Yami

January 15, 2021 By Yami 4 Comments

Dollar Tree Valentines Lantern

Some of the following links are affiliate links. Please see full disclosure for complete details

Hey there and Happy Friday! I have a little bonus blog post for you and it’s another Valentine’s DIY!

For this one, I am using 4 of the canvas frames (5″ x 7″) from Dollar Tree in order to make a lantern. These frames were back from my Christmas Haul and I was supposed to make something for Christmas out of them, however I never got to it.

But hey! It still worked out.

Make sure you scroll to the end for even more DIYs!

The first thing you need to do is remove the canvas.

RELATED: DIY Valentine’s Wreath

Next you want to remove the staples. If anyone tells you this is easy, you are being lied to. Holy moly, it took me forever to remove them!

An hour later, I was left with a ton of holes! I didn’t like the way they looked so I had some Dollar Tree spackle and used it to fill in the holes.

Once the spackle was dry, I sanded everything smooth.

I put them together with some wood glue to create the shape of a lantern.

Then, I painted the lantern in my favorite white chalk paint.

After the paint dried I came in with my Rustoleum Aged Glaze and applied a light coat all over with a lint free rag.

I then took these cute Dollar Tree hearts that were new this year (they come 5 to a pack) as well as this new striped ribbon in order to hang it from each side. And I cut the ribbon in 4 pieces that were all the same length.

Then I glued the center tip of the heart to the center tip of the ribbon with hot glue to secure it in place. And then I hot glued the end of the ribbon over and under the top of each frame that way there were no ribbon ends exposed on the inside of the lantern.

Once all 4 sides were done that was it! All I needed was a candle to place inside.

I love the rustic touch this brings to my decor but it still has that romantic shabby chic feel.

And of course, like always you can adjust the color of the lantern and/or the color of your ribbon to match your style.

I hope you like this and if you want to see even more inspiration I have more DIYs you can check out below!

Let me know what you think and as always share with any friends who would enjoy!

I will see you in the next one! Until then… adios!

January 13, 2021 By Yami 4 Comments

Dollar Tree Valentines Day Wreath

Hey everyone! Happy Wednesday! Today I have a simple Valentine’s DIY that you can recreate with items you may already have at home.

My goal for this year is to not buy too many unnecessary things, especially when it comes to crafting. I will be taking that into consideration whenever I bring you DIY’s going forward. Oftentimes what happens is that crafters and DIYers like me end up buying “all the things” because we think we can make “all the things” but honestly life gets in the way. And then we don’t get everything done that we wanted to in the first place. In the end we are left with a stash of unused crafting items. Ugh.

Trust me, I know… (consider this an insider’s look into a DIYer’s life, ha!)

This presents several problems:

Unused items that will take up space and clutter my home
Spending unnecessary funds (that’s nicer than saying “wasting money”😝)
Disappointment and guilt

So… we are nixing all that this year!

Seriously… the only thing I bought new for today’s DIY was the heart wreath form and that only cost $1. The rest was left over from my DIYs from last year.

I said it was a problem. 🥴

You will simply need a wreath form in the shape of a heart, khaki colored ribbon (or any of your choice) and faux florals.

>>>As always you can follow this tutorial on my Youtube Channel. <<<

The first thing I did was cut the ribbon in half to make thinner strips. Since it is so wide it would have been too hard to wrap around the wreath.

RELATED: Neutral Valentines Day Decor

Then I hot-glued the end of the ribbon to the center wreath wire from behind and I began to wrap it around (hot gluing on the back as I continued around).

*In order to make this look nice and clean you want to make sure you space out the ribbon evenly as you wrap it around.

I didn’t have to worry about bringing the ribbon back down to cover the wreath form completely because I was going to cover that area with the roses.

The first thing I did was remove the rose heads from the stems.

I took the leaves of the bushes as well and began to glue them onto the bottom third of the wreath. I did this in order to have some back fill.

Then I placed the roses on the wreath. I used hot glue to secure them.

*Now, in order for the roses to lay flat you will have to cut off the stem to the very end, but if you do this the rose will unravel because nothing is holding it together. So, in order to prevent this I like to add hot glue between the petals to make sure the whole flower stays intact.

I placed the lighter roses on the top and the darker roses on the bottom.

Once I was happy with how it looked I added a little piece of jute string to the back with hot glue to hang it up.

And that was it!

It looks awesome on my front door (it also helps that I just painted it, LOL!).

I love that it’s not cheesy and over the top, yet still has that “romantic feel”.

And the best part about it is that it only cost me $1 (everything was left over from last year with the exception of the heart form 🙌🏼).

Let me know what you think below and share with a friend!

I will see you all in the next post! Until then… adios!

January 11, 2021 By Yami Leave a Comment

DIY Window Trim

This post is sponsored by Woodgrain and some of the links below are affiliate links. For more detailed information please see full disclosure.

Hey everyone! How was your weekend? I hope you were able to enjoy some time with family and friends. It has been pretty chilly here these past few days and I have been cozying up by the fire inside our house.

I mean, is there anything better than a wood burning fireplace??? 😍

As promised, I am back with my other post that I talked about last week. This post has been a long time coming, however, since it has been just my hubby and I that do this as we progress through our house (and he has a full time job), this project has taken a little longer than expected.

But alas, here we are!

The minute we walked into our new home I noticed something immediately – there were no casings around my windows.

They looked naked. 😱

I had never owned a home without window casings before and the windows just looked bizarre to me. I knew that the windows were going to have to be addressed at some point.

Of course, we had to remove the popcorn ceilings, repaint the walls, remove and install new flooring, replace the baseboards and fix the kitchen….

So after all of that was done it was time to get started.

I went to Pinterest to see what kind of inspiration was out there and naturally, I went to Canva to draw up what I had in mind after I decided on a look.

This is what I ended up with.

