My Thoughts on my DIY laundry soap in bullet points:

-I loved the original recipe, I just didn’t like that it was “unscented” so I added the scent crystal laundry softener beads for added
scent and laundry softener features.

- My laundry soap got hard last time because moisture got into the container. I had to use a drill and drill bit to grind up the powder again. Yes, it was that serious. To prevent this from happening add a cheese cloth with rice inside to absorb any moisture. You can also add silica packets as well. Rice works wonders.

-It lasted me one year & saved me LOTS of money. You only need to use 2 tablespoons per load, but I experimented and found the perfect amount to use with each load to fit my needs. I tend to add a little more to each load because that’s just how I roll.

- This recipe removed stains, left clothes clean, & my whites were bright {I do use bleach on my whites as well}

- This recipe is great for sensitive skin. I have mildly sensitive skin & I have never had any issues & from the research I have done on people who have used this recipe I have read that’s great for their family members with sensitive skin. But, as other things you & your families skin issues could be different so do your own research and experiments as needed.

- I do not have an HE washer, but I have read that it works well with them, but I would do my own research to make sure that DIY laundry detergent will work well for your washer.

- You can choose your own soap, scent crystals, & completely personalize this recipe it’s very forgiving and customizable to your needs and wants.

My recipe:

1. One four pound twelve ounce box of Borax. You can use 2 smaller boxes. {Found in Laundry Isle}
2. Three bars of Fels-Naptha soap. You can use any soap of your choice. {Found in Laundry Isle}
3. one four pound box of arm & hammer baking soda.{Not pictured here} {Laundry Isle}
4. one box of arm & hammer super washing soda {laundry Isle}
5. four pounds of Oxy Clean {one small/one large container/laundry isle}
6. Laundry softener cyrstals for scent. You can mix these in to your laundry detergent or add them to your loads as needed.

To Mix the recipe:
1. Grate the fels-naptha bars into a bowl
2. dump fels-naptha into a large container {I used a 5 gallon pale with a garbage bag inside}
3. Mix all other ingredients into the bucket & shake it all up together.
4. Place into container of your choice {I used a 4 gallon glass jar from Walmart}

If you have any more questions leave them below or {here} on the facebook page, tag me on Instagram @lizmariegalvan or with hashtag #LizMarieBlog, or you can tweet me. I will do my best to answer any questions you may have. Have you tried a laundry soap recipe? What does yours have in it? Is it different from mine? What are your thoughts? I would love to hear from you!

Just like Kashi granola from The Knoxville Holts.

Almond Joy Bites from Will Cook For Smiles.

Easy cinnamon chex treats from Design Dining & Diapers.

Braided lemon loaf from Twigg Studios.

Chai cupcakes with cinnamon buttercream from Root & Blossom.

Pink big girl bed from Woven Home.

Desk Makeover from Only From Scratch.

DIY monogrammed pillow from Lilikoi Joy.

Linen & Rope basket from Woodgrain Cottage.

Let’s party! Can’t wait to see what you guys link up! Remember to link back to the blog, follow the blog, visit some other posts that are linked up & leave them some love, & as always, HAVE FUN!

M

To create the stand, I first spray painted the dollar store candle holder & metal tray with this Krylon Oil Rubbed bronze. I’m a little obsessed with this finish lately, you can see the fan I just used this spray paint on {here}. After the paint dried I used this scotch super glue that I found in the dollar section at Target & put it around the rim of the candle stick. I placed the center of the try on top of the candlestick & placed the spray paint on top of the try for weight & allowed the glue to try. Voila there is your cake stand. The Meyers clean day dish soap & hand soap are from Target as well as the bowl. The clearance section got me again!! Gosh I love Target. It’s my happy place. Ps. This radish scented soap is yummy, I would have guessed otherwise.

Do you guys have a stand like this in your kitchen? What do you use yours for? I have really been enjoying mine & also I have wanted to start hand washing the dishes more & using my dishwasher less. I like the simplicity of it all. What do you guys think? Chat with me in the comments below, on Instagram, or on Facebook, I would love to connect with you. Talk to you soon!

