Friday Favorites - Week 330 - Summer DIY

Happy sunny Friday All!! Hope you've been soaking in the vitamin D, enjoying the pool, getting your hands dirty in the garden and tackling any DIY projects while the weather is warm enough to work outside! We are back from our family trip to Iowa and it feels good to get back into the swing of things at home again...and back to more DIY! I can never get enough DIY, so with that in mind, these 4 awesome summer DIY projects screamed at me this week, aren't they FANTASTIC?! 

Little House Living : DIY Rustic Succulent Centerpiece

The Homespun Hydranga : Upcycled Pallet Walkway

Grandma's House DIY : Barn Door Closet

Gypsy Girl Revivals : Tricking out Trash - Baby Bed Springs

Say HELLO to our lovely hosts this week:

Simply Sweet Home Twitter | Facebook | Google + | Pinterest | Instagram

MustLoveHome Twitter | Facebook | Google + | Pinterest | Instagram

A Heart Full of Love Twitter | Google + | Pinterest

Our Secondhand House Twitter | Facebook | Google + | Pinterest | Instagram

Homemade & Yummy Twitter | Facebook | Google + | Pinterest | Instagram

LeroyLime Twitter | Facebook | Google + | Pinterest | Instagram | BlogLovin

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I used the FREE online collage maker fotojet to make the stunning collage above. It was very easy to use and quite similar to a few other editing programs I've used before. 

FotoJet enables you to create amazing collages, photo cards, posters Facebook covers, Twitter headers, YouTube banners, fun photos and more. Below are some highlighted features:

* Comes with 500+ templates that can be freely edited and 80+ adjustable layouts.

* Provides users with the ability to create collage from templates or from scratch.

* Offers 500+ clipart images and lots of text samples.

* Supports advanced editing features like Undo/Redo, Snap, etc. 

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If you were featured this week, snag the button below to display 

proudly on your blog, you earned it!

Can't wait to see what you link up!!

Financial compensation from Fotojet was not received for this post. 

Opinions expressed here are my own.

Publisher Plus Software Review

There's only one word to describe my reaction when I first opened Publisher Plus for Mac, MINDBLOWN!

With so many choices and simple changes for layouts, fonts and colors...the possibilities are endless. 

From Seasonal Sale Flyers for your Clothing Boutique, Church Bulletins, Neighborhood BBQ Posters, Fitness Magazines, Restaurant Menus, Holiday Party Invites, Baby Announcements, Graduation Invitations, Wedding CD Covers, Sports Awards, Business Cards, Designer Resumes for your College Graduate, Cover Letters that will set you apart from the rest...and so much more!

Endless possibilities and ease of use are two high priorities for this busy Mom. Take for instance

the following "Lost Dog" Poster. The top (blue) one is the Publisher Plus Layout and after just 5 minutes, the one below (green) is mine. Color changes, Font changes, taking the bottom section from 2 columns down to one, a few more edits and you have a beautiful eye catching poster, ready for printing.

Publisher Plus Layout

My Layout after 5 minutes

Yearly Birthday Parties are always fun to plan. If you don't have

time to hand make invitations this year or don't want to pay the hefty

price to have someone else do it for you. You can easily create your own

using this software.

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back

Add your own photos, colors and flair with ease...

Looking to upgrade your old business cards?
You can design your own to fit any genre. I love
having 'Mommy cards' on hand so I can easily pass
out my cell number to a new friend.

front

back

Bottom line, if you are looking for a creative and easy
program (that even your Mother can use) to wow your audience,
this one's for you!

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Financial compensation was not received for this post. 

A sample product was gifted from Pearl Mountain Technology. 

Opinions expressed here are my own.

Magic Shoelaces by Laceez

Have you ever read the book "Magic Shoelaces" by Audrey Wood?

It was one of my favorites growing up and I still have a copy which

has been passed down to my kiddos. 

After stumbling upon Laceez on Instagram and seeing that 

no-tying was involved, the Magic Shoelaces book came to mind.

The laces arrived in cute drawstring bags and mini boxes
with a drawing on the backs to show how to lace them,

so you too can have magic shoes!

My daughter snatched up the blue and purple pairs quickly

and promptly threw away her old nasty laces. The XL were 

a bit too long for her shoes, so she looped them through again

and they fit perfectly. The best part, Laceez makes 

for a much faster out the door routine in the mornings for school.

The purple ones made her high tops slip on shoes, perfect

for a trendy girl on the go!

I can't wait for my four year old to grow out of his

velcro shoes so I can buy him a big boy pair with laces

and give him a pair of magic shoelaces from Laceez as well.

If you want to make your family shuffle out the door

with a bit more ease, I'd definitely stock up on some Laceez!

Disclosure: Thank you Laceez for sponsoring this post.

All opinions are my own.

Love Note Challenge

What's Valentine's Day without a little love note?

I was recently contacted by the Cardstore Blog to check

out and review their FREE printable love notes, which

are perfect for leaving a little bit of love around the

house for your significant other.

 My hubby of 10 years, yup, count 'em - TEN!

is quite the dapper fellow, he LOVES to dress up

and is the epitome of handsome. When I met the guy, 

he didn't even own a pair of jeans!

 He always knows how to make me laugh, is my true

knight in shining armor, a wonderful husband, AMAZING

father to our four little people and just knows how to 

make a girl feel special - a keeper for sure!

We both have quite a fondness for coffee, so hopefully

he won't make me prove that I love him more than 

coffee - haha!

Twelve years ago, he asked for my number in the most

unique way... "would you like to go pick a basket

of daisies sometime?" - took my breath away, literally!

Want to show a little bit of personalized love to your other

half this Valentines Day? Head over and snag your

FREE printables from

 Cardstore.com

Don't forget to tag your ideas with #okaytocry

Cardstore Review

I was recently asked to review a card from Cardstore, or rather the process of purchasing a card via cardstore.com and with my Dad's 70th Birthday coming up, I have to say, I found THE perfect card for a laid back farmer and lover of classic things. 

(inside it says: Classic. Happy Birthday)

The options are endless, from choosing a pre made card, which you can personalize to creating a photo card and adding your own crafty spin on it. I loved the ease of the drop down boxes and the mini card preview at the top of the page, that showed which step I was working on.

Cardstore didn't leave anything out in the checkout process either...with a magnifying glass that automatically pops up so you can scan your card for spelling mistakes before placing your order.

I quickly created an account with my email address and a simple password and then headed to the payment and shipping option. You can either mail the card directly to your recipient or to yourself, as I did in this case since we are putting a skydiving gift card inside. 

Since it's his 70th, what better way to help him celebrate from afar then with a cool classic Birthday card and helping him check something off his bucket list!

Loved cardstore so much, I've already made up two more cards, with photos this time, for Grandparents day and have them saved so I can mail them closer to the date... easy breezy! 

photo copyright of cardstore.com