[Coupon Diary] Entry One

Dear Diary,

Everywhere I look a new fad is popping up... on my television... in my RSS feed... in my favorite blog... on my Facebook... Couponing... and not just your average, "save 50 cents" but extreme couponing. 

I've seen the show, TLC's Extreme Couponing and I have seen the blogs, The Coupon Project and The Krazy Koupon Lady and always overlooked diving into the world "$1.45 shopping trips".

My savings typically includes "You Saved $3.49".  I want my savings to be "You Saved $60.00". 

I have read the Couponing for Beginners articles and I literally am a victim of every "What Not To Do"!  I shop randomly through the week for that night's dinner... I don't carry my coupons in a organized fashion... I don't make lists based on sales... but I want to.  I want to save my family money.  I want to be thrifty.  I want to be an extreme couponer!

 

My first entry included how to begin.  The Krazy Koupon Lady tells me that I can become an extreme couponer in 10 days.  The Coupon Project: Coupons 101 walks me through 15 lessons.  Overwhelmed much?  Yes.  It seems so easy.  Simple really?  Get Sunday paper, clip the coupons, scan the ads, organize coupons... very simple indeed. 

Well I am going to take this journey into my own hands, with the much needed help from the experts at it all.  I already have my [smaller] coupon binder.  I have begun "clipping" but I have not begun shopping.  I am a little intimidated at it all.  These experts tackle all stores... all items... all coupons.  I am thinking that I am going to start out small.  Start with the stores I shop at most: Target, Fred Meyer and Safeway.  After I spend the rest of the week researching and organizing, I will begin with my Sunday paper and my weekly ads and begin making my lists for the week.  My goal... save more money.

Well my dear diary... I think I have rambled enough on where to begin and how crazy this new project sounds... but I am excited... I really am...

                                                                      Sincerely,

[DIY] | [Cleaning] How to Clean Your Microfiber Furniture

I have a toddler.  I have a husband.  Therefore my couch is a bit messy.  A few stains, a lot of water rings and discoloration. 

My microfiber couch as been through spills, markers, ink, you name it... I wanted to clean it and the basic water and scrubbing was not cutting it.

I found this site (from Pinterest), The Complete Guide to Imperfect Homemaking, where the it led me to Chris and Robin's Nest.  Robin posted the tips and tricks about cleaning a microfiber couch WITHOUT water... Here is my journey trying to clean my microfiber ottoman.

[Theirs: Chris and Robin's Nest | Mine: You Can Pinterest]

[DIY] | [Cleaning] How to Clean Your Microfiber Furniture

Difficulty:

• Easy | Medium depending on stains and furniture

Time:

• 15 minutes to 1 hour [depending on size of furniture and depth of stain]

Supplies:

• Vacuum
•  Rubbing Alcohol
• Cloth or Sponge
• Spray Bottle

 Steps:

• Start by vacuuming your furniture piece.  I used my brush attachment.  It was very helpful :)

 

•  Next take your alcohol and add it to a spray bottle.  [I forgot to picture this part...] but here are my supplies for the cleaning...

• From my research, rubbing alcohol does not harm the microfiber.  As with any new cleaning product, try a test spot on the fabric to ensure that it does not damage your furniture.  The rubbing alcohol dries very quickly.  This is one great thing about using it over water.

• Scrub, scrub, scrub.  Seriously, you don't need to do an arm workout if your couch was as dirty as mine.  My arms are so sore.  I can barely type this... [Insert Rosy Cheeks] 

• After it has completely dried, run your hands over the piece to "wake up" your microfiber.  :)  I found that my hand was just as easy as a bristled brush.  

• Here is my final product...

 

• Notice the dirt and grime on my rag... It was white when we began... now it is filled with yuckiness...  

 [Before] & [After*]

*Please note that my Ottoman was especially stained with very old water rings and stains.  Many of them came out in one try.  Tomorrow I will re-clean my Ottoman with the same steps and see if the leftover water stains will remain.

Although my stains still remain, I am overall excited about the outcome... and still ashamed I let my Ottoman get this bad... but I am proud of the hard work, and I mean hard work, that I put into it.

Note to self... Don't let your Microfiber furniture get this bad... makes cleaning a lot more work... ;)

[DIY] Yarn Vases

My kitchen/dining room bar needs something... but what?

I went on a Pinterest search for some simple do-it-yourself [DIY] ideas and I came across Yarn Vases.  After a few clicks I found Designs by Vanessa & A Simple Kind of Life have two great DIY tutorials. 

Myfriend came over (and she is crafty) so I put her to work on our first yarn vase.  Here is our journey with yarn, hot glue and a bottle.

[Theirs: Designs by Vanessa | Mine: You Can Pinterest]

[Recipe] Yarn Vase

Difficulty:

• Easy 

Time:

• 15 to 30 minutes [based on size of bottle and optional embellishments]

Supplies:

• Yarn
• Bottle
• Hot glue gun & glue

Steps:

• Start by placing a small strip of glue along the bottom base of the bottle.
• Place the yarn over the glue and begin wrapping the yarn around the bottle.

