DIY Soft'n Slo Squishies & Paint Markers

The following post contains sponsored content.

Squeezed many times after two coats of Soft'n Slo paint markers completely dried over two days. 

 My 11 year old daughter has been on the crazy-for-squishies train for a couple of years now.  She may even consider herself somewhat of a squishy expert.  That being said, she and her twin brother own several Soft'n Slo squishies, and have been very pleased with them.  They have held up for months before beginning to show signs of being lovingly squeezed over and over again daily. Since this brand of squishies has been pretty dependable overall, I was excited to see DIY Soft'n Slo squishies and paint markers at our local craft store. I purchased one of every style of blank squishy I could find, plus both packs of paint markers (regular colors and brights) as a gift for my daughter.  Our daughter is a crafter at heart, and was so excited to receive this gift bag full of DIY squishies supplies.

Did the Soft'n Slo DIY Squishies & Paint Markers Meet Our Expectations? . . .

The blank squishies felt like the same great quality my children have come to expect from Soft'n Slo.  Unfortunately, the paint markers did not perform as well as we would have liked.  The freshly painted squishies looked amazing with very good coverage. After we allowed the paint to dry for a few days, however, there appeared to be spots where the paint did not adhere to the surface of the squishy.

Squeezed twice after single coat of Soft'n Slo paint markers dried for 4 days.

 I suggested to my daughter that she try adding a second coat of paint.  After allowing the second coat to dry for two days, we found that there were still spots where the white showed through.

Unsqueezed after two coats of Soft'n Slo paint markers dried over course of two days.

 Next came the squeeze test.  When we squeezed the squishy several times, the paint began to crackle and flake off.  What would have been a beautiful one-of-a-kind squishy, did not end up being the masterpiece my daughter had hoped for.

What will we do with the remaining blank squishies?

We still love Soft'n Slo squishies, but the markers were just not the same quality we have come to expect from this brand.  The blank squishies are great though, so what we will likely do is to try painting them with puffy fabric paint.  This type of paint comes in a wide variety of colors and is made to be flexible.  If that goes well, maybe my daughter can try to salvage her cake squishy or perhaps repaint other squishies to give them a makeover.
Two Soft'n Slo squishies our children received as stocking stuffers.

Two Soft'n Slo squishies our children received as stocking stuffers.

What kinds of squishies are your children's favorites?

Tell us in a comment here.

Easy DIY Wall-Mounted Shoe Organizer

This post was sponsored by Oriental Trading Company, where the possibilities for DIY and home decor projects are infinite.

We live in a small townhouse, and are often challenged by the lack of space we have for five people (and all their belongings) to live comfortably.  One of the first rules of living in a small space is to maximize usage of the walls.  I was pretty happy when we put up two rows of hooks on the wall by our backdoor.  Then after awhile, I started to think about how we could make this wall even better . . .

Before Photos:

Two rows of coat hooks plus a shoe bench.

A bench stuffed with the shoes belonging to two tweens and one teen.

There were three main things that were not ideal about our setup.  1)  The coats were spread out between two rows of hooks, and not every hook was being used. 2) Depending on how many pairs of shoes or boots our children owned at the time, there were times when the shoe bench was too full to close the lid properly.  (Also, the shoes were getting dirty from being thrown on top of each other. I think that bothered me more than the children though.) 3) There was no room for my husband's shoes, so he would leave his shoes strewn about the first floor of our house.

PROJECT:  Wall-Mounted Shoe Organizer

SUPPLIES NEEDED:

Unfinished Flower Boxes

Unfinished Wood Slat Crate

Semi-Glossy Latex Paint

Paint Brush

2-inch Drywall Screws (3 per Flower Box)

Cordless Screwdriver

Level

Measuring Tape

Pencil

Chalkboard Sign

Chalk Markers

Woven Table Runner(s)

Step 1. Decide how many flower boxes you need for your space. The ones we used measure 24" x 6" x 6". You can configure them in multiple rows to fit your space. We used one row of three across.  You can make this project fit almost anywhere, from a mudroom to a closet.

