Category Archives: Decor

In case you haven’t seen our latest home project, made with love, a staple gun and a few curse words, here she is! An upholstered headboard, created under the guidance of this Design Sponge tutorial. Matt did the wood-cutting, and the fabric came from an old Anthropologie duvet cover. (I’m so glad it turned out okay because I would have been eternally bummed if I ruined it.) The thing is huge, which is awesome because our bedroom had previously been a big sea of nothingness. I feel tiny leaning against it. Anyway … ta da! DIY success. Phew.

I haz done crafty. Yeah, I can hardly believe it either.

Introducing my first home project. Chevron-patterned book shelves! Created with contact paper!

Got the idea here.

Wanna see how I did it? (Say yes.)

The Before Picture. Matt has taken over the bottom shelves, if you couldn’t tell.

Materials: Contact paper, ruler, scissors, painter’s tape, pen/pencil

First, measure the width of the shelves. Then decide how many peaks you want. I chose 2.5. Divide the the width by the number of peaks and that is how wide each peak should be. Phew, that was the most math I’ve done since high school.

As for the height of the peaks, I just kind of eyed it.

Cut out your chevrons. (Not sure if that’s a word.) Tape them up. Make sure they’re perfectly straight(ish).

Apply each chevron strip one half at a time.

Voila!

Total cost = about $15. The best part? I can take it off if I get sick of it. But for now, I love it.

“Please Don’t Leave” Rug at Urban Outfitters (I know we’re supposed to be boycotting them right now or something but … honestly—really?)

“You Look Nice Today” Welcome Mat at UK H&M. Via Andrea’s Pinterest.

Chevron (!!) Welcome Mat at UK H&M.

Har har. “Beware of Dog” Mat at Amazon.

You know you’re getting old when you can’t wait to spend Memorial Day weekend “working on the house.” It’s true. We’ve amassed a huge list of little projects (one of which is, um, “finishing unpacking”) and it’s about time we check some off. Most of Matt’s projects involve assembling furniture and lifting heavy things (or whatever boys do), while, luckily, most of mine are focused on making our home feel more like home. It’s all about the details, right? I’d love a sweet little welcome mat. Aren’t these cute?

Have a happy weekend, friends!

While looking at my calendar usually stresses me out (too many things!), I do love the look of these vinyl wall decals, which come in white board or chalkboard. So legit.

I’m realizing that many of the decor items I like come from kids’ decor sites. Which is weird.

Oh well.

Mushrom tap lights via Ohdeedoh.

ABC Superheroes Print (look at it closely!) also via Ohdeedoh.

One day, I would like one of these …

or these …

Just not today.

Chickie and lobster bebes via Joy Cho’s Pinterest.

So we have a new house (yay!), which means we have a new house to decorate. Naturally, I’ve been browsing a lot of home decor blogs, which incite the exact same thoughts/feelings I used to get while reading wedding blogs.

OMG, I love everything. OMG, I want everything. OMG, everything is so expensive. OMG, I’m hyperventilating. OMG OMG OMG.

Breathe, and then repeat.

Honestly, the more I read home decor blogs, the more I appreciate good ol’ IKEA. I once thought I grew out of Ikea (or, rather, people told me I should grow out of IKEA), and I haven’t had the best of luck with all my IKEA purchases (missing screws and such), but on the whole, they offer many great pieces that are damn affordable. And you can just grab the stuff straight off the shelves. No waiting six to eight weeks for the delivery guy. Open the box, and several hours and curse words later, you have furniture! It’s grand.

This Swedish IKEA blog, Livet Hemma (Life at Home), makes me even more antsy to make an IKEA run. (You can translate the page in English using Google Chrome or Firefox.) It’s all about styling Ikea products in fresh ways. I’m inspired.

You can paint IKEA porcelain plates to create a fun wall.

Love, love, love this DIY storage unit made of handpainted plywood boxes.

Digging the mismatched cushions on this KIVIK modular sofa.

Oh yes. The newspaper-covered RAST three-drawer chest. As newspapers are dying, this is a lovely way to memorialize them. (I can’t believe I, a newspaper reporter, just said that.)

If this was my home office, I’d be quite happy.

Maybe we’ll go to IKEA this weekend! Fun!

via Decor8

Oh, how I need some animal butts on my fridge! (Who would have thought I’d ever utter that sentence?) Love these from Poketo.

They’re the perfect compliment to these animal heads. I’ve wanted this jewelry rack for a while, but it’s so darn expensive.

My kind of tea time. The Tiger Lily Tea Pot and the Leaning Tower of TEAsa from Fred Flare are both on my wishlist.

Love these organic cotton towels by Wonder Thunder. They’d sure make dish-drying a happier affair.