Pinterest-inspired: DIY jewelry cleaner

Hey hey! I’m back today with a Pinterest-inspired post that I’ve been meaning to share for a while now. My plan is to start writing more of these posts – taking simple projects or helpful tips I find on Pinterest and showing how they turned out for me.

This one is super simple and cheap (free if you have the basics on hand). I found this DIY jewelry cleaner while pinning months ago and it’s actually from a food site here. Which is fitting because all of the “ingredients” are from the kitchen:

You’ll need one tablespoon each of salt, baking soda and dish detergent. Also, one cup water, a piece of aluminum foil and a bowl.

Just stick the water in the microwave for one to two minutes (I do two to get it nice and hot) and while it’s heating use a piece of foil to line the bottom of the bowl:

When the water is ready, pour it in the bowl, add the tablespoons of baking soda, salt and detergent in and watch it fizz:

That’s the fun part. ;)

Then you just place your jewelry in the bowl for five to ten minutes. The ingredients eat away at the grime and dirt and my rings come out sparkling! It’s amazing!

I feel like I commercial for dish washing detergent with all the SPARKLE but it’s true – this stuff really works well. I used to use jewelry cleaner from the store, but the brush that came with it fell apart after the second use. Since then I’ve used a soft toothbrush but I find I don’t really need to use it with this recipe.

If you’ve got some major gunk on there you may still need it. When I take my rings into my jeweler to be cleaned they look at me like I have three heads and ask WHAT IN THE WORLD I have been doing. I guess the spray paint, saw dust, paint, glue and all the other DIY messes stick around. ;)

This homemade version eats away at all that stuff and makes them absolutely shine. Love it. And the ingredients are so basic I always have it all on hand. If you are cleaning a bunch of jewelry you’ll want to make a new batch each time, according to the source.

I’ve also used this on more delicate jewelry like an opal ring – it worked beautifully. Some of the reviewers on the site I linked to mentioned it messed up sterling silver jewelry, but then others said it cleaned up their silver beautifully, so try it for silver at your own risk. Check out that link for reviews before you try something you are hesitant about!

I’m thrilled with it and highly recommend it – I’ll take an easy, cheap solution any day! :)

So have you found any great tips on Pinterest lately? I hope to share some of mine with you more often – good results and the bad. Cause it’s nice to actually DO something I’ve pinned on Pinterest, you know. ;)

The Story In Which The Crazed Lady Walks Into The ENT

I'm sick with a bad cold today and I'm handling it in an unusual fashion.  I am allowing myself to be sick.  I know.  Weird.  I am lounging on the couch with my computer (duh), a book (George Muller: The Guardian of Bristol's Orphans), ads from the Sunday paper (tracking down best prices for school supplies--we need a LOT!), and watching a movie from the library (18 Kids and Counting).

It's kinda nice to be sick when I actually have some extra time.

Patrick brought in a bottle of Gatorade and suggested it might help.  I agreed.  He then eyed that 32 oz. jug and said it sure looked awfully big.  And tasty.  I was guilted into suggesting all the kids be given a little cup first.  Patrick happily obliged, skipping off into the kitchen with it.  He returned a few minutes later. 

There was one-inch left in the bottom. 

Moral of the story: Sharing is over-rated.

I might be sick because of all the trip craziness, including this day, driving from Billings to Spokane.  By this point I was so, SO tired.

And I'm sorry to report, this IS NOT a dramatization.  I'm doubly sorry to report that coffee had little effect. 

Being sick reminds me that I haven't yet shared our "how to find an emergency ear, nose, and throat doctor in a strange town" episode.

The Story In Which The Crazed Lady Walks Into The ENT

Vu started complaining of ear pain mid-trip.  I treated him for swimmer's ear and kept him out of the pool, and that seemed to solve the problem.  A few days later his ear drum burst. (Note to self: don't forget that Vu has a high pain tolerance and might not complain--even when he has a severe ear infection.  Note to other adoptive parents: this is common in children who have suffered neglect--they learn to ignore pain.)

Anyhoo, after some hit or miss trying to find an urgent care in South Dakota, we spent one morning and $140 for some ear drops.  Diagnosis: swimmer's ear, double ear infection, ruptured ear drum.

Sidenote: Dr. CrazyForKids (me) thought he also needed an oral antibiotic.  I am usually anti-medication, but I felt his complicated double ear infection needed more than just ear drops. 

