Author: Dina Ray

HAPPY SPRING EVERYONE!!!

OMGoodness you guys….I absolutely LOVE these wooden flowers.  They come in a variety of choices and are so versatile.  You can paint them, dip them, dye them or just simply leave them in their original color.  They are so beautiful and AMAZING!!!!!  I couldn’t wait to craft with them as soon as I received my first shipment!!

I have to admit, this sign was not my idea…I searched Pinterest for inspiration and came across this sign and added my own unique twist to it along with my Chalk Couture.  Although the flowers dry pretty quickly, I painted them the night before to allow plenty of drying time.  I chose three colors of paint that reminded me of spring and that I felt looked great together.  I chose not to dip them and instead watered down the paint colors and used a paintbrush.  I think they turned out beautiful!!

Other items you will need for this project besides the wooden flowers:

• Whitewash board from Walmart
• One 4″ (or any size that fits on your board) Seed Starter Pot
• Small piece of floral foam
• Greenery of your choice
• Hot Glue
• Wooden Beads
• Jute Cord
• Chalk Couture transfer and paste (optional)

After letting the flowers dry overnight, it was finally time to create something beautiful with them.  I took the seed starter pot and cut it in half with my scissors.  I cut a small piece of the floral foam off of the block to fit inside the pot.  I hot glued that piece of foam to the board making sure to place it near the bottom and to allow room for the pot to cover it.  I then hot glued along the edges of the pot and placed it over the foam.

I began building the floral portion of this project starting with the greenery.  I clipped off sections of some of the boxwood greenery I purchased at Walmart for under a dollar.  I pushed them through the foam and arranged them across the board.  Now for the fun part…working with the wooden flowers!!!   Although in the picture you see that I painted one a light pink, one a light turquoise, and another one a pretty coral color, I decided the coral and pink were too close in color and I needed to use a different color.  After going through all of my paints, I just couldn’t find a color that I loved so…I decided to just leave it in it’s natural state and I loved it like that!!  I didn’t have the floral wire picks to attach to the flowers (and I have no plans of getting out during this COVID-19 chaos) so I attached the flowers to wired stems from some old flowers I’d picked up a long time ago from Walmart.   It worked perfectly!!  I arranged them right above the pot making sure to use the largest flower in the middle and adding the two smaller ones on the side.

By the way, you can watch my Live video of this project on my Facebook Page – Designs by Dina.  At the end of the video, I decided I really wanted to add a little more to it to bump it up a notch. Of course, I didn’t have any of the items I wanted to use with me during the video so I added it all afterwards.  I decided instead of using the jute cord that came with the board as a hanger, I wanted to add wooden beads to the top and I love how it turned out.  I chose the same pale pink color that’s in one of the flowers as well as white beads which both tied into the color scheme of the sign perfectly.

There was room at the top for something else and I decided to incorporate my Chalk Couture into this project.  I searched through my collection of  Chalk Couture silk screen transfers trying to find something that would fit in that small space that related to spring or flowers.  This “Live Life in Full Bloom” was the perfect fit.

And there you have it…so quick and inexpensive!!  What an easy way to add a little spring into your home.  I don’t know about you, but these colors just make me happy.  Hopefully, this post will inspire you to add a little spring charm to your home and help you transition your home for the new season!

Blessings friends!!

For those who follow me and know me, you know I have a son who is a senior this year and is scheduled to graduate in May.  Although, life is very uncertain right now, I wanted to write this blog post to encourage parents and students to not lose faith.  Don’t lose faith in our Lord, don’t lose faith in our school systems, don’t lose faith in our leadership, don’t lose faith in anything!!  Our Lord is in control of EVERYTHING and this too shall pass!!  I have no doubt about that.

I know it’s difficult to try to focus on all things positive.  I get it…after watching the news media, reading Facebook posts and all the other negative things out there…I get how one can become overwhelmed by it all.  Personally, I’ve never been a worrier about things out of my control.  I’m not saying I don’t worry…I just don’t worry about things happening in the world that are way beyond my control.  There’s just no sense in that…you’re only hurting yourself and those around you.  People have often misconstrued that as “not caring,” but that couldn’t be farther from the truth.  I’ve always looked at things this way…whatever happens is going to happen regardless if I worry about it or not!  So why worry?  Right?

