How to Use Elastic Thread to Make Smocked Fabric

Smocked fabric by the yard is very popular… It is so easy to purchase it, make a seam, and voila – a cute little dress or top. The downside is that these fabrics are expensive and sometimes the selection isn’t that great but it really isn’t that hard to create your own!

The style [...]

Another Frame Built from the Scrap Pile…

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My daughter painted the sweetest picture for me in her art class. I love the bright colors and her fun approach to a vase with flowers! I decided to build another frame using pieces from the scrap pile to showcase her artwork!

Materials:

Scrap 1x3s Scrap 1x6s Decorative Wood Embellishment Glass Kreg Jig, Screws, [...]

Upholstering the RH Inspired Baroque Chair…

 

Here is another plan I drew for The Design Confidential that I was planning on building…  (That seems to get me in a lot of trouble!) Although this chair doesn’t have the turned legs like the inspiration piece, I like this one a lot better. It is a little more simple and a lot more [...]

Make a Lamp from a Wine Bottle

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This is not the typical 70s wine bottle lamp… There are tons of awesome liquor bottles out there, not that I’m in the habit of hanging out at the liquor store (really, I’m not), but the few times I’ve been, I’ve been amazed at the different styles, shapes, and colors. This particular wine bottle is [...]

Spray Paint Transformations…

Buddha's Makeover

Aaah, spray paint… I truly love it. What other product is there that is inexpensive, comes in a variety of colors/finishes, and can transform virtually anything it coats? I do have my favorites (I am a frequent stalker on Rust-Oleum’s Facebook page!) and have quite a collection of cans in every color imaginable!

To me, [...]

Building the PB Inspired Rebecca Trunk

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The Rebecca Trunk from Pottery Barn… Gorgeous! The bad news is that it retails for $499.00! Yikes! It really is a beautiful piece!

I drew the plans for this piece for The Design Confidential. It uses only ONE sheet of plywood! By the time I bought the rest of the supplies listed in the plans, I [...]

Create a Striped Panel with Stain and Plywood

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I am building the Restoration Hardware Inspired 1900s Boulangerie Table from The Design Confidential. (These plans can be found here.) The plans call for different pieces of wood as the main panels on the tabletop. In an earlier post, I shared my method of making the legs out of 2x4s. Today, I will share the method I used [...]

Give a Dress a Makeover…

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I love dresses.  Yes, I actually wear them on occasion – even on some of my trips to the home improvement stores to buy lumber, parts, power tools, etc! I really love the Bohemian style dresses made in India with their “flowiness” and bright colors! I have a couple of dresses that I absolutely love [...]

Build a Bookshelf Inspired by West Elm…

I saw this bookcase and I was in love… I decided I would try my hand at creating a knock-off furniture plan for it. I used one (yes, ONE) sheet of plywood, edge-banding and a few screws! Such a cheap build coming in at about $50!

Here is a photo of what my shelf looks [...]

How to Make a Ruffled Tote Bag

 

I saw the cutest tote bag with fabric ruffles on it… I knew my daughter, aka “The Han”, would love it! Then I saw the price tag… I know a lot of people who would gladly pay $8.00 for this adorable bag, but I wasn’t going to do it. You see, I got my [...]