The doctor didn't seem impressed by my self-appointed medical degree on ear infections. 

That night was HORRIBLE. 

Vu started running a fever and his ear canal was swelling shut.  (BTDT with James who had to have a wick forced into his ear canal for swimmers ear--NOT FUN!)  Vu's ear was draining pus and he was in so much pain!

I was in a strange town, in a strange hotel, with six not-so-strange-but-still-youngish kids.  I was alone.

What to do? 

I knew I could go to the ER, but I also felt I needed an EXPERT.  I needed Superman.  Super Doctor.  Super Ear Doctor.  I needed an ENT (ear, nose, and throat specialist).

But I knew that wasn't possible.  I mean, I've waited months for an appt. with an ENT. 

But Vu's ear canal was fiery red and he said it felt like there was a dragon war going on inside. 

It was 5 am.  I was trying to comfort a crying kid.  I was exhausted.  My brain was whirling with crazy ideas.

What if we just walked in to the office of an ENT.  Would they see us? 

I knew what the answer would be if I called first.

So, I did some google searching, loaded up the motel room with three plates of donuts from the free continental breakfast, left five kids sleeping (Kim knew I was leaving),

and showed up at the ENT, 8am, right when they opened.

Billings, Montana is my new favorite town.  And I have a new favorite ENT.

Yes, they listened.  Yes, they saw the wild look in my eyes (see pic above for reference). Yes, they had mercy on my sweet crying boy.  Yes, they let us see the ENT.  He suctioned the infection out, gave us different ear drops AND an oral antibiotic (the ENT confirmed Dr. CrazyForKids prescriptive diagnosis!), and we were back at the hotel before the other kids had even started waking up.  

Soon we were off to Spokane and off to healing for Vu's ears.

Moral of the story.  Be bold for your child.  It never hurts to ask.  And don't downplay your pseudo medical degree. 

Show us your family spaces!

Good Monday to ya! Hope your weekend was lovely! I’m kicking off the week with our next room in the Show Us Your House series of linky parties – this one is family rooms and I’m really looking forward to seeing these links!!

First up, I’ll share our space. This is one room that just did not work for us for years…and it’s completely my fault. ;) When we built our home I chose a corner fireplace instead of the normal spot between two windows. I’ve gone on and on about what an AWFUL IDEA THAT WAS, but I won’t blabber on anymore about that. You’re welcome. ;)

I finally figured out a way to make that corner fireplace work better in the room last year and I am SOOOO much happier with it:

Last summer we also moved the TV stuff to a different spot in the room and that one change opened up the room tremendously.

We finished paying off an insane amount of debt early last year (I can’t believe that was only last year!) and our first real purchase (paid for with “cash” of course), was a super nice sectional from Arhaus:

This is hands down one of our best purchases ever…if not the best. This sofa is so darn comfy and has held up great! The cushions aren’t flat, spills wipe up easily…it’s fantastic. I swear it looks like the day it was delivered!

You can see by that pic that I put the Rugs USA rug back in the family room – that old rug was in such awful shape I decided to try this one again. At first I didn’t think the drapes and pillows worked with it, and I still don’t think the drapes work great…but they are fine for now, I’m not worrying about it. I wasn’t about to try to rework the whole room for the rug. Maybe later, but not now. :)

I found a couple new pillows from Target (earlier this summer) that incorporate a lot more of the colors of the room. Before I had solid red pillows in here – these pull in the rug much better. I also pulled some knit pillows from our bedroom, because let’s be honest…we all know I never make our bed. I mean…really.

So at least they are being used in the family room instead of sitting in a pile next to the bed:

Last summer our fridge went kaput (almost exactly a year ago!) and when it went kaput our laminate floors went with it. So insurance paid for new floors and we kicked in a little extra for real hardwoods throughout our main level:

OH MY GAH, I love them so very much. So. very. much. There’s no way we would have been able to do this without that lovely fridge melting down on us, so now I’m not nearly as upset about it. ;) Living in a mess for two months was not so fun at the time though.

When we moved the TV stuff last summer, I turned a Craigslist dresser into our entertainment center:

(That rug is showing as bright blue there and I’m not sure why, it’s really more of a charcoal blue color. See pics above.)

