Happy Holidays! Cards & More from Zazzle

The holiday season is full of traditions and ours is no different.  Each year we spend time with family watching National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation, playing card games, listening to holiday music and eating until our bellies burst.  We also are sure to send out a photo card to wish everyone a good season and a happy new year.

Shutterfly has been our go-to for our photo cards.  Their paper is nice and thick and their printing is high-quality.  We usually find a coupon for our stack of cards but the price is still a bit more than the generic holiday cards you can find in-store.  Always the budget-minded shopper, this year I stumbled upon an amazing groupon for a new company so I thought I'd give it a try.

Zazzle is an online marketplace where you can create, buy and sell custom-printed items.  Want a custom protective case for your smartphone?  Done.  Want to print that hilarious cat-meme you created on a coffee mug?  No problem.  Want to send out holiday cards with photos of your adorable family.  Perfect timing!

Customizing our cards was super simple with their online customization tools - just upload the photos, edit the text and colors and complete the order.  We received our cards about 3 days after we ordered through Zazzle.  We received 75 double-sided printed cards on heavy cardstock for less than $40.  Not too bad.

Plus, right now Zazzle is having a holiday sale so stock up on those holiday cards and tell those you love howdy!  (P.S. Use the code personalcheer at checkout for 50% off your cards!)

Happy Holidays!

Nesting // Big Brother Bag

Baby #2 has arrived - October 25th to be exact!  And big brother Luke is so excited about his baby brother, Callaghan.  To make the transition from a family of three to a family of four easier on our 3 year old son we did what any amazing parents would do....bribed him with gifts.  I created a Big Brother Bag for Luke from his baby brother using the good ol' wear, read, want, need method.

1 // Tote Bag - This DIY monogrammed tote bag is the perfect size for Luke to take to school and he was pretty stoked that it was personalized with HIS letter "L."

2 // T-Shirt - There's something about these "Big/Little Brother" t shirts that make me all warm and fuzzy.

Nesting // DIY Maternity Photo Shoot + Tips

Well, ladies and gents...I'm officially full-term - 37 weeks and 3 days to be exact.  That means any day now we could become a family of four.  Yikes!  I know everything will be fine and we'll adjust, but the thought of it sends me straight into a Nick Miller freakout.  Before we're swimming in a sea of diapers and sleep is just a sweet, sweet memory, I wanted to capture this exciting and slightly scary moment in time.

I'm all for professional family photos but it's just not in the budget, so I broke out the camera and set up my own little photo shoot to capture my last (mark my words!) pregnancy.  I don't have any fancy photography equipment - just a regular ol' point and shoot camera, a small tripod and some good ol' natural light.
Our bedroom is one of the best places to catch some good filtered light which is what you want rather than direct light which casts unsightly shadows.  I started out the photo shoot in front of one of the windows which is draped in sheer, white curtains from Ikea and is the perfect backdrop to get that gorgeous soft backlit effect.  I also placed a small bench in front of the window so I would be elevated and would have a comfortable place to sit for these first few poses.

Houzz // Vinegar and Voilà: Clean Your House the Natural Way

Many homeowners strive for a healthier home — whether that means choosing ecofriendly materials for a remodel or greener products for everyday life. For me, finding healthier, more effective and budget-friendly cleaning alternatives is at the top of my list. Fortunately, effective nontoxic options have been around for centuries. Many of these cleaners, including vinegar, are already in your closet.

Vinegar is one of the most versatile and effective household cleaners. At pennies per ounce, it's also one of the most inexpensive cleaners on the market. Simply mix 1 cup of water and ¼ cup distilled white vinegar in a spray bottle. This basic mixture can be used for most cleaning chores, with additional natural elements added to tackle tougher jobs. 

Check out my latest Houzz ideabook for a full rundown of ways to use vinegar in every room of your home and feel free to share your tips in the comments section.

Disclaimer:  As a Contributor for Houzz, I have been compensated for any Ideabooks featured on Houzz, although I am not compensated for sharing Houzz Ideabooks on Revamp Homegoods.  All opinions expressed here are that of the writer and are in no way influenced by Houzz.

How To Pick The Right Exterior Paint Color For Your Home

These days I feel like I have a paint brush and roller glued to my hands...oh, what I wouldn't give for bionic painting hands!  I'm hard at work putting the finishing touches on our mudroom/kitchen reno and if that wasn't enough I decided to paint the exterior in my downtime.  Why did I decide to take on two massive projects at once?  Well, I'm crazy....and impatient.  Plus, I picked up my Clark + Kensington paint a few weeks back (in Ace Hardware's Seal Point) and it's been calling me from the shed ever since.

Exterior Paint "Seal Point" by Ace Hardware - Progress...still have trim and a few walls to finish.

Ace Hardware offered me the opportunity to try out their new line of premium paint - Clark + Kensington.  Picking the project was easy - the paint color, that was another story.  Choosing paint colors is a daunting task.  It's one thing to make the wrong decision and have to repaint (like I did here), but it's a whole 'nother problem when it's a huge project like the exterior of your house.  Knowing what will work for your home and style and making the right decision will save you time, money and a few gray hairs.