Step 2. Add one coat of paint on your unfinished flower boxes and crate.  Add up to two more coats of paint, making sure the previous coat is completely dry before adding the next.

Step 3. Lightly mark on the wall where you'd like your flower boxes to be positioned with a pencil. Use your measuring tape to ensure each box will be the same distance from the floor.

Step 4.  Pre-drill 3 holes in each of the flower boxes for the screws to help prevent the wood from splitting when screwing the flower boxes to the wall.  (See photos below for screw placement.)

Step 5.  With the help of your level and the marks you've made on your wall, secure the flower boxes to the wall by screwing the 2" drywall screws through the pre-drilled holes and into the wall.

Step 6.  Place woven table runners on the floor along the wall under the flower boxes to have a place for boots or wet shoes.

Step 7.  Add a crate to hold wet hats and mittens.

You can create a sign easily using a chalkboard sign and chalk markers.  I made two! One for hats and mittens in the winter, and a second sign for flip-flops in the summer.

Our whole family agreed that the new Wall-Mounted Shoe Organizer worked out great.  Our children could see all their shoes easily and never had to search for the second shoe.  My daughter could fit most of her shoes sole-to-sole, but put her high-top sneakers side-by-side.

Look!  There was enough room for my 3 children's shoes AND my husband's shoes.

After Photos:

If we could have, we would have mounted the flower boxes a few inches lower so our children could hang their backpacks on the row of hooks right above them, but we did not want to cover the existing electrical outlet.  Instead, we are using those hooks for hats, umbrellas, and dog leashes.  All their coats fit on the top row of hooks because we are now using every hook.

Like this DIY project? Pin it for later . . .

What would you want to change about your coat and shoe area?

Tell us in a comment here!

10 Things You'll Need to Turn a Closet Into a Cozy Book Nook for Kids

Thank you to Zazzle for providing the reading-themed throw pillows for our DIY book nook project.  All opinions expressed are our own.

If you have more than one child and live in a small house like us, you may be running out of places for your children to find some quiet time away from their siblings.  We have a small walk-in closet that was just being used as a catchall, so we decided to turn it into a cozy book nook where one or two of them could sit and read without disturbances or distractions.

I thought putting together this DIY reading nook would be a huge undertaking, but it was easier than I thought it.  The most difficult parts were prepping the closet and organizing the books (our children have way too many books).

How to prep your closet to house a book nook . . . 

A.  Empty out the closet completely.  (You should have seen all the things our children rediscovered during this process.)
B.  Remove the closet door.
C.  Remove any bars, hardware, and hooks from the walls.
D.  Make sure the existing closet light is sufficient for reading.  If not, change it or add additional lighting.  You could add a cordless LED lamp, a clip-on book light, or even a flashlight (kids love reading with flashlights).
E.  If the walls are not to your liking (ours were pink), paint them a light, warm color.  Choosing a dark color for the walls will cause the nook to feel smaller and darker than it needs to be.
F.  Hate the floor in your closet?  Don't worry, we'll cover that later.

Once you have all the prepping out of the way, then the fun begins!  You'll be on your way to having a cozy book nook in no time.

Pin This DIY Book Nook project for later . . . 

10 Things You'll Need to Create a Cozy Closet Book Nook . . .

1.  X-large Dog Bed - I explored many options and, after measuring the closet floor, I decided that this jumbo dog bed was the least expensive, most effective, and easiest way to create cushy seating on the closet floor.

2.  Two Large Bolster Pillows - Place two cylindrical pillows the size of body pillows in one corner of the closet to create a right angle.  (We purchased ours at Sears for under $20 each during back-to-college dorm shopping season.)

3.  Book or Reading-Themed Throw Pillows - I had looked around for toss pillows with a reading theme for awhile, but could not find anything that was more than just typography, until I took a look at the throw pillows on Zazzle.  With all the designs, shapes, and sizes to choose from, I was like a kid in a candy store.  I ultimately chose the square 20" Library throw pillow, the square 20" Dragon Magically Appearing from Books throw pillow, and the Cute Bookworm round pillow.  They were exactly what I was looking for our 3 tweens . . . cute, but not too cutesie.

