$45 Bathroom Cabinet DIY

When we first bought our home, we knew that there were plenty of things that we would need to update. Add in a few "oh my gosh the refrigerator is dead/pipes froze/furnace is broken" moments (insert amused, all-knowing "welcome to homeownership" comment here), and there have been plenty of times when I sat, staring at bare walls and leaking doors wondering why I didn't just move a little further north, to a brand new home.

*Sigh*

Taking all setbacks into consideration, our house is far from complete. I still walk downstairs and think "oh right, that room needs XYZ." However, while it is a work in progress, I still love our home. But now, I'm in even more of a time crunch, because I'm pregnant, and if I don't do it now, when will any project be finished?

So that is what led me to tackle the bathroom, last weekend. Ever since we moved in, I have wanted to paint the kitchen cabinets, and, at some point replace the countertops. I decided to work on the bathrooms first, as sort of a "test run" on a smaller scale.

So, in one day, I took my bathroom from this:

To this:

I chose a black stain because of the existing bathroom color scheme: the toilet and bathtub in this bathroom are gray, while the existing cabinet was brown wood with a cream colored countertop. I opted for black, hoping that the contrast would make the cream/ivory countertop appear whiter and brighter, so that it would complement the gray fixtures.

Supplies:

• Sandpaper or sanding block (I used 2 fine grade sanding blocks)
• Stain, such as Minwax Polyshades
• Paintbrush (I used a thinner paintbrush than one I would use on the walls, since I needed to paint around the mirror)
• Mask, to avoid breathing paint fumes
• New hinges and door pulls
• Painter's tape

How To:

1. Remove the doors, drawers, hinges, pulls, etc.
2. Sand the existing finish and diminish any existing gloss.
3. Tape off any edges, and around any hardware that cannot be removed.
4. Mix the stain. I purchased one quart of stain, which is way more than enough, so keep this in mind when purchasing. A little goes a long way.
5. Cover the entire surface with a thin coat of stain. You will get a much better result from multiple thin coats, than you will from one thick, gloppy coat. Plus, the stain is rather thin and runny, so a thin coat reduces the risk of drips.
6. When the stain has dried enough so that it is no longer sticky, lightly sand (optional).
7. Add another coat of stain. This may be enough for you, but there may also be places where the stain needs to be touched up a bit. Add a coat as needed.
8. After the final coat has dried, remove the tape, attach your new hardware, and reattach the doors and drawers.

Now, you should have a brand new bathroom!

What I May Have Done Differently:

While I love the new cabinet, and the bathroom definitely looks modern and updated, the finish is a lot glossier than I anticipated. If I were to redo this DIY, I would pay more attention to the finish on the can of stain, and maybe pick something a little more subdued. However, I am definitely not disappointed, and this is, of course, up to personal preference.

You may also be interested in:

Painted Brick Fireplace

Recycled Chairs: Wooden Chairs Turned Teal and Chevron

Painted Brick Fireplace

Today's post is a classic example of a DIY gone wrong, that actually ended up even better than anticipated. When we moved into our home a few weeks ago, I knew that I wanted to paint the fireplace. Some people love old brick, but it just wasn't working for me, and it made the room in the basement look a lot darker.

Plus, there was a section of mismatched brick and ugly mortar in the middle of the wall, where a hole was clearly patched.

I was at first inspired by this gorgeous painted fireplace, so I started by following those instructions. The two paint colors that I chose were "Creamy White" by Behr Ultra, and Behr "Blanket Brown", both satin enamel. I used a roller to paint the brick with the white shade, and a paint brush to paint between the bricks and completely cover the mortar. I used roughly two coats, to completely cover the brick.

Now, the blogger at the previous link stated that her brick had a rough texture, and was uneven, which helped to get the almost spattered look of the painted fireplace. Because my brick was mostly smooth, I used a pair of scissors to give the roller some texture for the top coat.

Then, I rolled it in the brown paint, and lightly painted over a section of the wall.

