Kitchen Command Center .... Behind The Scenes!

After over a year I'm finally sharing how the heck my Menu Board, Dry-Erase Board and Chore Charts are hanging in my Kitchen Command Center!  I've received dozens of emails and comments asking how, so I figured it was time to actually make a post about it!  Are you ready? .......

3M Command Strips

Not a single nail hole involved!  For the Menu Board and Dry Erase Board, I used the "Command Saw-Tooth Picture Hanger".  This size will hold up to 5lbs!

 For the Chore Charts, I used the "3M Command Picture Hanging Strips".  Seriously, these suckers are awesome and I use them all over the house ...

You can find these at just about any shopping center like Target or Walmart ... even home improvements like Lowes or Home Depot. 

I hope this helps you get one step closer to creating a Command Center for your home ... happy shopping!

Peek-a-Boo!

I haven't been present on my blog in a few months ... I terribly miss it and I fear I'm going through personal crafting withdrawal. So where have I been and what exactly has been occupying my time?

My little shop ChichiKIDS has exploded locally and it's still in high demand online ... not to mention I've pulled several "Reserve" days in the military, launched ChichiLIFE, launched new product lines for ChichiKIDS, launched OH SO Chichi Handbags as a Miche Independent Sales Representative, started taking and teaching dance classes again, manage 3 FB pages, 3 blogs, volunteer work, photography groups ... and of course all those wonderful things that come with raising a toddler who has a schedule of his own ... specialized speech therapy 3 times per week, gymnastics, softball and playgroups. Did I mention my hubby has been deployed for the last 6-months?

My passion for blogging and crafting is still present ... I'm simply trying to figure out a balance that allows me to manage all of it while keeping a certain level of sanity. :)

Here is a little photo journey of my favorite projects the last couple months ....

TONS of custom iron-on vinyl appliques for local groups.

I love the challenge of new and unique designs.

Gift for family and friends! I'm going through a "every gift needs to be handmade" phase.

The launch of my You + Me designs for Valentine's.

I participate in a 365 day photo challenge called A Year As A Military Spouse ... we contribute publish worthy photos to document our life. I'm behind publishing my photos ... I blame it on the crash of my Macbook and the fact that I have to borrow my hubby's. :)

More custom work. Whoa, this one was labor intensive!

The launch of my Maternity Sets, inspired by a custom request.

St. Patrick's Day designs ... that's my little leprechaun!

I really am the luckiest mom. :)

"Quote Me" tee's ... inspired by my very own little kiddo.

He turned 4 ... that's all I have to say. I'm sure you understand. :)

The launch of ChichiLIFE. Cute, functional, organized!

Oh look ... a home project! Yup, I squeezed one in there!

This is my kiddo's activity center.

The launch of OH SO Chichi Handbags ... I adore my Miche's!

Did I mention I was raising a superhero?

Now ... I have a couple craft projects I've been working on that I'll be sharing with you ... let's see if I can get them posted this week! :)

Meal Planning Board Tutorial

Last month I guest-posted my Meal Planning Board tutorial over at Serenity Now! If you missed it, I've re-posted for you to enjoy!

Here we go ...

This Meal Planning Board (originally inspired by Charity over at All Things Beautiful) is part of my Kitchen Command Center and is probably one of my favorite projects so far! It actually inspires me to cook and get a little more adventurous with our meals ... plus, it lets my husband get in on the action and clip-up a few meals that he'd like during the week. Now don't be intimidated by all of the parts and pieces to this Meal Planning Board ... it's REALLY easy, I promise! I whipped this baby up in a little over an hour ... even with the "help" of a set of 3-year old toddler hands ... that includes making the the decorative clothespins and push-pins too!

Meal Planning Board ~ Tutorial

Let's get started ...

Supplies

Large Picture Frame
Cork Squares
Cute Fabric
Felt
Felt Scraps
Decorative Clothespins (tutorial here)
Decorative Push Pins (tutorial here)
Lettering
Scissors/Rotary Cutter/Glue

Grab your frame and toss the glass (or save it for another project).
You'll just be using the frame and the frame backing.

Cut your cork to the size of the backing.
I used two pieces of 12x12 squares and cut them to size.

Glue your cork to the frame backing.

Cut your fabric and felt slightly larger than the frame backing. Lay your fabric face down, then your felt, then your corked backing.

Wrap the fabric/felt layers around the board and glue to secure.

Place in your frame.

Flip it over and you have a cute and slightly cushioned fabric board! The felt helps make the board a little "cushy" (is that a word?) and gives it a more finished look.

Ok, get those the Decorative Clothespins ready! You can check-out my tutorial here. I used my Sizzix machine to cut the felt circles and the letters. You can absolutely use stickers or other pre-made embellishments for this too!

Space out your clothespins and simply push them into place! I started with Wednesday's clothespin in the center, then Sun on one edge and Sat on the far edge ... then it was simply dividing the remaining space.

