Operation "Deck the Door"

Christmas is coming! And since one of my goals from my Fall Bucket List is to decorate my apartment, I've been setting aside some time here and there to do just that. I LOVE how my door decoration turned out this year:

It's definitely an improvement over last year's door decor!

This is the angle I usually approach the door from. This makes me so happy! It was a group effort between me, my roommate, and a friend of ours who lives in the same complex we do. My roommate did the bow and our friend hung the tiny little ball ornaments because I didn't have the patience to do it!

The ribbon and the "wreath" (it's actually a 12' garland I wrapped around a few times) came from the Dollar Tree. This red ornament came from Michael's last year and the frame is something I picked up last year and spraypainted.

The "JOY" letters came from Target's Dollar Spot and the ball ornaments are also from there, but I got them last year. The silver ornament is from Michael's last year. Notice the little spider hanging out on the "J"? He stayed there the whole time I was taking pictures and as soon as I was done he scurried away to his home!

I crouched down so I could get a child's perspective of our door. I think it's even better from this view :).

Since I already had most of the materials for this project, the total cost was only $3! You can't beat that! If I'd had to buy everything fresh, it would have come out like this:

$4 - two ornaments from Michael's (with 50% off coupon)

$3 - frame from Goodwill

$1 - little ball ornaments from Target's Dollar Spot

$1 - "JOY" letters from Target's Dollar Spot

$1 - 12' garland from Dollar Tree

$1 - red ribbon from Dollar Tree

$5 - blue spray paint (for frame)

That would make the total $16, which is still really cheap, especially when you consider that you can easily spend that much on just a wreath alone!

When I hung up my door decor, I wanted to make sure our peephole wouldn't be covered by it. I was not expecting this lovely surprise, though - the view through the peephole is so sweet! This was taken at night so the lighting isn't great, but you can at least tell what I'm talking about.

"Finished" Art Wall

Wooo! I FINALLY finished the art wall over my desk in my bedroom. I use the term "finished" a bit loosely, since it's still not 100% where I want it to be, but for a good while at least, any changes I make will be minor ones. Here are the photos and sources of it all.

This is the view from my doorway. I'm not sure putting that frame below my light switch was the greatest idea I've ever had, so it might be one of the things to get moved around if I do any tweaking.

Clockwise from top left: 1) This is a collection of 4 sunset photos I've taken over the past year. The first was taken in Prescott, AZ, the second was taken from the top floor of one of the parking on my college campus, and the bottom two were taken last fall on my way back to Sacramento from my parents' place. 2) I purchased this print from Mae Chevrette and the frame came from Target. 3) I purchased this "&" print from Milk Box Prints and this frame also came from Target. 4) This photo of my and my siblings was taken about 5 years ago. 5) This is a simple little hand-me-down frame and I cut a piece of scrapbook paper to fit. 6) A small whiteboard that I purchased from Target. Currently it has some lyrics from Mumford & Sons written on it. 7) This is a frame I picked up at Goodwill and then spray painted a while ago. I stuck in some miscellaneous photos that'll be pretty easy to change out if the mood strikes me.

 Clockwise from top left: 1) This collage frame was a hand-me-down from my older sister. I put some older photos of my four younger siblings in it. 2) Another hand-me-down frame, this time with some photos taken during my 2009 Grand Canyon backpacking trip. 3) This "&" print came from Cursive Art. Frame from Target. 4) This is an engagement photo I took for my sister and her husband 4 years ago. Frame is, you guessed it, from Target. 5) Small corkboard from target. 6) Photo of the cross at InterVarsity's Campus by the Sea on Catalina Island. I'm fairly sure it's a law that if you go there, you have to take a photo of the cross. 7) Silver-toned tray I picked up at Goodwill for about $2 that I've been using as a magnet board. I love it! 8) Photo of my mom and dad at my sister's wedding and two notecards from Target's dollar section. 9) Another frame from Target with a photo of my family at a time trial we all rode in about 6 years ago.

And here's the whole thing, including my desk. The left edge needs some work. I'm not thrilled with how even things are compared to the right side, so that'll most likely get changed within the next couple months, if not sooner.

Overall, I'm really happy with how this turned out and I can't wait to keep adding to it and improving it! If my roommate agrees, there's another spot in my apartment that I think would be great for a gallery wall. Now to find some inspiration for it...

Wreath Redux: Spring Edition

Remember the frame wreath I hung on my front door for Christmas? Well, I decided to set myself a little challenge and bring it back with a new twist for every season this year. Here's what I came up with for spring:

The "welcome" sign thing came from the dollar store and therefore cost only $1 - my only expense for this project! (The ribbon was wrapped around one of my birthday gifts from my parents. I'm pretty sure it came from Costco - that's where my mom buys all her ribbon.)

The entire thing only took about 10 minutes, which includes the time it took to go the dollar store on my way home from work.

I never really understood the point of wreaths, but I actually quite like them now! Even if my roommate and I were the only ones to ever see it, it would be totally worth it - the wreath adds cheer to every day and makes coming home extra special!

Linking up to Rhoda's Spring Door Decor party.

It's the Small Things

People often say that it's the small things that make life utterly wonderful or utterly unbearable. Well, this is a very small thing but it makes a positive difference in my morning routine.

