Bathroom Board and Batten Tutorial

It's been a crazy week around here and to top it off, our pup got sprayed by a skunk last night. Not fun. I had no idea that fresh skunk didn't smell like skunk at all. My house smells like old greasy chemicals. It's disgusting. Luckily, I think it's going away. It's really not the best smell to fall asleep to though. As for Max, he at least got his much needed bath that he hasn't had in awhile lol. I guess there's an upside to everything :)

I shared with you a few months ago my updated guest bathroom and how I did the top half. Now today, I'll show you how I did the bottom half.

 It's the weirdest thing going into this bathroom now. It used to have such a cramped feeling, but now with the paint and molding, I swear it's grown extra square footage. It's amazing what a few updates can do to do a room.

 I shared with you this tip before. Most base molding pieces don't have a good ledge for the mdf to sit on when you're doing board and batten. So, instead of replacing my base molding...which would be a pain...I just grabbed a piece of decorative molding and placed it on top of my current base molding with the widest edge up. Then when I sit the mdf for the board and batten down, it doesn't hang over :)

 So, after nailing down the new molding to the base molding, I then put up the vertical molding first. I found where I wanted the two tier look to start and end and measured out from there. When putting up the vertical molding, I made sure it was straight with my level and nailed it in where I could into studs. Of course, that's optimal but not always a choice, so on the ones that I couldn't, I used liquid nails to secure into place.

I then topped off the vertical pieces with the horizontal pieces. Nailing each piece into a stud.

 For the top tier, in order to find the length I needed for the shorter vertical pieces, I place the first piece of horizontal molding up. I then found the length of the vertical pieces and cut all the pieces I needed at this length.

 I placed the smaller vertical pieces up next, making sure they were in line with the longer ones.

 I then topped off the vertical pieces with the other horizontal pieces.

For the ledge, which I think makes something good look great, I used a smaller width mdf (1x2). I laid the pieces down on top of the horizontal pieces already attached to the wall making a ledge.

 Instead of putting the 2" side against the wall, it was placed against the mdf as you can see below:

To finish it off even more, I used some decorative corner molding right under the 1x2. 

 Next I filled in all the gaps, joints, and nail holes with some puddy and sanded them down.

 I ended up painting this bottom portion Pebble White by Glidden. It's not a stark white; it has just enough warmth to it.

After painting, I filled in the seams with some white caulk to give it a more finished look.

I can't get over the finished product. I love this bathroom so much. I'd much rather use this one over my master bath any day :) TMI? lol I guess maybe it's about time to do something with my master bathroom then, huh? :)

Cute Storage Boxes from Old Boxes and Sweaters

Does January seem like the 'get it organized' month for you? It does for me. Every single January it feels like I'm in high organization mood. This January is no different; now it's just a little more focused on storage too. With this little babe coming around I'm starting to realize how much more storage I need since our house completely lacks it...but that's all for a different post :)

I'm obsessed with little containers, boxes and baskets to store (hide) anything and everything. I'm constantly on the lookout for them when I go shopping. The other day I realized that it might just be somewhat of a waste of money :) Especially with two babes in diapers, I have a gazillion boxes hanging around. Plus, I have the phobia of getting rid of things so I have a ton of sweaters too. I decided to save a little bit of money and reuse and recycle what I already had into some super cute storage!

 I started off just cutting off the top flaps of one of the diaper boxes. The easiest way I found to do this was with a knife/razor blade.

 I then put the box into the sweater and marked where I wanted to cut it. The cut mark was about 2 inches or so taller than the box. This left enough room for the sweater to fold over into the box.

 I then laid out the sweater and cut it as straight as I could at that line.

 Since the bottom of the sweater is hemmed, I chose to put that at the bottom of the box since you'll see it, and since I know it's straight. I secured the sweater all around the box with some hot glue. If the sweater is too tight, you can stretch it. If it's too big for the box, you'll have to do an extra step and cut off some excess fabric. This sweater fit the box perfectly.

 Once the bottom was glued on, I folded the sweater over into the box and secured it with some glue also.

 I decided to finish the raw edge off with some cute ribbon. I just hot glued the ribbon all along the edge on the inside of the box.

 For the handles, I had a few ideas of what to do, but this ended up being the quickest. It's not necessarily the most functional since you can't really use the handles if you have a ton of weight in the box...but it still made it look cute :) I used some rope and twirled it around and then knotted it on both ends. I then just hot glued it directly onto the sweater.

