Not Really a Makeover, but: My Secret Room...

The crayon isn't a fixture. It's just for scale.

Welcome to my secret room. I decorated it myself using my home decorating magazines and my inner child. It was like going on an unlimited furniture and decor shopping spree. We had so much fun creating it. I got the idea from the Small Notebook, and I love that my room pops up from a file folder so I can fold it up when I'm not staring at it and daydreaming. 

I have all my favorite things- a fireplace, a beautiful wreath, pretty pottery, and two perfectly-behaved (and of course non-shedding) loveable pets whom I named Goldie and Puff. They aren't all to scale (whose fireplace comes up to their waist?) but it's my room so I don't care. If my kids were a little bit older I would love to make rooms like this with them. 

Please stop by again soon and we can sit by the fire and share a cup of tea. Goldie and Puff love to have company. Maybe one day you can even make your own secret room. If you do, be sure to let me know so I can drop in for a visit!

Makeover Monday: Cleaning in the New Year!

Okay, so we're approaching a new year, and in my house, instead of spring cleaning we do New Years cleaning! My hubby usually takes a week of vacation between Christmas and New Years, and we typically use part of that time together to get our house in shape. I am pretty good with keeping up with the day-to-day tidying in our high-traffic living spaces- kitchen, living room, bedrooms- but the clutter seems to collect in the corners, and especially here- try not to scream- THE OFFICE! (insert screeching violins here)

Yeah, this is the not-so-beautiful part of the beautiful thrifty life. But I have heard a rumor that the "home office" and/or "guest room" in many people's homes has a tendency to end up this way. It is not a place that really belongs to anyone, and it's not a place that's usually seen by the public. Therefore, it becomes the dumping ground for all the paper clutter, wrapping supplies, craft stuff, and pretty much all that stuff that you just don't know what to do with.

Well, our office is also my craft room, and doubles (triples?) as a guest room (there's a futon couch along one wall- not that you could tell...sigh...) when we have company (which, by the way, is usually the only time it's clean). Last year around this time we had guests, so I frantically worked to get this room clean, and I remember how following Christmas after our guests had left, I realized that I enjoyed having a clean office far more than any other gift I had received for Christmas. Over the year it collected clutter again, and got sporadically cleaned again when the arrival of company was pending, but as of this week it looked, yet again, like a bomb had gone off. 

One of my goals for this post was to demonstrate how something that seems overwhelming can actually be quite surmountable, if you start small. This is what I accomplished in this room in less than an hour:

It may not seem like much, and much of the cluttered look is due to my craft supply organization (or uh, lack thereof), but I now have floor space, desk space, and the couch is completely clear as well. 

I'd like to continue working on this room as my pet project over the next few months, and I will be sure to keep you updated. Honestly, I want it to be my gift to myself. My vision for this space is to have it be someplace truly beautiful, relaxing, and inspiring, where I can come to blog, create, and unwind. Already after I took this photo I had my husband help me hang some things that had been sitting under the desk for I-don't-know-how-many years! Included in those things were some awards I've received for musical performance, horseback riding, and academics. I wanted to have them displayed, because as a stay-at-home mom, sometimes it's nice to have a reminder of the "grownup things" you are capable of achieving!

Here are a few other "corners" that got decluttered this week:

My linen closet, aka, "Alternate CVS Stockroom". If you look closely, you can see the labels I put on the shelves. Yep, labels. :-) (By the way, that stack you see in the upper right-hand corner goes up another foot or so. It's mostly composed of toothpaste and feminine products!)

And my laundry room- it may not seem like much, but this is the first time in months that I've been able to see the floor and the top of my washer and dryer. My husband also installed more shelves (you can barely see them in the upper left corner) to hold all the extra cleaning supplies I've accrued from my deals shopping.

So again, it's not much, but it's feeling really good every time we take another load of garbage out to the trash cans, and pack another box full of stuff to take to Goodwill. I have really found that it's so much easier to keep your stuff organized when you have less stuff. As more corners get decluttered, I will be sure to share my successes.

Oh, and for all you guys out there who are wondering why I get my own space, you should know that my husband has his own man-cave down in the garage, with laminate flooring, walls covered in sports memorabilia, big screen tv, recliner, etc. So he's not missing out on anything. ANYTHING.

Have you started any New Years cleaning? Now is the time! Go for it and then leave a comment to share your success!

Makeover Monday: Reflecting Roses

Junky catch-all mirror before...

Beautiful welcoming roses "window box" after!

As I mentioned on my Christmas Home Tour post, I like to see something beautiful when I first walk into my home, and this mirror had become something of an eyesore. It has a great little box on the front, which looks silly when it's empty, but can look junky when it's full of random stuff: mail, keys, rubber bands, etc. So I decided to fill it with something beautiful. It reminded me of a window box, so I went to the Dollar Store and found some pretty red velvety roses to brighten up the space. I know, faux flowers are not exactly a high-end decorating item, but I thought these were very pretty and for $4, they were a great bargain as well! 

I chose the red roses because they would fit in nicely with my Christmas decor, and they will be seasonal through Valentines Day as well. When spring comes, I can fill it with a new variety of blooms. Either way, now I smile whenever I walk through my front door!

For more Makeover Mondays, click here!

Makeover Monday (A Day Late): Wrap it Up!

