5 Fall DIY's

Happy Friday! The weather is getting colder, Sundays are soon to be spent curled up on the couch watching movies with friends instead of sitting on patios enjoying the warm weather.  Let's embrace the sun setting early and the leaves falling to the ground by spending those chilly days inside doing a few DIY's. One more thing... Most of these DIY's would also make great gifts for the holidays!

1. Gold Leaf Bowls - These beauties will bring back those middle school art days with a little bit of paper mach and a whole lot of gold leaf! Great for holding jewelry!

2. Chai Candles - Hostess gifts, dinner party favors, or even just for yourself around the house.. bring that Starbucks chai tea into the home this winter season!

3. Gold Initial Ornament - You cannot go wrong with a little gold leaf this season. Or a lot, your choice. Personalize your christmas tree with these pretty little things or give one as a winter house warming gift!!

4. Watercolor Mugs - These mugs. oh my. They're so easy I want to make them in stock and send one to every single one of my friends! They're soooo adorable I just can't handle them!

5. Polka Dot Napkins - I know, I know, enough with the gold. I'm sorry! But how perfect are these DIY napkins. You could also turn these into placemats for an adorable table setting that could double into New Years Eve!

Which one of these will you be gifting this year?

Dorm Room DIY

As most of the schools have already had their move-in days by now and students are settling into their dorms or apartments for the school year, I know everyone is gearing up for classes to start. {who's excited!?} The start of a new school year was always so exciting - You're finally back and reunited with all your best friends, whether you're preparing for recruitment as a freshman going through rush, or a sister prepping to welcome new members, or you're really excited to start finally taking classes that actually apply to your major - There is one thing everyone has in common. The living experience.

Dorm/ apartment living can be tough. Miles away from home, you don't have your bed, your walls, your bathroom and you feel like you're missing a piece of home. Here are a few DIY projects that can help you gear up for the new school year and make your room or apartment feel a little more you!

1. Colorful Table Lamp || Turn a thrift store table lamp into a fun lighting feature on your desk with bright punch of color. Spray paint the base with your favorite color spray paint and make that old ornate lamp a little more interesting.

2. Washi Tape Letters || Not so great with a paintbrush but want to be crafty? That's okay! Use washi tape to create fun patterned letters and initials to hang on your door or sit on your desk!

3. Chalkboard Drawers || Sick of seeing all of your clothes through those cheap plastic drawers? Use chalkboard paint to paint the faces of the drawers and have custom labeled drawers for all of your things! This is a great idea {i wish i did this in college..}

4. Brick Bookends || Using 2 bricks {preferably without holes} take a can of spray paint to the bricks and add your touch of lace, fabric or glitter to create fun and inexpensive bookends.

5. Washi Tape Pinboard || Spice up a cork board with washi tape and create a fun way to pin up your photos, notes, and more!

6. Painted Mason Jars || Spray paint a few mason jars to sit on your desk and hold all of your school supplies. This tutorial is great and easy to follow.

7. Lilly Pulitzer Wall Art || Don't throw away your old Lilly planner just yet - Use those old prints and patterns to hang on your walls! Tear out those pretty patterns and put them in frames to create a photo gallery wherever you need a punch of color.

8. Daily Dry Erase Board || Turn a photo collage frame into a daily calendar by filling the frames with scrapbook paper that has the days of the week written on them. Buy the perfect frame here.

9. Lamp Shade Photo Display || Wrap twine around a lampshade to create a modern twist on the bulletin board.

Living Room Must Haves

Since moving into my new house, everything seems to be coming together very slowly. I'm not sure if it's because I've been very busy at work or if I'm just slacking a little but it's been slow progress.  Here are the last few little items and trinkets I think would make my new living room complete.

I'm also thinking a few of these can be DIY projects with items I already have.  And if you've been following along for a while, then you understand that me and some paint are BFFs when it comes to a little DIY project. Hopefully they'll actually work and I can share those here as well! 

But as for now, here's my wish list: {minus the DIY dreams}

Shop these Items:

Making It Your Own

Who doesn't love a good shopping trip to IKEA? Well, if you just shouted at your cubicle reading this - then you're going to love this. Today I'm featuring 10 Ikea products that are great for spray painting! Did you see my bar cart hack the other day?? Go check it out and see for yourself what a can {or two} of gold spray paint and some matte finish can do!

But really - that desk lamp doesn't come in the bright fuchsia color you really want? Grab the desk lamp and a can of good ole' spray paint and make a weekend project out of it! Now, next question.... Why Ikea products? Well, because in most cases they come unassembled and in a million parts {i know sounds treacherous..} but that's actually the good part. In most of those cases, you can spray them down with a few coats and THEN put the furniture together and BAM, it looks like a professional did it!

A few of these are on my list...Which of these are on yours??

