My Buddies

This post title reminds me of the 80s toy, My Buddy...I always thought it was a little creepy.  Anyway, are you a cat person or dog lover?  Me, I love dogs!  When I see a dog on the street, I have a pretty hard time just passing by without a pat on the head or a scratch under the chin.  I truly love all dogs.  

Let me introduce you to my buddies: Andy and Enzo, our two male labs.  Andy is older (age 7) and Enzo is still a puppy (age 2). 

They are the love of my life (other than my Mr. HSH, of course!)  When I am home, they literally can't leave me alone.  Whether I am cooking, watching TV, getting ready in the morning, they are by my side at all times!  Andy and Enzo are the best snugglers!

The other dog love of my life was Luna, part Syberian Husky, part wolf.  Yes, you read that correctly...she had some wolf in her.  Luna was my family's dog for nearly sixteen years, and let me tell you...she was the absolute perfect dog!  My sweet Luna passed away in December 2010, and she will always have a place in my heart. She was such a graceful dog.  If you have an animal, go hug it and give it a kiss right now b/c you never know when they may be gone!  Same goes with your family!  Love them with all of your heart. 

Quick + Easy Projects

Somebody stop me!  I have been bitten by the DYI bug.  On an icy day like today, these two projects that I completed really help put my cabin fever at bay.

First up is a nail-head bulletin board.  I have admired the look for a long time, but I didn't want to shell out the money to buy one a la Ballard Designs.  I recently came across a bulletin board that was shoved to the back of a closet, so I decided to try give it a new life.  Instead of using burlap (which is very cheap), I went with a painter's drop cloth.  Honestly, I needed to run to Home Depot for some other things, and in an effort to minimize my outings.  While there, I also picked up some silver thumb tacks.  I like the color, so no need to spray paint them, but by all means, if you feel up for it, I'm sure it would be pretty quick.

Naturally I didn't take a photo of the bulletin board before, but I did manage to take some photos about halfway through.  This is the backside once I stapled the drop cloth in place.  I suggest pulling it taught because it will make adding the thumb tacks that much easier.

Here is the final result hanging on the wall:

It's a little different from the Ballard Designs version, but I have to say that I'm pretty happy with the final result.  And, the total cost was around $12! and took all of twenty minutes!  You can't beat that!

Next up, I found these tiles at Home Depot for $.33 each.  I snagged eight of them with the idea of turning them into coasters.  All I needed to do was add felt protectors to each corner, and presto, it worked!

Before (as just plain tiles)

After in their new life

Pretty amazing, right?  This project cost me $8 and took about ten minutes to pull each piece of felt and put it in the corner.

Love cheap and easy projects!  Happy Weekend!

My First DIY...Ever

My little secret is out...I have never started a DIY project!  I'm not counting the burlap tablecloth from Thanksgiving because I really didn't do any work.  After reading design blogs for quite some time, I was finally inspired enough to take on a relatively easy project.  I decided to spray paint a wicker shelf that has followed me from my high school room to my various apartments after college, and finally in my house that I share with Mr. HSH.  This shelf has seen many different lives and traveled near and far, so I did not want to get rid of it.  It just needed a face-lift.

Here it is in all of it's former glory

See what I mean?  This poor little shelf was neglected in our middle bedroom.  I desperately needed some extra storage next to my desk and to cover some those unsightly cable cords.

After giving it two coats and letting it dry overnight, I am pretty pleased with the new color.

I decided to go with Charcoal gray.  Below is a full on view of my desk and garden stool (scored at Home Goods).  If you look closely, you can tell that I did some styling between the two photos! 

Now I feel that I am ready to conquer any DIY project! Perhaps finding a solution for the other cable cords?  I will update you along my journey as I take on other DIY projects!