Barefeet in High Heels

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DIY of the week...a game of washers

Published on 8.31.2011 in DIY, washers

Our Block Party on Saturday was a lot of fun, but we thought we'd have some "options" if people got bored.

So, Engineering Man broke out his tools, was a manly man, and made a game of washers for us.

He started with a sheet of plywood, two 8-foot 2x4's, screws...

water clean-out pipes...

washers, and spray paint.

First, he took the sheet of plywood and cut two 16 inch x16 inch squares.

Then, he took the 2x4's, and cut eight 16-inch "frames" for the box.

This is done by measuring the outside of the lumber, and cutting in to the inside at a 45-degree angle.

He then matched the "frame" edges to in essence make a shadow box with the plywood...

...and screwed them together on the edges...

...to make the frame...

He then put the plywood on top and screwed it down to the frame.

Next, he flipped the box over, and centered the cover of the plastic clean out in the middle of box, and started to screw it down.

He then screwed the top half of the clean out onto the bottom half, and finished screwing it down in the grass,

...because the screws were too long.

He then broke them off by hitting them at an angle with a hammer.

And voila...the boards were done!

**sidenote** I didn't get a picture of it, but we did end up spray painting the boards as well.

Then, using the spray paint, I sprayed the washers on both sides with a coat of paint. Four each of the two different colors.

Ready to play!

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Tuesday's Review...

Published on 8.30.2011 in week in review

First, sorry about not posting yesterday. Let's just say my stomach was not being kind to me.

Can you believe I only took TWO random pictures last week?

I guess that says a lot about how I'm finally getting into a routine...

So, the week in pictures included a new way to use a beer bottle...

...and helping daddy make a game...

In the non-documented world we went on a walk with friends, had 60 neighbors at the house for a block party, cleaned extensively after someone (Mini #1) wrote with pink markers all over the walls, met our teacher, had a great day at church, and played with lots of friends.

I'll do better this week!!

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Friday's Favorites...garage sale finds

Published on 8.26.2011 in Friday's Favorites

This past weekend I stopped by a neighborhood garage sale...

...and came away with some goodies for $2 total.

Of course, not until I got the stuff home did Engineering Man point out to me that I haven't bought the game "Operation" but the Spanish version, "Operando".

Eh...just trying to put a little culture into the home...

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Thursday Things I Never Thought I'd Hear...

Published on 8.25.2011 in Papa R, Thursday Things

Driving home from church I called my mom who had been trying to get a hold of us while we were there...

"What's up?"

"Oh, we don't need you now. Where were you?"

"In church...you know...that thing we do on Sunday mornings..."

"We skipped church today. We're out golfing."

***Heard in the background from my dad***

"Yea, it's better to be out golfing thinking about God than in church thinking about golfing."

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House update...first floor: part 4

Published on 8.24.2011 in house

The living room...

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DIY of the week...curtains and pillows...

Published on 8.23.2011 in decorating, DIY, sewing

In the model home that we walked through prior to buying our house there were curtains...gorgeous curtains...that reached floor to ceiling.

Eighteen feet to be exact...

Engineering Man and I loved the look it gave the living room. And we wanted to recreate it, in our color scheme, and cheaper than what it would cost to custom make the curtains.

First I looked for curtains to buy...hahahaha...there were none to be found...not at 18 feet.

Then I started looking for fabric...and tried to get Brother on board.

For those of you that don't sew...Brother is my sewing machine...the last time I worked with him...well, let's just say we didn't exactly get along...

(and yes, that's why the boys got new pajama pants last week. I was working out the kinks...)

After Brother got on board, I bucked up and started cutting.

The 60" piece of fabric I cut in half vertically, and then in half again horizontally. Basically into quarters. Each of these quarters than became a curtain panel.

I then took an iron and ironed a 3/4 inch seam on three edges of each panel.

I then started sewing, basically hemming three sides of each curtain panel. I didn't do the bottom of the curtain because I wanted to hem each one in place. It's just slightly easier to hem from the bottom up than from the top down when dealing with curtains so long. I have mentioned they're 18 feet, haven't I??

I, of course, forgot to take a picture of the next part, but along the top of each panel, I created a pocket by turning under the top seam another 5 1/4 inches, and sewing/tacking the pocket into place. I picked this number by using the size of the finial on the end of the curtain rod.

And...done. Well, except for Engineering Man having to go 20 feet in the air at midnight.

The next day I sat on the floor, measured against the wall, and hemmed the bottom of the curtains. Running a sewing machine foot pedal is not easy while sitting on the floor, but well worth it in the end.

Then I turned to the pillows.With the leftover material cut from the bottom, I cut two squares the same size.