I apologize that this Makeover Monday turned into a "Makeover Tuesday", but my sweet husband needed the camera yesterday so I was unable to snap these beautiful photos. :-) And since it's Tuesday, I thought I'd add this to the Talk About Tuesday blog carnival from the Lazy Organizer. Welcome!

I am pleased to say that all of my Christmas shopping is done, with the exception of a few stocking stuffers. Thanks to amazon.com, all of the gifts I have purchased have been arriving with regularity in boxes on my doorstep, and I have not had to set one foot inside a mall or crazy department store. (By the way, you can still get Free Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25 at amazon.com, and if you order by tomorrow you can still get your items in time for Christmas!)

So now I am facing quite a few gifts in need of wrapping- luckily, not as many as last year since I did such a good job sticking to my Declaration of Independence and carefully selecting only a few quality gifts for each of my children. :-) However, the presents do add up, and they must be wrapped. Upon assembling all of my various wrapping supplies, minus ribbons and bows, this is what I had to face:

Well, rather than going out and spending $10 or more on a fancy wrapping organizer, I decided that a garment bag would do the trick:

It holds all the rolls of wrapping and some folded-up gift boxes, and with a hanger in the top it hangs neatly in the closet. Just add on a plastic shopping bag with all of the tools and accssories- scissors, tape, tissue paper, tags, etc.- and I have a portable wrapping center that cost about $1.50. :-)

Here is the bag hanging up:

No more running around searching for tape and scissors; no more wondering where that one roll of Santa paper went- it's all nice and neat and can be hung up and tucked away in a closet until I need it. 

Okay, I gotta go now. I have gifts to wrap, people!

Check back later this week for some nifty gift wrapping ideas...

Makeover Monday: Falling Into the Holidays!

Fall vase before...

Remember back when I was "fallifying" my home? Well, I decided to give this $2 Goodwill vase a new job for Christmas. I put the scented pine cones and fall leaves into a ziploc bag for storage and picked up 2 packages of colored glass ornaments from the Dollar Store. A clear vase, some shiny ornaments, and I have myself a gorgeous Christmas decoration for my mantel!

Christmas vase after!

I think this would also be really beautiful with silver and blue (or green!) ornaments, maybe add some tinsel for more texture, and even tie a bow around it for a more festive feel. The possibilities are endless! Christmas, here we come!

How is your Christmas decorating going? Do you have any great thrifty holiday decorating ideas to share?

Makoever Monday- Bookshelf Beautiful

Bookshelf before...

Bookshelf after!

Do any of you have a bookshelf that's starting to look a little junky? I know, we all love our books but they can become an eyesore if we're not careful. Well, in a matter of minutes you can easily make your shelves look like a page in a home decorating magazine- even with kids' books (no, it won't stay that way, but it looks nice for a little while)! I am an amateur decorator, but here are a few things that work for me:

- Start by clearing the bookshelf, then arrange the books in piles by the height of the spine

- Arrange books with the largest on the bottom for horizontal piles, or the largest in the middle for vertical arrangements

- For horizontal piles, try lining up the books so that one side is straight (like the inside edges of my horizontal piles above)

- Make all the books' spines flush (like a flat wall, not steps) and bring them to the forward edge of the bookshelf to neaten and unify the look (they do this at libraries and bookstores)

- Use horizontal piles as bookends to support books standing vertically

- Consider adding other decorative objects (such as a vase, pretty box, or small figurine) to add interest and showcase favorite items along with your books

It's yet another simple and free makeover that can really make a big difference! I love books, and I love them even more when they can look so beautiful and really add to the overall decor of my home!

Any other tips for bookshelves? Leave a comment and share!

Makeover Monday: Style Your Bed!

 

Makeover Monday is here! Have you ever looked at a photo of a bed in a magazine or a catalog and thought, Man, I wish I had a bed like that!? If you have, chances are you either did nothing or you bought the bedspread thinking that would solve the problem.

Well, something like that happened to me once. We had just gotten a new mattress set, and we needed some new bedding to go along with it. We found a beautiful set (see "before" photo above) but when I brought it home and put it on the bed, it just didn't look the same as it had in the picture on the packaging. 

So then I got a brilliant (okay, obvious) idea: why not just copy the way they made the bed on the package? After all, it's just making a bed- I can make a bed! So I pulled the package from the trash and took a closer look. I noticed that they had folded the top sheet over the bedspread and added another throw pillow. So I re-made the bed and borrowed a throw pillow from the other room. Voila! A new bed for me!

The best thing about this makeover is that you don't even need to buy anything- just browse online or in catalogs and find a bed 'style' that you like, then gather the components from your own home and dress up your bed! You might be surprised at how very stylish your plain bed can become!

The "After" Photo

Have a Beautiful Thrifty Day!

New Feature! Makeover Mondays

I am so excited to introduce a new feature to my blog: Makeover Mondays! Every Monday I will post with a new makeover that focuses on home decorating. These will include fun and frugal (even free!) ways to makeover spaces in your home, or even makeover objects in your home (see Playing Dress-Up). 

Over the years I have found a lot of different ways to really appreciate what I have by just changing things around and making them new again, and I am so excited to share some of these ideas with my readers. I am also eager to use this opportunity to explore new ways for me to be creative in my own home and celebrate my beautiful thrifty life!

And as always, I look forward to your comments and ideas, so keep 'em comin'! Stop by on Monday to check out the first big makeover...I can't wait! ;-)