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3.31.2020

upcycled wine bottle plant markers

DIY, garden, outdoors, re-purposing, seasonal, spring, summer, tomato cage crafts, up-cycling, trash to treasure, garden art, victory garden, spring garden, plant markers, wine bottle crafts
i finished planting our backyard 'Victory Garden' on Sunday afternoon.
then realized i wanted some plant markers...
after half an hour of poking around in the garage workbench and shelves,
to find something interesting to make about a dozen markers out of,
i came up empty handed.

the muses, they are kind, though!
as i walked back into the house, my Mom was standing at our wine bar popping a cork
and held up the bottle as she asked 'is it time for wine?'...
and little bells started ringing in my head.

why not use wine bottles to make plant markers? WINE not, indeed!!!

continue reading to see how ridiculously easy this is - and how fun they look!

3.27.2020

painted easter eggs

art class, color, color palettes, crafting, decorating, DIY, diy decorating, Easter, painting, spring, up-cycling, makeover, Easter eggs, gingham, paint chip decor, spring decorating, Easter decorating
while employing this mandatory time at home to accomplish some long-overdue tasks,
i've unearthed some goodies that i completely forgot that i still had!
(tell me i'm not alone. please. i can not be the only decor/craft-supply hoarder out here!)
.
seven ceramic eggs that i bought at a thrift shop years ago turned up in a box,
and as soon as i saw them, i decided to give them a makeover with paint -
and pictured them just as you see them in the image above.
because it's all about making do with what we have at home right now, yes? yes!

continue reading to see the before & after!

3.24.2020

paint chip easter eggs - over easy!

art class, color, color palettes, crafting, crafting with kids, painting, decorating, DIY, diy decorating, Easter, fast cheap and easy, on the porch, original designs, paper crafts, paper, re-purposing, spring, tutorial, Easter decorating, Easter eggs, Easter egg decor
if you've been around here any length of time, 
you know that i like my decorating projects 'fast, cheap, & easy'TM. my trademark phrase.
in this case, the project is 'over easy'! 
yeah, it's a pun, but it's also true - because this is a super-fast craft idea for spring & Easter.
.
continue reading for the easy how-to and how i've used them...

3.20.2020

painting the daffies yellow!

art class, color, color palettes, crafting, crafting with kids, decorating, DIY, diy decorating, Easter, flowers, paper crafts, paper, painting, re-purposing, spring, up-cycling, tutorial, spring decorating, crafts for kids, daffodils, paper daffodils
spring 2020 sure is coming in like a... not lion. more like a T-Rex!
as we all adjust to this 'new normal' (and no, it's not normal),
we're all looking for activities that calm us, entertain the kids, make home a bit more... home-y.
.
using my recent 'paint your own paint chips' technique,
i've been happily painting away and then making new decor elements with the results...
this time 'round, i came up with flowers.
i'm not painting the roses red... i'm painting the daffodils yellow!

continue reading for my easy tutorial for this sweet spring project...

3.16.2020

the art of nesting

boho style, color, crafting, decorating, DIY, diy decorating, Easter, farmhouse style, garden, nests, neutrals, original designs, re-purposing, rustic style, salvaged, seasonal, spring, up-cycling, thrifted, vintage, handmade, spring vignettes
'nesting' is kind of the mood of the moment, isn't it?
as part of our newly-required 'social distancing' practices, 

we're all spending more time at home right now.
the organizing & purging that we began with gusto in January 
has become a flurry of cleaning & disinfecting in March.

confession: i am not a person who loves cleaning. i DO it, of course, 
but my main motivation has always been that i clean the house so i can decorate the house.
 restyling. refreshing. we sometimes call this 'nesting'.
mama's about to have babies do this. newlyweds do this. 
and sometimes, angry/frustrated people do this. 
(deb raises her hand).
yeah, i'm one o' THOSE people. i clean like a banshee when i am mad or feel out of control. 
the physical activity - and the loud music i play as i engage in it - really can help re-set my mood.
plus it accomplishes something good (a clean house), so it isn't wasted energy.

i think this applies when we are a bit scared and uncertain, too...
cleaning, conquering clutter, completing a project, expressing some creativity
are positive things we can do with the pent-up energy that threatens to overwhelm us.
in times of stress (like we're all experiencing right now), it can be helpful
to set ourselves to the task of gaining some control over a part of our lives, like our homes.

and yes, that includes crafting and creating and decorating -
all facets of 'the art of nesting'.
these pursuits can re-set our mindset and give us a respite in the midst of chaos.
it can help us engage our brains in a positive thought pattern -
and if you have littles at home, you can teach them how to focus on what is possible
rather than on limitations.

in light of that, i've been puttering around the house as i clean,
and decided to update & refresh a few projects from the past.

since my whole 'thing' here at homewardFOUND is 'use what you already have'
i looked around at my stash and found a way to freshen up an original project
that i created over a decade ago. it needed a facelift. and so did i!
the creative process made me smile (the best kind of facelift) as i was working on this,
and now the finished product makes our home smile with its presence...
a good reminder that old can be made new, new approaches can be taken,
new things can be accomplished. at any time.

i think NOW is a good time to put those principles into practice, don't you?

 continue reading for a colorful re-furb and a link to my nest-making tutorial...