You can also watch the video tutorial on Youtube as well!

I used 3 different sized pieces of millwork for my window casing. I wanted a large 5.5″ inch (actual size) millwork piece for the top. 1.5″ pieces for the top trim pieces and 3.5″ pieces for the sided and below the window sill.

I didn’t want the casing to be just a square so I wanted the top part and the sill to come out the sides a little more.

They ended up being 1.5″ wider than the side casings. Feel free to take a screen shot and save these images for future reference if you wish to do something similar.

Once the drawings were done, it was time to get to work. The first thing we needed to do was demo the existing window sills. You will need to score the edges with a box cutter and then use a hammer and crowbar to remove the existing sill.

Once you remove the sill, you need to make sure that all the nails are removed and any debris is vacuumed up with a shop vac.

Then it was time to cut the new casings!

For this we used Woodgrain’s Finished Elegance millwork from their Timeless Craftsman collection. The pieces are all pre-primed and their finish is super smooth. They are all cut with square edges that are slightly rounded so the corners aren’t so harsh.

Woodgrain is celebrating 65 years of manufacturing and their dedication to providing great wood products is exceptional. They offer millwork of all styles and they are both manufacturer & distributor of their wood products. I was honored to actually go and visit one of their distribution centers here and they have such an amazing operation. Woodgrain also manufactures doors and windows.

Another great thing about Woodgrain is that they really consider the environment. Whenever lumber goes through their sawmills and millwork facilities they capture the wood fibers and shavings from when they cut down the lumber and then use that for animal bedding (the type used in stables etc.). That’s pretty awesome!

And the best thing about their millwork is that you can buy it at your local Home Depot. So, if you are looking to update your home, definitely give their products a try!

Okay… so after we took the necessary measurements we cut each window based on their exact measurements. Since our home is older we knew that there were going to be slight differences here and there.

We used our miter saw to cut the pieces to length, and used the jigsaw only for the window sills.

Next, we set the sill in place and nailed the sill in with a brad nailer.

We placed the sill first and then the 2 side pieces. We made sure to use liquid nails along with the brad nailer to install the rest of the trim.

The top piece was assembled before it was installed as shown below.

Finally, the last piece that was installed was the trim piece that went underneath the window sill.

After everything was attached, we went in with Woodgrain’s Finished Elegance caulk and made sure to seal all the seams so that it looked like the window casings were always there.

And even though these are pre-primed I still went in with my favorite paint to cover all of the nail holes and the sides that were cut exposing the MDF. I wanted to make sure everything was seamless and that the casings matched my new baseboards as well.

After everything was done, this is how they turned out!

They totally changed the look of the windows!

By adding casing in this design the windows look even bigger and are now a focal point in the rooms.

And they go perfectly with our new Woodgrain baseboards!

What do you think of the change? Here is a side by side.

Now, there were a few windows in the home where we could not case out the windows completely because of the lack of space between them. So, we made sure to replace the window sills and paint everything light and those windows still look great!

I am extremely pleased with their new look and how simple it was to add so much character and value to our home.

Let me know if you have any questions below! And share this with anyone who wishes to “level-up” the look of their windows. 🥰

I will see you soon!

Until then…adios!

January 8, 2021 By Yami 2 Comments

Cottage Farmhouse Dining Room Reveal

This post is sponsored by Lamps Plus and some of the links below are affiliate links. For more detailed information please see full disclosure.

Hey everyone! I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and a Happy New Year!

I took a much needed break and I will be honest it has been hard getting back to the rhythm of things. There are a couple of posts that I am excited to share with you all and then going forward for the rest of the year I decided to figure out a better schedule for myself.

As of right now I will be doing one post and one video per week. I am hoping it will give me adequate time to get each video and coordinating blog post out at the same time (which is something I really want to do for this new year). This is not to say that there may be more than that per week on occasion, but there should always be a new one every Wednesday. 🤞🏼

Okay back to our scheduled programming…. 🙌🏼

One of the things I have been dying to tackle for a while now is our sad dining area. It’s actually comprised of 3 areas: the entrance, the dining room and the transition space from the dining room to our newly updated kitchen.

First off, the entrance is so sad. The door is outdated and the furniture in the area is a mismatch of items that we kept after we sized down to our new home. We sold a lot of things on FB Marketplace and only kept the essentials. This meant that not everything went together.

The large dark cabinet is an entertainment center and the blue cabinet is a really old makeover when I first started painting furniture…. I have come a long way folks . 😂

The entertainment console (as you can see from this angle) also weighs everything down and blends into the dark floors giving no character at all to the wall behind it. And the lamps are outdated and just between you and me, the one on the right doesn’t work anymore. 🥴

The secretary you see on the corner will be a furniture flip I will share here soon. The fireplace is also outdated and will eventually be given a facelift… just not today!

In regards to the dining table, that is actually a new purchase off of Facebook marketplace. We sold our old dining table and purchased this one. I love how it’s so large and fits the room perfectly so that is definitely staying.

Finally, lighting has been a huge issue as well. We only have one large window in this space and it’s underneath a porch so not much light shines through. You can see below that there are areas more lit than others and I still have the ceiling fan base up after we took off the blades to remove the popcorn ceiling.

Yep! Full transparency here folks!🤣

You can also see how sad this transition wall to the new kitchen is. It had no character and looked extremely cluttered with all of the items we were keeping on top of my old coffee bar table (originally an IKEA hack).

So I am sure you can see how all of this was driving me crazy! Everything was disjointed and not coordinating at all.

I will say that one thing I do love about the space are the window casings that my hubby and I installed ourselves (more on that soon!). I am also grateful for our floors being done, the updated wall color and new baseboards that we replaced.

So in essence the place has good bones, but it just needs a furniture and decor overhaul.

So I got to work!

