As someone who has difficulty making color choices, I really love being able to buy plain but customizable things. Ikea has these great magazine files made of untreated wood and they’re only $10 for a set of two. I decided I would paint these white and add a minimal black pattern inspired by the following:

found here and here

If you want to spruce up your workspace, find those magazine files at your local Ikea (their product name is KNUFF, just thought you should know), grab some paint, and go to town. I used large foam paint brushes for the outer and inner surfaces of the files and then painted the rectangles using a smaller flat brush. A little simple and a little messy.

I’m excited to use these in my new place! Crossing my fingers that I will actually fully unpack, decorate, and nest this time around.

ps. Emma Watson has the best eyebrows, huh?

For place cards this Easter, I thought I would go with a yarn silhouette kind of theme. I loved how the first one turned out, but then I realized I needed to make sixteen more. So I changed it up a bit and tried a few different ideas.

Supplies I used:
Pre-folded place cards from Paper Source
Yarn, paint, glitter, fabric, paper
Hot glue, Mod Podge, Xacto knife, cutting mat

1. Golden Marbled Easter Eggs DIY – SheKnows
2. Temporary Tattoo Easter Eggs – Country Living
3. Origami Easter Bunny Baskets – Studio DIY
4. Colorful Tealights Easter DIY – The Kitchn
5. Leaf Print Eggs – Spoonful
6. Graffiti Art Easter Eggs DIY – Paper & Stitch

Decorating eggs is a really funny tradition when you think about it…who even came up with that? Going to Wikipedia that right now. See ya!

When I was younger, I had Valentine’s Day parties every year. I have such vivid memories of sitting around the kitchen table with my four-year-old besties, surrounded by everything red, pink, and heart-shaped. These days, I throw Galentine’s Day parties which is pretty much the same thing except for there’s champagne instead of juice boxes.

I love the idea of having goodie bags at parties, no matter how old you are. Who doesn’t love goodie bags?! Crazy people. Anyway, I bought these kraft bags at Paper Source and decorated them with some heat embossing.

Supplies needed: Paper kraft bags, stamps, embossing powder, heat tool, VersaMark watermark stamp pad, (optional: glue pen, heart punch, glitter tray).

First, stamp the paper bag using any rubber stamp and the VersaMark watermark stamp pad. Then pour embossing powder over the entire stamped imprint. Pour the excess powder into the glitter tray and make sure the image is nice and clean. It helps to flick the back of the paper in order to get all of the extra powder off. After this, just plug in your heat tool and place it over the stamp, until it becomes shiny and magical right before your eyes. Ahhh! It never gets old.

You can also heat emboss your handwriting or doodles by using a glue pen. To make the bag with the hearts at the bottom, I just punched out hearts along a strip of paper, and used a technique just like this one.

Goodie bag contents:
“Happy Days” pencils – Anthropologie
Wildflower seed paper hearts – Paper Source
Kraft  bags – Paper Source
Gold/Pink Card – Paper Source
Washi Tape – Michael’s
Arrow Stamp – Michael’s

All other heat embossing tools are from Paper Source.

What do you have planned for Valentine’s Day? Anyone else throwing a V-Day (or Galentine’s Day) party?

A while ago, I picked up some plain coasters from Crate and Barrel and thought they would look nicer with some heart decorations. I’m pretty crazy about hearts no matter the time of year, but we’ll call these Valentine’s Day-inspired coasters. :)

Supplies needed: cork coasters, paint, heart shapes/stencils, washi or painter’s tape

To make the heart shapes, I used a makeshift stencil traced from clipart. When painting the coaster above, I taped the heart to the coaster with washi tape. After a few failed hearts, I just started making brushstrokes.

They turned out a kind of messy, but I’m trying to embrace the idea that DIYs are supposed to be a little messy. That way people can see and appreciate that they’re handmade. Right…? That’s my new logic.

Have you done any V-day crafts this month? If so, leave some links in the comment section!

Let’s talk about DIY fails. I would prefer not to experience them, but at the same time they’re always kind of funny. And rewarding! Sometimes. One of my 2014 goals, as I shared here, is to finish what I start even if it seems completely doomed. Making these mercury glass jars was one of those frustrating, doomed projects. But I’m glad I finished the project because now I have a better idea of what to do next time.