DIY Welcome Sign

Following along with DaNita's monthly challenge, I tackled my outdoor space. Moving into a new construction house has many benefits, but one of the downfalls is all the mud you have to deal with. We finally got around to pressure washing our concrete and are now focusing on getting grass planted in the areas that didn't take last summer. 

I have a nice porch so I really wanted to get it decorated with spring/summer decor to liven up the space. I've been wanting to make a "Welcome" sign so I decided now would be the perfect time. 

Tyler had a plywood board laying around so I stained it with Miniwax Dark Walnut (I really just love that color!)

I bought large stencils from Hobby Lobby and placed them on the board to see how I wanted to position them and to make sure I had enough room for all the letters.

I then took the first stencil, centered it on the board and traced the letter with a pencil. 

One by one, I traced each letter and made sure they were all centered correctly. If I make a mistake, I just erase the letter and trace it again. 

For stenciling, I like to use acrylic paint and a thin tip paint brush. Starting from the top, I painted in each letter. I carefully paint the outside lines and then fill in the inside. 

After I finish painting each letter, I let it dry and apply another coat. It doesn't take nearly as long because you are just filling in the spots that need touch up. To add a little dimension, Tyler put a boarder around the sign with 1x2 pines and I painted it white.

My front porch looks much happier and I love how welcoming it is ;) If you've been wanting to stencil a sign, go for it! Tag me @the.whispering.pines so I can see your project. 

Thanks for stopping by,

Jodi

"Hello! My name is Jodi from The Whispering Pines.  I love to decorate, refurbish old furniture, create small crafts and come up with unique party ideas. I also have a knack for organizing and enjoy experimenting with new recipes. My style is rustic with a touch of farmhouse. If you ask my husband, I could live in antique shops and home decor stores. I love being inspired by others and hope, you too, can gather a little inspiration for your home!" 

May Challenge: Sprucing Up our Outdoor Spaces

Hi all!

So sorry, I'm a little late posting the challenge for May. I have so much going on. I was going to skip out on writing this post, but decided I can't do that.  So here it is, short and sweet.

During the month of May, we are going to get our outdoor spaces spruced up, organized and ready for summer!

We have beautiful weather, which always makes me want to get outside and tidy things up out there.

This month I'm challenging you to do the following:

Trim bushes/trees

Weed flower beds

Clean patio furniture

Clean patio

Clean bbq grill

Clean gutters

Pressure wash driveway/sidewalks

Clean & organize pool area

Clean & organize toys

Bring color to your outdoor spaces with flowers, etc.

Okay, ready set, go clean and organize those outdoor spaces!

This post is part of the Monthly Organization Challenge. You can join the challenge at any time. Go HERE to see all the posts and bring Delightful Order to your home and life this year.

To stay connected, you can sign up to receive emails when new posts are published or follow along on Instagram or Facebook. (Please note that Facebook has made some changes, and you may or may not see all the posts there.)  I also have a Monthly Organization Challenge board set up on Pinterest, so you can follow along there as well. 

May you be a little inspired!

Until next time,
DaNita 
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View more of my Most Recent Projects HERE.
 

Front Porch Fall Decor

Hello all!  It's FALL! One of my favorite times of the year!
Last week I spent some time sprucing up my front porch for fall.

 

I added a wreath, a few mums to my pots, plopped down some pumpkins and voila.. I turned it into a festive fall-ish front porch.

I scored this adorable wreath at Joann Fabrics for 50% off. I had an additional 20% off of that, so I was pumped!  70% off, yes I think I'll take it.

A few weeks back I found this mat at Bed, Bath & Beyond and I LOVE it!  The middle section can be replaced too.

 I love adding a little color to the porch.

 The orange pumpkins are real...

 .. and the white ones are fake.  

I showed you how I spray painted them and added a little glitter to them in this post here.

 I picked up these pumpkins today at Ross....

... and I totally LOVE them.

There you have it, my Front Porch Fall Decor.

Remember to vote for Delightful Order each day for the Top 25 Home Management Moms!

May you be a little inspired!
Until next time,
DaNita 
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Creating a Backyard Fire Pit

I LOVE to work outside in my yard just about as much as I do inside. I usually hop around… outside to inside, inside to outside and so on.  I always have ideas and I had this dream of having this cute little backyard fire pit area.  So, a month or so ago, my husband and I created the area.

I’m totally digging it.

We’ve enjoyed it and our boys LOVE to roast marshmallows and hot dogs over the fire.

Here’s where it all began…

We had this semi-level area where an over the ground pool sat, a few years back. The pool was ruined so it's been gone for a while now.  I'd love to get another pool one day, but I do get nervous with pools and little ones, so I think we'll stick with kiddie pools until my littlest knows how to swim.

The area had became an ugly eye-sore in our backyard and my husband and I decided it was time to change that. So we bought this fire pit (on sale) at Home Depot and some concrete edging blocks.

and some pavers to create a walkway out to the fire pit.

We raked out the dirt as level as we could…

… laid down landscaping fabric, placing the edging blocks on top of the fabric.  We actually just left the fire pit in it’s spot and ran the fabric around and under it.

…then we simply added gravel rock (I think that’s what it’s called) on top of the fabric.

Once the blocks were in place, we cut the excess landscaping fabric off.

then added our chairs back into the area (the chairs are from Wal-Mart.)

I have this vision of nice evergreen bushes all the way around the fire pit so, eventually, I’d like to create a landscaping border of mulch around the entire area and under the pavers. Then I’ll fill the mulch area with bushes and flowers, creating a semi-enclosed fire pit area, but for now… I’m TOTALLY LOVING my new backyard fire pit!

How about you, do you have a backyard fire pit?  Did you create the area yourself of hire someone to do it for you?  Do share, I’d love to hear from you.

May you be you a little inspired!

Until next time,

DaNita

Bringing Color to My Front Porch

I've been wanting to bring some color to my front porch for many months now.  I finally found the time to pick up some flowers for my pots and the other day I spent a BEAUTIFUL day planting and brought in some much needed COLOR.

Right now, it looks a little wimpy, but it won't be that way for too long.
At least, I'm hoping!  I SO do NOT have a green thumb!! So, we shall see! ;)

This here, is what my porch looked like before:

 boring! blah! need color!

and another boring! blah! need color area.

But nothing that some pretty flowers can't fix.

I LOVE Geraniums!

To add a little height to my pots, I always get Dracaena Spikes ...

The purple one is Verbena

Like I said before, I love geraniums and get some every year.

Another favorite of mine is Scopia Gulliver White Bacopa

It's gorgeous once it grows and trails over the pots.

Another trailing favorite is Cabaret Calibrachoa.

Love me some Pansies

This one is White Nancy Lamium.  

White flowers will appear and bloom throughout the summer.

I LOVE the added color!!

Who else has been outside working to bring order to their yards, porches, gardens, etc.
I would LOVE to see your OUTDOOR SPACES. Link them up right here:

I'll be linking to parties that are found on my parties page.