Initially I had wanted to turn the transition space into a pantry because I currently walk all the way down the hall, but I did several renderings and honestly, all of the options I liked were just too large and overpowering for the space. Plus, there was still the issue of the area being too dark.

So I nixed that.

Pantry shown above is a design from Ana White*

I decided that I wanted to make this a feature wall instead with lighting, shelving and a unit that would not only give me style but storage.

Lamps Plus reached out to me during the time I was planning everything and wanted to be a part of the transformation so I checked out what their website had to offer. And let me tell you their selection was amazing!

Not only do they have lighting options for all areas of your home, in different styles and for different budgets, but they also had home decor accents and furniture pieces to transform any space in your home.

I went to Canva online in order to put together a rendering of the entire space to make sure that I coordinated everything for a seamless flow, but also to make sure that there was adequate lighting in the space with what they had to offer.

And this is what I came up with.

As always you can watch the transformation on my YouTube Channel as well.

Now while some of these pieces were not what I ended up going with in the end, this gives you an idea of what it will look like when everything came together.

The most complicated and time consuming part of the project was the transition wall. This included hardwiring sconces to our existing electrical and then stenciling the entire wall and adding shelves.

I chose this stencil and decided to give the wall a very light painting treatment. I didn’t want to overpower the space with too many things going on, but adding a stencil gave it a more high end and cozy feel.

Once the hardwiring was complete thanks to my awesome husband (don’t worry, he is professionally trained), it was time to add the actual sconces.

After that was complete we picked up these brackets and installed them on the wall with some wood pieces that I stained to match my existing plate rack in my kitchen wall.

Also, the screws that worked for this installation were silver, but I took some metallic black paint to camouflage them.

Once that was done, I added some drapes to the window at the front. The window (while it looked amazing with the new casing) was still lacking something and adding the drapes I used in my office at the last house worked perfectly for this.

Finally, I couldn’t leave my front door as is. It was outdated and dingy and I couldn’t wait to give it a facelift so I used Magnolia’s Wedding Band in a Semi-Gloss to give it a refresh. Perhaps someday in the future I can replace it, but for now, this will do.

Once the larger pieces arrived and we set them up, it was time for the accessories. Most of the accessories I used were from our last house, but they paired perfectly with the new pieces from Lamps Plus.

For example, this task lamp from Lamps Plus was perfect for the entrance. I paired it with this greige table and added items to the shelf on the bottom.

Plus, I love the fact that this table lamp is so unique and it has a base that allows you to plug in your phone or tablet to charge. So handy!

On the other side of the entrance I added this server that functions as 3 things: storage, another entrance table and a buffet when needed. Win-win-win!

Plus, look at how much those lamps light up the space. It doesn’t feel as dark anymore.

Again I used more of my old decor for the area and replacing my outdated lamps with these made a huge difference -plus they were more my style.

Replacing the chandelier was the only thing needed over by the actual dining table. But by just doing that it elevated the space so much and created such a focal point!

Now, over to what is possibly my favorite area of them all – the transition space. I LOVE how this came together exactly how I envisioned it. It doesn’t look like the same space anymore (as a matter of fact, it even looks larger!).

And not only does everything work perfectly to get that high end Cottage Farmhouse style, but the light this space now has is amazing.

The stencil gave it that personal touch, the shelves filled in the empty wall space, the storage console gave me storage and a surface to place things on and the sconces added so much life to this dreary space.

Look at how everything came together and brightened up the entire space!

JUST WOW! I am so in love! Do you have a favorite piece from the updated space? I would love to know below!

It’s definitely a huge change from before and the look of everything is elevated! The space looks more cohesive and sophisticated.

The best part about this is that there was no huge demo involved. By adding one pair of sconces, replacing the current light fixture above the dining table replacing the outdated lamps and adding one task lamp by the entrance, I resolved all of my lighting issues. In addition, by adding some key pieces of furniture with similar materials and styles the entire space was transformed.

Another great thing was that I was able to accessorize with things that I already had on hand allowing me to appreciate everything even more.

If you are looking at updating your space with either new lighting and/or furniture I would highly recommend Lamps Plus as they have such a large online selection with different styles and price points.

In addition, their items ship fast and their furniture pieces are packaged so well in order to protect them during delivery. We were really impressed with the care of packaging because in the past we have received items from other vendors that were damaged, split or broken so that definitely is important to us. Plus the quality of the actual product is hard to beat!

I look forward to seeing you all back here very soon!

December 12, 2020 By Yami Leave a Comment

Hot Cocoa Tiered Tray

Hello and Happy Day 12 of my 12 Days of Christmas! We made it and I thought I would end it with something simple and sweet. I love hot chocolate, but frankly I don’t have an area for a whole decked out cocoa bar. And frankly I don’t need one.

I am a simple girl and only need a few ingredients for my hot cocoa: hot cocoa powder, milk and marshmallows. Seriously that is it for me and I am a happy girl.

No bombs, no cinnamon, no peppermint… nada!

So I thought I would share my hot cocoa tiered tray with you all in case you are like me and prefer the simple is better approach.

CHECK OUT the rest of days in case you missed one!

DAY 1 | DAY 2 |DAY 3 |DAY 4| DAY 5 | DAY 6 | DAY 7 | DAY 8| DAY 9| DAY 10 | DAY 11 |DAY 12

Some of the links below may be affiliate links. Please see full disclosure for more details

I got this tiered tray from Hobby Lobby a couple of years ago (they still carry it). And it’s perfect for festive displays like this.

I like to put hot cocoa powder and marshmallows into mason jars to give it a nice rustic look. And even though I don’t like peppermint in my hot cocoa, I always like to add candy canes to my tiered tray to add to the Christmas feel.

I even add a little ribbon to the mason jar to make it more festive.

I made this cute beaded garland with an ornament at the end that reads “Hot Cocoa Station” – you can see how easy it was to make in this video.

