Although it's hard to believe, it's almost that time of year when holiday parties start occupying most weekends. Most people's go-to gift for these kinds of events is usually a bottle of wine, but sometimes it's nice to surprise your hostess with something different. Here are 60 fantastic DIY hostess gifts that you can start thinking about ahead of time to avoid excessive holiday stress.
It's advent calendar time! As I write this post, the Midwest is being walloped by a snow storm. Nothing inspires holiday decorating like many inches of snow, and to stave off decking all the halls, I created a little diy advent calendar village for our children. Read on for the full tutorial.
Using blocks of wood and test tubes, I assembled a village full of tiny treasures to help our family celebrate the season...
Growing your own herbs is incredibly satisfying. Not only do they take up very little space, they take your cooking to new heights as you start experiment with different flavor profiles, you can even read our guide to choosing your own here.
If you've ever been inspired by try a whole new color scheme or style in your Christmas decor, you may have been deterred by the fact that you'd have to replace all of the ornaments you already have. But with a little paint, you can give your ornaments a makeover, saving cash and keeping your old decor out of the landfill. Here's how I gave some glass bulbs a new look, three different ways.
One of my favorite things about the autumn months is coming home at night and snuggling by the heater under warm blankets with candles or incense burning in the background. The heavenly scents help me to unwind after a long day at work, and incense holders are so easy to make that there's no excuse not to have a stick or two burning away while you cozy up and get stuck into that good book. Click through to learn how to make your own DIY incense holder, and head to the bottom of the post for more information about the benefits of incense!
I'm a big collector of costume jewelry, so I'm always trying to find great ways to store it. A while back, I did this project so I have plenty of space for my necklaces and most of my dangly earrings. But I was still left wondering where to put all of my stud earrings, bracelets and other accessories. Until now. Keep reading to check out my incredibly easy, functional solution.
The widespread appeal of nautical and coastal decor makes a lot of sense when you consider the primal and ancient connection humans have to the sea. Being attracted to the water is hardwired into our very cells. Scientific studies have proven what we already know anecdotally: spending time near, on, or in lakes and oceans make us happier and healthier. It's no wonder that so many of us respond to the colors, clean lines, and natural elements of coastal, beach, and nautical decor. It makes us feel good to be reminded of the sea.
If your initial reaction to the term "coastal decor" is negative, it's probably from witnessing too many cutesy and heavy-handed thematic rooms. We are not advocating buying and displaying any and all items that have a sailboat or seahorse on them. Good decorating never grows out of an overly simplistic theme, and, "Put an anchor on it" is not a valid design philosophy!
Now that summer is in full swing, I can't stop thinking about plants... and my indoor garden needs a bit of sprucing up. So I did a little Pinterest searching, and came up with tons of great DIY ideas to add some character to my succulents, cacti and other greenery. And today I'm sharing them with you. Find out how to dress up your plant babies with these ten gorgeous DIY planter ideas.
Hanging a mirror is a painless way to add depth and interest to a wall. Mirrors reflect light and movement in a room, they're eye-catching, and they can make a space appear bigger than it is. If you know us here at Curbly, you know we LOVE a good IKEA hack. Today we're reflecting (sorry!) on some of our favorite IKEA mirror hacks and transformations, all in uniquely awesome ways. Keep reading!
Mother's Day is right around the corner, which means that it's time to start thinking about a thoughtful gift for mom. So today we're sharing a fun DIY succulent planter using that terrazzo pattern that is oh-so-popular lately. Keep reading to check out the full tutorial!
Four years ago, I threw out the question: "What is the best bottle cutter on the market?" A lot of readers weighed in. Some gave recommendations for their favorite glass bottle cutter, others just wanted a definitive answer, which is what I wanted. Finally, FINALLY, we decided to get to the bottom of the bottle cutter question and have a product shoot out between four popular models. Our competition has not been without a...
If you're like me, you want to be more eco-friendly but you're not quite sure what the next step would be after recycling and turning off the lights when you leave the room. Here are 11 DIY projects from around the web that will help you live a more environmentally conscious lifestyle.
There are no two ways about it... I'm a plant person. And my obsession has gotten so bad that I'm running out of places to put my greenery. So today I'm sharing a fun project that will give you another spot to display your beloved succulents - on the wall!
Christmas decor comes in a wide range of styles. Some decorations are cute, some are classy, and some are, well... I'll say it: ugly. Sadly a lot of do-it-yourself decorations can fall into this last category, but I'm here to tell you it doesn't have to be that way. I've found 81 examples of stylish Christmas decor that you can make yourself (and proudly display when you're done).
I have been loving brass metalwork hurricanes lately, especially the ones from Anthropologie. While trolling the lighting aisles of the Habitat for Humanity Re-Store the light bulb went off...the one in my head that is. I could use a brass and glass 1980s light fixtures to make a brass hurricane. Here is how I made my knock off metal work hurricane.
Halloween can get cheesy fast. Just look around your local craft stores, and you'll see ghosts and goblins and witches galore. But there are ways to decorate your home for the holiday in a more sophisticated way... and we set out to find 15 of the very best. Click through to check them out.
I grew up as a Girl Scout and did my fair share of camping, and the s'mores were always my favorite part. Even as an adult, I would toast s'mores on my gas stove, but sadly my current home has an electric stove, leaving me without a makeshift campire to make s'mores. Rather than letting that stop me, I made this portable s'mores fire pot with Sterno ethanol gel canisters and a planter pot!
For those of you who love color as much as I do, then you probably love PANTONE too. (If you're not sure what it is, here ya go). And in my opinion, those swatches really lend themselves to fun DIY projects. So today I'm sharing a quick and easy tutorial for "balloon-dipped" PANTONE vases. Read on to check 'em out.
Summer is right around the corner, which means it's time to step up our patio game... and lighting is one of the most important elements of a functional outdoor space. So today we're sharing 23 of our very favorite outdoor lighting projects. Click through to check 'em out!
Spring is in the air! To me, spring is always, first and foremost, about color. It's also my favorite time of year to keep flowers in the house, but this can be a very expensive habit. Instead, I've committed to getting my flower fix by picking one or two flowers from my daily walks to display in small bud vases. To honor each bloom, I wanted to whip some special bud vases to give them just-the-right place to live.
