Organization: Bath Toy Storage

I have hated the lack of bath toy organization in our bathroom for a long time now. It always looks like a hot mess. I searched Pinterest for a reasonably cheap solution to this problem and came across what you see above, a shower rod with wire baskets. Let me show you my bathroom storage before so you get an idea of where I was coming from.

Quite a sad place. 

Pin: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/83809243038563397/

This pin did not have a working link, so I do not have an original website for you guys.

Materials:

-Shower Rod  - Zenith Adjustable Tension Shower Rod, White, 72 Inches $13

-Shower Hooks - IKEA RINGSJON CLEAR SHOWER CURTAIN RINGS 12 PCS $6

-Wire Baskets - Organized Living Simple Basket, White $8 each

I bought this stuff on amazon, I've attached the link for anyone who is interested. All of these items were available for free super saver shipping.

Result:

All in all this was one of the easiest transformations that I have ever under took, taking a total of two minutes to put up. I love that the bath tub now looks and is more organized. The whole project cost me $35, which is more than I would usually spend, I'm sure if you shopped around you could find the items for cheaper.

Fun Food: Rainbow Cake

The rainbow cake recipe has been around Pinterest for a really long time, I've seen it in many different variations, rainbow cakes, cupcakes, pancakes, etc... I decided to make this for my daughter's birthday last year. It was really easy to make, it takes a little longer than making a plain cake, but so worth it.

Materials:

-White Cake Mix
-Food Coloring in various colors
-Cake Pan
-A few mixing bowls

Here is how I did made my cake.:
1. Mixed up a batch of white cake mix.
2. Separated the mixture into 6 different mixing bowls.
3. I added a different color food coloring to each bowl.
4. Poured each color into the cake pan one on top of each other.
5. Baked the cake.

Result:

Kid Craft: Marshmallow Structures

I sometimes need quick and easy crafts to do with my daughter, using items that I already have in my house. I have seen this craft using marshmallows and toothpicks to build structures and I thought it might be a fun and creative.

Pin: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/241505598737224912/

Original Website: http://daisyyellow.squarespace.com/vividlife/marshmallow-structures.html

Materials:

-Toothpicks

-Marshmallows

When we actually created these structures, I found out that maybe this is a craft for older kids. This is because all my daughter wanted to do was to eat the marshmallows, instead of building the structures.

DIY Dream Bank

One day when I was perusing Pinterest I came across this fun way to save money for a specific goal, it also beats keeping my change is a glass jar. The idea is you create a bank from a memory frame, shadow box or keepsake frame. The one I saw on Pinterest was available to buy from uncommongoods.com and cost $25. I decided to make one of my own from a memory frame from Ikea and a X-acto knife for $10.

Pin: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/67202219412384208/

Original Website: http://www.uncommongoods.com/product/dream-bank

Materials:

-X-acto Knife

-Shadow box, Memory or Keepsake frame
Here is one from Amazon that is even cheaper than the one that I used.

 $9.07 each

The easiest way to create one of these banks is by using the x-acto knife to cut a slot back of the frame to insert the money. This took me about an hour because the backing to the frame that I had was relatively thick. But, after I created the slot the bank was pretty much completed. I made one for to save for a trip to Disney World for the family and a Second Floor Addition to our house.

Result:

Valentine's Day Table Setting: Before Kids

About 5 years ago I started a blog called Attractive Design for Less. This blog was about home improvement, home decor, DIY projects, pretty much anything home related. I ended this blog venture about 3 years ago, but I was looking through my old posts the other day and thought it would be fun to share something that I used to do before I had kids. My husband and I did not have alot of money so we used to have a nice Valentine's Day meal at home. I used to decorate our dining room with nice dishes, candles and used cloth napkins. For anyone who is trying to save money and still would like to have a romantic Valentine's Day dinner this is a great idea.

To save money you may be either having a romantic dinner in for two or a dinner party with friends, here is a table setting that will not break the bank.

• Simple white square plates
• Bamboo place mats
• Red cloth napkins
• Interesting red glass candle stick holders (you can find these cheap at Pier 1)
• "Love" dessert plates (look for these at your local thrift shop or Marshall's)

Kid Craft: Heart Fish

Valentine's Day is on Friday time to start some fun heart themed crafts. I searched through Pinterest for some fun easy crafts I could do with my daughter who is two. I found a fun craft that turns a paper plate into a fish using hearts.

Pin: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/13370130116023900/

Original Website: This one did not link to an original website.

Materials:

-Paper Plate

-Construction Paper

-Crayon, Pen or Marker

-Glue Stick

-Scissors

One thing that I didn't do that I think might help, if you have a toddler doing this with you, is to cut out the hearts before you start. I cut the hearts out as we put the fish together and my daughter had a hard time waiting for me to do this. She did have fun gluing on the hearts.

Result:

Kid Craft: Olympic Torch

As the start of the Olympics is only days away, I have created another fun Olympic craft with my daughter. This time we have made an Olympic Torch. I found a great tutorial at Oh My Creative. 

Pin: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/204280533071766326/

Original Website: Glowing TeaLight Olympic Torch

I always look around my house to see if I have any materials that I can use to substitute for items that I might have to buy to create my crafts. This tutorial has you use a battery operated tea light, I decided to not include this in my torch to save money.

Materials:

-Paper Towel Roll

-Gold Paint  - Martha Stewart 32103 2-Ounce Acrylic Metallic Paint, Gold

-Yellow, Orange or Red Cupcake Liner

-Tape

-Orange, Yellow or Red Tissue Paper

You probably have most of these items in your house already. I added a link to some cheap gold paint on amazon.com, I had this in my house, I was purely lucky on this one.

Result:

This post contains affiliate links, I do receive a small commission, this does not affect my opinions.

Kid Craft: Olympic Ring Painting

The Olympics are starting this week and I cannot wait. My daughter loves to watch the ice skating and ski jumping. I thought I would look for some fun Olympic themed crafts to get our house in the spirit. 

First up is a really easy, really fun painting craft that toddlers can even participate in, inspired by the Olympic rings. I found this one thanks to Monica over at East Coast Creative Blog. 

Pin: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/43487952625900311/

Original Website: http://eastcoastcreativeblog.com/2012/07/olympic-crafts-for-kids-2012-olympic.html

Materials:

-Art Canvas - Art Alternatives Canvas Panel (8 X 10) PACK OF 12
-Tempera Paint - Crayola Washable Kid's Paint (6 Assorted Colors) 2 oz Each
-Dixie Cups -  Dixie 5oz. All-Purpose Cups, 100ct ((Colors/Styles Vary))
(I provided an amazon.com link for each material)

Result:

My daughter had a lot of fun with this project, I just set it up and let her have fun.