How to hang pictures so they don't move

Are you a picture straightener? Does it drive you crazy when a piece of art you've carefully hung on the wall tilts out of alignment? (Please tell me I'm not the only one!)

I've figured out a way to get my pictures to stay firmly in place when I hang them, which is especially valuable if I'm hanging more than one piece. Here's how I do it.

First, you need two pieces of hanging hardware on the back of the picture frame. When I have things framed, my frame shop always attaches two D-rings on the back of the frame and then strings hanging wire between those two rings.

As soon as I bring the pictures home, I remove the hanging wire so that I'm left with just the two D-rings.

Next, I measure the space between the two D-rings. The easiest way I've found to do this is to use a level. I place the level on the picture frame and use a Sharpie to mark the location of the D-rings.

Then I simply place the level on the wall and use a pencil to mark the position of the two Sharpie marks. Since the marks are on the level, it's easy to be sure that the two marks are level on the wall. Then I hammer in two nails or two picture hooks right on those marks.

For large pieces or for mirrors, I like to use Ook picture hangers. (affiliate link) They are easy to nail in, they hold lots of weight, and they don't leave big holes in the wall.

Once those two nails or picture hangers are in place, it's a cinch to place the two D-rings onto the hangers and voila! You have a picture that's not only perfectly straight, it'll never need to be straightened.

This is especially helpful when hanging a group of pictures in a high-traffic area, such as the dining area of our condo. Naturally, wall art is going to get bumped sometimes, but if a picture is hanging on two nails, it doesn't budge.

No more picture-straightening!

Have you ever used this trick for hanging wall art? Or do you have another way to do it? I love getting new tips!

(Note: This post includes an affiliate link so that you can quickly see the item at Amazon. But you can also find these at big box stores such as Lowe's and Home Depot or at your local hardware store. I've even seen them at my grocery store.)

Easing into springtime

We've had a teaser of a spring in North Carolina. She appeared really early, only to be replaced with brutal winter just as the flowering trees were at their peak. But now she's back, and it looks like she's here to stay!

The warmer temperatures and longer days make me want to hang out on our front porch again. I updated it last spring, and here's its warm-weather look:

I changed it for Autumn simply by switching out accessories:

And again for Christmastime:

When I updated the porch last spring, I chose a neutral fabric for the loveseat and chair cushions. I'm so glad I made that decision! I think the neutral fabric works well with all the different looks. (Read this post to see why I'd highly recommend Sunbrella fabric–I have no affiliation with the company; I just think the product is exceptional.)

Now that it's time to decorate for spring once again, I'd like to show you one of my household tricks.

Last fall, I stitched up new covers for the outdoor pillows using this easy method and simply put them right on top of my spring pillows. I'm pretty good at sewing straight seams, but I'm not very good at hand-sewing the pillow closures. Instead, I use a glue gun to finish the pillows. So now that I'm ready for spring again, the metamorphosis of the pillows is as easy as 1-2-3:

1.

2.

3.

Most of my pillow covers opened up with a firm pull. One was a little stubborn, so I just warmed the glue with a hair dryer until it pulled open easily.

Now I can just fold up the autumn covers and store them until October. It's time to make lemonade and enjoy the long evenings on the porch!

Do you have any decorating tricks for easing from season to season? I'd love to hear!

Joining these fun parties:

Wow Us Wednesday

Thoughts of Home on Thursday

A simple tip to save your eyes when reading small print

A few weeks ago I had to call my internet service provider for help with my modem. I was able to answer all the technician's questions until he asked for my modem's serial number.

The technician was so helpful. "You can find the serial number on a sticker on the back of the modem," he explained.

Wonderful. Except that sticker was about 1"x1".

Even with my strongest reading glasses, I was unable to make out the number.  Then it occurred to me that I could use my phone to take a picture of the sticker.

I was able to easily zoom in on the sticker and read the serial number from the photo.

I applied the same trick to the label on my refrigerator. It wasn't hard to read; it was just in an awkward spot. Instead of craning my neck to read the sticker, I simply stuck my phone in the fridge and snapped a photo.

All the information I need, right in the palm of my hand!

You could use the same zoom-in trick to help you decipher the tiny print on medicine labels, credit cards, insurance cards, etc.

Got something that's hard to read? Take a photo and zoom in!

Have you discovered any simple tricks lately?

How to make your kitchen smell fresh

Now that spring weather has finally arrived, I find myself itching to get some spring cleaning done.  I love for my house to smell fresh!  I haven't been able to simply throw open the windows, though, because the pollen has been so thick.  So I've come up with a simple little trick for making things smell lovely.

