Numbers

So I am loving the numbers on all my doors and I have continued thinking of fun and cute ways you could use house numbers. Here's one -

This picture is from a home Sarah Richardson designed on HGTV - so cute! You could use numbers above a row of hooks in a hallway or in a bathroom. Or you could number the drawers on a dresser. You could place a number above each of your kids pictures and hang them horizontally or vertically in a row. You could use numbers in a cute clock display as well (a number placed above each clock going down my stairway wall would have looked so cute). I love how the numbers in this picture are all different too - you could buy them in different metals and sizes and even paint some too.

Treasure Hunt - Curtains

Since moving in our house I have been working on lengthening all our curtains because I can't find any long enough (for a good price that is!). I recently saw these fabulous curtains on the internet from Urban Outfitters- since they are almost $80 a piece and I need 4 curtains for our living room I set to work searching on the internet for a cheaper knock-off.

What I came up with was actually a shower curtain from BedBathStore.com. They were only $23 a piece - woo hoo!!!! Yes they are shorter (and wider) than a regular curtain but I figured no curtains are long enough and I have to add fabric anyway so there really isn't a difference.

The black portions at the top and bottom are from a faux-silk curtain from Hancock Fabrics. I got them on sale for $20 (they would be great curtains on their own- really pretty and a great price!). I basically cut off the top and bottom of each black curtain then sewed the white ruffle curtain in between the two pieces. Using the "already made" black curtain meant I didn't have to hem the top, bottom, or sides. I got the curtain rod from Home Depot - you can't really see it but it has a cute finial in black and white. So each curtain was $20 for the white and $20 for the black which ends up being half the cost of the Urban Outfitters ones (and THEY would have needed additional fabric too!). These ruffle curtains would be darling in a girls room too - you could buy two to sew together if you wanted one long ruffle curtain. You could also add a little color to them by sewing a little ribbon trim at the end of each ruffle, or every other ruffle. My hope was that by adding the black it makes them a little more formal (but still fun!).

I found my dining room curtains at Target - and again they were too short. I didn't want to add different fabric to them, so to make them long enough I just bought an extra curtain panel and cut it apart to add to the bottoms then covered the seam with some pretty trim I got at a fabric store.

Treasure Hunt - Console Table

I need a console table and fell in love with the look of this one. It is from Restoration Hardware and costs a mere $1300 - let the treasure hunt begin!

Home Decorators just came out with this great knockoff for $570 (that includes shipping). I really like it but I think I might have found something better-
I found these columns at tablelegs.com that you can order in different heights - so I can get two of these at 24" high then put my dear husband Matt to work building a table top and bottom to attach them to. They come unfinished which means once the table is built I can easily stain it any color. With shipping, two of these columns are $350 so total cost for the table will probably be around $400. You could do a similar look for even cheaper if you used a skinnier column but I wanted the thickest I could find - this one has a 7 1/2 " width. I have to be more patient on the projects that require my husbands expertise so someday (hopefully soon) I will post the final results.

*UPDATE*  to see the final results on this table click here

More Door Decor!

I love door decor so much, I decided to put something on every door! I got these house numbers at Home Depot. They already come with adhesive on the back so they easily stuck on the doors and once again could be removed with out any damage to the doors. I can already hear my brothers the next time they come to my house saying things like "whats behind door number 2? - Or would you like to trade and go with what's behind door number 5?!" At least I can easily direct people to where they can find the bathroom now- ha ha!

Hanging Collections

I love hanging collections - my three favorites are clocks, mirrors, and plates. You can obviously mix any of those three together and with picture frames as well if you like.

I got all but one of these clocks at Hobby Lobby (which means I got them all half off as well- which I love). I also got the gold letters to make the roman numeral 12 at hobby lobby. They have larger letters there too but unfortunately don't have a large X. It got me to thinking what cute wall decor roman numerals could make anywhere in your house - you could do the roman numeral for your address, the year your family was established, number of people in your family, etc. Unfortunately roman numerals can get quite long - you can find a roman numeral converter online to check what different numbers would be.

I stole the mirror collection idea from my sister Angela. She has a large wall in her foyer covered in different mirrors and it is beautiful. I didn't have a big space to do a large mirror collection but I think even 6 small ones look pretty cute. It took some time to find some I liked so I was happy to realize I could use picture frames too. The center two are picture frames, I removed the glass then had a glass company cut mirror for me that would fit in the frame. You can also find plain mirrors in some sizes like 4x6 and 8x10 at craft stores.

Pier 1 Imports is my favorite place to find cute plates. I bought more than I needed then brought them home to arrange them and then took back what I didn't need. The one plate I couldn't find and felt the collection needed was a white plate with blue on it so I actually made that one at Color me Mine. It is a really fun pottery place where you design and paint anything you want onto plates, platters, pitchers, etc. then they fire it for you. I've made personalized plates for some family members there as well - they make great gifts!