It’s that time of year where the DIY projects start expanding to the great outdoors. You can see my post on How To Create The Perfect Outdoor Space {Here}. Today we are talking about curb appeal. I’m going to be honest, I rarely focus on the outside of our house. I have this handsome guy who lives with me that loves being outside and getting down in the dirt while doing projects outside. & I’m usually inside covered in paint & glue doing something messy  creative. But once in a while I like to get outside with the hubs & make the curb appeal of our humble abode look pretty. I can feel people judging me right now & asking how can you be a DIY blogger but not want to work on the curb appeal of your home? I do. I really do! I am just learning how this all works. I’m trying to make my green thumb a little greener, flex my landscaping muscles, & get motivation to add the seasonal wreath & make my lovely front porch attractive to passer-byers. While browsing through pinterest for some curb appeal inspiration I was finding some stunning homes that I wanted to share in case you were wanting to do some outdoor projects yourself, or if you just want to show your husband the photos & lock him outside for a day to make your home have more curb appeal. Either way works. & stay tuned for some curb appeal projects from me coming soon. Did I just commit to that? I guess we will have to see.

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All of these homes are oozing with curb appeal in their own ways. From beautiful painted doors, siding, & shutters to flowers, plants, bushes, walkways, porches, lighting & yards these homes really inspire to create curb appeal in your own space. After drooling over these photos I am a little intimated by all of the inspiration, but taking tiny tips & ideas from each photo makes it a little less intimidating & little more easy to obtain. Hope you were inspired!

I already loved that baby more than I could ever tell someone. I never knew the connection I would feel with a life that was only 5 weeks old inside of me. I instantly wanted to be a better person, the best mom in the world, & I started imagining my life with this blessing that God had placed inside of me. For a few weeks I was in a strange disbelief & things that used to matter didn’t matter anymore because I was carrying a tiny human inside of me & my heart was full joy.

8 weeks

I never knew that at 9 weeks I would encounter another nightmare. The life that was growing healthy inside of me died. And so did a piece of me. I can never describe that feeling of waking up in the morning after losing my baby the night before. For a split second I wanted to believe it wasn’t real, that it was like the wasp dream that I had & our child was okay inside of me. The days following my miscarriage were nothing short of traumatic. The world was a blur. Sounds, smells, sites, and feelings were not the same & there was never a moment that at a drop of a hat I wouldn’t start uncontrollably crying. I felt like I would never feel the same, and in some ways things never went back to the way they were before our first child. A part of me left, a part of me died, but as a whole I grew stronger. Through losing our first baby I have never been closer to God or my husband. & for that I am grateful.

There is not a week that goes by that I don’t think of our baby & what milestone that we would be at. Today our sweet baby would be 2 months old. I am forever grateful for all of the amazing support we receive from family & friends, the change in me, the relationship I now have with God, & oddly enough for those few weeks of pure joy & that closeness I felt with our child. Knowing I will someday be reunited with that sweet innocent baby in Heaven brings tears to my eyes even as I type this. Since August I have not gone public with our miscarriage, & have remained silent & only discussed my feelings with God & family, not wanting to be vulnerable or put my feelings in writing. Lately I have felt this overwhelming wave of peace that I couldn’t keep to myself. Peace in knowing that this is all part of my plan. Peace in knowing that there are beautiful moments to come. Peace in knowing that we are blessed. Peace in knowing that God is in control. Peace I can’t keep to myself. Every day I get better and better. Stronger & stronger. I am so thankful that my heart has been healing and that the Lord has given me peace & understanding. I will forever remember that day in August when we had to say goodbye & my birthday in March that was the due date of our sweet angel, but among those hard days are many more good days. & of course on this Mothers day where I would have been celebrating with my little bundle of joy I am blessed that my husband made this day extra special for me,  that church eased my heart, & family & friends sent there love. Just little reminders that everything is going to be okay.

Dear sweet baby, I love you so much. My heart hurts because I never got to hold you or be your mommy very long here on earth, but one day your daddy & I will see you again & until then I will be strong knowing that you are happy & healthy where you are. I love you baby more than I can ever say. Love always, your mommy. 

Bracelet: All My Heart Shop

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Water color May calendar printable from Burlap & Lace.

DIY pillow covers from Life On Virginia Street.

Restoration Hardware inspired wine cabinet from The Styled Soul.

DIY dipped votives from This Little House Of Mine.

Thrift store treasures makeover from The Learner Observer.

5 steps to create a gallery wall from craftivity designs.

