Cook: Homemade Freezer Slaw

I got this phenomenal slow cooker magazine for my bridal shower, alongside a crock pot with liners (these are awesome) and I'm still using it. Especially during the cold winter months, it is a huge time saver! The best part is, there are hundreds of recipes. I shutter at the thought of a monthly subscription to this publication as it would easily take us a few years to get through this copy.

In this specific issue is a great cole slaw recipe. It was suggested to use on barbecue sliders, so I gave it a go. It would have been nice had the recipe mentioned that it made enough to feed a small army, as we ended up with enough slaw for the rest of the winter. 

I can't argue though, it was not only delicious, but pretty, and it froze very well.

Here's this great recipe:

Thanks for stopping by the Humble Hammock!
Cara

DIY: $25 Coat Hanger

Unlike most men, my ball and chain prefers to see what I want to hang on the walls before I do so. This is sweet, but his standards can be pretty pesky. I came up with this coat hanger to combat our mini-closets. This is really for our guests to use so when they walk in our door immediately know where their coat can hang while we visit.

It all began with a trip to Hobby Lobby. I bought the hook backboard for $6 and each hook was $6 - $7. I used my 40% off coupon (off a regular priced item) which you can easily use on the CouponSherpa app. We could have drilled these little hooks into the wall, but it would have resulted in 8 holes that weren't anchored or sturdy. This backing added stability. Plus, it's easy to remove if I ever want to relocate it.

Laying your idea out before starting, helps your project look more thought out.

I started by painting the back board with a white craft paint I had in my stash. I didn't paint it completely and left some of the wood exposed on the edges. This made it look distressed without sanding.

                          

Next, my handy man helped me screw the hooks into place. We 'eyed' the measurements which was really hard for him, but I savored the compromise. The outer hooks were porcelain. Said helper didn't realize how fragile it was, so after he cracked the outer hook, I had to get creative with the glue.

We finished by adding three sawtooth hangers to the back before measuring against the wall and hanging it in place.

It's that easy! Thanks for stopping by the Humble Hammock, please come back for a visit :)

Cara

DIY Edition: Bathroom Painting

Meet my downstairs half bathroom. If it had a name it would be something difficult to say like Rikkitikkitimbo. Why? Because this bathroom has been the epitome of difficult. 

Here's a little backstory... 

Before heading out of town to celebrate Christmas with our families, we purged our well with bleach. Over the course of two days, the bleach sat in our water lines. It ate some bacteria and removed some grime while also loosening the water calcification deposits that had formed on some of our old copper piping. So, when we got home and flushed out the pipes and drained the water heater we ran into leaks in our guest bathroom. 

Friends, I'm telling you - this was no picnic. We were supposed to cook the most extravagant Christmas dinner that you've ever seen. Due to this tragedy, I had to move the whole smorgasbord to my brother's house so that the men could get the pipes fixed and we could get our water turned back on. I digress, let's talk about painting. Awful as all of that was, let's get to the good stuff. When that nightmare ended we got to repaint our guest bathroom!

Here is the color that we chose. I apologize, it really looks so much different in the lights that I chose to photograph. I can best describe it as grey during the day and blue at night. It's a versatile color and I feel that I got two colors in one. I love this since I have major commitment issues with paint.

Twin Cities by Valspar                

Since we don't know what the exact color of our bathroom was, it was a perfect excuse to choose another and repaint. After our contractor came and patched and sanded our walls we were set. 

Here are some before and after photos (guilty, they were taken with my phone :(...) to hold you over through the end of this post. 

This little corner was a bear to paint. We didn't move the vanity, but if you're doing your bath, I'd advise you to do so!

Here is the final color!

Thanks for stopping by the Humble Hammock! I'll have more on this bathroom as I decorate and hang items on the primary wall. Stay tuned!

Cara

DIY Edition: Chair Cushion Recovering

My coworker came into a dining room set this fall. When she brought it home she knew that the cushions weren't going to match her space, but thought she'd update them with something more fitting when time allowed. Having no experience upholstering, she had a couple of her crafty friends over to help. Did I mention her two crafty friends had yet to upholster themselves? No matter... here's our journey.

Side by side comparison of the before and after. We liked the end product so we continued with the three remaining chairs.

Chair one - a success!

When researching fabric types and quantities for her project, my friend was advised to purchase 1/4 yard for each seat. She went ahead and doubled that estimation and it's a good thing she did! From two yards, the fabric was cut into four quadrants (see below). Each seat was laid onto a quadrant after being removed from the chair to be sure there was enough fabric. 

Tip: When choosing your fabric be cognizant of patterns. If you get a fabric with lots of lines that need to remain straight, this may be tricky. Maybe stick with a fabric that doesn't require as much symmetry.

To begin, we used the following:

• electric staple gun and staples 
• hammer
• fabric scissors
• friends (you'll want two pair of hands while upholstering - one to stretch the fabric and the other to staple and another pair of hands to reassemble the chairs).

