PROJECT HOME: FIREPLACE MAKEOVER

One of the big projects we really wanted to accomplish soon after moving into our home was giving the fireplace a little make-over. This is one of our favorite rooms in the house. It has an amazing amount of windows and we loved that the fireplace took up a huge portion of the wall. Our vision for this room is a bright and cozy place to host friends, watch movies, and have great conversations. There are a lot of dated features about this room, but I love the bones and its character. We have a lot of plans to really update this space and make it our own. First project?? The fireplace! We knew this would make an immediate impact on the space and that we could build around it afterward. Here is a before picture of the living room and fireplace that was used as one of the listing photos:

How We Updated Our Fireplace:

1// Hardware - We took off all of the old hardware on the fireplace. This included the brass cover and yellow-ish sconces. We also made sure to remove any nails and hooks from the brick.

2// Clean - We spent about an hour or so vacuuming the heck out of the fireplace before painting it. One tricky thing about painting fireplaces is that you can tend to have grease spots that will show through the paint as yellowy patches. Right around where the fire will be I might suggest taking some soap and water to the brick to break up any grease. We didn't paint the inside part of the fireplace, but if you do, you'll want to super clean and scrub that space before painting. You also won't be able to use it as a "fireplace" if you paint that area, unless the paint is specifically created for a fireplace and heated environments. 

3// Prep - We used blue masking tape to prep the areas around the fireplace. Since we are planning to also paint the trim and rest of the room we didn't mind if it wasn't perfect but we especially wanted to protect the floors and the wood mantel. We used trash bags to protect the mantel which I would suggest because paint ended up getting everywhere!

4// Prime! - This is a SUPER important step. Since brick is SO porous, it will take a lot of paint. Having an amazing coat of primer on your fireplace will make the final paint job go on smoothly and beautifully. Lets be real, priming this bad boy was a labor of love and took many, many hours. My suggestion would be to spread this project over two days. It took me nearly 6 hours to do one coat of primer and completely cover the entire fireplace. We used an entire gallon of Kilz paint primer for one coat. Kilz is AMAZING. Even though it took a really long time to cover everything, we only needed one coat of this stuff. Again, for this fireplace size, it took an entire gallon. I also went over a few grease patches a couple times to get rid of any yellow showing through the primer. So, onto the process...first I took a roller and did a basic cover over the top of the bricks with the primer. The roller brush didn't cover much because the grout on our fireplace is a little deep so it only got the fronts of the brick. Make sure you pick up a roller brush that's meant for a more porous surface. Then I took a brush and worked on filling in as much of the grout as possible. Because paint brushes are a little large, there were still some spaces and pores I couldn't quite get to. After a lot of time with the brush, I moved onto a small paint brush that you would use for painting canvas and art projects. This really took a lot of time because I wanted to get into every nook and cranny and make sure I did a complete cover with the primer. I would highly recommend watching a show while doing this! It makes the whole process a lot more enjoyable. ;) But take your time, make sure you do a full coverage of primer. It will be totally worth it if you do! 

5// Paint - After doing one, complete coat of primer and using an entire gallon of paint, we let the space dry. Once dried, we used a Valspar semi-gloss paint & primer in bright white. The semi-gloss was perfect and really added a beautiful shine to the fireplace. It also made the fireplace feel smooth and clean. We love how it looks in person! Since we worked so hard on the primer coat, it only took one easy coat of paint to finish off the fireplace. Again, we used the roller first and then used a larger paint brush to finish up the rest. It only took about an hour to do the final paint portion of the fireplace. 

And you're done!! It was definitely a time consuming project but it made a huge impact in our space and really updated the look. We also decided to update the lighting and Jon picked out these lantern style sconces at Lowe's which look beautiful up against the white. I'm still trying to figure out if I want to leave the mantel wood or paint it white...or black...I can't decide quite yet. I might do the rest of the room first and then decide. ;)

We are planning to paint all of the wood trim white and paint the walls a really beautiful light blue color to make all of the white really pop! I can't wait to see how this room progresses over time! 

EASY DIY PROJECTS

I might have mentioned this before, but I'm not a big DIY gal when it comes to making pretty things. My kind of projects are the ones that take under an hour and can be completed and cleaned up easily while in good company or during an episode of Pretty Little Liars. ;) I always get a slight high when I pin an awesome, quick and easy DIY project.

