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Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Vintage Prints

Stumbled upon this wonderful site!  Vintage printable prints for FREE!  These would be adorable printed on card stock or repurposed aged paper and framed. I would frame several of the same color scheme in a gallery style to give my monochromatic bungalow a pop of pizazz!

My favorites:






Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Springspirations

As the dude and I keep our fingers crossed we get an offer on our downtown bungalow soon, I can't help but daydream of spring interiors for my current and new home.  I am always wanting to move and change things around.
As I was perusing through Target.com I stumbled upon their great line of occasional chairs.  WOW!  Can you say "love at first sight?"  Problem is, there are too many to choose from!  They are all at a great price point as well.  $135-$250.  Here are my faves....




Also comes in yellow and tiffany blue

Love the masculine and modern lines



perfect for a vanity



can't get enough ikat this season!






Rex says, "This one is not dude approved."  But, I think it would be adorable in a little girls room.


Sunday, March 14, 2010

What? No closet?

During our renovations, the issue of not having a closet was becoming a BIG issue.  Telling a fashionista she has to keep her clothes in boxes was not going so well day after day.  Telling the FRUGAL FASHIONISTA installing a closet on a budget was not going over so well either.


Praise the LORD for IKEA!!!!  During one of my many trips to ikea during the renovation I ran across the pax wardrobe system. I had been coveting these wardrobes for months.  But, at $120 a pop, and needing 7 of them.  I just couldn't find myself to drop the dough.  You can not imagine my excitement when I found pax wardrobes in the "as is" section of ikea.  The color was antique, which was to be discontinued in the coming months.  They had 10 in stock at $10 a piece.  I told the clerk without hesitation, "i want all of them!".  7 had been my guess for months but I had not formally measured the space.  But, I was not taking any chances on the wardrobe of my dreams.


While I was not crazy about the color, the hubby and I painted and primed them the same color as our bedroom walls with hopes of them blending in a bit.  And so, the work began.  We are thrilled with the outcome!  I have a super organized closet where I am able to see everything I own.  I opted for white linen curtains to give the room some softness since we did not do drapes anywhere in our home.  The total cost of this dream closet was only $250 (including interior organization accsesories and fabric for curtain from ikea).  While our home is oh so small, I don't think I will be able to find another closet that will give this one competition.  
Storage of clothes before:


Honey.....Look what I bought????!!!



Hubby installing the wardobes, with me giving him direction.....he had to have a beer to get through this one!


Ahhhh....... love the organization.









Tuesday, March 2, 2010

I love a good bargain!

While I have started my search for new items for the new house I have wandered off into dreamland of a perfectly put together modern yet feminine sophisticated home.


During my search I stumbled upon the new line that Wal Mart is carrying by Home Trends.  I have never been a huuuuuuge fan of wal mart.  But, I must give them props for giving their stores one huge makeover and giving Target some competition.


Here are my favorites from their new collection.  I'll be stopping by to save some money on these items so I can splurge on a few eclectic ones.


Desk  $149



lamp  $25




lamp $25



tea light holder  $12




wall art $29


Monday, March 1, 2010

Nailed It


Freckles Chick recently posted this DIY nailhead headboard.  Im in love!  I know what my next DIY project will be!  Anyone could do this and make it totally customizable to their taste.




Making a fabric covered headboard has been on my list since the dawn of the blogosphere.
And you know what, no one ever told me that a fabric store could be so intoxicating. I totally did not take all the bolts of fabric (Damask, trellis, oh my!) , unraveled them onto the floor, and rolled around in them. Fully clothed, of course, because if I had been nekked, that would have just been weird. I mean, not that I did this.

Wait, what just happened........focus, FC, focus.
This project took me about 2 hrs (I think I aged 10 yrs making sure the nailhead trim was straight but SO worth it).

Materials (for a king-sized headboard):
- 3 yards of fabric (I splurged on a gorgeous mushroom-colored linen)
- 1/2 inch thick plywood cut to desirable size (Home Depot cut ours to 77 in. long x 36 in. tall)
- quilter's batting
- nailhead trim kit (available in the upholstery section of fabric store)
- staple gun
- hammer (for nailhead trim)
- scissors (for trimming fabric)

Fold batting to desired thickness, wrap around the plywood, and staple (watch your fingers) around perimeter to secure. Pull tautly as you go. Trim excess as needed. Photobucket
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Lay your fabric facedown and place headboard on top. Starting in the middle , pull fabric taut and staple. I checked the front of the headboard every so often to make sure I didn't have any weird wrinkles.
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Now for the detail--nailhead trim!! Again, I have to thank Emily for this embellishment idea. 

It's like, where have these been all my life?! I'm naming my first-born after you, Em.

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It was a bit hellish to get the nail head trim to look straight, but after some choice cuss words and a Band-aid later, mission accomplished. So......the bed's not made nor did I style this shot.
Forgive me for keeping it honest. I was so thrilled with the finished product that I couldn't wait to snap a shot.
Haven't hung it yet; right now it's just leaning against the wall.

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Edit: Being somewhat of a Type A personality, my method for making sure the nailhead trim was straight was to use a ruler to make little light pencil marks all the way around the headboard. Then I lined up my nailhead trim w/ the pencil marks as I pounded in the brads to secure the trim. And voila.
Also, there was a lot of stepping back and examining my work from afar, just to make sure. Hope that helps!
Update: A few readers have inquired as to how we'll hang the headboard. I'm planning on using Dusty's genius approach outlined here. Thanks D!

The approximate breakdown (for a king-sized headboard):
 
linen: $24 (normally $14.99/yd but it was 50% off at my fabric store)

cotten batting: $15
plywood: $19
nailhead trim kit: $15

staples/gun: already owned one

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TOTAL: $73