LAST MINUTE HOLIDAY DECOR : 4 EASY DIY PROJECTS

Did you decorate your home for the holidays? Maybe you did, but even if you didn't (or even if you did) maybe you still need or want some last minute holiday decor before Christmas. I'm always excited about a good DIY project, an today I'm sharing 4 links that I found and love. All of these seasonal pieces seem simple enough that you could create in no time an you may even have a few of the supplies already on hand. All links are listed down below. Enjoy and happy decorating.

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NEW HOME! WHERE HAVE WE BEEN...

So I'm been MIA for a bit now and I do apologize. Some of you have asked me "whats going on? did you buy a house? can we see pictures of it? where have you been lately?" well I've been right here, an there, an there, oh and over there too… and yes we bought a house back in January! I have been juggling so much the past few months that the blog had been put on a slight hold while we work to get all the details in order… an there's still a bit more to go before I will be back to this space full time… but thanks for you patience in the mean time. Lately I look like the below photo but I wanted to share some photo and info for those of you who were curious of our new space…

THE NEW HOME
We had been home hunting since last Fall. We really didn't find anything we liked an were feeling overwhelmed (at least I was) so before the holidays we put it on hold and then started looking again in January. We had been searching for a space big enough for all of us but we just couldn't find anything with-in the price range, style and location we needed. I'm sure our realtor was banana's in the end after all the homes we made her take us too, but then low and behold we found one. We skipped over this home at first because the exterior wasn't really to impressive, there was only one photo (exterior shot only) and the listing was "As-Is" and it is a government owned HUD (repossessed) home. We knew it may be a mess inside and need major work but after seeing it we discussed about making it our own. We had to move fast after seeing the home because it was actually going up for auction the day after to be sold by the bank. It was a nail biting process waiting but we won the auctioned bid and then the paperwork and planning began. We had a loan officer who was specialized in 203K loans, which is for home rehab projects, so after thinking it all over that was what we landed on. I had to serve as my own contractor and needed to hunt for certified contractors who could do all the work for us. We submit forms out the wazoo and ran background checks for approvals but in the end we have 2 contractors, a flooring company, and an electrician. The home was in need of some major work so we put the top things on a list and prioritized what we could afford for the loan and what we could come back to in the future. The major issues noted were - plumbing, electrical and a moldy wall and leaking roof… we knew there was water issues with the home, but it was tricky to work around as we were not granted permission for water to be on durning our inspection period, so we had to wait until after possession before we could analyze this more. Of course every didn't go as smoothly as planned and the home was winterized wrong and we had flooding and pipes burst in multiple places in our home. Needless to say all new plumbing needed to be installed a week into our renovation, so our bathrooms and walls were all tore open and still being put back together. The amp box to our home was not to code and updated. Our roof has some leak issues which is still being worked on. Our front foyer has mold that still needs some repair too… And then there was the glorious kitchen. None of our appliances passed inspection. I mean why would they, they were from the 60's. The layout in this space was horrible and the style, color, wallpaper, and overall space just wasn't cutting it. We looked at a bunch of photos (thanks to Pinterest) and decided that we should take out a wall and open up the whole thing. We added attic supports, changed the layout, installed new cabinets, counters to come, budgeted and have new appliances, pretty much the works. We're pretty pumped about this space now. The rest of the home was cosmetic issues… we have lots of painting hours under our belt and still more to come after moving into the space. Doors and walls where damaged from prior owners, and we are repairing things as we can. There was hardwood under the carpet, which we knew of, so we removed carpeting and spent countless hours pulling tacks in preparation for the flooring people to come in the sand and refinish them properly. Also our kitchen had new flooring laced in which was a nice plus. The home is definitely a "Labor of Love" but it's our home, an we're pretty excited about the potential of this new space where we can all live and enjoy together.

