Leather Pulls

{I love the way the pink reflects onto the white cabinetry}

The other day I was feeling particularly annoyed by how boring and off-the-shelf my cabinet pulls were.  In my little studio I have to look at those cabinets all day long, so I wanted something special and different.  I was playing around with some leather for another project and it gave me an idea.  Forget hardware, I’m going to make Software! :) (I was pretty thrilled with this little pun)  It was so simple and SUPER inexpensive (yay!)

My cabinets went

Here’s how you can make your own:

1. Cut strips of leather (as many pulls as you’ll need) to 1 1/4″ x 5″ (If you want to add color to the underside, now’s the time)
2. Use the felt-tip pen to mark a dot where you want your screw to go
3. Make the hole for the screw using a phillips screw driver and a couple whacks of your hammer
4. Push your screw through the hole and secure it to the cabinet with a hex nut
5. Enjoy your new software!

{Add paint + brush to your supply list if you want to add a pop of color on the underside like I did}

A little creativity goes a long way!

Bits & Pieces

One of my favorite things about interior design is making a space functional as well as beautiful.

A couple ‘challenges’ I’m facing in my studio are: no drawers… anywhere. Kitchen or otherwise.  And: lack of clothing storage.

It’s actually really exciting to figure out ways I’m going to make this space work, these challenges force you to be creative and think outside the box.  Here are a couple snippets of ways I’m getting the creative juices flowing…

{No drawers? No problem.  My gold flatware looks pretty and is easily accessible in this pitcher}

{Not much folding to do around here, pants hang on hooks to free-up space in the dresser}

Thanks for letting me share some bits and pieces of solving my design dilemmas ;)

New Beginning!

Hey all!  Well, it’s been awhile… sorry about that.  Hopefully all will be forgiven when I share what I’ve been up to :)

Moving! I got my own little studio in Leucadia with lots of funk and mexican-style charm.  Here’s a look at the space I’ve got to work with:

Keep in mind these are ‘before’ pictures ;)… I’m so excited to make all 200 sq’ my own and I’ll be sharing every step of the process right here on my blog!

Yosemite

Hi all! You may or may not have noticed that I haven’t posted in a little while, well I went on a vacation to one of the most beautiful places this time of year — Yosemite National Park :)  The waterfalls were in full-swing and we didn’t miss a single one!  I think we hiked about 20 miles in two days, and even through some snow!!  We got rain, sun, and really chilly and the scenery never got old…

You can definitely tell from the pictures which days were sunny and which were cloudy :) Hope you enjoyed some of the snapshots from my trip! I have some very exciting news to share later this week…!

Design 101: Pattern

My Design 101 series focuses on the Principals and Elements of Design. The principles refer to the laws of design. Elements refer to the things that are involved in making a design. Pattern is an element of design, its definition is the repetition of an object or symbol throughout. The repetition can be either random or organized.

My favorite spaces have at least one pattern, usually more. I love eclectic interiors and those type of spaces usually incorporate many different patterns as well as design styles.

They key to creating a harmonious space with assorted patterns is to play with the scale. I like to use a combination of large, medium and small-scale patterns. This way, they don’t feel like they’re competing.

Here are some rooms that have really embraced pattern as a design element:

Pattern adds so much visual interest to a room and can be incorporated in so many different ways, whether it’s with textiles, woodwork, decorative tiles, or wallpaper. Pattern can work in any room and any feel. Soft and pretty or fun and up-beat. Pick your poison and have fun with it!

Paper Cranes

There’s something sweet and peaceful about paper cranes. For some reason I’ve been feeling like I want to make a paper crane mobile. I can do that, right? Like mobiles aren’t just for babies??

So, the obvious next step here would be to learn how to make a paper crane, and in case you’re like me and don’t know how yet, here are the steps:

I’ll let you know how mine turn out! ;)

DIY Earring Display

Jewelry is pretty. That’s why we wear it. So why keep it closed away in a jewelry box? Jewelry should be treated as art, and displayed!

This is my quick little DIY for making your own jewelry display :)

Supplies:

• Frame (I found mine for $1 at a thrift store)
• Lace table runner
• Super Glue
• Scissors

1. Cut your table runner to fit your frame top to bottom. Don’t worry if the lace doesn’t fit perfectly in your frame – mine didn’t, you can always pull it from the sides with some thread.

2. Apply dots of super glue to the frame then attach the lace, pulling just a little bit so that it’s taut. Shazam! You’re done! Now for the fun part – hanging all your pretty earrings!

I hope this inspires you to create your own jewelry display!

Bliss

A bit of bliss to daydream about on a Monday…

Catchin’ Dreams

A while back, I randomly decided that I wanted to make a huge dreamcatcher. I’ve always loved the way they look, and I figured that mine would be a more modern interpretation. I have a lot of jewelry and things that I never wear or use, but really love. I wanted to incorporate all of these things into my ‘sea inspired’ dreamcatcher.

I used a 12″ embroidery hoop, a lace doily, found beach glass, shells, sand dollars, beads, feathers, and little gemstones & crystals. It’ll probably always be a work in progress, as I’ve already added more to  it. I’m loving it & my dreams are already sweeter! ;)

3 Things

{Cupcakes for Two, recipe here. Because sometimes you just want a cupcake.. or two}

Whew! These past couple of weeks have been busy ones for me. I finally finished every one of my furniture projects (!!! I’ll share more on that later ;))  I spent a little much-needed QT with my parents last week, (yay!) where we (my boyfriend, cousin & I) were treated to an amazing dinner at my new favorite restaurant here in Encinitas, Solace. I tried raw oysters for the first time….! I’m still not sure how I feel about them… they may be an acquired taste.. ;) I’m also super excited about my recent employment opportunity! – I started a new weekend job at the place I interned in Solana Beach, Bixby&Ball. This place is filled with wonderful ladies, wonderful home decor, and wonderful energy! :) I’m so happy to be back! In the mean time, here are 3 (other) things currently making me happy ;)

{A sweet note my boyfriend wrote when we first started dating that I recently tucked into a little frame :)}

{The cutest matchbox + matches ever. Isn’t that saying the truth?}

Ps- for some reason the word ‘boyfriend’ really bothers me.. :/ it sounds so juvenile! Maybe I’m just cray-cray.. I don’t know am I alone on this?? Anyway, here’s to a great week ahead!