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Door Makeover with Modern Masters plus a Giveaway!

July 29, 2014 by Danielle

This post is sponsored by Modern Masters. I received compensation and/or product for review, but all opinions are 100% my own.

I’m totally stoked to share with y’all today! I’ve been looking forward to this post for several weeks, and FINALLY have it complete for showing off. Not being a fan of boring, plain white doors like my house was full of when we moved in, I jumped at the opportunity for a Door Makeover with Modern Masters!

What a transformation, right?! We built our house on a budget last year, so we went with a lot of basic, standard things, including boring paint. I’ve slowly been repainting some of the rooms (long ways to go still…so lots of room makeovers to come!), and thanks to Modern Masters Front Door Paint I now have some doors that are fun and ‘POP’, instead of the boring white.

I first heard about Modern Masters at Snap! Conference I went to this past April. First of all, fabulous ladies who really knew their product and could answer all my questions. As I looked into their door paint more, I noticed they really tried to make painting and remodeling extra fun, and added personality to their colors…literally! When you choose a paint color, it isn’t just ‘purple’ or ‘berry’. The deep purple shade I chose is Spontaneous. The crisp grey shade I chose for my stenciling is called Mysterious. They have 24 gorgeous colors based on the emotional color wheel, so you can find the perfect match for YOU. See, super fun!

So first of all, I applied my Spontaneous paint to my boring door. I did three coats just to make sure I had adequate coverage (two looked great, but I figured why not do another….can you tell I love painting?). You should know….I did two doors, one side on each. My bedroom door, and my craft room door. So that means I did SIX coats (two doors, one sided, times three coats)……..

…..and still had THIS much leftover in the quart container!

Ya, a little goes a long way and I LOVE to have extra paint for touch-ups down the road (kids create scuffs, we all know this), or even for adding it to other spots in a room to tie in the color. Woot Woot!

I then used this design from my favorite stencil company, Royal Design Studio, to create my pattern on the flat main parts of my doors. The Mysterious color was a perfect accent….it stands out, but also blends well at the same time. A great ‘pop’ without a ‘wham, in your face’!

Clean-up was a cinch….I did get a bit of paint on my doorknobs (I loosened them, but could not for the life of me get them OFF the door), but once it dried I simply peeled off the unwanted parts and it was perfectly clean! I’m all for the easy. Modern Masters paint also dries quickly (but not TOO quickly), and I could easily apply my next coat after about two hours….but it was fine to touch within one, which makes it nice when I’m still going in and out of the doors I’m painting. I love the satiny finish, smooth and beautiful!

Another perk of Modern Masters Front Door Paint? It never fades, even in the sun! Perfect in this Texas weather, that’s for sure! I really wanted to use this on my front door, but due to HOA stuff I’m not allowed to change my door color 🙁

Don’t want to paint your house doors? How about your garage doors or shutters? It works great on those, also! I love flexibility.

Modern Masters even has a FREE app, for iPhone or Android, that allows you to instantly see how their Front Door Paint can look on your doors! Genius, right? And don’t forget to swing by their Modern Masters Cafe Blog!

Front Door Paint is available at selected Lowe’s and Ace Hardwares as well as online via Amazon or the Modern Masters online shop. One of my nearest Lowe’s that’s now carrying this is in Fort Worth – so my neighbors already know where to head to nab up there fun new door paint!

Now it’s YOUR turn to transform some doors or shutters into a fun, beautiful expression of YOU! One lucky reader will receive a FREE Quart (remember how far that much paint will go?) of Modern Masters Front Door Paint in the color (expression) of their choice!

Must be at least 18 years of age to enter. Only valid for the Continental US. Giveaway courtesy of Modern Masters and Busy Mom’s Helper. Please see complete Terms and Conditions in the Rafflecopter Giveaway below.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

DIY Pirate Sign

June 26, 2014 by Danielle

*I received free product to use in this post. All ideas and opinions are 100% my own. See my Disclosure Policy for further information.