I’m choosing to focus on the positives right now more than anything.  I know some parents and students are worried about whether our kiddos will be able to graduate together on time and as scheduled.  I know some parents and students are worried about Prom and the uncertainty of whether that will be cancelled.  I know spring sports parents and students are saddened that they won’t be able to take the field, court, track, etc. anytime soon or even at all for their final year.  All of these things are legitimate concerns and I’ve wondered all the same things as you have.  Although no one knows how all of this will play out…I know One who does.  I’m just going to lean on that and put my faith in Him to work all of this out.

In the mean time, I’ll focus on all the things that I can control.  I have control over whether I take the steps recommended to keep my family and myself safe from this virus.  I have control over how I react to this pandemic by choosing faith over fear!!  I have control over how I react to the closing of the schools…I’m excited about the possibility of having a little more time with my son before he heads off to college!!!  Has Covid-19 put a hold on our plans?  ABSOLUTELY!!  However, all of the things happening right now all over the world is temporary…real…but temporary!!!  We need to all remember that and rely on the One who will get us through it all.

My advice to the class of 2020, high school or college graduates, is focus on the positives, continue on your path the Lord has planned for you, don’t let this alter your purpose in any way, etc.  This virus cannot take away who you were created to be and what you were created to do in this world.  It’s only delaying it temporarily…perhaps to allow you more time to prepare for adulthood and all that lies ahead.

I’ll close by challenging everyone reading this…let’s all focus on all things good in our lives!!  Let’s bring joy to others who may be struggling right now with the fear of the unknown.  Let’s be a positive light in such a dark time.  Take the time to do something positive for someone.  Let’s just spread positivity and love wherever we go!!

Blessings to all!!

If you follow me on my Designs by Dina Facebook page, you may have already read this post I made earlier this year.  In my post, I mentioned that after my son’s senior basketball season I would have more time to really focus on “My Word” that I chose to be a reminder to me throughout this new year.  Well, that time has come and I’m posting it again as a reminder to myself.  I hope it inspires you to do the same!!  I’ve made a few changes with some updates as well.  So here it is friends…

The new year brings new beginnings for us all.  I’ve never been one to set New Year’s resolutions, because let’s face it…it would probably only last for maybe a month…if that long.  HaHa!!  However, I am all about wanting to better and challenge myself and if a new year is what inspires me to do that, then so be it!!

A new year for me is a like a blank slate…wiped clean and ready to be written on again.  My first priority was to get healthy and mindful of how our unhealthy lifestyle has affected both my husband and I. With the inspiration of our nephew, who’s slaying this healthy eating lifestyle by the way, my husband and I have made some changes and have already seen what a difference it’s made in our lives.  We started this journey on January 1st and I’m praying the Lord gives us the strength and desire to continue this lifestyle throughout the rest of our lives.  After all, we want to be around to see our wonderful children and grandchildren grow up.

A couple of years ago, I was reading a blog of a fellow crafter who was talking about her “word” she was going to focus on for that upcoming year.  I really didn’t give it much thought then, but this year with so many changes happening in our family, I was inspired to choose a “word” of my own to help me deal with those changes better.  I’m not sure if it’s my age or the fact that our youngest son will be graduating from high school this year and going on to college, but I’ve really been thinking about what our future will look like with all of these changes.  So….two years later I thought to myself…I NEED a “WORD” too.  HaHa!!

Let me tell you something friends…if you haven’t tried to choose “ONE” word out of the trillions of words in the English language…IT IS HARD!!!!  Of course, you want it to be the PERFECT word to inspire you daily.  It took me a long time, but I found my “word”!!  Are you ready for it?

NURTURE!!!  I know…you may be thinking…it took her that long to come up with that “word”?  HaHa!!  Well, let me share with you how I came to choose it.