So what's still to come… the home is quickly being reassembled for us because moving day… well, it's this weekend!!! Eck! I also have 3 approaching birthdays to plan in our new home. We had discussed this long ago when home hunting began but JD (the boyfriend) is moving in with us so we decided it best to sell his home. We didn't want two homes over us so we've been multi-house juggling projects an getting his home ready too for weeks. It goes up to sell this week so send us some good vibes it sells quickly an that the process is painless, please. And well I think that's about a wrap for now… Enjoy the photos an until I am back here full-time I'll see you around social media. Much love,

 

DIY : FELT HANDMADE VALENTINES

So with my kiddos we try to make homemade valentine's. Sure we could go out and buy some pre-made ones but something about handmade is more from the heart. If you have young kiddos you'd know their attention span is only so long, so I prepped my supplies before hand to make crafting together a bit less work and more fun for them. If you're scrambling to make a last minute valentine here's a quick an simple DIY to get you thru. Enjoy!


SUPPLIES 
Peel & Stick Felt Sheets - found at Michael's
Peel & Stick Hearts - found at Michael's
Scissors or Xacto Knife
Pen, Pencil (writing supplies)
Old food boxes (we used Cheerios)
Ruler

DIRECTIONS 
Open up an lay flat cereal boxes, or any lightweight cardboard boxes. Measure out card sizes, we wanted them to be 2"x3". You will write your message on the blank side of the cardboard, so on the reverse side where you have an image, apply the Peel & Stick Sheet. Carefully cut out cards (May nee parents help, I used an Xacto it was a bit faster). If you are attaching accessories to the cards I would suggest writing the message first while the surface is still smooth. Flip cards and apply accessories, Peel & Stick hearts. You could also use anything else you may have an care to decorate with, buttons, gems, string, etc.

*Note - I measured and prepped the cards before hand so they could enjoy the decorating stages.
A few years ago I made tags which this DIY is similar.

DIY : BLACK AND GOLD BALLOON WEIGHTS

So I made these super simple animals balloon weights for a birthday that just past. I had a theme of gold and black going on, you can see the cupcake toppers here that also were for the party, but I really like how these animals came out, especially the hippo which was my favorite! I hunted down dollar animals (the lion and tiger were at Walmart, and the hippo was found at Michael's) and then took it upon myself, along side a few cans of spray paint to turn them into something more appropriate for the party. I taped off the animals creating patterning using (don't laugh) SaranWrap and wash tapes. I used the plastic wrap to cover larger areas so I wasn't wasting all my tape in the process, if that makes any sense whatsoever. Overall they took me a few hours between drying and taping but it was well worth the efforts. They would be a great quick addition for a party or maybe even for basic home decor. Then I tied each animal to a balloon and finished them off with the little hand lettered tags below, which each animal sat with a tag resting against it's mouth (kinda like it was eating them), I know I'm a huge geek, but all in all it looked cute non the less. Enjoy!

DIY : GOLD ANIMALS & DINO CANDLE HOLDERS

So this past weekend the guy I'm seeing celebrated a birthday and I had planned a surprise birthday dinner and night out with friends. I wanted to make it a bit more special for him to remember, so I made a few little things, keepsakes if you will, for the night. These candle holders, which sat on top of cupcakes where one of the items I made. As for my supplies... the animals/dino were bought in bulk for a few bucks at a party supply store called US Toy, gold spray paint from Michael's was the most expensive item, and then the flower holders on top are vintage and were purchased in bulk on eBay. Overall all the supplies where fairly easy to come by and then I uses an x-acto knife and screw to make holes into the tops of each piece where I'd then place the flower (though I cut them down some with scissors) along with some liquid glue. I love how they turned out and so did everyone else. Good luck if you decide to make some of your own and if you have any questions surely message me in the comment window below. Happy Monday!

DIY PAINTED STONES

I love these painted stones. There is also something very interesting about making them look like little plants… As I don't have a green thumb for indoor plants (also because my cat likes to destroy them to bits) I could see a stone garden in my near future. I'm sure they would also make great paper weights and overall unique decor. How would you display painted stones?

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CREATIVE VALETINES IDEAS

Happy February! So how did this month sneak up on us. I know we had a lot going on in the month of January, but man it just flew right by. Are you ready for Valentines? It's still a week away, but if you're like me and trying to plan ahead, here were a few creative Valentines ideas that seemed simple enough to pull off yourself. Maybe not the cursive sewn letters but they are still cute non the less. Enjoy!
 

