Sunday, September 26, 2010

Show Off Sunday Party

Welcome to my 3rd Show Off Sunday Party!  I am looking forward to seeing the great projects from this week.  We had 33 entries last week, thank you again to everyone who linked up last week.  I am hoping to get to 50 this week, so please invite your friends to join us this week.

I am sorry that I won't be posting my favorite posts from last week.  I spent all week on the road driving from California to Virginia.  I promise next week I will have more time and I will be able to post my favorites. 
Thanks for coming to my linky party!  Feel free to post anything you would like from: home decor, crafts, recipes, thrift store finds, great before and afters, etc.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Now the not so fun part, rules.
Here are the simple rules: (I hate rules!)
* Add my blog or button to your link. Or don’t. Sidebar. Separate tab. I don’t care. Just put a link to my site somewhere on your blog so others can come party with us!
* Link directly to your post, not your blog. If you want to link to your BLOG, click here and link away!

Let the fun begin!!!! 

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Tip Of The Week

TIP OF THE WEEK 

This weeks tip of the week comes from my mom.  Whenever one of us kids moved out, she would give us one of these jars for our new apartments.  She even gave one to a close friend of mine. 


We call them magical jars of everything.  While the jars were generally decorated in some way, but they served more than a decorative purpose.  Each jar had a bunch of random things in it, from nails, screws, brackets, picture hangers, hooks, picture frame wire, drywall anchors, etc.  These are the greatest things ever, especially for someone who is moving out on their own for the first time.   When you move out you may not have screws or nails and didn't think of getting some prior to moving.  You never know when you will need a random screw to hang up a picture or fix something in your first apartment. 


I have had my jar for years and over the years I have filled it with additional random items as I have come across them.  I also have added a little organizer for all my screws, nails, hooks, etc. but I always go back to my magical jar of stuff.  


I am sure that when I have kids one day that are moving out on their own, I will pass down the magical jar of everything traditional to my children. 

See you next week! Have a great week! :)

Saturday, September 18, 2010

Show Off Sunday Party

Welcome to my 2nd Show Off Sunday Party!  I am looking forward to seeing the great projects from this week.  Our 1st Show Off Sunday was a huge success.  We had 38 entries, thank you again to everyone who linked up last week.  I am hoping to get to 50 this week, so please invite your friends to join us this week.

My favorites from last week are:
My first pick is All Things Home Master Bath Wall Art. I love the use of empty frames as art work. 




My Second favorite pick from last week is Envy My Cooking's Artichoke Dip.  I can't wait to make it.




My third and final favorite pick from last week is Lemon Tree Creation's Fall Planter Box.  The color is amazing, great project. 




Next Sunday I’ll post my favorite projects from this week's party!


Thanks for coming to my first ever linky party!  Feel free to post anything you would like from: home decor, crafts, recipes, thrift store finds, great before and afters, etc.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Now the not so fun part, rules.
Here are the simple rules: (I hate rules!)
* Add my blog or button to your link. Or don’t. Sidebar. Separate tab. I don’t care. Just put a link to my site somewhere on your blog so others can come party with us!
* Link directly to your post, not your blog. If you want to link to your BLOG, click here and link away!

Let the fun begin!!!!


Friday, September 17, 2010

New Ballard Designs Catalog

Did anyone else get their new Ballard Designs Catalog today?  My October 2010 catalog came today and I am in love.  As most of you know we are moving in a few days to Virginia which means I get a new house to decorate!!  I am so excited.  Plus I have an additional 1000 sq ft to decorate, as our new home is bigger than the home we are leaving in CA. 

I love going through different catalogs looking for inspiration.  I go through a magazine and circle things I like or rip out pages of rooms or looks that I really like.  I will take all the pages and put them in my idea binder.  I will have to show you guys that one day.  

While going through my October 2010 catalog I found a few things that I loved and thought that I would share them with you.  I especially love some of the new items from Suzanne Kasler, their new designer.  Here are the items or looks that I loved:

Page 7 ~ Green Bedroom


Page 13 ~ Sepia Botanical Canvases

Page 15 ~ Document Lamp Shade
Page 16 ~ Magnetic Boards

Dream Living Room

Another Dream Living Room

I have shared one of my favorite inspiration catalogs, whats yours?  Where do you draw your decorating inspiration from?