4.  Soft Cuddly Throw Blanket - You can use a throw you already have or buy a new one, but a cuddly throw is a must for ensuring your little reader is comfortable and will want to stay put to read on.  You should be able to find a plush throw for around $10.  We found ours for less than $10 at Walgreens of all places during back-to-college season.

5.  Window Wall Decal - Because the nook is in such a small space, a window decal will give the illusion of something beyond that wall.  It also may spark your child's imagination about being in another place, something that is needed when he or she is fully immersed in a great book.  Window wall decals come in a huge variety of styles and sizes.  Our small 28"x20" forest view window wall decal cost us less than $6 shipped.

6.  Sheer Curtain Panel - Hang a full length sheer curtain panel over the doorway.  This will allow you to see inside the book nook without disturbing your child's reading.  It also allows much-needed light to filter into the book nook.  A solid door would not do either of these things and would likely make the reading nook feel enclosed and stuffy.  A cafe rod with hanging hardware included plus one sheer curtain panel cost us under $10 at Target.  We also added an inexpensive metal curtain holdback to pull the curtain to one side, but that is optional, as you can just slide the curtain panel to one side on the curtain rod.

7.  Patterned Fabric or Washi Tape - To dress up your closet shelves, trim them by covering the front edge with patterned tape.  You'll need to measure the thickness of your shelves, but this .75" pin dot fabric tape fit ours perfectly.

8.  Shag Rug - In addition to what you see from the doorway, our closet has additional space to the right.  If this is the case for your closet, then you can cover the remaining floor space with a soft shag area rug.  Be sure to measure the space.  This 2'x3' soft shag rug fit our space perfectly and coordinated well with the jumbo pet bed we chose.

9.  Bedrest Pillow + Extra Throw Pillows - Sometimes it's more fun to read with a buddy, so it's a great idea to add extra throw pillows plus a bedrest pillow to create additional seating on the rug.  If you shop around, you could probably find a bedrest pillow for about $20.  We found ours on sale (in neon yellow) at Target.  The extra pillows can be toss pillows you already own if you don't wish to purchase or make new ones.

10.  Bookmark Bucket - For a special touch, add a little bucket to hold bookmarks so your children are not scrambling to look for one when it's time to stop reading.  I found the bucket and the colored string in the Target dollar section.  I actually tied our bookmark bucket to the string on the ceiling light.  Don't have bookmarks? Checkout my DIY bookmark craft!

Be sure to fill your book nook with books in a variety of genres!
Take all the books from your existing library and add some more in a variety of genres and reading levels.  Your local used book stores and library book sales are the perfect places to find new titles to add to your book nook library.  We donated a bunch of books and added new titles.  This is something we'll have to do regularly, as our book nook shelves are quite full.

What do you think?  Was this DIY book nook project easier than you thought it would be?  Our children are in love with it so far and have even asked if they could sleep in it.  If you have ideas for making a closet book nook even cozier, please share it with us in a comment below.

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What's Left on Your Summer "Wouldn't It Be Fun?" List?

Where we live, school begins in a few weeks.  Although I'm looking forward to having the children return to school and regaining much-needed quiet during my workday, I would also welcome some extra time to finish all the things we had on our "Wouldn't it be fun?" list.  You know . . . those things that pop into your head that you may even have purchased supplies to do with the best of intentions, but never actually got to them.

What's left on my family's list this summer?