Start by laying the first quadrant of fabric (top side down) and seat upside down on the floor. Proceed to cut 4"x4" squares at the top of the fabric that aligns with the front of the seat. Cutting the squares helps to remove excess fabric for stapling while keeping the folds minimal on the edging of the seat.

When stapling the fabric to the seat, we found it worked best to staple near the fabric about 1/2" from the edge. Be cognizant of where the screw holes are in the seat so that when reattaching them to the frame they are easily accessible. Stapling fabric over the hole may make for a mess. Not that we did that or anything....

Staple within 1/2" of the seats edge

Remember what I said about making sure you have two pair of hands on recovering duty? Here you have it. One pulls the fabric tight and one staples. Tip: use your knees to create more tension with the seat and fabric as I am in this photo.

The bottom of the seat is going to be ugly. That's okay because no one can see the bottom. As you go, it's okay to trim the excess fabric so that the seat lays flush to the chair frame. This is a great way to keep track of the pre-drilled screw holes too.

TIP: When pulling the fabric, start with the front of the seat, move down the sides and finish with the back of the seat. Flipping the seat over to check on the stretch and alignment is a good idea. If you're using a fabric with a pattern, be sure that you're keeping your lines straight. 

                                         

Test the seat before screwing it back into the frame. You want to be sure that everything looks presentable and fits correctly.

Sometimes the staples need adjusting. Be sure to hammer in any that are sticking out. You don't want them to rub or cause your fabric to loosen.

Viola! The finished product!

Photo courtesy of A.Hudak :)

Thanks for stopping by the Humble Hammock! Do come back :) 

Cara

DIY Edition: Curtains & Pillows

I wanted to put together some quick curtains for our garage windows on the cheap. My endeavor began with a trip to Hobby Lobby where I picked up this grey cotton blend fabric for $5.99/yard. I bought four yards knowing that I would probably end up with a little extra. 

The color of the curtains in the garage didn't really matter, but I knew that I wanted something neutral to keep the light that comes in from looking eerie. I chose grey because I knew I could do something with the extra fabric in another room of the house.

To begin, I rolled out the fabric and measured the length of the window (something near 51"). I decided to add 3" to the top and bottom (6" total) to allow for a 1.5" folded curtain seam. My final cut was at 57" for both panels. The width of the fabric on the bolt was enough for the width of my windows so I didn't need to cut it vertically. If I had, the panels would have looked more finished.

Here's the inseam for the curtain rod. Before sewing I pinned the seam and stuck the rod through to be sure that it would fit. 

Here we sew!

Ta-da!

After all of that I still had enough left over to recover these pillows for my grey and yellow living room. To get started I made sure to have enough fabric to fold over the pillow by placing the pillow on the printed (top) side of the fabric. Then, by folding the back side up, I pinned fabric to the the left and right side of the pillow. Sewing this pillow inside out is key so that the seams can hide.

Once the sides are sewn and flipped right side out with the pillow slipped inside, the top can be pinned by folding both the front and back edges into the pillow. Pin so that the seam is tight the pillow fits snugly in the cover.

To hide the seam, I use a slip stitch (go to the :50 mark). Pillow case covers aren't like pillows, in that with pillows you can sew the fourth side nearly all of the way before stuffing and then slip stitching the remaining 5" or so.

Here is the finished product! I made this burlap pillow over a year ago and freshened it up with a little paint and a monogram. 

$20 for two new pillow covers and two curtains seems like a pretty good deal to me! Thanks for stopping by the Humble Hammock. Do come back :)

Cara

Budget: Christmas Decor

Getting Christmas décor on the cheap is a specialty of mine. Sure, everyone flees to the big box stores after the holidays to grab next years wreaths and lights, maybe even wrapping paper, but there are better places to find those one of a kind décor items. You know…antique stores.

A couple of years ago I was in French Lick, Ind. and found myself sauntering around the small town looking for something I couldn’t live without. For more on that trip click here. Anyway, vintage Christmas decorations are my second weakness (first being Brownie Cameras). While browsing, I stumbled upon a glorious box of ornaments that were unmatched in detail, color, size and shape to anything I had ever seen. 

They’re stunning, right? They were marked for $6 each ($30 for all) but when I approached the counter I did one better than to haggle. One thing you’ll learn about owners of antique stores is that they’re just as interesting as most of the items within the walls. Smile, greet the owner and LISTEN. They’ll talk and talk (make sure you have time for this) about the ‘old days’ and how ‘things aren’t made like they used to be.’ They’ll tell you about their kids, the town and probably a little history about what you’re buying. After you’ve learned more than all of your history classes combined from grade school to college, see what they’ll do on the price. I walked out with these beauties for $20. 

Now, off of my vintage soapbox, here are some items that are from a box store (sorry, there are some vintage pieces too) and how I’ve used them to decorate. I’ve approximated the cost and location of the purpose for your post-Christmas thrifting game plan!

Finally, to top off my holiday pieces, by request, here is the tree skirt and stockings that my grandma made for me. They were inspired by Pinterest and are probably my most cherished Christmas items. 

Thanks for stopping by the Humble Hammock! Do come back :)

Cara