Christmas Top Five

Ho Ho Holy Moley! I can't believe 2014 is almost over! Thank you so much for dropping in every now and again to see what's new on The Hydeout. I never imagined I would one day be blogging (ew...I still don't like that word), but I love writing about my adventures in home decorating and am looking forward to sharing some exciting new projects next year (read: bold wallpaper for the entryway and a possible fireplace refresh)!

So, I thought it would be relevant to end the year with my Top Five Christmas Decorating Ideas for a Warm and Cozy Family Home. And here they are, in no particular order...

# 1. Retro Hodgepodge Tree

I love a perfectly imperfect tree decorated with a mishmash of ornaments and tinsel and paper decorations the kids have made over the years. The trick to keeping it from looking tacky is sticking to a color scheme and a loosely applied theme (i.e. mine could be rustic vintage). I will take down any completely clashing ornaments the kids put up when they are not looking and hide them at the bottom of the Rubbermaid container. But anything nostalgic goes up, and my favorites are actually the paper decorations for the pops of white they lend to the tree, which really brighten it up.

#2. Mason Jar Snowscapes

This was an activity I did with the kids at one of our Christmas parties a couple of years ago after seeing similar jars in the Anthropologie catalog. All you need are some large Mason jars (vintage ones look nicer but any old spaghetti sauce jar will do), plastic figurines, bottle-brush trees or whatever you can imagine putting inside, Plasticine, sparkly fake snow from a craft store like Michaels, and some Elmer's glue. Begin by coating the inside of the lid with glue, then build up a small mound of Plasticine on the inside of your lid. Cover the Plasticine with glue and sprinkle with fake snow. Finally, insert your figures into the Plasticine, using more glue if necessary. Carefully place jar over top and secure tightly to lid. My friend's kid made one with a pewter owl figurine inside and it looked just like something you would buy at West Elm!

#3. Mid-Century Swedish Gnomes

                   I picked up this trio at a thrift store waaaay back. I love their wooden vintage looks and their expressive faces. I just bet these guys get up to no good when there is no one at home... ;) I have seen similar Scandinavian style gnomes at stores like HomeSense. 

#4. Shelf with Swag/X-mas Card Holder

To display our Christmas cards this year (BIG HUGS to those of you die-hards who still send these out), I thought I would attach some baker's twine to the garland decorating the display shelf above the entry to the living room, and hang cards with mini red paper clips I found at Target. Best thing is that it frees up the fireplace mantel for more decorations!

#5. Retro Plastic Light-up Santa

There is something about an old-fashioned Santa, whether he be the plastic light-up kind or a velvet-suited tree ornament type, that brings me right back to when I was a kid. This guy holds court in my living room every year and I just bought a bigger one to go in my yard this year at Value Village. 

And...One for Good Luck

I know I said I was only going to post a Top Five, but I couldn't resist throwing in this pic! 

Hope your holidays are merry and bright!

Peace, Love and Joy always,

Lara

Renegade Craft Fair NYC

This past weekend I took a trip to NYC with one of my oldest and bestest friends, and to my great joy and surprise the Renegade Craft Fair just happened to be in town. I have always enjoyed craft shows, from church bazaars to the Canadian creme-de-la-creme, the One of a Kind, but the Renegade was in a whole other league than even the OOAK. This show was chock full of hipster type Etsy sellers and the best part is there was no admission fee (take a cue from that, OOAK)! Martha Stewart American Made was on hand, doling out some freebies and giving some free craft lessons. I took part in a wood burning class, which was super cool, although I was a little disappointed with my end product. There was also an old-fashioned photo booth, yummy food vendors and lots of lumbersexuals on hand for eye candy (read cute boys with scruffy beards and checked shirts...seems to be a big trend in NYC) ;)