First cut a lemon into thick slices.  Then run some water in a Pyrex measuring cup, squeeze some of  the juice from the lemon slices into the water, and then add the lemon slices themselves to the water.

Now microwave the lemon water on high until the water bubbles.  Place a bamboo chopstick in the water; breaking the surface of the liquid allows bubbles to form more easily so the water can boil without boiling over.  The steam from the lemon water will make your microwave smell fresh and clean.

Next, pour the lemon water into a small saucepan on your stovetop.  Add a couple of teaspoons of vanilla extract to the mixture.  Bring the mixture just to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer.  Take care that your pot doesn't boil dry!



The combination of lemon and vanilla makes the kitchen smell fresh and clean and homey--kind of like the smell of a lemon meringue pie fresh from the oven.  A lovely smell for springtime!

What's your favorite way to make your home smell fresh?

Joining my friend Roxy at Living from Glory to Glory for her Encouraging Homemakers party!

DIY Jewelry Organization

Organization is a struggle for me, but I've just completed a small project that's going to make a big difference.  I organized my jewelry.

Let me be more specific:  I organized my necklaces.  I don't have problems with small things like rings and earrings.  They fit neatly in my jewelry box.  But my necklaces were a mess--they were lying in a drawer, all tangled up with one another, and I'd swear that they were becoming more tangled as they lay there!  Once I finally got them all separated, I vowed to do something to keep them disentangled.

This was a very inexpensive and easy project.  All I bought were two 20" x 30" foam core boards.  Mine are inexpensive boards made by Elmer's; I paid less than $4.00 each for them.  I used two just to make the whole thing a little sturdier.

I found a piece of fabric in my stash large enough to cover the board, and I simply wrapped it like a present, securing it in back with a staple gun.  The staple gun worked like a charm on the foam core board!

I knew that I wanted to hang my board on the wall, so I wanted it to be extra sturdy.  To that end, I cut off six inches of spare wooden yardstick and glued it to the top of the back of the board with E-6000 adhesive.

Then with the same E-6000 adhesive, I glued on pop tops from soda cans onto the yard stick to serve as hangers.  

Then I flipped the board over and added push pins in a neat row across the top.  I just used clear plastic push pins that I already owned.  I figured the jewelry would make the board beautiful, so why bother with buying pretty push pins?

Hanging the board was easy.  I measured the distance between the two hangers, then drove two nails into the wall that distance apart.  I used a yardstick and level to make sure my two nails were lined up correctly.  One nail is attached to a stud.  The other is just attached to the drywall, but it seems quite sturdy.  If I have any trouble, I'll re-do it using a drywall anchor.

My jewelry board is hanging in my long, narrow walk-in closet, which is unfortunately a bad place for taking photos, but you get the idea:

Not a tangle in the bunch!  Bonus: since I can now see my necklaces, I'm wearing them more often.  It's a win-win-win.

Do you have your jewelry organized?  Any tips to share?

I'm joining these wonderful parties:

One Project at a Time at A Bowl Full of Lemons

Wow Us Wednesday at Savvy Southern Style
Tutorials, Tips, and Tidbits at Stone Gable

How to make a plastic pumpkin look like the real thing

I'm a big fan of real pumpkins and gourds.  Every Autumn, I'm the first person in line to buy pumpkins.   Ain't nothing like the real thing.

But I like to have some plastic pumpkins and gourds, too.  I use lots of pumpkins and gourds in my Autumn decorating, so it's nice to have some things that last from year to year.  I just don't want them to look plastic, you know?

So I've figured out a way to make plastic pumpkins look like the real thing.

Last Autumn, I cut the stems off all my real pumpkins and gourds.  That was super-easy to do with gourds and baby boos.  Cutting the stems off our jack-o-lantern pumpkins took a little more effort and a very sharp knife.  Then I plopped them all into a bowl and left them.  My husband thought I was crazy. Here's how one of the stems looked after it dried.

This Fall, I bought a faux pumpkin at Michael's.  It was pretty realistic-looking, I thought.



First I wiped it with gel stain.  This made a big difference--the stain lessened the plastic sheen and settled into the scuffs to look like dirt from the field.   Then I removed its plastic stem with a pair of pliers; it came off very easily.  Finally, I simply hot-glued one of my beautiful dried stems to my fake pumpkin.

Looks pretty real sitting on my front porch, don't you think?

I did the same thing with the gourds, using stems cut from last year's real gourds and baby boos.  I found some very realistic-looking plastic gourds at Michael's, but the stems screamed "Fake!"

