Our friends over at 3M had sent me these nifty decorative metal damage-free Command hooks that stick to the wall. Something that stick to the wall and doesn’t require tools means I can complete the project quickly, which is key to me getting ANYTHING done. They also came with detailed instructions on how to remove them (in literally 2 simple steps) so that they don’t leave a mark on the wall. I hung this one, in oil rubbed bronze, so that it matched the rest of the decor.  But they come in other metals as well.  I’ll give the play by play after the jump, of how I hung the wreath, but how does it look?

Pretty cute, right?  The hook just blends right in, which was great, and it took me about 30 seconds total to hang the hook – pretty good on timing.   This particular one holds up to 3 lbs, but they come larger, if you want to hang a very heavy wreath. Like this ice skating wreath!

This wreath is a tab small for the space, too. The next one I hang will definitely be larger.  If you’d like to make this Valentine’s wreath, check out the simple tutorial here. 

For details on how to hang a wreath without hurting it, continue after the jump!

So here’s what I did. First, I hung the hook. I peeled the sticker off one side, as directed, and attached the sticky tape to the hook.

I then removed the back tape and stuck the hook to the wall, as straight as I could get it, because I was too lazy to find a level.

Following the instructions, I then slide the top part of the decorative hook off, and pressed the stick tape and inside of hook firmly to the wall for 30 seconds.  I let it sit 1 hour as directed before hanging my wreath. 

In the meantime, I fastened my bow to my wreath by using a pipe cleaner. Pipe cleaners are pretty much magical. You can use them for EVERYTHING you would ever need. I also always make my bows separate and attached to a wreath with another ribbon or pipe cleaner. I twisted it tight so that the bow would stay put.

Then I cut a ribbon to hang the wreath from the hook.  It was about a foot.  I slipped it under the pipe cleaner in the back of the wreath, so that it was hidden.  And tied it in a very, very tight knot.

I moved the knot to the back of the wreath, again, to hide it. And hung the wreath!  That’s it, you’re done! 

To comply with FTC guidelines, 3M sent us these fancy hooks. But I only wrote about them because I think they’re awesome.

I am, by nature, a messy person and so is my boyfriend. When two messy people live together, it is not good. I always spend at least one whole weekend day cleaning, and it sucks because a.) I should be outside! but b.) it’s never anything important. It’s always stupid little stuff, like putting laundry away, straightening up, getting organized, etc. I H-A-T-E it.  And if I get myself into some kind of project?  Forget it. Before you can say craft, I’ve got an Elmer’s glue bottle in the bathroom, my fabric scissors in the kitchen and yarn just everywhere. And it’s not just me. I actually found two pairs of my boyfriends pants in the couch cushions once. Two! The end game of all this messiness is usually me flopped down on the bed with my hands over my eyes moaning that “it’s all just too much.”   Very dramatic, I know. But messy house – messy mind.

Which brings me to my point. Recently, and for the life of me I cannot remember where though it may have been Ramshackle Glam, I saw a tip that says whenever you move from one room of your house to another, bring along one thing that needs to be put away along with you and before you know it, you’ve got a clean house. It seemed so small a thing to do, I didn’t think it could possibly make a difference. But Oh.My.God. I actually now have an apartment that I can look around and say, wow, not bad.  There are no socks hanging over the lamps. (Yes, that has happened.)  My scissors are by the sewing machine, the Elmer’s glue on the desk.  The dishes – oh, the dishes – actually can now be found drying in the rack or when I’m very, very lucky, in the cabinet where they belong.  It has changed my life.

And when I wake up in the morning and just see all that floor space and cleanliness it makes me happy.  It truly is the little things, you know?

We made two flavors: Italian and an herb flavor with Herbs de Provence.  They were both delicious, but the Italian was my favorite.  The main thing I learned was: don’t be stingy with the fat! I definitely trimmed a bit too much off of the pork shoulder.  It was still very tasty (and obviously better for me), just not quite as greasy as sausage should be.

Here’s a tutorial with photos and the recipe!

You will need:

1. Pork Shoulder, about 8 lbs
2. Spice mixture of your choosing (see below in post for ideas)
3. 1 cup cold white wine
4. Meat Grinder or Kitchen aid attachment
5. 1 cup finely chopped onion
6. 4-6 cloves garlic finely chopped

Start with a pork shoulder. I used  and one that was just 8 lbs, because that was the smallest my grocery store had.