Other trends I noticed were all things fringed and tasseled and AIR PLANTS everywhere! By far the busiest booth was "Coral & Tusk," who sell textiles embroidered with whimsical animals and natural objects. They had big boxes filled with these embroidered fabric scraps for dirt cheap, and there were about 15 people at any given time trying to crowd into the 5 foot by 5 foot space...yikes! But it was worth getting a few elbows to the ribs to get these amazing finds, which I plan to turn into pillows:

coralandtusk.com

I also couldn't resist this charming little terracotta Geo-Planter:

www.ash-ware.net

And, of course, I had to get myself something tasseled:

rebeccadaryl.etsy.com

Finally, these teensy, delicate wishbone earrings in 14 kt gold rounded out my Renegade haul:

www.alibinyc.com

I was simply lucky that I happened to be in the city when this fantastic event was on, but it happens in different U.S. cities (and London, England) at different times, so if you are ever as lucky as I was to be in the right place at the right time, you must, you must go! http://www.renegadecraft.com/

Being Happy With What You Have

Yesterday, I was chatting with a friend who just bought a new house and she started asking me my opinion on some renovations she was considering. I actually had to tell her I wasn't the best person to ask as I have never done any major renovations...never taken down any walls, never replaced any kitchen cabinets, never installed new flooring. I guess you could say I've been pretty lucky--all three of the properties I have had the pleasure of owning with my husband were in pretty good shape when we bought them. But that's not to say  there aren't lots of changes I would love to make to our current 1960s house...just that when it comes down to taking a family vacation in the winter or splurging on a swanky new bathroom, Mexico wins.

The thing is, I really do want to live in a house that I feel good about. Heck, I have more books on interior design than I do cookbooks. I also really enjoy the challenge of making something not so spectacular look...well, if not spectacular then a heck of a lot better, just by flexing my creative muscles and avoiding spending too much cash.

In one of the first posts I ever wrote back in July ("The Living Room"), I talked a little bit about that giant eyesore--the outdated, multi-tonal stone/brick fireplace that I've been stressing about since we got this place in 2010. It just didn't fit with my vision of the living room and I felt like it threw the rest of the design out of whack. But, what to do?

Before

Well, it's taken almost four years of fussing around, but I have finally gotten to a point that I actually love our family hearth...and I NEVER thought I would say that. I've considered painting it white, and still might do so, but for now I can totally live with it. 

After

A few ways to live with what you have...and be happy with it:

• Make liberal use of paint...it is the easiest, most cost-effective way to make a difference (read the "Living Room" post to see how I changed the color of the fireplace insert, which made the single biggest difference to the look of the fireplace).
• Use accessories to add bold pops of color that distract from whatever it is you are trying to hide (in this case, the plants, books and even the cat bed are those colorful distractions).
• Don't underestimate the importance of cohesiveness. Bringing in elements that are similar in color, texture, style and finish can make the overall space more pleasing to the eye, and hopefully help to camouflage the not-so wonderful aspects of the room (the rustic vibe of the barn wood mirror really did that for this room, as it echoes other rustic, wooden, vintage pieces in our living/dining room).
• Invest in art. It doesn't have to be expensive, but art is beautiful and it always adds a touch of class to any room. The same goes for artfully framed photographs. And kids' art always makes a house feel cozy.

There you have it...embrace what you have! You just might be amazed at what you can live with, if you open your mind to the possibilities. :)

Getting our Spook On

It's my favorite time of year again...HALLOWEEN! Here are a few pics from my hauntified front yard:

The metal flower decoration is just something I keep on the door year round. For Halloween I attached some mini rubber skeletons to it. The sign is Martha Stewart from a few years back. I just love how everything pops against my front door, which I painted in Martha Stewart's "Barn Red" last fall.

Aaaaaand of course there are pumpkins and mums in assorted colors. I am so excited about all the varieties of pumpkins you can find now! Although you can't really tell in this picture, the bigger guy on top is the red warty sort (my personal favourite :)).

It's such a simple craft, but my girls spent a good hour making dozens of these jack-o'-lanterns to decorate our front windows. I love how creative they got!

Last weekend we went to Dollarama and I gave the girls ten bucks each to pick out whatever Halloween lawn decorations they wanted. Now there are gory body parts, skeletons and grave markers dotting our lawn. My fav dollar store find is this seven-foot spook.

