The Stripes I Always Wanted

I have always been a lover of thick stripes painted on walls.

Exhibit A:

photo via Elle Decor

Exhibit B:

photo via Elle Decor

Yesterday on a whim, I decided I was finally going to add these to my house.  I have played with the idea of painting stripes for the past year so yesterday was the day.  I decided to add subtle stripes to the little niche in my hallway.

Here is my tutorial.  It's not very scientific or technical. I just went with it:

1) I used a book, level, and pencil to start taping off straight lines:

2) I began to paint every other line with the lighter shade all the up the wall.

3) Notice the faint pencil lines (pictured below) after taking the painting tape off. I used an eraser to rid my walls of all evidence of cheat lines.

4) Lastly, I removed the painting tape and erased the pencil lines. Ta Da!

I'm pretty "house proud" as Nate Berkus would say.  I love how these stripes turned out! They definitely add some interest to my hallway.

Has anyone else tried this in their home? I would love to see the final result so please share! 

I'm considering adding the same stripes to a short corresponding wall in this hallway.

Want to see more tutorials? Visit my "stripes" post and other DYI tutorials by clicking on the button below...

 

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Antique Store Beauty

I had my first antique mall experience yesterday. Nate Berkus shopped at an antique mall on his show so I figured I would give it a shot.  All did I know, antique malls can be very overwhelming.  There were aisles and aisles of stuff - some cool overpriced stuff, some worthless overpriced stuff, and some treasures.  Each dealer had their own booth which they decorated to their liking. I happened to find the above Pottery Barn-looking chair at a booth that had 50% off signs. I couldn't imagine this $50 chair would actually be 50% off. I asked a store worker and sure enough - it was.  Only $25 for this beauty! 

I have actually been in the market for a new office chair.  I currently own a white plastic IKEA chair that does not cut it in terms of comfort while sitting for hours on end blog stalking. While I like the look of the IKEA chair, I knew we must sever our relationship soon so I can move onto a more comfortable mate. I actually found a white padded, very modern looking chair at Marshall's (They also had the same one at TJ Maxx) that I loved, but it was $100. I was willing to save up for this chair because I liked it so much.

Now I have a $25 chair with lots of potential. I'm going to paint it (color - to be determined) and add a stylish chair cushion (to ensure comfort). 

Here are some possibilities:

photos via Pottery Barn Teen

I am considering the following paint colors:

Par Four Green

Tropical Smoothie

Igloo

Any of these colors would fit into my office. Now I just need to decide which one to go with.

Which one is your favorite?

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My Sister's Bridal Shower

My sister, Nikki, got engaged last Labor Day weekend and we just held her first shower this past Sunday.  Nikki loves the outdoors and has a career in the equine industry so my aunt and I decided to throw her a country-themed shower using her wedding colors of lavender, brown, and taupe.  Of course, me, being the crafter/party planner I am, was ecstatic to start planning the shower. I searched for western/country themed ideas that were tasteful. I found several items I liked. Instead of ordering them online, I decided to make them.  My favorite project ended up being the burlap "Nikki loves Jason" banner that they can also use at their wedding.

Here are some pictures from Sunday:

In the picnic basket bellow you will find the jelly and jam party favors we gave each guests. Attendees could pick out their own flavor. These were a big hit.

For utensil packets, I stamped little brown paper bags with a heart and then inscribed "N&J" inside the shape. I felt this kind of looked like a heart carved into a tree.

The items I made from inspiration on Etsy are:

• The Burlap "Nikki loves Jason" Banner
• Tissue Paper Flowers (so unbelievably easy - just googled "how to make a tissue paper flower")
• Wooden Wedding Signs - "eat, drink, and be married" / "Nikki & Jason" / "Nikki's Shower" (for the driveway)

Congrats Nikki!

Check out this post and other DYI projects on:

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Working with Burlap

Of course you know I swoon over Pottery Barn products. While their products are definitely my style, their prices aren't... well until they go on sale. I find that Pottery Barn catalogs are always an inspiration. One constant in their decor is burlap. They use it on everything from pillows to lamp shades to curtains... it's every where.

   

I recently purchased burlap by the yard from Hobby Lobby to use for a project I'm working on for my sister's bridal shower.  Since I had some left over, I decided to try my hand at a painted burlap pillow. 