A Little Pathway Cleanup

I think I've mentioned this a time or two, but I'm not much of a gardener.  Things tend to find their demise at my hand and I'm not really fond of weeding.  So, when our pathway started sprouting grass I let it go so long that in a few spots you couldn't tell there was a pathway there at all.  I finally got motivated one sunny day last week to clean up our pathway of all that baneful grass.

 It looks so much better than that overgrown eyesore we were rocking.

Houzz: How to Repair A Broken Glass Door Pane

If you're keeping up with me on Instagram you might have caught this photo back in February.  In the words of my favorite uber-dork...."Did I do that?"  Seriously, ever since I saw the throwback reference on New Girl I can't stop snorting laughing.

So you know when everything in your being tells you not to do something and you ignore your smarter self and do it anyway?  Like car surfing or drinking that outdated milk?  That's exactly what happened here.  Apparently I was in a "I also like to live dangerously" kind of mood when I was cleaning up our mudroom and leaned an old window against the door.  It was safely leaning on the wood parts, until I nudged it out of the way and CRASH! - broken glass.

After cleaning up and removing the remaining glass shards from the door, we used painters tape to close up the opening.  Then it stayed that way for months....I just couldn't find a glass company in our area.  I finally tracked down Thorseness Glass in Astoria and bought a replacement piece of safety glass for only $7.

How To Choose the Right Sheen of Paint

Paint is paint, right?  Well, not exactly.  There's different colors, brands and qualities which all factor into the the final outcome of a project but did you know that sheen is just as important?  Check out this handy guide from Ace Hardware's Clark+Kensington line of paint which is sure to keep your next project looking its best.

My 5 Must Haves for DIY Projects

Once I find something I like, I tend to stick with it, whether it's a meal at a restaurant or a brand of clothing, and DIY tools are no different.  Here's a list of my top 5 tools that I use when I'm working on a project.



3M Scotch Blue Painter's Tape -

I use the blue painter's tape to help me with difficult painting projects like the striped walls in Luke's room and the painted rug.

Making the Switch To MailChimp

While I love sharing all about our trials and tribulations of owning a fixer-upper home with all of you there are parts of blogging that I'm not too fond of.  Most of which have to do with coding and building an easy-to-use website.  If you've been keeping up you might have noticed that I had a complete crash with my RSS feed and email subscribers a few months back.  I've been using feedburner and I am not happy with it so I've been on the hunt for other options.

I finally found an email subscriber service through MailChimp that is free for blogs with a small readership (under 2000 email subscribers.)  MailChimp makes it easy to design exceptional email campaigns, share them on social networks, integrate with web services I already use, manage subscribers, and track my results. I can mix and match MailChimp’s templates, features, and integrations to suit my needs. 

The MailChimp platform was surprisingly easy to navigate and use, plus it is pretty nice on the eyes, too.  Much, much better than feedburner's platform.

Importing my feedburner email subscribers was a piece of cake.  I downloaded the feedburner .csv file, created a new list on MailChimp and imported the .csv file into MailChimp. Easy peasy.   As for setting up a new campaign to automatically send RSS emails when new content is published or creating a branded template, that was a little more tricky.  Luckily MailChimp had my back with helpful tutorials to guide me along the process.

DIY DECOR: A Dark & Dated Ottoman Gets a Bright Update

Just like my trash to treasure cabinet, there's nothing better than taking a "seen-better-days" piece and transforming it into something beautiful.  This ottoman is no exception.  Plus, this had to be the one of the easiest upholstery projects in history - right up there with my chair cushion upholstery project!  If you can cut fabric and wield a staple gun then you can upholster a cushion.

I grabbed the piece from our local thrift shop for $3.99.  The floral needlepoint top was a little too traditional and dated for our home, but I knew with a little cleanup and update it could be a cool addition to our living room decor.

5 Easy Ways To Show A Blogger Some Love

With Valentine's Day a little more than 2 weeks away, love is definitely in the air.  Don't forget to show those around you some love and why not start with your favorite blogger?

Yes I'm a blogger so all of the information below hits close to home, but this isn't just about me and my readers.  With all the blogs out there (over 6.5 million!) you are either a blogger, know a blogger, or enjoy reading a blog.  Are you doing all you can to help that small business succeed?

Wait, back up...small business?  Yep, that's exactly what a blog is to many bloggers - whether they sell ad space, own an online shop or offer freelance writing or other types of services (or are building their blog towards these) - the blog is their business and each of the five tips below will help to build and grow their business.

Home Design Rules And Why You Can Break Them

A recent post on my living room update and my latest Houzz Ideabook and the uproar it caused in the design world (I wish!) over the length of my curtains got me thinking....Why do we think we HAVE to abide by someone else's rules for our home to be considered beautiful or well-designed?  And, why are we bullied into doing things because someone else says it looks good or, on the flip side, that it doesn't? Don't get me wrong, this is not a rant against negative feedback but just a nudge to all of us to open up our minds just a little.