1959 Paris Michelin Guide Map Wall Art DIY

I've been working on a couple fun DIY projects and have the first ready to share- DIY wall art made from a 1959 Paris Michelin Guide Map!  If you have any bare walls at home and aren't sure what to put on them,  this is a SUPER budget friendly and thoughtful way to add in some wall decor.  

If you have any bare walls at home and aren't sure what to put on them,  this is a SUPER budget friendly and thoughtful way to add in some wall decor.

Kind of crazy that I picked up this 1959 Paris Michelin Guide Map for just $5.00 at an antique store in Hopkins almost TWO years ago!  Can't believe it took me this long to do something with it but truthfully I kind of forgot I had it until I stumbled upon it a couple days ago while doing some spring cleaning and organizing... whoopsie! 

That's when my light bulb moment occurred- I could use these maps for wall decor in the small hallway under the stairs!  So, I thumbed through the guide book and picked out six maps for my 4"x 6" frames and hung them up in the hallway.  

I think the contrast of the black frames really pops against the paint color (Behr's Sandstone Cove) and the dusty pink + red maps create the perfect accent color combo!

I know I haven't shown this space on the blog before so in case you are wondering, the hallway connects our kitchen to the back entryway and the door on the right leads into our scary old basement.  We have a couple topographic maps by the kitchen so I like that the theme/type of art flow is similar through to the hallway.

Like I said, if you have some bare walls you are looking to fill at home be sure to always keep an eye out for interesting books at antique or thrift stores.  Who knows, you might be able to create a whole gallery wall with a couple thrifty book finds!

What do you think of the new DIY wall decor?

Would you have done something different with the guide book maps? I'd love to know!

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I'll be working on another forgotten antique find this weekend.  Can you believe I got this antique camping stool almost THREE years ago and haven't done anything with it?!  It's just been sitting in our old gross basement, poor guy.  Anyway, cue the makeover montage music, it's time to get to work!

Ugh, I love a good makeover montage.  I mean who doesn't?!

I'd love to hear any color/finish/fabric suggestions for the stool, let me know! 

Be sure to stop back to see how it turns out!  

West Elm Souk Rug Pattern Inspired Pillow Cover DIY

It was gettin' crafty up in here today- Check out my latest little DIY pillow cover project!

A combination of things inspired me to take on this little DIY project which started when I found this cute "Ziggy" pillow from Fine Little Day  on Pinterest a while back....

The pattern was cute, simple, irregular and had a handmade sort of feel.  I kept coming back to the Pin thinking "I wonder if I should try to DIY something like this?"

The look or texture of the print reminded me of the popular zig-zag or interlacing trellis patterned Souk and Torres rugs at West Elm with that similar irregular type line work...

West Elm Souk Wool Rug $199-$1299 and Torres Wool Kilim Rug $59-$599; Sidenote- I'd love to have one of these if anyone has a spare $1,000 I can borrow?! JK

I figured I should give this DIY a green light using a combo of the looks I was inspired by,  seemed like DIY-ing the print would be totally do-able right?  So, I had to try it!

I had an old cheaper white pillow cover that I figured I could sacrifice in case this turned out terribly and after steaming and ironing it for nearly an hour to de-wrinkle it was ready!  I started out by lining up the pattern look I wanted with painters tape.  I wanted to fit the three lines of diamonds going along the length of the Souk rug so I started by lining up that pattern with painters tape.

Using the painters tape allowed me to adjust and get the right size and shape similar to the rug.  Once I had the diamond shapes fitting across the center I cut out a piece of cardboard that fit into each of those three diamonds then used it to trace out the top and bottom rows of the diamond/zig zag pattern.  Once that was complete I used black fabric paint and a foam brush to apply the pattern.

All in all, it was a pretty simple DIY and I imagine there's probably ten other (and perhaps better?) ways I could have gone about applying or tracing out the pattern?  But I am just happy with the end result!  I think it has a simple modern look that we can fit easily into our living room or sunroom decor.  What do you think?

 Do like how the pattern turned out?

If you want to try this DIY, would you do the same pattern or something different? 

I almost want to attempt a sewing version of this DIY now, hmmm... Using the same pattern inspiration I could use thicker yarn and stitch it through a pillow cover instead of the printed/painted version?!  Sound crazy or should I try it???  Let me know!

Versatile Zippered Clutch DIY!

Hello from Antarctica Minneapolis!  It's 1 single sexy little degree this evening here in the Twin Cities, well on our way to a balmy -17 for the night.... ahhh the splendor of the northern midwest!  I'm happy to report that I did in fact get my buns off the couch over the weekend for some DIY action!  I decided to tackle the DIY clutch bag idea first (link to inspiration here).

So glad I did!  How simple and cute is this little zippered clutch?!?!