 I was going to use this for some toys, but decided that it fits diapers (duh) perfectly. And it's a ton better than just grabbing them out of the old box or bag or floor...or wherever they end up being :)

 Now that I had this crazy realization that I can make super cheap boxes, I'm excited to make some more for a little cube organizer I have. I haven't been able to find any white fabric storage cubes for them anywhere and it's been driving me nuts! So, instead, I might just have to make some with these boxes and some old sweaters :)  I just hope I have enough old sweaters...

Pin for later!

DIY Knock-off Nailhead Trimmed Upholstered Headboard

I'm slowly finishing up some projects in my master bedroom. It's sooo close to being done. I've thought it was done a few months ago, but then realized how much I needed storage. So more and more changes have come about. But, this headboard has been one that was sitting undone for months now. I showed you the headboard when I shared my Rast dresser Ikea Hack with you, but it wasn't completely finished. The reason? I just kept forgetting to grab the trim every time I went to Hobby Lobby. Lame. Yes :) lol.

 This is going to be a semi-tutorial and then links to how to do the rest of the headboard since I just used two different ways and combined them into this one. Here's the tutorial on how to do the full upholstered headboard for under $20. And here's the link on how to do the curved headboard, which I'll share some portions with you below :)

First, grab your plywood the length you need to cover the size of your bed and the height you want. Then take the corners and grab a marker attached to a piece of string. Put the end of the string on one of the top corners and then mark your curve. Do this on the other corner also.

 Cut out the curves with a jigsaw.

 Follow the above tutorial for how to finish upholstering your headboard. It even offers a great trick on how to add the fake tufts.

Most people wonder how I have the headboards stand up. I just attach two 2x4s on the back of the headboard. The best time to do this is at the beginning before upholstering since you will drill from the plywood down into the 2x4s. If you want to attach it to your frame, make sure the wood is measured in line with it and use a drill to make some larger holes for the bolts.

 Now for the trim. This trim is $3 or so a yard at Hobby Lobby. Get it with your coupon and it becomes way cheap :) I grabbed 4 yards for just around $7.

 I used a white pencil to mark 1.5" all around the entire headboard. This is going to be where the trim is placed.

 I then hot glued the trim all around the headboard. At the corners, I cut the trim and started the down or upwards line again. It just made for a smoother look. On most of the trim, I hot glued every 4th or 5th 'nailhead'. For the curves, it ended up being almost every other one, just so it laid down smoothly.

 The 4 yards was the perfect length for my queen headboard, but it's always smart to grab a little more just in case :)

This headboard was actually quite cheap for me since I ended up using the old plywood and batting from the headboard that was originally here. Total out of pocket this time around? About $15. Not bad, huh? :)

Here's my almost complete master bedroom. I added a bench in place of the chairs since it has storage. I'll be happy and call it done when I finally get around to making the other Rast dresser that's been sitting in the garage for 2 months. Truthfully, when you are pregnant, things like that just don't rock your boat as much as they used too lol.

 The fabric I chose for the headboard was just a linen found at Hobby Lobby for under $7 a yard, then of course...I used a coupon :) I found a similar fabric at Walmart of all places for like $2.50 a yard only 6" shorter in width. But if you are working with a smaller headboard, that would totally work.

The trim also comes in 3 different colors. Chrome, like mine, brass and kind of an oil rubbed bronze. And it does come in squares also!

So, what is this headboard going to cost you?
Plywood: $8/$9
Batting: $6 (or more depending on how plush you want it)
Fabric: as low as you can find :)...or high. Mine was about $10
Nailhead Trim: $7
2x4s: $3

So under $30. But that's making it really really basic with the cheapest fabric you can find and not doing double batting. I would double up the batting if you want some cushion. So, around $40. Not bad considering I've seen similar headboards going for over $500 at Pottery Barn and Ballard Designs. :)

Winter White: Decorating Between Christmas and Spring

I often have troubles deciding how to decorate in between Christmas and Spring time. If you think about it, this time really has no big decorating theme like Christmas or Fall does. So, when all of the Christmas items are put away, what's next? Well, you all know how much I love white for decorating. It's a good thing that I have 20 foot ceilings and don't ever feel like painting them or else all my walls would be painted white along with almost all my furnishings being white. For me, white not only works well for Summer, but it works perfectly as well for Winter. Meet Winter White :)

Of course, you don't want your house feeling too cold which is what all white can bring, so a great way to warm it up is with textures, other neutrals, layers, and pops of color.

