Tag: DIY

5 Ways To Have A Family Valentines Day

On By Rosina MottaIn DIY, family, hacks, holidays, Valentine's Day3 Comments

Ahh love. The holiday we celebrate chocolate, flowers & jewelry with our main squeeze is just around the corner. Between gift giving, dinner reservations and showering each other with amor, we may forget that its not just about the two people with hearts & stars in their eyes. For those with children, its about celebrating the family unit. Not everyone can get away for time alone and frankly, some may prefer to include their kids in celebrating Valentine’s Day. I have compiled 5 ways to have a family inclusive holiday with ideas on how to make it fun & creative.

Babble shared 14 Valentine’s food hacks that are just sweet and fun to share with the family. Imagine the fun of dipping marshmallows in chocolate together, or cutting the heart shaped fruit for dessert skewers.

Food Hacks

One Creative Mommy took it to another level with a hair tutorial. We take such care in how we look on holidays, so its a no brainer to spend that extra time to have your kids looking festive too.

Valentines Hair

If your kids are little ones, imagine the cuteness overload in making these thumbprint Valentine’s cards shared by Love Bugs? Making them is part of the fun. Framing them as a keepsake is priceless.

Love Bugs

Whether going to a park, setting up camp in your living room or heading to your own backyard oasis, these picnic hacks are so fun to share with the family. I kinda want those cup salads now.

picnic hack

Turning your home into a sea of Valentine’s festivity shouldn’t cost a boat load of money. I came across these floral hacks that can be put together quickly and on a budget. You dont have to spend a lot. Just head to the dollar store for a couple vases, some colored beads and add some flowers. Love it!

Flower Hacks

5 Candy Free Valentine Gifts

On By Rosina MottaIn DIY, gifts, holidays, printables, Valentine's Day10 Comments

Ahh Valentine’s Day. You can smell the sugar wafting in the air. You dont even need to be in a store…its everywhere. It begs the question…why candy? Why is candy the main gift to give out on Valentine’s Day? Well…besides flowers and jewelry of course.

Think about it for a minute. You are at work and everyone has candy. Handing it out, in a bowl on their desk, or even opening that 5 pound box from their love. You cant escape it in the workplace. What about schools? Kids probably dont get as much candy while at school right? Pshhh…yeah right! If you aren’t imagining the rolls of smarties taped to those mini Valentine’s cards handed out to everyone in class, you are lying to yourself. It happens.

Acknowledge it…there is no denying it’s everywhere!

It got me to thinking of the alternative gifts and Valentine’s related items to share at work and school. I Googled, I Pinned and I have ideas for you. Still cute, sweet and hopefully dentist & insulin free.

Temecula Blogs shared these adorable fruit pouch ideas with the cute gift tags. They have a handful of other ideas too.

temecula blogs

Polka Dot Chair inspired me with these options for the colleague that would appreciate the beauty product related gift. Perhaps ‘You’re the balm’ on the tag?

Polka Dot Chair

Crazy Little Projects has a unisex gift idea for both the workplace and classroom. Who doesn’t love popcorn? And that card on top…cuteness!

Crazy Little Projects

Here Comes The Sun offers a whimsical and let’s face it, a fun gift idea. If given to classmates, maybe at the end of the day so you dont have a bubble fest in the classroom!

Here Comes The Sun

Frugal Coupon Living may be sharing a snack idea, but its not candy. Its those addicting little goldfish crackers. I doubt I could wait long before tearing into the package. But that card…how creative!

Frugal Coupon Living

Are you planning on handing out candy free gifts to your colleagues or kid’s classmates? If so, please share your ideas or links to your blog posts.

4 Life Changing Organization Hacks

On By Rosina MottaIn decor, DIY, hacks3 Comments

If you are anything like me, you are always seeking the next hack to make life easier. I dont have it all figured out. Not by a longshot. Clearly I am a work in progress. That is my motivation to learn and improve along the way. Part of the fun in learning about new hacks is the discovery. The ‘Of Course!’ moment. I have those on a regular basis now. Partly because of all the amazing hacks shared by The Krazy Coupon Lady. I am sure you have already visited her site. If you haven’t yet, you should. Like right now. Seriously. Go…I will wait here.

*hums Jeopardy theme*

Great site right! I knew you would like it…now back to the hacks. I have come across so many & they span different needs such as cooking, shopping, online site and beauty hacks but I wanted to share those that help keep your home organized. I am not saying I have a magazine ready home, but these tips and hacks below will get me closer to a feature spread in Martha Stewart Living!

Bobby pins end up everywhere…all the time. Until now. UrbaneBloc shared a genius hack using a simple magnetic strip to keep your bobby pins organized. That alone is awesome!

bobby-pins

Home Goods shared a tip that not only appeals to my OCD, but makes so much sense I am amazed this isnt a typical way to store sheets. The fact that its a hack means its not mainstream. Whyyyy?

sheets

I wouldnt advise you to look under my sink right now, but when I reorganize it like the pic below I may just invite people over for an open house! Look how cute! Thank you Martha Stewart.

tension-rod-sink

For those who occasionally spend time on their hair (occasionally guilty!), you may have some tools and hardware laying around. For many people, its tough to keep all the cords organized. This Cosmopolitan hack is not only a no-brainer, but it can be a beautiful design piece to your decor. A magazine holder…how can you not love it!

hot-tools

There are sooo many more hacks to share. I can go on and on but like I said before, part of the fun is the discovery. So go check out The Krazy Coupon Lady and click through all the other tips & hacks. They are honestly life changing!

Must Have Apps For Bloggers

On By Rosina MottaIn apps, blogging, DIY3 Comments

I sometimes find myself so attached to my laptop, I almost need to openly declare I have a problem. Seriously. I need to step away and take care of other stuff. I have some apps on my cell which make that possible and have come across more that are must haves.

Becca from My Crazy Good Life seems to be ahead of the game and has taken the guesswork out of the best apps bloggers find helpful. You most likely already use the big 3 like Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. But did you know there are at least 6 more that can help you daily?

Facebook Page Manager will allow you to toggle back and forth between your personal profile and your blog fan page.

Pinterest is a huge resource. You already include pictures in your posts (if you dont, you should) so pinning them for others to see and repin is a great link back to your blog.

PicStitch helps you make collages of your images so you dont annoy your network with a feed blast.

Feedly allows you to connect your favorite blogs, rss feeds, sites and youtube channels in one app.

InstaRepost gives you the opportunity to share the content you find with your network. It automatically links back to the original post and you may end up with a new follower for sharing their content.

Lastly, there is a way for you to create your own icon on your home screen for your blog. Do you have one? If not, you can learn about how to do it for either the iOS or Android platforms when you visit My Crazy Good Life.

There are a handful of others Becca shares and I encourage you to check them out.

9 apps

Happy Blogging from Cappuccino Connected!

 

 

Homemade Holidays

On By Rosina MottaIn DIY, holidays4 Comments

The leftovers are gone, Black Friday is over, the neighborhood is starting to look festive. Its time to kick the holidays into high gear! Some of you have it all together and may already have the magazine style decor out and your homes may already smell like gingerbread and pine. You are my heroes! My house has some of the decorations out and its starting to come together, but its far from magazine ready. My intention is to create a holiday ready home with decor and gifts that are homemade. Yup…the rest of 2015 is (hopefully) going to be all DIY style!

I have taken some inspiration from Vicki Johnson’s boards on Pinterest. With soothing items like bath bombs and salts, to seashell crafts, she has lots of ideas to share. That is just one board! She pinned a great craft of glitter ornaments made from Pledge & glass paint. How pretty!

glitter ornaments

There is a simple and beautiful craft I want to try. With the options to change colors and sizes, I can see these pom balls as tree decor and hanging throughout the house.

pom ball

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One that I know for sure is a must have in my house. I need to make this wreath. So simple and yet so festive. Clothespins hold your holiday cards in such a unique and chic way…who wouldn’t want to try this out?

wreath

You have to check out her boards. With nearly 14k pins, there is plenty to see!

Chicken Scratch DIY

On By Rosina MottaIn #followfriday, DIYLeave a comment

Its #FollowFriday and I am so excited to share this new site with you. Not only is it fun and unique, it also has a wide appeal. Check out Chicken Scratch DIY.

cropped-chicken-scratch-0303

Kimberly Linville is a wife, mother and entrepreneur with a gift for the daily hustle. She is transparent, genuine and shares her story to give us all a peek into her personal life. Her site has a targeted market yet it has a little something for all of us. Living in Oklahoma, you may think her blog would be targeted to her region however the opposite is true. Kimberly has lived in 4 different states & her perspective is broadened by all of the regions she has called home. The culture differences are enlightening.