How do you decorate for Halloween? Do you keep it sophisticated and restrained or do you go all out? I would love to see your pics! Upload them to The Hydeout's Facebook page...and in the meantime, I leave you with this photo of the hairy dude who appears to have taken up permanent residency on my front swing. Happy-Howl-o-ween!

Chalkboard Wall

Do you have an eyesore in your house that burns your retinas every time you look at it, but you just don't know what to do about? Believe me, I have several, but I finally came up with a solution for one of them. I am a firm believer in first impressions, and the first impression guests were treated to at my house wasn't as stellar as it could be. Oh, there are a lot of things that could be improved about our entryway, but the thing that bugged me the most was the 8' oak kitchen cabinetry panel that is parallel with our front door.

Before

You might say, what's the big deal? And, honestly, you would be right. But I am not one for bare walls, and this expanse of bare wood in a finish I never would've picked for myself was just begging for a makeover.

So what does a girl with no less than five chalkboards or chalkboard-styled pieces of art in her house do? Why turn this eyesore into another chalkboard, of course! I know you've seen this done many a time before on HGTV and Pinterest, but chalkboard walls are really handy. Now I can change up my greetings with the holidays, post menus for all the gourmet dinner parties I host (uh, yeah, like that's going to happen), and leave notes for family members in a pinch.

After

All you need to transform a wall into a chalkboard is some Rust-Oleum Specialty Chalkboard Paint (it even comes in different colors), and some latex-based primer. I did one coat of primer and two coats of paint. Not bad for an afternoon project! What do you think? Are chalkboard walls here to stay or are they a trend that will look as dated as stencil borders in a couple of years?

Vintage Toys

When you go to someone else's house for the first time, what is the one thing that makes you feel most at home? For me it's that sighting of a vintage toy. I am a kid at heart. And I love, love to decorate with kids' art, kids' books and kids' toys (the vintage kind, that is...you won't find me lining my mantle with my daughter's Beanie Boo collection any day soon ;)).

The best toys in my opinion are the ones I grew up with in the 70s and 80s. They don't make 'em like this anymore:

At my old house in Toronto, I used to have a curio cabinet filled with part of my vintage toy collection. I would like to do the same thing at this house, but first I want to refinish the old cabinet. I'm thinking of painting it with Miss Mustard Seed's milk paint in Grain Sack or Flow Blue (www.missmustardseedsmilkpaint.com/colors/)...stay tuned for that blog post!

When it comes down to it, though, I believe that toys should be played with, not kept behind glass so they can one day be sold to finance that Winnebago. My almost-five and seven-year-old are allowed to play with all my treasures...but if I come home to find they've given all my Strawberry Shortcake dolls Mohawks, well, let's just say if mama ain't happy, ain't nobody gonna be happy ;)

Here are some of my favorite toys from when I was growing up. Recognize any of these?

Original 1980s Strawberry Shortcake Dolls

1970 Barbie Country Camper. Look who stopped by for a S'more...it's Jimmy Osmond in the sparkly silver pantsuit!

The Barbapapas

What were some of your favorite toys from your childhood? Leave a comment, or post a photo of your favs on The Hydeout's Facebook page...I would love to hear from you!

Pillow Talk

As anyone who knows me knows, I have an unhealthy obsession with throw pillows. Unlike my obsession with plants, which I can sort of justify by telling myself that I am "rescuing" them (from what terrible fate, I'm not quite sure), pillows just take up a lot of space on the couch...and after a while, in our closets, which are filled to bursting with them.

I love that you can totally change the look and color scheme of any room, just by swapping out the pillows. Three years ago, I took an introductory sewing class that changed my life. We learned to make an envelope-back pillow cover, and I have since made about a hundred million of these. For any of you living in the Hamilton area, I highly recommend taking the pillow-making class at Needlework (www.iloveneedlework.com). Once you know how to sew, the possibilities of what you can do with your decor have no end!