Now look--can you tell which gourds are fake and which are real?

Next I'd like to make some velvet pumpkins, and I'll certainly use real stems for those.

So before you toss your real pumpkins and gourds into the compost heap, cut off those stems.  When Fall rolls around next year, you'll be all set!

How's the Fall decorating going at your house?

Linking to Tutorials and Tips at Home Stories A to Z 

and Wow Us Wednesday at Savvy Southern Style

Kid-friendly breakfast sandwich: the easiest, fastest way to fry an egg

My house is quiet this morning.  After one of the busiest summers ever, everyone is now back to school.  Which means that my kids need a good breakfast that will keep them fueled throughout the morning.

Introducing the kid-friendly breakfast sandwich.  Kid-friendly because they love to eat it and because they can make it themselves!



My boys have taught me many things over the years.  In 22 years of being a mom, I've learned to expect to learn things from them.  One thing I never expected to learn from them, though?  How to fry an egg.

I mean, seriously.  I've been frying eggs for more than 40 years.  What else could there be to learn?

Once more, I stand humbled.  My son recently taught me a bit of cooking magic that I'll share with you: the easiest, fastest way to fry an egg.  No kidding.

Use a small, microwave-safe bowl.  We use a fruit bowl from our everyday china.  Break an egg into the bowl.

Pierce the yolk and mix it into the white just a little.  A plastic fork works well for this task and won't leave a mark on the bowl.

Microwave on high power for 30 seconds. The egg will make popping sounds in the microwave, but if you've pierced the yolk it shouldn't explode. If you like, you can stick a toothpick into the yolk and leave it in while microwaving; this should prevent too much popping.

Using a potholder, remove bowl from microwave.  Be careful! It'll be hot!  Flip egg over with the plastic fork.  Microwave for another 15 seconds. Season as desired.  Note: you can spray the bowl with non-stick cooking spray if you like.  This makes clean-up easier, but it makes egg-flipping a little tricky.  We prefer to skip the spray.

This makes a fried egg that's the perfect size and shape for a breakfast sandwich. My oldest son likes a sandwich made with an English muffin, a piece of cheese, and a couple of strips of bacon on his fried egg.  My youngest son likes the same thing, but prefers to use two frozen waffles instead of an English muffin.  Two pieces of toast would also be good.  We keep pre-cooked bacon in the fridge so that they only have to warm the bacon in the microwave for a few seconds.  The sandwich is ready in just a couple of minutes--perfect for busy school mornings!

Of course, my metabolism is not quite the same as my boys', so I don't get to indulge in the same breakfast sandwiches as theirs.  Still, one of these eggs on a light multi-grain English muffin makes a tasty and nutritious breakfast.  For 170 calories and 5 grams of fat I get 11 grams of protein and 8 grams of fiber.  Not bad.

Hats off to the chef!

Do you have any simple, tried-and-true breakfast ideas for school mornings?

Adding freshness for free

One of my favorite things in all the world is having fresh flowers in my home.  Oh, I love fresh flowers.

Sometimes I'm blessed to have a gorgeous bouquet such as this one my husband brought me on our 28th wedding anniversary a few days ago:

Sometimes I'm blessed to have fresh flowers from the grocery store, and sometimes I'm blessed to have fresh flowers from my own yard.

But what about times like now, when I have no flowers blooming in my garden and no room in my grocery budget for flowers?

Well, inspired by Karianne from Thistlewood Farms, I've come up with a free solution.

 

Boxwood clippings, meet my living room.



Don't they add a lovely, fresh touch to the room?

For this spot, I wanted a fairly tall arrangement, so I cut long stems and arranged them in a vase.  For other spots, I will probably place short stems in a shallow pot or other container.

These clippings stay fresh and beautiful for a long time.  And when they do start to wither, I have a great source for more free clippings--right outside my front door!



By the way, these photos give you a sneak peek of my new living room.  I'll be sharing the entire space with you as soon as it's complete.  I thought it would be done long before now, but we've run into a snag in getting the right rug for the space.   Patience, patience.

Guess what's in the other wingback chair?



Yep.  Cocoa has a new favorite spot to sleep.  Well, sometimes she sleeps.  Sometimes she just hangs out with the family and watches TV.

Bonus: greenery looks good for a long time.  These clippings stayed fresh inside for two weeks!  Follow this simple tip to make all your fresh flowers last longer.

Are you a flower fanatic like I am?  What's your favorite way to add freshness to your home?