Dear Pottery Barn: anything you can do, we can do better :)

Are you singing the song in your head right now? Ha! 

Pottery Barn - $149

It's been a part of our DIY to-do lists for probably going on 2 years now.  In a push to get some things around the house crossed off our list before Misty's baby shower (which is Saturday!) the hubby finally got going on making this fixture a reality. 

I purchased the white cords from IKEA, I think in the same trip as the farmhouse sink, so as you'll remember that was well over a year ago.  Joey make the wooden box from scrap materials he has lying around.  I give him so much grief for keeping every piece of scrap wood, so I will admit it, it came in handy this one time.  We stained it to resemble our kitchen table and countertops.  I love the little beadboard detail that he threw in there too. 

Our previous builder grade light fixture had 5 arms and produced plenty of light so I figured that we didn't need to add another 11 lights like this PB fixture.  You would have to wear your sunglasses at the dinner table! 

Pottery Barn $399!

After some intense moments holding it up while standing on top of the dining room table we got it put into place and the power turned back on and PRESTO!  Our glorious shining mason jar light fixture is operational.  It gives off ample light and i think maybe even makes the room look a little bigger.  I just love it!

Another project that has been on my to-do list for a long time is the wooden ruler growth chart.  We bought the wood for this project back in February and it's been sitting in the basement for several months.  I don't know why I wait so long to do stuff like this because it really was a quick project.  I stained the wood with Aged Oak, let dry overnight.  The next evening with the help of my math superstar husband we got to work on the ruler portion.  I was a little scared, okay a lot scared, of messing it up.  But, with this nifty gadget, square level thingy it was pretty easy.  I used a sharpie marker so there was no dry time involved here! 

Online the ruler sells for $59 and the mason jar fixture $149.  The 16 jar fixture sells for $399!!!  We tried to figure up how much we saved and we figured between the wood for the ruler (probably about $10, already had stain on hand and a sharpie marker) and the cords for the light fixture (maybe $20 total?, already had wood and stain) and I did buy new mason jars so they would be nice and clean (less than $10) we saved at the VERY least $168 and really more like $418 because our fixture is more like the $399 version!  I wish someone would give me the $418 because think how much I could do in our house for that much! 

In other house news, Joey is currently working on building a small deck that will eventually step down to a stone patio.  I'm narrowing down paint colors for K's room.  I picked about 5 different shades similar to the kitchen island and the laundry room and when I got them all home and held them against the laundry room wall I realized they were all almost identical.  I guess that means I like that color?  When the deck is complete we are going to get started on the screen door for the laundry room. 

In other, other news, I am FINALLY completing the 5K off my 29th year bucket list.  This Saturday, the morning of Misty's shower, because you know, why not?  I will be the first  to admit I am nowhere near ready to run it, but I know I can walk it.  I can't believe it, just another 20 days left in my 20's!  But, ready for a fun party and then ready for vacation!