DIY Circus Tent Ceiling Tutorial

After coming across this gorgeous circus tent ceiling on Pinterest, I have been determined to incorporate this idea into Bean new room. This weekend, after weeks of dreaming, plan finally came to fruition.  The walls and ceiling of her new room were painted a tan color that I once loved for the guest room but that simply would not do for Bean’s Big Girl Room. 

 

Step 1: We painted the inside of the closet ( I added horizontal pink lines), the ceiling and 12” down the wall with White.  As we painted our fourth coat, we learned a valuable lesson about saving $12 on the cheap generic brand paint. Trust me,  paint quality is not the place to save a few bucks!

Step 2: Straight Lines!! After the ceiling was painted white, it was time to tape the lines for the circus tent.  Admittedly, this was a bit intimidating but in the end it was so much easier than I anticipated.  I began on the upper 12” of the wall that we had painted white. Now I sketched it out on AutoCad to figure out the scale of the triangles.  Bean’s room was essentially 11’0” X 11’ 1” with a strange little entrance Bump.     

 

I figured out that the triangles at the ceiling line would need to be approximately 19” to make them all the same so I began at the corners and drew a vertical line every 19” using my handy level to keep them straight.  I started at the corner and worked to the middle of the wall.  This meant that the excess measurement ended up in the center space. You can see from my diagram that AutoCad came in very handy in extending the lines into the entrance area.

Step 3: Once I had the vertical lines drawn, I began painting every other square the pink color. 

 

Step 4: Chalk Lines!! When the vertical blocks were painted the husband and I took a chalk line and snapped a line following the pattern on the diagram.

Step 5: More Lines!  With the chalk lines up, it was time for tape.  I knew this project would depend on a straight crisp line so this is a place where I splurged on the good painters tape.  Was it a necessary splurge?  I have no idea but the idea of painting this ceiling twice made the extra $10 bucks more than worth it!

 

As we taped to the middle we kept the tape inside the “white area”.  This part is crucial.  We also let our tape overlap in the center. You can tape more precisely to get a perfect point in the middle but I am LAZY! I also planned on adding a ceiling medallion to the center of the ceiling so I was not overly concerned with the center 18”.

Step 6: PAINT!  To be honest once the tape went up, the painting was a breeze and went quite fast.  The next day the tape came down and well honestly I was in love!!!

We were left with the brown on the wall, which looked especially shabby with the newly painted ceiling so the next step was to paint the walls.

Step 7: Transition Strip! There are two ways that we considered transitioning from painted ceiling to the wall.  You could paint a horizontal line or you could use molding.  We went with the latter. We used cheap vinyl trim called trellis trim.  It was $2 for an 8’-0” piece and was a simple 2”w square trim. The trim can be cut with a utility knife and applied with a simple construction adhesive.  Is this the correct way to do it? I don’t know, but it did the job and it looks great!  

I also had my hubby build window valances so we simply ran the trim right into the valance.  (picture tutorial to follow)

In the end the job was much easier than I expected it to be so if you give it a try be sure to share your experience with me! I thought I would feel relieved when the painting was done but now really there is still quite a long To Do list from bedding to storage to curtains so check back and please let me know if you have any ideas or comments for me!

 

A New Room For Bean

Since returning to work full time, it feels like a lifetime since I have found a moment to think, much less put pen to paper (or fingers to keys). This week I am working on moving my baby girl into her very own big girl room and the realization that she is growing up so fast (and that I have done an awful job of capturing those moments on paper) have made me take pause and recommit to recording these moments. 

To be quite honest, an alarming squeak escaped my lips when I saw where my blog left off, after all, 9 months ago, my baby was a baby. Today she a walking, talking 2 year old, hurtling towards adolescence.

Fast forward to today and my thoughts are consumed with plans for her “Big Girl Room”. Once I get a design idea in my head, there is no letting go. Therefore, much to my husband’s chagrin, this weekend will be filled with one project after another in an attempt to get her new room wrapped up. Admittedly, I don’t know if I am more excited to give her a new room or to claim her old room as my closet overflow, all I know if that I am determined to make some progress. 

After a LOT of time on Pinterest (Follow Me) I have fallen in love with the idea of a grey and pink room that can grow with her and be girly while not being too girly. These are a few of the inspiration rooms that have made me swoon!
 