I don't have a photo of that part, but maybe it was the color, maybe it was the texture of the brick, but whatever it was, it was unfortunately not the effect that I wanted. 

We mixed some white paint with the brown to lighten it up a bit, and tried again. Still something was off.

"I kind of like the white better," my husband said. So we decided to try and wipe off some of the brown paint, wait for it to dry, and then repaint that section white. As I grabbed a paper towel and smeared off some of the paint (which actually just smoothed it out), my husband stopped and said, "actually, I kind of like how that looks."

A new plan was born.

We painted the walls, still using the textured roller and a light hand, and coating the wall and fireplace in sections. It's important to roll vertically instead of horizontally, or the paint will cover the mortar. Then using a dry paper towel, smudge the paint horizontally along each brick. This part of the process is really quick, and the goal isn't to make it look completely perfect. 

Here is the finished product (excuse the table full of supplies)!

Close up:

Painted brick fireplace.

All in all, I think it turned out really well for a a DIY accident, and it really makes the room look much brighter and put together!

You might also be interested in:

Teal and Chevron Painted Wooden Chairs

Recycled Chairs: Wooden Chairs Turned Teal & Chevron

We've recently moved into a new home, and after ripping out some hideous wallpaper (post to follow), and painting our bedroom our beautiful shade of teal, I had some paint left over. In a rush to get some seating ready for our housewarming party, I used it to transform some old dining chairs into cute, comfy seating.

Using some upholstery tacks, grey and white chevron printed fabric, and leftover paint (and some primer!), I was able to turn these chairs (which I got for free from a friend) into something eye catching and new.

To prime them, I used Kilz Original primer, and painted one coat (kind of haphazardly) over all four chairs. I wasn't really worried about getting paint on the seats, since I planned to cover them anyway. After letting the primer dry, I painted each one with a coat of teal paint. The paint brush definitely leaves some lines in the paint, but that was the look that I was going for. If you want a smooth finish, you might want to try a roller.

To cover the seats, I simply cut enough printed fabric to stretch over the top of the seat, and stretch around the edges. I placed of bit of polyester batting between the fabric and the top of the seat cushion. It doesn't add ton of cushion, but it fluffs up the seat a little bit to make it look newer, and less worn in.

I used some upholstery tacks to attach the edges of the fabric underneath the seat cushions, and reattached them to the frame of the chair, and there you go! Brand new chairs from an old dining set that was destined for the dumpster.

Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole

Chicken Cordon Bleu is a fancy-sounding recipe that involves stuffing chicken breasts with ham and cheese. That sounds pretty labor-intensive to me, so this Chicken Cordon Bleu casserole is a perfect way to get all of the flavor, with minimal fuss!

It's low carb, gluten free (assuming you have gluten-free panko for topping), and most importantly, it's really, really good.

You will need:

• Approximately 6 cups of cooked chicken. You can use less, but more makes for a bigger casserole. It needs to at least cover the bottom of a 9 x 13 baking dish.
• 1/2 pound of honey ham
• 1/4 to 1/2 pounds of swiss cheese, depending on how thinly it is sliced.
• 4 tbsp of flour (I use Bob's Red Mill, for gluten free!)
• 6 tsp of butter
• 3 and 1/2 cups of milk
• 1 and 1/2 tsp of salt
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 heaping tablespoon of spicy mustard
• Lime or lemon juice
• Panko bread crumbs
• Parsley for topping

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place the chicken in a layer in the bottom of a greased baking dish. Chop up the ham, and layer it on top, and then cover with the swiss cheese.

In a pot or pan, melt the butter over high heat. Slowly add the flour a scoop at a time, stirring constantly to mix it in. Gluten free flour tends to clump, for me at least, so stirring quickly and constantly while adding a little at a time really seems to help.

Slowly stir in the milk, paprika, salt, and mustard. Lower to medium heat, and let the sauce thicken for about ten minutes, continuing to stir occasionally so that it doesn't burn.