I DO want to be good at home projects and cooking, I'd love to know the best way to restore an old dresser and how to make a mean soup with leftovers. I'm practicing and hopefully over time I'll get better and better! But in the meantime, here are some of my favorite quick DIYs for the non-DIYer. :) Now that some of my energy is slowly picking up (almost done with the first trimester!) I'm definitely planning on doing a couple of these in my spare time. :)

1// Polka Dot Umbrella by Designlovefest 2// Natural Cleaning Products by Kinfolk 3// Creativity with Crayons by Alisa Burke 4// Display Ideas for Instagram by Dot Coms for Moms 5// Beeswax Candles by Oh Happy Day 6// Dipped Spoons by House of Earnest 7// Lemon Peppermint Foot Scrub by Freutcake 8// Recycle Old Letters by Simple Mom 9// Whipped Coconut Body Oil by Babble 10// Decorated Power Cords by Designlovefest

WEAR: DIY STUDDED SHORTS

My favorite type of DIY projects are the ones that can be finished while watching an episode of Game of Thrones. ;) I bought these pair of shorts as an, "I'm seriously going to try and wear shorts this summer" resolution. I loved that they were a nice fit and not too cheeky, but they were lacking a little in the pizazz department.

I picked up a pack of Bedazzle studs from a craft store and went to town. It took me maybe an hour to complete my stud pattern and it was super easy. The pack of studs came with small silver and gold circle studs and I picked out all of the gold ones for the pattern. I used the end of a butter knife to push down the stud ends after pushing them in place. I placed them in random order until I felt like it was well studded.

I love that it adds so much to a simple pair of pants and I'm plotting my next studding project now. ;) I know you can find an amazing variety of studs on Etsy and I might buy some fun packs and stud some tops and outwear. The possibilities!

Hope you are having a wonderful weekend!

CHEER: WREATH DIY

This year for our Christmas wreath, I wanted to make something simple, natural, and easy! I'm the type of DIYer that likes quick and simple projects. My favorite type of DIY projects are the ones that only need one picture. :) Since I've really been into the natural look for our home, I decided to make a holiday wreath from plant clipping in our back yard and left-over crafting feathers. After clipping my plant pieces, it took about 5 minutes to put together! I love that you can easily replace the plants with new ones throughout the season to make a quick wreath that looks pretty inside and outside. :)

For day 9 of Christmas Cheer Jenny and I will be sharing with you two different and simple wreath DIYs for the holidays! See Jenny's wreath here later today! Can you believe its already over a week into December? Before we know it we'll be writing 2013 on everything.

S U P P L I E S 1// Branch wreath base. I bought mine from Michael's. I love the traditional round wreath shape but decided to go with this oval shape instead. It's a good shape for plant arrangements. 2// Found objects from around your home and backyard. 3// Floral wire.

S T E P S 1// Arrange objects on your wreath however you like. 2 // Use floral wire to secure anything that's loose. 3// Hang up your new wreath inside or outside! Just make sure it's out of reach of your furry friends, since some plants like holly can be poisonous.

Three days of Christmas Cheer left! Follow along on our Facebook page!

CHEER: DINNER PARTY

Last Saturday, Jon and I hosted our first dinner party. I set a goal to finish my dining room decorating on December 1st so we could host it in our newly decorated space. We ended up pushing two tables together and fit 12 people in our space. Everyone brought a side dish and we had a feast! This may sound silly, but I felt like such an adult! We all dressed up, lit candles, I pulled out our best dinnerware and we had a fancy meal all together as friends.

I love celebrating the holidays with my family, but there's something special about being able to celebrate with your community as well. :) I am STOKED that our dining room is finally done! If you've been following along on my Project Condo series you know it's taken me some time. I haven't revealed the final photos yet, but I will very soon! For our dinner party, I was able to use some of the fancier things we haven't been able to use yet. I love how the whole setting looked. It was Christmasy, simple, and just enough "adult". ;)

For the table setting, Jon helped me cut out place-mats from kraft wrapping paper that I picked up from Target and Jenny wrote everyone's name on the side. This was a clever way to assign seats and make it look pretty. I got the idea from Chelsea of Oh My Deer who made a similar handmade place-mat and loved the idea! It's a lot less expensive than buying 12 place-mats. I was also tempted to buy these tear off paper place-mats at West Elm, which I might end up doing later, but liked this idea for the party better.

