The Painted Cottage – A Tour of My Favorite Store at the Beach
We just got back from a very relaxing week at the beach. The weather was perfect and our boys really enjoyed playing in the surf. I think we brought back a bit too much of the beach with us (sandy sheets, hair and toes). But, at least we had…
My Home Tour – The Guest Room
Having guests over is such an exciting opportunity to catch up and show off your home. Here's a tour of our guest room for you to enjoy. Come on in, kick your shoes off and stay overnight if you wish!
The room had humble beginnings. These…
Writing in the Sand Picture
This is a fun project to do with your kids (or by yourself) while you are at the beach.
Collect some cool shells, beach glass or driftwood. Use a broken shell with a sharp edge to write your name or message in the sand. Decorate your…
Decorative Book with Hidden Potential (and a gift for my 100th follower)
Two weeks ago I was thrilled when one of you wonderful readers signed on to become my 100th follower! What a milestone for a relatively new blog.
This lucky, 100th follower was Sharon, who has an equally amazing blog called This Thrifty House.…
Coat Rack made from an Old Door
We have a great mudroom area in our house, but when we moved in we didn't have anywhere to store our shoes, and all we had to hang our coats on were a few peg hooks behind the door. Not very efficient or attractive in my opinion. (Especially…
Door & Picket Fence Nightstand – I "Picked It" from the Trash
My best friend from elementary school will be flying in today from New York. I have a sweet little retreat all made up for her in our guest room. I promise to post pictures of the whole room in the near future (when the sun – and sons –…
Pretty Handy Girl will be featured this week…
...on two amazing and wonderful blogs:On Monday, I will be featured on The Hand Me Down House, written by the fabulously talented and thrifty, Amanda. She is a real creative genius and has shared some amazing transformations! Last week…
Enjoying Summertime – OIB, NC
Meeting of the gullsAs we near the end of summer (at what seems like break neck speed), I wanted to stop and remember the lazy days of sleeping in; playing on the beach; napping after an afternoon in the sun; and heading out to the pier for…
This Whole Post is on Repairing Holes!
How often have you removed a screw, accidentally dented your drywall, or had a hole that couldn't hold a screw anymore? And, how long has that hole stared glaringly at you? Let's talk about repairing holes.
Today, I will empower you to fix…
Rebuilding Daisy the Discarded Chair
I have a serious problem. I can't bear to see a piece of furniture being thrown away. It could be the ugliest, most broken down chair and I still feel the need to save it from Mt. Trashmore. That was the case with "Daisy" this poor ugly…
Hanging Jar Storage
Over the weekend I finally cleaned up our garage. This is our multi-purpose space, so it had multi-multi-multi items strewn everywhere. Check out this cool Hanging Jar Storage.
Because our garage is small (fits 1.5 cars) space is a premium…
Upholstering Little Bench – A sweet spot to land
If you stuck through my ugly post yesterday. I have some pretty pictures for you today!Two years ago I happened upon a cute little bench being thrown out with a neighbor's trash. (I am addicted to trashed furniture. In fact, I have a NASTY chair…
Changing Out an Old Outlet
So, this is one of those not so pretty posts, but I promise it is Oh So Handy! Learn how to easily change out an old outlet.
Changing Out an Old (UGLY) Outlet
Our home was built in 1978 and most of our outlets are almond colored and many…
Slipcover for Bistro Table – Going Undercover
Our office renovation is nearing completion. We've been working on the room for two plus months now. The majority of the work is complete, but we are waiting for two desk cabinets to come in to the Office Depot warehouse so we can actually order…
Pottery Barn Inspired Lantern from $5 ReStore Light Fixture
If you have been following my blog, you may remember this light fixture that I rescued bought at our local Habitat for Humanity ReStore. Read below for a Pottery Barn Inspired Lantern.
Originally I thought about using it as a light in our…
A Mailbox that Can Take a Beating and Still Looks Great
Several years ago I painted a mailbox for my stepmom (the wonderfully talented author, Diane Chamberlain). Her house was on a busy street and the mailboxes on this street were a prime target for mailbox baseball. I wanted to paint her mailbox…
Turning a Craig’s List Bed Frame into a Garden Bench
How to Turn a Craig's List Bed Frame into a Garden Bench
While visiting one of Raleigh's local shabby chic boutiques, I fell in love with a sweet bench made from an old bed frame. But, the $350 price tag meant that our relationship was not…
Sun Prints – Easy and Stylish Summer DIY Art (+ how to fake floating frames)
A few years ago while I was trying to entertain my toddler, we made sun prints on a hot summer day.
What! You've never heard of sunprints? Well, you really need to get your crafty hands on this hot product. Visit the Sunprints.org website…
Rewiring a Copper Wall Sconce – Out with the Old and In with the New
If you've been following the Pretty Handy Girl blog, you will recognize this copper wall sconce from the reading nook post. It was a $5 find at the Habitat for Humanity ReStore!
The sconce was a wall mount, but plug in kind. The lamp was…
Pillow Talk – Making Red & Blue Star Pillows
If you read yesterday's post, you saw two star pillows on my son's reading nook bench. I promised you the tutorial, so here it is:
These were super easy to make. I made two pillows in just over an hour on my Brother CS6000i sewing machine.…