Outdoor Rug Makeover

"Rug" and "Makeover" don't usually go together in the same sentence, but they should really go together more often than they do!

I've been in the works of redoing our 8 year old outdoor rug, and 'lo and behold if I didn't see this pop up on BHG's website!  Great minds think a like! :)

I adore theirs, and wish I would have thought of doing it the reverse way myself.  HOWEVER, if you try either of these projects, I have to disclose that during the trial and error of this project, I HIGHLY recommend using any paint OTHER than spray paint! I don't know if it's the Kansas wind that took over, or if my rug was just not going to budge and allow itself to soak in the spray paint, but after using an entire can + of spray paint, we concluded that using a different kind of paint is the theory that worked best (for us).  

To start;

You'll Need:
An Outdoor Rug
Pre-Cut Stencil
Paint
Paint Brush
Newspaper if you decide you're still going to go ahead and try the spray paint theory. ;)


Start with a clean outdoor rug:

 

Put your pre-cut stencil in place:

Using scrap pieces of paper, protect the sides of the initial from your spray paint.  If you're stenciling in, you will skip this step.

 Spray to your hearts content.  I gave up, after 1.5 cans of spray paint, and filled in my initial with acrylic paint and a brush.

So that you can see the project both ways...

Here is the spray painted version.

Meh...Could be worse...

Here is the spray painted, then brushed version:

Gonna have to go with option 2 here.  Just sayin' :)

Additional Note:  Since I spray painted and then brushed, I did not brush the side design squares.  Seemed to help save my project fail, and overall I'm really happy with the project.  I love a good upcycle! :)


Need further tips and tricks?  I hope I can help!  Comment or email me.

Happy Crafting!

Better Homes & Garden's State Fragrance Contest

My friend, and fellow blogger, Momma Harvey, has had a very exciting few weeks!

She was chosen by Better Homes and Gardens®, to create the State of Kansas', state fragrance! 

I know she put a lot of time and effort into this project, and what she came up with was a delightful fragrance called "County Fair".  Don't you just love the name?!  It smells even better! *Takes a deep breath in*


Once she published the instructions; I wasn't going to miss out on testing it out. So here we go...

You'll Need:
1/2 cube of Baked Apple Strudel
1/2 cube of Enchanted Evening Walk
1/2 cube of Vanilla Carmel Spice
1/2 cube of Cinnamon Spice
1 Better Homes and Gardens Fragrance Wax Warmer (or something similar to)

Start cutting your cubes in half.  I found the easiest way to do this was to just leave the wax in the container. Using a butter knife to cut through the wax.

Once all your wax has been cut into halves, place them in your wax warmer, plug it in, and flip the switch.

Now you wait, but it only takes a few seconds for that cinnamon-y spice smell to start tickling your senses, then cube, by cube, they all start to melt.  Ahhh...Somehow she really did capture the smells that really do remind me of Home!

To vote for Momma Harvey, and her "County Fair" fragrance, please visit BHG's Facebook Page, and click "Kansas" to place your vote!

Good luck Momma Harvey!  We are routing for you!!