DIY

design fix: yarn wreath 19 December, 2010

My ultimate rainy day recipe is finishing all of you DIYs  (that you’ve been putting away till a rainy day) and watching old classics.  Taking into consideration that it’s been raining non-stop for 3 days already, I did just that.sometimes I think we had more rainy days here in LA, I would have been a more productive person overall :)

I’ve been wanting to do a yarn wreath for quite a while now so yesterday I finally sat down to do it over Funny Girl.

it started slowly… about hour and a half later,

I just LOVE the final result! What are you doing on your rainy/snowy days?

 

<images via design apothecary>

yarn wreaths 12 December, 2010

I’ve been in a crafty mood lately and I totally see a DIY project coming. What would it be? a yarn wreath, of course. I got so tired of the traditional tree branches look, and the yarn wreaths are so versatile – you can make them sleek and contemporary or go way out with ornaments, feathers and what not. And they are SO easy to do yourself too. Here are a few of my favorites from Etsy.

1, 2, 3, 4.

1, 2, 3, 4.

And how cute are these yarn balls, such a great contrast with shiny ornaments. 1, 2, 3, 4

xmas: folk affairs 6 December, 2010

Another inspirational board for your holiday decoration needs. I absolutely LOVE the simple folk theme as it shows that great design is not necessarily the expensive one.  It wakes up the craftiness in me, how fun would it be to actually have a pre-Christmas ornament making party with all of the friends.

Felt has been transforming the design world for quite a while now and my heart just melts when I see the cute little felt ornaments. Etsy is a great resource for those. Lots of woods and aged bronze give a real warmth and soul, while knits make you want to snuggle and cuddle (can’t get over the simple greatness of scarf wreath!).

Would you go for the simple Christmas? or does your heart crave the lavishness?

1. Scalloped Trees – $39-$79; 2. Millinocket Moose Ornament – $16; 3. Felt Wreath; 4. flora coaster tags pk 5 – $9.50; 5. Keepsake Bird Ornament; 6. Rattan Stars – $29-$39; 7. Rustic Bell Ornaments Set of 6 – $9.36; 8. Recycled Paper Garland – $28; 9. Mercury Animal Ornaments – $6.99-$9; 10. DIY Scarf Wreat; 11. Music Sheet Votive Holders – $36; 12. Natural Cocktail Napkins with White Monogram – $18; 13. Ceramic Imari Bowls – $59.

gift wrapping ideas – part 1 4 December, 2010

Driving by the shopping center in jealousy today, I know that all of you, wise plan-ahead people, are doing your holiday shopping these weekend (i’ve never seen that parking looked SO packed). So I’ve decided to bring  some gift wrapping ideas for your full satisfaction.

There are a few ideas that particularly speak to my heart.

1. Newspaper/Music Notepaper Wraps are my all time favorites. So casual, these are budget-friendly solutions and look so lovely with creative trimmings.

via country living

via country living

for how-to click www.bystephanielynn.com

via oh hello friend

2. Brown Bag Paper is another great last-minute idea. It is such a great back drop for an ornament, botanicals or practically anything cutesies you might fancy.

via compaicreative

via gingerbreadsnowflakes

3. Candies. You cannot go wrong with them!

via country living

tissue paper is SO last year, drown my gift in candies!

via country living

design fix: wall stripes 29 April, 2010

As promised I’m reviling one more DIY transformation of my apartment for the latest party weekend.  As a regular married couple we also have the TV discussions. And although we haven’t bought it yet (it’s been a year now!), the question of where to place it has been raised several times. Of course, my husband wants to put it on the pedestal in the most prominent place in the room and to be honest, we don’t have that much choice. So my challenge was how to visually divert the eye from this monster in the room and have the TV to be the last thing people will notice. I needed a statement!

So here what I came  up with.

BEFORE: Regular white rental wall got painted in “Russian Blue”. Yes, I’ve selected the color by its name:)

Then I taped off irregular width stripes and primed the surface of the stripes with Acrylic Medium Gel, that way the edges come out very crisp and precise.

The fun part began. I used white, green, black and 3 tones of gray, all of which are left overs from previous projects.

After 2 days of re-taping, re-priming and painting again, the result was quite a statement which I was looking for. I bought two Manzanita Branches and nailed them to bring in the element of nature.

As for the rest, I got two TV stands form Ikea (yes, I know… designers use Ikea too) and upholstered the doors in this amazing linen with printed fonts. I was looking for this fabric everywhere and finally found it in F&S Fabrics (Thanks Maison 21). Now, as the set is done, I’m ready for the arrival of the TV in our house.

<images via me>