I love a quick art project! As I was preparing to (finally) hang some art on my walls, I was thinking of ways to keep my costs low and make my own wall art and the answer was as simple as making this paint scrape art with a few colors that matched the scheme of my home. Within 5 minutes, I had a colorful piece of art that I love.
The front wall of our living room needed something. It was just begging for an accent wall, but we weren't sure what sort of material. Until we found Timberchic, a company that creates reclaimed wood specifically to be placed on the wall. It would lend a bit of a rustic feel to a space desperately searching for an identity, and some much-needed textural interest. Click through to find out how our wood accent wall turned out - and to learn how to do it yourself.
See that round thing staring at you? That's the amputated heart of an old walnut tree that was in my backyard. It makes me sad to think about it, but two summers ago, we had to have this beauty cut down, even though it was healthy, because it was hanging dangerously over a neighbor's garage. Here's what it looks like when you chop up a perfectly good walnut tree:
The carpet is down. The furniture is in. The original Curbly House is officially on the market! We spent the last few weeks putting in long hours to get the living room (and the rest of the house) ready for showings, and we're excited to share the reveal with you today! Read on to see how we designed a cozy living space that will (hopefully) help us sell the house quickly to a lucky new family who will enjoy it for years!
Yesterday we told you about our plans to make over our old house before we put it on the market, and today I'm back to walk you through our design process. As far as I'm concerned, the design process is the stuff dreams are made of - you get to go wild with dreams and possibility. In fact, you have an obligation to do so.
While I always have to scale back (hello, budget), and redefine my dreams, I think examining the process is worthwhile. Have a look at the ideas we considered in bringing this room into all its glory.
I have some pretty huge professional goals this year, and one of them is about redirecting the Curbly ship into new waters. Specifically, our whole team is committed to pouring all we have into creating original content (projects, roundups, and tutorials) and taking on more room makeovers. I believe in the power of transformation, so I'm committing myself to it.
We're beginning this theme of transformation by revealing a little secret: for the past few weeks, we've preparing to sell our old house! You guys: I'm so excited about this! This house was our first home (the original Curbly House, which we'd been using as a vacation rental); it's the home where we brought our newborn children, and interestingly, it's the one we never talked much about. Today I want to give a little background of the house, as well as our efforts to get it in tip-top shape for whomever lives there next.
On Mother's Day, it's lovely to be the recipient of a nice gift or thoughtful activity from your child or partner. But why limit the awesomeness to a single morning? This Mother's Day, we vote to celebrate not just once, but as much as you possibly can. To start, why not have all your nearest and dearest mama friends over for a fun workshop and tasty treats? It doesn't have to be complicated or super fancy. Like all things related to the holiday, it's the thought that counts. Here's a sure way to throw a successful little celebration in honor of all those gals that need a little extra "me" time along with an afternoon of fun.
I love to read magazine and so does my family. Long live the paper subscription! So, I wanted magazine storage for our living room to keep them all in one place. So, let's get to it: how to make a simple and stylish wood and leather magazine rack.
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.
I found these...
Sometimes large open spaces are harder to decorate than smaller ones. It's sort of like someone asking you what your favorite food is... the sheer number of options is intimidating! All kidding aside though, it can be tricky to decide where to put what and how to fill up the space. Read on to find out how the problem was tackled in this living space.
As someone with a brown thumb, the only plants I can keep alive are succulents and cacti. Luckily, there are so many beautiful succulents to choose from, and they range from small to large and are very easy to maintain, making them the perfect plants for DIY projects. This simple wood succulent centerpiece allows you to bring the plants indoors in a way that will beautifully display plants on your table.
Save money on expensive pots and planters with this quick and easy project that will conceal any ugly plastic container in about five minutes, for less than $1 a piece.
Using some leftover contact paper, you can whip up some faux metal containers to hide the ugly plastic ones your store-bought houseplants came in.
Heads up: this is not a post about how our family doesn't watch TV. We are a busy family, like any other, but we do love to watch our favorite shows and sports. Instead, I want to share how our family manages to enjoy television with out spending a ton of money on cable TV service each month.
We decided to cut the cord nine years ago, and haven't looked back. We've had to adapt our methods as networks and subscriptions have changed, but I don't think we missed anything we have really wanted to watch. Here is how we do it today.
Searching for a simple and cheap way to add a Scandinavian touch to your walls? Look no further. This minimal wall hanging is the perfect touch to any space in your home and only takes minutes to make, it's so easy!
Not too long ago, we gave our family room a mini makeover. But it didn't feel quite like us or flow well with the rest of our home. We love all things Scandinavian-inspired and I knew that I wanted the space to feel cozy and welcoming. Before, our space felt a bit blunt and loud. Our geometric painted wall was one of the first things that caught your eye in the space and I wanted to finally get rid of the turquoise color, which was never...
Living in a rental is not my ideal situation, but I’ve learned to make the best of the space that I have and still make the customizations that I want. One of the best ways to customize a space is with a fun accent wall, and for renters who cannot paint or apply wallpaper, removable wallpaper is king! I wanted to create a completely customized accent wall without painting it, so instead, I created customized removable wallpaper using a form of solid-colored contact paper.
Saving for a sofa? The good news is you don't have to tap into your savings too deep to get a quality sofa with great style. Here are 20 affordable sofas that don't skimp on style.
Just because you live in a rental apartment doesn't mean that you can't rework it to fit your own taste - there are so many easy ways to customize it to reflect your personality. You just have to get a little creative! Here are ten great tips for making your rental living room feel like home. Your home.
Apartment-living, like anything in life, comes with its own set of pros and cons. Con: the walls are so thin you can hear your next door neighbors breathing. Pro: when the 20-year-old fridge in your kitchen inevitably breaks, you're not the one who has to replace it! I've been living in rentals for about eight years now, and while one day I'd like to buy a little fixer-upper of my own, for now I'm figuring out how to enjoy the temporary spaces I inhabit. Here are a few tricks I've learned that can help you put your own mark on your apartment. Bonus - everything is reversible, so you don't have to worry about a disgruntled landlord!
It's cold outside... well, at least it is in most of the country. If you live in one of those places where the weather is 80 degrees all year you might want to skip this post. Better yet, read it so you can survive when the weather drops to 65 degrees.
We kid, warm weather dwellers. Believe me, all of us want to be you right now (and all year long). My own bitterness probably comes from having to avoid frost bite just going to get my mail everyday. Okay, that was a little dramatic. Seriously though, those of us who live in cold weather environments know the challenge of staying cozy without having to pay astronomical bills in the winter. Yes, there are a thousands ways you can renovate your home to help make your heating more efficient, but that doesn't help you right now. This post is about practical tips and small purchases that can help you stay warm today with out a renovation.