• After a few wraps (2-3 to begin, then 4-6 after you feel comfortable) push the yarn to create a tight, close coil.

• Since our bottle has writing, we wanted the yarn to be very tight, but depending on your bottle and style, you could leave the coils looser.  It's simply your preference. 

• If you choose to make the coils tight, you won't need additional glue until you reach the portion of the bottle that changes size.  Near the neck of the bottle you may need a small strip of glue every few wraps to keep the yarn in position.  (Trust us, this took a few tries without glue before we noticed it gaps and strange over-lapping...)

• Once you get to the top of the bottle, it is your choice to decide if you would like to place yarn around the top of the bottle.  Which ever way you choose, make sure you add glue to secure the yarn.   

• After our first [white] yarn vase, we decided to be a little bit more adventurous.  We made a bi-colored vase and added swirl flowers.  The ideas are limitless.  If you make some with with embellishments, please share what you did!  We would love to hear about them!

As always, thank you for stopping by!

[Inspiration] Running late

Or as Carrie Bradshaw would say, "If I wasn't perpetually ten minutes late, would my life be totally different?"

[Blooper]

Last week I posted this [DIY: Bow Holder].  It was a very easy and inexpensive project.

• The ribbon was on sale at Michaels for $1.98.
• The frame was free from my grandmother.  (You can also find inexpensive frames at a thrift store for very cheap).
• The scrapbook paper was on sale at Michaels for $0.25 a piece, so it was $0.50.

As I was trying to take a quick picture to post, my daughter had to come investigate and play with her "bow". 

 A very durable bow holder.

Toddler friendly.

Easy to use.

Hope you have a great upcoming week and Happy President's Day!

[Recipe] Pepperoni Pizza Grilled Cheese Sandwich

Any simple meal in our household makes for a happy [mommy and] family.  

That is why I was super excited when I saw Pepperoni Pizza Grilled Cheese Sandwiches, I almost jumped for joy!  What a great twist on your typical grilled cheese or pepperoni pizza!  

I found some great recipes from Sweet Anna's Blog and Deep South Dish.  I decided to take a spin at this sandwich for my family.

[Theirs: Deep South Dish | Mine: You Can Pinterest]

[Recipe] Pepperoni Pizza Grilled Cheese Sandwich

Serving size: 1 sandwich

Difficulty:

• Easy

Time: 

• 15 to 30 minutes

Ingredients:

• Mozzarella Cheese Slices (enough to cover bread twice)
• 2 slices of bread (we used Whole Wheat bread)
• Pepperoni (at least one layer, approx. 12 regular pieces)
• Butter or margarine (we used melted butter with a brush)

Instructions:

• Butter the 2 pieces of bread on one side.
• Cut the mozzarella if needed.
• Place one piece of bread, butter side down on a frying pan on top of the stove.
• Add one layer of cheese.

• Add one layer of pepperoni.

• Add one more layer of cheese.

• Place the other piece of bread down, butter side up.
• Turn on the stove to medium-low
• **Tip** Use a domed lid to cover to help melt the cheese evenly.
• Flip the sandwich after a few minutes or golden brown with melted cheese.  
• Cook both sides.
• Take off, let cook, cut and ENJOY!

Some recipes call for marinara as a dipping sauce, but for our meal, we used tomato soup.  It was delicious.  It was a nice spin on grilled cheese.  Next time we will try marinara sauce!  Enjoy everyone!

[Women's Style] | [Guide] What is Polyvore?

If you have checked out the Women's Apparel category on Pinterest you may have seen something like this...

Casual Touch of Yellow by youcanpinterest featuring heart shaped jewelry

When I first saw this I thought, what exactly is this?  And how can I make my own outfits?

The answer is Polyvore.

What Exactly is Polyvore? 

[From their website]

Polyvore is the web's largest community of tastemakers where people can discover their style and set trends around the world. Trendseekers and shoppers alike come to Polyvore to discover the hottest brands, products, trends and looks.
Polyvore's easy-to-use virtual styling tool lets you mix and match products from any online store to create fashion collections called "sets".
After you have created a set, you can publish and share it with your friends and the Polyvore community.

 How Can I Make My Own Outfits?

•  Simply sign up at polyvore.com.  It's so simple.  You can follow me at YouCanPinterest on Polyvore.
• Once you are apart of the community you can begin creating your "set" (or outfit as I call it). 
•  All the categories can be found to your right.  Find the category you'd like to begin with and click on it.

 How Can I Narrow My Choices or See More?

• On the right hand side there are small tabs to narrow your search by color, price and even enter your own keywords (which are pre-set to help you find keywords)
• You can also click on the arrow or type in a page number to see more options.

What Do I Do When I Find Something I Like?