Ahoy, Matey! I’ve got another fun pirate-y project for you today! This DIY Pirate Sign is so simple to make, and your wallet will love you for it!

I don’t know about you, but I love when there’s a project I can make once, then reuse again and again! Call me lazy, or cheap…..but I’m all for saving time and money! This DIY Pirate Sign was the perfect decoration for our recent Pirate Party, and is now an excellent (and sturdy) fixture for the boys’ Pirate Bedroom!

When I began brainstorming for the bedroom makeover, I knew I wanted some sort of rustic, wooden sign. I did NOT want to deal with the cost, working with the wood itself (lots of sanding to make it smooth enough for the boys to play around) and wasn’t fond of how HEAVY it would end up being.

Then I met the fabulous team from FloraCraft at SNAP! Conference at the end of April. They had this AMAZING map board on the wall, which at first I thought was wood boards. Turns out, it was actually Styrofoam boards! Wonderfully lightweight (which meant easy to hang), versatile (we were able to stick pins and hang things onto it), and absolutely gorgeous! I knew it would be perfect for the boys’ bedroom decor, and they were kind enough to help me out!

Notes: The amount of boards, puddy and paint will depend on your desired dimensions of your sign.

Supplies

1″x12″x36″ Styrofoam boards
FloraCraft Smooth Finish puddy
Brown paint of choice & paint brush
StyroCutter Plus (or other cutter for the Styrofoam)
Plastic knife, or other puddy spreader
Vinyl Lettering/images, or stickers
Long nails, to attach Styrofoam
If desired, sealing spray to hold the vinyl/stickers on better

Directions

Cut your Styrofoam pieces. I cut one board in half hotdog-wise for the ‘post’, putting one piece up above the other. For the individual signs I did about 4 per board, varying the size of each (some larger, some smaller). I used the amazing StyroCutter Plus, which made it uber easy to cut the boards. Since it’s basically melting through it, the edges end up smooth and nice!
Use a plastic knife, puddy knife or other smooth spreader to spread the Smooth Finish puddy over the boards. If you want it smooth, this puddy can do that easily. I purposely made mine look more ‘rough’ and ‘old wood’ looking.
Once the boards are covered in the puddy to the texture that you’d like, and it has fully dried, paint your boards. I found that the paint does go on a little lighter over the puddy than expected, so just keep that in mind.
I used my trusty Silhouette Cameo to print out my vinyl lettering and images (mermaid, crocodile, skull rock, etc.), then put the vinyl on the boards. I wanted them to stick better (and longer) so I sprayed an adhesive over the top to seal them to the boards.
To attach the individual signs to the long ‘post’ boards, I pushed a long nail (long enough to go through the top sign and then the ‘post, so I used about 1 1/2 inch long), through the sign, then used another nail and hammer to stick it in a bit further for extra security. To attach the ‘posts’ and signs to the wall, I got 3 inch nails (since the thickest part would be 2″ with the ‘post’ and signs), and did the same thing. Push it through the boards, then just hammer it into the wall. I did this a few spots on the ‘posts’, and then one in each sign just to be safe. That probably was a bit much, but my plan is the sign to stay put for a very long time.

That’s it! Now you have a fun DIY Pirate Sign to use for your next pirate-y event or room makeover! So head on out and grab some fabulous FloraCraft products and get your DIY on!

Pirate Bedroom: Royal Design Stencils Review

June 12, 2014 by Danielle

*I received a free product for review. However, all opinions, thoughts and comments are entirely my own. I will never share anything I don’t personally use and love.
Wow, guys, I’m totally stoked! For the past two months, Hubby and I have been spending our ‘free’ hours working on a Pirate Bedroom makeover for our three boys. It’s been quite the project, and I can’t wait to show you the grand reveal tomorrow (so be sure to check back)! Today I get to share an AMAZING part of the makeover….Royal Design Stencils!

