Monday, May 27, 2013

Work Out Update (1)

So I have been really trying to keep track of my working out so I can see what I'm doing that's working or what I'm doing that isn't working. O I figured it would be a fun thing to share on here and help me keep track of everything. I started this whole work out thing on a Wednesday, so my days are a little off. But it is proof you don't have to wait until a Monday!

Starting weight: 140 lbs
Starting Size: 8-10

Day One, Wednesday:

Elliptical
Level: 10 Time: 30 minutes Distance: 2.2 miles

At-home Sit-ups 
6 sets of 25 reps / total: 150

Gym Sit-ups with 4lb medicine ball
2 reps of 25 straight
5 reps of 10 to each side

Day Two, Thursday: 

Elliptical
Level: 10 Time: 30 minutes Distance: 3.1 miles

Gym Sit-ups with 4lb medicine ball
4 reps of 25 straight
5 reps of 20 to each side

Side-ups with 8lb weight
50 to each side

Day Three, Friday:

3 mile hike with the hubs



Day Four, Saturday:

Break Day

Day Five, Sunday:

Break Day

Friday, May 24, 2013

Old Candles to Glass Storage

There are some really beautiful candles out there. But apart from making your own candles with the glass jars, there isn't much to do once the candle burns out. Or is there?


What You Will Need:
Used up glass candle jars
Boiling water
Knife

Begin by taking your knife and cutting slits in the candle wax all the way to the bottom. Make sure you do a line around the outside of the candle to help the water get underneath the candle easier.


Put your boiling/extremely hot water in the candle and allow it to soak for several minutes. You can see that some of my candle is already floating to the top. Some of it won't float to the top however, so if you're getting a little impatient (I always am when it comes to waiting on crafting) just wait a few minutes and scrape the knife around the bottom again. Odds are it will come loose a lot quicker.

When you pour the water out of your container, please make sure not to pour the wax into your sink. Clogged pipes equal bad times, and who wants to explain the the plumber why there is candle wax lining your pipes?


My pictures didn't come out too clearly, unfortunately there is no natural light in my current kitchen. New house, why hast though taken so long to finish? But you can pretty much use these candle jars for anything now. I have some Wal-mart candle jars storing some green teas in my kitchen. It looks so neat to be able to see the teas I'm choosing instead of having them stored in a gross box stuffed in a cabinet.


And then I have a bigger candle jar storing some spring nail polishes in my room. It is a really cute way to have my frequently used polishes of the season out on display and right within my reach. As a mom I have limited time to paint and dry my nails, but as a 22-year old girl, I have a strong desire to have them painted. Sigh, its a constant battle.


I hope you guys enjoyed the tutorial! If you would like to see how I did the label on the nail polish jar check this post out! If you try these out please show me some pictures on instagram or twitter with the hashtag #thesaylors! I'd love to see some awesome ways you guys use your candles for storage.

Wednesday, May 22, 2013

I, I, I, I work out.

So I've been feeling rather on the chubby side lately. I don't know how it's happened, but a year has passed since I've had Emma and while I technically lost the baby weight after only a few weeks, I never  really lost the belly or extra flab. I weigh what I did pre-pregnancy, but it just doesn't look the same.

So, I'm gonna vlog/blog my weight loss progress. Whether I am actually progressing or failing miserably. 

Today was a total positive, even if it resulted in me having a major migraine.

The first thing I did, which is different than my normal gym routine, was run for thirty straight minutes on the elliptical on level 10. It was awful, I got really dizzy, but I'm still glad I didn't stop the entire time.


That's me as red as a tomato after I got done. Can you see how fake that smile is? I wanted to die.

I also did 100 sit ups on the machine, and had done 125 regular floor sit ups before I went to the gym. Abs of steel here I come! 

I did pretty good diet wise today too. I'm not trying any crazy diets, or even counting calories, because I really want to keep eating healthy. So I'm just trying to find healthier ways to do everything.

The one new healthy diet thing I would say I could not survive without this week is my magic bullet. 


