Project Big Boy Room, Part 3

I should be hitting a road block any minute now. All these projects for Matthew's room are coming along wayyyyy to smoothly.... lol

Part 3 will be the mod podge monogram for his wall.

I found an 18 inch "M" wooden letter at Hobby lobby for $12.99, used my 40% coupon code on my phone and purchased it for $7.79. Fishing card stock stickers were on sale for $1.00 so I bought a sheet, but ended up not using them on this project.
 I also purchased 3 sheets of patterned scrapbook paper which was on sale for .30 a piece.

My supplies:

 Here's my unfinished wooden letter. I started by laying down a drop cloth over my table. I regularly buy plastic table cloths from the dollar tree and cut them into 3 sections to use for crafts. They hold liquids well and don't "soak" like newspaper does.

 I put a heavy layer of mod podge over the letter and smoothed it out with a foam brush.  Make sure you work fast, unfinished wood absorbs liquid very quickly.

Once you've applied a thorough amount of mod podge, cover your letter with scrapbook paper or card stock. Smooth out wrinkles as you go. Depending on the size of your letter, you may have to use more than one sheet of card stock to cover your letter.

Smooth out as many wrinkles as you can because you will see them when it dries.

Turn over your wooden letter. Using an xacto knife or razor blade, trim the paper as close to the edge of your letter as you can. These will be your finished edges.

Flip your letter back over. Apply a generous layer of mod podge over your letter and let it completely dry. Mod podge will appear white like Elmer's Glue when applied, but don't worry it will dry clear.  Apply additional layers as needed until you get the shiny finished effect that you like.

My letter had cutouts on the back to hang by nails, but I wanted something more rustic. I hot-glued some leftover twine rope from Matthew's Pirate Party to the back to make "picture wire"

You are done!

I love the rustic look that the "wooden" patterened paper gives this monogram. Since you can mod podge almost any paper or cotton fabric, there are a ton of projects you could do. You could make a solid color one and use as decor every year for your childs birthday. You could make it in pink or blue and give as a baby shower gift thats costs less than $10.00 to make.

 Possibilities are endless.

Total Cost for this Project: $8.69

( I already owned a bottle of mod podge/puzzle saver and an xacto knife)

Links below for items.

18 inch Wooden "M" letter:

http://shop.hobbylobby.com/products/18-unpainted-wooden-letter-m-366625/

Mod Podge/Puzzle Saver: (you can find the smaller bottle of puzzle saver at walmart for around $2)

http://shop.hobbylobby.com/products/8-ounce-gloss-mod-podge-183996/

Xacto Knife:

http://www.walmart.com/ip/X-Acto-1-Basic-Light-Duty-Knife/19703023

Project Big Boy Room, Part 2

Wall Decor....could it be more expensive these days?
Thankfully, Hobby Lobby, Michael's Arts & Crafts and Jo-Ann's all offer a 40% off one regular price item coupon almost weekly. No need to waste paper by printing these either. Michael's, Hobby Lobby and Jo-ann's offer a free app on your smart phone with digital coupons. Download the app, "clip" the coupons, and show it to the cashier. Which is perfect for me because I cant count the number of times I've printed the coupon and left it at home. Crap......lol

Occasionally Michael's will also offer a "special" coupon for an additional 20% off your total purchase including sale items. MEGA SAVINGS HERE!

Enough blabbing about the savings. Tonight we went to Hobby Lobby looking for more inexpensive decor for Matthew's room and SCORE! All posters and matted pictures were on sale for 50% off. I found a really nice "sign" on sale for $5.99. It was the perfect size and I knew I had a frame at home the same size to put it in.

 

 

 

 Whenever I shop for wall decor I always check my spare frames and pictures we are not using before I go, because a can of spray paint is cheaper than a whole new frame. In fact, check ALL your supplies before you leave, make sure you only purchase what you need.  :)

Anyways, the frame I had was a plain black frame I purchased on clearance at Walmart a few months back. I had some leftover Rust-oleum Hammered Spray Paint in Brown, which I purchased at Walmart last month for around $5.00 a can.

