Harllee Design: DIY Projects

Who likes wine and cheese? THIS LADY! I have been a wine supporter for many years now but recently delved into the world of cheese. Wine is kind of "our thing" because we live by vineyards; people come to visit and we serve wine, cheese, salami, etc. I don't know anything about cheese. I know more about defusing bombs than I know about cheese and let me tell you, I know very little about defusing bombs.

This is where serendipity comes into play.

I saw a tutorial for DIY cutting boards on Centsational Girl and knew they would be perfect for serving cheese and appetizers.

AND THEN.....

I went to a winemaker's class on Saturday with my father and husband and the topic was wine and cheese pairing! (The class is at Callaway Winery and is awesome, I highly recommend it)

Which lead me to this lovely conclusion:

A monogrammed cheese board.

Materials:

A section of untreated wood, also called "green". (I used 1-3/4" thick Douglas Fir, it is a softer wood but has worked great so far)
Jigsaw or scroll saw
Sand paper, 80 & 220 Grit
Template (I printed mine on the computer)
Wood burner (I bought mine at Michael's Crafts, $13.99 and I used a 50% off coupon= $7)
Mineral Oil

Instructions:

1. Choose a shape for your cutting board, I chose a standard shape from Microsoft Word. Print the template, cut it out and trace onto your wood. Square is good too!

2. Use your jigsaw or scroll saw to cut the wood.

3. Sand the wood with 80 grit sandpaper, then move to 220. Make sure you sand all sides.

4. Wipe your cutting board down to remove all dust.

5. I printed my monogram on the computer and used an ancient secret for transferring it to the wood.

Ancient Secret

Print your monogram (you can also use simple clipart).

Flip your monogram over and use a pencil to shade the back of your picture, cover the entire monogram.

Flip picture back over and place on your cutting board, tape down to prevent it from slipping.

Trace the right side of the monogram completely using a ballpoint pen.

Remove the paper and admire your work! The lead on the back of your picture was transferred to the wood when you traced the right side.

6. Now you are ready to burn the monogram into your wood. I don't have any tips for this, just be careful, take your time and follow the manufacturer instructions. Also, practice on a piece of scrap wood before attempting to burn your cutting board.

This is the cutting board before the application of mineral oil.

7. Once you have the monogram burned in to your satisfaction rub the mineral oil into the wood and enjoy! You need 2-3 coats of mineral oil properly coat your cutting board.

Invite some people over (or none at all) and serve some cheese and wine!

I *highly* recommend blue cheese with a white dessert wine. I don't like either but the combination was magical.

Just for fun, here are the combinations we tried in wine class:

First Course

Wine: Callaway Winemaker's Reserve 2008 Bella Blanch (Sparkling)

Cheese: Le Delice des Cremiers

Second Course

Wine: Winemaker's Reserve 2008 Sangiovese

Cheese: Brebis Ossau-Iraty

Third Course

Wine: Winemaker's Reserve 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon

Cheese: Extra Sharp Canadian Cheddar

Fourth Course

Wine: Winemaker's Reserve 2010 Late Harvest Chardonnay

Cheese: Castello Blue Cheese

These might be the cutest curtains ever made by human hands. I also might be prone to exaggerating, you be the judge.

I woke up at 6am intending to go to hot yoga. Let me tell you, this is not a motivator to get out of bed. I hit the road to my friend's house (I wasn't about to pass out like a fool alone) and quickly went nowhere. *sitting* *waiting* . Thirty minutes passed and I hadn't made it on to the freeway yet, DAMN YOU rush hour traffic. At this point I decided to head back home.

Or so I thought.

I decided to stop at Home Depot and get another can of grey paint (elephant skin) to finish my room. You guys, it took me THREE cans to paint my bedroom. Now before you can ask, NO, I do not live in a palace. I live in a standard house with standard sized rooms. I ~~have no idea why it took so much paint~~ was probably doing something wrong.

After getting the paint I decided to hit Walmart (What else is open at 6:30am?) to get supplies for a long planned project:

These curtains make my heart pitter patter.

Materials:

2- Twin size flat sheets from Walmart (This will be the liner)- $5 each

2- 3 yard sections of medium weight apparel fabric from Walmart (this will be the curtain)-$1.50 a yard

3 spools of 3/4" pompom trim ($2.97 each)

Thread in coordinating colors

Instructions:

This project took me 90 minutes from start to finish

1. Iron/dry your liners, I threw mine in the dryer on refresh.

2. Trim your liner to fit the curtain.

Note: Your curtain will be longer than the liner, you

can leave the extra length and let it pool on the ground or trim it to size. I like the length.

3. Fold all the edges over and sew a hem, leaving the top for last.

Optional Steps

Scream at your dogs because they are playing Spartan Warrior all over your fabric.
Lock them outside with no toys.
Let them back in because they are tormenting the neighbor's dog
Wonder why your neighbors are such jerks.

MOVING ON

4. Fold the top edge over and create a pocket approx. 3" wide. You will use this pocket to hang the curtains.

5. Attach your trim! I chose little black pompoms. Make sure you sew the trim on opposing sides as shown in the picture, I didn't want to trim the entire curtain.

6. You are done, hang them up and enjoy.

The trick is to line the cheap fabric. It gives the curtains weight and makes them look expensive.