Shutter Earring Rack: 5 Minute Project

Tags

5 minute project, closet, crafts, earrings, jewelry, organization, organizing, repurpose, shutter, upcycle

Two summer’s ago, I picked up a small shutter at a yard sale and knew it was perfect for my earring rack. I cleaned it, sat it on my dresser, and organized my earrings. I thought about re-staining it, painting it, replacing the knob, etc. My goal was to hang it on the wall. Unfortunately, I never got around to it…

Until now, when I decided that I liked it almost as it was. Hubster helped me push two metal picture hangers into the back of each panel.

Step 1: Add Mounting Bracket

The decided that the shutters look better hung separately and that the knob was the perfect place for my hoops. Hubster quickly mounted them on the wall for me and I arranged my earrings.

Shutter Earring Rack

What do you think?

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Guest Room Bed

Tags

bed, bedroom, guest room, headboard, home decor, makeover

One of the fantastic things about having a bigger house is actually having a guest room. A few years ago we got a new mattress and boxspring and kept our old ones knowing we’d have a guest room in the future. We went to visit my family in Philly over our Christmas break and my mother gave us the bed frame & headboard from my grandmother’s spare room. I guess my parents were tired of having the boxspring & mattress on the floor while they stay over.

Headboard Before

I wanted to redo this with a cute crackle finish, but Hubster vetoed the shabby chic look (I’ll just have to pull it off in other parts of the room).

After a thorough cleaning and several coats of white paint (I used the trim & door paint we purchased from Sherwin Williams, knowing it would hold up to a good cleaning), we carried the headboard and frame upstairs and quickly assembled them.

Guest Room Bed After

I know the after picture isn’t fantastic, I still need some time to create some bedding and cute throw pillows. One step closer to actually having our guest room put together.

What is one DIY home project this is on your short list?

Dining Room Table

Tags

antique, chairty shop, dining room, dining table, furniture, home, postaday2011, preused, reclaimed, table, thrift, thrift shop, thrift store, used

If I were to describe my furniture taste, it would sound eclectic. Modern and antique pieces. A hodge-podge of furniture can work together if the decor is cohesive in design. 

I love everything about antique tables; well-crafted from strong wood with beautiful details, intricately carved in legs, a hidden leaf, and imperfections that whisper their secrets. To think I found this one on a whim. We were strolling through town and we decided to stop in our local charity shop. I went to pay and Hubster ran home to get the trailer so we could haul this beauty home.

Dining Room Table

Recently, my sister had a similar find, but carried her table home… You see, my table is too heavy for the two of us to carry home for a mile and a half up a steep hill.

Once home, it needed a gentle buffing with Old English (for dark wood). Evelyn has some aged company. Now I’m one step closer to revealing my new dining room.

Now time to run off and make a late dinner to eat in our dining room!!!

Meet Evelyn

Tags

antique, buffet, dining room, furniture, home decor

I  inherited this antique buffet from my parents years ago, but I had to wait until I had a house with a dining room until they actually released it to my hands. My mother named the buffet Evelyn, after the woman she inherited it from.

Meet Evelyn

When my mother was a child, her and my grandmother used to have tea once a week with a woman named Evelyn. Evelyn and my grandmother had worked together at the Quaker Lace Company in Philadelphia. Evelyn inherited the buffet from her parents who were missionaries in the Dakotas somewhere. All through my mother’s teens, she admired Evelyn’s buffet, wistfully thinking about owning beautiful pieces of furniture some day. Evelyn never got married and when she was older and could no longer care for herself, she moved in with a friend and gave the buffet to my mother.

Martin Furniture C.O.

The buffet was made by Martin Furniture Company in Hickory, N.C.

Delicate Details

Evelyn is now home to my linens and booze. With a fresh coat of Old English and Evelyn looks just as fantastic as she did when my mother inherited her. Hubster was never a fan of antique furniture, but I think I’m wearing off on him. Afterall, they don’t make furniture with detail like these anymore.

Beautiful Buffet

Now that Evelyn is home, we’re one step closer to revealing our first room reveal.

Do you own any antique furniture?

B Green (Loft) Baby

Tags

black dress, clothing, dress, frugal, Frugality, GAP, Preloved, thrift, thrifty

The other weekend, I was lucky enough to get a chance to stop by the coveted B Green Loft in Bloomsburg, PA. It’ll be their two-year anniversary this week on Earth Day. It was my first trip to the store when the owner wasn’t working, I actually saw a few new faces working that day. My pilgrimage wasn’t as big of a success this time, I only found two garments (but am completely in love with the one). I found a tan GAP cardigan, which was much-needed (still looking for the perfect chocolate-colored one). Belle even loves it! I tried on a few pairs of tan pants (I checked the tag, also GAP), which just weren’t the right fit.

Tan Cardi

Then I found a beautiful black dress with tiny white polka dots, flutter sleeves and a sash tie. It is super comfy and the empire waist is elastic. The tag said GAP (again, haha). I’ll wear either a black or white camisole under it for work, since it is a bit low-cut. Either way I LOVE the dress! I have the perfect black (polka dot) peep toe shoes to compliment it.  I am a dress girl, always have been. Can’t wait to strut my new (to me) dress.

Little Black Dress

I didn’t need a bag so I could donate my 10¢ token to BTE (as always)!

Aromatherapy Satin Eye Pillow

Tags

aromatherapy, de-stress, de-tox, eye mask, eye pillow, eye pillow tutorial, hangover cure, lavender, migraine relief, pampering, rejuvenation, relax, relaxation, satin eye pillow, self sooth, stress buster

As I mentioned in Soothing Salts, I need to focus on relaxing and de-stressing. I haven’t owned an eye pillow in years and decided it was time to make myself a customized one. I used an old satin camisole as the casing (perfect time to reuse a preloved item).

Eye Pillow

Step One
Cut two 5″x8″ rectangles and stitch three sides closed, leaving an 1/4″ seam allowance.

Step Two
Turn the satin pouch right side out and fill it with one cup of flax seeds (better than those plastic beads), a sprig of dried lavender and 10 drops of lavender essential oil (or you can create you own combinations).

Step Three
Folded the open side into the sack. Then stitch it close on the outside on the pillow, continuing across all four sides. This creates a finished seam.

In order to preserve the aromatherapy benefits of the lavender, store it in a plastic zipper bag in the freezer of the refrigerator (check your cold tolerance).

Other combinations to try: rose petals and rose oil or dried chamomile flowers and peppermint oil.

*If flax seeds aren’t available to you, try using corn kernels or uncooked rice.

*This is perfect for migraine relief, puffy or sore eyes, hangovers, etc…

Gift Bow Bonanza

Tags

Being Green, crafting, crafts, gift bows, gift giving, gifts, green Christmas, holiday wrapping, present wrapping

A few months ago I had seen the idea about making gift bows from recycled magazine or catalog pages. I tried a few tutorials with no success, they were either more difficult than the directions and/or the end product didn’t look nice. We can’t have ugly bows, after all, the wrapping is the prelude to the gift. Finally I stumbled upon “how to” instructions on this blog and had success with the directions.

You can make the bows smaller by making the strips of paper smaller. I made a larger bow by adding a larger outer layer first, I made the original loops larger to allow this. My gardening bulb catalogues seemed to have the best colors for bows and the paper was thicker than some magazines, which also helped.

Gift Bow from Magazine Paper

Gift Bows