Because I didn't have quite enough silverware for everyone to have the branch flatware setting, I decided to mix and match what I had to give it a more collected look. I did the same thing with the glasses too. I had purchased around 20 random glasses (some mason and some jam jars) from thrift stores for one of Jenny's showers when she was engaged and I loved how they were all different, but looked great together. I've used these glasses on so many occasions! Definitely worth the hunt!!

I decided to decorate the table with pieces I already had around the house, plus a little glam. I bought the gold candle wreath from Michael's and used holly from the backyard to decorate the table. I love how everything came together. The dinner party totally made me want to start one of those dinner clubs and make a fancy meal every month...maybe even a themed dinner night?? Ah! That would be so fun!

Dinnerware & Decor Found Here: 1// Organic Dinner Plates - West Elm 2// Salt & Pepper Shakers - Gneiss Spices 3// Faux Antler - Z Gallerie 4// Branch Flatware - West Elm 5// Silverware - Gift 6// Blue Glass - Anthropologie 7// Mason Mug - Thrifted

Do you throw dinner parties during the holidays?? What is your favorite thing to cook? How do you like to decorate the table? Oh, and while you're answering those questions, be sure to check out my friend Gina's farm to table Thanksgiving on her blog. Best idea ever!

You can follow along with 12 Days of Christmas Cheer on the Maiedae Facebook page! Also, be sure to check out how Jenny sets her table on her blog later today! Happy weekend, friends!

CHEER: FOREST IN A JAR DIY

Welcome to the third day of Christmas Cheer! Today's theme is "playing in the snow", and since we don't usually get snow in Atlanta, Jenny and I decided to share two snow related DIYs with you. :)

Growing up near Seattle, Washington, we always had lots of snow during the holidays. I remember grabbing our laundry basket and sledding down the hills at our apartment complex with my little brother and sister. We loved making snowmen and measuring how high the snow would get in one night. When I moved to Georgia on my 8th birthday, I was always disappointed in the lack of snow, but I've learned to really appreciate the little flurries and snow we get now and then. The ice storms...not so much. ;) This year, I'm not crossing my fingers for snow since we had a 72 degree day yesterday. It's feeling more like fall then winter right now. But maybe we'll get a couple flurries?!

Jon has been wanting to take me on a skiing trip to Colorado sometime. I would LOVE to go and see all of the snow covered mountains and stay in a cabin with a huge fireplace...that's definitely on our "before we have kids" list...and also maybe on our "after we have kids" list too. :)

For this DIY, I was inspired by all of the beautiful homemade snow-globes I've seen lately. I liked the idea of making a water-less display so I wouldn't have to deal with the potential messes. I also like that these are easily something you can make very detailed and intricate or just keep them simple like I did.

Supplies// For these mini forests, I used mason jars from around the house, bought light blue transparent glass paint from Martha Stewart, fake snow, white glitter, mini Christmas trees, and used a hot glue gun. You can also use mini animals or Christmas scenes to decorate your forest.

Steps// 1. Paint the outside of your jars with transparent glass paint. This just gives it a little bit of a blue tone and blurs the glass so it has a neat "blizzard" look. I did this for two of the three jars. Put jars in the oven on 350 for 20 minutes. Let cool. 2. Hot glue trees, animals and other found objects to the lid or bottom of your jar. I like to alternate between the two. 3. Sprinkle in glitter and fake snow. If you shake the jar a little, the fake snow will stick to the sides and look like it's falling. 4. This is my favorite part. For the jars with the forests at the bottom of the jar, take the lid and dab hot glue to the bottom of the lid to create glue strands. Delicately dip the hot glue strands in fake snow to make it look like it's snowing. This took a little bit of time and patience, but turned out beautifully.

If you're in the snow globe making mood, check out these other DIYs. :)
* Snowy Diorama - Martha Stewart
* DIY Wintery Snow-globes - The Paper Mama
* Holiday Snow-globe - Apartment Therapy 

Also, be sure to check out Jenny's homemade Marshmallow recipe on her blog later today! You can follow along with our 12 Days of Christmas Cheer on Facebook and with the hashtag #12DaysofCheer. :) Happy Monday!