Thursday, September 16, 2010

New Mirrors From Big Lots

While at Big Lots the other day I came across these great silver mirrors for only $5 each., what a steal of a deal!


I have been wanting something to place over my dresser in our bedroom, for a while now.   When I saw these mirrors, I knew they would be perfect to go with the silver sage and brown decor we have in our bedroom.  


I purchased two mirrors to place on the wall above my dresser, for just $10.  Usually you can't find one great mirror for under $10 much less 2 mirrors for $10.  To finish off my dresser I added two vases that I got at Home Goods for $11.99 that match the silver sage bedding that I purchased from Restoration Hardware.  I also found a little vase with white hydrangeas in the clearance section at my local Target for $4.  


This is one of my favorite corners of my home, I love the way the mirrors reflect the light in our bedroom and coordinate with the other decor items in our room.


What great finds have you found at your local Big Lots?

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Tip Of The Week

TIP OF THE WEEK
 
As part of some of the changes to my blog this month, I wanted to start a weekly feature.  My weekly feature is going to be the Tip of the Week!

Every week I am going to share with you a great tip that I have found helpful.  If you have a great tip you would like me to share please forward it to me and I will be more than happy to share your tip and a link to your blog. 

Now to my first tip.  Every time you buy bedding or curtains they come in these great heavy duty plastic bags.  I always keep these bags to reuse late on.  I keep the bedding bags to store my winter bedding.  Every summer I pull our heavy blankets off the bed and I need something to store them in after I wash them.  These comforter bags are great for storing your washed blankets, it keeps them clean and dust free while being stored.



The bags also come in handy for our move.  I put all of our bedding back in it's original bag to keep the bedding clean during the move.


I also keep the bags for storing extra bedding.  I like to change our guest room bedding around frequently, which is why I generally buy neutral bedding and colorful accessories.  I can change the bedding but keep the colorful accessories and still get a new room.




The curtain bags are great for storing curtains that you aren't using.  I used ours for our move.  It was a great way of keeping the curtains clean and dust free while in the moving boxes.



Next time you are about to throw away these great heavy duty storage bags, STOP!!!  They may have a double duty use in your house.

I hope you will stop by next Wednesday for another Tip Of The Week!


Sunday, September 12, 2010

Show Off Sunday Party

I am so excited to kick off House of Thrifty Decor's first ever Show Off Sunday Party!!  I can't wait to see what great projects everyone has been working on.

Next Sunday I’ll post my favorite projects from this week's party!


Thanks for coming to my first ever linky party!  Feel free to post anything you would like from: home decor, crafts, recipes, thrift store finds, great before and afters, etc.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Now the not so fun part, rules.
Here are the simple rules: (I hate rules!)
* Add my blog or button to your link. Or don’t. Sidebar. Separate tab. I don’t care. Just put a link to my site somewhere on your blog so others can come party with us!
* Link directly to your post, not your blog. If you want to link to your BLOG, click here and link away!

Let the fun begin!!!!

Friday, September 10, 2010

Making My Own Blog Button

I must admit I am not the best when it comes to HTML or doing creative things for websites.  One of my brothers is a graphic designer and my other brother works on computers for a living but I am not an expert in computers like they are.  I guess I got other genes.  Until now I didn't need to know about HTML and how to work a web-site but with my blog I have had to learn.
I have seen all the great buttons that other bloggers have on their sites, and I wanted one to.  Thus began my search on how to make one, because let's be honest I had no idea.  I found this great blog that shows you how.  
http://bloggingwithamy.com/how-to-make-a-blog-button/
She broke the process down into easy do able steps.  The first button I made didn't come out right it was very pixelated once I shrank it down.  I had to look for a better background that I could shrink down.  Well here is the final product, I hope you like it I am sure it will evolve in the coming months but not bad for my first try at this.
 Feel free to add my button to your blog.  Thanks

 
 

1 Month Anniversary

Wow I can't believe it has been a month since I started my blog!!  I am so touched that I already have 68 followers.  It has been a very busy month, but so much fun.  I want to thank all of my followers, family and friends for your support.  It has been a great first month and I can't wait to get to my 1 year anniversary!

