DIY Refurbished dresser tutorial

Well better late than never but I wanted to post about this since it's a subject that is very popular right now with the age of DIY and re-purposing projects out there.  Here is one I did just this last fall myself for the first time ever and it was a total success to my relief! (Not that I doubted my ability, but you know sometimes things don't work how you want)  A friend of ours had a big old dresser for sale cheap so I snagged it up since my daughter needed more storage for all her clothes now that she's 8 going on 14, yikes! It wasn't in bad shape but it was obviously dated just like a piece my grandmother still has in her home.  I thought it was a perfect opportunity to try a diy refurbishing project so I got a couple ideas on colors and went to work.  I cleaned off the whole dresser and unscrewed the handles from the drawers after removing them.  I used a matte white primer first over all the wood and I stood the drawers upright so that I could spray paint the front without getting it everywhere. It took about 2 light coats to cover the dark wood.  I also did this all in my garage with a sheet under the furniture by the way.  After letting the primer dry for the stated time recommended I used Krylon matte paint spray in a gray tone (it has a twinge of blue in it) I used spray because I wanted some white to peek through to give it an antiqued look.  I sprayed 2 light coats, touching up a few spots as I felt the desire.  I layed out the hardware and used Krylon metallic silver spray paint using 2 light coats drying in between of course.  After everything was dry and to my liking I used the Krylon matte clear coat spray to cover everything (including the hardware) to protect the finish and make it more durable.  My daughter was ecstatic to see her new dresser I might add! The dresser actually came with 2 heavy mirrors you could attach but I decided against it and I am going to salvage an old mirror and do the silver metallic finish on it to match the hardware! Overall a great success and I'm eager to do my next project :)

Homemade bar soap

~Here is a batch of homemade bar soap I started making last November when I realized how easy it was to create something that smelled great, was good for my sensitive skin and looked beautiful! All you need is a package of any type soap base you want (I use the goats milk base) you follow the directions on the package and pour into your molds of choice. These can be found in the same soap making area of the craft store. For this recipe I used vanilla essential oil and instant maple and brown sugar oatmeal. It smelled sooo good! :) AND the BEST part? It's good for you! You know exactly what's in it.  In no time you will have bar soap that you can pamper yourself with or give as gifts as I have and they will love it!

Mason Jar soap dispenser Tutorial

This is one of the mason jars I turned into a soap dispenser! I eventually removed the burlap just because my kids are still young and messy (not everyone's a neat freak lol) I used Rustoleum oil rubbed bronze spray paint and a pump I saved from an old bottle. Also make sure it's going to be long enough for the jar fyi. I punched a hole in the lid to fit the pump and hot glued underneath it very well to secure it.  I scoured Michael's scrapbook section for the tape and embellishments then sprayed clear coat over it to seal(minus the burlap) VOILA! I have made many so far and have given as gifts and I love it! Plus I make my own hand soap so this is great and saves money!

DIY Herb Garden

-This was my first herb window planter and it was a success! I had a small apartment at the time and this was perfect!  I love fresh herbs in my dishes and it's much more economical than buying the expensive jars of herbs at the store.  I got these herbs and planter as a set which was good for a first timer like me.  It included the seeds, soil and planter. Once the herbs got so big I had to carefully transplant to a bigger herb planter outside!  I have a dehydrator which I used do dry my fresh herbs that I picked when ready and I use cute little mason jars to store them!  I love it and it saves me money which is even better :)