A Beautiful Mess: DECORATE

A year and a half ago we signed a bunch of papers and unlocked the door to our 100-year-old, yellow house for the very first time. It's been a trip. If you would have asked me on that day how long I thought it would take to get everything "decorated" I would have said three months. Our closing date was in August, and I was pretty sure that by Christmas it would be perfect. I have friends and family with "finished" homes. Fast forward a year and a half, and I'll tell you one thing I know for sure—nothing is ever perfect. Unrealistic expectations? Today I'm here to share what I've learned from this 100-year-old yellow house and this past year and a half of in-progress living. 1. Here's what I mean. As the years went by I started to understand my look a little more. Houses are the same way. Your home has its own set of strengths and weaknesses. 2. I'm not a lazy person. But you know what? What I learned—guilt keeps me frustrated and does nothing. 3. And you know what?

freezer paper stenciled reverse applique hand stitched pillow - artsy-crafty babe Now there's a title for ya! Totally inspired by Alabama Chanin, here's my spin on it. What you'll need is: 2 (two) 1/2 yard pieces of jersey knit + 1” strip of the under-layer piece long enough to go around the perimeter of the finished pillow coverfreezer papercraft paintspongeironsafety pinsneedle & buttonhole threadscissors For a 16” pillow cover, I start with an 18” square. This gives you some wiggle room with pattern placement, especially if you’re like me and end up cutting the square wonky and don’t quite manage to get the stencil in the middle of the square. It is best to go bigger, then trim afterward. Cut two pieces of freezer paper 18” square (pretty convenient that freezer paper is 18” wide), then cut two pieces of jersey 18” x 18”. Using one piece of freezer paper, fold it in half, then quarters, then diagonally if you choose – cut out shapes as you would if you were making a paper snowflake. Thin your craft paint by about half with water. That's it!

decor happy Song Lyric Wall Art / D.I.Y. Project A couple weeks ago, I found a paint-by-number at an unbeatable price. I can't pass these things up even though I already owned this particular design. I thought that I could maybe use it to make a fun D.I.Y., but my new rule is that all thrifts that I purchase with the intent of restyling need to get done right away. I have way too many half finished projects in my life. With that little bit of motivation I came up with a fun D.I.Y. to display some of my favorite song lyrcis in our newlywed home. Here's how I did it... I displayed our piece in our bedroom, on Jeremy's side of the bed. A couple weeks ago, I found a paint-by-number at an unbeatable price.

4 Men 1 Lady Rearranged Design chiribambola Art & Mañas 23 feb Inspiración: Mesita auxiliar en azulón Me pirra este azulón! tengo un bote con un azul muy muy parecido muerto del asco en el armario esperando el mueble perfecto para él! Mientras tanto… me conformo con mirarlo en la distancia Enviado por: Art & Mañas 4 feb Restaurando una mesita en blanco roto decapada en gris plata Por fín está acabada la mesita de Belén! Al final hemos tardado un poco más de la cuenta ( un mes más, para ser exactos :-D), pero lo importante es que está acabada y que ha quedado preciosa. Desde le último post, sólo nos quedaba pintar los pomos que ha sido casi la decisión más difícil y al final nos hemos guiado un poco por las pinturas para metal que tenía en casa, que eran dos: color crema y un azul grisáceo que usé en su momento para las bisagras del baúl aguamarina Así que cogí todo el color crema que tenía y eché un poquito de azul y nos salió este azul que veis en la foto, que me encanta!