OMG!!!! (Squealing like a 13-year-old girl!)

THEY. ARE. COMING.

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!

Finally the day has arrived!

Yes, I squealed. Blew out my hubby's eardrums.

My girlfriends and I are already planning how we are going to purchase the front row seats.

Who do we know? Who can we bribe? Who can we steal borrow from?

We will get them. Oh yes, we will.

OK. Done. Back to our scheduled programming. Check out my five dollar projects below.

Squeal!

UPDATE: Tickets are secured by a very-powerful-distant-cousin-of-best-friend-and-coworker-of-my-sister person.

We don't know where we will be sitting but this guy has connections around here I am confident he will hook us up!!

Awww yeah!!

Double squeal!

Five dollar Spring projects!

Hope your weekend was GREAT! It snowed here today. Ugh. So it was fitting that I worked on Spring projects, eh?

I'm joining Lindsay over at Living with Lindsay for her Five Dollar Challenge -- check out her site, so much fun!

Money doesn't grow on trees?? No one sent me that memo. I should clarify -- one of these projects was FREE and one was only two bucks.

Just sayin'.

Let's start with one of the cutie moss bunnies at Pier One. I've picked these up about four times in the past month or so, but couldn't figure out what to do with them. Last week, it hit me:

A pot I already had, along with foam and moss I already had. Add in a $2 mossy bunny:
ACK! Adorable! Stuff the foam in, stuff the moss on top, stuff in the bunny. You are DONE.

My other project was one I'm really excited about -- because I know you already have half of it in your cabinet:

If you are the ONE person on earth who does not have the generic glass vase that comes with all flowers, then just get your booty over to Goodwill -- they've got about 25 waiting for you.

I used my jute twine (correction from this post -- I thought it was sisal but turns out jute has a slightly darker look that I like better than the sisal) and wrapped it around and glued it like I did the bottles.

I. love. it. It screams Spring to me. I threw in the "faux" flowers till I splurge on some white tulips. (When did tulips get so expensive??):

And I have to show my under $5 projects from last week as well -- you can find them here. My son's art caddy:
Little container for little toys:
Four custom tags for under $2:
Fun little magnets:
Head over to Lindsay's to see more fun projects! And keep linking up your spray painting projects here -- so much inspiration!

How to install a dimmer switch

If you read this blog waaaay back when, you know how much I luuuuv me some dimmers. I think lighting is one of the most inexpensive and easiest ways to create a mood in your home. And I just cannot express how much a dimmer switch will change the lighting in your room -- for as little as $7.

OK, now STOP shaking your head, thinking, "This Chick has gone and lost. her. mind. I cannot (and will not) do anything electrical."

Yes, you can! I swear. Just look at how easy it is.

If the light you are placing the dimmer on only has ONE switch that operates it, you'll need the single pole dimmer, like this one. This is GOOD because these are CHEAP -- less than $7 (edited to add that the cost has gone up over the years -- I can now find them for about $12).

Dimmers come in a mad selection of styles and you'll pay more for more bells and whistles:

If your light is controlled by more than one switch, you will need the 3-way version. You need to look when you purchase -- the packages are almost identical.
When you open it up, this is what you'll see:

(Stop shaking. It's easy, I SWEAR.)
The only tools you should need are a Phillips head screw driver and a flat head screwdriver:

Go to the switch for the light you are changing out and turn it on -- first so you can tell if you get the right breaker and second, it's a real PITA when you've run down a set of stairs, through the house and to the garage, turned off the breaker, run back through the house, up the stairs and then realized YOU HAVE NO CLUE WHICH SWITCH YOU ARE WORKING WITH! Whew.

Go to the breaker box, and turn the switch to off:
Make sure the light is NOT working. Now you are free to use your flat head screwdriver to take off the switch plate. This is what you'll see:

Stop hyperventilating. It's going TO BE OK!!

Use your Phillips screwdriver to take the actual switch off the wall:

Then pull the whole switch out. There will be a wire connected to the green ground screw, and two wires connected to the switch -- either stuck inside it or tightened under the screws:

See that little bitty slat below? You'll want to use the flathead screwdriver and push it in while you pull the wire out of the little hole above it. (If your wires are in there. See above.)