As usual, I was lying in bed waiting until the very last minute to get up and start getting ready for work.  Many times I lay there thinking about everything and anything like “What’s on the agenda for the day?”  “Does my son have a ballgame tonight?  “If so, are his socks and basketball gear clean and ready for tonight?” “What are we eating for supper tonight?” because you know with this healthy eating, we cannot do fast food after the ballgame at 9:00 pm or later anymore.  HaHa!!  Don’t laugh…you know you do this too.  So I picked up my phone looking for some inspiration of what to fix for supper that night that’s quick and easy and Keto friendly.  You know…it’s a little scary how Facebook works, since I’ve been looking up health recipes since the beginning of the year…all of a sudden they flood my Facebook newsfeed daily.

Anyway, I’m scrolling through Facebook and I come across an advertisement of a company I ordered from once before.  The name of the company is My Intent.  If you haven’t heard of them, look them up.  They make custom jewelry with your “word” on it as a daily reminder to you.  What an awesome idea…right?  Well…I for sure need a “word” now so I can order this cute little jewelry!! HaHa!!

Days and weeks went by and still…no “word” seemed to be fitting.  I began thinking about all of life’s upcoming changes in our family and I asked myself…”What change do I want to make in 2020 and beyond?” I thought about all of the things I wish I had more time to spend doing or the people I wanted to spend more time with.  I also asked myself “What’s one thing I would like to be more like?”  Then it hit me…I wanted to be more nurturing to the people I love…my family and friends, as well as strangers I may come into contact with who may not have anyone in their lives to nurture them.

Our lives right now are so busy that it’s hard to keep up with everyone and everything going on around us.  However, I know things will change in a few months and it will be the perfect time to begin nurturing all of the people and things I’ve neglected over the years.

I found it….I finally found my “word”!!  How perfect is this word….for me!!

Nurture – to care for and encourage the growth or development of.    The process of caring for and encouraging the growth or development of someone or something. 

Besides my family and friends, I also want to nurture my business.  It’s definitely taken a backseat since about the middle of November when basketball season began.  I know it’s just a side business as I do have my “big girl” job, but I love my Designs by Dina business and I plan on keeping it going for a long time.  I have a feeling it’s going to help me get through the “empty nest” stage of our lives.

I’ve taken a few steps recently as part of nurturing my business…one being hiring a business coach to help guide me through this process.  There’s so much to learn and so much information out there that I have yet to learn.  Another step being creating this blog and website.  Baby steps toward growing and developing a business I love and feel so passionate about.

After finally deciding on my “word,” I immediately visited My Intent’s website and ordered myself a necklace.  I also ordered one for that sweet blogger friend I mentioned earlier with her own word…for planting that seed two years ago and inspiring this whole thing.

I’ve shared all of this to encourage you to choose your “word” too.  I’m praying it’s going to inspire me to stay focused on nurturing all that’s important to me!!  Hopefully, your word can do the same for you too!!

Blessings!!

Nothing gives me the fever to start decorating for Easter more than cute pastel colors.  It just screams Easter and spring to me and I just can’t help but get excited to bring a little of that into my home after a long and dreary winter.  Strolling through all of the stores and seeing these beautiful colors just puts me in a cheerful mood, so who wouldn’t want to be surrounded by that in your own homes.  Right?  Well, I hope this craft inspires you to do just that!!

As soon as I saw these cute pastel pom pom garlands in the Dollar General Store a couple of weeks ago, I knew I had to make a craft with them or use them to decorate with somehow.  If you watched my Live video on my Designs by Dina Facebook page, you heard me say that I snatched every one of them up.  My husband and I shopped at all the Dollar General Stores in our area…five of them to be exact.  HaHa!!  If they had them, I bought all they had.  At the time, I had no idea what type of craft I would make with them, but I knew I would be able to use it somehow.  Aren’t they just the cutest?

Inspiration hit me while cleaning my closet…haha!!  About a year ago, I purchased several of these boards from Hobby Lobby for an upcoming Chalk Couture Make and Take workshop.  I ended up changing my mind when I came across something else that I felt my group would love better.  So there they were, stacked up in the corner of my walk-in closet just waiting for this project.  I chose to use Waverly Chalk Paint in the color Silver Lining for the board.  My first thought was to do a light dry brush on the board, mainly because I wasn’t sure if I had enough paint to cover the whole board.  HaHa!!  I ended up changing my mind…again…and painted the whole board…and yes….I had enough paint to cover it…woohoo!!