Now I just need paint behind my mirrors and plates - they don't look great on white walls!

Details

So this was not a big project but the little decorating details are sometimes what makes the biggest difference in a room. I added these little white crowns to the corners of my ikea roller shades. The idea is stolen (of course) from Robert McArthur's home (click on this link if you want to see, it is picture #10 under McArthur Park). For his house he used alphabet letters in each corner -since I only have two roller shades I would only get as far as B in the alphabet so I wanted to come up with something different. For the crowns I simply found a picture of a crown on the internet then printed it off. I then cut it out and used it as a guide to cut the same thing out of white contact paper. Once the backing was taken off the contact paper they simply became stickers that I put in the corners of the shade. Now if I ever get sick of them or want to change them out it will be very easy. It took only 5 min. to cut out and since I already have a big roll of contact paper it was free!

Door Decor

So it was only a matter of time before I painted my pantry door blue. I did it in my old house and loved it and I have been itchin' to get this one done ever since we moved in. I used the same color as the hutch since they were in close proximity (Benjamin Moore "rocky coast"). You can go on my "old home tour" page to see a lighter shade of blue I used in my old house that I really like too. It feels just a little more like home now!

I know it seems scary to paint a door (husbands generally don't like the idea either). But really it would be so easy to paint it back to white if you really hate it. Just make sure to do a good paint job- or hire a professional so that it still looks good if you have to repaint it. I had to promise my husband this is the last door I am painting (I had already painted the door in the dining room that goes outside black - he didn't love it like I did). Pick a door that stands out or is a focal point and decorate it! Sarah Richardson - a decorator I absolutely love on hgtv- painted some closet doors and a bathroom door in a mudroom she designed in bright Red. Click here to see how cute it looks! Finally I added this metal Fleur de Lys I found at hobby lobby ($10 -half off). I was able to use Command Velcro strips to hang it - so there is no hole in my door and it can easily be removed. I worried about it holding such a heavy piece of metal but it has been a couple weeks now and I am confidant it isn't going anywhere! These command strips have "opened up" (no pun intended) a whole new world of door decor for me - you could attach almost anything to doors now without any damage - a picture, an alphabet letter, hooks, etc. - just make sure there is a good flat area on the back to attach the command strip to and you are good to go!

Hanging Pictures

Robert McArthur is a designer that resides in Bountiful. He sometimes designs LDS temples and his home was the inspiration for our exterior. I have been fortunate enough to see inside a couple of his homes and ever since, I have been inspired to try to think more "vertically" when hanging pictures instead of always "horizontally." Click here if you want to link to Robert's web page to see his portfolio.

For these frames I just used Microsoft word to make large letters. For each one I used a different font. I then gave them a bright background and printed them off - so the cost was FREE

Vertical groupings work well on smaller walls so for this large wall I had to go horizontal. I love the look of a large mat with a small picture. It can be very expensive if you have them custom made by a framing or craft store (around $30!). For the cheaper version I bought a large white mat board from Ben Franklin (a local craft store - I think it was about $6 and big enough for 2 frames). I then went home and cut just the outside edges so that the mat would fit inside the frame. Even though I am careful and use a razor blade it is still far from perfect but it doesn't matter - the frame edges will hide your imperfections. Then I took the mat back to the craft store (maybe go to a different one!) and asked them to cut a 4x6 opening in the center. For some reason they only charge like $2 or $3 (I have even had them do it for free once). I am not a great photographer but have found that if I make a photo black and white- it looks more professional. I also like the pictures that are zoomed in quite close on my kids faces.

To hang a grouping like the one above it is a whole lot easier if you hang empty frames first, then find pictures in coordinating sizes to go in the frames. I always purchase a whole bunch of different frames I like - way more than I need but that way you have options and you can always return the unwanted ones. I then always start by laying out a grouping on the floor. I keep moving the frames around until I come up with a grouping I like - then you can test it on the wall. I do this by removing the papers that come inside the frames and tape them to the wall. This also gives you a good idea of where to put the nail holes. Again it is slightly harder to make a grouping from a bunch of already framed photos you like and want together, but it can be done, just use the floor first and if you are nervous about nail holes try non-committal Command Velcro hanging strips (I love these things!).

When hanging pictures you usually want them at eye level, but if you are hanging a vertical grouping they can go quite high and low. Pottery Barn magazines are always a great place to look for inspiration on hanging pictures.