3.14.2020

home-making

decorating, DIY, diy decorating, creativity, dollar store crafts, fast cheap and easy, junk makeover, re-purposing, salvaged, seasonal, spring, up-cycling, wall art, gallery wall, salvage art, home decor, spring home decorating
friends, i just want to offer an encouraging note to you today...
i know things are scary in this world right now. i feel it, too.
.
in the midst of all of it, i am purposing to choose to keep my mind in a place of faith not fear, 
a place of peace not panic, a place of still finding things in everyday life to be grateful for. 
to find simple, comforting ways to be creative and content at home. 
to make home a place of respite, refuge, and happiness.

and isn't it good that we can make our homes a retreat from the worlds' chaos?
 

in the midst of the current sense of uncertainty, 
i hope that you can all 
focus your mind and your thoughts on still seeing beauty in the world around you,
extend patience and kindness to others (but not your hands! LOL),
and fill up your homes with a daily celebration of life:
music, cleanliness, and a calmness of spirit built on gratitude for what we DO have.

.
we have a choice, and our choices affect others around us and in our homes...
we can still shine the light of hopefulness and BE the bright side of life right now.
we can still pull together here on social media and encourage & uplift one another.

.as a way of sharing good news and encouraging messages & images,
i invite you to share your social media links in a comment on this post:
facebook page, blog, instagram, pinterest, twitter. you can share someone else's, too!
.
this is a way we can 'visit' some new people, find uplifting content, and let it brighten our days! ðŸ˜˜
____________________________

oh, and that project pictured above?
i've had a few questions about it, so i'll share the details...


continue reading to see more!

3.12.2020

fois gras? no - faux grass!

decorating, DIY, diy decorating, flowers, garden, industrial, outdoors, on the porch, re-purposing, salvaged, seasonal, spring, summer, up-cycling, artificial turf, fake grass, candles, spring decor, spring decorating, spring fresh, grass
as a decorator / designer, my BIG thing is using things differently.
differently than everyone else, for sure - but also differently than they were ever intended to be used.
i love to let my imagination run wild and come up with 'alternative uses' for just about everything!

when Mom and i designed our backyard landscaping in 2016, we chose faux grass / artificial turf
because of the easy maintenance, long lifespan, and no need for watering.
after the expert installation, we had a lot of scraps left, so i kept them.
i knew that i would come up with ways to use those scraps - and i did!

you've seen our faux grass in some photos of our backyard here on the blog...
 decorating, DIY, diy decorating, flowers, garden, industrial, outdoors, on the porch, re-purposing, salvaged, seasonal, spring, summer, up-cycling, artificial turf, fake grass, candles, spring decor, spring decorating, spring fresh, backyard decordecorating, DIY, diy decorating, flowers, garden, industrial, outdoors, on the porch, re-purposing, salvaged, seasonal, spring, summer, up-cycling, artificial turf, fake grass, candles, spring decor, spring decorating, spring fresh, backyard decor
under the salvaged bucket fountain    .     as a heat shield for roses AND to hide the A/C unit

recently, i used some of the smallest scraps to enhance our spring decor INSIDE the house...
continue reading to see the details!

3.09.2020

spring decor accents made from 1 tablecloth

color, decorating, DIY, diy decorating, entertaining, farmhouse style, re-purposing, room makeovers, seasonal, spring, simple solutions, tablescapes, thrifted, wall art, tablecloths, gingham, gingham check, plaid, fabric crafts, sewing, spring decor, spring decorating, home decor, diy home decor
i love  a good decorating challenge...
for example, how much decorating punch can you get from a single piece of fabric?

i picked up a pretty green gingham tablecloth at Home Goods
and transformed it into some fresh new accents for our home this spring
to prove to myself that it doesn't take much to make a big impact.

continue reading to see how far a $15 purchase got me!

3.06.2020

greenhouse from salvaged windows

decorating, DIY, diy decorating, farmhouse style, garden, industrial, junk makeover, junking, original designs, outdoors, re-purposing, rustic style, salvaged, spring, up-cycling,
 going through an old journal, i stumbled across these photos... from 1995.
(that's so long ago that i used an old-school film-loaded camera and had them printed!)
they show a very sweet birthday surprise that my late husband created for me:
a small backyard greenhouse, made from vintage windows.

he covertly collected vintage windows and a door (free off of Craigslist!)
then built the frame and inserted the windows to make this charming little place for me...
it was one of the nicest birthday gifts he ever gave me.
(i just wish i had been a better photographer back then!)

continue reading for more photos, and details about how he built it...

3.02.2020

paint chip shamrocks!

paper crafts, green decor, saint patricks day, march decor, spring decor, DIY, shamrocks, shamrock decor, diy decorating, home decor, paint chips, painting, party decor
it's finally MARCH!
so now i can divulge the second decor project that i came up with
after creating my 'painted paint chip' paper <<< click for tutorial
(this project was actually the REASON i came up with that alternative to using actual paint chips)

inspired by my own pink 'paint chip hearts' shared back in February, 

i tweaked that process to make shamrocks to decorate with, in honor of St. Patricks' Day - 
and it's SO easy, even your kids can do this!

continue reading for an easy-peasy spring decor craft that your little leprechauns will love...