How to Create a Weathered Oak Finish

So maybe you remember me bragging about this amazing solid oak dining table I found on Facebook Marketplace a few weeks back. I went to pick it up – and drove 30 minutes down the highway with my SUV trunk open to haul this beast home. This table is solid, through and through. And it had that oak-y orange-y polyurethane glow that just made me want to sand it right away! However the table came from a smoking residence, so it smelled strongly of cigarettes. The minute it entered my house, I doused it in vinegar, and once that was dry, I covered the entire table in baking sofa…and left it like that for 3 days. I was not playing around! Those two tricks worked and removed the smoke smell completely! I was finally ready to get to work on this diamond in the rough. Check out the table below! (Before) I had not given much thought to what kind of dining table I wanted – to be honest I was just excited to have a table. Brian and I had been dining off a small 36″ round glass table for the last two years, and I was over the moon when I found this one for $50 online. Not only could I know have family over for dinner, play games, and finish my dining room, but I could make it over however I wanted. I’ve been a lover of barn wood, driftwood, and all things weathered, as you know! So […]

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Best things to buy at IKEA

How do I know what are the best things to buy at IKEA? Well if you’ve been keeping up with me on Instagram, you know I’ve got a lot of love for IKEA. Many people think of IKEA as a starter store – people shop for dorm furniture, first apartment stuff, “cheap” goods for the house. Let me tell you a little secret, half of my designer friends who have plenty of money to go elsewhere still swear by IKEA. Why is that? Well the potential is endless! Not only does walking through the store ignite your imagination for how to use their items in your own home, but their items rarely have just one use. They are affordable, and their furniture is very customizable! From painting, to completely over hauling stuff, there are about a million posts out there on how to customize IKEA furniture – they are dubbed “IKEA HACKS”. But that’s for another day! I’m here today to tell you WHAT to buy from IKEA – where you will get the most bang for your buck, because let’s be honest, when you’re walking through the ginormous home goods store with your big yellow IKEA bag, and things are labeled $1.99 or $5.99, you end up wanting it all. So I’m going to give you a list of my favorite tried and true items that are truly worth getting on your next IKEA trip.   Low on storage space? You MUST buy a Wardrobe! This is something I […]

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DIY rattan pendant light

When I told my mom I was making a DIY rattan pendant light, she laughed. Not because she thought it was stupid..but because she grew up in the 70’s and thinks it’s hysterical that I spend my time looking for rattan chairs, macrame and crafting while I blast Fleetwood Mac. What can I say, I was born in the wrong decade, I’ve thrifted and DIY’ed most of my house, other than things I can’t, like bedding and rugs. See..my loom is broken. Just kidding, I just really can’t make things out of fabric, I do not have the patience for that. Bless those who can! So I just assumed lighting was up there with things I could not make. I mean, sure I can spray paint a light fixture and wrap some sisal rope around an existing lamp, but when it comes to pendant lighting, I decided I would just get my check book out (my credit card because it’s 2018 and I never even owned a check book) and just buy a light for my basement. So there I go..Googling my life away like everyone else and these are the results I get when I search for a rattan pendant light.   The prices are not horrible, but I also could not find the type I really wanted. Discouraged, I just pushed it out of my head. Later that day, Brian (the boyfriend/handyman/super human) and I went shopping, and I found this at Five Below. All it is is […]

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My DIY gallery wall hack: Modern Boho

When I started to makeover my basement living room, I knew I wanted to keep my modern boho style going down there, which meant keeping things light and airy. I love gallery walls as much as the next home decor enthusiast, but I was also wanted to see something new above my sofa; a simplified version of a gallery wall. The walls in my basement living room were dark wood paneling when we moved in. They were dark, had a tiny of orange, and were oddly shiny (Why did anyone think this was okay to ever put in a house?!)  Needless to say, the first thing I did after getting keys was slather the walls with as much primer as I could manage to put up until the paneling was out of sight! After I put my furniture in the space, it still felt like it was missing something. I still need to change out the light fixture, and have future plans to add hardwood flooring, but until those items are done, I continue to decorate with smaller and budget friendly tricks that make the space feel cozy. This brings me to my modern boho gallery wall. I wanted to keep it simple and use muted colors. I’ve been drooling over cactus art, and photography of Joshua tree that is currently  sweeping the modern boho decor scene (that IS a thing). But there are two issues there; I’ve never been to Joshua Tree National Park, and the photography I do […]

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Creating a Bedroom Sanctuary: why it matters for your health

bedroom: noun 1. a room furnished, primarily for sleeping sanctuary: 7. any place of refuge; asylum. When I moved into my new house, I focused on the rooms I felt needed the most TLC. My outdated kitchen and boring bathroom to name two. They did in-fact need a lot of love from me, and I poured all my energy into them, but I abandoned the most important room in my house; my bedroom. Creating a bedroom sanctuary and why it matters for my health never crossed my mind; I have to work on practicing what I preach! I’ll start by saying it doesn’t matter what your style is. It doesn’t matter what your budget is, the size of your home, your marital status, if you have kids, if you pet is your child, your occupation, your gender, race, or age. It doesn’t matter, because everybody in the world sleeps. We all understand that concrete concept right? But do you understand what your bedroom does for you? A bedroom should be a safe space. For kids it’s their own space, regardless if they share it with a sibling or two. Have you ever met a child who was so excited to show you their room and so proud of everything in it, because to them it’s their safe space, it’s catered to them. A child’s room is fun, it’s bright, it’s full of toys, cozy bedding, child-sized furniture. It’s adorned in things that make the child happy. Fast forwards – teenagers rooms. They are […]

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