I added a few more touches like a birdhouse ornament from Day 4, some tea towels, a mini cake stand and white ceramic creamer.

The topper was a Dollar Tree DIY from my classic Christmas DIY collection.

I think everything ties in so well together and I cannot wait to enjoy hot cocoas this Christmas season with my kiddos who enjoy them as much as I do.

I hope you had fun during these 12 Days of Christmas and were inspired to DIY a few things this season. It was a lot of fun, but I am happy to say that I am done with Christmas decor this year. Whew!

I am looking forward to enjoying the Christmas season with my family and I hope you have a wonderful Christmas as well.

I am hoping to cook up something huge before the end of the year, let’s see if I can pull it off. Check out my second channel for more behind the scenes at what’s going on next door!

I will see you all soon!

Until then… adios!

December 11, 2020 By Yami 2 Comments

Dollar Tree Mini Christmas Tree Decor

Hello friends! Hope you are doing well! Today is Day 11 of my 12 Days of Christmas and I am going to have to apologize from the get-go. My plan was to create a detailed post on these Christmas trees, but my husband has been dealing with the manflu and since I have been taking care of him, guess who now is feeling under the weather???

Ugh! I love taking care of family when they are sick, I just don’t want to get sick myself, but here we are…

So I will have to give my self a little grace and take it easy or else there won’t be a Day 12. I did try to make it up by adding 2 different DIYs and one of them in a Pottery Barn Dupe!

I was able to edit the video tutorial for both, but I didn’t have enough strength to edit the images… Video is included below for you. All you have to do is click PLAY.

CHECK OUT all of the 12 Days of Christmas here!

DAY 1 | DAY 2 |DAY 3 |DAY 4| DAY 5 | DAY 6 | DAY 7 | DAY 8| DAY 9| DAY 10 | DAY 11 |DAY 12

Some of the links below may be affiliate links. Please see full disclosure for more details

Here are what the first set looks like.

I used popsicle sticks and thumbtacks to create the look of metal corners on the larger crate. I have a full and detailed tutorial on how to create a faux galvanized look on anything in this Youtube video.

The larger trees are new from Dollar Tree this year and I used white pom poms to act as snow.

For the second DIY, I recreated the trees below. The cheeseboards from Pottery Barn are so pretty but too expensive so I recreated the look for less.

I used Dollar Tree wood tree cutouts and painted them with my favorite white chalk paint and Aged Glaze to give them a similar look.

And even though these aren’t cheeseboards, you can still enjoy how closely they resemble the original inspiration pieces and use them as decor.

If you are curious and wish to make these yourself, please check out the fun and easy to follow tutorial below.

Thank you so much for following along and I will see you all tomorrow

Until then… adios!

December 10, 2020 By Yami Leave a Comment

5 Minute Dollar Tree Christmas Wreaths

Hey there friends! Hope you are all doing well! Today is day 9 of the 12 days of Christmas and this time we are doing some 5 minute farmhouse inspired Christmas wreaths out of Dollar Tree items.

I didn’t mean to make most of these Dollar Tree DIYs, however, I had the items so I might as well use them.

There will be 2 versions of these wreaths and I will show the second below, however, I will only share the instructions for the white one. If you wish to see the red and khaki one you can always check out the Youtube video on my channel.

CHECK OUT all of the 12 Days of Christmas here!

DAY 1 | DAY 2 |DAY 3 |DAY 4| DAY 5 | DAY 6 | DAY 7 | DAY 8| DAY 9| DAY 10 | DAY 11 |DAY 12

Some of the links below may be affiliate links. Please see full disclosure for more details

I had some of these cloths from Dollar Tree on hand and you can find them in the automotive section.

So I cut them into strips and began to wrap them around these Dollar Tree wreaths. The smaller ones come 2 to a pack. I added hot glue every so often to the wreath to make sure the cloth was secured on properly.

Next I had this wooden tree form that I had removed from a Dollar Tree farmhouse truck for another DIY and decided to stain it with my Aged Glaze that I have been using on everything lately.

It just has the perfect stain color!

Of course, one was not enough and I came across these trees in this Dollar Tree pack. This was the same pack the snowflakes on my cork ornaments came from.

I decided to stain those as well. I removed the adhesive from the back and stained the backs (it was just easier that way!).

Next, I hot glued them onto the wreath. Easy peasy!

I took some ticking striped ribbon and created a bow and hot glued it on as well.

Then with a little bit of twine I hung it in my kitchen. And that was it for this simple white wreath!

I love how it looks on my faux cutting boards on my kitchen wall.

And here is the khaki and red version.

These are super sweet and quick to make if you find yourself running out of time for your holiday decorating! Which one is your fave?

As always, don’t forget to share with your crafty friends!

I will see you all tomorrow!

Until then…. adios!

December 9, 2020 By Yami 2 Comments

Dollar Tree Letters for Santa Mailbox

Hey everyone! Happy Hump Day! Today is Day 9 of my 12 Days of Christmas and for this DIY and I’m bringing you this fun mailbox you can make so that your littles can send their letters to Santa.

CHECK OUT all of the 12 Days of Christmas here!

DAY 1 | DAY 2 |DAY 3 |DAY 4| DAY 5 | DAY 6 | DAY 7 | DAY 8| DAY 9| DAY 10 | DAY 11 |DAY 12

Some of the links below may be affiliate links. Please see full disclosure for more details

I got this cute little mailbox at my local Dollar Tree. My daughter helped me share all about it in our last shopping haul.

I spray painted it with primer and then gave it two coats of my favorite white chalk paint.

Next, I painted the little flag red. It took me several coats to get it completely covered, but I managed to get most of it in the end!

Afterwards, I cut some scrap book paper that I had on hand to add to the mailbox door as trim. I simply applied it with a glue stick (nothing fancy here folks!).