Next, just follow the directions. Wrap the copper ground wire around the green wire on the dimmer:

Cap it off with the enclosed nut. Just stick it on the end and twist it. This ensures the wires stay connected and protected:

Then simply connect the other two black wires to the two left over wires. Twist together and twist the nut on:

Gently push all the wires back into the wall box:

That's it!! Told you it was easy. Screw the dimmer switch back onto the plate:

Go to turn on the breaker switch to make sure it is working. Then get completely sidetracked by your Decorating ADD and peruse the new Ballard catalog that just came in the mail:

Sorry. Make sure the light works:

Then go ahead and put the plate back on. Make sure all the little screws go the same way:

Oh, sorry. That's just me. I think I like this way better:

So many issues, so little time.

That's it! You are done!! I have installed dimmers in pretty much every room in our house. The kitchen: The dining room is a necessity!!

I have all of our ceiling fan lights on dimmers. Our master bath light is on a dimmer -- FABULOUS on dark mornings. All of our recessed lighting is on dimmers. I tell you what -- they say dimmers save on electricity and I believe it. We've been in this house five years and just last week changed out two recessed lights. They lasted FIVE years people!

You won't be disappointed! I challenge you to make this a quick and easy weekend project!

Disclaimer: MAKE SURE SURE SURE the breaker is turned off. Please! If you've not tried this project, do your own research as well and try this at your own risk. 

Four ca-ute projects under $5!

And three were under TWO BUCKS!!

Awwwww yeah...

And yes, some involved spray paint, of course.

Remember the little tool box from the previous post? I got it for $3.99 at Goodwill and about peed. my. pants. when I saw it. I have been looking for one forever! (OK, just a few weeks, but...whatever.)

I printed out my stencil:

After I spray painted the whole thing brown, I added the stencil to the front:

(The blurriness is me, not the stencil.)

Then took another trip to Goodwill (good thing there are three within 1.5 mile radius of our house, right??) and found five little glass cups that fit in perfect:

Totally and completely adorable, no?? I still have to find more art supplies that are scattered throughout the house, but I absolutely positively adore it:
Total cost was $4 for the box and $2.50 for the cups. Uhhh...wait...that's more than $5. OK, well...whatever.
The next two involved the following:

Basically 60 cents of paper, $1 wood tags and $1.50 knob from Hob Lob -- almost all half off!

I got this little container from my sweet stepmom last Christmas, (hello LA!) and loved it, but have been staring at it in my son's toy room thinking I needed to jazz it up with some ca-uteness:
Spray adhesive, scrapbook paper, spray paint and a knob later:
He loves it! I love it! Ahhh! Feel the love!!

More scrapbook paper and spray adhesive on the wood tags for this one. Add in some fun scissors (1.99 at Hob Lob -- I have a few and love them!), $1 ribbon, the printer and you get this:

(Again...blurriness is me. I swear I wasn't drunk.)

I drilled holes, ran the ribbon through and tied them to the baskets:

This box was a $1.99 Goodwill find. It's the perfect size for the itty bitty teeny tiny toys little boys love:

Adorable!! Less than $2 bucks for all four people!

And for my final trick of the evening, I give you 60 cent wood cuties you can find at any craft store:

Hot glued magnets to the back and you get new magnets for the Bub:

I did all of these in just a couple hours and they were F.U.N. I've got a couple more little projects to do to the toy room and then I can't wait to show you!

The Spray Paint Party has seriously been the most fun I've had! Keep linking below ladies!!

Summer inspirations...

The magical season is here. Summer.
Days of alfresco dining. Sheer white curtains fluttering in the cool gentle breeze.
Floral tablecloths, tall glasses of lemonade and fresh flowers.
Some summer eye candy for all of you:-)

Images from Petersham Nurseries, Taj Safaris, Fisherman's Lodge, Kerala House Boats, Pinakin Patel, Deodar's Guest House, Villa Balquisse and from some old posts.