Mantle me that!

I've never liked our mantle. Maybe that's because we don't actually have a mantle. We have a shelf, awkwardly placed a foot above the fireplace. It's awkward. Unfortunately, we rent and the landlords put the shelf their. So we have to deal. Dealing has been much in the form of placing anything and everything that is within reach. And then topping it off with Tomas' ship, because he's in love with that thing.

Well, after almost 7 months of being here.. I've finally conquered the mantle (and replaced that ship). Here he is in all his beauty:

I am so happy with how this turned out (maybe I'm a little biased?). I could just sit here and oogle at my own mantle (awkward..). I made the sunburst mirror, the "Live" sign, and those antique books. Tutorials on all those coming soon..

I took the red glass balls out of the vase that used to be on the mantle and tossed them in a mason jar. I had picked up a bunch of mason jars at A.C.Moore a few months back when they were on sale for 99 cents. The old books on the left and the candle sticks were thrift store finds.

Note to self: Don't take pictures before sunrise.

And that's it. I'm so happy to finally like love my mantle!

Link parties! -

Via Carducci

Ever since my first attempt at a wooden sign I've been craving more. I stumbled upon this tutorial on how to give new wood that rustic look I love so much.. and knew exactly what I wanted to make next.


In what seems to be my never ending re-decorating of our bedroom and my attempt to personalize the space,  a 'Bolzano' sign seemed  perfect. This is where the Mr. and I first met. After sitting on that idea for a few days, I had an even better idea. And here she is:

 Via Carducci. It's the name of the street we lived on when we were in Bolzano. I think 'Via Carducci' is more romantic that just 'Bolzano' and adds a little mystery. Plus, I have an strange thing for Italian street signs, like these.. i just love them:

So without further ado, here's the how-to (unintentional rhyme (or not?)).

I picked up a piece of wood from Lowe's. Cut it in two. Painted it brown using watered down paint.

Dipped a paper towel in black paint and rubbed a bit of that in.

While letting it dry, I printed the letters for 'Via Carducci' then cut out a stencil using the stencil plastic paper I picked up from A.C.Moore a while back. Taped the stencil on the wood and painted black over. Truth be told, I had to do this twice. The first time I used acrylic paint and probably went a little too fast (I was excited for the finished sign!).  When I lifted up the stencil it had smeared alot. So I simply turned the sign over to the other side and started again. This time I was more careful and used the black paint from Lowe's.. this seemed to work better.

Then I impatiently let her dry..

I loved her so much that I tried her all over the house before going back to my original plan of putting her in our bedroom.

Now she rests on our dresser, with white hydrangeas next to her (no picture.. sorry). I still have the other half left. I have some ideas for this buddy.  You see, I like lists.. a Lot, with a capital L. Here's an embarrasing picture of what my little woman nook normally looks like.

What I really need is a place to keep my lists. So i thought hmmm... and added some post its on for size.

Seven post its. Seven days a week.. perfect fit? I'm thinking chalkboard paint? Or maybe white board paint?
For now this guy is hanging out at my desk until I figure out what to do with him.

Antiqued Books

I have a love affair with words. I have an even stronger love affair with books. Not only reading them, but I love love love a full bookcase. It just makes me happy.  So it should be no surprise that I spend way to much time in my life oogling over the decorative antique books that Pottery Barn and Restoration Hardware always use.

Via Pottery Barn

I. just. want. to. sit. on. the. floor. and. stare. at. those. books. TMI?

But seriously.. isn't it just amazing? Enough of my awkward fantasies..

Or not. I am also loving antiqued books.

I can't figure out where I got this from.. sorry!

Via Books for Decoration

Via Country French Antiques

Via Country French Antiques

They just add something wonderful to a room and make my heart sing.

Via Pottery Barn

Via Pottery Barn

Via Restoration Hardware

Via Restoration Hardware

Cheers!

What I've Been Up to Lately

I've got quite a few projects done or in progress over here. Just haven't gotten around to blogging!  I'm loving this 'Ghandi's Fundamentals to Change the World' print out I found. I'm still debating on the perfect frame.

 I spotted this table out back by the dumpsters and didn't think twice about bringing it home. The revamp is underway!

I have a love for words. And signs. I've finished this sign for our bedroom, and I am oh so in love with it!

Cheers!

Uneven, crooked, wonderful Pillows

I've wanted to make my own pillows for some time now. Eventually, I'd like to make some neat ones like this pottery barn 'nest' pillow:

But I figured I'd start simple. In redoing the bedroom I've decided I need to warm up the room a bit. We have brown wood but everything else is a white or light grey.. not much color and no warmth. So when I saw this red wool fabric at the store I snatched it up.  And here's the outcome:

 They're a little bit uneven.. and don't even get me started on how long it took me to sew that damn zipper on the last end.. but they are finally finished! And I'm lovin' how they look on the bed.

Thrifting!

Over Thanksgiving when my family was in town, my mom and I stopped at a few thrift stores in search of the perfect chair for my desk. And we found it! It's a little wooden chair, originally made in Sweden. It was all of $7.

It needs a little love..

and wood glue, but it has the perfect rustic look I love.

We also picked up a fake flower arrangement

 But don't worry, the fake flowers were quickly tossed (much to Mom's dismay) and my remotes found the home they've been looking for (rather than between the couch cushions).

Frames Galore

 

The wall above the cabinet in my woman cave / living room (above) was inspired from this shot in a Pottery Barn catalog:

 

 I was originally thinking I would do something like this in our bedroom, so I've been on the search for mirrors and frames for some time now. It wasn't until I reorganized the cabinet so that I could stow all my crafts, that I realized I needed something on the wall above. And I then I thought the frames would look perfect there instead of the bedroom.

 

I'm still waiting for the perfect idea to put into these frames, for now they're empty.. yet I still love them!

I love love books. I made sure I carefully picked out a few of my favorite books and a few books that I feel describe me at the moment. Dreams, Lithuanian, Tuscany, Running, Marriage, the World...

And some knick knacks I picked up at the thrift store a while back.

 

I'm loving it all so much right now, it makes the living room so much more homey!

Thanksgiving Preparation

Along with crossing off my new [wo]man cave and Radiate Love sign off my list in preparation for Thanksgiving. There were a handful of other little changes our casa saw.

I tried to spice up the Dining Room table, which was previously empty. I picked up a wooden tray from T.J. Maxx some time ago, then some balls from Pier 1. 

I finally redecorated the mantle. More on that later, but here's a sneak peak. 

We hung the mirror that used to be on the mantle in our bedroom.

I tried to find ways to decorate the guest room man cave that I'm not allowed to decorate (that's not decorated). A yellow plant in a Jack Daniel's bottle did the trick (and the Mr. actually liked it!).

With the rest of those flowers I threw them in an old wine glass and put it in the bathroom. I covered it with burlap because I can't figure out how to get the label off.