. -->

12.29.2019

rustic junky new year wreath

rusty, metal, junk, junking, diy decor, home decor, thrifted, repurposed, upcycled, salvaged, junk wreath, 2020, new year decor
i love creating a fresh look on our front porch for each season. 
okay, it's not a porch. more like a 'vestibule' - long, narrow, and dark. 
(totally impossible to photograph well, especially with dark terra cotta colored stucco walls. but i try!)

that's why it's important to me to come up with a display here that will welcome guests.
i always bring in light colors, textures, and seasonal elements.
i have a plan for this area and am searching for a large lighter element to add this spring...

for winter this year, i chose rusty metal as the starting point.
some whitewashed wood elements, rope & twine, and rustic wood crates
(ALL things that i have used here before!) combined in a 'winter' scene.

continue reading to see more of our front porch decor...

12.26.2019

tiki style tablescape

tiki bar, tikis, tiki culture, tiki hut, tropical decor, happy HULAdays, home decor, diy decor, holiday home decor, holiday
our Hawaiian holiday style continues onto the dining table...
using what we had on hand already, along with a few simple and inexpensive additions,
i was able to create a table that reflected the island style of our 'Happy HULAdays' Christmas decor theme!

as always, i try to keep the decor simple and easily removed, so we can play games or craft here.
'continue reading' to see the details...

12.25.2019

totally tiki-tastic holiday!

tiki bar, tikis, tiki culture, tiki hut, tropical decor, happy HULAdays, home decor, diy decor, holiday home decor, holiday, nativity
our Happy HULAdays theme begins at the front door, 
with a totally terrific tiki welcome...
i made these guys by simply painting faces on planks of pine wood from our garage.
if you look closely, you can see that i used the grain of the wood as part of each face design.

the 'Happy HULA days' sign is a piece of plywood washed with brown paint, then hand-lettered.
the HULA letters were painted onto a few of my giant letter tiles, and glued onto the plywood.
tiki bar, tikis, tiki culture, tiki hut, tropical decor, happy HULAdays, home decor, diy decor, holiday home decor, holiday, nativity
you might recognize a few of those tiki faces... 
on the left: Olaf from Frozen (complete with twig arms and hair), a stylized Small World clock face, and a completely doe-like face that just came outta' my paintbrush that way!
on the right: a sun-like face inspired by Small World, a tiki face discovered online, 
Santiki - also discovered online - and finally, Baymax from Big Hero 6. that's for my Dad <3

the 'enter with the spirit of Aloha' sign is one my Mom bought in Hawaii and has had for years
(it was in the tropical backyard weekend makeover i did for my Mom)

... and the fun is just beginning!
continue reading to see MORE of the tikis that i gathered and created for our decor this year!

12.24.2019

nativitiki - times two!

tiki bar, tikis, tiki culture, tiki hut, tropical decor, happy HULAdays, home decor, diy decor, holiday home decor, holiday, nativity
my thinking is: if you're going to do a Christmas theme, do it all the way.
the TIKI tree in my last post was just the beginning of our 'happy HULA days' theme...
i also created TWO incredibly cute nativity scenes with a tiki vibe.
(oh, and that name? well, as i was painting them, 
i thought to myself 'a tiki nativity. wait! nativi-tiki!' ... and it stuck!) 

i laugh out loud every time i look at this nativiTIKI in our living room! it's so happy!
grab a handful of macadamia nuts and continue reading to see all the tropical details...

12.23.2019

happy hula days!

tiki bar, tikis, tiki culture, tiki hut, tropical decor, happy HULAdays, home decor, diy decor, holiday home decor, holiday
 nope, this is NOT your ordinary Christmas tree...
THIS, my friends, is what our tree looks like THIS year: it's a TIKI TREE!

our 'Happy HULAdays' celebration theme has been a very BIG secret,
because my daughter and her hubby were coming to visit this past weekend.
and this whoooooole thing was a surprise for them!
now that they've seen it all, i can finally share what creative mayhem i've been up to!
(and OH my goodness, what FUN things i've made... there are SEVERAL posts coming this week)

so grab a nice mai tai or other rum drink, and click through to see the TIKI tree details...

12.20.2019

diy wire lampshade frame Christmas tree

junk, junking, junk tree, thrifted, upcycled, repurposed, wire lampshades, makeover, diy, Christmas tree
i created this tree last year, from lampshades and wire lampshade frames & a wire waste basket.
that was after i had stepped away from blogging, so i never shared it here... 
with a 'tree' theme running through all of my December posts, 
i thought it was fitting to include it now!

