It’s Field Trip Friday with Nancy from Artsy Chicks Rule!  It’s a real treat to have Nancy here today.

Nancy is more than talented. She can transform furniture, make crafts, and has a beautiful blog full of inspiration.  Take it away, Nancy…

Hi Everyone!

I’m so happy to be here today to share a bit about myself and my blog.
Thank you so much for inviting me Meegan!

My name is Nancy and I am a mother of 2 and wife to one fabulous guy.
I write a blog called Artsy Chicks Rule about my love of DIY, design & decor on a budget.
I love re-inventing thrifty finds, making signs & graphics and a little bit of everything else.
My husband and I have been DIY-ers for many years.

Here’s one example of a DIY project we completed in our home….

Kitchen Cabinet makeover with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint.
You can read more about our home here and see a few room tours here.

I also love doing anything “artsy” and have my entire life.
Which is why, when I started thinking about writing a blog, my husband came up with the name….Artsy Chicks Rule.
He’s called me his “arsty chick” for 25 years so the name was a perfect fit!

My motto – Re.store, Re.style and Re.love.

I’m a thrifty girl. Always have been!
I love a deal…..and I love to decorate on the cheap!

Above all, my favorite thing to do is paint and bring new life to old pieces, either thrifted or those I already own.
I move things from room to room and re-invent things constantly around here.

This Aubusson Blue Chalk Painted Thrift Store Dresser  is one of my all time favorites.
This also happens to be one of my favorite colors in the Annie Sloan Chalk Paint line.

Isn’t that blue fabulous?

Another DIY is this tile back splash I completed in less than 24 hours with the help of this super fabulous product.
DIY Kitchen Backsplash

 I also love signs and graphics and love “writing” on everything. Well, almost everything. ;)

Here are a few:
Estate Sale Sideboard

Coastal Custom Graphics Chest

 Dated to French Fabulous Bread Box

I’m so happy to have had this opportunity to share some of my favorite things with you!
And again, many thanks to Meegan for having me here! :)

You can also find me on Pinterest, Facebook & Instagram, among others!

Hope to see you soon!

I couldn’t be happier about today’s Field Trip Friday with Debbie from Debbie Doos.  She took me under her wing right from the beginning of my first blog post.  So, it is an honor for me to have her here today.

Hi there everyone, so nice to be here today at What Meegan Makes.

Meegan and I go way back, like way back to when she first started blogging. It has been a pleasure getting to know her through this journey of creativity.

My name is Debbie and my blog is Debbiedoo’s.

I share, budget friendly home decor ideas, crafting and thrift finds, some even freebies that I make over.

This was my past year round up and I do hope you enjoy and come by and visit me sometime.

 I did not have a whole lot of BIG diy’s this past year.

 My largest project was

probably painting the fireplace surround.

You can read all the deets about it, but is sure was a lot easier than I had aniticpated.  I even asked myself what took me so long.

I started off the New year pretty heavy into crafting.

I started to get the hang of it more and really had fun just going with it.

Stenciling a tea towel.

by the time March came along I am sure I had at least 30 or more crafts on the blog.

January archives

February archives

These burlap utensil holders were a fan favorite indeed.

I loved them too and can’t wait to get them out again before you know it.

March was a really big month for my family and I.

We got to take a trip of a lifetime to The countryside of Ireland.

Our son marched in the St. Patricks’ day parade.

March archives

I was pretty whipped after that trip and did not do much for the rest of the month.

April came along and I started getting into my upcycling/repurposing projects

I never thought this old chippy window turned chalkboard would be so popular,

but y’all really liked it and it still hangs proudly in our kitchen today.

and since the rooster stencil was out,

I decided to make a pillow out of a drop cloth

You would have thought this thing was made out of gold on pinterest.

I always question what makes something so popular, and you really never do know.  I just do things I love and if it sticks, great, if not, that is fine too, I LIKE IT! and it is our home.  You have to enjoy your own surroundings and be comfortable with your own style.  That is one thing that has been the toughest for me in blogging.

NOT changing everything on a weekly basis!

I almost forgot another big diy of ours was painting the pantry door red.

We are so happy with this project, still.

It is holding up great and just adds such interest and conversation to the kitchen.

I later found out the history of a red door and was fascinated by it.

And

then

there was a sharpie.

First time at a sharpie project.

This dollar tree plate with Sharpie set the tone for more sharpie projects to come.

April archives

May archives

If you notice I am highlighting the archives as I go, there are a lot of crafts and home projects in them for you to check out according to the season.

JUNE was a huge month for me

JUNE archives

July archives

August archives

September archives

Probably the biggest boost for my overall morale and self esteem since blogging.

I actually came up with a never been done before concoction of painting on glass with mod podge and rit dye.

I tried it stricly as an experiment and thought I would take pics as I went along, just in case it turned out OK

Mixing Mod podge with Rit dye turned out better than OK.

I went on to do some pretty cool stuff with the Rit dye and Mod podge combination.

Rit dye archives

Glad I kept in mind you’re only a rock star for a short time, then it is back to same old same old.

Not complaining, I like my same old same old, but like I said this little boost was certainly good for me at the time.

Then before you knew it, in a blink of an eye,

fall was here and that truly is my favorite.

My garbage picked Painted with rit dye, burlap and chicken wire pallet shelf is probably my favorite of all.

 Have I mentioned it fell off the wall once?

Yes, it did, and not a thing broke off of it.  The nail actually broke, very weird, but hubby fixed it and all is good now.

Ocotber archives

November archives

The fall season is gone before we know it, and people quickly move onto Christmas. In fact, people I noticed started pinning Christmas decor in October.

cray cray indeed.

But that is how this biz rolls, very quickly, competitively and  rush it along.  Hey, I don’t make the rules, if I did, we would still be in Fall mode.

Christmas was easy and very stress free for me this year.

I decorated lightly

even bought myself a small Charlie Brown Christmas tree from Target.

All the Christmas decor, but the tree is down now!

In fact, this sucker is staying up for a while and I plan on decorating a few more seasons with it.

Next,

Valentines day

Here is a sneak peek at Mr. Charlie Brown tree and our Family room for Valentine’s day.

So, that is my year in review.  Like I said, a lot of crafts,

oh and even more cooking and baking for me this year.

Recipe archives

I appreciate every single one of my friends and readers that come by to visit me.

Wishing you all the very best in 

2014!

XOXO