Top Pinterest DIY Epic Wins!

So, if you are anything like me, you have given hours and hours of yourself to Pinterest and pinned tons of DIY projects!  The conversation in my head usually goes something like this:
Me:  Ohhhhh, that's so cute.
Me:  I could totally do that!
Me:  It looks super easy and it even has "easy DIY" in the pin description.
Then, I run to the store (immediately, because I must do it NOW - I mean, how did I ever live this long without this ridiculously cute and easy thingamajob in my house???)

Then, my husband walks in on me working on this "easy" DIY project.  The conversation usually goes something like this:
Adam:  Ummmm..... what in the world are you doing?
Me: Project.
Adam:  What are you making?
Me:  A (insert project name here)
Adam:  Why?
Me:  Because it is cute and easy to do.
Adam:  You found this on Pinterest, right?
Me: Um-hum
Adam:  (looking at the picture on the computer) Is this it?
Me: (getting irritated) Yes.
Adam:  It doesn't really look like that.  Should that smell be coming from the oven?.....
This usually results in me throwing the entire thing out and either running to Home Goods to buy something similar or going on Etsy and letting someone else do it for me.  There is the occasional call to my sister saying that I have a "fun" project for "us" to do (translation, "her").  Julie, my sister, got most, if not all, of the crafty and cooking genes in my family.

So why did I go in to this long explanation of my epic Pinterest fails?  I told you all of this because there have been a number of Pinterest success projects - I swear!  These are foolproof projects that even the DIY challenged can accomplished without much trouble!  Let's go through some of them!!

Valentine's Day Upcycled Crayons

This was a great project!!  Everyone has tons of itsy-bitsy crayon rejects laying around the house.  You basically take all the pieces, throw them in a heart-shaped brownie tray (you could do this with any other shape tray too.  It would be really cute as a give-away for a birthday party!)  Then, you bake them for about 15 minutes, or until they are all melted.  Let them cool and pop them out.  Four lessons learned: First, your house will STINK.  Second, you will never be able to use this brownie tray for anything other than melting crayons in it.  Next, if you have bigger crayons, you can just cut them up with a chef knife, just note that the crayons pretty much ruin your cutting board....it is impossible to clean the crayon off after.  Finally, use dark and light colors in each mixture.  If you have too much dark, they mush together and become kind of a gross poop color (sorry, that's all I could think of and no one wants to color with a poop colored crayon.... that's why there is no crayon color called "poop.")

On a scale from "easy" to "Martha Stewart" - I would rate this VERY EASY!

Tomato Cage Ghosts

With Halloween coming up around the corner, this is one to start thinking about.  This was one of my very first DIY holiday decor projects.  I was SUPER proud, I must have posted it on Facebook fifteen times!  This is crazy easy, cheap and super cute!  All you need is a tomato cage, king-size pillowcase, sharpie and some string lights (white, orange, purple, etc.)  Once you figure out what a tomato cage is (buy at Home Depot or Lowes) and which way to place it (small end on top) it is easy from there.  Wrap the cage with the lights (one set per ghost).  Make a cut about 1/4 way up both sides of the pillowcase and use your sharpie to color some eyes and a mouth.  Slip the case over the cage - and presto - you have floating ghosts!!!!  On the "easy" to "Martha" scale - EASY!!

Valentine Munch Monster

This is a perfect project for those of you with elementary students.  Every year we are asked to make a "mailbox" for our kids valentines.  The Valentine Munch Monster was a huge hit in my sons class and probably took about 15 minutes.  All you need is a kleenex box, wrapping paper and construction paper.  Just wrap the kleenex box with the wrapping paper.  Cut out some eyes and teeth and tape them in - that's it - you're done - this is a no-way-to-mess-up project!!!!  Again, VERY EASY rating!

These are just a few of my Pinterest success stories.... don't worry, I will be sure to share some of the epic fails as well - and trust me, there are plenty!!  I would love to hear about some of your success stories and some other projects that I could attempt (nothing with fire or sharp objects, per my husband!)