1. Wouldn't it be fun to make tie dye shirts for the whole family?  I found a great deal on a large tie dye kit on Amazon last month!  I was super-excited and even bought a white t-shirt for each member of the family at A.C. Moore a couple of weeks ago.  That's as far as I got.  THERE'S STILL HOPE!
2. Wouldn't it be fun to make slushies anytime we wanted to?  I bought the ice shaver machine to grind up the ice before summer began.  I bought some red punch this week and started to make extra ice this morning.  THIS WILL HAPPEN!
3. Wouldn't it be fun to make our own taco shells and experiment with different fillings?  I bought a pan to make our own taco shells out of corn tortillas at the beginning of the summer.  That's as far as I got.  Unless my husband takes the lead on this one, IT'S NOT LOOKING GOOD!
4. Wouldn't it be fun to make a framed dollhouse miniature version of my daughter's artwork?  I bought an antique looking dollhouse miniature picture frame many months ago.  That's as far as I got.  If #7 happens, then THERE'S STILL HOPE!
5. Wouldn't it be fun to make our own cinnamon and sugar tortilla bowls to serve ice cream in?  I bought two wavy tortilla shell pans a year ago from a school fundraiser.  I really think think our children would love this dessert idea.  With so many other fun things on this list, this one seems sort of low priority, doesn't it?  IT'S NOT LOOKING GOOD!
6. Wouldn't it be fun to get our oldest son into building model cars?  He bought the model a couple of weeks ago from A.C. Moore.  He even used his own money.  My husband and he started to paint the parts one evening.  It looked like it was a great father-son activity.  They haven't touched it again since.  (The same thing happened with the robotic arm my son got for Christmas.) We need to teach our son to finish what he starts!  THIS WILL HAPPEN!
7. Wouldn't it be fun to build our daughter a dollhouse that can hang on the wall?  We bought this cool, but simple hanging dollhouse kit for our daughter since she began showing an interest in collecting dollhouse miniatures.  My husband and daughter started building it, but then we had a mishap with the scrapbook paper he was using for the wallpaper.  When we went to buy more, the craft store was out of that particular print.  Two weeks later, we were able to find it back in stock.  We bought the paper, but they haven't touched it since.  Between the kit and the supplies, we've spent well-over a hundred dollars on this dollhouse.  THIS WILL HAPPEN!
8. Wouldn't it be fun to clean out the basement and have a place for the children to practice Taekwondo and perhaps have a ping pong table?  If possible, there might be more things in the basement now than at the beginning of the summer.  IT'S NOT LOOKING GOOD!
9. Wouldn't it be fun if we had a Disney fund jar?  We think the children are around the perfect age to go to Disney, but we need to save quite a bit of money for the trip.  This is something we'd like to encourage the children to participate in.  I bought the personalized vinyl decal and I already have an old-fashioned reach-in candy jar I can use for this.  You know, the kind that sits tilted with a round knobbed lid.  I think every time I read the instructions for applying the decal, it seems so technical that I put it off for later.  I just have to sit down and do it!  THIS WILL HAPPEN!
10. Wouldn't it be fun to let our youngest son loose on the beach with his metal detector?  He got a kids metal detector for Christmas, so we're all set there.  Now we just have to get to the beach.  We have a trip planned before school starts.  If we don't forget to pack the metal detector, we'll be all set.  THIS WILL HAPPEN!
11. Wouldn't it be fun to take the whole family to New York City for the weekend?  We've said this multiple times throughout the past year or two.  That's all we've done is talk about it though.  The next step would be to reserve a weekend when we don't already have plans, find kid-friendly hotel accommodations, buy the bus tickets, plan an itinerary, and  . . . IT'S NOT LOOKING GOOD!
12. Wouldn't it be fun to turn this closet into a book nook for the kids? This is my latest "Wouldn't it be fun?" thought.  Well, I actually planned it out and ordered just about everything I need to set it up.  We're almost done emptying the closet out and my husband just bought paint and supplies to give the closet interior a fresh coat.  I'm super-excited about this project, as are the children.  I'll definitely take photos of our progress and share them in a blog post when we're done.  THIS WILL HAPPEN!

What items on your list fall into the categories of THIS WILL HAPPEN, THERE'S STILL HOPE, and IT'S NOT LOOKING GOOD?

Our Neighborhood Radio Shack Store is Packed with Options to Bring Our DIY Tech Projects to Life #LetsDIT #shop #cbias

I am a member of the Collective Bias® Social Fabric® Community. This shop has been compensated as part of a #LetsDIT - Do It Together social shopper amplification for #CollectiveBias and its advertiser Radio Shack.

It's no secret how much every member of our family embraces technology.  With my husband working in IT, we are pretty well-versed in where to shop for our various tech needs.  Those needs can range anywhere from shopping for a new mobile phone to building a custom charging station to accommodate multiple devices per person for five people.  This DIY tech project was just one of the reasons we headed to Radio Shack last week.  We also wanted to checkout the Boogie Board eWriters we recently heard about (to replace those old magnetic doodling boards we finally had to get rid of) and to find out what options there were for robotics components and kits for our 10 year old son.  The latter is not something I think a big box store would carry, but I knew that Radio Shack, who caters to DIYers and hobbyists, would.

Our local Radio Shack store is not a big one, but it is conveniently located in the largest mall in New England.  You will be amazed when you walk in the store to see how organized the store looks, while still being packed full of product.  After the courteous associate showed us where the Boogie Boards were located and we made our color choices, we noticed that there were robotics kits for children on the shelves right above them.  Then we looked to our right and saw the colored SOL Republic headphone bands our son had been hinting about.  I can't think of any other store where I can see three things I would be interested purchasing without wandering through aisle after aisle.

A small store definitely does not mean a small selection at Radio Shack.  I think their secret is that they display only a small handful of each item and replenish them as they sell out, rather than giving each sku multiple spots.  As a customer, this is fine with me.  I never need to purchase 20 of the same thing . . . just one or two.  I also appreciate being able to see everything available without needing to conduct an extensive search.

Ultimately, we purchased two Boogie Boards and an HDTV antenna.  My husband has missed watching some games on TV since we switched to strictly streaming video.  We did look at components for building a custom charging station, but decided we weren't ready to move forward with it just yet.  We still need to figure out a few other aspects of the charging station to make it look organized and user-friendly.  The associate suggested we look for more ideas on RadioShack.com since their site offers free shipping to our local Radio Shack store or to our home on orders over $25.  We also checked out the robotics components where our son could build robots from scratch, but we decided against it for now since I'm not ready to trust our 10 year old with a soldering iron.  The great thing is that we can stop back for any of the items we didn't purchase that day the next time we're in the mall!

I remember shopping at Radio Shack with my dad when I was younger than my children are now.  It's almost like going to the corner hardware store . . . you can find everything you need for your latest project and get personalized and friendly service.

It is on my to-do list to return to Radio Shack to pick an associate's brain about getting our son started on DIY robotics projects before summer arrives.  I also need to check the trade-in values of all our old mobile phones, tablets, headphones, cameras, video games, and more online, so we can come back to take advantage of Radio Shack's Trade & Save Program (not available at franchise locations).  What better way to reduce our clutter and to pay for new gadgets on our family's wishlist?

Which Room Would You Makeover If You Won the Armstrong Residential Ceilings “Style Is Looking Up” Giveaway? #MC

I participated in a campaign on behalf of Mom Central Consulting (#MC) for Armstrong Residential Ceilings. I received a promotional item as a thank you for participating. All opinions expressed are my own.

Armstrong Residential's Drop Panel Metallaire Vine Ceiling (Photo from Armstrong Ceiling Gallery)

We have painted ceilings in every room in our home and, to be honest, I had never paid much attention to them aside from noticing the occasional cobweb.  That was until we had a plumbing issue upstairs about a month ago and the water from the pipes leaked from behind the wall of the shower down into the ceiling of our kitchen.  Now it's all I can do to not look up at the ceiling because our nicely painted white ceiling currently has an unsightly brown-yellow spot approximately a foot wide on it.

Although my husband was a able to install hardwood flooring in our living room and even repair the plumbing issue we had upstairs himself, we are not as confident about our ability to fix the ceiling ourselves beyond just repainting it.  One thing we've learned about DIY home projects is that we need to recognize our limits, especially when I'm dreaming about a tin tile or drop panel ceiling.