I am ready to get our move cross country completed and share with you our new home in Virginia and to complete a few half done projects and share them with you.  I have a few great projects lined up for September.

I am constantly growing as a blogger and trying to make my blog more enjoyable for you my followers.  In the up coming month I am going to make a few changes to my blog to make it even better.  The first change will be starting a party link.   As you know I love a party not only in my blog world but in my personal life, I look for an excuse to have a party.  I also wanted to give my followers a venue to show off the fabulous projects they are working on. I hope you will join me on September 12th for Show Off Sunday with House of Thrifty Decor! 

Thank you again for all your support.  I can't wait to write more posts and to see what great projects you will share with me on Show Off Sunday with House of Thrifty Decor! :)

Thursday, September 9, 2010

I Just Added Feed Burner to My Bog!!

Happy Thursday everyone!  I can't believe the weekend is right around the corner, where does time go?

I wanted to tell you about new exciting change to my blog.  I just added Feed Burner to my blog on the right hand side.  I love this new feature because it will allow my followers to receive new blog posts via their e-mail.  Its a great way to keep up to date on whats going on at House of Thrifty Decor, without having to go to the web-site every day.

I hope that you will sign up for the Feed Burner service and enjoy reading my new posts from your e-mail.
Thanks
Laura

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

Can You Believe Fall Is Almost Here?

Wow, fall is coming soon.  It's Labor Day and we had wind, rain, and cold nights here in Northern California just a few days ago.  Just a few days earlier it was 100 degrees, it has been a strange weather year for sure.  With the changes in the temperature it has me in the mood to start thinking about and my fall decor.  Or maybe its because stores have all their fall items and even Christmas items out.  I can't even think about Christmas shopping yet.

In past years I haven't gone over board for fall decor because we lived in a condo and the HOA had strict rules on decorations.  I remember moving in 5 years ago and getting a letter about the pumpkin on my front door and how it broke the rules and regs in the community.  Fast forward to this year, we are in a home and I can't wait to decorate.  My husband even bought these really cool statues last year at Target for 90%, they were only $5.  I will say they weigh about 10-15 lbs each, but hey they were a steal of a deal.



Once we are a little closer to Halloween I plan on putting out our new Halloween and Fall decorations, so watch out for the upcoming posts.  To get some inspiration for decorations I can do after we move to our new home, I did a google search for some great ideas.  Here is what I found, hopefully they will inspire you as much as they have inspired me.


I like this idea, its very simple and easy to do.  Plus it won't take a lot of items to complete.  This would look great by our front door, or even on a table.




Look at all these leaves.  This door screams it's time for fall!  To put this look together you would need to purchase some leaf garland from your craft store or dollar store.  I have seen similar garland at our local dollar store, you.  This would be an item not to spend too much on as the leaves will get beat up a little bit by the elements.  Keep in mind you may not be able to use the garland year after year depending on where you live and the type of weather you receive.  What an impact these leaves make.




The bowl of mini pumpkins is so cute.  You will need a bowl, some foam, leaves (fake or real), mini pumpkins and berries to put this look together.   Its a simple way to put together a fall centerpiece.




Out of all the looks this is my favorite.  It is classy and simple.  I love this look!  It says fall but not too over the top.  I will be looking for a white pumpkin once we move to VA next week.




What is not to love about roses.  These beautiful yellow and orange roses are to die for.  I love the color variations.  This idea would be great on your Thanksgiving table.  You could put together this wonderful arrangement and take it to your next party as a hostess gift.  What hostess wouldn't love these flowers?




I like this look mainly because the dog is so cute!  I also love the stacked variety of pumpkins and gourds in the the background on the old chair.   Next time you pick up pumpkins look for them in a variety of colors, don't just get the standard orange.




I selected this one because the use of the bird cage.  I thought it was a great idea to use something that wasn't expected.   This look is very out of the box.