The components under the TV work great by the way! I LOVE having them out of the way. I loathe electronics and cords and stuff…I am always trying to figure out ways to hide them if possible.

I do have some plans for this room – new art, new paint and perhaps a new wall treatment? I’ve got the color picked out but I’ve been mulling over the wall treatment for awhile now. It will happen as soon as I want to do all that work. Which could mean about a year. ;)

I love how this space has been transforming over the years but my favorite part is how much more open than it used to be. Moving that TV (it used to be to the left of the fireplace) over across the room has made a HUGE difference.

You can find all of the posts about our family room here!

Now let’s see your family spaces, your living rooms – whatever you call the room where your family chills and relaxes!

Don’t forget the schedule for the rest of the year!:

September (basements/rec rooms), October (bedrooms), November (foyers), December (mud/laundry rooms)

I ask that you link back to TDC in your post, especially if you’d like to be considered for a feature in a recap:

<div align="center"><a href="http://thriftydecorchick.com/" title="Show Us Your House" target="_blank"><img src="http://www.homestoriesatoz.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/image34.png" alt="Thrifty Decor Chick" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

Go ahead and link it up and have fun!

Get Your Tickets ToThe Most Amazing Show On Earth!

It's still summer break here and we've been having fun with our puppet theater.  We bought ours at a school auction; it is homemade with fabric sewn to fit onto expandable curtain rods.  The two rods fit into an open doorway.  Easy to make and a great gift idea!

Great fun on a hot day!

Painting tips (and the laundry room walls)

Hey there! I’m back with another update on the basement laundry room. When we started finishing our basement in January, we decided to move the washer and dryer to a dedicated room down there. Some people thought I was crazy, but I can now tell you from experience, it’s freakin’ awesome. ;) (You can see the reasons why I did it here.)

I told you about the paint color plan for the basement a couple of months ago, and I knew I wanted to paint the laundry room this Pebble Beach color from Benjamin Moore:

I got these matched at Sherwin Williams because I’ve fallen in love with that paint, and I got it for a great deal during one of their sales.

Since I was painting the laundry room, I figured this would be a great time to recap some of my favorite painting tips. I use these pretty much every time I paint and they keep the process as cheap as it can possibly be!

First up, the dreaded preparation. If I can avoid this part, I do. :) I showed you how I fill holes in the walls here and that’s still my method. But if there are small nail holes I’ll just quickly fill them with spackle and wipe away the excess (don’t even need to sand) or just leave them alone – paint fills them in if they are small. ;)

I saw an idea in Family Handyman a while back that recommends using nails to make holes in the rim of the paint can to prevent the paint from filling up that area and dripping all over the sides:

I have tried it and honestly it didn’t do much good. I used large nails and lot of holes too – it just didn’t drain well. So I stick by my easy (but messier) method, which is just wiping the paint from the rim with my finger and onto my paint t-shirt:

I wear that one pretty much every time I paint. If I don’t have it on, I just grab a rag and use that. I always find it’s impossible to keep my hands completely clean while painting anyway, so why not just use them. ;)

I saw a tip from Sabrina Soto on HGTV once a while back that I still use – before I paint I grab painters tape and use it to clean off the roller:

(You’ll be seeing a lot of that green FrogTape around here by the way, I’m one of the members of their new Blog Squad, whoot!!)

This way the fuzzies end up on the tape and not your walls! (And the cheaper your roller, the more fuzz you’ll get off, in my experience.)

Here’s another tip – it took me a while to realize this, but even if I’m painting a regular room with normal ceiling height, I put my roller on a pole, instead of holding the roller. It is SO much easier on your body to stand back and let the long pole do the work. My back and shoulders used to ache when I used just the roller. Now it doesn’t bother me much at all because I use the pole.

By the way, please don’t buy a pole at the store just for painting!! Any standard broom that comes apart (and most do) will attach to your roller:

 

You can’t tell from these photos but that red broom handle is covered with paint. ;)

As far as trays go, I just use the plastic liners as my tray, without a metal tray underneath. You don’t need it. I’ve tried the metal paint trays where the paint is supposed to peel right off and uh, it did not happen for me. Maybe it was the fault of the operator, but it was ridiculous. Save your money. :)

When it comes to small jobs where I’m just using a small foam roller, I will either just dump some paint on a couple paper plates:

Or I will skip the plastic tray all together and use up some of my plastic shopping bags and line the metal tray with it:

If you do this, make sure to turn the bag inside out if there is print on it. :)

I don’t buy the little handheld paint trays specifically made for cutting in with a brush. Instead I use coffee cups and wash them out after each use:

If you don’t have any (we don’t drink coffee so we don’t have a ton), you can get them for about 25 cents at Goodwill. They hold just enough and are the perfect size for a paint brush. The handle makes them easy to hold on to and carry around the room.

