i love wednesdays

If you don't already know, I have the privilege to not working on Wednesday.  Thanks Mr. H!!!  I take the time to catch up on housework, hang out with my friend Beth (if her nursing schedule allows), run errands, or whatever I want!

Today, I got to spend the afternoon with Beth and we did some crafting and baking, two of my favorite things.

I know I've mentioned my date jar a lot, but I have three weddings coming up this summer and thought it'd make a great gift for our newlywed friends.  I love the polka dot paper!

I created several dates to get them started, but I left a lot of sticks blank for them to create their own dates.  I hope they love it as much as we do!

After our crafting we wanted a sweet treat so we found this yummy dessert on Pinterest: Fudgy Chocolate Chip Toffee Bars.  Check out Barefoot and Baking for the yummy recipe.  They are delicious!!!  Mr. H was pretty excited to partake in this yummy dessert too.  

I wish everyday was filled with crafting and baking with friends.  Wouldn't that be perfect?!?!

it's craft time...DIY doormat

My friend Meredith and I love to find DYI home projects on Pinterest.  We've recreated a few so far and all have been very successful.  Meredith found this DIY monogram doormat over at Sweet Something Design and I was instantly onboard!

Not only was this project super easy, but it was all made for just about $10.  It can't get any better than that right!?!?

Here's what you'll need to get started...

• Rug from Walmart
• Ruler
• 2 different size plates (or other circular objects)
• Sharpie
• Black acrylic paint
• Paint brush(s)

Head to your nearest Walmart and pick up this doormat for just under $7.00.

To create the circle, you'll need two round plates or circular object to trace.  You can decide how thick you want your outer circle.  I did mine on the think side so my initial could be larger.  You"ll want to make sure it's centered. 

Just trace the outside of your plate (or circular object) with a sharpie.  Here's a tip...line the outside of the plate with tape to make sure you don't get sharpie on it and then peal the tape off when you're done.   

Here's your outer circle.

Place your second plate (or circular object) inside and make sure it's in the center of the other circle so all the edges will be the same width.  Now trace this plate with a sharpie.

The outer circle is complete.

Now it's time to draw out your initial.  I'm pretty lucky that mine is all straight lines. Ha.  I used a ruler to do the basic letter and then I made it thicker.  

The hard part is done.  It's time to paint.  I found using a small flat paint brush was easiest.  

It was a little challenging with the rug being woven, I just had to make sure it got in all the crevices.  So instead of using strokes, I dabbed it.    

And that's all there is to it.  Pretty easy and what a beautiful custom doormat!  

I must admit though, I'm a little curious as to how long it will last before the paint starts to wear off after we walk on it.  I plan to put it at our front door.  

We have several weddings coming up this summer and I've thought about making these for gifts.  I would have loved to receive this as a wedding gift myself.  I've done several monogram projects and I'm loving having "H" as my new initial instead of "W."  I'm just saying'  Ha.  

I hope this inspires you to get crafty and add a little something personalized to your front entry too.  If you make one, I'd love to see it!  

Happy day FRIENDS!