Pour the sauce over the casserole, covering it completely. Sprinkle panko and parsley over the top of the entire casserole, and bake for 25 minutes. The casserole should be bubbly when it has finished cooking. Let cool, and serve!

You may also enjoy:

Crockpot Chicken Chili

Jalapeno Popper Stuffed Chicken

Ravens Purpletini

Are you looking for a purple drink for the Baltimore Ravens football, or for a wedding or event? Then look no further than the Ravens Purpletini!

My husband and I are huge Baltimore Raven's fans, and since I'm a big fan of the color purple in general, it only makes sense that we had to perfect a purple drink recipe!

Please note that this drink recipe is for two drinks per batch. While I'm sure that you could use your math and create a big pitcher of it, if you are looking for a party-size serving, I highly suggest you try this purple punch.









You will need:

• A shaker (if not, you will have to guess your measurements)
• Three ounces of vodka
• 2-3 ounces of cranberry juice
• 1 ounce of sour mix
• 1 ounce of lemon-lime soda
• 1 ounce of Blue Curacao

Shake. Pour. Enjoy!

You may also enjoy:
Purple Yucca
Buffalo Chicken Tacos

Crockpot Chicken Chili

I have to admit that cooking with a slow cooker/crockpot made me slightly anxious. I was, perhaps unreasonably, worried that leaving the appliance plugged in and cooking all day would leave me to come home to a flaming pile of rubble where my kitchen used to be. Luckily, this did not happen, and using a crockpot has become one of my favorite ways to cook.

I <3 Crockpot

 

One of my go to meals is this simple chicken chili, which uses only a few ingredients, but is so simple and tastes great! Feel free to modify to use whatever you have on hand.

You will need:

• Approximately 6 chicken breasts (depending on the size). You can also substitute ground chicken, but the shredded chicken breast is definitely better, in my opinion.
• One 28 ounce can of diced (not crushed!) tomatoes
• One jar of salsa
• 1 can of corn
• 2 cans of the beans of your preference. I usually use cannellini, but I've also used black beans and kidney beans, or a mix!
• Cheese, for topping

*If you're feeling spicy, try making it buffalo-style, by adding 1/2 tsp of oregano (approx.), and 3/4 cup of buffalo sauce!

Place the whole, uncooked chicken breasts in the crockpot first, then dump the remaining ingredients on top. Cook on low for 6-8 hours. Afterward, the chicken will shred easily with two forks. Mix it up and enjoy!

You might also like to cook:
Moussaka Casserole
Chicken Bacon Ranch Pasta

Sweet Potato Cheese Fries

I'm sort of at the point where I've cut so many things out of my diet, that things I once hated are now delicious. Example: sweet potatoes. So how did I manage the cheesy mess that is pictured directly to the left?

Enter cheesy sweet potato fries. They aren't actual fries, though I suppose you could cut them into fry shapes. However, if you're like me, you won't care, and will choose to simply have your husband cut sweet potatoes into slices.

The following recipe will let you treat yourself with a healthier version of cheese fries that tastes suspiciously similar to it's fattening alter ego.

You will need:

• 2 sweet potatoes
• 5 tbsp of olive oil
• 1 tsp of salt
• 4 tsp garlic
• Cheese (cheddar, mexican blend, etc)

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees, and cut your sweet potatoes into slices that are roughly 1/4 inch thick. Place the slices into a bowl, pour in the olive oil, salt, and garlic, and toss until the slices of sweet potato are covered.

Spread the sweet potato slices out on a tray (it's okay if they are overlapping) and bake for 25-30 minutes, flipping them with a spatula halfway through. After 30 minutes, take them out, and cover with your chosen cheese. Bake for about 2 minutes, and remove from the oven.

We ate ours with some chipotle ranch dressing. It was amazing!

You may also enjoy:

Peanut Butter Fruit Dip (great with apple slices and strawberries)

Jalapeno Popper Stuffed Chicken