I picked up this Happy Easter wooden cutout sign at the Dollar Tree…for a dolla!!!!  HaHa!!  It fit perfectly inside the board even leaving room at the top for my cute little pom pom garland.  I decided to paint the Happy Easter part of this sign with again…my go to paint…Waverly Chalk Paint in the color white.  For the bunny, I decided to cover it with reindeer moss from the Dollar Tree …again…for a dolla!!  WARNING…this moss does not smell very good at all!  But…it was cute so I took one for the team and held my breath while working with it.  HaHa!!   I hot glued small sections of the bunny and added the moss to it.  It works better if you pull the moss apart and break it into little pieces.  After I covered the entire bunny, I took my scissors and gave it a hair cut…trimming off all the longer pieces that were hanging off the sides.  Every little bunny needs a cotton tail, so I grabbed a cotton ball from the bathroom.  It was a little too big for this size bunny, so I just pulled it apart and used half of it.  I then hot glued it to the bunny and made my very own sweet little Peter Cottontail.  

Next, I hot glued the Easter sign to the board as close to the bottom as I could allowing room for the garland at the top.  I measured to see how much of the garland was needed and cut that section off.  I hot glued the two pom poms on the ends to the board in the top corners and then moved each pom pom to space it out evenly.  

This was such an easy and quick project for very little money $$$!!  If you want to see a video of this project, HOP on over to my Designs by Dina Facebook page.  You can also enter for a chance to win this cutie by simply sharing the video on your Facebook page with your friends and family!!  Don’t wait long though…drawing will be soon and this giveaway will no longer be valid.

I hope this has inspired you to add a little Easter Cheer to your home and begin turning your house into a home you love too!!

Blessings Friends!!!

Can you believe it’s March 1st already….Easter will be here before you know it!!  I decided I’d better get busy preparing for the holiday before it sneaks up on me.  Luckily, I picked up this cute little Easter Basket from the Dollar Tree last week…for a dolla.  I actually bought 3.  Two of them I knew I would use for my grandsons’ Easter gifts and the other I bought to use for a craft project on my Designs by Dina Facebook page.  I simply added their names and personalized it with some heat transfer vinyl and my regular iron.  I didn’t want to use my heat press for this project because of the shape of the basket and it worked out perfect!  How cute are they….right?

For the last Easter basket, I decided to make that cute little bunny sign in the picture above.  The board came from Walmart’s craft section…it was under $3.00.  It already came whitewashed and with a jute string hanger attached.  I love these little boards…I pick some up every craft trip I make to Walmart.  I removed the string since I would be using the sign vertically and wouldn’t need the hanger.  I cut apart the Easter basket…I know…I kinda felt bad because it was so darn cute!!  I cut off the bunny ears and the face of the bunny.  I also cut a small rectangle from the side panels of the basket that had the blue gingham pattern on it for the bow tie.

I cut the bunny’s face to fit on the board and then attached it with hot glue.  I added the ears the same way and tucked it under the top of the face to hide the ends.  I pinched the middle of the rectangular piece of gingham and tied it in the middle with part of the jute string that I cut off of the board.  It made the perfect bow tie.  I hot glued it to the board under the bunny’s face.

As you may already know, I usually always try to incorporate my Chalk Couture into my crafts.  I thought it would be cute to use one of the silk screen transfers from last Easter with the saying “Some Bunny Loves You.”  It was small enough to fit under the bow tie in the corner of the board.  I used my black chalk paste and it worked out great!!  To finish it off and add a little more color…I added one of the three cute little carrots I purchased last year from Hobby Lobby.  Again, I attached it with hot glue since the carrot was super light.

And there you have it…a cute little bunny sign!!  If you want to see my Live video demonstrating how I made this sign, “HOP” on over to my Designs by Dina Facebook page and check it out!!

Blessings!!!

One of my favorite things to decorate is a dough bowl and after this blog post, you’ll see why.  If you don’t have one…do yourself a favor and get one!!  I ordered mine online from Kirkland’s last year and I absolutely LOVE it!!