I created this pillow using only supplies I already owned:

• Burlap (previously purchased for a different project)
• Stencils (previously purchased for a different project)
• Ribbon (I always have tons of ribbon laying around.)
• Pillow Insert (I used a decorative pillow that I had from my college days.)
• Black Paint & Paint Brush
• Hot Glue Gun & Glue Sticks (Every crafter owns one.)
• Straight Pins
• Scissors
• Tape
• Button (optional)

 I started by measuring the burlap against the pillow form. I cut the material and then used straight pins to mark off where the seams would be.

 When I began this project, I didn't realize that my stencil set did not include numbers - just letters - so I did my best to use forms in the letter stencils to paint numbers. As you can see below, I'm using an "I" as the number 1.  I taped the stencil to the burlap to ensure the stencil stayed in place whiling I was painting.

Note: if you are using stencils, I would suggest utilizing a blow dryer to speed up the drying process. That way you can move on with your next stencil quicker.

After the painting was complete, I used straight pins to tuck the edges of the burlap inside creating a pillow case shape.  I used the hot glue gun to close the seams since burlap has too many wholes for needle and thread.

After I finished gluing the sides together, I felt the pillow needed an extra touch so I decided to add ribbon. I used the hot glue again (these things are AWESOME) to add a strip of ribbon across the top. I also added a bow and button to top it off.

Here is the final product:

FREE DECOR

This project was so easy and so FREE!  Thank goodness for free entertainment.  You can paint anything on your burlap pillow. I decided to chose a number that was meaningful to me because I felt I already had too many words worked into my decor.  Numbers were refreshing - something out of the norm.

If you have questions about making your own burlap pillow, just ask. I would be happy to help.

Check out my project and other DYI ideas on:

A Little Tipsy

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Mirror Inspiration

I discovered this beautiful aqua mirror on the House to Your Home blog. I was drawn to the vibrant pop of color. The aqua green seems to be making a statement when topped on the neutral dresser and paired with pastels. 

Most of the decor at my house is based on a neutral or softer palette. I always get a little scared when purchasing something so boldly colored in fear that it will look outrageously out of place in my home. Then if it did look hideous, I would have to waste time taking it back to the store. A loose-loose situation.

In effort to create this look without much financial risk involved, I decided to keep my eyes pealed for potential mirror options I could paint at Goodwill. Here is what I found for ONLY $2.60:

I painted my color options on the back of the mirror to see what they would look like. I think the one on the left is closest to the inspiration picture above.

Still deciding on a color... I'll keep you posted on what I decide.

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Wreaths Galore

 Awhile ago I blogged about a wreath I created out of scrapbook paper and a styrofoam circle. I love the way it turned out. The best part was that it was so easy to create.  It was very affordable, although I think you can do it even cheaper than I did.  The styrofoam wreath actually ended up costing $6 and I have heard you can buy these at the dollar store for $1.  I didn't have time to shop around when I created mine so I had to go with the more expensive one Michael's had. My other expenses were tied up in scrapbook paper, a stamp pad (to antique the corner of the flower petals), and the stick-on pearl embellishments. Overall, this project was still cheaper than a store bought wreath.

Here is a refresher on this project:

Here is another wreath I created for my bathroom:

My friend, Julia, loved the idea of crafting your own wreath and set out to create her own.  Julia created a ruffle-looking wreath using material and a straw circle form. While her project was easy, it did take some elbow grease.  She said pushing the material into the wreath base was extremely tiring, but worth the work.
Here is how she created it:

1) Cut your material of choice into squares.

2) Use scissors to push the center of the material square into the straw form.



3) Continue until you fill up the front side of the wreath.



4) Keep going. I know it takes a while. (Rest in between if you need to. I hear this really works your muscle.)



5) Top off with the embellishments of your choice.

Props to Julia! Her first wreath turned out to be a beautiful masterpiece!

I also came across this wreath done in burlap. The author of Tatertots and Jello created this for Thanksgiving, but of course you could change the embellishments for any holiday. I absolutely whole-heartedly LOVE it and it may be in my crafting future. Anyone who knows me totally knows this is my style. The polka dots and ruffly flowers speak to me. 

Tatertots and Jello

Happy wreath-making!

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