Which brings me to my latest project. My husband's family cottage is situated on the Kettle and Stony Point First Nation Reserve by Lake Huron, and last summer, I found the most gorgeous wool fabric at a CAR WASH there, of all places! This super amazing car wash sold tons of beautiful traditional print fabric, craft supplies for leather moccasins, and even some Pendleton blankets. I knew I had to snap up the sweet fabric below or I'd be kicking myself in the tush all the way home.

Last week, I finally found the time to turn this fabric into two new envelope-back pillow covers. So quick and easy...and much easier on the wallet than ordering similar pillows from Pendleton!

When paired with some Turkish kilim cushions I ordered from Istanbul last year (!), I now have the colorful, exotic couch I've been lusting after for years.

Insta-makeover! (Well, not quite instantaneous, but it's amazing what a difference a couple of new pillows can make.) If you're ever up by Pinery Provincial Park, take a side drive down the road to Kettle Point. The beach is beautiful...and the car washes are a crafter's dream :)

AT HOME Magazine Story

So, this morning was a bit of a crazy one, with me waking up an hour after my alarm went off and one of my daughters waking up with pink eye, so it was a huge surprise when the phone rang a bit after eight and one of my friends told me that the issue of At Home magazine was delivered with this morning's paper, and THE HYDEOUT was on the cover!

Kathy Renwald, who wrote the story inside, did such a wonderful job of capturing my design sensibility and the "feel" of my home, and the photos look lovely, I think.

You can check out the issue here at:
http://edition.pagesuite-professional.co.uk/Launch.aspx?EID=064c888d-af25-4799-a36b-1eed761b0ffe

Stay tuned for some super fun blogs posts next week: I've got a couple of projects on the go that are almost complete! And if you're new to this blog, please "like" The Hydeout on Facebook, so you can get notifications whenever I post something new.

Till then, thanks for checking out what's new on The Hydeout, and have a fantastic weekend!

Fun with Plak-Its

If you're like me and still clinging to some of your old first-apartment-post-grad wall art (you know what I'm talking about--the Plak-It Claude Monet Water Lillies, that framed canvas print of a dog with an Afro that you bought at Urban Outfitters), here is a fun project for you. As long as you can stomach painting over that mounted black-and-white poster of Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany's that you know you're never really going to put back up on the wall, you can turn these dime-a-dozen reproductions into beautiful, original pieces of art.

This is one of my favorite things to do because it is cheap and easy...and, hey, it's environmentally responsible, too! There are just two steps to this project:

1. Get out your white paint and paint over your old "art." Wait for it to dry completely.
2. Decide what you want your new art to be. You don't have to be an artist for this. Find a stencil you like on-line, print and enlarge it if necessary, and simply fill it in with black paint. Or, you can write a word or a line from a favorite poem or song. I did this one free hand, but you could buy an alphabet stencil at a craft store and get a similar effect. So simple, yet, I guarantee you, much better than what was there before...

For the silhouette art of my family below, I cut around photographs of my family members' faces where they were in profile, then blew them up to the size I wanted them. I traced around the pictures directly onto the painted Plak-It board, then filled them in with black paint. I really wanted the piece to have some texture, so before I painted it white, I basically used up all my ugly colors of acrylic paint by slapping them on haphazardly and unevenly and using a metal spatula to chunkify the paint even more. Then, once it was completely dry, I painted over it with a thick white interior wall paint. You don't have to take this extra step, though, if you don't mind a smooth finish.

There you have it...original art in a day or less! Natalie Vaillancourt...this one's for you (I know you have some Plak-Its with motivational quotes lurking in a closet somewhere)!

Sew-Easy Dog Bed

Last Sunday, my family welcomed a new puppy into our home. Blue is our first dog, and he is pretty dang adorable. He is a Bernese Mountain Dog, which means one day he will be 100 pounds, but for now I wanted to make him a cute little puppy bed. Needlework on James St. North in Hamilton (iloveneedlework.com) recently acquired some swoon-worthy Japanese fabrics that I couldn't wait to find an excuse to buy, and it just so happens that the cotton-linen blend is the perfect weight for this project...lucky me! I always find that if you start with fabric you love, it is much easier to be motivated to sew. This is a TRULY EASY project that any Tom, Dick or Harriet with a sewing machine can pull off in a cinch.