CHEER: ADVENT CALENDAR DIY

Today is the first day of Christmas Cheer! AND the first day of December. Tonight I'm having a group of couples come over and Jon and I are hosting our first holiday dinner party. I woke up extra early to make my traditional Oreo cheesecake goodness. There will be fancy table settings, bread rolls, champagne, turkey, potatoes...I can't wait! Tricky part is, I only have a table that seats 6 and there will be 12 people dining with us this evening, but Jon and I are grabbing the fold out table from upstairs and putting together two tables of 6. It'll be a little squishy, but the yummy food and friends will make up for it. :)

This is the first year I decided to make my own advent calendar. In the past, I've picked up one from Target, stuck a few pieces of candy behind the doors and ended up forgetting about it. This year I was inspired by so many beautiful pins on Pinterest and Jenny's handmade advent calendar (which you can see over on her blog later today!), that I just had to give it a shot and make my own.

I was originally inspired by an advent calendar DIY on The Marion House Book because of the simplicity and organic feel. I decided to take supplies I already had to create my own.

Supplies// For this advent calendar I used a piece of plywood I've had sitting next to a bunch of boxes for months. I had intentions of doing something with it sooner, but decided it would be a perfect piece for an advent piece. To match the look of my home, I stained it. You'll also need 25 nails, paper tags and found objects that can be turned into ornaments. I also picked up a letter and number screen print pack via Martha Stewart from Michael's craft store and some gold paint.

Steps// 1. Stain or paint your wood. Let it dry overnight. 2. Number 25 tags//paper with the color of your choice. Since I don't love my painting skills, I just used a screen printing pack and they all turned out beautifully. 3. Gather 25 ornaments. I used things I found outside, mini ornaments I already had, cinnamon sticks and bells. Put them all on twine. 4. Evenly nail 25 nails onto your board. It helps to use a measuring tape and make dots where you want the nails to go, so everything looks even before nailing it in. 5. Hang your tags and ornaments on the calendar! 6. Each day you can either turn over a number or place the ornament on your tree. :)

I'm also loving these advent calendar DIYs: 
* Mini Tree Advent Calendar by Oh happy Day
* Magnetic Holiday Advent by Twig & Thistle
* Simple Advent Calendar by Charm Stitch 

Happy first day of Advent and happy first day of Christmas Cheer! You can follow along on our Facebook page where we will be posting each post from my blog and Jenny's blog and adding additional pictures. You can also follow along on Twitter and Instagram with our hashtag #12DaysofCheer. Are you as excited as I am about the holidays!?

HOLIDAY DIY ROUND-UP

Since the holidays are in full swing, I asked my sponsors to share their favorite//must-do DIY for the season. I'm always on the lookout for creative ways to decorate and make something, especially during Christmas! Check out their picks below:

1// Autumn Leaf Bunting - Picked by Chelsea of Sea, Field & Tribe

"It's a fun and simple way to bring nature indoors. I love the ever-changing colors of the leaves, which continue to shift their spectrum even as your new home decor." Find Chelsea here: Blog + Shop.  

2// Advent Wreath - Picked by Leah of Unearthing Words

"I’ve been meaning to make a proper advent wreath for a while now and I have been inspired by many gorgeous Pinterest pictures. I think I’ll go more traditional with the greenery and purple//pink candles!" Find Leah here: Website + Book.

3// Striped Wall - Picked by Kellee of Pirate & Lilac

"I've been thinking about painting a wall in my apartment, and even went so far as to buy the paint... but still haven't gotten around to it!  I'm hoping I can finish it soon (maybe a New Year's resolution?) as I also want to use the wall as a backdrop for my blog photos and shop!  I picked this tutorial as it shows many different examples of stripes in ways I hadn't thought of before, plus practical tips.  The blog itself has many great articles as well!" Find Kellee here: Blog. 

4// Lace Boot Socks - Picked by Maddie of Thriftary 

"These DIY boot socks are my absolute fav so far. Everyone needs the perfect pair of boots to walk them through this amazing holiday season, and these socks are the perfect accessory for that!" Find Maddie here: Blog + Twitter. 

5// Framed Branches - Picked by Moorea of Moorea Seal 

"I moved my workspace into a new studio in June and I still haven't decorated! I want to add some nature inspired pieces to the walls with elements of branches, feathers, moon imagery, antlers, and animal skulls."

Find Moorea here: Blog + Shop. 