Next, I took some Christmas greenery from Dollar Tree and took it apart. I began placing the leaves on the top first with some hot glue.

And gradually added more greenery, berries, poinsettias and a pinecone.

Next, I made a little decal to go on one of these cute Dollar Tree tags that read “Letters to Santa”. I can’t hand letter for the life of me so I rely heavily on my Cricut.

I used some Dollar Tree ribbon to tie a bow on the tag and then used hot glue to adhere it to the front.

Finally, I wanted it to sit on a stand so I took a candlestick that painted earlier this year, added some hot glue and placed it on the top.

Note* the hot glue can peel off if I do decide to use the candlestick for something else in the future.

And that was it for this DIY!

I think it’s adorable and really festive.

I am sure my kids will get a kick out of using it. They have been playing with the Dollar Tree mini village since I finished them.

One thing I like about this project is that you can use whatever Christmas decor and trimmings you have on had to decorate it and make it your own.

And I absolutely love that little tag!

I hope you enjoyed another day with another Christmas DIY!

I will see you in the next one. Until then… adios!

December 8, 2020 By Yami 2 Comments

Dollar Tree Christmas Village Hack

Hey there! It is Day 8 in the 12 Days of Christmas and I am bringing you a Dollar Tree hack. However, you can use this idea with any thrifted mini houses or any ones you might have on hand that you no longer think go with your style.

CHECK OUT all of the 12 Days of Christmas here!

DAY 1 | DAY 2 |DAY 3 |DAY 4| DAY 5 | DAY 6 | DAY 7 | DAY 8| DAY 9| DAY 10 | DAY 11 |DAY 12

Some of the links below may be affiliate links. Please see full disclosure for more details

I picked some of these Dollar Tree mini village houses. And honestly they are cute, but look more like toys to me and I would rather my decor look a little more sophisticated. You know what I mean?

These houses do have a place underneath to insert and LED tea light or some mini string lights so it does have that working for them.

I am pretty sure you remember from my last post, that I spray painted these with primer.

And I am glad I did that actually, because when I took them to paint with my favorite white chalk paint, it only took me one coat to get them nice and white.

After the white chalk paint was dry, I painted the roofs and a few other details with black chalk paint. I like the more stark contrast of black and white since I think it adds a more high end look to the pieces.

Next, I wanted to add a little bit of sparkle so I added some school glue to a few areas and included a couple of patches on the roofs….

… and sprinkled some fine white glitter.

Then, I added some mini string lights inside and I was done!

Aren’t they darling?!?

I also noticed that the chalk paint made the surfaces feel more like ceramic so that was an added bonus.

The hard part now is keeping my little one away from them, she adores these little houses and appreciates playing with them.

Well, that was it for today! I hope these 12 days are giving you all some fun inspiration or in the very least, something to look forward to every morning.

I will see you back here tomorrow!

Until then… adios!

December 7, 2020 By Yami Leave a Comment

DIY Cookies for Santa Tray

Happy Monday! Hope you are all well!

Today is Day 7 from my 12 Days of Christmas and I have another easy DIY for you! This time I am up-cycling an old and unused tray that I have had for years. I was seriously about to get rid of it by donating it, but then I thought I would give it one last try at redemption.

CHECK OUT all of the 12 Days of Christmas here!

DAY 1 | DAY 2 |DAY 3 |DAY 4| DAY 5 | DAY 6 | DAY 7 | DAY 8| DAY 9| DAY 10 | DAY 11 |DAY 12

Some of the links below may be affiliate links. Please see full disclosure for more details

First thing I did was prime it with spray primer (you can see some upcoming DIY’s coming your way).

Trying to hit 2 birds with one stone there. 😉

Next, I spray painted it with some leftover white satin spray paint that was literally almost out (but I made it work!).

I use a spray tent whenever I spray paint inside my garage (especially in the winter). It’s the best thing ever for spray painting! I think this is actually one of the things I have used the most in my DIY years. It’s great to capture overspray! If you haven’t gotten one, it’s definitely a must have for the Christmas wish list!

Then with my Cricut Maker I made this cute vinyl decal. This decal is also available in my shop.

I tried very carefully to place it in the center. Talk about pressure!

Then I got the crazy idea to hand paint some holly leaves and berries on 2 corners of the decal.

For the berries, I used a berry off a Dollar Tree bush, put it on a toothpick, then used it as a stamp!

Talk about craftiness! 😂

It worked out pretty good actually. I used the color Crimson by Waverly for this.

And that was it!!! Eventually I will probably seal it with a clear coat, but since I will just be using it once this Christmas it should be okay for now.

I am sure the kids are going to be excited to actually have a tray this year to put mommy’s amazing sugar cookies on!

Seriously, if you haven’t tried the recipe you totally should!

And I guess the hollies don’t look thaaaaat baaaaad! 😝

That’s it for today! I hope you all are still enjoying these DIYs!

I will see you all in the next one. Until then… adios!

December 6, 2020 By Yami Leave a Comment

Super Easy DIY Garland

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Today is Day 6 and that means we are halfway through the 12 Days of Christmas where I bring you 12 Christmas DIYs for 12 days! This is probably going to be the simplest DIY yet, with probably the most impact for the effort.

CHECK OUT all of the 12 Days of Christmas here!

DAY 1 | DAY 2 |DAY 3 |DAY 4| DAY 5 | DAY 6 | DAY 7 | DAY 8| DAY 9| DAY 10 | DAY 11 |DAY 12

You can also watch all of these video tutorials as well on on the playlist and see these back to back on the playlist!

So let’s get into it!

You will need some Dollar Tree small ornaments and some vase fillers. I got the vase fillers below from Hobby Lobby last year on clearance but they have them again this year and they are on sale.

NOTE: You don’t have to purchase anything for this… as a matter of fact if you have any old ornaments you aren’t using get them out and make this out of them. And if they aren’t the right color, a little can of spray paint helps too.