Which ceiling could use a makeover in your home? Through March 15th, you can enter for a chance to win a $2,500 grand prize room makeover, which includes an Armstrong ceiling, an installation credit, and a $1,000 Lowe’s gift card, in the Armstrong Residential Ceilings"Style Is Looking Up” Giveaway.  Also through to March 15th, Armstrong Residential Ceilings will select a winner each week to receive a $50 Lowe’s gift card!  Visit Armstrong Residential Ceilings on Facebook to enter and for the official contest rules.

Home Improvement Tips from Cassandra Lavalle

Thank you to Waterpik for providing a complimentary prize pack for us to base this review upon and for providing an additional prize pack for our contest prize. All opinions expressed are my own.

Did you know that May is Home Improvement Month? We were excited to be able to participate in a Q&A with home expert Cassandra Lavalle, founder of Coco+Kelley, to pick her brain about home improvement projects we have been wanting to tackle in our own home.

One home improvement project that is often overlooked, also happens to be one of the cheapest, easiest, and sometimes most impactful on your family. Upgrading your shower head takes mere moments and can be enjoyed right away. Will upgrading your shower head increase your homes value? Not significantly in dollars, but it can certainly lift your families spirits immediately!

I recently upgraded our shower head to a Waterpik 14-mode Riata Nickel handheld. With 14 different nozzle settings each member of my family can customize their shower experience depending what they are in the mood for. If you like a low pressure drizzle it can do that, or if you want a high velocity jet it can do that too, and pretty much everything in between.

Installing the Waterpik could not have been easier. In fact, the entire installation took a few minutes and did not require any tools at all. All kidding aside, I think it took me longer to remove my Waterpik from the clamshell packaging than it did for me to install it.

Although it is not required, some Thread Sealing Tape ($2 available anyplace that sells plumbing supplies) is a good idea. I had some on my threads already so I did not need to do anything at all prior to installation.

Even though I always recommend reading instructions, if you are at all handy you can probably install the Waterpik without them because the process is so obvious. There are only a few parts and, to be quite honest, they only go together one way.

Upgrading your shower head is an easy way to improve your families comfort in a few minutes and for not a lot of money. The Waterpik we have can be purchased from many retailers for about $60. You can find other Waterpik handheld shower heads on www.waterpik.com from $30 on up, so there is a model to fit any budget. Be sure to checkout Waterpik’s popular line of RainFall+ shower heads, which includes their water-saving EcoRain model.


Our Waterpik Prize Pack includes a Rainfall+ Shower Head, a set of 2 unscented pillar candles, and a $25 Home Depot gift card!

Photo courtesy of Payton & Company

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Good luck in the drawing!

Thinking About Refinishing Our Basement This Spring . . .

My basement is a mess. It started off as a fairly nice finished basement, one of the reasons we chose this home over some others, but my enjoyment of the finished basement was short-lived.

Within one year the basement had flooded 2 times resulting in the need to rip up the rug. Within the first 4 years the basement had flooded 6 times, pretty much ruining the concept of making it nice again. The previous owners clearly finished the basement just for the sale, but that is another story . . .

As you can imagine, a flooding basement creates severe damage to your belongings and we weren't spared one iota. In addition to the damaged rug, pad, tack strips, and sheetrock that needed to be hauled away, we lost much of the furniture. Anything that was unfinished wood or worse yet particleboard was ruined.

I needed to get all the ruined stuff out of my home. Wet and moldy carpet and furniture is not only lost money, but it is a severe health hazard. At the time I had infants and toddlers in the house, so removal was a top priority.

I ended up manually removing everything and throwing it in a dumpster. Many items I needed to take apart and even cut into pieces to remove them. The project was laborious and exhausting. In hindsight, I should have called any one of the removal companies in my area. I am simply too out of shape for that kind of work. Why not have well-trained and equipped people do it for you?

I also suffer from allergies, I cannot imagine how much the mold affected my health during that time. The homeowner’s association did end up installing a drain right outside our home. We haven't flooded since and I'm considering refinishing the basement this Spring. Our family of 5 could really use the extra living space.  However, if we ever have the misfortune of flooding again, I am calling a removal company!