DIY: METALLIC GOLD PLANTER

A few weeks ago I went down to South Carolina to visit my family & came back with two plants. One of them was the Jewels of Opar. My Grammie divided hers into several styrofoam cups & sent us each home with a section. 

The little styrofoam cup was only meant to last the car ride home, but I accidently made it last through my trip to Siesta Key, then my trip to New York, then my trip to Baltimore. 

See I was trying to find a cute pot! Something unique, but affordable. But as my Jewels of Opar started to die, I realized I didn't have the luxury of time. I caved & bought the 97 cent standard pot from Home Depot.

& then I remembered my golden spray paint! I gave it two coats, they dried in just a few minutes!

As you can see (left) I don't have so much luck with plants. So I took a gold paint pen for a little quiet  encouragement. Moral of the story: everything looks better in gold :)

SMALL SPACE LIVING: BUILDING A CORNER COFFEE BAR

Wait! We've moved!!!

But you can find this exact post by clicking HERE.

APARTMENT DIY: INSTAGRAM FRIDGE MAGNETS

Instagram, VSOCAM, Pinterest, Snapchat, IPhone, Facebook, Twitter.... photos on-the-go are in. I mean really, what better way to keep our friends & family & coworkers & crushes up with our really photogenic lives??

As you know, I'm trying to make this new (to me) 450 square foot box into my home. Step one: Plaster the space with my favorite images. When I was in college, I used to tape huge (I mean huge.. maybe, 2ftx3ft?) photos of my friends & family on my dorm room wall. Over the years, however, I've developed a taste for tinier things & better adhesives. & lucky for me, it's at that crossroad you'll find Instagram Fridge Magnets.

You need:

• Printic App (Free)
• Stick-on Magnet Sheet
• Pen
• Scissors

I read on Delightfully Tacky about a DIY just like this. There's this free app called Printic. Guys, its so cool! Through the app you can log right into your Instagram, Facebook & Mobile galleries & order as many prints as you want... directly from your phone! There's several options & I chose the "Prints." Ordered just about 30 photos for under $15! Best of all, they were mailed to me in just three days.

Next I bought a sheet of sticky magnets from Michael's. (HINT - they have tons & tons of coupons online. Just check on it before you go up & they'll scan it right from your phone.) 

Then, you guessed it: trace, cut, stick, trim. 

Before you know it, your apartment is going to look like home ... or at least one little corner J

Happy DIY-ing!

HOW TO: BRIDAL SHOWER GIFTS

My friends are starting to get married. Isn't that fun?! It started off with just a few acquaintances. I'd see it in my newsfeed, stalk the pictures on Facebook, throw a "like" here & there, but now I'm actually getting invited to the weddings... & the bridal showers.

I've been to a few showers before, but always for my cousins. So for you "my friends are getting married & I don't know how to do Bridal Showers alone" newbies like me, I thought I'd write down a few steps for the Bridal Shower... just in case you need them J

1. The RSVP: Don't forget to RSVP. I almost did. That would just be rude.

2. Shopping: Usually I follow my mom, sister, or cool coworker (Is there anything Katie Hayden can't do?) around the store like a lost puppy while they expertly maneuver through aisles & registries. Sometimes, I even let them do the shopping alone & throw in my monetary share later. But good news! I have seen the other side! & it's not that scary J. My friend was registered at Pottery Barn, which, lucky for me, is right across from J.Crew & Madewell at Kenwood Mall (hellllllo, new white cotton pants). I just asked for her registry at the checkout counter, wandered around aimlessly until a nice lady nametagged Marion offered to help me, & Voila! The rest is antique silver salt & pepper shakers + pewter napkin ring history!

3. Wrapping: Like most things in my life, I waited til the last minute for this. But if my many cousins' showers & weddings taught me one thing, it's to never underestimate the power of cellophane. It's a little known fact that everything looks better when you can sneak a peek through polka-dots.

4. The Card: I totally forgot the card. BUT I did have these amazing golden clothespins. Perfect. They remind me of the bride (sparkly & fun!) & also dressed up the fact that I forgot a card. Note: even if you don't think you have a reason to own golden clothespins, invest.

5. The Bow-quet: Of course you can never forget the Bridal Shower Bow-Quet. (The bride uses this at her Rehearsal in place of real flowers). (Here's a tutorial in case you don't know what I'm talking about.) You'll want to include ribbons or some unique feature to your gift wrapping that will make a fun little flair on the bow-quet. Like golden clothes pins.

6. Arrival: Voila. Drop that gift off at the door & grab yourself a mimosa. You deserve it.

HOW TO: GALLERY WALL

My drafting table is my prized possession. So, naturally, I feel it deserves only the best kind of decor. Like a magical little corner of perfection. Whether from thrifting, or from my sister calendar (post coming soon J), or the ones my friends have made (how cool is that Flowering Tree print?!?), or my little sister, or sometimes the one's I've even done myself... I've somehow gathered a lot of art over the years. Any who, today I'm going to show you how it all came together to give my drafting table the wall it deserves.

I grew up wanting to become a  professional collage maker. I'm serious. I thought I could create a market for myself. (You know, collages are at such a high demand!) While I found myself a different profession, my collage-making skills came in very handy for this project.

It started here (& stayed here for almost a year). 

Then, I found this post about Building a Standing Desk & this one on 20 Easy Wall Hanging Ideas by A Beautiful Mess. Suddenly, I knew my drafting table deserved so much more! So I pulled my extra frames out from under the bed, & ripped a few months out of my sister calendar. For a few weeks we had this:

Still, I was stalling, hoping for the perfect centerpiece. & I found it! 

Inspiration HERE (seriously love these) - but I recreated to fit my light + airy theme & feature my fave Cincy neighborhoods J. Funny story, I accidentally made this 5ftx7ft tall! Luckily, Staples in Hyde Park was able to shrink down to the size I wanted. 

& then it was time to put my collage skills to use J

GALLERY WALL | YOU WILL NEED

• Art & Frames
• Phone Books & Paper Grocery Bags (or maybe wrapping paper?)
• Scissors (I kind of want to spray paint mine gold...)
• Marker
• Tape
• (Bright Pink) Hammer
• Nails that will support your Art

No need to eyeball the sizes anymore, you can trace!

Even better: mark the nail hole so that after you tape everything into order, you can just nail through the paper. 

Nail. Remove paper. Hang frame. Repeat. 

& soon you'll have a gallery wall :)

Easy Peasey, right? I adjusted mine a tiny bit at the end.. decided to go for a non symmetrical look (Top Photo). What do you think guys??

A Magical Makeover

 

The magical world of a move can come with a few hefty price tags. So it's wise to cut costs everywhere possible.

Thus I present: the magical makeover! From chair on the left (a hand me down from the neighbors) to the very Annie chair on the right: it took a can of white spray paint, a clearance patterned fabric, staples and a staple gun, and a little extra stuffing from the basement. What do you think!?

tinkering with tools.

i moved back in to oxford last week for my FINAL year of school. armed with an electric drill, an art savvy little sister and a knowledgeable mother, we took to the decorations ourselves.. as we have never done before. despite the odd pinging sounds (very similar to what a water pipe from the bathroom on the other side of this wall may sound like when hit by a drill), the eight hour day (thanks mom and coll), and the lack of experienced supervision, our finished product is something quite spectacular.

look out world.. i became mechanically savvy last week (: