home is wherever i'm with you

Look what I made! I'd seen several versions while Pinteresting/Stumbling, but none were of Virginia. Once I started conceptualizing how to apply their versions to Virginia, I realized why. You can't do it! The outline of the state is so complex, so I had to improvise a bit. Instead of wrapping the string outward from the heart, I just did more of a messy thing. I love how it turned out.

First, you need to find a very simple outline of your state. Kristin, from K Sarah Designs, recommended I use a simple embroidery outline, and it worked great. You'll also need a piece of plywood (I got mine from Michael's), stain (I used dark walnut), a sponge brush, gold nails, and gold string (I used gold embroidery floss). All in all, it cost me about $25.

What do you think?

Leah

Boring to Awesome

I always considered myself someone who preferred uniformity, clean lines, and black&white. In the last year or so, however, I've found myself drawn to mismatched items grouped together, subtle colors, rough textures, and unexpected details. It's been hard to find just the right balance of minimalist and all of my new style loves. One of my first actual deviations from the old ways was this frame collage (sorry about the quality- I lost my phone in my backyard on St. Patrick's Day and the camera lens broke). I got all of the frames at my local Goodwill for either $0.99 or $1.95 each. I think my favorite thing about it is that it's not quite right. The pictures hang a little crooked, the bottom right one has some of the gold paint peeling. But I like that!

My partner, who requests to be called "Jarl of Winterhold" (he plays a lot of Skyrim), got me these AMAZING prints from Etsy (here's the listing) by Yours is the Earth. I wasn't quite sure how I wanted to frame them, but I think I'm going to try something similar to what I did ^up there. Character is better than sterility any day, right?

Leah

Rad Kitchens

I think one of the worst things about having a blog is that you have to come up with material to post. And in my situation (post-graduate school, first "grown up" job, living in an expensive city), coming up with the money for new projects is somewhat challenging. Especially when I spend most of my money on food.

I'm continually trying to give my kitchen a makeover, but since we live in a rental, the changes I could make would be minimal. Organizing cabinets is great and all, but how do you make a small ugly kitchen into something amazing? If you know, please tell me!

I spend inordinate amounts of time on Pinterest (follow me!), but everything involves painting cabinets, built-in storage, tiling, or removing cabinet doors. Here are some of my kitchen inspirations.

From The Social Home

From Remodelista

I love the dedication to a single color family- from Solid Frog

But, as long as I am in my current situation, I can only spend hours on Pinterest, dreaming of what I don't have. And what's the fun in that? I think it might be time for some drastic kitchen changes (ie: paint). I'll keep you posted!

Leah

been busy being crafty

All of this warm weather means I'm more inspired to do crafty things. And when I do crafty things, I want to share them! That's where you come in. Prepare to be amazed by my somewhat average cooking skills and slightly more impressive diy skills. We'll start things off with one of my recent projects. I first saw this project on Pinterest, and was determined that I could make something that awesome. I scrounged up all of the supplies at our local Michael's and got to work! Here's a link to the inspiration, from Two Girls Being Crafty.

At first I didn't add a wash, so it looked a lot more like the inspiration painting. After a few weeks, I decided it was a little too bright for the location (right above our tv), so I toned it down a little with a mud-colored wash. I had to purchase all of the supplies, but all in all, it probably cost less than $50.

I'll be honest- I was so proud of myself, I texted a picture of it to my Mom.

Leah