50 Things About Me

I decided to join in the fun over at City Girl Gone Coastal.  If you decide to join in please link up HERE

1. I was born at 11:50 PM on August 15th 

2. I grew up in the country

3. I did not start driving until I was 18

4. I lived in a village of less than 600 people

5. I basically grew up in the restaurant business

6. I was a top junior handler for many years, showing Shiba Inu

7. My husky, Fyr, has over 30 Best in Shows and won the UKC premier in 2002

8. I miss spending my summers in the upper part of Michigan

9. I moved to New Mexico in 2006 to be with my Husband

10.  I am a PROUD law enforcement wife

11.  I currently have 4 dogs

12.  I never thought I would ever own a Bloodhound but now I can not imagine my life without one

13.  I refuse to be told how to live my life 

14.  On the weekends you will find me 4x4ing in my FJ Cruiser.  

15.  I name all of my cars.  My FJ Cruiser is Abby and my PT Cruiser is Toby

16.  I am a muscle car girl at heart and will own another Mustang some day

17.  I love guns and I am a VERY responsible gun owner

18.  I have a wonderful 8-4 M-F job working in investments

19.  I have worked very hard to become an advanced communicator bronze in Toastmasters

20.  When I am sick I turn into a 5 year old

21.  I have crazy dreams and remember most of them

22.  I am addicted to makeup and collect it

23.  My favorite blush is Tarte Dollface

24.  Ruby Woo will be my favorite lipstick for as long as I live

25.  I met and married my husband within a year

26.  I purchased my first home before I was 25

27.  We do not want Children.  We love kids but they are just not for us

28.  I still "back to school" shop for myself

29.  I decided to follow my dreams and open a boutique 

30.  I have a love for reused and recycled decor

31.  My husband and I do not agree on anything

32.  My favorite guilty pleasure food is pepperoni cheese bread from Little Ceasers

33.  I can listen to Shinedown all day long 

34.  I will always be a redneck at heart

35.  I am a compulsive planner

36.  I will justify any purchase from Target 

37.  If I had a million dollars and could only shop at one store I would probably choose Target

38.  I refuse to shop at stores that promote animal cruelty or animals of any kind

39.  I love my ferret!

40.  Someday I want to move to White Oaks, NM and have a ranch

41.  I will own a mini Sicilian donkey someday! 

42.  My Bloodhound, Hank, is my world!

43.  I use way to many ...... and !!!! when I write

44.  I spend to much time reading blogs and watching YouTube videos

45.  I still have a huge crush on The Rock

46.  My husband is 6'6" and I am 5'2.5"

47.  When I am frustrated and trying not to speak my mind I crack my neck

48.  I wish Jack Lemmon and Walter Mathau were still around. 

49.  I wish our society would take the time to learn about history and the importance

50.  I am proud of who I am and what I have accomplished.  I can't wait to see what happens this year! 

Master Suite List

We are getting ready to start our renovations on our master suite.  I am a list girl and decided to share my "what needs to get done" list. :)  

Master Closet

Paint

Light Fixture

Tile

Organize with new shelving and rods

Master Bathroom

Tile

Paint

Tile around tub

Tile around shower

Paint vanity

Add storage under vanity

Frame out mirror

lighting

New faucet for tub

New tub with jets

New faucet for shower

Install new faucet for sink

Decor

Master Bedroom

Finish wood floors

Paint

Headboard

Light fixture

Window treatment

Paint dresser

Rug

Paint nightstands

Lamps

Decor

Bedding

What renovations or organizing projects are you starting this year?  Are you a list maker too?

DIY Pallet Wall for the Free Toilet Room Makeover

For this DIY you can use fence slats, barn wood, or old pallets.

Some rooms because of their size or general purpose can be a challenge to add that personal touch to. From the day we purchased our house we have been brainstorming ideas to of how to remove the mass-produced almost hospital feel in the water closet of our master bathroom. Some time back, when out on a 4x4 adventure, we came across some old pallets just thrown out. We decided to pick them up for two reasons. First it is simply not right for people to leave waste just tossed about but secondly, look at the character of this wood!  Who would toss this out? 

The hardest part of this project by far was taking the pallets apart without breaking them. Be sure to use your safety equipment, and try to save a few of the old nails to reuse to help the wall look authentic. Gloves and eye protection are a must for this project! 

