DIY Backyard Brick Fountain

We are project fanatics. We love a good project we can enjoy as a couple and as family so when I fell in love with the sound of the fountains at Lowe's it was EASY to predict our next family project. 

We decided to make our own water fountain out of bricks we already had lying around. This is a great project for up-cycling unused items in your yard!

So let's get started! All of our items were purchased at our local Lowe's. You can use any variation of these items that you would like to give your fountain a special touch!

What we used:

• red/charcoal colored retaining wall style blocks (12"x4" in size)

• A round MacCourt 9 gallon high density pond liner or "plantainer" 

• 2- 1.5" PVC pieces sold at Lowe's precut in 2 foot long sections

• 2 PVC elbow fittings, also 1.5"

• 1 roll of 1.5" black plastic, flex tubing 

• Submersible pond pump (size medium when shopping the garden section at Lowe's)

• 1 bag of Egg Rocks

• 1 bag of White Rocks

We started by digging a small hole exactly the size of our plantainer or pond liner. And then a small "trench" 2 foot long on the back side of our liner hole to conceal our PVC. 

As shown:

Next,

We drilled a hole for our PVC at the top of our plantainer rim. Pictured is PVC inserted into plantainer and resting in our trench we dug previously. We also used this hole and trench to conceal our pumps electrical cord.

 

Using elbow fitting to connect a vertical PVC at the back end of our horizontal PVC as pictured below.

As you can see in the picture above we have already placed our bricks in a circle around our pond plantainer. We left a gap between the plantainer and the brick that is approximately 3 inches. This will later be concealed with small decorative rocks.

Finally you are ready to stack your bricks and get creative! We added an extra row of bricks on the ground in a half moon shape on the back side of our fountain to help support our masterpiece! 

Once you have created your ideal fountain shape, add tubing from your PVC to your fountain starting point. We chose our water to trickle from the very center at the top of our highest peak. 

Once you have decided where your water will start it is now time to decide how your water will fall! We used our egg rock and white rock to add color and small dams throughout the brick staggered fountain to give it a subtle trickle effect as well as a steady water fall stream from the center. 

To finish, we added our extra rocks to the outer ring to conceal our empty space as well as scattered rocks along the bottom of our "pond".

If you would like to see our video footage of our beautiful WORKING brick fountain please check us out on Facebook: 

https://www.facebook.com/Ourlittlelife2013

Any questions? Please do not hesitate to ask. We would be happy to assist you in building a beautiful fountain of your own.

Here are a couple more photos & angles:

Lexi's Doll House, A Young Girls Dream

This time last year, March 2014, my sweet 9 year old daughter came to me with several sketches of outfits she had designed, unique stylish little outfits she had created with girls her age in mind. She explained to me how she wanted to become a fashion designer and start her own business making and selling young girls clothing. As I thumb through the drawings I tell her this is a neat idea and those outfits would be very cute someday. What I did NOT gather from this conversation was the fact that she meant NOW. She meant she wanted to start a clothing line NOW. At 9 years old. 

Once I finally picked up on this (subtle hints weren't working, she had to flat out say it) I was not only surprised but also at a loss for words. 

How do I go about this conversation without crushing her dreams yet supporting her passion & drive?

After some thought and her continuing to tell me about her idea for several days, I KNEW which direction this should go. 

I will give her the tools necessary to build on this idea and show that I support her ambition. 

Over Spring Break, a couple weeks later, we started with the basics. She wanted to MAKE her own clothes so she needed to learn how to sew. A simple hand-seen pillow for starters. She looked at me like I was crazy when I handed her that needle and thread but she followed instructions well and proved she meant business. She wanted to tackle something more complex. She wanted to learn how to REALLY sew. She wasn't looking for a Home-Ec lesson!

We dug out my great grandmothers portable sewing machine and practiced straight lines... Yet another silly look from my daughter but she went along with it anyway.

I was obviously stalling! But it was apparent she was on to something. She was serious when she came to me with this idea so it was time I get serious too!