I love everything from the rag rugs to that gorgeous ottoman.

That mirror almost made my heart stop…hand to God!

This ceiling!! I must admit that when I showed the hubby this, he immediately muttered “Damn You Pinterest”!!

Weeks later, I have not been able to get it out of my mind so I wouldn’t be surprised if this ends up being a part of Bean’s new room.  I have already started crafting and scheming to get this wonderful luxe look on a canned tuna budget so stay tuned for a barrage of progress photos and tutorials!

 

 

 

Bean’s DIY Halloween Costume

Last Year, I spent hours turning my little Bean into a little Owl for Halloween.  I pinned, I glued and in the end I could not have been happier with her DIY Toddler Halloween Costume!

(when will I learn to rotate pictures?)

 

 This year, I had my heart set on turning her into a Peacock.  I amnot certain where the bird obbsession came from but  I was pricing feathers and looking for blue leotards when my mom stopped over with this hat that she had picked up at the mall.  I took one slightly disapproving look at it and immediately thought “Yes mom, that is exactly what a 2 year old needs…a hat…that she will wear for a picture and never again”.  Then I tried it on her and in a split second any dream of turning her into a peacock disappeared.  It was adorable and immediatly reminded me of an equestrian helmet (which on the head of toddler is too cute for words.  I began googling pictures of equestrians and this picture of the American Girl equestrian doll set me on a path of turning Bean into a little mini Equestrian.

As I thought it through, I realized, this was going to be the easiest DIY Halloween Costume ever and that while it would cost me money, everything could be worn separately again and again, well except maybe the hat…the hat really is not the most practical toddler accessory.

 

I began by simply taking sticky tape Velcro and attaching it to the insides of the hat, in front of her ears and adding a piece of black ribbon to make the chin strap.  I did not take pictures because it really was so simple. While I would normally post a full DIY Halloween costume tutorial,  here was literally no crafting needed (except for cutting 2 pieces of Velcro, which you can see in the picture) so I am instead going to post a list of items that I needed to pull it all together.

Hat - The Hat came from H&M but any little round bowler hat could be adapted.

Jacket - I bought a boys, black velvet jacket on Ebay for $5 (originally from Target)

Shirt - I had a white button down shirt with a ruffled color that I had found at a garage sale during the summer

Pants- Now I had my heart set on these adorable Ralph Lauren “riding pants with the little patch on the inside of the knee, but they kept selling on ebay for $30 and I simply couldn’t do it.  So I used a pair of white stretch pants she already had.  I bought suede Iron on elbow patches to replicated the look,  but in the end I didn’t think I needed them.

Boots- To be honest Bean ended up with 2 pairs of boots, I found a pair that I thought would work and a few weeks later stumbled across these black boots with the patent leather toes and heels on a clearance pile at our Gap Outlet.  They were technically a size 8 (and she was still comfortably in a 7) but her feet grow like weeds so I bought them anyway and they worked perfectly.

Note:  I also bought a little red ribbon from the party store but I forgot about it until the day after Halloween so it never made it to the costume,  still, it would have been cute.

The piece that really sold it was the stick pony, we found it for $12 at a toy outlet and gave it to her a few weeks early so she could “practice” playing with it.  Seeing her “gallop” up and down the sidewalks Halloween night made us realize that was the best decision ever.  In the end, I loved her DIY Halloween Costume so much that I let her wear it for way more than Trick or Treating.  I think we ended up celebrating this  Halloween costume for a good week and half by letting her wear it everywhere (from the grocery store to Mcdonalds)

I could not have been happier and since every item can be worn again all winter long,  even my husband was happy as a clam! 

 

Update:  I have stumbled across a miniture pony farm that gives pony rides.  With winter coming to an end,  I am planning on letting her wear the costume again for a trip to the farm because I am DYING to have pictures of her dressed like an equestrian on a miniture pony *SWOON*

Where was I when Easter Egg Hunts got competative...for parents?

Today with Easter behind us, I found myself sorting through Easter pictures, reliving Bean's many first experiences. The one that stands out of course is the Easter bunny and the myriad of egg hunts that Bean wandered through. I was unsure of how Bean might react to a large man in a bunny costume with a face that I personally find terrifying but the Bean was unphased.

