Drop Cloth Drapes

I first heard about using drop cloths as drapes out there in blog land, from I believe The Lettered Cottage. It was one of those, "IM DOING THAT" type of things. :-) so here are mine: 

 I actually made these in my bedroom first, I accidentally bought the kind with a plastic backing to prevent leaks. they were really stiff at first but after a wash and dry they looked much better, and I actually prefer how these look to the non- plastic ones I used in my living room. They just seem to sag and look sloppier even after ironing....so I will probably replace them with the plastic back sooner or later.

Both sets were purchased at Menard's.  6.99 each for the small bedroom ones (5'x5')
$19 for the 9x12 for the living room ( I cut them in half because they were all out of  the 9x6 size)

Mini Closet Makeover

Okay this is a somewhat of an embarrassing before picture....I think laundry was one of those things that made me sick this recent pregnancy, and being busy with a newborn, a two year old, work and so many other more fun things to do....I found my closet was looking like this:

BEFORE:

yikes....

So with a little blog magic.......

        AFTER:

This project actually took me about a week, I was put it off alot because I was pretty much dreading it. 

so, lots of folding, hanging and tossing out later I am finally done!

I printed out some simple lables for my bins from Word      

Now if I can only keep it organized!

Weekend Shopping and DIY

So this weekend my sister and I finally made the two hour trip to our closest Ikea store! it was wonderful! We got on the road around 1ish after I worked my quick morning shift at the bank. Baby Laina came with while sissy Brooklyn got to stay home and have a daddy day.

On the road

Once there, I found that I was veering from my list just a bit.....trying to decide  what I reaaaally wanted and needed the most. So here is what I got!

Stockholm Bowl, This was kind of a
splurge for me at $29.99, but love I how it is a large piece and would make a statement on my little dining room table.

4 Nyttja Frames, two 8x10 and two 4x6 for my floating shelf display. (more on that to come.)

I only ended up getting one of these Skimmer candle holders because I dont like little cluttery stuff, but I live the shinny-ness.

White Salong vase, I still need to find the perfect light pink flower to display in it, probably on my bathroom counter.  

Now on to the floating shelf dilemma....

I originally waned this Lack wall shelf to go above the back of my couch in my living room.  but looking at it in the store, it seemed way to wide, like it would be sticking out over your head while sitting on the couch.  so then we looked at a skinnier shelf with brackets that only showed on the bottom of the shelf. It was skinnier, which was perfect but it was also shorter and I would have needed two to make it long enough for the back of my couch.  So, at $29 Each, I wasn't about to spend $60 just on  the shelf.  But after studying how the brackets worked for that one, we decided we would try to DIY our own! so after 3 amazing hours at Ikea, next stop: HOME DEPOT!

Here is what we found there:

I realize now that this is kind of a horrible picture..you cant really see the shape of the board, but its a 2x6 for the amazing price of....

!!! YES!!!

This will become our shelf.  we had them cut them down for us to 74 inches, same as the Lack shelf. Then we found these little brackets for around $2 each

 our plan is to place them on the board like this....so crossing our fingers hoping our rigs would work and willing to risk the $9 total the supplies would cost we brought it all home.

Painted the board and the brackets white.

 Painted the back part of the brackets to match the wall color.

 Drywall anchors

 this is how the bracket looks on the bottom of the shelf

Perfect!

Word Art

 I am in need of some major art on my bare walls....I really love the modern look of word art like these. It looks clean and simple while adding interest to your decorating. Here are a few I have found while browsing that are my favorite. I plan on re-creating the one above in photoshop and hanging it in my bathroom or hallway.

  Not sure if this one would work in my house, but its awesome all the same.

Love this, found at The Love Shop on Etsy.com. Will definitely find a place for it somewhere... 

Also the framed version

I am also thinking about doing a framed monogram like this when I get my floating Ikea shelf for above my Couch,  similar to what Young House Love did in their living room below

So I choose my favorite and re-created it on photoshop 

Then print, frame and hang!

I think it could stand to be a little bigger but I am rather happy with how it  turned out.

Sorry about the weird glare on the glass....

Bookshelf Makeover

My dad had actually made this little shelving unit for his files a in his office a long time ago, he was no longer using it and it was basically being thrown away.  I thought it may still be useful, so I loaded it up and brought it home.  Gave it a few coats of dark walnut stain and poly, and hes what how it came out.

I'm still trying to figure out what I want to put in it and such, but it is rather useful to stash diapers and toys and books through out the day.  I will probably eventually paint it white and get larger baskets and use it for toy storage in the Girls' playroom once I get that finished. :-)

Got my Paint!

The doorbell rings, and I open the door to find.....

Cant wait to think of something to use it for!

Planning a trip to Ikea

I live about two hours drive from the closest Ikea store, to needless to say I always have an ikea want list! I try to keep track of the items I want so I dont forget to grab them when I do make the trip. I am possibly going to make it down there next weekend so I am going through my list to make sure I get my must haves!

Knubbig Table lamp for my bedroom.

Skimmer candle holders to go on my floating shelf for behind my couch.
The wall shelf, previously mentioned :-)
White Lacks side table probably for next to my couch...im not really sure, but at $7.99 each, why not just get one??