DIY Stencils

I had a project I wanted to do (Monogram Wall Art) that required large stencils.  I went to my local Micheal's and they didn't have any large ones.  I looked online and found large stencils but only in that stencil font.  Since necessity is the mother of invention, I set out to make my own stencils.  The best part is, you can make them in any size or font you want!

Wire Shelving Shelf Liner

Most closets have wire shelving in them.  They're great for hanging clothes and baskets fit really well on top of them.  However, I have a shoe storage problem in my closet. I store shoes on top on my wire closet shelves; flats sit great, but the heels fall straight through if they're not balanced exactly right.  The tiniest bump causes all of them to move.

Flats sitting perfectly

Heel disaster zone

I looked around for a shelf lining product.  I found some, but most of them look so flimsy that I didn't think it would solve my problem.  So, I came up with my own cheap and cost effective solution!

Bookshelves Using Standards

What happens when two book lovers move in together?  Too many books and not enough space.  Due to the configuration of the apartment, putting traditional bookcases was not an option.  I love the look of floating book shelves, but they are expensive and are a lot of work to put up.  My solution was to put a bookshelves on the wall using standards.

Refinishing Wood Furniture

Before the move, I had one last DIY project to finish up.  J's parents were nice enough to give us a Buffet and Hutch that they were no longer using.  J's dad built it himself, and it was a very nice piece of furniture.  However, lightly stained wood with enamel hardware isn't really our style.  For the cost of paint and new hardware, we have an awesome piece for our dining room.  In fact, it looks so good, her mom has threatened to take it back!

If you don't have parents donating furniture to you, thrift stores are a great place to find wooden pieces of furniture that are just in need of a little love.

Refinishing a Metal Bed Frame

Preparing to move into a larger apartment has meant needing additional furniture.  Thankfully, we've been able to "borrow" furniture not being used from our parents and reuse it in our apartment.  However, in this case, the furniture did need to be refinished.

I wish I could say this was my first experience refinishing furniture, and I did everything correctly the first time because I'm awesome.  But, that's not true.  This is the second time I refinished this particular bed frame, and it went much better.  Learn from my mistakes because I had to pay for them the second time around.

Mason Jar Lamps

Like any good millennial, I love mason jars.  The more vintage they are the happier I am.  The problem with vintage mason jars is that they're more on the expensive side than my limited budget allows. The solution was to make newer (and cheaper) mason jars look vintage.