Headboard: Step One

I'm determined to make my own headboard.  I have been thinking about it since we bought the guest bed.  You see, because of the configuration of the room in our Cape house we had to buy a very low bed, and the only way to get to both sides of it I had to put it at an angle.  So to solve this, I wanted to make a headboard. 

Finding the style I wanted was hard.  I had to find something that was low on the sides but high at the top.  That way the headboard would have weight if pulled away from the sloped wall, but could be tucked into the corner if we need more floor space. 

I found this picture:

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I love the shape and I hope my father-in-law will be able to cut it out. 

The plan is to make a stencil of the shape, give it to the father-in-law and he will cut out the shape from ply-wood.  So I set out to make the stencil.

I have to warn you this took some math.  I surprise myself sometimes with my ability to do math, it seems to be kind of instinctual (I guess, and I get it right, or close, most of the time).  I know this is not the way normal people do math, but it works for me.  Now, just in case I didn't get this right I had my husband, who is a math teacher, to sit with me while I was doing it.  In the end the only time I needed help was with some simple division.  Not bad.

This is the room (and bed) that will get the new headboard.  I really have not spent any effort on this room, it is my newest project as far as the design.  I have a lot of plans.

I gathered my suplies:

To get the headboard to fit in the tight spot I measured it against the wall with the bed. 

I just taped the paper straight to the wall. 

For the math and actual drawing I had to put it on the floor.

In order to get the half circles right I used an improvised compass ... a pencil, a thumb tack, and a string.

I measured the circles and the space between the two sides, and then made my lines. 

(It took me forever, and a yoga class, to decide where to put the horizontal line between the two curves.  It was tough!) If you look close you can see the other  line I was thinking of.

To get the two sides exactly the same I folded the first side over and cut out the design. 

I think it came out really well.  Now we just have to see how it looks cut out of wood.

And just because she tried so hard, I have to give you a shot of my kitty with the new head board to be.

I hope to have this headboard done by the end of the summer.  (I didn't, it took much longer) I will be sure to show you the results.

UPcycled Air Freshener

For Christmas this year I got a wonderful car air freshener from my sister-in-law.  What I love about it is that it is NOT hideous.

In the past two years I have driven a lot.  This year and last I was communicating to school almost two hours both ways.  I ate a lot of meals in my car and it began to get funky (if you know what I mean).  I bought a lot of air fresheners, but i always hated how they looked.  Those cardboard air fresheners are just ugly.  My car is so cute I didn't want to defile it with a tacky freshener, but I did because I also didn't want to offend my passengers with a stinky car.

But this past gift solved my problems...it freshened the air, and was attractive.  I loved it.  I loved it until it stopped working that is.  The little sent thing inside dried out and my car was back to being stinky. 

At the same time I have a lot of bars of soap people have given me as presents, but I don't use soap bars, I use liquid soap in the shower and at my sinks.  These bars of soap went unused and have started to add up in my vanity (I have three bars as of right now).  I read you can use soap as an air freshener, just throw it in the side pocket of your car and you have a nice smelling car.

I started to think, maybe I can put these two techniques together.  Instead of throwing away my beautiful car air freshener I refilled the smelly bit (I don't know what you call that) with a little piece of soap.  Now I have a nice smelling car, and a pretty air freshener to boot.  I rule. 

This what I did.  I have no idea where my sister-in-law got the original air freshener so I can't help in that department, sorry.  The pictures are pretty clear, so I will stop "talking" now. 

Now my car smells like cranberries and has a cute little jewel like thing too.  Love it.  The best part is that I have so much soap I can just keep doing this with my extra soap for ages.  I can change the smell and color there are so many possibilities.  I can't wait to use the lemongrass soap my step-mom bought, yum. 

Lavender Linen Spray

There is nothing in my mind more decedant that linen spray.  The idea is that you can spray it on your sheets, towels, and such and they will smell good while you sleep, bath or use the fabric is so delightful.  I have looked at linen sprays in stores for years, but they always seem to expensive for something that is primarly water.

I finally took matters into my own hands....I made my own.  I'm on a bit of a lavender kick right now, check out my Lavender Laundry Detergent here, and thought lavender would be good.  I also like lavender because of its aromatherapy qualities, lavender is supposed to help with depression and lighten moods. 

I was happy to see that it is not very difficult to make your own.  Here is what I did.

Supplies:

Clean spray bottle
Vodka (100 proof is the best but I used 80 proof)
Lavender Oil
Label (I made my own)
Modge Podge
Paint Brush
Measuring Cup



Process:

There are not a lot of rules on how to make linen spray.  Generally most of the sites I saw suggested you dilute the oil in the vodka because as we all know, water and oil don't mix. The amount of vodka differed by site from two tablespoons to a half cup, so I decided to split the difference and use a quarter cup.  I then added a good dribble (yes dribble, my bottle did not poor very well) of the lavender oil.  It was probably about a tablespoon. You can add more or less lavender oil depending on how strong you want your linen spray to be. 

I pored the vodka-oil mix in my spray bottle and filled the rest of the bottle with distilled water.

To check how strong the spray was I tried it on a cloth napkin, then added a little more oil (because I like a strong lavender smell).

Bottle Label:

No Linen spray would be complete without a nice label.  I made mine on word, printed it out on photo paper (to get a better quality print) and glued it on.  Modge Podge is the perfect adhesive because it dries clear.

I painted the bottle with Modge Podge and attached the label.  To keep the label nice, I waited for the underside to dry and then painted over the label as well.  This gave my bottle a good layer of water-proof protection.  At first the bottle had some air bubbles, but after a day or two they dried out.

Lavender Linen Spray:

I immediate sprayed my sheets, the pillows (and then all the upholstered furniture in the house).  It is a subtle smell, but that night I could defiantly smell the lavender sent as I fell asleep.  At first you will smell the vodka, but the alcohol quickly evaporated leaving the lavender scent behind.  AND don't worry, this should not stain your fabric.  It didn't stain mine. 

What's your take on linen spray?  Do you think it is a waste of time or do you love it?

Shower Curtain Fix-Up

I have been waiting months to get a new shower curtain.  Our old one was too dark.  But after all the searching I just could not find one I liked.  So I made my own.

I wanted a mostly white curtain with a touch of modern blue, and that is just what I got.


This is how I did it:

Gather Supplies:

Paint
Stencil brush
White shower curtain
Stencil
Something to protect your table

Mix Paint Color:
I used several colors to get the blue I liked.  I once had a classmate in art school who suggested I make my own colors and not just use the bottle colors.  That was one of the best suggestions ever.  This color has just a touch more depth. 

Stencil Curtain:
Lay the stencil on the curtain.

Apply pain to the end of the brush.  Then pat off extra paint on a scrap piece of paper.

Pat paint over the stencil, make sure not to have too much paint on the brush or it will bleed.

Remove stencil and let dry.  The results are amazing. 

And, just because I love her, and she loves to be in my photos here is what was hiding behind my new curtain:

 Rhea snuck behind the curtain....

 ... and poked her head out at the end.  She is such a cutie.

Come back tomorrow for a giveaway!

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