For this project you will need:

• 1-2 yards of medium- to heavyweight fabric, depending on the size of your pooch
• 1 spool of coordinating thread
• Stuffing for bed (fiberfill, a large floor pillow or store-bought cushion-style dog bed)
• Buttons or zipper (optional)

To start, cut two identical rectangles of fabric, big enough to fit your dog (and/or cover your cushion). Fold over the hem an inch or so on one end of each rectangle and iron. Then sew down the hem (just a straight stitch all the way across the top of the hem as pictured). 

Next, pin right sides together (turned over hem will show on outside). 

Using a straight stitch, sew all around three sides of the cushion cover, leaving a 3/4 " seam. Flip inside out and insert your filler. If you don't care about being able to remove the cover, you can simply hand sew (slipstitch) the opening closed and you are done! Go pour yourself that mojito! However, if you have some skills in the sewing department, you will most likely want to make the cover removable (hence, washable). I used the automatic button-hole mechanism on my sewing machine to make three equally-spaced-apart button hones in the hem of one of the fabric pieces, then sewed buttons on the underside of the opposite hem.

Like a true novice, I didn't predict that my puppy would LOVE chewing on those little wooden choking hazards, so I recommend installing a zipper if you have the know-how...or just give the pillow to your cat. Meow!

A Plant You've Got To See To Believe

So, I've talked about succulents, terrariums, upside-down planters...now I'm going to blab about another magical, mysterious wonder of the plant world: the incredible, soil-shirking Air Plant. When I started this blog, I didn't know it was going to be my mission to convert you all into houseplant-obsessed geeks like me, but it appears that is what this has become! :)

These rebels of the plant kingdom don't need any soil to survive...that's right, they just survive on air, sunlight and water, making them so versatile. How you display them is completely up to you...in a rock bed, on a piece of birch bark, in a glass orb...the possibilities are endless! I bought mine at i fiori on James St. North in Hamilton, but in nature they grow in southern climes just about anywhere they want to. I found the air plant I had previously on the ground in Florida, where it had landed after becoming dislodged from its home on the side of a palm tree. Unfortunately, it disappeared one day from its perch on my back patio (I've got my eye on you Mr. Squirrel), which necessitated a trip to the florist to find a replacement.

These are the two lovelies I came home with. One is actually in bloom, which I'd never seen before.

I decided to plant them in a felted wool bowl with some small stones in the bottom to anchor them. To take care of your air plants, simply place them in an area with plenty of indirect sunlight, then give them a good dunking whenever they start to feel crispy (once a week or more). If kept outside in the summer, the rain should be enough to keep them hydrated. 

I promise my next post will be something non-plant related :) In the meantime, I'd love to know if I've inspired anyone to add a little plant love to their home! 

Make Your Own Terrarium

I love terrariums. There is something old-timey and romantic and cabinet-of-curiosities about them. For a long time I dreamed of having one, but I didn't have the proper type of receptacle, and all the ones I could find for sale were too rich for my blood. You can make a terrarium out of virtually any kind of glass container, but I was determined to have a pretty-looking one with a lid. In an "aha" moment, I figured out that the glass dome from my cheese plate fit on top of an old glass hurricane candle holder, and...boom!...I was ready to create my own mini ecosystem.

There are two kinds of terrariums: Open and Closed. Both are ideal for people who are prone to forgetting to water their plants. Open Terrariums are more for dry plants, such as succulents, as they don't like a lot of moisture. Closed Terrariums, on the other hand, are miniature replicas of the cycle of nature: rain falls then evaporates into the air, gathers in the clouds (on the underside of the lid), and falls again. Keeping the lid closed allows for moisture to be recycled, meaning you only have to water these nature's miracles once every month or so with a wee bit of the wet stuff. You will need to remove the lid to let in some air once every week to 10 days for a few hours for the plant to thrive and to avoid mold. Plants that like a lot of moisture, such as tropical plants and orchids, are ideal for this type of terrarium.