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DIY MAKESHIFT CLOSET IDEA

Over the Christmas holiday my daughter received a large collection of princess dresses, shoes, tiara's and other accessories. I love that she's wanting to dress herself and wanting to be unique with her style, I totally promote that, but I don't support, is the piles of tossed about stuff after she's done playign and moved on to something else... Up until now I had yet to find a good solution to store all of these pieces. But after I did a bit of digging about, I came across a few of these makeshift moveable closets which I'm thinking would prove itself beneficial for her situation. Something shorter, child size for her to access, that can house all items neatly in once place. I'm gathering info and size measurements to try my hand at building something similar. I'm not much of a builder, so wish me luck. Any projects on yrou weekend agenda? :)

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DIY : A LITTLE WELCOME HOME PENDANT

I love how little hanging pendant looks. I also have a soft spot for bakers twine and I keep trying my best to figure out ways to incorporate it into every project I do. You can see I snuck it into the holiday gifts this year over here. The pendant though, a couple holidays ago I made a very simple DIY pendant (aka bunting) which you can view those instructions here. I have been seeing this very special guy who was away for a very long holiday break, and though I didn't want to go over the top on his arrival back home, I wanted to make it known that he was surely missed a great deal. Handmade gifts always seem more personal to me so I knew I wanted a little welcome home something or another and this pendant seemed like the perfect project to me... and it made him smile, an was very appreciated, so extra bonus point foe me, woohoo! If you decided to use my tutorial to make your own pendant, I'd love to see it, so link me in the comment section below. Happy crafting.


DIY PENDANT (view my tutorial for the DIY over on my prior blog AdaLou) 

HAPPY 2014 + GOLD DIY IDEAS FOR THE YEAR AHEAD

Yay it's 2014! Are you ready for a new year? I hope so. And I hope you had a great (and safe) night last night while you counted down the minutes leading up to today. Though the big party, with the confetti, and screaming friends, the ball drop, an cocktails, may have been last night... I can't help but think of ways to still celebrate the new year in style. This holiday always has me thinking gold, black and white, and as the years have gone by gold has grown on me greatly. Though you may not be throwing a party as crazy as last nights may have been, here are still a few fun DIY's that could be carried over into everyday events for the year ahead. Enjoy and have a happy 2014!!!

LINKS FOR ALL RESOURCES ABOVE ❯❯❯  1  //   2  //   3  //   4
TOP DESIGN CREATED USING ❯❯❯ THIS BACKGROUND

HOLIDAY GIFT WRAP : BLACK, WHITE AND A UNICORN

That's right, there's a unicorn on that gift. I mean who doesn't love a unicorn ;) Over the weekend, the guy I'm seeing and I did our gift swap. I'm sure this looks like a lot, but 90% of this is stocking stuffer items, like socks, playing cards, pez (yum!), stickers, an other trinkety things I picked up. We both share a passion for clean minimal design but with an aesthetic look. Black and white is the first thing that comes to my mind when I think of clean and simple. I love polka dots, triangles, chevrons, organic nature-like botanical patterning and kraft paper... I am a sucker for kraft paper... oh and bakers twine... an washi tape! An sadly I couldn't find anything I was really drawn to out at the stores so I tackled it myself to make all of this gift wrap above. I was pleased with how it all turned out, before it was happy torn apart and enjoyed. To achieve all of these looks I printed out patterns I had created and cut it all and taped away. Are your gifts all ready and wrapped? Are you excited for tomorrow? :)

HOLIDAY GIFT WRAPPING IDEAS

I love wrapping gifts, especially with kraft paper. In years past I would tie bakers twine around them and call it good, but this year I've been strongly drawn to black and white plus the mix of tan. I'm trying to add a bit of that into this years decorating with a few extra touches too. Here's a few inspirational pieces I gathered. So is all your holiday wrapping done for the season?

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HOLIDAY DIY'S : 5 LINKS I LOVE

With Christmas quickly approaching I can't help but think of last minute DIY projects to add that little extra touch to your holidays this season. There are so many wonderful ideas out there but here were five I spotted and loved. Hope you're having a wonderful weekend. :)

RESOURCES  //  Top Photo. DIY IMAGES -  Image 1. Image 2. Image 3. Image 4. Image 5.