Next, you will need to remove the little hanging caps from the ornaments.

Then, you will need something to cut off the little piece the cap attaches too. I like to use my wood burning kit with the cutting tool.

I love my wood burning kit and used it for some of my fall decor. It is so versatile!

After those were done, I burned a small hole on the opposite side of the ornament as well. I will be stringing the ornaments so I need another hole.

Then finally with a large embroidery needle and some jute twine, string a combination of the fillers and ornaments until you have the right length and your desired pattern.

And that was literally all there is to it! Told you it was easy! And this only cost me a little over $5.

Beaded garland over mantles are so trendy right now, but they can get expensive so this is a great way to use a cheaper alternative or even old ornaments you may have lying around!

So simple, yet so chic!

We say “Bueno, bonito y barrato” in Spanish. 😉

Let me know what you think!

I will see you all tomorrow!

Until then… adios!

December 5, 2020 By Yami Leave a Comment

Trash to Treasure Cork Ornaments

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Hi there! Hope you are well!

Today I am sharing some ornament ideas made from wine corks. There is so much inspiration online and since I already tackled my largest cork project many years ago, I figured something smaller was in order. In addition to these ornaments I have a bonus DIY towards the end.

So for the ornaments you will need to cut them in half and the best thing to do is steam them first for a few minutes. This will cause them to puff up and become softer and easier to cut. Don’t worry, once they cool off they go back to their normal size.

CHECK OUT all of the 12 Days of Christmas here!

DAY 1 | DAY 2 |DAY 3 |DAY 4| DAY 5 | DAY 6 | DAY 7 | DAY 8| DAY 9| DAY 10 | DAY 11 |DAY 12

You can also watch all of these video tutorials as well on on the playlist and see these back to back on the playlist!

Simply use a serrated kitchen knife to cut them down.

Then it’s time to assemble.You will need 13 cork halves for this one. Assemble them with 3 at the top and 2 at the bottom with one in the center.

Use hot glue to adhere them together. Then, add one cork to each of the ends. You will get the shape below.

If you want a smaller one leave the end pieces out and only do the first step. You will only need 7 cork halves.

I wanted to add a little something extra so I got these small snowflakes from a pack at Dollar Tree and painted them white.

Then I used school glue and added fine white glitter to add some sparkle.

Once that was dry I hot glued it to both the large and small ornaments.

Finally, I added a ribbon to the back of each to hang them.

For the next DIY, I used 37 whole corks. These were actually the more rubbery ones, not true “cork” but they work just fine.

I painted 24 of them in my favorite white chalk paint and set them to dry. They can suck in a bit of the paint so you may need to do more than one coat.

Next, you want to assemble the ones remaining that are not painted. Follow the pattern below: 1,4,3,4,1.

Finally, take the painted ones and glue them onto the perimeter as shown below.

I came back and touched up several areas with paint and I then was done.

*Now, I plan on using this as a coaster during the winter for hot beverages, so I didn’t bother to seal it. If I were to use it with any cold drinks that might sweat I would definitely add a layer of clear wax.

It’s the perfect size for mugs!!!!

And here are those cute ornaments.

They are perfectly neutral and thrifty!

Any wine lover like myself would love any of these as gifts for the holidays as well!

I hope you are enjoying these 12 Days of Christmas and I hope you liked today’s DIY. Don’t forget to share with your friends!

Until next time, adios!

December 4, 2020 By Yami Leave a Comment

Dollar Tree Birdhouse Ornaments

Hey everyone! It’s Day 4 and I am still alive! Today I am making these adorable little Dollar Tree Birdhouse Ornaments that have yet to be seen (well I haven’t seen any 😁) so you can imagine how excited I am.

CHECK OUT all of the 12 Days of Christmas here!

DAY 1 | DAY 2 |DAY 3 |DAY 4| DAY 5 | DAY 6 | DAY 7 | DAY 8| DAY 9| DAY 10 | DAY 11 |DAY 12

You can also watch all of these video tutorials as well on on the playlist and see these back to back on the playlist!

The best part about this is that Dollar Tree is currently flooded with these in the craft section because these are for Spring so you should definitely find plenty!

I chose these 3 different styles but they do have others as well.

In addition, I decided to give them all different paint jobs so that you can see several options.

I chose to paint 2 of the house “bodies” with my favorite white chalk paint and the other I decided to use my Rustoleum’s Aged Glaze that I have been using on everything lately to give one of the houses a stained look.

I also painted another house’s roof with the same aged glaze.

On that ornament, I also decided to also paint a red ticking stripe with some Waverly chalk paint.

Then on the house with the white roof, I wanted it to have the look of snow. So, I decided to use some school glue and add glitter to the roof. Once the glitter dried, I sprayed it with some Mod Podge Ultra in order to make sure the glitter wouldn’t fall off.

I added a few more details like this cute little bow from another Dollar Tree ornament that I didn’t use.

And I added some berries to the one with the black chalk painted roof. I wanted to create a wreath around the entrance hole.

Lastly, I added a little bit of greenery and some tiny berries to the last house.

Finally in order to hang them, I used the same hooks that I used on my glass ornaments and simply screwed them into the little roofs. I added some ribbon and that was it!

Aren’t these the cutest ornaments (besides my last ones 😉) ever?!?!?

And the possibilities with colors and accessories are truly endless…

I think the little bow on the one below was just perfect.

Which one of these is your favorite?

I hope you liked these sweet little ornaments and if you want, you can always watch the video tutorial on my channel!

I will see you in the next one.Until then…. adios!

December 3, 2020 By Yami Leave a Comment

Dollar Tree Advent Wreath

Happy Day 3 of !2 Days of Christmas! I am excited for today’s DIY since I have never actually made an advent wreath before.

CHECK OUT all of the 12 Days of Christmas here!