If you have experience using a sewing machine, it's so SUPER easy to make one of your own!  I whipped one up in about 20 minutes..... sew easy, I decided to make two clutches!

All I needed was some leather or faux leather fabric, scissors, zipper, sewing thread, sewing machine and pins.  I cut the leather/faux leather to the size I wanted and found a zipper to fit.  The gold one above measures 8.25" x 11.0" (fits and iPad perfectly!) and the larger one I made measures 10.0" x 14.0, perfect for throwing a good amount of random crap in :)   Curious how to make one? Let's get to it!

Here's how I tackled making one of these versatile little clutch bags! 
Start by cutting two pieces of fabric for the front and back of your clutch.  The photos below are of the 10.0" x 14.0" clutch I made so I cut two pieces of my faux leather fabric, both 10.0" x 14.0" in size.

Then it's time to get the zipper stitched in place along the top edge/opening of what will be the front side of the clutch.  With this step, I pinned the zipper in place face down along the top edge of my faux leather then stitched in place.  Once that step was complete and the zipper was attached to the fabric, I turned the zipper face up and did another line of stitching on top of the leather 2mm from the seam where the leather and the zipper meet.

The extra line of stitching provides a cleaner look and allows the zipper to sit flat once the bag is finished :)

Next, you need to attach the back side of the clutch fabric/ faux leather to the zipper.  Take the second piece of faux leather and place it on top of the first piece and line it up with the zipper (make sure the right side of the fabric is faced down as shown in top right photo below).  Stitch the second piece of fabric attaching it to the other side of the zipper.  Then with the zipper attached, lay both right sides of the faux leather face up and stitch the back side fabric 2mm from the zipper & leather seam (top right image below).... You will basically repeat the steps you did for the front piece of fabric attached to the zipper.

Once you have the zipper completed, place the back fabric piece on top of the front so the wrong sides of the fabric face out and then pin together.  Next simply stitch along the three outer sides 0.25" from the edge of the fabric.

That's pretty much it!  Then turn that sucker right side out, situate the zipper a bit and you are done!

Super easy if you know your way around a sewing machine right?!?!

I have to tell you that I've been calling the larger version my "work clutch" and I LOVE IT!  It's totally useful for the office- Instead of carrying a big ol' purse around or stacking little random stuff on my laptop when I'm on the go to meetings, I've been stashing all the goodies I like to keep on hand in my new little "work clutch"....  (cell phone, pen, pencil, measuring tape, iPad, mints, credit card, etc.) 

The Work Clutch idea is pretty b*tching right?  (sorry I am obsessed with b*tching lately for things I love)!

Aside from the DIY clutches, I tackled one more little DIY project during the Arctic Vortex :)  The second coat of paint on project #2 is drying and then I'll get it all gussied up to share!  Stay tuned for more DIY action!


What do you think of the DIY clutch?!? What color fabric and zipper would you use if you made one?
What project do you think I tackled for DIY #2?!?!
Did you tackle a fun DIY while you've been stuck inside due to the nasty weather?

Head Over Heels DIY Friday: Summer Styled Rope Mirrors and Candle Holders

Hello and happy Friday!  I have a sort of Summer DIY decor post for you today, because honestly I'm confused about whether we are in spring or summer right now.  It feels like we just skipped over spring and went right into summer here in Minnesota, does it feel like that where you are?  I know Memorial Day is next week which is the official start to summer, but heck it was freezing a week or two ago so let's just call it summer I say! 

Now onto my summer styled DIY project- Rope Mirrors and Candle Holders!

I've been seeing a lot of home decor made with rope lately and figured I could add it to some mirrors or candle holders at home.  So, I grabbed some Sisal rope from Home Depot for just $8.81 to add onto three glass candle holders and two mirrors I had at home.

For the candle holders, all I did was wrap the sisal rope around a few times and then pinning the ends to hold them on (no glue required on these!).

The mirrors were a little trickier and required the use of a hot glue gun.  I cut enough rope to go around my square Ikea mirrors three times with a bit extra to loop at the top.  I glued the rope in place around the edge of the mirror (shown in images below).

For my round mirror it was a bit easier.  I just placed cut rope on the inner edge of my mirror and glued the ends together.

Easy-peasy right?!?!?

I'm Head Over Heels for this simple DIY's, are you?!?!

I'm loving this fresh summer-y update for the mirrors & lanterns, but right now they are on my mantel and I feel like we are lacking some color.  So, help a girl out!  Tell me...

What could I add to the mantel or fireplace itself that would add color and compliment the rope/summer theme?

Sacre Bleu! Drab to Chic & Fab Blue Dresser DIY

I finally got my rear in gear over the weekend and painted that $10 campaign dresser.  I'm so happy that I no longer have to look at that dull beat up dresser- why-oh-why did I wait so long ?!?!  The fresh blue look is sooooo much better!