Let’s get started shall we?  First, I started with the lamb’s ear garland that I purchased from Hobby Lobby when they ran their florals and greenery at 50% off.  I’m almost as obsessed with lamb’s ear as I am buffalo check right now.  Anyone else with me on that?  HaHa!!  I arranged that inside the dough bowl for filler.

If you’re anything like me and most crafters, you’re constantly collecting things that most people would throw away.  I always look at it and ask myself,  “Hmm…what can I make out of this?” HaHa!!  Well, that’s exactly what I did for my vase in the photo.  I used an old pickle jar that just so happened to be the perfect size.  I measured and cut a piece of buffalo check adhesive vinyl that I ordered from Amazon to wrap around the middle of the jar.  I peeled off the adhesive backing placed it onto the jar and…Voila!!  It turned out so cute and it was so much easier than mod podging scrapbook paper onto the jar.  No bubbles, no wrinkles and no drying time either.  That’s a win/win in my book!!  I added a few hydrangea stems that I purchased at Walmart for $5.00 in the vase and it looked beautiful.

Next, I wanted to make something to raise the vase and flowers up in the dough bowl.  So I decided to make a little riser. I used one of the Wood Pile brand round plaques from a package of 4 from Hobby Lobby…again 1/2 off.  For the feet, I purchased a package of little wooden knobs from Walmart which came in a package of 8.  I decided to use the four smallest ones as I felt they would be the best size to go with the wooden plaque.  I added a light whitewash of Blackberry House paint to the plaque and the feet.  I then hot glued the feet to the bottom of the wooden plaque…it was so easy and ended up being the perfect size!  I placed it in the center of the dough bowl with the vase on top of it.  Worked perfectly…I love it when a plan comes together, don’t you?

Last, but definitely not least, I used one of the new Chalk Couture surfaces  and transfers that was just released in the Spring/Summer launch at the beginning of this month.  The two wooden house cut outs are by far my favorite of the new surfaces.  Add the silk screen transfers that were made especially for that surface and it turned out amazing!!  Although it was a difficult decision to choose from all the cute designs, I chose the “Home Sweet Home” and “Love Makes our House a Home” transfers.  I chose black chalk paste for the lettering and I absolutely LOVED how they turned out.  You can find everything that I used for the house cut outs on my Chalk Couture website:  designsbydina.chalkcouture.com.

Now that all my pieces are made…let’s put it all together!!  I placed the two house cut outs on each end of the dough bowl.  Added a few brown paper mache’ eggs and the two small buffalo check carrots!!  How cute did this little vignette turn out?  In the photo below, I decided to take out one of the house cut outs and add the cute little bunny that was part of the Wilshire Collections Decor at your Door Surprise Box that I ordered.  The cute little buffalo check carrots were also in my surprise box along with so many other adorable items for Spring.  If you don’t follow Wilshire Collections, do yourself a favor and start!!  You’ll absolutely love it!!

So there it is friends…a simple and affordable way to add a little seasonal decor to your home.  The beauty of decorating with dough bowls or trays is that they are so easy to transition from season to season.  

I hope this inspires you to purchase yourself a dough bowl or a tray and create your own little vignette in your home. I promise you…you will love it!!

Blessings,

Dina

Have you ever heard of “God winks”?  I first heard of God winks from a movie on the Hallmark Mystery Channel. (HaHa! Don’t judge) I don’t even remember the title of the movie, but it was so good…and yes….I cried…haha!!!  Evidently, there have been several movies on the Hallmark Channel, hosted by Kathy Lee Gifford, that I’ve missed and a book series as well.  After watching that movie last week, that word has just stuck with me.  So much so that I could not get it off of my mind, so I decided to do some research on the word and looked up the definition.  Webster’s definition is:  “An event or personal experience, often identified as coincidence, so astonishing that it is seen as a sign of divine intervention, especially when perceived as the answer to a prayer.”

I’m not a believer in coincidence…never have been.  I’ve always known when something like this happens, it was God’s handy work and intervention.  Unfortunately, I’m sure there have been many God winks in my life that went unnoticed.  Times that I was so wrapped up in my own chaos, whatever it may have been at the time, to notice and to thank Him for what He had done.  As believers, isn’t it amazing that God loves each and every one of us so much that He gives us reminders every now and then of His presence in our lives whenever we need it the most?   His timing is always perfect!!  His presence in my life gives me such comfort and helps me get through the trying times.  I truly don’t know how people get through life without the Lord.