Note: Terrariums are ideal for locations that get little direct sun. Though they need some indirect sunlight, putting them in a south-facing window will cause the glass to heat up and cook the plant...not what you want to happen.

To build your terrarium, simply cover the bottom in some river stones to absorb excess water, then add your potting soil and your plant(s). Decorative moss is a nice touch. Some people like to make "scenes" by adding Star Wars figures and whatnot. I added this Seedpod Bird from West Elm, and it actually started to germinate. It doesn't look as cute anymore, but, hey, it's proof that my mini ecosystem is working!

The Swinging Life

I've always wanted a hammock, but we don't have two trees that are close enough together to string a hammock between them, and those hammock stands you can buy just don't cut it for me. So my awesome husband suggested a tree swing that the whole family can sit on. How fun is that? It's not quite the same as a hammock since you can't lie down on it, but it does accommodate two (or two wee ones and an adult) very nicely and is the perfect spot for this family of readers to chill with a book and watch the world go by.

My kids like to tell people that their dad built it, but he actually bought it from Lowe's on-line (though he did put it together ;)). You can't find these on display in any hardware store, it seems, but most stores have a version you can order from the Internet.

A lot of neighbours have commented on how tempting it looks. I keep wondering when I'll wake up to the creak, creak of the newspaper carrier sneaking a swing in the middle of the night. If you're ever in the neighbourhood and feel the urge, just go for it! You have my permission :)

A Plant for Every Black Thumb

People often ask me for advice on houseplants. I guess because I have so many and they are all in relatively good form, people assume I have a green thumb. And if having a green thumb is some intangible, magical thing that necessitates very little effort and a whole lot of luck, then yes, I definitely have one of those. Because aside from watering my guys once a week (or less, never more), I don't do anything special. Fertilizer? What's that?

Having said that, some plants are more finicky than others. I love Boston Ferns, but they are one of the most difficult plants to keep, in my opinion. My advice is always the same: Get a succulent. These fleshy, desert-dwelling plants not only possess otherworldly beauty, they are virtually impossible to kill. Their only enemies are too much water, and to a lesser degree, not enough sunlight. So if you are worried about neglecting your plants, this is the houseplant for you...believe it or not, succulents actually thrive on neglect.

With so many breathtaking varieties of succulents, trust, me, you will have a hard time picking just one. One of the most common--and practical--varieties is the humble Aloe Vera plant. Keep this tentacled beauty nearby and you will never have to splurge on Polysporin again. Simply snip off a bit of the leaf, and squeeze.

Perhaps my favourite of my succulents, is my Burro's Tail, if only because I spent waaaaaay too much money for it at a florist's in a strip mall in Scarborough where they made up prices on the fly. They are pretty rare to come by, though, so maybe I wasn't totally ripped off.

Most florists and garden centers, including Home Depot, carry some succulents. If you're in the Hamilton area, i fiori (http://i-fiori-flowers.blogspot.ca) on James St. North, has some wonderful miniature varieties for under $5. I bought this Sempervivum "Oddity" there. I'm crazy about the tubular leaves.

Cacti fall under the succulent category and are another remarkably easy plant to care for. Just give them very little water. A little bit every month or less is my philosophy. I'm not a crazy plant lady who names her plants, but this here is Ace, my Rat Tail Cactus. He never ceases to amaze me.

The Pencil Cactus is another really interesting-looking, fast-growing succulent that will undoubtedly get lots of attention from guests. I just found out that the sap from this plant is toxic, however, so best to keep away from babies and big, brawny types with a fetish for breaking pencils.

There you have it. A brief intro to the wonderful world of succulents. Now go out there and add some green to your house!

