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May 7, 2020 By Mario

How to Make a Play Kitchen Set out of a Pair of Nightstands (DIY)

I'm going to attempt to walk you through some of the steps I took to make a play kitchen set out of a pair of nightstands. It ended up being a lot of fun and fairly easy to make. We hired a contractor to make the most difficult part, the door. The contractor was able to use the two drawers to make the custom door. This allowed us to use the same wood and cut down on supply cost. I didn't take pictures of every step mainly because I did most of the work in between naps and didn't always have time to grab my camera. I hope this is helpful! Please comment if you have any questions and I will be happy to help.

Here are the step by step guide on how to make a play kitchen.

Find two nightstands that are at the height of a toddler or the child that will be using the kitchen set.

Night Stands

I removed the middle shelf from the nightstand that would become the oven.

Night stand 1

This opened up a groove to allow for the oven rack {aka cooling racks} that were cut off to fit the space.

Night stand 2

I left the middle shelf on the kitchen side.

Night stand 3

I removed the backs from both nightstands to replace it with beadboard.

Night stand 4
Night stand 5

I used mending plates and trim to serve as the backsplash.

Night stand 6

Little Miss helped me install the backsplash. At this stage she had no clue that I was working on something special for her.

installing
Night stand 7

We went to Lowes and had them cut a piece of plexiglass to fit the oven door. When I came home my husband caulked the inside of the door with silicon and we carefully placed the plexiglass in it.

Night stand 8

My husband made the cuts for the kitchen sink and faucet. I used a corning ware casserole dish as the sink mainly because we have an apron front kitchen sink and the porcelain is more familiar to her than stainless.  I found the faucet at the mission for $5. I really wanted a "J" faucet but couldn't justify spending $40+ on one. I will just be patient until I find one that is used and then I will replace it to look more like a kitchen sink rather than a bathroom. It's not like she can tell the difference.

Night stand 9
Night stand 10
play kitchen

My friend Brooke made the stove burners using her Silhouette machine

sticker stove burners

I found the antique stove knobs at the local appliance repair shop. They had a bucket full of old vintage and antique knobs.

stove knob
stove cover

I initially placed a battery operated touch light in the back for Little Miss to use as the oven light and quickly realized that we were going to blow through touch lights in a hurry. If the oven light wasn't on, then the oven didn't work and her food wasn't "makin" so I had to make a quick modification.

play kitchen 1

I borrowed our friends "hole cutter drill thing"

play kitchen 2

and cut a new hole for a nightlight.

play kitchen 3

The nightlight has a switch on the front of it so Little Miss can turn it on and off herself.

play kitchen 4

It's secured with hot glue on the inside and caulk on the outside. It's plugged into an extension cord that's plugged into an outlet.

play kitchen 5
play kitchen 6

The kitchen sink curtain was made with Amy Butler, Heather Baily and Tula Pink fabric that you can find on fabric.com.

play kitchen diy
play kitchen diy 2
play kitchen diy 3

Filed Under: Blog

May 7, 2020 By Mario

Dining Room Makeover – Easy & Budget-Friendly ideas

Dining Room Makeover

We aren't quite finished with the dining room but I just couldn't wait any longer to share it with you! We have one long shelf to install at the bottom and then it is done. We are both so in love with this new space and are reminded how filling a space with the things that speak to you can totally change the way the entire room feels. While I loved the plate collection that was there before it just didn't do the wall justice. Now we not only have a place to display some of our favorite finds we will also have room for a little school storage.

BEFORE:

Dining Room Makeover_Before
Dining Room Makeover_Before1

AFTER:

Dining Room Makeover_After

Filed Under: Blog

May 7, 2020 By Mario

How to Make Liquid Hand Soap from a Bar of Soap (DIY)

Liquid Handsoap DIY

The other night I was bathing the Littles and began to look at the ingredients listed on the liquid body wash bottle and started to think about the fact that the majority of it is water, then I looked at the hand wash and same thing.... aqua. Because most people have turned to liquid soap rather than bar soap I figured there must be a way to convert the cheap bar soap into the expensive liquid soap we all know and love. After I tucked the littles into bed I began my google research and there it was...a wealth of information on the subject. I combined a number of "recipes" into one that works perfect!

Here's what you need:

  • Cheese grater (from the dollar store)
  • 2 Tablespoons of Liquid Glycerin (found in the band aid section at any drugstore or grocery store)
  • 1 - 8 oz bar of soap
  • 1 gallon of water
What you need 1
What you need 2

Below are the step by step guide.

Step 1:

Grate the entire bar of soap

Liquid Handsoap DIY_step 1

Get a cute little girl to help you do the hard work. Don't worry she's not using an actual cheese grater with a blade.

cute girl helper
grated soap

Step 2:

Fill a pot with 1 gallon of distilled water and add the soap shavings.

Liquid Handsoap DIY_step 2

Step 3:

Add 2 Tablespoons of liquid glycerin and turn the heat to medium/high and stir until the soap dissolves.

Liquid Handsoap DIY_step 3

Step 4:

This is what it looks like once it's dissolved, basically just soapy water.

Liquid Handsoap DIY_step 4

Step 5:

Leave it alone to cool for at least 10-12 hours. It begins to cloud up after 3-4 hours.

Liquid Handsoap DIY_step 5

Step 6:

After it has cooled completely around 12 hours later it will harden and look like liquid soap.

Liquid Handsoap DIY_step 6

Step 7:

If the soap is harder than it should be you can take some beaters and blend it while adding just a little bit of water until the consistency is more like liquid soap.

Liquid Handsoap DIY_step 7

Step 8:

There you have it....Liquid Soap!!!

Liquid Handsoap DIY_step 8

Step 9:

Now you can refill your 12 ounce bottle of liquid soap (that cost $3.99) with your gallon of refill that cost around $4.99. That's some huge savings!!!

Liquid Handsoap DIY

This is a fool proof project that results in huge savings. For my favorite Mrs. Meyer's Basil scented soap
1 bar at $4.99 produces over $50 worth of liquid hand soap!!! I'd say that's worth the 20 minutes it will take you to make it yourself. The hardest part about this project might be finding and choosing your favorite bar of soap. Mrs. Meyer's is kind of tricky to find. It can be ordered on their website or your can special order at your local health food store.

  • I also made liquid body wash using this same recipe.
  • After many have shared Dove soap does not work well with this recipe.
  • Use your gallon container that the distilled water was in for storage of the soap.

(UPDATE)
I have had many emails regarding runny soap. Because I have had the opposite problem both times I've made it while using different soaps I can't give you a tested remedy. What I have read on the internet is some soaps have extra moisturizer in it making it harder to set firm, Dove being one of them. I read that you can heat the water back up and add more soap shavings and allow it to cool again, once cooled if it still hasn't set you can whip it in a blender. If this still doesn't work then google until you find a solution to your particular situation.

  • Texas folks I have found Meyers bar soap at Central Market but not Whole Foods.
  • The soap can be a snot-like consistency, gross description I know but it still works.
  • Soap does not create a big lather.

Filed Under: Blog

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