I make so many smoothies on this thing that help cure my cravings for sweet things and they are so super yummy and good for me that it is a win win win! I strongly recommend getting some kind of blender if you're trying to eat healthy. You can make vegetable juice without a juicer, make smoothies, blend up some stuff to make salsa. The possibilities are endless. And there is something great about knowing what you ate didn't have any preservatives and was natural. 

Anybody have any smoothie recipes for me?

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

D.I.Y. Vinyl Lettering - No Machine!


So, unfortunately for me, Christmas passed before I learned of the magic little label genie called the Cricut. Boy howdy do I want one of those, but until the day I find two hundred dollar bills laying around I probably won't get one. So I have to get a little more crafty in my label-making abilities.

(I had already done the flour one as a tester before I did the rest)

So, there are several things around the house I wanted to add a little flair to. The first thing was these kitchen canisters. I got them for my wedding, and so far they've just been sitting on the top of the fridge (I have the smallest kitchen known to man, literally only two counters) and they look incredibly boring. So I wanted to add labels and make them look a little more organized.

So the first thing I did was to write out exactly what I wanted the labels to say and look like, thickness and everything. You can see where I messed up on the s for sugar a few times.

Then you need to cut out your little drawings.

After mine were cut out, I took scotch tape, and taped it face down to the back of the vinyl.

All that was left to do now was to cut around the paper and through the vinyl so the letters were cut out and ready to be stuck to things.

So at this point all I had to do was peel off the back of the vinyl and stick it to the clean surface I wanted it on! Yay!

I did all three canisters that are in use:


My doggies water and food bowl. Can you see the rain drops for water and the doggy bone for food?

And I put a cross on our still in progress first aid kit!

Are those cute or what! I can't wait to find more things to stick my labels on. I paid $7.99 for two large sheets of plain white vinyl at Hobby Lobby and it is one of my favorite craft purchases so far!


Disclaimer: I had this posted on an old blog of mine, That's Sew Crafty. I decided to move it over to my current blog. All images and words are my own.

D.I.Y. First Aid Kit


Something I think every household needs is some sort of first aid kit. Whether or not you just have some band-aids in the back of your medicine cabinet, or if you have a fancy complete ready to buy one, I'm sure that you have some sort of first aid on hand.

The only problem with having it all thrown into your medicine cabinet is its accessibility. Who wants to rummage through old toothpastes and empty prescription bottles to find a band-aid when your child is screaming from a scraped knee? Or if you accidentally touch the oven when putting in those delicious cookies you baked from scratch? (okay, okay, or pulled apart from the frozen package) Having your first aid materials all in one place is convenient in times when you already have something else on your mind.

Now what you may be thinking at this point is, where am I gonna find the cash to buy a first aid kit? Those ready-made ones can be pretty pricey, and usually only come with small amounts of each thing, when you really need more than ten band-aids.

My suggestion to you is to make one yourself. Each time you go to the grocery store you can buy one or two items off your list of must haves, starting with the frequently used items, and slowly build up everything you'll ever need.

What I suggest you buy:
Band-aids of various shapes and sizes; how many times do you end up with a paper cut, or a child with a scraped knee? Band-aids are simply a part of every family household, and they are a necessity for first aid kits.

• Gauze The only time I have ever really used gauze is on my husbands really bad sports scrapes (and he hates it) or when I get poison ivy to keep the medication on the infection and to stop myself from scratching and spreading. Whatever you use it for, its really good to have laying around.

• Gauze pads These are incredibly handy for the times you don't need to wrap the whole appendage but a band-aid just won't do the job.

• Bandage tape Well you can't use gauze without being able to tape it down can you?

• Safety Pins This one really isn't a must have for your kit, but it will certainly be useful to know exactly where some are in case of emergency.

• Disposable Latex Gloves These are also really important. Say you have one of you friends children over for the night and they scrape their knee. You'll want to put these on to protect yourself from germs. Or if you have a mouth emergency. You don't want to be sticking your unsanitary hands around in there.

• Scissors Obviously scissors have a variety of uses. They can cut the bandages, cut clothes of more serious injuries, pretty much anything.

• Tweezers Besides always knowing where some tweezers are, I imagine these would be useful to get rocks out of a scraped knee, broken glass out of a teeny bare foot, or splinters out of your little boys fingers.

