Decor Articles
This past year, I have tried to join the cool kids in making seasonal mantels. This is my very first Easter mantel and honestly, I’ve been so busy that I didn’t put too much time into it. Haha! All in all, it turned out kinda cute, plus I only spent about $20 in total! I used a couple of my 5 Minutes or Less Dollar Store Easter projects, plus a few other little crafts I made just for this mantel. My theme was bunnies and pastels – okay, not really a theme, it just ended being that way. Yeah, I’m fancy, and I know...
Out with the crib, in with the big girl bed. I’m not gonna lie, I was pretty sad saying goodbye to the crib. But I held it together with my excitement over painting my first big piece of furniture with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint. I did a chalk paint experiment last week on a vase in my dining room, comparing homemade chalk paint with Annie Sloan. I was glad for the practice run and excited to give Lucy a new big girl bed, so the tears stayed away for the most part.Lucy’s “Before” Room This past weekend was The Great...
Welcome to OPC’s The Better Half. My name is Jocie, and I love to craft and DIY my home into something wonderful as I strive to be both thrifty and fabulous. I hope you enjoy comparison of Annie Sloan Chalk Paint vs Home-made Chalk Paint. If you enjoy this article, check out some other recent crafts and consider subscribing to The Better Half (email or RSS). Also, feel free to share this tutorial on Facebook and give it a +1. All the buttons float along the left side of your screen. Thanks! I am brand-spanking-new to the world of...
Since repainting our living room, the walls have remained bare. Mostly because I wasn’t sure what to do, but also because art and wall decor are sooooo expensive. But then, last week, I couldn’t sleep thinking about all my current projects, and it occurred to me that I might be able to use some of the old decor in a new way. What was there to lose? Otherwise, it would all go to GoodWill, so I might as well give it a shot. After all, repurposing and spicing up old stuff on the cheap kinda rocks!Spray Paint Talk Once I made...
Yes, I painted the built-ins…again. A month or so ago I asked for your feedback about this. I painted them green but was not real happy with it. I got lots of opinions (all wonderful and kindly given – THANK YOU!). At the end of the day, I went with my gut and painted them gray. I had originally steered away from gray because I felt like “everyone” was doing it. You know, I was trying to be original. FAIL! Be like the cool kids, embrace gray. That’s what I learned. So I painted the backs of the built-in shelves...
As I have shared before, I am super lucky to have a real-life bloggy friend 5 minutes from my house – Liz from Naptime Decorator. She is sweet, kind, and has a wonderful sense of style. When we first connected a few months ago, she invited me to her Craft Night that she hosts for her friends (this is a real party, not the linky kind, lol!). Liz also has some pretty wonderful friends who have been very kind to this insecure crafter. This past week was my third Craft Night and each time I have even more fun! Liz threw out some Valentine’s...
A month or two ago (maybe more), I started to re-design our living room. I had planned on doing it fairly quickly, but once we painted, I got distracted on other projects and the holidays. Here was the before:Now that we’ve painted the walls a light, icy blue:I had been playing with the idea of either doing a stenciled wall (on the wall space above the fireplace) or paint the backs of the built-ins. In the end, I decided to paint the built-ins because stenciling the wall would be a lot of work and too much patterns if I kept...
I have never gotten too much into decorating for Valentine’s Day, largely because my girls’ birthdays are on January 24th and February 11th. I’m usually so wrapped up in party planning and birthday decorating, Valentine’s Day is a bit much. But this year, Ethan had recently cut me up a bunch of pallets and I was excited to do some art! *Keep reading to find out how you can get a FREE Valentine’s Day Pallet!* On a side note, check back in the next week or two – Ethan and I will be doing a video and detailed...
I may be showing my inner dork, but in my teen years I went through a serious Doris Day phase…Did you catch that in the title? <3 You can thank my mother for teaching me to love the oldies but goodies. Also, sorry if you subscribe to us by email or RSS. Yesterday, I accidentally hit “Publish” instead of “Save” as I was writing, and many of you received an unfinished version of this! MY BAD.I started this pillow project a few months ago and finished a few weeks after that. I had made a pillow in middle...
This year, as the girls are growing up, I really wanted a way to keep our hearts humble and grateful, and not just use Thanksgiving as the time to over eat and kill time before Christmas. I have really been enjoying the month of Thanks on Facebook – each day we share something we are thankful for. Its been really neat! I’ve been looking for ways to help the girls join in on Thanksgiving, more than just the day. If you are a Pinterest fan or hang out in the DIY/design blogger community, Thankful Trees are super popular this...
