Seasonal Decorating – Page 2

Dressing Your Thanksgiving Table – A Fall Tablescape

Here is a quick lineup of my Thanksgiving Tablescape – I did this one a couple of years ago and it was a big hit. A finely decorated table can add to the festive atmosphere. What are you plans this year? Tips Day One – Use what you already have. Tips Day Two – Get creative and use different colors, textures and shapes. Tips Day Three – Add items from the great outdoors. Tips Day Four – Vary heights and layer. Tips Day Five – Bring fall inside and mix and match unusual decor – owls, pinecomes and lanterns? Tips Day Six – Carry the prominent shape throughout. Tips Day Seven – Don’t forget the kids! Come visit me at ValFrania.com to see what other great things I have to offer you – I’m all about DIY and beautiful home decor that doesn’t break the bank! … Read more

A Bit of Couch Table Glitz

Every time I flip a piece of furniture, I wish I could find a permanent spot for it in my own home. I think this is common for anyone who turns an old out-dated piece into art. We put our heart and soul into it throughout the creative process. It’s something that you must experience before you understand. It’s even hard to see it go out the door when it sells. You feel like a piece of yourself is leaving. Of course the cash in hand is great as is the thought that someone else will enjoy your creation. But still. It’s an emotional moment. I find it quite funny that we would get so attached to a “thing”. But it’s true. A piece of ourselves goes out the door each time. Here is the before. We got it from our favorite shop in Door County here in Wisconsin. We … Read more

Outdated Cabinet Upcycled into a Cat Bed

It’s the same with babies and cats. They tend to take over your house. Cat bed, toys, littler box, tunnel…my kids think I’m nuts. They come over to my house and you have to step over all of Mia’s stuff. Let’s face it. Mia is my baby, so I enjoy seeing her lounge and play. Catadorn is my go-to shop for cat toys and accessories. So I had this idea that maybe others might like to have some furniture that has a duo-function. How about an end table that hides a cat bed when company comes over? Here is the before. I got it at a garage sale for just a few bucks. The picture looks kinda nice, doesn’t it? This is a case where the photo fools the eye. It’s was in pretty bad shape and needed help. I think it was supposed to look high end, but somehow … Read more

DIY Pumpkin Floral Centerpiece

They say the third time is the charm. So, here is my third flower arrangement I’ve shared with you – a DIY floral centerpiece. By showing you my first three attempts at flower arranging I’m hoping you’ll get the idea that you can do this too. HONESTLY…it really is quite easy. My little ceramic pumpkin turned floral centerpiece is the best yet. Here’s how I did it… I started with leaves around the bottom and then added a candle. It only took a few more flowers to make it fuller. I just kept moving them around until I was happy with it. The leaves were too big. I just didn’t like it and it didn’t really match the picture I had in my head. It was OK, but “OK” wasn’t good enough. So I took the leaves out and I knew it was done … Read more

Fall Floral Arrangement DIY Tutorial

I found this pot out in my mom’s a storage shed covered in dirt. It had sat in there many years and traveled here to Wisconsin from Michigan a few years ago unprotected in that little plastic shed. Here’s that little pot – it’s amazing the treasures you find sitting in a little plastic shed covered in dirt. Since Michaels had fall silk flowers at 80% off yesterday, I bought a bunch for that little pot along with a little ceramic pumpkin I bought from a consignment shop for $2.00. I started with flowers, two pots, some foam and a few picks. The only tool I used was a pair of tin snips that I used to cut the stems. I stuck one of the smaller flower bushes in the center of the foam and spread them out. Normally you would just cut them apart and arrange them, but I thought … Read more

Let’s Keep it Simple DIY Christmas Gift Wrap

An Oldie But Goodie from 2013 Three of years ago I was looking for something different than the usual gift wrap. Scouring the Internet for ideas turned out some great options. I settled on this: I wanted to had to keep it simple. Life was just too busy to be Christmas fancy. Most people just go out and buy a bunch of rolls of coordinating paper. But instead of going traditional, I decided to embrace – the KISS principal (keep it simple, stupid). The couple of rolls from last year wasn’t enough to work with, so a thrifty minimalist type of outlook was in order. Enter: builder’s paper – a plain brown roll paper. This one is from Amazon for $11.30 and it’s PRIME! It kinda looks like a brown paper bag, but quite a bit thicker and easy to work with. There is a ton of it on … Read more

Free Printable Christmas Gift Tags

Free Printable Christmas Gift Tags Is Christmas on your mind today? I love Christmas. Since this year has been hectic and unusally busy (as has been for you all, I would imagine), I'm giving you my gift tag FREE download to make your gift wrapping easier. Christmas Gift Tags for You Free Printable Christmas Gift Tags Just click on "Free Printable Christmas Gift Tags" below the pictures and I will send them to you via email as a PDF. I LINK TO THESE GREAT PARTIES

Simple DIY Christmas Decorations {Love My DIY Home}

5 Simple DIY Christmas Decoration Projects for December

Making your own holiday decorations is a great way to deck the halls with friends and family. There’s no need to waste money on store bought goods when similar and oftentimes superior products can be crafted in the comfort of your own home. Getting the family together to create holiday decorations creates a sense of togetherness, and the beautiful end result speaks for itself. If you love Christmas and DIY crafts, the following holiday project ideas are sure to satisfy your creative urges. Wrapping in Style Photo by PermaCultured via Flickr When we think about Christmas decorations, the first thing that comes to mind is usually the tree, but what about the gifts? Wrapping gifts with style turns your presents into an extra decoration in your home. Functional decorations such as this blur the line between holiday tradition and aesthetic, adding a whole new dimension to your decor. A … Read more

Holiday Crate x10 Challenge {Love My DIY Home}

Christmas DIY Wood Crate Challenge

We were challenged to take a plain wood crate and make it Christmas festive. I bought three and plan to use them under my Christmas tree. BEFORE Box and Snowflakes First I spray painted the inside with Rustoleum’s Painter’s Touch 2x Ivory Bisque. Large wood snow flakes at Hobby Lobby were perfect for an accent. I spray painted them the same ivory bisque as the box interior and then sprinkled silver glitter on it to give it some pinache and then hung it on a nail on the box. It took a bit because it was 10 degrees outside and since I paint out on my front lawn, it was interesting to say the least. I painted a bit, brought it in to dry and took it out for more paint an hour later. After a dozen ins and outs, I finally got it painted. Anyone free to come clean out … Read more

Kitchen Cabinet Door Chalkboard {Love My DIY Home}

Cabinet Door Chalkboard – EASY DIY

Peel & Stick! Here is the promised cabinet door chalkboard easy DIY from my fall porch. Seriously, this took me less than 5 minutes. Not everything you see is a difficult to achieve as it seems. Sometimes it’s crazy easy. This is one of those. Here it is on my porch: I started with a clearanced kitchen cabinet from Menards. I paid $3. I bought three of them all in different colors. I would have painted it using chalky paint, but it was already painted! I can deal with that… I pried out the little plastic hinge thingys and used that spot to hang it from my ladder by nails. I had planned to paint the inside part of the door with chalkboard paint like my friends did in their kitchen, but when I went to do it, I remembered I had some peel and stick vinyl chalkboard that I … Read more