The frame took about two coats to get the good dimensional  "hammered" look I wanted for the frame. I let the first coat dry for about 2 hours before applying the second coat. This type of spray paint is perfect for lots of projects because no primer is needed and it can be used on metal, wood, plastic, etc.

 Here is the finished frame, I find the hammered look gives it a more defined edge and blends well with the rustic picture.

Total Project Cost :
 (using the materials I already had at home) $5.95

(clearance frame was $7.00, spray paint was $5.00 and picture was $6.00, so $18.00 if you had to buy all products. Remember,  1 can of spray paint is good for multiple projects, so choose a color that you may be able to use on other projects such as neutral colors)
 Links are posted below for most products used.

 

Rust-oleum Hammered Spray Paint Brown-
http://www.rustoleum.com/CBGProduct.asp?pid=29

Project Big Boy Room, Part 1

For awhile now I've wanted to update Matthew's plain white sheet on the bed with a batman blanket room. His room is so mismatch and uncoordinated its ridiculous. He had a spaceship canvas, a marvel poster and some random zoo prints on his wall. Poor kid, lol.
I wanted him to have a simple and clean design to his room. Something that could adapt as he gets older. I chose a neutral color bedding set for his room from Pottery barn Kids . Keep in mind, this momma lovessssss Pottery barn Kids but I rarely shop there because it isn't in our budget. However,  I found a plain set that even Matthew liked on clearance.

To save money, I opted to buy the Duvet instead of the comforter. Louisiana heat doesn't permit comforters and my toddler is one sweaty sleeper anyhow.

Purchasing the Duvet, Twin Sheet Set, Pillowcase and Sham, my total was at $114.97. Still not bad for an entire bedding set from Pottery barn Kids considering the original price was $160.00, but we aren't done yet.

The last few weeks I sold a few old baby toys and clothes on Craigslist for around $50.00 cash. I then used the $50.00 to purchase a Pottery barn gift card at our local store. On the home page of www.potterybarnkids.com, there was a coupon code for $10.00 off of a $100.00 (no exclusions on sale or clearance)

Upon checkout, I used the FREE $10.00 off coupon code available on their website, along with my $50.00  to purchase his bedding for only $54.97 

 I could have saved on the shipping but this set was not available in our local store and Pottery barn Kids doesn't offer a Free "site to store" option. Never pay for shipping if you don't have to.
So, buy using the company's free $10.00 off coupon and getting rid of some junk of of Matthew's room, I saved $60.00 on his bedding set. I saved more money that I spent.

How could you save even more? Search the Internet before you make an online purchase ANYWHERE. There are tons of coupon codes online offering discounts up to 15% off at Pottery barn. I searched online and ebay for these coupons and gift cards, but ultimately decided to use the free code provided on the Pottery barn kids website. What I mean by gift cards is purchasing gift cards or merchandise credits on ebay at discounted prices to save money. For example, if you can find a $75.00  merchandise credit card on ebay for only $60.00, you will technically save $15.00 off your purchase.
Example- If you purchase a quilt listed $75.00 with that gift card, you will only pay $60.00 for that $75.00 quilt. (The gift card cost you $60.00, but it has a value of $75.00). Gift cards and Merchandise credits can also be combined with online coupon codes/promo codes to further your savings.
Another Example- Same $75.00 quilt, combined with a 10% coupon code found online, discounts your quilt to $67.50. You will now have a credit of $7.50 on your gift card. Hope that makes you smile :)

TOTAL COST PART A- $54.97

Links below for most products used.

More posts this week on the progress and savings of Matthew's room, stay tuned!

Pottery barn kids Oliver Bedding Set:
http://www.potterybarnkids.com/products/oliver-quilted-bedding/
Pottery barn kids Oliver Sheeting:
http://www.potterybarnkids.com/products/oliver-sheeting/?pkey=e%7Coliver%7C3%7Cbest%7C0%7C1%7C24%7C%7C3&cm_src=PRODUCTSEARCH||NoFacet-_-NoFacet-_-NoMerchRules-_-