We went shopping for the fabric to complete one of her outfits. While shopping, Lexi stumbled upon doll clothing patterns. She loved the idea of creating something for her American Girl Dolls so we decided she should start learning to read patterns and practice her clothing designs on a much smaller scale, doll clothes. We purchased a Singer Simple and went home to start practicing.

Lexi picked up on everything so quickly that her first doll outfit was completed the same day. She fell in love with her doll clothing designs so much so that she switched gears a little. Yes she still wanted to design clothing for young girls but for now she loved the idea of designing clothing for young girls DOLLS. 

She started talking about designing and making doll clothes and selling them. Lexi finished 5 doll outfits that week and as she finished them I was posting her progress on my personal Facebook page. Lexi was such a hit with family and friends that we then created her own fan page to share her designs on. And with that Lexi's Doll House was born. 

About a month later, we opened a shop on Etsy, Lexi's Doll House on Etsy's, with intentions of selling Lexi's designs to fund her passion and for to purchase more fabrics & supplies to continue bringing her doll clothes to life. We had no idea that her 5 original outfits would sell within a matter of days. She continued designing & her fans continued to grow. 

It has been an unbelievably journey this far for Lexi & our little family. One year ago we would have never guessed we would still be talking "doll clothes". Lexi's Doll House is proof that putting your faith and support into your child's dreams is the most beneficial & rewarding gift you can give to your child. If you're on their side, anything is possible. 

Be watching for Part Two of Lexi's Story for more on her first year as a young entrepreneur and what she is doing now.

You can also follow her progress on Facebook: Lexi's Doll House
And on Etsy: Lexi's Doll House

Salvaging A Tattered & Worn Poster

Project #5

Before our boy's room remodel began, the kids got a little ahead of schedule and decided they would hang their own posters and decorations on the walls.

Did I mention that the posters they decided to use were BRAND NEW! :-/

Initially, I had a few other ideas in mind for these said posters but I was forced to revamp those ideas when I found them in the back of the closet.. Crinkled, wrinkled, ripped and worn. I refused to purchase another poster so I was forced to get creative.

I came up with a SUPER easy solution!

This picture just does not show how terrible the poster ACTUALLY looked. I'm sure you can imagine how bad the visible wrinkles looked in person. The entire poster looked like the boys crinkled it into a ball and spread it out again. 

Edges were ripped and worn, overall the poster looked like it should just go in the trash.

My solution?!

I purchased a 20"x30" black foam board for $1.00 (yay!!). This was a little smaller than the actual poster but that was fine considering I couldn't use the outer most edges of the poster anyway.

I began by laying the foam board over the picture to center it. I then traced the board using a white Stabilo All Pencil. I love this pencil, it wipes away super easy!

Next, I painted Modge Podge over the entire surface of the foam board and using my pencil outline to guide me, aligning the poster just right :-).

I still had the edges hanging off the board... I didn't want to cut the edges off but instead give the picture a more wrapped canvas look. So I cut away the 90 degree angle from each corner...

And secured the four sides to the back of the foam using Modge Podge. (If you can't tell I LOVE Modge Podge! One reason being: I feel it is very durable and more adhesive then plain Elmer's Glue).

Finally, I still had a ton of wrinkles on the surface I needed to address. So to do this, I have learned from previous canvas/paper projects that the more Modge Podge layers you apply the better the end results will be. 

               (See all the wrinkles?!)

I layered the picture with 5-6 coats allowing each coat to air dry until it was barely sticky. I then turned the poster face down and placed something heavy on top of the entire project. I do this because it allows the Modge Podge to harden and dry completely while decompressing any air bubbles or wrinkles your paper may have. 

Apply Modge Podge layers to satisfaction and boom... You now have a brand new poster to display :-)

Unfortunately, I was unable to get a picture that did not reflect a ton of glare but you get the idea! There are no more wrinkles, no more rips and the poster looks much nicer with this super simple face lift!

Be sure to check out my other

Superhero Room Decor projects on the blog now!

Boy's Room Decor: Batman Hat Rack

Batman Hat Rack

Project #3 of the Boy's Room Superhero Remodel is a Batman Hat (or belt) Rack.

