My First Blogiversary & Giveaway

Welcome to my first blog Anniversary.

 I'm so grateful to all that have supported me.

I've gone from Court Clerk, to Legal Secretary, to Real Estate Agent to .... this. 

My blog started from family encouragement because I always redo, recycle, repair, and re-design everything I get my hands on. They really pushed me last year when I used birthday gift money to buy a dining room set and turned it into our kitchen storage island. Taking them seriously,  I worked on four chairs using recycled leather belts and finished a few other projects to launch "Redo It" on November 14, 2013.  I've done a large amount of work on and off the blog scene since then. 

My most popular and craziest project to date is the Toy Horse into Garden Sculpture. 

I've worked extremely hard and learned a wealth of information within the last 12 months from my blog friends.   If you are considering a blog and someone tells you it's so easy, they aren't completely honest or they don't blog.  My redo work is easy for me... but the blogging isn't. It's scheduling, it's social networking, contacts, tongue in cheek chances and challenges, emails (boy, are there emails!), updating, ...and so much more. It's exhausting. It's a full time job. The key to maintaining it is... fun. Making it fun everyday. 

Starting small with no idea what to do, I can state that it has been an education venturing out into the blog world. There's the good, the bad and the ugly.  I've researched, reached out, experimented with various promoting ideas, made so many wonderful friends, expanded my skills, and now I'm starting a small local business.

Now to the present: 

It was back to school for my youngest son, and we had family birthdays, and some local social activities during September but... it was my busiest blog month! Not only was the workshop raising sawdust, but my activities were above normal (for my standards anyway). 


I had the opportunity to curate "Ways to Fake Leather" for HomeTalk. It was so much fun to explore HomeTalk contributors and share their creations.

Utilizing Minwax stains into a table top design not only demonstrated a unique use of stains, it created a great makeover for an accent table.

As DIY guest designer for The Crafters Workshop, I demonstrated how to use One Stencil Four Ways with four different projects

Then I had the awesome opportunity to try Websters Chalk Paint Powder. It was very easy to mix and use! The results were fabulous!

I started Co-Hosting Retro Re-Pin!  The party that's right up my alley! I love to pin and we "reuse" everyone's old posts (or new ones for newer bloggers) and pin them to our boards. Love this party! 

I started a new weekly series "Friday Five", featuring my five favorite discoveries during the week.

I set my own record for a project producing month with these lovelies in addition to all of the above projects.

Secretary Desk     Easy Chalkboard
70s Coffee Table    Upcycled Treadle Sewing Machine Base    Ugly Thrift Store Dresser
Chair Makeover: Miss Velvet    Old Chair Restoration: The Gentleman    Chair Makeover: Miss Rose
Designer Vanity Makeover

I had my first ever booth sales event for the pieces I restored and upcycled. I sold everything but three pieces. Well, one was on hold. So two were left.

Oh, and I met Vern Yip. (insert big smile and fanning myself)
What an exciting moment in my life! He is everything he appears to be on television and other media. Extremely kind, intelligent and personable! He autographed an upcoming project piece I have and my new business card.  I truly admire his "less is more" style.  His designing skills are just simply unrivaled. (sigh, again) He discussed his design ideas and was highly interested in mine. Nicest guy ever! 

And I ended the month guest hosting more parties! If this is the start to my new year, I'm going to be busier than ev-ah!

I want to thank each and every one of you for landing on my blog, following, making friends with me and giving me the confidence to go on. There are a select few of you that have really been very helpful and special to me. (You know who you are. THANK YOU!) I started out only to give ideas and inspire. But this journey has turned into friendships, learning and sharing experiences. For that, I'm so very grateful. 

Are you ready to share the next year with me? Who knows what we will be doing together! I've got some fun stuff planned. It's always a surprise.

Let's start with a Giveaway, shall we? 

Thanks to my lovely co-hosts who are joining me to share this event, we are each celebrating by giving one lucky winner all of the following prizes:

I have a $25.00 American Express Gift Card to giveaway... 

and Two 12"x12" TCW Stencils to giveaway 

Kristina & Millie at

Blog/ Pinterest/ Twitter/ Google+

have a gorgeous hand crochet Juliette Cloak to giveaway

($150.00 Value!) 

 

Leslie at The Crafty Side Of Sarcasm

Blog/ Bloglovin/ Facebook/ Google+

has a $20 Visa Gift Card to giveaway!

Terms and conditions: 

Giveaway is open to any resident who is 18 years of age or older who lives in one of the 48 US Contiguous States. This giveaway starts on Friday, Nov. 14th at 12:01 am (EST) and ends on Friday, Nov. 28th, 2014 at 12:00 am (EST). The winner will be notified by email and will have 48 hours to respond. 

The winner will be drawn randomly through Rafflecopter which uses Random.org. This blog, Redo It Yourself Inspirations and co-hosts, reserves the right to obtain names and email addresses solely for this Giveaway only. The winner has 48 hours to respond to claim prize. If potential  winner forfeits or does not claim the prize, prize will be verified and re-awarded in another random drawing. The winner will  be announced on the Rafflecopter form on the original giveaway blog post. 

This blog, Redo It Yourself Inspirations and co-hosts  reserves the right to use your first name and last first initial in order to announce the winner AFTER the prize is claimed; the right to tell the sponsor of the prize the proper information including but not limited to:  Full Name, Full Address, Email Address, Phone Number and anything information needed to claim the prize. 
VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW. 
This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, Pinterest, Google, Bloglovin or Instagram. You understand that you are providing your information to the owner of this sweepstakes and not to Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, Pinterest, LinkedIn or Google, Bloglovin or Instagram, or any other entity.

Good luck to everyone! 

a Rafflecopter giveaway