This look reminds me of my wreath that I use for the fall months.  I liked the use of the pumpkin hanging in the middle.  I might replace my ribbon this year and hang a pumpkin in the middle of my wreath.




This look inspired me because of the multiple layers in this display.  I like the use of different items, colors, and textures.  It really adds depth to this display.  It also showcases using existing landscaping and turning it into your fall holiday display.


I really hope that this photos I found online have inspired you as much as they have inspired me.  Please share withe me your favorite inspiration photos!







Tuesday, September 7, 2010

What To Do With Cake Stands?

I don't know about you but we have three cake stands in our home.  Way more than one person needs.  Although they do come in handy around the holiday time, the rest of the year they just sit in my cabinets.




I recently bought this great hutch/wine cabinet that matched our kitchen table in the clearance center at RC Willey.  I loved this piece at the price was really great.  Once we got it into the home I had no idea what to place on the top of it.




While cleaning out our kitchen cabinets I found my large cake stand that turns into a punch bowl and two little cake stands left from our wedding.  These three great pieces take up tons of precious storage space in my kitchen.  As you see we don't have much cabinet space.



I decided to display the cake plates year around on my new hutch.  Not only did it free up two cabinets but I also got to display some of my glass pieces.






To finish up my display I found these great prints at Homegoods for $15.99 each.  I think they are really nice and add to the final look of this previous empty corner.






Next time you are looking for decor for your kitchen, look around your cabinets for items you can display and use in your kitchen.  Double duty decor not only saves money but can save space in your kitchen cabinets.

Monday, September 6, 2010

What To Do With An Old Entertainment Center

Happy Monday everyone!  

WAIT!!!  Are you going to throw out your old entertainment center?!?  Don't I have a great idea on how to reuse it.


Like most families we bought a new HDTV about a few months ago.  When we bought it home I realized that this monster 46" TV my husband bought wasn't going to fit into our entertainment center.  My perfect 27" TV that I have had for 10 years fit beautifully, but as my husband reminded me I needed to get a TV made in this century.  

What were we going to do with this monster entertainment center and matching book cases? I purchased the set from Lowes many years ago.  I had labored for days putting these heavy alder wood pieces together.  Plus the center was under $150 and such a good deal.  My husband wanted to put the furniture out in the dumpster or sell it at the yard sale.  After saying no a few times, I finally realized where we could us it.  In our rental home there was an option to make the formal dining room into a 4th bedroom, the owner decided not to do the extra bedroom but they still made a spot for the door to go.  It was crazy we had this strange alcove in our home.  I never could figure out what to do with it.   The entertainment center can fit!



So we pushed it in there and lined up the bookcases on the right hand side.  It looked great and many people don't even know there is a strange unfinished door way there.  There is about a foot between the back of the entertainment center and the wall, but you would never know it.  



I decided that I needed a space for all of my crafts.  So I picked up these great clear storage boxes and labeled them.  It really helps having everything in one place, and now everything has a home.   The labels are great to, there is no wondering what is in each box plus I can see through the boxes.


The width of the center is perfect for holding my wrapping paper.  I added this great tension rod to hang my wrapping paper and ribbon that I use regularly.   I really could use another one but for right now this works.  Once I get into the Christmas season I may add a few more to hang all my wrapping paper for the season.


I had this plastic jar sitting in the garage.  It works great for all those extra pieces of ribbon that I had floating around.  No more hunting down small pieces of ribbon.


So the next time you are thinking of throwing away your old entertainment center because you don't have room for it or your new TV won't fit in it think about reusing it in another way.  An entertainment center makes a great craft storage place and a wrapping center.

***Parties I'm link to. ***

Between Naps on the Porch
Making The World Cuter
Sumo’s Sweet Stuff
The DIY Showoff
Skip To My Lou
Keeping it Simple Thrifty Treasures
Mad in Crafts
I’m Topsy Turvy
Craft Edition-Sugar Bee

Wednesday, September 1, 2010

Under $500 Room Make Over




I was writing this post about redoing our dining room for under $500 when an e-mail came in about a post on Funky Junk Interiors regarding Are Dining Rooms a Dying Breed?  Well in our house I am afraid they are.  