Hmmm...if I had to pick, I think I would choose this Driftwood Photo Display via Morning Creativity. :) What about you? What are you handmaking for the holidays or pinning on Pinterest?? Oh, and before I forget! I need to announced the winner of the "Three Treasures" giveaway! Click here to see if you won. :) 

Interested in sponsoring Maiedae for the month of December?? Check out my sponsor rates here. :) 

DIY: "THE BIRDS" INSPIRED PILLBOX HAT

Hi, my name is Maddie Flanigan and I am the blogger behind Madalynne, the cool pattern making and sewing blog. If Steve McQueen was the "King of Cool", then Madalynne is the "Queen of Cool." Three to four times a week, I post about a myriad of subjects - tutorials on how to draft a sloper to interviews of independent pattern makers//designers and what projects I'm currently working on. For the past two and a half years, my day job has been in the technical design department for a very large fashion company in Philadelphia. A couple of months ago, this company took note of my personal blog and asked me to start and Intranet blog that would create a cohesive voice for all their brands. Cool, right? I consider myself one lucky gal to be able to do what I love both day and night (blog and sew), not to mention I receive a stellar discount off some really fancy clothes!

Enough about me though, let's talk Halloween! The holidays are my favorite time of year. Seriously, I kid you not. From early September to late January, I'm all about pumpkins, nutmeg, cinnamon, spice, evergreen, apples, red and green, and black and orange. All my senses - taste, touch, smell, sight, and sound - gobble up anything and everything holiday related. The first holiday, Halloween, is my least favorite of the holidays - I usually don't dress up - but I didn't want that to be the case this year. To get gung ho about October 31st, this sewing and pattern making geek did what she does best – make something… a Halloween costume.

Along with sewing and pattern making  old movies are another love of mine. If you're an old movie lover like me, then you are aware that Citizen Kane was recently knocked out of the number one spot for Vertigo. Vertigo is an Alfred Hitchcock movie. Rear Window, North By Northwest, and Strangers On A Train are all Alfred Hitchcock movies. Another one of his movies, and the inspiration for my Halloween costume is, The Birds. Starring Tippi Hedren, the movie chronicles a shi-shi San Francisco socialite who pursues a man to a small town that slowly takes a turn for the weird and bizarre when birds suddenly begin to attack people. The movie is not one of my favorites, but Tippi Hedren is and that's what I decided to be for Halloween.

Below, I show you how I created my Tippi Hedren costume. Surprisingly, it was very easy and quick - total assembly was less than two hours. Even a busy gal can carve out some time to make this number.

S U P P L I E S
* Hat ---> First, you will need a pillbox-type hat. Coincidentally, I owned one that I used for my costume. If you don’t own one, Etsy.com has many options.

* Tulle ---> I bought 1 yard of tulle and cut it into rectangular squares of varying shapes (see tutorial below). The color of the tulle should match the color of hat (if you want to mix it up though, go ahead and use a different color!)

* Needle & Thread ---> Depending on the thickness of your hat will determine what size needle needed (For me, a thinner needle is easier to sew through thick plys of any kind of fabric). Also, any type of thread – cotton or polyester – is okay. Just make sure the color of the thread matches the color of the hat and tulle (again, if you want to jazz it up, go ahead and use a different color!)

* Birds ---> I bought my birds at the dollar store. What was great about these birds was that wires were attached to the bottom of their feet, which meant attaching the birds to the hat was a cinch. If the birds you find don’t have wire attached to the feet, you will need to buy wire separately – you could use paper clips – or glue the birds to the hat. Etsy.com and any craft store will have birds. Cake toppers that are birds is also another option.

S T E P  B Y  S T E P
1// Attach birds to hat using glue or wire. I suggest trying on the hat beforehand to determine the placement of the birds

2// Begin sewing tulle to hat. Like I said before, I cut my tulle into rectangles of varying sizes. There was no rhyme or reason to the size I chose. Stitch once to secure and then start folding tulle in varying ways to create pleats that stick OUT and UP

3// Sew more pieces of tulle onto the hat, folding and pleating as desired and sewing one layer on top of each other, until the desired volume, size, and shape is achieved

4// Trim outer edges of tulle as needed to create desired volume, size, and shape

5// Ta-da! You’re finished!

Thank you, Maddie, for putting together this fantastic DIY! I LOVE the look of your hat and I can't wait to see pictures of your entire costume at the end of the month! 