DAY 1 | DAY 2 |DAY 3 |DAY 4| DAY 5 | DAY 6 | DAY 7 | DAY 8| DAY 9| DAY 10 | DAY 11 |DAY 12

You can also watch all of these video tutorials as well on on the playlist and see these back to back on the playlist!

Also before I start I wanted to share some happy news! If you follow me on Instagram you probably already know, but one of my DIYs was featured in the special Christmas issue of Country Sampler Farmhouse Magazine!

I even got a full page spread!!!!! How cool is that?!? I was so excited and honored and humbled…. frankly I couldn’t believe that one of my DIYs made it’s way to this nationally distributed magazine. 😱

You can see how I made those featured ornaments here and if you wish to get your own copy you can always order one online or you can purchase them at your local craft store or grocery store. My dad got his at Publix 😉.

Okay, let’s get right into it and as always you can find the video tutorial for this on my channel as well.

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You will need at least 2 bags of these cut pieces of birch from Dollar Tree. If you wish, you can always use more in order to make it larger, but definitely no less than 2.

You will also need candles. I used these LED battery operated ones since I have little kids, but you can use the regular wax candles. Keep them the traditional purple and pink or go neutral as I did.

Next, you want to hot glue all of the pieces together. You will start with one ring, but be sure you have enough for two layers (one on top of the other).

When you place the second layer make sure you stagger the pieces as best as you can. This will create a stronger hold. Hot glue each piece to the ones below and next to each other.

After that is done, hot glue the stands to each of the candles on all 4 corners. Try to get it as square as possible.

Next, get yourself some flower bushes. I chose these white poinsettias in two different styles. Pull off the flowers from the stems as well as some of the leaves.

Use some of the leaves on either side of the candle stands to hide them. You can add more greenery throughout as well.

I then began to hot glue the poinsettias onto the wreath.

You can make their placement completely random or you can do as I did. I did two mesh poinsettias with one glittery poinsettia in between each of the candles.

And that was it! So simple and elegant. I also love the contrast of the rustic birch and the white blooms.

Please let me know what you think of this little advent wreath! Have you made one recently?

I hope you are enjoying these quick DIYs and I will see you back here for the next one!

Until then… adios!

December 2, 2020 By Yami 4 Comments

DIY Dollar Tree Glass Ornaments

Happy Wednesday everyone! Hope you are having a fabulous week! Today I am sharing another DIY… as a matter of fact, I am doing the 12 Days of Christmas on my Youtube channel where I share one DIY every day for 12 days and I am wondering if I will keep up here. 🥴

Here’s hoping! 🤞🏼

CHECK OUT all of the 12 Days of Christmas here!

DAY 1 | DAY 2 |DAY 3 |DAY 4| DAY 5 | DAY 6 | DAY 7 | DAY 8| DAY 9| DAY 10 | DAY 11 |DAY 12

You can also watch all of these video tutorials as well on on the playlist and see these back to back on the playlist!

In order to get started on these DIY Dollar Tree Glass Ornaments you will need some of the little glass bottles below.

Yes, we are making glass ornaments! Cute little mini snow globe village ones that is…

You find the bottles you see above near the sand bags in the decor section at Dollar Tree. Remove the stickers and wash and dry them well….

Next, you will need these village accessories, also from Dollar Tree.

RELATED: DIY BALLARD DESIGNS CHRISTMAS TREE DUPE

I will be using the Christmas tree and one light post for each ornament.

Since the light post is too large for the bottle as is, I needed to cut it down, so I started by removing the snow on the bottom (it’s one piece that pops out). And then I cut the half wall side off.

The pieces are hollow and in order to prevent this from showing, I cut off the end of the half wall that I cut off and then glued them back together….

I just put them together like I did below and filled them with hot glue. Once the glue dried it was one piece.

After removing the bottom snow portion of the tree I filled the underneath area up (since it was also hollow) with hot glue and then placed it inside the bottle.

I couldn’t find my craft tweezers so a mini clothes pin had to do!

Then I added the light post. After those were dry I added a little bit of Dollar Tree white sand.

RELATED: DOLLAR TREE HIGH END ORNAMENTS

I added a couple of dots of hot glue to the cork top and placed it back on the bottle. This will ensure the cork doesn’t just slide off.

Afterwards, I tied a bow around the neck of the bottle.

And then I used this small hook (found in one of my picture hanging kits) to screw into the top of the cork so I could have a place to hang the ornament from.

With the addition of another piece of ribbon, I was done!

How adorable is this?!?! I love the delicateness of it all… and the fact that it’s actually glass so it doesn’t feel cheap.

These bottles are just the perfect size as well. Since they are glass they are heavier so you wouldn’t want anything bigger weighing down your branches.

I am so pleased with this one and I hope you enjoyed this too!

For even more inspiration check out this Christmas DIY video below!

Don’t forget to share and I will see you in the next one! Until then… adios!

December 1, 2020 By Yami 2 Comments

Dollar Tree Farmhouse Christmas Countdown

Hey everyone! Hope you have been having a wonderful start to this Christmas season. I have been creating videos on Youtube so don’t forget if you are not subscribed, please make sure to head on over to get even more inspiration. I will also be sharing specific videos at the end of the posts so make sure you scroll to the end.

For today’s DIY, I will be making a Dollar Tree Farmhouse Christmas Countdown that is brand new and never before seen!! This is part of my 12 Days of Christmas where I bring 1 Christmas DIY a day for 12 Days.

CHECK OUT all of the 12 Days of Christmas here!

DAY 1 | DAY 2 |DAY 3 |DAY 4| DAY 5 | DAY 6 | DAY 7 | DAY 8| DAY 9| DAY 10 | DAY 11 |DAY 12

You can also watch all of these video tutorials as well on on the playlist and see these back to back on the playlist!