One more tip I learned years ago – if need to stop mid-painting and have wet brushes, stick them in a Ziploc bag or a plastic grocery bag (tied up) and they will stay wet for days.

Some say to put them in the fridge but I’ve never found it necessary – they stay wet just as long left out as well:

If I have paint left in a tray I’ll wrap it up in a bag and tie it up to keep it till I’m ready – that way I’m not trying to get all that paint back in the can (you’ll always lose some). You can keep used rollers ready to go that way as well! (Although I find they dry out quicker than the brushes.)

And when are ready to wash the brushes – you’ll love this little guy:

This brush comb is about $5 but has saved me a TON in new paint brushes. You just brush it through while washing them out. It gets all the bits of paint out and leaves the bristles nice and straight while they dry out. I LOVE this.

So there you go! A few of my favorite painting tools and tips! If you have never painted and are nervous about it, don’t be. I hadn’t put a drop of paint on a wall in my life before the day we closed on this house. And that first day I painted our family room and it’s still the same today…so I did OK. ;)

Back to the laundry room -- here’s the space before we started:

And here it is after the tile was installed, Pebble Beach was painted on the walls, and baseboards and quarter round were installed:

I was up at the crack of dawn one morning scrambling to get that trim down so the washer and dryer could be installed! By the skin of my teeth, I tell you.

I thought this color was going to be much lighter than it was – but there isn’t any natural light so I think with that it would read MUCH lighter. I love it though – it’s coming together just as I had imagined! I’m going for a “rustic elegance” look in there – that term came to me after I started the shelves in here and I think it’s fitting. I’ll show you those soon! 

So do you use any of the tips I mentioned? Do you have any painting tips I missed here?  I love hearing new ones so share away!

**Don’t forget -- the next Show Us Your House party is next week and it’s time to show off family rooms! That one will go up Monday morning this time – probably around 10 a.m. EST. I know that will be different from my past link ups that go up at night so I wanted to make sure to let you know!

Have a great weekend!!

They’re back! (Fall linky parties)

It’s that time again! Can you even believe it? I have been counting down the days to fall. ;) And these parties are gonna ROCK!

We’re back with another It’s Fall Y’all linky party series!:

Layla and Kevin at The Lettered Cottage will kick it off with fall tablescape ideas on September 18, then Rhoda at Southern Hospitality will celebrate with outdoor decor on the 20th. The week after Kate from Centsational Girl and I will join in with fall mantels on the 25 and easy, quick fall decor here at TDC on the 27.

I’m so ready!!:

I’ve already been thinking about ways to add fall touches to the house this season. Last year I didn’t do much since we had the whole water/floor issue which I was really bummed about.

One thing (things?) I know will be back:

I love my little mice, yes I do. They are a fall favorite around here now. :)

So mark your calendars, get ready, cause it will be here before you know it!

I’ll be back later today with an update on the basement laundry room!

Forever And Always

What a special day!  We completed Lan Lan's US adoption. 

She now has her official American name and will be issued an American birth certificate with our names as her parents.  I love the judge who officiates.  She does a mock trial with all the kids and explains history regarding the courts and legal system. 

The best part was when the judge asked Lan Lan if she understood how long she would be in our family.  Lan Lan said, "For one year.  And until I get old and die."

And the judge said, "And even longer than that--forever and always."

Sweet words.

Some people think it is too late for older children to be adopted.  Especially kids who have always been waiting.  And waiting.  Some think kids who have experienced a harsh life will never overcome the effects.



referral picture in 2010



Those people don't know Lan Lan.  She is one of the sweetest, most loving children in the whole world!  She is determined and loves to try new things.  She is musical, artistic, athletic, opinionated, kind, optimistic, sassy, stylish, thoughtful . . . and did I mention beautiful? 

Forever and always.

I love those words. 

How blessed we are.