FANCY SHMANCY: FALL DIY IDEAS

1// Feather Headdress by Kimmel Kids
2// Pumpkin Spice Latte by Lauren Conrad
3// Fall Envelopes by Oh Happy Day
4// Lady Bird Costume by A Beautiful Mess
5// Autumn Wreath by Life Love Photography
6// Pumpkin Butter by We Dare Food
7// Painted Baskets by The Marion House Book
8// Fall Facial by Whole Living

What is on your fall DIY wish-list? Feel free to share links or your Pinterest board in the comment section below! I'm definitely wanting to try out the pumpkin butter recipe and those beautiful painted baskets! Jon and I are hoping to do a little fall DIYing of our own next week to decorate our front lawn for autumn. Wreaths, doormats, pumpkins, plants...can't wait to create a welcoming entrance to our home! There's something special about hand-making in the fall. Maybe it's the hot drinks, cool weather, and friends?

DIY: FALL MOBILE

Last Sunday, a couple of great ladies got together at my place for a "Pinterest Party". Jenny and I started doing Pinterest Parties late last year as an excuse to get crafty, meet new people, and have a girls' night. This month it was just a small group. We each brought our own project to work on, snacked on homemade cookies, and chatted about life.

I wanted something to hang on our front door...or somewhere in our house? So I put together a Fall wreath//mobile. It's inspired by dream-catchers, a splash of anthro, and a touch of whimsy. After making this piece, I realized this would be adorable in a baby's room (don't worry, not quite yet), but you could also put it on your front door, over your fireplace, or in a group of wall hangings in your favorite room.

S U P P L I E S  N E E D E D:
* 5-10 roles of ribbon in different colors and textures.
* Wire hanger.
* Feathers.
* Leather.
* Scissors.

S T E P  B Y  S T E P :
1// Shape your wire hanger to your preference. Try to make it even on both sides. I tried to re-shape the hook part just a little so it wasn't too hanger-ish. ;)

2// Using one ribbon color at a time, cut different lengths and loop//tie onto the bottom of the hanger. Add in different colors at different lengths until you get the fullness you desire.

3// Cut leaf shapes out of leather (can be purchased at a craft store) and make a little slit at the top for the ribbon, set aside.

4// Begin tying feathers in groups of 1 or 3 and tying them at different lengths at the top of the hanger. Tie leather leafs to ribbon in groups of 1 or 3 and hang at different lengths just like you did with the feathers. Once you get the lengths//amount you like, secure to the top of the hanger by using knots.

5// Cut a long piece of thin ribbon and wrap around the top of the hanger to hide the knots and other unpleasantries.

6// Use scissors to trim up the ribbons to your preference.

7// Hang and enjoy!

What I loved most about this project is that you can easily make it your own. You can pick any kind of trinkets you'd like to hang from the middle and use colors that flow well with your space. :)

Can't wait until the next party! I love being able to have time during a busy schedule to craft for myself. So relaxing! I hope you have a wonderful weekend! I'm heading up to Rome, GA, today to visit my alma mater for their annual Mountain Day celebration. I'll plan to share snapshots with you when I return. :)

PROJECT CONDO: STEEL CURTAIN ROD DIY

One of the things I really wanted to do while taking on the adventure of decorating our condo, was DIY projects. I've seen so many affordable, creative projects and I thought it would be a good way to grow in my crafting skills and experience in making things. When planning the decorations for our dining room, my original plan for the curtain rod was this piece from West Elm. I loved the industrial, sleek feel and thought it would fit in perfectly with our motif.

After a suggestion from my friend Jenny and encouragement from Jon, we decided to save money and build our own! The way this project turned out was exactly what I pictured. It has a very authentic, industrial look and is more of a statement then the original designer rods from West Elm. We also saved a little over $40.00 building these ourselves!

S U P P L I E S   N E E D E D
 * Two 3/4" wall/floor flanges
 * One 3/4" coupler
 * Two 3/4" elbow joints
 * Two 3/4" steel pipes in the length of your preference
 * Two 48" steel pipes 3/4" in diameter
 * Curtain panels
* Wall screws (be sure to include wall anchors if you're not directly screwing into a stud)

S T E P - B Y - S T E P
1. Attach the two 48" steel pipes to the coupler, putting one on each side.
2. Attach the elbow joints to the ends of the steel pipes making sure they are parallel with each other.
3. Once you've connected the pipes with the coupler and added the below joints, put on your curtain panels.
4. Attach the short steel pipes and wall flanges to the ends of each side. All of your pieces should be on at this point.
5. With a helper, hold the curtain rod in place, making sure it's level and at the correct height. Mark where you want it by putting pencil marks on the wall through each of the holes of the wall flanges.
6. Use wall screws to secure it to the wall.

