Decor

Home Decor Ideas: Using Your Printer

There are a lot of amazing home decor projects you can do with your printer. You’ve got everything from different kinds of DIY transfer papers to printables, and plotter prints. You can get really crafty, or there are ideas that just require you to hit the ‘print’ button

Transfer Magic

Transferring onto wood is a great home decor piece to have. Black and white photos look best on raw wood. For this though you’ll need a Lazerjet printer, or find someone who does. You can find the directions to making the black and white wooden photo in picture (1) here. A white backdrop works best if you want to do a color transfer – just check out the bench in picture (2) from Poppy Talk.

Or how about transferring your photos onto ceramic tiles to create your own homemade coasters (3) – follow along with the instructions here.

You’ve also got fabric transfer printing paper – which is what was used to transfer the bee image onto the napkin (4). Check out Sophia’s Decor to see the other transfers she has done – like transferring vintage graphics onto chairs and tote bags.

Water slide decal paper was used to transfer a free printable onto a flower pot – seen in picture (5) from Lost Bird Studio.

Lumi sun print paints are the the latest thing in photo transferring. What you do: print out a negative image on a transparent sheet (which you can do at home with an Inkjet printer), then you coat your fabric (or other material) with the Lumi Inkodye, place the negative image on top of it and leave it out in the sun. The negative image blocks out the sun, which exposes the image – just like the DIY canvas print in picture (6).

The Gift of The Internet – Printable Ideas

The internet is a true friend when it comes to free printables. You can get everything from artwork and hand lettered quotes, to labels for jars, notebooks and gifts.

Over at Tried and True you can download the outline artwork of the quote from picture (7) and paint it in. Then there are the free antique labels that Cathe over at Just Something I Made has put up for free download. She used the labels to create her own hand towel labels (8) – awesome!

Feel like doing a little origami? Mr Printables has printable templates for creating your own display letters (9).

Plain Printing

Here are some ideas that just require good old fashion printing. First is a confetti sheet of travel photos I created and printed out on glossy paper (10). Check the how to guide here: Travel Photos Confetti Display – Plus DIY Printables Guide.

This next DIY project is an easy one, and cheap. But you will need to go out to a printer like Kinkos or Staples. Ask for Blueprint/Plotter/Engineer prints and you will get some huge black and white pieces for around $5++ just like the one in picture (11) by A Beautiful Mess.

Why not print out your photos, like I did with my travel photos, and create your own little stands. I used air dry clay to make the stands in picture (12) – which you can find the instructions to here.

December 19, 2013 in Decor, DIY

Home Decor Ideas: Using Concrete

Concrete is one versatile material. You can use it to make small DIY home decor projects, or even something as large as a countertop. DIY concrete countertops can make their way into kitchens or even bathrooms as seen in picture (1), with the reclaimed walnut sink. This post is going to focus more on simpler and smaller home decor projects.

DIY Concrete Ideas: Designer Pieces

Making your own letters is a popular DIY project, whether it is with cardboard, clay, or even concrete. What sets Wit and Whistle’s concrete letter apart is that Amanda went ahead and used two different colors of concrete. Resulting in a designer like piece – seen in picture (2).

It is really great seeing people make designer like pieces at home with ordinary materials like concrete. Over at A Merry Mishap you can follow along with the instructions on how to make the diamond paper weight (3). There are no DIY instructions for the concrete pillows in picture (4), but you could create the same illusion by “pouring concrete into bags then resting an object in the centre”.

Light Up The Night

When it comes to lighting, how about creating your own lamp with a solid, sturdy concrete base (5) – over at Nimi Design. Or follow along with the tutorial at HomeMade Modern to create the industrial chic pendant lamps in picture (6).

Out the Front Door

Working our way out the front door we have a minimalist style coat rack – made with a concrete base (using a bucket as a mold) and dowels (7).

Outside you can get creative with concrete by making your own stepping stones. See how to make leaf stamped ones (8) over at HGTV. Using cinder blocks, you can easily create your own modern wall planters seen in picture (9) – from Apartment Therapy.

