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Oh the places you’ll go…

April 28, 2017 by Michelle Hinckley

My men and I have been blessed to go on some fabulous vacations. However, of all the trips we have ever taken as a family, an RV road trip has been the most fun and memorable out of all of them.
NO LIE!
You may remember we did an RV trip two years ago with Access RV Rentals here in Salt Lake City, UT. Before that trip I was not looking forward to it. The high-maintenance side of me had a pre-judgement that RV-ing was the complete opposite of luxury. I couldn’t fathom sitting on an bumpy RV for a week listening to my kids bicker with each other and complain “are we there yet”? To my surprise, they (and I) loved it.

When the opportunity arose to do another Access RV Trip there was no question the answer was “ABSOLUTELY”. We picked up the RV in Indiana and started our way back to Salt Lake City, UT in a week’s time.

What is great about RV’ing is you can cover a lot of sites in a short amount of time. Plus, kids have much more space to stretch out unlike sitting in a car for a week.

I cannot describe how valuable a week on an RV is for a family.
It’s fun to brag about all the places we went on our trip but Henry David Thoreau said, “It’s not what you look at that matters, It’s what you see.”

Seeing pictures in a text book is one thing. Seeing those places first hand is priceless.

Have you ever had your children attend a different religious services other than their own? That one experience alone made a huge impression these three.

These men also learned about the great leaders of our country and what they contributed to society.

The beauty of being on an RV is that all the distractions at home are eliminated and you’re forced to spend time together…like it or not.
Let’s just say, we never knew 10 rounds of UNO could be so comical.

You never realize how big the world is until you leave home.

Having been on 2 RV trips now I can say it’s definitely you should put on your bucket list. These boys still talk about our RV trip from 2 years ago and I know they’ll talk about this last trip for years to come.

Here’s our home-away-from-home… Mannequin Challenge style…

If you’re Utah I put my recommendation on Access RV Rentals. Click on their site or check out their Facebook page for more information.

* We were sponsored by Access RV Rental to review their rental program. All thoughts and opinions are our own.*

Bringing Spring To Our Front Porch.

April 12, 2017 by Michelle Hinckley

Salt Lake City weather is unpredictable. One day we’re wearing shorts in 70 degree weather the next day it’s dumping snow (case in point…3 days ago). I’ve been itching to plant some flowers but have been shy to pull the trigger with the looming threat of another spring snow. Instead, I decided to spruce up my front porch with some container planting until I’m ready to commit to some in-ground planing.

I teamed up with Monrovia plants to show just how easy it is to add some color and life to your porch with just a few plants. You may have heard of Monrovia through their beautiful catalog or online site. Their plants are sold at several nurseries but their biggest retailer is Lowe’s Home Improvement.

What’s unique about Monrovia is the attention and care they give to their plants. They grow everything from shrubs and succulents to perennials and trees.
I would love to plant several of their edibles next…

After visiting my local Lowe’s I picked out an assortment of plants for some containers on my porch.

Here’s a little trick…because spring time in the Rockies is so unpredictable I only permanently plant some in containers. Others, I just put the plastic container right in my planter which I plan to permanently move and transfer when the ground thaws. That way I can still stage a dash of spring to the curb appeal of my home without worrying about things going south over night with the changing weather.

I can still satisfy my desire for adding some spring foliage without having to worry about them dying in a late season snow storm.
If the forecast calls for extra cold temps I can just bring my plants inside until it warms up again.

BUT, here’s the other incentive. The kind lady at Lowe’s told me they have a 1 year return policy on plants as long as you have your receipt.
Say whaaaaaat?!
EVEN if I kill the darn things?
Yep!

To learn more about Monrovia plants (and learn the difference between an “annual” and a “perennial”) check out their website here. If you have a “green thumb” (or even a black thumb and like to kill plants like me) you’ll definitely want to sign up for their newsletter to get updates about deals and tips on how to grow your garden beautifully.

DIY Faux Bois, Wood Grain Shelf

December 12, 2016 by Michelle Hinckley

For this week’s furniture makeover I experimented with the faux bois technique…which is the imitation of painted wood grain.

When done correctly it can easily be mistaken for a printed paper. It’s probably one of the easiest paint treatment/techniques I’ve done to date.

I started with this old wooden shelf. The Mr. removed back panel with a crowbar being careful not to crack or damage it.

I cleaned and primed the shelf and the back panel. Here’s a shot of the products I used for this project:

Sherwin Williams Extreme Bond Primer
DecoArt Chalky Finish Everlasting White
DecoArt Chalky Finish Yesteryear Gray
Warner Graining Tool

The shelf got a 2 coats of

I wanted the faux bois detail to peak through the back of the shelves. I painted my primed back panel a coat of gray with a paint brush. This does not have to be perfect by any means. Slop it on there with a medium heavy coat.

I would only recommend painting 2 (ish) rows at a time.

Using a graining tool you simply start at the top and drag the tool down, rocking it up and back to create different grains as you’re pulling. It really is so simple that my 9 year old made a couple of passes perfectly on his first try. If you don’t like the pattern you’ve created on a pass, just paint over it and start again.

Between passes I stamped off the excess paint on a napkin.

Stand back and admire your work.

After everything was good and dry we added some casters to make the bookcase mobile and added the back panel with finishing nails.

Ta-da! One of the easiest projects ever with big impact. Everyone who has seen it asked where they can get the wood paper. They’re shocked when I told them I painted it.

It’s all done and for sale at The Old Flamingo: $135.

Follow me on my new instagram feed to see my latest finds for sale at @MichellesFinds or on my blog instagram @4men1ladyblog.
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