'continue reading' for the details...

12.18.2019

rustic holiday tablescape

designed to coordinate with the contemporary rustic style of our 'tree' theme,
as seen in the faux wood junk trees in the background,
this tablescape is a study in simplicity...
wood tones & textures, clear glass, and mixed hues stand out amongst minimal foliage/greenery.

the bonus? this style is REALLY easy and fast to create!

'continue reading' to see the details up close...

12.16.2019

ornaments... not just for trees

so usually, the BIG DEAL in a post on holiday decor is the Christmas tree.
sorry to disappoint, friends, but THIS is the tree that we ended up with.
my severe back pain limited my mobility and strength to the point where i knew
that i couldn't wrestle our normal 9' tree into the house and set it up. no way.

instead, i grabbed my little 4' white pre-lit tree that usually goes in my office/studio,
and a bar-height round table served to elevate it up to a decent height in the living room.
a vintage chenille bedspread served as a combination tablecloth/tree skirt,
and a slight few ornaments filled in the branches. and that was fine.
(it can't always be a big reveal, especially when one's health is at stake!)

but what was i supposed to do with ALL of the other ornaments
that normally fill our regular 9' tree?!

'continue reading' to see how i used some of them...

12.14.2019

more sweet sweater trees!

today i was moving some things around my studio/office, and discovered some 'forgotten' trees!
i made them awhile back.... and loved them, 
but they don't go with the current brightly colorful scheme in this room.
so, i came up with a quick idea to CAMOUFLAGE them - with sweaters! 

continue reading to see the before & after...

12.12.2019

copper 'junk' trees

upcycled, repurposed, diy, home decor, thrifted, junking, Christmas decor
paper trees aren't enough for the 'tree' Christmas decor theme i dreamed up, oh noooo...
i had to go rummaging through the kitchen cabinets (and, i admit, a few thrift stores)
to find MORE STUFF to make trees out of!
and THIS is where my crazy imagination took me:

stacking copper kitchen molds (usually used for gelatin, ice cream, cakes, even meatloaf)
into tree shapes.
although there was one that didn't need to be stacked... it already looks like a tree.
so i topped it with a snowflake cookie cutter.

i call 'em 'copper junk trees', even though this isn't really JUNKY junk.  

cled, repurposed, diy, home decor, thrifted, junking, Christmas decor
from the bottom of this stack, we have:
a copper cookie tin (from Costco, two years ago)
a large copper fluted ring mold
the LID from the copper cookie tin, flipped upside down
two medium-sized copper fluted molds
a copper funnel

i admit to gluing the funnel on with a dot of hot glue
because it just would NOT stay on there!!

on glass cake stands on the kitchen island,
they add the perfect bit of whimsy to the room.
(that wood fencing is just there for the photos)

OH! here's a thought... if your style is totally kitsch,
you could make these with shaped Tupperware pieces, too!
or use tiny little tart pans & containers to create small versions of these,
and hang the lil' trees ON your real Christmas trees.

yup. deb's really gone over the edge with this one, friends...
but hey, it's fun. and i think decorating should be fun.

shared online:

funky junk interiors | diy salvaged junk projects #505 

featured!



oh my goodness, thank you Miss Donna - TWO features!

diy salvaged junk projects #506

12.09.2019

scrap paper tree wall art

i never throw away paper scraps. ever.
(because the moment i DO, i find a use for them! LOL)
when i had some thin strips of wood-patterned paper left over
from my faux wood tree project in my last post, they went into a drawer in my studio.
and just about about a day and a half later, i had a project to use them in:
a piece of contemporary rustic wall art for our gallery wall!

'continue reading' for the really easy details...

12.06.2019

faux wood 'junk' trees

faux wood, wood-look, junk trees, junking, diy, handmade, crafts, home decor, Christmas
 this is not a collection of trees made from wood. nope.
it's a collection of trees made from wood-printed PAPER! 

'continue reading' to see more details of this easy and kid-friendly craft
that can be made with new or reclaimed materials -
a simple, inexpensive way to get a 'junk project' look for your holiday & winter decor!

12.04.2019

sweet sweater... trees!

thrifting, junking, repurposed, upcycled, reused, home decor, Chrismtas decor, sweater trees
yep, i found something ELSE to use sweaters for!
( no, this isn't my original idea - i've seen some really darling colorful ones on the 'net! )
but this is ME, queen of sweaterdom, so i had to try to make my own versions of them...
and i like the simple, warm look!

'continue reading' for this super-simple holiday & winter decor project
made with thrifted / upcycled sweaters...