Looks tasty, doesn’t it? One of the keys here is to KEEP IT COLD.  As it gets warm, the fat gets stringy and gelatinous, which makes it difficult in the grinder and difficult to mix.

Nest, peel back the skin and cut it off:Try not to cut off any extra fat. Then cut the shoulder into cubes.  As you cut the cubes, put them pack in the fridge to keep cold.

More photos, step by step and the spice recipes after the jump!Next, break out your food grinder or Kitchen aid attachment: Begin putting the cubes through the grinder.  Again, leave most of it in the fridge, just take out a bit at a time to run through the grinder.  The fat can easily clog the grinder if it gets too stringy (this happened to me!) and the colder it is, the more likely it is to NOT do that.

Put this back in the fridge while you create your spice mixtures.  Here were ours – for half of the meat, since we made two.  Double this if you’re only using one spice:

Herbs:

1. 2 Tablespoons Herbs de Provence
2. 1 Tablespoon fennel
3. 1/2 tsp. garlic salt.
4. 1 tsp. salt
5. Generous grinding of fresh black pepper

Italian

1. 2 Tablespoons Italian seasoning
2. 1 tsp. red pepper flakes
3. 1/2 tsp. garlic salt
4. 1 Tablespoon fennel
5. 1 tsp. salt
6. Generous grinding of fresh black pepper

Next, chop one cup of onions – finely – and 4-6 garlic cloves, finely. Put your ground meat in a bowl, separate into two if you are using two spices.  Pour in the wine, onions and garlic (half into each if you are using two spice mixtures.) Add the spices and mix!

We didn’t use casings.  I bought artificial casings, and I just couldn’t figure them out. So we settled for patties! Make JUST ONE PATTY.  Fry it up in a little oil and taste it – see how you like the spice.  Do you need more? More salt, more pepper, more everything?  Add what you may need if you think it needs more flavor, then form the remaining meat into patties.

Cook them if you want to eat them now, or freeze them for a later date! If you cook them, cook them in a skillet with a touch of oil over medium heat until brown throughout.  And that’s it, you’re done!We ate ours with homemade ravioli! 

My answer was immediate, “Of course I do!”  But when I really thought about it, it’s more than that. I love having a dog.

I’m sure most dog owners think their dog is the best, but Pelusa is just such a cool character. We barely even had to train her. She just gets it. I’ve never owned a dog before so I am not sure how spoiled I am, but with very few exceptions, she doesn’t do anything bad ever. She peed on me while I was in bed once, but that was more my fault than it was hers. And with this face, I really couldn’t be mad for long.  Even though it took 20 minutes of bleaching at 7 a.m. to undo the damage.

Every night, whenever I get ready for bed, Pelusa marches herself first to the front door for her final walk of the night and then trots right back to the bedroom where she stands at attention until I get in bed, lift the blanket and let her burrow down near my stomach or feet. She’ll stay there all night. Sometimes we steal the covers from one another. Poor Giancarlo often gets the short end of the stick in battle. We’ve taken to just using two blankets. One for him…one for me and the dog.

I’ve never had a creature love me unconditionally simply because I walk in the door everyday (except my mom, but she’s womb-obligated to do this) so it’s funny to have this little thing follow me everywhere I go, demand to be curled up at my side and whine if I don’t give her the proper amount of belly rubs.

She’s just the sweetest little thing in the whole world and I love having her.

For those who may not be on it yet, Pinterest is essentially a site where you post (or “pin) great finds and photos from the Internet and can organize it onto different boards on your page.  You can also repost from others.  I love it because I can easily file and later find, ideas that I like. Just a few recent pins I’m obsessed with recreating:

A lamp with fabric strips instead of a shade:

Smooth stones decorated with a paint marker. How insanely simple and cool is this? A Sharpie would also do the trick.

This drawing which I desperately want to turn into a painting, cross-stitch or drawing of my own:

Are you on Pinterest?? Follow us and we’ll follow you back!

Here’s the recipe, which is from Martha Stewart, 2010.  To make the chocolate ones, reduce flour by ½ cup, add a ½ cup of unsweetened cocoa and increase sugar to 1 cup.

