{fun wrapping idea}

One of my goals for December was to come up with a fun, creative wrapping idea... & I think I found it!

I'm a fan of using just plain butcher paper as a wrapping, but since it's so simple, I wanted to add a little somethin' somethin' to them.  This weekend I had to wrap a few gifts for my church's "giving tree", so I knew they'd be transported & shuffled around. Because I didn't want to risk them losing a bow or tag...

...I taped a ribbon!

^^blog photography at it's finest: my roommate's legs, chipped nails, & empty lemonade bottles

All I used was some washi tape, which I bought on Amazon a few weeks ago, & scissors!  Washi tape is colored, thin tape & one of the most versatile materials ever.

I'm already running out of rolls—I've been using it that much.

Just a super simple, but festive wrapping idea that I thought I'd share!

{lively interiors: my gallery wall}

I'm so excited to show you my gallery wall today!  It's not at ALL finished, but it's a good start. I've collected frames, prints, & paintings for about two years now, so I had quite the selection to choose from. It was hard to decide what to hang!

Since I had so many frames, I had to first figure out a layout. My room looked like this many nights:

After about five different layouts, I felt like the wall looked too crowded. It was also totally unbalanced, {aka the left side}, so I shifted everything over & eliminated a few small photos. In the end, I was totally over-thinking it & making myself crazy, so I just grabbed a hammer, some nails, & started hanging.

Here's the wall before:

And now the after!

I decided to do all white & tan frames, since they would pop against the gray, & not do black frames. {The idea of black frames with all that dark brown trim in the room had me feeling stressed.} I also hung two hangers that brought in more wood tones. The calendar already came with the frame, so I mimicked the look with just a regular pants hanger I had in the closet. I love that it matches one another in a quirky way, while not making the wall too frame-heavy. The best part? You can change up the art whenever you want! 

^^"be happy" painting by me

1. calendar from a local SF store

2. childhood photo

3. childhood photo

4. paint-by-numbers by Dylan & I

5. childhood photo

6. section of my watercolor sketch book…just my practice doodles

7. IKEA print

8. IKEA print

I'm going to hang some additional frames/mirrors on the thin slab of wall to the right of my bed, as well as add one more photo {or two?} below the butterfly print. But I'm not in a rush. I'm very happy with how it looks for now. It makes the room feel so much more homey! 

If you're curious about the other side of my room, here's one corner. Since I was hanging everything else, I finally got around to putting up a mirror.

^^vogue painting by me, framed shells are by my aunt

Thanks for looking & reading! If you have any more questions about where I got anything or how I decided to hang them, leave a comment! 

{vintage lamp makeover}

Since my room only has one window & a tiny light fixture, I needed more light! Specifically one by my bed. I almost ran to Target & bought one for $40, but I decided to mosey over to Goodwill to see if they had anything. 

They did!

$10 of beaded, dated, ugly goodness. Get rid of the shade & this thing is a gem.

{BTW…I totally carried this lamp on the bus ride home. Sans bag {because SF is anti-plastic/paper bag & I never remember to carry an eco-friendly one} & I got LOTS of fun stares.} 

^^just a few cracks, but nothing a little paint can't fix

The next day I braved the rain & stopped by a flea market I'd heard great things about. 30 steps in I found this pink, vintage beauty. It's over 20 years old, allows an abundance of light {obviously} & is oh so gorgeous. The pink? I die.

I came home, rolled up my sleeves, & spray painted the heck out of the stand. Good as new. But when I pulled the painting tape off of the base, I accidentally ripped off the felt bottom. I was mad at myself for 5 seconds, but then I saw this:

A happy mistake. I just so happened to have some sturdy black felt, so I traced the base & stuck it right back on.

Perfect!

For $20 total, I'm so happy with this little makeover. It not only allows ample light, but it looks amazing too.

obsessed with those curves^^

Fits right in!

^^notice anything else? :)

{a little dresser update}

I love IKEA, but I hate that "standard" look. I don't want someone to walk into my room & think…oh, that's from IKEA. You know? My dresser does that, & it was time to do something about it.

After finalizing the colors in my mood board, I've been looking for anything coral to add to my room. Lo & behold…Anthropologie had something. Knobs, to be exact. In the sale section.

In CORAL.

And they only had six left!

Meant to be.

You have to wait a little bit longer to see the full thing. But it was the perfect pop of color that was needed. Does it still look like it's from IKEA? Heck yes. But it's not as boring as it was before. I have one more idea for this dresser that I'm mulling over, but for now, the knobs are good enough.

**Sorry for the terribly colored photos. Ugh. 

{diy project: faux blue opaline glass}

Have you ever read the blog Little Green Notebook? It's one of my current faves. She's an amazing interior designer & ultimate DIY-er & I'm currently lusting after her new herringbone floors.

A few weeks ago she blogged about how to make faux blue opaline glass. I fell in love. The top of my dresser has been a crazy mess these days. By the time I get home from work, I all but throw my jewelry off on top of it. So between papers & receipts & books…my valuables are not placed where they should be. I needed better, pretty organization…& this was perfect!

This project is so easy & cheap. All you need are clear, glass bowls & spray paint.

I went to the Salvation Army & got the four below for $4.50. Total steal. Here's the whole process in pictures & captions...

^^clean each thoroughly before painting!

 ^^only paint the outside of the bowls!!

 ^^a couple of thin coats should do the trick

^^perfect edges

Don't they look great?!

All credit goes to Jenny. 

{diy project: armoire makeover, part III}

{Part I}
{Part II}

The fun & final part! Knobs!

My mom & I headed to one of my favorite places for knobs...Anthropologie!

We thought that since we went a little boring on the color of the armoire, we could be more adventurous with the hardware. We walked in thinking color! patterns! fun!

There were lots of gorgeous options, but we narrowed it down to two:

This crystal octagon knob:

& one very similar to this golden metallic knob:

^^I can't find the actual knob online, so this'll have to do.

To be safe, I bought four blue knobs & two gold knobs, that way I could try them out. But I already picked: I was in love with the blue crystal knob. I pictured it in my mind on the dresser & thought it looked so chic. I thought it was the perfect mix between vintage-y & bold. It was just the pop the armoire needed! 

Fist-pumping the air, I walked out of Anthro ready to see them on the dresser in person.

After trying out both, the clear winner was...GOLD! I was so wrong! Don't you agree that it just looks better? The blue knobs just made the armoire look...cheap. Or something else I can't think of the word for. 

Once all of the gold knobs were on, I was finally 100% happy with the end result. I love it! I wish I could fly it out to San Francisco :)

The whole process was so fun & really a lot less complicated than I thought it would be. Full disclosure: this took me two months. It could've taken two days. Ha! But I had such a blast working on it with my mom, that I'm glad it took a long time :)

Here's the final before & after:

If you have any other questions about this project, feel free to ask!