Shop these Ikea Products:

Party on Wheels {IKEA Hack}

Furniture hacking is when a piece of new furniture is immediately refinished or repurposed for better use. Why not right? Most commonly done with Ikea furniture due to the inexpensive cost... and of course the broad range of furniture they have. Well this project has been a long time coming. I'm so excited to finally show you all my Ikea bar cart hack!

Let me start off by saying this BYGEL Utility Cart from Ikea is only $29.99. Yes, that's right - I said $30.  You can get it here. Next, Once I got it all out of the box - I took my gold spray paint to it. Unfortunately I work full time during the day so I painted this after work {essentially in the dark} and there are no pictures of the painting process. I promise you it's very easy though!! The best part about Ikea products is that they come unassembled. Once you take all the pieces out of the box you just need to spray paint anything and everything that's 'silver' metal. Then once you've sprayed, sealed, and dried - follow the directions and assemble it! Ta-Da!

You might notice that I have a nice little wine rack where I can hang 4 wine bottles under the middle shelf... this is where I like to think my creative genius came into play. I took the VURM 4-wine bottle rack {painted that gold as well} and had some help with attaching it to the underside of the middle metal shelf. Note to self: this was pretty difficult and I suggest having someone with experience help with this. Drilling metal screws through a metal shelf & then cutting the ends of the screws.... Difficult. Definitely not my area of expertise, I like to stick to spray paint!

Now, to decorate & make it look pretty in your space! Mine is sitting in my new kitchen with grey walls and white marble floors. This bar cart fits perfectly into my new space! Enjoy!

Evelyn Henson Bar Cart Print

Want more ikea hack ideas? Check out my post over at Creative Juice on 6 fun & easy ikea hacks!

Friday Favorites & The Liebster Award

Happy Friday!! Here are my friday favorites from Pinterest this week - There's even a DIY included!

Style Me Pretty

The Apron Blog {Home Depot DIY included!}

Home DIY Concepts

Now, I have some exciting news! Kristen from Home Sweet Life blog has nominated me for the Liebster award! Thank you so much Kristen - It means a lot! The Liebster award is a series of chain posts that link, connect, and act as a way for new bloggers to get to know each other!! Keep reading to see who I've nominated! {this is going to get wordy - stick with me}

If anyone is looking for the official rule list, here it is:
The Liebster Award Rules:
1. You must link back to the person who nominated you.
2. You must answer the 10 Liebster questions given to you by the nominee before you.
3. You must pick 10 bloggers to be nominated for the award {under 200 followers if possible!}
4. You must come up with 10 questions for your nominees to answer.
5. You must go to their blogs and notify your nominees

As for the 10 questions from Kristen:
How long have you been blogging?

Almost a year! It's so crazy to think it's already been one year - WOW!

What or who serves as your blogging inspiration?

My overpriced education..... HAHA but really. I love love love residential design. My day job is a little unique and if I had to categorize it I would say it's a little more on the commercial side. While I love my job - Defined Designs is my outlet for keeping up with the latest trends, styles, and everything you can think of Design! It might sound weird but my inspiration is definitely staying current.

If you're not in front of your computer writing posts, what could your fans find you doing to enjoy your free time?

Well, if i had to be honest.... I'm always in front of my computer. Yes, I work from my computer & I blog from my computer. But those hours that I'm able to step away from the laptop, you can probably find me out and about in the queen city with my friends! Shopping, Eating, Enjoying a country concert in the summer.. {in reality you can probably find me at cabo fish taco or chipotle...}

Has there ever been a project or idea that didn't go as planned? AKA any DIY disasters

Yes. Yes. Yes. Nobody is perfect of course there are DIY Disasters. The only thing is - I usually get frustrated and throw it out so there is zero documentation of any such thing.

Where do you see your blog in 1 year?

Can I say I have no freakin' idea? I have so many hopes and dreams for myself in general I feel like I would be happy with any form of success that comes within the next year. I would love to connect with more small business's or bloggers and collaborate and partner more. I don't plan on stopping this blog any time soon so like my mom and dad always told me {cue cheesy background music} "the sky is the limit so reach for the stars"

If you had to describe yourself in 3 words, what would they be?

This is such a difficult question.... Perfectionist, Crafty, and Talkative. {hence, the blog}

If you could have anyone play you in a movie, who would it be and why?

That's easy, Rachel Bilson. If you haven't seen Heart of Dixie go sit down, log onto Netflix, and binge.

What's your favorite home purchase/ project you've ever made?

Well, I did just move into a house so this one is going to be hard. Home Purchase - definitely either the TV cabinet I got off craigslist & I'm having refinished {score!} or the amazing new area rug I got at home goods! {similar here}

Any travel plans this year?

Hmmm.. well I seem to travel a lot for work - Does that count? I'll most likely have the opportunity to visit a few job sites for work and see the construction/ warehouses/ and the furniture! Besides that I would LOVEEEE to go on another cruise but I don't see that panning out for a while!

What advice would you give to any new bloggers out there?

This one is a little ironic because my blog is still so new to me. It's hard to believe it's almost been a year since I started. This past week I attended a blogging conference at the Art Institutes of Charlotte where I held a networking workshop with a fellow Charlotte blogger friend of mine. There is so much advice I could give this answer would drag on for days. The one piece of advice I would have to say would be to stay true to yourself. It's very hard to get caught up in other blogs you follow and it's easy to find yourself comparing yourself to them. What you don't think about all the time is no matter how fancy and successful those blogs are - they all started out just like you!

The Blogs I have nominated are:
1. Hope in a Blog
2. Trendy Lindy
3. Turquoise and Teale
4. Sweet Peach Couture
5. Lessons with A
6. The Wetherills Say I Do
7. As the wine cork turns
8. Becoming a Mrs.
9. The Mainline
10. The Next Step

My 10 questions for my nominees:
1. How long have you been blogging?
2. If you had to pick one blog you follow that you find the most inspirational, which one would it be and why?
3. Where do you see your blog in 1 year?
4. What was your most recent shopping purchase to use or feature on your blog?
5. Do you have a DIY project you are proud of? What was it?
6. Most bloggers are very mobile, where do you blog from mostly and why do you enjoy blogging from there?
7. What was your first "success" moment in blogging? {big or small}
8. If you could have anyone play you in a movie, who would it be?
9. Who or what serves as your blogging inspiration?
10. What is one piece of advice you could give to new bloggers out there?


Good luck and congrats to all of the bloggers nominated!! Thank you Kristen!

Finding Organization

After packing up my entire life and moving into a new place recently, I think I've finally realized how much stuff I have.... A  L O T. Whew - I've been here for a little over a week now and I feel like I haven't even made a dent in my unpacking! I can't figure out where I'm going to put all this extra stuff I have whether it's crafting supplies {oh my lanta - The crafting supplies} or the mass amounts of paint I have collected, or even just design magazines or books I've saved. Why? Not a clue. Good thing I love painting cause I could open up my Hobby Lobby with all the paint I have!

As I sit here in my {unpacked} living room staring at the buckets and boxes of stuff just piled up in the corner of the room, I'm thinking I need to get something to help me organize my own personal Hobby Lobby. My criteria for this:

1. Appealing to the Eye - This is a must, being a designer I needed my space to look very well put together.

2. Easily Accessible - Hey, A girl can like to craft and paint right? I would love for my paints especially to be organized, hidden and easy to get to.

Just two simple requests and the more I think about it I know the perfect resolution to this. One word - IKEA. The Expedit shelving series would be perfect for this situation! The only question now... Which one? Check out some of the looks I love using the Expedit series:

Made by Girl | Pinterest

Bien.hu | Pinterest

lolalina | Pinterest

BloigPluss | Pinterest

Birch & Bird | Pinterest

Live Creating Yourself | Pinterest

Apartment Therapy | Pinterest

Flickr | Pinterest

Design Sponge | Pinterest

I love the thought of putting legs on the long, skinny Expedit shelving unit and filling it with pretty decorative baskets. What's your thought on this organization idea? How would you style this ikea product?

Friday Favorites

Happy Friday! Who's excited for the weekend?? I know I am... It's moving weekend! The next time you see me I will hopefully be all settled into my pretty new house!! {don't worry it's just a rental} Not only am I excited to be moving into a house for normal reasons, but hey hey who wants a home tour?? I'm so excited to have a clean slate and all new inspiration to post about!

Well, getting back to the fact that it's finally friday. Here are my favorite pins from this week!

Style Me Pretty

I love this nursery. I have a bunch of girlfriends who are expecting right now so if there's a nursery on Pinterest you can bet I'm all over it! I love the look of the mid century modern dresser and the watercolor paintings are to die for!

Design Manifest

This may only be a portion of what leads on to be a beautiful living room but that is alright. Look at that side table. Driftwood side tables will never go out of style {i'm convinced!} Love the combination of mixed patterns and colors also!

Pinterest Image | Shop acrylic on Wayfair

One word: Lucite. Ahhhh my latest obsession. Lucite accent furniture and decor is right up my alley so I couldn't pass this one up. For those of you who don't know, lucite is just a fancy word for acrylic.

Makely 

And just one more thing I love, gold accents. This DIY gold leaf vase is an amazing project to spice up any part of your home on a budget! Time to get crafty!

Home Design Collections

Don't you love the look of this eat in dining area? Taking this cozy casual area another notch and adding the pink table base screams creativity. Such a bold move pulled off flawlessly.. my applause.

Design Improvised

Ohh the joy coffee brings to the world every morning around hmmmm 8am? This coffee nook is so adorable I want to create something just like this in my new home!