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When I was pouring over Pinterest and design magazines as we were building Our DIY House, the style that spoke to me the most was vintage industrial. It’s mix of a cultural and historical elements, lots of pieces that look or are salvaged, and lots of mixed textures like metal, glass and rustic wood. My…
Welcome to Our DIY House on this fine Fall day. Why don’t you come in and I’ll make you a vanilla latte? Or… wait! You simply must take a walk with us outside first. It’s just too gorgeous out here in the autumn. We fell in love with our country acreage exactly 9 years ago…
Fresh forest foraged Fall wreath. Say that 10 times fast! Today I have the exciting task of sharing a Fall DIY wreath idea with you along with a whole bunch of my favourite fellow Canadian bloggers. This Fall, I wanted to create a wreath from things I foraged in our backyard. Not only is it a cost…
I was telling a friend the other day that I really needed to make our living room a little more “manly”. Our home has become a place with a lot of sparkle and flowers and fluff which I think makes sense considering there are four girls living here. However, my original vision for our home decor…
Woohoo! It’s almost summer, folks. Can you feel it? Beach days? Popsicles? Kids swinging from the rafters? My girls and I can’t wait to soak in every bit of summer, and we’ve been working hard over the past month to prepare the front yard of Our DIY House for optimal summertime enjoyment. I’ll be the…
Patience is a virtue for life in general… and for decorating. I completely believe in slowly and carefully piecing your home’s decor together by choosing every element with intention and only purchasing things that you absolutely adore. When we designed and built the kitchen in Our DIY House, we left the backsplash bare because I…
I never thought I’d be this excited about a laundry room before, but I am seriously FREAKING OUT. I am so, so incredibly happy with how our laundry makeover turned out that I couldn’t wait to share it with you. It might sound silly, but I truly think that making this room a little prettier…
A Guest Post by Judith of Juicy Green Mom DIY beauty is becoming increasingly popular as people discover that conventional beauty products are full of chemicals and toxins. Making your own can be much more cost-effective, and you know exactly what the ingredients are! I like easy DIY beauty recipes where you just pour the…
This project has got to be one of my favourite because it’s just SO simple and easy, but it is just so satisfying. There’s just something about taking something utilitarian and a wee bit blah and turning it into something cute and pretty in a few simple steps and without spending a ton of money….
Do you get the home organization and renovation bug like I do in mid-winter? I’m just itching to get over this darn flu we’ve had for a week (so far – ugh!) and get to work on more home organization and finishing. There are still a LOT of projects left to finish up in Our…
What’s your philosophy when it comes to kids getting messy? I’m pretty relaxed about it. I think it’s fun to squish and smush and sprinkle, so we do A LOT of that at our house. If you come to visit me without a warning, you better believe our home will be littered with toys and…
Christmas is a month away. Can you believe it?! This will be our second Christmas in Our DIY House, and we’re all very excited about it. This year, I had the pleasure of decorating our home early for the season as a part of the Canadian Bloggers Home Tour – Christmas Edition! Shannon of AKA…
Happy MONDAY and welcome to a new week in November! Remembrance Day is tomorrow here in Canada. We will take the day to remember the many brave people that have lost their lives for Freedom in our country. (This great video is one that I will share with my young children.) After tomorrow, we will begin…
There’s nothing quite like a steaming hot latte on a crisp Fall morning, am I right? I’ve recently started a plan to cut out all white sugar and white flour from my diet – basically the processed stuff. I LOVE my coffees in the morning, and I especially love lattes. Last week, I discovered a…
I’m quite smitten with my front door. It’s bold, teal and lovely. It needed a pretty new wreath on it for Fall, but I wanted the wreath to tie-in with my door’s teal-ness while sill saying “Autumn”. Behold, my vintage inspired and feathered fall wreath in teals, greens, a dab of burlap, and a rustic…
I had a whirlwind couple of days this past weekend attending BlogPodium in Toronto (which was AWESOME!), and now that I’m back home I’m ready to snuggle down and cozy our home up for Fall. I’ve decorated our Autumn mantel very simply this year, but I really think it’s pretty so I thought I’d share it…
With Little C’s first day of Kindergarten fast approaching, I’m starting to get nervous thinking about how I’m going to stay on top of everything. I’ll be the first to admit that I definitely fall short in the organization and cleanliness categories – I’d much rather be crafting or baking than cleaning or bookkeeping! I’m…
This DIY Jitter Glitter Necklace set is a fun and simple first day of school gift idea for any little one heading off for the first time! As you probably know, Little C is headed to Kindergarten in less than a month. I’ve been going through all sorts of emotions as I process this big…
I’m a tad bit obsessed with anything from Restoration Hardware. I’m a big fan of the “vintage industrial” look (mixed in with all sorts of random decor looks that I love), and all of the furniture and art from RH is definitely the epitome of this style. Something that I’ve wanted to do for a…
Hands down, my most favourite social media platform right now is Instagram. There’s something about it that is so positive and inspiring. Unlike other social media platforms, negative trolls rarely gather there, and there’s just so much light-heartedness and support all around. I’m totally a visual person, and pictures everywhere just make me smile! Last…
So, painting things now takes about 1.3 billion times longer now that I have three kids and a newborn in the house. This little painted side table project took me about 2 weeks, and I finished ONE out of THREE. Ha!