What I find the most fun is her chicken coop as I have always been interested in sustainability. She takes us on the journey with her and the kids. I dont know about you but I love saving money and lets face it…eggs are flippin expensive right now! Frankly, I am impressed with how comprehensive her posts are as she includes links to Amazon for the items needed in her projects. Takes the guesswork out of the equation.

coop

 

 

That is one of the 3 main sections to her blog…chicken life. She includes a DIY section for adults and projects for the kids too. With a holiday break just around the corner, I am looking forward to her tips!

DIY Projects Using Pallets

On By Rosina MottaIn decor, DIY, hacks, homeLeave a comment

Over the course of cruising through blogs, pins and the DIY channels, I have been inspired with the uses of upcycled items. I have shared some of the tips previously however, I am thinking larger scale. Something that most see as industrial use only. Pallets.

We have seen some use the pallets in the home for decor, disassembled for multi-purpose wood framing and for outdoor patio use. I had no idea just how many options there were. That is until I came across this free e-book. Karah Bunde published DIY Wood Pallet Projects: 35 Rustic Modern Upcycling Ideas to Personalize Your Space and its phenomenal. bundeIts comprehensive and full of ideas that I want to try. Some are out of my comfort zone where others are easier for beginners like me.

The e-book is optimized for chrome desktop viewing so if you cannot see it properly, you can view it here.

With my limited experience, I was pleased to see the step by step instructions and pics illustrating not just how to use some of the tools, but the types too. Now when I walk into Home Depot, I can say ‘Hey I need a medium grit for my palm sander’ and they will think I am way more experienced!

DIY Wood Pallet Projects_ 35 Rustic Modern - Karah Bunde_0601

Hope you find some inspiration for upcycling these awesome pallets. If you have tips, please share.

 

 

 

Homemade Holidays – The Gift of Upcycling

On By Rosina MottaIn christmas, decor, DIY, gifts, hacks, holidays, tips, upcycleLeave a comment

In keeping with my intention (yes, intention) to give homemade gifts this Christmas, I am always on the lookout for clever and crafty ways to make meaningful and fun pieces to share with my loved ones. I have pinned and shared so many ideas and I have collected info from some of my friends that I want to try.

The other day I came across a great post with new ideas that I had never considered. It was a link from Good Housekeeping that showed up on my facebook feed so naturally I clicked through. The very first idea was how to upcycle a knife block for a kid’s art station. SOLD! What a great tip! Not only is it functional, but it’s fun & funky at the same time.

knife block before knife block

I mean how flippin’ cute is that!?

We all recycle our cans right? What about upcycling them into something beautiful like this?

can before cans after

Agreed that it would take a lot more effort but the end result is stunning! If you feel like you can take your craftiness to the next level, how about starting with an old vacuum hose? Imagine transforming it into this gorgeous piece of holiday decor.

wreath before wreath after

It may be beyond (waaayyy beyond) my craft skill level at this point, but its certainly a goal. Seriously…I am going to check out more of these upcycle ideas. A broom into a functional decor piece? Im intrigued…

DIY – Homemade Holiday Gifts

On By Rosina MottaIn christmas, DIY, gifts, holidaysLeave a comment

With the holidays here, we have just a few weeks left to shop & the thought of gift giving is center stage. This year, I am going to try the DIY route and do homemade gifts. Call me crazy but I think getting crafty is the way to go. Yes, the supplies would of course be purchased but the assembly is gonna be all me. I hope.

Ive taken some inspiration from fellow bloggers and of course, some of my favorite online shops like Hobby Lobby and Kirkland’s to make some of the gifts I think my family will love.

For example, this etched glass is at the top of my list. It wont say Merry Christmas, probably more along the lines of an initial or a universal sentiment so it doesnt get packed away as a seasonal item.

etched glass

These jars, although decked out for the holidays, can be filled with anything and the letters can be swapped out.

jars

For the one that needs a little pampering, nothing like bath products to make you feel like splurging. If the bottles look like a familiar shape, you are a coffee drinker like me!

bath salts

I pinned lots of ideas to my board and have a list to try out. Wish me luck!

Follow Rosina’s board ♡gift ideas♡ on Pinterest