I read a story during my research about Jim Kelly, the retired quarterback of the Buffalo Bills.  He was facing the passing of his mother, but couldn’t bring himself to go to her bedside to say goodbye.  Even after the hospice nurse informed the family it was time to say their final goodbyes.  Jim still couldn’t find the will to go in.  He felt bad about it, but he couldn’t bear the thought of having his last memory of her being on her deathbed.

Jim was grieving in the hallway when he noticed a song playing over the sound system in the nursing home.  The name of the song playing was “Goodbye Jimmy, Goodbye.”  His mother always called him Jimmy and sang this exact song to him when he was younger.  The lyrics are, “I’ll see you again, but I don’t know when.  Goodbye Jimmy, Goodbye.”  Three minutes later she passed away. Is this just coincidence?  Absolutely not!! He believed God gave his mother another way to say goodbye to him and letting him know she was in heaven. This was an example of a God wink that gave this man comfort in his grieving state…the assurance of where is mother had gone and the promise that he will see his mother again one day!!

So let this post encourage you and I both to never allow ourselves to get too busy or too wrapped up in what’s going on at the time, to not notice the God winks in our lives.  Let’s be mindful of them and give thanks to the One who loves us enough to  send them to us!!!

Blessings to you and yours!!

Well…I survived Senior Night of my youngest child!!  Whew…it was an emotional day right off the back!!  I kept reminiscing about all of the times I got onto him about throwing the ball in the house.  I remembered all the times from as young as 2 years old that he would shoot the ball into anything that resembled a basketball goal.  The trash can, the hamper, empty boxes…whatever he could find.  I remember when he played on his first team at 3 years old and how all the other kids would pick up the ball and run with it, but not him…he dribbled because that’s what his daddy taught him.  I remember his first “real” basketball goal we set up outside for him and how excited he was.  I remembered all the times he wanted ME to play with him because he knew he would beat me good!!  HaHa!!  Our boy lives and breathes basketball…and so have we for 14 years now.

Reading all the other mom’s posts on Facebook and looking at all of the pictures of their kiddos sure tugged on this mom’s heart.  The majority of these boys have played together since they were little.  They played travel basketball together and we shared many long car rides to and from those ball games.  It’s been a privilege to watch them grow, not only as players, but as young men.  We’ve had an amazing time with these boys and their families…memories we will treasure forever.

My husband helped coach these boys up until they hit middle school age.  Their bond is strong and it’s a beautiful thing to witness.  As you can see in the picture, my husband and I are vertically challenged (haha) so even through those latter years before middle school, these boys (not ours of course) towered over my husband.  But never did their respect for him waver nor his for them.  I’m grateful for a husband who wants to invest his time into his son and the other boys through coaching or anything that they do together.  I honestly don’t know who enjoyed it more, the boys or my husband.

District games begin tomorrow, if we win we continue to play.  If we don’t, he will be playing his last high school game.  All good things must come to an end they say…I’m just not ready for it yet!!  I love watching my boy play, I love his unselfishness on the court, I love his amazing basketball IQ, I love his defense, and I love his 3 point shots!!  But most of all, I love his sportsmanship and his willingness to do whatever it takes for his team.  Sometimes that meant sitting the bench when we played an opposing team with a lot of height and never seeing any playing time.  Although, he was disappointed at times, he knew it was best for the team and made that sacrifice.  To me, that’s a true team player and I’m extremely proud of him for that.

In his recent and last interview on our local radio station, he was asked “What was some of your favorite memories of playing in this gym?  His reply “Pretty much just every single day,  just playing with my ‘brothers’ all the time…I’m going to miss it!” Well son…you’re not the only one who’s going to miss it!!  Make these last games be the BEST games of your lives, play hard, have fun and soak it all up!!  Our hearts are always going to be with our #1….GO TIGERS!!!!

Just had to add this edit that my son designed! He just showed it to his Dad and I tonight. As soon as I saw it…I knew I had to try to figure out how to add it to this post!! This is the field he plans to pursue after high school…graphic design!! Isn’t it great?