She shyly wandered up to the bunny and presented herself for a hug as I stood as far away as I coud while still keeping her in view. In fact, as the egg hunt wrapped up, Bean sidled back to that bunny reaching to be lifted into his nap and when I went to lift her down, she turned her face dramatically into his furry bunny chest with a loud "Nooooo"!
I was shocked at her bravery but then again my fear of human puppets surely did not begin at such a young age.

The real fun of the day was watching her hunt eggs, or rather watching all the children hunt eggs. I love people watching and the sights at an Easter egg hunt did not disappoint. For starters, Bean is one year old. She does not eat chocolate or candy so the contents of those eggs are far less important to her than the hunt. Her first hunt was in her Grandfathers back yard and she was the only participant. I watched as she shrieked with glee throwing her hands to her cheeks with a look of surprise at every egg. Since her grandfather "toddler proofed" her eggs, filling them with quarters for her piggy bank and graham cracker bunnies, she sat and opened each egg but the enthusiasm of the hunt was gone. Her next two hunts occurred with other children, the first with cousins and the second with neighborhood children. It was the second hunt, that I lost focus on the children and began watching the parents. I watched as parents followed their children pulling their arms to direct them to the next egg or running ahead and standing over eggs as they called their children over.
Was I missing the point? Wasn't this hunt for children? I came across a viewpoint in the paper on this exact situation in which parents were quoted saying they helped because they wanted their child to be on an even playing field. It's an egg hunt, why does there need to be an even playing field? Who will be disappointed in finding only one egg in their basket? Bean did find eggs at the neighborhood hunt but she was far more concerned with watching the other kids. In fact, at one point as she stood watching the children, a little boy walked over to her, took her hand and helped her put an egg in her basket, and yes I swooned and almost asked him to marry her in twenty nine years! A moment later, another little boy swooped in behind her and unloaded a handful of eggs from her basket into his. At the end, I emptied the contents of her eggs into her basket and returned the plastic shells to the homeowner, noticing two things. On one end of th e patio, a parent had their children counting their eggs to settle the argument over who had "won" and there was not a single candy that would be given to Bean from her "winnings". When had Easter Egg hunts gotten competitive? As Daddy carried Bean home, I knew she would never even know she missed out on her many candy treats, (whichwould be donated to Daddy). For her, the hunt was all about the experience. When she is old enough for it to be about the loot, she will run a little faster as I hopefully drink my coffee on the sidelines feeling no need to "coach" her, unless I see her move in on the unwatched basket of some unsuspecting baby, in which case she will be snatched off the playing field and benched, immediately!

Crafty Mom Dumpster Dives…Again

I am beginning to fear that the neighbors are actually going to start locking their garbage cans when they see me slow down as I walk by but once again, I have scored with a dumpster dive.  Technically I suppose calling it a dumpster dive makes it sound a bit more extreme than it was.  While I am a thrifty and crafty mom, I have not quite resorted to crawling into dumpsters.  However when I saw this little art desk sitting out for the trash, I knew it had to be mine.  

Since I was in the car with my husband, I asked him to stop and he looked at me like I was crazy and kept driving.  I then dropped him off at home, put Bean down for a nap and when he got into the shower I leaped into the car and drove around the block and hauled it home (much to his chagrin since I stored it in his garage for months before touching it). 

This week, with spring around the corner, I decided to finish the awaiting indoor projects that I know will not get done once the weather warms.

First things first… cleaning this desk.    It was filthy but with Clorox wipes and goo gone, I got it pretty clean.  At least I thought I did, when I took it apart(which is a MUST in a rehab project) to paint it I realized that it was still rather disgusting and headed back for more cleaning supplies. 

Finally with the pieces apart, clean and drying in the sun I headed out for Plastic spray paint.  I decided to go a classic white and navy and sprayed each piece.  When it had dried I reassembled it and sprayed it with a final protective semi-gloss lacquer so it could be washed (because I knew Bean was going to beeline for it  with a crayon or marker in under 30 seconds).

Well, it is now inside and the drawer is filled with crayons that before spilled out everywhere.  And I am in love with the rehabbed desk and so excited for the years of toddler activities I envision happening right here!

 The bean is happy as a clam.   

Now all I need is a chair…luckily tomorrow is trash day!