• A Small Cup I actually suggest a couple small cups, so you can dispose of them after a use. Unless you are just planning on washing them. But these are good to fill with a little water to take aspirin with.

• Antiseptic Spray The most important thing when treating a wound is making sure you keep any and all germs out so there is no infection. Having this spray on hand makes sure you won't forget to spray it on your hands before touching things (even though you always promise your kids you won't touch it if they just let you see it, and your first reaction is to touch it immediately) and to sanitize around the wound quickly.


• Burn Ointment This is one I have used a few times. There is nothing like singing your finger on the oven or a pan you forgot was hot. Nothing can take away that burning sensation like burn ointment. So this is something I plan on having access to right away.

• Aspirin You should keep this separate from whatever you use on a regular basis. That way you don't run out and you have this emergency stash, because you never know when you'll need some quickly. *Note* any kind of medicine needs to be approved through a doctor before consumed especially when it is for a child.

• Calamine Lotion Ever had poison ivy? A few mosquito bites? Then I don't need to explain the importance of this cooling magic gel.

• Aloe As your typical girl, I have spent plenty of time trying to get that lovely bronze glow from both the tanning bed and from the suns natural light. And as a completely pasty white person, I have been sunburned more times than I can count. The only thing that soothes it or the itching that comes with tanning beds is aloe gel. It is a must have for me.

• Thermometer This is an obvious one, its always important to keep your temperature under control. Especially if there is a child or (like me) a pregnant woman around. A serious temperature can cause a lot of problems and having a thermometer on hand allows you to keep it under control.

• Hot Water Bottle When you have a sore spot, the best thing to do is to alternate colt and hot, but you can't do that without someplace to keep your hot water without burning you.

• Ice Packs Important for the same reason above. Nothing makes a sore spot or a wound feel better than when you put some ice on it.

• First Aid Guide All of this stuff is pretty useless unless you know how to use it. And even if you know how to use it, it doesn't mean the baby sitter does, or whoever is opening your first aid kit. So this is really handy to have around.

Something else you will need is some way to keep all your first aid items in one place. I opted for the super cheap tub you see in the top picture, it was only a dollar at the dollar tree (that store is a magical place.) and then I added a vinyl label. But you can really do anything you want with it. Large food storage containers, pretty baskets, the sky is the limit. Just make sure you keep it out of reach of the little ones!

As a disclaimer I would like to say I originally had this posted on my original blog, That's Sew Crafty, all content is written by me. It was just on my other blog originally. 

Monday, May 20, 2013

D.I.Y. Twine Bottle

So I had myself a little wine night the other day, and ended up falling in love with this bottle. It has an elongated neck, and it is gorgeous. So I knew I was gonna keep it for a project.

I really love the light rustic country look that is trendy right now. All the homes that utilize this have a very homey feel and I really have been trying to find our homes style, and I'm dying for this to be it. I have some decorations already on my entryway table that are rustic, but this twine bottle really completes the look. These things are oodles of money at the store, so my D.I.Y. Saved me a lot of money.

All I had to do was buy the wine bottle, which I had no problem doing. Emma was with Granny for the night. So I had myself an Office marathon and woke up with all the materials I needed to do this awesome craft.

Materials Needed:
Empty Wine Bottle
Twine
Hot Glue Gun/Glue
Scissors

Time Needed:
About an Hour


I began by placing the end of my twine on the bottom of the bottle and hot gluing like crazy! Don't be shy, you're going to want this to be super sturdy. Give it some time to dry and continue.


Then I put a thin line of hot glue around a potion of the bottom of the bottle and put the twine in place before it dries. You have to be kind of quick here, hot glue dries fast!


Placing my hot glue gun tip directly beside the already glued twine, I added another line of glue.


Again, like before, I quickly pushed the twine on top of the glue and repeated the process all the way around the bottle. The twine eventually goes up...


And up...


And up the bottle until you are finished. It was a very lengthy process, I almost quit and took a break just because I was getting bored but I'm glad I stayed put and finished the project.


Get the twine all the way to the top and cut it, leaving about an inch or two of excess. Then stick the excess inside the bottle and pour some hot glue in there. It really rounds the look off when you go all the way to the top.