When I started planning out this bedroom project, I knew I wanted to use a stencil on the walls. I also knew that I absolutely LOVE Royal Design Stencils, so of course was going to browse their selections first! If you remember my girl’s Frozen Bedroom Makeover, I used Royal Design’s Starry Moroccan Night Stencil for her accent wall. It was so easy, and turned out so beautifully! So to their website, I went!

I was worried, though….WHAT exactly was I looking for, that could be a good fit for a pirate bedroom? They have a LOT of amazing stencils to choose from, but I was looking for something JUST RIGHT. Then it happened…I found it! The absolute PERFECT stencil for the boys’ bedroom! There was no question, Royal Design’s Pro Bamboo Trellis Stencil was THE ONE!

One of the many things I love about Royal Design Studios is their customer service. I’ve spoken with some of their staff at my recent SNAP! Conference, recently when I tried the company’s new Wallternatives (remember the adorable Owl Bedroom for my cousin?), and then when discussing a stencil for this bedroom. They’re SUPER friendly, and sincerely care about their customers! They also ship your orders really fast, so I didn’t have to wait too long before starting on this major bedroom makeover!

The stencils are very sturdy (I did all but one wall in this bedroom, and it’s still top shape!). I really appreciate the guidelines on all of their stencils, so it’s no issue lining it up as you move along the wall. You can get the perfect alignment every time! Just tape the stencil to the wall, paint over the stenciled lines, wait a bit for it to dry more, then move on to the next section. If you need to clean some paint off the stencil, just wipe it off nice and smooth. Told you….these stencils make it easy for you! Can you tell where the stencil connects on the walls in this pic….?

I can’t, either! And if you do make a little mistake, just get a little brush and touch it up. No worries!

Seriously, this pirate bedroom wouldn’t be NEARLY as cool if it weren’t for the fun stenciled walls. I just LOVE it! I cannot say enough good about these stencils (and yes, I’ve used stencils from another company before, and they didn’t work very well!), or about Royal Design Studios. They’re my #1 go-to place for stencils, and I’m already planning more fun projects using them!

GUESS WHAT ELSE?! They’re going to be giving away one of their FABULOUS stencils to one of you lucky readers next week! So be sure to come back next Thursday the 19th for your chance to win your choice of a Royal Design Studio Stencil to do your own fun project!

Wallternatives Wall Decals Review

May 30, 2014 by Danielle

I received these Wallternatives free of charge to facilitate this review. All opinions are 100% my own.

Okay, so I’ve been dying counting down the days until I got to share this with you guys! It’s a brand new product line launching TODAY! Seriously, look at how dang stinkin’ cute these Wallternatives Wall Decals are!!!

Just LOOK at that adorable fabric decor! Yes, I just said FABRIC decor. LOVE IT! So first, backstory time: I was first introduced to Royal Design Studios Stencils when I used their Starry Night Moroccan Stencil for my girl’s FROZEN bedroom. I fell in love with their stencils, and was stoked that they were at SNAP! Conference that I attended at the end of April.

At the conference, they were showing us the preview for their AMAZING Wallternatives line! After looking through their many fantastic designs, I was just like Oh. My. Gosh! THEY HAVE OWLS! Anyone that knows my aunt (who lives down the street), she loves owls. Borderline obsessed. So guess what her sweet little girl’s room is done in? Yup, OWLS! I saw that Wallternatives has these adorable Colorful Owls WallPrints™ Fabric Decals and KNEW I had to decorate my cousin’s room with them.

I said it before, and I’ll say it again: SO STINKIN’ CUTE!!! I’m in love with these….not only because they’re absolutely adorable and fun, but they’re also easily applied. You know how sometimes regular vinyl will fold onto itself and then you’re just like ‘well, that sucks’ and have to throw it out, or rip it? NOT THESE! Seriously, they could stick together, and you just smoothly and easily pull them apart and continue with your decorating.