You will need to find out the square footage of the wall you are going to cover. To do that you take the height and width of the wall in feet rounding up to the next foot and multiply them together. Then we laid out the boards and took measurements to ensure we had enough to cover the needed square footage for this project. Laying them out also gives you a chance to get an idea of how it will fit together.  

We painted the water closet before starting the wood project. You may need to do touch ups after your wood is on the wall because you will have some scratches here and there.  Also it is important to paint the wall behind the wood because in this application there will be cracks and gaps that add to the rustic look. We could have used different colors depending on what look we wanted to pull from the wood. A blue gray or silver would have enhanced the blues and grays common in sun bleached weather exposed wood. Browns can make the wood look more used but not as old. We used black to get the look of a space or emptiness behind the wall. No matter the color you go with it is important to use a flat to limit any shine, it should look like an old wood wall not a new shiny wall covered by old wood.     

Using a good adhesive (liquid nails) and a few of the old nails we started at the top and worked our way down. We liked the look of having the boards staggered in no real order. So with a jigsaw we cut some at different lengths. Being sure to pair up matching widths. Very few walls are perfectly square so length measurements were taken for each row as we went this is important because wall measurements can very from ceiling and floor level. You will find it is very possible that each row could be a different enough length to affect the final cut. It is also important to be thinking a few steps ahead and have your next few boards planned because some of the boards may not always be the same size (width and thickness). Thickness is not very critical in this application because changes in thickness will add more texture to the wall, however width is a little more important. If the next board you place is a lot wider or thinner than the one you are pairing it to the next row will have a very uneven gap. Some gaps look good but to large of a gap and it can look poorly thought out. If you are going to go with a staggered look keep in mind that a few full length or longer boards will add to the total stability of the project.

Once we reached about half way we changed direction and worked from the bottom up. The reason this was done was because we knew it would be a possibility that we would be cutting a board down the middle to fit the last gap, and by placing this thinner board behind a fixed object like the toilet it helps to blend it in with the surrounding boards. In the picture above both boards on top of the visible black wall and below it are cut 2 inches thinner than the others but because they are separated and distracted by the toilet it is not as noticeable as one board would be cut 4 inches thinner. The last boards were secured in place completing the wall. This took about six hours including painting and the dismantling of the pallets. 

If you have any questions regarding creating your own pallet wall please feel free to send us an email at mandyjeanchic@gmail.com or leave a comment below or on our facebook page. 

Don't forget to like Mandy Jean Chic on facebook, follow me on Twitter or Instagram, and find me on Pinterest. :) 

LINKED UP:

A Diamond in the Stuff /  Seven Thirty Three / My Girlish Whims

Beyond the Picket Fence /  5 Days 5 Ways / Simply Sweet Home

Blissful & Domestic / Becoming Martha / While He Was Napping

Little Becky Homecky / A Little Knick Knack / The Charm of Home

Homespun Happenings / Be Different Act Normal / Tatertots & Jello

I Heart Naptime / A Lived In Home / Sunny Simple Life

I Gotta Try That / Coastal Charm / Home Stories A to Z

A Bowl Full of Lemons / The Blackberry Vine / Cornerstone Confessions

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DIY Nail Rack

Check out my DIY Nail Rack Tutorial over at 

So You Think You're Crafty!

If you build a DIY Nail Rack using my tutorial or have built one of your own please leave me a comment with a link.  I would LOVE to check it out!!

FREE Toilet Room Makeover

Last weekend we decided to makeover our toilet room only using items we had laying around the house.  As any DIYer knows you have a ton of left over paint, wood scraps, decor etc.  We couldn't see the sense in going out and shopping for a room makeover when we probably had the stuff laying around.  We also like free :)

Supply List 

Paint- Oops paint from Lowes.  Purchased a year ago $3

Pallet Wall- Free pallets from a 4x4 trip

Wreath- JoAnns. Purchased in the spring $10

All other decor purchased at yard sales and discount stores off and on through the years

Hubby created the light fixture.  He used an old outdoor light and replaced the glass with metal. 

I love the texture of my wall!!

FOLLOW THIS LINK FOR THE DIY PALLET WALL

DIY PALLET WALL

LINKED UP WITH:

Nifty Thrifty Things /  DIY Show Off /  I Should Be Mopping / The Girl Creative /

Creating My Way To Success / Under the Table and Dreaming / Sumo's Sweet Stuff

The Dedicated House /  A Blossoming Life / Sew Can Do 

Mad in Crafts /  Some Day Crafts/ Not Just  a Housewife

TaterTots & Jello / 

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