Hardware

Think of hardware as Jewelry for your furniture. You don't necessarily need it but it sure is stylish when you put it on! I was very happy to discover that Hobby Lobby carries many of the same great knobs as Anthropologie at a lower cost - and the best part, Hobby Lobby often puts these on sale too! At 50% off most cost around $3-$4. Below are some of my favorite knobs I got there. Also don't feel like you have to use the same hardware everywhere, each room gives you a new opportunity for something cute. Even in the same room you can mix hardware. For example your kitchen island or desk area can have different hardware than the rest of your cabinets. Oh and ladies- I installed them all myself (the power drill is not just a man's tool!)

I love these knobs with letters on them, you can get quite creative spelling words or just go in order of the abc's. I also saw some cute numbered hooks at anthropologie that would coordinate well with these.

Using your leftover paint

As I have stated before you rarely find things for your house in the right color but that is where your leftover paint comes in handy! This is a metal accent piece that had a rusted finish on it, I spray painted it a glossy black and hung it above a window at our old house. Then with the move here I decided to change the color. I have lots of blue paint on hand (of course) so put a coat of blue paint on top, waited a few minutes then rubbed some of it away to reveal the black underneath. It is now hanging above the door to our master bedroom.

All three of these items used to be gold - I don't have anything against gold by the way, but in this particular area the gold wasn't working. If you have any old pictures hanging in your house and you feel the frame is dated and not working - try painting it. The crown is from Hobby Lobby (half off it was $10). I loved the gold on it but I think it works in silver too, so nice that spray paint comes in tons of colors - even metallic.

Last picture (but not the last time I will paint something!). I knew I wanted a large pot on my nightstand and had a tough time finding one the right color and price. So I decided to make one the right color since I already had the "right color" leftover from the walls. I found this cheap metal pot at TJ Maxx, it was copper to begin with. After painting it I then rubbed on some glaze to antique it a bit. Next I found a damask shape on the computer and printed it onto paper then cut it out with scissors. I then taped it on the front and dabbed at it with a paper towel dipped in black paint. You can see in some areas it bled a little but I liked that it wasn't perfect looking. (At the time I couldn't find a cute damask stencil so I made one - however I have since seen them at Hobby Lobby for about $3).

Welcome!

So I had the traditional "over the door" wreath hanger but it was scraping along the top of the door frame and making the door difficult to open. I decided to scrap it and find a pretty hook instead - I'm so glad I did! I found this cute crown with a hook at Hobby lobby (half off of course -$4) They had so many cute hooks I had a hard time narrowing it down! The wreath I just found today at Rod Works - $35. Finally the "M" hanging in the center is also from Hobby Lobby (again half off- how does this place stay in business? Oh wait, maybe because of me!) I never would have thought of hanging something in the center of a wreath - I stole the idea from my brilliant sister-in-law Kori. Most of my ideas are stolen and I invite you to steal anything you like from this blog! By the way if you don't live by a Hobby Lobby - they sell most of their items online at hobbylobby.com.

Come Shopping with me!

Over time I plan on replacing a lot of the lights in our house and thought I would post some of the ones I have found on line that I like. I found this first one on lightinguniverse.com it is $155. They are foyer lights but a couple of them over a dining table would look pretty too.

This one I found on Overstock.com, they have some great lights at a great price, this one is $90.

I was considering this one for over our Master Bathtub. Also from Overstock, $160 (seems a bit much for such a little light, but it's cute)

This is an Overstock.com light for $87, again no idea where it would go but it looks like it could be cool. I wish their were some reviews about it though, without any it makes me nervous. Every once in a while you come across a risky decorating item - this is a perfect example of one. It could be a really cool unique statement piece - it could also be very strange and just plain ugly. Would you dare to buy it?Love this one and I'm pretty sure it's the one I'll end up getting for over the master bed. Overstock, $117

This is so similar to the one above and I wish the price was more similar, it is slightly more at $167 from Overstock.

This is a good look alike to an $800 restoration hardware chandelier. It is from lighting universe and is $196. It comes in Bronze or Silver and has 3 different sizes.

This is such a cool light from pottery barn it is $150.

Back to overstock, this one is $100, I'm leaning most towards this one for over the master tub

Finally I just found this one on csnstores.com, it is $105 which is a steal for the size. I need a couple of large lights for my foyer and these fit the bill at 22" across and 31" high. For some reason I think all lights should be around $100 (can't explain why), but didn't expect to find large foyer lights for that price so I'm pretty impressed with these. However I don't want to buy it simply for the price - I'm such a sucker for sales. (Original price $477!!! that is so tempting to me, why!!!)

So if your in the market for a light - now you have a couple good sites to check out. I also recently found this coupon code for Overstock.com, 121745. Good for 10% off any one item and it doesn't expire, one-time use only though. Also FYI - Ballard designs carries "can light" conversion kits so you easily change any can light in your house into a pretty pendant light.