diy
whitewashing vs. dry brushing
I get a TON of emails with questions about whitewashing furniture – mostly wanting to know the difference between whitewashing and dry brushing and how to choose which technique for a piece. I’ve posted a step-by-step tutorial on how to whitewash furniture, but thought I’d give a breakdown on the difference between the two and…
diy: ombre, hand stamped favor tags
When my printer bit the dust days before a baby shower I was co-hosting back in February, I had to improvise real fast in order to get the gift tags for guest favors done. They turned out to be a hit, and since I’m decorating for a friend’s shower this weekend and am once again…
how to create a “zinc” finish
There is this little alcove between the tub and shower wall in our master bathroom in which we want to put custom built-ins, but since we are getting ready to finish our second floor, I thought hanging a full-length mirror would be a much better use of funds for a temporary fix. We don’t have…
diy: safe, nontoxic, eco friendly way to strip furniture
I get a lot of emails about refinishing furniture and pieces that I have worked on it the past and the best advice I can give anyone is to pay the most attention to the prep work! Prepping a piece (aka stripping the finish, or sanding and scuffing it to make it paint-ready) is the…
diy: gilded picture frame
I hope you all had a wonderful Turkey Day! For those of you uninterested in the chaos that is Black Friday, how about a little DIY? Old picture frames and spray paint go together like peas and carrots, but I’ve got a twist for you today! I love gilded picture frames, so I thought I’d…
a few helpful tips before your next diy
Lately I’ve gotten quite a few emails about some of the DIY posts I’ve blogged about, so I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to highlight some of my favorite products for helping with your next project! Krylon spray paint is my go-to brand – the coverage is excellent, the color selection is crazy…
before + after: whitewashed brick fireplace
When my clients asked me to help bring their 1972 ranch home up-to-date, the first thing that had to go was the bright orange/red brick fireplace. Their family room gets so much natural light, yet the floor-to-ceiling brick seemed to glow. Instead of painting the brick completely, I decided to whitewash it, instead, to tone…
diy: bottle lamp
Last summer, I found a wine cask on clearance at Pottery Barn for $20. I had no clue what I was going to do with it or where I was going to put it, for that matter (it’s HUGE), but I liked the seeded glass and figured I would eventually find the perfect spot. It…
diy: how to make new wood look old and weathered
In yesterday’s post, I showed you how I made my own custom picture frames for nautical charts and today I thought I’d show how I created the weathered stain – it’s super easy and very inexpensive! I wanted to create a finish similar to the mirror and candlesticks on my fireplace, since the frames will…
diy: make your own picture frame
I’ve posted before on oversize art and the impact it has in a space, so I decided to take my advice when it came to my own home! We have a huge vaulted ceiling in our living room and I needed something big to fill all that wall space over our couch. My hubby…
diy: step-by-step guide to whitewashing furniture
Lately, I’ve gotten quite a few emails asking for help creating the whitewashed finish I wrote about last year, so I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to post a step-by-step guide for anyone interested in trying it! Whitewashing is a simple technique of watering down white paint and literally washing it over a…
sharpie wallpaper
I hope you all had a wonderful weekend! Aside from throwing elbows to get through Ikea on Saturday, for me, this weekend was all about relaxing and regrouping after a long and crazy week. I tried to limit myself to an hour of Pinterest and about fell over when I stumbled upon this guest bathroom…