Be sure to check out all of the other amazing features over on  Jennifer, Tonya, & Mandy’s blogs. You may just be featured there this week! Have fun partying, be sure to link back to the blog, visit some other links, leave them some love, & tell everyone about the party so that they can come party too! Don’t leave your friends out that’s not nice.

My amazing Sister {actually she is my sister-in-law who is married to my wonderful brother, but I hate saying “in-law” so she is my sister by marriage. sound good? lol} Well, she bought me this o so lovely vintage fan for my birthday one year. Imagine me getting a package on my door step that was the oddest shape that I had ever seen & then having to wait until my brother & sister all the way in Michigan were ready to skype to watch me  open it. The wait seemed like hours wondering what this odd package could hold. I’m sure my face, when I finally got to open it on our skype call, was priceless when I saw the beautiful little fan in all it’s glory. She knows me so well. After a few years of this lovely fan being in our home, like most things around our house, I wanted to give it a fresh new update. So with some cleaning & some spray paint this little fan has a new life, & a new spot in our house.

 The blue was so lovely, but we all know that I change things all of the time & the best part about painting something, is that you can always change it back! This little guy has a new spot on my desk & I’m loving looking at him & think of my sis when I see it as I’m working.

After cleaning up the fan I used Krylon oil rubbed bronze in satin from the brushed metallic line. I love the metal finish it gives & I’m loving the bronze color on the fan. I didn’t prime the fan at all, I simply just put a few coats of spray paint on the fan letting it dry in between layers. This Krylon spray paint covered so well & is very durable. I love this metallic line that they have! This little bronze fan is the perfect new accessory for my new desk in the living room that you can see {here}.

Have you spray painted anything lately? What did you spray paint? Did you go with a bright color or a metal finish like mine? What is your favorite spray paint brand/color? If you blogged a spray paint project, link it below in the comments… I would love to see it! Hope you guys love my little fan makeover!

I must preface this post by saying something before I introduce you to my new desk.  You may be confused by my color choice for the desk. Like ummmm Liz, the desk matches the walls. Well, this week those walls are changing! I have a painter {a very lovely friend of mine} coming to paint our house this week {living room, dining room, kitchen} So this desk was painted with those changes in mind. More updates on that later. I’m so excited for change in our home! For more updates on the behind the scenes of our updates be sure to follow me on Instagram {here} & Facebook {here}. & I will take better pictures of my desk when the walls are painted, but I just couldn’t resist showing you my new lovely little desk…

I started out by making one of our guest bedrooms my workspace. Over time I found that I hated being secluded into a bedroom while all of the action was happening out in our living room, I rarely used the office & the desk that we had just became a spot to set stuff on. So the office turned back into a guest bedroom & I was using the dining room table or the couch. One of my good friends recently gave me some barstools that she no longer wanted & I knew exactly what I wanted to do with them. My plan was to make a simple DIY desk with the barstools with some boards, screws, stain, & paint. I wanted a slim desk that would fit in front of our front window in our living room, so I could work with a view. This barstool desk was the perfect solution.

This little desk was quite simple to make. We measured out how long we wanted the desk & then placed a stool at each ending point. We cut our boards from Lowes to that exact length. We lined the boards up across the stools & attached using one screw on each end of the board for each board. After the boards were attached I painted the barstools frappe by valspar {You could choose to paint the stools beforehand} I stained the boards special walnut by Minwax.

What do you think of my little desk? We are thinking about adding shelves onto the sides, but for now this little guy is my new favorites spot in the house. I have been enjoying using it & it really is the most handy thing I have built in a while. You can see my desk chair makeover {here}. Do you have a desk in your home? Where is yours located? I’m loving my desk with a view out of the window. In fact I am sitting at my desk right now as I type this looking out at the rain. I can’t wait to show you updates on the painting of our living room, can you guess what color we will be going with? Be sure to find me on Facebook & Instagram for daily updates on our progress. I hope you have a great day! xx

Favorite garage door.
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Favorite range hood.
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Favorite Antique Window.
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Favorite curtains.
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Favorite desk area.
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Favorite bathroom cabinet.
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Favorite Kitchen.
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Favorite terrarium.
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Favorite blog.
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I hope you liked seeing some of my favorites from this week! What are some of your favorites? Share in the comments below. & I would love to know what some of your favorite blogs are too! Share them in the comments so I can find some new reads too! I hope you all have a great weekend. Be sure to find me on Instagram & Facebook for updates on the daily from me, Liz Marie