Two of the most common questions I’ve received from my friends and readers lately about my recent projects are: “What’s the difference between chalk and chalkboard paint?” and “How do I make them?“. Writing a thorough post on chalk paint vs chalkboard paint has been in my queue for some time now, and I’ve slowly…
When we were planning the build of Our DIY House, we knew right from day one that we wanted to build as “smartly” and as energy efficiently as possible. Since we were moving from an 880 square foot house to a 2000+ square foot house, we needed to make sure that we wouldn’t be paying…
As much as I love the black and white bones of our DIY vintage industrial kitchen, I’ve been craving the addition of colour in the space for quite a while now. The last few weeks of pregnancy have really ignited some sort of maniacal nesting monster in me, and it’s really worked to my advantage…
Our original house plan had a “servery” nook between the kitchen and the dining room. When I saw it, I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that it had to become a special little nook just for me – with COFFEE. I’m a huge coffee lover, and a dedicated space for a good coffee…
Just above Little A’s crib in her newly decorated bedroom, is a pretty monogram art made from an Ikea picture frame, some burlap fabric, an MDF letter “A”, Mod Podge, and some scrap fabric that matches her room decor. I made it in an afternoon (during nap time, of course!) and I’m really happy with…
When we moved into this house last summer, my Mom gave us their old oak farmhouse table that they had DIY’d about 20 years ago. I’m the oldest of 5 kids, and I have many fond memories of eating and playing at this table with my big, loving family. My parents had made this table…
We moved into Our DIY House on July 1st – about 6 weeks ago. We took a relative break for a month (because we were exhausted and I had morning sickness all day). This month, we’ve finally got the ball rolling again on finishing everything up. We have some painting, trimming, our master bath, and…
If you’re a buddy of mine (or even if you’ve been following my blog for a little while), you’ll know that I’m a terrible housekeeper. Sew some dresses or craft a banner? Sure! Wash pots or mop my floor? Booooooring! Now that spring is here and I hope to be moving into Our DIY House…
Tomorrow is December 1st and I’ve finally had a chance to put up our little Christmas tree. I didn’t think we’d fit it in our 800 square foot house this year with now two children (and so many baby and preschooler toys and crafts in every nook and cranny), but I made it work. We’re…
I love taking photos of my two girls! They’re just so darn cute and I want to capture every stage of their little lives with images that I can treasure forever. While I like to take photos with natural backgrounds (like the beautiful outdoors), I also like to experiment with creating interesting backdrops with easy and inexpensive materials that I have in my crafty arsenal. My favourite materials to use as backdrops are simple fabrics and white banner paper – both of which also work really well ask backdrops for product photography if you’re a DIY mommy that sells her creations!
Are you looking for a way to get the exact colour of butcher block countertop you want, but don’t want to spend the money for a high end, trendy shade? Or maybe you’re looking to update the current wood tones of your counter or tabletop. In this post, I’m going to show you how to…
Laundry rooms often get overlooked when we are decorating our homes. The truth is, paying a little attention to this essential space will not just increase its storage capability and basic functionality. Doing so can also add beauty to an area where you might spend a lot of your day, whether you like it or…
Home Decor Index Search or browse through all of my Home Decor & Renovation blog posts for just the right inspiration for your space! Resources My best decor tricks and hacks! From simple home hacks to make your life easier to basic decorating tricks that make your home look high-end, you’ll find all of my…
With almost all of the rooms in Our DIY House done (ish), it’s time to work on a very personal space in our home: our master suite. We’ve left this space until almost the very last because hardly anyone sees it except for us, but it’s definitely time to finish it and turn it into…
Did you know that it’s totally OK for your home decor style (and skill level!) to slowly evolve over time? I think everyone’s does as they grow and change. My home decor style has certainly evolved over the last few years as we’ve settled into the new home that we built and I’ve become better…
Well, we’ve finally done it! After over 2 years of living in Our DIY House, we’ve finally finished the kids’ bathroom upstairs. Can you believe it?! I can hardly fathom it myself. It was one of those jobs that seemed to drag on forever. Once it was functional, we lost our motivation to finish it….
When you have one or two or more children running through your home on a daily basis, it’s important to think of them when you’re decorating your home. I believe that you can create a beautiful space that’s both pretty and practical. Here are some ideas and tips on how to decorate your home with kids…
My girls and I have been LOVING the gorgeous spring weather we’ve been having here lately! It’s been so therapeutic to be out in the sunshine, work on our yard, and do a bit of gardening. One of our recent projects was a fairy garden for our front steps. It’s been in the works for…