Parents And Technology…Are We Too Busy Recording To Appreciate The Precious Moments

The other day, we rewarded with a fluke spring day in what is typically my least favorite winter month and we headed to the neighborhood park.  As my husband chased Bean around the basketball courts, I found myself lying on the ground trying to get the perfect shot and it made me wonder.  When it comes to parents and technology are we so caught up in the capabilities technology has afforded us that we are forgetting to live in the moment? 

I put my smart phone back in my pocket, and picked myself up off the ground to join in on the game of chase uncertain as to whether I was feeling guilty over spending too much time behind the screen of my phone.  

When it comes to parents and technology the landscape has changed dramatically from when we were children.  I don’t have to remember to grab a camera or a separate video camera before we leave for adventures because my phone is ALWAYS attached to me. I don’t have to carry a planner to plan play dates and mom time because my PHONE is always on me.  I don’t need as large of an arsenal of toys for waiting rooms and restaurants because my phone is loaded with toddler Iphone apps is always on me and Bean can navigate it almost as well as me. 

The question is am I missing out on the simple joys of parenting because I am behind the screen trying to capture the experience with a frame worthy shot or uploadable video?  I follow my Bean around with the Phone snapping pictures desperately wanting to capture every moment. Perhaps it is because I do not have many pictures of my own childhood.  Perhaps, I want her to know that I cherished every single moment I was blessed to have with her. However will she remember me snapping endless pictures from behind my phone screen or will she remember me chasing her through the yard with my attention fully devoted to the sound of her laughter. 

With my phone securely zipped into my pocket, we ran as a family across the courts laughing like children, laughing those belly laughs that only come when you are truly in the moment. 

 I don’t see myself giving up the smart phone any time soon, that would require a visit to Rehab and a very intensive 12 step program but I think it may be time to schedule some technology free time into our days.  Maybe some trips to the park where my phone remains charging in the car. I think it may be time for me to watch the Bean’s delight when she goes down the sliding board by herself without trying to capture her expression in a photo.  

This change may mean leaving the park without a priceless photo to post to Facebook showing how cute I think my kid is but I think the memories we will make will be more than worth it. After all, I am a blogger, if I feel the need to brag about an experience that was not captured on film but that is too cute to keep to myself,  I will simply come home and write about it.

Infant Ear Piercing…Is It Worth It To Prove The Bean Is A Girl?

A fellow blogger over at the Parenting Patch brought up Infant Ear Piercing this week as her Hot Topic Tuesday and well since I have been a negligent blogger as of late, I decided that this is as good of a place to jump in as any.  You see I am in favor of infant ear piercing and absolutely swoon over tiny baby girls with those little diamond studs in their earlobes.  Not only do I think it is Adorable with a capital A, it also helps little bald baby girls like my Bean to say “I am a girl”!! 

The Bean is constantly called a boy, constantly.   Perhaps it is because she is a bit of a tomboy and plays a little rough, perhaps it is because I think navy blue is a gender neutral color and I don’t think that dresses are suitable “play” clothing.  There are a lot of variables but with her hair only now beginning to sprout ,  she is generally assumed to be male and I think two little ear studs could make all the difference. So why are her ears still empty?

For one thing, I don’t care that people assume she is a boy.  The other day a father at her baby gym watched her playing with three other boys and turned to me saying, “It’s so nice to see four boys playing together so nicely.  How did I respond? I shook my head, smiled and said, “Oh I know, it’s great.  I didn’t want to make him feel bad about calling Bean a boy and he had just said my child was well behaved, which is all that I heard!  Perhaps little earrings would have made him realize those boys were playing so nicely because they were trying to impress my little lady, but she has no idea that people think she is a boy.   

I was able to pierce my ears at 13 and it was a coming of age milestone.  I paid for it with my saved up allowance and I waited approximately one full week before breaking my father’s rule about no earrings longer that a ½” below the earlobe.   I felt so grown up and I remember cleaning and turning my earrings with pride.  I want the Bean to have that moment.  I want her to feel that pride of making a decision like an adult.  I don’t know if I will make her wait to thirteen but I will make her wait till she can take care of her ears on her own.

Until then I will continue to swoon when I see babies with studs in their ears.  I will also continue to smile when Bean is called a well behaved little boy because while I love the idea of infant ear piercing,  I love the idea of a grown-up  lunch and trip to the mall to get a piercing when she is ready.