Over the weekend I decided this black iron candle holder needed a fun new look. There's nothing wrong with it as is, but it just looked kinda plain sitting on the window ledge. I love the color scheme of red and turquoise... so with a can of glossy red spray paint and some fun new candles the transformation was complete. The best part is that the cost was only about $5. Here's the before and after pics!

Spring Wreath

Since we are having such an unusually warm winter, my spring door decor came out a little early this year! I decided to DIY a wreath using a simple grapevine wreath and Spanish moss. So cute and so *cheap* too!

So I started out with my grapevine wreath from Michael's ($4.99) and 2 bags of Spanish moss from Wal-Mart ($2.99/ea.). It basically came together by hot gluing the moss onto the wreath, making sure to get glue and moss down in all the crevices. I only glued moss on the front side and around the edges.

Here's my damask ribbon for hanging...($5.99 at Hobby Lobby)

I knew I wanted the focus to be on the wreath and pretty ribbon, not an icky metal wreath hanger. Since we have a wooden front door, I just created a loop around the top of the wreath and nailed a few small tacks at the top of the door to secure it.

Here's the finished product! I love how it looks against my DIY frosted window too.

And the final close-up. 

I'm linking up over at Southern Hospitality for the Spring Fling party, so be sure and check out all the other great blogs out there! Lots of fun ideas.

Shopping Your House

A few weeks ago I decided that our guest room needed some fixing up. The walls were fairly bare, and it just didn't feel very inviting. I ended up adding a bunch of small touches that made a big difference. The best part is that everything I added was from my own stash. 

 Here's a "before" pic of the guest room. We are using my old bedroom set and I already had the comforter and curtains from my apartment days. 

I added these gold frames in a vertical pattern above the nightstand and on the other side of the room. The frames were from Target a few years ago; they were in a giant collage at my old apartment and had been hiding in a box since then.  Inside the frames are cut up remnants from an old shirt I loved, but sadly had been ripped in the dryer. 

This framed dress was worn by my aunt when she was little and was passed down to me. My cousin had it preserved and framed. This holds a lot of sentimental value for me as I grew up with it hanging in the room that I always slept in at my aunt and uncle's house in Alabama. Love it.

 Here is the lamp on the nightstand. This was another thing stashed away in a closet not being used. I added a neutral lampshade and used Rub N Buff in 'Gold Leaf" to change the lamp itself from silver to gold.

Here's a close up of the framed fabric. This used to be a really pretty silk shirt from Express. I always loved the pattern and the black, red and gold colors so I just couldn't throw it away when it got torn in the dryer. So glad I didn't!

I added another gold frame on a black scroll easel, and the dream letters to the dresser. The Rub N Buff also came in handy to polish up all the hardware on the furniture.

I added the rosette pillow from Pier 1 on the bed. It used to be in the office.

The Rub N Buff was used again to give these finials a nice golden shine.

Here's a pic of the Rub N Buff. I found it at Hobby Lobby for about $3.99 a tube, which goes a LONG way. Seriously all you do is squeeze a tiny amount onto your finger or a soft cloth, rub it onto your desired surface, then buff it to a shiny finish. Works like a charm!

I think this room is a lot warmer and more inviting now. Pretty amazing the stuff you can re-purpose when you go digging in boxes and closets. The only money I spent sprucing things up was the $3.99 on the Rub N Buff. I highly recommend it!

Frosty Windows

This is a little project which was inspired by this post on Bower Power. The front door of our house has a big, paned glass window which was NOT very private. Anyone walking by could see straight into the house and look at me sitting in my chair upstairs. We wanted enough privacy so that the view was blurred, but we could still see out if we needed to. 

The Goods: Martha Stewart Frost Etching Effect paint, stencil brushes....

And of course the Martha Stewart stencils! These things can all be found at Michael's.

I started on the center pane, and worked my way up and out. The key is to get a VERY thin layer of paint on the brush so there's no seepage.

As one pane dried, I would re-align the stencil and move on to the next.

Here's the finished view looking upstairs.

Here's the view from outside. It's enough to blur the view looking in but not completely frost it out.

And a final close-up.

The New and Improved Office

We put the final touches on the office this week, and it is now officially functional. I think B has asked me a million times "So we're done right?". I am bad about finding more and more decorative stuff that I think we absolutely HAVE TO HAVE RIGHT AT THIS VERY MINUTE. Lucky for him, I think I am done for now. The last thing we threw in was the big red rug from Pier 1 and the only thing I am still thinking about adding is maybe a cool clock on the wall above my desk. We will see!

On a side note, we scored some awesome deals on things we needed to put the room together. The curtains, curtain rod, and matching metal tiebacks are from Wal-Mart for about $35 total. The bookcase ($24.99) and black side table ($14.99) are both from Target, and the lamp (which I am in love with) is from Marshall's for $29.99. The pillow and rug from Pier 1 were not so much of a deal, but a girl has to splurge sometimes. :) All the rest is stuff we already had and rearranged. 



Weekend Project

Last weekend our goal was to tackle the office upstairs. Since we moved in it has slowly become the "kind of an office but more like drop all of our random crap in here" room. I had a desk up there for our desktop computer but that was about it. And don't even get me started on the closet.....there were still packing boxes w/ stuff from 2008 when we moved in. After cleaning everything out, getting some curtains up, building a bookcase and arranging a sitting area, the office is finally fulfilling its purpose. Here are some before pics. I will post some of the new and improved office later this week. :)

Christmas Decorations- Part 2

 Christmas crackers

 Holly & Ivy mugs from my aunt

Christmas Decorations- Part 1

 The tree

 One of my fave ornaments, I have a few of these big wooden words on there.

 Double decker bus ornament from World Market

 Oversized ornaments hanging in the windows above the couch

 Snowman countdown calendar

Happy Halloween!

Basement

Here are a few pics of the basement (man cave) now that it's finally finished.

The before shot

Finished window ledge and curtains

Harry modeling on the hardwood floors we put in, and by we I mean Brian and my dad.

Entertainment Center/Beer Fridge/Brian's sweet new TV

Full view of the room