I was looking for something I can create that would be solely my own since there are so many options out there already so I made sure to include a free printable that I designed so you can make your own too. More on that in a bit…

Here is the item you will need from Dollar Tree. It’s not the cutest thing in the world, but it had instant potential in my opinion. Extra points if you can guess what that date means…

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>As always you can watch the video tutorial of this here<

First thing to do is remove all of the tags, then paint it with black chalk paint.

My Folkart black chalk paint only requires one coat, but I did two so I could make sure the indentations from the original sign’s design did not show through.

Next it was time for the printable, you can sign up to download these here.

It’s best to print them on card stock. I also have a version in Spanish as well. You can use a paper trimmer or scissors to cut them. I like to leave a little bit of white on the exterior to showcase the border, but you can cut right on the line.

Next, take a hole punch and punch the top centers. You want to make sure to punch in the exact same spot so they all hang evenly.

Next, I cut the ends off of 4 jumbo popsicle stick for my frame hack. If you don’t have these sheers get them, they make projects like this so much easier!

Plus it’s a great gift for any fellow crafter. 😉

Set those 4 popsicle sticks aside and get yourself some ribbon.

I decided to layer mine and add this cute gingham ribbon from Dollar Tree.

Use hot glue for the ribbon and then cut the ribbon on the edges, enough to fold over onto the back of the sign and then glue those ends down as well. Next, hot glue the popsicle sticks to the back of the sign.

You want to make sure you leave half of the popsicle hanging out from the original frame. This is where you will attach dowels to form a frame on the exterior of the sign. By doing this, you’re adding more surface area to glue the dowel down and make it more secure.

I used my sheers to cut my 1/2″ dowels and then hot glued them down.

Finally, it was time to add a little finishing touch and I used a piece of greenery that I removed from a Dollar Tree ornament and placed it in the center of the sign.

And that was it for this Countdown to Christmas DIY! I love how it turned out!

Simple yet so farmhouse! And of course, if farmhouse isn’t your style, you can always change up the colors and ribbon to match any style decor. I hope you enjoyed this Dollar Tree DIY!

Looking for more amazing DIY’s for the holidays? Check out the video below!

As always don’t forget to share with your friends and I will see you in the next one! Until then…. adios!

Yami

Dollar Tree Valentines Lantern

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Make sure you scroll to the end for even more DIYs!

RELATED: DIY Valentine’s Wreath

Dollar Tree Valentines Day Wreath

So… we are nixing all that this year!

>>>As always you can follow this tutorial on my Youtube Channel. <<<

RELATED: Neutral Valentines Day Decor

DIY Window Trim

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You can also watch the video tutorial on Youtube as well!

Cottage Farmhouse Dining Room Reveal

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Pantry shown above is a design from Ana White*

As always you can watch the transformation on my YouTube Channel as well.

Hot Cocoa Tiered Tray

CHECK OUT the rest of days in case you missed one!

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Dollar Tree Mini Christmas Tree Decor

CHECK OUT all of the 12 Days of Christmas here!

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If you are curious and wish to make these yourself, please check out the fun and easy to follow tutorial below.

5 Minute Dollar Tree Christmas Wreaths

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Dollar Tree Letters for Santa Mailbox

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Dollar Tree Christmas Village Hack

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DIY Cookies for Santa Tray

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Super Easy DIY Garland

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CHECK OUT all of the 12 Days of Christmas here!

You can also watch all of these video tutorials as well on on the playlist and see these back to back on the playlist!

Trash to Treasure Cork Ornaments

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CHECK OUT all of the 12 Days of Christmas here!

You can also watch all of these video tutorials as well on on the playlist and see these back to back on the playlist!

Dollar Tree Birdhouse Ornaments

CHECK OUT all of the 12 Days of Christmas here!

You can also watch all of these video tutorials as well on on the playlist and see these back to back on the playlist!

The best part about this is that Dollar Tree is currently flooded with these in the craft section because these are for Spring so you should definitely find plenty!

Dollar Tree Advent Wreath

CHECK OUT all of the 12 Days of Christmas here!

You can also watch all of these video tutorials as well on on the playlist and see these back to back on the playlist!

*Some of the links below may be affiliate links. Please see full disclose for more details*

DIY Dollar Tree Glass Ornaments

CHECK OUT all of the 12 Days of Christmas here!

You can also watch all of these video tutorials as well on on the playlist and see these back to back on the playlist!

RELATED: DIY BALLARD DESIGNS CHRISTMAS TREE DUPE

RELATED: DOLLAR TREE HIGH END ORNAMENTS

For even more inspiration check out this Christmas DIY video below!

Dollar Tree Farmhouse Christmas Countdown

CHECK OUT all of the 12 Days of Christmas here!

You can also watch all of these video tutorials as well on on the playlist and see these back to back on the playlist!

*Some of the links below are affiliate links. Please see disclosure for full details*

>As always you can watch the video tutorial of this here<

Looking for more amazing DIY’s for the holidays? Check out the video below!

Instagram

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This post is sponsored by Woodgrain and some of the links below are affiliate links. For more detailed information please see full disclosure.

This post is sponsored by Lamps Plus and some of the links below are affiliate links. For more detailed information please see full disclosure.

Some of the links below may be affiliate links. Please see full disclosure for more details

Some of the links below may be affiliate links. Please see full disclosure for more details

Some of the links below may be affiliate links. Please see full disclosure for more details

Some of the links below may be affiliate links. Please see full disclosure for more details

Some of the links below may be affiliate links. Please see full disclosure for more details

Some of the links below may be affiliate links. Please see full disclosure for more details

Some of the links below may be affiliate links. Please see full disclosure for more details

Some of the links below may be affiliate links. Please see full disclosure for more details

Some of the links below may be affiliate links. Please see full disclose for more details

Some of the links below are affiliate links. Please see disclosure for full details