You can also layer the pieces together, like I did with the owl sitting on this branch and the leaves on the branch. They’re actually SEPARATE pieces, but I placed them together. Of course, I didn’t get it perfectly the way I wanted it the first try, so just pulled them apart and tried again until I found the layout I was hoping for.

Another feature I’m stoked for is that they’re able to be REAPPLIED again and again, as long as the adhesive is clean. They don’t get stronger over time, so after 10 years you can go ahead and switch them around without having to scrape them off your walls. Yup, flexibility and not having to fully commit to a layout is fabulous with me!

Worried about the safety factor (what mom isn’t)? No worries here! This material is US patented, green and non-toxic. There’s no PVC, Phthlates, Clycol-ether or Formaldehyde. It’s environmentally friendly and bio-degradable over time.

Know what ELSE they have along with their Wallternatives line? ChalkTalk Chalkboard Art! I can’t wait to get my hands on some of that and have fun with it in my craft room, the kids’ play room….everywhere!

So head on over to Wallternatives and check out their fabulous products for yourself….see which one (or which MANY) you fall in love with!

Heroes of the City App & Giveaway!

March 30, 2014 by Danielle

I was given a free full-version of this app to review, along with the items included in the giveaway. All opinions are my own.

I’m constantly on the lookout for good children’s apps. Not that my kids are on devices often, but when they are, I want it to be worth it. This Heroes of the City app proved to be just that!

When I’m looking for apps, there’s a few things I want: educational, fun, and variety. Along with that, something that my kids can actually DO without me ~~doing it for~~ helping them. The Heroes of the City app was ALL of that! The entire concept is based on little vehicles (cars, trains, etc.) that are alive and rescue/help around their city. For example, here’s Paulie the Police Car, or Harry Hot Rod.

Movies: There are HOURS of movies from Heroes of the City included in the app. So cute, fun and the kids really get into it! We found this especially helpful during small periods of time (doctor office wait) when we just need them to be STILL!

Games: Our 4-year-olds LOVED the games, and were able to do them mostly on their own. Green Lantern (age 2) needed more supervision, but Wonder Woman was more than happy to help, since the games were even intriguing for her! Their favorites were the memory game, one similar to Angry Birds where you shoot a crow from a canon trying to get it as far as you can without it hitting/bouncing off things, and a game of putting out fires in the City…..you can BE THE HERO OF THE CITY! There’s also drawing, puzzles, jump over obstacles and SO MUCH MORE!

My Hubby’s favorite aspect was that no matter what score the child gets, even if they ‘lose’, it does FIREWORKS. For the littlest kids that don’t understand scores, this is really rewarding for them and gets them excited to learn/play. It also does show the score/trophy earned, so for older kids like Wonder Woman, it motivates them to try again to bring up their score. Although the games are mostly for fun, most of them have a real learning aspect to them, such as strategy, to help the kids develop their minds.

To get this fun-filled app, just go to either the AppStore or GooglePlay

Want to win your OWN fun with Heroes of the City? Well, they’re giving one lucky winner a fun package! Not only will you get a DVD with about 5 episodes from the Heroes of the City show, but these fun things as well:

A fun-filled story book, which even has a ‘look and find’ section! The kids had a blast searching for their favorite characters in the book. Wonder Woman enjoyed reading the stories to them, so it was great for ALL our kiddos!

You’ll also receive TWO die cast metal figures of some characters from the app/show! We received Paulie (police car) and Harry (hot rod). They’re big enough for younger kids, but still nice and small-sized for easy play…..as you can tell the size in Superman’s hands…

One note, though: just on Harry Hot Rod, the main screw holding the bottom together wasn’t long enough to hold it. We simply replaced it with a little screw we had on-hand, and it was fantastic after that. It must have just been a faulty one, because Paulie the Police Car’s screw was just great. But as a heads-up, to avoid any choking hazards….watch for this screw if/when you first get it.

Enter now for you chance to win some fun things, and don’t forget to nab the app for some fun and educational time for the kiddos!