I got the idea for the cup & mason jar from Pinterest, only I put flat little cotton pads in mine. I've had it set up like this ever since I moved to my current apartment and the system works really well. The mason jar is one I got from my mom and the cup that rests inside the rim is a $0.50 find from Goodwill.

The clock is a very recent addition (found at Target for around $6!). I was having a hard time keeping track of the time when I get ready for work/school/life in the mornings, so I bought this clock to help me stay on time. I love its shiny finish & the roman numerals.

Do Or Don't: Vibrant Chairs

Lovely Readers,

I was so inspired by Katie Bower's red chair makeover, I thought I would try it myself :)

Right now the hubs and I are using four mismatched hand-me-down chairs. They are nice, don't get me wrong, but they are all worn out and need a matching paint or stain job to unify them since they aren't identical...and since I stained the table two years ago (and it took forEVER), there is no. freakin. way. that I am going to attempt to sand and then stain every last crevice in those chairs!

So.....the dilemma is that I can't decide what color to pain them. The table is stained a dark walnut, and our dishes are various shades of blue - although right now we only have two shades, peacock and navy. I honestly have no idea what would be a good color. Especially since we live in a tiny hole, and even if we move, it would be to another tiny, slightly less sucky hole ;) So what do you think? Keeping in mind that for the next few years our "dining room" will be visible from the living room, should I go with something bold like this gorgeous blue?

image

Something cheerful like this green? also it would appear from these two photos that I am drawn to bamboo chairs ;)

image

Or something neutral like this pretty gray? I think I would rather steer clear of white, but I do like this gray tone.

image

So what should it be? One of the above, or something completely different? I am open to any and all suggestions!

More Wine Bottle DIY Project Ideas

Remember all those wine bottles I acquired in March? Well, other than using one as a vase and unsuccessfully attempting to cut some of them, all they've done for the past couple months is sit on a cupboard shelf in the kitchen.

 I recently ran across this video tutorial on a different method of cutting glass bottles and I'm hopeful this will actually work!

Here are some of the ideas I have for things I'd like to do with my wine bottles:

I would love to use the cutting method above to make tumblers like these from Bed Bath & Beyond:

Or some cool hanging lights like these:

Originally from Pottery Barn. Looks like it's been discontinued, but once you figure out the lighting, it really doesn't look like it would be that hard to make! Also, there's no cutting required!

From here. Cute & simple and oh-so-summer-elegant. I think these would look charming hanging from tree branches over a wooden picnic table.

How awesome is this modern take on the wine bottle light? Sold here, but I'm sure it would be 100% possible to make this myself.

And last, here is a project for turning wine bottles into Tiki Torches. The best part? No cutting or new-fangled electric lights required, so I might actually do this one sooner than later!

I think a set of these would be an awesome wedding present. Unique, elegant, useful, personal, and of course, super affordable!

Summer Projects

image from here

I've found that I am great at starting projects, but not so good at finishing them. Perhaps posting them here will help me do a better job of seeing them to completion?

I want to take advantage of the summer weather (once it finally shows up in CA!) to do some apartment-improvement projects.

1. Paint an area rug for the kitchen (and living room if the Hubs will let me) using this or this method

2. Make this shoe storage dresser if I can convince someone to let me borrow their kreg jig :)

3. Make these map coasters - using maps from places we've traveled to together (Maui, New Orleans and Cabo, to name a few)

Scored for Free: Empty Wine Bottles

Thanks to Craigslist, I recently scored a dozen free empty wine bottles.

I've been wanting to do something with empty wine bottles for a while now, I just can't figure out what. Here are some ideas I came across when I did a Google search:

- Make some uber-classy garden tiki torches

- Make drinking glasses or vases

 - Arrange on a tray to make a tabletop arrangement

- Turn into a soap, vinegar, olive oil, or balsamic vinegar dispenser

I'll probably use a few of the bottles to do 2 or 3 of these projects, but that will still leave me with extras. So any more ideas are totally welcome! Someday, I hope to be able to make a chandelier or light fixture out of wine bottles. But I think that's something I'll have to save for the far, far distant future.

I have a black thumb!

This is my first ever DIY furniture project - sanding, staining, and replacing the hardware on an old cherry desk that my family has had for years. It's been "my" desk since I began college and when I knew I would be moving into an apartment, I decided to update it so it would fit in with my color scheme and aesthetic.

Before:

After:

In it's natural environment:

The process took a lot longer than I expected. Because I worked full time over the summer and I wanted to finish the desk before moving, I ended up hiring my youngest brother to finish the sanding and my oldest brother was kind enough to drill new holes for the hardware. Everything else I did myself, from choosing the handles (that in and of itself was quite an ordeal because the curved drawer fronts would not accomodate most handles!), to staining the desk. Here's the cost breakdown:

Stain, sandpaper, woodfiller, hardware - ~ $40.00
Hiring brother to sand - $20.00
Total cost - ~$60.00

Oh, and the staining was messy! Even though I wore latex gloves, my fingers, especially my thumbs, still got stain on them. Cleaning the stain out from under my nails was a pain, but it was so worth it to end up with this beautiful desk!  There are minor imperfections with the stain job that only I will ever know about, but considering that this is my first DIY job, I'm more than happy with the results. I can't wait to get the opportunity to stain another piece of furniture - now that I know exactly how much labor is involved in the process, I should be able to budget enough time to do it all on my own. In the meantime, I'll have to content myself with more minor, crafty DIY projects.