Ooh .. they look like little clothespins soldiers all lined up in a row! This makes me smile.

Now cut those felt scraps into rectangles so you can create storage pockets for all of your meal choices. I chose to make 3 categories of meals and therefore needed 3 pockets. Again, I used my Sizzix to make iron-on fabric letters, but you can use stickers too!

Grab your decorative push-pins. You can find my tutorial here. You'll need 4 push-pins for each pocket. Pin your bottom corners. Before pinning the tops, make sure you leave a little extra room so there is space to slide your meal notes.

Simply push-in the pins!

Ooh! A cute little row of menu pockets! I made pockets for our "favorite", "fast", and "new" meals and so far it's been a good fit for the way our meals work here.

You can add a little row of glue along the bottom of the pocket to prevent the meal cards from slipping out the bottom.

Now you're ready to start planning your meals! I simply cut strips of regular printer paper and wrote out our meals by hand.

The finished product!

The Meal Planning Board hanging proudly at the top of our Kitchen Command Center!

I'm Guest Posting @ Serenity Now Today!

Today you can find me guest posting my Meal Planning Board Tutorial over at Serenity Now ... one of my favorite blogs! If you don't already visit Amanda @ Serenity Now, head on over! She has a fun blog jammed packed with great ideas.

Hop on over and you may find a little surprise waiting for you!

Plant Your Gadget Charging Station

So really, who DOESN'T have a pile of charging cords crammed into their junk drawer? Anyone? I was seriously, seriously overwhelmed by the amount of cords we had crammed into our drawers ... and the ridiculous amount of hand-held electronics ... 2 cell phones, 4 iPods, 1 iPod touch ... not to mention the random power cords! I mean really, enough was enough.

In no more than 15 minutes I had put together a centralized charging station and in the spirit of Spring I labeled it "Plant Your Gadget". It's functional, it's cute and decorative. Whoop!

Plant Your Gadget

Supplies

Basket, Decorative Grass, Power Strip, Embellishments

"Plant Your Gadget" Decorative Charging Station

Gather up your electronics and all of those lovely charging cords

I hung our power strip on the wall behind our table and neatly zip-tied the cords up the wall to the basket.

Use a loosely woven basket and simply thread the head of the charging cord through the gaps in the basket.

Pile decorative grass over the cords then thread the top few inches of the cords through the grass.

Now plant your gadget in the basket, plug it in and charge!

You're done! It's decorative, functional ... and you won't forget where you're charging your gadget!

My First Video Tutorial!

I posted my first ChichiKids video tutorial! I'm sure my family will get a kick out of it ... as they had to witness my "toothpaste commercials" since I was a kid (and I may have been known to jump in front of the camera to do a few "weather reports" ... even as an adult).

Enjoy ... and if you comment ... be nice. :o)

ChichiKids Fabric Appliques ~ Basic Iron-On Tutorial

All of my ChichiKids video tutorials will be linked on my sidebar under ChichiKids Tutorials.

The awesome little apron that I wear in my videos and EVERY day when I work on applique orders and DIY projects was handmade by The Apron Addict on Etsy!

Love for the Mini-MOO!

My Mini-MOO business cards arrived!

MOO.com is simply amazing and it's effortless to create your own cards using your OWN photos! It's like a modern day "mullet" ... except it's a party on the front and business on the back. *smile*

If you haven't stumbled across it, I have an Etsy shop called ChichiKids! My shop focus is custom, iron-on fabric applique letters and designs for your clothing or home DIY projects. If I meet someone and the conversation turns to "So, what do you DO?". I have a hard time explaining my shop focus and appliques. It usually results in an "Oh. So, anyway ....".

I had a friend ask me, "Why don't you just say you sell "crafts". Well ... outside this AWESOME blog community, "crafts" seems to be a "dated" term ...people tend to think Popsicle Stick Bird Houses and Paper Bag Puppets. *giggle*

With my Mini-Moo's and my applique projects proudly featured on the front of each business card ... they have a visual reference and perhaps the conversation will be more of ... "Oh, COOL! So anyway ...".

... and THIS is why I'm so excited!

LOOK! My Mini-Moo's!

Aww ... cute little box! These shipped to my overseas address in a matter of days!

Ooh! A little peek into the box!

Appliques in action! With your MOO cards ... you can use as many photos as you like! Each card can have a different design. SWEET!

I love the little Peek-a-Boo Turkey ... and seeing my niece and son on my
business card simply makes me smile.

I'm excited to show-off on my card that appliques are not just for clothing! Did you notice that the M,T,W,T,F,S embellished clips on my Meal Planning Board were actually Doodle Dot Letter appliques? Oh Yes!

Thinking about ordering from MOO.com? Here is a coupon code for 15% off your FIRST order! Have fun!

2RB2CK