I guess my only reason for dragging my feet on the project was because I couldn't decide on a paint color.  Each one looked perfect and I loved them for different reasons.

After much deliberation, I decided to go with a glossy and rich navy blue.  I figured it would be a good color choice in case I end up using it in a different room in the future. Navy is a bit more versatile than red or pink- even though that would have been fun! 

I picked up two cans of Rust-Oleum spray paint at Home Depot and hauled the dresser outside for painting.

Sadie managed to photo bomb with just her nose :) stealthy and sneaky!

I pulled out the drawers, sanded the surface to get it roughed up, and removed the handle hardware.  The bummer was that I couldn't remove the brass corner details.  They seemed to be glued on so I had to cover with painters tape which was a long and annoying process, ugh!  Then I started spraying...
I did about three coats and let it dry overnight.  I was so excited to bring it back up into my closet to see how it looked, thankfully I was not disappointed.  The fresh paint totally changed the look and it fit so much better in the space!

One other little change/detail I added was this antique bracelet I got from blog friend Mimi-Toria Designs.  I loved the look of the black tassel on the green dresser above, but wanted to add a unique and personal detail of my own.  I don't think anything else would have looked more perfect!  Love how jewelry can also be house jewelry too!

I think the new rich blue look fits in nicely with all the other closet goodies I've got going on... BUT I still haven't picked out my window treatments, rug, or a cute decorative pillow to jazz up my refurbished antique chair. 

Those are the wanted items on my list before I plan to take "after" photos.  I guess they are little details but I want every little bit of my closet/dressing room space to be uniquely me!  So I hope you can be patient with my picky-ness until then :)  For now...

What do you think of my $10 dresser's new look?
What do you think of the color choice?  Like it or hate it? 
What do you think of the (house) jewelry added on the dresser?

I'd love to hear what you think, don't be shy now :)

Hammers and High Heels DIY Friday: Framed Paper Florals

This week's DIY is all about my inspiration from earlier this week-  paper!  Yes, pretty floral paper creations!  I know it sounds kind of strange, but I'm Head Over Heels for these Framed Paper Floral creations!

All you need to make them is a frame (or two), paper, fabric, scissors, tape, glue (Elmers is fine), and small pins.

To make my framed paper floral creation, I started by making the individual flowers.  I used the floral shapes from my inspiration post and focused on making four types of flowers in various sizes.  I nicknamed the types of flowers petal, accordion, circles, and 4-fold. 

First up is the petal- Cut 4 drop shaped petals, pinch the narrow end and glue, then glue the dry petal ends together.  You will have to sort of hold the four petals together until the glue dries a bit.

Now to the accordion- Fold up a square piece of paper accordion style, staple through the center, with scissors cut the front side at an angle on each end, then open and glue ends together.

For the circle style flower- start by cutting circles in varying sizes (they don't have to be perfect), cut 3-5 to make a nice flower shape, Fold part of the circle inward to make the circle turn into a cone shape (you can fold in as little or as much as you want depending on how you want the flower to look), glue the folds in place, once you've made the circles into cones layer from largest to small and glue in place.

Last is the 4-fold- Fold a square piece of paper in half and fold that in half again, on folded sides cut two half petal shapes, unfold.  You can repeat and layer on an additional 4-fold or leave on it's own.

After I finished making a good-lookin' gang of paper florals, I prepped the frames by removing the glass fronts.  Then I took some faux linen fabric and wrapped it on the frame backing with tape (yes it looks icky but I didn't want to use anything permanent). 

Once the fabric was set on the frames it was time to add the flowers! 

I laid them on the frames to plan out an arrangement, then all I did to attach them was pin them onto the fabric.  In an effort to not smash the paper, I carefully pinned through the flower first so all I had to do was push the pin into the fabric. 

That attachment technique seemed to work nicely (progress image above).

To bring some spring into our Living Room, I decided to add the two finished Paper Floral Frames to our mantel.  Since it's technically still winter, I left the birch branches but I added a bit of green moss in for an early fresh spring feel.

I think the Framed Paper Florals turned out to be a good winter/spring transition look for our mantel decor- certainly a unique decor addition as well! 

What do you think of this little DIY project?  Are you Head Over Heels?

What other creations would you make with paper flowers?

I have to say, making all those little flowers was kind of fun but a little annoying at first.  Took a bit to get the hang of it but thankfully no papercuts here :)  I might try making a wreath next in some bolder colors! 

Alex and I are cooking up ideas for our next home project, hope to share some of that news next!  Have a great weekend!