We are currently renting our home and when the homeowner purchased the home she had an option of a 4th bedroom or formal dining room, she picked the dining room.  I personally would have picked the 4th bedroom, but that's not important.  

When we moved in I had set up the room as a dining room.  But soon realized that besides Thanksgiving and Christmas we don't use the room.  I did however have some left over furniture from our condo and needed a home for them.  So we decided to ditch the dining room and go with a den/craft storage place.  

I decide to just try and spend $500 or less on the room, and also incorporate a few things I had left over from past rooms that were over 5 years old.  If it was over 5 years and I wasn't using it in this room or in another room of the house it needed to go to the thrift store.  This was all part of my idea of getting rid of stuff in case we moved, well we all know that I am moving across country!

First I wanted a sitting area or someplace for the dogs to sit and look out the window every morning. ;)  As it turns out the dogs use the couch more than I do. We went to RC Willey  where I knew we would find a good price on a couch that wouldn't brake the bank.

  If you don't live in California, Nevada, or Utah I am sorry but you are missing out on an awesome store.  RC Willey has the most amazing clearance center and customer service.  Their store is decorated beautifully into groupings and they rotate their merchandise all the time.  Any floor models are then put into clearance.  They also take returns to the clearance center, we got a $1900 leather Natuzzi couch for $800.  It was a return because the wooden leg had a scratch on it at time of delivery.  I didn't care it was nothing that a little marker wouldn't fix, and I turned the leg on the couch to the good side.  No one knows but you now.  I find that if I befriend the clearance staff they will call you when the good stuff comes in.  Our clearance gal Cameron called me the minute another Natuzzi couch came in, because we needed a second one.  I purchased before anyone else really saw it.

Sorry I ramble a bit, back to the couch.  So we went to the clearance center and found this awesome couch for $219, brand new it was just left overs from last season plus it came with free pillows.  I didn't mind if I had last summers couch in my den.   



Now I wanted a rug for the floor.  I had this rug from our condo and purchased it from Target about 5 years ago.  It was one of the first things I bought when I purchased the condo.  So I am going to count it as free.




Next I found this awesome coffee table and end table at Big Lots.  The pieces are made by Broyhill and part of the heritage heirloom fireside cherry collection.  It is an awesome collection that was discontinued.  We bought the floor model of the bedroom furniture from RC Willey.  When I saw the coffee table and end table at Big Lots I almost died.  I had to have them, so I waited until they were 70% and bought them.  The coffee table was $110 and the end table was $100.  A little more than I wanted to spend but I love the pieces and they will last a long time.


Next were the book cases and entertainment center.  I had these from my first apartment over 6 years ago.  They have been painted many times since I purchased them.  They were purchased at Lowes, when they used to carry furniture that you have to put together.  The pieces are solid alder wood and super heavy, I am reminded how heavy they are every time I move them.  All three pieces were purchased for under $150 on clearance.  The store clearances them out, and discontinuing them.  Originally I was missing a door to the bottom bookcase but the store gave me the display door because it was painted all difference colors and they had to throw it out.  My mom asked if we could have it and they said yes.  Yeah!  I am going to count this as free because well its over 5 years old. 



Next I wanted some wall art.  My husband fell in love with these two car pictures from RC Willey, they were $5 each and I couldn't resist.  They didn't go with my overall theme but when you are married sometimes you give in.  The other frames I bought at Home Goods.  They had boxed sets of 3 sized frames for $19.99.  I picked up two sets and hung 5 of the 6 frames in this room.  I still haven't gotten around to fill the frames, but trust me I have the photos.  



Behind the couch is out dining room table I needed a place to store it and this worked perfectly.  On top I added some fake flowers and rocks left from our wedding and a $5 vase from the thrift store.






Now for the grand total:

Couch               $219
Rug                  Free
Coffee Table   $110
End Table       $100
Bookcases       Free
Ent. Center     Free
Vase                 $5
Decor               Free
Pictures           $10
Frames            $40


Total $484 

Not bad for a new room.

***Parties I'm linking to.***