How to Create a Make-Up Brush Jar

This is a really brief post, but I feel that people should know about it! I had an inspiration during my purge to try and use more of the things I already own in projects. Like I had this mason jar lying around, but then I thought to myself, "What if I put all of my makeup brushes into this jar?". BEST. IDEA. EVER. Well so I thought. The brushes were just a little short and they kept falling into the jar. It made it kind of hard to get the brushes out in the morning. So I had another brilliant idea.

I had some old stones laying around that I received from a bouquet I received. I didn't plan on using them anymore so I used them in the jar! It gave me the extra inch my brushes needed so I can see them all.

As you can see from my title image, it looks great now! I'm going to try and use more things from around my home, and someday maybe I will clean my whole apartment and post how it looks online. Maybe...

Have a great day!

How to Hang Picture Frames Using Excel

Oh Goodness May! My first real DIY blog post in a long time. Can you feel the excitement in the air? In addition, its a DIY post involving Excel! I finally can fulfill a promise I made to you. So my sister-in-law showed me this awesome thing on how she designed how to hang her frames for her stairs using Microsoft Excel. She wanted to hang them all on a diagonal and by using Excel she was able to get the exact measurements so that nothing was off (it also helped that my brother is pretty handy with a hammer and measuring tape). Anywho, she gave me this idea. I give all credit to her.

If any of my friends are out there reading this, they know that I am average with a hammer and screwdriver. I can get some IKEA instructions backwards every now and then, but really, who hasn't? Okay so how this works. You need to have everything measured beforehand. That means you need to know exactly what frames you are going to hang and where you are going to hang them. Then, you create a worksheet with the same dimensions. How do you do this you ask? Make each square an inch by an inch (or half an inch by half an inch or centimeter by centimeter or however you want to do it). Then, you also draw your frames with their exact measurements. It will look something like this:

So precise right? And you can see the exact measurements of where everything should go. Before you start hanging, please double check all of your measurements. I started hanging and had read centimeters instead of inches when I first measured. I actually had to re-measure and re-do the whole wall. So, the next step is to hang them up! This is the step that I am the worst at and why I am using this method. I'm like Tim Taylor from Home Improvement. I try really hard and somehow miss the mark entirely, as seen from my mistakes mentioned above.

Well there you have it! I somehow did it. Yes I pulled like twenty Tim Taylor's to get it there, and if you look closely, you can see all of the spackle that is lined around the frames. However, they are all up now! I am unfortunately not savvy enough to use nails, so I tried using command strips. Sometimes you have to use what you are good at, and that is command strips for me. BUT then around 2 AM two of the frames fell and one shattered. Hence there are two gaps on my wall. When I took these pictures, I was re-constructing one frame and cleaning up the mess of the other one. But basically this is how it works and now I have a gallery wall. YAY! Its a dream come true. So what do you think?

Update on Dining Room Decorations

Remember a while back when I was coming up with ideas on how to decorate my new apartment (See here)? Well, unfortunately, I had NO idea on what to do with my dining room at that time. All I knew was that I needed a bar! Well, I built the bar, but the dining room still feels like it is missing something. Then BAM! Like lightning! I know EXACTLY what to do!

A KATE SPADE THEMED DINING ROOM

but....
the catch is that I don't want to buy anything designer or extremely expensive. All of my decorations will be found on an extremely tight budget or DIY. Are you excited? Because I am super excited!!

Readers, have you tried to make something designer on a budget? Got any tips?

DIY Wine Shelf and Bar

I finally live in an apartment where I have room for a bar! AHHHH. So excited you guys. I have been trying to think of what I would want to do, and I finally decided to mimic an idea Jen from IHeart Organizing used (Cutest blog in the world if you ever need to be inspired). She used an IKEA Lack Shelf and some wine glass holders she found on Amazon and created her own wine glass storage! See it here.  Inspired by that, I went to IKEA and bought a shelf. While I was there, I found a lovely wine rack! I was so excited because it would fit perfectly on the shelf.

Then, I tricked my dad into coming and helping me install it. We followed the instructions and drew some very level lines. After that. there was some drilling and such.Before we put the shelf up we made holes for the wine rack using the drill. I was hoping to spray paint it and then put it up later on. However, I did a quick test and noticed that normal wine glasses don't fit on the wine rack. ARGH. So, I ordered these off of Amazon. I bought two and used the original holes my dad created. It makes me so happy now! My apartment is finally coming together. I just used a bookshelf I had found at Nadeau for my "bar" and put the shelf above it. Here is the bar view:

And here is a view of it standing a little farther back. I know I said it before, but isn't it pretty? I just need to order one more wine rack to go in between the two already in there and I think it will be done!

Is DIY for You?

I just read this really interesting article on Houzz called "8 Reasons to Jump Off the DIY Bandwagon" (found here). It makes a lot of sense. Everyone on the internet is all about do it yourself and being an original lately. Even I can be guilty of that. However, I agree with them on a lot of points. DIY can get really expensive, and if you don't have a creative bone in your body, why try? I am not trying to say that you shouldn't try if you really want to. Its just that there are times when I know I need something but can't be creative. It is better to buy things and have them come perfect and ready to go. You just need to find the balance.

Take me for example. Yes, I love to create something from scratch, but if I can justify paying for exactly what I need, I will. I have gone to tons of antique stores and found the exact thing I needed for under the price I was willing to pay. I'm supporting local businesses by doing that, and honestly, I love something with a little history to it. Readers, what do you think? Should it be DIY all of the time or do what you can, buy the rest?

Faux Water Faux Flowers

Want flowers all year long? Then this is the blog for you. I found this idea from Living Beautifully. 

Here are my peonies that currently "live" on my dresser.

What you'll need:

faux flowers

a vase

Craft flower water (clear resin) *I found mine at Michaels

1) Make sure to clean out the vase for any stickiness or dust. The glue will trap it in there and that won't make it very attractive! 

2) Arrange the flowers however you want them, and don't forget to cut them to the right length. Once the glue is in the vase, you only have a few seconds to place the flowers in the vase perfectly.

3) Follow the directions on the resin box. I did the boiling method (fill a pot with water and stick the bottle in it to melt it). If you decide you want to do multiple flowers, best to do it all at once. Once the bottle partially fills with air, its hard to keep it in a pot of boiling water for a second go. 

4) Once the resin is dry, it looks amazing! I have a habit of killing anything that is green and living. This way I can have flowers all year round!