• Simply drag it to the left side.  
• Here you can move the item, resize it or rotate.  You can also flip it, flop it, copy it... it's your blank canvas to design.
• Clicking on the little house will allow you to go back home to the categories and continue browsing.

How Do I Publish?

• Simply hit "Publish" on the far left side with the white check in the green box. 
• A screen will pop-up and ask you for a title, description and category.  
• You may add optional tags (which are also preset).
• Hit Publish and...

Your outfit is now on your Polyvore page for all to see!

• Share it on Pinterest, Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr... 

Such a fun and simple way to explore the fashionista in you!  You can even look for items in your price range for everyday looks or check out the latest designer fashions.

Keep stylin' and Polyvore (& Pinterest)!

[Note] Valentine's Day 2012

I would like to start off by sending you a huge thank you for stopping by my blog.  I have to admit that this is not an easy task for me.  In reality, it's quite tedious.  It takes me a while for the creativity juices to start bubbling and this blog is making me use the right side of my brain. 

The Pinterest community is so large.  I think that is my road block... trying to decide which category to showcase and in what way.  I have actually organized my Google calendar with tasks that I need to complete so that I can continue to dive deep into all that Pinterest can offer.

Once again, thank you for diving into this journey with me.  Have an amazing Valentine's Day!

[Recipe] Cream Cheese and Jelly Sushi

Okay Pinterest, you have just made lunch a little more fun on my toddler's home.

Yahoo! posted an article about Jif's Peanut Butter and Jelly Sushi Rolls and it made it's way on to Pinterest.  PB&J is such a staple lunch in many homes, what a fun way to change it up.

In our home, we do not use Peanut Butter, but we do use Cream Cheese.  I wanted to try this simple recipe with our staple sandwich.

 [Theirs: Jif Peanut Butter] | [Mine: You Can Pinterest]

[Recipe] Cream Cheese and Jelly Sushi Rolls

Difficulty:

• Easy 

Time:

• 10 to 15 minutes

Supplies:

• Cream Cheese
• Jelly
• Bread
• Rolling Pin or Large Can
• Knife

Steps:

• Roll out your bread with a rolling pin or large can.

• Cut off the crest, leaving you with a rectangle.
• Cut the rectangle in half.
• Spread Cream Cheese first, then the Jelly.
• Roll your bread to form the sushi roll.

It is the perfect lunch for your Valentine.  We added some strawberries (how appropriate). 

I thought I would share from a toddler's perspective how much fun sushi rolls can be!  Strawberries were the first to go...

And the ripping begins...

Thanks for stopping by!  Enjoy this recipe and have a wonderful Valentine's day!

[Inspiration] Motherhood

Daring truth about a mother's love can be the backbone to one's life.  Motherhood is one piece of my life that has forever instilled love, wisdom, compassion and pride to my life.  No matter the future of my children, my heart will be with them.  No matter my future of my life, my heart will always be with my mother.

[DIY] Bow Holder

I have a little girl.  She was born with a full head of hair.  The old wives' tale about heartburn and a newborn with hair was proven true for this mommy.  I never had heartburn before my pregnancy and towards the end of my second trimester into my third, Hello Heartburn.  Boy (or girl...) was I poppin' Tums.  

When my daughter was born, I did not go bow crazy.  It wasn't until about one month old I decided to add a nice alligator clip bow into her hair.

Now I never got into over the top bows, but after a few months, the bows became and essential part of my daughter's life to keep the hair out of her eyes.  A year and a half later, I was losing bows all over the place.  It was time to make a Bow Holder of my own.

[Left: Little Birdie Secrets | Right: You Can Pinterest]

I have seen many bow holders on Pinterest.  Some of my favorites have included:

Little Birdie Secrets: Bow Holder

Make It and Love It: Bow Holder

Baby Making Machine's Blog

 [DIY] Bow Holder

Difficulty:

• Easy 

Time:

• 15 to 30 minutes

Supplies:

• A picture frame [This was an old frame from my Grandmother]
• Scrapbook paper [I used 2 - 12"x12" sheets]
• Glue Stick
• Ribbon [I used the backside of a ribbon I had since I did not like the design]
• Hot Glue Gun & Glue

 

 Steps:

• Glue your scrapbook paper on to a piece of cardboard.  Make sure to line up the design the best you can.  Don't worry about if it is uneven, you can cover it with ribbon later.  The key is to leave paper along the edges to fold over.

 

• Fold the paper over.  Make a cut where the end of the cardboard is for each corner.

• You will have 4 corners cut out around the cardboard like so...

• Fold up the sides and glue with your glue stick.  You can use your hot glue gun if you'd like.

• Using your hot glue gun, glue ribbon strips on to your base.  Remember to cover the section where you aligned the design together with ribbon. (You can see where the longer ribbon is aligned with the start of the second page of scrapbook paper).
 

• Now add your base to your frame.  Volla!  You have your own bow holder!  You may decorate it accordingly or leave it as you wish.

Thank you for stopping by!  As always, comments and questions are greatly appreciated.