Ingredients

3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon almond extract
1 large egg
1/4 cup sliced natural almonds
4 30-inch black licorice laces, cut into 3 inch lengths (see Helpful Hint)
3 ounces semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
Directions

Whisk to combine flour and salt in a bowl. In a separate bowl, beat butter with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until creamy, about 2 minutes. Add sugar gradually, beating until mixture is pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in extract, then egg. Reduce speed to low, and add one-third flour mixture. Gradually add remaining flour mixture, beating just until blended. Halve dough and shape into disks; wrap each in plastic, and chill 2 hours or up to 1 day.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Roll about 1 tablespoon of chilled dough between your palms to form 1 1/4-inch- to 1 1/2-inch-long oval shapes. Slightly elongate one side to form face. Gently pinch bridge of nose to form eye sockets. With a paring knife, make 2 small slits at top of each shape, for placement of ears. Place 2 sliced almonds into slits. Place shapes on parchment-lined baking sheets, spacing 2 inches apart.

Bake, rotating sheets halfway through, until cookies are light golden brown on bottom and around edges, and tips of ears are golden brown, about 20 minutes. Transfer sheets to wire racks, and immediately insert a wooden skewer about 1/2 inch into mouse’s rounded end. Remove skewer and insert curved length of licorice for tail. It should adhere to the still-warm cookie. Let cookies cool completely on wire racks.

Melt chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over (not in) a pan of simmering water. Turn off heat; keep chocolate warm until ready to use, stirring occasionally. Place melted chocolate in a parchment cone or a resealable plastic bag with a tiny hole cut in one corner. Pipe chocolate in tiny dots to form eyes and nose. Chill until chocolate is set, about 20 minutes.

Cook’s Note

To make the eyes and noses, pipe tiny dots of melted chocolate with a parchment cone. Use a curved length of black licorice lace to form the tail.

I wanted to hang it on the door, but it is delicate.  The Sweet Husband thought to hang it from the mirror in our hall, and it was a great decision.  It really shows off the shiny ornaments! Here it is up close:

Step by Step instructions after the jump!

What you’ll need:

1. 1 Styrofoam wreath. 
2. Enough ribbon to cover wreath
3. Lots and lots of ornaments. I went through about 45 large ones and 50 small ones. Choose any color you like! I love red and gold combos, so that’s what I went with.  I love these large boxes from Target – they made it so easy to coordinate! I’m sure you can also find boxes like this at the dollar store, Walmart, etc.
4. Hot glue

Instructions:

1. Wrap the ribbon around the wreath with hot glue, so that it covers the entire wreath. You can use any color ribbon you like. I had been saving that thick green ribbon from Williams-Sonoma (I knew it would come in handy at some point!) So I chose to use that.
2. Using hot glue, glue the ornaments all over the wreath.  I liked to mix in the small ones to make sure as much was covered as possible.
3. That’s it! Remember that this wreath will be very, very fragile.  So hang it somewhere where it won’t get knocked around too much – like on a mantle, shelf, or even on a mirror, like we did.  This is probably not best for a door!  Enjoy!We featured this post on:

I’m actually ahead of the game this year thanks to some strategic online shopping  (literally this is the first time in my life this has happened) and rather than lug a huge suitcase full of breakable, expensive or just plain can’t-be-replaced gifts around, I’ll be shipping them ahead of time so they arrive safe and sound. I can’t really foresee a holiday travel day free of my usual huffing and puffing through the gate and security but I know it’s going to be glorious.  And to make it even easier, I’ll be using UPS My Choice – and we’re happy to announce that we’re offering one Yay! DIY reader a $25 gift card to do the same!

I’m a fan of UPS anyways, but their My Choice service makes delivering for you and your recipients a snap.  Through the Web or your mobile device, you can coordinate UPS deliveries – both to you and from you – using delivery alerts, specific delivery time frames and reroute options. Long story short – you can make sure packages you are sending or receiving reach you the first time by organizing them to come according to your life and schedule! There are basically two levels of membership.  I have the first one!  You can sign up for the service by using this link: https://www.ups.com/pea/registerWT.mc_id=PR100107

This giveaway will close Friday, December 16 at 5 p.m. sharp! To win the gift card, leave us a comment telling us how many gifts you plan on shipping this holiday! For an extra entry (sign up: https://www.ups.com/pea/registerWT.mc_id=PR100107), send us a screenshot showing us that you signed up for the service and mail it to yaydiy@gmail.com.

Good luck!!! FTC Compliance: We received compensation from UPS in the form of a gift card to participate in this campaign promoting the UPS My Choice delivery service, however, all opinions expressed about UPS are that of the blogger.