Sky Planter

A couple of weeks ago I was in Corning, NY, for a one-night stopover en-route to Washington D.C. There is a really pretty, artsy downtown there, and I bought a lot of nice things. One store that got me particularly excited was Pure Design (www.puredesignonline.com). It was filled with the kind of mid-century modern home decor and furniture you see in Dwell magazine (Herman Miller, Marimekko, etc.). Right by the door, they had a display of these Boskke Sky Planters and, of course, I had to get one. It would necessitate me buying another houseplant, but what is one more when I already have 51 to water? Plus, I would be watering it upside down!

I picked up a spider plant yesterday for a buck and a quarter and planted it as per the instructions. There is a reservoir at the top of the container where your add the water. When you look at it from the inside, the bottom looks solid and it's hard to understand how the water can reach the soil, but as it turns out...AHA!...the reservoir base is made of clay, which is porous, allowing for a "Slo-Flo" release. I haven't had to water mine yet, so it will be interesting to see how messy it is (it did come with a warning not to hang over carpet or furniture or your husband's slippers), but I love how it looks like an octopus. The bottom line here is, don't tempt me with new reasons to buy another plant. I am incapable of resisting.

The Ottoman Empire That Never Was

A couple of years ago, I had a brainwave: I was going to get rich making furniture out of old suitcases! It came after leafing through a library book on recycled crafts, and seeing a photo of a very cute bench made out of a vintage suitcase.  I thought, "I can do this!" and started imagining filling my house with all versions of suitcase furnishings (Ottomans! Side tables! Cat beds!) and selling them on Etsy and at craft shows.

Well, to this day, I have only made one piece of suitcase furniture. As it turns out, vintage suitcases are not as cheap or as easy to come by as I thought they'd be, so I can't imagine what I'd have to sell my upcycled creations for in order to make this brainwave worthwhile. But, that being said, I like my lone suitcase ottoman. You can make one, too. All you need is:

• a vintage suitcase
• a piece of foam cut to fit snuggly inside the suitcase and extend over the top by several inches
• fabric to cover the foam with
• four screw-in sofa "feet" and associated fittings depending on the kind of feet you choose 
• screws
• a piece of plywood cut to fit inside the bottom of the suitcase
• a screwdriver or power tool
• a hammer

The first thing you'll have to do is break off the top of the suitcase. This took a little more work than I was expecting, but a few good blows with the hammer did the trick. Next, put your plywood inside and screw/drill your feet into the bottom. (I ended up painting my vintage feet found at my local Bibles for Missions store to match the colour of the suitcase.) Wrap your foam with fabric (mine is a vintage bark cloth I ordered from Etsy) and just pin it at the bottom, then insert into suitcase and you are done! Now you have a lovely, bespoke conversation piece to adorn your handcrafted home. 

Simple, No-Sew Fabric Art

So, a while ago, I was looking for something to put on the wall behind the master bed. Since we don't have a head board, there was a lot of blank wall. The reclaimed wood mirror from the living room would have looked nice, but I liked how it looked above the fireplace, so I came up with this idea, having seen it done at my favourite fabric store in downtown Hamilton, Needlework (iloveneedlework.com).

It's so simple, and people always comment on how cool it looks. All you need are a variety of different sized embroidery hoops (I bought mine in bulk at Value Village), and some great-looking fabric. I instantly fell in love with this "Architextures" fabric by Carolyn Friedlander when I saw it on Needlework's Facebook page, and since it is all from the same collection, I knew it would look good when grouped together. Easy-peasy, instant art!

The Kitchen

Our kitchen lets in a lot of light, which makes it a very pleasant room to work in. Seeing as I work from home as a freelance editor/writer, we decided to build a desk in front of one of the windows for my "home office." I really wanted a nice old slab of barn wood for the top, but we haven't been able to find one the right size and type yet, so for now my husband made me this one with some pine from Home Depot. Does the trick!

Eventually, this 1990s kitchen will need an overhaul, but I'm pretty content with it as is. My one big wish list item would be a candy-colored Smeg fridge (even before redoing the counters or the cabinets). I like happy, colorful kitchens like people used to have before it became the thing to go all white or dark and stainless. I even like the old avocado-colored appliances that everyone got rid of. Anyone have one they feel like unloading? :)