessed that I can rely on so many people who don't judge me and who have loved Logen for the amazing kid he is.