D I Y  T I P S
* When purchasing your steel pieces, make sure the diameter of each piece is the same.
* Since this is a heavier rod, make sure you are either screwing into a wall stud or using anchors.
* I only have two curtain panels right now, but plan to add two more to make the window look more full. I would preplan this since it's difficult to take the rod off the wall once you put it up.

T O T A L   T I M E  &   C O S T
Time: 45 minutes
Cost: $60.00 (not including curtain panels)

I love how this turned out! It's our first DIY for the condo and I'm looking forward to doing more!

PINTEREST PARTY: JEWELRY DISPLAY DIY

Last Sunday, Jenny and I hosted our third Pinterest Party! This month, we asked the girls to bring supplies for a jewelry stand. This DIY was a little more open ended than the others, because we sent them Pinterest inspiration, but left it up to them to pick out how they wanted to make their own displays. :)

We prepared veggies, crackers, hummus snacks, and a yummy orange juice//ginger ale mix with strawberries before our guests arrived. It was a small crowd this month due to the holiday weekend, but the four of us had a blast working on our projects and watching the ever amazing Emma Stone in Easy A. I loved seeing the different stands each girl created. Jenny used a frame, Kate used a small wooden shelf and a slice-a-slice she scored at an antique store, and Jessie used a wooden flooring sample! I wish I could have gotten better photos of their projects, the lighting in our living room turned out to be very poor so they didn't turn out. :( I'm going to think of a better way to photograph the other projects for future posts!

For my display, I just purchased a wooden cutting board from the thrift store for $1.50. Score! I used, little white and brass colored jars and display bowls for the rest of my jewelry, so I wanted to make sure I designed something that fit with the rest of my jewelry keepers. 

Here are the supplies I used:

* Wooden Board

* Thin Masking Tape

* Acrylic Paint

* Brass Screw Hooks

* Hanging Hardware (not shown in the photos, placed on the back)

Step 1: Tape down your board in the pattern you want.

Step 2: Use an acrylic paint (or spray paint) of your choice to paint the entire piece.

Step 3: Carefully remove the tape before the paint is completely dry.

Step 4: Use the same color paint to touch up and correct mistakes. I decided to paint some of the lines to connect on my pattern so it created a more geo pattern.

Step 5: After the paint dries, use a pencil and a rulers to mark where you want your brass hooks.

Step 6: Screw in each hook. The wood I used was soft enough for me to do this by hand. If your material is too tough, try using a hammer and a nail to get a hole started. 

Step 7: Attach hanging hardware to the back of your display so you can hang it on a wall.

Tips: This is a great project to really get creative. Use wire, ribbon, or lace to create a different place for your jewelry to hang. One girl even cut shapes from a free people catalog to create a collage with mod-podge! 

I'm thinking about creating another that's a longer length with a similar design for my longer necklaces. :) I love doing these Pinterest Parties. It's been such a fun way to get to know new friends, have much needed girl time, and create something beautiful from all that inspiration on our Pinterest accounts! Next time we meet, we are planning to try our hand at this DIY. Can't wait! 

BRIDAL SHOWER: COOKIES & MILK

I mentioned in my post earlier today that Anica and I threw a lingerie shower for Jenny! We were able to host it in an absolutely stunning place in downtown Rome, GA. The eclectic mix of industrial, rustic textures and colors were so beautiful and perfect for the shower.

We had a "cookies and milk" themed shower. Jenny LOVES sweets, especially cookies and milk...so Anica and I spent the weekend baking chocolate chip, chewy brown sugar ginger, and lemon crinkle cookies. We also bought Oreo's, Girl Scout cookies, and some frosted animal cookies!

I went to a couple different thrift stores and purchased a mix of glasses, mason jars, and jam jars to use as cups and put cute little paper straws in. I had a small collection of glass bottles with lids so we put different types of milk in each, labeled them and put them in ice inside a way cute silver tin I recently scored from Target.

Take a look at how beautiful this place is!

I wish I lived there! -- It was so fun planning this shower. Jenny had an amazing time, see her post about it here, and Anica and I were so thrilled to be able to do something special for her. :) I can't believe my best friend is getting married in June!!

Recipes for homemade cookies found here:
* Chocolate Chip Cookies
* Chewy Brown Sugar Ginger Cookies
* Lemon Crinkle Cookies