And WA-LA! You're a crafty master and saved a ton of money. Two things this little mama loves.

Tuesday, May 14, 2013

Kinspiration

So I wanted to show you guys all the plans I have for my kitchen. All of these images are either from Pinterest or Better Homes and Gardens, I don't own any of them.


This picture, even though is technically of a dining room, is my main inspiration for the whole kitchen. I love the contrast of the dark floors, matching countertops and dark gray color of the walls with the white cabinets would look amazing.


Here is another example of that contrast, but the main reason I chose this picture is the giant word. I completely plan on making this for my kitchen, I even have a little wall (that will be hosting our entry table) that has no real purpose because it is too tiny. I plan on making a tutorial for you guys!


The bad thing about ripping out cabinets is you have to pay for whole new cabinets from scratch instead of fixing the ones you have. The good thing is I can build this baby around my fridge. While mine will not be nearly as extravagant, I plan in doing something similar. 


Come on, how awesome is this? I've always thought those white plastic trays were one of the trashiest looking things about kitchens, yet I have one right in my drawer. This, if I can find it, is something I totally plan on getting. Like I said earlier, the sweet part about tearing out cabinets is freedom, the bitter part is the price.


While I don't really like this kitchen, I love the shelf under the cabinets for small appliances and decor, it really frees up counter space, which after living in an apartment that leaves me with half a counter to cook on is a big deal.


And finally, I love the relaxed feel of this kitchen. I definitely want a country cozy look to my kitchen, but I want a seriously modern updated version of that. Make sense? Not to me either, but I look forward to getting my kitchen done finally and seeing what look I'm talking about.


Monday, May 6, 2013

D.I.Y. Colored Labels

So I have seen a ton of posts on Pinterest about using chalkboard paint and labels to easily make chalkboard labels (which, when we move into the Leaky Cauldron I totally plan on doing for the pantry, because that is awesome). But, I needed some pretty labels that I intended to keep permanently labeled, and would be shoved into a bag and probably wiped off.

So I just painted my labels a really pretty color and wrote on them with a Sharpie. It is really simple, takes about five minutes plus drying time, and I liked the outcome, although I feel like it could be done a little better if I wanted to spend more time.


Here is what you will need:
Paint (your choice of color)
Paintbrush
Labels
Paper Towel


You just put a tiny dollop of paint on your paper towel and lay your labels on the paper towel as well. This is to prevent mess and have a super easy clean up.


Paint over the labels. I really wanted a brushed look instead of a smooth solid color, so I only applied one layer and didn't pay too much attention to the details.


Then to pizazz them up slightly I added the parenthesis to put around whatever label I came up with. It ended up looking alright, but not great.


And finally, let it dry and you can peel and stick them to whatever you want! I am planning a toddler bag organization post soon so I will be using these for that purpose! I really hope you enjoyed the post!





D.I.Y. Face Mask

So today I am going to show you guys a really fun cheap face mask. If you are a fan of my YouTube channel, Truderds, you know how I've recently discovered some pretty toxic stuff in common makeup. It's scary, especially when there are so many more natural remedies out there.

This mask is something I originally saw on Pinterest, but I can't find the original source anywhere. So if anyone has seen it, please let me know so I can give credit where it is due.

Let me just tell you though, it's awesome. Even day after, my face feels so much softer and my skin is a little more clear.

What you need:
Half a lemon
2 tbsp honey

All you have to do is cut a lemon in half, and pour the honey on the lemon. Then take your lemon and just rub it on your face. Simple and cheap right? You let it sit for five to ten minutes (i recommend using the other half of lemon in a glass of ice water and sitting back to relax.) and then you wash it off with warm water and enjoy your new glow! Natural, effective and no nasty chemicals!


Why does this work? (Also, please ignore my chipped nail polish!) Honey is a natural anti-bacterial and inflammatory. It absorbs the impurities from skin while you're letting it soak. Lemon helps naturally lighten, exfoliate, clean and tone skin because it is full of vitamin C and alpha hydroxy acids. Beat that $10 face masks!

Let me know on Twitter or Instagram if you try this out!