This Giveaway Has Ended

Relished Foods: Review & Giveaway

March 14, 2014 by Danielle

I received a free trial to facilitate this review. All opinions are 100% my own. Relished Foods has now Re-branded to Home Chef, so all links have been updated!

If you’re like me, dinnertime is often rushed, stressful and just ONE MORE THING to do in an already packed schedule. I love cooking, but between planning, shopping and actually making the food, I need me hours in a day! I was so excited to have the opportunity to review a newer company Relished Foods, and I absolutely loved it! The best part? They’re all prepared in 30 minutes or less! (yes, I heard angels singing, too)

The meals we got were:

Pan Roasted Pork Tenderloin with Orzo, Cherry Tomato, Charred Lemon & Baby Arugula

This was the meal I was the most excited for, and Oh. My. Gosh. It was AMAZING! I’m talking a fancy restaurant-quality meal. Hubby and I chose this for our ‘date night’, since we didn’t really have the time or budget to go out to eat. I even made it look pretty!

The other two meals we had were:

BBQ Bone-in Chicken Breast with Vinegar Slaw & Heirloom Fingerling Potatoes

Photo courtesy of Relished Foods

This is now Hubby’s favorite BBQ sauce. Seriously, he was LICKING THE PLATE! Then he licked my plate….I think it’s safe to say he really enjoyed this lunch!

Crab Cakes with Sauteed Baby Spinach & Spicy Remoulade

Photo courtesy of Relished Foods

As most of you know, I hate seafood…any kind. So Hubby got to enjoy this dish all by himself, and he was IN LOVE with this! He’s kind of picky with seafood, but he said this was quality crab meat, not a bunch of filler. I had a taste of the remoulade sauce, and really enjoyed that.

Sound amazing? Well, here’s all the details to get you going…plus a PROMO CODE for your first order! And don’t forget the giveaway…..

a Rafflecopter giveaway

So, ready to give it a try? Relished Foods has graciously offered a promo code good for 50% off your first order, valid through the month of March! PROMO CODE: BusyMomsHelper

How it Works: When you wish to place an order, you go to their website RelishedFoods.com. They have a new menu every week with 5 different chef-designed meals to choose from. You can select from 3 to 5 of the meals, in either 2, 4 or 6 serving sizes.

They then pack all of the ingredients in the correct portions in very nice, clean and easily used packaging.

Everything is clearly labeled, so there’s no guessing what seasoning is what (ever confuse cayenne pepper with paprika? It wasn’t a pleasant experience!).

They then ship it quickly to you in a safe, refrigerated pack.

All of the items were kept a perfect temperature…I checked when I got it because I’ll admit, I was a bit nervous of shipping raw meats. But it was perfectly chilled, so no worries! Oh, and nothing is frozen, just fresh!

The cuts of meat were individually packaged, completely sealed. Here’s the pork loan, two chicken breasts and crab meat in our crisper, just begging to be cooked!

The produce was AMAZINGLY fresh, guys – like better than the stuff I normally have to run to the store to get, hoping it’s still fresh by dinnertime.

Each meal includes a page with very CLEAR and DETAILED instructions. One side is a description of the meal, to get you all drooling. The back is step-by-step, with photos, on how to prepare your meal. I even made Hubby prepare his own Crab Cakes, and he did with no problems at all.

The cost? Only $9.95 per serving! That includes all of the ingredients, planned meals with instructions AND delivery straight to your door. They are currently delivering to about 50% of the USA, and you can verify with your zipcode on their website.

And even though each of our meals was 2-servings, they’re BIG servings. We actually got 8 servings total from these. So especially if you use this as a ‘date night out’ replacement (like Hubby and I plan to do) it’s completely worth it! No more driving to get ingredients, or paying a high priced bill at the restaurant.

I received a free sample of this product/service to review. The giveaway is provided by Relished Foods. All opinions are my own.

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