Bring In Textures
I love this room because of all the white with the wood accents. This of course can be done a much smaller scale with wood and white accessories.

(source: House Beautiful)

The textures of the rug and the wood bring in much needed warmth to this living room. Even the texture in the wreath warms up the painted brick fireplace.

(source: Country Living)

Play With Neutrals
Here's a great way to keep mostly everything white but bringing in other neutrals such as greys and creams. I would die for that ceiling!

 (source: Romantic Home)

Here's a beautiful neutral bedroom with pops of gold, wood and browns.

(Source: House Beautiful)

This bedroom offers some easy decorating ideas to bring white into your room without changing your furniture. Just change out your bedding from some white linen and swap out your accessories with some white ones like the white flowers in the white vases shown here.

(Source: HGTV)

Layering
Here's a great way of layering. Not just adding pillows and blankets, but also by layering the windows with curtains and bamboo shades. Even adding all the piles of books works as layering also.

(Source: House Beautiful)

This living room offers so many ways to decorate with white while still keep it cozy. There's tons of textures and layering going on.

(Source: HGTV)

Add Pops of Color
To me this bedroom just screams comfort and style. Not only is the texture in here amazing, brought in by the rug and bench, but the pop of color from the flowers is perfect.

(Source: Elle Decor)

This kitchen offers a great example of adding pops of color into an all white color scheme. The turquoise in the dishes and the pinks and greens in the flowers keeps it from looking too sterile.

 

(Source: BHG)

Now I'm all for keeping everything white and neutral, but of course that's not practical for most people. So, a great way to play up this Winter White in your home is to bring it in through accessories. Change out your curtains; add a nice plush white throw to the couch; make some new shams for your accent pillows; switch out accessories on bookshelves. 

I'm excited to show you what I've done around my house in the upcoming weeks to bring Winter White in :) Let's just see if this baby get's here before then or not.

Old Traditions and New Traditions: Luminarias

The hubs and I started a few traditions when we first got married. The main tradition was not putting up the Christmas tree until Thanksgiving night. I loved this idea, but then soon realized that it was me and only me putting up the tree :) He just brought it up from storage and was done. Now that we have our little girl and another on the way, we are thinking more and more about traditions we want to bring into our house during the holidays. The first was celebrating the Dutch tradition of Sinterklaas. Next, was opening up pajamas on Christmas Eve. I remember getting to open up one present on Christmas Eve when I was little like it was yesterday. We got to pick whatever present we wanted. I ended up opening some purple pompoms. It's probably the strongest Christmas memory I have growing up. So, I love the idea of having our girls open up a present every Christmas Eve...even if it's always pajamas :) Maybe we'll add a movie and some goodies in with them when they get older.

Another tradition I want to start this year is putting up luminarias. I grew up in a town that put out luminarios every Christmas instead of hanging Christmas lights. It's so magical seeing them on roofs of every building around and lining driveways everywhere. It's also just as fun to help put them out, especially when you're a kid. What kid doesn't like fire and sand? :) Also, my husband's old neighborhood had a group that used to put out luminarias on everyone's driveway on Christmas Eve. So, I decided this year to start the tradition back up...luminarias every Christmas Eve. It'll be a great way to tie in new traditions with the girls with our old traditions long ago.

I'm sure many of you may have heard of luminarias (or as we always called them, luminarios) and know what they are. But for those of you who don't, they are super simple things. Just lunch bags with tea lights in them. Nowadays, you can buy the string lights that stake into your grass and then put the bag on them, but I'm going to keep the tradition how I remember it and put out the bags with sand and tea lights.

Here's what I used for mine: White lunch bags, glitter snowflakes for decor, sand and tea light candles.

 The process is pretty self-explanitory. Glue on the snowflakes and then put sand in the bag and light the candle! We always folded the bags top edge over for a cleaner look.

Of course, since these are paper bags and candles, be careful :) Out of all the years of growing up, I don't ever remember a bag burning up, maybe the mound of sand helps? I know it helps keeps the bags from blowing away. But, if there's a concern, you can always go the route of battery lights or strung lights.

I'm excited to get these outside in a just a few nights! I'm even more excited to have the girls help with them in years to come...I'm sure they'll have a lot of fun decorating them too :)

Happy Holidays!