Head Over Heels DIY Friday: Table Linens to Decorative Pillows

Hooray for Friday!  My DIY this week is a quickie (post-wise and project-wise).  On a random Target trip I found this placemat and table runner on clearance.  The woodgrain pattern was textured, either velvet or flocked.  I didn't really have a use for them in our dining room but loved the design.  Then I got a fantastic idea!


Since the placemat and runner were backed with another fabric I thought I could simply open the seam on one of the edges and fill them with batting to make some pillows.  Sure enough, it worked!  I ended up cutting the runner in half to turn it into two pillows that would match the placemat size.  But it was so easy, the last step was just sewing the closure closed (which can be done on a machine or by hand).

I know it probably sounds a bit nutty to turn table linens into decor pillows, but I think it turned out to be a nice set to freshen up our living room!

Would you have done it too?  Are you Head Over Heels for the pillows or the project?

Sorry I have been short on posts lately, I will try to stay busy over the weekend with this blizzard thing on it's way.  I imagine Alex and I will be cooped up in the house, anyone else too?  Ugh, the doldrums of winter.  Have a great weekend!

A Bland Black Tray Gets a *Studly* Makeover

Remember those gold studded black trays I saw at Honeyshine?

Of course you remember!  They were just to fabulous to forget right?  Even though I loved it and wanted to buy one, I thought it would be fun to create my own!  After all it's a simple black tray with gold stud accents, couldn't be that hard. 

We had an old faux leather coated tray in our basement (yep, our basement it stuffed with stuff) that used to sit on our coffee table until Sadie started to get interested in chewing on it.  Rather than it getting destroyed I just hid it in the basement and haven't really missed it.  It did look pretty boring, but adding some studs will spruce it right up! 

I had a bunch of leftover nailhead trim from my last chair upholstery project (which was awful and required perhaps 400 pieces of used and unused nailheads). 

Anyway, I began pressing each nailhead into the top edge of the tray.  The sewn faux leather surface was really easy to work with since I could easily stick them in the top edge seam. 

I spaced them out evenly and then used a hammer to make sure they were set evenly along the top edge.

I am so happy with how it turned out!  It kind of went from blending in and unnoticeable to being something that stands out on it's own.  It's a perfect fit in our Sunroom to gather all of our books and magazines.

I love it and I am so happy I took something that we had and weren't using and made it useful rather than buying something new.  That feels GOOD!

What do you think of my studly storage tray?

Have you created something useful from your "stuff" pile recently?  What was it?

My *Grave* Fall Mantel Decor & Distressed Mirror Tutorial

I'm getting in the spooky spirit with my uber creepy mantel decor that features something straight out of a graveyard...

 Yep, those are actual grave markers along with an antique iron widow's peak.  I imagine you might be thinking "Say what?!?" and no we didn't go grave robbing, we actually got these two years ago at Junk Bonanza. 

The booth vendor informed us that they were from Iowa and the markers were used temporarily until an actual headstone could be placed permanently- hope that was true.  So yes, they are creepy but Alex and I like that kind of authentic creepy-ness. 

Before we get into all the decor details, I have to share a quick tutorial with you! 

When I started planning out my decor I thought distressed antique looking mirrors behind the grave markers would look perfect. But sadly, I didn't have any or know where I could find them so I started to think of how I could replicate the look DIY style. 

I started with some old mirror squares from Ikea in our basement along with black and gold cans of spray paint.  I thought it'd be easy and I would slowly spray paint near the bottom so it would have a kind of ombre look.... that didn't work out on the first try :) I ended up ruining one of the mirror squares (thankfully had more in the basement) or I guess you could call it my practice round? Whoops!

Anyway, I learned to spray from a distance of two feet and to barely press the spray paint trigger so that the paint will kind of splatter out.  The splatters are what will give it that faux antique/oxidized look.

  Once the mirrors dried I got the mantel set up!  I placed both mirrors behind each grave marker. 

 On the ends I added white pumpkins, gourds, and skulls inside antique light bulb covers.

 In the center I placed our antique widow's peak with white pumpkins, gourds, and moss (which tied back to our dining room decor too!).

 Perfectly spook-tacular mantel decor!

Lastly, in case you are a bit more curious about the grave markers (like I was when I began writing this post), here's some more information I found online-  the markers belonged to a 17th century organization called the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, also known as "The Three Link Fraternity."  FLT stands for Friendship, Love, Truth.  Back then, it was odd to find people organized for the purpose of giving aid to those in need and of pursuing projects for the benefit of all mankind, thus going by "Odd Fellows".

Interesting huh?  I love learning the story behind my antiques :)

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What do you think of our spooky mantel decor?

Do you like the DIY distressed mirrors?

I have one more DIY Halloween decor project and our sunroom pics coming up!  Love having lots of fun things to share in the next few days and weeks!

Joining Kate's Linky Party over at Centsational Girl!