Bathroom Makeover

After having the classic 'beach theme' bathroom for several years, I decided I wanted a bathroom makeover. I had no idea, at first, what I wanted to switch to, but I thought something with purple would be nice. I started with my poppy picture and pieced together an elegant poppy, purple and orange bathroom.

  When I got my first apartment on my own, I was excited to decorate in themes and colors of my choice. I picked seashells and beach colors for the bathroom and found three seashell art pieces online for just $5 each and free shipping. Even when I first bought them, I knew I could easily paint over them when I wanted something different to look at. And that's exactly what I did as I redid my bathroom look.

  I started by completely painting one of the pieces completely tan;

I wanted to create a 'wooden pallet' look to the already wood square.
  After the paint had dried, I sanded it down a bit and put on a second coat. While the paint was still wet, I brushed in strokes of darker shades of brown to make it look like wood grains and knots. I used different sized paint brushes and, for some spots, brushed in a circle, let it dry a little, then brushed it out. Once I was happy with how it looked, I let it dry overnight, before starting to outline the lettering.
  I had seen this quote on a canvas at Target about a year ago and I loved it. I think it is a great reminder to have hanging next to the bathroom mirror, so that I see it each morning as I'm getting ready for the day.
  First, I measured out three sections and penciled in straight lines. Then I started penciling in the words. There was a lot of erasing and adjusting to get the letters (mostly) centered and to give each letter a calligraphy look. It was a lot of close-up work; I had to keep setting it down and coming back to it, so that I didn't get a headache. It was a few days to get all the letters penciled and painted on, but well worth it!

This bathroom feels super relaxing, happy, and inspirational.
I also added a picture that a friend made me as a Christmas gift.
He used mirror paint on the frame's glass, then painted in the
words from a stencil - absolutely perfect!

Flannel & Lace Scarf

After my last Plaid & Lace Scarf (made from old shirts), I knew I wanted to make another one, but softer and bigger. I looked online and in-store for the perfect materials. Sure, it costs more than hitting up the thrift stores, but I got exactly what I was hoping for!

I bought 2 yards of the flannel fabric at fabric.com. I wanted to make sure I had enough for the length I needed to be able to wrap the scarf. I even have plenty extra that I might make a couple baby blankets with it.

The flannel is so soft and the colors are perfect for fall!

I cut out a piece approximately 9" x 72" to get the size scarf I was wanting.

I found the lacy material at Joann's; it wasn't exactly the 'lace' that I'd had in mind, but when I saw the stitching on it, it matched the plaid so nicely that I couldn't pass it up! Rather than buy another two yards of that, I just stitched two pieces together.

I sewed the flannel and lace into a long tube, gave it one twist, then sewed the ends together. The twist makes it so both materials show once I put the scarf on.

It could not have turned out more perfectly!

Fall Candle Holders

I'm so excited with how awesome these candle holders turned out!

Last year, my sister decorated some jars with colored rice and un-popped popcorn; I thought it was so pretty and wanted to try it this year.

I started by mixing uncooked, white rice with a couple drops of food coloring and a couple drops of rubbing alcohol. (If you're worried about kids or pets getting into it, I read that white vinegar will also work.) I kept some white rice and made yellow and orange for the traditional candy corn colors. I laid the colored rice out on paper towels to let it dry completely. If you use vinegar, it will need a lot longer dry time; that's why I decided on the alcohol - plus, the rice for this project will be completely sealed off.

I headed to my area dollar store and craft stores to find a perfect, candy-corn-shape container... It ended up being some wine glasses turned upside down - perfect for a candle holder!
For a base, to hold the rice in, I found some round mirrors that were just a bit larger that the glasses, but would work well anyway.

Pouring in the white rice first, then orange, then yellow, I had an upside down candy corn. I used my hot glue gun to glue the mirror on the top of the glass, then was able to turn the glass without any rice falling out.

       

Originally, I thought I'd leave the mirror visible, but I was a little fussy about the glue showing more that I expected.
Fortunately, I had some silk leaves that I had bought last year and never used, so I added those around the mirror and the ugly glue was hidden! Now I just have to remember not to pick them up from the top, just in case...

I think they turned out stunning! I sprinkled a few acorn and baby pine cones around the leaves to add to the fall look. I absolutely love them! Happy November, Friends.