This project consisted of only a few inexpensive items:

Scrap wood

Modge Podge

Small hooks

AND of course... Batman Duct Tape (Scotch Brand)

So to get started I rummaged through the wood pile and decided on a thin but long 1x6" piece of scrap wood

It's old.. Dirty.. And has previous nail holes but it won't matter when it's finished!

I cleaned up the board with water and a little bit of sanding and it was time for the Duct Tape :-)

The Batman symbols glow in the dark!

I applied 4 rows of tape. Being careful to cover all edges (top, bottom and sides). 

The most difficult part of this project is lining up the rows so the symbols match up evenly and appear to be one complete piece when finished.

Tedious but worth it!

My finished board looked like this..

You can't even tell there are 4 strips of tape on this board :-)

Next, I applied Modge Podge in a very thin layer to seal the entire project and prevent the tape from peeling away.

Once dry I placed sawtooth hangers on the back and finished the project with small hooks to hold the hats and/or belts...

Clearly it is not hanging in the boys room yet but I wanted to share the project itself with you and will later reveal the completed masterpiece! 

I think I will be adding a top row of hooks as well so that this can truly be utilized for belts AND hats... I will be sure to include the updated version in the grand finale!

If you missed Project #1 or Project #2 view them now! You won't want to miss all the great pieces to the superhero puzzle that will be coming together soon!

Boy's Room Decor: Wooden Superman Logo

Project #2 of the Boy's Room Superhero Remodel is a hand painted, wooden Superman Logo

This project did not involve my superhero duck tape lol!

It consisted of time, paint and more meticulous TIME!

Materials needed:

Plywood

Paint- red and yellow

Jigsaw

Sand paper

Ruler

Pencil

Superman Logo to follow

I googled several logos and chose to free hand the image onto my plywood.

I first created the exterior portion of the logo on the plywood with pencil... Once I was satisfied I cut it out using a jigsaw.

I then, lightly sanded the edges with 60 grit sandpaper

Next, I needed a logo that was clear and easy to follow for my S design. Since I was not using it as a stencil I chose two and bounced between them when drawing to get better detail.

Here are the logos I followed:

Note: make sure you have a GOOD eraser :-)

This is how mine turned out:

Now it's time to paint!

I painted the red portion first...

I just used basic acrylic paint.

Once dry, apply yellow and voila! You have a Superman Logo or "shield" as my son calls it!

If you missed Project #1 view it Here

Superhero Bedroom Decor

Project #1: Superhero Duck Tape Shelves

My boys Matthew (5) and Dylan (2) are superhero FANATICS! Every day is jam packed with fighting villains and rescuing their imaginary victims. So it was SUPER easy coming up with bedroom decor they would LOVE! 

We are trading in the drab, toddler safari theme for an exciting and more enjoyable "big boy" SUPERHERO decor... 

My first project included TWO things:

*Superhero Duck Tape

Purchased at Walmart 

*Block Shelves

Previously purchased from Target

Since this project was my own, I was learning as I went... The first shelf was more of a headache and the second went ever so easy!

So... My finalized how to instructions are a combination of BOTH shelves.

To begin:

Start with the outer edges, the Comic Duck Tape is wrapped around the entire outer edge... Beginning and ending on the bottom.

Meet the beginning and ending of the strip together and cut away excess evenly.

The Avengers Duck Tape is draped over the front edge and cut to allow BOTH sides to show the superheroes facing the correct direction.

I continued in this fashion completing another strip, butting up exactly to the edge of the previous strip.

As you can see there is still a small area of shelf exposed, for this I continued the same way as the two previous strips and was left with this

Carefully cut away the excess and the outer portion of the shelves are complete!

 

I got a lot wiser with the second shelf and measured each inside piece of tape before cutting and applying

The first shelf was a little more stressful and my husband attempted to help..

Eyeing the pieces and allowing them to overlap was quite a bit more frustrating! The second shelf went A LOT smoother.

I continued with three rows of tape just as I did the outside, cutting away the excess and being sure to seal all air pockets.

Done!!

This is how they turned out....

I can't wait to show you the rest of my Superhero room decor projects I have in the works! 

Hope you enjoy and find this useful! Feel free to share!