kitchen remodel: stovetop

We were hoping to find a cooktop on Craigslist to save ourselves a little bit of cash. After weeks of scouring Craigslist, we finally found one. It was exactly what we were looking for. I would say it retails about about $700-800 and we paid $240 for it. The only reason the previous owner was selling it was because he preferred to cook with gas, and this stovetop is electric. Score for us!

We quickly removed our vintage pink cooktop and installed our new shiny black one. It is such an improvement, even with our ugly green countertops.

After purchasing this cooktop I’ve realized we’ve gotten some really great items from Craigslist (our washer and dryer, Isla’s dresser and my beloved pink velvet chair) and they’ve turned out to be just what we were looking for.

My quick tips on buying via Craigslist:

• Be specific in what you’re looking for. In this instance we were looking for a 30″ electric cooktop.
• Search CL every day. If you live in a smaller town you might consider checking the CL sites of nearby cities. If the price is right, it might just make sense to drive out of your way to pick up your items.
• E-mail the seller immediately. You cannot wait and “think about it” when you’re working with CL. Believe me, I’ve lost out on some great items because I didn’t jump on it.
• Don’t purchase an item  unless it’s in awesome condition. If it is an item to be reupholstered, painted, etc. make sure the structure is good. Don’t plan on replacing broken drawers, or springs, etc. You know you’ll never do it and it’s (most likely) not worth it.
• Ask the seller if he/she is flexible on the price when you make your initial inquiry. This will give you some bargaining room when you meet the seller. We got a small $10 discount on this cooktop just for asking if it was OK to bring $20′s and make it an even $240.
• Never go to the seller’s home alone- especially if you are female.
• Plan on paying for the item using cash. If you’re pretty sure you want the item I would bring the cash with you, otherwise the seller will want to sell the item to the first person willing to pay for it and cart it away.

Has anyone else had great luck with Craigslist purchases? Do you have any tips for success?

We’re slowly but surely working on final decisions for our remodel. I’ll share our inspiration board when it’s complete and let you know our timeline as we have a few more things nailed down.

 

 

our weekend: cabin fever cure

BJ knew I was sick of being stuck at home all week because of the snow but I don’t think he realized the magnitude of my cabin fever until I started rearranging all of the furniture in our bedroom on Saturday morning. So we got out of the house.

I ran Downtown and he and Little I took a walk in the stroller down there and met me. We looked in a few of the shops, tried on some shoes (gross, I know, since I was just on a run), and had lunch. His goal was to stay out so long that I would be excited to go back home in the afternoon. I would say he was successful, but I did finish rearranging the furniture and cleaning underneath our bed once we made it home.

Split pea soup and grilled paninis for dinner and then we watched Super 8. Have you guys seen that yet? It’s actually pretty good. It’s mostly family friendly, aside from a scary-ish alien.

We’ve spent today watching football. (Who’s looking forward to the football break next week? This girl.) Now we’re headed to watch the second game with the in-laws.

Oh, and also, I’ve spent all weekend having to eat these cinnamon rolls that I made in my snowed-in state. Bummer, right?

Happy weekend!

 

the cutest snow angel

It has been a snowy week here in Washington. The snow is so beautiful but all of our activities for the week were cancelled and Isla and I have a bit of cabin fever. BJ only worked a half day today so we spent the afternoon celebrating the snowy goodness.

We bundled up and took a walk to a neighborhood cafe. Our stroller rocked it in the snow. I think I should send this to BumbleRide for marketing purposes.

We played a little Scrabble Scramble and had some lunch.

On our way home we made snow angels in the front yard. The tiny one was my favorite. Obviously.

Our snow angel family

Happy snow day (x4) y’all!

 

our weekend: friends and treats

Our weekend was full of dinner with friends and fun yummy treats. And there was also the miracle of snow…which is still here and more is coming!

We had a Progressive Dinner with our church small group on Saturday night. It was a lot of fun to get together with everyone without our kiddos. We made 3 stops for 3 different courses- appetizers, main course and dessert. We hosted the last portion of the evening with a small ice cream parlour and games. More on that later this week.

We had a bunch of egg yolks from the dessert I made so BJ decided to make us Eggs Benedict on Sunday morning. Yum! (whenever I see photos of my kitchen it makes me cringe, I cannot WAIT to start the remodel!)

Then on Sunday afternoon I made these Buffalo Chicken Bites as we watched the Packers lose. This recipe was yummy. You can’t go wrong with Buffalo chicken filling in my book, but the dough was especially delicious.

The little one is practicing all kinds of new tricks pulling up on various objects at her level and even letting go. She thinks she’s pretty cool.

We’re snowed in here for the next couple days. We’ll have to think of some creative ideas so we don’t go crazy!

DIY: fabric coasters

My friend Jessica pinned these adorable coasters a few months ago. I had kept them in mind as a cute stocking stuffer or hostess gift for the holidays. As I was packing, finishing Christmas present purchases and generally running around like a mad woman, crafting these coasters got cut from my To Do list.

I finally got myself together last weekend and made a set of them for a friend as a little thank you gift. They don’t take too long to make, especially if you have a rotary cutter and mat. (One of my favorite craft purchases ever.)

Supplies:

• fabric and matching thread- I used a scrap piece of cotton, how many coasters you make will depend on how much fabric you need. You will need 2-5″ squares for each coaster.
• alphabet stencil
• rotary cutter and mat (not necessary but definitely helpful)
• ruler and/or straight edge
• fabric paint
• small paintbrush
• marking pencil or disappearing ink marker
• sewing machine

Step 1: Measure and cut 2-5″ squares per coaster.

Step 2: Take one of your squares and measure where you will put your text. The letters on my stencil were 1″ in height but varied in diameter. I placed my letters 2″ from the bottom and 1″ from the right and left sides. Mark where you will put your letters. If you use pencil make sure you trace your lines lightly, it is not easy to get pencil off of fabric.

Step 3: Place your stencil on your fabric using the guide lines you just drew. Using the small paintbrush, paint in the lines of the stencil being careful not to move your stencil. If you happen to  make a mistake it is easy to fix with your brush. Make sure you give each of the letters time to dry before painting the next one. Side note: please don’t paint on your mat, I was just using this as a background for my pictures.

Step 4: Once the paint has dried, take both pieces of fabric (one will have SIP on it and will be blank) and pin them right sides together. Sew around the edge of the fabric using a 1/2″ seam allowance. Be sure to leave about a 1-1/2″ opening on one side of the fabric so you are able to turn the coaster right sides out.

Step 5: Turn the coaster right sides out. Use a scissor or other pointy object to make sure the corners are turned out fully. If needed, trim the corners to they lay better. Iron flat. At this point, you can erase any marks remaining from your guidelines.

Step 6: Top stitch around all sides of the coaster. I lined my presser foot with the edge of the coaster and sewed around the edges, turning at every corner.

Step 7: Repeat for each coaster. Package up and send to a friend.

I could see doing these little coasters in all different variations- mix and match fabrics, different words and/or phrases, etc. This project is really versatile. As always, let me know if you have any questions or if one of the steps isn’t clear.