Feathers in Our Nest

a blog about faith, family, food, & more written by a wife and stay at home mom of five

  • Home
  • About
  • Recipes

New Kitchen Backsplash

September 28, 2016 by Aliesha

This summer I decided to do a little “upgrade” of our backsplash in the kitchen!

I’ve been wanting to tile it forever, but I decided to do this low-budget solution instead of waiting for who-knows-how-long for real tile.  I’m really happy with how it looks!

DIY White Faux Tile Kitchen Backsplash | Feathers in Our Nest

I used thermoplastic panels that look like glossy white tiles.  (Exact product)  I was able to cut the panels with kitchen shears and a utility knife (around outlet/light switch holes)  I glued them up with this, and everything has stayed where it should!

dsc_7520copysm

dsc_7524copysm

It took me two afternoon naptimes to complete this project.  I think it was time well spent!

dsc_7528copysm

We love how it transforms the kitchen!  Yay for inexpensive upgrades like this!

Aliesha Caldwell is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.

Filed Under: decorating, homemaking, house tour, kitchen

Our Homeschooling Room

May 16, 2016 by Aliesha

Over the last couple of weeks, I’ve been sprucing up our family room (in the back of our house) to serve as a homeschooling room for us for the fall!  We’ll actually be starting our homeschool year in July, so I wanted to get things in order before then!

I’ll do another post about the curriculum we’re using, but it’s all been ordered and should be arriving this week!  It’s literature based, so we’ll be spending lots of time reading together on the couch.  That’s one of the many benefits of homeschooling… lots of snuggles on the couch while reading together as a family.  I can’t wait!

The layout of the room hasn’t changed, but I did add window treatments, pillows, a pin board, shelving, and some decorative touches.

DSC_6416copysm

This is Tad’s desk (personal, not his work-from-home desk, which is upstairs).  We use this computer for educational videos.

DSC_6373copysm

I made the plant hanger with some macrame cord leftover from another project.

DSC_6376copysm

This watercolor was painted by my late paternal grandmother.  I love it!

DSC_6425copysm

Here’s a simple tutorial for making a plant hanger.

DSC_6424copysm

This room had cornice boards on the windows, so I removed the drapes and added a new fabric.

DSC_6360copysm

I didn’t take pictures of the process, but it was very simple.  I just cut the fabric in half lengthwise and used iron-on hem tape to him the bottom and side edges.  I ironed the sides so it would have a nice crease at the corners. Then I pinned the fabric to the top of the cornice board using upholstery pins.  I saved a lot of money doing it this way, and I’m happy with how it turned out.  If you don’t have existing cornice boards, this tutorial could help you build some.

The fabric I used is by Waverly and I found it at Walmart, if that helps you track it down!

DSC_6406copysm

DSC_6421copysm

DSC_6410copysm

I also made a coordinating pillow using the leftover fabrics from the window treatments and the pin board.  It’s a simple envelope pillow (similar to this).  The yellow pillow cover is from here and I found the turquoise pillow at Target (dollar section).

DSC_6366copysm

DSC_6365copysm

I wanted to make a pin board so we could hang up our Scripture memory verses.

DSC_6409copysm

I used a large canvas and covered it with quilt batting (using a staple gun). Then I stretched fabric (Waverly, from Walmart also) around and stapled it as well.

DSC_6368copysm

The entire room isn’t dedicated to school.  We also have an elliptical, an ironing board, the vacuum, all our beach/pool stuff, mason jars, and a few other miscellaneous things on the other side of the room.

DSC_6420copysm

We installed simple shelving on two walls to house books and learning resources.  Like I said, we haven’t gotten our curriculum for this year yet, but some of it will go on these shelves.

DSC_6394copysm

To make the shelves, we just bought pine boards in the width we wanted.  At Lowe’s they’ll cut it to the exact length you need for free!  Very convenient.  We bought metal brackets and screws as well.  I measured and marked where to put the brackets, and Tad screwed them into the shelves.  We worked together to hang them on the wall.  It only took a couple of hours to hang all six shelves.  You could sand and paint them or even stain them if you wanted a different look!

DSC_6419copysm

The other set of shelves is above the new desk.  Vera will not be doing a ton of seat work, but she will need a place to practice her handwriting.

DSC_6387copysm

This set of shelves currently has a lot of school supplies, learning activities, paper, coloring books, and art supplies. We’ll do a big stock-up on school supplies when the sales start this summer.  I really love our new pencil sharpener!  And we’re all excited about this jumbo pack of crayons.

DSC_6395copysm

The bins on these shelves are from the Dollar Tree, the magazine holder (to hold paper and stickers) is from IKEA, the photo boxes are from Michael’s, and the turquoise tub is from Target (dollar section).