December 13, 2013 in Decor, DIY

DIY Mood Board: Playing With Copper

Copper, the sleek material you can buy at a hardware store. Rustic yet polished, it’s no surprise why it is a popular choice for DIY projects. Here are some of the best copper DIY ideas that I have seen and been inspired by so far.

Tube Stands: In picture (1) a block of wood and some copper wire and pipe have been used to create a chemist vase – by A Merry Thought. Chelsea from Lovely Indeed has created a wall mounted test tube like copper wall planter (2). It is a simple and minimalist way of adding some plants into a room’s decor. For more plant decor ideas have a look at my post here: Elegant and Stylish Plant Decor Ideas.

Chairs: Room of Karma has upcycled old wooden chairs (3) by painting them with copper colored paint. The chairs in picture (4) are from Anthropologie and is not an actual DIY project. But by using metal instead of wooden chairs and painting them in copper spray paint you can get a whole different effect.

Hangers: Here are some great DIY ideas using copper piping – they are so stylish and minimalist. For the floating clothes rack (5), by Love Aesthetics, all you need to do is hang a long copper pipe using two hooks and metal cable. This would make a great looking coat rack by the front door.

The copper kitchen hooks DIY (6) comes from the Finnish blog, Bambula. They were made from half inch copper elbows. To find out how they were made, check out the pictures here.

Planters: To make the planters in picture (7), all you need are some cap fittings and ketchup (yup). Check out the tutorial over at Poppytalk.

Another spray painting idea in picture (8), but this time a glass beaker gets the royal treatment – by A Merry Mishap. And lastly there is the hanging geometric planter (9) by Fire and Flowers.

October 24, 2013 in Decor, DIY

Style Guide: Bathroom Wall Decor Ideas

When it comes to decorative ideas for the bathroom walls there are simple ideas like putting up a large painting, artwork, photographs or prints as seen in picture (1). Or if you are into the more vintage style, wall decor ideas include skeleton keys, subway art signs, bird cages, and letters (Vintage Wall Decor Ideas: From Bird Cages to Designing with Frames). But I believe that the best bathroom wall decor ideas are more structural, functional, and part of the bathroom itself. For example how you paint the walls adds to the decor of the room.

Wall Texture: When it comes to painting the walls you’ll have a ton of unique choices in creating textures. Using a dry brush can create a linen texture (2) while a sponge can be used for a more marble look (3). Check out my post here for more ideas and painting techniques. Another idea would be to the paint the wall a solid color, then hang up a framed piece of decorative wallpaper that really stands out.

Mirror Styling: The bathroom mirror itself can act as a wall decor piece. In most bathrooms this is a large wall fixture. You can easily restyle the look of the bathroom just by changing the frame of the mirror. Have a look here for pictures and ideas: Designer Bathroom Mirror Ideas: From Lighting to Framing. A designer touch would be to add back lighting behind the mirror. This will add a nice soft glow in the room, and elegantly frame the mirror.

Wainscoting: Then there is wainscoting or using beadboard. This is when a panel is fitted to the lower part, breaking up a flat wall – just like in pictures (4) and (5).

Storage: The things you need to store like extra towels and cotton swabs, can be arranged to be used as decorations. Keeping them in glass jars or wicker hampers creates a nice look. These can be put up on open shelves or wall storage and cabinets with glass doors. For pictures and ideas on this take a look at this post: Design Guide: Bathroom Shelving Ideas Mood Board.

Other Unique Ideas: A few other decorative wall ideas include your window treatment, plants, and even lighting. How you do up your windows will play a role in the style and design of the bathroom. Curtains are more traditional, while the barn style windows in picture (6) are more rustic. Bamboo blinds work well for a more tropical spa like feel. Having plants and flowers in the bathroom keeps the space feeling fresh. Most people will usually just use a vase and put them on the vanity. Picture (7) shows a more unique approach with plants hanging in wall planters in the bathroom. One last idea is to use mini chandelier lights just like in picture (8). The walls in that picture have an elegant pattern from the reflection of the chandelier’s glass. 1/2/3/4/5/6/7/8