DSC_6385copysm

DSC_6381copysm

DSC_6382copysm

We got a new CD player from Walmart, and I know we’ll enjoy listening to music and stories during our day!

DSC_6378copysm

DSC_6383copysm

One of my friends is moving, so I bought this chair from her when she was having a yard sale.  I painted it turquoise!  (I took my curtain fabric to Lowe’s and had them color match a sample can of paint to it.)

DSC_6392copysm

Theodore was my little buddy while I took pictures of the room this morning!

DSC_6389copysm

I have a few other little places I put up art and pictures.  This is the little bit of wall next to the doorway to the kitchen.

DSC_6405copysm

I love this “Be Joyful” print from True Cotton (one of my favorite Etsy shops)!

DSC_6402copysm

I hope you enjoyed this little tour of our homeschooling room!  I look forward to sharing more about our curriculum choices soon.

If you homeschool, do you have a homeschooling room? Tell me about it!

Aliesha Caldwell is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.

Filed Under: decorating, homemaking, homeschooling, house tour

Updated House Tour: The Girls’ Room

June 10, 2014 by Aliesha

The girls share a room and Jude has his own.  The girls’ room has not changed much since the last time I posted about it, but since I’m updating my house tour page, I thought I should include this room too.

The room is bright, colorful, and playful, just like my spunky girls.

Most things in the room were DIY (including the lovely “art” on the wall behind the rocker… ahem).

The girls’ closet is makeshift, since our house was built in the 1920’s and has very few closets.

I love their gallery wall.  We recently cleaned up the toy area and moved some things around so that this corner would be less “junky.”

We still have a changing table in the room, though I stole the pad off the top for Jude’s room.  We always change CC on the floor anyway.  Hopefully she will potty train soon and we can move the table out completely!

Vera is in a toddler bed now, and she does really well with it.

We have lots of children’s books.  This shelf contains only some of them; the rest are in the living room.

If you recall, this is the “before” shot of what this room looked like when we moved in!

Thanks for joining me today on a tour of the girls’ room!

Filed Under: decorating, house, house tour, nursery

  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • …
  • 6
  • Next Page »
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter
About Us

This blog shares our family's story and our journey from newlyweds to a family of seven. We share milestones, we share struggles, we share sweet memories, and we share about our Savior. Keep reading...

FACEBOOK

NEWSLETTER

Subscribe to our super-fun weekly newsletter! Enjoy exclusive content & fun bonuses!

* indicates required

Archives

INSTAGRAM

PINTEREST

Visit Aliesha @ Feathers in Our Nest's profile on Pinterest.

Popular Posts

newborn sleep routine

10 Tips for Establishing a Newborn Sleep Routine

What I Buy at Aldi

What I Buy at Aldi {Real Food}

essential oil blends

Essential Oil Blends – What Works for What?

DIY Citronella Candles {Keep Mosquitoes at Bay!}

Dream Diaper Bag: Review of Lily Jade Shaylee

Baby Basics: Guide to the Products I Love

Perfect Cold Brew Coffee at Home! Easy DIY recipe using a French Press | Feathers in Our Nest

Perfect Cold Brew Iced Coffee

See Other Popular Posts...

About Feathers in Our Nest

At Feathers in Our Nest, you can expect to find delicious recipes, homemaking tips, practical advice for frugal living, resources for those who are in ministry, inspiring links, and cute photos and stories about our children. You can browse older posts by checking out the Tips & Tutorials Page or the Recipes Page. Thanks for visiting! Read More…

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter

Recent Posts

Easter Family Devotions | Feathers in Our Nest
Gospel Centered Books for Older Kids | Feathers in Our Nest
Gospel Centered Family Devotionals | Feathers in Our Nest
Gospel Centered Story Bibles | Feathers in Our Nest
Gospel Centered Picture Books | Feathers in Our Nest

Popular Topics

baby baking whole grains birthdays books bread breakfasts Christmas cooking Cordelia crafts deals decorating desserts essential oils everyday fall family food friends frugal living giveaways health and beauty healthy eating holidays homemaking hospitality house Jude main dishes marriage menu monday milestones ministry parenting photography pregnancy projects recipes reviews she {hearts} it sponsored Tad travels Vera worth repeating

Copyright © 2025 · Foodie Pro Theme by Shay Bocks · Built on the Genesis Framework · Powered by WordPress

Sign up below to join the Feathers in Our Nest email list!
Every Friday, you'll get exclusive content: the latest posts, recipes, photos, & more!
Your information will never be shared or sold to a third party.